Author Note: ...warning...this is Jackie-centric

Chapter 24 – Replay

T7S

Thursday afternoon, Mr. Aucoin walked purposefully into the dispatcher's office with a determined set to his jaw. "Burkhart. My office. Now." He turned on his heel and left, his shoes slapping the tile as he walked down the hall.

Jackie looked at her coworker, Tandy, and shrugged. "Was it something I did?" Tandy shook her head in condolence while the amateur watch commander, Nelson quipped, "He's going through a d-i-v-o-r-c-e. Be nice."

Jackie smiled, but still felt a pit of dread in her stomach. She'd only had the job for a week and a half and thought she was getting good at it. Was this the way other people felt when they got fired? She walked down the hospital green colored walls to Mr. Aucoin's office. Hesitantly she knocked on the door and then walked in.

Mr. Auccin looked up. "Sit."

Jackie perched on the edge of the duct taped covered office chair and folded her hands in her lap. "You have something you want to say to me sir?" She asked boldly.

The ambulance company owner leaned back in his squeaky chair and absentmindedly scratched his cheek. "Yeah. Burkhart….I know you haven't been here for a long time but…well, I have to cut back on some expenses and well…I can't let the ambulance drivers go so…"

Jackie blurted out, "Is it the divorce sir? I mean if it is, maybe I can help!"

Mr. Aucoin was shocked by her impudence. "My divorce? Who told you I was getting a divorce?"

Jackie lowered her voice and whispered, "People talk." Even though she didn't know about this particular gossip, she was going to take it as far as she could. "What happened sir?"

The bushy gray eyebrows furrowed. "Why should I talk to you about my personal problems? You don't even know me!" Embarrassment tinged his voice.

Whispers of a memory made Jackie say, "It's just amazing the guilt we can carry with us and it's equally amazing how just a talk with a stranger can cure it all. I'd like to think that I'm that stranger…sir." Where did that come from? That was a great line!

Aucoin's cheeks were pink with mortification but Jackie knew it was too late to backpedal. "Sir? I think I can help. I know every article in Cosmopolitan magazine and it's like the bible for relationships. And….and if I can't help you then you can fire me."

There. She said it. Her burgeoning dispatcher career was on the line.

Mr. Aucoin tapped his nicotine stained finger against his lips while Jackie squelched a silent "Ew" and waited for him to speak. Finally after what seemed like forever, he leaned forward on the desk and said, "I've been married to Denise for ten years. I've given her everything. A house. Two kids. A new car. But she wants more. I can't afford my family and this business. Something's got to give!"

The confession must have been a relief because the appearance of Mr. Aucoin's almost having a stroke went away. Jackie took a deep breath and asked the most important question. "How did you ask Denise to marry you?"

Aucoin shrugged. "We were living together and the baby came along so we just got a marriage license. I mean I didn't want my daughter to be born a bastard child….everything just worked from then. I mean until now."

Jackie pressed her hand over her eyes. The big dolt missed the most important part of the engagement.! Men could be such idiots. "What kind of ceremony did you have?"

Her boss shrugged. "Dinner at her parents…because I had to go to work on Monday and Denise was still taking a class at the community college."

Jackie exhaled. "There's your problem sir. Put a ring on her finger! A wedding ring… an onion ring, just let her know you want her in your life! Nothing says forever like a diamond." Jackie added, "And jewelers have payment plans, sir."

Aucoin pursed his lips. "You know Burkhart…you are really good with advice. Maybe this part time job isn't really where your career lies."

Jackie gulped. She was fired. She was sooo fired! Aucoin continued. "There's a position in at the city desk. It's fondly referred to as the Suicide Line Hotline, but basically, people call when they have a problem and don't know if they need a cop or a nurse or a priest. Something tells me that you would be a good fit."

Jackie almost couldn't hear the compliment due to the blood rushing from her head, through her ears and down to feet. She wasn't being fired? Sitting up a little straighter, Jackie fluffed her hair. "Is….is this like a promotion?"

Aucoin was scribbling something on his paper pad. "Yeah and the hours and pay are better too." Here's the address for city hall. Tell them you want to take the Civil Service exam and in the meantime, I'll call my contact and recommend you. Burkhart, all you have to do is pass this test."

Yes, it was easier to beg and plead for this dispatcher job and last week she probably would have done just that. But today, it was a step in the right direction.

This could be Jackie Burkhart's new beginning.

T7S

Hyde paced the floor in front of the black and white basement television. Where the hell were Fez and Kelso? He looked at Eric and opened his mouth to say something then exhaled loudly and threw himself into his chair. "They said they would be on time."

Eric looked at his wrist watch and replied, "They're only a half hour late and Kelso is coming from Chicago."

Jackie sighed, "What's the big hurry?"

Hyde glared at her. "We have to recreate last Saturday night so we can find our missing time. Aren't you the least bit curious about what happened to you?"

Jackie pulled an emery board from her and filed done a potential hang nail. "Actually no. I've been having a pretty good week. Why do I want to ruin it?"

Eric was thinking the same thing. "I agree. It was last week and we've all moved forward since then. What are you looking for?"

Hyde's mind seemed a bit blank. Did he really need to do this or was it just that losing a whole weekend nagged at him. "I need to see if someone there remembers us and what we did. I think it will help me figure out when Leo found his kid and brother. He never talks about them and suddenly they're all together? Something don't add up."

Jackie piped up. "If we're taking the Vista Cruiser, I call shotgun!"

Eric heard his two buddies running down the steps and grinned, "Driver picks the music and shotgun shuts her piehole." He was kidding - did she know that?

Kelso shouted, "BURN! God that felt good! Its' the first burn I've heard in a week!"

Jackie pouted, "It wasn't like I was gonna play ABBA or something. Besides, I think I was squished in the back last time and I want to be in the front."

Eric smirked, "I was just giving you a hard time. You can sit up front while as long as you don't touch the radio. I'm playing my new Steve Miller cassette."

Hyde reached over and frogged Kelso's shoulder, "I brought a bag of the good stuff."

Fez smiled widely. "I got my teeth cleaned. The dentist said I could have all the candy I want as long as I brush and floss."

Eric looked at Hyde who looked at Jackie who only shrugged. "Maybe he wants fresh breath too….I think that's commendable. Good for you Fez."

Kelso seemed a bit more energized than usual and jumped off the sofa. "Well, let's go replay last weekend!"

The Vista Cruiser was loaded and pointed in the direction of Mount Hump South.

T7S

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A/N...I know it was short but it's leading to somethng...have patience!