Chapter thirty-three:

HYDE

I put down the projects WB sent to me earlier this week when I heard the door opening. Jackie's leaving the room, and her therapist gives her a small pat on the back and an encouraging smile. They say their goodbyes and Jackie comes to me. I quickly pick up the papers and wrap my arms around her tiny frame.

"Hey, what are those?" She asks, glancing at the papers

I smile softly at her "Just some papers WB gave me to check it out. Figured I could do it while waiting for you"

She nods, but doesn't ask more questions, which is good. These papers are the blueprints to what's about to be the underground Grooves WB talked to me about so long ago. He said the construction started a month and a half ago, and asked me to go check it out with him tomorrow. He's really excited about it, he's been waiting to show me the place for a while now, but he put it off because of this whole situation with Jackie.

I'm excited about it too, it's a fucking dope project, I've never seen anything like it before. Still, I was about to tell WB 'no', because I don't want to leave Jackie alone now, but Donna overheard our phone talk and forced me to say yes, claiming that Jackie won't die if I go away for a couple of hours. I sent her a look, and she promised me she'll stay with Jackie the whole day, so I ended up agreeing.

I want to sort things out with WB, I want to get the store/bar running soon, so Jackie and I can finally move in together and get the start over we so desperately need.

I want to tell Jackie about underground Grooves and my upcoming (and definitive) move to Chicago, I want to tell her more than anything, but now's not the time. She shouldn't focus on anything other than getting better right now. If she focuses on that, then we'll have plenty of time to plan the future later.

"Ready to go?" I ask, and she nods.

I take her hand and we walk to the car, and I glance at her. Something happened, she doesn't look okay.

I open the door for her, and once we're inside the car, I start the engine and decide to ask her what's going on. She knows I like to hear about her therapy sessions, and normally she would be talking right now, but no. She's staring at the window with a very gloomy look on her face.

"What's wrong, doll?" I ask softly

"How did you know…?" She starts and I smile

"I can read you like a book" I answer "What's bothering you?"

She takes a deep breath and I start to rub small circles on her thigh while I drive us back to the apartment.

"Clara wants me to see a psychiatrist," She says sadly, and I feel my heart beating fast inside my chest

"Why?" I ask

"I don't know" She answers me honestly "She says he's an old friend of hers, and that she already sent a copy of my file to him, all I have to do is schedule an appointment"

"Then we'll do that as soon as we arrive, ok?" I say, and she nods

"I'm just…" She starts, and I can see she's afraid of something. "I think they're going to try and admit me into a nuthouse… Clara said they aren't, but..." She says with tears in her eyes

I take her hand in mine and give it a gentle squeeze. I doubt that Jackie's therapist would suggest something like that, I talked to her once, and she's really nice. She also seems to care a lot about Jackie, and she probably knows about Jackie's fear of these institutions by now.

"I don't think that's the case, doll" I answer honestly

"What if it is?" She asks me, her voice trembling in an effort to hold back her tears.

"It's not" I reassure her "Let's just… let's go see this doctor first, see what's that all about, then we'll go from there, okay?"

She wiped a few tears with the back of her hand and nodded before laying her head on my shoulder.

"If they try to lock me up… Will you come to rescue me?" She asks, and I smile at her

"Without a doubt," I say, pressing a kiss to the top of her head "Stop thinking the worst doll. Things are going to be okay"

I feel her relaxing "Promise?"

"I promise," I say "We're giving this doctor a call when we arrive home, that okay?"

"Okay"


I press a kiss to the top of her head and turn off the engine. It's the next day, and Jackie's currently laying her head on my shoulder, glancing nervously at the building across the street.

"Alright, we're here," I say, opening the car door and helping her out. Her eyes were still glued to the building, and I pull her body closer to mine, engulfing her in a tight hug. I feel her body relaxing, and she wrapped her arms around my waist, resting her head on my chest.

"You'll be okay," I whispered in her ear when I notice that she started crying softly, my heart breaking inside my chest. I should call WB, call this whole thing off for now, Jackie needs me.

But then I remember the things Mrs. Forman and Donna told me, and the many, many things I've read in the last few months. I can't be around Jackie forever, I'll be around her as much as I can, but eventually, she'll go back to work, I'll start to work again (hopefully, here in Chicago), and she needs to learn how to be okay without me for a while.

I also need to learn that. Every second I spend away from Jackie nowadays is agonizing, I spend every single moment worrying about her, anxiously waiting until she's in my arms again and I can make sure she's safe. That's not healthy, man, and I know that. But what the hell am I supposed to do? I'll get better when she gets better, hopefully, this doctor will help.

And it's not like Jackie's going to be completely alone. I would never let her alone, especially now, I know she's scared out of her damn mind, so I made sure to pull in some strings.

"I have a meeting with WB in ten minutes" I blurt out as my fingers run through her hair.

She immediately tightened her grip on my waist and I sigh, I hate this.

"Steven, but what if…" She starts, but I cut her off by placing my index finger on her chin and lifting her head so her eyes can meet with mine. God, her eyes are beautiful.

"Nothing will happen, he'll not send you to an institution, I promise" I reassure her, running my fingers through her cheeks, she was about to say something again when I see a certain someone walking in our direction and I smirk.

"Steven, I don't want to be alone in there," She says

"You're not gonna" I reply with a small smile "Hey Donna, how was class?"

Donna smiles and adjusts her backpack "Ugh, it was a mess, I'm on my finals week and my only pencil literally broke in half when I was right in the middle of a test"

"Donna?" Jackie asks, looking confused, I press a gentle kiss to the top of her head.

"Did you really think I would let you here alone?" I say, and Jackie manages to give me a small smile

"I'll be back to pick you two up in an hour," I say, cupping Jackie's face on my hands "Will you be alright?"

She nods "Yeah, thank you"

I smile and press our lips together, killing her softly, but deeply. One of my hands slips from her face to her hair, my fingers playing with her long, dark locks.

"Okay you two, that's enough. I just saw tongues and now I'm grossed out," Donna interrupts us, and I roll my eyes

"Bite me, Pinciotti," I say, then I press another kiss on Jackie's lips "I'll see you in a bit, love you"

"Love you too," She says, and I kiss her one last time before sending a meaningful look at Donna and walking to my car.

I turn around, and I see Donna linking her arm with Jackie's and giving her a soft, encouraging smile before they entered the building, and I let out a breath in relief.

Jackie's in good hands.


"Son, here you are!" WB says when he sees me, looking more excited than I've ever seen him.

I put my car keys in my front pocket and I walk to him, it's been a while since I've seen him.

"Hey, man"

"Hey," He says "How's your girl, son?"

"Getting better, I think" I answer "I just dropped her off with Donna at the psychiatrist's office, I'll have to pick them up in like, 45 minutes"

"Oh, so she's getting treatment? That's good! That's great, actually!" He says "Does she know about our new project?"

"I haven't told her yet, but I will"

"How about we give you something to tell her then?" He says, patting my back as he guided me to the paper-covered glass door.

He unlocks it, and we step inside of what's going to be the store part of Grooves. It looks pretty familiar.

"It looks exactly like the store back in Point Place," I say as I looked around "Except the records are actually on record bins instead of milk crates, so I guess that's an upgrade"

"This is not what I want to show you kiddo," He says, as he walked to a door near the back " This is what I want to show you"

He opens the door, revealing a dusty staircase that leads people down to the basement. I follow him down the stairs, covering my nose to avoid breathing in the dust.

"It's dusty because the construction is not done, we still have a lot to do" He explains and I nod

When we step into the basement, WB opens another door, revealing a very, very big area with construction material all over it.

"Shit," I say, a small smile creeping into my face "This place is huge"

"You bet your ass it is," WB says proudly as he walked to the space "This is where the bar's going to be, and that's where we're building the stage"

"When will it be ready?" I ask

"In about two or three months," WB said with a proud smile "They're almost done with the store, so they'll focus entirely on the basement now. What do you think?"

"I'm thinking that I must look like a freaking kid at a toy store right now, holy shit. This place is fucking amazing."

"Oh, I know," WB says, smiling at me "C'mon, I want your input on some things"


I drive back to pick up the girls with a small, satisfied smile on my face. I can't help it man, I can't stop thinking about all the indie bands I'll be able to help out with this, and how amazing it'll be to control that whole place.

I can't wait till Jackie gets better so I can tell her this. This is the type of thing that would drive her nuts with excitement.

I park the car in front of the building just as Donna and Jackie are leaving it. Donna looks worried, Jackie looks gloomy, and my heart skips a beat. Surely things couldn't have gone bad… could they?

I didn't even need to leave the car, the second I killed the engine, Donna and Jackie entered it, Jackie sitting by my side while Donna sits next to her. Jackie doesn't say anything, she just clings into my arm until I wrap it around her, resting her head on my shoulder.

Before I could ask anything, Donna mouthed to me:

"She'll tell you later, drive"

I nodded and I started to drive, and after a few minutes, I feel some of the tension leaving Jackie's body, which is a good sign.

Not so long after that, I finally park the car in my usual spot near their apartment complex, and we make our way upstairs. Jackie's fingers intertwined with mine the whole time.

When we finally enter the apartment, we're greeted by a not very nice sight. Forman's sitting on the couch, wearing only a wife beater and boxers, watching TV as he ate a bowl of popcorn.

"Gross, Forman," I say, scowling at him.

Forman mumbles something in response, but I don't stick around long enough to hear it. I gently walk with Jackie to her room, and I close the door behind me.

"What happened there, baby? Are you okay?" I ask immediately, and her bottom lip starts to quiver.

"I…" She says with tears in her eyes again "He wants to put me on medication, Steven!"

"So?"

"Crazy people are the ones that take medication for these types of stuff" She mutters sadly "And… I feel like I went nuts and this… this only confirms it"

"Doll, you won't take these drugs forever, okay? I've read about that, they're supposed to help you feel better" I say, placing my finger under her chin so I can look at her in the eyes

"What if I become, I don't know, a drooling idiot or something because of them?" She asks apprehensively and I give her a small smile

"You're not, okay?" I say "You can talk to Mrs. Forman about this later, she's a nurse, she can answer your questions"

She just nods and I kiss her forehead, wrapping my arms around her tiny figure.

"If I take these drugs I'll have to stop drinking," She says out of nowhere, "The doctor said I can't smoke or drink anything while I'm taking them"

"But you barely drink, and you haven't touched a joint in months," I say

"I know. It's just that now that I know that I can't do it, it kind of makes me sad, does that make sense?" She says "It's just one more thing that makes me different than everyone else, and not in a good way"

"Jackie, it's no big deal" I answer "If you want to, I will go through that with you"

"What do you mean?" She asks me, looking confused

"I'll stop drinking too. And I'll give up the circle" I say nonchalantly and she widens her eyes

"Steven you don't have to do that…" She starts, but I interrupt her with a kiss

"It's no big deal, doll," I say after we break apart "You're not alone in this. Besides, it'll probably be good for me too, y'know?"

"Steven…"

"Jackie, it's cool. I've barely touched a beer since we got back together, and it's been a while since I've had a circle" I say "Don't want to end up like Edna"

"What? Steven you're nothing like her, stop saying that" She reprehends me and I smile sadly at her

"I wasn't the best version of myself when we were apart, doll" I confess "I smoked and drank every day. I was becoming white trash, just like Edna"

"Steven…"

"Y'know…" I start, sitting down on her bed and pulling her to sit on my lap "I barely remember a thing of the 6 months I've spent without you, but I do remember your face when Sam arrived… God, it killed me to see that"

"Steven, we're way past that, why…"

"Let me finish baby," I say, pressing a quick kiss to her lips to shut her up for a few seconds "The moment you left the room was the moment the drinking binge started. I remember I tried to be angry, tried to convince myself that you cheated on me, and I acted like an ass, I 100% deserved to be punched by Donna, by the way"

"Steven…"

"And then you left, for good," I say, feeling my chest tightening with the memory "And I felt like trash, I missed you so much, and being without you was killing me on the inside. Tried to replace you with booze and pot, most of the days I drank until I passed out"

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad…" She says

"I grew a pornstache, Jackie," I say seriously, and she grimaced

"Ew! Why would you do that?" She asked

"Dunno. I was drunk half the time" I answer nonchalantly

"You're really doing this?" She asked seriously, and I nod

"Yeah, not just for you, for me too" I answer her honestly "You are not alone in this, Jackie."

Her eyes filled with tears and she hugged me, tight.

"Thank you" She whispers, leaning her chin on top of my head "I don't know what I would do without you"

"I feel the same way" I reply, running my hands up and down her back "You saved me from myself, doll. I love you"

"I love you too," She says, rubbing her thumbs through my sideburns "You're perfect"

I take her face in my hands and I press a chaste kiss on her lips. Just when I was about to pull away, she captured my lips with hers, this time, the kiss was feverish, and she slipped her tongue inside my mouth, and I kissed her back with the same energy.

We broke the kiss when we ran out of air, and I moved my lips to her neck, gently nibbling and kissing her soft skin.

"Enough with this Star Wars crap, Eric!" We hear Donna yelling from the living room, and Jackie and I break out of our daze.

"Wanna see what's going on?" I ask and she nods.

When we walk into the living room, Forman and Donna are sitting on the couch. Donna looks annoyed and Forman looks twitchier than usual, still wearing the wife-beater and the boxers. I grin and sit on the lazy boy near them, pulling Jackie to my lap. I have a feeling there are a few great burns on the way.

"But Donna! Leia and Han! This is wrong and you know it! Leia belongs with Luke!" He whined

"Eric, for the love of God, it's been two weeks! Can you just stop talking about it?"

"If you think that I'm going to stop talking about what has to be the greatest crime committed by the cinematographic industry, then you're bonkers," He says, throwing his hands in the air.

Jackie and I smirk at each other when we see Donna's indignant face. This is getting good.

"Bonkers, Eric, really?" Donna says "Like my cat, Mr. Bonkers? Y'know, the one you killed?"

I let out a quiet chuckle "Man I forgot you killed her cat, what is wrong with you?"

I looked at Jackie and she was watching their little quarrel and chuckling to herself. It's the first time in a while that I've seen her actually laughing, and it makes me feel hopeful.

I kiss her cheek and pull her close to my body, leaning my head in the crook of her neck, then I turn to look at Forman and Donna.

"Hurry Forman. She's laughing, say something stupid to Donna again" I urge them. He knew I was joking, but he played along and so did Donna. Both of them grinned at the sight of Jackie laughing again, it's been too long.

"Well, you can forget about your daily dose of Forman lovin' today, missy!"

Donna stifled a laugh "Thank God for that!"

Forman looked serious out of a sudden and pulled her aside "Wait, really? Because I like giving you some Forman lovin'. It's what gives me joy in life, Donna" he says and I roll my eyes

"I'm serious now, " Donna says, glaring at him, and Forman starts to squirm.

I look away from them to focus on the beautiful woman sitting on my lap, I pull her even closer to me and she rests her head on my shoulder.

I feel her lips pressing against my cheek and she moves to whisper in my ear.

"I love you"

"Love you too, doll. More than anything" I say it back, pecking her lips. She moves her head back to my shoulder, and we both start watching as Forman and Donna's bickered with each other, just like old times.


Hello friends, long time no see, huh?

Sorry about taking so long to update this, I've been so focused on my upcoming stories, that I kind of lost the inspiration to write this story for a while. But my inspiration is back now :D

Please let me know your thoughts about this chapter in a review, and don't forget to check out my tumblr!

Thank you for reading!