Chapter 2
Jackie's Gone
What a strange day at work Eric thought as he took off his red velvet jacket and bow tie and placed them on top of the dryer in the basement. Hyde and Kelso did not come in today. That left Roy an even more nervous wreck trying to call one of the first shift people to do the cooking and Eric having to do Kelso's job on top of his own. It was actually good to be at work and not think about other things. Other people. Other people known as Jackie. The only person that was here was sitting in the dark before Eric had turned the light on was Fez.
"Fez, why were you sitting in the dark, man?" Eric turned on the old TV before sitting on the sofa.
"Because my soul is dark."
The last thing Eric wanted to do at midnight was try to decipher one of Fez' horny riddles.
"Why's that?"
"Jackie's gone."
Eric stood up, "Gone? What do you mean, Jackie's gone?"
"She told me to tell Hyde that she's very sorry and when I came back here. I heard Miss Kitty talking* on the phone with Pam that Jackie is staying in New York with one of her aunt's. And that makes Fez sad."
'F***'
"Where are Hyde and Kelso?"
"I don't know, I haven't seen them all day."
Eric didn't mean to be a bad friend to Fez by ignoring him and running up the stairs but he had to talk to his mother.
"Mom," Eric barged in his parent's room and turned on the light.
"This better be important or my foot is going to go up your ass."
"Eric," Kitty rubbed her eyes, "What's wrong, sweetie? Are you sick?"
"No. What's this about Jackie going to New York?"
"You woke me up out of a sound sleep for THAT?!" Red barked
Eric was this close to telling his father to shut up, but he didn't feel like dealing with the consequences of telling Red off at the moment.
"She and Steven broke up----can't we talk about this in the morning?"
"Sure." There was no more information to be found here.
"And tell the foreign kid to go home!" Red yelled before going back to sleep.
"Yeah, yeah."
Eric had to go to the one place he really didn't want to go to. But if anyone could shed some light on what happened today it would be Donna.
"Eric," Donna came downstairs in her white tank top and plaid sweat pants, "Are you----what's wrong?"
"What's this about Jackie going to New York?"
"Why do you care?" She raised an eyebrow
"Are you going to let me in?"
"Sure."
"What's going on?" Called Bob from his room.
"Nothing, Dad. It's only Eric."
'It's only Eric.' How could he marry a woman who thought of him like that?
"I care because Jackie is OUR friend."
"She just told her Mom she needed to get away since breaking up with Hyde."
"And that's another thing. Hyde and Kelso were not at work today. Did they get into it?"
"Why are you making this your problem?"
"They're my friends, too, geez, Donna."
"I haven't seen Hyde nor Kelso all day. And you should be in bed. We have to pick out our wedding invitations in twelve hours."
"Don't you care if Jackie is all right?"
"I care, Eric," She sighed heavily, "I'm sure she's fine. Now go home and get some sleep." She lightly pecked him on the cheek and pushed him out the front door.
"Is that you Forman or is it Dorothy Hamill?" A drunken Hyde fell at his feet near the basement entrance.
"What happened to you, man?"
"That f***ing bitch dumped me."
Eric repressed the urge to beat the crap out of his best friend for saying such cruel words about Jackie but managed with the goodness he had in his heart to help Hyde up.
"Where's Kelso?"
"I have no idea." Eric helped his friend back into the basement where Fez took the other side and they put him on his bed.
"Jackie's in New York with one of her aunt's."
"Good. I hope she rots there."
"You don't mean that about the sweet Jackie." Fez said
"The hell I don't."
"She said to tell you that she's very sorry."
That's when Eric caught his reflection in the mirror and realized that sentence was not for Hyde but for himself.
"I hope she gets run over by a train."
"Okay, buddy," Eric raised his voice, "That's quite enough."
Hyde would have had a comeback remark if it weren't for the fact that he passed out.
"Oh, Fez, my Dad wants you to go home."
"See you tomorrow, Eric."
Eric went back to sit on his spot on the sofa and needed to see Kelso before figuring out what he was going to do.
Upstate New York
Jackie looked at herself in the mirror and hated how she looked. She didn't change out of yesterday's clothes, her make up was smeared, and her hair unkempt. This wasn't show All American Miss Popular Girl Jackie Burkhart was supposed to look. Jackie was in a hurry when she packed her things and didn't bring her department store skin care products with her so she was appalled that she had to use plain old soap on her young face. This really was for the best, she decided as she turned on the sink. Hyde and Eric's friendship would have blown up if she stayed in Point Place and maybe Eric would cancel the engagement. It would be quite empowering if he did it first instead of waiting for Donna to lower the axe. Jackie lathered the soap all over her face and rinsed with the tepid water before toweling her face dry. The happiness was gone and she felt herself look average. She hoped her mother would call Point Place High School to explain her absence and that she was going to finish her high school at Lincoln High. It really bothered her that her and Eric were building on something they have been teasing each other for years with their veiled insults that over time unbeknownst in their consciousnesses that a friendship was forming. It really bothered her that they were building on something that could not be acted upon. Besides maybe it was just an infatuation with Eric. She went from Michael to Steven no problem. What if Eric was part of the cycle she put herself in? He wasn't a cheater like Michael and he wasn't off putting like Steven. But still they probably would have broken up and all that would be left would be to f*** Fez and then she'd have screwed all male members of the basement gang. That would've made her just as much as a whore as Laurie. Jackie opened up her purse that was on the clothes hamper and took out her light pink blusher it was the first time in what seemed like a long time that she had no interest to put her make up on.
"Jackie!" Her aunt called up "Dinner's ready!"
"Coming." She yelled back.
'Yes. It's for the best.'
If there was one thing you could say about Michael Kelso is that he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed. Eric found him in the basement at nine o'clock in the morning taking an orange popsicle out of the deep freeze. He looked like the same doofus who although had a pregnant girlfriend would still cheat on Brooke if the opportunity presented itself. He flirted with all the 'hot chicks' at the restaurant. This wasn't going to take long not only because Eric didn't want to waste his time talking to Kelso but Donna was going to find him and make sure he didn't miss agreeing with her on the invitations that she wanted to pick out. It was laughable to think he had a say in the planning of his own wedding.
"Hey, Kelso."
"These generic popsicles suck! When does your dad go back to work?"
"Right. Did Hyde accuse you of having an affair with Jackie?"
Kelso wasn't black and blue and he figured Hyde would beat up any guy he thought put the moves on Jackie and that included ex-boyfriend Michael Kelso. Especially ex-boyfriend Michael Kelso. That would have been the first person Hyde would have suspected.
"No. And I'm insulted man, because hey look at my body! If you were a woman you'd have sex with me, Eric."
"Shouldn't you be thinking about Brooke?"
Eric walked away but didn't get very far when Donna was waiting for him by the Vista Cruiser.
"The store doesn't open until 10." Eric reminded.
She put her arms around him and pulled him close, "I know I've been bitchy lately...."
'Really? I didn't notice.'
"Really."
"And I'm sorry, Eric. I'm just stressed out what with school and planning our wedding."
They shared a kiss and that's when Eric realized it was different. That kiss was devoid of passion. Okay he and Donna have been friends for eons and he should have realized that when they got together they were just kids. It might have been because Red chipped away at his self esteem while Kitty smothered him to make up for it that he never saw who was right under his nose the whole time. Jackie. She wasn't the same annoying girl that first came into his life because she and Kelso were an item. She was different now. She was grown up, beautiful, and confident. Now she was somewhere in New York because she didn't want to cause any trouble. She didn't want him and Hyde to end their friendship and she didn't want to cause any grief to him and Donna.
"What's on your mind, Eric?"
"Donna, I have something to tell you."
"Sure. What is it?"
"I'm very sorry, but I cannot marry you."
*When Kitty came home from work.
Jackie's Gone
What a strange day at work Eric thought as he took off his red velvet jacket and bow tie and placed them on top of the dryer in the basement. Hyde and Kelso did not come in today. That left Roy an even more nervous wreck trying to call one of the first shift people to do the cooking and Eric having to do Kelso's job on top of his own. It was actually good to be at work and not think about other things. Other people. Other people known as Jackie. The only person that was here was sitting in the dark before Eric had turned the light on was Fez.
"Fez, why were you sitting in the dark, man?" Eric turned on the old TV before sitting on the sofa.
"Because my soul is dark."
The last thing Eric wanted to do at midnight was try to decipher one of Fez' horny riddles.
"Why's that?"
"Jackie's gone."
Eric stood up, "Gone? What do you mean, Jackie's gone?"
"She told me to tell Hyde that she's very sorry and when I came back here. I heard Miss Kitty talking* on the phone with Pam that Jackie is staying in New York with one of her aunt's. And that makes Fez sad."
'F***'
"Where are Hyde and Kelso?"
"I don't know, I haven't seen them all day."
Eric didn't mean to be a bad friend to Fez by ignoring him and running up the stairs but he had to talk to his mother.
"Mom," Eric barged in his parent's room and turned on the light.
"This better be important or my foot is going to go up your ass."
"Eric," Kitty rubbed her eyes, "What's wrong, sweetie? Are you sick?"
"No. What's this about Jackie going to New York?"
"You woke me up out of a sound sleep for THAT?!" Red barked
Eric was this close to telling his father to shut up, but he didn't feel like dealing with the consequences of telling Red off at the moment.
"She and Steven broke up----can't we talk about this in the morning?"
"Sure." There was no more information to be found here.
"And tell the foreign kid to go home!" Red yelled before going back to sleep.
"Yeah, yeah."
Eric had to go to the one place he really didn't want to go to. But if anyone could shed some light on what happened today it would be Donna.
"Eric," Donna came downstairs in her white tank top and plaid sweat pants, "Are you----what's wrong?"
"What's this about Jackie going to New York?"
"Why do you care?" She raised an eyebrow
"Are you going to let me in?"
"Sure."
"What's going on?" Called Bob from his room.
"Nothing, Dad. It's only Eric."
'It's only Eric.' How could he marry a woman who thought of him like that?
"I care because Jackie is OUR friend."
"She just told her Mom she needed to get away since breaking up with Hyde."
"And that's another thing. Hyde and Kelso were not at work today. Did they get into it?"
"Why are you making this your problem?"
"They're my friends, too, geez, Donna."
"I haven't seen Hyde nor Kelso all day. And you should be in bed. We have to pick out our wedding invitations in twelve hours."
"Don't you care if Jackie is all right?"
"I care, Eric," She sighed heavily, "I'm sure she's fine. Now go home and get some sleep." She lightly pecked him on the cheek and pushed him out the front door.
"Is that you Forman or is it Dorothy Hamill?" A drunken Hyde fell at his feet near the basement entrance.
"What happened to you, man?"
"That f***ing bitch dumped me."
Eric repressed the urge to beat the crap out of his best friend for saying such cruel words about Jackie but managed with the goodness he had in his heart to help Hyde up.
"Where's Kelso?"
"I have no idea." Eric helped his friend back into the basement where Fez took the other side and they put him on his bed.
"Jackie's in New York with one of her aunt's."
"Good. I hope she rots there."
"You don't mean that about the sweet Jackie." Fez said
"The hell I don't."
"She said to tell you that she's very sorry."
That's when Eric caught his reflection in the mirror and realized that sentence was not for Hyde but for himself.
"I hope she gets run over by a train."
"Okay, buddy," Eric raised his voice, "That's quite enough."
Hyde would have had a comeback remark if it weren't for the fact that he passed out.
"Oh, Fez, my Dad wants you to go home."
"See you tomorrow, Eric."
Eric went back to sit on his spot on the sofa and needed to see Kelso before figuring out what he was going to do.
Upstate New York
Jackie looked at herself in the mirror and hated how she looked. She didn't change out of yesterday's clothes, her make up was smeared, and her hair unkempt. This wasn't show All American Miss Popular Girl Jackie Burkhart was supposed to look. Jackie was in a hurry when she packed her things and didn't bring her department store skin care products with her so she was appalled that she had to use plain old soap on her young face. This really was for the best, she decided as she turned on the sink. Hyde and Eric's friendship would have blown up if she stayed in Point Place and maybe Eric would cancel the engagement. It would be quite empowering if he did it first instead of waiting for Donna to lower the axe. Jackie lathered the soap all over her face and rinsed with the tepid water before toweling her face dry. The happiness was gone and she felt herself look average. She hoped her mother would call Point Place High School to explain her absence and that she was going to finish her high school at Lincoln High. It really bothered her that her and Eric were building on something they have been teasing each other for years with their veiled insults that over time unbeknownst in their consciousnesses that a friendship was forming. It really bothered her that they were building on something that could not be acted upon. Besides maybe it was just an infatuation with Eric. She went from Michael to Steven no problem. What if Eric was part of the cycle she put herself in? He wasn't a cheater like Michael and he wasn't off putting like Steven. But still they probably would have broken up and all that would be left would be to f*** Fez and then she'd have screwed all male members of the basement gang. That would've made her just as much as a whore as Laurie. Jackie opened up her purse that was on the clothes hamper and took out her light pink blusher it was the first time in what seemed like a long time that she had no interest to put her make up on.
"Jackie!" Her aunt called up "Dinner's ready!"
"Coming." She yelled back.
'Yes. It's for the best.'
If there was one thing you could say about Michael Kelso is that he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed. Eric found him in the basement at nine o'clock in the morning taking an orange popsicle out of the deep freeze. He looked like the same doofus who although had a pregnant girlfriend would still cheat on Brooke if the opportunity presented itself. He flirted with all the 'hot chicks' at the restaurant. This wasn't going to take long not only because Eric didn't want to waste his time talking to Kelso but Donna was going to find him and make sure he didn't miss agreeing with her on the invitations that she wanted to pick out. It was laughable to think he had a say in the planning of his own wedding.
"Hey, Kelso."
"These generic popsicles suck! When does your dad go back to work?"
"Right. Did Hyde accuse you of having an affair with Jackie?"
Kelso wasn't black and blue and he figured Hyde would beat up any guy he thought put the moves on Jackie and that included ex-boyfriend Michael Kelso. Especially ex-boyfriend Michael Kelso. That would have been the first person Hyde would have suspected.
"No. And I'm insulted man, because hey look at my body! If you were a woman you'd have sex with me, Eric."
"Shouldn't you be thinking about Brooke?"
Eric walked away but didn't get very far when Donna was waiting for him by the Vista Cruiser.
"The store doesn't open until 10." Eric reminded.
She put her arms around him and pulled him close, "I know I've been bitchy lately...."
'Really? I didn't notice.'
"Really."
"And I'm sorry, Eric. I'm just stressed out what with school and planning our wedding."
They shared a kiss and that's when Eric realized it was different. That kiss was devoid of passion. Okay he and Donna have been friends for eons and he should have realized that when they got together they were just kids. It might have been because Red chipped away at his self esteem while Kitty smothered him to make up for it that he never saw who was right under his nose the whole time. Jackie. She wasn't the same annoying girl that first came into his life because she and Kelso were an item. She was different now. She was grown up, beautiful, and confident. Now she was somewhere in New York because she didn't want to cause any trouble. She didn't want him and Hyde to end their friendship and she didn't want to cause any grief to him and Donna.
"What's on your mind, Eric?"
"Donna, I have something to tell you."
"Sure. What is it?"
"I'm very sorry, but I cannot marry you."
*When Kitty came home from work.