A/N; Sorry this chapter took so long for me to post, but you can probably see why~

It's pretty giant in caparison to the others. A lot of plot progression happens though.

Anndd...there's going to be some "Smoosh smoosh" next chapter if plot progresses according to how i want it to.. ;D

So, let me stop talking so you can get to reading this mammoth.

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I, through some god-sent miracle, was able sit through the whole period of study hall in peace. The main reason was because Eric came in late, stumbling his way to class just before the bell rang, which was normal since it was first period study hall and there really was no reason to come in on time. Everyone did it, because, come on, who cares if you miss a period where all you do is sit around and stare like a brain dead pochucker.

The blinds on the windows had been shut, the teacher who supervised the class apparently watching a movie in that class next period or something. I really didn't mind, I had math homework that I had forgotten about anyway. Logarithmic to be exact, which a lot of people hated but I found it really simple. I like to think I'm intelligent, maybe a little more so than the highly regarded Broflovski child, who obviously lacked common sense. I had always been suggested to take the classes he was in, but refused solely because it'd be too much work. I'm too lazy for that advanced shit. So I sit around in ordinary classes with my idiot peers.

A majority of my period was spent on said math, while the remainder was spent doing the norm for me, which was pondering dumb things. Today, I had managed to try and figure out exactly what light was. I mean, of course I know what it is in scientific terms, but that doesn't make it any less strange. It's not touchable, or containable, yet it can pierce through materials like cloth. It was a weird thought.

I slumped in my seat as Cartman entered, but thankfully, the bell sounded before he said much of anything and dismissed us. I wove my way through the desks and to the door on the other side of the room.

Clyde joined me like he usually did once I got into the hall, his class next to mine, but soon ditched me upon seeing Bebe, Wendy, and a girl I'd rather not talk about. I watched as he stumbled away toward them with that goofy gait of his. For some reason, assuming he said something about me, their eyes moved to meet mine. They gave me their smiles, well at least Bebe did because she wasn't a complete bitch, before raising their hands to give small waves. I kept a blank expression as I proceeded to walk, giving them a small nod before turning to my locker.

I opened it with ease, throwing my books in besides the teal shirt that still sat balled up on the side. It had been there since the incident the other day, and was starting to agitate me a bit. I wanted him to take it back already. All it was doing was cluttering up my locker and wasting space, not to mention it was dirty.

As I was pulling my books out for the next three classes, I saw someone lean on the locker besides mine, their eyes burrowing a hole in me. I only saw them from the corner of my eyes, so it wasn't like I could make out a face or anything, and I didn't want to acknowledge their presence unless absolutely necessary. I didn't talk to people.

"Hey, Tucker. You have the math homework." He shifted a bit. Orange. Though I couldn't make out the face from my peripheral, I could clearly see the neon orange radiating and threatening to burn my retinas.

"No." I said, lying to him even though I'd spent a majority of my study hall doing it.

"You liar. I saw you doing it first period." He snorted, replying immediately with a hint of disgust in his voice.

"No you didn't."

"You had a calculator out.." He said as if he was a detective who had evidence on me. Dude...thank god idiots weren't allowed to be detectives or we'd be more screwed than we already were. I have to admit, this responce did catch me off gaurd and i wasn't quite sure how to rebuttal for a minute. It'd be even worse if I was looking at him, his hood most certainly not on.

"So what?" I finally came up with.

"Let me borrow it." He said just as I pulled the last book I was going to need out, allowing me to secure my locker shut and get away from the poor boy before he pissed me off.

"No." I gave him one last response before disappearing down the hall. I didn't even look at him as I left. I didn't need to. I didn't want to.

...

The rest of the day progressed rather slowly, but wasn't all that bad. That's how the best days in my life usually went, only getting as good as "wasn't all that bad".

It was now last period, and I was in full slouch mode, just sitting there relaxing and wishing I was home doing the same thing. The teacher always finished early, giving us a few minutes at the end of the period to be social or whatever.

The room got noisy. I stayed quiet.

Tweek found his way eventually to the newly vacated seat besides me and spent, I kid you not, a whole minute just twitching before he said anything to me. When he did, I hadn't been paying attention and his words had been so broken up that even when I was I didn't really catch a damn thing he said. I moved my gaze away from the board and to the blonde besides me, trying my hardest to register what he'd said. It didn't work, so I just looked him over to sum him up a bit. He was wearing a tee-shirt, which was most likely due to the fact that his favorite button up had made a home in the corner of my locker. His hair was messy as usual, falling out of place whenever he twitched.

Almost positive he had said something either completely dumb or along the lines of "Hey, Craig! How are you?", I just nodded in his direction as a response That might have been a mistake, because his face lit up immediately after I did, and a smile stole his lips.

"G-great! I'm sure m-my parents wo-won't care~ Gah!"

Fuck. I'd just agreed to go over to his house. I guess it wasn't so bad, I usually didn't mind hanging out with him because he wasn't too much trouble like most kids my age. As long as we got to watch Red Racer.

I know what you're thinking. Red Racer? That's still on? You still watch that? The answer is yes..to all of them. It's only reruns at this point, but I love that shit. Seriously, dude.

So that was how I spent the rest of my day; huddled up with Tweek on his bed, back against his headboard as we played video games and watched tv, not even bothering to interrupt our time together by turning the light on when it got dark. I had to admit that even though he was a clingy little bastard, and a pretty big nuisance, I really liked spending time with him like that. I liked when he leaned his head on me as we watched tv, or when he cursed at me for kicking his ass in shooter games. I could have spent days there.

It seemed weird that two completely different people like us would get along so well, but we just worked. I think it was due to the fact that he needed me, and in a sense, I needed him. He was my only true friend, as sad as that was. Sure, Token and Clyde were my friends too, but Token only talked to me in school and Clyde only talked about himself. It was different with Tweek. He genuinely showed interest in me, he seemed to really care and he still tried to strike up conversation even though he knew I wouldn't say anything. Our existences relied on each other.

"D-Do you really h-have to go n-now?" He asked sadly as I slipped my shoes on inside the door before picking my backpack up from the floor. I felt guilty for having to go home, but I knew it was inevitable.

I gave a him a small nod before speaking one of the few phrases I'd said that entire day. "We'll see each other tomorrow." I assured him as I slid my arms through the straps of by book-bag and secured it on my back. I turned myself towards him, blinking a few times as I watched his eyes look to the floor and then back to mine. I rolled my own at his hesitation, holding my arms open, inviting him to give me a hug, which I knew he wanted to do.

He could never pass up the opportunity, and dove right in, wrapping his arms tightly around my chest and burying his face in my collarbone, threatening to never let go so I'd have to stay. After five minutes of trying to pry him off, he willingly stepped back and allowed me freedom.

We said the rest of our goodbyes and I left somewhere around eight thirty. I was originally going to leave around nine, but seeing as I wanted to be home and in bed by then and adding in the fact that my house was a twenty minute walk from there, I had left earlier.

The air was cold like it normally was, and me being the knave I am, left my chullo at home that morning in my room. I had liked the way my hair looked today, and didn't want to mess it up by wearing a hat, so I didn't bring it. It's not like I'd known I was going to be going to Tweek's, but I probably should have shoved it in my backpack anyway.

My backpack did a fairly nice job o shielding my back from the harsh cold, but that was unfortunately all it did. The rest of my body was exposed to the chilling winds that flew through the air, making my frame shiver a bit. I stuffed my hands into my jacket's pockets, pulling it snuggly against my figure, a heavy sigh escaping my lips and producing a small puff of condensation in the air around my mouth. The longer I stayed outside, the more the thought of my legs freezing became apparent and making move with a little more haste.

I bet Steve didn't mind this weather though. That was what I had decided to name the snow troll. Tiny was too generic and cliche. He did have a big layer of fur though, so it would be ridiculous if he was cold right now..

I wondered if he thought of making friends with humans, or if he made such pointless observations, like of the stars shimmering in the sky.

The stars...

The sky was usually clouded, covering the stars and leaving this dark town even darker than it normally was. Tonight was different though, and that thought made me realize that they were shining brightly above my head. I moved my dark eyes up to look at them, trying to spot out constellations and for once, I didn't over think anything. I didn't care if there were aliens up there or if the galaxies never ended. I just looked at those shining orbs.

I wish I could tell you my trip ended there, peacefully with a beautiful view, but it really didn't.

As I was making my way closer to the warmth of my house, my eyes fixed on the impressive clusters of stars. I heard the sound of someone's feet hitting the pavement. The footsteps were heavy, like the person had bricks tied to their ankles. Someone was obviously coming down the sidewalk.

I moved my eyes down to see a stumbling figure coming towards me, the streetlights far apart and only providing small amounts of light. We were going to pass walk other in the dark which scared the shit out of me, Of course, like any other teenager who was walking home alone at night, the first instance that popped into my head was that this person was a crazy killer and was going to kidnap me and torture me before horribly mutilating my body. Then they'd dump my somewhere in the mountains where I'd never be found. The closer this person got though, the more vibrant the color of the jacket became until I could clearly tell that it was orange. It was Kenny. Something was off though. Why was he stumbling? And why wouldn't he look at me? He was clearly turning his head away from me in attempts to hide something.

I honestly didn't care that much, even if I should have. Maybe he'd just gotten drunk for no reason. Who knows. Besides, he'd always been nothing but an ass to me, and it's not like he'd care if it had been me acting strangely on the street at night. He'd actually probably make fun of me. I passed him as these bitter thoughts clouded my judgement, not paying him any attention and thanking god that he wasn't Freddy Krugger or whoever that guy was that carried around a machete.

I listened as his footsteps drew further away, only to be followed by the sound of a loud thump. This sound scared the shit out of me for no logical reason, and activated fight mode. My hands flew from my pockets as I jumped only to find that nothing was attacking me. The hell just happened?

You know in those horror movies where someone hears a noise so they turn around slowly only to find some scary Japanese ghost standing behind them? That didn't happen to me. Instead, I was greeted with the image of Kenny lying on the ground, still and unmoving, collapsed in on himself under the light of a street lamp.

I froze and thought the situation over, my mind contemplating the possible actions I could take in this situation. I knew just going home would be the smart and safe way to get out of this scenario but believe it or not I have a conscience Sure, most of the time I ignored it, and I definitely would have here if it weren't for the fact that he was alone, but there were certain times when I needed to listen to it. I would feel awful if he froze to death or something because I didn't help him, even if I did hate the guy with all of my being.

I let out another rather heavy sigh as I retraced my steps, finding my way back to where the blonde laid on the cold, hard ground. He groaned as I approached, not turning towards me or anything even when i finally stood beside his broken down body. Bending over, i stared at the back of his blonde head before speaking out to get his attention.

"Kenny..?" My voice was weak from lack of use, but I was sure he heard me, even if he didn't reply back. "Let me help you home, dude.."

That sparked something in him, his head turning quickly as he practically spat a 'No' out at me. I blinked a few times once his face came into view and showed me exactly why he had been hiding it. He'd clearly been in a fight of some kind, and someone had wrecked his face pretty bad. His eye was already starting to turn black and his lip was busted open. A bit taken back, I didn't say anything, just stared, which he probably didn't appreciate.

"N-no...just leave me here.." He said more calmly this time, he head turning away again and resting against the pavement. I watched the gusts of his breath escape into the air, keeping an eye on them to make sure he was still alive. After another moment of my impolite staring, I stood up straight again.

"Get the fuck up, McCormick.." I demanded sternly, about done with standing outside in the cold. I was obviously trying to help him, couldn't he see that?

"I...I can't go home.." He replied to me as he slowly dragged himself off of the ground, struggling to get his weight up, but when he did, I offered him my shoulder. It probably would have been better if I carried him piggyback or something, but i wasn't the most muscular guy alive, and Kenny weighed about the same as me. I could have dragged him, but i don't think that'd be a good idea either. Ir's not like he was incompetent anyway.

"No one said you had to." I said, letting him know that's not where we were going.

And so, as fate would have it, I ended up dragging him back to my house, sneaking him passed my parents and up into my room. I don't know why I did it, but my impulse told me to, and for some reason I listened. The same boy who I wouldn't even lend my homework to this morning, I was going to shelter in my room.

I made him stand on his own as I dug through my drawers for things I didn't like, finally digging up an old Red Racer tee whose design was almost too faded to make out and a pair of sweat pants whose draw strings were missing. I threw them to Kenny before nodding towards the bathroom, hinting that I wanted him to change in there and maybe clean up a bit.

I changed myself rather quickly before leaving the room long enough to tell my parents a friend was spending the night, to which they flipped me off and I did the same. By the time I returned, Kenny was on my floor, lying there. He'd definitely washed himself up, looking better than he had when i found him lying on the cement.

I thought about inquiring what happened as I found my way to my bed, but decided it was none of my business and I really didn't care enough to pry. This didn't mean we were friends or anything, I just needed to make myself feel better, which leaving him back there wouldn't have done. Last thing I needed was to live with the fact that I'd let someone die a horrible death because I didn't feel like dealing with them.

I sat on the edge of my bed, looking down as his messy hair spilled everywhere around his head, resting on the orange parka he was now using as a pillow. His bright blue eyes stayed fixed on the ceiling until my gaze had caught his attention, attracting his focus to instead rest on me. He looked over my face as if he'd never seen anything like it, interest in his eyes. And then he smiled. It wasn't that normal, cocky bastard smile that made me want to hit him, but something more genuine. It made me straighten up a bit, a strange feeling in my stomach as my heart jumped. What the fuck, dude..

I averted my eyes to the side, which earned a chuckle out of him for some reason, a sound that seemed to lighten up the whole situation.

"The floor's hard, ya know.." He finally spoke, his normal tone returning and reminding me he was still the annoying poor kid I had always hated.

"Then go home." I simply offered before scooting back to sit near the wall, my back leaning on my headboard just as it had rested on Tweek's.

It was silent for a while before he said anything else on the matter. "No...you're rooms a lot warmer than mine. Besides, your floor is more comfy than my bed." I could hear shifting, which I could only assume was him getting comfortable, and it kind of made me feel bad again. It was so fucking weird how much sympathy I was feeling, and I knew it'd nag at me for forever if I let him stay there, but I tried anyway. I leaned across my bed, stretching out just enough to turn the lamp on my nightstand off and darken the entire room. I snuck a glance at him, now on his side with his eyes closed as the dark shrouded him like a sheet. Some light shone in through the window, provided by the galaxies of stars in the sky outside, but other than that it was dark.

I laid there for a while, trying my hardest to get comfortable but I just couldn't when I remembered that I was making the other teen sleep on the floor after getting beat. I knew that logically, it was much better than him staying on the sidewalk and it had been generous for me to take him in at all, but I hadn't even given him blankets or anything. It just stuck in my mind until I couldn't take it anymore. Too lazy to get up and get him blankets, I groaned irritably "Fine, whatever. Get up here. I swear..if you do anything weird though I'll kick you out." I watched him get up off of the floor only to sit on my bed, looking down at me. I rolled onto my side again to face the wall, trying to make this less gay than it already was.

"Me? Do weird things? Nooo." He said sarcastically as he settled himself under my sheets, lying down besides me. Then things got quiet. I could feel him there, even though he wasn't touching me. It turned out inviting him up to my bed didn't make it any less difficult to sleep. I had never slept with anyone else in my bed before, usually having enough forewarning to blow up an air mattress before my friend even got to my house for a sleep over. Even with the uncomfortable lingering feeling, I soon began to doze off. I was jerked back into consciousness though by the others voice again.

"Remember that time..at that lame pioneer village when those idiots wouldn't break character..?" His voice was relaxed, calm even as he spoke softly of a time from our childhood.

I had to think back for a moment before remembering that day. It certainly wasn't of my favorite trip ever. "Yeah.." I muttered.

More silence. Then came that sleepy voice again. "I got to hold your hand that day..." He replied as if that'd been the most important thing that happened that day. Like we hadn't gotten shot at and like nothing could've been better than that. Those words brought back that feeling in my stomach.

"Yeah.." I managed to repeat as I puller the sheets up to cover the lower half of my mouth, my eyes sliding shut.

He didn't say anything after that. We both just eased off into sleep with out another word.

They say that stars align, and when they do, they spell your fate out for you. Are they why I was feeling different than normal? Are they why Kenneth McCormick was sleeping in my bed?

Who knows..

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I want to thank my reviewers~ I love you guys for the feedback.

If you didn't review, do it so I can love you too!

;3