So I've been working on this fic for the past month or so and lately I've been playing around with whether to make this a one-shot or split it up into a multi-chap fic. And quite frankly, I've had a hard time finding a suitable ending for this, so I decided to split it up into a multi-chapter fic to give me some more time to play around with it. It's only going to be five or six chapters long and since I've already got four and a half typed up and everything, you won't have to wait too long between chapters. And after you read the end of this first chapter, well... You're probably going to be thankful for that.

Also, quick note, this is just... The recent episodes don't count here, just BTDub. Like, this takes place just after "Chicago." Ish. But how awesome was "Virgins?" That was just... Amazing. It was everything I'd always dreamed it would be and more ― one can only imagine how Jess and Nick must be feeling...

Anyway, on with the fic.

Disclaimer: I do not own New Girl or any of the characters associated with New Girl. If I did, I assure you, you would know. Oh, would you know...


His Fault
Chapter One:
Not A Date


"Jess, I have some errands to run – wanna come with?" Nick asked in his most laid-back tone, half a smile and a cocked eyebrow taunting her away from her book and coffee. Ever since returning from his father's funeral, Nick had been shifting away from his usual self, he laughed a bit more, smiled a bit more, frowned a bit less, and looked at Jess with a certain spark in his eye that made her hungry for more. So when he asked her like that, leaning against the counter and looking at her as he played with his keys, it was hard for her to resist his offer. She smiled back at him and pushed back in her chair, marking her page and closing her book.

"Yeah, of course. Just… give me a minute to change." She told him, gesturing at her attire, which, at the moment, consisted of her pink robe and little else. It was a Saturday night and the only plans she had had involved a worn-out paperback and a pot of coffee, so even though it was barely six o'clock when Nick approached her, she had already changed from a flowery skirt and sequined top into her pajamas, matching it with her robe when she decided she needed to be closer to the pot of coffee so she wouldn't have to interrupt her reading too much when she needed a refill.

Winston and Schmidt were both out, of course, and Nick had the night off, so it had just been the two of them in the loft. Nick had been restless all day, flitting about the loft doing a bit of this and that, not really able to sit down for more than a few minutes at a time ― an odd and even rare occurrence for a man who could spend hours just sitting in front of the television watching whatever so happened to flit across the screen on him if he had lost the remote control. Jess had just shrugged it off as him having too much energy, too used to doing things since returning from "Chicawgo", as he called it, and for the most part just gave him his space unless their paths happened to cross. She loved spending time with him and his new mood was certainly one she was found of, but this was the sort of Saturday that just had a lazy sort of feel to it, the perfect sort of day to spend with her favorite book. In fact, if Nick hadn't asked her to go out with him, she probably wouldn't have even left the loft until Monday morning when she promised Cece she would go dress shopping with her and her mother, who was, obviously, in town and helping Cece plan her upcoming nuptials.

"Yeah, take your time." He nodded at her, flipping her book over and reading the synopsis as she power-walked off to her room. He barely had time to finish reading the blurb, however, as she came back out mere moments later, now donning a pink skirt with forest green trim, black lines tracing out the sort of pattern one would find in a challenging coloring books meant to entertain older teenagers and adults, and a light blue shirt that complimented her eyes just so, accented by a crocheted pattern on the short sleeves that cut off just below her shoulders, not to mention the peek it allowed him of her cleavage. He was too busy pretending not to be admiring her new attire to notice the light blue wedges on her feet and the bright yellow bag she was pushing up her shoulder.

If he told her how hot she looked now, how awkward would it have made things? he wondered to himself.

But he didn't tell her that. Instead, he picked up his keys again and walked towards the door with her on his heels, grabbing his jacket on the way out, locking the door behind them, and walking down the hall, his arm guiding her along to the elevator. They entered it and smiled at the people already standing in it, nodding polite hellos as they asked them to push the button for the first floor and then riding in silence, leaning casually against the bar in the back together, hands just almost touching.

They took Nick's car to run his errands. Even though Jess said her car was probably more reliable, he didn't care, he just wanted an excuse not to look at her the entire time they were driving along, and what better excuse than to make sure they didn't drive off a cliff and die?

He couldn't be sure why he had asked Jess to go along with him, other than the fact that A) he enjoyed her company, and B) he thought she could use some, err, fresh air. But mostly the first one.

They made small talk about the weather and their friends and just their lives in general as they drove along, first to the bar to pick up Nick's check, then to the bank to cash it, then the hardware store for a few minutes, then to the dry-cleaners ― he'd lost a bet to Schmidt ― the shoe store, and then the liquor store, and by the time they were done with all that, it was well past eight o'clock and they both found themselves hungry and tired, in more ways than one.

"Alright, I think that's all I have to do today," Nick said, closing his door as he slid into his seat. He had his keys out, holding them in his closed hand as he tapped on his steering wheel, glancing over at Jess as the overhead lights flickered on, illuminating their little piece of heaven as the world around them grew darker, the streetlights just starting to come on. "So… you hungry?" he asked, eyebrow quirked as he planned the rest of their night in his head. They could go to dinner and a movie now since he had nothing else to do the rest of the night. It could be a date if she wanted it to be, or not, if she would rather it that way, he wouldn't put any pressure on her. He just wanted an excuse to spend more time with her in an enclosed space, her perfume swirling about mixing with his muskiness... He liked it.

"Starving, actually." She admitted, smiling at him slightly. She hadn't really eaten much of a meal since rolling out of bed that morning, choosing instead to eat a few snacks scattered through the day and, well, it left her feeling very hungry, to say the least.

"Right, um… Wanna go to that place downtown? The one with the really good fries? There's a movie theater right down the street from there, we could head over there after we finish eating and catch a late movie?" he asked, sticking the key in the ignition as she nodded, barely squeaking out a yes. The ride there was silent, each of them trying to work out whether it was a date or not without having to ask the other what they thought.

By the time they got to the restaurant, neither had quite figured it out ― though Nick did pay for their meals, he quickly explained that he just wanted to thank her for tagging along with him and keeping him company, which she bought.

Until they got to the theater and he let her pick the movie and paid for their tickets, the candy Jess decided halfway through that she wanted, and the large pop that they split. And then she started to question it just a bit.

But no, it wasn't a date. It couldn't have been. Could it?

After the movie was over, they each took a bathroom break and then headed out of the theater. It was almost eleven at night by that point and had gotten quite chilly out. Cursing himself for relenting when Jess suggested they walk from the restaurant to the theater instead of taking the car, Nick slipped off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders, her doe eyes widening as she reached up and touched the edges of it, fingering the zipper teeth as he smiled down at her tentatively. No, not a date, he told himself, walking close to her to keep both of them warm. There were very few people out, but if one of the few who were out had glanced at them, why, they would have seen nothing more than a couple out on a date.

But of course, it wasn't a date, they kept telling themselves.

Not a date.

"Today has been nice." Jess whispered, the chilling breeze threatening to whisk her words away before Nick could grab them.

"Yeah, it has, hasn't it?" he asked, looking down at Jess. So wrapped up in each other, they barely paid any attention to their surroundings ― their fatal mistake, really, anyone would tell them after the fact.

They weren't more than half a block away from where they'd left the car when a voice, gruff and threatening, cut through their bliss and happiness, shattering their not-a-date bubble and cracking their very world in half. "Give me your money!" They froze in their tracks and looked up. Standing in front of them was a guy not much taller than Nick was. He had a bandana tied around his nose and mouth, his dark, short hair sticking up erratically, matching his behavior and his wild, dark blue eyes. The only thing that made them take this guy even remotely seriously was the gun he was pointing directly at them.

"Easy there, buddy." Nick seethed calmly, holding his hands up in a surrender position. If it was just him alone, he might have gotten smart and risked getting shot ― if he was out on the streets this time of night alone, he was probably drunk, and he was stupid when he was drunk ― but since he had Jess with him… Well, he wasn't willing to risk her getting shot, never mind him. Slowly and subtly, Nick eased himself in front of Jess, blocking the gunman's shot of her. If he wanted at Jess, he would have to kill Nick first.

"I said give me your money!" the gunman yelled again, his booming voice bouncing off the buildings and streetlights. Ah, if ever Nick wished for people to be around, it was, well, now, but it was latish on a Saturday night, most people were either at a bar or club or at home, not out on the streets. And the people they had previously passed on their short walk were nowhere to be seen now. Figures.

Slowly, Nick moved his hand into his back pocket and removed his wallet, there wasn't much in it, anyhow, maybe fifty bucks ― thank God he had tucked most of the money from his paycheck into the glove box on Jess' side of the car ― a few pictures of his friends that he had copies of at home, an expired ID, and a credit card he'd already maxed out; he could part with the worn piece of leather that had been a gift from Schmidt if the man would just take it and leave.

He held it out to the man who quickly snatched it away and stuffed it in his own pocket before he looked over Nick's shoulder at Jess and shouted the same command. Nick squared his shoulders as he saw a look of hunger and lust flash in the man's eyes. He was thinking evil, vile things, Nick could tell, and while he didn't seem the type to try anything ― he was probably just a junkie who needed money for a quick fix ― with an unwilling woman, Nick was still on edge. He would take on a man with a gun; he didn't give a damn, if it meant keeping Jess safe.

"Jess, just give him your damn purse." Nick hissed at the frozen woman, who seemed to be unable to move at the moment. He didn't know what Jess had in her purse, and he was quite shocked ― yet pleased ― that she wasn't trying to talk the man into putting his gun down and turning himself into the police ― They'd both die if she used that word around a guy like this, that much he was sure of ― but he knew that whatever it was, it could be replaced. She, on the other hand, could not.

"Listen to your boyfriend, chicky!" the gunman said, getting agitated that this was taking so long. Jess shook her head, coming to her senses ever so slowly. Her purse, she needed to hand the man her purse so he would take it and leave and they could get to the car, get to safety. And then she could cry on Nick's shoulder about how scared she was as he called the police and they filed a report, and then they could go home and she could finish her book and maybe drink some tea or coffee and fight off sleep and the nightmares she knew she was going to have that night. Maybe if she was lucky, she could convince Nick to let her sleep in his bed with him to comfort her, make her feel better and give her a good night's sleep. But first, she had to hand him her damn purse.

"Look, I don't want to have to shoot anyone here, so hand me your purse and no one gets hurt." The gunman shouted, pointing the gun over Nick and aiming it at her. Jess froze up again, however, as she saw the barrel of the gun aimed at her head, one false move and she would be dead. One hand griped her purse strap, slowly sliding it off, as her mind froze up, not sure what it ought to be doing now. She had seen so many movies, had taken so many self-defense classes, had read so many books on this subject, but all that information was lost to her, her brain stuck in the black nothingness that came with her adrenaline rush. All she had to do was get the huge, heavy, impossible to move purse off her arm, and they would be fine. All she had to do was ―

Bang.


So I know what you're thinking ― the whole date/not date thing has already been done on the show and blah blah blah. Sorry about that, but it seemed... fitting. Plus, it just sort of slipped itself in there, ya know?

Oh? What? Oh! Ooohhh. You were wondering about the end of the chapter? Who got shot and all that? Well, I mean ― isn't it obvious? Oh, you're right, it's not. Well, imagine that!

I've almost got the second chapter ready to post, so expect it within the next five days, because I still have to edit and all that. Anyway, until then, try not to drive yourselves too crazy with wondering what happened and what's going to happen next. Or do. Whatever floats your boat.

Always,
~Hisa-Ai~