THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.
Chapter 13 – Changes.
A/N: Hey. I had less reviews than usual last time but the ones I got were incredible to read so thank you. :) And thank you luvcali for noticing it too. But let's move on… I'm going to skip ahead in this chapter because I want to advance Jackie's pregnancy or else this will never end lol. So this begins approximately 6 weeks after the last chapter (she's almost 5 months along). Thanks a lot and happy reading.
P.S. I used a line from the Golden Girls I heard and if you're fan you will recognize it but if not then you won't care.
Warning: Language, I guess. Rare, though.
Disclaimer: I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.
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THE HUB
"So I'm thinking we can hold off on booking a place until the guests give us their availability dates. That way we can also give everybody more time to buy the avalanche of gifts you have requested. Finally… Jackie?" Donna queried as she looked up from her sheet for the first time in almost 20 minutes to see her best friend staring off into space. "Jackie?" she tried again more forcefully.
Jackie flinched and focused her attention on her friend and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I'm just freaking out about stuff. Again." Jackie gave a nervous laugh and started shifting through hotel brochures while Donna eyed her suspiciously.
"You know," Donna started, "I would think that you of all people would get excited about planning a baby shower. Or as is the case, piling in your eighth plate of fries while I plan it for you." Donna reminded her teasingly.
Jackie put down the brochures and sighed. Looking at Donna again, she started unloading what had been plaguing her thoughts since the previous evening. "Have you sent the base-nursery lately?" she asked, catching herself.
Donna scoffed. "It's not exactly easy to miss what with the radioactive paint." Upon Jackie's glare, Donna quickly shut her mouth for fear of angering the beast once again. "Sorry." she mouthed. Jackie started again,
"Anyway" Jackie drawled "if your senses haven't yet been completely destroyed by that sorry excuse for hair dye, you might have noticed that the painting is done, the carpet has been fitted and the furniture has been ordered. I'm freakin' out Donna!" Jackie exclaimed, her voice hitting a new level of shrill.
Donna struggled to stifle her laughter at the sight of Jackie in such a frazzled state. Once she had regained her composure, she asked, "Well, I'm sure that as freaked out as you are, Hyde is even more so." Donna told her convincingly but Jackie merely arched her eyebrow.
"Oh, you'd think so, wouldn't you Donna? But nooo." Jackie said mockingly and launched into a full-blown tirade. "Steven has to be the one who has everything under control. Steven has to be the one who makes sure I get all the right food. Steven has to be the one who organized my Lamaze classes. Steven has to be the one who thought a birthing video would help me prepare for this elephant of a child and Steven has to be the one who is constantly on the decorator's back making sure they're not slacking off." Taking a breath, Jackie gave one last comment. "And Steven had to be the one to talk you into planning this shower because he didn't want me getting stressed out!" Jackie huffed and sat back on her seat with a frown while Donna stared at her with wide eyes.
"Well clearly he failed with the last one." Donna joked.
Jackie groaned and leant forward so that she could whisper to her. "It's just… I'm really scared about having this baby." Jackie told her honestly. Donna immediately looked at her with concern.
"Hey, you're gonna be fine." Donna reassured her but it didn't have much of an effect on Jackie so she tried again. "Every first-time mother gets like this. I'm sure of it." Donna searched for the right words to help her. "Look, it's probably just because you're past the half-way point now." Jackie looked at her confused so Donna clarified, "You know, at first you could act like the baby wouldn't come for months and you could put off all of this anxiety for a while, but now…" she trailed off.
"Now…?" Jackie pushed her.
Donna rolled her eyes in frustration. "Now, you are really close to the end and now you have to start preparing for this baby arriving. It's real now." Donna felt a surge of happiness when she said the last part as it struck her for the first time that her best friend was really going to have a baby. She noticed that Jackie looked a lot calmer than she had a minute earlier and that her eyes were slightly glassy. Suddenly a huge smile covered her face.
"Oh my God! I'm having a baby!" Jackie exclaimed happily and the two women proceeded to wipe tears from the corners of their eyes while laughing slightly.
Donna cleared her eyes. "Man, we are such girls. I need a circle."
Jackie laughed and pointed to her slightly bigger stomach. "Good luck with that." Donna looked at her, intrigued.
"So Hyde really has everything under control for you?" Jackie smiled happily and nodded.
"Oh, Donna. He is incredible. I never thought he could be so mature, sweet and caring. He really is a changed man."
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ERIC'S ROOM
Hyde: This was an awesome idea, man. Red would never think to look for us in your room.
PAN TO ERIC
Eric: Yeah. It's pretty ingenius, huh?
PAN TO FEZ
Fez: (frustrated) Yes, Eric. You are the king. Now can we please talk about boobs!
PAN TO ERIC
Eric: Jeez, relax man. Fine, we can talk about boobs.
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: Yeah, I mean have you seen the size of Jackie's boobs lately? Everywhere you look, there they are. Man, knocking a girl up is great. (grins)
PAN TO FEZ
Fez: You are so lucky Hyde. Not only did you find a beautiful woman to have sex with, but you get to touch her gigantic boobies all day long. I hate you.
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: And it's not just how big they are. They're also great to sleep on. You're looking for a couple of pillows? Go find Jackie.
PAN TO ERIC
Eric: Maybe I should get Donna pregnant! Yeah, and then she'd be huge.
PAN TO FEZ
Fez: Donna would crush you if she was pregnant, Eric. She's like an Amazon. Just like home…
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: Well, Jackie can crush me if she wants. 'Cos what a way to go! (laughs)
PAN TO ERIC
Eric: OK, so pregnancy is out. Oh! I could propose again!
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: NO! I'm still bruised from the last time you ditched Donna after proposing.
PAN TO FEZ
Fez: Buy her another promise ring. That was so much fun last time!
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: Oh, you mean how she wore it around her neck instead of on her hand? Yeah, that was a sweet burn.
PAN TO FEZ
Fez: (chuckling) Ooh, how about when she told him she couldn't keep it! Oh, how I cried from my spot inside the Cruiser.
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: Hehe, yeah. Well, as fun as reliving past burns on Forman is, I should probably go to work.
PAN TO ERIC
Eric: Aw, man. All you ever do these days is work and earn money and build a life. It's all so meaningless.
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: Well Forman, if I have to choose circle time with you or having sex with Jackie against the cash register, you know what I'm gonna choose.
PAN TO FEZ
Fez: Of course! The cash register! Nothing can make Jackie hornier than rolling around in money!
PAN TO HYDE
Hyde: You have no idea, man. For her birthday last year, I got her a tiny roulette table. I'm still in bandages.
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NURSERY
Jackie found herself coming here more and more often since Hyde and Fez had finished painting the walls and fitting the carpet two weeks ago. Sitting in the rocking chair in complete silence, Jackie gazed down at the large photo album Kitty had been keeping for over 10 years. In it were mainly photos of the gang at school events, nights out or simply shots taken while they hung around the basement. As Jackie looked at each picture, she felt wave after wave of nostalgia catch her. The six of them had barely started their lives but already they had made a lifetime's worth of memories. Concerts, graduations, dances, camping trips. They had all seemed like such major events at the time and as she passed through each photo, she laughed at how overdramatic and silly they could be at times. As she neared the end of the album, she finally came across some pictures of Hyde and her together. These photos, however, did not generate so many happy memories. The day of Hyde's high school graduation – he had just cheated on her and moments after the photo was taken, Red had a heart attack. Then there were Christmas photos from the year before where their relationship was falling apart. Then some pictures of the gang at the Packers Game where she had ended up crying over Hyde. And finally some photos of Jackie on the set of her cable show; something she had used as an escape from her break-up with Hyde. Frowning, she swore she would have to get some good photos of the two of them to put in the baby book. There was no way she would one day explain to her child what the story was behind these pictures.
Hearing the door above her open, Jackie slowly closed the album and put it back into the crib just as Hyde reached the bottom of the stairs. Hyde was actually surprised to see her down here by herself. He had naturally assumed that she would wait until the room was finished before deeming it worthy of her presence. Still, he was glad to see her because with Leo still AWOL, he had been forced to call a temp agency and get some guys in to help with the clearance sale. That had been one too many barely lucid experiences for one day. But now he got to come home to a beautiful woman at the end of it all. Doesn't suck Hyde thought. Smiling at her, Hyde walked over to Jackie and gave her a short but sweet kiss and led her back to his room so that he could finally collapse. And well, if she wanted to do a little something more to him while he lay there, then by all means he wouldn't try and stop her.
"Can we sleep now?" Jackie asked as the pair fell onto the bed. She could barely keep her eyes open and wanted nothing more than to just lie there with him until the cavalry arrived. Or until Kitty called them for dinner.
Hyde grinned. "You're reading my mind. If Grooves is anywhere near as hectic tomorrow as it was today, I'm gonna have to start going in all day." Jackie merely yawned and rested her head on his chest.
"Whatever makes you happy, baby." Jackie mumbled. Smiling despite himself at her sleepy expression, Hyde turned on his side and placed his right arm around her so that both of them could get comfortable. And the pair were out like a light.
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5 WEEKS LATER (JACKIE IS 6 MONTHS ALONG)
"STE-VEN!" Jackie hollered from her seat on the toilet. Moments later the door burst open and in ran a frantic looking Hyde who was immediately at her side.
"Wha-what? What is it, what's wrong?" he asked breathless.
Jackie's cheeks acquired a bit of a crimson colour. "I can't get up." Jackie muttered and she quite literally saw the muscles in Hyde's face relax but when his arms started to shake and he threw his head back in laughter, she immediately burst into tears.
Oh crap Hyde thought. "Crap, don't cry. It's just your hormo-"
"I'm not crying because of hormones, dammit!" Jackie said between tears. "I'm crying because my size 40 ass won't let me get off this toilet!!" Hyde blinked when some of her spit hit his sunglasses square on. Now that she was entering her final trimester, Dr. Harris had warned that her hormones would be at their most erratic and that every fear a man could have about a pregnant partner would become reality. And lucky Hyde had another three months of this. "Are you going to just sit there and gawk at me until this baby go on a tour of the town sewage system or are you going to help me up?" Jackie spat at him. Yup Hyde thought. That's gotta be hormones
Hyde put one arm around her shoulders and another around her lower abdomen and slowly lifted her off the seat. Once she was standing, Jackie noticed he was still a bit out of breathed and narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you tired from lifting me?" Jackie asked him warningly.
However, he was still too new at this to realize when he was being asked questions or when he was being told answers. "Well to be fair-"
"Oh, you did not just call me fat!" Jackie told him and marched out of the bathroom.
"I didn't." Hyde said with a confused look. "I was about to say it though."
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FORMAN KITCHEN
Donna and Jackie sat at the kitchen table sipping at some hot lemon flavoured herbal tea Kitty had whipped up for a caffeine-deprived Jackie. Donna cringed at the taste but did her best to plaster on a fake smile so that Jackie didn't throw another cup over her.
"Now, isn't this nice?" Donna said to her while Jackie glared back. "Or awkward as hell." Donna muttered.
Jackie put down the cup and clicked her fingers three times. Kitty recognized the signal and ran from the stove over to Jackie and promptly gave her a refill. "There you go sweetheart." Kitty said with a comforting smile. "All better?"
"Oh no." Donna groaned and lowered her head as much as she could.
Kitty quickly realized the trap she had put herself in but it was too late to do anything about it because the beast had been officially angered. "All better, Mrs. Forman?" Jackie asked sweetly. "What exactly would be all better now that I have gotten a refill of some crappy ass herbal tea?" she asked with her voice becoming increasingly menacing. "The fact that my doctor says that I will get bigger over the next few months despite the fact that I have a tiny frame? The fact that I can't seem to turn around without winding somebody in the stomach? Or-
"JACKIE!!" Donna yelled causing her friend to lost focus and regain some sense."
Jackie turned back to the petrified older woman and started crying. "Oh, Mrs. Forman I'm so sorry!" she said wrapping her in a hug.
Not knowing which of Jackie's many personalities was the more lethal; Kitty untangled the girl from her arms and sat her back down. And then she ran like hell.
Now that the girls were by themselves, Donna decided to butter Jackie up for the 27th time today. "So you seem to be burning people a lot better lately." Donna stated. "It's like your whole sense of humour is sharper."
Jackie nodded while sipping at her tea. "I know, it's weird. It's like somebody is telling me to say different things and be more of a tease. It's exciting though. You should see what it has done for me in bed!" Jackie exclaimed excitedly.
Donna found herself oddly interested. "What do you mean?" she asked. Just then Hyde walked through the kitchen door with a cane and a limp as well as an eye patch. "Hey." Hyde muttered before walking out the sliding door. Donna looked back to Jackie who was smiling wickedly and Donna gasped.
"Oh, come on Donna. I'm a whole lot heavier than I used to be. It's not my fault I was on top last night."
"Well how did he end up with an eye patch?" Donna asked her, bewildered.
Jackie's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "I'm not sure. It could have been when I kneed him in the face."
"Jackie!" Donna shouted in disbelief.
"What, I'm ticklish down there!" Jackie said in defence.
Donna simply rolled her eyes, begging for this pregnancy to end.
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RECORD STATION
DONNA'S BOOTH
Jackie had just gotten back from a check-up and with Hyde meeting with W.B. Jackie decided to book in some more time with Donna which is how she ended up sitting next to her in the radio station eating her lunch. Once they moved past the details of her appointment, Jackie began to quiz Donna about her date with Eric the following night.
"You know, you guys have been together and broken up so many times, I don't even know what you count as your anniversary." Jackie stated.
Donna glared at her. "That's funny. I was just gonna say the same thing about you and Hyde. Or you and Kelso…"
"OK, ok, sorry." Jackie said sheepishly. She watched Donna gulp down half a cheeseburger and turned her nose in disgust. "You know, you shouldn't give in to your natural beast cravings when you have such a big date tomorrow night." Jackie said in her typical disparaging way.
Donna shook her head. "It doesn't matter. The fat always takes a few days to show." Donna told her while finishing off her cheesburger.
Jackie looked at her in confusion. "Where does it go in the meantime?" she asked.
Donna looked at her blankly. "To Connecticut!" she exclaimed. "How should I know where it goes?"
So much for having a sharper mind Donna thought with frustration.
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GROOVES
HYDE'S OFFICE
"What?... No! You can't just dump it there until I can pick it up… Because it's supposed to have been ready last week, that's why…well why don't you go do that to yourself!"
Hyde hung up the phone in annoyance and before he had time to bite into his lunch, there was a knock at the door. "Fuck's sake." Hyde muttered and got up to open the door, coming face to face with Leo.
"Leo, hey you're back!" Hyde said happily.
"Really?" Leo asked hopefully and Hyde just closed his eyes to find the strength he always needed when talking to this guy.
"So where've you been for the last few months?" Hyde asked him as they walked out of his office and over to the listening pit.
Sitting on the couch beside him, Leo replied, "Well, to cut a long story short. I found out my wife was married to some other guy and that he didn't go for threesomes so I sent her back to him."
Hyde frowned, unsure if he should believe him. Regardless, it was good to see him again and Hyde was looking forward to having someone around the store other than horny teenage virgins and horny 40 year old virgins looking for anything in the Elton John collection. Or as Hyde liked to call it, 'pizza dumpster.' "That sucks, man." Hyde told him.
Leo nodded. "Yeah. But now I can get back to my dreams. Like finding a cure for cancer. And finding new storylines for Happy Days. That shark thing was scary, man." Leo said with a shiver. He began looking around the store and when his gaze/haze rested on Hyde, he asked, "Hey, where's foreign guy?"
"Work."
"What about tall girl?"
"Work."
"And loud girl?"
"Eating." Hyde stated as quickly as he had answered Leo's two previous questions.
"Why isn't she working?" Leo asked with confusion. Or rather, more confusion than usual. Hyde was perplexed by Leo's seemingly valid line of questioning.
"Uh… she can't work right now cos she's having a baby." Hyde told him proudly. She was having his baby. That still felt weird for Hyde to grasp.
"Why, is she pregnant?" Leo asked. And there it is Hyde thought.
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3 WEEKS LATER
FORMAN KITCHEN
"Oh, this is just so exciting!" Kitty exclaimed as she, Red, Hyde, Eric, Donna, Fez, Bob, Leo and Laurie were gathered around the door leading down to the basement. Laurie, who was only a month earlier than Jackie, stood with her hand on her back and leant against the wall in discomfort. Kitty continued, "Now I'll be honest. Occasionally I did sneak a peek or two at what was going on down there-"
"You mean how you sat on the stairs all morning and followed Hyde and Dad around with binoculars?" Eric interrupted causing Donna to smirk.
"Eric." Red groaned. "Shut up and let Steven open the damn door." Red looked around him and sighed. "For God's sake, why is everyone here?"
Kitty slapped his arm. "Now you stop that Red Forman. This is a special day and it's only right that everybody we love is here to share it with us. Now Steven, will you do the honours?" Kitty asked him eagerly.
"Sure." Hyde stated. "I've been waiting my whole life to open a door." Opening the door, he continued, "It was worth the wait."
One by one, the group quietly descended the stairs with Red leading the pack, followed by Kitty, Eric, Donna, Laurie, Bob, Leo and Hyde, in that order. The ladies gasped while the men whistled with approval. No longer were the walls a plain ocean blue. Now they had faint images of clouds on the ceiling and the wall where the washer and deep freeze used to rest against was now filled with an Aladdin theme with the magic carpet, several characters and the marketplace illuminated in a dark blue sky. The rocking chair had been glazed and now caught the light of the paint. The crib was also fully furnished and had a new cream coloured baby blanket in place of Hyde's template. More furniture had been added with a mobile hanging over the crib and a bookcase in place of the records along with a tiny cassette player on top of it next to a stack of read-along children's books and nursery rhymes. By the spot where the shower used to be was a playpen which currently held various toys and stuffed animals. For a more practical nature, the cassette player had a shelf above it holding diapers, bottles, baby wipes, a thermometer and a baby book. The last thing to be noticed was the sleeping figure in the rocking chair with a photo album opened on her lap. Hyde walked over to her and gently nudged her shoulder, making her wake up.
"Hey," she mumbled groggily, "what time is it?" Jackie asked with a yawn.
"Time to show everybody the nursery." Hyde joked as Jackie noticed the crowd of people examining every feature of the room. Hyde helped her stand up and placed his hand protectively in the small of her back. "Look who's awake." Hyde said to get everybody's attention. Kitty, Donna and of course, Fez rushed to Jackie's side and began offering their opinions on the style of the room while the guys and Laurie leaned casually against the stairs. Eric noticed their bored faces and felt the urge to say something.
"Hey, Hyde. Not to insult your work or anything but this place is a bit…" Eric trailed off, unsure of how to finish his thought.
"Boring?" Hyde suggested with a smirk. "Yeah, don't expect to see me in here that often."
Fez heard this remark and laughed to himself as he thought of what was behind Hyde's comment.
After a while, everyone had cleared out leaving only Hyde and Jackie in the room. "So, everyone seemed to be impressed." Hyde stated proudly. Jackie smiled happily at him and quickly ran over to the playpen where she tossed the stuffed animals from their spots and pulled out a long, thick piece of fabric and placed it in his hands. "What's this?" he asked in confusion. Jackie rolled her eyes and simply smiled at him. After a few moments, Hyde unrolled the fabric and felt a smile tug at his face. The last remnants of his Zen however, would not allow the smile to fully surface and Jackie had to settle for his patented grin as a reaction. "Well, it's a blanket." Hyde stated blankly. Looking up at her hopeful expression, he finally told her, "Thank you."
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4 WEEKS LATER
FORMAN HOUSE
Laurie was out with her fiancée. Or at least she said she was with him. Red and Kitty were at the church's bingo night which consisted of Kitty networking with the bar crowd and Red ensuring nobody touched the Corvette he had bought back the previous day with his retirement money. Eric was at a jewelry store with Fez, looking at engagement rings. He was under strict orders from Red not to go and buy one just yet. He was only allowed to look. Then there was Hyde who was working late at Grooves and then having an even later dinner with W.B. And then there was Jackie; who was currently lying on the bathroom floor, barely conscious, with sweat covering her forehead and her hands clutching her lower abdomen in agony.
"Somebody please help me." she whispered.
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A/N: Uh oh. This was a bit shorter than usual but I think you can tell from the ending why that is. Just to add to the bombshell: there is only one chapter left. :( Don't hate me for breaking it like that but I knew if I said it earlier then you would all convince me to carry on and I just couldn't risk it. You all have too much power over me!!! Brightside is that I have a new story on the way very soon and perhaps a little something before that.
If you don't hate me, then please review for me. For old time's sake.