The Seeker

Steven crouched, running across the Burkhart's lawn. The damp grass soaked the cuffs of his jeans. He darted between a pair of rose bushes, pressing up against the red brick of the house. Soft pants left his lips. The moon was bright in the sky, and Steven squatted in the mulch, his eyes scanning the neighbor's house, the yard, and the Burkhart's for any sign that someone had seen his arrival.

All quiet on the western front.

The mulch was damp under his fingertips. Steven waddled on his feet, still crouched, around the side of the house, towards the back where Jackie's bedroom was located.

Jackie's bedroom window was halfway open, the white lace curtains billowing out into the air. Steven eyed the lattice crawling up the side of the house by her window, pulling on it with his hands, wincing at the ache of his knuckles. One last cursory glance of the yard. When he was sure it would hold, Steven began to climb, pausing every couple of rungs to make sure that no one had spotted him.

Arriving at her window, Steven pushed it open the rest of the way, hoisting his body in through the window with a grunt. He fell onto the carpet, knocking her bedside table. He winced at the noise he made on impact, Jackie's knick-knacks clattering together.

"Who's there?" Jackie cried, springing up on her bed.

"Shh!" Steven said, raising his hands. He came up onto his knees. "It's me."

A moment passed.

"Go away, Steven." Jackie said, falling to her knees. She rearranged her pillows, clutching her stuffed unicorn to her chest. The mattress groaned as she fell back onto it, pulling the flowered duvet up to her chin. "I don't want to see you."

Steven slid on his knees across the carpet. He stopped at the side of her bed, staring at the back of her head. His breath teased a tendril of her hair, and Jackie angrily swatted at the fly away strands, pushing them smooth behind her ear. "Jackie, I need to tell you something."

"I don't care. Go away." Jackie replied, her body stiff.

"I can't. Not till I tell you." Steven said.

"I don't want to hear it."

"Well, too bad."

"No." Jackie said, rolling over to face him. She came up onto her elbow, her dark eyes bright in the dim room. "If you couldn't have just told me earlier, you can hold onto it for a bit longer. You were a jerk. And I don't want to talk to you."

Jackie flopped down, turning her back to him.

Steven sighed, his head dropping so his forehead rested on the lip of the mattress. He closed his eyes, willing his breathing to return to a place of calm. Sweat cooled the small of his back. "I didn't want to tell you because I knew it would just hurt you."

"Well, now I really want to hear it, let me tell you." Jackie spat, her words laced with sarcasm. Jackie rolled onto her back, looking at him. "What'd you do? Fuck another nurse?"

"No!" Steven said emphatically, raising his head to meet her eye. "I wouldn't do that to you, not again."

"Then what?" Jackie cried, throwing up her hand. "What could possibly be so terrible?"

Steven chewed his tongue.

"I kissed Donna." Steven ground out.

Jackie's face twitched. Her breathing changed, coming out in short, gasped bursts. She laughed. "I'm sorry. What?"

"Donna. I kissed her." Steven said, rocking back on his heels.

"Why?" Jackie said.

Steven felt his pulse quicken. "Cause she asked me to."

"When?" Jackie prompted, her tone expressing her growing anger.

"That night she and I were at the water tower. We were drinking. We were talking, about you and about Forman." Steven shook his head, curls bouncing. "She started to cry, Jackie. I told her I didn't think she and Forman were good together, that I didn't think they would make it and she started to cry. She asked me to kiss her. I didn't know what to do."

"Oh," Jackie said, climbing out of bed. "I don't know, Steven, you could have not kissed her."

"Jackie, we weren't even together." Steven said, standing. His knees ached, the blood rushing back to his feet. "I didn't cheat on you."

"Is that what you've been telling yourself to make you feel better?" Jackie spat. She threw her unicorn plush onto her bed, beginning to pace before her door. "How could you, Steven?"

"I don't know!" Steven burst, wanting to pull out his hair. "I shouldn't have done it, ok? I know that! I regretted it as soon as I did it!"

"Did you sleep with her too?" Jackie asked, coming to a stop.

Steven shook his head no. "No, of course not. I didn't even want to kiss her."

"Oh, but you did." Jackie seethed. "You probably would've slept with her if she'd bawled, huh? Cried just a little bit harder?"

"Jackie, don't be like that." Steven said. He took a step closer to her, pausing when Jackie began to pace again. "Look, I swear, I didn't want to kiss her. Fuck Jackie, from the moment we broke up, all I wanted was to be with you again."

"You've got a funny way of showing it." Jackie said.

"I made a mistake." Steven said, thrown back in time. He had said the exact same thing to her when he had slept with Sharon. "Jackie, I swear, I didn't know what else to do. She caught me unawares."

"Did she force herself on you?" Jackie asked, stopping by her vanity.

Steven's eyes narrowed. "Well, no."

"So she just started to cry and you felt bad and decided you needed to kiss the boo boo all better?" Jackie sat on her vanity poof.

Steven ran his hands through his hair. "She started to cry. She said she needed to know something. She asked me if I would kiss her. I kissed her. That was it."

"Did you french her?" Jackie asked.

"No."

"Did you touch her?"

"No."

"Did she touch you?"

"No, nothing like that."

Jackie seemed unconvinced. She crossed her legs, her foot bouncing up and down erratically.

"Jackie, I swear." Steven squatted before her, his hands on her knee. "I swear to you, alls I did was kiss her. And I hated it. I wanted it to be you. I swear."

Jackie shoved his hands off of her. She took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. Her head tipped back, and she stared up at the dark ceiling. "I knew something had happened."

Steven felt his stomach clench. He winced as he answered her. "I know."

"You lied to me." Jackie's chin lowered, and she met his eye. "All this time. You've lied to me."

Shame. Steven looked away. "Jackie, I'm sorry."

"No." Jackie fumed, standing. Her bare feet brushed over the carpet. "I hate being lied to, Steven. I hate it. You know that! Do you know how this makes me feel?"

"Probably about as shitty as I do?" Steven guessed, turning to face her.

"Don't try to sympathize with me."

"What do you want me to do then, Jackie?" Steven asked, his tone rising. He spread his hands. "I do know what it's like to be lied to all the time. You think you're the only one whose parents treated them like crap growing up?"

"This isn't about our childhoods, or our parents. This is about how you've been a sneaky son of a bitch and lied to me!" Jackie cried.

"Jesus Christ." Steven mumbled, sinking onto the edge of the mattress.

Jackie came to stand before him. "Was I the only one who didn't know?"

Steven shrugged.

"No, don't do that." Jackie said, leaning back on her right leg. She shrugged at him, her face screwed up as she made fun of him. "You know. Tell me. No more lies."

"As far as I know, Kelso doesn't know." Steven said tiredly.

"So, basically, I am to last to find out." Jackie scoffed, chewing on a thumbnail. "I've turned into Fez."

"Would you have preferred to hear it from Forman?" Steven asked.

Jackie scowled. Her hand dropped away from her face, palm slapping against her thigh. "What do you think?"

Steven's fingers returned to his hair, lacing through his curls. His toes flexed in his boots. Inhaling sharply, Steven pulled sharply on the strands, and then released them, his scalp tingling.

"What else have you lied to me about?" Jackie asked.

"Nothing." Steven answered honestly.

"I don't believe you." Jackie reproached.

"Well, then that's your problem." Steven said. He was quickly growing annoyed with the way the conversation was going. In hindsight, he knew that Jackie would be pissed. He knew that she would doubt him, but he had expected more of her. Maybe that after the initial shock of the news, she would have been able to have a reasonable conversation, and listen to him. Try to understand where he was coming from. Steven felt his shoulders rise and fall and his chin dropped to his chest.

Jackie made a sound deep from her throat.

"Look, Jackie," Steven began, "I'm really sorry I kept this from you. But I didn't do it with the intention of hurting you. I wanted to protect you."

"Protect me?" Jackie asked. "From what? Donna? You think I couldn't take her?"

"I wanted to protect you from this!" Steven said, motioning between their bodies. "I wanted to protect you from this pain and anger."

"How kind. If I cry too, will you kiss it better?" Jackie asked.

Steven's jaw locked. She was testing him. Seeing how far she could push him before he grew too angry, too annoyed with her, and left. She was pushing him away. Steven wasn't going to rise to the bait.

"If you ask nicely." Steven retorted, matching her acerbity.

"Nice, Steven." Jackie crossed her arms.

Silence fell over them. The ticking of the grandfather clock in the hall echoed into Jackie's bedroom. Wind whistled through the open window. Steven watched the curtains billow into the room with a sudden breeze, then suck back out into the night air. Gooseflesh popped up on his bare forearms, and Steven rubbed absently at his skin.

"Tell me everything, everything that happened." Jackie's voice startled him. She sank onto the bed beside Steven, leaving just enough space so no part of them touched. "Don't leave anything out."

"Jackie. I've already told you everything." Steven replied.

Jackie fixed him with a stare. "Then tell me again."

Steven sighed, swallowing thickly. "I was going to go to the water tower either way-"

"Why?" Jackie interrupted.

"Because…" Steven searched for the right words. His back began to twinge. "I just needed to get away. I needed to go to a place where we hadn't been-"

"I've been to the water tower, Steven, lots of times. With you."

Steven continued on as if Jackie hadn't spoken. "Where we hadn't had sex. So I got a twelve pack, and I'd just packed the cooler, and Donna showed up in the basement. She invited herself along."

"Typical Donna."

"So we're drinking, and listening to music, and talking."

"Talking about what?"

"It's like I said," Steven said, feeling very much so like Jackie should have a spotlight on his face for this interrogation. "We ended up talking about you and Forman. At first, man, I don't know, we just talked about bullshit. Whatever. I don't even remember. It honestly was inane bullshit that didn't mean anything. But then, Donna started getting all weird."

"Weird, how?" Jackie asked.

"Emotional."

Jackie huffed. "Just because you try to feel as little as possible, doesn't mean everyone does."

Steven turned to look at her. "That was mean, Jackie. You know that isn't true."

She didn't respond. She kicked her feet out, the mattress bouncing with her shifting weight.

"She was asking me questions about Forman. She wanted to know what I thought of their relationship. I told her I didn't want to get involved." Steven rubbed at his eyes. "But I'd gone to the water tower to not think of you, and there I was, obsessing over you still, and I just wanted to be left the hell alone."

Jackie bent her head, her hair blocking her face.

"We got into the Camino. I started the engine. Donna asked me if I would do something. She said I didn't have to, but she just needed to know something. She asked me to kiss her." Steven stared straight ahead. "And she was crying. Not like heaving sobs, or anything. She was just crying, and looked so defeated, and all I thought about in that moment was that she was a friend. Some friend she turned out to be."

"What do you mean?" Jackie asked.

"What kind of friend asks that of another friend?" Steven let his frustrations spike his words. "She made me her scapegoat. She used me. She knew this would happen, and she didn't care."

"You're mad at her." Jackie stated, peeking at him around her hair.

"Well. Yeah." Steven said, as if it were obvious.

"I don't understand what she needed to figure out." Jackie said. "That she didn't want to be with Eric anymore?"

"I think she needed that one thing to bolster her confidence to break up with him." Steven said.

"What a bitch." Jackie whispered. "I knew something was up. Steven, I knew it the whole time."

"You're very perceptive." Steven said without irony.

Jackie chewed on her lower lip. "I always know. God!" Jackie bounced up off the bed. "I am so mad, I could- I could just punch something!"

"Mad at me?" Steven asked, watching her warily.

"Partly." Jackie said. She rounded on him, pointing an accusatory finger. "You swear you're not lying to me?"

"Jackie, I swear."

"Swear on something you love. Swear on the Camino. Swear on Led Zeppelin. Swear on dirty jeans."

"Jackie I swear on the Camino, on Robert fucking Plant, and on every Steve McQueen movie I've ever seen that I'm not lying to you." Steven said. "I've told you everything."

Jackie nodded. "Ok."

"So you believe me?" Steven asked.

Jackie shrugged. "I guess."

"You guess?"

"This is a lot to take in, Steven." Jackie said, covering her face with her hands. She swept her palms over her cheeks, pushing her hair back. "Look, can we talk about this tomorrow? I'm tired. I need to think."

Steven opened his mouth, prepared to say tell her no. Jackie did look tired. And he had dumped a lot of information on her. He had to trust that her mind wouldn't take her down the wrong rabbit hole.

"Yeah. Yeah, alright." Steven stood. He paused on the shag rug, reaching out to touch her hand with the tip of his fingers. "Jackie. I love you."

"I know, Steven." Jackie replied. She toed the carpet. "I love you, too."

-x-

Jackie was like a jungle cat, poised in the treetops, waiting for her prey. She was Zen on the outside. Cool, calm and collected.

The shit had hit the fan, but she had the upper hand. She held the ace, and she was going to use it to her favor. None of the others, except Steven, knew that she knew. She'd milk all the information she could. Figure out if what Steven had told her really was the truth.

Eric looked shocked to see her, when he opened his bedroom door. His fluffy hair stuck up in the back, and he pulled his bed sheet tighter around his body. A bruise, purple and black, stained the bridge of his nose. "Jackie?"

Holding up a bag of Danish's, Jackie shone a megawatt smile on him. "I brought breakfast."

"Why?" Eric asked, eyeing the bag warily.

Jackie shrugged a shoulder. Her cheeks began to burn holding her smile in place. "I just figured, we could, y'know, talk."

"Uh, huh…" Eric said slowly. He looked down at himself. The door closed a hair. "Let me put on some, uh, pants."

"Yes, please." Jackie said.

Eric all but slammed the door in her face. Jackie could hear Eric fumble around in his room, opening and closing dresser drawers. She waited patiently, leaning against Laurie's closed bedroom door. Eric's hair was still unkempt when he opened his door, but the bed sheet had thankfully been replaced with jeans and a t-shirt.

Jackie quirked a smile. The bag of pastry rose once more. "Can I come in?"

Opening the door wider, Eric made a sweeping gesture, admitting her into his bedroom. Jackie looked around with a cynical eye. She couldn't remember if she had ever been in his room before, and she found the close quarters as uncomfortable as Eric apparently felt as well. He struggled over whether he should close to door or not, finally settling on closing it.

Shaking the bag of Danish, Jackie whirled on her heel. "Hungry?"

"Yeah. Always." Eric replied. He snatched some clothes off of his desk chair, wadding them in his hands. "Here, have a seat."

"Thanks." Jackie sat, setting her purse on top of Eric's cluttered desk. She caught a peek of Playboy, and quickly looked away. "Steven doesn't know I'm here."

Eric's face played a range of emotions. He took the bag from Jackie, plopping onto the end of his bed. His voice was curious when he spoke. "Oh?"

Jackie's fingers tugged at one another. "Look, Eric. I just really needed a friend. I needed someone I could trust. Someone I know wouldn't lie to me."

"How do you know I wouldn't lie to you?" Eric asked.

"You don't like me enough to care." Jackie stated.

Eric again looked uncomfortable. He babbled for a moment, cut himself off, and then busied himself with a Danish.

Jackie let him eat, trying her hardest to keep the look of disgust off her face as crumbs dribbled from Eric's mouth and onto his shirt. Eric stuffed his cheeks with pastry, balling up the bag and lobbing it towards the trashcan. The waxed paper rimmed the basket, falling into its depths. Jackie resisted the urge to clap in surprise. She needed to be on Eric's good side, not his petty side.

"I don't know what you want me to say, Jackie." Eric started, wiping crumbs away. "I think you need to talk to Hyde."

"Well I'm here talking to you." Jackie said, leaning her elbows onto her knees. "I know you and I haven't always gotten along. I know we have our differences. But I've always considered you a friend, Eric."

Eric's green eyes met hers with trepidation. "Jackie, I don't know that I'd call us friends. We hate one another."

"I don't hate you." Jackie said, honestly.

"Well." Eric laughed, disbelieving. His hand rose, smoothing down his hair.

Jackie licked her lips. "All I want to do is talk."

"About what?"

"About the big secret." Jackie said, fanning her fingers. "You brought it up, Eric, you teased me with it yesterday like it was no big deal." Jackie shrugged, leaning back in the desk chair. "So. If it's no big deal, than just tell me."

"Hyde will tell you when he's ready."

"No. I want you to tell me." Jackie said. "Steven will just, tell me what I want to hear, or whatever. I need to know the truth."

"The truth." Eric repeated.

"Please, Eric. I need to know." Jackie persisted. She reached out towards him, grasping his hand. Eric grew stiff under her touch.

"The truth." Eric said again.

Jackie nodded. She released Eric, working her face into a look on contrition.

"Well." Eric started, his eyebrows rising on his forehead. "You know Donna dumped me. She cheated on me."

Eric paused, waiting for Jackie's reaction. When he received none, he continued.

"It's not just that she cheated on me. It's who she cheated on me with." Eric watched Jackie closely for her response.

Jackie felt her pulse quicken. But she was Zen. Steven had taught her that. "Well? Who was it? Do we know him?"

"Yeah, we know him." Eric said.

They stared one another down.

"Say it." Jackie demanded.

Eric scratched his temple. "You know… Now that I think about it… I really don't know that I should."

"Oh, don't be a wuss, Eric." Jackie admonished. "We've come too far for you to chicken out now, this isn't the line for Shockwave at Six Flags."

"Ok, fine, it's Hyde." Eric burst. "Donna cheated on me with Hyde."

"With Steven?" Jackie asked, drawing on her natural acting talent. She scoffed. She pushed her hair back from her shoulders and laughed like Eric had told her the funniest joke she had ever heard. "No, Steven wouldn't do something like that."

"Oh, but he would," Eric leered, "for a friend."

"The hell does that mean?" Jackie asked.

Eric leaned closer. "It means that Hyde and Donna! They kissed!" Eric's voice grew in pitch. His hands gripped his hair, "And he helped her as a friend by kissing her!"

"That doesn't sound like something Steven would do." Jackie said.

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger. I heard it straight from the horse's mouth." Eric said.

Jackie chewed her lip. Her eyes narrowed. "When did this happen? What all happened? Tell me everything."

"I don't know, when they went to the water tower?" Eric said. He stretched his neck. "They made out in the Camino. God, I can't even look at that car without feeling intense rage."

Standing, Jackie began to pace, her thumbnail firmly between her teeth. She pushed aside a pile of Eric's clothing on the floor, stopping briefly at his window. Pointing out at Donna's house, Jackie rounded on Eric. "What does Donna have to say about all of this?"

"Huh?" Eric asked stupidly.

"Think!" Jackie cried, smacking Eric's arm. She sat beside him on the mattress, shoving him over to make room for herself. "When Donna told you what happened, that fateful day at the ice shack, what exactly did she say? I always made Michael tell me everything! That way, I had plenty of ammo against him when we got back together."

"Ok." Eric said, blinking rapidly. His warm arm pressed against her. "She said that things weren't working out between us. I asked her what she meant, and then she said that she had kissed someone else and felt more kissing him than she had felt kissing me since we called off the wedding. For a year, Jackie, I'd been living this lie, thinking everything was cool. And Hyde made her feel more in a night than I had in months."

Green fingers of jealousy gripped Jackie's belly. She swallowed thickly over the wave of nausea that rolled up her throat at the thought of Steven, her Steven, and Donna making out.

"They couldn't have done it." Jackie said. Her head shook slowly from side to side. "I mean. Steven wouldn't do that, not to me. A kiss…. Well, that's not so terrible."

"You two weren't even together, what do you care so much?" Eric asked.

"Why did you care so much to hurt me with it, then?" Jackie retorted.

Eric nervously laughed. "I didn't- No. I didn't want to hurt you, I just didn't want you to- No, that wasn't at all the plan-"

"So you had a plan?" Jackie asked. "What were you going to do? Break up me and Steven, because Donna had broken your heart?"

"Look here." Eric stood, rounding to face Jackie. "You can't just come in my room, at ten o'clock in the morning, and- and throw accusations in my face like some kind of accuser."

"Eric." Jackie stood, taking a step closer. She jabbed her pointer finger into his chest. "You were. You were going to try to come between Steven and me. Don't you see who the real enemy is here?"

Eric's eyes narrowed.

"Donna." Jackie said.

Eric's eyes rose to the ceiling and he exhaled slowly. "Jackie. No. We can't do anything to Donna."

"Why not?" Jackie asked. "You do realize she's put a wedge between all of us, right? She's the Yoko now!"

"Because, I still love her." Eric said, his voice jarring. "She's my best friend. She's it, The One, I can't ruin any future chances I may have with her over some kind of petty revenge."

"Oh, but ruining the lives of your friends is perfectly alright?" Jackie asked hotly. She slapped Eric across the side of his head. "You are so stupid! You and Donna are not going to get back together!"

"Oh, what do you know?" Eric threw back at her. "Your boyfriend sexually comforts any girl who has an emotional breakdown, you think that's going to work out in your favor? What happens the next time Donna feels upset and runs to Hyde?"

"You don't know what you're talking about," Jackie spat, grabbing her purse from Eric's desk. "Good luck with your plan to break up Steven and me. It won't work."

Eric cackled at her retreating form. "Just you wait and see missy!"

-x-

Jackie cupped her chin in her palm, drumming the nails of her free hand on the tiled island. She watched Pam across the kitchen, at the small wet bar, preparing a pitcher of margaritas. Pam's hips swayed to the music pulsing from the small radio beside her.

"Well, what did this Donna do when you confronted her?" Pam asked, bringing the pitcher over to the island. She licked her fingers, wiping them absently on a dishtowel. "Bernie, where are the limes?"

"Nothing, I haven't confronted her." Jackie responded. "I haven't seen Donna since the baptism."

Bernard set a plate of limes down on the island counter. He turned away and came back with a plate of salt. "What did your boyfriend have to say about it all?"

Jackie glared at Bernard unhappy with the pretense he was playing at Big Happy Family. She didn't answer him, but sat back on her barstool, her arms crossing. "I mean, it's one thing to kiss someone else's man, but it's another thing when it's your best friend! Why wouldn't she tell me? I mean, if I'd kissed Eric, I would have told Donna like right away."

Pam slid a margarita across the island towards her daughter. Jackie took to cool glass in her fingers, tapping her nails against the sides.

"Not that I would kiss Eric. Yuck!" Jackie gagged, washing down the taste with a sip of margarita. Jackie set the glass down on the island roughly. "It's the thing of the matter. At least Steven was honest with me."

"But was he, dear?" Pam asked. She cocked her head, thick blond hair sweeping over her shoulders. "Now I'm not trying to start anything, but Steven does have a history, y'know."

Jackie scowled at her mother. "Mom, don't. You don't even know Steven. He wouldn't do something like that to hurt me."

Pam's lips pinched like she'd eaten something sour. "Ok, all I was saying is that he does have a history."

"Did he cheat before?" Bernard asserted himself into the conversation again. He smoothed his mustache, wrapping an arm around Pam's thin waist. "It's like they say, 'Once a cheater, always a cheater'."

"I wouldn't go that far," Pam said, giving Bernard a look of derision. "I mean, Jack and I have both always known that one needs to have fun. Openness in a marriage isn't a bad thing."

"Ok, the both of you need to mind your own business." Jackie said, pushing off her stool. She left her margarita unfinished on the counter.

"Sweetheart, we're just trying to help!" Pam called.

"We're here if you need us!" Bernard's voice followed.

"Ugh, get bent." Jackie mumbled, running up the stairs. She needed advice. She needed someone to tell her what to do. Before, when she had been dating Michael, she had turned to Donna for advice, or maybe Valerie at school. But Donna was now involved, and Valerie was the biggest gossip in all of Point Place.

No, what she needed was someone who was neutral. Someone who wouldn't judge Steven for his past indiscretions, because they had no idea of his past indiscretions.

The small sip of tequila was enough to bolster Jackie's resolve. She gathered her purse and a jacket, slipping into her wedges. Slamming her door, Jackie ran down the stairs, grabbing the Lincoln's keys from the small porcelain bowl in the foyer. Pam wouldn't need the car. Besides, she had Bernie to drive her wherever she needed to go.

The Lincoln roared to life, and Jackie tore out of the drive, heading towards the town's limits. She had only made this drive a couple of times, and never alone, but she felt confident that she would be able to find the prison without any trouble. The scenery quickly transformed into farmland. Cows dotted pastures, and Jackie white-knuckled the steering wheel the closer she got to the prison and her father.

Following the signs, Jackie exited the highway, apprehension settling on her shoulders. She parked the Lincoln in the visitor's lot, following another lone woman into the prison. Jackie gave the attending officer her father's information, taking a seat in the waiting area. The chair was hard and uncomfortable, and Jackie stared at the door leading to the visitor's area.

"Burkhart?"

Jackie jumped up from her seat, rushing the prison guard. He led her down a cinder-block hallway, opening a metal gate into the visitor's area. Jackie scanned the small area, finding her father after a moment.

Jack Burkhart had grown a beard and lost about twenty pounds. He looked lean and muscular, and gray spotted his temples and facial hair. When he saw his daughter, Jack stood from the table beaming. "Jacqueline!"

"Daddy!" Jackie cried, tears welling in her eyes. She weaved through the tables, throwing herself into her father's arms. "Daddy, I've missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too!" Jack cooed in Jackie's ear. He held his daughter tight to his chest, his mere touch a comfort on Jackie's heart. "It's been too long."

"I know." Jackie said, pulling away. She wiped the pad of her thumb under her eyes, taking a seat across the table. Guilt wracked her, as always did when she thought of her father in prison. "Daddy, I'm sorry."

Jack grabbed one of Jackie's hands, his skin rough and callused. "It's alright, kitten. You're here now."

A bell filled the air, and Jackie jumped. Jack patted her hand. "It's alright. What's wrong, kitten?"

"Nothing." Jackie said automatically. Her eyes rolled hard and she felt new tears well up, burning her eyes. "Well, I mean, it's something, but I don't know if maybe I'm making a big deal out of it."

"Ok." Jack said. He released Jackie's hand, leaning back in his chair. "Tell me about it. Boy troubles? Your mother?"

Jackie glanced up at mention of Pam. Jack's tone was bitter, and his dark eyes had narrowed.

"Mom is- whatever." Jackie said, dismissing the topic with a wave of her hand. "It's Steven."

"What happened?" Jack leaned forward. "Did he hit you? I'll kill him."

"No!" Jackie burst. She quieted down, noticing she had garnered the attention of a couple other inmates and their visitor's. "Steven would never do that. No, it's just. Ok. So we broke up because he wouldn't commit to me, and then he kissed Donna, and then we got back together, and I don't know what to do about it all."

"You broke up with him, or he broke up with you?" Jack asked.

"I broke up with him." Jackie said. "All I needed was for him to propose, Daddy, that's all I was asking for, and he wouldn't. He wouldn't even give me some sort of hint that we were going to make it and maybe someday get married."

Jack scratched an eyebrow, crossing his legs. "So while you two were broken up, he kissed Donna? This is the girl who let you live with her when you're mother was away?"

"Yes."

"I thought she was dating that other boy you always see." Jack said. "What's his name?"

"Eric." Jackie supplied. "She was, but then she got Steven to kiss her and she told Eric, and they broke up."

"So she used your boyfriend to end her relationship." Jack stated.

Jackie slapped her palms onto the table. "Yes!"

"But you two weren't back together when this happened."

Jackie's eyes rolled again. "Technically, no."

Jack sighed. "Jacqueline, I'll be honest, I don't understand why you're upset."

Jackie made a sound of dissention from the back of her throat. "Daddy. Because Steven kept this from me! This happened, like weeks ago, and I'm only just now finding out. Steven lied!"

"Well, sweetheart," Jack scowled like he didn't want to say what he was about to say, "you two weren't together. He probably didn't want to hurt you. Make you worry more had happened than had actually happened."

"But that's just it!" Jackie jumped in. "Now I don't know what to believe!"

"Does Steven usually lie to you?" Jack probed. "That Michael lied to you all the time."

"No, Steven doesn't lie." Jackie said, looking down at her hands. "I mean that's like the one thing Steven doesn't do, is lie. He may not want to tell me when things go wrong, or he messes up, but he still tells me."

"Then what's the big deal, kitten?" Jack asked.

Jackie palmed her chin. "It's just, now the gang is all broken up. Donna is mad at Eric, and Eric is mad at Steven, and Steven is mad at Donna. Eric is trying to break up Steven and I. I don't know what to do."

Jack sighed once more, lacing his fingers over his crossed knee. "Jacqueline, I think punishing Steven is the wrong way to go."

Suddenly defensive, Jackie leaned back from the table. "I'm not punishing Steven."

"You are very much so like your mother." Jack continued. "You are both beautiful women. And you can both be cruel."

Jackie sat dumbfounded, her mouth opening and closing like a fish.

"Think about it this way. Steven didn't have to tell you at all. But he did. I don't think he had bad intentions, sweetheart." Jack said. "I think the problem you have is with Donna. She doesn't seem like she's being a very good friend. Maybe the reason why you're so upset is because she used Steven so wrongly."

"Huh." Jackie said, chewing on her cheek. "You know, I think you're right, Daddy."

Jack nodded. "I think you need to talk to Donna, kitten."

"Yeah," Jackie agreed. "But what about Steven? I mean, how do I know that all he did was kiss her?"

"Well." Jack quirked an eyebrow. "Let me ask you something, Jacqueline."

"Ok."

"Does it really matter?"

Jackie's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

"In the end, say if Steven did do something more with Donna, is it going to change how you really feel about him?" Jack asked. He held up a hand when Jackie opened her mouth to retort. "No, no, hear me out, kitten."

Jackie's teeth clenched.

"How long have you and Steven been together?" Jack asked.

"A while." Jackie said. "A year and eight months." Plus or minus the months we weren't together because of the nurse.

"And in that time, has he ever given you reason to doubt his sincerity?" Jack said.

Taking a deep breath, Jackie massaged her lips together. Her father had a point. Steven had always been sincere in his actions. He didn't lie to her, even when she didn't want to hear what he had to say. On many occasions, Steven had protected Jackie from pain and harm, from perverts at amusement parks and even Michael's own infidelity. He had punched out Chip for calling her a bitch. He had stepped up and taken her to prom, to the Valentine's Dance, and had been there for her when her mother had left, giving her a safe place to stay. Everything Steven had done had been with her best interests in his heart.

How could she doubt him now?

"No, I guess he hasn't." Jackie said, meeting Jack's eye. "But why didn't he just tell me?"

"Would you have wanted to tell him?" Jack lobbied.

Jackie rolled her eyes, conceding defeat. "Ok, but then what am I going to do about Eric and Donna? Donna's my best friend. Well, she was. And Eric has decided it's his life's mission to break up Steven and I."

"I wouldn't worry about Eric." Jack said, leaning his forearms onto the metal table. "He's in pain and in denial. It's Donna you need to talk to. If she really is your best friend, you two should be able to work things out."

"What if I don't want to work things out with Donna?" Jackie asked.

"Then don't." Jack said. "But a Burkhart doesn't go down easily. She tried to take something that was yours, and now it's up to you to protect it."

"You know what, you're right." Jackie said. She jumped up from the table, wrapping her arms about Jack's shoulders. Kissing his temple, Jackie pulled back. "Thank you, daddy. I gotta get back. I have a lot of work to do. I'll be back soon."

"Alright, kitten." Jack said, smiling at Jackie.

Jackie paused at the exit, turning back to look at her father. She wrapped her hand about the metal bar, pressing the tips of her fingers of her free hand to her lips. She blew him a kiss, smiling broadly when Jack pretended to catch it, pressing the kiss over his heart.

"I love you, Daddy." Jackie said softly before turning away. She marched out of the prison towards the Lincoln, feeling like a new woman. She had plans to make, and a reckoning to bring. Her father was right.

A Burkhart never went down without a fight.

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A/N: I got lost in a subreddit on That 70s Show. Where I realized that there are wayyyyyy too many people who think that Jackie is a terrible person and Steven is a deadweight loser. Which they may be in the very beginning, but, my god, the progression that happens as the show goes on, you can't ignore it.

Anywho.

Eric still has something up his sleeve. Donna still needs to have her ass handed to her. And Steven and Jackie still need to drive off into the sunset with the windows down and Led Zeppelin blaring.

I loved all of your reviews! Please keep them coming!