A/N: Sorry I haven't been updating as frequently! I promise, though, this story will not go unfinished. I've just been busy between work and updating one of my other stories. Basically, I don't want to force myself to write unless I have a solid idea. I'm off for a few days now, so I will be brainstorming what happens after this chapter and the next. You can definitely expect more updates. Thank you and please review!
…
A month passed, and it was nearly Thanksgiving.
Jackie was in her sixth month of pregnancy, which meant it was hard to get comfortable in bed, it was hard to be on her feet longer than ten minutes… it was hard to do pretty much anything.
She and Eric had been going strong and there were no signs of Nate after the events that took place on her birthday. That was probably the thing she was most thankful for that coming Thanksgiving.
Now, it was two o'clock and Jackie was sitting on the couch in the living room, reading a magazine. Kitty had dragged Red to some first Thanksgiving reenactment, while Eric was in class. Jackie had to admit: sometimes it was nice to be alone. She knew she wouldn't get much of that in the near future. She never used to be able to handle being all by her lonesome, but she didn't feel quite so lonely anymore. Plus, it gave her time to relax without feeling too guilty about it. However, her relaxation was about to be interrupted.
She heard the sliding door open in the kitchen. "Eric, is that you?"
"No." She heard a familiar voice and turned to face the door leading to the kitchen. The door swung open, revealing a tall blonde.
"Donna!" Jackie threw down her magazine and stood up.
"Jackie, oh my God; you're huge!" Donna walked towards her and attempted a quick hug.
"I know," Jackie admitted, touching her stomach self-consciously. "I look ridiculous."
"No, you look like you're pregnant," Donna reminded her. "How far along are you?"
"Twenty-four weeks," Jackie told her, and gave her a look of shock. "What are you doing back?"
"It's Thanksgiving break!" Donna said excitedly. "I know I haven't been home since I left, but I didn't want to jeopardize my job by leaving this past summer." She watched her small friend stroll back to the couch, sitting down. "I can't believe it. You're even walking like a pregnant lady."
"That's because I am pregnant, Donna," Jackie said. She placed her hand on her baby bump. "Oh, he's kicking again," she whined.
"He?" Donna's face lit up. "You're having a boy?"
A small smile formed on Jackie's face as she nodded. "Yeah, and I swear he's the next Pelé. He doesn't stop moving."
Donna smiled, sitting next to her friend. "Can I feel?"
Jackie nodded as Donna placed her hand on Jackie's belly just as the baby kicked again.
"Oh my God!" Donna exclaimed. "Jackie, this is so exciting!"
Jackie didn't say anything, but nervously smiled at her friend.
"So… any word from the dill hole?" Donna inquired, noticing her friend's lack of enthusiasm.
"Oh… yeah." Jackie looked down for a moment. "He said he wants to be involved, but—"
"That's great, right?" Donna asked. "I mean, he's undoubtedly a terrible person for taking so long, and by no means am I condoning you getting back with him if you aren't already, but… it'll be nice to have help, right?"
"He's not going to be helping," Jackie adamantly said. "I told him off, and… well, Steven's the one who brought him over. He looked absolutely pathetic."
"Hyde brought him?" Donna asked, surprised.
"He thought I still lived in the apartment," Jackie told her. "When he found out who he was, Steven beat his ass."
An amused smile came across Donna's face. "Hyde beat up your baby daddy?" She raised her eyebrows. "You think maybe…?" She trailed off, giving Jackie a suggestive look.
"God, no," Jackie retorted, rolling her eyes. "He was just being nice, which was pretty sweet."
"So you and Hyde are totally over then?" Donna asked. "I always thought you guys would end up back together, you know, if you and Fez didn't make it."
"We're friends, Donna," Jackie replied flatly. "That ship has totally sailed."
Donna nodded, thinking. "You're doing surprisingly well on your own, Jackie. I honestly wasn't sure if you could do it."
"Yeah, well…" Jackie shrugged. "I have support from, you know, the Formans."
"I guess they are really helpful," Donna commented. "At least Mrs. Forman is." She looked around the room, trying to look casual. "Hey, how's Eric?"
Jackie felt her heart begin to race. "Oh, he's fine. He's at school right now."
"Does he like it?" Donna asked, trying not to seem too interested.
"Yeah," Jackie replied with a nod. "He's actually been student teaching at the middle school as of a few weeks ago."
"Oh, that's…" Donna trailed off. "Good for him. I'm glad he's doing something."
"Yeah," Jackie responded. "Are you… like, are you seeing anyone in Seattle?"
"Not really," Donna said. "I've gone on a couple first dates that didn't end too great."
"Well, are you over Eric?" Jackie asked, raising her eyebrows.
Donna thought about it and shrugged. "Well, yeah, I'm over it. He's just, like, my first love, you know? I'm always gonna have some feelings for him. Probably like how you feel with Kelso."
Jackie snorted, trying to suppress her jealousy. "I love Michael, but I have zero feelings for him."
"Okay, but you did for a while after," Donna pointed out. "Eric and I have only been broken up for like a year. I'll get over it eventually."
"You just said you were over it," Jackie reminded her, a bitchy edge clear in her voice.
"And I am," Donna declared. "Just maybe not completely."
…
It was now Thanksgiving. Kitty had spread out every dish over the dining room table, which she had to add a leaf to. It had now become tradition to have Bob Pinciotti over each year, as Kitty felt sympathetic for him since Midge had left.
Jackie had let Eric know that Donna was back and would be attending dinner that evening, a fact that made them both nervous. They had spoken with Fez and Hyde, who each agreed not to say anything for the night.
"Alright," Kitty said, clapping her hands as she picked up a floral arrangement from the table. "No room for centerpieces tonight!" She looked over at her son. "Eric, honey, will you please set the green bean casserole on the table?"
"Sure." Eric disappeared into the kitchen.
"Oh, just think," Kitty said, smiling at Jackie as she straightened up the silverware on each napkin. "Next Thanksgiving there'll be one more of us."
"I know." Jackie beamed at the thought of adding a high chair to the table next year. She admired how perfect the table looked, her eyes proudly lingering on the only contribution she had made to it: the salad. "Three more months. I can hardly believe it."
"Oh, you will," Kitty told her. "Now, I was talking to Red about moving your bed into Eric's room; that way your current room can be a cute little nurs—"
"Mom." Eric stood in the doorway of the dining room, oven mitts on his hand as he held the casserole. "Um, Bob and Donna are here."
"Oh, good," Kitty replied, noticing the two Pinciottis behind Eric as they talked in the kitchen. A thought crossed Kitty's mind. "That means I have to move my pies before Bob decides to sneak a piece!" She exited the dining room and Eric walked in, setting the casserole on the table.
He gave Jackie a serious look upon turning around. "You sure you don't want to tell her?" he asked quietly.
"I just can't," Jackie admitted. "She overreacts to things; you know that. I just can't handle that right now."
Everyone began entering the dining room, so Jackie and Eric sat down in the chairs next to where they had been standing.
"God, I can't wait until I can actually scoot my chair under the table again," Jackie commented.
Donna took a seat on the other side of Jackie. "If it makes you feel better, it's Thanksgiving, which means we'll all be at that point at the end of this meal." She cracked a smile.
"Alright, now," Kitty announced once Fez and Hyde finally entered the dining room and sat down, "I have been working on this for nearly ten hours so we're going to make this last, okay? This holiday is for memories, not for eating as fast as you can so you can leave the room." She shot her husband a look, who rolled his eyes.
Everyone began piling their plates high with food. Jackie glanced around the room, noticing that everyone had a beer but Kitty, who had a cocktail in front of her. She frowned and began standing up.
"Hey, hey, where are you going?" Eric asked her, lightly touching her arm.
"I forgot to get a Tab," Jackie replied.
"Sit down," Eric told her, standing up. "I've got it."
Jackie sat back down, a relieved smile coming to her face.
"Kitty," Bob said, his mouth full, "Great turkey, as always."
"Thank you, Bob," Kitty replied graciously.
"Anyone like the salad?" Jackie asked, her eyes searching around the table for who had it on their plates.
"It's good, but it's just salad," Fez responded.
Jackie's face fell, and Kitty noticed.
"Well, I think I'm gonna take another serving of that salad because it's just so darn good!" she exclaimed. "Jackie made it, everyone."
Not wanting to face any potential pregnant wrath from Jackie, everyone took some until the glass bowl was empty.
"So good, Jacks," Hyde commented.
"Yeah, you really did good with this one," Red added.
Eric returned to the dining room, squeezing his way past Bob, and set the can of soda in front of Jackie after cracking it open for her.
"Thanks," Jackie told him earnestly. She took a sip of her drink. "Could you put some of those sweet potatoes on my plate, honey?" A blank look crossed her face as she realized what she said. "Um, Fez… honey?"
"But I am all the way over here!" Fez whined. "Oh, fine." He grabbed her plate and walked to the other side of the table, putting a scoop in between the turkey and the green bean casserole. "There you go. Sweet potatoes for you, sweet potato." He grinned as he handed her the plate and then went back to his side of the table.
Donna gave Jackie a weird look. "You call Fez 'honey'?" she asked, lowering her voice.
"Oh, I call everyone 'honey' now," Jackie said nervously. "It's just… it's a maternal thing… honey." She put her hand on Donna's knee and laughed.
"Okay." Donna chortled and they all continued eating.
…