The gang walked into a bar called Ricky's with apprehension. Hyde had told them that Lucy and Jackie were going there tonight and had invited them. After everyone got over the initial shock of Jackie going to a bar, they all decided to check it out. Hyde looked around for the two girls but couldn't find them. Someone tapped him on the shoulder. Hyde turned around to see Lucy. "Hey, we've been waiting forever for you guys," she had to shout over the noisy crowd. Kelso and Fez started at Lucy in awe.
"You look hot," Kelso said without any thought. Fez nodded his head excitedly in agreement. Even a gay guy would have to admit that Lucy looked smoking in her slashed black tank top, tight leather pants, black arm warmers, and black combat boots.
"Thanks," Lucy responded with a roll of her eyes. Jackie had been right about Kelso; he was such a man whore. But, the midget had also told her that he was a good friend, so Lucy had yet to pass judgment on him.
"Where's Jackie?" Donna asked curiously. Surely, Jackie would want to hang around someone who could protect her from the sleazy types that like to frequent bars.
Lucy laughed like Donna had told a really funny joke. When she realized no one else knew why she was laughing, she stopped. "At the bar," Lucy said casually. "Three drinks ahead of everyone else," she mumbled to herself. Only Hyde heard her. Lucy hated seeing Jackie drunk; it reminded her of Pam Burkhart. Jason had hated it too.
"She acts like our mother when she does that," he'd complain. "She's better than that." Of course, Jackie was nothing like her mother. She wasn't an alcoholic floozy. Jackie only drank when she was in a really bad place. She'd get incredibly drunk and do something really stupid. Lucy couldn't count the number of times she'd helped Jackie out of tough situation. The worst she'd ever seen her friend was after Jason's funeral. Jackie had gone on a huge binge and drank for three days straight. Lucy was convinced she was going to kill herself that way. Surprisingly, that wasn't what landed Jackie in the hospital. Not eating did that.
They all walked over to the bar, where Jackie was the middle of telling a story. You could tell she was a bit drunk, but not too bad. The gang was in shock; Jackie never drank. All the guys stared at how hot Jackie looked in a short denim skirt, a tight cropped flower-printed tank top, and tall tan boots. "And so I said, 'You need to put the keys in before you start the car." Everyone around her cracked up laughing, even Kelso, who hadn't ev3en heard the rest of the joke. Jackie turned around and saw her friends. "Hey guys! What took you so long?"
"We had to make sure someone wasn't playing a joke on us," Eric answered with a smirk. Jackie glared at him.
"For your information, I've been here several times. Just ask Sal." Jackie fired back. "Hey, Sal!" she shouted over to the bartender, a big burly guy who reminded Eric of Darth Varder. "Can you tell this skinny nerd how many times I've been here?"
Sal smiled. Jackie was one of his favorite customers, especially since her band often played free gigs. He still served her even though she was underage but only because he like the midget. "Yeah, she comes here all the time. Even when we beg her not to." Sal answered jokingly. Jackie realized what had just been revealed about her.
"Hey, can we get some beers for our friends?" Lucy interrupted before Eric can say something. Sal nodded and set them on the bar. The gang all got a bit drunk, but not nearly at the same level as Lucy and Jackie. The two girls were doing shots while they were just sticking with beers. Fez tried one of the shots and proclaimed that it tasted gross. Donna felt drunk just sniffing it. Hyde was amazed at how well Jackie could hold her liquor seeing as how small she was.
"Hey, Sal. Can I get another one?" Jackie shouted cheerfully. She was always the most carefree completely wasted. Then again, most people probably were. Jackie knew Jason would hate how she was acting right now, but she didn't care. He wasn't here to stop her.
"No," the bartender told her wisely. He knew the girl was unpredictable when she was this hammered, and he didn't want any damages.
"Why not?" Jackie whined. Lucy choked back a laugh. Jackie glared at her. Everyone sat back and enjoyed the show.
"Because you've hit your limit," Sal responded firmly. Everyone laughed.
"Ha ha. You have a limit!" Kelso shouted stupidly. Hyde frogged him. "Hey, what was that for?" he shouted, rubbing the spot where Hyde hit him.
"Just felt like it," Hyde smoothly replied. Donna watched him carefully before turning back to Eric, who was babbling on about Star Wars.
"Since when do I have a limit?" Jackie asked angrily, choosing to ignore the idiots around her. She needed another drink. It would comfort her lonely heart.
"Since you threw a stool and put a hole in the wall," Sal reminded her sternly. Jackie looked at her drink thoughtfully for a moment before shrugging.
"You threw a stool at the wall?" Donna asked incredulously. She knew her friend had a temper, but she never thought Jackie would do anything like that.
"No," Jackie replied causally. "I threw it at a person." Hyde cracked up laughing.
"I told you she was the devil," Eric said triumphantly, taking a sip of his beer and then making out with his girlfriend.
Suddenly Jackie's body went rigid. Lucy turned around and saw the guy that had stolen both Jackie's heart and virginity when they were freshmen. Andy Ferris walked in with his arm over a trashy blonde and a smirk on his face. He spotted Jackie and left the blonde. Hyde and Kelso both immediately got a bad vibe off this guy. "Hey, Jackie. Still hanging around a bar desperately searching for guys I see." the jerk said with a cruel laugh.
"Still a dick I see," Lucy chimed in. She hated this guy with every fiber of her being. Andy was the first guy to break Jackie's heart and strip her of her self-respect. After him, Jackie started sleeping with guys for comfort, trying to find something that resembled love. Of course, she had a few good relationships too, but Jackie always had felt like she was missing something.
"And you're still a bitch," Andy replied venomously. Hyde took one look at this dude and nailed him in the face. He wasn't about to let this dude insult Jackie and her friend. They all ran out of the bar as fast as possible, even though Lucy and Jackie knew Sal wouldn't call the cops on them. It was just instinct. They finally got to the basement. Jackie sat down on the couch and stared at the blank TV. Lucy sat next to her and said nothing. Hyde sat in his chair while everyone else scattered around.
Finally, Jackie spoke. "Why didn't you just let me handle him?" she asked Lucy angrily.
"Because you would've let him sweet-talk you into something I'm sure you don't want a bad repeat of. You would've acted like…" Lucy trailed off. Everyone watched steam rise out of Jackie's ears.
"Like who?" she asked her best friend angrily. Jackie knew what Lucy was saying was true, but she didn't feel like hearing it.
"Your mother," Lucy replied coolly. "And you're better than that." Now everyone was really confused.
"Screw you," Jackie told her oldest friend while getting up and walking out the door. Lucy sat there for a minute before realizing what she had just said.
"Shit," Lucy mumbled. She turned to Donna. "Can you go out and make sure she doesn't try to walk home?" The lumberjack nodded and ran outside to catch the midget.
Hyde thought about something. "Hey, Lucy, what did you say to Jackie that was so bad?" he asked curiously. Everyone gave her a questioning look.
"I told her she was like her mother. Jackie hates being compared to her mother." Lucy answered vaguely.
"Why would she be offended? Jackie's mom is hot!" Kelso exclaimed while picturing Pam in a bikini.
"She's also an alcoholic who's more concerned about drinking and sleeping with cabana boys in Mexico to be there for her daughter," Lucy explained absentmindedly. In her drunken state, she forgot that Jackie didn't want them to know about her family.
Hyde snorted. Jackie was always bragging about stuff her mom had bought her or money that her dad had given her. He doubted that her family was anything less than perfect. "Yeah right. The way Jackie's always bragging about the stuff they've given her doesn't make me think her family's unhappy."
Lucy rolled her eyes at how little they knew. Jackie was certainly good at keeping people in the dark. "Yeah, they shower Jackie with gifts to make up for the fact that they're never around." Everyone gave her a confused look. "Jackie's mom, as I said, is always somewhere boozing it up and doing it with hot young men, and Jackie's dad is always on business. She's lucky if she sees them twice a year. Jackie's parents give her stuff instead of love. Not a great replacement, but everyone needs something."
They all sat in silence, soaking up this new information. If you thought about it, it really did explain Jackie's personality. She was materialistic and superficial because no one had ever gave her love. Jackie's bitchness and shallowness were just defense mechanisms so that people couldn't hurt her. At the moment, everyone in the room liked Jackie just a bit more.
"And how do you know all this?" Donna asked carefully, now back from driving Jackie home. This girl knew a side of Jackie none of them even knew existed.
"I've was Jackie's neighbor until we were fourteen and have been her friend since we were five," Lucy responded nonchalantly.
Something she said earlier popped out at Hyde. "Wait, you said Jackie's lucky if she sees her parents twice a year. Does that mean Jackie lives alone?" he asked worriedly.
"No. I'm living with her right now, and there's always been someone around," Lucy responded ambiguously. She may have spilled the beans about Jackie's parents, but she wasn't going to say a word about Jason. Lucy knew she wasn't strong enough to talk about him. Lucy looked over at the clock and decided that she should leave. "I've got to go. See you guys tomorrow!" she said before walking out. Everyone watched Jackie's friend walk away in amazement. The girl had managed to change their entire view of a person in less than ten minutes.
Donna thought about all the lies Jackie had told and how easily they had slipped off her tongue. She wondered what else Jackie had lied about.
Hyde felt a crushing guilt for the way he'd always treated Jackie, like she was a spoiled princess. He'd always thought she had parents who loved her the way his never had. From the sounds of it, Hyde realized that Jackie's parents were just as bad as his, maybe worse. And at least Hyde had the Formans now. They loved him like another son. Jackie had no one.
Kelso and Fez were still thinking about how hot Jackie's mom was. It was Eric who had the most interesting thought of all. Maybe, he thought, Jackie wasn't the devil. Maybe she was just a girl who'd been let down and broken too many times.