OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
"Well, Pheebs, you were sort of right. Topeka was a pretty neat little place," Rachel admitted from the back of the van.
They'd only left it about 3 hours ago, but a part of her already missed it a little. There was an undisturbed simplicity about it that she'd liked and almost yearned for now. Topeka had made her feel isolated but somehow concurrently heightened her sense of closeness to her friends and to Ross. It made her feel lost to the rest of the earth, and therefore made her issues seem less worldly and less socially unacceptable. As absurd has it may have been, being in Topeka made her feel cloaked in a sheet of invisibility to anyone who might have judged her or expected more, and as she hurtled faster towards the West Coast, she craved the feel of California but also resented the spotlight she feared it would restore on her problems.
"Okay, we've got some options," Chandler announced from behind the driver's seat, looking over every so often at the road map Monica had laid out before them. "We can either go for about 6 more hours and end up somewhere in Utah for the night, or we can drive for another 10 and spend the night in Vegas."
"Vegas?!" Joey screeched.
"Yes, Joe, prostitution is legal there," Chandler answered before his friend had even asked. Joey seemed offended. "You also have to be 18, and you've got a few months left, my man. Ross and I, on the other hand..."
"Hey!" Monica yelled from beside him, smacking him on the side of the head with an extra folded-up map.
"Don't even think it," Rachel warned Ross concurrently in the back of the car, waving her finger threateningly in his face but also smiling a bit. Joey chuckled smugly, having earned his justice.
"Well I say we just go straight through to Vegas," Rachel proffered from the back, her legs draped over Ross' as she nonchalantly filed her fingernails and thoughtlessly twirled a piece of hair around her forefinger. Ross, noticing her relaxed deportment, leaned over and whispered into her ear.
"Maybe all you needed was a good lay to unwind a little," he joked, referring to their exhibition in the pool the night before. She scoffed and swatted him hard on the shoulder, raising a loud "ouch" from him and a sulking pout. Out of the corner of his eye, though, he saw that she was smiling.
"Anyone oppose?" Monica asked, referring to Rachel's motion to plow on through. The car rang silent and Chandler stepped on the accelerator, determined to make it to Las Vegas before it was too late for them to enjoy their stay there.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
This hotel, just like this town, was much different from the one before it. It was located on one of the main drags of Vegas, surrounded by the ceaseless hustle-and-bustle of flashing lights, loud music, boisterous outfits and bloated cash-registers. Granted it was a small, loft motel located above a nice restaurant, but it was clean and well-kept and provided a great view and location.
By the time they pulled in, it was already past what could have been considered a normal dining hour and they'd stopped for a big lunch earlier that day, anyway. Tired but determined, all anyone really wanted to do was dress up and paint the town red to celebrate their last night on the road (for at least a week, anyway).
Rachel dressed up in a short white mini-skirt and a simple black tank-top with black stiletto heels, while Monica wore a pair of nice pants and a printed tube-top. Ross gave her an unsteady and disapproving look when she came down to the lobby adjusting it underneath her armpits, but she dismissed it with a brush of her hand and a roll of her eyes.
"Where're Phoebe and Joey?" Chandler asked, after the four of them had been waiting for over 10 minutes.
"Oh, that's right, she told me she and Joey were going to stay in and watch a movie because they were tired. I gave them the name of that club we're going to be at, though, so they said they might come by later," Monica clarified.
