If I Can't Have You…
Chapter Three
Author's Note: Sorry for the delays…on everything I write. I swear, one of these days I'm going to call in sick and just write all day and update everything. At any rate, for any one who is reading I'm truly grateful, and I hope you enjoy it.
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. Nothing. Bastards!
"…and that is how Kelso and I learned that peeing off the water tower was three different types of illegal." Fez smiled proudly at the other five teenagers lounging around the Forman basement.
"Yep, hanging with me can be all sorts of enlightening, little buddy." Fez just nodded enthusiastically at Kelso. "Just like fooling around with me, right, Jackie?"
"Sure, Michael." Jackie didn't even look up from her magazine as her boyfriend slid his arm around her, smiling his biggest, smuggest, goofiest smile, ignoring the tone of her voice that indicated neither fooling around, nor this conversation, were incredibly stimulating for her.
"So, uh, Jackie, what time should I come over tomorrow night?" Kelso continued, giving a wink to Fez as he said this…he obviously had big plans.
Rolling her eyes, Jackie finally looked at him. "Michael, I already told you, I'm busy this weekend. The football team is playing away and the squad is staying the night in Chicago after the game." She snuck a quick, nervous peak at Hyde, before returning her gaze to Kelso.
"Well, damn, Jackie. Your parents are still out of town, I was thinking we could do it this weekend!"
Jackie crossed her arms and glared at her boyfriend, raising one eyebrow dangerously.
"I mean, I was thinking we could have romantic alone time this weekend. Damn!" And with that Kelso pushed himself off the couch and with saying only a "Come on, Fez" more, stormed out of the basement.
Jackie merely shook her head, gave a small shrug to the remaining occupants of the room, her eyes lingering on Hyde for the briefest of moments, and went back to her magazine.
Hyde knew very well that she was lying. Or at least half lying. The rest of the cheerleaders were, in fact, staying overnight, but Jackie had arranged it so she could drive separately, in order to not miss out on a day of their lessons. He would have felt bad about Jackie deceiving her boyfriend to keep his secret, if Kelso wasn't being such a moron about it.
He looked over to where Donna and Eric were mouthing something to each other, before tentatively, Donna leaned forward into Jackie's view.
"Jackie, is everything okay? You've seemed, uh, well, different lately."
Hyde knew exactly what she meant by different...less bitchy. And he couldn't say that he too hadn't noticed it. But he watched Jackie expertly control her voice and expression, forcing a too chipper response of, "I'm fine, everything's perfect," and knew the while things were most definitely not perfect, the red head wasn't going to get anything out of her. At least not any time soon...
Before Hyde's fist could even knock against the wood, Madeline was opening the door, smiling at him, and inviting him inside the now familiar hall. Taking his coat she kindly asked how his day had been.
"Pretty good, yours?"
"Oh, it was alright. Nothing too exciting happened." She smiled again, so genuinely it almost made Hyde look away, before ushering him to the kitchen. "Jackie should be home any minute. Would you like some hot chocolate? I was just warming some up for myself." He nodded, and looked around the kitchen while she busied herself at the stove.
It was pretty late. For an old woman, anyway. And he was pretty sure if Jackie hadn't demanded they practice when she got home, Madeline would have long been in bed right now. But she didn't seem to mind the hour, in fact she seemed content to be taking care of someone, to be waiting up for someone.
He'd always pictured servants to be miserable people, harboring all sorts of pent up anger until they finally became the murderous butler cliché. But as he looked at Madeline, humming about the kitchen, dressed in a rather fuzzy looking robe, he was pretty sure she was as far from killing someone as you could get. She actually reminded him of Kitty Forman in a way. Always baking, always asking questions, scolding Jackie for eating too fast, or for not wearing a coat. And since he'd been coming here everyday for a week, and not seen hide nor hair of either of Jackie's real parents, he figured Jackie really did need a housekeeper. He was interrupted from his ponderings when a large steaming cup of cocoa was placed in front of him. Showing Madeline a rare, full smile and saying a quiet thank you, he took a long sip.
He wasn't even to the bottom of his cup when he heard the front door open and Jackie's voice call loudly for Madeline. "Maddy? Maddy, are you still up?" He could hear her footsteps getting closer, and smiled when she pushed through the swinging door of the kitchen, already bag-less, coat-less, and barefoot, and wearing a very fitting and revealing cheerleading uniform.
"Maddy, uh, thank God. I need a hug." She seemed to not even notice Hyde was there as she bounded over to the older woman, and threw her arms open wide, dramatic pout fixed upon her lips.
"Oh, angel, what's wrong?" Madeline shot Hyde a smile over Jackie's petite shoulder.
"Well, I just had the worst day ever." Jackie's voice wavered with tears, her grip never loosening a bit from the housekeeper. "First, I woke up late, well you know, and was all sorts of crazed on my way to school. And I only got a B+ on my Kenedy paper from last week. Stupid teacher said my closing was weaker than usual. Can you imagine? I re-wrote that paragraph at least five times...it was perfect. Then I couldn't find my lucky pom pom. You know the one I painted glitter on the handle. So I had to use an icky generic normal one. Not to mention, Michael is still mad at me and told me he didn't want to see me tonight anyway and walked away before I could tell him I loved him. And then, on the way out of Chicago, I got lost, in a dirty part of the city that I didn't know. And it was just so horrible." She let a sob-like sound out, before plastering her head to Madeline's shoulder.
"There, there, dear. Have you eaten?"
Jackie lifted her head, revealing tear filled eyes, as she shook it side to side.
"Well, then you sit down next to Steven, and I'll fix you a quick plate."
Jackie turned to a bemused Hyde, and her eyes widened as she looked at him for the first time since her grand entrance.
"Oh, Steven, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were here."
He nodded a greeting and offered her a friendly smirk as she sat beside him.
They sat quietly, but not necessarily uncomfortably, until Madeline placed a full plate of food in front of each of them.
"Thanks," Jackie's voice said, evening out, before she dug in to her mashed potatoes.
By the time their plates were empty, Jackie's mood seemed to have lightened considerably. "And then their mascot tried to do a flip, but half way through, the head slipped off, and when the guy landed, he lost his balance on the oversized cat ear and landed on his face. It was hilarious. And then, to make it even better, he picked up the head and ran off the field crying."
Hyde chuckled appreciatively as Jackie was just about in tears recounting her story. "I'd have like to have seen that."
"Yeah, I even thought to myself, 'I wish Steven was here, he'd laugh at that dumbass too.'"
"Jacqueline Burkhart! Language!" Madeline, who had cleared the plates but was still listening by the sink, turned to the ward she'd practically raised.
"Sorry, Maddy." Jackie snorted.
Once her giggles subsided she turned to Hyde. "So, Steven, you ready to dance the night away?"
"As ready as I'm going to be." Begrudgingly, he stood from the table and made his way to the basement door. He turned to see Jackie, kiss Madeline on the cheek and wish her goodnight, before following him down the stairs.
Once in the studio, he turned to her and realized she hadn't changed into her typical leotard. "You're gonna dance in that?"
"Yeah, I'm too lazy to change. It's been a long day." She padded over to the record player, humming as she walked. "Alright, what's it gonna be tonight? Zeppelin? Floyd?"
He smiled that she too now referred to them with the abbreviated names of a fan. "How 'bout some Jagger/Richards genius?"
"Alright, the Stones it is. But I get to pick the song."
She made her way over to him, and took his hand, just as the instrumentation of "Gimme Shelter" began to play. She looked at him expectantly, and with his arm around her he began to lead her in the moves they had been practicing. Reaching behind herself, she pulled on his fingers, moving his hand lower, to the base of her back. He tried not to notice that he could feel her hips rolling unconsciously to the music from this new location.
"It's so much easier for you to lead me this way, see?" And then she twisted her torso and let herself fall back to the side. "And you can dip me this way. There's enough leverage or whatever for you to support my weight, and pull me back up, easily."
"Jackie, you way what, sixty pounds, it's easy to move you around. Period."
"True, I'm nice and petite. But Donna is much taller, much stronger. So practice doing it right."
For the next hour and a half they danced constantly. She made him dip her at least fifty times, telling him to wait to feel it in the song. The more dramatic the moment, the better the dip. He rolled his eyes at her, but tried to do as she said. They practiced the samba he'd learned earlier in the week. She added some moves. Finally, she twisted her body slightly then quickly moved her leg to his side, instructing him to hold it, to hold her there, and slowly walk back, pulling her with him.
He hooked his hand under the curve of her knee, feeling her short, pleated skirt pull even more up her leg. For a moment he thought he couldn't hear the music; her leg was so smooth, so soft, so warm. Then he realized the record had ended, and he shook his head in frustration. He didn't get stupid thinking about soft legs. He wasn't that kind of guy.
But then again, no girl he'd ever touched had legs like that before. He shook his head again.
Jackie stepped away, smoothing her skirt on her way over to the record player, oblivious to the readjusting zen on Hyde's face. After turning everything off, and placing every record they'd used gently back into its sleeve, she turned to him.
"You did very well tonight, Steven. Donna's never gonna know what hit her."
She smiled. And he smirked a 'thank you.'
"Well, it's after midnight. I'm sorry I kept you out so late, but I think it really helped to get another practice in."
He just shrugged, it wasn't as if he'd have been asleep by now anyway. Most Fridays he'd watch TV at the Formans until 2 or 3am, just to be sure when he went home his mom and his "uncle" of the week were good and passed out.
He followed her up the narrow steps, back into the warm and spacious kitchen, down the richly decorated hall, to her large, fancy front door. He would have never guessed in a million years that he'd feel so welcome in a place like this, with a girl like her. But after wishing her a good night and walking back out into the crisp night air, he realized Jackie Burkhart really wasn't so bad. And after he had a willing Donna, securely swept off her feet and into his arms, he'd have to remember to thank her.