Craig
Craig was cold.
Probably in an attempt to humiliate him in that childish way that Cartman specialized in, Craig was stripped down to his underwear. But that wasn't really what was making him cold, no, even he could understand that much.
No, the cold was coming from inside, spreading from his chest to his arms and legs, right down to the tips of his fingers and toes. Every inch of him felt numb, dead. He felt dead, standing there next to Cartman, waiting for Tweek to show up. He was early, he hadn't been able to sit still.
Physically, he felt on edge. Last night, he hadn't slept. Instead, he'd stared at the ceiling as his thoughts spiraled over and over again. Always around Tweek, always making him more frustrated and miserable. That seemed to be a theme these last few days, misery and frustration. Today, he'd get those feelings out by fighting Tweek. It probably wasn't healthy, hell, it probably wasn't completely sane but he didn't give a shit anymore.
Cartman didn't seem to care what Craig was doing, he was just talking on his phone to Kenny, which honestly couldn't have interested the Noirette less. "No, look, Kenny, you need to be here, alright? This is going to be fucking sweet dude, you can't just miss it." A moment's pause. "Why the hell are you in Shop Class right now, get out here Kenny."
Craig ignored Cartman with practiced ease. Instead of paying attention to him, he focused on loosening the tense muscles in his body. Just because he felt like a neurotic mess didn't mean he had to look like it. Fuck that, he was in control of himself, he wasn't like Tweek.
Tweek, the same twitchy creature who singlehandedly had captured his interest and held it in a vice for the past few months. Tweek, who drank too much coffee and screamed about flesh-eating aliens. Tweek, who pulled his hair and looked at Craig with wild, hopeful green eyes. Tweek, who screwed with Craig's head and turned everything he knew on its head.
Tweek, who he was going to fight.
Craig's fists clenched, then unclenched.
"You know what, fuck you, Kenny." Finally hanging up, Cartman muttered, "God, what an asshole." Craig didn't respond, he just fought the urge to pull his chullo down over his forehead. He had to stay still, he had to prove to himself that he was in control and that none of this mattered. But no matter what he did, his flat expression didn't feel right, it felt too open and upset.
"You know what to do, right Craig?" Cartman asked, looking the boy over. "Use what you learned yesterday to overpower him, but don't hesitate to punch him too." He grinned at that, too excited about it. "This is gonna be cool, man, you are going to kick Tweek's ass."
"Don't be so sure about that fatass." Looking up, Craig found Stan and Kyle walking towards them. But he could have cared less about those two, no his eyes were focused on the boy trailing behind them.
They'd put a stupid robe on him. It was red and gold, no doubt warmer than what Craig was wearing. His head was bowed, his steps were shuffling. Craig could see the boxing gloves on his hands, looking almost comically big compared to the boy wearing them, even though they were no doubt the smallest ones they'd managed to find him. Wisps of blond hair escaped from under the hood pulled up over his face. Even his twitching was subdued.
Craig could feel his heart rate kick up a notch. For a moment, he wanted to push the other boys out of the way and tell Tweek that he didn't have to fight, that they could just go home, fuck everyone else. But then he remembered the fear yesterday, all the attempts he'd made to reach out a hand only to be turned away and his uncertainty turned to further frustration. It's not fair.
As they drew level, Stan roughly grabbed Tweek's shoulder and shoved him forward. Tweek stumbled, his shoes catching on the rough ground. In the back of Craig's head, something reared up and demanded he push Stan away from Tweek, but it was too soft to breach the wall of frustrated anger in the forefront of his mind.
"Oh, I'm so scared," Cartman mocked, laughing at the other two boys. Craig tuned them out, he didn't care. He just stared at Tweek, waiting.
Very slowly, Tweek raised his head. The first thing that struck Craig was how empty Tweek looked, how dead. Then the boy met his eyes, dim green locking him in a vice. Suddenly, they blazed to life, startling Craig. Pressing his mouth into a hard line, Tweek lifted his chin and stared at Craig with a fierce determination that took his breath away.
Without hesitation, he glared right back. Where was this yesterday? Where was this when I fucking needed to see it? Why now?
Remembering the mental image of Tweek that had haunted him yesterday, Craig felt yet more anger show its ugly head. He sees a monster, doesn't he? Fuck him, I'll show him a fucking monster. Even as Kyle, Stan, and Cartman continued to argue, Craig stared at Tweek, unwilling to back down.
His uncertainty was gone, he was going to fucking kill this blond spaz.
Suddenly, there was a swell of noise as kids started pouring into the playground, all headed for them. They were talking about the fight, Craig could dimly make that out. He could hear someone calling something about programs, he was pretty sure it was Clyde. He'd have to punch him for that later, or maybe not.
Even as the crowd of kids, now grown to include people from the grades above and below theirs, loosely circled them, Craig didn't flinch. He was ready for this and so was Tweek. Everything else was simply a distraction.
"Okay," Stan called suddenly, quieting the kids around them somewhat. He looked around, making sure everyone was listening. "The time has finally come." Craig shifted his feet apart slightly, Tweek took a breath and shivered. Everyone's eyes were on them, this was it, this was the fight that they'd been building up to for days.
Moving closer, Cartman said to Craig, "You know what to do, you have got this in the bag." Craig nodded once, his attention more focused on Tweek.
As Stan pulled the robe off the boy, Tweek started twitching more violently. The determination was still there, but Craig could see the sheer energy held in those wiry limbs as the boy stood there. All he was left with were a pair of boxing shorts, red and yellow like his robe had been. His entire body was covered in bruises, yellow, black and blue. Craig's jaw clenched as Tweek twitched to one side and his mouth dropped into a shadow of the boy the Noirette knew only too well. Scared, reluctant, upset.
Leaning close, Kyle said, "Remember, Tweek: punch hard, punch low." It was good advice, Craig had to admit, but he wasn't scared. He was too numb. That cold that had spread through him froze his blood and left him feeling dead inside, matching the look that had been on Tweek's face when he approached.
"Hrrr," Tweek squeaked, pulling up his fists and readying them. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, Craig couldn't tell how much of it was him twitching and how much of it was nervous energy. Stop postponing it, let us at each other.
"This is when you gotta get mean, Tweek." Kyle insisted, his mouth a hard line. Craig hated the sight with an irrational force. Hated seeing Tweek being backed by people like Stan and Kyle, but he was too pissed overall to give those thoughts any credence.
"Ack!" Tweek twitched hard to the side before hardening his expression, shaking his head back and forth like a dog as if trying to rid his mind of unwanted thoughts. "Mean, ghrrr," he repeated, trembling.
As if to put on a show, Cartman got closer to Craig again and said in what he probably thought sounded like a mystic voice, "The spirit of the dragon is in your hands." I don't need the spirit of a dragon, shut up before I hurt you. But he didn't say that, he just clenched his fists at his sides and took a more sure stance. "Hurshar kashurshar. Hurlong churshar. All right?" Cartman said.
"Okay," Craig said absently, hardly listening to Cartman's attempts at showing off. He's just trying to get his friend's attention, all I need to focus on in Tweek. It was easy, hadn't he always been focusing on Tweek after all, hadn't he always stared at the boy? God, I wish I could have had a chance to just fucking understand. He shoved that thought into the back of his mind. Focus.
Clearly unimpressed with his response, Cartman growled, "Now, listen to me! Hurlong kashurshar! All right?!" Stop yelling in my ear and let me at Tweek. "And seriously: Hurlong kepur shung kwong!"
Needing to get him off of him, Craig quickly said, "Okay, okay!" Finally, Cartman stepped back, giving Craig room.
Once again, all was silent. Stepping forward, Craig set his face in a scowl. Tweek stepped up to meet him, his wide eyes narrowing slightly. It was like the rest of the world ceased to exist, all Craig could think about was the blond boy standing before him. He was so much smaller than the Noirette, but Craig would never have dared suggest that he was weak. Right now, he looked like a lion.
"Ghrrr." The sound escaped Tweek's mouth just as they always did, but it didn't sound like one of his usual spastic noises, it sounded like a growl. Maybe Craig was losing it, but the world slowed down, leaving both Tweek and him in a bubble. Done running, done pretending.
Loosening his posture, steadying himself, Craig cracked his neck, releasing the pressure there. The sound seemed to echo, but maybe he was going crazy. In the end, he and Tweek hadn't been able to get away from this, they were going to fight. All that pressure that had been building up, all the tension, it was about to be released. It didn't matter that the other boys had set this whole thing up, Craig was fighting for his own reasons.
He was fighting because he was sick of Tweek's paranoia. He was fighting because he was sick of his own confusion. He was fighting because everything around him was pushing him to do so. He was fighting becauseā¦
In that moment, he realized that in the end, he didn't really know the answer to that question.
Tweek let out another growl and twitched to the right.
Craig lifted his middle finger and tilted his head, lifting his chin in a silent dare. Come on you twitchy fuck, show me what you've got.
Walking to their side, Stan held his hands out to both of them. "You ready Tweek?" The blond nodded once before his expression fell into a glare. "You ready Craig?" Resisting the urge to flip Stan off too, Craig nodded once. Stepping back, Stan yelled, "Let's get it on!"
For a moment neither of them moved, then suddenly Tweek let out a roar and flew forward. Like that, the fight began. Everything else vanished from the Noirette's head in that moment. Craig couldn't even track his movements the blond struck so fast. Bringing up his arms, Craig managed to block the hit to his face before throwing Tweek off of him.
Skidding back across the ground, Tweek let out a yell of, "You're such an asshole!" before attacking again. This time he aimed for Craig's unprotected side, his fists coming at him with all the strength Craig had been seeing in flashes these past few days. His fist connected but it was the words that really hit hard.
With a growl, Craig tackled the boy to the ground, pinning him down. "You're too paranoid to see past your own delusions!" he shot back, leaning back to avoid the strikes Tweek attempted to land on his face. Drawing his own fist back, Craig struck Tweek's sternum, knocking some of the air out of him.
Looking up at him with a furious, hurt expression, Tweek spat, "Maybe if you didn't look at me like you wanted to kill me, I wouldn't think you did!" Yanking his arm free, Tweek landed a punch on Craig's jaw that sent him tumbling off of him. Regaining his balance a moment later, Craig spat out the blood that had pooled in his mouth from his slit cheek.
"You have no idea what's running through my head!" Craig yelled back. He wasn't even sure if Tweek could hear him, the cheering of the people around them was too loud. Without care, he plowed into Tweek again, using his elbow to knock him aside. Twisting out of his way, Tweek aimed a punch at Craig's ribs that he stumbled back to avoid.
Around them, Craig could vaguely make out people yelling their names, cheering them on. He couldn't be sure though, not with the blood rushing in his ears. Grabbing Tweek, Craig managed to get a knee into his stomach, forcing the air out of the blonde's lungs. As if his attack had left no lasting effect, Tweek used their proximity to kick out Craig's knees.
"Of course I don't know what's going through your head," Tweek gasped out, even as their fighting led them away from where they'd originally been gathered. "No one knows what goes through your head!" It didn't matter, the crowd moved with them, ravenous in their desire to see more blood. Craig was only too happy to oblige, Tweek's words only egging him on.
"Well, maybe you should have fucking asked!" Tackling Tweek once more, Craig sent them rolling over the cold ground, attempting to land blows all the while. Tweek hit him in the face several more times, one punch definitely blacking his eye. He could care less, he just kept on hitting back, furious. Tweek's words were killing him from the inside out, but he pressed that pain back, choosing to focus on the physical pain being dealt to him.
"Maybe you shouldn't have stared at me so much!" Tweek spat, managing to get to his feet quick enough to land a kick to Craig's ribs. Rolling away from him, Craig leaped to his feet and launched himself at Tweek. They were outside of the building they held home ec in by now, Craig only spared half a second to register how far they'd gone before his attention was back on Tweek.
"Maybe you should have spoken to me!" Craig retorted, his fist knocking Tweek's head back, cracking his neck. The kids around him kept screaming encouragements, but Craig couldn't hear them and if Tweek could, he paid them no attention. Instead, the blond screwed up his face and jumped at Craig.
"I couldn't talk to you!" Tweek panted, his voice cracking as he said it. "I didn't know how."
"Well I didn't know what to say to you either," Craig said, breathing heavily. Going in to push Tweek off his feet, Craig found himself stopping as what Tweek had just said registered. At the same moment, Tweek's strike to Craig's gut froze and his forward momentum carried them together.
Without even thinking it through, Craig leaned down and rested his forehead against Tweek's and softly said, soft enough that only the blond could hear, "You've always been the exception."
In that moment, as he panted heavily and pressed back against Craig, Tweek's eyes widened and he stared at the boy. In the silence, the noises around them filtered through Craig's head.
"Go Tweek! Kick his ass!" That was Kyle, but his voice sounded distorted, Craig's focus instantly snapping to the way Tweek's breath hitched for a moment, almost as if Craig had broken something in him. "Get him!"
"Come on Tweek," Stan yelled, joining in with his friend. "You got him!" But Tweek wasn't listening, his face was too busy crumpling into a hurt, furious and frustrated look that took Craig by surprise.
"I don't want to be the exception, Craig," Tweek hissed out through his breathless gulps of air. "I wanted you to treat me like a human! I wanted you to treat me like you did everyone else!"
Though Kyle spoke over him, Craig still said, in a pained growl, "How can I fucking treat you like everyone else when just seeing that bruise on your face makes me want to murder Cartman?"
Eyes widening, Tweek asked, "What?"
Craig tried to repeat what he had said, wanted to say it and just get it out. But all he could do was spit out a choked, "Fuck you!"
Narrowing his eyes, Tweek let out a "GGHAAAH!" before launching himself at Craig and punching him in the mouth. Letting his anger surge up once more, Craig's fist connected with Tweek's cheek and they were back to fighting. Locked together in furious combat, they both tumbled into the slide, which under their combined rage crumbled.
As it came down with an unholy crash, Craig just barely avoided getting crushed. Rolling out of the way of the support bars, Craig searched the cloud of dust that had been kicked up for Tweek. Spotting his black and blue torso, Craig leaped up and tackled him once more.
They kept getting closer to the shop class building, but neither of them cared. The crowd just kept cheering, throwing in their own jeers and calls as they did so. Craig's only focus was on Tweek. "I hate you!" he was yelling, his words lost to the screams of the other kids. "I hate you and your paranoia and your damn face and your damn eyes."
"I hate how emotionless you are, I just want you to smile for once!" With a feral yell, Tweek leaped into Craig, throwing them both upwards. There was the sound of shattering glass as the back of Craig's head hit a window and then went through it. He could see as shards cut Tweek's face and arms and feel them do the same to him. Remembering third grade, Craig growled and twisted them so he landed on Tweek instead of the other way around.
"What the-?" Craig heard someone yell as he traded blow for blow with Tweek. The boy wiggled out from under him and sent him flying into one of the machines with a kick to the gut. Spitting blood from between his teeth, Craig physically lifted Tweek and threw him against one of the table saws.
"Don't screw aROUND!" someone yelled before the sound cut out as Tweek's fist hit Craig's ear, momentarily deafening him. Movements becoming almost frantic, Craig pushed Tweek into a stool which he vaguely registered Kenny was standing on. Hitting it, Tweek was instantly back on his feet and whipping his fist around into Craig's ribs.
"Stop screwin' aROUND!" Noticing that the boy was getting less precise and just shakier, Craig used it to his advantage to send him backing into the Jigsaw behind them. With a growl that sounded more like Tweek's usual screams, the boy retaliated and slammed Craig back into the second Jigsaw cutter.
Chaos reigned around them as both machines fell, sending everyone else around them into a panic. Locking Tweek in a hold, Craig drove them both into a tool cart, which fell over as well. With him in that hold, Craig spat into the boy's ear, "Do you see what I am now Tweek, do you see what a monster I fucking am."
Breaking free, Tweek stumbled back and drew in a deep breath. "You aren't a monster, if you are, then I'm one too." Limbs shaking, Tweek pulled back his fist and landed a punch right across Craig's jaw. The moment he did, his eyes suddenly focused on something behind Craig, a fearful expression on his face.
In Tweek's moment of weakness, Craig dredged up the last of his strength and body slammed Tweek into the wall behind them. The blonde's skull connected with the plaster and Craig could see his green eyes roll back into his skull as consciousness fled him. Stumbling backwards, swaying as his own grasp on reality weakened, Craig stared at what he'd done, at the boy who he'd just fought.
If you're a monster, then I'm one too. As Tweek's last words flitted through Craig's head, the Noirette felt his knees give way. There wasn't any strength left in him to hold him up. Falling, Craig had the time to think, Does he really mean that? before he was tilting forward and his head cracked against the concrete floor, finally knocking him out.
