AN: I love each and everyone of you! You have no idea just how happy each and every one of your reviews make me. I'm so glad that everyone is enjoying the story so far. Alright, here's the "big" chapter all of you have been waiting for. Now, there isn't too much JH interaction... that'll come in the later chapters, but this is their big meeting. I hope you enoy!
Chapter 6: Drawing Pictures of Innocent Times
Zach sat at the kitchen table, completely mesmerized. He had been watching this new woman talk non-stop going on 30 minutes. She mostly talked about superficial crap like clothes, makeovers, etc. Zach wasn't quite sure. He hadn't been listening, just watching. To his surprise, his Aunt Donna just stood over the stove listening and smiling. From all his years, he had never known his best friend's mother to be girly and only witnessed her take pleasure in such activities on rare occasions. He wondered what it was about this tiny, brunette woman that didn't make the tall red head want to strangle her. Zach was already feeling a headache coming on from the non-ceasing chatter.
Another thing that Zach couldn't help but notice was how much younger the two women looked with their huge, laughing smiles. They talked of normal everyday things, but there was just something about their chemistry that anyone who didn't even know what was being said could tell they were enjoying their conversation.
"Do you want to get out of here?" Zach asked as he looked at Josh who seemed to be just as bored as he was.
"Yeah." He gruffly responded. "Let's go to my room."
As the two got up to walk away, the sliding glass door opened, revealing another long haired deviant to society. It could only be Jeff, their best friend and bandmate.
"Where were you guys last night? You missed Expletive play and this crazy guy with a bloody nose looking for this guy that punched him out. It was awesome."
Zach and Josh just exchanged knowing, silent glances. "Something came up, dude. We had to leave." Josh stated nonchalantly.
"Well what was it?"
"You know," Zach butted in. "The usual."
Jeff gave the two a distrusting eye. "No. It isn't usual for you guys to miss Expletive!"
"Well, it happened to be yesterday's usual." Zach retorted while patting his friend on the shoulder. "You get my drift?"
Jeff rolled his eyes incredulously. "Alright, I'm not the stupid one of this group, but if you guys want to be all secretive with each other than that's fine."
"Good boy Jeff." Josh said, still unmoving like a statue. Zach slapped his friend on the back and smiled evilly.
"Well," Jeff tiredly began. "Do you guys at least want to go to the Jam Room? Or have you really lost your minds?"
"They can't." Now it was Donna who piped in. "They have to stay here for dinner. You can join us if you like."
Jeff sighed and shook his head in dismay. "I guess I can do that." He finally said.
"Now," Zach began while clapping his hands together. "Back to what we were doing."
Josh and Zach made a beeline out of the kitchen, leaving Jeff behind in complete confusion.
"You should follow them." Donna said matter-of-factly.
Jeff sighed again and followed the path through the house that his friends had just traveled. Once he was out of sight, Jackie continued on with their conversation.
"So, that Donna, is my nightly ritual before I go to bed. It's what has allowed me stay looking young and beautiful." Jackie gave a hair flip. "You should really think about using it, Donna."
Donna smiled at another one of Jackie's bandhanded compliments. She really had missed the 5 foot tall midget.
"So," Jackie's voice dropped a little, signaling she had something serious to ask. "Who is all going to come to dinner?"
"Pretty much just us and I told Hyde to come over after he gets off of work." Donna watched Jackie as she nodded with her lips clamped tightly together. Donna decided to change the subject. "Mr. and Mrs. Forman are coming up for a visit in about a week. They always come up for the 4th of July. Besides, it gets too hot for them during this time of year."
"Well that'll be great. I can't wait to see them again." Jackie put on another forced smile. "Do they know that I came back?"
"Yeah, I told Mrs. Forman last night. She's already planning a party for you. I told her about this big dinner, but she just said that you deserve a huge celebration with good food." Donna rolled her eyes as she continued tossing the salad she had just made.
"Good food?" Jackie questioned with a smirk.
"Yeah," Donna sighed. "She is slightly turning into her mother… at least in the food area. I think she just still loves to baby Eric and nobody's dinners are good enough."
Jackie laughed at the cynicism laced in Donna's voice. "That's just how mothers are. Dennis's mother always loves to mention how I'm just some plain Midwestern girl. When Bobby gets married, I'll probably insult his wife too."
A grin formed on Donna's face. "Yeah, but you insult everybody, so that's a given."
"I do not you lumberjack! I give helpful criticism." Jackie stuck her nose in the air and stood pompously against the counter. The air around them settled, and the pricks of a question eating away at Jackie's gut taunted her to allow its emergence.
"So," Jackie rolled around the question in her head, thinking of the best way to word it. She came to the conclusion that there was no way to conceal her fear and just came out with it. "Steven isn't mad at me for leaving, is he?"
Donna looked at her best friend who nervously waited for an answer. She was still so transparent with her feelings, no matter how much she tried to hide them. A lot like Hyde. Even though they hadn't seen each other in twenty years, Jackie still showed the same girlish nervousness that she did at 17 when she and Hyde started dating. Donna wondered what that could mean for the two of them. Was there some kind of hope? Donna pushed the thought away as she remembered it was stupid to lift expectations for these two. Jackie was probably responding the same way that Donna would if she was in her situation except with wondering if Eric hated her. First true loves just do that to a person.
"No, I don't think so." Lie. Donna knew so. She knew that Hyde didn't hate Jackie at all. Once while drunk, he practically spilled his soul to her. It was funny how the Zenmaster could loosen up with some liquor in him, but the conversation ended up becoming really sad. The two of them were the perfect example of what happens when people just stop communicating to each other.
"Well good. I don't need his grumpy attitude anyways. I have enough to worry about already." Donna listened as she watched her friend try to down play the situation. Some things never change.
Hyde pulled into the driveway, his blood whirling around his body, sending tingling sensations through his arms and chest. He hadn't been this nervous since Sam went into labor with Zach. Then, it is was okay to freak out a little because he was having a kid, but now it was more important than ever to just remain cool and aloof. He couldn't turn into a bumbling idiot now. He breathed in and out of his nose slowly, calming his nerves. Okay, I can do this.
A rapping noise on his window disrupted his meditation. Hyde turned angrily to Forman grinning and waving like an idiot. He opened up the door and stepped out. Eric had a smug grin on his face as he met his best friend's eyes.
"Taking a breather, Hyde?" Hyde really wanted to smack that stupid grin right off of Eric's face, but he had to remember Zen.
"You know, you are especially more annoying during the summer. When you don't have school to worry about, you just lurk around trying to find people to piss off."
"Why do you think Donna celebrates every year come August?" The two shared smiles and Hyde forgot why he was mad, but that stomach falling feeling washed over him again.
Jackie looked at the clock and noticed how close to dinner it was. "I'm going to go make a drink."
As Jackie walked through the swinging door, Hyde and Eric entered through the sliding one. Hyde looked around the room to find no tiny brunette in sight.
"Where's Jackie?" Eric asked.
"In the other room making herself a drink."
Hyde hesitated for a second but figured he just had to get it all over with. "Um… I'm going to go say hi." And with that he walked out of the kitchen, leaving Eric and Donna exchanging questioning glances.
When Hyde entered the living room, the only thing that he seemed to be able to see was her. She had her back toward him and was slowly pouring herself a glass. She was still slim but with a little more curves in all the right places. Her hair still hung long on her shoulders, curled slightly to give it some bounce. A sharp breath hitched in Hyde's throat. She was beautiful.
"Hey Jackie." The deep, familiar voice startled her. She knew exactly who it was and suddenly felt too scared to turn around. She could feel a hot blush form in her cheeks and her abdomen clenched in anticipation. She gulped down a ball that had made its way into the base of her throat. It was now or never.
As Jackie faced him, two hearts began to beat in unison. The air around them was thin, leaving them fully exposed to each other. They drank each others images, enjoying the taste for just a second. Tiny hooks pulled at their hearts in timed rhythms as they felt the other's eyes steal bits and pieces of their bodies.
Zach made his way down the Forman staircase wondering when dinner would be ready. About halfway down he took witness of the scene occurring in the living room. Jackie and his father just stood silent, staring at each other. Curious, Zach stopped descending and watched the moment unfold. The air around him felt thick with mystery. Out of no where, Jackie slowly responded. "Hey Steven."
Steven?
Zach sat at the dining room table devouring the food on his plate taking the time in between bites to peer at his dad and Jackie. They sat next to each other at the table and every once in a while would carry on a quiet conversation between the two of them. Every now and then his dad would smile at her and they would meet each other's gaze, and she would nervously smile back. Zach was completely confused.
Everyone else was too absorbed with eating and their own little discussions to notice. Sometimes, Josh's dad would ask Jackie something about living in Boston, and she would happily ramble about mundane crap. Other times, Jackie would ask everyone else about things that have been happening in Point Place. That usually led into a discussion about a memory from way back in the 70s.
The strangest thing of it all was how this loud, tiny woman kept referring to his dad as Steven, and he just let her do it. No body but Grandma Kitty and Grandpa Red ever called his father Steven. It was Hyde, or in his case Dad, and nothing else. Since he was little, Zach had watched his father quickly correct people when they would try to call him by his first name. But now, it seemed like he barely even noticed the slip. However, Zach couldn't help but see that it seemed like his dad actually enjoyed this woman calling him Steven.
Anger grew in the pit of Zach's stomach causing him to lose his appetite. He just didn't understand why no one seemed to care that Jackie up and left one day and just now was coming back. She annoyed him like no other person had before, but everyone else seemed to enjoy her company. They would lightly burn her and tease her, but everything was good natured about it. Zach couldn't help but feel that there was some big secret being kept that no one wanted to talk about. Zach hated secrets with a passion. He hated being kept in the dark.
Zach looked over at his father and Jackie once again as she giggled at a burn he had just thrown at Eric. The laughing twinkling eyes she shined up at him were just too much. He looked over at his Aunt Donna and noticed that she was looking at the two also.
"Donna," Zach whispered as he tried to keep his question as concealed as possible. "What is going on between my dad and this Jackie lady?"
Donna turned to Zach and grinned slightly at the boy. He really was quick when it came to catching onto things.
"Zach," Donna answered just as quietly. "I'd like you to meet Jackie Burkhardt, the love of your father's life."
AN2: Reviews make the world go round. : )
