I'd say I'm sorry about the lack of updates on this, but that would be lying. I needed the break. However, I hope you're not all too mad at me for the hiatus. Anyway, the next chapter is done apart from some minor tweaking, so it shouldn't be too long before I post it. Like, really soon. I might even just post it right now, but I doubt it. But really it should be almost that quick. This chapter is very much transitional. I couldn't help it.

I own nothing. Titles are Police songs. I don't own them either. Please review.

Flexible Strategies.

Hyde walked into the Forman's kitchen wearing his sweatpants and a wife beater. He didn't say anything as he grabbed a plate from the cabinet, sat down at the kitchen table and started scooping eggs onto his plate. Kitty and Red stared perplexedly at Hyde.

"Steven, what are you doing here?" Red finally asked.

"Jackie ate all the food in the house." Hyde replied. Seeing the disbelieving looks on their faces, Hyde sighed. "Also, she kicked me out."

"This wouldn't have anything to do with you finally realizing you're going to be a father would it?" Red asked, going right to the heart of the situation.

"Oh, you guys noticed that." Hyde laughed nervously.

"Yes, we did." Kitty answered. "Steven, it's okay to be nervous, but, it's not okay to be an A S S."

Hyde groaned. He knew that they were right. "So, what do I do?"

"Go apologize to the woman you love." Kitty said, pushing Hyde out of his chair.

"Can I eat my eggs first?" He asked, reaching for his eggs.

Red pulled the plate away from him and grinned. "No, get your own damn breakfast."

Hyde sighed and then straightened his shoulders as he walked to the sliding glass door. He put his hand on the door handle before turning around.

"I'm not really good at apologizing."

"It's easy." Red told him. "You just say, 'I'm sorry.' Like that."

"And that works?" Hyde asked, disbelieving. It seemed way too easy.

Red laughed. "In your case, no, you might want to get some flowers as well."

"Or better yet, some food." Kitty laughed. "Ice cream sundaes always worked for me." She clapped her hands. "Oh, tell her to come over here later and we'll eat sundaes together!"

Hyde nodded. "Okay, thanks."

Kitty and Red watched him go. They turned to each other and shared a knowing smile.

"He's doomed." Red said matter- of-factly.

Kitty nodded in agreement.

"Okay, talk to you later." Eric hung up the phone as Donna walked out of the bathroom towel drying her hair.

"Who was that?" Donna asked.

"Jackie." Eric answered as he flopped down onto their bed. "Apparently Hyde didn't come home until around two last night, and he smelled of booze."

"Eeek." Donna winced.

"Yeah, so now Jackie is convinced that he's cheating on her."

"Why would Jackie think that?" Donna asked before quickly shaking her head.

"Don't answer that." She glared. "I'm going to kick his ass. I told him what would happen if he pulled this shit again." She clenched her fists.

Hyde walked into his house just as Jackie was walking out. He grabbed her shoulders and held her still.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

Jackie glared at Hyde. "I was going to do some shopping and then I was going to the doctor's appointment." She answered. "You clearly forgot."

"I didn't forget." Hyde lied.

Jackie knew better to believe him, but said nothing. "Well, you can still come if you want."

"Uh, Forman has the day off, so no one is at the record store."

Jackie nodded, clearly disappointed. "Right, well, I'll just go by myself."

Hyde instantly knew he was being an ass. "Jackie, just give me one minute and I'll go with you okay?"

Jackie nodded once as Hyde kissed the top of her head and went into their house to call Eric.

Jackie was leaning up against the house with her eyes closed chewing on her bottom lip when Hyde came out. He stared at her for a minute as he watched her try to gather her composure.

A while back, he had figured that there were two ways of getting Jackie to tell him what was wrong. The first was to simply wait it out until she came to him and demanded that he listen while she talked, and the other, more effective way was to push her. The only downside with option number two was he usually ended up getting kicked in the shins.

"You know, I'm not good with words."

"I noticed." Jackie's reply was short and her eyes were still closed.

"So, you should know better by now then to take what I say literally." He responded.

He watched as Jackie sighed. He could almost visualize the tidal wave of Jackie wrath that was about to come his way. She just needed one push.

"Besides, you haven't been much of a picnic yourself lately."

Hyde made a mental apology to his legs as Jackie's eyes opened in disbelief. He watched her stare at him dumbfounded for a moment, as though she were trying to decide if he had really just said what she thought he said.

Finally, she took a deep breath, a clear signal that she was just filling her lungs with enough air so that she could shout at him and not get tired.

"You don't have to do this you know." She said it so softly that Hyde was taken aback by it.

She continued, "If you don't want to have this baby with me, then you don't have to. Fenton says there's an apartment waiting for me if I want it, I'll just move into it and you won't have to worry about a thing."

It was Hyde's turn to look dumbfounded. This was not going the way he had planned it.

"So this is an other ultimatum then?"

Jackie shook her head. "No, Steven, this is a choice. I'm giving you an out." She paused as she assessed him. "That is what you want right? That's what your actions these last few weeks have been telling me."

How the hell did someone so tiny get to have so much power over him? He could feel her slipping out of his grasp, not just physically, but emotionally as well. He felt like he couldn't breathe.

"You're not going anywhere." He said, pulling her close to him and capturing her mouth in a heated kiss. A minute later, she pulled back, but she wasn't smiling.

"Steven."

"You." He said, pointing a finger at her. "Do you remember what I said that night we went to that restaurant that reminded us of Hell?"

"That the maitre d reminded you of Fenton?"

"No, I said that I wasn't going to let you go."

"Oh, that." Jackie replied. "Well, I release you from your promise."

"It's not up to you."

He watched as tears started streaming down Jackie's cheeks. He made to wipe them away but Jackie slapped his hands away.

"Why are you making this so hard for me?" She asked as she turned and walked back into the house. Hyde kicked the ground in frustration before following her inside.

When Hyde called Eric to tell him that he had to go to work that day, Eric instantly knew that things were not well in the land of Hyde.

"I spent way too much time and energy getting those two back together." He said to himself. "I'll be damned if those two ruin it."

"Who are you talking to?" Donna asked as she walked into the living room where Eric was pacing.

"Uh, no one." Eric answered.

He walked over to Donna and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Hyde needs me to go into work today. He sort of forgot that he and Jackie have a doctor's appointment later."

"He sort of forgot?" Donna asked her voice was low and menacing.

Eric winced. "Don't kill the messenger."

"I'm not going to kill you." Donna replied, kissing Eric softly. "I'm going to kill him." She grabbed her purse and was walking out the door before Eric could stop her.

"She does that on purpose." He said, following her out the door. He ran up to catch her as she walked down the stairs.

"Where are you going?" He asked when she turned down the hallway instead of going outside to the parking lot.

Donna stopped and turned to Eric. "I'm getting back up."

"Fez?" Eric asked, "I know Fez is protective of Jackie and all, but um, is he really the best choice for back up?"

Donna shook her head solemnly. "Not Fez." She answered.

Eric shook his head. "No!"

"Yes." Donna nodded.

Eric grabbed Donna's hands. "Not Laurie. Anybody but Laurie."

"We have no other choice." Donna replied. "Laurie is our only hope."

They walked to Fez and Laurie's apartment and both of them stared at the door for a minute before Donna knocked. They waited for a grand total of one minute before Laurie opened the door in her bathrobe.

"Oh, it's you." Laurie said. "What do you want?"

Donna looked Laurie square in the eyes. "We need your help."

"That's not true." Eric told her. "I don't think we need your help with anything."

"Funny, little brother." Laurie said before turning her attention back to Donna. "With what?"

Donna looked around to make sure no one was in the hallway. "We have a code one."

Laurie instantly opened the door so that they could come inside. "Get in." She ordered. They complied and Laurie closed and locked the door behind her.

Kelso was feeding Betsy her morning cereal when the phone rang.

"I better go get that." Kelso told his daughter while making silly faces at her. He double checked to make sure she was properly inserted into her high chair and couldn't get out, he ran to the kitchen only to find his wife was already on the phone.

"Who is it?" He asked.

Brooke put her hand up, gesturing that she would answer his question in a minute and then turned around and leaned down.

"Yes, I will be there." She hung up the phone and turned back to Kelso, plastering a huge fake smile on her face.

"Hi, honey!"

"Don't hi, honey me." Kelso replied. "Who was that?"

"It was just Donna." Brooke answered.

"Oh, well why didn't you just say so?" Kelso replied, grinning. He shrugged his shoulders and walked back over to Betsy who was attempting to feed herself.

"Betsybet, that's your shirt, not your mouth."

Brooke laughed. "She's going to need a bath; can you give it to her? I need to run."

"I thought you weren't working until two today."

"I wasn't but uh, Donna is sick and needs me to cover her shift." Brooke lied.

"Oh, okay. I'll give her a bath and then take her over to Mrs. Formans."

Brooke shook her head. "No, um, why don't you take her to your mom?"

"Do I need to remind you about what happened the last time we did that?"

Brooke sighed. "No, you don't."

"What about Fez and Laurie?"

"Fez is working and well… I don't trust Laurie." This wasn't technically true, but Brooke couldn't think of a better excuse.

The two looked at each other for a minute before they both gave in.

"Pam." They said simultaneously.

"What time is your appointment?" Hyde asked after a long twenty minutes of silence.

"Two." Jackie answered not looking at Hyde. She was too busy staring at her engagement ring.

"I spent a lot of time looking for that ring." He said.

Jackie couldn't help but smile a little. "That's not how Fenton tells it."

"Well, what does Fenton know?" Hyde sat next to Jackie and pushed her hair back. Jackie looked up nervously at him.

"I know I've been kind of a dink lately."

"That's putting it lightly."

Hyde smiled. "Well, you're not really up to par either, princess."

Jackie crossed her arms and pouted. "Is it because I'm fat?"

Hyde blinked. "What?"

"It is!" Jackie shook her head. "You're such a shallow creep!"

"Well, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black!" Hyde retorted.

"See, there you go, calling me a pot! Are you trying to imply that I'm round?"

"No," Hyde answered. "I'm not implying anything."

Jackie started to sputter. "You, I can't, you just, you,"

"You?" Hyde pressed. This banter was starting to turn him on.

"You immature, shallow, commitment phobic, backside of a pig!" Jackie yelled.

"Okay."

Jackie stared at him. "I just called you a pig's ass and all you can say is okay?"

Hyde nodded. "Yep."

Donna, Eric, Fez and Laurie were in a circle in Fez and Laurie's apartment.

"This is bad; this is very, very bad." Eric said.

"Stop spazing, little brother." Laurie ordered. "It'll be alright."

Eric shook his head. "No, you don't understand how much work I put into them. They can't end it now!"

"They're not going to end it." Donna told him. "Hyde knows the consequences."

"I'm with Forman." Fez said. "This is bad."

"Don't worry, baby." Laurie said. "Do you want to put your head in my lap?"

Fez nodded and walked over on his knees to Laurie and put his head on her lap.

Eric looked at Donna hopefully.

"Don't even." She said.

"So, um, I guess I'll call Fenton." Jackie held out her hands. "Help me up?"

"I meant what I said." Hyde told her, ignoring her request. "You're not going anywhere."

Jackie sighed. "Steven, you don't have to be so honorable. I'm not asking you for anything."

"Well, I'm asking you for something." He replied.

"What?" Jackie asked resigned.

"Do you still love me?"

"Yes." Jackie answered quickly. "But that's not the issue." She took his hand and looked at his watch.

"We need to go." She grabbed her purse and Hyde followed her outside to the Camino.

"I'll drive." He told her, opening the door for her.

Jackie didn't argue. She simply got into the passenger seat and let Hyde shut the door.

As Red applied the rest of the car wax to his car, he watched as Jackie and Hyde left their house. Just from their body language, Red could tell that Hyde either hadn't apologized, or it had gone terribly wrong. He wasn't sure which was worse. Shaking his head, Red put down the rag and walked inside the house where Kitty was. He kissed her on her head.

"Hungry?" She asked, already pulling out the bread to make him a sandwich.

Red smiled at his wife. She knew him so well.

"Our son is a dumbass."

Kitty sighed. "What did Eric do this time?"

"Not that one, the other one."

Kitty sighed again. "I take it he didn't listen to your advice?"

Red shook his head and glared at the sliding glass door. "No."

"They're just scared of having a kid though; it's a lot of responsibility." Kitty pointed out. "So what's the plan, Stan?"

Red thought about it. The kids had offered to help Hyde and Jackie with getting ready for the baby, but Red was going to take it one step further. He got up from his seat at the table and walked over to the phone.

Donna, Laurie, Brooke, Eric and Fez sat in their secret hide out, (otherwise known as the listening pit) as they attempted to come up with a plan that both saved Jackie and Hyde's relationship while simultaneously making Hyde wish he had never been born. Donna, it seemed, was out for blood.

"I still say we should go with my idea." Donna huffed and crossed her arms.

"Donna, dear, I don't think hanging Hyde upside down by his balls is um, conducive to what we want to accomplish." Eric told his wife. His response was a quick flash of the tongue.

"Shouldn't you be working, little brother?" Laurie asked, scanning the record store.

"Shouldn't you be taking your VD medication?" He retorted.

The phone rang and Eric quickly got up to answer it.

"Grooves."

"Make sure all of you are here at two." Red ordered his son.

"My day is going well, yours?" Eric smiled sarcastically into the phone. He was greeted with a click. Eric turned around to the girls.

"That was Red; he wants us at his house at two."

"Don't you have to stay here?" Brooke asked.

Eric shrugged. "I'll get Leo to watch the store, Hyde will never know."

Hyde and Jackie were now at Doctor Lewis's office. Hyde sat on the only available stool, tapping his finger anxiously on the counter. Jackie stood beside the bed, fiddling with the straps of her gown. Both of them were nervous about the check up. They were going to see their baby today, and while Jackie was excited, Hyde was still anxious as hell.

"You're right." Hyde replied. "Look, I know I've been kind of a jerk lately,"

"That's putting it lightly." Jackie muttered underneath her breath

"But… crap, Jackie, I don't know what I'm doing."

There was silence for a moment while Jackie stared at Hyde.

"And you think I do?" She asked, taking a step towards him. "I'm afraid I'm going to end up like my mother and then Farrah will resent me like I resent my mother."

It was Hyde's turn to take a step closer to Jackie. "You're not your mom."

"And you're not Bud."

The two stared at each other for a moment before Hyde closed the gap between them. They kissed lightly, but Jackie pulled away before Hyde had the chance to deepen the kiss.

"I'm selling the Shelby." Jackie announced, breaking the silence.

"You're what?" Hyde was confused. Where the hell did that come from?

"Steven, we're having a baby, we need a car that's baby friendly."

"I don't care." Hyde told her. "You're not selling the Shelby."

Jackie glared at him, "Well what do you propose we do? Because we need another car and I'm not going to ask you to give up your El Camino."

"Well, I'm not letting you get rid of yours." Hyde countered.

The two were at an impasse, staring at each other, willing the other one to break. Neither of them wanted to give up their cars, nor did they want to have the other do the same. Jackie knew that it was a necessary step though, but Hyde refused to even go that far.

"Jackie, Steven, how are you two doing today?" Dr. Lewis walked into the room.

"We're fine." Jackie replied, hopping back up onto the bed. "She hasn't been moving around as much lately."

"Well that's good." Dr. Lewis smiled at Jackie. "It just means that the baby has run out of space to move, you have nothing to worry about." Jackie smiled slightly at this information and nodded.

"So what do you say we get started?" He put on his gloves and Jackie leaned back on the bed and pulled up her shirt so that Dr. Lewis could apply the sonogram gel.

"You guys ready to see your baby?" He asked.

Both Jackie and Hyde nodded silently. Hyde remained expressionless but Jackie was smiling. A minute later, their baby appeared on the screen.

Jackie was in complete awe of what she was seeing. "Wow."

Hyde agreed with her. Wow was right. Part of the reason he had been freaking out was due to him having to become a responsible adult. He was trying to hold on to his youth for as long as he could, but now as he watched his child move around on the screen, none of that mattered anymore. Hyde took Jackie's hand and squeezed.

That's when she knew they were going to be fine.

The gang stood in the Forman's living room in a line. Red had a whistle around his neck and he was walking up and down the line like a drill sergeant. The kids stood at attention as Red lectured them.

"We have less than a month before the baby is due, and we need to practice, practice, practice! Eric, you're going to be in charge of the car. Be ready to drive her to the hospital. Make sure you know the quickest route there."

Eric nodded and gave a mock salute. "Will do dad, I gotta get back to the store before Hyde finds out I left Leo in charge." He kissed Donna and Kitty goodbye and ran out.

Red ignored him and turned to the kids. "Fez and Laurie, you'll be charge of Jackie's overnight bag. Make sure it's packed and you know where it is."

Laurie raised her hand. "I've got a question, what if Jackie goes into labor at night and we're not there?"

They all looked at each other, equally perplexed by the scenario Laurie put forth.

"Well, um, we'll just have to make sure they call us." Kitty shrugged.

"Yeah, but this is Hyde and Jackie we're talking about." Donna said. "Hyde is going to freak out and Jackie's going to be in too much pain to even think about calling us."

They all nodded in agreement with Donna.

"So, should someone stay with them?" Fez asked. "Not me!"

"Not me!" Kelso and Brooke yelled at the same time. Donna realized what happened and glared.

"No."

"Well, next time, call not it faster, Donna." Kelso said.

"Aren't you still on duty?" Donna asked.

Kelso smiled. "Yep."

"Leave, dumbass." Red ordered. Kelso shrugged and walked out.

"I better go too; I don't want to leave Betsy alone with Pam Macy all day." Brooke told them. She looked over at Donna and Laurie. "Call me if…" The girls nodded solemnly at Brooke before she left.

"What am I supposed to do?" Donna asked Red.

Red pulled out another whistle and handed it to Donna. "You're second in command."

Donna didn't know what to say. This was the best honor she had ever received in her life. "Wow."

"Use it wisely." Red advised her.

Later that night, the gang sat in Hyde's basement, looking at the sonogram picture.

"So did you find out what it is?" Kelso asked.

Jackie shook her head. "No, we decided not too."

Hyde stared at Jackie for a minute, "Jackie, your exact words were 'I don't need to see that it's a girl."

"Because that's what she is, Steven." Jackie shook her head as to say, 'duh.'

She got off Hyde's lap and left to go upstairs to find something to snack on. Donna, Brooke and Laurie followed her. Eric turned to Hyde.

"You guys are okay right?" Eric asked.

"You give the word, and Laurie will take care of Hyde for you." Donna announced to Jackie as soon as they were in the kitchen. Laurie smiled maliciously and gave a little wave.

"We're fine Forman." Hyde said.

"Good, because they were gonna let Laurie after you, and from man to man, you don't want to know what they were planning." Fez winced.

"Remind me to never piss off Donna." Eric shuddered before turning back to Hyde. "So, seriously, you guys are okay?"

"Of course we're okay, Donna." Jackie rolled her eyes. "I think it just hit us that we're going to be parents."

"I can see why that would freak you out." Laurie nodded thoughtfully, "After all, it's going to be you and Hyde's kid; it's like Rosemary's Baby but without the creepy apartment building."

"Let's just pray it doesn't have horns."

Jackie stuck her tongue out at her friends. "Let's go back downstairs, I want to watch the rest of The Man Who Knew Too Much." She grabbed her potato chips and the girls followed her back down stairs.

NEXT: It's the Fourth of July but there are more than just fireworks.

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