At the center of that fire are Aniston and Schwimmer. During an interview in the show's Burbank, California, set, they are relaxed and playful. She calls him "Schwim" and he calls her "Hon". They hug for the cameras. Then she sticks her finger up his nose, and he cracks up. Their ease comes through to audience, says Kauffman. "People need something to invest in. It's like going home."

TV Guide: When did you find out Rachel was pregnant?

Jennifer Aniston: When we shot the [season] finale.

TV Guide : They didn't tell you until then?

Jennifer Aniston: No. They wanted it hush-hush. Every year they tried to keep the cliffhanger secret and it's gotten out.

TV Guide: What did you think?

Jennifer Aniston: I was like, "Wow."

David Schwimmer: I don't think I even knew at the finale. I think I knew at the beginning of this season that that was going to be the plan. Well, I mean I knew when we were filming last year's final episode obviously, along with the rest of the country, that she was pregnant.

TV Guide: You didn't know that Ross was the father.

David Schwimmer: No. I had no idea.

TV Guide: How did you react when you found out?

David Schwimmer: It kind of make me laugh bacause their roller-coaster romance of the last several years. This will be another curve in the track.

TV Guide: Should they get married?

David Schwimmer: That's a good question. I guess not, really, because they're not in love with each other.

Jennifer Aniston: Friendship outlasts romance.

TV Guide: you think?

Jennifer Aniston: I don't know what I'm talking about! [laughs] I don't think they should be married for the sake of this. We're beyond that in this day and age. But if they olve each other and want to be together, I think they sould be married.

TV Guide: Jennifer, once Rachel became pregnant, rumors flew that the storyline was created because you were really pregnant.

Jennifer Aniston: of course they did. I mean, it makes sense. I understand why people would think that. It's funny, though. I wasn't angry at all. The only time I got kind of annoyed was when they were actually reporting it on, like, [the] news.

TV Guide: When single moms have babies on TV, they have the baby, then...

Jennifer Aniston: You never see the baby again. Where does the baby go? The baby room?

TV Guide: So will there be a baby regulary on Friends?

Jennifer Aniston: Interesting! What's going to happen? Will she have a baby that's seen all the time?

David Schwimmer: It may just end with you giving birth.

TV Guide: Do you think Rachel will be a good mom?

Jennifer Aniston: I think Rachel will be a great mom. I think she'll be scared to death, like evrybody. Look at all the friends she's had for so long. She's going to have a lot of help.

TV Guide: Does playing a pregnant woman make you think about being pregnant in your own life?

Jennifer Aniston: No. I think about it, but that doesn't make me go, "Ahhh." It feels nice to have the advantage of taking off the pads.

TV Guide: David, your character has a son from his first wife. Does playing a dad make you think about having kids?

David Schwimmer: No. It's not reality. Seeing Lisa [Kudrow] with her real baby [Julian, 3] -that makes me think more about having a baby.

TV Guide: you have said that it peeves you that Ross has been divorced so many times, and that marriage is a running gag for him. Would you feel that way even more if he married again?

David Schwimmer: A fourth time? As long as it's not "OK. Let's get him married again nest week" Sometimes I feel that some of the coices that have been made for my character have not necessarily been earned. Or smart.

TV Guide: Will Pheobe and Joey hook up?

Jennifer Aniston: I hope so. I just think that would be great. But I think that should happen at the end. And we shouldn't know until then.

TV Guide: Could the show go on if not all the Friends were on it?

Jennifer Aniston: No way. Not a chance. You wouldn't want Monica and Chandler, Ross and Rachel, and Joey and... Tammy. It wouldn't be fun for us. We wouldn't want to do it.

David Schwimmer: It wouldn't be the same show