Kind of short this one, but the story is reaching its climax! Who knows what's going to happen next?!

Disclaimer: I actually own the letter 'S.' Every time you use that letter you must pay me a quarter. That means that everytime South Park uses the character Stan, they own me money! So in part, that makes me a semi owner of the show, allowing me to do anything I want with the characters! Note: this is all a lie.

Enjoy!

Because You're Always There

Chapter Four

I knocked on the door of Kyle's house, the hollow echo of it sending a shiver down my spine. I was possibly more afraid of this moment than any to come. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for one more minute of sweet silence. It could quite possibly get very loud very soon….

My eyes snapped open at the sound of creaking. I looked down and saw the brass doorknob on the house slowly turning like tumblers on a safe. The door cracked open and the sickening scent of perfume wafted to my nostrils. They flared in irritation, but I coaxed my face to keep its fragile grin.

"Stanley," she said deftly, her voice cold and still.

"Mrs. Broflovski, it's nice to see you again," I greeted with a smile. Her eyes were mooned over in annoyance and she remained silent. I was hoping she would move aside and let me in, but she was as unmoving as a statue. I cleared my throat nervously and coughed into my hand. "Is Kyle ready yet?"

"No," she responded practically before I even finished my sentence.

"Could we perhaps come in and wait for him, Sheila?" my mother asked, appearing at my side and throwing a coat over her shoulders. "It is a little chilly out here."

"Oh, good evening, Sharon," Kyle's mother said, some life returning to her voice. "Yes… I suppose you could come in and wait for him." Only then did she move from the doorway and let us in. All of a sudden I was very thankful for mom insisting she come with me. I eagerly brushed past the two of them, and Sheila choked on a cough. It was then that I realized that not even she could stand the perfume she was wearing; it was all just a ploy to annoy me.

"Why, hello Stan!" Mr. Broflovski called to me from the dining table. I let out a sigh of relief at the sound of his voice. He didn't seem angry with me at all. "I'm so glad our son is getting to go to the prom." He paused a second to let out a sort of chortle. "This isn't really what I was expecting but… I'm happy for Kyle none the less."

I simpered and straightened out my tie gingerly. I was trying my hardest not to attract any attention. But the flash of a camera quickly caused me trip over my own feet and onto the nearby couch. Mom chuckled and held up her digital camera again.

"No!" I defied, putting up my hand. "No pictures!"

"What's wrong with pictures?" she asked me, still laughing. "You want to be able to look back on this day, right? And a picture is worth a thousand words. I can't wait to see the two of you together!"

"Mom," I growled. "You're embarrassing me."

"Now Stan," Gerald started, getting up from his seat. "There are very few special moments in you life; most of them pass you by without you even realizing it. Prom is something that you'll never have again. I think you can bare to put up with a few pictures for just one night. If not for yourself, then for Kyle."

I looked down to the floor, feeling ashamed. Mr. Broflovski had a way of doing that to people. I glanced toward my cell phone and gawked at the time. "We're so going to be late!" I cursed, running my hand instinctively through my hair. "Kyle!" I called up the stairs in agitation. "Are you coming or not?"

"I- I'm coming," came the small reply. Gradually, the red headed beauty descended the stairs, his hand timidly on the railing. His emerald eyes seemed to glow brightly, causing my own to dilate in awe. His plain black suit fit so well on him that it looked as if it were meant for him. He blushed and looked away from the rest of with a bemused smile on his lips. "You… you look great Stan."

"You look amazing," I mumbled, barely even aware of what I was saying. "But… I thought you were going to wear a dress!" Kyle glared daggers at me and trotted down the rest of the stairs with an annoyed look on his face.

"You shut up," he mumbled to me as he passed by. "I really don't know about this Stan. We're not even sure if we're allowed in. I just… I just have a bad feeling about tonight."

"Speaking of shutting up," I began, purposely ignoring my boyfriend's concerns, placing my hands on my hips. "Where's Kenny. Wasn't he supposed to meet us here?"

"He's not here yet," Kyle informed with a sigh.

"What?" I asked in disbelief, shaking my head.

"I said he's not here."

I shook my head again. I must have blacked out in fear on the way to my room. I didn't even remember walking here. I gazed into the darkness of the hospital area, the only source of light was the waning moon through the window. Sure enough, Jim and I were the only ones there. I thanked God that Kyle had enough sense to hide when we got in. But still, I couldn't let on anything. I had to keep playing dumb.

"Who are you talking about?" I asked after swallowing my insecurities.

"He's a patient here," Jim informed and I felt the weight of the world lift from my shoulders. I guess they weren't looking for Kyle after all. "He managed to get away, knocking down two nurses on his way," Jim continued, eyeing up the room suspiciously.

"What's the matter with him?" I asked, making my way to the bed, hoping I'd be able to see where Kyle was hiding.

"He came in for a routine check up," Jim explained, and looked as if he was calming down a little. "We discovered a… a tumor in his brain. He doesn't have much longer to live. As soon as we told him, he freaked out, saying that he didn't want to die, that he had so much to live for still. We tried to restrain him, but in his craze, he managed to escape into the hospital."

"Wow," I said, unable to come up with something more creative for the shocking news. "I can't imagine what that would be like. To have someone tell me that I was going to die in just a few short days."

Jim looked over to me, his eyes misty. He scratched the stubble on his chin and averted his gaze. "Yeah," he agreed. "We usually try to refrain from telling people that. Especially if we think they'll react like that patient did." Jim took this moment to adjourn, and headed for the door. "I think I'd better get back to work. I don't know if we've found him yet or not."

The nurse headed out into the hallway, grabbing the silver knob on his way out and pulling the heavy door shut. I heard it click softly and let out a sigh. I gasped when I heard my breath echoed back to me by someone else.

Kyle was pressed up against the wall, his back flat against it. I laughed at his cleverness in spite of my worry. He had hidden behind the open door as we walked in; a really good hiding place. "No wonder you're afraid of hospitals," he whispered under his breath.

"Can you believe I've actually gotten over it?" I laughed, beckoning him out of the corner. I furrowed my brow in thought and bit my lip. "What do you mean anyway?"

"Some guy shows up for a routine check up," Kyle started, leaning against the mattress. "And finds out he's had a brain tumor he never even knew was there. That's fucking scary if you think about it! And then Jim said they don't usually tell them it's there unless it's…." Kyle trailed off, his shoes squeaking to a halt as his mouth fell open.

"What?" I asked, concerned about where he was going with this. Kyle hastily reached out and rubbed his hand on my thigh, the one with the scar.

"You can walk, now… right?"

"Yeah, perfectly fine," I answered, confused. "It doesn't even hurt anymore."

"And how long have you been here?"

"A little less than a year." His reactions were really starting to freak me out. "W-what are you thinking Kyle? What's this all about?"

He looked up to me, his green eyes cold and shimmering tearfully in the moonlight. "So why are you still in this hospital?" I swallowed hard. He couldn't really be thinking- "It's so obvious. The night of the crash. They had to have checked you for any internal problems. They would have had to make sure they checked up on everything, it's only natural."

"Kyle?" I called, my voice quivering as the realization started to creep over me.

"Just a…" he started, looking away. "Just a routine check up."