Chapter Twelve:

I could hear him sigh heavily from across the hall. I sighed too in response, remembering this situation from before. His locker had been jam packed with pads and he just discovered them. I went back into the bathroom and sat down in the cripple stall. I locked the door and plopped myself down on the floor. I lit my cigarette, knowing good and well it was my last one and that I'd have to go buy more. I didn't care. I needed it more than ever.

I know that Pip is going to come in here in a few minutes, blubbering about his situation, and I know it is going to be very hard for me to not get up and try to comfort him. I wanted to leave before he came in here, but there was nowhere for me to go. There was no rewinding again, so I don't want to get into any trouble. I took a long drag of my cigarette and threw the butt in the toilet. On second thought, I'm not going to buy more cigarettes after school. I'm going to quit. I'm going to quit everything. No more prostituting, drinking, and drugging. I wasn't immortal anymore and now, more than ever, I want to live.

I heard the bathroom door open and shut and the internal lock click closed. Then I heard the crying. My heart ached, listening to him go on like that. I bit my lip and tried my best to sit still. He gurgled and snorted when the pad fell off of him and I couldn't help it anymore. I got up, unlocked the stall, and exited it. He gasped when he saw me and shame consumed his face. I felt my heart ache even more, but I said nothing.

"Kenny?"

I ignored him and unlocked the bathroom door. I ran out and proceeded to run out of the building. I couldn't handle being stuck just a few feet from him and not being able to comfort him. I kept running as far as I could and then walked the rest of the way to my apartment.

Once inside I opened up all my cabinets and started to pour all my alcohol down the drain. I proceeded to drain the ones in my refrigerator and even my emergency stash. I threw all the bottles in the trash. It took two bags to hold it all. I went to my bathroom and took all the pills I had and flushed them down the toilet. I went throughout the house, looking for any kind of drug and threw or flushed anything I could find.

I plopped down on my couch and breathed in relief. Maybe this can be a fresh start? Maybe I can get serious about school and make my way out of the God forsaken town. I just wish Pip could have a fresh start. Its not like he could flush or throw away his adoptive parents. I snorted, enjoying the visual I came up with.

As I sat there, staring at the black screen of the TV, an idea came into my head. I ran over to my desktop computer and pulled up a word processor. I started typing away.

I sat there in that uncomfortable chair and itchy robe as Kyle blathered on about our futures after high school. I wasn't in the first row of graduates, but sitting there in that second row was a huge accomplishment. I had started attending all my classes, doing all my homework, and studying for all the tests and my GPA had raised exponentially. I was actually, technically, in the top fifteen percent of my class and I couldn't be anymore proud of myself. It might sound vain, but I deserved it. It was a hard and long road quitting my habits.

I had to get an after school job and downgrade to a practically cupboard sized apartment, but I made it. And I wasn't the only one who made it. I looked in front of me, into the front row, and smiled at the sight of Pip sitting there in the fourth chair. He had a huge grin plastered onto his face and his eyes twinkled with pride. The best part of it was that it was my doing.

God said I couldn't talk to him, but he didn't say I couldn't email the counselor at school with an anonymous tip to pull up Pip Pirriup's sleeves. To my relief the counselor actually acted on the tip. She had found what he did and called his parents. They ended up sending him to an inpatient treatment facility for a month or so, but once he came out he was a whole new person. Or not really a new person; he was the person that he had been pretending to be. He was happy, bubbly, smart, and confident.

After hearing what Pip had resorted to, most of the bullies stopped picking on him. Some of the more empathetic kids talked to him out of pity, only to find out what a charming person he was. He wasn't lonely anymore. Butters, Wendy, and the new kid named Damien were his friends now. I heard in rumors that he was planning to go to the University of Colorado in Boulder to study English literature. I couldn't be happier for him.

The rest of my high school years didn't turn out as well as his, but it's okay. I didn't make any friends, the stigma from my past behavior too strong. I didn't get into any competitive universities like him, but I did get into one of the junior colleges in Denver. I'm planning on moving there, going to school, and eventually becoming a drug and alcohol counselor. And I'm really, really hoping that I can find someone of the caliber of Pip in Denver.

"Kenny McCormick!" The announcer proclaimed and I walked across the stage and received my diploma. A few people cheered for me and it was good enough. I looked down at Pip's face and he was beaming up at me. I felt my heart flutter in response, but I reminded myself of the situation: Me not being friends or anything with Pip was the best thing that could have happened to either of us.

-.-.-.-

A.N.: And that's it. I hope you guys like the ending and, of course, the story as a whole! I would love to hear some feedback from you guys, so please review! And share it with your friends. ;] I'm sad to see this pairing go. Hopefully I'll write another story with this pairing one day.

Thanks for reading my story!