I THOUGHT YOU WOULD NEVER ASK
Hyde was sitting on the sofa looking out his window at Sam. He was wondering if she would knock or just go away. Finally he watched her take a deep breath and knock on his door. Hyde walked to the door and opened it. "This is a surprise Sam, I didn't think I would see you this soon."
Sam walked into his house, she hesitated, and turned to face him "We need to talk Hyde"
"I agree Sam so what is on your mind"
She looked at Hyde. "Hyde you have been vague and distant for some time now. I want to know what is going on with you.
Hyde motioned toward the couch "Have a seat Sam" He then grabbed a kitchen chair and straddled it facing Sam.
"Sam I am very sorry for the harsh words I said to you. I should not have said them in front of everyone in the basement. I apologize, but the problem is that I meant every word I said."
Sam visibly flinched.
"You know I did care for you Sam"
Sam loudly interrupted, "How can you say that, how dare you say that, after what you said to me."
"Sam, what I was going to say is that I care for you as a friend, and if you think about it, you're not in love with me either."
"Hyde, how can you say crap like that, after all we have been through together?"
Hyde paused, "Sam" he softly said. "We are each others rebounds. Me from Jackie and you from your so called ex."
"Sam, we were meant to be friends. We made a mistake. I know we were affectionate toward each other, but we lacked passion. Even our love making was like we were doing it by the numbers."
"Hyde. You mean you know someone who makes love better than I?"
"Sam I was thinking about passion. Don't confuse passion with anything else. There was no passion with you."
"Hyde are you saying I am bad in bed? Where or who did you learn all this passion?"
"No Sam, you're not bad in bed. You were just in the wrong bed. You don't belong in my bed. Also Sam you do not learn passion. It is either there or not there. Half the time I did not know how to act around you, I was afraid of every little thing I did would set you off. We essentially tip toed around each other. I thought I was in love with you, but slowly I started to question my feelings toward you."
"So Hyde, what happened? What made you decide, you're not in love with me."
Hyde looked up at Sam "Sam I am sorry. I never should have let this go on so long. I thought the feelings would go away. They just got more intense."
"Hyde what in the hell are you talking about?"
"Jackie, the longer we were separated the more I missed her."
Sam stood up and with her voice steadily rising. "What...Hyde, you two have been broken up for almost two years. I can't see why you would decide that after all this time."
"Sam, with you, as much as I tried, and as much as I thought I loved you at one time, something was missing. I could not put my finger on it. With Jackie I realized the problem was with me not you. When I broke up with her, my life went into a downward spiral. Even being with you could not check it. I started to realize that the high point of my day was when I saw Jackie, even if I was mad at her."
"Hyde, that is ridiculous. So Hyde, are you trying to tell me you're in love with Jackie? She cheated on you. You broke up and now you're telling me you are in love with her. Your incredible Hyde; I feel like I am in some alternative universe."
"I guess I have always been in love with her. I just never forgave her. I said I did, but I didn't. When I got my stupid pride out of the way, I eventually realized there was nothing to forgive. She did not need forgiveness, she needed understanding. I never gave her a chance to explain why Kelso was in her room. I have come to realize that she would never have cheated on me."
"Hyde I feel used, it is like our whole relationship was a lie."
"No more than you used me. We were friends who made a bad mistake. Besides you always had your Ex the guy you always ran from only to run back to."
"I am so confused Hyde. You have decided you are in love with a girl you broke up with over a year ago and has left Point Place?"
"Jackie leaving Point Place was what made me realize I was still in love with her. Even when we were broke up, she was always around. When she left, I missed her, I suddenly felt empty."
"So Hyde, what are you going to do?"
"Go after her Sam, and pray to God she still loves me"
.
"Hyde, you're going to chase her to Chicago?"
"If I have to, I don't care where she is I will go to her."
"Hyde, I am sorry, I just don't get it. Out of the blue you decide you're in love with Jackie, and you're going to drop everything and go find her? Why?"
"Sam, because Jackie is the single most important thing ever to happen to me."
Sam stood up and looked at Hyde; she shook her head, and walked out wordlessly.
SEVERAL DAYS LATER
Hyde was home trying to get things in order so he could make the trip to Chicago and try and woo Jackie back to him. His main concern was the record store. The last time he left; Leo just about wrecked the place. Besides Leo at one point in his drug induced haze thought the store was his and tried to sell it. Fortunately the man he tried to sell it to was Red Forman. Hyde heard a knock on his door. He was not in the mood to talk with anyone so he flung the door open ready to jump on whoever was standing there.
Standing there was Jackie. She was dressed very simply in a yellow sundress with her dark hair cascading down her back. Hyde stood there shocked, speechless, with his mouth hanging open. Jackie walked in, and started tapping him on the chest with her index finger.
'Hey, I heard you were going to Chicago"
"Um yes, I am, I was."
"Hey why were you going to Chicago?" With that question she walked right up to Hyde, and stood toe to toe with him.
Still tapping Hyde on the chest, "Hey Dude, I heard you love some girl in Chicago."
"How did you get here? Why are you here? Why aren't you in Chicago?"
Jackie put her hand across Hyde's mouth. "Steven hush. I am here to see Brooke and I heard you were going to come to Chicago and rescue me. You know Steven, when a girl stands this close to you, and totally invades their personal space. She usually expects to be kissed."
Hyde gently removed her hand from his mouth. Looked down at her, and said. "You want me to kiss you?"
"I thought you would never ask."
Hyde woke up and looked over. He still could not believe it. Next to him was Jackie Burkhart She was sleeping on her stomach. Her head was turned away from him. Her raven hair was splayed across her bare back. The sheet was pushed down to her waist. God she is beautiful, he thought. He kissed her bare shoulder. Hyde chuckled to himself. I guess we still can't keep our hands off each other.
.She was his again and would be for life. Hyde felt complete again. That vague something is missing feeling was gone.
Hyde was propped up on one arm, looking at her bare back, absent mindlessly playing with the sheet. Lost in thought about him, and Jackie.
"Steven"
"Yes Jackie."
"Stop fidgeting. If you want to see my ass, just pull the sheet down."
He heard her giggling; Hyde took Jackie into his arms. He looked down into her beautiful multi colored eyes.
"Now Jackie, all this time I thought it was you, who wanted to look at my ass."
"You're deluded Hyde. Kiss me."
