Hyde makes his way through the wooden doors of the dingy club. It's been a few years since he's been there but he quickly sees that not much has changed. About a dozen tables make up the perimeter of the place, the chairs facing the direction of the stage. There he sees a young girl,18 or 19, dancing in front of just a handful of men. Hyde looks down at his watch; 1:15 in the afternoon. He's still unsure why he decided to inside. Probably curiosity, but most likely because he wants to know if she's still there.
Besides the dancer and the few men, he spots two waitresses sitting by a table on the other side of the room, deep in conversation. There is a man dressed in black sitting a few feet from the stage and Hyde assumes he's a guard, responsible for looking after the dancers and keeping the men in check. Hyde slowly makes his way over to the two waitresses.
As he approaches, they look up at him. One of them stands up. She's short with long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail. Her dark stockings cover her long legs and her skirt is a bit too short for the cold winter weather.
"Hi sweetheart, would you like a table?" she asks. Her voice is low and raspy, not what Hyde expected.
He shakes his head and looks over her shoulder to look at the other waitress. She is a bit taller, about twenty-two years old. Her hair is red and cut short. She is looking at him, a smile forming across her lips and Hyde can tell she likes what she sees. He's seen that look many times before back in Point Place, usually from older women who wanted to have some fun with him.
"I'm looking for someone" he says, looking back at the blonde.
"Who might that be?" she responds. She cocks her head to the side and raises an eyebrow. Men usually came around requesting a specific dancer, but they are usually regulars who come a few nights a week, mostly at night.
"Jackie" he says.
The waitress straightens her head and shrugs her shoulders. "Sorry sweetheart, I don't really know the girls by name. It's my first week" she replies. "Maybe Hannah here can help" she says before grabbing a few menus from the table behind her and making her way to one of her tables.
Hyde looks back at the red head still sitting in front of him.
"I might know her, but I only know the girls by their stage name. Do you know hers?"
Hyde frowns.
"What does she look like?" the waitress asks, noticing his disappointment.
"Short, green/blue eyes, blonde hair...last time I saw her anyway, might be black now."
The girl ponders for a minute, trying to think of all the girls. "Serenity?"
"I don't really remember" Hyde replies.
"Well, she's scheduled to come in soon, if you want to grab a table and wait."
Hyde nods and walks a few feet away towards a table by the bar. Once he sits, the blonde waitress brings him a glass of water and a menu. "If you want to order something, just holler" she says and walks away. Sitting there, Hyde wonders if she is still working here. It's been about three years, surely she must have moved on by now. After she denied his help, she asked him to trust her and he had. He had walked out of these doors years ago, hoping that she would turn her life around.
Minutes pass and men walk in and out of the place. Dancers come on and off the stage and walk around in hopes of making a decent day's wage. A few of them have already offered him private dances and he'd respectfully refused. He makes sure to keep his left hand on the table so they can see his silver band. They probably didn't care that he is married, but at least they know.
After nearly an hour, the door opens and she walks in. The clicking of her boots are faint against the music, her dark jeans are almost fully covered by her long brown coat and her curls are bouncing with each step she takes. Hyde can't help but smile when he sees the darkness of her hair. She looks like the Jackie he likes to remember, not the girl he saw standing on this very stage three years prior.
He looks as she makes her way towards a few tables and engages a few men in conversation. She laughs at a few of their jokes and even sits with a few of them briefly. For about fifteen minutes, he watches her and notices how radiant her smile is.
As she wraps the conversations with the customers, she starts walking towards the bar and as soon as she spots him, she stops dead in her tracks. Hyde watches in amusement as she furrows her forehead and squints her eyes in surprise. He adjusts his sunglasses and smirks.
She takes the remaining few steps towards him and smiles. "Steven, what are you doing here?"
"Just thought I'd stop by" he says nonchalantly.
"Just stopped by a strip joint at two in the afternoon? Hitting a new low there aren't you?" she jokes making his smirk widen.
"Hey, I was raised by the best" he replies sarcastically. He raises his glass to his mouth and takes a sip of water. Looking at her up and down he is pleased to see that she looks better than the last time he saw her. She has gained some weight, her eyes sparkle once again and her walk is confident. "So, you still working here huh?" he asks, hoping she doesn't catch the disdain in his voice.
Her face brightens and she can't help but laugh. "That's why you're here isn't? You're checking up on me."
"No I'm not" he says. His gaze shifts from her to a man behind her getting up from his chair and putting his jacket on.
"You are, admit it."
"You're a big girl Jackie, I'm not checking up on you" he says looking back at her.
"Well good, because I don't need a bodyguard. That's only for the dancers" she says and shoots him a smile. She takes her jacket off and puts it on the back of his chair. She watches as his expression changes to one of surprise.
"You're not a dancer anymore?" he asks, his tone hopeful.
Jackie pulls the chair next to him and sits on it. Shaking her head, she reaches over to his face and removes the glasses. "Much better" she says. She folds his glasses and hands them to him. She watches as he puts them in his jacket pocket and rubs his forehead. It's clear that he's uncomfortable without his frames, and it surprises her that he didn't just put them back on.
"What do you do here then?" he asks, curiously awaiting her response.
"I demoted myself to waitress" she says with a slight laugh.
"Sounds more like a promotion" he says. She notices his serious tone and knows that he did in fact come back to check in on her. It warms her heart to know that even now, three years after they last saw each other, he still cares. Even if it's only a little bit, part of him thought about her and brought him here.
"Morally, I guess. Financially, it's kind of a bitch. It's for the best though, right?" She looks around the club and catches her fellow waitresses watching her and Hyde. A hint of jealousy surges throughout her body as she watches Hannah checking him out, but she quickly catches herself as she looks down at his hand and sees the silver band on his ring finger. Of course, he's married she thinks. How had she managed to forget that?
Probably because the last memory you have is of coming close to screwing him in the back alley.
"I can help you if you want" he says quietly.
"I'll be alright Steven."
"Jackie, stop being so damn st-"
"How have you been? How's the wife?" she quickly interrupts, not wanting to get into an argument with him. After all this time, she's come to terms with how their relationship ended and she even got some closure thanks to their last encounter. There is no way she is going to argue with him and set their relationship back again.
Hyde sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "Good, life's good" he responds.
"And the wife?" she asks, glad that he's dropped the financial conversation.
"Good" he says again. She sees his body tense up and knows she should change the subject. It can't be easy talking to an ex-girlfriend about your wife, especially when that girlfriend had pressed on about marriage during the relationship.
Jackie quickly starts up another conversation and for a while longer the two catch up. They talk about everything from her last days as a dancer to Eric and Donna's wedding. He tells her stories about her old friends and she's happy to hear that they are all happy and thriving. She can't help but to be proud of the people she grew up with, even if she hasn't spoken to them in nearly a decade.
After about forty minutes, Jackie glances over at the clock above the bar and stands up from the chair. "I have to get to work" she informs him.
Hyde looks down at his own watch and nods his head. "Yeah, I should get going too."
He gets off his own chair and for a moment, they are standing face to face, their bodies mere centimeters away from each other. She takes one last chance to look into his eyes and can't help but smile. His blue eyes, so familiar to her, are still her favorite part of him. They reveal so much about him and right now, she can see just how much he cares and, for some unexplainable reason, it overjoys her.
"Thanks for coming Steven" she says, her voice lower and huskier than she intended it to sound.
He takes a step towards her, closing the small gap between them. He lowers his head and places a soft kiss on her forehead. Once he pulls back, Hyde smiles when he sees her blushing cheeks. Jackie playfully slaps his arm and laughs.
"See you around doll" he says gently.
Jackie stiffens for a moment at his mention of her old nickname. His genuine smile, however, helps her recover quickly. Even if they did not end together like she had dreamed of, she knows that she holds a very special place in his heart. She knows that even though they betrayed and hurt each other, nothing would stop them from loving and caring for one another.
"Good bye puddin'" she replies.
Hyde pulls his sunglasses out of his pocket and slips them on his face. He takes one last second to look at her before turning his back to her. As he crosses the room he nods at the two waitresses he spoke to earlier and soon he is out the door.
Once the door closes behind him, Jackie glances over to the two women who have shifted their attention towards her. Jackie knows that they will inevitably ask her questions about the mysterious bad boy, and part of her would be proud to tell them the story of how she tamed him, but the other part knows it is best to leave that in the past and accept this new bond she has with Hyde. So, instead of walking over to them, she shrugs her shoulders, grabs her jacket from the back of the chair and walks towards the kitchen, ready to start her shift.