South Down: Oh YES!
Dragon Slaer: Maybe.
Warknight216: No kidding.
Guest: Uh-huh.
Guest: Yeah, I wanted that scene to be both horrifying and cathartic at the same time. Honestly, Cartman's been overdue for a beating like that.
Guest: Moving on.
Guest (sure are a lot of these): Was wondering if anyone would pick that up.
Nicole980: Yeah, he figured it out, alright.
Time seemed to slow down for Kyle as he fell. For what seemed like an eternity, he almost appeared to drift peacefully through the chilly winter air. All sound was tuned out, from his own cry of terror, to the screams of his schoolmates as they saw him fall.
He was brought, painfully, back to reality as the feeling of his body hitting the river below engulfed him, and an agonized scream escaped his throat. For a moment, he was totally submerged underwater, the chilly water stabbing into his skin like swords. He thrashed violently, erupting towards the surface, giving a panicked gasp as he did.
Quickly, he was tossed to and fro by the violent rapids. He threw his arms to grab hold of anything to keep from being swept away, and his fingers managed to grasp one of the large rocks that surfaced above the river. Clinging to it, he held onto it as if he were hugging a family member. It was the only thing keeping him from being swept away by the river.
By now, the other kids were rushing to the side of the bridge where he had fallen. "Kyle!" Tweek shouted out in a panicked tone.
Kyle didn't dare look up, fearing that any slight distraction would loosen his hold on the rock. He buried his face against the rough surface, holding on for dear life.
"Kyle, hold on!" Clyde shouted down to him. "We'll call the police or something!"
"No way are they gonna get here in time," Token replied. "Does anyone have any rope or something?"
"Well, actually. . ." Craig said, taking out his bag. Unzipping it, he pulled out a long, thick chain.
"Wait, why do you have that?" Token asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Never mind that," Craig retorted. Slinging the chain over the side of the bridge, he called out, "Kyle, grab the chain!"
Several other kids joined in holding onto the end of the chain as they carefully lowered it towards the rock where Kyle was clinging to. The red-haired boy dared to glance up, seeing the chain dangling just a few inches away from him.
"Come on, grab it!" Token called out to him.
Kyle stared at the long chain, the key to his salvation. All he had to do was just grab it. . .
Except he didn't.
"Never!" He shouted vehemently, wrenching his head away from the chain and shutting his eyes tight. "I'd rather be swept away than be saved by any of you!"
The other kids winced slightly at his words. The boys exchanged worried glances.
"All you ever do is make things worse!" Kyle shouted in rage. "When that fiasco with the internet troll came about, you just turned on each other like fucking animals instead of trying to make things better! Your stupidity drove a nice girl, a girl half of you claimed to be friends with, into the hands of a creep! And when I tried to help her, you went and did the very thing I told you not to do, undoing all of my efforts! And now, you bait my worst enemy into attacking me just for your own fucking amusement!"
At that, Butters shrunk down in shame.
"And after everything, now you want to be heroes!" Kyle vented. "Well forget it! I'll save myself! I don't need any of you!" As he spat out his last words, he batted the chain away with his arm, sending it twirling by the side of the bridge.
The kids continued to hold onto the chain, the weight of Kyle's words starting to take effect. Craig let out a tired sigh as he exchanged glances with his friends. Nearby, Butters looked down at the ground, marred with Kyle and Cartman's blood, a feeling of disgust crawling through his gut.
At that moment, Stan, Wendy and Nichole reached the bridge. "Guys, what happened?" Stan asked, before he noticed the blood streaming across the ground and followed it to Cartman's broken body. "Holy shit!"
Cartman lay on his back, coughing up blood. His face was covered his bruises, and he looked as if he'd suffered a few fractures across his body.
"Kyle did this?" Nichole asked, in complete disbelief.
"Cartman started it," Clyde said quickly.
"Where's Kyle?" Stan asked him. Clyde tilted his head towards the side of the bridge, where the kids continued to hold the chain over, and Stan rushed to the end and looked down to see Kyle hanging onto the rock.
"Oh, shit!" He shouted, panicked.
"He tried to save me," Heidi whispered, clutching her sore knee. She was having trouble standing up after the kick she'd received from him.
"He won't grab the chain," Craig explained.
Stan stared down at Kyle as he clung to the rock. The redhead was struggling to pull his whole body out of the water onto it, but the rock wasn't large enough for him. If he tried to stand, he would fall off. The best he could do was crouch down on it, trying to keep from slipping.
Stan glanced at the chain, then to Kyle, then back to the chain. Quickly, an idea formed in his head. Looking up, he stepped towards the end of the bridge.
"Stan, what are you doing?" Wendy asked, worried.
Stan glanced over his shoulder to stare at her. "Fixing this," Was all he said.
And with that, he stepped off the bridge.
"Stan, no!" Wendy cried.
Stan glided through the air, his eyes sharp. As he fell, his arm shot out and grabbed onto the end of the chain. The sudden added weight caused the kids holding it to be jerked forward, but they held on tight. The momentum allowed Stan to swing through the air to the right of the bridge, before swinging back towards Kyle.
When Kyle looked to the side, all he saw was Stan swinging towards him, one arm on the bridge, the other outstretched towards him. All Kyle had time to do was widen his eyes in surprise before Stan slammed into him, carrying him off the rock in one fell swoop. He held on tightly to Kyle as they swung over the river.
"(Holy shit)!" Kenny shouted, stunned.
Letting go of the chain, Stan and Kyle were tossed through the air and landed in a heap on the ground beneath the bridge. They tumbled across the rough surface, coming to a stop a few feet off the side of the river.
"They made it!" Butters shouted, jumping for joy. Immediately, the kids rushed to get to the two.
Beneath the bridge, both Stan and Kyle were breathing heavily as they lay on the ground, dazed. Craning his head in Stan's direction, Kyle whispered out, "S-Stan? Why-"
"I-I'm sorry," Stan interrupted, getting onto his knees. "Everything - becoming student body vice president, the fundraiser, the video - it was all just a distraction. It wasn't what you actually needed."
"Stan," Kyle choked out, but sat up as he noticed their schoolmates practically tumbling down the hill towards them.
Nichole was the first to reach them. "Kyle!" She shouted, collapsing at his side and gathering him up in her arms. "What happened, dear?"
Kyle looked away, too ashamed to look her in the eyes after what he'd done. "I-I nearly killed Cartman," He confessed, wincing as he spoke. Nichole said nothing, her mouth hanging open in shock.
"It's all my fault," Butters said as he reached them, rubbing his knuckles together nervously. "I thought if Kyle beat up his worst enemy, he'd feel better about himself. I didn't think it would get this bad, though."
"It was me, Nichole," Kyle choked out. "It was all me. I wanted to kill him. I've wanted to for such a long time. And I nearly. . ." He stopped, tears beginning to stream down his eyes.
"Kyle. . ." Nichole whispered.
"Oh Nichole, I'm sorry," Kyle said, looking up at her with tear-streaked eyes. "I wasn't strong enough. . . to hold back. Just like when I got Canada nuked. Now Cartman. . . and Heidi. . . they're both hurt now. I'm not good enough." He pressed his face against Nichole's chest, trying to fight back the tears continuing to spill down his bruised, bloody face.
"Oh, Kyle. . ." Nichole said, hugging him close.
"That's not true!" A voice shouted out, causing all heads to whip in the direction of who had spoken, including Kyle. It was Heidi.
"You are strong!" She said. "You never give up! You slip and fall and you make bad choices, just like everyone else, but you don't let it define you! You always get back up and try to learn and grow for the better! We need you!"
Kyle stared at her, his eyes wide. Tear streaks still adorned his face, but he was no longer crying.
"And even if you disagree," Heidi went on. "You need us. You need your friends. And there's nothing shameful about that. Even the strongest people need help sometimes. I only wish I'd learned that sooner."
Kyle let out a deep sigh. Standing up, he wondered towards the end of the bridge wall and lay down against it. Stan sat down next to him.
"Hey, Kyle," He said. "At first, I didn't get why were hanging out with Nichole so much. And I guess I was afraid you wouldn't be my best friend anymore. It was stupid and selfish of me. The thing is, you like Nichole and if she makes you happy, she makes me happy, too. And if she's your friend, then she's mine, too."
"Thanks, Stan," Kyle whispered, smiling softly. "Though I don't know what you were so worried about. You're still my Super Best Friend, and nothing will ever change that." As he spoke, he rested his hand against Stan's shoulder. Stan gave an awkward grin.
Slowly, Wendy and Nichole sat down next to Stan and Kyle respectively, Wendy leaning her head against Stan's shoulder. They gazed at the river before them, at the spot where Kyle had nearly lost his life.
"So, what's gonna happen now?" Wendy asked.
"We become better people," Was all Stan said in reply as he rested his arm on Wendy's shoulder.
It was then that the kids heard the sound of something heavy being dragged on top of the hill. Glancing up to the side, they saw Cartman struggling to pull his injured form towards the edge of the hill.
"Guys. . ." He groaned out, blood still streaming from his mouth. "I think I broke something. Could use a little help here. Guys?"
Kyle sighed. "Speaking of becoming better people," He said, turning to Token. "Token?"
"On it," He replied, already on his phone and calling the ambulance.
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