Craig's POV

I walk into the kitchen, grabbing a bag of popcorn and tossing it into the microwave. As the popcorn continues to cook, I lean against the kitchen counter and sigh, thinking about everything that happened today. I actually kissed Kenny, of all people. And I don't even like guys. Do I? I did it on my own free will. Do I like him that way? No. I don't. Fuck that. He's annoying as hell. I just did it to be a dick and prove a point.

I'm pulled out of my thoughts when the microwave beeps. As I open the door, the smell of that fake-ass salty butter begins to waft around the room, overwhelming my senses. I open the popcorn, pour it into a large bowl and walk back into the living room.

Kenny smiles at me, looking happy as ever. I want to slap the look off his face, but I won't. Instead, I sit down on the opposite end of the sofa so a cushion is separating us. I put the popcorn down on said cushion. "What's good?" I ask, nodding towards the television.

"Pulp Fiction is on," Kenny says. "I haven't seen it, but everyone says it's really good. Want to watch?"

"Sure, whatever," I murmur.

I begin to zone out when the movie starts, but Kenny seems to be thoroughly enjoying it. I feel like this would be a movie I'd like, but I can't seem to pay attention to anything. I'm strangely restless and fitful. I don't know how long I'm simply sitting here in thought, but I'm brought back into reality when Kenny says, "Oh, uh..."

I stare at the television as a man is being raped. "Oh," I echo Kenny's word.

Then the rapists are killed. For some reason, I find that incredibly satisfying to watch.

"Sorry," Kenny apologizes. "I didn't know... I didn't..." he trails off, tongue tied.

"It's fine," I insist with a snort. "Jesus Christ."

As the movie goes on, I can't seem to stop fidgeting. My mind's racing, replaying the events that took place today and I can't focus on the movie. Soon, I begin to feel sick. When it becomes too much, I excuse myself from the living room and sprint up the stairs and into my bathroom. Closing the door behind me, I slide to the floor and lift the toilet seat up before puke explodes out of me. I grip onto the porcelain seat as I continue to heave. Once I finish I flush the toilet and turn around to sit against the wall. I hold onto my chest. My heart's beating like I just ran a marathon and I'm struggling to breathe.

Soon, I hear a knock. It's probably that shit-stain trying to see if I'm okay. "What?" I ask in a raspy voice.

"Are you okay?" he pries.

Called it.

"Yeah, I just got nauseous," I tell him, standing and flushing the evidence away before opening the door to let him in. He watches me with a cautious eye as I turn the sink taps on and rinse out my mouth.

Annoying. Why is everyone so annoying?

"Did you just throw up?" he questions.

"Yeah, I did," I snap, turning the taps off with shaky hands. "Don't worry about it."

Kenny walks closer to me and places a hand on my shoulder. "Do you want me to leave so you can get some sleep?"

After this episode or anxiety attack or whatever this thing was, I'm feeling fucking exhausted. I look at him through the mirror and weakly say, "No offense, but that would be great."

He smiles slightly. "None taken."

I walk him to the door and wave him off before going back upstairs. I change out of my day clothes and get comfortable. My eyes hurt. My head hurts. My throat is sore. My mouth tastes like shit. I rinse my mouth out once more before retreating to my room and lying down. I feel like I could sleep forever.

Kenny's POV

On my way home, I see Stan and Kyle. God, they're so gay it's fuckin' adorable. "Hey, guys," I hold up a hand.

"Hey, Kenny!" Kyle greets.

"What's up?" Stan asks.

"Walking home from Craig's," I answer easily. "What are you guys doing?"

"Wasting time," Kyle says. "How's Craig doing with his expulsion?"

"He doesn't seem to care," I admit. "He's never been really into school. His grades are shit anyway."

"What exactly happened?" Stan asks. "I know Craig and Cartman hate each other but Craig's not the kind of guy who goes around and attacks people."

I can't say anything. If I say that Eric was blackmailing Craig, they're going to want to know why and sooner or later, I'll wind up telling the whole story. "I don't know."

Kyle scoffs. "Yes you do, you were fucking there!"

I roll my eyes. "Fine, I do know, but I can't tell you. Craig would kill me."

Stan and Kyle glance at one another, swapping unsure looks. "You've been doing a lot with Craig lately." Stan says, sounding suspicious. "Are you, I don't know... into him or something?"

I groan. "God, I told Kyle this earlier. I don't expect anything from Craig, I'm just helping him out with a personal issue because I care about him as a person."

"So... You are into him," Stan answers, reading between the lines of what I said.

"Fine, yes!" I admit, throwing my hands up. "Why does it even matter?"

"It just does," Kyle says. "Don't get sidetracked. Help him, but don't try to force anything."

"I'm not," I insist. "Besides, Craig knows how I feel. I don't think he cares, though. Which is fine."

"Not surprising," Stan snorts. "He's a dick when it comes to people's feelings."

"Watch it," I warn lightly.

Stan just smirks and Kyle adds, "Either way, be careful. People like Craig are self-destructive. He's bound to blow up eventually."

I wave a dismissive hand. "Whatever, I'll see you at school tomorrow." I quickly walk away from the two, shoving my hands into my pockets. I'm almost home until I get a text from Craig.

CRAIG: You forgot your laptop here.

Shit. I don't want to go all the way back to his house. It's late enough as it is. But I need it for school tomorrow. I text him back.

ME: Shit! And I need it for tomorrow! Do you think I could come to your house early tomorrow and get it?

CRAIG: I'll just meet you at the bus stop tomorrow.

ME: Thank you so much! I owe you big time!

CRAIG: No you don't. See you tomorrow.

At home, I'm alone. No surprise. I decide to head to sleep early since there's nothing better to do around here.

.

.

Come morning, I meet the guys at the bus stop. When I think Craig might not show up, I spot him walking on the opposite side of the road, messenger bag in hand. He looks both ways before crossing.

"You ain't allowed on school grounds," Eric reminds him.

Craig doesn't even spare him a glance. Instead he pulls my laptop out of his bag and hands it to me. "Here."

"Thanks," I smile, tucking it carefully in my back pack.

He simply nods and walks away, ignoring Eric's derogatory comments. Even when Craig is out of site he continues to rip on him. "Oh my God! Isn't he such a fag you guys! I mean –"

Before he can say anything more, I punch him in the gut, sending him to his knees. "Dude, shut the fuck up!" I say, immensely irritated.

Coughing, Eric looks up at me and growls, "Make me!"

Before I know it, I'm on top of Eric, hitting him. I continue to punch him until I'm quickly dragged off his body by Kyle. Stan stands in front of a screaming Eric, trying to block him from hitting me.

Kyle pulls me away from the fat ass and whispers. "Dude, you can't get angry like that. I know you care about Craig, but if you go off like that at school, you're gonna be in the same position as he is."

I try to defend myself. "Yeah, but –"

Kyle interrupts me. "Kenny, it's going to be like the whole breast cancer scenario all over again, but this time it'll be you fighting Eric, not Wendy." He pauses. "Do you even remember what happened to her after that fight? The principal threatened to expel her. She was suspended for five days, and this is Wendy we're talking about."

I let out a frustrated sigh. "Good thing we aren't on school grounds, then."

The bus soon pulls up and we all get on it. The drive to school seems longer than usual and when we get there, I immediately part from my friends and make my way straight to first period. The day has just begun, but I already can't wait for it to be over.

For once in my life, I sit in the front of the class. When Stan, Eric and Kyle stroll through the door, they all sit in the back. We all listen to the teacher drone on about things no one cares about until the bell rings. I'm the first one out the door. I might be acting like a dick, but I swear if I am near Eric I might not be able to resist the urge to smack him.

When gym comes along, I place my bag into a locker and close it. There's no point in locking it, because people don't think it's worth it to steal from the poorest kid in school. I quickly get changed into shorts and head for the gymnasium. Once I arrive, I realize I'm the first one there so I decide to lie down on the bench for a minute. I close my eyes and try clear my head. 'Just avoid Eric and you won't get yourself into trouble.' Soon everyone starts to walk in, socializing with one another.

"Hey Kenny?" I open my eyes and see Clyde standing over me. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

I sit up and he leads me out of the gym and into the change room. "What's up Clyde?" I ask, slightly confused.

"I know something's wrong with Craig," Clyde says in a soft yet serious voice. "I've also noticed you and Craig have been hanging out a lot more lately, so I just wondering if you knew what was going on."

"No clue, dude," I lie easily. "Why ask me? Go ask Craig."

"He doesn't talk to me..." Clyde murmurs.

"And what?" I start. "You think even if I knew something that I'd tell you his secrets?"

"You do know something," Clyde argues surely.

"Maybe I do," I vaguely relent, "but it's not my story to tell."

"I want to help him," he sighs. "He's my best friend."

"Some things are hard to get out," I tell him. "And Craig has always been big on secrets. Just be there and don't treat him any different. Don't tip toe around him. That'd just piss him off."

Clyde sighs again, getting whiny. "He's never going to tell me..."

"So, what?" I ask. "Maybe you don't need to know."

"Was it something to do with Cartman?"

"No," I say. "The fat ass just pissed him off. Work-related drama, you know how it goes."

"Is that why Craig is like, freaking out?" Clyde pries. I just shake my head and he frowns. "Y'know... don't tell him this, but sometimes I think there's something really wrong with him. It's like... he doesn't see some things the way normal people do."

I wrinkle my nose at that. "Well, what would you define as normal? Who knows, maybe we're the weird ones." I make my way towards the door and before I show myself out, I turn my head, looking at Clyde peripherally. "Like I said, whether he's fucked up or not, you just have to be there for him. Treat him normally and don't pussy-foot around him."

Clyde speaks up. "I don't want to possibly lose my best friend because of some secret." His voice cracks. "It makes me feel like he doesn't trust me."

All I can do to respond is nod and walk out the door with my head down.

.

.

Gym class goes by unceremoniously and then it's lunch period. I decide to escape through the back door and loiter on the stairway behind the school. I sit near the bottom and take off my book bag, digging around until I find a plastic baggy with my weed. I fill my pipe and take a few puffs.

Before I know it, Clyde is back and this time he's with Token, Tweek and Red. Lovely.

"Hey," he says.

They all take seats and I offer Tweek the pipe since the other three are straight. Tweek gladly takes it. He says it helps him calm down. Funny, I thought it would have made him worry more than he already does.

"Kenny," Red says, deciding to be the first to speak. "What's going on with Craig? We're his friends..."

"We're his friends," I repeat her. "So, what? That means you deserve to know all his business? It doesn't work that way, chickie. Go talk to Craig. Maybe he'll tell you about his expulsion or whatever it is you want to know about. Shit."

"No, that's not what I meant," Red says calmly. "We're his friends and we care about him. We're just concerned for his well-being."

Token, Tweek and Clyde all nod their agreement.

"So you want to know if I know anything." I state.

"We're aware that you know something, but we know that you're not going to tell us," Token says with a sigh. "So there's no point asking."

"B-but we wanted to -ah!- see if you c-could tell us how we should -gah!- approach Craig w-while he's like this," Tweek says, taking another puff from the pipe.

I stare at them, confused. "Wait, why me?"

"Because you're the only person Craig is actually talking to," Clyde points out. "I told you this earlier. He won't talk to any of us, as if he's trying to push everyone away."

"Except for you," Red adds.

I let out a long sigh. "Like I said, just be normal. Don't ask him if he's okay. Don't question him. That will only piss him off. You guys need to be patient and understanding and if or when he's ready, he'll tell you. But it has to all be on his own time. If you try and force it, then it'll be just a pointless confession that will likely make things worse." Things, meaning his coping mechanisms.

"It was something really bad, wasn't it?" Red asks quietly.

"Yeah," I say. "Shit always happens to people who don't deserve it. It's the cruel law of the universe."

Red sighs, but smiles slightly. "Thanks Kenny. Y'know, you would make a great guidance counselor or something."

I snort at that comment. I don't think they realize that I'm dirt fucking poor and I can't afford to go to university. Or better yet, the fact that I don't want to.

"Yeah!" Token agrees. "You're a decent person, people trust you and you give great advice."

"Really?"

In unison, they all say, "Yes!"

I smile a little at that. I'm not really used to compliments of this sort. "Thanks guys, but I think I'm just gonna focus on the present and not worry about my future until the time comes."

They all nod in understanding, say thank you one last time and walk away, leaving me with my bag and little pipe.

I take a few more puffs before putting it away. I stare at the ground, at the snow, off into the distance, up at the sky. I linger, wasting a little more time before returning inside.

Hopefully Craig's friends will leave things alone for a little while. He just needs more time.

I stroll to my next class. I'm a bit late, but the teacher doesn't call me out for it. I saunter in quietly and take the first empty seat I spy. Since I'm stoned, it's a bit hard to pay attention, but I still try. I don't make a habit of going to class high. That was Craig's thing. Freshmen year he greened out in class. I don't think he's too into weed anymore. Overdoing things always puts it into perspective.

Before I know it, class is over and my buzz has died down. Just in time for English. I have no idea how I'm going to finish my independent project by tomorrow, but I'll just wing it. Not looking for a perfect grade anyway. I take my seat and reach in my bag to grab my laptop as Garrison wearily says. "Alright everyone, this is your last class to finish your project, but since I know most of you dumbasses didn't even try to do the project the first day, I will let you take it home for the night to finish."

I, along with many other students, sigh with absolute relief.

"Remember, you need to write an essay about the comparisons between the book we read in class and a book of your choice. So if you haven't done that, I suggest you restart your project." He sits at his desk and puts his head down, obviously planning to take a nap. "Y'all got an hour."

Soon, nothing but the sound of laptops clicking, pencils scribbling on paper and Mr. Garrison's light snoring can be heard throughout the classroom. Surprisingly, this project is pretty simple for me and it isn't long 'til I have half my project done. I look at the clock to see how much time I have left. About ten minutes. I decide that I've deserved myself a break and leave class to use the bathroom, not even bothering to ask if I can be excused.