Author Note: It's a shortie but it's moving the story along!

Chapter – Eleven - Okay – This Isn't Working

It was finally Tuesday and Eric parked on the street outside of Jackie's apartment. He was nervous and excited and terrified all at the same time. He kept repeating Kelso's mantra, "Quit thinking of Jackie as a friend and start thinking about her as a girl." He barely had time to knock on the door before Jackie swung it open. She looked frantic.

"Eric, this is going to be a disaster!" Eric walked through the door and took off his jacket. "Calm down, what's going to be a disaster?"

Jackie was pacing the length of her small living room. "This! I was okay with doing it with someone I didn't know – well not exactly doing IT, but I'm going to be doing it with you! What if you think I'm terrible and this affects the egg processing stuff? I didn't read anything about that."

Eric smiled and caught her hand. "Come here midget." He gave her a hug. "If you don't feel comfortable processing your egg – man I feel weird just saying that – then we can wait another time."

She threw her hands in the air. "I can't – apparently there's a window of time thing I'm supposed work with." Eric laughed, "Hey, come sit with me." The flustered girl plopped on the couch and dropped her head in her hands. "You were right about the cup and magazine being impersonal. This feels impersonal and I don't want to make a baby feeling like this."

Eric scooted over to sit next his friend. "Jackie, let's take this one step at a time. Hold my hand."

She reached out and grabbed his hand. "Now, take the remote control and put on the news. I've had a long day." Jackie looked at him like he was insane. "Put on the news?"

Eric smiled, "One step at a time. Maybe tomorrow we'll rub each others feet."

"I am so NOT rubbing your feet."

He laughed, "Then the next day we'll have a pillow fight and I'll wear one of my sisters nightgowns."

Jackie realized he was just being silly. "You goof. You're right again and I hate it when you're right. I'm taking this too serious. If it happens, it happens." Eric nodded his head, "There you go, now give me some of that Jackie Burkhart attitude."

"I don't have an attitude." She argued.

"Yes you do."

"Do not! Damn, are you trying to piss me off?"

Eric laughed and hugged her, "That's my Jackie. Now seriously, let's watch the news."

*

The Forman household was asleep when Eric got home. He quietly crept up to his room and got ready for bed. Jackie was right; this simple event was going to be more difficult than they thought. His wonderful one-step-at-a-time idea got them only as far as laying on Jackie's bed fully clothed and she fell asleep.

Eric sighed, maybe after a few more nights like this; she may change her mind and wait until she was 30. But this was Jackie Burkhart and this was the girl that made shit happen.

*

A tedious week had gone by and neither Jackie nor Eric felt like doing it or much less talking about it. She had stored the In Vitro books away but was still sketching the baby pictures. Eric suggested they just go see a movie. "Do you know what's playing?" she asked.

"Let's just see what's up when we get there. Drive in or walk in?"

"Let's do a drive in – I hate when people talk during the movie and ruin the ending." It happened; they finally made a decision about something! Eric felt like this was progress. Jackie grabbed some pillows and a couple of blankets, "Do we want to get popcorn there or on the way?"

"Let's get the movie popcorn – for some reason it always tastes better."

The problem started when they got in line at the drive in. Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi or Flashdance. Eric turned to Jackie and tried to appeal to her softer nature. "Jackie, I know you love Han Solo – please choose Star Wars. I will do anything you want – we can come back tomorrow and watch the chick movie but I have to see Luke. Please say yes."

Jackie pretended to think about it. She actually liked Star Wars but would never publicly admit it. "Okay, Star Wars but you have to buy me the big coke. And I want a Butterfinger!" Eric smiled happily and pulled into the line for the movie. They found a spot in the middle of the theater grounds and made sure the speaker worked. "I'm going to get the drinks and popcorn. Are you going to be okay here?"

"Are you serious? Go!" Jackie put her pillows around the door frame and got comfortable. She couldn't remember the last time she went to the drive in unless it was that time in Michael's van and she really didn't see the movie. This was so much better and Eric was a great companion. The sun started to set and the speakers began to play the scratchy sounding movie cartoon with dancing candy and drinks. Jackie thought about Fez when she saw the dancing candy bar. Maybe next time they'll invite him.

Eric nearly ran back with the popcorn and jumbo coke. He opened the car door and slid into the driver's seat. Jackie grabbed her drink and tried to cover the both of them with the blanket. "It might get cold" she said when he looked at her. Eric smiled and sat back waiting for the appearance of Han to be rescued from Jabba the Hutt.

*

The brilliant score of the Star Wars theme boomed through the speaker box as Eric caught his first vision of a new space station so much bigger than the Death Star. Eric reached for Jackie's hand as Lando, Luke, Leia and Chewie returned to Tatooine to rescue Han from Jabba the Hutt. Jackie gasped as she saw Han was frozen in carbonite. She cheered when Leia strangled Jabba and Han knocked Boba Fett into a pit.

Eric was thrilled when Luke returned to the planet Dagobah to complete his Jedi training but was dismayed that Yoda was sick and urged Luke to confront his father. Eric cried to learn that Leia was really Luke's twin sister. Jackie patted Eric's hand tenderly.

"Its okay – you didn't know." She said kindly. She sat and watched the Ewoks but wasn't overly impressed with the Rebel Alliance. Eric was enthralled when Luke began to fight the evil Emperor but was stopped by Vader's light saber. Eric crushed Jackie's hand when Luke cut off Vader's robotic hand but refused to kill his father because he was a Jedi.

When Vader asks his son with a dying breath to remove his helmet, Eric gasps to see that Anakin Skywalker was human and dies. The couple clung to each other as the Death Star exploded and Leia reunited with Han and there was the Ewok celebration with included Lando and the spirit figures of Obi-Wan and Yoda and finally Anakin who had been redeemed as a Jedi.

When the credits started to roll Eric looked pointedly at Jackie, "I did NOT cry. If anyone asks – you know what I mean!"

She looked back just as pointedly, "If anyone asks, I did NOT go to a Star Wars movie!" Eric laughed and pulled his friend in for a hug. Her hair smelled so good and her hands were warm on his back. The Star Wars theme was still playing in the background when he kissed her.

She had no hesitation in kissing him back and Eric didn't know if she was thinking of Harrison Ford but at that moment he didn't really care. His hands found their way under her light jacket and she groaned against his lips. Thoughts of Leia and Darth and light sabers were filling his thoughts as he deftly unbuttoned her blouse. Jackie pulled his shirt to bring him closer to her. Eric reached over and stuffed a pillow under Jackie's head as the music played on – he was so in the moment as his hand reached under her skirt.

Jackie gasped and reached for his belt which was whipped off in seconds. Eric moved over her body as the John Williams theme music marched on into the Ewok celebration, Eric couldn't stop kissing her. The music and the way she smelled was like a drug. He fell into her as the music swelled and she clung tightly to him – encouraging him to join her while the theme music played on.

Her breasts were soft and she was so beautiful and Eric couldn't control himself – he heard himself call her name before he collapsed right there on the front seat of the Vista Cruiser. Jackie wrapped a leg around his and cradled his face in her shoulder. "I can't believe I did it in the car at a Star Wars movie." She groaned.

Eric lifted his head and smiled, "I can't believe I did it without my little raincoat!"

*