Title: Telling Him

Author: thebluecheat

Spoilers: Everything up through 2x05 to be safe.

Rating/Warnings: PG/K+

Word Count: 6062 (all 3 chapters)

Disclaimer: I don't own New Girl, but if I did, you can bet that Nick and Jess would get married and make babies. And Cece and Schmidt would never have broken up, because I may have shed a few tears over that. But I don't own NG, so…

Author's Notes: This is my second New Girl fic - it's a three-parter where Jess finally owns up to her feelings for Nick, but is having a hard time with the idea of actually telling him. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

An outsider might find it a little bit strange that Nick was happy to help Jess with her Sam issues.

Hell, Winston lived with them and he thought it was completely messed up for Nick to help Jess have sex with Sam, even if it was now limited to just giving her that weird mix CD (which was constantly blaring from Jess' room at night). It was that much more messed up that Nick was creeping around outside her room when it was playing ("What the hell, man?")

Schmidt, on the other hand? Totally fine with it. But he was still wearing whales, so.

Cece - while not technically an outsider, but still living outside the apartment – did think it was weird, and told Jess so in no uncertain terms over a late lunch on a Saturday afternoon. "What is he now, your gay boyfriend? Because that's the only situation in which it would be normal for a guy to give you a CD to have sex to WITH ANOTHER MAN. Unless it was Schmidt – that I could understand. But it wasn't a Kanye CD, was it?" she asked, sitting across from Jess at their favorite café.

Jess sighed. "Cece, Nick and I just have a complicated friendship that involves him giving me sexy mix CDs."

"But friends do not lurk outside your door listening to you have sex, and Winston told Schmidt he saw Nick do exactly that!" Cece countered.

Jess shrugged awkwardly. "Maybe he wants to…make sure I'm…happy? I don't know." She narrowed her eyes at her best friend. "You sure have been spending a lot of time with Schmidt lately. You even had coffee yesterday morning. What about Robbie?"

Cece waved the accusation away. "Schmidt and I are just friends, and Robbie is fine. It's nice to be friends with an ex, and heaven knows Schmidt could use more real friends. So could I. Neither of us is willing to open up to very many people, you know? So we're here for each other."

Jess gasped. "You still love him!"

The model scowled. "No, I don't. Shut up."

"Ha!" Jess crowed. "You do! You love Schmidt!" she sang out as they left the café to head back to the loft.

Cece just rolled her eyes. "I will admit to caring for Schmidt if it will get you to stop singing about it, loudly, in public. But I'm not in love with him – like you are with Nick!"

Jess abruptly stopped singing as her eyes got huge. "CECE! NO! That is…that is FALSE! And untrue!"

Cece smirked as they walked up to the apartment building. "Uh-huh."

Jess sputtered. "I'm serious! I mean, come on…I'm sleeping with…"

"Sam," Cece offered as they entered the building and stepped into the elevator, pressing the button for their floor.

"I know his name, Cece," Jess gritted her teeth. "Yes, Sam. Would I sleep with Sam if I was in love with Nick?"

"If you were in denial, you would," Cece replied as they exited the elevator and walked toward the loft.

"Ugh!" Jess cried. "I am not in love with Nick and I am not in denial!" She paused, casting her eyes to the floor. "And even if I were in love with him…he's not in love with me, so it's a moot point."

Cece pursed her lips. "Well, this isn't fun anymore," she remarked as Jess unlocked the door to the loft, where they found Schmidt and Winston pretending not to have heard Jess' outburst in the hallway. "Guys, you are the worst actors I have ever seen, and I work with models who have asked me to read lines with them for soap opera auditions."

Schmidt popped up from the floor, where he'd been doing spontaneous push-ups as Winston gratefully sat down from his equally spontaneous deep lunges. "Man, I need to stretch the next time I try that," Winston breathed, collapsing on the couch.

Schmidt pointed to the jar on the end table. "Ten dollars, Jess, and I'm being generous because it's your first time!"

Cece rolled her eyes. "Schmidt, don't be ridiculous. You can't make Jess put money in the jar for having feelings for Nick. They're just feelings. She hasn't done anything."

He gaped at her. "I have to put money in the jar for my feelings all the time!"

Winston sat up. "That's because you constantly tell us what you're feeling, and it's almost always disgusting." He scooted over on the couch so there was room for all four of them to sit.

"Jess," Cece asked gently, "this thing with Sam, it's not like you. And we're all worried about you needing to spend time with one guy to sleep with another – it's like needing to get drunk before sex. So we're concerned—" she glanced at the guys, who nodded their agreement, "—that this isn't a good thing for you. I mean, if you're happy, great, keep it up – but at you?"

Jess sniffled, causing both Winston and Schmidt to look like they were about to run away until Cece glared at them. "I mean, I like Sam well enough, you know? He's so hot, and we have a good time…we even talk a little bit now before we…make the beast with—'

"No," all three of them interrupted her.

"Fine," she huffed. "Before we…do it. And I know there's nothing there, emotionally. It is what it is. I knew going into it that there wouldn't be an emotional connection. But I feel bad because when we're together…" she sighed. "I'm thinking about Nick."

"Gross," shuddered Schmidt.

"Says the man who wants to see Nick's penis," Winston muttered darkly.

Jess glanced down at her clasped hands. "I didn't even realize I was doing it until he brought up the whole 'fluffer' thing!"

Winston looked guilty. "Yeah, my bad on that one."

She glared at him. "Well, thanks a lot! I mean, I've always been attracted to him – you're all attractive in your own way—"

"In our own way?"Schmidt hissed angrily.

"—but we had that fight, and then we got everything out in the open – well, not everything, I guess, since I didn't tell him how I feel about him, but I didn't know—"

"Speed it up, Jess," Winston implored.

"—and we both agreed it would never work between us, and it's true, it's so true, and that's why I'm still sleeping with Sam!" Jess cried emphatically. "Nick and I are so different that it would never, ever work. We'd just fight all the time. And we both agreed on that. Then he gave me his sexy mix CD—"

"There is nothing sexy about that CD," Schmidt said, shaking his head. Cece glared at him for interrupting, even though she agreed.

"—and told me to use it with Sam. So obviously he doesn't feel the same way," Jess finished, out of breath.

"Who said it first?" Winston questioned.

"What?" Jess asked blankly.

"I know Nick," he remarked. "He's big on denial and running as far as he can in the other direction if he thinks something is one-sided. So who said it first that it wouldn't work between the two of you?"

"I did," she admitted. "We were arguing about him being my fluffer—" - and here Winston looked guilty again – "—and I told him I'd thought about us being together and that it would never work, and he agreed."

"Well, of course he agreed!" Schmidt exploded. "Anything else would have been suicide! In that situation, you agree, no matter how you really feel. Just like I did with Cece after her pregnancy scare, before we started dating."

Winston nodded his agreement, while Cece chose to ignore them and focus on Jess. "I thought you broke up with Russell because he wouldn't argue with you and you needed more passion in a relationship. Now you're saying you can't be with Nick because there would be too much arguing, and therefore passion? I'm confused."

"Yeah, Jess – does my boy have too much passion in his pants? Because he's not afraid to show it!" Schmidt crowed excitedly. "I've been wanting to use that for so long."

"Jar," Winston, Cece, and Jess all replied in unison.

He grumbled as he picked through his wallet and deposited several bills into the jar.

"Where is Nick, by the way?" Jess asked, glancing around the loft as she dried her damp eyes with her sleeve. "It's weird for him not to be here on a Saturday afternoon."

"He's working the day shift today," Winston answered, handing her a tissue. "He's helping train the new guy they hired last week, and he gets the night off in return. He'll be off at 5." He checked his watch. "Oh, it's almost four already and I told him this morning that we'd come by when you two got back – he must be wondering what happened to us." He pulled out his phone. "Yup, I have a 'where are you' text from half an hour ago."

Schmidt grabbed his own phone. "I don't. I'm wounded! Why didn't I get a text? Am I not also his bro?"

"I'll let that one go," Winston said, standing up, "because you just put money in. But that's your only freebie for the rest of the weekend. Are we ready?"

"I think so," Cece replied, pulling Jess to her feet. "Are you okay now, sweetie?"

Jess nodded, smoothing her blue dress and red sweater, before turning to the guys. "So you think…you think he was lying when he said we shouldn't be together?"

"It's very likely," Winston promised, guiding her to the door ahead of the others. "I told him to set boundaries – I told him not to build you a dresser, for God's sake – and what did he do? He built you a damned dresser."

"No offense, Jess, you're like a sister to me, but I would not build you a dresser under any circumstances," Schmidt added.

"For once, we're on the same page," Winston agreed.

Jess looked thoughtful. "I'm having crazy wild sex with Sam, and I don't think he would either."

"This is just my opinion," Cece began, "but I don't like this thing with you and Sam. I'm all for you trying new things, but if you want to pursue this thing with Nick, it's time to let Sam go." She cocked her head to one side. "You do want to pursue something with Nick, right?"

Jess shifted her weight from one foot to the other as everyone piled into the elevator. "I don't know. I'm scared. If I were absolutely sure about how he felt…"

"I'm pretty sure he wants to get you out of that dress," Schmidt assured her.

"JAR," Winston yelled, as they exited the elevator and walked out onto the street.

"The jar's not even here! It's in the loft!"

"Then give me the money and I'll hold onto it."

Schmidt exasperatedly handed Winston a ten-dollar bill. "I'm out of smaller bills," he complained.

"Stop being a douche, then," Winston grinned, pocketing the money.

Jess rolled her eyes as they walked down the street to the bar. "I know he's attracted to me – we both admitted as much to each other already. I'm talking about real romantic feelings – relationship-y feelings. Completely different issue."

"He hates every guy you date," Cece pointed out optimistically. "Jealousy implies feelings."

Jess shook her head. "He loved Russell."

"Everyone loved Russell," Schmidt interjected.

"He wanted to be Russell," Winston argued. "And Russell was dating you. So what does that tell you?"

Cece thought for a minute. "Maybe he thought Russell was good for you. He has terrible self-esteem issues, right? He probably thinks he's not good enough for you."

Jess looked hopeful. "And Sam?"

"Is not your boyfriend," Cece offered. "Nick knows you're just scratching an itch with Sam."

"Wow," Schmidt breathed as they entered the bar. "You really do have the wisdom of a thousand white women."

As Cece rolled her eyes (with a poorly-concealed smile), Jess hissed, "Okay, we are not talking about this at Nick's bar." She looked toward the bar but didn't see him – he was probably in the back grabbing something. "Or anywhere near him. I think we're done for now. Good conversation, everyone!"

They sat down, and Cece took Jess' hand. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes," Jess answered. She glanced at the bar again – Nick was back, serving a few regulars. "And I'm going to end it with Sam." She frowned. "What's the protocol for breaking up with your booty call?"

"I'd suggest leaving the phrases 'break-up' and 'booty call' out of it altogether," Winston recommended.

"Might I suggest a carefully-worded text message?" Schmidt answered. "That's how most guys handle it."

Jess was horrified. "But that's so mean!"

Winston shook his head. "What's mean is trying to do it in person, panicking, and saying all the wrong things so you wind up making the girl cry – or hit you. You might be pissed off to get that text message, but are you going to cry over it? Remember, it's not a real relationship, so it's not a real break-up."

She frowned again. "I guess. I still don't like it, but I don't want to make an idiot of myself, either." She took out her phone. "What do I say?"

As Schmidt dictated to her, Cece nudged her. "Don't send that – he just walked in and he's coming over. You'll have to do it in person. Privately, please."

"Keep it short and simple," Winston advised.

"Also, don't sing," Schmidt ordered.

"You'll be fine," Cece soothed. "Just relax. It'll be fine."

Jess exhaled nervously as she stood up to greet Sam, who looked really hot. "Hi, Sam! How are you? Let's go somewhere private!"

Sam grinned. "Awesome idea. Bathroom or back to your place?" he asked, clearly misunderstanding.

Winston, Schmidt, and Cece all gave each other horrified glances as Jess' eyes went wide in a panic. "What? No! We're not having sex – I'm breaking up with you!" She immediately clamped her hands over her mouth.

THUNK, went three heads as they hit the table.

"Oh," Sam replied, his grin replaced by an unhappy expression. He glanced at the booth, at the three inhabitants studiously avoiding his gaze. "Yeah, I can see why you'd want privacy for that sort of thing…"

"Oh, my God, Sam, I am so sorry," Jess said, mortified. "I didn't mean for it to come out like that."

He nodded. "I figured. But you do want to stop hanging out?" he confirmed, obviously displeased.

"Um…yes," she replied, "it's nothing against you – I think you're great, best sex of my life—"

—THUNK, THUNK—

"—but I think it would be better if we stopped, um—"

"No, Jess," Schmidt whispered urgently.

"—boning?" Jess tried.

THUNK. THUNK. THUNK.

Sam glanced down at the booth, then back at Jess. "I mean, I guess if that's what you need, then, okay." He gave her a faint grin. "It was pretty good though, right?"

"Yes, yes it was," Jess agreed readily, not entirely sure how to proceed—

"Jess!" Winston hissed. "Focus!"

"But the truth is I have feelings for someone else and that means sleeping with you is wrong even if he might not feel the same way," she said quickly.

"Well, I guess that makes sense," Sam agreed. "Look, I hope it works out. Text me if it doesn't." He started to walk away, then turned back. "This totally explains why you keep calling me 'Nick' during sex," he said thoughtfully, before walking to the exit.