Disclaimer: Oops, forgot to do this on the prologue. I don't own any of these characters. I wouldn't live in an apartment if I did. 

Reawakening

Chapter 1 – Out of Africa; Burned Curtains

Mrs. Forman's surprise was definitely a distraction. And a welcome one. A wide smile crossed Hyde's lips as he stood in the Forman's living room. And he truly felt the smile. "Forman, I'm not sure it's possible, but you look wimpier than ever," he said. He walked over to his long time best friend and gave him a quick hug.

Eric Forman chuckled and shrugged. "Yeah, well, I was deprived of my Mommy's fried chicken," he commented, giving a cheeky grin to his mother.

Kitty squealed and clapped her hands together. "Oh! My poor baby…you must be starving! I'm going to go make some for you right now."

Red Forman rolled his eyes. "Kitty, its ten o'clock in the morning."

She gave him a put-upon look. "Well, excuse me for wanting to feed my obviously starving baby boy!" She huffed and turned to walk into the kitchen.

Red shook his head and followed her.

Hyde lightly punched Eric's shoulder. "Man, what are you doing back? I thought you were staying an extra year."

For a second, Hyde thought Eric's face clouded over.

"Oh, well, I just...You know, Africa isn't that great," Eric said, trying to keep his voice light. "It's really hard to get a good stash of…" He glanced towards the kitchen door. "Oregano."

Hyde nodded. "Yeah." He crossed his arms across his chest. "This is about

Donna, isn't it?"

Eric shook his head. "What? No! What makes you think it would be about Donna? Donna and I are over. We were drifting apart, and I'm not back to see if we can get back together someday. No. That's not it at all."

Hyde snorted. "Whatever, Forman. Anyway, it's good to see you." He shook his head. "Even if you are an ass for what you did to Donna. By the way…." He punched Forman hard on the arm, and grinned when Eric yelped and winced. "Take it like a man. You deserve it."

Eric frowned and rubbed his arm. "So I heard that Kelso proposed to the devil."

Hyde closed his eyes briefly, just a moment too long.

"Oooo, did I touch a nerve?"

Hyde opened his eyes and rolled them. "No. So he proposed. I didn't give a crap." He shrugged and looked away. "She said no, anyway."

"What about this stripper you drunkenly married but who left you?"

Hyde's patience was wearing thin, and he glared heatedly at his friend. "Look, this isn't twenty questions, okay?"

Eric's expression and voice were puzzled. "Wait, what are you more upset about, the fact that your stripper wife left you, or that Kelso proposed to Jackie?"

Hyde reached out and popped another frog on Eric's arm. "Look, shut up! None of it matters! All of it's over. Kelso's gone, Sam's gone. Jackie is…whatever. It's over."

Eric nodded and again rubbed his arm. "Whatever, man. Just curious."

Hyde shifted on his feet uncomfortably and looked at the kitchen door. "Well, hey, it's only two of us since Fez is either feeling up his new girlfriend or babysitting Jackie, but how about circle time?" His need to get completely wasted was even greater now. Maybe Mrs. Forman's surprise hadn't been as pleasant as he'd initially thought.

Eric noticed the slight trace of bitterness in Hyde's voice when he said Jackie's name, but he decided to ignore it. "Now you're talking. Although, technically, if it's just you and me sitting across from one another, it won't be a circle, it'll be a line." He grinned, pleased with his coming comment. "So line time?"

Hyde shook his head and gave his friend a light shove. "Whatever, man, lets just go."

The Hub

Jackie stared at her ex-boyfriend. After wandering around Point Place aimlessly, she'd gone to the Hub for lunch. Alone, of course. To her shock, he'd shown up. Now they sat together at a table, and she was listening to his latest disaster story. "So you burned down the club?" She wasn't surprised. After all, he'd once almost burned her house down.

Michael Kelso shrugged in his patented sheepish manner. "It wasn't my fault!" Jackie raised an eyebrow at him, and his eyes widened. "Well, how was I supposed to know that alcohol is so easy to set on fire? No one ever told me! And how was I supposed to know that bottle had vodka in it? It was clear, like water! Anyone would make that mistake! I was trying to put OUT the curtains!"

She couldn't help but giggle at his expression, a mixture of a puppy being scolded and a little boy who sincerely didn't understand what he'd done wrong. "I'm sure you were just trying to help," she commented, slightly condescendingly. She reached out and patted his hand. "Just like always."

"I really was, Jackie," he replied fervently. He grinned appreciatively. "You've always gotten me."

Jackie shrugged, thinking to herself that there really wasn't all that much to get. The rather rude thought surprised her, because she'd always had a soft spot for Michael despite all the times he'd cheated on her and broken her heart. But after she'd found out he was planning on proposing to her, and when no one else was around, she'd found herself thinking about him, and them, a lot.

And she'd realized that he wasn't right for her. Nor was she right for him. Sure, she loved him, and she'd told him that, but not in the right way. Their time had come and gone, a long time ago. She wasn't in love with him and actually hadn't been, really, ever.

Not in the way she had - did - loved Steven.

NO!

"Look, Jackie, I want to talk to you. I mean, I lost my job in Chicago. I don't know why. I mean, they're rebuilding and everything. They're still gonna need security guards. Anyway, I'm coming back to Point Place…" He shook his head and held his hands up. "Now, don't get all excited on me. I know you're gonna want to get together, and I know I said that someday we'd be together. And I still think we will. In a few years or so. But Brooke wants me right now." He smiled cockily. "Like I didn't expect THAT to happen. But anyway, I just think, I mean with Betsy and all…"

Jackie smiled. "Its fine, Michael." She laughed at the rather dumb expression on his face. "I mean it. I'm fine with it." She squeezed his hand. "Be with the mother of your child."

Michael looked uncertain. "Well…okay, but Jackie, I mean, it's just for Betsy's sake. I mean, when she gets to be where she goes through all that…girly stuff, I'm probably gonna have to leave. Can't deal with THAT." He slid his chair closer to Jackie's and slung an arm around her shoulder. "And if you ever have…you know, physical needs…I'm here." He winked at her.

Jackie rolled her eyes. "It's good, Michael. We're good."

She couldn't help but remember that they'd had a slightly similar conversation when he returned from California after that summer. She remembered sitting on the couch, and how Steven had looked none too pleased at the way Michael was talking to and touching her. That was the first time she'd allowed herself to hope that their "fling" was more than just that.

Her smile faded. She HAD to stop thinking about the past. That summer, and everything it had given birth to, was long gone. She lowered her head and stared at the table. Why was it all feeling so fresh again? There was just no good reason for it to.

"Jackie, you okay?"

She slowly lifted her eyes to Michael, and she forced a slight smile. "Yeah, I'm fine."

He stared at her. She looked faraway, distracted. He could tell she wasn't thinking about him, because if she was, she'd be yelling at him. "What are you thinking about?"

Jackie looked away and answered without thinking. "Steven."

He nodded. "Thought so. Hey, you know Hyde's single now since his hot stripper wife left him." She gave him a dirty look and he shrugged innocently. "What? Oh, come ON, Jackie, you gotta admit she was hot! She was a STRIPPER!"

She stood up. She didn't need to be reminded that Steven had married a STRIPPER instead of HER. "I'll see you later, Michael."

Michael Kelso shook his head as she hurried away. "Poor kid," he mumbled. "Trying to replace me with…" His brow furrowed in confusion for a moment, but then he chuckled. "Damn, me and Hyde screwed her up bad!" And with that, he dug into the French fries she'd left on her plate.

That night, the Forman basement

Jackie stood awkwardly in front of the television, doing her best NOT to look at Steven. He sat on his normal chair, and although she tried her best, she repeatedly peeked over at him. He was smirking and shaking his head slightly, obviously amused.

"Well, I'd say that was the reunion Forman was hoping for," he said.

Jackie smiled uncertainly. "Yeah," she said. "I'm sure he wanted to get into a screaming match with Randy, only to have Donna push them both to the ground and then run out." She couldn't help but giggle. "Fez is so happy Michael is back. He's like a little puppy." Her brow furrowed. "They BOTH are."

Hyde's smile faded. He'd missed Kelso, but for some reason, seeing the easy way Kelso talked with Jackie, the easy way she talked to him, really irritated him. Some things never changed, as much as he wanted them to. That tinge of jealousy was still there, and he still hated it.

"I feel bad for Donna, though. I mean, now what's she going to do? It's an unusual thing for a lumberjack. I mean, it has moments, sure, but it's not really that great having two guys fighting over…." She trailed off and looked guiltily down at the ground.

Hyde stood up and crossed his arms over his chest. His eyes leveled on her downcast face. "Guess you know a little about that, huh?" His stomach tightened. This topic wasn't the most pleasant for him. Jackie had played that game quite skillfully.

She closed her eyes. "Steven…"

"Why are you wearing that outfit?"

Her eyes opened and she looked at him, surprised at the abrupt change of topic. And to CLOTHES? Steven was asking her about her CLOTHES? "What do you mean?" she asked. She glanced down at herself. Her Jordache jeans and a lavender, long sleeved, button down shirt. "I'm wearing it because I look so good in it."

"You trying to remind me of something? Is that your new game plan?"

Her heart stood still. She remembered now. She'd worn this on that day, that summer. She peered hard at his face in an attempt to see his eyes from behind his glasses. "No, I…" She could hardly breathe; all her breath was caught in her throat.

He remembered.

"I mean, it was so convenient that you were wearing that same outfit and watching the Price Is Right this morning. Wasn't it great that I was here to see that?"

She trembled, but not because of his biting implications. "You remember?" she whispered brokenly.

Hyde glared at her, suddenly full of anger and bitterness and feelings that seemed like regret and hurt; all things he didn't want to deal with. Ever. He hated the fact that the look on her face made his heart race and his mouth feel dry. And he hated that he was remembering how she used to kiss him in a way no other woman had ever done. NO other woman. And how her small, soft hands had touched him. How her petite frame molded to his with such passion and….NO!

He rolled his eyes and walked away, quickly heading for his bedroom.

She jumped slightly when he slammed the door, but smiled slowly. Her heart was now completely out of control, and she lifted her right hand to her chest.

"He remembers," she whispered, closing her eyes.

And the echo of that thought in her mind sent warmth dancing through her entire body.

Maybe…just MAYBE…maybe there was a chance.