♔ | burkhart

          is he high? is she high? the lack of munchies says decidedly NO. it COULD be a dream… but then again, steven did NOT ride in on a white horse and there’s no starry meadow and fez isn’t playing romantic love ballads (ABBA songs) on a violin. wait… how did fez– ? nevermind. foreigners are SNEAKY, but there are more pressing matters at hand. 

          HAND. steven hyde is asking for hers. he’s asking her to MARRY him and the only thing that’s telling her it’s not an elaborate HOAX is the way he’s looking at her– glasses off and this is REAL. fainting is an option, but jackie isn’t so sure UNCONSCIOUS is a good look for her. – ha, who’s she kidding? jackie burkhart couldn’t look bad if she TRIED. it’s one of the benefits of BEING HER!  

          ❝ oh my god– ❞ it’s not exactly eloquent, but it’s all she can manage. imagine it: jackie burkhart, SPEECHLESS. maybe if steven knew proposing would get her to SHUT UP for a whole minute, he would have done it a long time ago. still, better late than NEVER. he’s not down on one knee, but she won’t push the issue. she won’t even threaten bodily harm at the mention of BEULAH. it’s nothing like she ever imagined it would be, but… somehow? it’s PERFECT.

          ❝ steven, that was beautiful. i know i TALK about it a lot but i’ve been really good! i did LIE about burning the catalogs but if you couldn’t figure that out, you don’t know me AT ALL. i’ve got everything planned. our colors are gonna’ be lilac and white and oh my GOD, you are gonna’ look so HANDSOME in a tux. oh, and i ordered the vases for the flower arrangements like two months ago. the boxes are under the stuffed unicorn collection in my closet ‘cause i knew you wouldn’t go ANYWHERE near it. ❞ – the whole not talking thing didn’t last very long. she opens her mouth to continue, but it SNAPS shut oh-so-suddenly. she hasn’t even ANSWERED HIM. dainty fingers lace with rough and she hopes he’ll ignore the tears on her lashes– the last thing she wants to do is frighten him off. 

          ❝ mrs. steven hyde for the rest of whatever. YES.❞

          for  a  minute  there  he’s  sure  he’s  finally  broken  her     (     took  about  damn  time.      )     and  then  the  talking  starts.  and  continues.  and  continues.  and…     and  she’s  stopped.  cool.  the  grossest  part  about  all  her  talking  though     ?     not  catalogs,  not  the  colors     (      white  and     LILAC     ?     not  while  he  was  alive.  well,  on  the  outside.  he’s  been  dead     INSIDE     since  he  was  in  the  womb…     aw,  who  was  he  kidding,  if  jackie  wanted  lilac  they’d  be  doing  lilac. dammit     !     )   not  even  the  fact  he  was  going  to  have  to  wear  a  tux     —–     he  hadn’t  thought  that  through.  maybe  he  could  wiggle  out  of  it     ?     whatever.  no,  the  sickest  part  of  the  whole  thing  was  that  he  knew  all  this  crap  made  him  unhappy  was  because  he  was  really,  actually  listening  to  her,  not  tuning  her  out  like  he  usually  did  when  she  started  talking  about  weddings.  or…  talking,     in  general.  and  what’s  worse     ?     he’s  actually     LIKING     listening  to  her.  

          he  needed  a  circle  fast     -     something  was  obviously  wrong  with  him. 

          his  hands  lace  with  hers,  and  the  traces  of  a  smile  pushing  onto  thin  lips. eyes  remain  relaxed     ;     well,  his  entire  demeanor  does.  even  now,  hyde  isn’t  willing  to  betray  any   emotion,  not  even  now.  internally,  however,  is  another  story  entirely.  

                    ❝          cool.           ❞          she  deserves  more  than  just  that.     –     god,  he  really  was  getting  soft  on  her.  not     ———-     oh  screw  it.          ❝          yeah  man.  doesn’t  have  a  bad  ring  to  it,  huh     ?     mrs.  steven  hyde.  mrs.  jackie  hyde.  not  uh…     not  bad.  oh,  uh     -     i  remembered  that  you  told  me  if  i  was  ever  to  give  you  a  ring,  to  put  it  in  food,  so…          ❞          he  turns  slighty     ;     reaching  back  to  his  chairs,  where  a  bag  of  tortilla  chips  sat.          ❝          here.          ❞          

          she’s either on the verge of tears or about to go off on another LENGTHY spiel about their upcoming nuptials. steven is lucky THIS TIME because jackie hears the word RING and it’s all over from there. she’s humming with EXCITEMENT as she tears open the bag of chips, fully expecting to see a box with TIFFANY’S across the top in ornate letters. she feels around for felt and is met with chips and PLASTIC. 

          oh. 

          ❝ steven-- this isn’t a DIAMOND, this is a piece of CANDY, ❞ lips are set in a magnificent pout as she states the oh-so-very OBVIOUS. ❝ ... you sure you’re not proposing to FEZ? ❞ ring pop in hand, she studies the packaging. it IS blue raspberry. she’s KEEPING IT. it’ll sparkle in the light if she licks it, right? and really, it’s more along the lines of what she’s come to expect from hyde. ( she’s lowered her standards, remember? -- so has he. )

          ❝ you know what? it’s PERFECT. all that matters is you PROPOSED! ❞ she downright SQUEALS. he probably doesn’t want a reminder, but jackie’s going to give him plenty, anyway. ❝ oh my GOD, donna’s gonna’ freak out! do you think i should call my mom?! -- nah, she’s probably at the bottom of a margarita somewhere. ❞

                  ❝          dammit     –     okay,  jackie,  listen.  cause  i’m  only  going  to  say  this  once,  and  if  you  try  to  make  me  say  it  again  i  swear  i’ll  take  it  back,  okay     ?           ❞         setting  the  mood     —–     never  something  that  hyde  had  been  particularly  good  at.  

          a  hand  pushed  up  to  his  face,  glasses  pulling  off,  tucking  into his  shirt.  a  light  sigh     -     or  was  it  a  grunt     ?     -     slipped  through  his  nose,  swallowing  thickly,  reaching  down  to  take  jackie’s  hands  in  his  own.

                 ❝          listen,  man,  er,  jackie.  jacqueline  beulah  burkhart     -     heh     -     heh,  BEULAH     -  sorry,  don’t  kick  me.         ❞          he  wanted  to  be  serious,  he  really  did.  but  EMOTION  crap,  it never  was  his  forte.         

          is he high? is she high? the lack of munchies says decidedly NO. it COULD be a dream... but then again, steven did NOT ride in on a white horse and there’s no starry meadow and fez isn’t playing romantic love ballads (ABBA songs) on a violin. wait... how did fez-- ? nevermind. foreigners are SNEAKY, but there are more pressing matters at hand. 

          HAND. steven hyde is asking for hers. he’s asking her to MARRY him and the only thing that’s telling her it’s not an elaborate HOAX is the way he’s looking at her-- glasses off and this is REAL. fainting is an option, but jackie isn’t so sure UNCONSCIOUS is a good look for her. -- ha, who’s she kidding? jackie burkhart couldn’t look bad if she TRIED. it’s one of the benefits of BEING HER!  

          ❝ oh my god-- ❞ it’s not exactly eloquent, but it’s all she can manage. imagine it: jackie burkhart, SPEECHLESS. maybe if steven knew proposing would get her to SHUT UP for a whole minute, he would have done it a long time ago. still, better late than NEVER. he’s not down on one knee, but she won’t push the issue. she won’t even threaten bodily harm at the mention of BEULAH. it’s nothing like she ever imagined it would be, but... somehow? it’s PERFECT.

          ❝ steven, that was beautiful. i know i TALK about it a lot but i’ve been really good! i did LIE about burning the catalogs but if you couldn’t figure that out, you don’t know me AT ALL. i’ve got everything planned. our colors are gonna’ be lilac and white and oh my GOD, you are gonna’ look so HANDSOME in a tux. oh, and i ordered the vases for the flower arrangements like two months ago. the boxes are under the stuffed unicorn collection in my closet ‘cause i knew you wouldn’t go ANYWHERE near it. ❞ -- the whole not talking thing didn’t last very long. she opens her mouth to continue, but it SNAPS shut oh-so-suddenly. she hasn’t even ANSWERED HIM. dainty fingers lace with rough and she hopes he’ll ignore the tears on her lashes-- the last thing she wants to do is frighten him off. 

          she loves to talk. about cheerleading, about other people... makeup and magazines; about how cute she is on any given day-- about HERSELF. she loves to talk when there’s nothing at stake. right now? she’s silent, gaping down at her lap because how could she be STUPID enough to think he’d let her get away with that? her mouth is still tingling-- even after it’s wiped away, there’s faint remnants of pink GLOSS on his lips. jackie catches herself before she smiles.

          john’s PISSED and she understands why. wishes she didn’t, but she does and it’s growing increasingly difficult to ignore. she shifts, hesitating a moment before drawing her knees up and under her. smaller. safe. her arms fold over her chest. every ignored call to mom... every unanswered hello to dad-- every night michael kelso was off with some DUMB SKANK-- her fortress is stronger than people realize. this is just some silly arrangement. this is just some silly... whatever. 

          ❝ EXCUSE ME-- you asked! kinda’, ❞ is what comes out of her mouth after what seems like an impossibly long silence. and then:  ❝ you kissed me. THERE, i mentioned it! i mean, i don’t blame you-- if i had a penny for every time someone thought about kissing me, i’d be rich! ... richer than i already am! ❞ she’s not looking at him. she  CAN’T. there’s so much BULLSHIT coming out of her mouth and she doesn’t know hot to stop it. they both know where jackie burkhart’s hands were just a minute ago. and yet she’s very specific about the YOU kissed ME bit. hm.

&—( @burkhxrt​ ) cont. here.

                           Although picking locks wasn’t here favorite thing to do, she rather                              not scare the living hell out of someone by kicking it down. She                              was glad she picked the lock, though, since this girl led her                              presence to just being let in.

          why does no one ever seem to LISTEN to what jackie burkhart has to say? it’s becoming a problem because more often than not, she’s SPEWING major knowledge. why does no one seem to notice her sheer GENIUS? with a labored sigh, she clears her throat and repeats: