Chapter 14

“Overcoming Jealousy”

Charlie Wheeler.

Rachel somehow found this woman very intimidating. Charlie was a fellow NYU professor that Ross had introduced them earlier today. She was new in town and Ross was sent to introduce Charlie and another fellow professor Rachel didn't catch the name to the city and around the campus.

She was gorgeous and hot, Rachel had to admit. But something inside her felt uneasy around the woman. Was it because of the fact that she was an attractive smart woman? Or was it because that same woman was Ross' new coworker and knowing Ross would meet this woman everyday made her somehow feel threatened by her?

Did she not trust him?

Ross would never do that to her, she convinced herself. But then why did she still feel uneasy around Charlie? Why was she jealous of that woman? She did trust him after all, but maybe not completely.

A part of herself was still doubting him.

As they both were aware of, in their relationship love never was a problem. Trust and jealousy were.

It wasn't like she didn't try to trust him, because she did. She kept pushing negative thoughts away to the back of her mind, not wanting to second-guess him. But when a single attractive and smart woman came around like Charlie did, she couldn't help but feel jealous. And she hated herself for that.

Their first break up left a scar on her heart and it was only until today she realized that it was still there the whole time. Just lurking around and waiting to come out the seconds a possible treat appeared. No matter how hard she tried, she still couldn't shake those feelings off. She couldn't trust him completely. Not after what had happened almost seven years ago.

So here she was, sitting next to her boyfriend and had her head rested on his shoulder, silently claiming that Ross was hers in front of Charlie and eyeing the woman from head to toe, watching every move she made like a hawk.

Charlie looked at her watch and immediately finished her coffee. "I have to go now. My stuff arrived today." She stood up and grabbed her purse. She then offered her hand to Ross which he quickly shook it. "Thank you for showing me around today. It was fun to see the side of New York I never would've known if it wasn't because of you." She said with a smile.

Rachel could feel rage boiling up inside her. She didn't understand why the fact that Ross had to show his coworker around the city bothered her so much, but it did. Maybe because Ross and Charlie ended up going through the city just the two of them after ditching one of their fellow professors or because Charlie somehow looked like a type of woman Ross would gladly date. Either way, she didn't have a good feeling about this woman.

Ross reciprocated Charlie's smile. "No. It's my pleasure. Really." He took his wallet and handed her his name card. They exchanged name cards. "Just call me if you need anything or if you have any questions."

Why did he have to be so nice to other women? She wondered.

What he was doing maybe meant nothing to him. He was just trying to be nice to Charlie. But for Rachel, as jealousy clouded her judgment, she was annoyed by his offer to help Charlie.

Didn't they have anyone else to show her around the city? Why did it have to be him? She wondered.

Charlie thanked him, said her goodbye to the gang-which Rachel halfheartedly replied, and left soon after.

"Dude!!" Joey exclaimed ecstatically as Ross sat back down. "She's like HOT! Why don't you tell me about her before?"

Ross had to roll his eyes. "Well, Joey, in case you're not listening. I just met her for the first time today."

"Do you guys think she's hot?" Monica asked. Sure Charlie was charming, but hot? She wasn't sure about that.

"Ya-ha!" Chandler chipped in, earning a pinch on his thigh from his wife.

"Aw! Aw! Aw!"

"Wel, I don't think she's hot." Rachel blurted out.

"Yeah, you're right. She's not hot." Joey said. "She's like SUPER HOT."

Rachel rolled her eyes which didn't go unnoticed by Ross.

"What do you think, Ross?" Joey had to ask much of Ross' annoyance. "Don't you think she's hot?"

Rachel looked at Ross anticipatingly. Ross could feel her eyes on him and he knew he had to say no if he didn't want to sleep on the couch tonight.

Ross cleared his throat. "Uhm, noo.." He said unconvincingly.

Ross was a bad liar, he should've realized it by now, Rachel thought.

Not happy with his answer, she sighed and stood up. "I'm going to work now. See you guys around."

And just like that she disappeared without even saying goodbye to him.

"What was that about?" Ross asked no one in particular.

"She's jealous, Ross. That was that about." Monica replied. She somehow wondered why her brother could be this stupid when it came to a relationship though he always bragged about his title as a doctor. Knowing Rachel, it was very clear that she was jealous of Ross and Charlie's friendship.

Though Ross had a hunch that Rachel might feel jealous over Charlie, he still left confused on why she would feel that way. I mean, yes, he had to admit that Charlie was hot and pretty, but Rachel was so over her league. For him, Rachel was prettier, sexier, kinder, funnier, and more importantly she was all he wanted to be with.

He didn't care if Rachel didn't understand a bit what he was saying whenever he talked about dinosaurs like Charlie did. He couldn't care less about that. Yes, they were two very different people, but it was only with her he ever felt this way. She was undoubtedly 'The One'. The one person he had been searching his entire life. It was her and he would never do anything that did her harm.

He made his mistake in the past by hurting her and since they got back together, he vowed to himself to never repeat his mistake again.

So, as charming, as smart and as beautiful Charlie was, he had zero interest with her.

Ross gathered his belongings. "I'm gonna go to work."

When he was about to step outside the coffee house, Joey called him.

"Hey, Ross."

He sighed and turned his body around. "What now, Joey?"

"Uh, can I have her number?" Joey hopefully asked.

Ross sighed, took his wallet out, and handed Joey Charlie's name card. "Here"

"Thank you!" Joey held the name card dearly as he smiled widely. "I'm so going to ask her for my date to the party."

"What party?" Ross asked. Joey had given the whole gang tickets to some theater if he recalled it correctly. But whatever was that, he was sure that it wasn't a party.

Joey flustered by his slip of tongue. Not wanting the gang to find out about the soap opera party he was about to hold, he quickly said. "My stomach hurt." He clutched his stomach and faked being sick. "I think I need to go home." Joey quickly dashed into his apartment, leaving Ross baffled by his demeanor.

"What was that about?" Ross asked to no one before made his way to work

.......

Rachel had been avoiding Ross today and now she was heading toward Joey's apartment to see if she left her novel she had been looking for in there. She was lucky she still kept spare keys to Joey's apartment.

Rachel opened the door and put her purse at the table near the door.

"Joey?" Rachel called her friend. "You home?"

Not hearing any responses, she made her way into the bookcase in the living room, looking for her novel. Just when she was looking, a voicemail left in Joey's answering machine caught her attention.

"Hi, Joey. It's Jan Rogers. Can't wait for your party tonight. Listen, I forgot your address. Can you give me a call? Thanks. Bye."

She couldn't believe what she just heard. Joey was hosting a party tonight? Joey was tricking their entire group to watch some shitty show when he was here hosting a party they somehow didn't get invited to? Rachel couldn't believe he did this to them.

"Joey, you son of a bitch." Rachel muttered to no one.

As soon as she found her novel, she made her way toward Monica's apartment, waiting for Joey to come and blow up his cover.

As Rachel had expected, Joey came in a robe, faking sick and telling them that he couldn't make it to the play and told them to have fun without him.

The whole gang was there including Ross and Charlie. Charlie didn't have any friends yet in the city, so Ross had offered her to hang out with the gang. He knew Rachel was still not speaking to him and his action might bring more damages than good, but still, he felt bad for Charlie.

Thankfully, this whole soap opera party managed to take her attention away from Charlie even just a bit. She uncovered Joey's lies in front of the others and of course, Joey now had to invite them all to his party, much to his annoyance.

Later that night, after dropping their kids off at their parents, Ross and Rachel made their way to the party. Rachel was quiet the entire evening and Ross didn't know what to do.

The party had started and it was full of soap opera stars they usually saw on their TV. Monica was in heaven, asking autographs from her favorite stars, not even noticing her husband's absence from the party. Meanwhile Rachel wasn't feeling like partying tonight. Charlie was glued to Ross' side the whole time. So instead, she made her way toward the bar and went to grab herself a drink.

As she drank her drink alone, an attractive man she didn't recognize came over and sat next to her. Maybe he was one of the staff from 'Days of Our Life', Rachel thought.

He ordered his drink and she could feel his eyes fixated on her the whole time.

"I don't know why a beautiful woman like you is drinking alone at a party." He said with a charming smile.

She gave him a small smile, ignoring his remarks. She knew he was probably trying to flirt with her, but not only that she was in a relationship now, she also didn't have the energy to deal with this tonight.

"I'm James by the way." He said after hearing no answer from her. "I'm one of the writer in charge of DOOLS."

"I'm Rachel. A friend of Joey Tribbiani."

"Oh, Joey. I know him. He's a funny guy." He then saw a few empty glasses sitting in front of her. "So, what's your story?"

She raised her eyebrows, confused by his question. "I'm sorry?" She said after she took another sip of her drinks.

"This." He motioned his hand toward the empty glasses. "Something must've bothered you for you to drink this much alone."

"Oh, I'm not alone. I'm with my friends and my boyfriend." She emphasized the last word, hoping that he would stop talking to her and bothering her.

"So, where is this boyfriend of yours?" He took a look around the rooftop. "Why is he leaving you here alone?"

Her eyes were fixated on Ross standing a few feet away from her and looked so happy engaged in a conversation she couldn't hear with Charlie.

She sighed and gulped down her drinks, not even leaving a single drop behind.

James followed her eyes and he immediately spotted the boyfriend. "So, that's why you're drinking alone, huh?" He asked after ordering them another round of drinks.

"It's none of your business, really." She said as she took out her money but quickly stopped by him.

"This round is on me." James gave her a smile and a wink.

Meanwhile Rachel was starting to feel dizzy with the amount of alcohol she just drank combined with James' nonstop ramble about his successful career, Ross finally spotted her and it was his turn to burn with jealousy.

Ross recognized the look on James' eyes, the man was clearly into her and he wasn't going to let him hit on his girlfriend.

"Excuse me for a minute." He said to Charlie and quickly made his way toward her.

He encircled her from the back and gave her a kiss on her neck, making her jolted from the sudden touch.

"What are you doing?" She snapped as she took his arms away from her.

"Wh-what?" Ross asked. "I can't kiss my girlfriend now?"

She sighed and saw the look on James. She was somehow embarrassed for having a fight in the middle of a party.

" It's a pleasure to meet you, James." She gave James a smile. "Please excuse us." She stood up and dragged Ross along with her.

They stopped at a corner of the rooftop, allowing them for some privacy.

She let go of his hands and rested both of her arms on her chest as she bit her lips in anger. "What is wrong with you?"

Ross scoffed. "You are the one who is acting strange today. You haven't even talked to me since this morning." He started. "I should be the one who asks you that question. What is wrong with you?"

She kept silent, not wanting to address her jealousy over Charlie out loud. Maybe part of her realized it was ridiculous for her to even feel jealous over that woman, that was why she didn't want to say those words out loud.

"Are you jealous of Charlie?" Ross asked. "Is that why you've been acting hostile the whole day? All because of Charlie?"

"What about you, huh?" She snapped back. "Aren't you jealous of James? Isn't that why you suddenly came over to me after ignoring me for the whole night? Just to give me a kiss and letting him know that I'm yours?"

Tears were streaming down to her face at this point. She was not only upset because he brought along Charlie with them tonight, but he also ignored her the entire evening.

"He's trying to seduce you, Rachel. Of course I'm jealous." He knew it and unlike her, he admitted it. "And I thought you don't want me to come near you tonight. Isn't that why you've been avoiding me the whole day? All I did was give you some space." He sighed. "If you don't talk to me what's bothering you, then how come I fix it?"

She stared into him with her red and teary eyes. He took her hand and led her to sit at one of the chairs. He kneeled in front of her and wiped her tears away with his thumb.

"Now, can you tell me what's bothering you?" He asked. "Is it about Charlie?"

She nodded timidly.

He smiled, pulled her into a hug, and then brushed the back of her hair softly.

"She's my colleague, Rach." He began after they broke their hug. "I'm just trying to help her because I know how hard it could be to start a life in a whole new place. You know how hard it can be, right?"

She nodded. If it wasn't for her friends, she probably went home in a few days after she first came to the city. It was so hard, but she always felt grateful for having her five friends by her side the whole time.

He took her hands into his and rubbed it gently. "I'm not interested in her and neither did she. She knew about us and knowing her previous boyfriends, I think I'm out of her league. I mean she apparently only dated Nobel prize winners." He let out a chuckle and she finally let out a small smile.

"Well, I guess you got one wrong."

"What?"

"Look." She pointed in one direction.

Joey and Charlie were kissing.

Ross smiled. "I guess you're right. Maybe I'm wrong about that." He said before averting his full attention back to her. "But I'm right about this." He said before he brushed his lips against her.

Their lips were brushed against each other for a few moments until he pulled away.

"Let's go home and finish this."

.....

They kept their lips locked as he tried to find his keys and opened the door. Somewhere along their hungry and fiery kiss, he managed to turn his keys in and they stumbled inside the apartment together. He closed the door with his feet before pinning her into a nearest wall. He pressed her up against it. The coldness coming from the wall combined with their heated body offered her an overwhelming sensation and drove her mad with lust.

She made her way to his shirt, unbuttoning his shirt, eager to feel his skin beneath the garments. In seconds his shirt came off and she explored every part of his chest. Now it was his turn to feel her skin. He backed off a little and pulled her top out of her in urgency.

His lips then made their way to the sensitive skin behind her ear, earning moans from her. She tilted her head slightly, giving him a better access into her skin whilst keeping her eyes shut, enjoying every kiss and every touch he gave her.

"Oh God." She let out a moan as his lips began to travel into her chest down to the valley of her breast. With one swift motion, he unclipped her bra and free her out from it. Her fingers dug into his back as she felt his warm hands massaging her breast sensually before taking it into his mouth, giving her the wonderful sensation that made her go nuts.

She pulled him into a kiss and their lips once again locked in a passionate kiss.

"Bedroom." She managed to say between the kisses and he quickly complied.

The couple stumbled on their way into their bedroom and somehow they were now both naked with him laying on top of her.

He drew a trail of wet kisses from her neck to her shoulder, whilst his hands worked his magic with her breasts. She let out another moan as she found it difficult to control herself when his skillful mouth and hands were working its magic in such an arousing way.

She changed their position after a while with her on top of him, straddled him. As he circled her small figure with his arms, she pushed him into a lustful kiss. Ross let out moans when suddenly she began to rock her hips into him, generating a friction that was sending him over the edge. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold it any longer if she kept doing this.

Rachel let out a yelp of surprise as he rolled them over and lied on top of her again.

"My turn." He said as he gave open mouth kisses all over her body down to her inner thighs, teasing the most sensitive parts of her body every now and then. She clutched into the bed sheet tighter than ever when she felt his hot breath and his skillful tongue against her womanhood.

"Ross.. Please.." She practically begged as she kept her eyes shut the entire time.

Ross didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed a piece of condom from their drawer and put it on. He gave her a kiss and with one last look, he entered her. The sensation was beyond words. She reacted by wrapping her legs around him, making him sunk deeper inside her. They began to move in sync at a slow pace, wanting to prolong this intimate moment as long as possible.

Soon enough raging breaths and moans filled the entire room. A few amazing moments later, her legs started to tremble badly and with a final thrust they both finished together.

He collapsed on top of her and rolled his body next to her as soon as he caught his breath again. After they were both cooling down, she laid her head into his chest with one leg draped around him and then she gave him a few kisses on his chest. He reacted by giving her a kiss on her forehead and absentmindedly stroked her arms.

He pulled the cover into them.

"I love you so much, Rach." He said softly as he gently brushed her hair. "Only you."

Though he didn't usually express his feelings with words, today he felt like he needed to do that. To make sure she knew that she was the only one for him. She always did and she always would.

"I know." She answered softly. She tightened her grip around him as she suddenly felt guilty for ever doubting him. "And I'm sorry for the way I acted today." She said. "I'm sorry for doubting you."

When they started this relationship he knew this would be a problem one day and today his fears had come true. He couldn't blame