A/N: Thank you for everyone who read and reviewed. I really appreciate all the input. Relic I totally agree with your comment but there is a reason I'm having Hyde act that way. You will see it play out later in the story. So please keep on reading and reviewing! This chapter is from Jackie's pov. I'm still not sure if I'm going to completely alternate back and forth between her and Hyde. This is more of an introspective chapter for Jackie. She always seemed like she was weak on the show and I wanted to show that she can relay on herself so she is playing more of a stronger role. I'm sorry if anyone is out of character. In the beginning of the chapter I'm back tracking and showing the last part of the first chapter from her perspective. I hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

Love wasn't built on Conditions

Chapter 2: Home Sweet Home

It had been three years since Jackie lived in Point Place. She had graduated early from the University of Wisconsin at Madison with a degree in Textile and apparel design. She had taken classes during winter and summer to get her degree faster. She felt weird moving away from her new life and new friends but she didn't have much money anymore and had to go home. She was thinking about coming home and starting her own business. Moving back home kind of scared her. She would see Steven for the first time. She went out of her way to avoid him but she knew she wouldn't be able to once she moved back. Brooke and Michael had been kind enough to offer her a place to stay until she got back on her feet. She also promised to baby sit her god daughter as compensation. She had just finished moving her stuff back into Donna's old room and was headed over to the Forman's to figure out what to do for lunch. As she approached the drive way she saw a little girl sitting on one of the chairs playing with a doll. She had never seen her before and she was a little smaller then Betsy. The girl looked like she could have been a miniature version of herself. She had dark brown curly hair pulled into pigtails. She was wear a jumper and big dark brown eyes.

"Hi!" The little girl said to her as she walked up.

"HI," Jackie said and stopped to talk to her.

"I'm Nikki, who are you?" she asked.

"My name's Jackie. Didn't your parents ever teach you not to talk to strangers?" she responded. She was a little worried that some little neighbor girl was hanging out in the Forman's yard.

"Most people are afraid of my daddy." Nikki told her.
Jackie laughed.

"Are you staying with Brooke and the dumbass?" the girl said. Jackie was surprised such a little girl had such a dirty mouth.

"As a matter of fact I am." She looked down at the doll she was playing with. "What happened to her head?"

"Betsy pulled it off," she said simply.

"Ooh, that's too bad."

"Not really her stupid hair always got in the way,"

"What is she dressed up as?"

"A ballerina,"

"I used to take ballet," Jackie told her.

"I'm taking it right now with Betsy. I'm a lot better then she is,"

"Oh really?"

"Yeah I'll show you,"
"Okay, hey let me go talk to Brooke real fast," She said and walked into the Forman house. It had been ages since she had been here. She tried to only come around when she knew Steven wouldn't be here.

She heard laughter as she entered the living room.

"Hey Brooke, I just finished unpacking and I'm a little hungry so..." Jackie said and then saw Steven. She looked at him; it was unreal seeing him after all these years. He still looked exactly the same as the day she left him… but maybe a little older. He was still wearing those stupid sunglasses.

Before she could get a better look at him the little girl followed her into the room.

"Jackie! You didn't let me show you my dance!" She yelled.

She turned around to look at her again. She still didn't see the resemblance.

"When I'm done eating you can show me all the dances you know," she said trying to flatter her. She turned back around to the group. "Whose kid is that?"

"That would be mine," he spoke. She was surprised to hear him talk after three years. She knew his girlfriend had been pregnant but she never heard anything about it again after she left. Donna and Eric and the others just knew not to bring it up. She was hoping that his girlfriend and the baby died or there was a miscarriage. Sure it was evil to think and wish that but she couldn't help it. The girl had looked a little familiar. She was sure this was the little girl that Kitty had pictures of on the fridge.

"Oh," Jackie answered not sure what else to say. She watched as the little girl walked over to him and sat on his lap. She gave him a big hug and he kissed her on top of the head. It was surreal. Jackie had always had daydreams about what it would be like if she and Steven ever had kids. And she always sort of imaged a scene like this but now to actually see it and in real life bothered her. She stood there indifferent, staring as if she was imagining it. She was also a jealous that this little girl could get his undivided attention and he was never willing to give it to her.

"Daddy do you know Jackie?" she heard Nikki ask him.

He looked at her again. It was the weirdest situation and she knew he would lie to her to make things simple. How could a little girl understand what was going on with their complicated relationship, in fact neither one of them understood their relationship. The entire room went silent and all eyes were on Nikki and Steven.

"Yeah Hyde, do you know Jackie?" Kelso asked.

Hyde frogged Kelso. "Quite you,"

Nikki just stared at him. "Daddy?"

"Uh yeah… she hung out with us when we were younger,"

"Hung out?" Nikki asked.

"Played with…"

"HAHA… you can say that again! Jackie played with Me, Fez and Hyde," Kelso laughed.

Jackie shot him a nasty look.

"Why didn't she play with Uncle Eric?" Nikki asked.

Jackie's face began to look bright red and she knew that Michael loved this. Hyde looked at her and mouthed sorry. She gave him a small smile.

"Because your Uncle Eric liked to play with Aunt Donna,"

Nikki still looked confused.

"You'll understand when you are older,"

"I like to play with Betsy," She said.

Michael looked like he was about to burst out laughing.

"Kelso man, I swear to god you will be blind in both your eyes if you don't stop laughing," Hyde told him.

"Alright Jackie, lets go have some lunch at the hub," Brooke said.

"I think I'm gonna come," Donna responded.

"God Donna, you have gotten so big! And I didn't think that was possible because Eric is so frail!" Jackie replied.

"Burn!" Nikki called out.

"She really likes to say burn doesn't she?" Kelso asked Hyde.

"Well if you hadn't taught her it," Hyde replied.

"If you hadn't taught her to call me tatter nuts I wouldn't have taught her burn."

"Uh! Yeah let's go… I haven't been around all of you for three years and it's like nothing has changed… except Donna, you have a huge belly,"

"And you have a huge mouth," Donna said and she followed Donna and Brooke out of the Forman's back over to Brooke's. They all piled into the car.

Jackie was still thinking about what just happened back there. She was still surprised that little girl could look so much like her. And she was surprised how patient and a good father he was. She could see how much he loved his daughter. When they were together Steven had never talked about having kids and she wasn't sure if he even wanted one. But watching him in there actually not walking out on someone was amazing. That he could actually love someone with out conditions. Sure he loved Kitty and Red but it wasn't the same. They had never given him a reason not to trust him. Steven never trusted her or any of their friends. She knew he had could never really let anyone in. And it really hurt her that this little girl got to know a side of him that no one and not even she got to see. He had driven her off when she found out he had gotten Trish pregnant. She thought her life was over. She didn't know what to do or where to go. She had felt completely alone. So she left and went to Madison and enrolled. They had given her a lot of slack for taking a year off but she showed them. Instead of joining a sorority and all the little clubs she would have normally joined when she was younger and bitchier, she worked her ass off and studied and worked. She saved up enough money as she could to keep paying the bills. She never had a day off. Sure she was still acted stuck up to the gang but that was how their relationships was. She had to start a new life by herself if she couldn't be with Steven. Sure she had dated while she was away but no one seemed to click with her the way Steven did. There wasn't any passion or chemistry. All her friends thought she was strange for not wanting to have a serious relationship with any of the dozens of guys she had had dates with but she didn't see the point. She tried every time she came home to have the courage to go see him but every time she got home she just remembered that night over and over again and how much he hurt her. And she was sick of hurting. It was easier to just avoid him and spend all her time with Donna and Eric. She was sick of being their third wheel. It was kind of nice to be home again and see Brooke and Michael and Steven. She didn't realize how much she had missed him since she had been away from him. He could still read the expression on her face. And she was actually excited to get to meet Nikki. She seemed to be such a cute little girl.

"Jackie!" Brooke yelled. Jackie turned and looked at the front passenger seat.

"What? You don't have to yell," She told her.

"I have been calling you for the past five minutes," Brooke told her and Donna laughed.

"Sorry I was just in my own head,"

"You weren't day dreaming about those strappy sandals down at the mall again and how great they would be when you go to the beach this summer," Donna answered.

"No, I don't just have fickle thoughts all the time,"

This made both Donna and Brooke laugh.

"I'm serious!"

"Seriously funny,"

"Well you are seriously funny looking you lumberjack!" Jackie said and kicked the back of Donna's seat.

"Hey don't kick the driver or your walking midget," Donna called and pulled into the parking lot of the hub.

The hub had changed a lot since she had been gone. There was no longer a jukebox and the place had expanded. It was brightly colored and they had menus now. They were able to get their old booth by the bathroom but Jackie didn't feel right being here. It wasn't the same and most of the places here had changed.

"Why does everything look different?" Jackie asked.

"Well a lot has changed around here since the 70's," Brooke told her.

"Yeah and I hear that they have more cassettes down at Grooves then they do of records. They are trying to faze them out!" Donna exclaimed and then scarfed down her burger.

"Wow Donna, I know you are eating for two now but come on!" Jackie laughed.

"You try carrying a melon on your stomach all day and see how you feel,"

"I used to eat like that when I was pregnant with Betsy," Brooke replied.

"I wonder if I'm gonna ever want to have a kid then," Jackie laughed.

"Oh come on, you know you do. When you were with Hyde…"Donna began but trailed off. Jackie shot her a look. It wasn't that she was mad but she was sick of them always starting a story when you were with Steven… before you guys broke up and before you were with Fez…

"What Donna?" Jackie asked.

"Well what do you plan on doing here? I mean where are you going to work you had more options back at Madison and you could have stayed with Eric and me," Donna responded.

Jackie was kind of getting sick of this conversation with Donna. They had it a lot. She knew Donna was going to miss her but it's not like they couldn't come and visit her when they were back visiting the Forman's. Jackie loved Madison and would have rather stayed there but something was telling her to come home. She was going to start looking for jobs Monday at stores and try to save up enough money to get an apartment and to try to start her own company. She wanted to do it her way and she was sick of people telling her that she couldn't do it because that's what they were saying about her going to school.

"Donna, I can take care of myself," She told her and smiled. And for once she never felt so sure about something in her entire life.