My Heart Won't Let Me

Start of Something New

Chapter 13

‘Start of Something New’

Rachel stood with her arm crossed against her chest in the middle of an empty room - a place she called home for the last few years. Everything was packed and shipped across the street to the apartment she would now share with Ross - waiting for the new chapter of her life to begin - but right now she just needed some time.

She needed time to breathe, to process everything that had happened for the last month - with Joey’s departure just a little over three weeks ago, looking for another apartment to live just because she couldn’t see herself living here anymore, and then it ended with Ross offering her the room next to his whilst she couldn’t seem to find the perfect apartment according to her needs at a reasonable price.

“You know.. You’re welcome to stay here as long as you want to. The room is yours if you want it.” He had offered to her nicely the night where she confided in him on how hard it was to find a decent apartment for her and their daughter to live whilst keeping the rent under her budget. Living in Manhattans was ridiculously expensive, how could she never realize it before? “Listen.. I’m not trying to push you into anything, just think of it as an offer from one friend to another, okay?”

Ross managed to refrain himself from saying too much - of how wonderfully he was feeling to be able to share an apartment with his daughter and her. He discovered so many things he didn’t know before about Emma and how the mother and daughter interacted on a daily basis and there was nothing he wanted more than to have this as his reality. He wanted to tell her how he thought living together with her for the past few weeks felt right. How he woke up every day with a permanent smile on his face because he heard her voice and their daughter’s just outside the door of his own bedroom first thing in the morning. How he loved coming home from a stressful day at work to find her cuddling in the couch on his living room with their daughter. How he constantly thought about forever when the thought of her entered his mind.

How insanely in love he was with her..

He wanted nothing but to tell her all that, but he refrained himself because it wouldn’t be fair for her. He wanted her to decide and whatever she decided, he would respect that.

But then thankfully, Ross didn’t have to do just that, because her answer was plain, straight, and simple. She had given him a smile that night, a smile that brought tingles to his stomach and his chest burst with so much love for this woman. She had smiled at him that night and said those words he desperately wanted to hear.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” His smile was so big, his jaw was starting to hurt.

Her smile grew bigger and she giggled. “Yes, Ross. I’ll move in with you, but only if I pay you half of the rent and the bills.”

“Rach, you don’t need to. I’ve been taking care of everything on my own, so-”

“No.” Rachel interrupted him. “This is my only condition. It’s either that or I’ll just have to find another apartment.”

“Okay.” Ross said a little too fast and he blushed a bit when she gave him an amused smile. So much for trying to make it subtle on how much he wanted her to move in with him.

“Okay.” Rachel echoed with a smile on her face. “Just don’t come after me to complain when you finally realize what you’ve got yourself into.”

“I’d never.” He grinned. “You know what? In fact, I should start cleaning up the house to make room for your stuff and Emma’s.” He started to ramble as he stood from the couch of ‘their’ living room and started to take things off from one of the shelves. He was willing to place his precious dinosaur fossils into the box if it was what it took to have her in his apartment permanently. “-and maybe tomorrow we can go shopping to buy new shelving units for your room. I didn't need it before, but I know how much stuff you have and combined with Emma, considering that, I think I even have to give up half of my closet’s space.” He joked and then he stopped when he felt her eyes on him. He turned around to face her. “What?”