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“Truth or Dare, Devil.”
“Truth.” Jackie said, after sticking her tongue out at Eric. She was leaning on the freezer while the rest of the burnouts sprawled out on the beaten-up couch and chairs. Judging by the snack carnage and the loose limbs splayed everywhere, they must have really overdone the circle tonight.
“Lame. Hmm, well…” He trailed off, unable to think straight enough to find a question.
She regretted not just going straight home from cheer practice. Not that her empty house was any more appealing than this mess.
“OH! I’ve got one.” Donna leans over and whispers in his ear. They giggle to each other a little and Hyde rolls his eyes at them. Goofy shit like this is the price he pays for teaching them to be burnouts like him.
“Okay – Beulah,” Eric giggled again.
“BURN.” Kelso laughed and Fez tries to toss some popcorn in his mouth while it’s hanging open.
“Okay, no, for real. What is the biggest lie you’ve ever told?”
“Boooo that’s so boring.” Kelso groaned. “It’s probably some stupid cheer squad rumor.”
“I gossip, Kelso. I don’t lie.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder nervously. She had an answer immediately, but it was taking every ounce of her limited zen to not blurt it out.
Could she tell the truth now, when it felt like such a necessary lie in the moment?
“Come on, Jackie.” Donna tossed a pillow at her. “Quit stalling!”
Kelso tried to frog Fez in the arm but fell out of the lawn chair. He lay on the ground laughing and she decided, what the hell. It’s not like they’d know what the fuck she’s talking about. She hadn’t breathed a word about it to anyone.
“The biggest lie I ever told was that I didn’t feel anything.”
Hyde hadn’t said anything up until then, so Jackie was a little startled when he whipped around. “What?”
“That’s a stupid lie, Beulah.”
“BURN.” Kelso shouted again and then choked on Fez’s fistful of popcorn.
“Whatever Eric, you asked.” She flicked her hair over her other shoulder. Hyde was still staring at her. Well, probably. She couldn’t really tell with his glasses on.
“Hey, I got a dare for everyone.”
“Everyone?” Eric scoffed. “That’s not how it works, buddy.”
“Okay, Square.” He still hasn’t looked away from her.
“I mean, okay fine. A dare for everyone. Why not, haha. Lay it on us.”
“First one to the Hub wins.”
“Wins what?” Kelso whined.
“That’s not a dare.” Jackie points out.
“Okay – I dare you to be the first one to the Hub.”
Fez sprinted out of the room before Kelso can whine about a prize again. Eric and Donna fall over each other, giggling and grabbing. There’s no chance they make it farther than Donna’s bedroom.
Jackie raised an eyebrow at him and swung her purse back onto her shoulder. “You want a ride to the Hub?” She offered magnanimously. “I’m sober.”
“So am I. Got back from work 10 minutes before you.” He took his sunglasses off and carefully hooked them into his shirt collar. “You lied.”
“That was the question, yeah. I told a lie.”
“You lied to me.”
“Maybe.” She shrugged.
“No, you can’t pull that on me.”
“Whatever.” That smirk just wasn’t fair. He tugged at his hair.
They stood that way for a minute. Almost a staring contest, but it felt more like she’d been sprinting. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was ignoring the way her cheeks burned. It was his fault, he was the one getting closer.
“Why?”
“Steven.” She laughed darkly. “You wrote a haiku asking me to die that morning. I just-“ She bit her lip, blushing furiously. “I didn’t want to get burned, okay? I spend enough of my life being a joke to you.”
Hyde actually seemed a little stunned about that. “I wouldn’t have-“
She huffed impatiently. “Of course you would have. I hounded you for weeks, chased off other girls, guilted you into a pity date with me. Of course, you’d laugh at the little princess for having feelings about it. About you.”
“I’m not fucking laughing, Jackie.” His hands were on her waist now, but she still wasn’t getting it.
If that first kiss made her lips burn and her palms tingle, this one set her on fire. It was a while before she had the wherewithal to come up for air.
“Steven,” She gasped and smacked his arm. “You lied to me.”
“You started it, Beulah.”
He shut her up again.