Restless Days and Hidden Nights by Lady Cleo
Summer Nights
Edited 10/22/2010
Hyde lay quietly on his cot, listening to the night sounds that penetrated the small basement room. It was getting worse, far worse then he ever expected; he was in too deep now. Tossed and turned the nights away, counting down the hours to the break of dawn, always waiting for her appearance.
On top of the now constant waiting, a nagging voice had begun to chill his bones, keeping him up at night, making the waiting harder. It constantly bombarded his head whenever she did something cute or annoying. It repeated the same stupid words over and over: "You like her, you want her, and you need her." It wouldn't be so bad if her referred to anyone but Jackie.
The addiction was getting too strong. So strong that Hyde feared when the time came to break his habit he wouldn't be able to. The days were going too fast; he was running out of time. Everyday it got worse, the addiction got stronger. It was getting so that there weren't enough hours in the day to satisfy his habit. Hyde still had appearances to make, his reputation to up hold. That was near impossible to do when he needed to have her constantly, when he needed to hold her every second. Hell, he found even the annoying chatter desired at all hours of the day.
Half the summer was gone, what would happen in a month when they had to go back to the world? Just the thought of leaving this twisted reality he and Jackie had created scared him. What would happen when school started and she had to go back to her cheerleader friends? What would happen when Donna, Eric, and Kelso returned to the basement? Oh god, Kelso would return. Would Jackie suddenly run back to that asshole?
Hyde bolted upright, his heart constricted and he couldn't breathe.
What the hell was with that? And where the hell had it come from? Hyde asked himself as his Zen came back into focus and his breathing returned to normal. Whatever it'd been, he didn't relish the thought of its return. It's not like Jackie would ever go back to the asshole Kelso.
Hyde's vision blurred, his heart stopped for a second and he couldn't think. Fear overwhelmed the Zen that controlled him.
What the hell? There it was again. That's it! He absolutely had to break this habit now, before it was too late. Reaching down Hyde grabbed the closest pair of jeans and slipped into them. He took a quick glance at the clock: two in the morning. Damn, she was going to kill him. But, it had to be done now; else he would never be able to break the habit. Grabbing his Led Zeppelin shirt, Hyde bolted for the door and grabbed his keys as he trotted towards the basement stairs. Red would kill him if he ever found out about this, but damn it, if he was ever going to get sleep he needed to do this now.
Jackie's house wasn't far, even parking a block down he managed to get to her gate in a record fifteen minutes. He easily scaled the iron fence and dashed towards the house, keeping his body hunched over to keep from being seen by any sleepless wanders. Now the only trouble was figuring out which room was hers. If he remembered correctly, it was like the third window down, with the ivy vines beneath it. Sure enough, the light was on and window cracked. Hyde shook off the ridiculous feelings and started to climb. But, with each inch closer to the open window his heart rebelled.
The nagging voice returned, mocking him: "You can't do it, you need her, you want her, you like her, you can't do it." Half way up Hyde he stopped, finding that his heart was not cooperating. It took every ounce of Zen he had to force himself on. Once to the window, Hyde easily slipped into the room and glanced around the pink palace. Jackie was sitting up on the bed, gazing at him with wide-eyed shock.
Hyde stood there awkwardly, glazing back into her eyes, trying to force the words out of his mouth, but failing miserably. Unwillingly his feet carried him closer to the pink pixie who gazed up at him questioningly. Pushing back the covers, Jackie climbed to her knees so that their gazes could meet. The words were in his throat, ready to force their way past his lips. But, his heart had taken control, kicking the Zen out. God, she looked so innocently beautiful without any makeup, wearing only a slim pink nightgown. He couldn't do it; damn it to hell, he couldn't break her little heart like Kelso had done so many times.
Jackie's small hands slipped up, running across his chest and wrapping around his neck. She slowly pulled him down on top of her. Hyde settled his weight over her, eyes boring into hers, trying to read what was going on inside her head. Their lips met, but eyes stayed open for a few more seconds, both trying to figure out the other one. Hyde suddenly forgot why he'd come as her warm little hands slipped underneath his shirt. She was tugging gently at the edges, pulling the article over his head. Hyde let his hand dive into her hair, angling her head so he could deepen the kiss as she tossed the article of clothing to the floor.
Somewhere deep within his head, Hyde acknowledged that he was in far too deep, that he should run. That he shouldn't be on top of the small pixie, about to make a much deeper connection that would make it impossible to break the habit. And for once his heart stood up to his head and told his Zen to shut its pie hole.