Jess wasn't surprised when Schmidt answered Cece's door at 8 am on a Sunday morning, wearing only a pair of boxers. After Cece's failed wedding, Schmidt had tentatively rekindled their relationship. Almost two years later, they were getting very serious. He was at her apartment more than he was at his nowadays, and they were talking about marriage and kids.
Schmidt took in the disheveled girl standing before him, and with widening eyes, shouted, "Cece!" This was definitely Cece territory.
Jess pushed past Schmidt and dumped her bags on the floor before collapsing on her friend's couch. Cece padded out of her room sleepily, tightening the sash of her silky robe. She stopped short when she saw Jess sitting in her living room with swollen eyes and a mascara-stained shirt.
"I left Nick," Jess announced shakily. Two jaws hit the floor.
Schmidt, for once, had nothing to say. He stood in front of Jess, flabbergasted, while Cece sat down beside her and took her friend's hands in her own.
"What's going on, babe?"
Jess cried quietly as she recounted the events of the previous night. Cece shifted to put her arms around Jess and stroke her hair when she cried, "He- he told me he hated me."
Cece held Jess even tighter, responding with a sympathetic "He doesn't hate you, babe."
"I was going to tell him last night," Jess choked out. "I was going to tell him but he was drunk and mean and I just didn't know what to do and I couldn't stay, Cece, I had to get out-" Jess's rambling was cut short by a heaving sob. "What do I do, Cece?" Jess wailed. "I can't do this alone, I can't, but I can't go back.
"Can't do what alone?" Schmidt interjected, breaking his silence.
"Drop it, Schmidt," Cece warned him sharply.
His eyes narrowed a little, but he let it go. He walked over to the two girls and put a reassuring hand on Jess's shoulder. "It's going to be okay, Jess. You and Nick can work it out- you always do."
Jess shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. "I don't ever want to see him again," she whimpered, thinking of all the horrible things he'd said to her that night. "Please let me stay here." She looked at Cece pleadingly.
Cece nodded, pitying Jess. "Of course. I've got the spare bedroom over there." She motioned to a room near the kitchen.
"Don't tell him where I am, Schmidt," Jess instructed, rubbing her face on her sleeves. "You know nothing."
Schmidt nodded, knowing that Cece wouldn't let him say anything. He picked up Jess's bags and brought them into the spare bedroom.
Cece stood up and walked into the kitchen after she told Jess she'd make some tea.
Jess slumped further into the couch, crossing her arms over her chest until she heard her phone ring. She pulled it out of her pocket, knowing it was Nick without having to look at the caller ID. He'd been calling her almost nonstop since she left. Cece looked over, obviously concerned, but not wanting to meddle too much.
Jess answered the phone with a snappy but dejected, "What?"
Nick felt his stomach drop when he heard her harsh tone.
"Jess," he breathed into his phone, "please talk to me. Where are you?"
"I don't want to talk, Nick, I really don't."
"Please, Jessica, I'm so sorry, you know I am, I didn't mean anything I said, I was drunk, please come home, Jess, I need you, Jess, I'm so sorry-" Nick rambled, only to be cut short by Jess's trembling voice.
"Yeah, Nick. You were drunk. Instead of trying to talk to me about what you thought was going on-" she spat, "you got wasted and disappeared for three hours!"
Nick closed his eyes, his death grip on his phone tightening even more.
"I need someone that I can count on to be mature and trust me." There was a brief pause. "And, Nick...I don't think you're that person."
"I was scared, Jess," he explained desperately. "I thought I was going to lose you."
"Yeah, well," she managed, "now you have." He heard her let out what sounded like a sob. "Don't call me again, Nick."
And with that audible click, Nick felt his world collapse around him again. He threw his phone at his bedroom wall, and when the screen shattered, he felt that it was only fitting that his phone was now as broken as he was.
Jess sat on the couch, staring at the wall in front of her. She had thought Nick would call her again, but five minutes after she'd hung up on him, her phone was still silent. She couldn't decide if she was relieved or disappointed.
Cece approached Jess, handing her a mug of tea. "You okay?" she asked quietly.
Jess shook her head and took a sip of the warm liquid, hoping that it would soothe the dull ache she felt in the back of her throat.
Before she could say anything, though, a different feeling came over her and she shoved the tea back into Cece's hands before making a mad dash for the bathroom.
"It begins," Cece chuckled to herself, hearing the sounds of violent retching echoing throughout her apartment.
Schmidt came out of the spare bedroom, eyebrows raised. "Is she sick? I want her quarantined immediately!"
Cece rolled her eyes. "She's not sick, Schmidt. Don't get your panties in a wad."
All went quiet in the bathroom, and following the flush of the toilet, Jess sheepishly re-entered the living room. "I guess that tea didn't agree with me," she offered, nervously glancing at Schmidt.
He pointed at the bedroom. "In there!" he barked, backing away from Jess. "Stay there for at least 24 hours. I cannot risk catching the plague!"
Jess looked at Cece, communicating her question with just her eyes. Cece shrugged and said, "If he says anything, Jess, I'll castrate him."
"What is going on?" Schmidt cried, looking back and forth between the two women with his hands on his hips.
"Schmidt, if I tell you this, you have to promise that it does not leave this room. No telling Winston. No telling Nick. Especially Nick. He cannot find out about this- do you understand?"
Schmidt frowned, but nodded just the same.
"I'm serious, Schmidt," Jess said, her eyes welling up with tears again. She still felt a little bit nauseous and she'd probably need the toilet again very soon. "You can't tell him."
"I won't say anything," Schmidt said, now very serious. For being the smartest man he knew, he certainly was incredibly confused.
Jess pressed her lips together, not certain that she could trust him, but knowing that he would figure it out eventually. She blinked a few times and grabbed Cece's hand for whatever moral support her friend could offer.
"Schmidt," she whispered, "I'm pregnant."
So, there's our big secret. I'm sure most of you already had it figured out. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I was going to write more, but I'm going out of town for the weekend and I really won't have time. Let me know what you think, what you like, and what you think could be improved! Also, I know that they all may seem a little bit out of character, but it's kind of hard to keep them in character when most of this fic is going to be pretty depressing. I'm also working on the formatting, this is my first time working with fanfiction, blah blah blah- SO- bear with me! Xxx