AN: Sorry I had to make Fez such a jerk back there.

Disclaimer: The usual


Jackie trembled as she tried to steady herself against the wall.

Nobody had ever called her a whore before. She didn't know how to feel, ashamed? angry? both?

"Hey Jackie," came a soft voice.

Hyde firmly pulled her away from the wall and into his arm's.

He still wanted to go back in there and make that foreign kid see stars but Jackie took precedence over that.

"Come on I'll take you home," he said softly. She was still hunched over, sobs racking her small frame.

"No I don't want you to take me home," she said shaking her head.

"Ok well we can go somewhere else, anywhere you want to go," he continued in the same soothing voice.

"No, I don't want to go anywhere else," she shook her head again.

"You don't want to go home but you don't want to go out? You want to stay here?" Now he was confused.

"Just drop me back at the movies it's close enough to my home," she hiccuped.

"I'll just drive you back to your house, it's on my way," he said with finality, taking her arm.

"No I don't want you to drive me home," she repeated with emphasis, pulling away.

"I'm lost here Jackie," he was very confused. It was not like she hadn't welcomed him to her house before.

"I don't want you to see me mum ok," she whispered.

Oh so that was it.

He was good enough to sneak around with when mummy dearest wasn't around. What the hell was this? Was she getting some thrill from dating some low life like him.

"Fine," he snarled as he released her and began to walk away. "Find your own way home," he called out from his car as he skidded away.


Donna stepped out from the doorway, she had heard the whole thing.

"Come on Jackie, I'm taking you home," she looked back into The Hub glaring at Fez.

She would have been willing to take a few swings at Fez herself but she had followed the same train of thought as Hyde had. She had to make sure Jackie was ok and judging from her conversation with Hyde, Donna knew she really wasn't.

If Jackie hadn't been howling Donna was sure she would have made sure Hyde understood it wasn't that he wasn't good enough for Pam Burkhart although Jackie's drunken mother's mind might have warped it that way, it was that Jackie was too embarrassed about Pam for anyone to know about her problems at home.

Donna's own parents, whom Jackie was very close to, didn't even know.

"Come on midget," Donna whispered wrapping Jackie into an embrace, "It's time to get you home."


Jackie arrived home expecting to find her mother passed out on the couch.

She was very surprised to find that not only was she not there but the liquor hadn't been touched from the night before.

Supposing Pam was out trolling some bar somewhere or possibly had even found a date of her own, Jackie went upstairs and collapsed on her bed.

She was so exhausted but her mind was still wide awake. She couldn't believe she had messed things up so badly with Steven. She felt the tears starting to well in her eyes again but she let them fall freely.

How did her life get so messed up lately. Rolling over to her side she shut her eyes tightly and forced herself to sleep. When she woke up the next morning she went looking for her mother.

She checked everywhere that seemed likely, the lounge room again, her mother's bedroom, the pool house and even some places that seemed unlikely like the garage and the library.

Figuring she was on some 24 hour bender Jackie decided to do inventory of food they still had left in the house.

All she was able to come up with was a half empty carton of orange juice, a bag of peanuts, a jar of pickles and some mustard. She figured she had enough to get her through today but she probably do a shop so she'd have something for tomorrow.

She checked the clock. The stores closed in two hours, she needed to get a move on.

She wouldn't have time to pawn anything so she'd have to use her pay from this week which should cover the basics. She opened the music box, it used to store all her valuables but now only housed her measly savings, but it was empty. It looked like Pam had raided it again.

She had never taken it all before, usually only a few dollars here and there.

Fearing the worst Jackie ran toward her parents bedroom again and threw open the wardrobe doors.

It had been cleaned out completely on her mothers side along with her luggage. Jackie knew the awful truth. Her mother had left her. She hadn't even left a note explaining why.

Jackie sank to the floor trying to think of what to do. She couldn't keep living like this. She was running out of things to sell and her job wasn't earning enough to pay the bills, a fact of which she was well aware.

She picked up the phone and dialled the number for the Pinciotties.

"Mrs Pinciotti," her voice warbled into the phone, "would you be able to come and pick me up?"


When Jackie had explained the situation to Donna and her parents over a cup of hot chocolate they had insisted that she sat at their house as long as she needed to.

She would be able to use Valerie's old bedroom now that the older girl had moved out permanently to start her own family. Bob would drive Jackie back in the morning to pick up whatever she needed to and to help her secure the house until arrangements could be made.

Jackie's heart was warmed by the kindness of Donna's parents who may have been ditzy but definitely had their hearts in the right place.