Forgetful Love

Hello and welcome to my first Friends' fanfiction. Before I start, I just want to mention that this story is inspired by one of my favourite authors 2good2betrue and their story In a Heartbeat. I will admit that the opening may sound very similar as there really is no way to get around that, but afterwards, everything comes from my own imagination.

I hope you will all enjoy what I'm about to publish as its story concept may go either way. If I have written it well, it could both humorous and heartwarming, but if not, then it could be repetitive and obnoxious. As such, I would ask that you, the readers, provide as much feedback as possible. I love getting reviews and the more critical the better as I will be able to work on those mistakes or change up things to make it work.

Without further ado, I hope you all enjoy Forgetful Love.

Disclaimer: I don't know why people put disclaimers. It's obvious they don't own Friends so why is this a thing anyway?

Chapter 1

The sleek silver Porsche sped along the interstate, blowing past cars and trucks without any signs of slowing down. The person at the wheel, a dirty blonde, 31-year old female laughed in excitement as the tense 32-year old brown haired male sitting next to her clutched onto the passenger seat for dear life.

"Rach! Slow down!" he yelled over the wind, clutching onto his seatbelt as if thinking the speed would blow it right off its hinges.

"Oh would you relax Ross? I've driven before," Rachel smiled as she felt the wind in her hair and the enjoyment of driving after almost 7 years without being behind a wheel. She looked to her right to see an icy cold glare from Ross and inevitably slowed down a bit, although not enough to satisfy.

Ross sighed, realising it was useless arguing with her. He sat back up, hands still clutched to his seatbelt as he looked out the window. Secretly he was praying that they would run out of gas or something so that this nightmare of his would finally end. He couldn't believe he had let her steal the keys from his pocket when he had went to the bathroom and now, as fate would have it, he was stuck in this car ride of hell with her at the wheel.

"Rach, that sign says 100's the speed limit and you're going 120," he commented after seeing the sign speed by as they passed it.

"Oh alright…" she pouted and reluctantly slowed to an even speed of about 110. His constant speed warnings were getting annoying so she decided to start up a conversation. "So, how's your love life been? Been on any dates recently?"

"No," he answered plainly but noticed her smirking in the corner of his eye. He immediately became irritated at her reaction and quickly changed his response. "Um, actually there was this woman I met at the coffee house earlier today. I think I'll give her a call when we get back."

"Oh really?" Rachel asked, knowing very well that it was a lie. "When exactly did you get her number?"

Ross cleared his throat. "This morning, right before we left for this joyride."

"Ah yes, and did you meet this imaginary woman before we went into the coffee house together or after?" Judging by the silent look on his face, she knew she had won. There had been no woman, she had been with him the entire day so far.

"You know what? Enough about me. You probably haven't been on any dates either." He shot back.

"Ha! That's what you think Gellar. Just the other night, I met this really cute guy at the bar and unlike you, I actually got a real number from him."

"You met this guy at the bar?"

"Yes."

"And was he drunk?"

Rachel raised an eyebrow. "Maybe, so what? At least he wasn't made up in my mind."

An awkward pause ensured her statement as she curiously glanced at him. He wore a blank expression on his face, staring straight ahead as if he was lost in thought. She wondered what he could possibly be thinking that seemed so important.

"I don't think you should call him," he said all of a sudden.

His words cut through her brain as she accidently stepped on the pedal, jerking the car forward.

"What?!"

"I said I don't think you should call him. You never know what you might be getting into," he repeated in a tone that really bothered her.

"Are you telling me that you don't want me to go out with this guy?" she asked forcefully with an irritated tone. She had expected him to get all jealous as he used to. Not all defensive about it.

"No, I'm suggesting you don't go out with him." He answered back with just as much force.

Something about his tone made her temper rise. How can he just sit there all innocent like, and then tell her to just not call this guy without any reason whatsoever? It reminded her of when they had been dating and he had been so possessive about her that it made her feel more like an object than a person.

"Who do you think you are?" she practically yelled at him. "You can't just tell me who I can and cannot date! I'm not some stupid teenager looking to get laid and I certainly don't need you to make my decisions for me!"

"I'm not trying to make your decision for you. I'm just saying that meeting drunk guys at bars is not how you should be looking for someone." He explained in an agitated voice.

"Oh what a load of crap! You know what I think? I think you're just jealous that I can get a date while you don't even have the balls to go up to someone and say 'hi'!"

"That's not at all what's happening here! I'm just trying to-"

"What are you trying to do Ross?!" she asked, cutting him off. "What? Are you trying to look out for me?! Trying to protect me?! Trying to make sure I don't get hurt?! I'll tell you something Ross, if you really believed all that stuff, you wouldn't have slept with that copy slut on our anniversary so don't you go telling me you're just trying to make sure I don't get hurt!"

She knew that that was a real cheap shot but he was really getting on her nerves. She didn't understand why he was so precautionary around her. She remembered him doing this exact same thing just a week ago, and then a week before that too. Just the thought of him trying to prevent her from getting a date really pissed her off and she wanted to make it very clear to him that she did not need his help with anything.

Rachel turned completely towards him, taking her hands off the wheel for a moment. She noticed him looking forward with a very agitated look and just that got her temper rising again.

"You know what?! I'm tired of this! I'm tired of being treated like your little girl because news flash, I'm not! So how about you stop pretending like you know what's good for me because you really don't!"

"Rach-"

"Don't interrupt me!" she yelled accusingly, pointing a finger at his face. "I don't need you Ross! I can live perfect fine without you! I don't need you to look out for me! I don't need you to help me! And most of all, I don't need you to protect me from every single little-"

"Rachel!" he exclaimed but it was too late.

The car hit a bump in the road and violently swerved off the highway. It smashed into the guardrail on the side, sending it soaring into the air.

In that split second, Ross acted off instinct. He heard Rachel scream in horror as they plummeted to the ground and immediately only one thought went through him mind.

Protect Rachel.

Ross instinctively took off his seatbelt and threw himself over her, hugging her head and body with his chest right before the car hit the ground and everything became blurry.

The front of the car smashed down onto the hard ground, instantaneously activating the air bags and sending the car rolling down the hill.

The windshield glass shattered and the car crunched against the Earth as it hurtled downwards.

Ross felt his body spin, turn, and move. Pain filled every inch of his body as he tried to focus on the small being beneath him.

The car smashed against a stone and flipped through the air, smashing against the ground once again and deafening his ears from the force.

It kept rolling down the escarpment, treating the two beings inside like beanbags, crushing and destroying everything until it all just stopped. The screaming stopped. The smashing stopped. All was silent.

Ross felt numb, not moving and just letting reality sink in. It had all happened so fast and yet, it had all actually happened. First there was the yelling, then the sudden turn, then screaming, then smashing, then rolling, then pain, then…

Rachel.

His eyes shot open and he gasped for breath. His vision was blurry and he felt weak. There was blood in his mouth, there was blood on his clothes, on the seat, and on her.

His body shook in both pain and terror as he leaned backwards, giving him a better look at her face. He brought his arm forward to move the hair away from her face and immediately a sharp pain ran through his body. He didn't care though, he had to see her.

He brushed the strand of bloodied hair away and gasped when he saw her.

She was still. Unmoving.

There was a gash in her forehead, not too deep but deep enough to worry him. Her eyes were closed and her head hung to the side. He stared at her motionless body, scared, terrified, but most of all saddened.

"Rachel…" he croaked. His voice was weak and unrecognizable. He realised this was because of the immense blood that filled his throat and tried to cough it out but it was too painful.

But the most pain came from seeing her there, not moving, not breathing, just there.

He felt a tear slip down his cheek, or was it blood, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that the person he cared about the most in his life remained motionless beneath him.

He tried to muzzle her with his nose but got no reaction. He tried to feel for any signs of a breath but got no air.

He closed his eyes and squeezed out another tear.

"No… I can't lose you…" he whispered silently. He had to get her out of there.

He reached for the door handle, ignoring the increasing pain that shot up his right arm as he did. He felt it and pushed it open, shivering as the cool air touched his wounds. He didn't care; he had to get her out of there.

He reached for her seatbelt and unbuckled it, carefully placing her head to the side so he could dismount her without moving her too much. As his feet touched the ground, he felt bones crack in multiple different areas. He winced at the unbearable pain that coursed through his body and clenched his teeth, focusing on Rachel rather than the pain. He didn't care; he had to get her out of there.

He reached inside both arms and cradled her, using the rest of his strength just to pull her out of the destroyed car. His right arm brushed the seat and again, an unbelievable amount of pain caused him to shed a tear. He didn't dare look at his arm. He didn't want to know what was causing so much pain. He didn't care; he had to get her out of there.

He took his first step and stumbled, almost dropping her limp body. He knew immediately that his muscles in his left leg have been torn and judging by the discomfort in his ankle, he knew that he had broken a couple bones. He didn't care; he had to get her out of there.

He took a couple more steps forward, each one feeling like a million steps before the next. The world around him began to blur and his head became disoriented as it spun. His arms began to shake from the excruciating pain but he continued to limp forward, focusing only on the small person lying lifeless in his arms.

Eventually his legs couldn't take it and he fell to his knees, hearing another crack and shouting in pain and agony. He felt himself beginning to slip out of consciousness as he peered at Rachel's face one last time, hoping for any signs of life from her. He thought he heard sirens in the distance and tried to look up but the pain was just too much. He kept his head down and stared at Rachel as if she was going to be the last thing he would ever see.

She was so beautiful.

"Please Rachel… don't leave me…" he whispered, feeling the pain taking over and everything becoming limp. He felt blood dripping from his own head and he could no longer hear anything around him. Tears fell from his eyes as he painfully blinking them away just to see Rachel's face one last time. He just wanted her to live; wanted her to survive. He just wanted to see her beautiful eyes and her loving voice one last time.

"Rachel… I… love… you…"

Ross collapsed to the ground, holding her in his arms. He had lost his strength, he could feel nothing else.

He closed his eyes and let the darkness engulf him completely.

…

Author's Notes: Yeah, yeah, I know that it's very, very similar to the one 2good2betrue wrote but honestly there's only one way to write a car crash. Just stick with me and you'll start to see my own implications on this story. I think you guys will really like it.

Hope you enjoyed the first chapter and please review. Thanks.