The class felt as though it dragged on, lunch time not able to arrive soon enough. When the bell rang to let them out, the mass of hungry students charged for the door. Clyde was the first one out, calling back to his friends he'd meet them in the cafeteria before disappearing into the crowd.

Tweek got up from his seat and carefully packed up his bag. It wasn't that he had anything really important he wanted to keep safe, but rather, he was hesitant to go to lunch. After that, he wouldn't see Craig again until the day ended.

Craig snorted at Clyde's fast disappearance and got up to join Token, waiting for Tweek at his table. He watched the blond absentmindedly and tapped his fingers against his pants, thinking about his photography project. He wanted to integrate his friends into it since he hoped they would be in his future but he didn't know if he should take a group shot or do it in a different way.

Tweek joined the pair and they headed down to the packed cafeteria. Clyde was already seated at their usual table, munching away on his lunch with a gusto. They put their bags down at the table, then went to stand in the quickly growing line.

Craig made sure Tweek was between him and Token since the other students liked to push and get way too close and Tweek was glad for the safe haven that was the space between his friends' bodies. He wasn't a very large kid, in fact he was rather small, which made him an easy target. At least, it made him look like one.

They went back to the table Clyde was sitting at after everyone had gotten their lunch and Craig stared at his apple juice bottle with a sad expression since it hadn't even lasted until they reached the table. They were just too small for one growing teenager. He began eating and Token started talking about how his father was planning on taking him to the office so he could see if he maybe wanted to become a lawyer himself one day.

"Ugh, that sounds like torture," Clyde groaned around a mouthful of sandwich. "Unless that's up your ally, then yay."

Tweek slipped his juice onto Craig's tray, having gotten it specifically for that reason. He wasn't a fan of the drink, preferring to just go to the water fountain if he needed too.

Craig looked at the juice and lit up. "Thanks." He popped the cap off and stuck a straw in, listening to his friends conversation, sneaking glances at Tweek every now and then. Just to make sure he was doing alright. Or so he told himself.

Tweek was picking at his food as was his routine. He had been a little chubby as a child, but now, he was thin, and didn't seem to eat very often, and when he did, it wasn't much.

Craig looked back to the others just as Token shrugged.

"I mean it might be interesting. But I'm more interested in becoming a pharmacist or something like that. I know it will probably be boring though. Dad hasn't accepted any cases at the moment so we will probably just be looking through files." He took a bite out of his mashed potatoes. "What's going on with your father, Clyde?"

"You know, not a whole lot," he answered, taking a drink of his milk. "He's been really busy at the store lately, so I haven't actually gotten to see him much this week. He's gone before I get up and I can't stay awake until whenever he gets back. I tried. He does leave little notes around the house though, so I know he was there." He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a slightly crumpled note. "This one is from yesterday, before I came over."

The note read: Sorry I haven't been able to be around, Clyde. I'll do my best to see you this weekend. Love, Dad

"That's tough... The notes are a nice idea, though." Token gave it back, having a few more mouthfuls before changing the topic to school rumors about the newest escapades of Stan and his gang of absolute douchebags. The newest one was about how their actions had led to the White House's security to be fired, but there was only guessing as to how or why it happened in the first place. Some said Kenny had snuck in to make out with the first lady, but Craig knew that Kenny wasn't the actual whore he was depicted as. Another was claiming Cartman decided they were a security testing company now and him and the others had successfully destroyed the entire security system. Not as far fetched as some other ideas, they agreed.

Craig watched Tweek some more before asking. "Not hungry, or do you dislike the food?"

"Just not hungry," he answered, pushing around a bit of macaroni.

Craig nodded and kept eating. It wasn't anything new but sometimes he couldn't help worrying a bit. He stretched and waited for the topic of Stan and co. to end. When it did, he looked around. "Hey, anyone wanna come to the pet shop tomorrow? I need some stuff for Stripe and the other two assholes. Heard they have some new animals, too."

Clyde nodded. "Yeah, sure, dude," he agreed. He noticed Tweek deflate a little and looked at him in concern. "What's wrong?"

"I can't go," Tweek said, setting down his fork. "I have to work."

Token looked at him concerned. "Do you ever have a day off? You can't do school and have full working shifts every day. I can't believe your parents make you."

Craig pulled a face at the thought of Richard Tweak. "Not surprised," he mumbled.

"That can't be legal, can it?" Clyde asked, worried for their friend. If anyone deserved a break, it was Tweek.

"Since it's a family business it is," Tweek murmured, wrapping his arms around himself and hunching over. He really wanted to hang out with them, but there was no going against his father.

Token hummed. "Do you have any day off? I can't come along tomorrow either so maybe we can go another day? Do you need the stuff urgently, Craig?"

He shook his head. "No, I just wanted some more toys and maybe treats, but we have some left at home, too. I do need to go this week, though." Token looked at Tweek questioningly.

"I have to ask for time off," he said, fidgeting uncomfortably. He disliked when he made others fuss over him. He didn't feel like he was worth it.

Craig tapped the table in thought. "Maybe if I can come around earlier today we can ask your mother?"

Tweek sighed softly. "If you want to come by the shop, it'll have to be right after school. My parents don't hang around long on Mondays."

Craig shrugged at that. "I can do that. I'll just leave for a bit after asking and come back again later then."

Token nodded. "Tell them we have a group project we need you for. I really miss being able to hang out with all three of you idiots."

Craig flipped him off but agreed. "We haven't met up as a group since beginning of the year."

"I mean, you don't need me to all hang out together," Tweek commented. He knew he was the latest addition to the group.

Token frowned. "If we want to hang out with the entire group, we do. You're a part of the group Tweek." Craig nodded and Clyde voiced his agreement, adding that, if Jimmy was there, he would have said yes too. Embarrassed, Tweek nodded.

Token hummed. "Actually, I'm meeting up with him later today. I bet he'd be up for the pet shop, too."

"Fuck yeah!" Clyde cheered excitedly. "Hangin' with my bros! I live for this, guys, I'm pumped!" Token grinned widely too and Craig also felt his excitement rise at seeing them this hyped up.

"We'll talk to them today, then."

He bumped his shoulder softly against Tweek's to show his encouragement. "I'll bring Stripe earlier if you want to. For good luck."

"You don't have to go out of your way," Tweek answered, shooting him a slight smile. "I'm just glad I won't be alone tonight."

He looked over at Tweek and smiled back. "Me too," he agreed and it was true. He was indeed looking forward to spending time with him this evening. "Should we just ask to give you a day off or use the project as an excuse?"

"I don't know," he said with a little shrug. "The answer is about even whichever we pick. It really won't matter, it just depends on how generous they feel when we ask."

Token grumbled something unrecognizable before huffing. "Family business or not, this can't be legal. Do they at least pay you?"

Tweek nodded. "Yeah, that's the one thing they do." Sure, it was only minimum wage, but when you were like Tweek, unable to go anywhere to spend any of that money, it didn't really matter as it just began to stack up.

Token hummed. "Well, that's something at least." He ate the last bit of his lunch before adding, "I'll ask my dad about this later." It was nice of Token, but Craig doubted it would lead anywhere. "We'll see what comes out of it."

Craig bumped Tweek again. "I need one of my coffees. Wanna come along to the lockers?"

Tweek nodded and they stood up, dumping their trash into the garbage and putting up their trays, heading out of the cafeteria towards their lockers.

"Are you alright? I hope we didn't make you uncomfortable," Craig said as they strode to the lockers and he opened his tiny cooler, revealing he had only one left. "Gotta stock up on these…" He didn't actually want the drink right now since he'd just had apple juice, but he wanted to give Tweek some breathing space without seeming rude in case they had actually made him uncomfortable.

"I'm fine. Just not fond of being the center of everyone attention." Tweek's brain betrayed him again, adding on, I only like being the center of yours. He paced back and forth a bit as Craig went in his locker, glad to be out of the cafeteria. It got pretty loud in there and sometimes it was almost too much.

"Figured," Craig said, sipping his coffee and sliding down the lockers to sit on the ground. "I really wish your parents were more reasonable. It's not like we're four anymore and you can't make your own decisions."

"I know." Tweek rubbed at his arm again, then slid his hand down to his wrist, gripping it and twisting it back and forth a few times before switching to his other hand. "I don't know how to talk to them," he admitted. He wasn't sure why he knew he could trust Craig with his deepest thoughts, but he did, and there was no stopping now. "I can't tell what they want. From me, each other, the shop. I have no idea how they feel about me either, they react to everything the same way. Dad just starts to ramble about this or that until he just kind of stops, then mom nods. How am I supposed to interpret that, man?"

Craig nodded, understanding what he meant and, being friends with Tweek for quite a while, having experienced this exact situation multiple times. He patted the space next to him so Tweek knew he could sit down next to him if he wanted to. "I think he likes to hear himself talk. And I don't think anyone wants to listen to the bullshit he says so he just rambles to himself to feel important." He tapped his foot in a random beat. "If he starts rambling about something unrelated when we ask him, I'll just tell him thanks for letting you off and if he asks what I mean, I'll improvise some deeper meaning out of his words or something. Maybe he'll be too confused to disagree."

This got a chuckle, and Tweek sat down beside him. "That sounds good. I'm sure you'll stop him using that method."

Craig leaned against him, which wasn't difficult since the actual tall part about Craig were his legs, allowing him to rest his head on Tweek's shoulder. "It's a plan, then." He closed his eyes for a bit, focusing on the distant chattering from the cafeteria.

Tweek was happy to sit in the hall in silence with Craig, feeling the other pressed against his side. He allowed his eyes to drift shut, listening to the soft inhales and exhales of his companion. They had been quiet for a good three minutes when Craig spoke up.

"It's really nice to see you this calm every now and then." He opened his eyes halfway to look down at his best friend.

Tweek hummed softly in response. "It's nice to feel this calm, too," he said, remaining in his relaxed position.

Craig smiled. He felt happiness bubbling up inside and the light pressure in his chest made him feel the need to spill his secrets and thoughts. He didn't, but he got close to it when he replied, "I'm happy we're friends. I feel like I can really trust you and you're a lot of fun. And-" He bit his lip and tried to keep talking but he suddenly felt too self-conscious, so he ended it with a lame, "Uh, yeah."

Tweek opened his eyes and looked up at him, giving him a little smile. "I'm glad we're friends too, Craig. I feel safe with you, and like I don't need to worry about things when you're around." It was hard to say something so cheesy, but in the moment, it felt right, as though it was exactly what he was meant to say.

Craig held his breath a bit, feeling his face grew warm as he stared back intensely. Tweek's eyelashes were really dark. It brought out his bright eyes and Craig really didn't know where that thought came from, though he blamed his sister and her love for making him sit through rom-coms to poke fun at and-

"You're very pretty," he blurted and that was really not what he had wanted to say.

Tweek's face turned scarlet, his eyes widening as he sat up. His mind raced to come up with a response, but his brain was fried, giving him nothing to work with. He stuttered out a few syllables, trying to form a 'thank you', though it came out a jumbled mess of nothing. In his chest, his heart was pounding hard. Craig had just called him pretty. Him. Tweek Tweak was pretty to Craig Tucker.

Craig stared back blankly, not sure how he was supposed to react or how to fix it, so he tugged his chullo further down his face to hide the blood rushing into his cheeks full force. Tweek was stuttering unrelated words and he could've punched himself for disrupting Tweek's calm like that.

"Sorry. That... probably sounded weird. I mean it though." He wasn't about to go back on his words but he wished he hadn't opened his mouth. He scratched at his cheek hard nervously, hoping he didn't make Tweek go back on his words about feeling safe around him.

A shaky hand lightly brushed his, moving it away from his face. "Y-You'll hurt yourself," he managed to get out. "Um... T-Thank you. I uh... No one's ever said that to me before..." He looked away, a tiny smile was playing on his lips, his happiness evident.

Craig stopped scratching, hoping Tweek didn't let go but feeling weird about that thought right after. He saw Tweek smile and couldn't help but relax, some of the tension leaking from his shoulders, allowing him to slump against the lockers once more.

"Pity." He muttered. "Might really help your self-esteem to hear it, uh, more often."

The teen tugged at his hair nervously, his other hand still holding onto Craig's. "Yeah, maybe."

Recovering, his mind was screaming at him to give Craig a compliment as well, but he couldn't decide on one. Should he compliment his looks back? Would Craig think he was just copying him? Say something about him being smart? Was that too pandering? Ugh, why were compliments so hard!?

"I have no idea what you are thinking about, but I can tell that, whatever it is, you are overthinking. Calm down, Tweek." Craig smiled and turned his hand in Tweek's to squeeze it softly. He shifted a bit to pull his legs closer. "We kind of left the others in the cafeteria, huh."

Swallowing hard as he tried to get himself under control, Tweek nodded. "Yeah, we did do that, huh...?" Shit. Fuck. Fuck shit shit fuck! He'd missed his chance! He would probably never have a golden opportunity like this again!

Craig looked at him, then quickly looked away again. "Think we should, uh... go back? Or something?" He took their hands from his face and rested them on his thigh, staring at them instead of Tweek. He really didn't have much experience with situations like this. Especially since he couldn't even exactly tell what kind of situation this was.

"Nng, I... I'm fine here... I-If you are too, I mean!" He may have ruined it, but he wasn't eager to leave their tranquil moment either.

Craig looked up, surprised, positive he had made the situation awkward enough that Tweek wanted to get out of it. "Sure." He squeezed his hand again and looked back to their fingers, frowning as he tried to make sense of the situation. He checked the time on his phone quickly, seeing they had about fifteen minutes left of lunch. Students would be coming around to check their lockers soon.

He texted Clyde that they wouldn't be back for the break and then let his hand drop on his other thigh. "Wanna go check if one of the empty classrooms is open?"

Tweek nodded in agreement, slowly removing his hand from Craig's to stand up. He started to mess with his fingers, tugging at the bandaids covering them. Craig let go unwillingly, missing the feeling of it as soon as it was gone. He looked after Tweek's hand, and, when Tweek began pulling on the band aids, he grabbed it again.

"You'll mess those up," he said, leading the way towards one of the classrooms that he knew was empty at the moment, pulling Tweek along lightly. He held his hand loosely enough that the other could pull his hand back.

He didn't, rather, he held onto Craig a little tighter. Tweek liked the feeling of holding Craig's hand. It was warm and comforting, as where most things about Craig to him. Tweek knew that he saw Craig differently from everyone else, but... maybe... maybe Craig saw him differently too?

Craig tried not to smile uncharacteristically bright when he felt Tweek tighten his grip.

He tested the first door, which was locked just like the one after. The third one swung open for them and Craig held it for the Tweek to walk in. Inside, he looked around before deciding to pull Tweek towards the table at the window, where the sun was shining onto the desk. They sat on the table, looking out at the classroom covered in shadows, their hands firmly locked together. After a moment of silence, Tweek spoke.

"H-Hey, Craig?"

Craig hummed, taking another second to look back at his friend. Something about his tone made him nervous and he shifted his legs a bit.

Tweek cleared his throat a few times before continuing. "I just, uh, I want you to know..." He was shaking harder than usual, his nerves making it impossible to sit still. "I-I really like having you as a friend. You make me f-feel safe and happy and..." He took a deep breath, then turned to face him.

"And I, nng, I like you as more than a friend."

Craig stared at him, mouth hanging open from wanting to answer Tweek's first words, but losing the ability speak, hardly able to process what exactly his friend meant.

"I- You-" Craig realized very fast that he had to answer quickly in order to not make Tweek panic full force but he hadn't expected this to happen at all. He hadn't even considered this situation as something that even could happen. But he needed to say something, so he pressed out a very caught off guard and confused, "...Me?" that sounded higher than it should have. He could have slapped himself.

He thought of the past weeks and his confusion, and how Tweek had seemed to actively search out his presence and something clicked, even if he couldn't completely place it yet. He didn't said anything else, too surprised and stunned.

Fear blossomed in the pit of Tweek's stomach, and it showed on his face. He felt as though he was going to be sick, and was grateful he had skipped lunch. He let go of Craig's hand, drawing his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, giving a silent nod.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said it," he murmured quickly, his heart beating frantically as his brain screeched to fix his mistake. "I don't want to lose your friendship, s-so just forget I said it, please." His tone had a hint of desperation to it. What would he do without Craig? He was his closest and oldest friend. Sure, he liked the other guys, but he was pretty sure they were Craig's friends before they were his. There was no guarantee that if Craig left, they wouldn't too.

Craig wanted to punch himself in the face. This was exactly what he had wanted to prevent, but it'd happened anyways. He leaned back, hands covering his face and kicked his legs in an uncharacteristic show of frustration.

"Sorry..." he mumbled, voice low and muffled behind his palms. He took his hands away again, needing to look Tweek in the eyes so he understood that he meant what he was about to say. He leaned forward. "I need you to listen closely to me. Don't panic, I'm not dropping you over this, okay? Are you ready?" Maybe he could somehow fix this.

Tweek's eyes searched his face, worried and slightly confused. Ready? Ready for what? He let his legs drop back down, his nerves making it impossible to keep them up any longer.

Craig made sure he had his full attention before breathing in and out. "I'm sorry I reacted like this, I genuinely didn't expect you to say that. I..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I can't tell you that I like you back like that because I don't know. This is hard. Wow. You're amazing, honestly, and really fun to be around and you-" He pulled a face. It was really weird spilling all this. He was already feeling his embarrassment bubble back up again.

"You make me feel safe, too. Otherwise I couldn't even say this right now. I don't do this kind of talk often as you probably know." He laughed awkwardly. "Just- I have been feeling different about you recently and viewing you differently, too, but I can't name those feelings yet. And... I never... thought about my sexuality. At all. It's..."

Craig huffed and looked at Tweek, desperate for the right words and any help he could get. "I haven't had enough time to figure things out yet. I'm sorry. This is not a rejection! I think. I need more time before I can genuinely comment on this." He dropped his eyes again, burrowing his face in his hands again. "You really caught me off guard, ha ha. Sorry, I don't mean to hurt or scare you." After a second of silence, he asked, "Can I have your hand back?"

It would be a bold faced lie to say Tweek didn't feel hurt stinging his heart, but at the same time, he felt comforted. Craig hadn't run away, hadn't yelled at him, called him names, or even really said no.

"I understand," he said, grabbing onto Craig's hand lightly. "I didn't mean to spring all that on you. It just felt like a good moment. Uh, I mean, to be honest..." He blushed lightly, looking at the floor. "I haven't really thought about my sexuality either."

"Thanks. For understanding. And for telling me." Craig locked their fingers together feeling more confident in his next words. "This feels nice, for example. I don't think I would hold hands with Token. Maybe with Clyde because he's a touchy crybaby, but even that would be different." He thought about it more before shaking his head. "Actually, never mind. I wouldn't. That would be really weird."

Tweek's lips twitched and he giggled softly. "Thanks for not running away from me," he said. "I was afraid you would hate me if I told you." He bit his lip, then added, "Are... Are things going to be different between us now?"

Craig shrugged. "Probably. I mean, this is a pretty big thing, right? Would be weird if it didn't at least somewhat. I don't want to pretend it never happened. That would be mean. And also a lie." He shuffled a bit closer to Tweek. "Doesn't mean it's going to be different in a bad way." He felt his heart beat speed up before he said, "Your laugh is nice. I like hearing it." He started playing with Tweek's fingers for something to do with his hands.

Flushing, Tweek smiled, though both faded quickly as he relaxed from Craig's gentle touch. "What's going to change?" He was almost afraid of the answer.

Craig frowned, stopping his fiddling with Tweek's fingers for the moment to think about it before resuming the action. "This?" He wasn't entirely sure himself. "I mean, we haven't held hands before. So this might be something that happens more often." He thought some more, then shrugged. "And maybe some more compliments. I might be awkward every now and then but I'm not sure right now. Maybe I'll actually stop secretly staring at you and instead do it openly." His voice was deadpan but there was a spark of humor in his eyes as he said that.

Tweek spluttered in surprise, turning to look at his friend. "You stare at me?" He wasn't uncomfortable with this, merely surprised. He couldn't think of a reason someone would watch him, he wasn't exactly the most exciting person. Unless you liked random twitching and grunts.

Craig's words did help sooth him, however. He had been afraid that Craig had meant they wouldn't hang out as much. or maybe that these kinds of intimate moments would stop. He was glad to learn that hadn't been his plan.

Craig fidgeted around a bit. "I do. Usually because I want to make sure you're doing alright, and sometimes just as a pastime. I like watching you draw and read because you do funny expressions then." Craig didn't mention he kept shoving his actual reasons away and finding excuses. If he thought about it, it kind of terrified him to think he might have a legit crush on Tweek.

"I guess I'll take it as a compliment then," Tweek said, smiling shyly. "I didn't know you cared so much. I mean, I knew you did, I just didn't- What I mean is-" He stumbled over his words, realizing his meaning may have been lost and trying to get back to his point, which unfortunately seemed to have abandoned him.

Craig pursed his lips. "I know you don't really feel like you're a part of our group, but I can assure you that you are just as much as Jimmy, Token, Clyde and me. We all care about you a lot." He squeezed his hand in reassurance and smiled.

Tweek had never been happier to be cut off in his life. He let out a breath and nodded, squeezing his hand back thankfully.

"Now that that's settled for the moment... want to relax a bit? The sun feels pretty nice," Craig said, smiling expectantly.

With a nod, Tweek agreed, and they shifted closer to the window, remaining there until the bell rang.