Chapter 3: First Dose of Revelations

Donna looked up at her fiancé with disbelief. She couldn't believe that he would have the nerve to come down here and check up on her. Could he not trust her after all they've been through together? Anger seeped through her as she ran her hand through her red locks.

"Eric, what are you doing here?" she asked, her eyes boring down on him.

Eric shrugged, still having the fake smile plastered on his face. "Just came in to get something to eat with the guys." He patted both Kelso and Fez's shoulders.

"Great. Bring us into this mess," Fez muttered.

"Forman, what the hell?" Hyde got up from his chair to face his friend. 'What did he think we were doing? I can't believe that he still thinks that I'm after Donna.'

"I told you," he chuckled. "Just came here to get something to eat. It's not like I haven't done that before." Eric resisted the urge to punch his friend in the face. He had a very good idea of what Hyde was up to. He wasn't going to stand around and let it happen.

"Eric," Donna took a hold of his arm, "can I talk to you?"

He gave a quick glance at Hyde, then nodded. "Sure, I think we should." They walked out the door.

"What's going on, man?" Hyde asked his friends.

Kelso shrugged. "Nothing, man. Just hungry."

"Forman was checking up on us, wasn't he?" Hyde didn't even have to ask; he already knew the answer.

"He's just worried that you're going to steal Donna away from him," Fez told him.

"I mean, Donna's been acting really weird lately," Kelso added. "Now, all of a sudden, she wants to go on a date -"

"It's not a date!" Hyde cut him off. "I'm just spending some time with her. Just because he's going to marry her doesn't mean he owns her, man."

"Hey, don't yell at me," Kelso held up his hands. "I'm not the one who doesn't trust you."

Hyde shrugged and sat back down. Kelso and Fez joined him. "Are you going to finish those?" Fez asked, pointing at the fries. Hyde slid the basket across the table towards his friend.

* * *

"So, what do you want to talk about?" Eric asked, looking down at his feet.

"Do you trust me, Eric?"

His eyes widened, surprised by the question. "What?"

"Do you trust me?" she repeated.

"Of course I do," he replied softly.

"Then why are you here?" She held up her hands.

"I just… well… I thought," he stammered. He couldn't get his thoughts straight.

"Look," she walked a little closer to him, "I know I've been distant for the past week, but I'm just thinking things through. Our lives are going to change, Eric. I needed someone to talk to that -"

"Donna, you can talk to me." He took a hold of her hand.

"No, I can't," she told him, looking away. "I need someone to help me keep my mind off of certain things, just for a while."

"Certain things like me," he said, running his hand through his hair.

"Eric, it's not that," she rolled her eyes. "I just want to spend time with Hyde. It's been a while since I've done that."

"I guess it's all right then," he sighed. "You and Hyde should hang out."

Donna smiled. "Thanks, Eric." She gave him a quick kiss and led him back inside. The couple walked over to their friends.

"So, are we good?" Hyde asked him. He really hoped Eric would get over his paranoia.

"Yeah, man," he smiled. "Sorry about all this."

"It's okay," Donna told him. She was relieved that he was cool with this.

Hyde got up from his chair. "I guess we should leave then."

She nodded and followed him towards the door. She turned to look at her fiancé. "I'll see you later, okay?" He merely nodded as they walked out the door.

Eric let out a deep sigh and sat down. "So, you're okay with them being alone together?" Kelso asked.

He chuckled. "Of course not."

* * *

Not for one second did Hyde believe Eric. He just seemed to cool about all this. It seemed very un-Forman like. Hyde had a sense that Donna believed him or at least wanted to. 'Why is Forman so worried? Does he think that she'll instantly leave him for me?' Hyde couldn't help but smile at the thought of that happening. 'It would be nice to have her…'

"So, where are we going?" she asked, playing with the radio.

"I thought about heading up to the reservoir," he told her. "You know, so we can be alone."

Donna could feel her face getting hot. "Yeah, that's cool." She still didn't know why she felt so anxious about the idea of being alone with him. She's known him for years. She has spent time alone with him before. However, from the very beginning of their 'date', she knew that this would be different.

She took a good look at the man seated next to her. Her eyes landed first on his face. As usual, his eyes were hidden behind his shades. Donna noticed that he had very soft features for a guy who puts on a real tough front. She knew that underneath it all, he was one of the sweetest guys she knew. Donna's eyes traveled to the side of his face where he had his pork chop side burns; she couldn't imagine him without them.

Her eyes went down to his very solid chest. His somewhat tight, black T-shirt did well in showing it off. His arms were nice and muscular, not too muscular. It was just enough to shape them beautifully. She wondered how it felt to be held in those arms.

Overall, he was an attractive guy. Correction, a very attractive guy. Donna forced herself to look away. She hoped that Hyde didn't catch her staring at him. She couldn't let him know about the kinds of thoughts that were going through her head.

Hyde parked the car a little away from the lake. The two got out and walked over to the hood to sit down. They sat there silently for a few moments, before he broke the ice. "So, are you going to miss all this when you move away?"

Donna let out a sarcastic gasp. "Hyde, what about the rules?"

He smiled. "Screw the rules. No, really. Are you going to miss it?"

"Of course I am," she began, looking at her surroundings. "I mean, I'll visit and everything. It's not like I'm leaving forever."

"It won't be the same, though," he reminded her.

"I know that," she replied softly, her eyes on the ground. "This was bound to happen. You knew I wasn't going to stay in Point Place for the rest of my life."

"I know, and you shouldn't. You deserve better than this crappy town." Hyde tried to search for the right words to express how much he was going to miss having her around. He did the best he could. "It's going to suck when you guys leave." 'Real smooth man.'

"Yeah, but you'll come down and visit us," she said. "Especially when we go to all those college parties."

Hyde chuckled. "Yep, those should be fun." It was true that he would get to visit her, but it wouldn't be the same. He won't be able to see her everyday. She won't be just next door; she'll be in a whole other town. God, he was going to miss her.

"A lot of great memories we shared," Donna stated, trying to lighten up the atmosphere. "Remember the time we went to that disco?"

He remembered that night clearly. "Yeah, we danced right? Mrs. Forman gave me lessons." As soon as he said it, he wanted to take it back.

Donna cocked an eyebrow. "What? Mrs. Forman gave you lessons? Why would you do that?"

Hyde looked her squarely in the eyes. He had to tell her. "For you. I learned to dance for you."

Her jaw nearly dropped. Everything began to come back to her. She remembered him telling her that he really wanted to kiss her. She didn't take him seriously. Back then, he was just her buddy Hyde. She couldn't look at him any other way. She didn't let herself do that.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?" Her voice was barely audible.

"Because it didn't matter," he told her firmly. "There are lots of thing I kept to myself when you started dating Forman."

"Like what?" She was very interested in what he had been hiding from her all these years.

"The time you went to the Vineyard with Forman, I was there," he began. He hated reliving this night. "I told you that I had feelings for you, but you were too drunk to understand."

Donna was shocked about the fact that she couldn't recall him being there. All she remembered was something about singing, chicken, and Long Island iced teas. "What did I say?"

He let out a dry laugh. "You didn't say anything. You just beeped my nose."

She looked completely horrified.

* * *

Jackie walked up to the entrance of the Hub. She had cut her second date short with Stan, finding him rather boring. She pretended to be sick and made her way to the usual hang out, hoping that some of her friends would be there. She was in luck; she spotted three of them at a table.

"Hey, guys," she greeted, pulling up a chair next to Kelso. She looked around at the group and her eyes stopped on Eric. He was looking rather glum. "What's wrong with you?"

"Oh, nothing," he replied, wistfully. "It's just that Donna and Hyde are on a date."

Jackie nearly choked on her French fry. Eric took great pleasure in her reaction. "What?"

"Yep, they wanted to spend some 'time' together," Eric muttered.

The little brunette's mind was spinning. They couldn't possibly be on a date. She knew that wholesome Donna would never do anything with Hyde. She was too loyal to Eric and herself. Although, she could remember the time when Hyde was after Donna. But, that was all in the past.

As much as she tried to convince herself that nothing was going on between them, she couldn't help but feel worried. Soon enough, she was looking as glum as Eric.

* * *

"I did what?" Donna asked, her eyes still wide.

"Forget it, you were drunk," he said coolly. "It doesn't matter now."

"Why didn't you say something before that date?"

"I tried to, but I didn't know what to say, man." He was beginning to feel very vulnerable and he didn't like it.

"You should have said something," she told him firmly. "I had no idea you felt that way about me." All this time, he really wanted to be with her.

He shrugged and looked away. Donna could feel herself moving closer to him. Her hand went up to caress the side of his face. His eyes closed as he felt her fingertips brush against his skin. They were so soft and warm. He felt her turn his face towards her; his eyes were only half-open now. She leaned in and pressed her lips gently on his, creating a very soft kiss.

This time, he didn't pull away. Instead, he pulled her closer to deepen it.

* * * * * * * * *

I'm sorry for not updating sooner. I hope you've enjoyed it so far. There's more to come. Tell me what you thought of it.