AN: I'm so sorry this took so long. I had a little bit of a writer's block and then I had some ill times with writer's motivation. Luckily that didn't last too long. More questions should be cleared up in this chapter, especially about why I totaled the El Camino. There is also some JH interaction in here that I think everyone will enjoy. The reviews for last chapter were awesome and you guys really boosted my confidence.

Review!

Chapter 8: The Unexpected

Hyde rolled over in his bed and looked at the clock. He had 3 hours until he had to be at his next psychiatrist's appointment. He groaned into his fluffy, feather pillow. The looming sleepiness weighing heavy on his eyes was just so tempting. If he let himself relax for just a second, he could be dreaming about endless supplies of weed and meeting Zeppelin, but instead, he was wide awake with his waking dream plaguing his thoughts.

The image was much clearer now. The background no longer appeared gray, but instead had an off white shade. The lamp just above his angel's head was bolted to the wall in an upturned fashion, with a tiny yellow shade over the bulb. Fluorescent lighting filled the room and Hyde figured he must have been in some type of store. Just behind his woman in white was a tiny room with picture frames up on the walls. He felt his body pull closer to the woman, who was still as blurry as before. As he approached her, her white dress became clearer, hugging her body in all the right places. Lacy frills lined her impeccable shoulders, and a white waterfall halo cascaded down the back of her head, making her glow with radiance. He looked to her face and…

Nothing.

Hyde rubbed his eyes, the image burned in his brain. Hyde couldn't get over how weird this dream was and how it kept reoccurring while he was awake. He was beginning to question the validity that this was even a dream at all.

Hyde shook his head and sat up in bed. This past week had just been hard on him, that's all. He hadn't seen Jackie at all. Fez was really throwing down the hammer in not letting him in. Beating him up really didn't help his chances much. Plus, it wouldn't be long until Jackie finally ended the whole argument by slamming the door in his face. Other than one encounter at the Hub that ended just as badly, Hyde hadn't had a chance to talk to her about anything. She and Donna had locked themselves in her apartment hiding from him and Eric. Not like Eric was doing much to get Donna back anyways. Hyde had started training at the record store again, and every night when he came home, he found Eric sitting on the basement couch in his underwear, moping about Donna breaking up with him. It was probably the most pathetic sight Hyde had remembered seeing, and he tried on many occasions to tell Eric just that. But of course, Eric didn't even pick up on his hints.

Hyde was still at odds with the Jackie situation. He still couldn't figure out a way to prove to her exactly how much she meant to him. He was never good with words, but he thought even people who were couldn't voice his feelings. He knew that even if he tried, he would stumble and make a complete ass of himself. He didn't even want to bother. He literally had to show Jackie that he was serious about her. He couldn't imagine getting caught up in a situation where he led her to believe otherwise. They were happy from the last he could remember, but then again Eric and Donna were happy too. He thought if anyone could make it in this world, they could. That's what was always expected from that pair. He thought back to sitting in the hospital bed when Eric and Donna told him that they ended up not getting married. It would be a bold face lie if he said that he didn't compare his relationship with Jackie to theirs at the moment. He knew back then that they were way too young to begin considering marriage, but he figured they would come around eventually. After everything was over, he wondered if maybe he felt the same way then only worse. Maybe seeing his friends fall apart because of marriage really discouraged him to even consider it with Jackie.

That didn't explain marrying the stripper though. Nothing he could come up with explained that.

Hyde turned on his bedside lamp and looked around his bedroom. What could he do for the next 3 hours? The first thought that popped into his mind was having a little private circle time. Maybe it would clear his head a little. Trying to constantly figure things out that linked back into the past two years he had missed out on really gave him a headache. It was like a continuous game of chess except this version he was really bad at. Every single time that he checked over the game board several times, making sure that no possible pieces could interfere, he would make his move and immediately lose another man. His losing streak only continued to get worse. Hyde dropped to his hand, cast, and knees on the cold, concrete floor, searching under his bed for his tin. Once located in the shadows, he reached his arm to grab it, his knuckles grazing a shoe box. Usually, the random object under his bed wouldn't catch his attention, but Hyde had nothing better to do. Along with the tin, he dragged out the little shoe box, stacking it on top to bring with him on his bed.

He studied the shoebox for a second and immediately recognized it as the box that once held the boots Jackie bought for him way back when she started stalking him. He smirked at the memory. It was a bit ironic how the tables had suddenly turned. If someone would have told him then that he would be beating down Jackie's door everyday just to talk to her, he would have told them that would only happen when he died and gone to Hell. Well, he didn't exactly die, but this life was pretty close to Hell if he could imagine one. Hyde shook his head despondently. Yeah, I must be in way deeper than I thought if I just compared life without Jackie to Hell. Hyde sighed and opened up the box, finding that it was filled with random junk. Sitting on top was a white clip that Jackie wore in her hair all the time. He picked up the smooth plastic, rubbing it in his fingers as he delved deeper into the box. A stack of folded notebook paper sat in the very corner and another stack of pictures was just next to it. Hyde immediately knew what this was. Around when he and Jackie first started dating, she gave him pictures of herself that she demanded he keep. When she noticed that they weren't framed and hanging all around his room, she told him he better keep them or she would kick his shins. So, he complied and it was only slightly intentional that he chose this shoebox. Soon, Jackie started writing him notes at school, so everyday he would come home with a little folded piece of paper in his pocket. He would always just toss it in the box.

All of the other stuff he didn't remember putting in there, such as the hair clip. A pink scarf that Hyde assumed also came from Jackie's hair lay bunched in the opposite corner of the notes. Next to it was a card with a Christmas tree on the front. He grabbed a corner and picked the card up, opening to read what was inside. Jackie's hand writing swirled the words, "I know that we are anything anymore. We're not even really friends. I wanted to get you a card anyways. Merry Christmas, Steven." It was dated for 1979. She must have just given it to him a few months before. Bells started ringing off in Hyde's head. They weren't together then. Even she said they weren't anything, but he still kept the card. He got Christmas cards every year from Mrs. Foreman and others, but he only kept her card and put it in her box.

Hyde smiled to himself. It was perfect.

He put the tin and the box back underneath his bed, too overcome with excitement about his discovery to want to get high at this moment. He threw some clothes on and made his way up the basement steps. Waiting for him in the kitchen was Kitty and his dad, WB. Over the past week, Hyde had started to get to know WB "again" through training at the store and a few lunches. He could tell WB was a little hurt by his memory loss. He was trying everything he could to get them on friendly terms and a little too fast in Hyde's opinion. Finding out that his dad really wasn't who he thought he was and then becoming best buds with the guy that was supposedly his real father wasn't something Hyde was used to.

"Steven!" Kitty exclaimed, jumping from her seat at the round kitchen table. WB stood up also, straightening his suit as he grinned at his son.

"What's going on?" Hyde asked, catching on quickly that something involving him was in the works.

Kitty looked up at WB with a smile, directing him with her eyes for him to speak. WB cleared his throat and held out his arm towards the sliding glass door. "I have a surprise for you, son."

Kitty and WB waited expectantly as Hyde lifted his eyebrows at the two. "Alright."

Hyde walked to the sliding door hearing Kitty giggle with excitement as he slid open the glass. He took two steps outside when he saw it. Sitting in the driveway was his beautiful and unscratched black El Camino. The sun's rays hit the paint just right, and Hyde was in total awe. He could feel his jaw hanging loose from his face, but he didn't care to fix his expression. As far as he was concerned, the El Camino was laid to rest with the weird junk yard mechanic. Seeing his baby before him was like seeing a ghost whose arrival one was actually quite pleased to see. A strong hand clasped down on Hyde's shoulder. He turned his gaze to WB who beamed ahead at the car. A light fluttering near his broken arm caused him to look the other way where he found Kitty bouncy on her toes with glee. He had to admit. He was pretty happy himself.

Hyde walked away from the two to get a better look. He stood in front of the car, looking for any indication of the marks from the accident. He saw none. There was no way this was his original car. No one could fix that kind of damage this fast. He looked to WB who still had a jolly grin on his face, except now he was staring at Hyde instead of the car.

"After the accident," he began explaining. "I started searching for another one. I found this from some guy in Wyoming actually." He gave a hearty chuckle and put his hand to his chest. "I had to pay him a lot of money for this car, but, I thought it would be worth it."

Hyde closed his jaw, nodding his head approvingly. It looked just like his car, almost an exact replica. The interior was the same, the paint job, the excellent condition. Someone cared about this car as much as he cared about his. It meant something to them.

A wave of melancholy and realization rolled over Hyde, turning his happy mood on its ass. He drew out a sigh and walked away from the car, facing his now confused father.

"I don't think I can take this car, WB."

WB's eyes opened wide with surprise. "What?"

Hyde folded his arms and looked back at the car. "It's just that Leo gave me the other El Camino. It just holds a really special meaning."

Hyde watched carefully as WB took his words into consideration. The liveliness in his features drained slowly and he gulped uncomfortably a few times. Hyde suddenly wanted to take back his words. He looked to the car again. He really did need a car. He was tired of Foreman having to tote his ass around. Also, Hyde probably had a better memory than Leo. Leo probably won't even think anything's different.

"Well," WB finally said. "I guess I can just take it back to the guy."

"Wait." Hyde called. He caught Mrs. Foreman's hopeful eyes, encouraging him to change his mind. "Well, maybe I can take this car." Hyde grew uncomfortable under his shirt while WB listened with a little more hope. "I mean, this can have a special meaning too. You know, because you're my dad and you're just trying to help me out."

WB nodded his head and his smile appeared on his face again. "Yeah, well, that is what I'm trying to do."

Hyde shoved his hands in his pockets and WB started fiddling with his watch. Kitty stared on in disbelief. She waited patiently for a few more seconds, hoping that the sweet moment between the two would continue, or maybe possibly they would address that it even happened. Men. She scoffed inside her head.

"So," Kitty hummed. "Don't you boys have something else to say?"

Hyde and WB exchanged confused and uncomfortable glances from each other to Kitty and back to each other again.

"Oh, thanks for the car." Hyde said.

WB smiled. "No problem, son."

Kitty rolled her eyes and stalked back into the house.

"You're not much of a talker, are you?" Nick asked, peering amusingly over at the brooding young man.

"Nope." Hyde answered. "It's a big part of who I am."

Nick smirked while twirling his pen in his hand. "Why? You seem like a guy that has a lot to say about things."

Hyde stuck his chin in the air pensively. "I guess you could say that. But in this situation, we're supposed to be talking about me. I don't care too much to discuss myself all the time."

"Most people usually love to talk about themselves." Nick offered.

Hyde rolled his eyes beneath his shades. "Yeah, tell me about it. I know about five people who are just like that."

Nick sat up further in his seat, picking up on an opening. "So they probably don't listen very much then?"

Hyde was about to agree but then an exception entered his mind. "No, one of them listens." Late nights of Jackie chattering away, lying next to him on his cot filled his mind. She could talk for hours, but as soon as he said something, she would shut her mouth just to listen. That's what really made her different from the others. She always stopped to listen.

Hyde cleared his throat and continued. "But the rest of them are always complaining about the problems in their lives expecting me to give them advice."

"Do they still depend on you like that since your accident?"

Hyde pursed his lips in thought. "Not really." He shook his head. "Things are just different between everyone since I last remember."

Hyde suddenly realized his comfort zone levels had really loosened. He slouched further on the couch and Nick caught onto his defensive position.

"Anything different about what you last remember? Are anymore memories popping up?"

Hyde shook his head, but inside he was wondering if he should tell Nick about his dream. Maybe strange dreams about angels in stores were common among people with his condition. Maybe with all of the education he had about the human mind, he could explain to him why it only appeared to him while he was awake and its detail enhanced each time. It was quite a jump for Hyde, to admit something abnormal about himself willing. He knew if he told any of his friends, they would burn him endlessly in the same exact way he would do to them. However, it was confusing him so much; he was really questioning the boundaries he always set for himself. Besides, all of this was confidential.

"Well, I've…" Hyde stumbled a little, taking another step back, questioning whether he should or not. He met Nick's expectant eyes and knew it was too late to turn back. "I've been sort of having this reoccurring dream, but it doesn't happen when I'm asleep."

Nick's eyebrow turned sharply upwards on his forehead. "Well, what happens in this dream?"

Hyde subconsciously rubbed his cast thinking of the best way to word it. "Well, I'm in this store and there is this woman standing in front of me. I don't know what she looks like just that she is wearing this long white dress. But the first time I had it I didn't even know I was in a store. Each time it happens, I can see things more clearly."

Nick held out his hand, offering Hyde a suggestion. "Do you think that it's possible that this isn't a dream? That it could be a memory?"

Hyde pondered the idea. Why hadn't that occurred to him before? His mind wandered back to the woman. "No, I don't think so." His voice hung his words out to dry.

"Why not?"

"It just doesn't feel like a memory. In my memories I feel a certain way, but in this…" He paused for just a second, censoring his words. "I've never felt this way before."

Nick nodded his head at his patient who was slowly becoming unwound. "Maybe that's why it's important. It made you feel differently."

Hyde held the shoebox in his hand continuing his daily routine: get daily necessities out of the way such as work and doctor's appointments and then try to get Jackie to let him inside. If it wasn't for the fact that he literally had his plan sitting in his palm, he would feel dejected and hopeless like most days. Today, however, he just felt nauseous.

Jackie, Donna, and Fez all sat in the living room having another one of their girl talks. Donna sulked pitifully on one end of the couch, checking off in her mind that this was another day that Eric wouldn't come for her. Jackie kept looking up at the clock, reminding herself that Hyde showed up around this time for her. Fez just happily munched on M&Ms he had bought after working at the salon for the day. A knock bounced off the door, each one of them sharing nervous glances. Fez walked his way over to the door, peering into the peephole while Donna and Jackie eagerly looked on.

"It's Hyde." Fez said.

Donna sighed and Jackie tried to put her annoyed face on. Fez turned around uncomfortably, quickly noticing the looks on both of his friends' faces. "Well, at least they're persistent."

Donna got up from the couch to sulk in Jackie's bedroom while Jackie tossed her hair over her shoulder in defiance. "Well, I don't want to talk to him if he still has nothing new to say to me."

"He has some kind of box."

Jackie sat up from the couch and marched over to the door. Fez quickly backed off and retreated into the other room, only to listen through the door.

Jackie ran her fingers through her hair and straightened her blouse. She opened the door expecting a smug Steven, proud that he finally had something to offer her, but instead he stood in the hallway nervously, his face reminding her of when he came to Chicago for her. Her defensive need to push him away melted, and she stood back to let him in. She eyed the box in his hand, noticing quickly that it probably wasn't a present for her. It better not be. She imagined he had enough knowledge of her to know she wouldn't accept a present encased in a dinky shoe box.

As they sat down on the couch, Jackie pointed to the box and asked, "What's that?"

Hyde handed the box over to her and cleared his throat to speak. She might have been the easiest to talk to, but it was the hardest for him to do things like this for her. "It's something that I found under my bed today, and I thought that you would really like to see it."

Jackie looked down at the box and fingered the sides of the lid. She slightly feared what the contents inside would be, but as always, her curiosity overpowered that sensation. She slowly opened the lid, her eyes fluttering once she recognized the contents inside.

"Some of the stuff in there I remember, like the pictures and the notes. I remember the clip too. I just don't remember putting it in there." Jackie only scanned over the materials, but once her eyes fell on a familiar Christmas card off to the side, she couldn't tear herself away. She picked up the card and opened it up, proving to herself that what she assumed was true.

"You kept this?" She asked in a whisper, presenting the card to him.

Hyde heard the shiver in her voice, solidifying in his mind his assumption that this card meant a lot to her. Whenever Jackie went out of her way to do something, especially for him, there usually was another hidden message behind it. Even though Hyde couldn't remember, he knew that accepting her card and keeping it in her box must have meant something too.

"Well, I don't remember you giving this to me. I'm guessing it was this past Christmas from the date on the card, when we were broken up. But, I thought you should see it, because… well…"

Jackie filled in the rest of his yielding explanation with the words she had already conjured up in her head. All those months that she spend wondering whether he still cared about her or not were coming back to her. He accepted her card, and he didn't just throw it away like she suspected. He kept it in this box filled with things from her, things he thought were special. The icy chains that had held her head still for so long evaporated in that one single moment.

Her silence was killing Hyde. He needed to hear her say something, anything at all. He wasn't sure if her stunned stillness was from shock of happiness or anger. He decided to test the waters before his thoughts really started to spin out of control. "So, is this a good thing to you? I mean, I thought it was…"

Jackie turned her head to him and looked up into his shaded eyes. Over the years she had easily found a way to still see parts of him through the dark glass. As she stared at him and he stared at her the clouds covering her insecurities and doubts cleared away. "Yes, Steven, this is a good thing."

He wanted to kiss her, but he wasn't sure if the intense look they still hadn't broken meant he had permission to or not. He parted his lips in anticipation, but then closed them again once she broke their connection by looking away. He patiently watched her bite her lip and tap her foot as she tried to decide what her next move should be. After a few moments of still not saying anything, Hyde started to grow nervous again. If she sat there thinking too long, she might just think her way out of choosing him.

"Well?"

Jackie turned her eyes on him again, unnerved that he wouldn't just let her take all her time to come up with the perfect move. He had caught her off guard and she slowly felt herself slipping to him again. She sighed and threw her hands in the air in defeat. "I don't know. I guess… I guess that I might give you another chance. But.." She pointed at him, her stomach turning at the grin on his face. "This does not mean we are back together. We're just… talking."

"Talking?" Hyde asked, confused by her meaning.

"Yes," Jackie nodded her head and stated firmly, "Talking."

Hyde sighed and looked around the room. He snuck his eyes over to her again as an idea popped into his mind. "I guess I could live with that."

Jackie smiled up at him, feeling her heart race like a hummingbird as a sly grin crept on his face.

"For now."

AN2: The next chapter is pretty clear in my mind so it shouldn't take too long for me to get it up, but if for some weird reason it does, I apologize in advance.