Chapter 2: Desirous
Pip was unable to shut his head out to the nagging pain in his head. It seemed as though his head was simply going to split open, allowing it's contents to pour and gush out onto the pavement.
I told you to get up, came the voice again, but this time from inside Pip's head.
B-but...why am I hearing voices? Who are you?
The voice chuckled. Oh, Pip, it spat, Don't you recognize your own best friend? I know we've had our share of troubles before but don't you see I mean you no harm?
I shall think you mean me harm! You're inside my head!
I hate to see you on the ground like that, Pip ol' chap, the voice mocked in a perfect imitation of Pip's old Uncle, Uncle Joe. Now we can do this two ways. One would be to simply do as I say and get off the fucking ground, or two, you could make things difficult and tiresome for both you and me and we can do things my way.
I-I can't!
Like Hell you can't! The voice growled with intense annoyance. Stop being such a god damn pussy and get on your fucking feet! That's all I fucking want you to do! Apparently you want more from me so I see I may have to be here a bit longer.
Suddenly Pip got to his feet, but not on his own will. He found he was unable to control his body movements (and he would later find that his speech wasn't to his willing either). Pip took a few steps and stopped.
Who are you? his mind whimpered again.
I don't remember you being so stupid, Phillip. Perhaps it's due to your fright, though. I can understand that being possessed might make someone a bit quiet for a while.
Who are you? Pip repeated.
Your best friend, Damien.
"DAMIEN?" Pip screeched allowed, receiving frightened looks from some of the adults walking by.
Keep it down, will you? Damien snapped. These people in your town are retarded. They're going to expect you're a troubled child if you randomly shout the name of the anti-Christ at random intervals.
Why are you in my body?
I'm going to show you a good time, my friend.
Where are we going?
I need to blow off some steam, Damien responded, having Pip bend down and cradle Lazarus in his arms. We're going to the movies.
"Hurry it up, buttpipe! We're gonna be late!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming! Don't kill me!"
Craig smirked and pulled his trademark blue and yellow cap over his dark hair. He'd kept the hat for as long as he possibly could and replaced it as soon as it started to wear out. Glancing over his shoulder at the shaking boy stumbling up the hill towards the school parking lot, his smirk was replaced with a slow roll of the eyes. "Damn, man, could you be anymore spaztic?"
Tweek made it to the top of the hill, pulling himself up quickly and glaring at Craig with a slight smirk. "C-considering my disposition and the f-fact that it's cold out h-here makes it hard for me to be c-coordinated." Tweek pulled his scarf around his neck and wrapped his arms around him in a weak attempt at warmth. "Besides, I-I'm here now and that's all that matters."
"Yeah yeah yeah," Craig responded, casually flipping him off. "I guess you're right. You are here before everyone else," he added with a quick glance around them, finding none of the others. "They'd better hurry their asses up," he continued to complain, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Jack Frost is fondling my balls."
"What are you gonna do, Craig?" Came the unmistakable whiny voice of Clyde, appearing suddenly behind them. "Flip us off with two fingers?" Rolling his eyes as he was received with exactly what he requested from Craig, Clyde opened the passenger seat of Craig's car, much to Tweek's dismay. The blonde sighed through clenched teeth, kicking the snow. If Craig had noticed the acute change in his best friend's behavior, he didn't need to, because the seat that Clyde so rudely claimed for himself was without a doubt Tweek's personal VIP seat. Craig grunted and grabbed Clyde by the shoulders, yanking him just before he made himself cozy. He then grabbed Tweek and shoved him in the seat, the shakier boy yelping with harmless shock as he did so.
"Jesus Christ, Craig! You coulda bruised me!"
Putting a yellow-gloved hand on the top of the opened car door, Craig leaned in with a slight glare. "Dude, shut up. I got you that seat, didn't I? I'd think you would thank me."
Tweek sighed loudly, wrapping his arms around his head. He had disappointed Craig, the one thing he never wanted to do. "I'm sorry!" He whispered loudly in response. "T-thank you, Craig." Craig simply laughed and ruffled his friend's messy hair. Suddenly he spun around, dashing off in the opposite direction, shouting "You dickheads!" and "You're fucking late, stupid cuntwipes!" Apparently everyone else (minus Kevin, he decided he's rather go somewhere else instead. However, he was replaced by Butters' friend, Connor) had finally arrived, only to have Craig chase them down and tackle Token, the closest to his proximity.
Tweek sighed once more, feeling yet again like a burden to his friend. He knew he wasn't exactly the easiest person to be around, but he couldn't help it. There was just something about himself that he couldn't control, and he partly had to rely on the others and their forgiveness to get through the day. Once his mother took him to see a doctor, just to find out what exactly was wrong with Tweek. The doctor had referred them to a therapist, who in turn conferred that there was nothing wrong with Tweek; he just wasn't completely right. He had said it was nothing that therapy could help with,and they were on their own.
Tweek was extremely grateful to have befriended Craig the way he did. The only real fall-out between them was in the third grade when the others simply set their fight up for them. They really had no problem with each other, but they weren't really friends. Afterall, Tweek had his coffee and his gnomes, and Craig had his guinea pig and Red Racer. With those valuables they were content,but after their fight they slowly grew closer and became better friends. There was that one small point in time, however, when Tweek was almost forced to hang out with Stan and his gang because of Kenny's death. He wasn't sure why he was around them as much as he was. He assumed it was because of Kenny's death; the boy always died but almost always came back, due to forces unknown to anyone else. There were people who seemed to miss Kenny; Cartman seemed a little less, well, loud. Stan sulked a lot, seeming to blame himself a lot for what happened, and Kyle seemed to be handling it rather well, having a tight grip with reality.
But it made Tweek question things. It made him question who loved him, who cared about him, who would really miss him. Despite his slowly growing friendship with Craig, no bonds felt strong enough for him. There seemed to be no one that would really mourn his death, and he wanted to change that. For too long he was hidden in the background, a mere prop to everyone else. He wanted to be known, to be accepted. He wanted to become close to others so they would miss him. He planned to do this by hanging out with those who seemed eager to spend their time with him, and that seemed to be Stan, Kyle, and Cartman. He would soon learn that they never had the intentions of befriending him, but trying to replace Kenny and fill the void the little hooded boy had left behind.
Craig was different. Craig took care of Tweek. He held a sort of pride in caring for the lesser-liked child. At times though, the blue-hatted boy had to admit, it was a bit of a hassle. There had been questions from others regarding the sexuality of Tweek and Craig, and they had a hell of a time trying to explain to everyone the relationship between them. How would they explain to others that they were more than friends, and loved each other, but would never be in love with each other? They settled on telling everyone they were just best friends, and would flip them off, leaving the matter finished.
As Tweek sat there, watching Craig wrestle the others to the ground in half-mock anger, he realized he would never be the macho friend that Craig wanted, but perhaps he could be the voice inside his head. His own Jiminy Cricket.
"Damn bitch," Token mumbled at Craig's greeting, his face shoved into the snow. He shoved Craig off and picked himself up, wiping the snow off of him. "If you don't stop horsing around we'll be even later, and trust me, we don't wanna see you piss yourself."
"Yeah!" Butters chimed in defiantly, "You might get your pants wet!"
Craig responded by climbing into the driver's seat and starting the engine as a warning that if they didn't all cram into the backseat it would be just Tweek and him in the movie. They all scrambled in the back of the small car, pressed together tightly. "Why, we're in here tighter than a pack of sardines," Butters remarked. Connor giggled faithfully. Clyde sighed with slight disgust, but his look was quickly replaced with a grin and shriek of delight as Craig slammed his foot on the pedal, zooming out of the parking lot with a devilish grin. Tweek yelled, clutching the dashboard in front of him and then slammed back into his seat, hiding his face behind his hands.
"Dammit Craig!" He shrieked, causing the others to laugh. "You're gonna wreck the car and we're gonna die! Or worse! You might get pulled over." Craig glanced at Tweek trough the corner's of his eye, his brows raised slightly. He switched gears with the stick-shift and increased the speed, a slow smirk growing on his face.
"JESUS CHRIST!" Tweek yelled with complete terror in his voice. "THE BUS!"
"What?" Craig asked, glancing at Tweek with confusion.
"THE BUS!"
Craig's gaze followed the direction where Tweek's finger was pointing. His eyes widened as they quickly were catching up to the back of a bus at a stop light. He slammed on the brakes, screeching to a hault just mere inches from behind the bus.
They were all shaking, not nearly as much as Tweek, of course, but that was to be expected, but Clyde and Token broke into fits of excited laughter. "Woo, yeah!" They cheered, giving each other high-fives. Craig slowly turned towards Tweek, his hands held firmly on the steering wheel. He grinned sheepishly. "Piece of cake," he insisted.
A low growl arose in the back of Tweek's throat, as he started pummeling Craig with his fists. "What . . . the hell. . . . is your. . . problem!"
Craig waited for the punching to stop before glancing out his window. There he saw Bebe and Wendy in the car beside his, glaring at him. Craig blew them a kiss, only for Wendy to flip him off. Craig scowled,mirroring her gesture.
The light turned to green and Craig drove at the speed limit, not a notch above. Tweek's heart was pounding in his chest, and he began taking deep, slow breaths to cool down.
"Come on, baby," Token complained from the backseat, "Why's the action stoppin' already?"
"Because we've had enough for one day," he responded, glancing in the rear-view mirror to find Butters nodding in agreement. "Butters," he said sternly, "If you tell any parents or anyone who might tell a parent, I will rip your balls off with a single finger. Ya clear?"
"Crystal!" He replied enthusiastically. "Why, that was lots of fun, I've never done anything like that before! B-but if my parents find out, they'll take my television away, and they won't let me get my liscense."
Clyde and Token groaned the rest of the ride to the cinema, complaining of being bored and cramped, and practically sitting on each other's laps. They bounded gratefully out of the car once they were parked, and ran up to the ticket-vendor, throwing their cash on the counter and waiting for their tickets.
They all bought popcorn, drinks, and candy, except for Tweek, who had a slight fear of getting cavaties or losing teeth at an early age. Craig tried to persuade him to buy something, or at least eat a little bit of Craig's food, but the Tweak boy refused. Craig finally gave up and headed towards the theater. A familiar british accent caught his attention however, and he spun around to find Pip yelling at the ticket-vendor.
"I want to bring my cat in!"
"Son, have you lost your mind? What makes you think an animal would be allowed in here?"
"Dammit," Pip grumbled, tossing the cat out onto the sidewalk. The cat yowled and trotted around the corner and disappeared behind the building.
The six boys swarmed around Pip, confused expressions clouding their faces. "What the Hell was that about, frenchie?" Craig asked rudely, giving him a small shove. Much to his surprise, Pip shoved him back. "Damn dude, what's your problem tonight?"
Pip blinked. "What do you mean?"
"You're acting fucking crazy," Craig spat, raising a brow.
"Oh, uh, I'm just in a bad mood," Pip grumbled, pushing through the guys and heading into the Emily Rose theater.
"Oh great," Clyde mumbled. "He's seeing the same movie."
Sighing, Craig led them towards the theater. "Well that was weird."
The movie had finished (and Tweek found he wasn't too afraid during the movie, but it being close to Halloween weekend and dark outside, the corners seemed sharper and the shadows darker), and the boys were all piled into Craig's car again. Butters was confiding in Connor how scared he was during the movie, and Connor was listening with sincere interest. Clyde and Token were making fun of it, obviously not impressed with the movie. Craig drove solemnly and quietly, and Tweek was glaring reluctantly out the window.
During the movie Pip had been making odd noises. He'd either growl with disgust or snort. Craig had to admit, the movie wasn't the best and a big dissapointment, but he didn't think it was that bad. While the gang was piling into the car, Craig and Tweek had noticed him sulking suspiciously behind the movie theater and searching for the damn cat. The cat seemed to appear out of nowhere, but they assumed it was their imaginations working in overdrive due to the movie.
Craig drove the boys home, and Tweek was sleeping over at Craig's. They planned on playing cards with Craig's family if they were home, and then watching movies. It certainly was different than the usual 'sleepover' Craig had with his other friends. These sleepovers involved sneaking out late at night, looking for beer, or trying to peek into the bedrooms of girls like Wendy, Bebe, and Heidi. Tweek had never actually slept over; they would plan on it, and Tweek would suddenly grow frightened about nothing and beg to go home. He didn't know why he tried anymore; he just assumed that they would make attempts and get better at it. It was like having sex, or smoking crack the right way. It sometimes took several tries to get it right.
They stopped by Tweek's house to pick up his stuff, and stopped by the video store for a few movies. Craig picked out The Shining, Saw, and Rocky Horror Picture Show. He was rather excited to watch the latter, but knew Tweek would be a little uncomfortable with it at first. But he would help Tweek learn to loosen up with movie choices, and hell, maybe he'd even dance along with the transvestite. Craig snorted with a brow raised at Tweek's choices; Son in Law and BioDome. Tweek held them up with a hopeful grin, his eye twitching. Craig sighed annoyedly. "Tweek, you know Pauly Shore isn't funny."
Tweek's disposition seemed to drop a few notches as he drooped a bit. "He's not?"
"Fuck no."
Tweek nodded eagerly and put the movies back. "Alright, t-then we can just watch what you got!"
They rented the movies and were back at Craig's house in ten minutes. Craig helped Tweek carry his things, with a sleeping bag under one arm and his keys in the other hand. Tweek got out of the car and reached back in with a shaky hand to grab his bag, but jumped, banging his head on the ceiling of the car when Craig slammed the trunk shut. Tweek yowled with pain and then rubbed the top of his head with a grumpy expression. Craig chuckled and pushed past Tweek to the front door, unlocking it and leaving it open for Tweek. Craig dropped Tweek's bag to the floor and stood at the edge of the stairs leading up to the second floor. "Izzy?" He called, waiting a second before calling again. "Izzy, you home?"
"Yeah, I am," came the reply. A girl of about thirteen or fourteen appeared at the top of the stairs, her light red hair pulled back in a ponytail. Small freckles were scattered just on her nose, but were hardly visible underneath a light coat of makeup. Izzy started down the steps before spotting Tweek, who had appeared behind Craig. She stopped in her tracks, her eyes wide at the sight of him. Tweek gasped, letting out a small 'gah!' before rushing off into Craig's kitchen.
Craig groaned. "Now why'd you have to upset him like that? You know he's uncomfortable around you." Bending down to pick up the sleeping bag once more, he added, "I still don't understand why you have this little crush on him anyway."
Izzy's face turned a bright red, her brows crumpling together in a glare. "I do not!"
"Then why are you turning red?"
"I'm not!"
Craig stepped away from the steps. "I thought you were going to Flora's for the night?"
"I am," she replied, finally stepping off the steps. "At least I think so. I have to call her and then call mom and dad." Their parents were out of town for the weekend, visiting some relative of the family.
Craig nodded and followed Tweek into the kitchen. He set the sleeping bag on the counter and went to the fridge opening it. Tweek was sitting on a stool at the counter, playing with a wax apple. Craig retrieved two cans of root beer, so cold that the second they were set before Tweek, sweat dripped from the cans and left rings of water. Tweek grabbed a can delightedly, cracking it open and downing half of it in one gulp. He sighed with content and shakily wiped his lips with his sleeve. Craig flashed a lop-sided smile and leaned his elbows on the counter across from Tweek, careful not to slide on the tile floor with his socks while he stood. They stood and sat there for a few moments in silence, Tweek obviously struggling with saying something.
"I-I have to admit, Craig-"
"Hmm...?"
"The car ride was actually pretty fun." Tweek smiled sheepishly.
Craig's right brow shot up. "Yeah."
Tweek traced designs in the sweat on the can. "I-I know you probably think I won't make it here all night, a-and I know I'm not as fun as the other guys, b-but, I'm gonna try."
Craig continued to stare at him with a raised brow, making Tweek grow even more uncomfortable.
"Oh Jesus," Tweek whispered, staring at the counter and fidgeting nervously. "I didn't mean to offend you! I'm sorry I assumed."
"Shut up Tweek, stop apologizing so god damn much."
Tweek nodded. "Al-alright. Like I said, I'm going to try tonight, I'm going to try and stay the whole night. I'll admit that I'm afraid to stay the whole night-" He paused to search Craig's face for any signs of laughter, but finding none he assumed Craig was just great at masking it. "Oh God no," Tweek shrieked, "It's not like I'm afraid to be away from home, it's just I'm afraid of, well, can you do something for me?"
Craig nodded.
"If, if I start. . .moving. . .in my sleep, don't wake me up."
Craig and Tweek were sprawled out on the floor in Craig's living room. There were no signs of Izzy being at home so it was safe to assume she ended up going to Flora's house afterall. They had finished The Shining, and Tweek insisted they turned off Saw. It wasn't scary to him, but it messed with his mind a little too much for comfort. Just as Craig assumed, Tweek was a litle uncomfortable when the Rocky Horror Picture Show started, but he was true to his word and tried to loosen up.
Tweek was mildly entertained by Craig's excitement and love for the movie. He knew every lyric, and didn't sit down once or take a break from dancing. Tweek had to admit he was starting to like the movie, because Craig made it so enjoyable for him.
On the screen a man with a hump, known as Riff Raff, was hanging around a clock designed like a coffin. Craig yelled and wooped, jumping on the couch and started singing and mimicking Riff Raff's movements perfectly. Tweek eyed him wearily, thrown a little off-kilter. Craig jumped off the couch, and in front of Tweek, his face inches away from his, waving a finger in Tweek's face. "But listen closely, not for very much longer. I've got to keep control." Craig jumped away from him, screaming the lyrics, "I remember doing the time warp, drinking those moments when the blackness would hitme, and the void would be calling, let's do the time warp again!"
Craig pulled Tweek to his feet, positioning him beside him. "It's just a jump to the left," he instructed, and Tweek did so. "And then a step to the right." They stepped with their right foot three times, waving limp hands along with it. "With your hands on your hips, you bring your knees in tight." Craig and Tweek did so, and through fits of laughter, Craig sang, "But it's the pelvic thrust that really drives you insaaaane!" The boys laughed and did several over-enthusiastic pelvic thrusts that would have put the characters in the movie to shame.
"Let's do the Time Warp again!" Tweek cried. Craig clapped, and shouted, "Take it away, Magenta," pointing to Tweek as Magenta sang her part of the song on the television. Tweek, eager to please Craig and 'break loose' decided to humor the both of them and do his own twitchy jig.
Suddenly there was a squeal similar to that of Columbia's from the entryway to the living room and they both looked up to find Izzy there, excited to see the family's favorite movie on the screen. Tweek fell over with initial shock and embarrassment, but was soon on his feet again. She dashed in, dancing along with Columbia, as well as Craig. Tweek eventually joined in once more, allowing the music and their laughter to possess him once more.
With the last note, they all fell to the floor in a laughing heap.
The three of them sat up and continued to enjoy the movie, although Tweek was disturbed by Dr. Frank -N- Furter. After performing his own rendition of 'Sweet Transvestite,' Craig questioned the lack of Izzy's absence. Apparently Flora was grounded for trying to sneak out and visit Ike late at night. The boys decided to allow Izzy to stay and finish the movie. They all laughed together, but there were times when the movie was so bizarre that Tweek yelped and hid his face. 'So much sex!' he cried every so often, only making the siblings laugh.
It was one of the best nights ofTweek's life, and he had Craig to thank for it. Too bad it would be the last night of it's type.