After getting kicked out of the restaurant, the quartet had stuffed themselves into a taxi, and couldn't stop laughing. Nick didn't remember feeling so nonsensically high on life since middle school...well, not while sober, anyway. And even Schmidt, when reminded that he still had time to return to the auction, just shrugged and said, "Why don't we just catch a movie."

"You know what I feel like watching?" Coach asked.

"Please don't say what I think you're fixing to say," Nick muttered.

"I feel like watching DIRTY DANCING!"

That made Jess start crying again, which made Nick start singing again, which made the taxi driver silently reach up and close the window in the glass partition. And they laughed all the way home.

When the movie was over, Schmidt and Coach shuffled sleepily off to their rooms, and Nick and Jess sat in silence for awhile, just letting the credits scroll. When the screen finally went black, Nick said, "I'm sorry your rebound was such a bust, Jess."

She looked at him like she didn't know what he was talking about, and answered happily, "But it wasn't!"

"What do you mean? That jerk stood you up. Wait...please don't tell me you've been texting him again!"

She laughed, "No, Nick, he served his purpose."

"Without ever showing up," he stated with flat incredulity.

"Sure! Think about it Nick...what's a rebound really supposed to do? It's supposed to get you out there again...let you know that you can do this thing again...and that other people ARE going to be attracted to you. That there WILL be other people in your life who care about you."

"Yeaaah?" He still didn't get it.

"Oh Nick! I went out there! I did it! I was nervous, but I did it. I flirted with other guys! I landed another date! It wasn't about HIM...it was about ME."

"Yeeeeah..." Maybe it was getting a little clearer now.

"Besides, at the end of the evening I had not one, but THREE handsome men serenading me in a public place...just because they cared about me. And not a single one of them wanted to have sex with me!"

"Well, Schmidt," they both said in unison, dismissing the obvious.

And her smile as she continued was positively angelic. "I'll never forget that for as long as I live. Thank you Nick."

"Yeah...ok...sure..." To cover up his embarrassment, Nick went over and slid the movie out of the dvd player, put it away in its case, and handed it back to her.

"Goodnight Jess. I'm glad you weren't too disappointed." He started to go to bed, but she stopped him.

"Wait...Nick..." When he turned, she tossed him the dvd. "I think it's time for this to go into the vault."

"You mean...?"

"YEP. I'm naming you keeper of Dirty Dancing. I won't be allowed to watch it again until YOU say so."

He grinned a crooked grin. "I'm warning you Jess...if you put me in charge, the contingency clause is going to be stringent. I'm going to need you to date someone for six years again, and then get dumped by them in the middle of a humiliating strip-tease, in front of their mistress, before I'm going to deem it time to break it out again."

"Cool. Fine. I can live with it. Stand it up on a shelf in your room and consider it my pact with you that my moping over Spencer is OVER."

He gave her a piercing look. "You're sure."

She nodded solemnly.

"Well then...if you're sure..." He started to bed again, and then stopped short and turned and looked back at her. "You're just going to buy another copy, aren't you?"

"Amazon has the Blu-ray Keepsake edition on sale for 14.99 right now".

He just sniffed a smile and said again, "Goodnight, Jess."