Author Note:...sorry it's a shorty but it's a "moving along" chapter

Chapter 33 – Did You Dream?

T7S

Jackie touched her mouth with shaky fingers, "Wow."

"Me too." Eric replied his voice low enough to make her blood pump a little harder than she expected.

Pushing her hair over her shoulder, Jackie eased away from the car. This was going to be awkward. She actually liked Eric's kiss. What to do! "Ummm….I'll….we'll talk later…okay?

Eric closed his eyes as a waft of honeysuckle passed by. "Yeah…okay…let's do that."

T7S

It was all Jackie could do to not run to Laurie's bedroom. She kissed Eric. Eric-freaking-Forman!, What was she thinking? The door closed quietly behind her as she slapped at the light switch and tore off her peach killer outfit. Jackie almost felt like scrubbing her lips of that kiss but she would only be fooling herself. She did like it. It was gentle and sweet and unassuming and everything she had wanted in a good night kiss.

Only it was with Eric.

Sighing loudly, she sat on the twin bed and looked at her reflection in the dresser mirror. She was wearing her matching bra and panties and what would Eric think if she saw her dressed like this? Stop thinking like that! She scolded herself. He probably hated kissing her. Donna was most likely the best kisser with those big lips of hers. Jackie be fair! Just because she's of lumberjack size doesn't mean everything is proportional, right? Why was she picking on all of her friends? Jackie stop it!

Biting the edge of her thumbnail she stood up and walked to the mirror. Her cheeks were slightly flushed and her heart was still fluttering just a bit. Nerves. What would Jackie Burkhart advise herself on a call to the Hotline?

"Hello? Can I help you?"

"Yes! I've kissed my best male friend and I liked it."

"Sounds like you are feeling a little guilty."

"Guilty? Jackie Burkhart doesn't do guilty."

"Well, if you liked it then why are you calling the Hotline?"

Jackie dropped her head and sighed. It was true. During the entire meal, she was quasi-jealous of Mona. She wanted flowers and she got a fork and knife. She wanted attention and she got cherry picker stories. She wanted a nice meal and got a hungry boar that ate from her plate. She wanted Eric to share his stories with her so she could laugh and smile like Mona did.

Jackie looked at her reflection in the mirror and asked herself candidly, "Is it that I want a boyfriend like Eric…or is it that I want Eric for my boyfriend?"

xXx

"No way!"

"Way! Eric replied from the basement telephone. "Kelso, it was totally unexpected and awesome and I don't know what to do!"

"Dude, jump on her bones man, you have an open invitation!"

Eric wrapped the phone cord around his finger and listened to Kelso yelling at the television on the other end. With a sigh, he replied, "Kelso, listen….I don't want to jump her bones, I mean I do, but not like you mean it. Jackie's different now and she's more mature than when you dated her."

"Is she still hot?"

"Smoking." Eric admitted.

"And it was a date…you said?"

"Well, we were with other people."

Kelso replied, "Well duh! What did you think about the other chick?"

"She was okay." Eric said truthfully. Mona was nice but not what he was looking for. She never seemed excited about anything and except for spying on his personnel file, her life was pretty boring and then there was the Star Wars thing….

Kelso sounded like he was chewing something as he replied, "Well, who did she go home with?"

That was a good question. Cedric was probably still crying over his windshield but Eric had no worries that Mona made it home – alone or with a sobbing Ceddie. "I'm going with she just went home."

Kelso started breathing hard like he always does when he has something exciting to tell. "Eric!"

"Kelso!" Eric echoed back trying to sound just as excited.

"Dude! Remember that dream I had in school where I was pushing Betsy on the tire swing and she was saying "Daddy push me higher!" Do you remember that?"

Eric frowned. He did. And why would he be remembering a Kelso dream anyways? "I remember…what about it?"

"Well, a while ago - a couple of lots of weeks ago...I was telling Brooke about how Betsy has a great life planned out for her and then me and we started messing around and one thing led to another….I'm gonna be a dad again!"

Eric was flabbergasted. A second baby Kelso was in the future? How could he be remembering this? A little thought tickled his brain:

Kelso looked over at Eric, 'See? That's my baby!"

Hyde coughed uncomfortably, "Uh…no…that's your baby in a couple of years."

Eric recalled that whole event like it was just yesterday, but they had been out of school for years – he'd been to Africa…how could he possibly remember Betsy on a tire swing?

"Kelso. Congratulations man…you're going to be a great father…again… but I have to ask you a question."

"It's gonna be a boy. I know it." Michael Kelso answered confidently.

"No – that's not it. Kelso how is it that I remember your dream?" Eric asked.

"I don't know man," Kelso laughed, "But Leo was in it too and I never dream about Leo."

T7S

"So this is the bird."

Marco preened and then thrust his feathery head through the bars of the cage to assess the newcomer to his surroundings. He shrieked noisily and reached for his cuttlebone to sharpen his beak. Meanwhile, Red popped open a beer and settled in his comfy pea green chair, gesturing for his curly haired visitor to take a seat on the sofa. "Yep. Usually, he's talking up a storm and we can't get him to shut up."

A dark beady eye looked out and in a low voice Marco hissed, "Sssssstoner."

Hyde laughed. "Did he say what I think he said?"

Red raised a brow, "If he did, I hope you aren't still doing that."

Steven Hyde held up his palms, "Who me? I'm a business man. I don't even break the law and I pay all my taxes." His brain twisted a little on the words that came out of his mouth. Taxes? What the Hell?

Red smirked, "Well son, if you are a bonafide taxpayer, it's time to give you the respect you deserve. It's nice to see both you and Eric gainfully employed and becoming adults."

"Dumbass." Marco commented.

Hyde laughed. "I think I was waiting for that. So, where's Eric? He said I had to be here because Kelso was coming down."

Red raised a brow. "Kettle head is coming over? That's just the thing to ruin a nice Sunday. Well, thanks for the head's up – I think I'll take Kitty to the theatre…it will be less dangerous there."

Hyde laughed "I hear ya Red. Let me head down to the basement because that's probably where the party…I mean trouble is going to be."

Red frowned. The last thing he needed was trouble – especially with all the kids in the basement. They were just grown up versions of their teen selves…well, maybe Eric has matured a fraction of a bit…okay and Jackie is less whiny since moving in, but a Kelso is a Kelso is a Kelso. He waited until Hyde pushed through the kitchen doors and tipped his beer can towards the cage. "Oh Marco…if only you were human."

"BAWK!" The parrot ruffled his feathers and settled on a perch with one claw holding a sunflower seed while he pecked at it. He liked the old man with no hair. He liked the beer better! When the old man stood up and poured a couple drops of beer in his water box, the parrot screeched excitedly. "Oh Marco!"

Red laughed, "Drink up boy and don't tell Kitty!"

"Here kitty kitty kitty!"

T7S

The stairs still creaked as Hyde worked his way down the corner twist and he grinned when he saw Kelso wearing the Stupid Helmut. "Hey, I see it still fits."

Kelso turned around and smiled big and reached out to give Hyde a big monkey hug which he deftly avoided. Instead, he sat down in his familiar chair and put his booted feet on the wooden spool. "Good to see ya man."

Kelso smiled, "I know, everyone says that about me. Did Eric tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

Eric came in from the outside staircase just in time to hear the last bit of conversation and chimed in, "Yeah, Kelso's been busy in the baby-making department."

Hyde grinned and reached out and frogged his friend in the shoulder, "Cool…I mean with Brooke…right?"

Kelso blinked, "What?"

Eric spoke slowly so Kelso would understand. "Brooke. Is. The. Mother. Correct?"

Kelso smiled and took off the helmet. "Oh yeah, we've been doing it like crazy since….since forever. I'm gonna be a dad again and I really hope it's a boy because we need to even the odds. Right now it's two to one and I need a dude on my team."

Eric turned a chair around and straddled the back. "Kelso, it's not like the girls are ganging up on you – I mean how much damage can Betsy do to you…really?"

Kelso frowned, "Have you ever changed a diaper? Seriously?"

"Girls! Let's not squabble." Hyde chastised with a grin. "Let's get down to the reason we're in the basement once more."

Eric scooted his chair closer to the spool. "Okay, I don't want to sound like a weirdo but something is happening to me and Jackie and well Kelso – to some extent."

Hyde lifted a brow, "Really? What do the three of you have in common that I need to know about?"

Eric took a deep breath, "We've been having these weird dreams and sometimes Leo is in them."

T7S

DISCLAIMER: It is not advisable to give beer to a parrot. This is just fiction and of course Red Forman would not do anything to harm a bird.

Right?

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