The sunlight crept through the window of Donna Pinciotti and Jackie Burkhardt's bedroom. Jackie laid in bed wrapped up in the arms of Steven Hyde. This had been a trend lately. That is, waking up in Donna's bed together. Although, this morning was somewhat different. Hyde had not been able to sleep that night. So, naturally, he kept Jackie up as well. They finally fell asleep at around three, and had been sleeping ever since. It was almost eleven o'clock when Donna and Eric went up to the bedroom to find the couple, dead to the world in slumber. They could see Hyde's bare chest move up in down with each breath. It was inhabited by Jackie's array of dark brown curls and her beautiful face. Eric gawked at the sight.
" Donna! Think of what those two have been doing in your bed all night!" he exclaimed.
" Didn't need that mental image, babe." the redhead replied.
The two saw Jackie's eyes flutter lightly. She was waking up.
" Steven?" the brunette whispered heavily.
They then saw their scruffy friend arise from his flat position to a more inverted one. He leaned his head against the head board with a mask of sleep still covering his face and eyes. The tiny girl that lay next to him did this also by laying her head backwards onto his chest. The sheet, blanket, and duvet still covering their bodies. They still hadn't noticed their engaged friend's presence.
" What time is it?" Hyde asked.
She leaned over looking at the clock that stood on Donna's night stand.
" Eleven o' three. We have to get up before Donna," she stopped mid-sentence looking at the two who were smirking at her " . . . comes home."
" You better be glad it was us instead of Bob and Joanne. Joanne would kick Hyde's ass all the way to the Michigan border. Clothes or no clothes." Donna replied crossing her arms over her chest.
Eric leaned over pulling up Jackie's risque underwear by one finger, twirled them around, and smirked at his friend.
" You are one lucky bastard!" he cursed. Hyde smiled.
" Put those down you freak! Donna, punish him!" Jackie exclaimed, sitting up and covering herself with the bedspread.
Donna gave him the 'you're not getting any for a week' look that she was famous for.
" Yes, ma'am," Eric muttered guiltily.
Jackie and Hyde laughed at him.
" Why do you always take pleasure in my defeat?"
" I have my woman. I don't take sick pleasure in playing with Donna's underwear, now do I?" Hyde said logically.
" Correction, Hyde. You have two women." Donna reminded him.
" Don't fret, Big D. By about . . . oh I'd say . . . one thirty-five this afternoon, I will only have one woman whom I cherish."
" And that best be me or you'll never ever see those frilly, pink panties again. Got me!" she threatened with a big, toothy grin.
" Of course, darling. Is there anyone else besides you?"
" Do the words 'Meow, Meow' come to mind?" Eric replied, smugly and dripping with sarcasm like always.
" Get bent, Foreman." he replied gruffly.
*~*~*~*~*~*
The scent of baking garlic bread and rich marinara sauce filled the Foreman kitchen. Kitty was making spaghetti for lunch as Bud and Red sat at the table drinking beer and reading the paper while Edna was engulfed in Cosmo. She was informing herself about the new, fall colors. It was all about brilliant reds, cool oranges, deep tans, and chocolate browns. Patchwork boots and shawls were very fashionable, and clogs, due to Farrah Fawcett's influence, were on their way out. Stacks were just so much more sensible. Also, she found herself reading '10 Ways to Please Your Man in Bed'. Like I need that, she thought.
Then, as Edna was reading an interview with Cheryl Tiegs about her new Calvin Klein contract, Cat walked in the door looking for her MIA boyfriend.
" Hey Catherine. Steven slept through breakfast, and I think he's down in his room still sawing logs." Kitty informed.
" That's all right," she held her nose up " Mmm . . . something smells wonderful, Mrs. Foreman."
" It's spaghetti. Sit down. Have some lunch. I'm sure he'll be up soon. You now how Steven likes to sleep all day unless Saturday morning cartoons are on. Cat, you know he's a sucker for Scooby-Doo."
" Yeah," she giggled and looked at Bud and Edna " I'm sorry. We haven't been formally introduced. I'm Catherine Peterson, but you can call me Cat."
" Hi. I'm Edna Hyde and this is my husband Bud." she replied.
" You're Hyde's parents! It's so nice to finally meet you."
" It's nice to meet you too, dear. You sure are a pretty thing. Steven always had prime choice women. I suppose he inherited that from me." Bud flirted.
She giggled. " How did you know?"
" Instinct. Plus, Kitty and Red were telling us about you. How long have you been dating now?"
" A little over two months. He's a great guy when he wants to be. He can be a jackass now and then, but it's my job to straighten him out."
Just as she spoke, the four, that is Hyde, Jackie, Eric, and Donna, walked into the kitchen. Jackie immediately dropped Hyde's hand at the sight of the blonde standing and chatting with his father.
" I thought the Foreman's said you were still sleeping?" she asked.
" I was. We went out for breakfast. We're planning a surprise birthday party for Kelso. He's such an idiot; he'll never find out as long as Fez doesn't spill."
Zen was his lifesaver. Hyde felt satisfied with his legit excuse. Now that he thought about it. The party for Kelso didn't seem like a bad idea.
" Why didn't you invite me?"
" Uh, we didn't think you wanted to get up on Michael's account. We only did it because we've known him our whole lives. It only makes sense. I mean, he made me a woman." said Jackie.
" Jacks, if we wanted to talk about your past sex life with Kelso, we'd just read about it on the Locker room wall!" Hyde snapped
" What?!" the petite, brunette exclaimed.
" Oh, it's there. Every single detail. Even about that time you went skinny dipping in the lake and Kelso took your . . ." Eric began.
" Shut-up you malnourished freak!"
" Running out of comebacks, Jackie?" Donna asked.
" You and," she pointed at Donna and then to Hyde " you are supposed to be on my side!"
" Whatever." he muttered, supposedly covering for himself.
" Son, what are you guys planning on doing tonight?" Bud asked.
" I don't know. Maybe a party? Foreman?" Hyde said, looking at his best friend.
" Felicia Presley is supposed to be having a blowout 'cause her parents are . . ." Kelso commented, but received a glare from the Foreman's " . . . Chaperoning the whole event?"
He grinned and Red just shook his head.
" We were gonna go to that party! Ever since Nina left me and Laurie refuses to sleep with me again, I needed some whore action!" Fez whined.
" Man, we don't need to hear anything else about your needs or lack of action." Kelso ordered.
" I was thinking about going to Milwaukee." Bud said.
" Why?" Donna asked.
" Because I have six tickets to see Aerosmith on the fourth row, center." he said waving the prize in front of their faces.
" Holy shit!" Hyde exclaimed grabbing them from his hands. The five teenagers looked at them with awe as if they had found the Sangraal.
" Steven.." Red threatened
" Yeah, Yeah. Watch my mouth."
" Where did you get these, Mr. Hyde?" Cat inquired.
" That's for me to know, and you to never find out. Just enjoy them for what they are."
" Houston, I think we've got a problem." Eric exclaimed.
" What are you whining for now, Eric?" the red-head queried.
" There's seven of us. You, me, Hyde, Jackie, Cat, Fez, and Kelso makes seven. There's six tickets. Who's out?"
*~*~*~*~*~*
The seven friends stood outside in the driveway later on that night. At this point, they were all enemies as far as anyone was concerned. Someone had to go. The original six wanted Cat gone. Cat wanted Jackie gone. Little did they know, someone else was gone too.
" Kids," said Kitty anxiously " I don't wanna tell you this, but . . . ."
" Tell us what Mrs. Foreman? Where's Bud and Edna?" asked Hyde.
" I don't exactly know. They didn't say where they were going. Just read this."
Kitty handed Hyde a stark, white envelope. It read 'Steven' in Bud's slanted, cursive scrawl.
He gingerly ran his fingers through the pasted seal. Taking out the folded piece of paper, he knew what was to come. He folded the stationary that he assumed to be Edna's because it was dotted with multi-colored tea roses. He began to scan the page of the same scribble as on the front.
Steven,
I realize this has become a trend, and I'm sorry. I had done a job interview a couple of months ago with a trucking company because bar tending hadn't been bringing in much dough. I knew I was coming to Point Place when I did the interview so I left them the Foreman's phone number. They called and said I had been given the position, but the catch was I had to be in Chicago tomorrow. I had to go or they would give the position to another candidate. I had to go. The garage has been sold to someone else. Again, I'm sorry about leaving. I hope to see you soon. Have fun at the concert with your friends.
Bye, Dad.
" See you in fifteen years, Bud." he finally said after finishing the letter.
" They left; Huh, man?" Eric asked.
" Yeah. They're gone. Let's just go. Tyler and Perry wait for no man."
" We're still going after that letter?" Donna asked.
" Are you kidding? The idiot pays God knows what for six Aerosmith tickets close enough to the stage that you could catch the sweat running off Steven Tyler's forehead in a vial and you think we're not going? Just for that I think you need to be the seventh man out!" Hyde snapped.
" Who really is out, my curly-headed friend?" Fez asked.
" I think we need to play eeny-meany-miney-moe." Kelso suggested.
" No, you moron! Let's huddle," Eric exclaimed.
The original four, Eric, Hyde, Kelso, and Donna, gathered together in their infamous circle and put their heads together leaving Jackie, Fez, and Cat out in the cold.
" It's either Jackie or Cat." he whispered
" Kelso and I vote Cat, right Kelso?" Donna replied.
" Right, man." he answered.
" So, do you agree with us, Hyde?" Eric asked.
" Yeah. She might kill me, but I agree." he responded.
The four friends turned around to look at the remaining three. Cat started to speak.
" You guys, I just realized that I have a paper due on Monday about the three branches of Government. I don't wanna put it off 'till Monday so you all just go without me."
" Are you sure, Cat?" Hyde asked her.
" Yeah. Can you take me home?" she asked hopping into the El Camino.
" Sure."
Before they drove off, Cat noticed a picture laying on the dash of the car leaning against the odometer. It was a picture Hyde and Jackie at Christmas. He had his hand around her waist and they were standing in the doorway of the kitchen under the mistletoe. The brunette was looking above smirking and he was rolling his eyes at the sight. Donna had taken the picture for her scrapbook. Cat just huffed, grabbed the picture folding it in half, and put it in the side pocket of her purse. He was gonna get it.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The six arrived home from the concert on a definite high. It had been amazing. Hyde had been correct. They were in fact so close you could see the sweat dripping off their foreheads. Donna had been extremely excited because Joe Perry had thrown the scarf he was wearing out into the audience and she was the lucky girl who caught it. Eric had complained because they didn't play Toys in the Attic and waited until the last set to play Dream On. Kelso and Fez were freaked because they had been hit on by two hookers. Kelso begged Fez that they were a sure thing, but he refused because he stated that paying for sex was just as bad as not getting any at all. Jackie was scared as well because Hyde had given her a hemp choker for their anniversary, and a drug dealer hit her up for a joint. She assumed it was due to the large narcotize around her neck. Other than the prostitutes and the dealer, everything was great especially for Hyde. This chick made advances at him, and he said that he was here with his girlfriend. He was on cloud nine for the rest of the night.
The said their farewells as Eric and Donna walked inside to get into bed and Kelso and Fez got into his Volkswagen to drive home. Jackie and Hyde stood around in the driveway.
" Steven, I had a really good time tonight. When they played Walk This Way, I was totally feeling it. I think this was the first time I listened to that song and didn't get offended."
" You of all people should not be offended by a song about sex. I mean, you aren't offended by Tiny Dancer."
" That's what that songs about?" she exclaimed.
" Jesus, Jackie," he said, shaking his head. " Hold me closer, Tiny Dancer. Count the headlights on the highway!"
" Ugh! Steven, is this a ploy to get me in bed with you?"
" Maybe." he said guiltily.
" Men are dogs."
" Sometimes I think Freddy Mercury has the right idea. Except the part about hair gel and yellow, Spandex jumpsuits." he said shuddering.
" Are you trying to tell me something, Hyde?"
" Yeah, I'm tired. Let's got to bed."
" To sleep." she added.
" Jackie!" he whined.
" You're not getting anything until Cat Woman is gone."
" Women suck!"
" If you keep on like that, you're not even sleeping five feet near me!"
" Ugh!!" he growled following her into the house.
*~*~*~*~*~*
This was a very transitional chapter. I promise the next chapter will be either the end or just the beginning of Cat, but the latter isn't going to be likely. Thanks for all of you support and tips with this story! I appreciate each and every one of you! Please r/r! Peace Out!