– Monica’s Apartment
The group is eating takeout. Ronnie’s sitting by the window, drawing quietly while everyone else jokes.
"Hey, what’re you working on over there? Another tragic crow in a graveyard?"Chandler asked his sister
"Nope. This time it’s… fog."
(Beat)
Emotional fog." She said
"Cool. I love weather." Joey said
(smiling softly)
"She’s been drawing a lot lately. That’s gotta be a good sign, right?" Rachel asked the boyfriend
(quietly watching her)
"Yeah. I think so." Jake said
---
– PHOEBE’S APARTMENT
Jake hands Phoebe the sketch. It's raw — a crumpled car, floating in a sea of ink. The lines are jagged, bleeding into the page. Phoebe studies it quietly.
(softly)
"She drew this?" She asked him
"Yeah. Found it stuck in her math folder." Jake said
"It’s not a car. It’s fear." She said quietly
(sits, shoulders heavy)
"I was driving. I broke the rule. And I brought her."
(Pause)
"Everyone keeps saying we’re lucky. But all I feel is… ashamed." He said
"Guilt's weird like that. Makes you think you don’t deserve the happy ending just because you survived the middle part." Phoebe said
Jake looks up. Eyes rimmed red.
"What if she’s still scared, but won’t say it?" He asked her
"Then she’s like every strong person who’s ever been through something real. She’s not scared of you. She’s scared you’ll stop loving her if she shows it." Phoebe told him
"I won’t." He said
"Then tell her. With your face. And your words. And maybe snacks."she told him
---
– RONNIE’S ROOM (THAT NIGHT)
Ronnie’s sitting on her bed, sketchbook in lap, her CD walkman in. Jake knocks gently.
"Hey." He says
(removing the CD):
"Hey. You okay?" She asked him
"Can I… sit?" He asked her
She nods. He holds up the crumpled sketch she didn’t know he found.
"This was in your math folder. Sorry. I wasn’t snooping. I just… wanted to understand."he told her
Ronnie tenses.
"It’s not finished." She said
"It doesn’t have to be."he told her
He sits beside her. Long silence.
"I’m sorry. For that night. For not saying this sooner." He said
"You didn’t make the guy drink while driving a red light." She told him
"But I broke the rule. I took the risk. And I keep wondering if you’ll wake up one day and realize I’m not worth the crash."he said to her
She closes her sketchbook, but doesn’t let go.
"You didn’t just crash a car, Jake. You stayed when I screamed. You sat in silence when I needed it. You handed me safety — over and over." She told him
She hands him a new drawing — one she finished. It’s of them sitting under blankets on Monica’s couch. Jake’s arm around her. Her eyes closed. The caption below it: “Safe is a person, not a place.”
"I don’t know how to say it yet. But I can draw it." She told him
(tearing up)
"You already did." He said
(They don’t kiss. They just sit there, leaning into each other. No drama. Just understanding.)
---
✏️ Final Journal Entry – Later That Week
> “He saw the drawing I wasn’t ready to share.”
“He didn’t run. He asked what it meant.”
“Maybe that’s what love is — someone who sees the mess and stays to help you name it.”
YOU ARE READING
After The Silence
Fanfiction(season 1-10) --- Ronnie Bing was never supposed to be noticed. But after a breakdown, an overdose, and a silent goodbye, she's learning what it means to stay alive. This is her story - the quiet kind of survival. Mature contact s6-7-8-9-10
