A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, and the favs, and to all of you guys who are following this story! 107derwent, MistyMountainHop, your detailed comments have been wonderful to read, thank you so much! I'm so sorry it's taking this long for me to update, but... life, you know. Anyway, you might notice that there are dates and times now, I've actually included them in all the chapters, and I've changed the timeline a little bit. I hope you enjoy what's coming, I'm having a lot of fun writing it and imagining ways our beloved characters can screw up and make up again and again. The way it happens in life, you know :)

Disclaimer: still don't own anything (but would kill for some of Jackie's smart outfits).

Chapter 4

Wednesday, July 25th, 1979.

Brooke's apartment, Chicago.

6:00 pm

"Brooke, what did I do?" Jackie let out with a whisper, looking pleadingly into her friend's eyes, hoping the older and by any means more mature girl would give her an answer that would set everything right.

Brooke scooted closer to Jackie on the couch and patted her knee.

"Sweetie, what do you mean?"

They were sitting on Brooke's couch for only half an hour, and Jackie was already a complete mess. They were supposed to go out tonight and have fun, but when Brooke saw Jackie barge into her apartment with angry eyes and snarky comments about her outfit bursting out of her mouth, she quickly understood their girl's night out was over before it even began. She managed to calm Jackie down, and then the tiny brunette melted into her embrace, sobbing and apologizing. She was nearly hysterical, so Brooke made Jackie sit on the couch and went searching her cupboards for the strongest weapon against depression she had on hand, that is a bottle of rhum and a margarita mix. Now, sitting next to her, Brooke wondered what had gotten into Jackie. For the few days she had been in Chicago she sounded chipper on the phone, like her usual self, and seemed to be very excited to talk all about her new job while being "her amazing self" at this new club opening that was happening tonight.

"Why did I come here? He told me he wanted me to stay! He actually told me! And I still went, and now I've ruined it, and he will think I don't love him anymore, and he will think that I've manipulated him!" the last sentence was made almost inaudible by a loud whimper that left her sobbing again.

"Oh, Jackie, don't say that! I think it's a good thing you came here and took that job. You did this for you, remember? And Steven is mature enough to understand that you taking this job doesn't mean you want to leave him."

Jackie locked eyes with Brooke before breaking into another series of sobs. "No he's not"

"Hey, hey, don't cry." Brooke patted her back, trying to think of something wise to say to Jackie. She wondered if this huge decision Jackie had made was the right one, but then again, she was certainly not here to judge.

"Hey, if you think you made a mistake, you need to talk to him, all right? I'm sure you can work this out."

"You don't know him, Brooke! I think I already made him talk too much, he's not this kind of person, you know. He doesn't like to talk."

"Well, then, tell me what kind of person he is?"

"He's the kind of person who bails when he thinks I manipulate him, and he acts on impulse, and he never stops to think that I love him and that he can trust me." The sobbing had subsued now, but it wasn't a good sign. Jackie was staring at the wall, lost in her painful thoughts.

"He didn't bail this time, though, did he? He told you to stay, and then he came here to be with you on your first day, and now he's letting you to do your dream job. Sounds mature to me, Jackie."

"But... Brooke, but what if he's not mature? What if he let me go because he doesn't care anymore?"

"Jackie" Brooke put a hand on her shoulder and made Jackie look at her. "That's nonesense. Did something happen to make you think that? Isn't he supposed to come here this weekend?"

Jackie looked at her friend, aware of how crazy this whole situation might have sounded to her. There wasn't really anything to worry about. After all, she got what she wanted. She had her boyfriend and her job. Sure, both were miles away from each other. And they would have to work it out eventually. But she didn't want to wait. She new Steven was a flight risk, but more importantly, she didn't understand why he let her go in the end? Didn't he care? Could he really live five days a week without her around? She wasn't sure of what she wanted anymore. She was so used to picture her perfect future, so used to believe that it would just happen one day, that when she actually discovered she needed to work for it, she felt lost.

"Brooke, I don't know what to do. I want to be with him, but I don't want to quit. I don't know what I'm going to do." Jackie sighed as she lowered her head on Brooke's shoulder, sipping her margarita.

"Well, I think what you need to ask yourself is - do you want to be with him, or do you want him to come and save you? Because if you really want to be with him, you'll have to swallow some of your pride, sweetie, and admit that you are afraid too, maybe as much as he is."

Bitch. "What do you mean "afraid"? I'm not afraid! I'm not afraid of anything! I am Jackie Burkhart, Jackie Burkhart does not get afraid!" Jackie was sitting straight now, pointing at Brooke and furious at how much she was like an open book to her friend. To hell with librairians, she thought.

Brooke smiled and tilted her head, the same way she would do at little Jimmy at the library everytime the young boy tried to sneak out a Playboy underneath his pile of comic books.

"Jackie, it's okay to be afraid. Sometimes things happen in life you're unprepared for." She smiled at her own memory of how terrified she was when she discovered she was pregnant with Betsy. "But most of the time, they are good things, because they make you grow. And in your case, your decisions will make both of you grow."

Jackie crossed her arms on her chest, still not quite sure where Brooke was going with this. "Huh". Well, after all, one thing was undeniable, nothing was going to be the same again after this. Maybe change was a good thing.

Wednesday, July 25th, 1979.

Point Place.

The Hub

1:00 pm

"What the hell, Forman? I'm not doing that!"

"Hey, you asked, man, I'm here to help. I got the Force on my side. The Force has never let me down before."

"Really, Forman?" Hyde chuckled, amused by his friend's overconfidence in the matters of love and relationships. Eric was not good at this. Not good at all.

Eric seemed hurt, and before Hyde could add anything, he threw his hands in the air and stood up from his seat, ready to storm out of the hub. Hyde reached quickly to him and grabbed his elbow.

"Oh, come on, man! Look, if you wanna know, I'd seriously like your opinion about Jackie. I don't really know what to do now." And he really didn't. Everything had happened so fast in the last few days. A week ago they were quite happy together, and then, the next thing he knew, she threw that stupid ultimatum at him, made him tell her not to go to Chicago, went anyway, and left him pretending everything was fine. But it wasn't. Jackie got her dream job, or whatever, while he was still in Point Place, missing her but too lazy to do something about it. It had worked out so well for him before. It was just so much easier to go back to his old self instead of growing up. Well, except he still wanted her, and this time, the stakes were much higher. Lost in his thoughts, Hyde finally heard Eric call out to him, exasperation clearly getting the best of his friend.

"Hyde! Are you even listening to me?"

"What? Oh, yeah, yeah man... What were you saying?" Hyde took a sip of his pop as he tried to concentrate on his friend's babbling.

"I was saying that if you want to be with the devil, you have to go to the devil. The devil is the devil for a reason. And if she left, she obviously ment it as a test for you. To see if you were capable of getting off your butt and give her what she wanted."

"Huh. So what you're saying is that she took the job and decided to go despite everything because she's evil?"

Eric stared at Hyde, amazed at how little his burnout friend seemed to understand the ways of life.

"Of course!"

Hyde shifted in his seat, letting out a scoff. Huh. He didn't believe it for a bit, but Forman had a point. Why did she leave? Well... because the job was important to her, and it made sense. But did it mean the job was more important than him? She had led him to believe she would stay if he wanted her to. He wasn't sure of anything, especially not sure if he was ready to be the one to put himself out there. He had always been the one to be pushed, not the other way around. He was aloof. He was zen. He wasn't a girl. But then again, maybe it was time he sucked it up. He was angry at her, angry she left. He wasn't sure she left him though. This girl was driving him crazy.

"You know what, Forman, you just gave me an idea!" Hyde patted Eric's back, smiling.

"Oh yeah?" Eric was oven the moon.

"Yeah, I'm gonna go to Chicago and give her a piece of my mind", Hyde said as he rose from his seat and squizzed Eric's shoulder.

Eric looked up at him, a question already forming on his lips as he began to suspect his friend wasn't going to follow his advice to the T, but Hyde turned away quickly and went for the door. In a matter of seconds, Eric was left alone at the hub, frowning at what had just happened, but secretely hoping Hyde wouldn't make a fool of himself in Chicago. Oh wait. If his friend was going to make a fool of himself, he wouldn't want to miss it for the world!

"Wait up!", he shouted, before quickly grabbing his things and running out of the door, trying to keep up with Hyde.

Wednesday, July 25th, 1979.

Chicago

Brooke's place

7:00 pm.

"You need to ask yourself what you want." The question was overwhelming her. She stood in Brooke's bathroom, staring at her reflection in the mirror, as if hoping that by some miracle the answer would come to her as she reapplied her make-up. The truth was, she didn't really know the answer. She didn't know the right answer. And she didn't want to have to decide right now. She loved Steven. And she loved her new job. It was a challende, true, and she would have to work hard to become the star she dreamed of being, but Jackie wasn't the one to waver in front of a challenge. Then again, maybe this was the problem. As long as there was a challenge, everything was right. But as soon as he'd actually given her the answer she wanted to hear, and all she had to do was go with it, she panicked. She wasn't prepared for things to get so serious this fast. It seemed crazy. Being with Steven, Steven actually wanting her to stay, that was the dream. But as soon as she had it, she felt lost. The job was a getaway, in a sense. Now, the job was also a reason for her to stay. Maybe she could talk to Steven and persuade him to move to Chicago? Stupid. He would never go for it. He wouldn't uproot just for her. Maybe if she threw something else in the mix, like a Chicago Groove's store to manage. She'd have to call WB and ask him if he could relocate his son. Then again, why would WB listen to her? No, the choice had to come from Steven.

And to think that he didn't even seem jealous of her working! That was truly unsettling. Not that she wanted him to act all caveman around her, but still. This wasn't the Steven she knew. Something was off. Maybe he really was disappointed in her and didn't love her the way he used to. She wondered how so much insecurities could fit into such a beautiful person. But there she was, insecure again.

"Jackie, there's someone on the phone for you!" Brooke called from the living room, urging Jackie to finish her post breakdown beauty routine and come out of the bathroom.

"Hello" She picked up the phone, wondering who could be calling here.

"Jackie, it's me." Hyde was on the other line, he sounded a bit angry.

"Steven! How did you find out I was here?" She was suddenly smitten. She'd missed his call and he found a way to reach her, probably called Kelso to ask for Brooke's number or something.

"Yeah, well, I figured you might be with Brooke since no one was picking up at the motel."

"Oh Steven..."

"Jackie, listen, we have to talk, ok? I'll be in Chicago in two hours, can you be at the motel at nine?"

"Why don't you come here?"

"I want to talk to you in private, ok?"

"Oh... ok, I'll see you there then."

Jackie put down the phone, wondering why Steven was so secretive and why his voice wasn't as soft as the last time they spoke. Maybe her worrying hasn't been for nothing. Maybe he did come here to break up with her.

Brooke sat beside Jackie on the couch.

"Are you all right, sweetie?"

"Yeah, yeah. That's good news actually! Steven is coming here, in Chicago, tonight! I'm sure it's for a good reason."

"Of course it is! Don't worry, Jackie."

"Well, I better get going then, I want to look my best." Jackie said with a huge smile, trying to persuade herself that everything was fine, and that Steven came just because he missed her too much and wanted to see her before the weekend. He didn't come because he finally realized he was angry at her for leaving. But what if he'd talked to someone? What if he'd talked to Eric? That skinny boy was able to put devilish ideas in his head! What if... what if Steven came here to tell her it was over?

Wednesday, July 25th, 1979.

Chicago

The Motel

9:00 pm.

Hyde got out of his El Camino in the Motel's parking lot, breathing in the cool evening air. Eric had insisted on coming along, eager to witness the awkward scene he was sure was going to take place tonight. But now he was curled up in the passenger seat, sound asleep. What a baby. Hyde didn't want to leave him in his car, but there wasn't much choice. He really needed to speak to Jackie was unfamiliar territory. They had both been abruptly thrown into adulthood: the decision he had to make was a life changing one, and they were both going to have to take responsibility for what was about to happen. The last few days, whatever was going to happen next, couldn't be ignored, and maybe it was for the best. Right now, they were in a kind of limbo. Either they were going to stay together or break up, it had to be done right. He'd always praised himself for being a man, a real man. Running away wasn't an option, no matter how appealing.

The knock on the door made Jackie jump. She got up from the bed and checked herself quickly in the mirror. She really wasn't sure of what was going to happen next, but at least she looked amazing.

"Steven" There was warmth in her voice, but she stopped a few feet away from him, unsure of how he would react if she came closer.

"Hey" He stepped towards her, a small smile creeping over his face. She seemed as hesitating as he was, and Hyde found that endearing. Or scary. But mostly endearing.

"What's going on?"

"How do you mean?" She let herself sit back on the edge of the bed, looking straight up at him and trying to decipher the look in his shaded eyes. Thankfully, he pulled off his shades, revealing his blue eyes sparkling with amusement. Or sarcasm. No. Definitely amusement.

"I screwed up, didn't I?" he said as he approached her.

Jackie smiled, feeling the tension leaving her body.

"Yeah. But so did I."

"Huh." He grinned and sat beside her, his thigh pressed against hers.

"So we're good?"

Jackie left out a sigh, internally overwhelmed with joy but not wanting to show it just yet. "We're good". She turned to face him and smiled, then slowly reached his face and stroked his cheek. He was quicker though. By the time her fingers softly scratched the back of his neck, he was already kissing her and pulling her closer, before laying her on the bed and covering her with his body.