In The Beginning
Chapter Two: The Gang of Four
A few weeks had passed by, and Jacqueline had grown to be the most popular girl in the school. Everyone was expecting that, she was a Burkhart after all. Jacqueline didn't think much of it, until the day her mother came back into her life...
Jacqueline waved goodbye to Pam Macy, who turned out to live just a few houses away from her, in The Pavilion, and continued to skip home, her bright pink book bag bouncing on her shoulder. Jacqueline didn't notice anything different about her house as she came inside, but looking back, she realized that the maids were squirming about and a new scent had made it's way throughout the house, wafting down the staircase as she ran up to her room. A womanly scent.
Jacqueline shut her door behind her, throwing her bag onto the floor as she turned up her radio and took the tiny, pink hairclips out of her hair, throwing them upon her vanity. It was then that she looked up into her vanity mirror, she gasped at the sight, and turned around instantly, staring at the strange, yet familiar woman seated on her bed.
"Jacqueline...you've grown so much." The woman said, crossing her legs carefully as she opened up her arms for a hug.
Jacqueline stared at the woman with a dumbfound expression, but she was so gentle and beautiful looking that she inched closer to her, letting the stranger wrap her arms around her.
"Who are you?" Jacqueline asked as she took a seat next to the woman.
"Darling," The woman laughed, her blond-brown curls bouncing up and down, "I'm your mother!"
Jacqueline's eyes widened.
She always wondered why she didn't have a mother, like her friends all did.
Why her maid would drop her off at school, rather then her mother.
But she never even thought to ask Daddy...
But it had to have been true; this beautiful woman was her mother.
They shared many of the same features. A small, delicate nose, baby soft hair, and pouty lips.
Jacqueline smiled, although she still felt quite unsure of the situation.
"Where have you been?" Jacqueline managed to squeak out.
"Mexico." Her mother said, flashing a smile.
It was the first, but certainly not the last time Jacqueline would ask this question and hear this answer.
"Jacqueline, I know you must be terribly confused by all this." Her mother said, standing up quietly. "But I promise, I'll make it up to you."
Jacqueline smiled again, but she wasn't sure how someone could make up for something like 'this'.
Dinner that night had been awfully delightful though.
Her father was extremely happy that Pam was home and Pam did make quite an impression on her daughter that evening, with her vivid tales of drunken nights on the beach and partying with celebrities in Cancun.
And the next day Pam dropped Jacqueline off at school, with a kiss, and in a way, it did make up for it.
When Jacqueline told her mother about her friends and how everyone liked her, her mother seemed especially proud. So Jacqueline made sure to keep everything the way it was. She always came to school neat and prim and always sat at the cool table during recess. In fact, the only person she even considered talking to who wasn't part of her little group was the boy everyone called Kelso.
It was kind of hard to dismiss him, since he always had his eyes on her and always complimented and always followed her and Pam.
One day, during recess, as Lacey and Stacey giggled over the newest Brady Bunch episode, Jacqueline noticed the four friends playing on the monkey bars. It had come to her attention that she still didn't know the other three's names, but figured they couldn't be too bad, since that sweet Michael Kelso was friends with them. She watched Michael, watch her, and then jump off the bars, his friends gagging as he walked towards her table. He stuck his hands in his pockets, flipped his hair back with a shake of his head, and took a seat next to Jacqueline.
"Hiiiii Michaeelll." The three blond chorused, because it was a known fact that Michael Kelso was the cutest boy at Point Place Elementary.
"Hi girls." He flashed a toothy grin and turned his attention back on Jacqueline. "So, um, Jacqueline...my mom packed some jelly beans in my lunch today." He paused, pulling out a brown bag, "I saved all the pink ones for you, since I know that's your favorite color."
The other three girls cooed in jealousy as Jacqueline took the bag graciously, popping a pink jelly bean into her mouth, "Thank you, Michael. That was really sweet of you."
Michael grinned, practically tripping as he walked away, mumbling to himself.
"You are so lucky!" Pam Macy shrieked as soon as the boy had returned to his friends, who were kicking and taunting him.
Jacqueline grinned, munching on pink jelly beans as the girls squealed over what just happened, and watched the four friends from the corner of her eye. The curly haired boy punched Michael in the arm, laughing hoarsely. Jacqueline quickly turned away as he caught her eye. She looked back again to see him staring, his eyebrows raised skeptically. He then shook his head and turned away.
For some reason, and she couldn't quite place it, that curly haired boy intrigued her.
She pushed this aside as the recess bell rang, and took her seat inside the classroom, which happened to be to the right of Michael.
She smiled at him, and he smiled in return as Miss Turner explained what today's assignment would be.
"Ok, class, we're going to split into groups of two to work on an art project..."
Jacqueline looked around the room nervously, for she hated when group projects were assigned. Everyone knew who she was, but she never kept up with who all the other kids were.
"Jacqueline and Donna." Miss Turner announced, instructing the red headed girl to take Michael's seat.
Jacqueline watched the red headed girl sit down shyly, as Miss Turner put a box of crayons and some paper on their desks, which they pushed together to begin working.
"I'm not really good at drawing." Donna said quickly, with a reassuring smile.
"Neither am I." Jacqueline laughed, picking up a pink crayon.
"Ugh..." Donna shook her head. "No pink. I hate that color."
Jacqueline's eyes bulged, for she had never heard of such a thing. A girl hating the color pink?
"How can you hate pink?"
"I just do." Donna said, picking up a red crayon. "My mommy says that pink is just the color that boys think girls should like."
Jacqueline sat there, astonished as Donna continued.
"And Hyde says she's right, because the government is full of men who just tell us what colors we should like. That's why my favorite color is blue."
"But blue is for boys!" Jacqueline said loudly, but then scrunched her nose up quickly, "Who's Hyde?"
Donna pointed towards the curly haired boy, who was paired with Michael. Both boys watched Donna and Jacqueline, but Hyde quickly ducked his head down as Michael stared.
"Who's that other kid you hang out with?" Jacqueline asked. "The skinny kid."
"That's Eric." Donna said, a red blush forming on her cheeks.
"Oh." Jacqueline said, watching Hyde's curly hair shake as he drew his picture with interest.
Donna and Jaqueline couldn't decide on what to draw, so they ended up drawing a very messy picture of Miss Turner.
When everyone finished up, Miss Turner asked each student to present their picture.
Eric and Pam Macy went first.
"For our picture," Pam began, giving Eric a cold look, "We drew GI Joe holding hands with Barbie," She paused, cackling slightly, "As you can see, Barbie is really pretty and GI Joe isn't. That's because Eric Forman draws like a girl!"
The whole class erupted into laughs except for Donna and Jacqueline.
Jacqueline because, she thought that the drawing wasn't so bad, and Donna because her mommy always said that phrases that ended with, "like a girl", were mean and not feminist-like.
Eric looked crushed as Pam sat down, winking at Jacqueline.
"Next are Michael and Steven."
Jacqueline was slightly confused, until Donna explained that Hyde's first name was Steven.
Hyde cleared his throat as Micheal held the picture up.
"For our picture," Hyde smirked, "We drew Pam Macy getting eaten by a dog. These are her guts on the floor here," Hyde said, pointing to splotches of red on the paper.
"We decided on this because I love dogs and Pam is pretty." Michael said loudly, smiling at Pam, who didn't seem all too thrilled.
"And because I love when dogs bite people," Hyde continued. "Especially stupid girls like Pam."
"Steven!" Miss Turner screeched, ripping the paper from Micheal's hands. "We have discussed this before. Go to the principal's office."
The class laughed, except for Pam who stuck her tongue out at Hyde as he walked past her and out the door.
The rest of the class presented, most chose to draw pretty things or people they know. Miss Turner especially liked Donna and Jacqueline's picture.
"You two make quite a team." Miss Turner said, causing Donna and Jacqueline to smile towards one another. "A+."
Class was over and Jacqueline tapped Donna quickly on the shoulder.
"Donna, my mommy's taking me to the Hub for some ice cream when she picks me up, would you like to come?"
Donna smiled quickly, as Eric came up to her, "I'd love to Jacqueline."
"Jacqueline!" Pam Macy hissed, with Lacey and Stacey by her side.
"Meet me by the water fountain, ok?" Jacqueline said quickly to Donna, who nodded and walked away with Eric by her side.
Pam Macy strode over to Jacqueline, frowning quickly. "Why are you talking to the Lumberjack?"
"You mean Donna?"
"She has a name?" Stacey laughed sharply.
"Girls like us do not hang out with girls like her." Pam informed Jacqueline. "If you want to be my friend, you can't be friends with her."
Jacqueline thought this over quickly.
If she wasn't friends with Pam, then she wouldn't be popular. And if she's not popular then what would her mother say?
"Don't worry Pam," Jacqueline said quickly, "I choose you over that..." Jacqueline winced, "Lumberjack, any day."
"Good." Pam pushed Jacqueline ahead of her. "Now, prove it."
Jacqueline felt instantly sick as she approached the water fountain, where Eric, Michael, Hyde, and Donna were standing. Donna instantly smiled as Jacqueline walked up to her, with Pam poking her back.
"Donna, Jacqueline has something to tell you." Pam said, giving Hyde a threatening look.
Hyde stared at Jacqueline, as he spoke out loud, "Pam Macy needs to get over herself."
Jacqueline cracked a smile, which he noticed quickly, but didn't show any signs of it.
"What do you need to tell me?" Donna asked, clutching her books to her chest.
"I'm sorry, Donna, but I can't take you to get ice cream today."
Pam was watching this carefully, which Jacqueline noticed.
"Oh." Donna said with disappointment. "Is something wrong?"
"Yeah." Jacqueline swallowed hard, knowing what she had to do. She put on a sudden change of face, which only Hyde seemed to notice, "I'm afraid I might catch Lumberjack cooties or something. You understand, don't you?"
"Excuse me?" Donna asked timidly.
"You heard me." Jacqueline grinned obliviously, "Later, Lumberjack."
Donna's eyes began to grow into deep pools as Jacqueline pushed her gently as she walked by. She met up with Pam, who smirked and congratulated her, before leaving the school.
Jacqueline went outside to the place where her mother usually picks her up. She pretended not to see Donna and Eric walking together, Eric holding her books as she cried. Michael came up to her slowly, and Hyde gave her a look of death as he caught up with Eric and Donna.
"That was really mean, Jacqueline." Michael said. "Donna's one of my good friends, so I really shouldn't talk to you ever again."
Jacqueline gave Michael a weary look.
"But you're just too damn pretty." He gave her a goofy grin as he walked away.
She shrugged, smiling slightly, until she noticed that Hyde stopped as the other three walked on.
Hyde and Jacqueline both stood on the corner, waiting.
Jacqueline felt her heart tugging at her with guilt, so she called out to him, even though he was just a few steps away. "Is she ok?"
He looked up at her with surprise. He was now wearing an old pair of sunglasses, so Jacqueline couldn't sense his reaction. He looked back down without saying a word. So Jacqueline moved in closer and said it again, "Is she ok?"
"I heard you the first time."
"So why didn't you answer?"
"Didn't feel like it."
She blinked widely at him, staring down at her black Mary Janes.
"Don't you think it's sort of impolite not to answer someone when they ask you a question?" She asked, because that's what she always taught.
He remained silent and she temporarily gave up.
It had been ten minutes, and she started to wonder if her mother had forgotten about her.
"So, how long have you and Michael been friends?" Jacqueline asked, watching the boy carefully. He didn't say a word. Not even a grunt. "Come on, you can't ignore me all day!"
"Watch me." He said with a sarcastic tone.
"See!" She laughed. "You just spoke to me!"
"So?" He grumbled. "Shut your trap."
Jacqueline was very taken aback by this; no one ever spoke to her in such a manner before. She was a Burkhart, for heaven's sake!
"I will not." She said strongly. "Now answer my question."
Hyde looked up the girl for a nanosecond, then back to looking straight ahead. "Which one?"
She grinned. "How long have you and Michael been friends?"
"A long time."
She rolled her eyes and continued to wait for her mother.
"Who are you waiting for?" He asked randomly.
"My mother." She said quietly.
"Me too." He laughed as he kicked the pavement. "She probably forgot about me."
Jacqueline felt a sudden ounce of regret for the boy and her face softened. "I'm sure there's just a lot of traffic. Both out mom's are probably just stuck in traffic."
"There's no traffic in Point Place, Jackie."
Jackie? No one had ever called her Jackie before...but she sort of liked it.
"My mom's probably at the bar." He continued. "She's always there."
"Does she work there?" Jackie asked innocently.
Hyde laughed, "I wish."
Jackie didn't really understand why he would say that, but she didn't ask what he meant, because soon enough she spotted her mother's Lincoln speeding heavily towards the corner, stopping abruptly.
Her mother sauntered out, smiling goofily, "Oh, Jacqueline, I'm soooo sorry! I promise I'll make this up to you!"
Her mother sure seemed to make this promise a lot.
"It's ok, mom." Jackie said sheepishly. "Can we drive my friend home?" She looked at Hyde, who barely looked up.
"This boy...is..." Pam looked at the dirty little boy in disgust, "Your friend?"
If Hyde was hurt, Jackie couldn't tell, because of his sunglasses, but he quickly walked off in the other direction. Jackie froze, giving her mother a weary look and ran after him, "Steven, wait."
"Don't call me that." He muttered, continuing at a fast pace.
"Sorry..." She bit her lip.
"Listen, Jackie," He stopped, but looked straight ahead. "I hate Pam Macy and Pam Macy hates me. If she knew you were offering to drive me home, she would ruin you."
"I don't care." She muttered, trying to look into his eyes.
"Yeah, you obviously do." He muttered. "Just stay away from me. The Gang of Four doesn't befriend Pam Macy or her friends."
"Gang of four?" Jackie asked sheepishly, though she already knew who they were.
"Yeah, Gang of Four. Donna, Kelso, Forman, and me." He snapped his tongue quickly at her, "No one else."
She saw how serious this was to him and let it go. "So does this mean we can't be friends?" She asked.
"Jackie, get it through your easy bake oven head." He had begun to raise his voice at her, scaring her slightly. "I hate girls like you."
Jackie stood emotionless. Never had anyone screamed at her.
She was a Burkhart; she didn't have to take this.
"Jacqueline?" Her mother called out to her from the car.
"Coming..." She called back. "Don't ever speak to me again, you freak."
"Whatever." He mumbled, walking past her.
Jackie pushed the last bit of innocence away from her, as she jumped into the car and buckled her seat belt.
"So did you tell that poor little boy off sweetie?"
"Yeah, mom." Jackie chirped. "I don't know what I was thinking."
Her mother beamed down at her with pride and Jackie smiled back.
Jackie didn't acknowledge the Gang of Four again, but gossiped about them like crazy. She helped Pam Macy spread vicious rumors about Donna, make fun of Eric's scrawniness, and denounce Hyde. Of course, Michael wasn't made fun of or talked about in a bad way, since he was the cutest boy in school.
No one really noticed Jacqueline's transition into Jackie.
That sweet, innocent girl had become an evil, gossiping, daydreaming, materialistic sap.
The only one who really noticed was Hyde; but he didn't let anyone know he cared.
Not yet anyway...
Chapter Two: The Gang of Four
A few weeks had passed by, and Jacqueline had grown to be the most popular girl in the school. Everyone was expecting that, she was a Burkhart after all. Jacqueline didn't think much of it, until the day her mother came back into her life...
Jacqueline waved goodbye to Pam Macy, who turned out to live just a few houses away from her, in The Pavilion, and continued to skip home, her bright pink book bag bouncing on her shoulder. Jacqueline didn't notice anything different about her house as she came inside, but looking back, she realized that the maids were squirming about and a new scent had made it's way throughout the house, wafting down the staircase as she ran up to her room. A womanly scent.
Jacqueline shut her door behind her, throwing her bag onto the floor as she turned up her radio and took the tiny, pink hairclips out of her hair, throwing them upon her vanity. It was then that she looked up into her vanity mirror, she gasped at the sight, and turned around instantly, staring at the strange, yet familiar woman seated on her bed.
"Jacqueline...you've grown so much." The woman said, crossing her legs carefully as she opened up her arms for a hug.
Jacqueline stared at the woman with a dumbfound expression, but she was so gentle and beautiful looking that she inched closer to her, letting the stranger wrap her arms around her.
"Who are you?" Jacqueline asked as she took a seat next to the woman.
"Darling," The woman laughed, her blond-brown curls bouncing up and down, "I'm your mother!"
Jacqueline's eyes widened.
She always wondered why she didn't have a mother, like her friends all did.
Why her maid would drop her off at school, rather then her mother.
But she never even thought to ask Daddy...
But it had to have been true; this beautiful woman was her mother.
They shared many of the same features. A small, delicate nose, baby soft hair, and pouty lips.
Jacqueline smiled, although she still felt quite unsure of the situation.
"Where have you been?" Jacqueline managed to squeak out.
"Mexico." Her mother said, flashing a smile.
It was the first, but certainly not the last time Jacqueline would ask this question and hear this answer.
"Jacqueline, I know you must be terribly confused by all this." Her mother said, standing up quietly. "But I promise, I'll make it up to you."
Jacqueline smiled again, but she wasn't sure how someone could make up for something like 'this'.
Dinner that night had been awfully delightful though.
Her father was extremely happy that Pam was home and Pam did make quite an impression on her daughter that evening, with her vivid tales of drunken nights on the beach and partying with celebrities in Cancun.
And the next day Pam dropped Jacqueline off at school, with a kiss, and in a way, it did make up for it.
When Jacqueline told her mother about her friends and how everyone liked her, her mother seemed especially proud. So Jacqueline made sure to keep everything the way it was. She always came to school neat and prim and always sat at the cool table during recess. In fact, the only person she even considered talking to who wasn't part of her little group was the boy everyone called Kelso.
It was kind of hard to dismiss him, since he always had his eyes on her and always complimented and always followed her and Pam.
One day, during recess, as Lacey and Stacey giggled over the newest Brady Bunch episode, Jacqueline noticed the four friends playing on the monkey bars. It had come to her attention that she still didn't know the other three's names, but figured they couldn't be too bad, since that sweet Michael Kelso was friends with them. She watched Michael, watch her, and then jump off the bars, his friends gagging as he walked towards her table. He stuck his hands in his pockets, flipped his hair back with a shake of his head, and took a seat next to Jacqueline.
"Hiiiii Michaeelll." The three blond chorused, because it was a known fact that Michael Kelso was the cutest boy at Point Place Elementary.
"Hi girls." He flashed a toothy grin and turned his attention back on Jacqueline. "So, um, Jacqueline...my mom packed some jelly beans in my lunch today." He paused, pulling out a brown bag, "I saved all the pink ones for you, since I know that's your favorite color."
The other three girls cooed in jealousy as Jacqueline took the bag graciously, popping a pink jelly bean into her mouth, "Thank you, Michael. That was really sweet of you."
Michael grinned, practically tripping as he walked away, mumbling to himself.
"You are so lucky!" Pam Macy shrieked as soon as the boy had returned to his friends, who were kicking and taunting him.
Jacqueline grinned, munching on pink jelly beans as the girls squealed over what just happened, and watched the four friends from the corner of her eye. The curly haired boy punched Michael in the arm, laughing hoarsely. Jacqueline quickly turned away as he caught her eye. She looked back again to see him staring, his eyebrows raised skeptically. He then shook his head and turned away.
For some reason, and she couldn't quite place it, that curly haired boy intrigued her.
She pushed this aside as the recess bell rang, and took her seat inside the classroom, which happened to be to the right of Michael.
She smiled at him, and he smiled in return as Miss Turner explained what today's assignment would be.
"Ok, class, we're going to split into groups of two to work on an art project..."
Jacqueline looked around the room nervously, for she hated when group projects were assigned. Everyone knew who she was, but she never kept up with who all the other kids were.
"Jacqueline and Donna." Miss Turner announced, instructing the red headed girl to take Michael's seat.
Jacqueline watched the red headed girl sit down shyly, as Miss Turner put a box of crayons and some paper on their desks, which they pushed together to begin working.
"I'm not really good at drawing." Donna said quickly, with a reassuring smile.
"Neither am I." Jacqueline laughed, picking up a pink crayon.
"Ugh..." Donna shook her head. "No pink. I hate that color."
Jacqueline's eyes bulged, for she had never heard of such a thing. A girl hating the color pink?
"How can you hate pink?"
"I just do." Donna said, picking up a red crayon. "My mommy says that pink is just the color that boys think girls should like."
Jacqueline sat there, astonished as Donna continued.
"And Hyde says she's right, because the government is full of men who just tell us what colors we should like. That's why my favorite color is blue."
"But blue is for boys!" Jacqueline said loudly, but then scrunched her nose up quickly, "Who's Hyde?"
Donna pointed towards the curly haired boy, who was paired with Michael. Both boys watched Donna and Jacqueline, but Hyde quickly ducked his head down as Michael stared.
"Who's that other kid you hang out with?" Jacqueline asked. "The skinny kid."
"That's Eric." Donna said, a red blush forming on her cheeks.
"Oh." Jacqueline said, watching Hyde's curly hair shake as he drew his picture with interest.
Donna and Jaqueline couldn't decide on what to draw, so they ended up drawing a very messy picture of Miss Turner.
When everyone finished up, Miss Turner asked each student to present their picture.
Eric and Pam Macy went first.
"For our picture," Pam began, giving Eric a cold look, "We drew GI Joe holding hands with Barbie," She paused, cackling slightly, "As you can see, Barbie is really pretty and GI Joe isn't. That's because Eric Forman draws like a girl!"
The whole class erupted into laughs except for Donna and Jacqueline.
Jacqueline because, she thought that the drawing wasn't so bad, and Donna because her mommy always said that phrases that ended with, "like a girl", were mean and not feminist-like.
Eric looked crushed as Pam sat down, winking at Jacqueline.
"Next are Michael and Steven."
Jacqueline was slightly confused, until Donna explained that Hyde's first name was Steven.
Hyde cleared his throat as Micheal held the picture up.
"For our picture," Hyde smirked, "We drew Pam Macy getting eaten by a dog. These are her guts on the floor here," Hyde said, pointing to splotches of red on the paper.
"We decided on this because I love dogs and Pam is pretty." Michael said loudly, smiling at Pam, who didn't seem all too thrilled.
"And because I love when dogs bite people," Hyde continued. "Especially stupid girls like Pam."
"Steven!" Miss Turner screeched, ripping the paper from Micheal's hands. "We have discussed this before. Go to the principal's office."
The class laughed, except for Pam who stuck her tongue out at Hyde as he walked past her and out the door.
The rest of the class presented, most chose to draw pretty things or people they know. Miss Turner especially liked Donna and Jacqueline's picture.
"You two make quite a team." Miss Turner said, causing Donna and Jacqueline to smile towards one another. "A+."
Class was over and Jacqueline tapped Donna quickly on the shoulder.
"Donna, my mommy's taking me to the Hub for some ice cream when she picks me up, would you like to come?"
Donna smiled quickly, as Eric came up to her, "I'd love to Jacqueline."
"Jacqueline!" Pam Macy hissed, with Lacey and Stacey by her side.
"Meet me by the water fountain, ok?" Jacqueline said quickly to Donna, who nodded and walked away with Eric by her side.
Pam Macy strode over to Jacqueline, frowning quickly. "Why are you talking to the Lumberjack?"
"You mean Donna?"
"She has a name?" Stacey laughed sharply.
"Girls like us do not hang out with girls like her." Pam informed Jacqueline. "If you want to be my friend, you can't be friends with her."
Jacqueline thought this over quickly.
If she wasn't friends with Pam, then she wouldn't be popular. And if she's not popular then what would her mother say?
"Don't worry Pam," Jacqueline said quickly, "I choose you over that..." Jacqueline winced, "Lumberjack, any day."
"Good." Pam pushed Jacqueline ahead of her. "Now, prove it."
Jacqueline felt instantly sick as she approached the water fountain, where Eric, Michael, Hyde, and Donna were standing. Donna instantly smiled as Jacqueline walked up to her, with Pam poking her back.
"Donna, Jacqueline has something to tell you." Pam said, giving Hyde a threatening look.
Hyde stared at Jacqueline, as he spoke out loud, "Pam Macy needs to get over herself."
Jacqueline cracked a smile, which he noticed quickly, but didn't show any signs of it.
"What do you need to tell me?" Donna asked, clutching her books to her chest.
"I'm sorry, Donna, but I can't take you to get ice cream today."
Pam was watching this carefully, which Jacqueline noticed.
"Oh." Donna said with disappointment. "Is something wrong?"
"Yeah." Jacqueline swallowed hard, knowing what she had to do. She put on a sudden change of face, which only Hyde seemed to notice, "I'm afraid I might catch Lumberjack cooties or something. You understand, don't you?"
"Excuse me?" Donna asked timidly.
"You heard me." Jacqueline grinned obliviously, "Later, Lumberjack."
Donna's eyes began to grow into deep pools as Jacqueline pushed her gently as she walked by. She met up with Pam, who smirked and congratulated her, before leaving the school.
Jacqueline went outside to the place where her mother usually picks her up. She pretended not to see Donna and Eric walking together, Eric holding her books as she cried. Michael came up to her slowly, and Hyde gave her a look of death as he caught up with Eric and Donna.
"That was really mean, Jacqueline." Michael said. "Donna's one of my good friends, so I really shouldn't talk to you ever again."
Jacqueline gave Michael a weary look.
"But you're just too damn pretty." He gave her a goofy grin as he walked away.
She shrugged, smiling slightly, until she noticed that Hyde stopped as the other three walked on.
Hyde and Jacqueline both stood on the corner, waiting.
Jacqueline felt her heart tugging at her with guilt, so she called out to him, even though he was just a few steps away. "Is she ok?"
He looked up at her with surprise. He was now wearing an old pair of sunglasses, so Jacqueline couldn't sense his reaction. He looked back down without saying a word. So Jacqueline moved in closer and said it again, "Is she ok?"
"I heard you the first time."
"So why didn't you answer?"
"Didn't feel like it."
She blinked widely at him, staring down at her black Mary Janes.
"Don't you think it's sort of impolite not to answer someone when they ask you a question?" She asked, because that's what she always taught.
He remained silent and she temporarily gave up.
It had been ten minutes, and she started to wonder if her mother had forgotten about her.
"So, how long have you and Michael been friends?" Jacqueline asked, watching the boy carefully. He didn't say a word. Not even a grunt. "Come on, you can't ignore me all day!"
"Watch me." He said with a sarcastic tone.
"See!" She laughed. "You just spoke to me!"
"So?" He grumbled. "Shut your trap."
Jacqueline was very taken aback by this; no one ever spoke to her in such a manner before. She was a Burkhart, for heaven's sake!
"I will not." She said strongly. "Now answer my question."
Hyde looked up the girl for a nanosecond, then back to looking straight ahead. "Which one?"
She grinned. "How long have you and Michael been friends?"
"A long time."
She rolled her eyes and continued to wait for her mother.
"Who are you waiting for?" He asked randomly.
"My mother." She said quietly.
"Me too." He laughed as he kicked the pavement. "She probably forgot about me."
Jacqueline felt a sudden ounce of regret for the boy and her face softened. "I'm sure there's just a lot of traffic. Both out mom's are probably just stuck in traffic."
"There's no traffic in Point Place, Jackie."
Jackie? No one had ever called her Jackie before...but she sort of liked it.
"My mom's probably at the bar." He continued. "She's always there."
"Does she work there?" Jackie asked innocently.
Hyde laughed, "I wish."
Jackie didn't really understand why he would say that, but she didn't ask what he meant, because soon enough she spotted her mother's Lincoln speeding heavily towards the corner, stopping abruptly.
Her mother sauntered out, smiling goofily, "Oh, Jacqueline, I'm soooo sorry! I promise I'll make this up to you!"
Her mother sure seemed to make this promise a lot.
"It's ok, mom." Jackie said sheepishly. "Can we drive my friend home?" She looked at Hyde, who barely looked up.
"This boy...is..." Pam looked at the dirty little boy in disgust, "Your friend?"
If Hyde was hurt, Jackie couldn't tell, because of his sunglasses, but he quickly walked off in the other direction. Jackie froze, giving her mother a weary look and ran after him, "Steven, wait."
"Don't call me that." He muttered, continuing at a fast pace.
"Sorry..." She bit her lip.
"Listen, Jackie," He stopped, but looked straight ahead. "I hate Pam Macy and Pam Macy hates me. If she knew you were offering to drive me home, she would ruin you."
"I don't care." She muttered, trying to look into his eyes.
"Yeah, you obviously do." He muttered. "Just stay away from me. The Gang of Four doesn't befriend Pam Macy or her friends."
"Gang of four?" Jackie asked sheepishly, though she already knew who they were.
"Yeah, Gang of Four. Donna, Kelso, Forman, and me." He snapped his tongue quickly at her, "No one else."
She saw how serious this was to him and let it go. "So does this mean we can't be friends?" She asked.
"Jackie, get it through your easy bake oven head." He had begun to raise his voice at her, scaring her slightly. "I hate girls like you."
Jackie stood emotionless. Never had anyone screamed at her.
She was a Burkhart; she didn't have to take this.
"Jacqueline?" Her mother called out to her from the car.
"Coming..." She called back. "Don't ever speak to me again, you freak."
"Whatever." He mumbled, walking past her.
Jackie pushed the last bit of innocence away from her, as she jumped into the car and buckled her seat belt.
"So did you tell that poor little boy off sweetie?"
"Yeah, mom." Jackie chirped. "I don't know what I was thinking."
Her mother beamed down at her with pride and Jackie smiled back.
Jackie didn't acknowledge the Gang of Four again, but gossiped about them like crazy. She helped Pam Macy spread vicious rumors about Donna, make fun of Eric's scrawniness, and denounce Hyde. Of course, Michael wasn't made fun of or talked about in a bad way, since he was the cutest boy in school.
No one really noticed Jacqueline's transition into Jackie.
That sweet, innocent girl had become an evil, gossiping, daydreaming, materialistic sap.
The only one who really noticed was Hyde; but he didn't let anyone know he cared.
Not yet anyway...