Chapter 19 – Duties

Eric was getting ready for bed when there was a frantic knocking at his front door. He smiled, thinking it was Jackie showing up to check on him. Instead of a beautiful brunette, he was looking at a red-faced, crying Bob Pinciotti.

Taken aback, Eric opened the door wider as Bob stumbled in wrapping his beefy arms around Eric's neck…his hot sobs wetting Eric's shoulder. "I don't know why!" he sniffled.

Eric gently pushed his old father-in-law back a distance and quizzed, "Bob….what are you doing here….at this time of night?"

Midge walked into the living room, "Ooh Eric….what a nice couch!" She sat on the sofa and ran her fingers over the soft leather. "When did you get it?"

Bob mopped his face with a large handkerchief. "We got a call about Donna."

An eyebrow lifted briefly, "What about Donna? I thought she was in Europe on some story?"

Bob was clueless. "You don't know?"

Eric sat down on the arm of the Barcalounger, "What is it that I don't know?"

Bob answered with a sniff. "She's at the Embassy in some place call Baku."

"Bless you Bob." Midge said politely.

"Thank you, honey." Bob replied.

Now Eric was puzzled. When did Donna leave Prague? What was she doing in Baku, Azerbaijan of all places? He barely remembered the city from his old Geography classes in school. Eric rubbed his temples and tried to wrap his head around Donna's odd situation. "Why, exactly is she at the Embassy?"

Bob struggled to remember the details of what the Embassy representative told him. "There was a riot. A big one and Donna got hurt and Anna has gone missing. "

Eric motioned for Bob to continue. "…and she lost her passport and I need a photo ID to get her a replacement passport to come home."

As matter of frankly as he could be, Eric asked, "And you want me to do what?"

Bob shrugged, "Doesn't she have an extra driver's license or some kind of identification in the house somewhere?"

Eric spread his arms wide, "You are free to search the house. When Donna left me, she took everything she owned except the kitchen table."

Midge frowned, "What do you mean?"

Eric smiled at his ex-mother-in-law but it didn't reach his eyes. "She filed divorce papers and I signed them on Monday. "

The new was shocking blow to Bob. "What? You're not married anymore?"

Eric nodded his head in the affirmative. "She filed for a divorce last November….I finally signed the paperwork. I had wanted to talk to her but she didn't want to be married anymore. Well, at least to me."

Bob looked faint. "So…you haven't talked to her?"

"Not since Christmas Eve." Eric confirmed.

Midge interjected, "This is February so that's like…..two…plus Christmas….that's three months!"

Eric walked over to the drawer that contained the last letter Donna had given him. He handed it to Bob who looked at him with a questioning expression. He plopped down on the sofa with Midge as they read the letter.

Eric:

I love you. I always have and I always will….but like I said last earlier, I am not in love with you. I hate myself for hurting you like this and I feel like a coward for telling you this in a letter. I just couldn't say it to your face without breaking down and crying.

Or staying.

Or worse, staying…. because I felt obligated.

I feel like I've lost…me…Donna. Just going to work and playing house with you isn't enough to keep me happy. The radio station was great when I was younger, but I had ambitions. I think I lost those years ago and I'm not so old that still I can't achieve something great.

Just not with you. I feel like I need your permission to do my best and I shouldn't…I just feel like I'm saddled with burdens I can't carry anymore. We never had a family and you're right, it was all my fault – I can't conceive, and no, I didn't want to adopt.

Eric, we will never be like your parents. We will never achieve that kind of relationship – look at where I come from….consider how solid your roots are. We are just fortunate to have had these ten years together. I think of that as my foundation that lets me be me.

I'm sorry it had to happen this way. Anna and I will be travelling extensively while we are covering the story. It's funny, but you never even asked me about it. She's a great mentor and I think I will learn a great deal. Maybe when I get back we can talk.

Be friends.

Stay friends,

Love you forever,

Your Wife.

Bob was crying and Midge was sniffling. "I didn't know she was so unhappy! She never said anything to me…did she tell you Bob?"

Bob shook his head. "No….our little girl pretended everything was good." He looked at Eric and asked again. "Did she leave a driver's license or anything?"

Eric replied, "No Bob. Like I said...she took everything except the kitchen table. All I had left was the divorce papers and that letter."

Midge sniffled, "This is such a sad letter. She loves you but she's not in love with you. Oh Eric, this is terrible."

Eric agreed, "Yeah…it was a surprise knowing she felt that way and I was kinda blindsided but you know…..Donna's headstrong. She was probably going to leave eventually and Bob, I really can't help you with any of the Embassy information. I just don't have anything that belonged to her."

Bob scratched his head and sighed, "Jeez…..I don't know how I'm going to get her a replacement passport."

"Maybe you can talk to someone in the government here and they can help you?" Eric suggested.

Midge looked up, "Bob, do you think we can have our governor call their governor and talk to our daughter? Does it work that way?"

Bob shrugged. "I don't know Midgie. We can try on Monday." He looked at Eric for confirmation. But Eric could only gesture a "maybe" with his hands. "Good luck. If I turn up anything, I'll let you know."

Midge stood up and walked over to the Barca where she put her arms around Eric and hugged him. "Eric, I just want you to know you were the best son-in-law I ever had."

Bob started crying again, "Me too! What she said." Bob turned and wiped his eyes, heading for the door. "C'mon Midge. We need to figure out what to do. I thought it was Eric's duty as a husband….."

When he locked the door behind his ex in-laws, Eric did feel a measure of sadness. The Pinciotti's were the last to know their daughter filed for divorce. Why wouldn't Donna have told her own parents?

Finding Donna wasn't his duty anymore.

•*¨*• •*¨*

The next morning found Eric as a dead alien slumped over a modified military tank. Kelso was covered in extraterrestrial body parts on the sidewalk (which he thought was very cool) and Fez was a corpse in a half-zipped body bag. The guys were having a ball.

During a break, Kelso yelled at Eric, "I wish we could do this every day!"

Fez was not as fond of being zipped up on the ground. "I am jealous. You guys have fabulous costumes and I'm in a lunch bag."

Eric stretched and grinned. He had to admit it was awesome but not something he would do all the time. The director would yell, "Action" and the scene started then someone would sneeze and they had to rework all the blood and special effects over again. He felt the worst for the stuntmen who failed to fall from the buildings on cue. Behind the camera was a way different world than seeing it from the theater.

There was a bit more respect for Jackie's career choice.

There was a tap on his shoulder and didn't even have to turn his head because the smell of wonderful flowers surrounded him. "Hello Jackie."

A soft palm ran over his chin. "Hello Eric….I kind of like this stubble thing you have going on here."

He smiled at the lavishly dressed socialite. "So what kind of alien are you?"

Jackie leaned against the cool metal of the prop tank and crossed her arms. "I'm not an alien; in fact, I'm in an entirely different movie."

"What?!" Now he was confused.

"The production company rented this warehouse by the water so there are two movies being filmed at the same time. My script says I'm a vengeful woman with an axe to grind over two ex-boyfriends." She giggled, "You should have seen my fight scene yesterday….I think I actually tore out some hair." Jackie nudged her shoulder against Eric's. "What are you doing later?"

Eric let go of the breath he didn't know he was holding. "Um….my mom invited you and Mel over for dinner…if you're interested…." He kind of let the invitation hang in the air.

Jackie looked around and pretended to think about his offer and hiding a smiled replied, "I guess your mom's cooking would be better than room service."

Eric reached out his hand and closed his fingers around her smaller ones and brought them to his lips for a kiss. "Thanks….I think that was a compliment."

A pleasant shiver skipped over her spine at the warm breath on her cold fingertips. She looked up with a wry smiled, "I can't guarantee if I'll be bringing Melanie or Mel Dupree….do you think your dad will freak out?"

Eric laughed, "You know what? I don't care. Dad is just going to have to get used to how the world is changing."

She smiled, "So….can you tell me how to find Michael and Fez? I want to say hello to my alien friends while I'm on a break."

Eric didn't want her to leave. It was so nice to see that beautiful face again and listen to her voice. He wanted to tell her about his plans to sell his house and start his own business….well that could wait for another time. Eric pointed in the general direction of their mutual friends and reminded her, "Don't be late for dinner."

She laughed lightly, "We'll be there with bells on….well, may Mel will be….you never know!"

(✿◠‿◠) *

"Donna honey, we're trying." Bob said patiently.

Staring at the Embassy ceiling, Donna was pacing the floor for the entire length of the telephone extension. "Dad, I need to get home. Did you talk to Eric?"

Bob cleared his throat, "Yeah, about that…..ummm…..when were you going to tell your mom and me about wanting a divorce?"

Donna could feel the blood throb under the scar on her forehead. Eric must have told them. Did he sign the papers? Did Jackie tell Eric? God what a nightmare! "Dad….I was going to tell you and mom when I got home…I didn't want to do it over the telephone."

"Pumpkin….I think you could have told us about that back in November when you thought about filing the paperwork….it's March of a new year and I'm just finding out about it?" Bob was getting upset.

Donna tried to be respectful. "Dad….I left Eric everything. I wasn't happy okay? I tried to make it work. I tried to be the good little wife but that life…..that existence is just not where I see my future."

Bob sighed long and loud into the telephone receiver before replying. "So that future you saw was trapped in some Embassy in a foreign country with no way home?"

A little humbled, Donna replied, "Maybe?" She closed her eyes and continued, "I don't know Dad. I was going on an investigative story with the famous Anna Cantana and I got hurt and she got lost and all I know is that I want to come home."

"Donna, we're trying. You didn't leave anything at your house that we could use. Like Eric said, you took all your belongings."

"Daddy." She felt like begging.

Bob yawned from Point Place, "Donna, your mother and me are going to talk to the governor and see what we can do at this point to get you home but you are going to have to be patient. Here, your mother wants to talk to you."

Donna waited and soon wispy voiced Midge Pinciotti came on the line, "Donna…honey…are you safe? I saw on the news there was a lot of fighting in your sneeze city."

Donna knitted her brow. "What?"

Midge continued, "Are they feeding you? Do you have an address and I'll mail you a care package like they do those boys in the military?"

"Mom…..mom, I'm okay. I got a few scars…nothing serious….at least until my hair grows back." Donna joked but the pun fell flat. "Anyways….please whatever you and dad can do – I appreciate it."

"Honey, can I ask a question before we hang up?"

"Sure mom."

"If you were so unhappy, why did you stay married so long?"

•*¨*• •*¨*

(✿◠‿◠) *