A/N: Hey, I hope you guys liked part one! Just to let you all know, there's a slightly steamy scene by the end of this chapter. It's not very detailed, but it's still steamy so… Just thought I should let you guys know.
Part two:
"So… School starts again tomorrow," She said, playing with his fingers and trying to sound nonchalant. He picked up on her tone immediately.
Things were going great between them, amazing even. He never thought a chick would make him feel like this.
They see each other every day. Sometimes they spend the entire day at her house when nobody's there, watching TV together and making out on her bed. They talk and they laugh, and he feels like every second he's not spending with her is a waste. She's incredible, and he's not planning on letting her go anytime soon.
"It sure does" He grimaced "Man, I hate school"
"Are things going to change now that school's starting?" She blurted, looking apprehensively at him. He softened and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"No" He replied "We're still going to meet every day, we just… We'll just have to pretend like we don't know each other at school"
"You sure it's going to work out? I mean, if we can't hang out at school, then how are we going to see each other? You have your friends and I'll have cheer and…"
He interrupted her by kissing her gently on the mouth "You worry too much, doll. We're gonna find time for each other, I promise"
"But… How?"
He sighed and pulled her to sit in between his legs, letting her rest her body against his.
"I got a job," He said
"How's that going to help us see each other? That will only make things worse!" She protested, but he remained calm
"It's going to help, doll" He explained "My boss, Leo, he's probably the most chill guy I've ever met. You can visit me there, and I can always blow the guys off by saying I have to work"
"Oh…" She said, finally relaxing into his arms. He pulled her closer to him and gently pushed her hair aside, exposing her neck to him. "Okay then"
He chuckled and started to press gentle kisses on her soft skin, stopping to watch in awe as goosebumps rose all over her body.
"Okay…" He whispered, before turning her around and capturing her lips in his.
Hyde and his friends made their way into the school cafeteria. School sucked, as always, it's been a month and he wants it to be over already. He cheered up a little when he first saw Jackie looking cute in her little cheerleading uniform though, sending him secret smiles that no one but him noticed.
God, he hated hiding this.
Sure, they still see each other every day. She's always visiting him at his job, he's always visiting her at her house, and they still go to the woods almost every night. But he wants to spend more time with her, he wants to hold her hand and walk her to her next class, he wants to kiss her in public, he wants everyone to know that she's his chick.
He won't do it though, because this is working, no one knows about him and Jackie, which means that Edna doesn't know, and his chick's safe.
"See that cheerleader over there?" Kelso pointed out, and Hyde tensed up the minute he realized who Kelso was talking about "Her name's Jackie Burkhart, and she's the hottest chick in the entire school. I'm going to ask her out"
Hyde hid his clenched fists inside the pockets of his jacket.
"She's so out of your league, Kelso" Eric laughed
"I don't know, she's a bitch" Donna said, and Hyde closed his eyes in a failed attempt to calm himself down. Edna's right there, serving lunch, he can't lose his composure now "They might work. I say go for it, Kelso"
"She's beautiful, like a goddess…" Fez said in awe as he ogled over Jackie
"That's it, I'm going," Kelso said "What do you think, Hyde?"
"Forman's right, she's out of your league" Hyde answered, staring at the wall and trying to picture himself throwing Kelso at it.
"Well, I'm going to prove you wrong," Kelso said, removing invisible lint from his jacket "By this time next week, she's going to be mine"
Kelso walked over to Jackie and her cheerleader friends, trying to look sexy, and Hyde wanted nothing more than to fucking murder him right now.
He watched as Jackie's friends smiled at Kelso, but Jackie remained unimpressed. That was until Kelso placed his hand on her shoulder.
Hyde saw red and was about to storm in to beat the crap out of one of his oldest friends, but Jackie was quicker. She placed a nice kick to Kelso's shin, making him double over in pain.
"Damn, Jackie! You didn't need to use violence!"
Forman, Donna, and Fez started laughing, along with half the school, and Hyde couldn't help but smile proudly at his doll. He taught her well.
That's my grasshopper.
"I still don't understand why you rejected Kelso that way," Kat Peterson said "He's really foxy"
"He's a man-whore, Kat" Jackie answered "He just wants to sleep with me"
"Well, that's not a bad thing…" Kat said thoughtfully "Sex is nice, it definitely helps with all the tension that comes with cheering. You should try it"
Jackie rolled her eyes "Thanks, but I think I'm going to save myself for a guy that actually loves me"
Kat shrugged and turned around to gossip with the other cheerleaders, and Jackie opened up her locker.
The second she did so, a small piece of paper fell on her feet, and she immediately felt all warm inside; she and Steven have been discreetly slipping notes on each other's lockers since school started. It's been a month, and one of her old shoeboxes in her room was already halfway filled with Steven's notes.
She looked around, no one seemed to be paying any attention to her.
Meet me at the hut after your practice, I have a surprise for you.
She smiled and carefully slipped the note inside of her purse. She couldn't wait to see him, she felt like she hadn't kissed him in forever, even though they spent hours making out last night.
"What are you smiling so hard about?" Kat asked, breaking Jackie out of her thoughts
"That girl is wearing the most horrible skirt I have ever seen," Jackie said, pointing at a random girl in the hallway
Kat snickered, "Oh my God, did she take that from her grandma's closet?"
Kat and the other girls started to talk about that poor girl's skirt, and Jackie went back to her own little world, thinking about Steven and wondering what kind of surprise he prepared for her.
Then she saw him walking through the hallway with his foreign friend, and they exchanged another one of their secret little smiles, she blushed and looked back at her locker.
She couldn't wait to see him today.
He heard the noise of clogs on pavement and took his eyes off his Rolling Stone magazine. Jackie's five minutes late, and he couldn't help but be a little bit antsy, she's never late for anything.
Then the little bell above the door rang and he could smell her perfume hanging in the air, he smiled.
"Hey," He said, wrapping his arm around her "Took you awhile"
She pecked his lips "Sorry, one of the girls from the squad cornered me after practice and I had to drive her home"
"Hmm…" He mumbled as he started to suck on her pulse point. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers on his curls and making his heart miss a beat inside his chest.
He grabbed her face in his hand and crushed his mouth into hers, capturing her lips with his own, slowly caressing her tongue as his fingers made their way into her hair.
"I missed you," She said after they broke for air, smoothing her hands on the sides of his face
"I missed you too" He answered honestly, before leaning down and kissing her again, this time, more urgently, more passionately.
"You said you had a surprise for me…" She mumbled in between kisses, and he laughed
"I was just waiting until you said something," He said, pressing one last lingering kiss on her lips before pulling away "Wait here"
"Close your eyes," He said as he walked behind the counter, he could see Jackie rolling her eyes before closing them, and he smirked to himself. Jackie's an amazing chick, but she's known for her lack of patience.
He stroked her cheek softly and handed an envelope to her.
"What's that?"
"Why don't you open and see it?" He said, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear and watching her reaction carefully
She smiled softly at him and opened the envelope, her eyes tearing up when she noticed that inside that envelope were the pictures they took at a photo booth two weeks ago, the pictures she thought she had lost.
He remembers that day vividly, it was one of the best days of his life. Jackie wanted to go out in public, but they couldn't do that, at least not in Point Place, so they drove to Milwaukee and spent the day at the mall. Jackie was thrilled, she dragged him into many stores, but he didn't care, because he was getting to hold her hand in public, to kiss her in public, to be her boyfriend in public.
They were walking through the food court when Jackie saw one of these cheesy photo booths, her eyes shining with excitement. Hyde had no other choice other than to let her drag him inside, and let her fuzz all over him in between the flashes.
The pictures came out great, and Hyde swiped them before Jackie could see them. He wanted to make a copy for himself before giving them back to her, and he also wanted to surprise her.
Leo taught him how to enlarge pictures a while ago, and he wanted to enlarge the last one – where she was kissing his cheek and he was smiling at her – to give her as a gift.
"Steven…" She said, her eyes tearing up "I thought you said the pictures didn't come out"
"I lied," He said, giving her a small, guilty smile "I wanted to make a copy for myself too, so I swiped them"
She smiled and stood on her tippy toes, pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek. "Thank you, Steven"
"Actually… there's one more thing…" He said sheepishly and went behind the counter
He grabbed a box wrapped in bright pink paper and handed it to her, and she beamed at him. When she opened the gift and saw the enlarged photo in a cute, simple frame, her eyes immediately filled with tears and she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist as she cried on his shoulder.
"C'mon man, don't cry…" He said, rubbing her back. He hates it when she cries "Did you not like it? I can throw it away if you want to"
"No!" She promptly said, wiping her face "Don't you dare throw this away! This is the best present I've ever gotten"
"Really?" He asked incredulously "But it's only a picture…"
"It's not only a picture, Steven," She said, stroking his cheek with her hand "It's… God, it's the first present I've ever got that actually means something, it's the first time someone has actually put some thought into a present for me… And it isn't even my birthday or our anniversary"
"It's no big deal, Leo taught me how to enlarge pictures and…" He tried to say, but she interrupted him
"It is a big deal. This means the world to me, Steven. Thank you"
"Anything for you, doll" He smiled before leaning down to kiss her passionately. Her arms shifted to tightly wrap around his neck, her fingers tangling into his hair as he tried to bring her as close as humanly possible to him.
This chick, man… She's something else.
"Jackie, doll, I'm freezing my nads off," Hyde said, turning his head to the side so he could look at her "Is it really necessary to do this in the winter?"
"Yes, it is," She said, snuggling closer to him. It was the day after Christmas, and they were currently laying down on top of two layers of waterproof blankets on the snowy ground, bundled up on their winter clothes as she pointed out constellations to him "C'mon Pudding Pop, the most beautiful constellations are only visible on the winter"
"I'm still not really into that nickname, doll" Hyde grimaced, but she rolled her eyes
"It'll grow on you," She said "It's not my fault if you're as sweet as a Pudding Pop"
"Actually, that is 100% your fault" He replied "You turned me into a sap"
She giggled and pressed a kiss on his cold cheek "Nop, you are naturally sweet, I just happened to be the lucky girl who gets to see this side of you"
He smiled at her and wrapped his arms tighter around her waist, she buried her head on his neck and he shivered when he felt how cold her nose was.
"Jesus, woman. That's it, I'm taking you home" He said, rubbing his glove-covered thumb on her nose "You're freezing"
"But I wanted to see the constellations…" She pouted, but he was having none of it. He got up and started picking up their things and putting them inside of her car
"We already saw them" He answered, wrapping one of the blankets around her and guiding her to the passenger seat of the car "We've been here for over half an hour, you already told me about Orion, his belt and his sword, and then you started yapping about Taurus and Canis something… That's enough for today"
She smiled at him "You paid attention"
"Don't I always?" He smiled back, starting the car and blasting the heater on "I like hearing you talking about stars, it's way better than hearing cheerleading gossip"
"I heard you gasping when I told you about Julie being pregnant last week" She retorted "So you like gossiping as much as I do"
"I already told you that I don't gasp" He answered as he started driving the car "I had a stuffy nose"
She just giggled, and he laced their fingers together as he drove her home. He grabbed the pompom on top of her pink beanie and took it off her head, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head and inhaling the intoxicating smell of her strawberry shampoo.
She sighed when he finally parked the car on the gravel driveway, and he looked questionably at her.
"Parents are not home?" He asked, and she shook her head sadly
"No, they dragged me to a Christmas gala last night and when I woke up this morning they were gone. Daddy said he'll be back next week though"
He clenched his fists. God, he really hated her parents. Jackie's fucking sixteen, she shouldn't be alone at this huge mansion all the time.
"I was thinking…" She started, gently rubbing her thumb through the back of his hand "Maybe you'd like to spend the night?"
His eyes widened behind his sunglasses, and he stared at her in shock for a few seconds. When he finally managed to get his composure back, he saw her looking expectantly at him.
"Doll, I mean… Are you sure you're ready for that?" He asked
He and Jackie have been dating for over six months now, and things have been amazing, but they haven't gone all the way yet. They reached second base a few times, but she said she wasn't ready to go have sex, not for now.
He remembers how she was afraid to tell him that at first, her eyes filled with tears and she asked him not to break up with her over it, which made him incredibly sad – and pissed.
Not at her. God, never at her. He was pissed at her mother and at her cheerleader friends for telling her that sex is the only way to keep a man around.
They had a serious talk after that, he let her know that she doesn't need to do anything she doesn't want to, that he would wait for her, and that he's not in it for the sex. He told her about how she should always tell him if she's uncomfortable, and that he would never pressure her to do anything she doesn't want to.
"Not to… Not to do that" She said sheepishly "I'm not ready yet, but I just thought that we could cuddle and watch some movies, then you can sleep with me, just sleep on my bed, if that's okay"
He smiled at her "Sure, doll"
She beamed at him "Oh, great! I'm pretty sure there's some hot cocoa mix in the kitchen, and we can drink it while we watch Breakfast at Tiffany's!"
Normally, he would've protested at the idea of seeing such a girly movie, but Jackie's so happy and he wanted to keep her that way.
He cupped her face in his hands and gave her a soft peck on her lips before getting out of the car and following her inside the house.
"Hyde man, where are you going?" Eric asked
"Gotta go to work, man" Hyde replied, taking his coat with his bandaged hand and leaving the basement before anyone asked him more questions.
Eric glanced at Donna, who just shrugged. Fez and Kelso weren't around, they went cruising for lonely chicks after Kelso managed to steal the keys to Casey's Trans AM.
"Who works on Valentine's day?" Eric asked, looking at the basement door
Donna chuckled "People who don't have someone to spent the holiday with"
"Normally, I would agree with you, but… I think that Hyde's been blowing us off and using work as an excuse" Eric said, and Donna looked questionably at him
"I don't know, Eric. Hyde started working like that ever since school started, and from what he tells us, his boss is a real hardass" Donna replied
"You don't think he's working overtime because of something Edna did?" Eric asked, concerned.
Hyde doesn't talk much, but Eric's not stupid, he knows how shitty Edna is, he knows that she's a worthless junkie and that she hates her own son. She used to take off for days in a row, sometimes even weeks, leaving Hyde without a penny to buy food. She also got in debt with a few drug dealers a couple of times before, and Hyde had to spend hours and hours working his ass off by mowing lawns and carrying some heavy shit to scrape a few pennies and pay off her debt.
Also, Hyde showed up with a bandaged hand about a week ago. He claimed he broke a plate when he was washing the dishes back at his place, but Eric wasn't buying it.
"No, I've seen her in the cafeteria today" Donna replied "You're worrying over nothing"
"Something's not right," He said "And I'm going to find out what it is"
"Okay there, Nancy Drew," Donna joked. "You think you can squeeze some time for your girlfriend in between your investigations?"
He smirked "Well, a good detective needs to have a good, supportive girlfriend by his side"
She laughed "Let's go upstairs, spy boy. Your parents are at work and we're alone…"
He chuckled and they both ran upstairs, hand in hand.
"I can't believe I'm doing this" Hyde muttered to himself as he finished the last details of his surprise for Jackie "I can't believe I gave in to the Man"
"What man, man?" Leo asked from his seat behind the counter
"The corporations, man!" Hyde said as he angrily spread rose petals on top of the picnic towel he borrowed from Mrs. Forman "Valentine's day is a scam, yet, here I am, trying to make my stupid, ABBA-loving, amazing girlfriend happy"
"Wow, it's Valentine's day?" Leo asked "I should really go see my girlfriend then"
"You have a girlfriend?"
"Do you have a girlfriend?"
Hyde rolled his eyes "Yeah, man, you met her. Her name's Jackie and she'll be here in ten minutes"
"Oh yeah, loud girl!" Leo said, "You love loud girl!"
Hyde looked down at the floor "Well… Maybe I do"
"You should tell her man," Leo said "She's gonna be happy. I think I'm gonna go tell my girlfriend I love her too, see you tomorrow, boss"
Hyde chuckled "See you tomorrow, Leo"
With that, Leo left, and Hyde continued his activities. He still could not believe he was doing this, but Jackie… She deserves it.
She has been incredible. She hardly ever complains about their relationship being a secret, and she always makes him feel better no matter what's going on in his chaotic life.
For example, last week, Edna threw an empty vodka bottle on him. He was able to dodge it, but he accidentally sliced his hand open when he went to pick up the glass shards from the floor. Edna had a good laugh, but Jackie didn't. She made him spend two nights with her in a row, cursed Edna every two seconds, and tendered for him like no one ever did before.
Jackie went to the drugstore and bought a set of butterfly bandages. She spent about an hour trying to figure out how to use them, all while listening to him complain how she was exaggerating and that it wasn't necessary. He still let her fuzz all over him though, because it felt really nice. He just refused to admit it out loud.
He knows how much she likes big, romantic gestures, she's a natural romantic. Jackie's the type of person who believes in soulmates and in love at first sight, she spends hours of her day watching romantic movies, yapping about how cute it was that Antony threw himself on his sword when he thought Cleopatra was dead and how romantic it was that they practically died together.
Hyde asked her if she was nuts after she said that, and he got a long, long lecture about how he doesn't have any romantic spirit.
Well, she's about to be proven wrong on that. Because he spent freaking hours organizing an "almost picnic" for them.
Yeah, an almost picnic. Because it's cold as hell and he's not spending hours of his day sitting outside freezing to death, he was still trying to recover from the time she made him go stargazing with her after Christmas.
So their picnic is going to be inside of the FotoHut. He cleared the space out (with Leo's permission) and they closed the store for the day; Hyde didn't want any interruptions. He lit a few scented candles, he made deviled eggs (her favorites) and he even spread a few rose petals around the floor.
Sure, he swiped the roses from old man Shinsky's yard, and he might have swiped the scented candles from her room, but hey, it's the thought that counts, right?
He turned around to turn on the radio when he heard the little bell from the door opening, followed by a gasp.
His face immediately lit up with a smile when he saw her standing at the doorway, with tears in her eyes and hands covering her mouth in shock.
"Oh my God, Steven…" She whispered as she analyzed the room in awe, and right then he knew that all his frustration from earlier was worth it. So, so worth it.
The faint noises of romantic music could be heard in the background when she threw herself at him and hugged him as tight as she could, and he couldn't help but let out a happy laugh.
"You are the best boyfriend in the world!" She said as she peppered his face with kisses "I can't believe you've done this"
"It's no big deal," He said, and she sent him a scolding look.
"Why do you always say that? It is a big deal, and you are going to let me smother you now" She said seriously, and he chuckled
"Anything you want, doll," He said, and she glued her lips against his, kissing him slowly, but passionately, and he felt like the luckiest guy in the world.
Sure, he had a shitty mother, he was broke and he had no big aspirations for his life. But whenever Jackie kisses him like this… She makes him forget all about his crappy life, she makes him feel wanted, she makes him feel like he's the most important person in the universe, she makes him feel… loved.
And he had never, ever felt loved before. Never.
When they eventually ran out of oxygen and broke their kiss, she gave him that look that always makes him weak on his knees, that same look she gave him on the night they kissed for the first time.
"I prepared us a picnic," He said, tucking a few strands of her dark hair behind her ear
She hopped off his arms with a big smile on her face and sat on top of the Forman's towel. She took a rose petal in her hand and gently ran her finger through it in fascination, and he sat near her. Her head immediately rested on his shoulder, and he opened the picnic basket.
Her smile brightened even more when she saw what was inside of it, and he couldn't do anything but watch her. Every time he thinks she'd reached the peak of her beauty, she surprises him, because she manages to get more and more beautiful every time she smiles at him like that.
He felt like an idiot, but he couldn't take his eyes off of her.
"You made me deviled eggs," She said, placing her hand on her heart
"Well, they're your favorites, and…" He tried to explain, but she leaned over and pecked him on the lips, interrupting him.
"Thank you," She said, running her fingers through his sideburns, and he couldn't resist but kiss her just one more time.
He told her all the adventures he went through to set this whole thing up for her, she lightly scolded him for stealing the roses with an injured hand, and he had to listen to her go on and on about how roses have thorns that could've easily ruined the bandage she spent hours trying to figure out how to use, but in the end, she just squealed and said she couldn't be mad at him, not after he'd done the most romantic thing she's ever seen in her life.
After they finished eating, he pulled her to sit in between his legs and they stayed in comfortable silence, enjoying each other's presence.
That was until a familiar guitar riff could be heard coming from the radio, and Jackie smiled at him.
"If the sun refused to shine, I would still be loving you..."
"Dance with me?" She asked, and he chuckled, taking her hand and helping her stand up.
"Only because it's Zeppelin," He said with a small smile, wrapping her tiny figure in his arms, closing his eyes and burying his nose on her strawberry scented hair, listening as Robert Plant sang what had to be one the mushiest of all Led Zeppelin's songs.
He used to skip this song before he and Jackie started dating, but not anymore.
Because he finally understands what the song's about.
"My love is strong, with you there is no wrong, together we shall go until we die, my, my, my…"
"Steven, I love you," She said as he rocked her back and forwards on a slow dance. His body immediately froze, and she looked at him "Please don't freak out, it's just that… God, I love you so much, you're the sweetest guy I've ever met, and I find myself thanking the universe for making my parents commit adultery that night at their gala. Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me, and I love you"
He looked down at her, and removed his sunglasses, giving her full access to his eyes. She looked terrified, and he cradled her face in his hand, trying to silently assure her that he's okay.
"I…" He stuttered, not knowing where or how to start "No one has ever cared for me the way you do, Jackie. My own parents never told me they loved me, and hell, I spent years trying to convince myself that love's not a real thing, but then… then you showed up and ruined everything… You turned me into a pansy, you make me feel stuff I've never felt before, stuff I never thought I would feel, and the mere idea of something happening to you makes me want to fucking die"
"Steven, what are you trying to say?" Jackie asked apprehensively, her tears running freely down her cheeks
He wiped them off with his thumb and looked her deeply in the eye "I'm trying to say that… I love you too, Jackie"
"What?" She whispered, giving him a small smile and letting out a sniffle
"I love you, Jackie" He repeated more clearly "And I think I've loved you since that day you showed up in the woods, running away from your parents"
"You… You are something else, Steven Hyde" She smiled, gluing their foreheads together "I love you"
He smiled and cupped her face in his hands, kissing her deeply, enjoying the feeling of her fingers tangling on his hair and her body so close to his.
They broke the kiss, foreheads still glued together as they smiled at each other.
"Happy Valentine's day, doll," He said, tucking her hair behind her ear.
"Happy Valentine's day, Pudding Pop," She said, smiling at him and closing her eyes as he leaned down to kiss her again.
"When mountains crumble through the sea, there will still be you and me…"
"So, Hyde, where were you yesterday?" Eric asked as he took a sip of his boxed grape juice
Hyde took his eyes away from the tiny cheerleader sitting on a few tables ahead of them and raised an eyebrow at Eric.
"School, work, home" Hyde replied curtly "What are you, my wife?"
"No, I just thought that, y'know…" Eric stuttered "It was Valentine's day yesterday and you are working too much, I mean, you got off to work early yesterday and I was worried that…"
"Were you celebrating with someone, Hyde?" Donna asked with a teasing smile, pinching Eric's thigh under the table. He almost asked about Edna in front of everyone! She sent him a scolding look and Eric sent her an apologetic one.
Hyde frowned at them, but decided not to say anything about what the hell just happened.
"Forman, what makes you think I would want to celebrate Valentine's day with someone?" Hyde asked "Even if I had a chick – which I don't, I would never celebrate a holiday created by corporations. Valentine's day is a marketing scam just like any other Hallmark holiday and I would rather chop some of my fingers than participate in that crap"
"We get it, Hyde," Donna said, unwrapping her sandwich and taking a bite. She immediately frowned "Good God, what's in this crap?"
"It's Tuesday, so… Yesterday's trash mixed with Edna's cigarette stubs and some other shit she found in the school's pantry" Hyde said with a wry smile "Why are you eating this crap, man?"
"My parents are out of town and I woke up too late to pack my own lunch," Donna explained, putting her sandwich aside and munching on Eric's potato chips.
"You should've told me your parents would be outta town, I would ask my mom to prepare your lunch today," Eric said
"Guys, I think I'm going to ask that Jackie Burkhart chick out again" Kelso blurted, his eyes drifting to where Jackie was sitting with her cheerleader friends.
Hyde immediately tensed up, he saw the way Kelso was leering at Jackie and he wanted to rip his eyes out.
"One kick on the shins wasn't enough?" Eric asked "Kelso, man, let it go. It'll never happen"
"Oh, it so will happen!" Kelso said, pushing his tray aside
"From what it looks like, even Fez has a better chance of getting with her than you, buddy" Eric said
"You think she'd go out with me?" Fez asked hopefully, and Eric, Donna, and Kelso burst into laughter.
"Yeah, right," Kelso said, wiping a few tears of laughter that escaped his eyes "I'm going, and by this time next week she's going to be my girlfriend"
"Okay Kelso, good luck," Eric said, rolling his eyes as Kelso got up and walked to the cheerleaders' table.
Hyde watched everything quietly, trying to control his urge of pounding one of his oldest friends into a bloody pulp.
"You need to work on your investigation skills, Nancy Drew" Donna whispered in Eric's ear, not noticing how Hyde's face was reddening with repressed rage.
"Shut up," Eric said, chuckling a little "Let's watch Kelso get burned"
"Jackie, I think Michael Kelso is coming to ask you out again" Kat Peterson whispered in her ear, breaking her out of her Steven thoughts.
He was all she could think about lately, their night was amazing and she can't get over how much she loves him. She was a romantic by nature, but she never thought that the things she'd read in her romance books were actually true, Steven makes her feel things she didn't even know were possible to feel.
She looked up and saw Michael Kelso walking in her direction, trying to look hot and failing pathetically at it. Steven was sitting at his usual table with his friends, and she could see how tense he was from a mile away.
God, she would do anything to be able to go over there, sit on his lap, and rub the tension off his shoulders in front of everyone.
He's her boyfriend, and it sucks that the only person who knows about them is Leo, Steven's stoner boss.
She glanced at Edna, who was looking grosser than ever, and she felt rage bubbling inside her. There's nothing she wants more than to kick Edna Hyde's ass. If it weren't for her, she wouldn't have to hide her relationship with Steven, and both she and Steven would certainly be a lot happier now.
"Hey, Jackie," Kelso said, sitting next to her and giving her a sexy smile. She immediately rolled her eyes.
"Hey" She answered him coldly, hoping that he would pick up on her tone and leave.
He didn't.
"So, I was thinking... I'm the hottest guy in school, and you are the hottest girl in school" He said "We should go out, fool around a little, maybe even do it if you're interested. What do you think?"
He tried placing his hand on her arm, but she quickly slapped him away. The only guy allowed to touch her was Steven, and no one else.
"Okay, get this through your pea-sized brain, Michael Kelso" Jackie said, glaring at the taller boy "I am not interested in you, and I will never be interested in you. You disgust me and you probably have more stuff going down there than Laurie Forman herself. I do not want to go out with you, so you need to stop asking me!"
"Damn Jackie, I'm just saying that…" He tried to say, but she interrupted him
"I don't care! Get away from me! And for your information, I am not the hottest girl in school, I'm the hottest girl from Wisconsin, you ass!" Jackie said, throwing the rest of her drink on his face and storming out of the cafeteria.
She was sure a lot of people were laughing, but all she could focus on as she walked away was how Steven was smiling proudly at her.
"Come on, Steven!" Jackie said, pulling on his hand as she dragged them through the woods "I want to show you the spring constellations!"
Hyde gave up on protesting a while ago. It's been months since he and Jackie went stargazing, and he missed it. Not that he would tell her that.
Wisconsin's winters are ruthless, so they spent over three months without visiting their special place in the woods, their encounters were limited to her house and the FotoHut only, until now.
It was still cold, but not nearly as cold as it was two weeks ago, and as soon as all the snow melted, Jackie started pestering him about going stargazing. He gave in, because at this point there's nothing he wouldn't do to make her happy.
"You could show me the constellations in your book again, y'know," Hyde said as he laid down on the cold ground next to her.
She moved to rest her head on his chest "It's not the same and you know it. Besides, I know you missed this, Pudding Pop"
He grimaced "It's been months and that nickname has not grown on me, doll"
"Well, that's too bad," She said "Because it's grown on me and that's not going to change anytime soon"
He just rolled his eyes and directed his gaze to the stars. He was now able to spot a few constellations Jackie pointed out to him months ago, like Cassiopeia and Ursa Minor, but he still had a lot of trouble with the other ones, especially the seasonal ones.
"No sunglasses when we're stargazing, Steven," She said, taking his precious shades off and hooking them to the hem of his sweater
"Fine," He grumbled. He started playing with her hair as she started to point out the new constellations for him.
"See that bright dot over there?"
"Jackie, are you kidding me?" He asked incredulously "There's over a million bright dots in the freaking sky right now!"
She rolled her eyes "The brightest of them all, Steven"
"Oh," He said, looking at the sky "Yeah, I see it. Which star is it?"
"That's a planet baby, not a star" She explained "That's Jupiter, the biggest planet from our solar system"
"I have a question," He said, looking at the bright dot "Are the planets named after Greek mythology too?"
She smiled at him "Kind of. They're named after Roman mythology, but it's almost the same"
"How's it almost the same?"
"The Gods are the same, they just have different names" She answered "Zeus, the most powerful Greek god, is named Jupiter in Roman mythology. Since he's the most powerful, they named the biggest planet after him"
"Huh, he must be really badass then"
"I'm sure his wife wouldn't agree with you," Jackie said
"What? From what you told me, his wife's a bitch!" He said, and she giggled
"That's because he's a cheating bastard. Her name in Roman mythology is Juno" She explained "But yeah, she should take her anger out on her asshole of a husband instead of innocent people"
"She killed Hercules' entire family because he was her husband's bastard son," He said "It's not like he asked to be born"
"Speaking of Hercules, let's see if we can spot Hydra now," She said excitedly, turning to look at the sky again
"And what exactly am I supposed to see?"
"It's a huge constellation, one of the biggest, it kind of looks like a long snake with a twist in the middle," She said, and he frowned at her, but didn't say anything.
They both kept staring at the sky for over 15 minutes, until Hyde got sick of it.
"Yeah, I can't see it"
"It's okay, I don't think we can actually spot it from Wisconsin anyways," She said, running her fingers through his chest
"I still want to know the history of it though," He said with a small smile, "I think it's cute when you get all nerdy"
"Steven!" She said, lightly slapping his chest as he laughed "I am not nerdy!"
"Yes, you are, and that's not a bad thing, doll" He pressed a kiss to the top of her head "It's one of the things I like the most about you"
She beamed at him "Is it?"
He nodded and captured her lips with his own, kissing her chastely.
"Yeah it is"
"Okay then," She giggled, and pressed another kiss to his lips before looking at the sky again "Remember when I told you about Hercules?"
"Yeah," He said "Where is it, by the way?"
"The constellation?" She asked, and he nodded "I think we can only see Hercules in the summer, but we can try to spot it now, maybe we'll find it"
"Nah," He said, running his fingers through her hair again "I would rather listen to you go all nerdy on me"
She smiled "After he was forced to kill his own family and Apollo gave him those tasks, he went on a few adventures to fulfill the tasks. In one of them, he was supposed to kill this horrible monster called Hydra. Hydra is a giant snake with many heads, and every time you cut one of its heads off, two others grew in its place"
"How the hell did he kill it then?"
"Hercules' nephew was helping him, and every time Hercules cut one of Hydra's heads off, he would use a torch to sear its neck before the other heads grew in" She explained "And then Hercules managed to cut them all off and killed it"
He stopped looking at the constellations long ago, and he watched in awe as she started to compare Hydra to the school's cheerleading squad. Her different colored eyes reflected the millions of stars in the sky, and he couldn't stop staring at her. She's so fucking beautiful.
He felt like he would die if he didn't kiss her right at this moment.
"Jackie, shut up for a second" Hyde said, cradling her face in his hands and kissing her deeply.
"I thought you said I look cute when I'm being nerdy?" She asked, looking dazed.
"You look cuter when you're kissing me" He replied with a smirk, and she giggled before gluing her lips to his again.
"Isn't it nice?" Jackie asked, looking up at the bright sky, the sun shining on her face.
He smiled at her "Yeah, it is"
"This place is beautiful during the day," She said, leaning her head against his chest. They were currently snuggled together under the willow tree; Steven was leaning his back against the trunk and she was sitting between his legs. "We should come here more often when the sun's out"
"Alright," He said, pressing a kiss to her forehead "Anything you want, doll"
He expected for her to kiss him, or at least smile at him, but she sighed sadly and looked lost in her own thoughts.
"What's wrong?" He asked softly
"It's nothing" She lied, and he raised an eyebrow at her. She sighed dejectedly "Fine. I know there's a reason why we can't go public, but I… You said I can have anything I want, but there's nothing I want more than to kiss you in school, have you walk me to class, yell at Michael Kelso that I have a boyfriend so he'll stop hitting on me, hang out at the Hub with you in front of everyone and… Just forget it"
He felt his chest tightening. The truth is, he wants that too, more than anything in the world. He wanted to introduce Jackie to the Forman's, he wanted to be free to kick Kelso's ass every time he makes a comment about her, he wanted to take her out on dates without having to spend two hours driving to another city, he wanted to take her to the basement and have her sit on his lap while they hang out with his friends, he wanted… damn! He wanted to just be her fucking boyfriend, a normal boyfriend, but life doesn't work that way with him.
Edna's been drinking a lot more, and that's definitely something, considering how much she used to drink before. She's been a lot more handsy than usual, the big scratch mark on his arm and the purple bruise on his back were living proof of it.
He just knows that if she found out about Jackie, she would make his life a living hell. Jackie's the more important person in his life right now and he'll be damned if something ever happens to her because of him.
He kissed her forehead again and hugged her closer.
"I want that too, Jackie," He said "But you know we can't"
"I know, I just… I hate pretending that I don't know you during school, and I just wanted…" She started apprehensively "Are you sure you can't even introduce me to your friends?"
He sighed "Jackie, my friends are idiots. You wouldn't like them"
"You don't know that," She said, crossing her arms "I know it's stupid, and I know there's nothing we can do, but sometimes I feel like… I feel like maybe you're embarrassed of me"
He stared at her incredulously "Are you crazy? Why would I be embarrassed of you? You're the hottest chick in Wisconsin"
"I know, Steven, it's just…" She stuttered "I think your friends would keep us a secret if we ask nicely, but you don't want them to know because… We're so different, y'know? On paper, we're not supposed to work. I'm a spoiled princess, daughter of the city's councilman, and you're the anarchist rebel who loves throwing stuff at glass; I'm a cheerleader with a perfect attendance record, and you're a burnout who likes to skip class to smoke weed. You're cool, and I'm a square. Your friends would definitely make fun of you if they find out we're boyfriend and girlfriend, and maybe that's why you don't want to introduce me to them"
"Is that what you really think?" He asked, not being able to hide the hurt on his voice
Jackie's eyes filled with tears "Sometimes. I can't control my thoughts Steven, and this whole thing… You can't blame me for being a little insecure, okay?"
"Wait here," He said, getting up from the ground and searching for something in the pockets of his jacket. Jackie looked puzzled, but didn't follow him, she just stared curiously at him.
He made his way around the tree and took his pocket knife. He made sure Jackie couldn't see what he was doing and he pressed the knife against the hardwood, scraping off some of the outer bark.
He couldn't believe he was actually doing this, his pocket knife was probably going to be completely ruined after he's done, but Jackie has the ability to make him do the sappiest things in the entire world. But he'll always do them as long as it makes her smile.
It took him over 10 minutes to finish it, and he was surprised she hadn't tried to take a peek at what he was doing. Jackie's not well known for her patience.
He admired his new artwork and gestured for her to come to him. She looked questionably at him, but still took his hand as he helped her get up. He heard her gasp when she saw their initials carved on the tree trunk.
S.H + J.B
He hugged her from behind as she started to cry softly, and buried his face on her neck, inhaling her scent.
"I would like to go public just as much as you do, dollface" He whispered in her ear "But we can't, if something ever happens to you, I'll… I'll lose my mind, okay? I need you to be safe"
"Steven…"
"If I tell my friends, word will get out and Edna will find out" He continued "Kelso and Fez can't keep their mouths shut, and Mrs. Forman will probably announce it in the church's newspaper. I don't want to risk it, doll. I can't lose you"
"I can't lose you either" Jackie choked out through her tears, turning around and hugging him as tight as she could. He hugged her back just as tightly.
"I love you" She whispered in his ear, and he started to press kisses on her neck.
"I love you too" He whispered back, gently pushing her against the tree as he moved his kisses up to her jaw and earlobe.
He worked his tongue through her jawline, listening to the beautiful sounds that were leaving her mouth. He could easily stay like this forever, just kissing his chick, tasting her, loving her.
His kisses moved to her lips, and she didn't waste any time and coaxed her tongue into his mouth, gently sucking on it and making him let out a few groans of pleasure. He tightened his grip on her waist, pressing his chest against hers, and she slid one hand under his shirt.
He broke the kiss and looked questionably at her. It's not like they haven't done anything before, she'd seen him shirtless plenty of times, but these types of encounters were restricted to her house, and maybe the FotoHut, if Leo wasn't around.
They haven't gone all the way yet, but they did plenty of stuff, just not somewhere without walls or a roof.
"Take me home…" She whispered as she started to nibble softly on his neck.
He swallowed a groan "Why?"
"My parents aren't home" She replied as she moved her kisses up to the sensitive area behind his earlobe "And I was thinking...We could go all the way today"
He pulled apart from her so he could look her in the eye.
"What?"
"I want to make love to you, Steven," She said, and if he wasn't currently leaning against the tree, he would be splattered on the ground. His mind was foggy and all of his blood was rushing between his legs, he could barely think straight, but he wouldn't let Jackie do something she doesn't really want to do.
"Jackie, I mean…" He started, but she cut him off with another kiss.
"I want to," She said when they broke apart, taking the Lincoln keys from her pocket and handing them to him "Take me home, Pudding Pop"
There was no banner hanging on the wall, no rose petals spread through her bed, and she definitely wasn't wearing the peignoir she always dreamt about, but she wouldn't have it any other way.
Steven softly closed the door behind him, and Jackie sat on her bed, waiting for him. He sat next to her and gave her a soft, reassuring smile before bringing his mouth to hers, kissing her slowly, but deeply.
They couldn't keep their hands off each other on the way to her house, if they had no self-control, they would've closed the deal right there on the leather seats of her daddy's Lincoln, but Steven was the one who refused to make love with her in a car.
She couldn't focus on anything other than Steven's taste, and Steven's touch. She wouldn't even notice if her house caught on fire.
She never felt so loved in her entire life, every kiss, every touch, was like a reverence. His gentle, yet passionate kisses made her feel precious, like she was a delicate piece of jewelry, only available to the luckiest, richest people on the planet.
He started peppering kisses along her neck as he took her jacket off, his fingers exploring the pieces of exposed skin, letting out a tingling feeling wherever they touched.
Soon enough, they were both in their underwear, mouths glued together as his body covered hers, their hands frantically running through each other's body, and if they had the ability to focus on anything other than each other, Jackie was sure they'd be able to see sparks flying through her room.
"Jackie, are you sure?" He asked hesitantly when she stripped off her panties. He looked down at her, and she could see the love and adoration in his eyes, which made her smile.
"I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life," She said, grabbing his face in her hands and pulling him for another passionate kiss.
He took off his boxers and positioned himself, not breaking their kiss.
He slowly slid himself inside of her, and she grimaced a little in pain. He kept whispering loving and comforting words in her ear, trying to make her as comfortable as possible, and once she was finally used to him, he started thrusting slowly. His hand searched for hers, and he intertwined their fingers together as he brought her to the moon and back.
Hyde didn't even light a cigarette on his walk back home. He was so relaxed, there was no need to.
He felt like a moron, but he couldn't wipe this stupid smile off his face, he never thought it was possible for someone to be so fucking happy.
Jackie made him spend the night, and they sure made good use of it. He would probably never say this out loud, but what he and Jackie had done… That wasn't sex, that was love. He and Jackie had made love, and it completely blew his mind.
He took his keys out of his pocket and opened the door to the trashy house, hoping Edna wouldn't be there, or would at least be passed out on the couch. He didn't need her to ruin what was probably the best day of his life.
He sighed when he saw her sitting on the couch, with a lit cigarette in her hand and a bottle of vodka in the other.
"What's with the smile?" She asked snidely, her voice hoarse like a trucker's.
"I'm not smiling," Hyde said. It was true, he stopped smiling the second he saw her.
"Yes, you were" She laughed bitterly
"No, I wasn't," He said, walking to his room. Edna's voice made him stop on his tracks though.
"You have a little girlfriend, don't you?" Edna asked with a mocking smile, and fear crippled down Hyde's spine. How the hell…
"No" Hyde denied immediately, because if Edna finds out about Jackie, he's fucked.
"Oh, I think you do," Edna chuckled, putting her cigarette out on the arm of their beat-up couch "I've never seen you smile like this, boy. I don't like it"
"Well, I wasn't smiling," He said, entering his room and closing the door before giving Edna the time to answer him.
"Watch out, kid!" Edna yelled from the living room "Don't want anything happening to this girlfriend of yours!"
Hyde listened carefully to the noises through the door of his room. Once he heard the noise of Edna stumbling to her room and closing the door, he threw his pillow on the wall and kicked his shitty bed, sitting on the floor dejectedly and burying his head in his hands.
Edna knows. Edna knows and now he's probably going to lose Jackie.
What the hell is he supposed to do now?
A/N: Please do not hate me for ending the chapter this way! I'm posting the next (and final) chapter tomorrow!
And I know that asking for reviews is annoying but... I feel like you guys over at this site don't like my writing anymore, I barely get reviews now.
Anyway, see you tomorrow!