I dreamed that you bewitched me into bed
And sung me moon-struck, kissed me quite insane.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)

God topples from the sky, hell's fires fade:
Exit seraphim and Satan's men:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.

-Mad Girl's Love Song, Sylvia Plath

The first day of school dawned hot and humid. Kyle was sweating as soon as he got out of the shower and he was feeling pretty gross by the time he made it to Harbuck's to meet Stan, Cartman, and Kenny to grab coffees before heading over to the school. He sat down at their table and Stan handed him his usual; an extra large vanilla latte with a triple shot.

"Dude, you should just break down and get an iced coffee or a frap or something. It's too hot to be drinking that," Cartman said, stuffing a huge breakfast sandwich in his face.

"Ugh, iced coffee. I seriously don't understand drinking coffee that isn't hot." Kyle replied, taking a sip of his drink. Stan wiped foam from his upper lip and smirked. "Dude, you're so picky."

"Jesus, can you guys give it a rest already? We haven't even started the school year yet and i'm already sick of you two." Cartman said, rolling his eyes. "I'm just glad that only one of you is in my homeroom so I don't have to deal with this every single morning."

"Back off, Cartman," Kenny said. He took a sip of a small black coffee. "Did you guys hear that that weird dude Mark moved back to town?"

Kyle's ears perked up at the name. "Mark? That homeschool kid? He's back?"

"Oh, my god, that guy is the best! Remember when he kicked your ass, Kyle? That was awesome!" Cartman started cracking up.

"Shut up, Cartman," Stan glared at him. "Are you for real, Kenny? Did he really move back to South Park?"

"I mean, I saw him when I was working at the gas station this summer. Him and his sister came in a couple of times." Kenny shrugged. "I just assumed they had moved back."

"This isn't good," Kyle groaned. "That dude hates me."

"Well, you did totally hit on his sister, man." Kenny remarked while squirreling away splenda packets in his pocket.

"I didn't hit on her. I just thought I liked her. I mean, she was super smart and I thought she was cute at the time." Kyle took the lid off his latte so he could stir in a little more almond milk. His thoughts drifted back to elementary school and...Rebecca, was that her name? Yes, Rebecca. At the time he had thought that she was really sweet and he had liked the fact that she seemed so smart and focused on her studies, much like himself. It wasn't until later and his subsequent ass-kicking at the hands of her brother that he'd realized that it was more of a passing curiosity. Now he couldn't imagine being attracted to her bc he was so tangled up in his feelings for Stan, and had been for a long time. He speculated that maybe he had transferred his actual longing for Stan onto her bc he had thought that she was what he was supposed to like. Who even knew anymore; he just didn't want to deal with her psychotic brother again.

"They seemed normal enough, I guess," Kenny was saying as Kyle broke from his thoughts. "They're still super close and awkward but other than that I didn't notice anything weird."

Stan pulled his phone out of his pocket to glance at the time. "Come on, you guys, we better hurry. We have like 15 minutes."

They all gathered up their bags and drinks and headed out of the Harbucks, the oppressive heat slamming them all in the face. For a fleeting moment Kyle wished that he had actually purchased an iced coffee instead but thought better of it; iced coffee was sickening as far as he was concerned.

"I'll meet you right here after class and we can walk to the cafeteria together, okay?" Stan was saying as Kyle slammed his locker shut. For the first half of the day they didn't have any classes together so they were going to be separated for the next couple of hours. Kyle nodded and pulled his messenger bag onto his shoulder. He leaned into Stan's kiss on his forehead, feeling glum. He missed him already.

"Don't forget, okay?" He asked, grinning.

"Don't be dumb, dude. I'll probably get here first." Stan replied, backing away.

"I'm going to hold you to that."

"You do that." Stan smirked and turned away. He waved over his shoulder as he hurried away to his homeroom. Kyle sighed and walked slowly into his own homeroom, scanning the room for a place to sit. In the corner Cartman was reading a comic book and eating chips and Kenny was sitting in the middle of the room, his head on his desk. It looked like he was trying to sneak in one last nap before the school year officially started. Kyle walked over and deposited his bag on the desk in front of him.

"Well, this sucks," Kyle said as he sat down. "We're all in here together so that means that Stan is going to be in homeroom all by himself."

Kenny yawned but didn't open his eyes. "He'll be fine, Kyle. You may not realize this but Stan is a big boy and he can take care of himself."

"I'm aware of that, Kenny. I was just saying, is all."

"Uh huh." Kenny folded his arms under his head, his eyes still closed.

"Hey, Kyle! Psst!" He turned around to see Cartman gesturing towards the door. Glancing over, his heart started to thud in his chest. Mark was standing there, looking bored. He had gotten a lot taller and his hair was styled differently but it was definitely Mark Cotswald. Kyle quickly looked away before he could notice him staring at him. He could hear Cartman laughing hysterically in the corner.

"What is that fat ass laughing about now? I'm trying to sleep here." Kenny grumbled, opening his eyes and sitting up reluctantly. He looked towards the front of the room and his eyes widened. "Dude, Kyle, it's Mark."

"Yeah, I already noticed that, Kenny. Hey, switch places with me so I can hide behind you." He started to pick up his bag when he noticed Kenny giving him a disgusted look. "What?"

"Dude, for real? What kind of man are you? You really want to hide behind your friends instead of just facing him? He kicked your ass like 10 years ago...I doubt he gives a shit about some petty crap that happened in elementary school."

Kyle flushed and set his bag back down. He knew Kenny was right but he still didn't want to just sit there and wait for Mark to go nuts on him again. "It wasn't 10 yrs ago. It was more like 8..."

"So? It still happened when we were all dumb kids. Just relax and stop making a big deal out of nothing. Goddamn."

Kyle gulped and sat back in his seat, trying to calm down. Realistically, he knew what Kenny was saying was true but he still felt unsettled. He hadn't seen Mark since he'd moved away from South Park the summer after 3rd grade, but he could still remember how unhinged he'd become when he found out that Kyle was interested in his sister. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead & he tried to take deep breaths to alleviate his anxiety but he still felt really nervous. He nearly jumped a foot out of his chair when the bell suddenly rang. He could hear Kenny snickering behind him and his hands clenched into fists under his desk.

"You need to calm the fuck down already. Why are you freaking out like this over something that happened years ago?! This guy probably doesn't even remember you. Get a fucking grip!"

He willed himself to relax, at least outwardly, but kept tabs on Mark in his peripheral vision as he made his way to a desk on the far side of the room. Thankfully, he didn't seem too interested in anyone else as he sat down, his attention focused on his phone instead. The rest of the period passed smoothly with the morning announcements blaring over the PA system and students asking questions about their schedules. Kyle idly checked his phone (being careful not to let the teacher see; one of the announcements had been about cracking down on phone usage in class that year) and was happy to see a text from Stan:

Is it time for lunch yet? ;)

Kyle couldn't help but smile stupidly as he responded:

God, I wish. You'll never believe who's in my homeroom.

The bell rang before Stan could respond. Pulling his crumpled schedule out of his pocket, Kyle checked to see where he needed to go next.

"What's your next class?" Kenny asked.

"Physics, great. I was hoping to have that class later in the day. I'm not even really awake until third period." Kyle groaned.

"Lucky you. I'm off to History," Kenny replied, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "I'll catch you and Stan at lunch."

"Cool, see you later, man." Kyle stood up and joined the crush of students as they made their way out into the hallway, taking care to stay as far away from Mark as possible. Mark still seemed completely engrossed in whatever was going on on his phone and didn't even bother to look up for the most part. Kyle hurried down the hallway, trying to avoid being elbowed in the face or carried away in the tide of students. He was thankful that the school didn't really seem as large as it used to, and he had no problem finding his next class. He wasn't surprised to see Wendy already waiting when he stepped inside. He imagined they would be sharing the majority of the same classes and knew that she was even more cutthroat about grades than he was. She nodded at him as he walked in and sat down next to her in the front row.

"Let me guess, you're taking nothing but AP courses this year?" She asked. She didn't bother to say good morning, of course.

"Naturally. You?"

"Yup." She pulled out her textbook. He noticed that there were already bookmarks and post-its sticking out of it. She'd probably read the whole thing and done all of the assignments already; he wouldn't put it past her. "I've heard this course is pretty tough so I wanted to come prepared."

"I don't really see you having any issues." Kyle remarked, pulling out his pristine textbook. He hadn't even opened it yet.

One by one the other students filtered in, with Butters and Token among them. The bell was just about to ring when Mark walked through the door, making Kyle immediately tense up. He drifted towards the back of the classroom and out of Kyle's line of sight.

"Hey, are you okay? You look really pale all of a sudden." Wendy whispered.

"Uh, I'm fine. I just feel a little tired." Kyle replied.

"Well, if you say so." She looked over her shoulder. "Who's that new guy? He looks really familiar but I don't know why."

Kyle swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to answer, but the teacher called the class to attention before he could respond. The teacher went through attendance quickly (Mark's "here" was exceptionally languid and disinterested, Kyle noticed) and jumped into the syllabus with very little preamble. It looked like AP classes were going to be all business this year; he could feel the air of tension coming from Wendy. Clearly, she was all business this year, too; no doubt vying for the coveted spot of valedictorian. Kyle groaned, already feeling tired.

The period seemed to fly by due to the teacher's intensity and before Kyle could take a breath another bell was already ringing. The rest of his morning passed in much the same way; bells ringing, overzealous teachers, and Mark walking into the room at the last moment, making Kyle's heart start pounding like mad. Wendy was indeed in almost all of his classes and they usually sat next to one another, conferring over notes and bouncing questions off of one another. Before he knew it, he was back at his locker waiting for Stan to walk to the cafeteria together. He was pouting when Stan finally rounded the corner.

"What's up with that face?" Stan laughed.

"You said you'd be here first, jerk." Kyle crossed his arms huffily.

"I got held up in Earth Science, dude. Relax." He put his arm around Kyle's shoulders. "I'm here now, aren't I? Loosen up; you're so tense."

"I'm always tense."

"Tell me about it." They started walking, Kyle leaning against Stan's side.

"Sorry I didn't get a chance to text you back...this morning has been crazy. Who's in your homeroom?"

"Oh, just Mark," Kyle replied. "In fact, he's in all of my morning classes. I guess I'm just lucky, huh?"

"It makes sense, though. I mean, he's a brain like you are, right? Of course he would be in all of your AP classes." Stan rubbed Kyle's head playfully. Kyle batted him away, annoyed at the gesture and his flippant attitude.

"The school year just started and everything is already ruined for me. That psycho is going to beat me to a pulp and you're here trying to be funny about it."

They arrived at the cafeteria and made their way to the snack line, where they could buy pizza and cheese fries instead of the usual school fare. They waved to Kenny who had staked out their favorite table from last year, his brown lunch bag laid out in front of him. Cartman was there too, scarfing down nachos. Butters, Craig, and Jimmy would probably join them before too long.

Stan fished his wallet out of his back pocket while Kyle grabbed a tray. "I'm not trying to be funny about anything, Kyle. I just think you need to lighten up about this. That crap with Mark happened when we were little kids...he probably doesn't even remember anything about it."

"God, you're starting to sound like Kenny." Kyle slammed a carton of chocolate milk down on the tray.

"Well, if that's what Kenny said maybe you should listen to him. He's just being logical." Stan reached up and took a slice of pizza out of the window. He put it back when he saw Kyle wrinkling his nose in distaste. "Sorry, I forgot you hate pineapple on your pizza."

"It's evil," Kyle said. "Just like iced coffee it doesn't make any sense."

"Like I said before, you are way too picky, dude."

"I can't help it if I like things a certain way." Kyle responded haughtily.

They paid for their food and sat down at their table. Cartman had finished the nachos and moved onto a huge strawberry cupcake. Kenny was munching on an apple and looking longingly at Cartman as he demolished the cupcake in two bites. Kyle slid a Coke over to Kenny wordlessly and he gratefully took it.

"Okay, one garden salad with no tomatoes, and a slice of plain, boring cheese pizza with no pineapple or pepperoni," Stan said as he handed Kyle his food. Ignoring him, Kyle primly drizzled vinaigrette on his salad. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a familiar person entering the cafeteria.

"Jesus fucking Christ, there he is again! I can't believe this!" He said, throwing his fork down. "This is unbelievable!"

"Wait, what? What's unbelievable?" Stan followed Kyle's furious look, his eyes settling on Mark as he walked across the cafeteria, once again engrossed in his phone. "Dude, is that Mark? He's gotten so tall." He took a big bite of pizza.

"He looks like he's waiting for someone," Kenny chimed in.

Mark had stopped in front of a row of vending machines and was looking around expectantly. A smile slid across his face as a girl bounded up to him, her long brown hair falling down her back. Kyle couldn't see her face but he had a feeling he knew who she was.

"Damn, is that homeschool's sister? She got like, super fucking hot, man." Cartman said in between bites of tater tots.

The girl turned towards them and Kyle's worst fears were confirmed. Both Rebecca and Mark were back in South Park and now they were all going to the same school. He groaned. "You guys, this is terrible. I have to deal with those two psychos at the same time." He hid behind Stan as Mark and Rebecca walked through the cafeteria and out the side doors to the lunch tables in the courtyard. Rebecca had grabbed a hold of her brother's arm and was holding it closely.

"What's the big deal?" Stan asked. "So they've moved back to town; why are you losing your mind over this? Besides, if anything happens, I'll protect you." He grinned.

"That's so reassuring," Kyle said, rolling his eyes. "I know I'm probably freaking out over nothing and being totally paranoid and ridiculous, but I just can't help it. I have so much going on this year and I just don't want any extra, unnecessary stress."

"Then why don't you take some pressure off of yourself? You always do this, dude. You overload yourself with super hard classes and extracurricular crap and then you have a nervous breakdown by the middle of the year. Not to mention you drive the rest of us crazy in the process." Stan opened his carton of milk and took a sip. Butters and Jimmy came over carrying trays and sat down before Kyle could formulate a response.

"Hey f-fellas. What's the h-h-happs?" Jimmy said, cheerfully. Butters plunked down a brown lunch bag and a stack of books. Soon after their arrival Craig and Clyde showed up too, setting down lunch trays and bags.

"Hey, did anyone else notice how fucking fine that homeschool kid's sister got since we were kids?" Clyde asked. He was sporting his letterman jacket and a bottle of Mountain Dew. He and Stan were both on the football team but Clyde liked to show off that fact more than he did. He'd been going out with Bebe off and on since they were kids but they were always fighting about one thing or another. Usually it had to do with Clyde flirting with other girls so it made perfect sense that he was the first person to bring up Rebecca.

"Wait, is she in your classes?" Kyle asked, puzzled. Clyde was taking all remedial courses due to the fact that he didn't give two shits about schoolwork or studying.

"Yeah, she's in a few and I have to tell you, she is looking pretty good these days." Clyde replied, a wolfish look on his face that thoroughly annoyed Kyle.

"I thought she was supposed to be super smart or something." Stan remarked, seemingly reading Kyle's mind. "Why is she in your classes?"

"Fuck you, dude." Clyde said, taking a giant drink of mountain dew. He exploded with a massive belch a few seconds later.

"Hey, didn't that homeschool kid kick your ass in 3rd grade or something, Kyle?" Craig asked with his usual tact.

"Yes, Craig, he did." Kyle responded in annoyance.

"Who's the h-homeschool kid, fellas? Fill me in." Jimmy asked. He hadn't moved to South Park until after Mark and Rebecca had already moved away so he'd never met them.

"We met him back in 3rd grade during this big spelling bee," Stan explained, rubbing Kyle's leg soothingly under the table. "His parents homeschooled him for his entire life so he was super weird and awkward and we gave him a really hard time about it after he started going to regular school with us. Kyle had a crush on his sister, Rebecca, and her brother kicked the shit out of him when he found out because he thought Kyle corrupted her."

"I know why they moved back!" Butters chimed in out of nowhere, smiling around at the table obliviously. "I help out in the office in the morning and I overheard Mark talking when he came in to pick up his and his sister's schedules. Their parents got a divorce and they decided to come back here with their mom."

"Well, that makes sense, I guess." Kyle said. "I just hope they both leave me alone."

"Dude, you're just being paranoid. Just let it go and leave the past in the past where it belongs." Stan said.

"I call dibs on homeschool's sister!" Clyde said, eyeing everyone at the table like he was challenging them. Kyle just sighed and went back to eating his salad.

Kyle's classes in the afternoon didn't pass nearly as quickly as they had in the morning. The only bright spot was AP English because he shared the class with Stan. They sat next to each other and exchanged goofy notes the entire period, laughing silently as the teacher droned on about what she expected from them that year and what books they would be focusing on. Mark wasn't in this particular class which helped improve Kyle's mood even more.

He was exhausted by the time the last bell finally rang. He practically dragged himself to his locker where Stan was waiting so they could walk home together. On their way out of the building they passed by Clyde and Rebecca who seemed to be having a pretty one-sided conversation, with Clyde leaning against the wall and leering at her. Rebecca just seemed puzzled and a little flustered; her cheeks flushed a cherry red. Mark was nowhere in sight.

They stepped out into the oppressive heat, Kyle holding up his hand to shade his eyes from the sun. Stan took his other hand and held it loosely as they walked through the courtyard.

"Clyde sure works fast, doesn't he?" Kyle said.

"Yep, he always has. I'm sure he's going to be having a huge blowup with Bebe before too long." Stan replied.

They turned onto the street right in front of the school where the sidewalk was shaded by huge elm trees. Kyle was relieved to be out of the sun and could feel sweat dripping down his back. He couldn't wait to get to Stan's house and into the air conditioning. He also couldn't wait to get there because Stan's parents were both still at work and wouldn't be home until almost 7:30. Shelly was away at college so that meant that the whole house was theirs for the next couple of hours. It was during these long, warm afternoons that they could curl up in Stan's bed away from prying eyes and just be together.

"I'm glad we decided not to tell our parents about us for the time being." Stan said as they turned onto his street. "That way I can have you all to myself for awhile and I don't have to worry about them nagging me or whatever about being home alone." He squeezed Kyle's hand and smiled at him.

"We'll have to tell them eventually, right? If we don't somebody else is just going to do it...you know how nobody in this town can mind their own damn business." Kyle was actually surprised that nobody had let slip that they were a couple already. All of their friends knew for the most part and people were always running their mouths.

"Yeah, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, I'm just enjoying having you in my bed with no interruptions." Stan responded as they walked up to his front door and he pulled a set of keys out of his pocket. Kyle flushed at his words. He had always been more bold and open about the things they did together up in Stan's bed, while Kyle was more reserved and shy. Stan could easily tell him everything he'd like to do to him, while Kyle would think dirty thoughts he could never possibly say.

They stepped into Stan's house, which was blessedly cool and dark; the curtains drawn against the heat and sunshine blazing outside. The only sounds were the lone ticking of a clock in the kitchen and the humming of the fridge. Stan dropped his bag on the couch and headed for the kitchen.

"I'm gonna grab a water and something to eat so we can just head upstairs. What do you want? We have diet coke, lemonade...?"

"I'll just take a lemonade," Kyle said, starting for the stairs. "Do you mind if I borrow one of your shirts? I feel so sweaty and gross."

"Sure, take whatever you want. I'll be up in just a second."

Kyle ascended the stairs and went to Stan's room, shutting the door behind him. He quickly shed his shirt and threw it on a chair, relishing the feeling of the ceiling fan throwing cool air across his damp skin. Goosebumps rose along his arms and his back as he rifled through Stan's dresser. He didn't bother to turn around when he heard the door open and close behind him, and continued to search for something to wear. He was just about to pull a shirt out of the drawer when he felt Stan's arms wrap around his stomach slowly. A moment later, Stan's lips were on his shoulder, trailing kisses along it and up his neck. Kyle shivered and leaned back against him, closing his eyes.

"You know, you don't really have to put a shirt on. I'm just fine with how you are right now," Stan murmured, his lips very close to Kyle's ear. His warm breath on his skin almost made Kyle moan, and he reached out to grab the dresser because his knees felt a little weak.

"I'm actually a little cold now," Kyle responded in a breathy voice. "With the, uh, fan and air conditioning on, you know?" His whole body seemed to flush as Stan continued to kiss along his ear and neck and shoulder. Kyle was beginning to feel so turned on that he could barely form a coherent thought. Stan ran a finger under the waistband of his boxers, teasing the skin there; he also decided to bite Kyle's shoulder softly. Now Kyle really couldn't think clearly.

"I think I can keep you warm enough, babe. I'm really not worried about that. Come here." He led him to the bed and Kyle sat on its edge, looking up at Stan expectantly. Stan took off his shirt and kicked off his shoes, and Kyle saw how his jeans were slung low on his hips; the waistband of his plaid boxers standing out starkly against his pale skin. He walked over to where Kyle was waiting for him and pushed him onto his back, his head resting against the pillows. Stan laid on top of him, cradling Kyle's face in his hands as he kissed him slowly and deeply; his tongue licking his lips open and then exploring his mouth. Kyle could feel Stan's firm stomach resting against his own, and he arched his back so that the entire length of his abdomen and groin were pressed tightly against Stan's.

"Mmm, you feel so good." Stan said, softly. He was running his fingers through Kyle's hair. Slowly he slid his tongue along the column of Kyle's throat, nipping his skin lightly with his teeth every now and again. Pleasure bloomed in Kyle's stomach and he almost felt hazy and drugged from what Stan was doing to his body. He didn't mind that Stan usually took control like this; if anything, he preferred it and reveled in the way he seemed to take possession of not only his body, but his mind. It was almost like he was a drug and Stan couldn't get enough of him; and his hands and mouth would rove possessively over every inch of Kyle's form.

Stan moved down Kyle's throat, leaving kisses on his collar bones and down along his chest. He moved slowly down Kyle's abdomen, licking and kissing the faint ginger hair that trailed from his navel down to the edge of his boxers. Kyle felt so overwhelmed that he almost didn't notice that Stan was beginning to undo his belt buckle, and with a trembling hand he reached out to stop him.
"No, I-I'm not ready for that yet, Stan." He said.

"I wouldn't say that," Stan responded, smiling darkly. He sat up and his hand came to rest on the front of Kyle's jeans, startling him as he squeezed the area gently. He gasped at the sensation of being touched there, as he had never allowed Stan to do it in the past. It was very obvious that he was incredibly aroused, and he seemed to become more turned on as Stan gripped him a little tighter; almost possessively.

"You feel very ready to me."

Kyle turned his head away, feeling the cool pillow on his cheek. He couldn't look at Stan while he was touching him like that, and he could feel himself blushing. "That's not what I meant. I just..."

"You just what? Kyle, you're driving me crazy here. I've been patient and waiting since the beginning of the summer...I don't know how much longer I can stand it." Stan said, his hand not budging. His voice had a slight edge to it that made Kyle nervous.

"I'm not trying to upset you, I just think we're moving too fast."

Stan sighed. "Okay, okay. Look, what if I just touch you over your boxers? Is that okay? You don't even have to take off your pants...I'll just push them down a little."

Kyle peered at him out of the corner of his eye, considering. "Well, I guess that would be alright. But you can't look, okay? You have to promise."

"Fine, fine, I won't look. Although, trust me, you don't have anything I haven't seen before." Stan replied.

"That may be the case but I just don't want you looking at me yet. I still have to get used to all of this." Kyle pouted.

"I know, baby. Now hush and let me enjoy this."

Stan lay on the bed next to Kyle after he was finally allowed to undo his belt and nudge his jeans down over his hips. Once again, he placed his large, hot hand on Kyle over his boxers, making him whimper slightly as he adjusted to the sensation of having his cock stroked by someone other than himself. He was so aroused that he could barely stand it, and as Stan closed his hand around him and started to pump along his shaft slowly, he thought he was going to pass out because it just felt so good. Feeling almost hypnotized, he raised his hips slightly, pressing himself into Stan's hand even more.

"See? You like that don't you?" Stan said huskily, and he started to move his hand faster. "Come here, I want to kiss you as you come." He reached his hand around Kyle's head and turned his face towards him, hungrily kissing his lips as he continued to stroke him. The heat increased in Kyle's body and the sensation that he was getting ready to explode any moment built inside his cock, leaving him breathless.

He was pushed over the edge when Stan thrust his tongue inside his mouth and gripped him just a little bit tighter; pumping him like he was born to do this for Kyle and Kyle alone. Kyle couldn't bite back a loud moan as he came in his boxers, feeling the heat of it as it connected with his skin. He felt like his entire body was on fire; like every nerve was being electrified and lights and shooting stars were blazing before his eyes and inside of his brain. When his body finally relaxed and he started coming back down to earth, Stan kissed him more aggressively than before, like they were making an unspoken agreement that Kyle belonged to him and no one else.

He lay there for a moment, dazed and riddled with the aftershocks of an amazing orgasm, while Stan gripped his hip and pulled him closer to him. Nibbling on his earlobe, he whispered in Kyle's ear softly, "I knew you'd like that. Just wait until..."

Kyle looked at him tiredly. "Until what?"

"Until you let me do everything I want to do to you. It's going to be amazing."

"I'm just sorry that I didn't, you know, reciprocate." Kyle said, feeling weirdly bashful all of a sudden.

"Oh, yeah? Well, I can help you take care of that." Stan said, starting to unbutton his jeans.

"No, stop! I can't!" Kyle yelled, grabbing Stan's hand.

"That's what I thought." Stan laughed. He grabbed Kyle's chin and tilted his face towards him. He kissed him lightly on the lips. "You are so fucking cute."

"And you're a pervert." Kyle said, sitting up.

"Guilty as charged. But, hey, one of us has to be. If it were up to you we wouldn't even be holding hands at this point. You're just so...god, what's the word? Chaste, that's it. You are definitely chaste."

"You make me sound like some kind of princess, Stan. Ugh, I seriously need to take a shower. Now I'm sweaty and I, uh, well..." He cringed as he stood up, his sticky boxers clinging to him.

"I mean, you do kind of act like a princess, dude. You're pretty high maintenance, you know." Stan said. He was stretched out on his side, his head propped on his hand and he looked amused.

"Whatever. Can I have a plastic bag? I need something to put my clothes in when I go home because I am not wearing these boxers for another second."

"Sure, yeah. Go take a shower and I'll grab you a bag. Hey, I can even join you if you like." Stan smiled brightly.

"No, thanks. I can handle this alone. I guess my jeans are still okay to wear, and my t-shirt feels a lot dryer so I can put that back on. Besides, I can't just go home wearing your clothes, my mom would never shut up about it. Just let me borrow a pair of your boxers." Kyle started rooting through the top drawer of Stan's dresser and pulled out a pair.

By the time Kyle had finished showering and dressing it was almost 6:30. He groaned when he noticed the time.

"Dude, I have to go. It's getting kind of late."

"What? But my parents won't be home for almost another hour. You don't have to go yet." Stan said, grabbing his hand.

"No, I really should. I have homework and my mom wants me home for dinner by 7. Besides, I need to get a jump on the reading for my classes because they are seriously not playing around this year. I don't want to get behind." Kyle stood up and grabbed his bags.

"Okay, fine. You'll be coming over tomorrow after school though, right?"

Kyle sighed. "I can't. Tutoring starts tomorrow. I'll be at school until 5:30 at least. Oh, and then I'm interning at the doctor's office the day after that. If I play my cards right I'll even get to sit in on a vasectomy reversal." He glanced at Stan, excitedly. He was surprised to see the annoyed look on Stan's face.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"The year has barely started and you're already crazy busy." Stan complained. "We only have like one class together and now I won't even get to see you outside of school."

"That isn't true. I'll be free Friday night and besides, it's not my fault that you didn't want to do AP classes." Kyle replied, frowning.

"I'm just not obsessed with my grades and studying like you are." Stan snapped, crossing his arms.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize giving a shit about my future was a bad thing! Excuse me while I throw everything away so that I can spend every waking moment with you!"

"So spending time with me is the same as 'throwing everything away' as far as you're concerned? Wow, Kyle, go ahead and tell me how you really feel."

"Ugh, that's not what I meant and you know it!" Kyle said, throwing up his hands in annoyance.

"So what did you mean?" Stan asked more softly now. He sounded hurt.

Kyle went and sat next to him, softening at the hurt tone in Stan's voice. "I just meant that I have a lot of goals that are really important to me, and I..." He looked away, trying to formulate his thoughts. "I guess I'm just really bad at balancing my work with a relationship because I've never had to do that before, you know? Like, I have to get used to doing certain things with you, and I also have to figure out a way to have enough time to do everything I want. I'm just trying to figure everything out and it's harder than I thought it would be."

"Well, I guess I could be more understanding about your schedule." Stan said. "It's not like I didn't know about how intense you are about school and volunteering and stuff before we got together. You were pretty clear about it."

"Why don't we go do something this Friday? Like, I don't know, go on an actual date? What do you think?" Kyle suggested.

"I'd like that," Stan said. He stood up and stretched, his long torso taut. For some reason the motion kind of turned Kyle on.

"Walk me to the door before I lose my mind and jump your bones." He gathered up his stuff and started towards the door, avoiding Stan's attempt to grab his ass.