The One Where Emma Turns 18

7

"Ross... why do you have a monkey?" Jack asked, confused.
We were looking at one of the first photographs in the album.
The older six laughed. "That was a bad time." Monica commented, shuddering.
"That was Marcel. He was my pet." Ross was proud.
"Yeah, until he started humping everything." Chandler said.
"But why would you get a monkey?" Erica asked, just as confused as Jack.
"Well, let's see. It was around about the time that he was lonely and divorced and obsessed with Rachel." Chandler didn't even give my dad time to answer before answering himself.
Everyone laughed. My dad went to protest but instead said, "yeah, that's probably true."

The next photo was the original gang of six all huddled around a newborn baby.
"Who's that potato looking baby?" Erica asked.
"I think that's me." Ben glared and then looked at Dad for confirmation.
"Yeah. That's Ben."
Ben shoved Erica lightly. "You need a filter."
She laughed.

The third photo was Chandler and Joey with the baby we now knew to be Ben.
"Where were we?" Ben asked.
"We took you out on a day out." Joey grinned, and him and Chandler chuckled with each other remembering the events of that day.
"I can't believe you let them two take me out as a baby." Ben aimed at Dad.
"I shouldn't have." Ross glared at the two boys who were still chuckling.
"Why? What happened?" Katie pried.
Joey looked at her with a straight face. "We left him on the bus."
Him and Chandler were hysterical again.

"Oh my God, what are you wearing?" Erica clasped her mouth to stop herself from laughing and Chandler stifled a laugh also.
"I was a bridesmaid." Mum rolled her eyes. "Was I not ridiculed enough for this at the time?"
"Probably. Especially because you walked down the aisle with your ass hanging out." Dad laughed with everyone else but quickly stopped when Mum glared at him.
"Who on earth made you wear that dress? Who's wedding was it?" Erica questioned.
"Barry and Mindy." Mum rolled her eyes. "What a terrible day."
"Who's Barry?" Jack asked.
"The guy Rachel left at the alter." Monica told him, and then Chandler added, "and then married her best friend, invited her come to the wedding and made her wear that."
Everyone gasped and then chuckled a little bit.
"It's like a soap opera." Katie pointed out.
"Thanks, Katie. I wasn't aiming for that in life." My mum said, half sarcastically.
"I think it's cool that you left someone at the alter." Katie smiled, and everyone laughed along.

"What the hell happened in this one?" I asked, looking at a photograph of Monica sat cross-legged on a race car bed.
"That may have been my fault." Phoebe shrugged.
"Yeah. Never let Phoebe sign for anything for you, kids." Monica told us.

"Why do you have birds?" Jack asked as we all looked at a photograph of Joey and Chandler. One was holding a chick, and one was holding a duck.
"It's a long story." Chandler sighed.
"They were my little birds. They were so cute. Then they went -" Joey's eyes filled with tears and Phoebe put an arm around him.
"That's that then." Erica rolled her eyes, disappointed with the lack of story due to Joey's emotions.

"Okay. What is this about? Even I don't know this one." Mike asked, holding up a photograph of Joey and Chandler sat in a canoe in the middle of an empty apartment.
"That's an annoying story." Chandler said, clearly remembering an incident.
"Tell us."
"Joey had built this ridiculously large, unmeasured TV unit. It didn't fit in the apartment so we made a deal that he'd sell it. Anyway, when someone came round to view it, they bet Joey that he couldn't fit in it. And Joey being Joey, voluntarily got into the TV unit to show this guy just how big it was. And then - long story short - he trapped Joey in there and robbed us and left us a canoe."
Everyone laughed loudly.
"How many brain cells do you have, Joe? I think you're missing a few." Erica commented through fits of laughter, and Joey looked on unimpressed.

The final photo in the first album was of Joey and Chandler on a bus in London.
Joey beamed and Chandler looked unimpressed.
"Is that London?" Katie asked, looking envious.
"Yeah. It was Ross' wedding." Joey said.
"Which one that time?" Erica mocked and my dad shot her a look.
"Emily." Dad told her.
"Which one was Emily again?" Jack asked, still picking through the photographs.
"Emily was the one where Ross said my name in his vows." My mum explained.
"Jesus. Poor girl." Katie flicked her hair as she spoke.
"Yeah, well... at least that was the wedding that made your parents drunkenly sleep together." Phoebe told the twins who both cringed.
"No thanks. We don't need that information." Jack muttered as Erica pretended to gag.