AN: I'm back with a new story! Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed my last two! I hope you'll enjoy this one! Remember to review to tell me what you think! :)

Summary: This story is AU with a few elements from the show, told mostly from Rachel's view. Ross and Rachel haven't seen each other since high school. Ross is divorcing Carol and they have Ben. Rachel ended up marrying Barry but they're in a terrible marriage. The other four will be included in the story. I can't really place it on a timeline but technology like cell phones for texting and computers are going to be used.

This story is dedicated to nno1ann - I'll be there for you.

Disclaimer: The characters from Friends do not belong to me.


We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.
The old skin has to be shed before the new one can come

- Joseph Campbell

Rachel opened her eyes to the bright daylight that was streaming through the curtains of her bedroom window. She just lay there for a moment with her eyes closed, listening to the only sounds in the room: her slow breaths and her steady heartbeat. Rachel sighed irritably before rolling over to look at the clock beside her bed. It was already 10:34am.

Rachel shifted her gaze to look at the framed picture on her nightstand. It was of her and Barry on their wedding day two years ago. Rachel looked radiant in her elegant wedding gown and flowing vale. In the photo she stood beside her new husband, smiling into the camera. It was probably the last day she had felt happy in her marriage to Barry.

Being married to Barry was not what Rachel had expected. All of her friends had explained how much fun it was to never have to work a day of their lives. They had made her think that a life living off her husband's money would be incredible. She had been infatuated with the idea that she would be able to shop all day and spend time with her friends, basically do whatever she pleased.

But living with only the purpose of being a trophy wife was not fun.

In the beginning of her marriage she had enjoyed doing nothing all day. But the excitement of being carefree had worn off quickly and soon Rachel realized how miserable she was. Now her life was like an endless cycle of regrets. Each new morning never actually felt new.

The worst part was that Rachel didn't feel loved. Barry was always at work; her husband spent more time fixing people's teeth than he did with her. It was understandable that Rachel felt like her marriage was terrible, she didn't feel like she had a husband at all.

Rachel slowly sat up, letting the covers slide off of her. She turned to sit on the edge of the bed before easing herself onto the cool wood floor. Rachel walked over to a chair where her robe lay. As she continued walking into her living room she wrapped the robe around her.

The apartment was silent. It wasn't a surprise that Barry was already at work.

Rachel thought about her grand apartment. It had crown moulding, elegant wainscoting and expensive furniture. Rachel had never felt at home in this place, she felt like she was trapped in a cage, similar to how she felt being married to Barry. But this was the life she had been raised in; she had no idea how to live any different.

Rachel had learned to deal with the fact that her days would only ever revolve around the image she had to keep up. The perfect home, with the perfect marriage and the perfect life was all an act. On the outside Barry and Rachel looked like the ideal couple, but on the inside Rachel felt like she was under-appreciated.

Rachel's relationship with Barry was barely a marriage. They only talked as much as they had to; there was no love, no passion, no excitement. Barry saw her as another item in his house. He let her do whatever she wanted so she would stay with him to keep up their image.

Rachel knew she couldn't leave Barry, no matter how unhappy she was. Her parents had set her up in this lifestyle in order to keep up their own pretentious image. Rachel hated having everything decided for her, but she had spent her whole life that way.

Rachel often wondered why she didn't love living like this. She had plenty of money and no work. All of her friends loved it, her family encouraged it, why did she feel this way?

Rachel walked through the hallway into the living room. She caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror and stopped. The face that stared back at her was a shocking sight, much different from the picture on her bedside table.

Rachel had circles under her eyes, her hair stuck up in all directions, but worst of all was her expression. Her once bright eyes now had no life in them, no sparkle, only depression. Rachel couldn't stand to look at herself any longer. She walked into the living room and sat down exasperatedly on her white couch.

She soon spotted her cell phone sitting on the coffee table. When she picked it up to give her friend Mindy a call she noticed a new message. Rachel didn't recognize the sender, but decided there was no harm in reading it.

I don't know what's going on. Carol has been spending a lot of time at the gym and she's really distant at home. I just don't understand.

Rachel hesitated for a moment and stared at the screen, her fingers hovering over the buttons. She had no idea who this person was, but she felt the need to reply. So she texted the person back.

You sent your message to the wrong person. And if you want my advice I think this Carol isn't the one for you, if she's treating you like that. Trust me I'm in a terrible relationship I wish I had had the guts to get out of a long time ago.

Rachel didn't know why she disclosed so much information to this person, but she hit send anyways. She continued on with her regular routine and called Mindy. They planned to meet for lunch and then go shopping together, as usual.

Rachel had a bounce to her step as she walked back into her bedroom to get dressed. She had been courageous and lived on the edge, for once. She had finally done something for herself, and it felt good.

…..

The day went by quickly. Soon Rachel was home again. Suddenly another text message made her phone vibrate in her Louis Vuitton purse. She pulled it out and looked at the screen. She recognised that it was the unknown number again. This time the message read:

I'm so sorry about the confusion and thanks for the advice. As for you, I think if you're unhappy you should end your relationship too.

Rachel smiled. She made a snap decision to reply again. She said:

It's not that simple.

…..

Weeks went by. Rachel had been talking to this person over texts for the whole time. She felt like chatting with this person broke up the predictability of her day to day life. Every time she got a new text she felt a little more cheered up, her day was brighter.

This excitement was just what Rachel needed. She was beginning to find life less of a drag because there was a new message to look forward to every day.

Eventually her and her new-found-friend exchanged emails. It felt like having a pen pal, Rachel enjoyed emailing back and forth. They had soon become good friends, and she didn't even know the person's name, all she knew was that he was a man.

She felt like she finally had someone to share her thoughts with. Even though Rachel had plenty of friends, none were like this one. Rachel knew this person was there to listen and not judge, unlike her other friends.

Rachel discovered that this was what she needed all this time. She finally had an outlet for her problems. She was beginning to feel a little less alone.

The two of them gave each other advice; it just so happened that her new friend also needed someone to talk to. Rachel didn't know how, but, she could tell this person was kind and trustworthy. She felt comfortable talking to him about Barry.

At first Rachel considered how dangerous it was to be talking to a complete stranger, but she didn't want to stop, she couldn't stop. This person was saving her from the downward spiral her life as Barry's wife had turned into. Her conversations with this person were comforting; finally somebody cared about her.

…..

Rachel got into the elevator and rode it to the penthouse suite. It was her friend Leslie's birthday party that night.

Rachel was not looking forward to another party with her friends. For one thing she was alone again because, of course, Barry had to work. But, also, Rachel couldn't stand having to spend the night making small talk with people that were so shallow. She knew all she'd be hearing all night was gossip and meaningless stories, which she dreaded pretending to have interest in listening to.

Rachel had only stepped out of the elevator and she could already hear the music blaring from the other side of the door. She took a deep breath before she knocked. It soon opened and Leslie's husband shouted over the music for Rachel to come in.

Rachel looked around the dimly-lit room. It was packed with people drinking, dancing, laughing and talking. The apartment had giant windows that overlooked the city of New York, which was now glowing with nightlife. Rachel hugged and kissed anyone she knew as she made her way over to see Leslie.

"Rachel!" Leslie shouted, when she spotted her friend.

"Happy Birthday!" Rachel said, as she hugged Leslie. "Here's a present for you," Rachel said when they pulled out of the hug. Rachel held out a small gift bag.

"Awe, Rach. You shouldn't have!" Leslie exclaimed as she took the bag. "So where's Barry?"

"He had to work," Rachel replied.

"You know who else said their husband had to work? Jane. But I heard from Ava that he's actually cheating on her!" Leslie gossiped. Rachel pretended to care by acting shocked. "Rach, will you do a birthday toast for me when everyone's here?" Leslie asked.

"Sure," Rachel replied. Leslie soon spotted another friend and ran to go hug her.

Rachel decided she needed some air; lately parties, like this one, were beginning to feel too hot and overcrowded for her liking. She pushed through the crowd, once again, until she got to the door.

…..

A few floors below the party, Ross was leaving Carol's apartment. Ross had been married to Carol for about three years now and they had dated for four years before that. They had a son, Ben, who was now two.

Ross and Carol's marriage had just ended a few days previous.

Ross looked around the apartment he had called home for years. All of the pictures of him and Carol were gone, only the pictures of Ben remained.

Ross took one last peek into Ben's bedroom before he left. It was dark but he could still see his son sleeping in his crib. Ross walked closer to Ben and just looked at him. It was going to be very hard to not see his son every day.

"Daddy?" Ben called, sleepily. He stared up at his father with a concerned expression.

"Shhh, it's okay. Go back to sleep," Ross said softly as he rubbed Ben's shoulder soothingly. Ben laid his head back down and was back asleep shortly. Ross couldn't stand to look at Ben any longer; it hurt to know how hard this was going to be on him, even if Ben was only two.

As Ross turned the doorknob to exit the apartment he looked at his hand. His golden wedding band caught his eye. It reminded him of the discussion his now ex-wife and him had had a little while ago.

-Flashback-

Ross had finally had it with Carol's withdrawn behavior. He decided he needed to confront her. Ross walked into the living room, where she was sitting on the couch, and stood in front of her. Ross' presence caused Carol to look up at him.

"Carol, can we talk?" Ross began, nervously.

"Sure," Carol replied, putting down the book she was reading.

"Um, okay, so lately I've been feeling like you're acting really distant and strange around me. I-I guess it seems like you have no time for me anymore. You're always at the gym or doing other things. And when we are together we have nothing to talk about," Ross explained quickly. He paused as he sat beside her on the couch. "I've recently been told that if you're treating me like this and I'm not happy I should get out of this relationship before it's too late."

"Ross the whole reason I've been so distant is because… I'm-I'm a lesbian," Carol said carefully. Ross was speechless. He sat there staring straight ahead, frozen in shock. Ross took a deep breath as he absorbed this information. All this time and he didn't know. The room began to spin, Ross felt dizzy.

Ross tried not to look at her. He cleared his throat before he continued, this time in a softer tone.

"So, you-you're a lesbian?" Ross asked. "Is this why you've been spending so much time away from me?"

"Yeah, Ross actually I met someone," Carol said slowly.

"You did?" Ross asked. He felt like he was going to be sick.

"It's Susan," Carol replied, bracing herself for his reaction. Ross remembered hearing Carol talk about her friend Susan a lot, now it all made sense.

"If we're both unhappy in this marriage I-I think we should get a divorce. I mean it's our only option…" Ross explained as tears came to his eyes. He looked at the floor.

"Ross I'm sorry. I should have told you sooner-" Carol began, but she was interrupted by Ross.

"Carol, I'm just- I just have to go," Ross stammered, he felt hurt and angry. He quickly got up and walked out of their apartment with his head hung low in grief.

Ross was glad he got out of the relationship when he did, he had just been so miserable. But, he also felt sad it had ended. All those years he had loved and cared for Carol were for nothing.

Ross just felt so stupid. Why didn't he know he married a lesbian? Was he actually so awful to be married to that he had actually pushed Carol over the edge?

For the longest time he had felt like he and Carol were growing apart, he just didn't want to admit it. Then he had reached out and talked to his best friends, Chandler, Joey and Phoebe and his sister Monica. They gave him advice but nothing seemed to help.

Luckily, Ross happened to accidentally find a new friend to talk to about it; otherwise he wouldn't know what to do. That friend was the one that gave him the advice to get out of the marriage while he could.

Ross had meant to text Chandler one day but he unintentionally sent the message to the wrong person. They had only ever talked over text messages and email, but he was glad to have someone other than his friends and sister to talk to.

Ross felt like he could trust this person. They were both going through bad marriages and they were both there for each other, to give advice and receive advice. She was in a loveless marriage as well, but was too afraid to get out of it.

Before Ross walked out of Carol's apartment he took off his wedding band and placed it on a table.

Ross didn't know what to do as he left, he felt so alone.

Ross walked over to press the down button for the elevator. He waited a few moments before the elevator doors opened with a ding.

Ross stepped into the elevator and noticed a young woman standing against the back wall. He couldn't help but notice how beautiful she was, with her straight dark blonde hair and blue eyes. She looked like she was dressed up for a special occasion.

Rachel looked up as a man entered the doors of the elevator. His demeanor seemed to give off a troubled vibe. He had dark brown hair which was messily styled with gel and he was wearing everyday clothes.

Ross pressed the button for the ground floor. Then he turned and leaned against the wall, a few feet away from her. He observed her again. In that instant she just happened to steal a look at him. They locked gazes for a moment and Ross noticed her eyes held a shockingly sad expression. It made him sad to look at her.

Rachel couldn't help but stare at the man. His soft brown eyes focused on hers and she felt like she couldn't look away.

There was an energy that passed between them. Rachel felt drawn to this man. Ross felt like he knew her from somewhere, he had definitely seen those eyes before.

Suddenly the elevator came to a jolting stop. They both grabbed the horizontal bars, on the elevator walls, to gain their balance. They looked at each other once more, shock and fright was now clearly in their body language. The lights flickered and they immediately knew something was wrong. The doors did not open.

They were trapped in the elevator.