Erosion
I wake to rustling.
I rub the sleep from my eyes, looking over to my left in time to see Kenny rip off his orange parka and pull his Mysterion cloak from his bag.
"Dude, what are you doing?" I whisper, sitting up. He looks back at me, shhing and gesturing towards Stan as he pulls on his costume. He pulls his face mask on, adjusting the eyes and pulling the hood up over his head.
"I have to go. It's important." He says, struggling to keep his gruff Mysterion voice and whisper at the same time. I frown.
"What? What's important? Is it Karen?" I know Kenny likes to dress up as Mysterion to comfort his sister, but she's halfway across town, Kenny and Stan are at my house for sleepover. He shakes his head.
"No. Don't worry about it." I know Kenny likes to play superhero. He takes it really seriously. He opens the window and slips out, sliding down the gutter. I watch him go, then get up and close the window. It's too cold out for this. He'll be back eventually. I go back to bed.
000
The bell rings, and I slam my locker door shut. The halls are emptying quickly, and I catch sight of Kenny loitering near the bathrooms. My class isn't far, and I stop by him for a moment.
"Kenny! Dude, where'd you go?"
He shrugs under his parka, and I frown. "I got a call," he finally concedes. I frown harder, if that's something you can do.
"That's not a great answer, dude. You know we worry about you when you do that stuff." He just shrugs again.
"So don't, dude. I'll be fine. I will always be fine."
I run my hands through my hair, "You'll get yourself killed one of these days dude. You're digging yourself in deeper and deeper." Another shrug, and he turns away, towards his class.
"I can't die," he mumbles through his coat and a sigh escapes me before I can stop it. He's so frustrating. I can't tell if his immortality complex is a joke or a delusion. But it's definitely annoying.
000
I inhale the enticing scent of my mother's cook with a pleasant sigh. I always forget how hungry I am until it's nearly time for dinner. I'm doing my homework in my room, but the scent still reaches me, all the way up here. The doorbell rings, and I'm pulled away from my thoughts.
I put my book down beside me and walk downstairs to see who it is, but Ike has already opened it. Kenny's standing at the door and speaking to him, when he notices me and brightens with a wave.
"Ike, bubala, who is it?" I hear my mother call from the other room.
"It's just Kenny!" Ike calls, obviously somewhat miffed to have been interupted while he was watching tv. Kenny seems to frown, but it's hard to tell under his parka.
"Oh, is it! Kenny, dear, why didn't you tell me you were coming over before I started dinner?" She responds and Kenny mumbles out a response. I take a cue automatically and translate before she can ask him to repeat himself.
"He says he's sorry!" I call, "He also says he didn't know he was going to be coming over." Kenny mumbles something else and I add, "He also says it's okay, he can doesn't need to eat."
"Oh, nonsense sweetie!" My mother says, stepping out of the kitchen to look at him, "You and Kyle are both growing boys. You know you're always welcome here Kenny, I'll make you some macaroni." She steps back into the kitchen as Kenny thanks her emphatically.
Ike goes back to the couch, and Kenny turns to look at me. His face is obscured, but I can tell something is wrong. I frown, "Hey, Mom, Kenny and me are going to go up to my room until dinner's ready, okay?"
"Sure, bubala, try not to get to invested in anything though, you've only got about five minutes!" I take my cue and he follows me up. As soon as we're in, I shut the door and turn around. he won't look at me.
"What's wrong, dude?" I ask, and he winces.
"What, can you read me that well?" He mumbles beneath his coat, his hands tugging at the drawstrings of his hood. I frown, step forward and slap his hands away. He still won't look at me. I push his hood off his face and have to stifle a gasp, but I can feel my eyebrows shoot up in surprise. I try to mute my reaction, but it's so hard with bruises blooming all over his face. He still won't look at me.
"Dude..." I whisper, all I can choke out. This is the worst I've ever seen him. This must be because of Mysterion. His stupid night time vigilante bullshit did this too him. I can't stop my hand from touching the fresh cuts on his face and the way his lip is still bleeding. I feel anger bubbling up in my chest, and I wrench my hand away, whispering fiercely, "Dude! This Mysterion shit has to stop now. This is not acceptable." He blinks and finally looks at me.
"Mysterion? Shit, dude, no. My dad did this."
I'm not sure what to say. I can feel my face go from anger to shock and horror and pity all in one fluid motion beyond my control. His eyes drop again, and he shrugs, intent on staring at my carpet as he tugs his hood back up over his head.
"It's not a big deal," He starts, "I usually don't get caught up in my folk's fighting, you know. He was... you know. Mad. My folks left their heroin out last night and I cleaned up after them. He was pissed off because he couldn't find it."
I take a deep breath, "I'm sorry, dude." He tightens the drawstrings against his face.
"Like I said. It's not a big deal. I've had worse."
"That's... not really reassuring, dude."
"I just don't want social services involved. I don't want your mom to call them."
I frown, "She won't call. She doesn't get involved with other people's family's."
He seems to sigh, and his shoulders sink, the pressure relieved, "Good. Because I'm really hungry, and I can't eat with this on."
"Kenny, Kyle, dears! It's time for dinner!" My mother calls up the stairs. He brightens immediately, sliding past me to open the door and start down the stairs without me.
"Thank you so much, missus Brofloski!" I hear him say. There's a sharp intake of breath, he must have pulled his hood down. I wince, and follow him.
000
I'm outside, during lunch. I'd thought to take a walk, since they were serving pork today and I couldn't eat it. Watching everyone else eat was just making me hungry. I catch a flash of purple out of the corner of my eye and look over. Kenny is in his Mysterion costume, with his little sister. He hands her something, and she jumps up to hug him. She runs off and he watches her. He notices me, and I look away quickly. I know he brings her lunch money. He used to hide it in her backpack and tell her it was from their parents, I knew, because he told me about it. Recently, though, he's been bringing it to her in costume. I wonder why.
I turn back and he's already gone.
000
The doorbell rings. It's Kenny again. His hood is down, and new bruises blossom on his face. I'm not sure if he's simply no longer ashamed to show it, or that with the blue black mark erupting from his left eye he'd be unable to hide it, even with his hood. He's smiling, but barely.
"Hey, Kyle." He starts. I open the door, and he steps in. "Hey, missus Brofloski!" he yells. I shake my head.
"She's not here," I tell him, "It's just me. They're at a parent teacher conference with Ike."
"Oh," he says, and I can see the crestfallen look in his eyes. He spends a lot of time at my house. I think he likes the attention my mother gives him. I'm glad she does. I try not to talk about Kenny's home life because he obviously doesn't want to, but I'm glad to know he feels safe coming when things get to bad. "So it's just us?" He asks, cocking his head to the side."
I nod. He steps inside and shuts the door behind him. "You didn't eat yet, did you?" He asks. 'Can I have something to eat?' is what he means, I know, but he clings pretty desperately to the polite act.
"When was the last time you ate, Kenny?" His eyes quickly move away from mine, and he shifts uncomfortably, "Kenny, dude. I know you give Karen your lunch money. You hardly ever eat at home and you don't eat at school anymore."
He shrugs, "It's not a big deal."
"Not a big deal?" I ask, incredulous, "Dude, you'll starve yourself."
He sighs, "I can't-"
"Die," I finish, spitting the word. He looks ashamed, almost guilty, "Yeah, you can, dude. We all can. Stop it."
He just shrugs, and moves toward the kitchen, taking my reaction as a yes. He still hasn't answered me. I drop it.
000
He smiles. I don't.
"Kenny!" I yell. He's pinned against the lockers by what I think is a wolf. It's blue, though, so I can't be sure it's a real wolf and not, say, a shapeshifter, or physical hologram or something else I don't quite understand yet.
"Kyle, I can't die!" He yells back, as the creature rips his head off with its jaw. His body spasms violently, then falls limp. I can feel my body shaking, in abject horror.
"Y-you bastard!" I hiss at the thing as it drops back onto its feet, tossing Kenny's battered head to the side. I feel tears well up in the corners of my eyes. "Kenny- K-" I hear myself mumble, beyond my control. It takes a step forward. I turn and run.
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AN/ It's been a long time since I've written a multichap, and I really hope you can enjoy it! I'll do my best to update timely. Yes, it will mostly be vignettes strung together. There's a story, though. K2? Maybe. Probably. You all know I simply can't resist.
