When Nick returned to the apartment several hours later, laden down with shopping bags, he was surprised to see Jess there, sitting on the couch, watching Dirty Dancing. She did not acknowledge him as he walked into the room. It looked like she was just staring blindly in the direction of the television, rather than actually watching it.
"Hey, Jess," he said. "You okay? You look a little stunned."
She jumped about a foot and a half.
"Oh, god, Nick! How long have you been standing there?"
"Like a minute and a half. I waved at you, but you didn't see me. Like I said, you look a little stunned."
"What? Oh. Yeah. A little. Paul… loves me, apparently."
"Hey! That's fantastic!"
She glares at him.
"What? I wasn't being sarcastic," he says, even though he obviously was.
"Well, sarcasm or not, you're wrong. It is not fantastic. Who falls in love with someone after only a month? I'm not ready to fall in love again yet! I just got out of a six year relationship!"
"Okay. Jess, calm down, you're shouting."
"Nick, of course I'm shouting! In what world should I not be shouting? I've been broken up with Spencer for 4 months! I was with him for six years! Six, Nick! I'm not just going to fall in love with the next guy I date, even if it is Paul, who's cute and nerdy and so sweet… but that's not the point! One month? Is he insane?"
"Jess, seriously, could you take the volume down a notch? I'm not the one who told you he's in love with you after only a month of dating you. Just, take a deep breath. It's going to be fine."
"How is it going to be fine, Nick? I broke up with him! That's not fine! I really liked him!"
"Oh, Jess. I'm sorry."
"Why? Like you said, you weren't the one who told me he was in love with me after a month."
"You know what I mean though. I'm sorry that you're in this situation, because it sucks," he said, though he made the turtle face as he said it. Boy was he glad he hadn't yet told her the real story behind the hole in the wall.
"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry. I'm just a little bit flustered. Oh, by the way," she said, whipping out the note he had left on her door. "What really did happen that caused there to be a hole in the wall?"
"Uh, are you sure you want to hear that story right now? You're upset, and you don't need to add my drama to yours."
"No, Nick, I absolutely want to hear about your drama. If anything, it will serve to distract me from my drama."
He sighed.
"Okay, but I'm going to stand in the kitchen, and I want you to stay seated in the living room while I tell you."
"Whatever you say. Although, that really seems unnecessary. And frankly a bit strange."
"Just do it, okay Jess?"
"Alright, alright. Now tell me this story!"
"Okay, but before I start, I'm just going to point out that this was not what I wanted to have happen. It's all just kind of a big coincidence."
"Will you just get on with it already?"
He took a deep breath.
"Okay, well, I guess the best way to start is to tell you where I put the hole in the wall -"
"When you say put, you mean?" she interrupted him.
"With my fist. There, I said it. I punched the wall, because I was not in control of my emotions, okay? Now, can I just get this over with, without you interrupting?"
"Okay, go ahead."
"So, I punched the wall right over there, by my bedroom," he said, pointing at the spot where the damage had been done. "And you might note that the spot I'm pointing at is just a tiny bit above the spot where someone else had left a note, saying that she was staying at her boyfriend's house all weekend."
Jess gasped.
"Nick!"
"Jess, please, just let me get this all out. I'm going to explain it all. Don't worry, okay?"
She said nothing. He took this as his cue to continue.
"Look, Jess, it's not a big deal. I just got a little jealous that you were going to spend all weekend with Paul, and not hang out here with us, at all. We've barely seen you since you started dating him, and while you were, you were so much less sunny and bubbly than we're used to. You were always worrying about what he said, and what to do, and how to react and stuff, and I just didn't get how you wanted to spend all your time with him, instead of with us, where you can be yourself. And I mean, yeah, maybe I have a little bit of a crush on you, but you're just so damn cute I can't help myself. But I really didn't want you to get hurt, and I guess you were happy with Paul, so I really didn't want him to break up with you, or you to break up with him, but since you did, I'm kind of glad. And it's not like I'm in love with you, unlike him, I don't move through relationships at the speed of light. I also know that we're roommates, and that you're not supposed to like your roommates in the way that I like you, but I don't really care what you're supposed to do. You're not supposed to drop out of law school to become a bartender. You're not supposed to move in with three random guys you found on the internet. But I did, and you did, and supposed to can just go to hell. But I don't want to make you uncomfortable and I don't want you to move out. So, if this is awkward for you, don't worry, because I'll get over it. It's not a big deal. It's just a crush. Tiny. Insignificant, really. And now I'm rambling."
He finally took a breath.
"Wow. Nick, that was a lot of information you just threw at me right there."
"I know. I'm sorry. I just had to get it all out. I'm going to go to my room now, and not bother you for the rest of the day. Or ever. Sorry, again," he said, and bolted out of the kitchen before Jess even had a chance to raised her eyebrow, and blew her hair out of her face. Apparently CeCe had been right. Interesting. And yet, somehow, it didn't feel all that awkward, and she certainly wasn't going to move out over it. She got up. She wasn't quite as done with the conversation as Nick was. She knocked on his door.
"Come in," he called, sure that she was going to tell him her bags were packed and that she would be out before dinner. She entered. She walked toward his bed. She sat down next to him.
"Let me just try something," she said. She leaned in. She kissed him. Just a tiny peck on the lips. Barely two seconds. She pulled back. She tilted her head at him questioningly.
"So how insignificant and tiny is this crush, really?" she asked.
"Not really all that tiny, and actually pretty significant," he replied.
"Okay, good. Just making sure," she said, moving to stand back up. He grabbed her arm. Pulled her back down to the bed. Pulled her closer to him. Kissed her again. For a lot longer than two seconds. Pure bliss. After five minutes, or maybe an hour, they stopped kissing. He leaned back against his headboard. She curled up in his arms.
"Okay, but Jess, I really don't want to be your rebound from Paul. And you guys just broke up a couple hours ago. I don't want to start something with you that you're going to end up regretting."
"I totally understand. So what do we do?"
"I say, we wait a week, exactly, and then if we both still feel this way we start something. I mean, we can give it longer than a week if you don't think that you'll feel ready for anything that soon."
"No, I think a week should be enough time for me to get my head on straight. I did only date Paul for a month."
"Okay, great. And we can take things slow. No need for anyone to fall in love with anyone else or jump into anything. And we'll need to figure out what to tell Schmidt and Winston. Although, Winston kind of already knows. About my half anyway. So, depending on how his day went, Schmidt might know too."
Jess just laughed.
"Okay, so in a week, how do we show that we're both ready, assuming, of course, that we are? I think we should meet in the kitchen, holding something of each other's. Like our toothbrushes. If in one week, we still want to start something, you will go to the kitchen at 5:43 pm, holding my toothbrush, and I will go to the kitchen at 5:43 pm, holding yours."
Nick smiled at this quirky little plan, but that was Jess for you.
"Okay," he said. "Toothbrush, kitchen, 5:43 pm."
"On the dot," she said.
"On the dot," he agreed.
The week passed in a blur for both of them. Nick felt incredibly nervous, as neither of them had said anything about what had transpired between them since the day they had first kissed. They had had no physical contact at all, and Jess had barely even been home. He was worried that now that she had a little bit of space from her breakup that she would no longer want to be with him.
She, on the other hand, was quite looking forward to starting a new relationship with Nick. She had thought about it a lot over the week that he had given her, and really, they made a much better pair than she and Paul, or even she and Spencer ever had. They sparked passion in each other. They challenged each other. Their chemistry, was, quite frankly, palpable. The kisses they had shared proved that. When she had kissed him, she had felt a warm tingle pass down her spine. When he had pulled her back down onto the bed, her heart leapt, and her head spun. Their mouths seemed to fit perfectly together.
Nick had been sitting in the kitchen for an hour clutching a toothbrush, waiting anxiously to see what would happen with the prettiest roommate. What if she didn't show up? Or if she wasn't holding his toothbrush the way he was holding hers? Would she let him down easy at least?
At 5:42, Jess walked into the kitchen, with a characteristically huge smile on her face. She held her hands behind her back, then suddenly drew the right one to the front. It was holding a toothbrush. Nick felt a huge wave of relief and joy wash over him. Neither of them said anything.
He got down off his stool and crossed over to her. He put one hand on her neck, and one hand on her waist, and dipped her backwards. He kissed her for all he was worth. She kissed back with equal enthusiasm. They kissed until they heard the sound of applause. They stood back up and turned toward the living room to see Schmidt and Winston standing there.
"Well," said Jess. "I guess we don't have to worry about telling the guys."
"You make an excellent point," replied Nick. "Now, guys, get the hell out, so I can go back to kissing my new girl."