Welcome back! Wow, we're so close to the ending now! Seventeen reviews, dude! So maybe you guys like StanKyle slashy stuff after all!

Sorry Sorry! I have WAYYYY too many reviews to do review replies! I started, and ended up at like 2000 words (review replies only), and I was only halfway done. SO, what I'm doing instead is I'll make one FINAL goodbye shoutout at the very end, thanking EVERY person to ever have reviewed my story. good deal?
The house telephone rang, with all its glory, and without warning Stan raced to receive the long awaited call. It was seven at night, making it a three and a half hour wait for Kyle's phone call. Within that time Stan did nothing, only amusing himself with the wonders of Internet while waiting for Kyle's promised call. The other boy wanted to do his homework before giving his attention to Stan, and although Stan complained that homework came before him, he followed through with Kyle's plan nonetheless.

And of course, Kyle had finally called; Stan was happier than ever.

"Hey Kyle!" Stan exclaimed, almost yelling into the receiver. He was greeted by a muffled fit of laughter, which he clearly recognized to be Kyle's.

"Someone's excited to hear from me," said Kyle. Stan nodded furiously, slightly forgetting that the other boy couldn't see him.

"Of course, dude!" Stan said gleefully. "So how was your homework?"

"Pretty tiring," Kyle muttered. "I had to do some worksheets for AP Bio, then switched gears to studying for both my Precalculus and my Chemistry exams tomorrow. I started doing my outline for Human Geography, but then I decided to call you instead." Stan smiled from his end of the phone; Kyle's heavy workload always astonished him, and Stan could never figure out how the kid was able to get all his work done.

"Get a life," Stan chuckled lightheartedly. "There's a lot more to life, you know."

"As if you've been doing anything interesting for the past few hours," Kyle shot back, nailing the accusation right on the money. Stan was at a loss for words, trying to get around the accusation, but both boys already knew he was right. "Well, what've you done so far?"

"Uh, nothing," Stan admitted, and the two of them laughed. "Waiting for your precious phone call, if you really wanted to know."

"Precious?" Kyle questioned. Stan nodded but quickly corrected his action, muttering a verbal confirmation to the boy. "So what I say is precious now?"

"Well valued, at the least," said Stan. "To me, I mean."

"Have you at least started on your homework?" Kyle asked, and Stan laughed nervously. "Dude, I'm flattered that you were waiting for me, but… you gotta do your homework too!"

"It's only Geometry homework," Stan muttered. "I can do that any time I want anyway. I've got lunch period to do it, too, remember?" He heard the boy sigh in defeat on the other side of the phone.

"Fine," came his response, and Stan laughed from his side of the phone. "But can I ask you a more serious question?"

"Yeah?"

"What're you going to do about Clyde?" Stan bit his lip at the sound of the boy's name, but he merely shook his head violently.

"What'd you mean?"

"Don't you think you should help the police force?" Kyle asked. "You know Clyde deserves the proper justice… give him the proper honor he deserves. Don't let Cartman and Wendy get away with it!"

"I'll tell them when I'm ready," muttered Stan. "And I don't believe that I'm ready now. I promise you, Kyle. When I can openly talk about it, I will."

"You told me…" Kyle said silently, trailing his sentence off.

"But that's you," said Stan. "At least with you I know that information's safe. And I don't have a fear of being hunted down when I tell you. Who knows? Some member of ANTIGSA might chase me down if I tell the authorities." There was a silence on the line, though much unlike the abundance of silences the boys had suffered through within the last month. He could hear Ike in the background, the loud cries suggesting a war breaking out in the boy's room. Kyle made scarce noise, but the occasional 'hmm' was enough to tell Stan that he was thinking.

"I guess you have a point," Kyle said, sighing in defeat for the second time within one phone call. "Promise me that you'll tell the police eventually."

"Of course," Stan said honestly. He looked outside his window, where a small storm of flurries had picked up. "You know I will."

"Great," said Kyle. "Hey Stan, I have to go help my brother in his massive war against the aliens. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Sure," said Stan, frowning slightly at Kyle's departure. "Oh wait, Kyle?"

"Yeah?"

"You know tomorrow's Valentine's Day, right?" He smirked, ideas racing in his head of things he could do for the two the following night.

"And?" said Kyle, and before Stan could reply the boy hung up. Stan frowned, still holding the phone to his ear. What had just happened? Perhaps Kyle had not heard Stan right… Valentine's Day! But then, there had been a sly tone to his voice… Perhaps Kyle just dismissed the topic on purpose.

Whatever the reason, Stan grinned madly, putting on his jacket. He would have shopping to attend to, now.

-

Valentine's Day came accompanied with a calm sheet of snow, covering the roofs and car hoods of South Park. Angry townsmen arose minutes before to brush off the new snow, but for the most part the new layer was in the least bit inconvenient. Snow on the ground level quickly disappeared, trodden frequently upon by car tires and the soles of shoes. Stan's shoes were among the many footprints that marked the ground, moving swiftly along the snow's surface.

He arrived at the school fifteen minutes before his classes started, which surprised him since he believed himself to be rather late that morning. He walked briskly through the halls while listing the names of the teachers that taught in the classrooms he passed by. It wouldn't be long until he reached their hangout location. It would be the first day with Stan and Kyle as a couple, and Stan wondered if Kenny really minded. Sure, Kenny had pretty much been the one to cause the two to get together to begin with, but that didn't mean he agreed with the coupling, either.

He stopped at the hangout, looked around, and frowned. "Where's Kyle?" He directed the question toward Kenny, the only person present.

"I dunno," Kenny mumbled, taking a bite into a bagel. Stan frowned, leaning against the concrete column as he looked to his feet. "I haven't seen him yet."

"Oh, okay…" Another silence. "Hey, Kenny, about—"

"I don't mind," Kenny muttered simply, and Stan stared at him in shock.

"How'd you know what I was—?"

"Not that hard to figure out," Kenny said with a smile. "But… I want what's best for Kyle. If he's better off with you than he is with me, then by all means take him. I just hated seeing him the way he was… that long ago."

"But am I that way now?" The sudden voice shocked both boys, and as Stan gleefully turned around he found the boy he had previously been looking for. The two smiled, meeting each other in a warm embrace, and as they separated they smiled into each other's gaze.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" Kyle exclaimed, and Stan smiled.

"Orange and green?" Stan muttered, looking at Kyle's attire. "Not exactly Valentine's Day attire, if you ask me."

"But you bought it for me!" Kyle exclaimed, startling Stan. "So naturally, it's appropriate to wear!"

"You know about that?" Stan asked, and Kyle nodded mischievously. "I thought your parents kept that a secret…"

"They did, Kyle muttered. "Ike didn't. Besides, I kinda found out on my own." Kyle removed his book bag, setting it on the concrete platform underneath the stairs, and as he reached into his bag he revealed a small, decorated box. "Chocolates," Kyle said simply. "For you."

"Thanks!" Stan said, happily taking it. Kyle handed Kenny a similar sized box, and as he returned his gaze to Stan's he smiled. "Don't worry, Stan. The other one's I'm giving aren't as big as yours. I only gave that to Kenny because, well…"

"I get it," Stan said reassuringly, pulling Kyle into his embrace once more. "I'd give you my gift too," began Stan, whispering softly into Kyle's ear, "but I kinda don't have it with me."

"You forgot your present? How could you?" Kyle's voice was cheerful, sarcastic, and playful, and it didn't take long for Kenny to figure out what was going on.

"Mind if it I give it to you later tonight, then?" Stan said, smiling. Kyle nodded profusely, but as the two turned toward a confused Kenny Stan laughed.

"You guys aren't really going to… you know… on the first day of dating…?"

"'Course not," Stan said, his voice cracking in laughter. "We all aren't as perverted as you, Kenny."

-

First period class, the ever-so-famous English class of Mr. Absenence, was even emptier that morning than it normally was. As expected, Cartman and Wendy were missing from class, but there were also a handful of other students missing. As many of the students noted, since they were more in tune to what occurred around the school, their peers were missing by the pairs, and it didn't take long for Mr. Absenence to catch on the reason behind the absences.

"We still gotta do work!" Stan complained, and the class laughed. The teacher nodded solemnly, passing out simple worksheets. Kyle laughed, noting the ridiculousness of the assignment, and after showing it to Stan the boy turned red.

"I'm not as bad as you think," said his teacher. "But if I can't spend time with my wife on Valentine's, then neither should the rest of you. Yet still…"

"Mr. Absenence!" Stan exclaimed, standing up. "I propose that you should get off work and find that wife of yours!"

"Good idea!" said Butters, standing up. "I—I'll be the substitute teacher, I—I suppose."

"That's entirely unnecessary—"

"Do it!" exclaimed Bebe, also joining in with her class. "Your wife deserves it!"

"Besides," Kyle said, also standing up. "For someone with that last name, you need to have more absences." The class chuckled, and as his teacher turned red Kyle added; "Don't worry… I know a friend who could've said a lot worse."

"Fine!" yelled their teacher, and the class cheered. "I'll—" but he was interrupted by the intercom. The class groaned in disappointment, and as Stan sat down once more he heard his name.

"Could you please Stan Marsh down to the office?" Mr. Absenence nudged his head in the direction of the door, and Stan complied. He knew what it was about, and as he glanced back at Kyle he nodded, exiting the room. He walked for a while, finding his way to the main office, and as he opened the door he met the presence of a police office.

He was instructed to follow the officer, and as Stan followed him he made his way through a couple of barren hallways. He arrived in front of a room, Resource Office, and as the officer took a seat he extended a hand. Stan willingly took the offer, seating himself in front of the officer.

"You know why you're here?" A nod. "You know what I want?" Another nod. "Do you think you're ready?" A third nod, and then Stan began to tell his story. He left things out, such as names, but he did describe them at the least. The officer handed him a tissue, more than once, and by the end Stan was in an emotional fit. Of course, there was a lot more that happened, but for the sake of everyone (Stan, Kyle, Clyde, and you, as the reader) it won't be said again in detail.

"I won't reveal your name, I promise." Stan nodded, looking at the clock. Almost the end of first period…

"It doesn't really matter. In the end Car—I mean, whoever it is---will eventually figure me out."

"You'll be fine," said the officer. "You should head back to class now. Are you sure you'll be fine?"

"Yeah," Stan said. "I kinda have to… Don't want my date on Valentine's to see me in such a wreck, right?" Stan chuckled at his own joke, though as he thought about it, Kyle probably wouldn't have cared what condition Stan appeared in.

"Lucky girl to have you as a boyfriend," the officer said, and Stan turned red. "Go get 'er, kid." Stan laughed and nodded, standing up to leave the room. He debated for a second whether he should correct the officer, but he decided against it. Lucky girl, lucky boy… same thing. Kyle was Kyle, regardless if he was a boy or girl. Stan would've probably liked him either way.

There was one more task Stan had left to accomplish, and as he thought about it, he smiled. "Tonight," began Stan, rubbing his hands together; "Tonight belongs to him."

That's chapter 28! yay, now we're only two chapters away from end...

Some advertisements. In the South Park fandom, I really need people to look at Crystal Beyond the Horizon, currently in it's 11th chapter, and it needs major review. Likewise for this story's counterpart, Hope. Run will also be updated shortly.

I have a Cardcaptor Sakura fic up, The Wizard of Elements, and although it sounds... I dunno. It's actually a romance story between Syaoran and Sakura. Read that too.

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Anyway, I hope you review this, as I need all the more motivation to help me... nail that ending. I've never actually completed a whole story before, except oneshots. So... please review, and I'll gladly appreciate it!

-Zak-