Chapter 9! I am so sorry it took so long. I couldn't find my floppy disk. See, I write everything on a computer in my room that has no internet access. Then I copy it over to a floppy and move it down here to upload it to ff.net. I lost my floppy. I'm such a dope. _
Anyway, this chapter could be titled: Jack Goes Public, so that will give you some hint as to what happens. It's nice and long so I hope that kind of makes up for it being late. I hope you enjoy it! :)
Legal: I do not own the rights to Three's Company or its characters, thanks.
=-=
Chapter 9: The Broadcast
That night before they went to bed, Janet asked Terri what had happened while she was gone. Terri started by telling her how she had tried to get Jack to like her and how she had failed miserably. "Oh, Janet. He hates me. He must hate me."
Janet got off of her bed and sat next to Terri, putting an arm around her. "Oh, Terri. Jack doesn't hate you. When you first moved in, then he hated you a little bit. But he doesn't anymore." Janet smiled.
Terri smiled as well as she recalled when she had first moved into the little apartment. She sighed. "Janet, you and Jack have become so much like a brother and sister to me. I don't where I would be if I had never met you."
Janet blinked back some humble tears and hugged Terri. "And you're like a sister to me, too, Terri. So what happened after that?"
Terri continued with the story. But Janet interrupted her at one point. "What do you mean, Mr. Furley *started* to figure out something was wrong? He knows about Jack! At least, that's what he told me the other day when Jerry and I were trying to get Jack to eat a sandwich with his hands."
Terri shook her head. "I don't know, Janet. He just looked completely clueless to me."
"When doesn't he?"
The girls shared a giggle and then Janet grew serious again. "Seriously, though, Terri. What is he trying to pull?"
They were quiet for awhile until Terri gasped. "Oh, Janet! Maybe *Mr. Furley* is the bad guy!"
Janet snorted. "Terri, Mr. Furley can't even tell an orange from an apple sometimes. Do you really think he could have done all of this?"
Terri shook her head. "No. You're right. He only could have done it if it was by accident."
"Or if he were framed."
"Yeah," they said together.
"Well," Janet spoke after another moment of silence, "what happened then? How did you get rid of RF?"
Terri's eyes widened and she grinned. "Oh, it was great, Janet! Helga told him off! Oh, she told him off good! She said...uh...well, I don't remember exactly, but she basically told him to mind his own business! Then she pushed him out the door. The only thing interesting, I thought, was that her accent went away while she was yelling. But when she spoke after that it was back again." Her brow furrowed in confusion.
Janet's eyes grew wide. She grabbed Terri's shoulders. "Terri!"
"What?"
"She wasn't Swedish!"
Terri rubbed her chin. "Then why would she pretend to be Swedish? What's the point in that?"
"Maybe she was trying to cover up for something," Janet said, thoughtfully. "Did anything else interesting happen with Helga?"
Terri thought for a minute. "Well...oh, when she went to clean to bedrooms Jerry went to 'see how she was doing'. Maybe there's a love interest there." She put her two index fingers together and winked.
Janet laughed and then grew quiet. "So Jerry's having an affair with Helga, who really isn't Swedish, but was pretending to be so we wouldn't suspect that she really isn't a maid at all, but just has something going on with Jerry," she whispered.
Terri nodded. "Yeah, that sounds about right."
Janet rubbed her chin. "Jerry's getting more intriguing by the minute."
=-=
The next morning Janet was sitting on the couch with Jack, reading while he watched cartoons. Jerry announced that morning that Jack had urinated *in* the toilet and he'd done it all by himself so Janet told him to go out and get some donuts to celebrate a small victory. Terri was at work.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. Jack turned to look at the door. Janet set down her book and hurried to the door. She pulled it open and nearly fell over backwards when Mr. Angelino pushed his way inside! "Mr. Angelino!" She gasped in shock.
Angelino paid no attention to her. He marched right over to the couch. "Tripper, where's my rent?" He said in his comandeering voice.
Jack fell over backwards off the couch. Janet hurried over. "Mr. Angel--"
"Joe may be taking charge for the next few days, but I still expect the rent from you. Where is it, hm?"
Jack looked frightened. Janet grabbed Mr. Angelino's arm and turned him around. "Mr. Angelino, let me explain. Jack mailed the rent to you. So you should get it by mail in a couple of--"
Angelino whirled around again. "Tripper!" He barked. Jack had just climbed back on the couch and fell off again at Angelino's loud voice. "You should know better than to trust so much money to the postal service--especially when it's *my* money! For that I--"
"Mr. Angelino!" Janet grabbed his arm and turned him around again. "You don't understand. I'm the one who sent the rent. Jack gave it to me to give to you and I--"
Angelino turned back around. "Entrusting my money to some young fling? Tripper, you're--"
"Sick!" Janet screeched, turning Angelino back around. "He's sick, Mr. Angelino. That's the only reason he gave it to me. And, actually, he didn't give it willingly. He was about to drag himself all the way down to your restaurant with the money! But I took it from him to give to you because he would just exhaust himself if he--"
"Very well," Angelino snapped. "But if I don't get it in the mail in two days I'll be very, very angry. That's a warning."
Janet nodded vigorously. "Oh, of course, sir. Of course." She grabbed his arm and brought him to the door. "Have a--"
Angelino spun around again, pointing a finger at Jack. "And, Tripper, wipe that idiotic expression off your face. You look like a dumb mutt."
He turned around and stalked out of the building. "Have a nice day!" Janet hollered, slamming the door shut behind him and slumping down against it. She breathed a sigh of relief. "That was close!"
Jack padded timorously over to her and sat in front of her. "What was that?" He said, unsure of his word usage.
Janet smiled and ruffled his hair. "That was Mr. Angelino. He wanted the rent from your restaurant."
"Rent?" Jack queered.
"The money," Janet explained.
Jack nodded. "Will he hurt Janet?"
Janet shook her head. "No, of course not."
Jack grinned. "Good."
Janet smiled and gently carressed his cheek. "Thank you, Jack. You're really very sweet."
He grinned from ear to ear. Just then they heard the doorknob moving and they quickly moved so Jerry could come in with the donuts.
=-=
That afternoon when Jerry went into Jack's room to take a nap Janet sat Jack down on the couch to teach him how to walk upright. He leaned over the back of the couch to watch her as she walked back and forth casually behind it. "See, Jack? It's really easy. Now you try."
He climbed over the back of the couch and she sat down on it to watch him. He tried to stand up, but he fell back down. Janet got off the couch and helped him stand. "Okay. Now walk."
She moved away. His legs wobbled and he fell down. "I can't," he moaned.
Janet sighed and let Jack climb back onto the couch. The doorbell rang and she walked to the door. "You'd think Jerry could get it every once in a while. He *is* supposed to be like a temporary butler," she grumbled.
She opened the door and was greeted with the flash of a camera. A news crew stumbled inside, followed by a reporter with a camera and a small tape recorder. "What is this?" She asked.
A brunette with big hair and a microphone said, "I'm Tuesday Jones from Around Our World At Night. I'm here to get an interview with you. I called the other day and you said you were free this afternoon."
Janet's mouth was open. "No, no you didn't call me." Then it dawned on her. "Oh, you must have gotten Terri, my roommate." She shook her head and put a hand on her hip. "And she said it was okay for you to interview me. Well, why didn't she--"
The phone rang. Janet excused herself and hurried over to it. "Hello?"
"Hi, Janet!" It was Terri. She sounded a bit nervous.
"Terri! Why didn't--"
"Listen, Janet, a reporter or something called a couple of days ago asking if she could have an interview with Janet Wood about some Save Jack Project. I thought it would be great and I told them you were free this afternoon. The only problem: I forgot to tell you." She laughed nervously again. "So they should be over--"
"Right now. Terri, I can't believe you didn't tell me!" Janet hissed through the receiver.
"I'm sorry, Janet. I have to go now, but I'll be watching it on the news tonight! Bye!"
"Terri, wait--"
The click of Terri hanging up interrupted her. She sighed and set the phone back down. She turned to face the news crews.
"Is everything all right?" Said Tuesday.
Janet nodded. "Yes. But before we go on the air--we aren't on the air are we?" Her heart nearly stopped.
Tuesday laughed. "Oh, no."
Janet sighed with relief. "Okay, good, because before we go on the air you need to know that Jack still isn't trained to act around people. We're currently working on that."
Tuesday nodded. "That's just fine. The rest of the crew will stay far enough away. So, this is how we want to do it..."
=-=
That night at six Janet, Jack, Terri, Larry and Jerry all crowded on the couch and chair in apartment 201 to watch the special on Jack. "This is great, Jack-O! All the chicks will want your number if they know you've been on T.V." Larry said.
Jack nodded and turned to Janet. "What is my number?" He whispered.
"I'll tell you later, Jack."
Silence.
"Janet, what are chicks?"
"Shh! It's on!" Terri shouted.
The theme music for Around Our World At Night came on and they saw a man sitting in front of a screen. On the screen was a picture of Jack looking off to the side and smiling. Underneath him were the words: The Save Jack Project. The music ended and the man spoke. "Hello," he said in a dry, mechanical voice. "I'm Rocky Johnson and welcome to Around Our World At Night. Tonight's top story is one of fairytale proportions. It's the story of a boy, a girl and a tragedy, but a tragedy that's in the process of being righted. Earlier today Tuesday Jones went into the home of Jack Tripper, Janet Wood and Terri Alden where she took a look into the lives of three people whose lives have radically changed."
He disappeared and they saw Tuesday standing outside of their apartment. "Behind this simple door lies a story. It's the story of three roommates: Jack Tripper, Janet Wood and Terri Alden. These three people lived together happily for some time before it happened. Late August of this year Jack was rushed to the hospital. The police told Janet he had been in an accident. Only Terri, who is a nurse at the hospital, knew the truth--that Jack was found lying beside his car, unconscience and in need of a doctor. And less than one hour later Jack would become...a monster."
The scene disolved and they saw the hospital. Tuesday's voice spoke. "But before I stepped into the lair of the beast, I took a stroll over to this hospital to find out exactly what the doctors know about Jack and his condition."
They saw her standing next to Dr. Huxtable. "I'm here with Dr. Heathcliffe Huxtable, who was the head doctor when Jack was brought in that fateful night. Dr. Huxtable, what was the first odd thing you noticed about Jack's condition?"
"Well, when the young man threw one of my fellow doctors across the room I suspected that this was no ordinary case," Dr. Huxtable said casually.
"So it's safe to say that when you saw Jack you thought he was...well, a monster?"
"No, actually. I thought he was a human being." Dr. Huxtable's eyes twinkled.
Tuesday was obviously getting frustrated. "So there was nothing scary about him at all?"
"No, no, I didn't say that. The man did have some awful breath."
Tuesday sighed.
"And that, that scared me," Dr. Huxtable continued.
That scene went away and showed Tuesday next to Terri. "I'm here with Nurse Terri Alden. Not only is she one of Jack's roommates, but she was there when he came to life, a different Jack than the one she had known. Ms. Alden, did Jack's behavior scare you?"
Terri nodded. "Of course it did, Tuesday. He was throwing my co-workers across the room, he was breaking the straps that should have held him down, he was roaring like some wild animal...he was scary. He was very scary."
"And his case is unexplainable?"
"Oh yes. There's absolutely nothing wrong with him. He's as healthy as a horse...or maybe a dog..."
"Ms. Alden, when you first saw Jack in that hospital room in August, did you ever think he could be trained to act like a harmless human being again?"
Terri looked upward in thought. She finally shook her head slowly. "No. I had no hope at all for Jack."
It went back to Tuesday standing in front of the apartment door. "After interviewing the medical professionals I decided the only way this case could come out in the open was if I took a leap of faith and came to this small, crummy apartment complex in Santa Monica."
The screen showed Rocky Johnson again. "Man or monster? We'll let you decide when we return shortly with more of our top story."
Terri put her face in her hands. "Oh, I'm so embarrassed! I didn't have any hope at all for Jack and I told everyone on national television! Not only that, but Dr. Huxtable had hope and I didn't and Dr. Huxtable never even *met* Jack before!" She cried.
Larry was sitting next to her and he put his arm around her. "Cheer up, Ter. You only said what you thought."
"That's right," Janet piped from her spot on the other side of Jack. "I didn't have any hope either when I saw him in that hospital room."
"No one ever has hope in a hospital room," Larry said.
But Terri just shook her head. They were quiet until the program came back on.
Rocky Johnson re-introduced everyone to the main story and then it went to Tuesday, standing on the inside of the apartment door. "Welcome everyone to the quaint home of Jack Tripper, Janet Wood and Terri Alden. Right now Terri is at work, but that's all right. We're here to see Janet, who has been taking on the big responsibility of training Jack; and Jack, the poor soul whose life was tragically changed by what was probably the most horrific accident a human being could have."
She walked over to the chair and sat down. Jack and Janet were on the couch, Janet closer to the chair. "Ladies and gentlemen, Janet Wood."
The camera panned over to Janet, who smiled ever-so slightly.
"And Jack Tripper."
The camera went to Jack, who just stared stupidly at it.
The camera went back to Tuesday. "Janet, what exactly were you thinking when you decided that you could take on this responsibility? Training the animal Jack to act and think like a human again...how big of a responsibility is that, really?"
It showed Janet, who nervously tucked some hair behind her ear. "W-well, it's an enormous responsibility. I--well, I could never do this alone. We--me, Jerry, Larry and Terri--have been working together to teach him how to dress himself, go to the bathroom, act around people, eat right, talk right, walk upright...basically everything. It's like he's a little baby."
"And what were you thinking when you decided that you would and could train little Jack to become big Jack?"
Janet looked over at Jack. The camera moved a little bit so that you could see him, too. "Well, I guess I was thinking that Jack is my friend and there is no way I'm going to just sit by and let him get locked up in an insane asylum, or let him lose the rest of his life to something that I could maybe fix."
"So how has training been coming along for Jack?"
Janet smiled and looked back at Jack. "I don't know. Maybe you should ask Jack."
The camera panned over to Jack, who peered at it through narrowed eyes. "Jack," Tuesday's voice said, and Jack's head snapped in her direction. "How are you today?"
"Fine."
"Do you like being trained?"
Jack nodded.
"What is your favorite thing that you have learned?"
Jack grinned. "Roses are red and violets are blue. Flowers are pretty and Janet is, too. My friend Larry taught me that." He said proudly.
The Janet onscreen was blushing and so was the Janet in the living room.
Tuesday chuckled. "That's very sweet. One more question, Jack. What do you think of Janet?"
Jack's face lit up. "Janet is my friend. She is funny and she loves me even if I do something bad."
He leaned over and licked Janet's face. Janet nervously patted him on the head. "He's really sweet," she said bashfully.
Tuesday smiled and turned to Janet. "So, Janet, would you say it's been hard to train Jack? Has he been a 'bad dog' quite a bit?"
Janet smiled herself and looked down. "Just enough to get me frustrated sometimes." She looked back up. "But he's really very good and we've been making outstanding progress. I really am surprised."
"So now, we had a reporter in the court hearing in October and when he told us about your story we announced it at the end of one of our shows. We got tons of emails and letters from people who wanted to know more about it. Then we got some letters from people who thought Jack should be locked away and wanted us to air the bad part of the story. But we got so many more good letters of support that we decided to run this. From what I have seen Jack is very civilized." She reached over to Janet and shook her hand. "Thank you, Janet." She then stretched out her hand to Jack. In the apartment Jerry, Terri and Larry all held their breaths. Jack, taking Janet's example shook Tuesday's hand, too. "Thank you, Jack." Tuesday smiled.
In the apartment Terri cheered, Jerry clapped and Larry gently slugged Jack in the shoulder. "Way to go, Jack-O!"
Janet ruffled Jack's hair. "I was so proud of him." She smiled.
On the television it went back to Rocky Johnson. "So folks, is Jack Tripper a man or a monster? Before even going to his apartment this afternoon we gathered different reporters from around the country to ask civilians that very question. We'll be right back with some of their responses."
In the apartment Janet's mouth popped open. "Gees," Larry spoke, "how many people know about this anyway?"
Janet shook her head. "I had thought it was just us, the doctors and everyone at the hearing."
"Well, thanks to that one reporter at the hearing everyone in the world seems to know!" Terri exclaimed.
They talked about it until Jack pointed out that the show was back on. They settled down to watch.
Once again it was Rocky Johnson. "Well, folks, let's hear what some normal folks like you had to say about and to Jack in regards to his position. Man...or monster?"
The screen flipped and it showed a young woman with a baby. "Hi," she said in a southern accent, "I'm Abby Henderson from Dallas, Texas. I think Jack is a man and, Janet Wood, I commend you for goin' against the odds and doin' this. You inspire single women everywhere who have big duties to tend to." She looked down at her baby.
The screen flipped again to show a young boy who was grinning widely, showing off some missing teeth. He was outside and they could see snow falling behind him. "I'm Jimmy Fields and I'm from Detroit, Michigan. Jack is not a monster and I know he can be a real life person again. Good luck, Jack!" He did a thumbs up.
Next it showed a mild-mannered family. A gentleman had his hand around his wife and two little boys stood in front of them. "I'm Dennis Michaels. This is my wife Rachel and our two boys, John and Thomas. We live in Pensacola, Florida and I just want to say that no human being should be treated like an animal. Jack is a man, not a monster, and with the proper training from Miss. Janet Wood he certainly can be just as normal as anyone else. So good luck to you both and we'll be praying for you."
The next person it showed was a little girl with curly red hair. She was wearing snow clothes and waved at them with a mittened hand. "I'm Tina Douglas from Grand Island Nebraska and I'm four years old. I believe in you, Jack. Get better soon!"
The next two people it showed shocked Janet and Larry into tears of laughter. It was Mr. and Mrs. Roper! "I'm Helen Roper from Santa Monica, California and this is my husband Stanley," said the kind Mrs. Roper. "We know from experience that Jack is a man--"
"Well, sort of," Stanley quipped.
Helen just ignored him and continued. "--that Jack is a man and not a monster. Janet, if anyone can help him we know it's you. Jack, honey, we'll support you all the way through this." She elbowed Stanley.
"Oh, yeah. We will," he added.
The screen flipped to show a gentleman in a brown beret. In the background they could see Big Ben in London! "Yes, I am William Pierce in London England," he spoke with a thick cockney accent, "an' I know Mr. Jack Tripper is a human bean so cu' 'im some slack! Blessings from England!" He waved.
Janet gasped and jumped off of the couch as the screen started to flip back to Rocky Johnson. "Guys! In the background! In London...oh my gosh!"
"What?" Terri asked, her hand over her heart at Janet's sudden reaction.
"It was him!" Janet was jumping up and down. "It was *him*!"
"It was who?!" Larry exploded.
"Elias!"
=-=
What do you think? Was going public a bad idea? You'll see how it gets incorporated into the story in later chapters. ^_~
Anyway, this chapter could be titled: Jack Goes Public, so that will give you some hint as to what happens. It's nice and long so I hope that kind of makes up for it being late. I hope you enjoy it! :)
Legal: I do not own the rights to Three's Company or its characters, thanks.
=-=
Chapter 9: The Broadcast
That night before they went to bed, Janet asked Terri what had happened while she was gone. Terri started by telling her how she had tried to get Jack to like her and how she had failed miserably. "Oh, Janet. He hates me. He must hate me."
Janet got off of her bed and sat next to Terri, putting an arm around her. "Oh, Terri. Jack doesn't hate you. When you first moved in, then he hated you a little bit. But he doesn't anymore." Janet smiled.
Terri smiled as well as she recalled when she had first moved into the little apartment. She sighed. "Janet, you and Jack have become so much like a brother and sister to me. I don't where I would be if I had never met you."
Janet blinked back some humble tears and hugged Terri. "And you're like a sister to me, too, Terri. So what happened after that?"
Terri continued with the story. But Janet interrupted her at one point. "What do you mean, Mr. Furley *started* to figure out something was wrong? He knows about Jack! At least, that's what he told me the other day when Jerry and I were trying to get Jack to eat a sandwich with his hands."
Terri shook her head. "I don't know, Janet. He just looked completely clueless to me."
"When doesn't he?"
The girls shared a giggle and then Janet grew serious again. "Seriously, though, Terri. What is he trying to pull?"
They were quiet for awhile until Terri gasped. "Oh, Janet! Maybe *Mr. Furley* is the bad guy!"
Janet snorted. "Terri, Mr. Furley can't even tell an orange from an apple sometimes. Do you really think he could have done all of this?"
Terri shook her head. "No. You're right. He only could have done it if it was by accident."
"Or if he were framed."
"Yeah," they said together.
"Well," Janet spoke after another moment of silence, "what happened then? How did you get rid of RF?"
Terri's eyes widened and she grinned. "Oh, it was great, Janet! Helga told him off! Oh, she told him off good! She said...uh...well, I don't remember exactly, but she basically told him to mind his own business! Then she pushed him out the door. The only thing interesting, I thought, was that her accent went away while she was yelling. But when she spoke after that it was back again." Her brow furrowed in confusion.
Janet's eyes grew wide. She grabbed Terri's shoulders. "Terri!"
"What?"
"She wasn't Swedish!"
Terri rubbed her chin. "Then why would she pretend to be Swedish? What's the point in that?"
"Maybe she was trying to cover up for something," Janet said, thoughtfully. "Did anything else interesting happen with Helga?"
Terri thought for a minute. "Well...oh, when she went to clean to bedrooms Jerry went to 'see how she was doing'. Maybe there's a love interest there." She put her two index fingers together and winked.
Janet laughed and then grew quiet. "So Jerry's having an affair with Helga, who really isn't Swedish, but was pretending to be so we wouldn't suspect that she really isn't a maid at all, but just has something going on with Jerry," she whispered.
Terri nodded. "Yeah, that sounds about right."
Janet rubbed her chin. "Jerry's getting more intriguing by the minute."
=-=
The next morning Janet was sitting on the couch with Jack, reading while he watched cartoons. Jerry announced that morning that Jack had urinated *in* the toilet and he'd done it all by himself so Janet told him to go out and get some donuts to celebrate a small victory. Terri was at work.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. Jack turned to look at the door. Janet set down her book and hurried to the door. She pulled it open and nearly fell over backwards when Mr. Angelino pushed his way inside! "Mr. Angelino!" She gasped in shock.
Angelino paid no attention to her. He marched right over to the couch. "Tripper, where's my rent?" He said in his comandeering voice.
Jack fell over backwards off the couch. Janet hurried over. "Mr. Angel--"
"Joe may be taking charge for the next few days, but I still expect the rent from you. Where is it, hm?"
Jack looked frightened. Janet grabbed Mr. Angelino's arm and turned him around. "Mr. Angelino, let me explain. Jack mailed the rent to you. So you should get it by mail in a couple of--"
Angelino whirled around again. "Tripper!" He barked. Jack had just climbed back on the couch and fell off again at Angelino's loud voice. "You should know better than to trust so much money to the postal service--especially when it's *my* money! For that I--"
"Mr. Angelino!" Janet grabbed his arm and turned him around again. "You don't understand. I'm the one who sent the rent. Jack gave it to me to give to you and I--"
Angelino turned back around. "Entrusting my money to some young fling? Tripper, you're--"
"Sick!" Janet screeched, turning Angelino back around. "He's sick, Mr. Angelino. That's the only reason he gave it to me. And, actually, he didn't give it willingly. He was about to drag himself all the way down to your restaurant with the money! But I took it from him to give to you because he would just exhaust himself if he--"
"Very well," Angelino snapped. "But if I don't get it in the mail in two days I'll be very, very angry. That's a warning."
Janet nodded vigorously. "Oh, of course, sir. Of course." She grabbed his arm and brought him to the door. "Have a--"
Angelino spun around again, pointing a finger at Jack. "And, Tripper, wipe that idiotic expression off your face. You look like a dumb mutt."
He turned around and stalked out of the building. "Have a nice day!" Janet hollered, slamming the door shut behind him and slumping down against it. She breathed a sigh of relief. "That was close!"
Jack padded timorously over to her and sat in front of her. "What was that?" He said, unsure of his word usage.
Janet smiled and ruffled his hair. "That was Mr. Angelino. He wanted the rent from your restaurant."
"Rent?" Jack queered.
"The money," Janet explained.
Jack nodded. "Will he hurt Janet?"
Janet shook her head. "No, of course not."
Jack grinned. "Good."
Janet smiled and gently carressed his cheek. "Thank you, Jack. You're really very sweet."
He grinned from ear to ear. Just then they heard the doorknob moving and they quickly moved so Jerry could come in with the donuts.
=-=
That afternoon when Jerry went into Jack's room to take a nap Janet sat Jack down on the couch to teach him how to walk upright. He leaned over the back of the couch to watch her as she walked back and forth casually behind it. "See, Jack? It's really easy. Now you try."
He climbed over the back of the couch and she sat down on it to watch him. He tried to stand up, but he fell back down. Janet got off the couch and helped him stand. "Okay. Now walk."
She moved away. His legs wobbled and he fell down. "I can't," he moaned.
Janet sighed and let Jack climb back onto the couch. The doorbell rang and she walked to the door. "You'd think Jerry could get it every once in a while. He *is* supposed to be like a temporary butler," she grumbled.
She opened the door and was greeted with the flash of a camera. A news crew stumbled inside, followed by a reporter with a camera and a small tape recorder. "What is this?" She asked.
A brunette with big hair and a microphone said, "I'm Tuesday Jones from Around Our World At Night. I'm here to get an interview with you. I called the other day and you said you were free this afternoon."
Janet's mouth was open. "No, no you didn't call me." Then it dawned on her. "Oh, you must have gotten Terri, my roommate." She shook her head and put a hand on her hip. "And she said it was okay for you to interview me. Well, why didn't she--"
The phone rang. Janet excused herself and hurried over to it. "Hello?"
"Hi, Janet!" It was Terri. She sounded a bit nervous.
"Terri! Why didn't--"
"Listen, Janet, a reporter or something called a couple of days ago asking if she could have an interview with Janet Wood about some Save Jack Project. I thought it would be great and I told them you were free this afternoon. The only problem: I forgot to tell you." She laughed nervously again. "So they should be over--"
"Right now. Terri, I can't believe you didn't tell me!" Janet hissed through the receiver.
"I'm sorry, Janet. I have to go now, but I'll be watching it on the news tonight! Bye!"
"Terri, wait--"
The click of Terri hanging up interrupted her. She sighed and set the phone back down. She turned to face the news crews.
"Is everything all right?" Said Tuesday.
Janet nodded. "Yes. But before we go on the air--we aren't on the air are we?" Her heart nearly stopped.
Tuesday laughed. "Oh, no."
Janet sighed with relief. "Okay, good, because before we go on the air you need to know that Jack still isn't trained to act around people. We're currently working on that."
Tuesday nodded. "That's just fine. The rest of the crew will stay far enough away. So, this is how we want to do it..."
=-=
That night at six Janet, Jack, Terri, Larry and Jerry all crowded on the couch and chair in apartment 201 to watch the special on Jack. "This is great, Jack-O! All the chicks will want your number if they know you've been on T.V." Larry said.
Jack nodded and turned to Janet. "What is my number?" He whispered.
"I'll tell you later, Jack."
Silence.
"Janet, what are chicks?"
"Shh! It's on!" Terri shouted.
The theme music for Around Our World At Night came on and they saw a man sitting in front of a screen. On the screen was a picture of Jack looking off to the side and smiling. Underneath him were the words: The Save Jack Project. The music ended and the man spoke. "Hello," he said in a dry, mechanical voice. "I'm Rocky Johnson and welcome to Around Our World At Night. Tonight's top story is one of fairytale proportions. It's the story of a boy, a girl and a tragedy, but a tragedy that's in the process of being righted. Earlier today Tuesday Jones went into the home of Jack Tripper, Janet Wood and Terri Alden where she took a look into the lives of three people whose lives have radically changed."
He disappeared and they saw Tuesday standing outside of their apartment. "Behind this simple door lies a story. It's the story of three roommates: Jack Tripper, Janet Wood and Terri Alden. These three people lived together happily for some time before it happened. Late August of this year Jack was rushed to the hospital. The police told Janet he had been in an accident. Only Terri, who is a nurse at the hospital, knew the truth--that Jack was found lying beside his car, unconscience and in need of a doctor. And less than one hour later Jack would become...a monster."
The scene disolved and they saw the hospital. Tuesday's voice spoke. "But before I stepped into the lair of the beast, I took a stroll over to this hospital to find out exactly what the doctors know about Jack and his condition."
They saw her standing next to Dr. Huxtable. "I'm here with Dr. Heathcliffe Huxtable, who was the head doctor when Jack was brought in that fateful night. Dr. Huxtable, what was the first odd thing you noticed about Jack's condition?"
"Well, when the young man threw one of my fellow doctors across the room I suspected that this was no ordinary case," Dr. Huxtable said casually.
"So it's safe to say that when you saw Jack you thought he was...well, a monster?"
"No, actually. I thought he was a human being." Dr. Huxtable's eyes twinkled.
Tuesday was obviously getting frustrated. "So there was nothing scary about him at all?"
"No, no, I didn't say that. The man did have some awful breath."
Tuesday sighed.
"And that, that scared me," Dr. Huxtable continued.
That scene went away and showed Tuesday next to Terri. "I'm here with Nurse Terri Alden. Not only is she one of Jack's roommates, but she was there when he came to life, a different Jack than the one she had known. Ms. Alden, did Jack's behavior scare you?"
Terri nodded. "Of course it did, Tuesday. He was throwing my co-workers across the room, he was breaking the straps that should have held him down, he was roaring like some wild animal...he was scary. He was very scary."
"And his case is unexplainable?"
"Oh yes. There's absolutely nothing wrong with him. He's as healthy as a horse...or maybe a dog..."
"Ms. Alden, when you first saw Jack in that hospital room in August, did you ever think he could be trained to act like a harmless human being again?"
Terri looked upward in thought. She finally shook her head slowly. "No. I had no hope at all for Jack."
It went back to Tuesday standing in front of the apartment door. "After interviewing the medical professionals I decided the only way this case could come out in the open was if I took a leap of faith and came to this small, crummy apartment complex in Santa Monica."
The screen showed Rocky Johnson again. "Man or monster? We'll let you decide when we return shortly with more of our top story."
Terri put her face in her hands. "Oh, I'm so embarrassed! I didn't have any hope at all for Jack and I told everyone on national television! Not only that, but Dr. Huxtable had hope and I didn't and Dr. Huxtable never even *met* Jack before!" She cried.
Larry was sitting next to her and he put his arm around her. "Cheer up, Ter. You only said what you thought."
"That's right," Janet piped from her spot on the other side of Jack. "I didn't have any hope either when I saw him in that hospital room."
"No one ever has hope in a hospital room," Larry said.
But Terri just shook her head. They were quiet until the program came back on.
Rocky Johnson re-introduced everyone to the main story and then it went to Tuesday, standing on the inside of the apartment door. "Welcome everyone to the quaint home of Jack Tripper, Janet Wood and Terri Alden. Right now Terri is at work, but that's all right. We're here to see Janet, who has been taking on the big responsibility of training Jack; and Jack, the poor soul whose life was tragically changed by what was probably the most horrific accident a human being could have."
She walked over to the chair and sat down. Jack and Janet were on the couch, Janet closer to the chair. "Ladies and gentlemen, Janet Wood."
The camera panned over to Janet, who smiled ever-so slightly.
"And Jack Tripper."
The camera went to Jack, who just stared stupidly at it.
The camera went back to Tuesday. "Janet, what exactly were you thinking when you decided that you could take on this responsibility? Training the animal Jack to act and think like a human again...how big of a responsibility is that, really?"
It showed Janet, who nervously tucked some hair behind her ear. "W-well, it's an enormous responsibility. I--well, I could never do this alone. We--me, Jerry, Larry and Terri--have been working together to teach him how to dress himself, go to the bathroom, act around people, eat right, talk right, walk upright...basically everything. It's like he's a little baby."
"And what were you thinking when you decided that you would and could train little Jack to become big Jack?"
Janet looked over at Jack. The camera moved a little bit so that you could see him, too. "Well, I guess I was thinking that Jack is my friend and there is no way I'm going to just sit by and let him get locked up in an insane asylum, or let him lose the rest of his life to something that I could maybe fix."
"So how has training been coming along for Jack?"
Janet smiled and looked back at Jack. "I don't know. Maybe you should ask Jack."
The camera panned over to Jack, who peered at it through narrowed eyes. "Jack," Tuesday's voice said, and Jack's head snapped in her direction. "How are you today?"
"Fine."
"Do you like being trained?"
Jack nodded.
"What is your favorite thing that you have learned?"
Jack grinned. "Roses are red and violets are blue. Flowers are pretty and Janet is, too. My friend Larry taught me that." He said proudly.
The Janet onscreen was blushing and so was the Janet in the living room.
Tuesday chuckled. "That's very sweet. One more question, Jack. What do you think of Janet?"
Jack's face lit up. "Janet is my friend. She is funny and she loves me even if I do something bad."
He leaned over and licked Janet's face. Janet nervously patted him on the head. "He's really sweet," she said bashfully.
Tuesday smiled and turned to Janet. "So, Janet, would you say it's been hard to train Jack? Has he been a 'bad dog' quite a bit?"
Janet smiled herself and looked down. "Just enough to get me frustrated sometimes." She looked back up. "But he's really very good and we've been making outstanding progress. I really am surprised."
"So now, we had a reporter in the court hearing in October and when he told us about your story we announced it at the end of one of our shows. We got tons of emails and letters from people who wanted to know more about it. Then we got some letters from people who thought Jack should be locked away and wanted us to air the bad part of the story. But we got so many more good letters of support that we decided to run this. From what I have seen Jack is very civilized." She reached over to Janet and shook her hand. "Thank you, Janet." She then stretched out her hand to Jack. In the apartment Jerry, Terri and Larry all held their breaths. Jack, taking Janet's example shook Tuesday's hand, too. "Thank you, Jack." Tuesday smiled.
In the apartment Terri cheered, Jerry clapped and Larry gently slugged Jack in the shoulder. "Way to go, Jack-O!"
Janet ruffled Jack's hair. "I was so proud of him." She smiled.
On the television it went back to Rocky Johnson. "So folks, is Jack Tripper a man or a monster? Before even going to his apartment this afternoon we gathered different reporters from around the country to ask civilians that very question. We'll be right back with some of their responses."
In the apartment Janet's mouth popped open. "Gees," Larry spoke, "how many people know about this anyway?"
Janet shook her head. "I had thought it was just us, the doctors and everyone at the hearing."
"Well, thanks to that one reporter at the hearing everyone in the world seems to know!" Terri exclaimed.
They talked about it until Jack pointed out that the show was back on. They settled down to watch.
Once again it was Rocky Johnson. "Well, folks, let's hear what some normal folks like you had to say about and to Jack in regards to his position. Man...or monster?"
The screen flipped and it showed a young woman with a baby. "Hi," she said in a southern accent, "I'm Abby Henderson from Dallas, Texas. I think Jack is a man and, Janet Wood, I commend you for goin' against the odds and doin' this. You inspire single women everywhere who have big duties to tend to." She looked down at her baby.
The screen flipped again to show a young boy who was grinning widely, showing off some missing teeth. He was outside and they could see snow falling behind him. "I'm Jimmy Fields and I'm from Detroit, Michigan. Jack is not a monster and I know he can be a real life person again. Good luck, Jack!" He did a thumbs up.
Next it showed a mild-mannered family. A gentleman had his hand around his wife and two little boys stood in front of them. "I'm Dennis Michaels. This is my wife Rachel and our two boys, John and Thomas. We live in Pensacola, Florida and I just want to say that no human being should be treated like an animal. Jack is a man, not a monster, and with the proper training from Miss. Janet Wood he certainly can be just as normal as anyone else. So good luck to you both and we'll be praying for you."
The next person it showed was a little girl with curly red hair. She was wearing snow clothes and waved at them with a mittened hand. "I'm Tina Douglas from Grand Island Nebraska and I'm four years old. I believe in you, Jack. Get better soon!"
The next two people it showed shocked Janet and Larry into tears of laughter. It was Mr. and Mrs. Roper! "I'm Helen Roper from Santa Monica, California and this is my husband Stanley," said the kind Mrs. Roper. "We know from experience that Jack is a man--"
"Well, sort of," Stanley quipped.
Helen just ignored him and continued. "--that Jack is a man and not a monster. Janet, if anyone can help him we know it's you. Jack, honey, we'll support you all the way through this." She elbowed Stanley.
"Oh, yeah. We will," he added.
The screen flipped to show a gentleman in a brown beret. In the background they could see Big Ben in London! "Yes, I am William Pierce in London England," he spoke with a thick cockney accent, "an' I know Mr. Jack Tripper is a human bean so cu' 'im some slack! Blessings from England!" He waved.
Janet gasped and jumped off of the couch as the screen started to flip back to Rocky Johnson. "Guys! In the background! In London...oh my gosh!"
"What?" Terri asked, her hand over her heart at Janet's sudden reaction.
"It was him!" Janet was jumping up and down. "It was *him*!"
"It was who?!" Larry exploded.
"Elias!"
=-=
What do you think? Was going public a bad idea? You'll see how it gets incorporated into the story in later chapters. ^_~
