Work Text:
“Dammit! I can’t believe this!” Schmidt exclaimed, throwing open the front door and marching into the loft.
“Can’t believe what?” Jess asked from where she was swaddled in several layers of blankets on the couch.
“Remy says that our heating won’t be fixed until later tomorrow. We’re gonna be freezing our asses off in the coldest winter L.A. has ever seen until then!” Schmidt slammed the door shut and started pacing back and forth in the foyer.
“It’s not that bad! We’ll be just fine, we’ve got plenty of sweaters and blankets.”
“This loft has a strong draft even on hot summer days, Jess. We’re going to be popsicles in less than a few hours,” Winston protested. He was currently curled in a ball on the opposite side of the couch, wearing multiple warm layers and pulling a knitted blanket tightly around himself.
“Oh, calm down, everybody! You guys wouldn’t last a day during a Chicago winter,” Nick scoffed, leaning back against the couch. He was sitting right next to Jess, but was proudly and defiantly wearing a t-shirt. He’d already refused several offers from Jess to share the many blankets she had accumulated and didn’t seem like he would give in any time soon.
“We have, Nick. But you know what? We had a working heater in the house then!” Schmidt exclaimed. Frustrated, he stormed over to the couch and plopped down between Jess and Winston. Jess side-eyed him as he reached over and snatched one of the blankets that she had spread across her lap and draped it over himself.
“You know what? I have an idea. Why don’t I make some hot chocolate to warm us all up, get us in the holiday spirit,” Jess suggested.
“Oh yes, that hot chocolate is going to make the difference between us freezing to death and us surviving,” Schmidt grumbled, “but, regardless, I would like some.”
“Who knows, maybe it could be the difference. I don’t want to take that chance, I’d love a cup,” Winston said.
“I’ll take some too. But not because I’m cold! Just because I want hot chocolate,” Nick insisted.
Jess nodded. “Alright then, why don’t you come with me while I heat up the water, Nick.”
He narrowed his eyes at her and sunk further into the couch. “I don’t know, I’m pretty comfortable here…”
“What, scared that you'll be cold if you get up and walk around?”
“No! I’m not! It’s not cold in here, why would I be scared?” He shot straight up off the couch and proudly stood with both hands on his hips, looking down to sneer at Jess. She shook her head in his direction as she stood up and shook off all but one of the blankets, keeping one wrapped snugly around her shoulders. Schmidt scrambled to grab the free blankets and swiftly tucked them around himself, giving Jess a triumphant grin as he did so.
“Hey, Schmidt! I expect those back!” she exclaimed, wagging her finger at him.
“Finders keepers, Jessica! Finders keepers!”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. You’ll be sorry when I only make three mugs of cocoa. Come on, Miller.”
“Wait, no! I’ll give them back, I promise!” he called as Nick and Jess turned to walk away. She smirked to herself and otherwise ignored his cries, causing Nick to have to stifle a laugh.
Once they were in the kitchen, she took their tea kettle off the stove and moved it to the sink so that she could fill it up with water.
“Nick, can you get down the hot chocolate mix? It’s in the cabinet over there,” she asked, pointing to the other side of the room.
“Of course.” He quickly moved to comply, getting up on his tiptoes to reach the box on the top shelf.
“Hey…can I ask you a question?”
“Yeah, shoot.”
Nick turned back around with the box of cocoa in hand to see Jess looking at him from where she was beside the stove.
“Why are you refusing to admit that it’s getting cold in here? No one here will make fun of you or anything.”
“I’m just used to the cold!”
“Then why do you own so many fuzzy robes and slippers?”
“I like fuzzy robes and slippers! I don’t wear them because I’m cold in the mornings, I wear them because I’m fashionable!”
Jess stopped to glare at him for a moment. Nick almost instantly broke under the pressure, deflating and letting out a deep sigh.
“It’s a matter of personal pride, Jess. I want to prove to myself that I’m tougher than all of you.”
“Wow, real mature, Miller,” she replied with a laugh. She set the kettle back on the stove and lit the burner underneath it. “But what is there to prove? I thought you said it wasn’t that cold in here anyway.”
“It’s not cold,” Nick grumbled, “but I’m also tougher than you guys.”
“I see, I see. Well, if you do happen to get cold…” Jess trailed off, pausing to lean in close next to his ear, “I’ll gladly steal a blanket back from Schmidt for you,” she whispered.
Nick couldn’t help but laugh and give her a glowing smile when she pulled away. “Thanks, Jess. I, uh…I might take you up on that offer? Temperature’s dropping fast, you know,” he said, clearly scrambling for an excuse.
Jess snorted. “Sure it is. Here.” She picked up the corner of her blanket that was closest to Nick and held it out to him. Reluctantly, he stepped closer to her and accepted the gift, moving the blanket so that it was draped across their shoulders. Their elbows bumped together in the middle underneath it, so Nick slid the arm closest to Jess around her waist. She looked up to give him a small smile before doing the same, making it so that they were keeping each other warm and so that they each only had one free hand.
“Oh, wait! We’ll need mugs. Move this way,” she requested, pointing to the right with her free hand.
Jess and Nick shuffled over together and each gathered two mugs from the cabinet before making their way back to the stove. The kettle was whistling to alert them that the water was hot and ready, so Jess turned off the burner and picked it up by the handle.
“Can you hold the mugs steady while I pour the water in?” she asked.
“Sure, sure. Go ahead.” Nick grabbed the side of the closest mug and looked over to Jess. She filled the mug up about three-quarters of the way full, then moved to fill the next. They made their way through the line rather quickly, and soon enough, were getting out four packets of hot chocolate mix from the box on the other side of the stove.
“This should warm us all right up!” Jess said cheerfully. She grabbed a spoon from the drawer in front of her, then held a packet out to Nick so that he could rip it open. He dumped the contents into one of the mugs so that she could stir it in. They went down the line of mugs and did the same for each one, having devised the perfect method to complete the task with only two hands between them.
“Hm, now, how to carry these over like this…” Jess mused, looking over the steaming mugs and how her and Nick were attached beneath the blanket.
“Oh, it’s no problem. I’ll just give the blanket back to you,” he offered.
“No, no, you take this one. I’ll grab Schmidt’s when I get over there,” Jess insisted. She extracted her arm out from behind Nick and slipped out from underneath the blanket. She tucked the corner that had been on her shoulder over Nick’s, taking a moment to smooth it into place. Then, in one swift motion, she grabbed two mugs and turned to run for the couch. Upon arriving, she passed one mug to each of her other roommates before burrowing herself back into the couch. Schmidt begrudgingly passed her a blue fleece blanket, deciding that keeping all of them wouldn’t be worth the potential struggle.
Nick made the return trip at a much slower pace, eventually settling down close to Jess before handing her a mug. She gratefully accepted it and scooted the tiniest bit closer to him so that their sides were almost pressed together.
“To surviving the cold together!” she exclaimed, holding her cocoa aloft.
“To surviving,” Schmidt seconded, raising his mug as well.
“To Remy, may he get his shit together and fix this before we freeze,” Nick added.
“Oh, so you’re finally admitting defeat, huh?” Winston asked, raising an eyebrow inquisitively.
Nick shrugged. “Yeah, whatever. Nothing to gain from denying it any longer.”
“What happened over there, Jessica? You broke him,” Schmidt said.
Jess shrugged nonchalantly. “Nothing! His toes must have just started to turn into little ice cubes.”
“Yup, that’s it,” Nick said, looking over to smile at her, “They were just little ice cubes.”
Winston and Schmidt both squinted at the pair, but quickly decided that drinking their cocoa before it got cold instead of questioning their roommates would be a more productive use of their time.
And so, the residents of apartment 4D drank their hot chocolate, and enjoyed the temporary warmth it provided. However, the group cuddle pile they formed afterwards did a lot more to keep them warm during the long, cold night that Remy spent ignoring the problem with their heater.