Chapter 3 – Chemicals between us

Craig got home at 8pm, and since they were leaving at midnight, he had enough time to pack the whole house if he wanted to. He opened the front door of his soon-to-be-ex-home and didn't even bother to take off his shoes. He approached the stairs and glanced towards the living room. There, sitting on the couch with a beer in his left hand and a remote control in the other, sat Thomas Tucker, clearly unaware of his son's presence or intentions. Not that he cared. Neither him nor his wife ever did.

Craig started climbing the stairs, making sure to skip the third step that always creaked, and quickly made it to his room. Usually, he wouldn't give two shits if anyone was bothered by the sound, and he'd sometimes step on it as hard as he could, but not today. This time, he had to be as quiet as a mouse. Once he entered his room he went straight to his closet and pulled two large suitcases from under a tall, wooden wardrobe. He grabbed every single item of clothing he owned, along with his books and laptop. He even took down the Red Racer posters that have been hanging on the walls for the last 10 years.

When on the verge of leaving their childhood house, one would usually have second thoughts. A *normal* human being would stare at the room that had sheltered him or her for so long and flashbacks would start forming in his/her mind. Craig was sure as hell not having any second thoughts. By the time he was ready packing, there was nothing left in the room apart from an empty bed, two nightstands, a desk and a chair. He was actually thinking of taking the curtains and the damn rug with him!

"All set" Craig said to himself while standing in the middle of the room, hands on hips, his silver eyes analyzing every single corner of his chamber. Nothing that could remind someone of his existence had to be left behind.

"Now, to prepare you for the trip" he murmured, turning towards his desk, where a little green hamster cage was standing. Inside it there was a brown guinea pig that had a long white stripe on its back.

"Today is the day, Stripe." Craig said as he refilled his pet's water bottle. "We're finally getting out of here. I just hope Nana won't mind me bringing you along. I mean, she was happy when I told her about my plans and when I mentioned McCormick she was actually excited and kept going on about how relieved she was hearing that I have a friend or …something like that. She'll adore you, no doubt about it." he smiled, gently petting Stripe's head with one finger.

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11pm. Just one more hour until departure. The house was as silent as a grave.

Craig quietly dragged his two large suitcases out of the room and closed the door behind him. He sneaked down the stairs, carefully avoiding the third step and glanced yet again at the living room, where he spotted his father sprawled on the couch, snoring loudly. Perfect.

He succeeded in getting out of the house, and made it to the garage where his blue corvette was patiently waiting for him. He quickly opened the trunk and tossed his suitcases, making a mental note to leave some space for Kenny's own luggage, and then tried his best to close it as silently as he could. He then returned inside, grabbed Stripe's cage and without even taking a last glance behind, he closed the door of his bedroom for (what he hoped to be) the last time.

Just as he was about to open the front door, he heard a cough behind him. He froze. "They got me" he thought, biting on his lower lip. Craig sighed and turned around, expecting to see his parent's figures sitting on the couch, arms crossed and glaring at him, but instead, he was met by someone with long red hair and half-lidded green eyes. Ruby, his little sister. She was just coming from the kitchen, a glass of water in her left hand, while she used the other to cover her yawn. The moment their eyes met, Ruby slightly flipped her brother off, and went upstairs, scratching her back.

…?

It took Craig almost 30 seconds to understand what just happened, but since Ruby ignored him completely and just casually went back to bed, he decided to let it be, and ran back to the garage.

He opened the backseat door and gently put Stripe's cage on the black leather couch and buckled it up. Safety measures, first. He hopped in the driver's seat, turned on the ignition, and off he went. Next stop, the McCormick residence.

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Blue eyes full of anxiousness glared into the dark, searching for a sign. Many cars passed by, but none were dark blue, looked new, or were driven by a black-haired teen with a blue chullo. God dammit.

Kenny sighed and ran a hand through his blonde locks. He should've waited inside by the window…he also should've taken his time with packing the bags. But he was just SO excited, the moment he got home from school, he started throwing everything he owned in an old, worn-out suitcase. And, considering how poor he was, that didn't take long. After packing, he sat by the window for almost an hour, grinning like an idiot, before declaring himself bored and deciding to wait for Craig outside.

Two hours later and here he is, standing stupidly by his run-down fence, suitcase at his feet, while he's constantly checking his phone. It's almost midnight and finally, Kenny spots a car that suits his description : dark blue, new, driven by a chullo-wearing dude. Hallelujah.

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Craig stopped the car in front of McCormick's house and waited for Kenny to put his bags inside the trunk. Once everything was set, Kenny adjusted himself in the passenger's seat and so the long ride began.

"Hey, Tucker" Kenny smiled to his left, quickly analyzing the car. "Nice ride. I see you're punctual as usual and –oh!" his eyes widened for a moment before grinning and turning again towards Craig. "You brought the rat with you?" he teased.

Craig glared at him for a second before looking back at the road. "Her name is Stripe and she's a guinea pig, you moron."

"Ooh! So it's a she" Kenny exclaimed and he turned again, trying to pet Stripe but failing since she was up in her little, cosy, plastic house, not giving any signs of wanting to be touched.

"Yeah, she's a girl and apparently, not interested." the noirette slightly smiled, eyes still on the road.

"Fuck you, man" Kenny laughed and turned on the radio. He skipped some channels and randomly pushed some buttons before hearing a familiar line.

*I want you to remember*

"O-o-o Craig! Listen!" Kenny shook Craig's arm.

* A love so full it could send us all ways*

"Dude it's Bush!" the blonde smiled, looking at the radio as if there was something very interesting written on it.

*I want you to surrender *
*All my feelings rose today*

"I can't believe they play such amazing songs on the radio! It used to be full of commercial songs and other crap."

"Trust me, nothing's changed. You pressed the CD button. It's my music that's playing."

"Dude, this is my favourite song! It kinda suits us, don't cha think?" Kenny grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at his friend.

"Don't make me hate it and delete it, McCormick." Craig said, trying to sound as bored as ever. But maybe he was trying too hard.

And maybe Kenny realized that. He was no idiot. You can't delete things from a CD...but that wasn't the point. He could read people very well and he knew that deep down Craig thought about them too, when he downloaded the song and put it on his CD. But he'll never admit that. Kenny'll just have to wait a little longer.

*I'll try not to complain*
*I know that's a pisser baby*

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I don't own the South Park characters, I just borrowed their names…and appearance… and some other stuff.