Jackie felt good. Way better than she thought she would. In her book, that talk with Eric was a huge success. She had expected it to be rocky at first -as it was- but if she knew one thing about Eric, it was how nice a guy he could be. Looking back and reminiscing about how rocky their relationship had been, she had no problem admitting to being around 90% guilty. At least we're getting some kind of fresh start, she thought.

Coming back into the real world, she noticed she was only a couple of blocks away from her house. There were no cars on the road. She had the streets to herself. The night had taken over the sky, with the moon looking as beautiful as ever. "This is perfect. What a way to end such a great day!" she told herself, unable to contain the smile that made its way to her lips.

She decided to slow down and admire the scenery. Being rich had one upside she hadn't considered: the neighborhood where she lived was really nice. It had beautiful houses, it was full of trees, luxury cars… It was a dream come true for her. Nothing could rain on her parade.

"Even Steven and his snarky comments couldn't piss me off right now." She thought out loud.

Crap, was the first thing to come to her mind. She was so happy with how everything turned out that she had forgotten about the next step in her plan. The next person on her list was Steven Hyde. Something told her it was going to be a little bit more of a hassle than it had been with Eric.

"He's going to act like I'm not even there," she said, looking down to the ground. "What can I do to make sure he really listens to what I have to say?"

Suddenly, she felt a cool gust of wind that sent chills down her spine, as if Mother Nature wanted to distract her from those negative thoughts.

She raised her head instantly, as if by instinct. Mother Nature's plan -if she had one- worked really well. She realized she was standing on her porch. She could see the silhouettes of her parents by the living room through the curtains. They're home! Came the happy thought. Feeling warm and fuzzy on the inside, she walked as fast as she could towards the door, got her key out, unlocked it, and stepped into the house, eager to tell her parents about her day. Maybe they'll actually listen to me for a change.

XxXxX

Steven Hyde was having the time of his life. "This is awesome, man."

He was surrounded by all kinds of beautiful women. Redheads, blondes, brunettes, Latinas, African-Americans, Europeans, etc; There were at least 100 cases of his favorite beer. In front of him, he could see the biggest stash in the whole world. The bed he was lying on felt really comfy. He was watching a football game on a huge TV. He was getting all the love he deserved.

He didn't know how he got to where he was, but he sure as hell knew he wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon. Or ever.

He heard the one on his left, Carla, call his name softly. "Steven…"

"What's up, hottie?" he asked with a sultry smile.

He heard his name being called again, this time by Bryce, the blonde on his right. "Steven!"

"Hey, there's plenty of Hyde for everyone here," he said as he turned to Bryce, trying to calm her down, as he felt her voice was rising a little.

"Steven!" came a third voice, way louder than before.

He looked around and noticed every woman in the room was looking straight at him.

"Steven!" they began to yell in unison.

"Steven!" they repeated, their voices now so loud that Hyde's ears were starting to get sore. He noticed they were all crawling to the bed. Their faces were dark. He could only see their eyes. They didn't seem pleased with him.

"Steven!"

He had to wake up. He had to wake the fuck up!

"Steven!"

His eyes finally opened wide and he jumped upright in a flash. He was sweating and panting really hard.

He shook his head to try and get the creepy images out. "What the fuck!" he exclaimed, unable to find better words for his nightmare.

Hyde's sudden reaction startled Kitty. She had to back up a little and take a deep breath in order to calm herself down. However, it wasn't enough to make her forget his words. "That's no way to talk to me, young man! What's gotten into you these days?"

Rubbing his eyes, he finally got a good look at his surroundings. He wasn't in a comfy bed. There wasn't a football game on. He didn't have a huge TV in front of him.

And most importantly, the room wasn't full of beautiful women. "I'm sorry Mrs. Forman," Hyde apologized sincerely while regaining composure. "It's just that I was having the best dream of my life and it took a pretty dark twist towards the end."

Kitty relaxed and put a hand on Hyde's hair and started circling her fingers, trying to give him a bit of comfort. "Oh, say no more, dear." She said, giving him a warm smile. "Just try to be less… Vulgar, okay?"

The effect of Kitty's fingers on his hair was immediate. His panting stopped completely and happy thoughts of beer and football started to fill his mind. "Yeah, no problem. Thanks, Mrs. Forman. I feel better now."

Kitty, pleased with how she handled the situation, turned around and headed for the door, before coming to a full stop. "Oh! I almost forgot. Jackie's here to see you. That's why I came down here. I think it's your turn to be yelled at."

Hyde let out a big groan. "Can't you just tell her I'm not here?" he asked, rolling his eyes. "Tell her I left town. Hell, you can tell her I'm dead for all I care." He lied down on the bed once again, covering his eyes with one arm. "I don't want to be thrown around the room by a midget."

Before Kitty could berate him, a third voice came from outside the room. "Gee, thanks, Steven. I knew you wouldn't be so eager to talk to me, but I didn't know you'd rather play dead than hear me out while I try to apologize to you."

it was Jackie's voice, but Hyde noticed there was something different about it. It didn't have its usual bossy tone. On the contrary, it was low, close to a whisper. As if she was trying not to be heard.

Above it all, to Hyde, her voice sounded full of hurt.

He could tell Kitty noticed it too because she was giving him one of her death looks. "Go talk to the poor girl!" she hissed with a low voice. When Hyde didn't move an inch, she tried again. "Now!"

That was all he needed. He was up and out of his room in an instant. "Okay, okay, Jackie. I'm here." He said as he took a seat on his chair. Jackie was sitting on the couch, in the same spot where Eric had been the day before when they talked.

Kitty came out of Hyde's room and addressed both of them. "I'm sorry you had to hear that, Jackie." She said while shooting her with a tiny smile. She then added in a dangerous, defiant tone, "I'm sure Steven will be nicer to you from now on."

Hyde was quick to react. "Yes! That wasn't cool."

"Aren't you the sweetest. I'll leave you two alone now." Were Kitty's last words before she climbed up the stairs and closed the door.

There was a long silence. A very long and really awkward silence. Hyde couldn't take it anymore. "So you came here just so we could stare at each other? I thought you wanted to apologize to me for whatever reason."

Jackie looked him in the eye. "You know what? You're right." She said, standing up and walking to stand before Hyde. Her bossy tone was back in action. "I'm gonna talk, and you're going to listen. You're gonna listen to everything I have to say."

Hyde looked bored. "So… Standard procedure, right?"

Jackie shushed him. "No snarky nonsense is allowed today, Steven." She took a deep breath to sort her head out. Once she had everything clear, she continued. "Okay, here goes."

Hyde was more expectant than he'd like to admit.

"Look, I know I've been a huge pain in everyone's asses. I know I've acted like a spoiled, bossy and bitchy little brat. I know you're gonna tell me that's why Michael and Donna left. And you might be right, I'm not going to argue with you on that. I know you're gonna say that I've always treated you like crap and called you a burnout and I always made fun of how you were poor." Taking another deep breath, she took a moment to look at Steven.

He had his poker face on. She couldn't read him, so she decided to keep going before she lost track of her apology. "I'm sorry, Steven. This might be hard for you to believe, but I'm deeply, extremely, truly sorry. Something happened to me a few days ago and made me realize that I've been going about life the wrong way. I'm no longer friends with some rich assholes, so I don't need to be just like them anymore. I don't need them to accept me. Hell, I don't want them to. My friends are the ones that always hang out here in this very basement… If they allow me to call them that."

Hyde was doing his best to keep his poker face from giving in and making way for his very much surprised face. He thought he wouldn't live long enough to see this day come. The day of Jackie Burkhart's reckoning. The day where she'll finally act like a normal, decent human being. He couldn't believe this.

Jackie was growing impatient. She knew it'd be a lot for Hyde, but she wanted an answer. She needed an answer. "So?" She snapped her fingers in front of Hyde's face to get his attention. "I pour it all out on you and that's what I get? Total silence?"

He was brought out of his trance thanks to the sound of Jackie's fingers snapping. He tried to keep a straight face and an even tone of voice while talking to her. "I couldn't agree with you more." He smirked. "You're one obnoxious, bossy and bitchy little brat. And you always had some sassy comments about my finances. That's Jackie Burkhart in a nutshell for you."

Hearing this, Jackie's face fell. She really had high hopes that Steven would forgive her. She thought that if Eric had done it, then he'd help Steven see how hard she was trying and he'd follow suit. So naive of me, she thought, disappointed.

Hyde noticed the change in Jackie's mood. It was like she had received the worst news of the year. He could see it in her eyes, which had lost their sparkle. She's serious about this. He thought. I'm gonna regret this later…

"But…" He began. Jackie's face jolted up instantly. "I can tell this is real. I mean, I've never seen you talk shit about yourself. You must be dying on the inside." Seeing Jackie's grin, he felt himself grin as well. "We're good, Jackie. Don't expect us to go shopping together or tell each other everything. I don't do that. Hell, don't expect me to even like you right away, you still have a long way to go, but you're on the right path."

Hyde figured she deserved another chance. I know I didn't and yet Eric's parents gave me one. That was a pretty solid reason on its own right, and to top it off, she seemed like she really wanted to grow up and change. Before realizing what she was doing, she started jumping up and down in celebration. "Thank you, Steven!" She practically screamed with joy. "If you weren't so stinky, I'd give you a hug!"

Hyde just threw a funny look in her direction. "Sorry, I'm still adjusting to this nicer person stuff." She apologized.

"No harm done, midget. Anyone would've told me that. I haven't had a shower today. I'm surprised Mrs. Forman didn't bring it up. I mean, she was only a few inches away from my face when I woke up."

Jackie sat back down on the couch. "That goes to show you how nice she is. I bet even the neighbors can smell you."

Hyde snorted. "You know, I'm starting to regret this whole 'second chance' thing already." He said jokingly. Jackie just stuck her tongue out at him. Before she had the opportunity to respond, the door opened swiftly and inside came a very excited Fez.

"Hello to my favorite American pothead!" He said with a smile when he saw Hyde. When he set eyes on the couch, he noticed Jackie sitting on it and his smile grew bigger instantly. "Ms. Burkhart! Aren't you a sight for sore eyes! My Goddess, I've missed you so much!" He said dramatically while he pulled her in for a big bear hug.

She smiled at his antics. "I've missed you too, Fez. More than you know." At first, Fez was nothing more to her than the weird foreign kid, but now, alongside Donna, he was the only one she could call a friend and not feel weird about it. Their relationship had developed a lot since they met. And precisely because she saw him as a brother, she felt obligated to apologize to him for how she acted in the beginning.

"You know Fez, I was actually hoping you'd come here. Can we talk?"

Noticing the serious tone. He pulled back and stared at her. "What's up, Jackie? Did something happen? Did you -" He stopped and made a face of disgust. "What's that smell? It's horrendous. Reminds me of home!"

Hyde couldn't hold back his smirk. "That'd be me. I can't believe I smell like a third-world country. I must really stink. I better go and shower or else Red's gonna put his foot up in my ass." With that, he got up and left the basement, leaving Fez and Jackie to talk.

"So, what did you want to talk about, Jackie?" Fez asked, a little bit more curious than Jackie would've liked.

She sat back and tried to relax. They did have a friendship so this shouldn't be that hard. "I just want to apologize for how I treated you when we first met." Fez seemed confused, so she figured it would be better to elaborate. "I was a jerk to you. I treated you like you were my butler. I thought you were beneath me because of your foreign origin." She gave him a sad smile. "You turned out to be a great friend, Fez. I think you're really brave. You left your home to have a better life. I could never do that."

Fez gave her the widest grin she had ever seen. "Jackie, my Goddess, you don't have to say anything. I'm just glad I can call you my friend!"

A warm feeling filled Jackie's stomach and she gave Fez a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, Fez. I promise to be an even better friend from now on."

Ecstatic, Fez decided this was as good a time as any. "Does this mean we're gonna do it?"

Jackie gave Fez her best 'seductive vixen' look. She lowered her voice and said, "Yes, Fez. We're gonna do it right here, right now. I need you right now." The next thing she heard was a thud.

Fez had passed out.

She burst out laughing. "I can't believe that actually worked."

In the middle of her laughter, Eric stepped into the room. "Hey, midget." He greeted her. "What's so funny? And why is Fez passed out on the floor? Did you pull the sex trick on him?"

"Oh, hey Eric." She said, giving him her trademark smile. "Yes, I did." When she saw him shake his head, she tried to defend herself. "I didn't know it was going to work! I thought you guys were kidding!"

Eric took a seat on Hyde's chair and chuckled. "When it comes to Fez and sex, we never kid."

Jackie couldn't miss this opportunity. "Unless you say he actually did it with a girl!" She completed Eric's sentence.

They both burst out laughing. "Passed-out burn!" Eric exclaimed. "Wow, that was a good one, Burkhart. I'm actually a little bit jealous I didn't come up with it first."

Jackie didn't know why, but that comment made her feel a little bit proud of herself in some way. "Thanks, Forman. I think that's one of the few good things I learned from Michael." When his name left her lips, she felt a punch to the gut and fell quiet. This didn't go unnoticed by Eric.

"Still hurts, doesn't it?" Jackie just nodded. "I get you." He said, trying to be as supportive as possible. "The good thing is, it'll hurt a little bit less every day until it goes away for good."

Jackie nodded once more. "Yeah, you're right. It still hurts but it's nothing compared to what I felt when I first found out he left."

Eric was pleased with her answer. Seems like I'm getting better at this. He thought, a little too proud of himself. He decided to change the subject. "So, how's this 'nice Jackie' thing working out for you?"

Jackie thanked him in her head for dropping the Michael subject. "It's actually great. Better than I ever hoped. I already talked to Steven and, while he said I still had a long way to go, he forgave me."

Eric wasn't surprised. "That's the thing about Hyde, he's a big softie on the inside. But don't tell him I said that because he'll make me regret it. He might be a softie on the inside, but he's a really good ass-kicker on the outside."

"Your secret is safe with me. Just like yesterday's conversation."

He chuckled to himself. Yeah, right. "Yeah, about that…" He wasn't sure how to say this, so he just blurted it out. "Everybody in the neighborhood heard us yelling so it's not a secret." He finished giving her a nervous smile.

Jackie didn't seem bothered by this revelation. "Well, I guess it's better that way. I suck at keeping secrets anyway."

"So I am gonna get my ass kicked!" They both laughed at Eric's joke.

Jackie was determined to keep the conversation going. This was a good way to practice and get better at being nice. "So, where were you, Forman? Did you see anything interesting?"

Eric told her how he went to the store to get some Star Wars dolls, or as he liked to call them, 'action figures'. Jackie snorted, rolled her eyes, and made just a tiny bit of fun of Eric's unhealthy obsession with that movie. He responded in kind. Without realizing it, they spent hours and hours talking and getting to know each other.

This is nice. They both thought at one point.

XxXxX

Red Forman hadn't been this happy in a long time. He couldn't remember the last time the house was so quiet. This was just what he needed after he came home from work. He was used to having all these dumbasses over, invading his privacy and interrupting his daily routine. With a beer in one hand and the remote control in the other, he sat down on his sofa and turned on the TV. The pre-show to the Monday Night Football match was about to start. He knew the cause of his current happiness. And he was smart enough to be grateful.

"Thank you, California." He said while cracking open his beer.

XxXxX

"So, Steven… Eric tells me that every single household in the neighborhood heard our little… Conversation yesterday."

Hyde took a sip of his beer and laughed. "You call that a conversation? From where I was standing, it was a catfight. You definitely won, by the way. You're naturally loud as it is."

"Wait. If you heard us, then that means Mr. and Mrs. Forman…" Jackie trailed off, afraid to complete her sentence. Hyde just nodded, understanding what she wanted to get at. She blushed. "Awesome. They're the only ones who like me here and I made a fool of myself in their basement."

"I don't know, Burkhart. I'm starting to think you have potential." Eric replied with a smirk.

Hyde chimed in. "I wouldn't go that far. Nonetheless, I have to say, spending time with you hasn't been as crappy as I initially thought."

Jackie smiled at them. "You guys might not know this about women, but..." She began. "That's what every one of us dreams of hearing." She couldn't stop the giggle that escaped her lips.

Eric snorted. "Hey, we're complete and total gentlemen." Jackie just rolled her eyes in response. "Yeah, I'm not kidding anyone, am I?"

Jackie shook her head and Hyde laughed at something he saw on TV. "At least you haven't asked me if we're going to do it."

Hyde gave her a look. "C'mon, Jackie. Who are you mistaking us for? Fez?" Hyde realized he hadn't seen his foreign friend anywhere that day. "Speaking of Fez, where is he, man? I haven't seen him today."

Eric and Jackie burst into laughter. "Yeah, he came by earlier, but he left a while ago saying there was… Something that he needed to take care of." Jackie replied.

Eric decided to join in on the fun. "Yeah, he had this… Something woke up. I mean, came up." Jackie had to cover her face so Steven couldn't see how hard she was trying not to laugh at that.

Hyde was confused but figured it'd be in his best interest not to push the matter further. "You guys are weird. And I'm saying this while we're talking about Fez, who's gotta be the weirdest person any of us has ever met."

The friendly chatter was cut short by Kitty, who shouted from the kitchen that dinner was ready. Jackie didn't realize it was dinner time, so she started gathering her belongings. "I better go. Time sees to fly while we hang out here lately." She gave them a small, brief smile. "See you tomorrow."

"No, Jackie," Eric blurted out. "Mom invited you to have dinner with us. She told me to deliver the message when I was coming down here. I completely forgot. I blame you for your little sex trick."

Hyde's eyes widened. "Sex trick?"

Jackie chose to ignore him. "Well, I blame Fez. I didn't know it was going to be that effective."

Hyde wasn't letting this go any time soon. "Fez? 'Fez' and 'sex trick'? You guys are really starting to freak me out."

Eric followed Jackie's trail and ignored Hyde as well. "So, will you have dinner with us?" Jackie wasn't so sure. She had had dinner at the Forman residence more than once in the past, but she was never formally invited. When he noticed her hesitation, Eric gave her his famous puppy-dog eyes. "Please? If you don't come up with us then I won't be allowed to eat bacon."

Eric's half-joking half-serious statement made her laugh a little and she felt herself relax. "Sure, what the hell? It's not like I've never had dinner here before."

Eric beamed at her in response and the three of them headed upstairs.

XxXxX

Dinner had gone smoothly for Jackie. Her fears of not fitting in with the little family soon faded away when Red made a joke about her little talk with Eric and how he was betting on her to kick his ass. When she apologized for putting on quite a show in their basement, Kitty laughed and told her not to worry about it. Red asked her about her parents, she asked him about work. Kitty asked her how she liked the food. She said it was delicious. They all made fun of Mr. Nude. Everyone berated Steven for burping out loud.

It was quite the experience.

After washing the dishes as a way to show her appreciation for the meal, she said her goodbyes to everyone in the kitchen and opened the sliding door. Kitty wasn't going to let her go out so late on her own, so she spoke up.

"Eric, be a gentleman and walk Jackie home, will you?"

Jackie knew Eric didn't want to go with her, he had already told her how tired he was and how he wanted to put his face in a pillow and drift off to sleep. "No need, Mrs. Forman. I'm a big girl and can take care of myself. Really."

Red had something to say about that. "Nonsense! Back in my day, a lady always had to be escorted by a man to make sure she got home safe. I think this dumbass can learn a thing or two about chivalry."

Reading the room, and more importantly, the expression on his dad's face, he decided it would be best if he didn't object and did as he was told. "Hey, now I'd feel guilty and responsible if something were to happen to you. You're not getting out of this one, devil."

Jackie chuckled. "As if you'd actually protect me from a burglar or kidnapper. You'd probably just run away and leave me there."

Eric feigned to be hurt by her words. "Okay, now you're definitely not getting out of this one. Let's go."

Jackie stepped outside and waved goodbye to Kitty and Red before she turned around and began walking home with Eric.

XxXxX

"You know... I forgot to thank your mom for dinner before I left. Could you please tell her just how grateful I am?" Jackie asked sincerely. Kitty and Red had, in their own way, always acted as some kind of foster parents towards Jackie, and she had nothing but respect and appreciation for them.

Eric looked at her with amusement in his eyes. "You sound like it's the nicest thing anyone has done for you. It's just dinner. No biggie."

Jackie averted her gaze. "It's just that I'm used to dining by myself. It felt good to be part of a family meal, if only for tonight."

Eric's heart broke a little at her words. Moments like these were the ones that brought him back to the ground and helped him put everything into perspective. There was a lot he didn't know about Jackie Burkhart, even though they had known each other for years. She hardly gets to see her parents and here I am, sad because of one lousy breakup.

"I'm sorry, Jackie. I keep forgetting there's plenty of things I still don't know about you." Eric told her with full honesty. "I'll tell her. I'm sure she'll be thrilled."

Jackie gave him a sad smile. "Thanks, Eric." Looking up, she noticed they were right in front of her house. She took her keys out and turned to face him. "Looks like we're here. Thanks for protecting me against the Sith, Louis." She joked, trying to lighten the mood a little bit.

"It's Luke, Jackie. Luke Skywalker." he sighed in defeat.

She raised an eyebrow. "So that's all you heard, huh? What about the part where I thanked you for protecting me?"

"Yeah, yeah. You know how I get when someone brings up Star Wars." He scratched his head in embarrassment. "You don't have to thank me. I'm just nice like that."

Jackie nodded. "Yeah, you are." She turned towards her house. "See you around."

Eric grabbed her by the shoulder before she could walk away. He surprised himself. He didn't even think before doing it. It was pure instinct.

Jackie glanced at him but said nothing. "Hey, I'm really sorry for what I said. I know I already apologized but I can see you're still somewhat upset." He gave her shoulder a tiny squeeze. "I just want you to know that you don't need to be 'formally invited' to be able to have dinner with us at my place. Mom always loves to have people fawn over her cooking and dad likes you better than me."

Despite everything she was feeling at that moment, she let out an honest laugh. "That's what you get when you can't help being a smart-mouthed dumbass." She replied, imitating Red's voice.

"Hey!" Eric complained, albeit not so seriously. He had a wide grin on his face. "I think it's worked out well for me. I've only been dumped once and I'm my dad's favorite son."

Jackie couldn't stop laughing at his point. "You've only had one girlfriend and you're Red's only son!"

"It doesn't make what I said any less true. I'm a champion." He patted his chest, pretending to be proud of himself.

Jackie shook her head, trying to make the laughter stop. "This is just what I needed. I'll be seeing you." Jackie headed for the door and unlocked it. She threw one last glance in Eric's direction before stepping inside. "Thanks, geek boy!" She said, waving at him.

Eric just flinched at his new nickname. "So we're back to name-calling, huh?" He could see her smile from where he was standing. That was the last thing he saw of Jackie Burkhart before she went inside and closed the door behind her.

Eric stood there for a minute, just staring at the door. Who would've thought I'd walk the midget home someday? He pondered, amused. "Certainly not me."

However, what surprised him the most was that he wasn't completely opposed to the idea of doing it again in the near future.

XxXxX

Author's Note: Now that we've done away with all the apologizing and have laid the groundwork for the story, this is were things start to get interesting...