Chapter Text
Kitty was busy making breakfast and Steven was already up before Red and Eric, sitting at the kitchen table, eating flakes.
It worried her that he was up so soon, it was very unusual of him. He seemed tired and she wanted to ask him why but she knew he wasn’t going to tell her anything.
All she knew was that something was bothering him and somehow, she felt like it had to do with Jackie.
The kids believe she doesn’t know anything of what’s going on with them but she notices a lot just like she noticed that Jackie and Michael have been getting closer and closer lately and it worried her. She could see that Steven seemed to be more bothered whenever he saw them spending time together.
She hasn’t talked with Steven about his feelings for Jackie since Veteran’s day but his feelings were visible to her beneath the surface. She had hoped things would turn our right for him and Jackie but if Jackie keeps going the way she’s going, Kitty was sure it wasn’t going to end well for anyone.
She hoped Steven and Jackie would have worked things out themselves but they didn’t and she couldn’t stop thinking that they might need help figuring things out but she wasn’t so sure it was the right thing to do right now.
She told herself to wait a while longer to see how things would go with Michael and Jackie. If it goes down the wrong path, she is going to interfere.
***
Later that day, Kelso and Hyde were throwing an egg back and forth in the basement. Kelso didn’t say where he got it from but Hyde didn’t care, he was bored and now they had something to do at least.
After a while of throwing the egg around, Donna walks into the basement and seems to be looking mad at Kelso. It made Hyde wonder what the moron did today.
“Kelso…What are you doing?” she said exasperated.
“Just tossing around this egg Jackie gave me to take care of,” he answered, distracted by the egg tossing.
Hyde didn’t know this and hid his surprise by smiling while tossing the egg back at Kelso but he couldn’t help but wonder why she would do that so he decided to keep quiet to see if he could find out more.
“Don’t you think it might break?” Donna said with a suggestive tone in her voice and it confused Hyde more.
“Yeah… well…I thought we would have some fun with it before I threw it at someone,” Kelso just said.
“You’re such a moron. You’re so going to fail Jackie’s tests,” Donna casually said with a smile.
It piqued Hyde’s curiosity and he had a bad feeling about what Donna was going to say.
“Tests? What tests?” Kelso kept going with a smile and so did Hyde, but dread was growing inside his chest and didn’t want to show it.
“Okay, I’m not supposed to say anything but Jackie’s testing you to see if you’re ready to get back together”
Donna said it so casually but her statement hit him hard and the dread he felt was closing in inside him. He had to see it coming, them getting back together, yet he was still surprised and he couldn’t deny the heavy feeling that came with the idea of Jackie and Kelso being a couple again. It even nauseated him a little.
Still, he tried to hide this whirlwind of feelings with a smile. He really didn’t like where this was going.
“Oh my god, are you serious?” Kelso said in surprise. The exact opposite of what Hyde was feeling right now. “Do you think I have a chance?” he kept going.
“Not a good one! You’ve already failed two tests and you’re about to fail the third. That egg is a test of your parenting ability”.
Donna’s statement made Hyde feel a little better, he was slightly relieved to hear that Kelso was failing at whatever test Jackie came up with, even if it sounded ridiculous. But he wasn’t going to get his hopes up though. Just because Kelso was failing, it didn’t mean Jackie wasn’t going to let him back in and Hyde hated the thought of that possibility.
He felt like he had to do something to sabotage Kelso, not for him but for her. He wasn’t going to let her make a mistake again. Although the thought of preventing them from getting back together made him feel selfishly satisfied a little.
The thoughts were swimming around in his skull when Kelso kept looking dumbly from the egg to Donna.
“So what you’re saying is that if I break that egg, then I will fail the test and I lose Jackie, the girl I love more than anything in the world.”
Kelso’s words made Hyde sick and a pang of anger hit. There was no way Kelso meant those words. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have hurt Jackie the way he did.
“Hyde, give me the egg”, Kelso gestured at the egg but Hyde saw his opportunity and didn’t want to pass up on it.
“Okay, catch,” Hyde made it seem like he was going to throw the egg back at Kelso but before he did, he swung his arm backwards and let go of the egg, making sure it would hit the wall behind him hard.
Hyde tried to suppress his smile at Kelso’s look of disbelief and Donna who’s trying really hard not to laugh.
“Whoops…” Hyde shrugged it off but then said: “I mean: hehehehe.”
The look on Kelso’s face was satisfying enough. Kelso stood like that for a while until he ran out of the basement angrily. Hyde didn’t care, he was just glad he did what he did but the feeling of dread kept gnawing at him. Jackie and Kelso seemed to be closer than ever to get back together and Hyde wasn’t sure there was anything he could do about it.
***
Kitty walked into the living room and saw a gloomier than ever Steven sitting on the couch. He was sitting a little slumped, looking lost in thought.
“There is Mr. Broody,” Kitty said in greeting.
“Hello, Ms. Forman,” he greeted back but didn’t say anything else.
“Wanna tell me what’s on your mind?” She continued and sat down next to Steven.
“What makes you think that I have something on my mind?”He tried to shrug it off but he wasn’t going to fool her.
“I know when something is wrong, a mother always knows,” she told him.
“It’s nothing, I just found out that Jackie’s testing Kelso to see if they would get back together,” he admitted after a while. He seemed to be relieved to talk about it.
“I see, I’m worried to hear that as well,” she tried to open the conversation more.
“Who says I’m worried?” Steven said defensively.
He gave up after she gave him a look that tells him she knows otherwise.
“Fine, I am worried but only because Kelso’s an idiot and it wouldn’t be a good idea for Jackie to take him back.”
“Is that all you worry about?” Kitty tried again.
“Yes,” Steven looked away, not wanting to look into her eyes.
“Steven, are you sure there’s nothing else you feel than worry?” She wanted him to admit the truth so she had a way of helping him. Steven was a sweet boy, after all, he was the only one to remember her birthday and she wanted him to be happy and if she could help him get there, she would. “You still haven’t told me anything about the date you had with Jackie.”
He shrugged his shoulders and said: “There’s nothing to talk about, nothing happened. Neither one of us felt anything so we just got back to slightly tolerating each other.”
“I’ll believe you, if you say so. But I want you to know that if you want to talk more about this situation, you can always come to me,” she laid a hand on his shoulder in support.
“Thanks for the offer, Ms. Forman but I don’t think that’s necessary,” he stood up from the couch and gave her a kiss on the cheek in thanks. He then disappeared into the kitchen where Red was coming from.
She gave a long look at the door in worry. She knew Steven was never going to admit he liked Jackie but the reaction he gave about Jackie’s current situation was enough to show her the truth.
She had to do something about it. She knew it wasn’t going to end well between Michael and Jackie and she didn’t want to see the girl get hurt again and if Steven really liked her and she liked him, she had a feeling that Steven would be much better for Jackie.
That’s when she knew she had to interfere, she had to find out if Jackie felt the same way and if she did, help them find their way to each other. The thought brought a smile on her face and Red looked at her suspiciously.
“What’s that look about? I don’t like that look,” Red narrowed his eyes at her, “You’re having an idea and given by that look, it’s not a good one.”
“What? I just want to help faith a little. It’s harmless,” she waved the matter away with her hand.
Red looked up and said: “Oh for God’s sake, Kitty. Don’t.”
“So you’re not going to help me?” she asked. She did need help carrying out this plan, she couldn’t do this alone.
“No and you better not do anything either,” he pointed a finger at her in warning.
“Well, if you’re not going to help. I’ll just have to ask Eric, he owes me for my birthday anyway,” she told him and in her mind, it was the perfect idea. He could help her figure out Jackie’s feelings and maybe he could help her come up with an idea to get them together since he knew them both much better since he talks to them every day.
“Fine but I’m not going to stand by and watch so I’m out of here,” he walked over to her and gave her a kiss, showing that he isn’t so mad at her as he showed.
She smiled at him and was ready to carry out her plan.
***
Eric walked into the basement, he needed to get going if he wanted to make his date with Donna. They haven’t spent a lot of time together lately so he couldn’t waste the chance of seeing her again and spend quality time with her.
He couldn’t be late because he had plans with Fez and Hyde to vandalize the lockers of their rival team afterwards and he couldn't miss messing with them, especially when it helps Fez get revenge.
Without looking, he almost bumped into his mother who was jumping a little on her feet in excitement and he didn’t like what he was looking at. This can’t mean anything good.
“What’s up, mom?” he said hesitantly.
“I need to talk to you about something, sit down,” she gestured to the old couch and he hesitantly did what he asked.
“What is it?” He looked at her expectantly.
“It’s about Steven and Jackie.”
“Steven and Jackie. What is there to talk about them? Did they do something to the basement? Am I falling into a trap?” He started firing questions at her, not sure what the meaning of this was.
“No, I want to talk about how Steven likes Jackie,” she looked at him confused.
“What? Hyde likes Jackie? That’s a joke, right?” he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, it would be impossible.
“He does and Jackie’s about to make a mistake by getting back together with Michael, I thought you knew this.”
“This is all one, big lie. This can’t be happening,” he said in an exasperated voice, pointing at his mom.
But one long look from her made him shut up and let his mouth fall open and said: “Oh, god, this is a nightmare.” He had his hands in his hair in disbelief.
His mom just waited patiently until he calmed down and Eric suddenly wondered: “Why are you telling me all this?”
“Because I need your help with them. I have a slight feeling Jackie feels the same and if she does, I want to help Steven and Jackie get together.”
“Please, don’t let it be true. That would be the worst,” Eric made a face like he ate something bad.
“Oh, don’t be such a baby, they would be cute together and you know it,” his mom said, sure of herself.
“I don’t think so,” he shook his head.
“Come on, Eric, don’t you want your best friend to be happy?” she put her hands on her waist to show he shouldn’t argue with her.
“Not if it means dating the devil,” Eric said madly.
“That’s not a nice thing to say, Eric. But you’re going to help whether you like it or not,” She said strictly.
“Help you? With what? Getting them together? Why should I help?” he asked honestly.
“Because you owe me from forgetting my birthday, I would still like to have a gift,” she looked at him intensely, making sure he didn't argue and he sighed, admitting defeat.
“Alright, you got me. What do you need me to do?” He knew he wasn’t going to get out of this so he decided to cooperate.
“Before we can help them get together, we need to make sure she feels the same way so it’s up to you to ask her. I know you can do it but still, good luck. I’ll hear it when you know something more,” she said, getting up and going up the stairs before he had a chance to say something.
This day isn’t going as well as he’d hoped but he might as well get it over with and find Jackie. The only thing he could hope for now is that his mom was wrong and that Jackie really doesn’t have any feelings for Hyde or else, they’d all be screwed.
***
Eric couldn’t find Jackie all day which surprised him since she always seemed to be around, much to his dislike.
Before he knew it, it was time for his date with Donna and he forgot about his mission for a while. He was happy to finally spend some time with his girlfriend and he hoped these dates won’t be less frequent.
That was a thought for later since he had to continue his plans with Hyde and Fez to vandalize a locker room.
When he arrived at the basement, Fez wasn’t there yet and Hyde was alone, sitting on his chair. He seemed to be watching tv but he had his sunglasses off and Eric could see he was some place far away.
Looking at him made Eric think more about what his mother said and with Kelso and Jackie getting closer lately. She might actually be right and he was still in denial but he had to know, he had to ask Hyde.
“Hey, Hyde. What are you watching?” he said in greeting.
Hyde looked as if he just woken up when he heard Eric’s voice, it didn’t mean anything good.
“Oh, nothing, just the Price is Right. They really can’t find any new candidates,” that was Hyde’s answer and he sounded way too into the show to make it believable.
“Right? So what do you think of Kelso and Jackie becoming friends all of a sudden?” He decided to not beat around the bush. He had to figure out if his mom was right and Hyde did indeed have feelings for Jackie.
“Nothing much. He’s a moron so I’m sure is going to blow up in his face,” Hyde shrugged his shoulders, not seemingly interested in the conversation but Eric noticed his best friend scratching behind his head which means there was more to it than he was willing to reveal.
“Really? I wonder what they’re up to now, I haven’t seen both of them all day,” Eric tried some more.
“Oh, you didn’t hear? Jackie’s apparently testing Kelso to see if they could get back together,” Hyde said and Eric just knew his friend was trying to hide his anger. Eric saw his fists shaking to try to control them.
That’s when it hit Eric, his mom was right and Hyde does like Jackie. He never would have guessed if he didn’t know his friend and it just felt unnatural. He was so surprised , he ran fast to the basement door. He needed to be somewhere else to process it all.
“Where are you going? We were going to go over our plan to vandalize that locker room,” Hyde sat up right. Obviously not expecting Eric’s sudden movements.
“Right, that’s what we were going to do,” he tried to laugh it off in nervousness and quickly sat down on the couch, not looking at Hyde.
“Why are you acting so twitchy?” Hyde turned to him and frowned in question.
“Nothing, let’s just get back to planning,” Eric shot a quick glance to Hyde and his peripheral vision, he noticed something on the wall.
“What’s that?” he pointed to the broken egg on the wall.
“That’s just an egg that got broken when Kelso and I were tossing it back and forth, it’s no big deal,” Hyde answered.
Eric took a better look at Hyde, he thought about it for a minute and he asked: “Does this by any chance have to do with Jackie’s tests for Kelso?”
“Whatever,” and Eric had his answer. The egg was some weird test Jackie came up with for Kelso and knowing how Hyde feels now, he might have tried to sabotage Kelso from passing the test.
That’s when the door from outside opened and Eric looked up to see Fez walking in.
“Hello, friends of Fez, ready to destroy the locker room of the Snapping Turtles,” Fez said and sat down next to Eric.
They spent the rest of the day planning for their vandalism, the mission at hand temporarily forgotten.
***
The next day, Jackie was on her way to the basement but she was lost in her own thoughts. So far, Michael hasn’t done a great job with her tests. She knew something was up when she was at the Hub with him where he was taking care of the egg.
He was going over the top with the egg and it didn’t sit right with her. It only made her doubts about this entire thing stronger. She didn’t want to admit because she thought this is what she truly wanted, to get back together with Michael.
But her heart didn’t flutter when she saw him taking care of the egg, she knew it would have happened before. Lately, she’s been telling herself over and over that being with Michael again would be right but everything inside protested against that thought.
She also knew why, it was because of Steven. Her heart and mind have been battling against each other since that first kiss with him. She knew what she wanted deep down but she couldn’t have it so her mind made her believe that she needed to be with Michael again.
It drove her to this situation and she didn’t like it. She needed to talk to someone about it and she believed that Donna wouldn’t understand and would tell her what she didn’t want to hear so she needed to find someone else.
Without realizing, she walked into the basement where Eric was sitting in front of the spool table, looking at different kinds of graffiti and she remembered what the guys were planning.
He didn’t notice her so he didn’t look up but standing there in the basement, she might as well ask him. He would be honest with her and right now, that’s what she needed.
“Is that for your plan with Steven and Fez?” she said.
He got startled and looked up at her and said: “Oh, it’s just you.”
She went to sit down at the lawn chair, not knowing how to breach the subject.
“But I’m glad to see you, I was actually looking for you,” he turned to her with a serious look.
“You were?” she didn’t know what to say, she couldn’t believe her eyes. He’s usually not that nice to her and it made her speechless.
“Did you finally realize you need my advice since I know how to make you more popular?” she suddenly said, excited and clapping in her hands. She thought he might finally need her.
“No, but I do need to talk to you.”
“Ugh, do you have another problem with Donna? Because I don't know how much I can tell her she needs to give you another chance before she’s tired of it,” she looks up in exaggeration. She’s heard enough of their problems lately.
“Wait, what? You’re the one who convinces Donna to forgive me all these times?” He looked at her with an open mouth.
“Who else would do it? God knows she wouldn’t be so fast to forgive you if I wasn’t here.”
“Never mind, this isn’t about Donna, even though that conversation isn’t over yet,” he paused for a moment, “I wanted to talk about what you’ve been up to with Kelso.”
“Oh, that,” she didn’t want to show anything to Eric but she was desperate so she was going to take the chance, “I’m guessing you’ve heard about my plan.”
“I did. I thought you were done with him,” Eric told her.
“I thought so too,” she mumbled but it was loud enough from him to hear and his eyes widened in surprise. She also couldn’t believe she was opening up to him.
She didn’t know how much she could reveal to him but she had to take a chance and continued: “I’m not even sure why I’m doing this. It seemed like the thing to do. I was just thinking that if I can’t be with the person I truly want, I might as well try to see if it could work with Michael again. Besides, I don’t think he truly cares what I’m doing with Michael right now.”
“The person you truly want? You mean you don’t really want to be with Kelso but with someone else?” Eric’s mouth dropped to the floor and he kept staring at her.
That’s it, she had said too much and she couldn’t handle the look he was giving her, she needed to get out of here and said: “You know what, forget I said anything. I have someplace to be.”
She ran out of the basement and she didn’t know where she was going but the conversation convinced her she had to try with Michael, there was just no other way.
***
Eric kept looking at the door even though no one was there. He was still in shock about his discovery.
He didn’t expect she’d tell him anything but she told him enough to know that she meant Hyde to be the person she couldn’t be with. Who else could it be? She never talked about any other guy. Plus, Hyde always makes it seem like he doesn’t care so it’s a possibility she also meant he wouldn’t care this time either.
The past few days, he had gotten a lot of information. He didn’t like hearing most of it but he couldn’t unlearn it no matter how much he wanted it.
One thing he knew for sure is that he had made a promise to his mom and he had to keep it. He owed her anyway. He just hoped she wasn’t going to do anything with it but he was sure he was going to be pulled into her crazy plans anyway.
So with much reluctance, he went upstairs to tell his mom everything he found out.