"'Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.'" -Isaiah 43: 18-19

There was something to be said about how the road treated the men's mentality. For Kenny, gliding down the highway was akin to how he could soar through the clouds on his now minimal trips up to what he considered his home away from home. Free and smooth as the wind let him fly as he pleased. For Kyle, it was the notion of escape. How the car could easily outrun any haunting notion that wanted to hunt him down, make him remember just what he was dealing with. At least temporarily, and that was all he could really ask for at this point.

Their destination was certainly no strain on them either, going back to who they once were. Before they both became more than human, before their world tried dismantling and pulling itself back together with shoddy string. Able to slip back into the way they'd been at the tail end of high school and the few years they lingered while Kyle commuted to and from his state university. They'd been born into their town as separate entities, but left it together, even to outsiders becoming one incomplete without the other. The last time they'd visited was nearly a year beforehand, only travelling for the sake of Kat getting to know her grandparents and aunt and uncles a little better, so they could hear her talk to them for the first time outside of a phone call.

However, regardless of the road, no matter the destination, the tension was still weighing on the redhead as he watched the city limit sign pass them by. He glanced down at the clock on the dash. Two hours and forty minutes. He'd set himself up not an hour before they hit the road. So he had only a tad over an hour before he would have to get out of sight, running through every possible hindrance they could collide against that would hold him back.

Kenny glanced over from the steering wheel, sensing the worry circulating his husband's overly paranoid mind. He grabbed Kyle's hand, pulling it between them behind the gearshift and squeezing his palm tightly. Kyle let out a long, quiet sigh, reminding himself that Kenny would get him out of dodge as he had been for the past few days as the trip loomed nearer, turning his hand to slide their fingers together and grip him back.

Kat sat in the back in her booster seat, head twisting and turning as she tried to take in all the sights at once, her legs kicking impatiently for them to get where they were going. "Why couldn't Val-for come?" she whined for at least the sixth time.

Kenny shrugged casually, "Grandma doesn't like him."

"Grandma's mean," she pouted.

Kyle frowned, childishly lifting their hands and lightly slamming Kenny's against the plastic console. "It's not Grandma," he turned and looked at her, shaking his head at the shit-eating grin crawling up Kenny's face for his possible war-path paved. "Val just doesn't like to travel."

"Is he with Uncle Stan and Aunt Wendy?"

"No, they're comin' with us to the wedding," he explained.

She frowned harder, "Then he's all alone!"

"He's not," he insisted. "Papa took him to one of our friends, okay? He loves going there. He's happy and we'll see him in just a couple days waiting for us at home. I promise."

Kenny nodded, shaking Kyle's hand for his attention. Green eyes hit him and he jerked his head down to his soda, Kyle rolling his eyes and reaching over to undo the cap with his free hand. "Val's gonna be just fine," Kenny continued. "I'm sure he misses you."

She crossed her arms, looking out the window with an angry pout. "This trip is stupid," she muttered.

Kyle looked at her sternly, holding Kenny's soda up to the blonde's lips and letting him take a few gulps before pulling the plastic back to recap it. "Don't start, Katlyn," he warned. "Grandma won't deal with a fit."

"And neither will Dad," Kenny snorted, getting the same lecturing look that Kat had just received and smiling nervously at the redhead. "Or me," he put on a firmer tone, Kyle's expression breaking to laugh at his pitiable attempt. He turned and winked at him. "This is why she'll hate you when she's older, you'll be better at dolin' out punishments. Enjoy these years of favoritism while you can."

Kyle cocked his brow and shook his head, "Well I guess that's only because kids don't like only talking to people who act their age, huh?"

He scoffed indignantly. "You're just jealous that I am in touch with my inner child," he drawled, Kyle rolling his eyes dramatically. "You just wish that you could feel true childlike wonderment again, Babe."

Kyle shook his head again. 'Saves Heaven and Earth with a goddamn sword and still acts like this. And I married him,' he thought, laughing to himself and squeezing Kenny's hand. He glanced in the rearview mirror, still seeing Kat's pout and sighing. "Kat, I promise, you'll have fun. Even without Val."

"He's lonely," she grumbled.

Kenny looked between the two of them, twisting his lips. "So did you know Val is Daddy's dog?" he asked casually, trying to worm her out of her attitude before a tantrum took hold. "He found him and everything."

She looked back between them and cocked her head, "Where'd you find him?"

Kyle tensed for a moment before shrugging limberly. "Uh outside somewhere… he... he had an abusive owner at the time," he said softly.

"That's why he has his scar," Ken continued. Kyle clicked his teeth. Well. That wasn't exactly true, but it fit the tale well enough he supposed. "Daddy rescued him."

"Did he just come home with you?" she asked, leaning forward a bit in her seat and staring at the redhead.

He paused and gulped. "Uh… not exactly. He didn't like me at first… he didn't until the second time he found me. And then he wouldn't leave. He kind of adopted me before I liked him much."

She stared at him in astonishment, "You didn't like him?" she stressed, unable to imagine her life without the massive canine.

Kyle laughed quietly, eyes glazing over. "It was… a rough time when we found each other. I was having some bad days."

Kenny squeezed his hand a little tighter, stroking over his fingers with his thumb. Every little bit he could tell Kat would help. Even if some of the words had to be tweaked, even if sometimes the story had to be altered to make her none the wiser… Every little bit Kyle could get out into the open would make it all easier down the line.

Kat looked from him to Kenny, his gaze still set steadily on the road. "Did you like him, Papa?"

He smirked, "Loved him. I was… away when they found each other," he phrased carefully. "Val was taking good care of your dad. That's all I needed to know about him." Kyle smiled sadly and nodded, tightening his hand just a touch more. "Loved him even more when we brought you home," he continued. "Dumb mutt wouldn't leave your side. Pretty sure you thought he was your dad for a while."

Kyle laughed and leaned back, remembering all-too-well Valefor's slobbering excitement getting to meet her. His panicked, frenzied whines when they'd take her out of the house and his sight. How he wouldn't let her let go of him as she learned to walk, going so far as to growl at Kenny for trying to get him away to let her try on her own. Kyle's face fell into a fond, wistful smile. Valefor had become what Kyle could only describe as his anomaly, the one piece of good fortune to follow him out of the pits of Hell. Kenny had tentatively asked Kyle after a particularly nasty self-hating fit if Valefor was triggering too many memories, if it'd be better if they'd leave him in Heaven and only go visit. Needless to say, Kenny had his answer after Kyle had attached Val's leash and taken him on a four and a half hour walk before coming home, Kyle swearing up and down that he was lucky that the two of them were on a time limit or he probably would've walked him clear down to his parents' house for that kind of bullshit statement.

Kyle himself could never explain it, how he could see himself and see what had happened, but never when looking at Valefor. He only saw his dog, saw what had kept him together for five months of his imprisonment. Maybe, he'd surmised, it was the notion of a kindred spirit. Valefor didn't exactly choose who he was either, and he could play both sides of the spectrum just as Kyle could, depending on who he was with. It was the closest Kyle had to someone to relate to as he lived his life with a full-fledged angel surrounded in a world of fragile mortals. He and Valefor were perhaps the only demonic presences to walk on Earth, and it was an isolating notion, but one that he was just glad he had companionship for.

'I hope hellhounds live longer than regular dogs,' he thought, lightly gnawing on his lip. It could be a challenge to explain a longer lifespan, but that was definitely something he was willing to work through if things actually turned to his advantage for once.

"We're almost thereee," Kenny sang. He let go of Kyle's hand, gripping the wheel and curving the truck onto the exit ramp. "You excited, Kat?"

"Uh…"

Kyle glanced back at her, "What? You get to see Grandma and Grandpa. You love them… for reasons I don't understand," he muttered under his breath.

She bit her lip shyly and shrugged, looking back out the window. "I dunno."

Ken snorted, "Hon, if anyone has to be nervous about seeing them, it's me. Since I married their precious little bubbeleh," he mocked, pinching Kyle's cheek.

Kyle growled, batting his hand off his face and scowling at his husband's incessant laughter. "Call me that again and you won't have to worry about my parents anymore because I'll find myself a nice Jewish man to marry like my mother wanted."

Kenny looked at him wryly. "Oh yeah. I can see that. Pretty sure you'd avoid that just so it didn't make your mom too happy. Got a Catholic this time around, maybe next round get yourself a Buddhist. See what'll make her voice go the shrillest."

He snorted, "Pretty sure Catholic is that point…" he paused, glancing back at their daughter. "Uh… speaking of…"

"We say that we take her to synagogue," he held up his hand. "Babe we're two steps ahead here."

Kyle frowned, "She doesn't know anything religious. You tell my mother she's goin' to temple, she's gonna ask what her favorite lessons are, you dope."

"…Oh yeah," he muttered, blowing bangs out of his face. "Well… what do we tell 'em then?"

He shrugged, "I-I don't know… I guess the truth?"

Kenny raised his brow, "The truth that we'd rather be invested in praising God out loud some other kind of way on weekend mornings?"

Kyle slapped his face into his palm and took a steadying breath. "I swear if you tell my mother that, you're walking home. No, we just calmly and firmly tell her that we're waiting to let her figure it out."

The blonde snorted, "Oh yeah. Sheila's gonna be allllllll over that one."

Kyle sighed and nodded. "Yeah no. They'll drag her off to temple tomorrow or Saturday. And she'll take her shopping for 'presentable' clothes, since I neglected to think of this back home getting her bag ready."

Kenny shrugged. "Fine. But that means we take her to mass."

"You don't even go to mass."

He looked over and smirked, "Well. I kinda know a lot," he said quietly with a wink. "But all's fair n' equal in this instance, right? So we keep it even. We agreed."

Kyle leaned his head back with a groan. "Fine. Equal. You take her to mass and I'll sleep in. I'm not going to watch you people eating crackers for an hour."

Ken snorted, "'You people?'" he quoted.

"I'm sorry. You Jesus freaks," he amended dryly, getting another laugh and a soft hit from the back of Kenny's hand against his arm.

Kat light beat her head against the back of her booster seat, eyes rolling enough she was beginning to make herself dizzy. "You two are so boring," she whined. "Are we… are we there yet?!"

"Ay," Kenny scoffed. "Don't make me pull this car over and kiss your dad until you get all grossed out."

"I'll run into the road. Then I'll be quiet. Unlike you," she said flatly, Kyle leaning back and laughing hysterically into his hand, Kenny pouting at losing yet another battle to a three-year-old.

Kenny glared at his husband, "You just had to teach her word comprehension," he grumbled. "You're why she keeps getting into trouble at school."

"Oh am I?" he challenged, trying to settle down a bit.

The blonde straightened up primly. "Yeah. I'm not the one teachin' her sarcasm. I'm a delight." Both Kyle and Kat sputtered with more giggles, Kenny looking between them and whining, bouncing childishly in his seat. "I give you two so much," he insisted. "All you give me is a hard time."

Kat stared at him, "Because we… we make you think?"

"Oh my god," Kyle laughed louder, leaning forward and hiding his face in his hands as he cackled.

Kenny growled, flicking Kyle. "Oh look, it's Daddy and Papa's old street," he said through gritted teeth, looking back into the rearview mirror at Kat's amused expression and smiling in frustration. "When we get to Grandma and Grandpa's, you should tell them all about how Daddy says Grandma's cooking tastes like an old boot."

Kyle's laughter stopped at once, looking at the blonde furiously. "Kenny, she'll kill me."

"You deserve it," he said snobbishly. "I give you nothing but love and you turn our child against me. I'm entitled to watching your mother beat you over the head with a cast iron."

The redhead turned to Kat and twisted his lips. "Are you gonna tell her that?"

She looked up in thought before glancing back down with a grin. "Not with… twenty hundred dollars," she said innocently.

Kyle glared at Kenny, "You taught her blackmail?"

He winced, "I think Cartman did that when he dropped by to visit on his way through town. Took me a good hour while you were at the grocery store to convince her Jews aren't literally made of money."

He groaned and rolled his eyes. "Of course." He turned back to the curly-headed blonde and sighed. "Ten dollars. And only if you're good this weekend. You'll get it when we get home. Deal?"

She nodded briskly, holding out her little hand. "D-deal," she agreed. Kyle reached his own hand out and they quickly high fived before turning back into their seats, Kyle glancing out the window at the passing houses.

"Man, will this town ever change?" he murmured quietly.

Kenny shook his head, "Nah. I think good ol' South Park is stuck in a time paradox. Least the houses. I did hear they're openin' a new Chiles, though."

"God is that what passed for news here?" he rolled his eyes. "We've lived in the city so long I forget that we used to have town meetings on new buildings opening," he scoffed.

Ken chuckled, glancing to the right and his face dropping. "Holy shit."

Kyle followed his gaze, glancing towards the row of buildings and his own expression followed suit. "Apparently not… all the houses stayed the same," he blinked. They all lurched forward as Kenny stopped the truck just before the railroad tracks, gaping at an empty lot.

"WHERE THE FUCK IS MY HOUSE?!" he shouted, Kyle cringing at the volume.

"Huh?" Kat blinked confusedly.

Kyle gulped, glancing back at her and rubbing Kenny's shoulder. "His old house used to be here… looks like they tore it down."

She narrowed her eyes, "Why?"

"It… wasn't in the best condition…," he said slowly. "Ken? You okay?"

The blonde just stared past him before shaking his head and turning his attention back towards the road, hitting the acceleration and all of them bobbing with the change in motion. "Yeah. That just was… unexpected. Considering last I heard Ma and Pops were still living there," he grumbled.

Kyle's expression fell further, continuing to comfortingly massage his shoulder. "Maybe they told Kevin or Karen and… and they-"

"No they didn't," he said quietly. "Pieces of shit… Whatever. It's fine," he scoffed, pulling up in front of Kyle's house. Last one just before the tracks, all too convenient for the two of them when they were younger and a perk they'd always enjoyed once they'd started dating. He put the truck in park and turned off the ignition. "It's totally fine. You know what? Means I ain't gotta feel bad 'bout not takin' Kat t' see 'em," he said, hitting the steering wheel and twisting to get out of the vehicle and head towards the bed to get her bag.

Kat's face fell, not used to Kenny being the one to act out. "Is Papa o-okay?" she asked timidly.

Kyle took a deep breath, unbuckling and nodding. "He'll be fine. He just doesn't get along with his mom and dad."

"Why?"

"They weren't very good parents," he winced.

Long, pale lashes fluttered in bewilderment. "Why?"

Kyle threw open his door and hopped out, opening her door and sparing another glance at his infuriated husband as he started to help her out of her straps. He leaned in close and sighed quietly. "Papa will tell you someday," he promised softly. "Don't ask him yet. And he needs to be the one to tell you. You understand?" She furrowed her brows. Kyle was always the one to tell her about things, switching the routine didn't quite compute to her. But he looked serious and sad enough for her to nod in agreement. At least for now. He smiled in thanks, carefully lifting her out of her seat and hefting her into his arms, kicking the door shut behind him and walking over to meet Kenny as he tore out her small giraffe-patterned bag. "Ken?" Kyle asked softly. "You gonna be okay?"

Kenny nodded. "I'm fine. Perfectly dandy." He slung Kat's bag over his shoulder and shrugged. "Let's just get in and out so we can hit the hotel, huh?" he said, eyes glazing over.

"Yeah, yeah of course," he nodded, holding out his hand. Kenny smiled sadly, taking it and relinking their fingers as they headed up the walkway towards the Broflovski homestead, both of them jerking back at the door flinging open and Sheila standing there clapping her hands in glee.

"Bubbie!" she greeted, hurrying out and grabbing around the three of them, dragging them in for a hug. "We were worried! You took longer than usual!"

Kyle rolled his eyes, "Needed a rest stop because someone can't hold it." He shook his head at her glancing at Kat. "No. Not that one." Kenny shed his angry grimace in favor of a cheesy smirk, waving at her pointedly.

She chuckled, bending him down and kissing his forehead. "How are you, Bubbie?"

"We're fine, Ma."

"I said you," she hit his curls lightly.

He smiled tiredly as he stood back up, "I'm fine." He glanced down at Kat hiding in his shirt shyly, looking at Sheila's hair and biting her lip. It was duller than her dad's, the shade almost making her uneasy by how close but how different it was from what she was used to.

Sheila reached up higher to grab Kenny's face and pull him down to kiss his forehead as well, the blonde breaking into a real smile at the welcomed greeting. At least he had this set of parents he could depend on, regardless of knowing Sheila remembered well enough catching him in the mornings after he'd snuck into Kyle's room the night before. "And how are you, Kenneth?"

"Doin' great, Mrs. Brof," he answered, giving her a quick hug. "How 'bout you?"

"Fantastic," she answered, looking back towards the house. "Gerald! Get out here!" she demanded before turning back to the toddler and smiling brightly. "Hello, Katlyn," she cooed.

Kat twisted her fingers in Kyle's shirt before timidly waving at her. Kyle smirked, shaking her a bit, "C'mon you remember Grandma."

Sheila raised her brow, "She'd remember me more if you'd come see us more often, Kyle," she crossed her arms. "Your little… home job can't keep you that busy."

Kyle shut his eyes, forcing himself to take a deep breath. He was expecting this. He didn't like it, but he knew that it was inevitable. He'd just hoped it wouldn't pop up until the day they were leaving. "Ma. It's a full-time job."

"From home," she finished with a clucking tongue. "It must be very nice to have so much downtime."

He reopened his eyes, narrowing them slightly. "You were a housewife. And still are," he reminded her staunchly.

"I was a stay at home mother," she corrected, slapping his arm a bit. "You and your brother needed me! Always getting into trouble and never studying enough when you had the opportunity so you could play with your friends."

Kyle scowled, arms tightening around his daughter, wanting to just get back in the truck and hightail it back to Boulder. "Then I'm a stay at home dad. And I get paid for it," he said flatly.

She huffed. "That'd be more impressive if you had more than just one child, Kyle. Maybe you two should consider another, so you'll be busier and won't have time for this attitude with me-"

"Gerald!" Kenny broke through the tense air building so rapidly as the man stepped out of the house, the blonde waving at him frantically. "Gerald! My man! How you doin? Come talk!" he urged, raising his brows hintingly.

The man looked between his desperation and Kyle's frustration and shook his head. Of course Sheila would start right away with her nonsense. He plastered on a smile, hastening his steps towards them. "Heya, Boys," he nodded, "How was the drive?"

Kyle relaxed a bit, "It was fine, Dad. How're you?"

"Same ol'," he shrugged. "You two?"

"Great," Kenny nodded, hooking his arm around Kyle's shoulders. "Ain't nothin' but sock hops at our place."

The man snorted a bit, "Well, just don't give Kat the complementary cigarettes."

"No promises," he winked, turning down to Kat still partially hiding. "C'mon, Kit-Kat," he cooed. "Say hi."

She gave them a small smile and wave. "Hi."

"Aw, come on," Gerald pressed. "Don't remember us at all? We gave you the big purple horse last time you were here."

Kat blinked, "Bryce?"

"Oh, you named him!" Sheila smiled, clasping her hands together. She glanced up to see the boys shaking their heads, mouthing 'her' over and over. "I-I mean… her. Of course it's a her," she laughed softly. "Do you take good care of Bryce?"

She nodded, straightening up at bit at the mention of something so familiar and dear to her, the stuffed toy always one of the last she would say goodnight to, right before her fathers. She was always placed precariously atop the other stuffed animals in the corner, the biggest one she had and so the designated protector of the entire herd. That is aside from her favorite bear that her dads had given her for her third birthday, an orange cotton companion that she'd dubbed Lime just to spite Kenny joking his name should just be Orange, that slept beside of her throughout the night and was waiting in her bag for bedtime. "I didn't bring her," she informed them. "She's too big."

Gerald chuckled, "Well, that's all right. She's waitin' for you at home, huh?"

She nodded briskly, blue eyes beginning to brighten a bit with the ease of conversation. "I keep… keep her with the other animals," she smiled. "She watches them."

"I bet she does great at watching them," Sheila grinned back. "Do you wanna come inside where it's a little warmer, Honey? We'll make whatever you want to eat."

She nodded, feeling Kyle shift her a bit in his grasp. "We're gonna head to the hotel," Kyle informed them. "Me and Ken are kind of beat. Wanna get some dinner, you know," he shrugged dismissively.

Sheila's face fell, "Bubbeleh, just stay here for dinner," she insisted.

"Now, Sheila, let them have a weekend to themselves," Gerald patted her shoulder. "How about we just do lunch on Sunday and talk before you guys leave?" he asked them.

"Sounds great, so long as you're the one doin' the cookin, Mrs. B," Kenny winked, handing off Kat's bag to Gerald.

Sheila smirked triumphantly. "Of course, Kenneth."

Kyle rolled his eyes, turning Kat in his grip and holding her up. "Gonna be good?" he asked.

She scoffed and rolled her eyes back at him. "Yes, Daddy," she drawled, giggling at a kiss against her forehead before Kenny leaned down and got her cheek.

"You better, or we're leaving you here," Ken teased. She grunted lightly, grabbing both of them around their necks and hugging them before turning in Kyle's grip stretching towards the ground. He put her onto her feet and she moved over to Sheila, holding her hand up and smiling as the woman took it.

"No hands means no walking," she recited Kyle's constant saying to her.

"That's a good way to be," Sheila complimented, squeezing her tiny fingers a tad before looking at the boys. "You know, Kyle. You could leave her here a little while. Take some time and go to school."

Kyle's content face fell immediately. "I'm not taking her out of preschool. Besides, I did go to school. And finished. Twice." he said firmly.

"No, you didn't," she lectured. "School doesn't give you just a certification, Kyle. Or a degree you can't do anything with."

"I make money for my family and have time to spend with them, that's good enough for me," he bit, starting to shake.

She looked between them and shook her head. "Obviously not enough free time if your husband wants my cooking and not yours. If you have such a relaxed schedule you should be much better at keeping your household afloat."

Kyle scowled, ignoring Kenny grabbing around his hand desperately. "I'm not a housewife," he spat.

"Daddy's not a wife," Kat re-emphasized. "I like his food, though."

"Same," Kenny frowned. "Thanks, Sheila. Been a slice. We'll see you Sunday… c'mon, Babe," he urged, tugging Kyle's hand. "I wanna go… see the plot," he murmured. Kyle broke from his enraged glaring into automatic sympathy, grasping Kenny's hand back and linking their fingers.

The redhead nodded, "If you're sure."

"Positive. See ya Kit-Kat," he smiled at their daughter. "Be good." Kyle glanced down and waved, giving her a sad smile, Kat tilting her head at the expression before Sheila started turning her to lead into the house.

"Bye, Papa, bye, Daddy," she called out before turning her attention back around.

Kenny gripped Kyle's hand tighter, starting to lead him down the sidewalk back towards the railroad tracks. "Fuck, Ky," he murmured as soon as they were out of earshot. "I'm sorry she's still pulling that shit."

He sighed, tucking his hair behind his ear. "She'll be pulling that shit until she's on her deathbed, Ken. To be fair, I wasted a lot of their money. Pretty sure they were hoping for reimbursement with me being able to afford to send them to a nice retirement home… Don't think I can do that anymore. Given, I probably couldn't have anyway with my field," he scoffed.

"Well… Ike?" he winced.

He shrugged, "Ike likes the fact that he couldn't have fucked up as much as Ma thinks I did. Because if my end goal was just a Bachelor's, I would've been fine. But no I had to aim higher," he rolled his eyes. "I'm sure he and I will figure something out down the line. His engineer bucks and my transcription pittance will get them somewhere medial at least," he paused. "Unless Kat goes to grad school. Then fuck them, they're on their goddamn own."

Kenny squeezed his hand as they made way across the railroad tracks, overgrown and dilapidated beyond repair. "What would you do if she went and dropped out?" he asked quietly.

Kyle hesitated, "Depends on the reasoning. If it was like me and a literal no-win situation, then I'd take it in stride. If she came up to us and said 'Hey so I'm pregnant so this whole school thing won't pan out'… well Dad wouldn't be happy let's just say that," he drawled.

The blonde shuddered, "No no no. No talk of pregnancy. Ever. That's not happening."

He snorted, "Ken, it has to be a talk at some point."

"Noooooope," he shook his head briskly. "She'll be a lesbian and that'll never be a worry and she'll wait to adopt like we did when she's old and financially secure enough and it'll be great."

Kyle rolled his eyes, "You can't bank on her being a lesbian."

"Shh. Let me dream," he whispered, closing his eyes. Three was just way too young for that kind of idea to spawn for him, he had enough to worry about with Rodney passing out his deadly cookies to any girl that looked his way. Last thing he needed was to know what Rodney would goddamn more than likely grow up to be. He shook his head, reopening his eyes at Kyle's quiet laughter, glancing over to the side and bringing them both to a stop, gazing at the dirt lot that was once his home. Kyle's chuckling halted, looking up at Kenny worriedly.

"Ken? You all right?"

He gulped, tugging his hand and leading him onto the newly sodded grass, making way towards the patch with its own grass trying to sprout in the deadened earth. "It's just… gone," he said quietly. "Why did they knock it down?"

Kyle let out a long breath through his nose, "Probably cheaper to rebuild entirely than to fix it up," he murmured. "It was kind of a wreck by the time you left."

"It was always a wreck," he rolled his eyes, shoulders drooping. "But it was my wreck, ya know?"

"I know," he nodded, squeezing his fingers tightly, letting Kenny lead him to the back of the lot, the blonde stamping his foot a few times in the dust.

He smirked sadly, "My bed was here. And where I first plowed your sweet ass."

Kyle rolled his eyes, "You're not going to take me on a tour of coital memory lane, are you?"

"Nah, just this one," he promised, kissing his cheek. "'Member how I smooth-talked you into bed that first time?" he purred.

The redhead snorted. "Stumbling over your words and tripping over your own socks is smooth?" he repeated. "You were shaking so bad I got your fucking blanket because I thought you were freezing."

"Oh, like you were much better," he scoffed. "Goddamn. 'Scuse me for bein' nervous 'bout hurtin' ya."

Kyle shook his head and laughed. "Well. You always were the softie between the two of us," he taunted.

"Ay, let's be real. Not much was soft about me when you were around. Still isn't." Kyle rolled his eyes again. Walked right the fuck into that one. Kenny glanced around and took another breath. "Seriously, though," he shook him lightly. "Remember all that?"

He nodded. "Yeah. And we were both a fucking mess. In every sense of the word," he smirked. Kenny pulled on his hand, leading him to sit down on the dirt with their fingers still intertwined, leaning against one another and staring at the blank canvas of land. "You tried so fucking hard to make it special for me," he smiled. "Ended up looking like a full-fledged retard and tried to kill me with candles."

"Romance wasn't exactly my thing," he shrugged. "And how was I supposed to know you're allergic to goddamn fake cinnamon of all things?"

He cocked his brow, "The fact that I refused to go into stores around the holidays?"

"In my defense, I thought that was a personal protest that there wasn't enough Chanukah stuff to combat all the baby Jesus shit," Kenny raised his hand a bit. "Made sense at the time." Kyle rolled his eyes amusedly, leaning down against his shoulder and nuzzling his cheek into the bone with a sigh. "You asked me to move with you in here, too," Kenny continued softly. "'Member?"

"I remember I tried really hard to make it some romantic gesture, but I fail as hard as you do at that," he scoffed. "Fuckin' restaurant cancelled my goddamn reservation," he muttered bitterly.

Kenny grinned, leaning his head down atop his. "Fuck man, you were so nervous I thought you were about to propose."

He raised his brow, "What if I was?"

The blonde shrugged, "I would've said yes. And called you a raging faggot."

"Aw, you remember how I accepted your proposal," he smirked. Kenny kissed his forehead and nodded softly. "But Ken… Are you really that upset the house is gone? You hated it here," Kyle said quietly.

He paused, letting his eyes drift around the abandoned lot. "I hated it, but… Fuck man, this was where we technically had our first kiss, too."

"There has to be more you miss than just things we did here," he insisted.

Kenny scoffed, "Like what? Dad throwin' whiskey bottles at us? And at you?" Kyle cringed a bit with the memory. "Ma snortin' pills? Kev tryin' like crazy to get me and Kare out 'till he made himself sick from workin' nonstop? None of us havin' friends over because we were embarrassed of what we were? You know what my good memories are in this fuckin' house? Karen bein' brought home for the first time. That one time that Ma was sober enough to scrounge up the money to buy me my first birthday cake when I turned fourteen… and then everything after that is you. This place was a dump. But… I dunno it's where I started to finally be happy and okay with everything that was happening to me with dyin' n' shit, you know?" he winced. "You came along and suddenly this place just didn't seem so bad."

Kyle was silent for a moment before smiling softly, closing his eyes and delving his head deeper against his shoulder. "Fuck, you're gay."

"Well good thing considering who I'm married to," he said thickly. He sighed, plopping his head down atop Kyle's hair with a pout. "Everything's different."

"Oh god don't go having a midlife crisis on me already," Kyle groaned. "You're not even thirty yet. Let Kat get into high school and then you can start freaking out."

He snorted lightly and kissed his head. "Nah it's not that. It's just… I thought we'd be stuck here forever, ya know? We'd buy a house a few blocks away and raise our kids here once you were done with school. Grow old and be standing off to the side embarrassed that no one ever grew a brain in this shit town."

Kyle took a deep breath and nodded. "Well. I would've preferred that to what happened to an extent," he murmured. "But us being out of here is the best we could ask for being like we are. Well, like I am," he shrugged. "We need the city; we need somewhere were our neighbors don't really know us. Here everything is everyone's business. Hate to say it but I'm sure once they tore down your house, it was a community event. Where Randy was there in a lawn chair with a can of beer telling them to blow it up."

Kenny smirked, reaching up and squeezing around his shoulders. "Think we'll end up back here regardless?"

Kyle shook his head. "No. We made the right call staying where we are. We had a lot of new shit to adjust to, trying to make that work along with picking pace back up here just wouldn't have worked." He grabbed a handful of dirt, letting it seep through his fingers back onto the ground. "New lives, new start," he shrugged. "Readjusting to account for my fucking mother nosing into my business would be impossible. And honestly I kind of like it just being the three of us, but we still have Stan nearby if something comes up," he glanced up at him. "Best of both worlds."

The blonde grinned, leaning down and kissing him softly, humming against his lips. "Wanna get back to the hotel?" he murmured, tracing his lips up along his cheek to his ear. "We can forget all about this dirt and your mother's bitchy attitude. Fresh start." Kyle smiled and nodded softly, the both of them working their way back onto their feet and linking arms around the other's waist as they made way back towards the truck. Kenny stole one last glance at the dirt patch as they walked away, taking a deep breath. He felt Kyle squeezing around him reassuringly, turning back and leaning down against him.

Maybe it was for the best, he thought. Completely leaving behind what he'd left in this town seemed to be the only reasonable thing to do at the end of the day considering such a strained relationship with his parents. He knew he'd have to give Karen and Kevin a call, tell them what he'd found out and subject Kyle to listening to an hour-long bitch fest with both of them. But he also knew Kyle didn't mind, and was probably just as furious at his family for running off as he was. There was a reason Kyle took him with him to Boulder, and it wasn't just because of their relationship. Kenny had a feeling that even without that element, the redhead wouldn't have let him become trapped in South Park. He'd always felt that they both deserved more than what they had here, and wasn't about to deny him the same opportunity he'd struck.

And besides, he reasoned, if Kyle had to completely rebuild himself from the bottom and cut as many ties as he could afford to sever, there was no reason he shouldn't have to, too. Just the two of them and the ground up; and either one of them could easily say that that was all they ever really needed.