Ross is divorced and freshly alone in the first episode after his wife, Carol (Jane Sibbett), discovers she is a lesbian. Later in the series, he dates Rachel, but they break up when he sleeps with another woman the night they decide to put their relationship "on hold." He starts dating Sarah again in season five, just as her husband, Jeff (Sam Huntington), comes back from war alive and well. But they break up when Sarah realizes that Ross has been cheating on her with Rachel all this time. It turns out that they are all still friends and get together for Christmas 1998. After getting into some trouble with the police due to some stolen goods that were in his car, they plan to skip town until they realize that they owe money to some people who want to kill them. So instead, they go on the run like criminals until the cops can't chase them any longer. At the end of the episode, "The Gang Goes to Hawaii", they show up at Carol's house to tell her that they are going to Hawaii without her so she can move in with her new girlfriend. Then they all have breakfast together before they go their separate ways. Ross returns in several episodes over the next few seasons as a regular cast member. In these episodes, we see him dealing with his ex-wife's death, raising Amy alone, becoming a father again through artificial insemination, and more.