It's finally here! I'd say hopefully the next chapter doesn't take six months, but we all know that'd be a lie. Regardless, I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Kyle arrived at the bus stop later than the other boys, Ike following a foot or two behind. Both of them looked exhausted. Of course, nobody would blame them; that is, if anybody actually knew about what had happened in the last few days.
Gerald had still not come back after two days of being gone. Sheila, as expected, was stricken with panic, completely incapable of focusing on anything else. She was a mess. The house was a mess. Her two sons weren't much better, either. Neither of them wanted to return to school after their father's disappearance, but they had been absent enough already.
"Kyle?" Stan was the first one to speak once they reached the bus stop. "Hey, dude! Where've you been?"
Kyle met Stan's gaze with dull eyes. If things had been the way they were just a few months ago, he might've opened up about everything right then and there, from the argument with Gerald to the events that followed suit. But in that moment, there was something telling Kyle to keep his mouth shut. "I… was sick. We all were. It kind of spread throughout the whole house," he lied instead.
Kyle knew his friends wouldn't be of much help unless he told them everything that had happened, including his suspicions about the link between Gerald's trolling and his subsequent disappearance. The problem was, none of his friends knew that his father was Skankhunt, and there were several reasons why Kyle wasn't keen on sharing that fact. For starters, he knew Cartman wouldn't let him hear the end of it; after all, he had participated in destroying all of his electronics. That was honestly already enough reason in his mind to keep quiet. There was, however, a fact much worse that loomed over Kyle's head.
His father was the reason Wendy broke up with Stan, and he himself had helped him in the end. Stan would be heartbroken or furious or both. All the boys who had been dumped in the past month would. Perhaps he was being selfish, but Kyle just didn't couldn't deal with that, not with everything he was already worrying about. He held his tongue.
"Oh no, that's horrible!" Cartman gasped, placing his hands on his face mockingly. "Well, I hope you guys didn't come down with a case of… Bitchitis!" He shot his friends with a smirk, anticipating their laughs. "Ha! Get it, Kyle? Bitchitis?"
"The flu, actually." A stone-faced Kyle responded. He didn't have the energy to deal with Cartman at the moment. In fact, the thought of facing the whole school day was enough to fill his stomach with dread.
Stan's eyes narrowed. Clearly he knew something was up with Kyle, but he decided not to say anything about it. "What about Ike?"
"Huh?" Kyle blinked. "I told you. He was sick."
"I know. I mean, why's he at the bus stop with you?" Stan pointed at the four-year-old standing by Kyle's side.
Kyle glanced down at Ike. His little brother normally would be driven to school by Sheila, who worried about him getting picked on by the older kids since he was so much younger. Their mom was now too busy stressing out over Gerald to drive him, though. "Oh. Yeah, Mom was too sick to drive him today."
Ike, who was just about as responsive as usual these past few months, didn't say anything. Ever since the nuking of Toronto, the two hadn't exactly been on speaking terms. Being honest with himself, Kyle had not made much of an effort to talk to his little brother since then, but only because he had no idea what to say. He figured his brother just needed some space.
"I'm telling you, guys, it's Bitchitis." Cartman piped up, his voice breaking with chuckles. He was making the slightest of efforts to sound serious, though it wasn't working too well. "Why else would Kyle's mom have been hit with it the worst? You should really take her to a doctor!"
Stan shot Cartman a glare. "Dude, would you just shut up?"
Kyle didn't respond, only rubbing his temples and sighing. He could hear Stan and Cartman start to bicker, which was something of a strange occurrence these days, but he didn't care enough to pay attention to what they were saying. When the bus pulled up, Kyle got on without saying another word to his friends. He picked a seat alone near the back of the bus and buried his face in his hands, trying to tune out everyone around him.
The school day had been just as draining as Kyle had expected. Worse, even, because now that Mrs. Nelson had taken President Garrison's place as teacher, he could no longer just blow off his school work whenever he pleased. Kyle had never imagined he'd actually miss Garrison's ramblings about The Love Boat and lack of actual teaching, but boy, he really could've used an easy day. Unfortunately for him, Mrs. Nelson had real expectations and wouldn't just let him slack off.
Kyle opened the front door to their house for Ike, who hadn't spoken to him all day. In all fairness, he himself had been avoiding talking to anyone as well, but it was still strange to walk in complete silence. His younger brother promptly ran off to his room, leaving Kyle alone in the much too quiet living room.
He considered sitting down to watch TV like he normally would after school, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to break the silence. Besides, he doubted that he'd be able to focus much on whatever he was watching anyways. Instead Kyle quietly wandered down the hallway, stopping when he noticed that the light was on in Gerald's office.
Kyle opened the door open cautiously, not surprised to see his mother sitting alone in the dimly lit room. When she lifted her head, he could clearly see the bags under her eyes. Based on the way Sheila was faced towards his dad's computer, he could assume that she had either recently been looking through it or was planning to do so soon. Either way, the screen was black now. When his mom didn't say anything in greeting, Kyle spoke up.
"Mom?" His voice sounded kind of lame, though he truly couldn't think of much else to say. "Are you… are you alright?"
Sheila turned to face Kyle. "I'm fine, Bubbe. Is there something you need?"
Kyle bit his lip. "No, I was just wondering what you were doing." Hesitantly he added, "Have you found anything on Dad's computer?"
"I haven't looked yet." His mother admitted, letting out a weary sigh. "I keep thinking I should, but it feels so wrong to invade his privacy like this."
Maybe if you'd invaded his privacy sooner, there wouldn't have been a gender war at the school, Kyle wanted to say. Gerald didn't deserve Sheila's trust. Still, he just stayed silent.
"But I need some kind of tangible evidence to bring to the police, or they'll dismiss the case." She continued, shaking her head. "They aren't taking it seriously; they think he just left on his own accord."
"The cops in this town are useless." Kyle muttered through clenched teeth.
Sheila clucked her tongue disapprovingly. "Kyle, you should have more respect for law enforcement. That reminds me," she added, glancing at the clock, "I've got to leave at five o' clock. Some of your father's friends agreed to help me look for Gerald. Can you watch Ike while I'm gone?"
"Sure, Ma." Kyle murmured, though he doubted that he would have any kind of authority over his little brother. He wasn't going to delude himself into thinking Ike had any respect for him anymore, but he didn't want to burden his mother with another thing to worry about.
"Alright. I'll give you the run down before I leave." Sheila replied as she gathered up a few loose sheets of paper. She noticed that Kyle had gone quiet, an almost contemplative expression on his face. "Is there something else you wanted to talk about?"
Kyle nodded hesitantly. "Mom… do you remember Skankhunt?" He wondered briefly if he was making a mistake. He probably was. There was a moment of hushed silence before his mom spoke up.
"Of course. Yes, I remember." Sheila blinked, looking mildly surprised. "Why do you mention it?"
"You know it wasn't Ike, right?" Forcing back his doubts, Kyle pushed onwards. It was high time his mother knew. "Mom, it was Dad. He was the troll."
Sheila was taken aback by his bluntness, but to Kyle's shock, his news seemed to come as no surprise to her. Instead her eyes dropped with a sort of weary sadness. "Oh, Bubbe, I already knew."
"You did?" Kyle's eyes widened as he took a step back. "You knew? How did you find out?"
"Your father told me." His mother sighed, sinking back into the office chair defeatedly. "I mean, I was sort of suspicious of him already; Ike's TrollTrace results came back clean, and Gerald had been acting strangely at the time… but he ended up confessing before I could bring myself to question him."
Kyle was in complete disbelief. After the whole incident, he'd lost all respect for Gerald. For him to tell Sheila about his crimes, after trying so hard to keep them secret… it was just baffling. What had compelled his father to confess? And more importantly, why hadn't either of his parents apologized to them, or at least to Ike? If his mother hadn't looked so sad already, Kyle might have confronted her about this. Instead he simply choked out, "Why?"
Sheila shrugged, letting out a slightly unsteady breath. "I guess it was weighing on his conscience. I was upset when I found out, I really was, but in the end I chose to forgive him." She shook her head. "I still don't understand why he did it. I guess it was his way of coping with everything that was going on in the world; you know, letting his anger out. Like boxing, or something. I've decided it's not my place to judge."
It wasn't lost on Kyle how unfair it was that Sheila was so quick to forgive Gerald when she had overreacted so harshly with Ike. In fact, it was really hard not to push the matter despite the circumstances. But he knew that this wasn't the time to have that discussion.
"Why do you mention it, though?" Sheila's voice broke Kyle away from his thoughts. "I mean, why did you think it was important to tell me this now?"
Right. There was a point in bringing this up, which Kyle had nearly forgotten. "It's just… I thought that maybe it had something to do with Dad's disappearance." His mom opened her mouth to speak, but Kyle cut her off. "There was that guy who came to visit. Don't you think it's strange that Dad magically vanished right after he showed up? I mean, even you agreed that he was suspicious." He waited for Sheila's inevitable objection, but instead she just sunk deeper into her chair.
"Perhaps you're right." His mother's voice was almost uncharacteristic in its defeat. "It seems strange for all of this to be connected, but… we don't really have anything else to go off of."
"So you'll mention it to the police?" Kyle asked hopefully, some of his previous frustration melting away. It felt good to be taken seriously by an adult for once.
"I can't tell them that Gerald was Skankhunt, for obvious reasons." Sheila clarified. "But I'll mention his mysterious guest. Is that all you wanted to talk about?"
Kyle nodded. As much as he wanted his father to pay for what he did, he could understand why Sheila didn't want to mention it to the police. He was still angry at Gerald, but even he knew why they couldn't let the world know that his father caused a Danish woman's suicide. "Yeah. Thanks, mom. And, uh… good luck with the search party." With that, he quietly left his dad's office, his spirits lifting a bit.
As he made his way down the hall, though, the pessimistic part of Kyle's brain began to take over again. What would telling the police do? It was like he said; Yates and his cronies were laughably incompetent. And sure, his mother was beginning to take him seriously, but it didn't excuse the fact that she was just willing to let Gerald get away with his crimes. By the time he reached his bedroom, Kyle was just as disheartened as before.
It didn't take long for him to decide to take matters into his own hands. He'd managed to pull off crazier feats before, It was worth a shot, anyway. Kyle wasn't quite sure what his own motivations were, though; on one hand, it was mighty tempting to let his dad have to deal with the consequences of his actions on his own. But Gerald had confessed to Sheila. That had to count for something, didn't it? Maybe his dad deserved a chance.
In the end, Kyle had come to the conclusion that if nothing else, finding his dad would give him answers. Perhaps Gerald really was the scum of the earth and deserved everything that was coming to him, but not knowing what had happened would eat away at Kyle's nosy brain. He deserved to know what was going on, and if he could get his father back in the process, then surely it had to be a win-win situation.
Kyle had planned to start packing as soon as his mom left, but this task proved itself to be difficult with Ike around. The four-year-old followed him around the house, eyes narrow and suspicious, not saying a word. Shit. He already knows I'm up to something.
He'd figured that his brother would catch on eventually that something was going on. Ike was a lot smarter and far more capable than he appeared. That didn't stop Kyle from trying to throw him off, though. He unhurriedly went about doing the chores that babysitting entailed: reheating leftovers for dinner, watching Yo Gabba Gabba for a while with Ike, and helping him get ready for bed. Thankfully, Sheila had instructed Kyle to put him to sleep at seven-thirty; any later and he wouldn't have been able to sneak out before his mom got back.
With the four-year-old hopefully sound asleep in his room, Kyle started shoving things into his backpack. He knew it wasn't his smartest idea, just up and leaving like this without a clue as to where he would go, but he had no idea when he would get another chance to get away. Besides, the sooner he left, the sooner he could put an end to this.
Once again came the dilemma of whether or not to bring his friends. Traditionally, they would've all done this kind of thing together. And under different circumstances, it would've been nice to have their help. But he already had his reasons not to get them involved, and there wasn't enough time to rally them together.
Spirits low, Kyle finished up packing. He reached for his wallet, which contained less than $70. He'd have to stretch it out to make it last. Busy trying to figure out the bare minimum he'd need to spend, Kyle was startled by the sound of small footsteps at his door.
"Where are you going?" Ike's eyes jumped from his brother to the bag he was packing.
Kyle silently cursed himself for not noticing Ike coming sooner. He should have known the little Canadian would be snooping around. When did he ever do what he was told? "Jesus Ike, you scared me." Quickly thinking up a lie, he continued. "Okay, you caught me. I was planning to sneak out and go to Stan's house. Do me a favor and not tell mom?"
Ike just crossed his arms and gave Kyle a disbelieving look. He never was big with words; whether that was due to his age or simply his own choices, nobody really knew. What was clear, however, was that he was always aware of what was going on around him. Kyle didn't need to be told that his little lie didn't work. His brother was too smart.
"Okay, Ike." Kyle sighed, zipping up his backpack and carrying it to the door. "I'll tell you what I'm doing, as long as you promise not to let anyone know where I've gone. You can keep a secret for me, can't you?" There was a small pause. Ike nodded. "Alright. I'm going out to look for dad. I just, I feel like I have to give it a shot, y'know? So… yeah." He cleared his throat awkwardly. "See you later."
Kyle had not gotten two steps out the door before Ike piped up. "I wanna go with you."
Turning around, Kyle let out a sigh. "No, Ike. Please don't make this difficult, okay? It's too dangerous for you. I can't take you." There was no way he was taking his four-year-old brother out into the freezing cold, especially when he didn't even have a plan for himself. Clever as he was, Ike was still hardly more than a toddler.
"Then I'll just follow you." Ike's words stopped Kyle in his tracks. Under his breath he muttered a curse.
"Ike, no. You'll get yourself hurt. I don't even know what I'm gonna do, and I have experience." Now he was really kicking himself for not making sure his baby brother had gone to sleep. He should've known Ike was going to want to come with him.
Ike simply shrugged, not saying another word. Kyle knew that he wasn't going to give this up. He had to choose either to take personal responsibility for the four-year-old's well-being, or leave knowing his brother would follow him and probably get hurt. Shit, he silently swore.
To give credit where credit was due, Ike was pretty tough for his age. This was the child who found and captured the US president on the back of a Newfoundland, who rescued the Canadian Princess from tooth decay and was knighted for it. Though he didn't have the same experience as his older brother, Ike had been on a fair few adventures himself and managed to come out mostly unscathed. If he could survive a trip to Somalia under the watch of Cartman, maybe he'd be alright. Kyle just had to pray that he wasn't being a terribly irresponsible big brother by believing that.
Ike stood silently as he waited for his brother's response. Kyle sighed, sounding utterly defeated. "Alright, Ike. But you have to promise not to do anything stupi-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Ike let out a childish squeal and ran off to his room. "Make sure you grab a coat! A real one! And leave your phone here so they don't try to track us!" Kyle called after him, already getting a bad feeling.
He spent the next twenty minutes or so helping his little brother pack a bag. Kyle knew they were running out of time, but he also tried his best to be thorough. If he was going to be responsible for Ike, he had to make sure he brought enough stuff with him to not freeze to death. It did occur to him that he was going a bit overboard; the words You're acting like mom popped into head head more than once. He shrugged it off. Maybe just this once, it wasn't such a bad thing.
Kyle glanced up at the clock. It was already past eight o' clock. They had to leave now. "Are you ready, Ike?"
His brother nodded. Of course he was; if he'd had it his way, they would've been gone twenty minutes ago.
Kyle decided that he and Ike would sneak out the back door to avoid being spotted. Not that many of the adults in South Park cared that much about what the kids were up to, but he decided it was better to be safe than sorry. Upon opening the door, the two were whipped in the face with a blast of icy wind.
Where do we even start? Kyle's eyes squinted against the wind, a knot of dread forming in his chest. "This is not going to be easy, Ike. Are you sure you want to do this?" He already knew what his little brother's response would be, but a small part of him still held out hope that he'd change his mind.
Instead Ike just nodded, looking far more confident than Kyle felt. "Yeah!"
"Alright, then." Kyle murmured, bracing himself as he led his little brother into the snowy night. Despite all his doubts, he realized that he felt a newfound sense of clarity and determination. For the first time that night, Kyle really believed that he could fix things. He took a deep breath. "Let's go."
It felt like they had been trudging through the cold for hours, though it was impossible to tell in the darkness. If it weren't for the thick white sheet of snow covering the town, Kyle and Ike would not have been able to see at all. The weather refused to let up; if anything, it only started snowing harder than before they left.
Ike, despite all his bravado, was struggling. Several times Kyle had to stop completely to let him catch up, yet every time he offered to carry him, the four-year-old stubbornly refused. Looking back at him now, Kyle realized Ike was lagging several feet behind him.
"Ike, are you okay? Maybe we should stop for a little while." Kyle grunted.
Ike waved his arms dismissively. "I'm fine!" Still, he didn't argue when Kyle bent down to pick him up. His little brother was nearly asleep. Well, what did you expect, bringing a toddler on a mission in the middle of the night? That nagging, doubtful voice in his head was practically jeering at him now.
Carrying Ike was no small task, not when he had to carry all the supplies they'd brought as well. Not much time had passed before Kyle found himself out of breath and needing to rest. He spotted a few park benches that were being kept mostly snow-free by a gazebo. It'd be nice to get out of the snow for a moment.
Setting Ike down beside him, Kyle let out a breath of relief. "We'll just rest here for a little while, okay?" His little brother stirred quietly before falling asleep once more, head resting on his shoulder. Kyle watched as the snowflakes fell from the sky. When you weren't trying to travel through the weather, it was actually quite peaceful.
He wondered what time it was. It had to be pretty late, since there were few cars on the road. As he watched the snow fall, Kyle found himself nodding off a few times. It was freezing cold and windy, but he hardly felt it. Once the weather cleared a bit, he decided, he and Ike could continue on. I'll just shut my eyes for a few minutes. How long could he stay asleep in the middle of a snowstorm, anyways?
As he let the sound of the wind carry him into the sweet darkness of sleep, the voice of doubt in his head eased up. Kyle let out a sigh as he fell into unconsciousness. Surely by the time he woke up, everyone would be fine.
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