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Joey blinks open his eyes after his root canal surgery and stares in bewilderment at the group surrounding him. Their faces seem familiar, but Joey is a little too loopy from the anesthesia to remember their names right now.
He immediately notices the gorgeous woman standing next to him and puts on his most flirtatious smile. "Hey, how you doin'?"
The other two women and three men in the room laugh at him. The blonde woman smiles at the man holding the video camera. "You were right Chandler! Recording Joey waking up was the best idea."
The dark-haired woman next to Chandler shakes her head, but she seems amused. "I can't believe he hit on Rachel like he didn't know who she was."
That name, Rachel, stirs a whole host of vague memories. Joey recalls their names as he looks at each of them in turn. Phoebe is the blonde woman, and she's clinging to Mike's arm. Chandler is holding the video camera on the other side of the dentist's chair he's lying in, and Monica is the dark-haired woman standing next to him. Ross is standing next to Monica, and he's holding a young girl's hand. Emma. Ross and Rachel's child.
Joey swallows nervously. Was that why he wasn't supposed to hit on Rachel? Rachel is smiling sympathetically at him, and Joey thinks she looks like an angel or something. She's too pretty to be real.
He chuckles weakly. "Sorry for hitting on you, Rach. You just looked really hot."
All of the adults chuckle at this remark, and even Emma is holding her hand to her mouth to suppress her giggles.
Joey is struck by a new thought. "I thought they only gave Make-A-Wish things for cancer," Joey says.
Mike frowns. "Make-A-Wish things?"
"Yeah." Joey pauses and reaches out his hand. Rachel takes it, and Joey feels tingles up and down his arm that have nothing to do with painkillers. "Why else would I have the most beautiful woman ever by my side when I woke up?"
His question was sincere, so he's confused when everyone else starts cracking up again. He thinks Ross should be more upset by what Joey said, but instead he's laughing so hard that he's crying.
"Dude, send me a copy of this tape," Ross tells Chandler.
Chandler grins. "I'm gonna make everyone a copy."
Joey gazes at the opposite wall in embarrassment. He knows he's probably blushing right now. The medication obviously destroyed his brain to mouth filter.
Rachel lets go of his hand to stroke his cheek. "It's okay, sweetie. Apparently, you just get really sappy when you're drugged up like this."
Joey leans into the touch for a few seconds, but then he pulls away slightly when he feels the cold touch of metal on his cheek. He stares at Rachel's hand, which has an engagement ring on it and a wedding band.
He glances over to Ross and Emma and feels a sharp pain in his chest. Joey feels like sobbing, but he doesn't understand why. He attempts to cover up his heartbreak with a winning smile when he looks back at Rachel. "I, uh, guess you and Ross finally got married, huh?" He looks down at his lap and bites his lower lip. He won't be able to look at her when she answers him.
Monica's sharp, pain-filled voice breaks through his inexplicable despair. "Chandler, turn off the damn camera! This isn't funny anymore."
"Shh. Let's just see how this plays out." Joey can hear Chandler adjusting something on the camera.
"Why does Uncle Joey look so sad?" Emma asks. "Is he okay?"
"He'll be fine." Ross replies, but Joey can hear concern underlying Ross's reassuring tone. "He's just really out of it right now."
Rachel grabs his left hand this time, and Joey gazes into her eyes once more. She doesn't seem to pity him, oddly enough. Instead, her gaze looks...loving. "Joey, I didn't marry Ross. I married you." She rubs her fingers over his hand for emphasis, and he glances down to see a wedding band on his finger that matches Rachel's.
His eyes widen in shock, and he stares up at his other friends to confirm Rachel's incredible words. They all smile at him.
Joey beams, but his expression rapidly turns into a grimace and he puts a hand up near his mouth. "Ow. I think I was so happy that I tried to smile too hard."
"Oh, honey, are you okay?"
Joey smiles, somewhat smaller this time, but no less ecstatic. Rachel is worried about him. His wife, Rachel, is worried about him. "Just wondering how I got so lucky."
The other adults in the room let out an "aww" noise and Emma breaks away from Ross.
"I wonder that all the time," Rachel replies.
Emma darts toward the chair and launches herself into Joey's arms. "I'm so glad you're not sad anymore!"
It occurs to Joey that if he's married to Rachel, Emma must be his step-daughter. He returns Emma's embrace and feels warmth and adoration fill his heart. "Hard for me to be sad too long with you and your mom around. It feels like I just won the lottery, only better."
Ross is grinning down at Joey when he puts a hand on Emma's shoulder. "Sweetie, you've got to stop hugging Uncle Joey at some point. The dentist just came back."
Emma rolls her eyes at her dad but acquiesces to his request. Chandler apparently decides that there is nothing left to capture, since he stops recording and turns off the video camera.
Everyone steps back to allow the dentist to check Joey's mouth for a few moments. After he declares that Joey is ready to go home, Rachel steps forward again, supporting him as he stands. The group exits the dentist's office together and goes their separate ways once they're outside. Joey walks out under his own power, but he yawns when he gets inside the cab waiting for him and Rachel.
"Tired?" Rachel asks.
Joey closes his eyes and nods. "Wake me up when we get to the apartment."
Rachel wraps her arm around him and lets Joey lean against her shoulder. "Will do."
Joey's lips quirk upward. He's already beginning to doze off. "Good night, Mrs. Tribbiani."
Rachel's words sound far away. "Good night, Joey."
Joey drifts off, and the fact that he actually married Rachel is the last thing he thinks of before he falls asleep.