They sat in homeroom for the last time, the clock counting down to summer, graduation, and their future. There was a bittersweet feeling to the whole ordeal and Kyle, for one, felt he could have done more in high school. Been more involved some how. Done something to really make the whole thing. Memorable. He glanced over at his friend Stan, who had his backpack in a death-grip under the desk while glaring at the clock, chin resting on the desktop.
"C'mon, c'mon" he whispered between clenched teeth.
Kyle snorted and shook his head. Obviously Stan wasn't sharing his thoughts.
Stan shot his friend a quizzical look and mouthed. "What?" Kyle just shook his head and returned his gaze back to the clock.
The final bell rang out, piercing the silence, causing a few students to jump. There was a loud shuffling of papers, zippers, and sneakers on linoleum as the class bolted for freedom, Stan leading the pack.
"Make sure to be on time for Graduation!" The homeroom teacher shouted out in vain after them.
The next couple of days were a blur of activities. Graduation rolled around, the ceremony was long and the weather hot. Tassels moved symbolically from left to right, mortarboards tossed, hugs, high-fives, and tears were shed. The last "free" summer in South Park had arrived.
Kyle leaned against the rough stucco wall of the High School watching his best friend and his girlfriend break up. They had already agreed to end it before college, give each other some freedom. Still, Stan thought they would have had at least one last summer. But Wendy had been given a job offer in her college town and decided to take it. She was leaving the next morning and no one could talk her out of it. Kyle watched as Stan made wide pleading gestures, but Wendy shook her head sadly and stood on her tiptoes to kiss Stan on the cheek. "Goodbye Stan." She whispered, "Be happy." She ran off, giving Kyle an apologetic glance before disappearing around the corner. He waited a bit before walking to a devastated Stan.
There are times in a friendship when it's best to say nothing, and this was one of those times. He patted Stan's shoulder just firmly enough and jerked his head in the direction of the parking lot. "I'll give you a lift." He said. Stan nodded numbly and followed a few steps behind his friend, shoulders slumped, his hands dug deep in his jeans pockets.
The drive was made in silence. It was a comforting quiet though. Kyle had always had Stan's back, he pulled up in the Marsh's driveway and Stan opened the car door, letting one leg hang out. He looked over to his red-headed companion. "Kyle…I. Thanks for…" Kyle held up a hand and silenced him.
"Dude." He said softly, giving Stan a half smile. Stan nodded in understanding. He got out of the car and closed the door, leaning down to the window "I'll text you."
Kyle picked his cell phone up off of his lap. "Always got it on me." He gave it a little shake for emphasis and placed it back on his right thigh. He waited for Stan to make it to the front steps before backing out. Stan held up his right hand in goodbye, Kyle flashed him the two-fingered salute from the steering wheel before heading home.
*A/N*
Just a short authors note for all of you lovely readers. I'm treating this chapter as a bit of an intro so therefore it's a bit shorter then I would have liked. The title may change, and so far I have rated it M, I do plan on having some sexual themes later in the story (I apologize to those people looking for insta-sex) as well as some violence, and of course the lovely harsh language of our favorite characters. I hope to keep you all biting at the bit for the next chapter. Until then, I bid you all goodbye.