A.N. Chaps twops ups. Thank you SO much to those who reviewed. I really hope you like this chapter, somewhat bittersweet as they say. Please review! & have a super day :) ...

Ch 2. A Fool's Heart

...

"So what do you think?"

"Huh?"

"Hyde, are you listening to me?"

"No."

"Ugh..." Fez sighed annoyedly. "I said, so do you think Laurie's cheating on me?"

"Of course." Hyde replied.

"What?"

"Seriously, do you even have to ask?"

"But--" Fez began to pout.

"Besides its not like you two are even really together, I mean sure she's your wife, but its not like she's your girlfriend or anything..." Hyde said, as he started to walk upstairs from the basement to the kitchen. He went to the fridge and pulled out a drink. Fez followed him and continued to rant about Laurie, but Hyde went back to not paying attention again. Then all of a sudden, he looked up.

"Oh my God, there she is." he pointed at the back door.

"There who is?" Fez asked, but Hyde was too busy looking to listen.

She was just standing there, talking to Donna and Eric outside. Her mom was there too, with some other people, but all Hyde could see was Jackie. Wow, she looks so beautiful, he thought to himself. Her hair was longer now, almost down to her waist. And she did indeed get tanner. Her skin was this gorgeous bronze color... he couldn't take his eyes off her. There was something else, too. She looked older. Like she's been through so much.

"Jackie..." He kept on staring at her, and didn't even notice when she looked in his direction. Oh! He quickly tuned away.

"She saw me." he said.

"Well, go say hi to her, you fool." Fez said.

"What are you crazy?" Hyde shook his head, "Nah, I gotta go downstairs." He hurried back down the the basement and sat down. Then got back up, then sat back down again. Yeah, you just need stay down here for awhile... Ten minutes later, You idiot! Why are you down here, go back up and see her...

He got back again and headed towards the stairs, but she was already there.

"Hello Steven."

"Hey." he said, taken aback.

"Fez told me you were down here." she said, while she took a few steps forward. "So..."

"I missed you." he blurted out quickly. She just looked at him.

"Yeah... me too." Jackie said, softly.

"Well, uh you look amazing."

She smiled at him, then looked down. "Oh, um before I forget..." she reached down in her bag, "I brought you back something."

"You did?"

"Yeah." Jackie pulled out a little wooden object and handed it to him, "Here. It's a Tiki Man. Its supposed to bring good luck, or bad luck... I'm not quite sure. The guy who sold it to me had a pretty thick accent."

Hyde looked at the little tiki man, "Uh thanks, its pretty cool."

"No prob." she said, as she sat down on the couch. He sat down beside her, but neither one said anything. Finally he broke the silence, "It's funny ya know, all summer I kept thinking of a million things I would say when I finally saw you, but now... I can't think of a single one."

"I know what you mean."

"Well, I'll can begin with something simple... how was your summer?" Hyde said.

"...It was nice."

"I bet, you were in Acapulco."

"Yeah. There were these really beautiful beaches there; the water was crystal clear and the sand was so warm & white. And the resort we were staying at was really secluded and peaceful. I had a lot of time to think." she paused, "So how was you summer?"

He shrugged, "Kinda boring. Spent most of it working at the hotel and just hanging here in the basement. I didn't go out with...", he stopped himself, and thought for a second, "I waited for you."

Jackie face got a little worried. She rubbed her forehead and looked away. "You know, I have to be going soon. My mom's having a barbecue with some clients and I..."

"Jackie, I can't let you go again without us talking about... things." She didn't say anything.

"I guess I'll start then." he said. "Look, you already know that I wanna be with you. And you already now that I'm sorry, really sorry for what happened."

"Yeah." she nodded.

"And I love you, you already know that too. But you need to know that I'm not just saying it because I want you back. I'm saying it because thats how I really feel. It's always been how I felt, ever since you told you did."

"When I told you I loved you?"

"I loved you, too. I told you I wouldn't say it back, but inside I knew I did."

Jackie paused for awhile, then finally answered. "I knew too."

He gets confused, "... How?"

"Hyde, I never doubted that you loved me. Even thought you didn't say it out loud, your actions spoke louder than words. The little things you would do... they told me you did." she hesitated, "But when you did finally tell me, I just couldn't believe you, because your recent actions had told me otherwise."

"...And that why you told me you didn't, but you did. Donna told me that you did. You still loved me." Hyde said, "But I completely understand why you would say that, you were angry."

"That's right. I was angry. And hurt. You have no idea how much you hurt me." Jackie whispered, "I trusted you. I trusted you with my whole heart, but you didn't trust me..."

Hyde took her hands and held them in his own, "I know, I know. And I'm so sorry."

"...and because of that you betrayed me. You hurt me so much... I didn't deserve that. I'd already been hurt by Michael, and I didn't deserve to have my heart broken again." she spoke the words so soft & calmly, but he could still hear the emotion behind them.

"I... I was an idiot, and I was scared. Scared of what was happening, scared of what I was feeling, and scared you'd hurt me first." he looked intently into her eyes, "But I'm trying my best not to be anymore, I'm even starting college next semester."

She smiled faintly, "That's great."

"Look Jackie, you mean the world to me. And we can make this work, just give me another chance. ...And I promise, I'll never hurt you again." He stroked her face and gently kissed her.

Jackie kissed him back, but after a few seconds she pulled away. "No... no. You can't do this. No." she shook her head, as she got up.

He looked down. "I'm sorry."

"Look, like I said, I did a lot if thinking over the summer." she begins to pace around the couch. "And I thought about you and Michael... and then I thought about me."

Hyde stood up and readied himself for what she was going to say.

"I wanted to forgive you. I really did. But after Michael, I promised myself I wouldn't stay with a cheater. And that the thing you know, when we were together, Michael was not even an option. You had no reason to be insecure, I didn't ever plan on going back to him..."

"But..."

"...but after you cheated, he once again became an option because..." she glanced up, "...because, he was still there. Sure him constantly flirting with me while we were still together was annoying but... how can I say this right? ... It was nice 'cause I could depend on him always being there. Like what he said after my dad went to jail, he's "ole' faithful"."

He just stayed quiet.

"I kept thinkin' he's just so pretty, ya know. And deep down he's got such a good heart. And we have a lot of history together. He'll always be my first love. Unfortunantly, as long as he's surrounded by pretty girls, he'll also always be a man-whore." she said.

"This is true."

"And then there was you... you've always been there when I needed someone, even when you hated me, you were always the shoulder I would cry on about Michael. Until finally I looked up and saw you. And afterwards, I felt this amazing, excited feeling every single time we were together. You always made me feel safe in your arms, and on top of that you were a great kisser..."

Hyde looked at her, then glanced to the side. He felt mixed inside, with all that she was saying. This last part was making him feel on top, yet he felt what was coming... he was about to crumble down. "Unfortunantly...?"

"... We had a lot of things against us. You weren't always open with your feelings, I gave you reasons to think I still hung up on Michael, and there just wasn't enough trust and communication between us... in the end maybe it just wasn't meant to be."

"But maybe it is, maybe it could be if we just worked on those things."

She shook her head, "I thought about it. And Micheal & me shared something special together, and you & me shared something special together..."

"I know what you're getting at, and please don't..."

"And both relationships ended badly. So I think the best thing for me to do... is to just move on. From both of you."

"I understand that you've gotten burnt, from both of us, but I--"

"Steven." Jackie cut him off. "It's not just that..." she trailed away for a second, "I met someone."

Just then someone opened the door, and peeked in. "Hey Jackie..."

Hyde looked up at him, as she turned around immedietly, "Yeah?"

"Our parents are waiting for us at the barbeque." said the guy. He was tall, pretty good looking with green eyes and clean cut brown hair. He was tan, too.

"I'll be right there, babe." Jackie answered, and he nodded and left. She turned back around and faced Hyde. She looked right into his eyes. She saw exactly how he was feeling, and it hurt her.

"I see." he said, barely audible.

"Um, his name is Shane. We met down in Acapulco. His family was staying at the same hotel we were." Jackie ran her fingers through her hair, "My mom sold them a house here in Point Place."

Hyde just nodded along.

She hesitates for a second, "I'm sorry you waited for me and I didn't--"

"No. Don't be... I mean, I'm not." he sat back down and turned on the tube, "Anyway you should just go. Shane's waiting."

And there was nothing left to say. Jackie left the basement and he stayed.