4 - Lost Control
Hyde was sitting on the couch, scribbling in his poetry notebook. He was just writing random things down, nothing comprehensible.
Jackie seemed to be doing better today. She wasn't bed-ridden, at least. She was painting on a canvas Hyde had found in the basement of the house when searching for flashlights.
She was intently focused on the canvas. Hyde knew she wasn't drawing him, she hadn't looked up since she started painting.
Randy walked in the room, from the entrance right behind Jackie. "Hey, Hyde- Holy fuck, Jackie! What is that?"
"Hm?" Jackie looked back at Randy. When she looked back at her canvas, she seemed to snap out of a trance. She screamed and dropped her paintbrush. "Oh my-"
Hyde stood up quickly and rushed over to her. He looked at the canvas. There was a frighteningly detailed portrait of a demonic creature. It was nearly all black, with blood red eyes and sharp teeth. Jackie looked in horror between the canvas and her hands, which were stained with red paint.
"Jackie, is that… Is that the demon that's possessing you?" Hyde asked, his voice calm and even. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't feel scared of the painting. He felt… drawn to it.
"I- I- Yes, but I didn't mean to paint it! I was going to paint you to distract myself from the demon's voice in my head but then I just- It was like I was in a trance or something."
Hyde tore his gaze away from the demonic face on the canvas. He gently took Jackie's wrist and said, "Let's go wash off this paint, okay?"
Jackie nodded, and they went to the bathroom. Hyde helped her scrub the paint off her hands. Her eyes stayed fixed on the red-tinted water running down the drain. Once all the paint was off her hands, Hyde dried them and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "Thanks," she said quietly.
"No problem, grasshopper."
Randy knocked on the door. "Kelso, Eric, and Donna are here."
"Okay. Be right there." Randy nodded and left. Hyde put one hand under Jackie's chin to tilt her head so she was facing him. "You okay?"
Jackie nodded. "I think so."
"Good." He pressed a quick kiss to her lips. "You ready to see Kelso and Donna and Forman?"
"Yeah, just one more thing." She hugged him fiercely, wrapping her arms tightly around his abdomen. He tucked her head under his chin and held her snugly against him. "I love you."
"Love you too," he said quietly into her hair.
Jackie tried not to look at the canvas as she and Steven came back to the living room. But when they got there, the canvas was gone. "Where did-"
Randy smiled. "I moved it to the dining room. Figured you wouldn't want to look at it."
"Oh. Thank you." Jackie looked around the room. Eric was sitting on one couch, and Donna was sitting on the other side of it. They kept throwing looks at each other when the other wasn't looking. Michael sat on the other couch.
"They need to fuck each other," the demon said in her mind.
Shut up, shut up, shut up… Jackie thought, aiming it at the demon.
"But I'm right. They clearly want to be with each other, so they should fuck and get it over with."
"Jackie?" Steven asked quietly. "You kind of spaced out. Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's fine. Let's sit down." Jackie sat next to Michael. Steven sat next to her. Michael got up and sat with Donna.
Steven gave him a look. "She's not even doing anything."
"I don't want to take the chance! I don't want to die," Michael said.
The demon chuckled in Jackie's mind. "Too bad for him. All who have seen me must die. You'll have to help me choose who's first, Jackie darling…"
"No," Jackie said quickly.
"What?" Steven asked.
Jackie shook her head. "Sorry. It just keeps talking. It won't shut up."
"Oh, darling, don't make me take over," the demon said.
"Don't!" she said. "You already did and I didn't even realize!"
"So why would it matter if I took over?"
Jackie looked around at her friends. At Steven. These people were the most important people in the world to her. She couldn't keep going like this. "I can't be around you guys. I just… I can't- I have to-" She stood up and walked briskly to the stairs. She went to her room and closed the door, then curled up on the bed.
She took her pillow and pressed it over her face, then screamed into it. She couldn't even be in the same room as her friends anymore.
She didn't want her friends to die. Especially not at her hands.
Hyde slowly entered Jackie's room. She was curled up on the bed with a pillow over her face. "Hey, grasshopper," he said quietly, not wanting to startle her.
She took the pillow off her face. "I told you I can't be around you."
"Come on, you didn't think I'd listen to you, did you?" Hyde sat in one of the chairs next to her bed.
"I wish you would." Jackie scooted to the opposite edge of the bed, putting distance between herself and him. "I need to be alone."
Hyde gave her a soft smile. "Remember what you said to me right after you broke up with Kelso after he cheated on Laurie? We can be alone together. That's all this is. Being alone together. I'm not gonna make you go through this completely on your own."
"You're so stubborn. Most of the time I love it about you, but right now I hate it." She pouted and clutched one of her flower pillows. She was so damn cute, even when she had a hellish monster inside her.
"And you're really freakin' strong. It's one of the many things I love about you," Hyde said. "And it's how I know you're gonna make it through this."
That seemed to be the wrong thing to say. The emotion drained from Jackie's face until it was blank. She blinked slowly, and when he saw her eyes again they were black.
"No one makes it through this," she said, voice deep and not her own. "No one ever has and no one ever will."
"Fuck," Hyde muttered. He stood up and backed over to the door, eyes never leaving Jackie, who didn't move. He stepped outside and called down the stairs, "Randy! It's here!"
Hyde heard a faint, "Oh, shit." Then Randy came running up the stairs, box in his hands. Kelso was following him, holding a tangle of rope. Hyde kept his eyes on Jackie, who was slowly standing from the bed. "You think he can stop me?" she asked.
Randy brandished his crucifix in her face, and she glared at it. "Stop, demon!"
Jackie hissed, then jumped at Randy, clawing at him. He pushed back, but she was stronger than him. "Kelso, get the rope!"
Dread settled in Hyde's stomach as Kelso stepped forward. Randy struggled with Jackie and managed to push her back towards the bed. Hyde joined in to pull her back, but she just clawed at his face. He stumbled back a little, because she had clawed him hard enough to really hurt.
Randy pushed her back on the bed and straddled her to keep her down. "Rope, please!"
Kelso gave him the rope and Randy tied Jackie's arms to the bed posts. She hissed and screeched as he did so. Kelso stared on in horror as they tied her down.
Once they secured her, Randy got off her and stood at the foot of the bed. She snarled at him. "Randy Pearson, you fool! You have made yourself an enemy of Hell! Your eternal suffering will be righteous."
Randy glared back at her defiantly. "That's where you're wrong. Your defeat will be righteous, not mine."
Jackie hissed at him one last time, then turned to Kelso. "Michael Kelso. What a shame that you'll never get the chance to apologize to Jackie for all the terrible things you did to her. I feel that you'll have to die first, to pay for the way you treated my darling Jackie."
Kelso let out a small scream, his eyes wide. Hyde glared at the demon. "Jackie is not your darling."
She whipped her head around to look at him. "Oh, but she is, Steven. She's certainly not yours anymore. Don't you see what she did to you just now?"
Hyde turned and looked in the mirror of her vanity. His cheek was bleeding where she'd scratched him.
"Only one other person has made your face bleed like that. Your mother, when she smashed a bottle on the wall and the glass hit you," the demon said.
Hyde clenched his jaw. He hated the demon knowing everything about him.
Jackie smiled, an understanding yet chilling smile. "Yes, Steven, I know you. I know what you're afraid of. I can help you."
"It can't help you," Randy said. "Don't believe it!"
Jackie's smile turned into a snarl as she looked back at Randy. "It will be satisfying to kill you."
"Well, it's not gonna be today," Randy said. He lifted his crucifix and began to pray. "Our Father, who art in heaven…"
Jackie hissed throughout the prayer, but eventually stopped. Her eyes closed, and she seemed to pass out. Hyde went to untie her, but Randy stopped him. "You don't know it's safe. I know it's hard to see her like that, but you gotta protect yourself sometimes."
Hyde stared at Jackie, lying on the bed. "Fine." He turned and left the room, Kelso and Randy following him. He slumped against the wall in the hallway. They both sat next to him.
"So…" Kelso said, "bondage is pretty much ruined for you guys now, huh?"
Hyde stared at Kelso for a moment, processing what he'd just said. Then he laughed. He laughed and he ran his hands over his face. "Oh, man. I needed that. Don't ever say something like that again, but, man, I needed a good laugh."
"No problem," Kelso said.
Hyde looked at Randy, still smiling a little. "And Randy? Don't ever get on top of my girlfriend like you just did again unless she's actively trying to kill you."
Randy nodded. "Duly noted."
Jackie sat in her bed, wound tightly in the covers. She'd woken up a little while ago. Eric and Donna were sitting with her while Steven made lunch. Randy and Michael were keeping him company.
Eric was bouncing his leg and glancing at Donna every few seconds. Donna seemed normal. The demon in Jackie's head seemed to disagree.
"They both want each other so bad… Why won't they screw each other?"
They're broken up. They used to date, but not anymore, Jackie thought, answering the demon's question.
"Hm. They're clearly still attracted to each other." There was a pause, then the demon said, "We could have some fun with them, Jackie darling."
No, Jackie thought firmly.
"I'm sick of you turning me down," the demon said.
And Jackie lost consciousness.
Eric forced himself to look away from Donna. He looked at the framed picture on Jackie's nightstand. It was her and Hyde, with Hyde pressing a kiss to the side of her face. She was smiling brightly. Eric wished he could make Donna smile like that.
"Oh, Eric," a deep, gravelly voice said. Eric's head snapped to Jackie. Her eyes were dark and she was grinning evilly. "Your thoughts are loud."
Donna stood up and untucked her crucifix necklace from under her shirt. "Stay right there."
Jackie laughed and tilted her head. Donna's necklace ripped off and flew across the room, hitting the closed door. "That necklace was made by someone who now worships Satan. And your thoughts are just as loud, Donna."
Donna glanced between Jackie and her necklace on the ground.
Jackie uncurled herself on the bed and laid down in a more relaxed way. "You two are stupid. You both want each other so bad. It's incredibly clear. So I want to have some fun."
"What kind of fun?" Eric asked nervously.
Jackie smiled. "You two are going to fuck each other and get rid of the painful tension between you. And I'll watch."
Eric bristled at the thought of Jackie- possessed or not- watching him and Donna do it. "Why? Aren't you planning to kill us anyway?"
"Yeah. But Jackie won't let me kill anyone. I haven't broken her yet. Until then, I at least need to get my rocks off. Steven isn't an option. Besides, wouldn't you two rather die knowing you love each other than die still caught in this tense pining?"
Eric looked at Donna. She glared at Jackie. "What if we say no?"
"You'll be the first to die when I break Jackie in a few hours. She's getting weaker, it won't be hard." She stretched out on the bed. "If you two get it on right now I might even let you live entirely."
"Donna, do you-"
She turned to look at him. They were standing close together. Eric could feel the heat from her body. He wanted her so badly. Not just for sex, but in a relationship. He wanted to love her again. He leaned in and kissed her. She kissed him back. He pulled her closer to him, until every inch of their bodies were touching.
"There you go," the demon's voice said, reminding Eric of why he was doing this.
After a few minutes of just kissing, the demon groaned. "Come on, get on with it. Touch her. Take her shirt off or something."
Eric dragged his hands over Donna's body down to her ass, which he gripped firmly. It made her roll her hips against his, creating friction between them. He moaned softly into her mouth. As they continued kissing and grinding against each other, Eric fiddled with the buttons of her shirt. Once he undid all of them, he stepped back to take it off and look at her for the first time in a long time.
He slid the shirt off of her. She was wearing a plain black bra, but she was still the most gorgeous woman he'd ever seen. Now that his eyes were open, he saw Jackie on the bed, touching herself. She was still wearing pants, so Eric didn't see too much, but it was clear what she was doing.
"Keep going," she said, her voice still deep and very much not her own.
Eric let his head fall to her chest, where he started placing open-mouthed kisses to whatever skin was exposed.
"What the fuck is going on?" Hyde asked, startling Eric and making him step away from Donna.
"Just a little fun, Steven," Jackie said. She removed her hand from her pants and sat up. Then she grinned evilly. "Jackie's body is so full of pent-up sexual tension because of how bad you are at pleasuring her."
"Try harder, I know that's bullshit," Hyde said.
"Do you? Or is Jackie a great actress? She faked it for Kelso for years and he never noticed. Not even when he actually made a girl come."
Hyde seemed to falter at that. Eric saw it as his moment to step in. "Come on, Kelso's a moron when it comes to that stuff. He doesn't care about anyone but himself during sex."
That seemed to bring Hyde back. "Right. Both of you get out and have Randy come up."
Donna grabbed her shirt and threw it on as they left. Eric shouted downstairs, "Randy, emergency!"
Randy came running up the stairs, holy water in hand. "On it!"
Once he was in the room and the door was closed, Eric turned to Donna. "So… I'm pretty sure I still love you."
"Pretty sure?" she asked.
"Yeah. The feeling faded a bit, but it's still there. It's okay if you don't feel the same."
"No, I do. I'm pretty sure I love you too." She kissed him. "I know the circumstances were terrible, but it was nice to kiss you again."
"Yeah, it was. Do you wanna… continue what we started? I think Randy and Hyde have it taken care of with Jackie."
"I know where the guest room is." Donna took his hand and led him down the hall.
Hyde stood near the back of the room as Randy went through the motions of prayers and holy water. Jackie shrieked and writhed on the bed as always. Eventually, she fell unconscious. Hyde waited a moment, then went to her side.
He gently shook her shoulder. "Jackie?"
Her eyes fluttered open, back to their normal color. They widened when she registered her surroundings. "What happened? Where are Eric and Donna?"
"Outside. They can tell you more when they come back." He took her hand in his. "You okay?"
Jackie sat up, running her free hand through her hair. "I… No. No, I'm not okay. I'm losing control, I can feel it. Once I lose control, the demon is going to kill everyone I love. I can't… I can't let that happen, Steven. I can't lose you or my friends." She started crying. Hyde squeezed her hand gently.
"I'll leave you two to talk," Randy said, backing out of the door and closing it behind him.
"If anything happens, it is not your fault."
"Yes, it is. It'll be my fault because I wasn't strong enough to fight it." She sobbed and ran her hands over her face.
Hyde sat next to her on the bed and hugged her tightly. She broke down in his arms. It crushed him to see her like this. He ran his fingers through her hair, trying to soothe her. "It's gonna be okay," he said quietly.
She pulled back from him. "No, it's not. I'm going to lose control and then I'm going to lose you. And if I lose you, Steven…" She sobbed. "I love you. I love you so much. You probably don't even realize how deeply I love you. I want you around with me. If you die at my hands, I will never recover from that. Never."
Hyde blinked as a few tears escaped from his eyes. He'd been trying so hard to hold it together for Jackie. She didn't need to see him falling apart while she was possessed. He wiped his eyes and tried to make a joke. "Come on, Jackie, now you're making me cry."
Jackie pulled his hands away from his face. When new tears fell, she wiped them away with her thumbs. She held his face firmly between her hands. "Steven, I love you. Don't ever forget that, no matter what happens or what I might do."
"I love you too."
She pressed her forehead against his. He closed his eyes, relishing her touch.
It was in that moment, foreheads pressed together and tears running down their cheeks, Hyde made a decision. He wasn't going to let that demon hurt the woman he loved anymore.
