A/N: Wow, diehardRRfan, thanks for the awesome review – and to everyone else who's reviewed. I've debated on whether I should include a proposal or save this off for the next fiction. I probably would've gotten more done if I hadn't procrastinated until the last minute, but whichever I choose to do – this is the final chapter for the anniversary… and this is the fastest I've ever finished anything.

"Eighth"

Ross shifted his body lethargically in bed, completely unable to get much – if any – sleep the night before. Spooning and caressing her body, he rested his hand on her hips and his chin on the nape of her neck.

However, he couldn't shake off the conversation with and what she confessed to him last night, more specifically the proposal that never came to fruition. Surely, one was definitely on the horizon – or that between them, "it's never off the table" as she so eloquently put the night after he had accompanied her to the hospital.

Were Ross and Rachel essentially delaying the inevitable?

Further, he would have been lying if he said that it didn't bring up some of his past ghosts and insecurities. Somewhere in his subconscious, his mind drifted aimlessly off, venturing into uncharted territory – a place he hadn't visited in quite some time and was so sure he'd never come back again: the sequence of events leading up to the dismal demise of Ross Geller and Rachel Green…

XXX

Their one-year anniversary was approaching – six weeks or forty-two days or one thousand eight hours or sixty-thousand four-hundred eighty minutes… then again, who was counting?

In Chandler's words, life couldn't be anymore perfect for Ross and Rachel. Seeing as how Ross was never the one to rush into anything in a relationship, it seemed uncharacteristic for him to propose to Emily after six weeks. So, he didn't have any intentions of proposing to her, but he had finally worked up enough courage to ask her to officially move in with him and make it official. She spent most – if not, all – of her time at his apartment anyway.

Of course, he did have a ring just in case. Other than that, tiny baby steps, if you will.

Something he'd never thought would ever be possible back in high school, Rachel was his girlfriend – but she still had that affect on him that would make him utterly useless. If only Ross had known that train would come to a screeching halt, his relationship dissolving faster than an Alka-Seltzer tablet in water…

XXX

Enter Mark.

All the elements of a functional relationship started crumbling down, becoming volatile and combustible, and tossed casually by the wayside. All of a sudden, she'd been crashing at Monica's place as an escape from her boyfriend – and his irritating jealousy.

Fight after fight, it seemed like Rachel was drifting apart from Ross and vice versa. First, the gap started off as inches, quickly followed by feet until ultimately, they had been separated by metaphorical miles. And while she honestly reassured him nothing happened during the time they were dating, it reeked of the same emptily hollow sentiment that Carol echoed to him – and look how that turned out.

Similar to a well-played chess match, thoughts of a proposal did entertain him, but common sense reasoned with him. If he had dropped the other p-bomb on her, it would've felt more like he was more or less apologizing and proposing for the asshole that he had become rather than the actual want to be married or necessarily because he loved her. He did love her – he just didn't want to propose to her under those circumstances

Ross did trust Rachel – it was that other guy he couldn't trust. And he didn't want to feel this way, but at the same time, he couldn't help it – what he saw in Mark was the same driving force that threatened and picked the right spot to shred something wonderful apart. Something he wasn't completely wrong about…

Jealousy and paranoia, intertwined like oxygen and breathing, continually reared its ugly head. The lack of communication between them slowly became an overabundance. Until eventually, trust shattering like a long-standing sports record. After he had slept with Chloe, he had become, break or not, scum like the other guys that had been with Rachel, but fucked around behind her back. A Chip Matthews, a Paolo, a Barry Farber: all people Ross thought he would never associate and categorize himself with, now he was no better than them – and it made literally him sick to his stomach.

It was then when their relationship had turned into the bloody massacre. Sure, hearts were stepped on like sidewalks and stairs. Heartaches endured here and there, yet they somehow remained for the most part amicable and the best of friends. At times, maybe too close for comfort as personally witnessed by one Emily Waltham. It was the countless victims and bystanders – ranging from the aforementioned Emily to Charlie and even Joey – who suffered the most and were slaughtered in the seven-year "war" that encompassed Ross and Rachel. Stubbornness and pride didn't help make things smoother, either.

In the end, as Ross mentioned in one of his lectures, it was like Darwin's survival of the fittest theory. Clearly, Ross and Rachel survived and outlasted the wreckage – and anything and everything else thrown in their direction.

And if you asked him about it now, he'd be the first to admit it himself and couldn't blame Rachel for throwing him out of her office that night. You can't blame a guy for wanting to spend time with his girlfriend, but he had been slightly overbearing and went about it the wrong way. Putting it lightly, he was pompous, but if you want to be cynical and blunt, he'd tell you that he was an asshole.

XXX

Ross shot up in bed, sweat profusely drenching his face – shutting off the alarm clock before it'd wake up his girlfriend. Just when he'd finally fallen asleep…

Shrugging off the nightmare he just had, he got up out of bed in his boxers, picking up their clothes resting comfortably on the floor and placed them in the hamper. He splashed the cold water on his face, making him more alert and awake. He quickly glanced at the calendar on the wall, but took another glimpse when he had noticed something.

May 8, he thought before finally realizing, mumbling to himself, "Shit, is it Mother's Day already…"

What with all the preparation and time consumed with and devoted to planning their anniversary, he'd forgotten this date. Wearing a clean set of clothes, he grabbed his keys, wallet and cell phone – all of which laid neglectfully in one of Pottery Barn decorations on the table, furnishings Rachel had bought after moving in. Before heading out the door, he reached for the grocery list, hanging by a magnet on the refrigerator…

XXX

Rachel stretched her arm, hoping to place her fingers across or on Ross's stomach, but ended up reaching for nothing but air. Immediately jolted, she sat up in bed, using the sheets to cover her body. Surprisingly, she found herself scared – or surprised – her that Ross hadn't been there next to her more than she'd like to admit. Her fears washed away and placated after hearing the pots and pans clanking and the aroma of coffee being brewed coming from the kitchen.

She noticed a vase of lilies sitting on the night stand next to their bed with a card to its right. Inside the card, Ross had scribbled, "Didn't I tell you that you were going to make an incredible mother?"

Tears were on the verge of flowing down her face, she giggled as she noticed that he had helped Emma sign her name on the card.

Rachel got up out of bed, put on a pair of shorts, tying her hair into a bun with a few loose strands – and walked barefooted into the kitchen. Walking up behind him, she snaked her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulders. It was as though they could stay locked in this position forever before thanking him. "You know it defeats the purpose of breakfast in bed if you're not in bed," he joked. "But, at least, it's coming out a lot better than when I tried cooking the other night."

She nodded, trying her best to suppress a laugh. He gave her a quick peck on the lips as he watched her sauntered out of the kitchen and into Emma's room.

Fortunately, Emma had been awake and watching cartoons on the television, Spongebob Squarepants. She clutched onto one of the stuffed dinosaurs that her father had given her last Christmas – not that she had been disregarding Hugsy – as the little girl stared intently at the television screen.

Rachel plopped herself down to watch, running her fingers through her daughter's hair – finally, Emma took notice. Doing her best, she declared, "Happy Mother's Day, Mommy…"

"Thank you, Em," she cooed before leaving for her room as she let Emma watch her cartoons uninterrupted.

Ross walked into their room where Rachel laid, carrying a tray of food in one hand and some orange juice in the other. He addressed, "Hey, sweetie…"

She smiled, acknowledging his presence. "Did you remember to give Molly her check for last month?"

"Yeah," he replied, "last week."

"Good – so, what else are we doing today?"

"I don't know," he casually mentioned, not wanting to divulge his latest scheme just yet.

"Geller, I'm pretty sure you have something up your sleeves," she countered, cocking one of her eyebrows.

"Well, you'll just have to wait and see, Green" as he walked back into the kitchen to grab today's edition of the New York Times.

Turning off the television in her room, Emma waddled her way into her parents' bedroom, raising her arms which signaled for her mother to carry her up on to the bed. Rachel fed Emma some of the pancakes and bacon from the plate.

Ross entered the room, admiring the interaction between his daughter and girlfriend – definitely, the two most important females in his life. He situated himself onto the bed, remembering back to the conversation he had had with Joey a few years back. The picture of a family: the one with Rachel as his wife and his kid running onto their bed on a Sunday morning and reading the paper…

In the past year, that picture became more and more focused as everything was falling into its place – well, almost everything.

Closer, Ross noted mentally.

XXX

After breakfast, Ross washed the dishes and read some of Emma's favorite books to her as Rachel showered. Doing more of the same, Rachel and Emma played with some of the dolls bought by Grandma Green while Ross took his daily shower.

Ross walked out of the bathroom, dressed in laid-back clothing, and Rachel noticed, "You sure you don't have anything planned, hon?"

"Pretty sure," he lied, something he wasn't fond of doing these days – but telling her would ruin the surprise. "Anyways, what do you want to do today? It's your day, Rach…"

She contemplated, "I kind of want to go shopping…"

"Alright, but after, you think we could stop by the Park and then Central Park," he suggested..

"Why the park?" she inquired.

"For Emma," he insisted.

Finally letting it just go, Rachel complied, "Fine, alright…"

"You hear that Emma – we'll go to the park," her father chimed.

Rachel changed into another pair of tattered vintage jeans, a tank-top and flip-flops – and as well as Emma into her clothes.

XXX

Rachel and Ross walked around the mall with his left arm around her as he pushed the stroller with Emma in it. They stopped to whichever store Rachel wanted to go to. She bought Ross a belated anniversary gift, since he'd surprised her with the jewelry. A really expensive watch that he'd wanted for quite some time. Of course, she'd also charge some clothes – lingerie Ross would enjoy on their vacation, really – to her credit card.

Ross stopped at a toy store at Emma's insistence – buying yet another needless toy that she'd probably forget about in a week's time. "Ross, I hope we're not spoiling her like my father did when…" the woman replied, catching up with the father and daughter.

"It's okay, sweetie," he cut her off, reassuring her it was alright.

This was something Rachel could definitely get used to – not her daughter being spoiled, but just her, Ross and Emma out and about as a family – her family. And to boot, one that wasn't dysfunctional as her parents had become. It already felt like they were married – but a part of the old Rachel still lacked and wanted a certain piece of jewelry to seal the deal, so to speak…

XXX

Ross held Rachel in his arms as they sat in the shade, watching their little girl play, feeding and then chasing the birds – so much more independent than Rachel was at Emma's age.

When Emma had eventually tired herself from the park, they decided to head home, but make a quick stop at Central Perk. Rachel placed Emma back in the stroller, but she hadn't fallen asleep. Their daughter had known of her father's plans although she didn't quite grasp or comprehend what Ross had told her – just that she wasn't supposed to tell Mommy.

As they closed in on Central Perk, He grew more and more nervous as each second and minute ticked by, unsure of how she'd react – but he was pretty confident she'd say yes. He wanted it to be perfect, but he knew it didn't have to be, so long as he said the words he'd been longing to say – probably as far back as a geeky fifteen year old kid.

It was something he couldn't wait another second to do, let alone three weeks from now and not because he was apologizing to her – but because he truly did love her; other than Emma, he loved her more than anything else in the world. So, it wasn't quite the planetarium, but he wanted to show that world just how much she meant to him and how he loved her so.

The sign on the Central Perk's doors read, Closed – which had been something unusual at this time of the day. "Hmm Ross, we'd better head back…"

"Just a sec, Rach," he wavered, opening the doors – apparently unlocked. Inside candles scattered across the dimly lit room, which would normally be a busy coffeehouse. She'd noticed the lily petals strewn about all over the floor. As if on cue, a song played – the song Rachel thought was the most romantic song, "The Way We Were"…

XXX

Individually, she could see several familiar shapes begin to take form: Monica and Chandler with Jack and Erica, the elder Gellers, the Hannigans, and Joey. Most of the people she'd known – all of them smiling but seeing both her parents and sisters there, she obviously could sense something monumental was about to happen – what exactly, she couldn't place her finger on yet.

Ross nervously started, "Rachel, you know that I've loved you practically forever – and that's something that's never going to change… ever."

Speaking with more confidence, "Honestly, Rach – I could try to come up with the perfect proposal, but I'd never be content with it because you deserve more than just 'perfect'. And I know it's not the original planetarium proposal that I'd told you about back in Massapequa. But it only seems fitting that we'd end up here: the day you came running into this place, our first kiss…"

"You're the only woman I'd ever want to be with, spend the rest of my life and grow old with…" Seeing as emotional as Rachel was, she obviously fought back those tears of happiness, but to no avail. He'd wiped them away with his finger. She let him continue, waited patiently until he finished – not like she'd be able to speak comprehensibly anyways.

"I guess, what I'm trying to say is," he briefly stopped to pull the box containing the ring out of his pants' pocket and getting down on one knee, "Rachel, will you marry me?"

Sometimes silence means everything – and could convey more emotion and meaning than trying to find the perfect words to say. She nodded wordlessly – and when she finally could muster a word, a resounding "yes" was all that was said as she waited for him to slip on the engagement ring – a different and newer one, not tainted by an incident at a hospital or the one that he'd had when they first dated. The ring symbolizing a fresh start – a new beginning they were about to embark together.

Gravity drew their bodies together as their lips locked in a passionate kiss. Her arms sliding up his body, and found their way around his neck.

"Ross," she called his name breaking the kiss, mentioning his name just above a whisper into his ear.

Not surprisingly, she reaffirmed – and basically, reiterated – what he had told her last night. It's ironic how several events tangled up in a disheveled mess that five simple words could turn all the transgressions and mistakes of the past eight years into a year of bliss – and now possibly forever. And as clichéd or corny as it sounded to everyone else, if Ross and Rachel could do it all over again…

She replied, with what else, five words of her own that meant the most to her and showed her the true meaning of love. Both of these superlatives could also be utilized to describe the man standing right in front of her.

"You were worth the wait."

XXX

A/N II: Finished. Surprisingly, the proposal, which I felt is kind of tacked on and rushed, was the hardest part to write (and be "original" with time constraints) compared to the other stuff in the previous chapters. Since I did decide to include the proposal, some slight angst at the beginning, but I'd make sure you would all eventually be rewarded.