Chapter 5: "That was awkward…" ~Style~
Disclaimer:
Okay lol. Back to reality. No longer in dream-world. In case you were confused at the end, chapter 4 was all a dream. It's also important to note they both had the exact same dream but obviously, Stan and Kyle do not know that but they did. This chapter onward will be sorta sparking off from that. As for timeline. It is not actually the weekend, but the second day of school.
Also, from this point on, chapters I post/publish is what I just completed. Okay. On we go!
Tuesday morning: Second day of school
Three of the four boys stood yet again at their iconic bus stop where they waited for their bus. It was a grey morning in South Park; if one observed above, they could see that the clouds were threatening to potentially rain.
"Dude, where the hell is Kenny? The bus will be here any minute," Stan wondered as he checked the time on his phone.
"Probably getting morning puss or sucking on wang for money. You know: the usual poor-douchebag-Kenny stuff," Cartman replied.
"You notice Kenny's gotten to be so gross lately?" Stan followed up.
"I've been saying that for fucking years and did anyone believe me? No!" Cartman proceeded to change to a more mocking tone of voice, "Noooo. Don't pick on Kenny. It's not his fault he's poor. Being poor won't wind up biting him in the ass. Meh-meh-meeeh," he then stopped mocking and spoke normally again. "We all have to face it, okay? Kenny is so poor, he became a whore for money. He has a problem."
"You can say that again. Did you know he apparently got paid to have sex with a bi-curious couple last week? He also apparently took the guy's load too..." Stan pointed out.
"Really? How do you know that?" Kyle asked.
"Heard it from a kid in my science class. But, knowing Kenny... It's probably true..." Stan said.
"Who was the couple? Anyone we know?"
"The kid didn't say," Stan shrugged.
On that note, the three finally saw their friend Kenny walk up and stood in the noticeable empty spot in between Kyle and Cartman; that way the order went, from left to right: Stan, Kyle, Kenny, and Cartman... all two the right of the iconic sign.
"'Sup guys?" Kenny happily asked.
"Waitin' for you, dude," Stan answered.
"What took you so long?" Kyle wondered.
"—Besides blowin' some dong or plowing some desperate whore..." Cartman muttered that comment under his breath so it would be hard to make out.
Kenny answered nonetheless, "Had to do a quickie this morning and lost track of time. For a second I did not think I'd make it..."
"You had to do a quickie?" Stan asked and Kenny acknowledged.
"Oh, for the love of God," Cartman started. "I hate to say it... No. Wait. No, I don't! You've turned into a poor ass whore, Kenny!"
"Yeah. Next thing you know, Cartman's mom will see you as competition."
"Shut your Jew mouth, Kyle! Kenny's way worse," Eric glowered at Kyle after his remark about his mother... which was not wrong by any means.
The horn from their school bus sounded as the three nitpicked at Kenny for his sexual life choices—while the latter defended them.
"Look: we're not saying to not do these things. Do what you want, Ken. Just... you gotta start keeping it to yourself, you know?" Kyle said to which Kenny understood.
"I get it. I'll try to keep it to myself from now on."
In time, the boys dropped that conversation once the bus came to a complete stop. They filed into a single line where Stan and Kyle were the last two to board. As they walked up the stairs, Kyle sensed a subtle nudge in the back from Stan. He looked back at him and could gather something was concerning him.
Kyle just could not rid himself of the thought that he dreamt about Stan last night and feared he would question about it. Nevertheless, he listened to see what he wanted.
"You mind if I sit with you this time today?"
"Uh, don't you usually sit with Wendy?" Kyle briefly paused on the last step.
At that point, a light exhale escaped from his mouth, "Usually... but I don't think that will happen anymore..."
Stan's reply really surprised him a lot. Kyle knew better than anyone that Wendy meant everything to him. They continued on after he agreed and sat together closer to the front. Once the doors closed and the bus drove on, the two began to talk.
"Well, this is a change. Usually, you sit and focus all your time on Wendy in the morning. Everything okay?"
"I... No," he admitted.
"Well, what's wrong?" Kyle inquired.
Stan had trouble replying for a moment, but with a quick nudge, he advanced, "You remember how I said I didn't know if I wanted to be with her?"
"Yeah. And?"
"Well, I've been thinking about it a lot last night before bed. And have been thinking about it since morning. All this time, I have been thinking: what am I doing with her, you know?"
"You're with her because you love her. You've loved her since the first day you saw her. How could you possibly ask yourself that?"
"Oh come on, man. Have you been with her lately? Because if you have, you'd know she can be incredibly exhausting," Stan replied. "Do you know how many times she has broken up with me? And I know you grew tired of seeing us in the same loop too, Kyle. You don't have to sugar-coat it."
"...Well, I will admit: at a certain point, it started becoming painful to see you too flip-flop around like you do. One time you're together, then you're not," Kyle confessed.
"Uh-huh. That's my point. I don't know if I wanna be around a person who constantly changes her mind like the wind changes direction. It'd be nice to have what Clyde and Bebe have. I want that. I want a stable relationship like that," Stan responded.
"All I can say then is to do what you think is best."
After what Kyle said, the conversation ended. The two readjusted themselves so they could be more comfortable. Kyle reached, unzipped, and searched through his bag for his earbuds. He then peered over to Stan and noticed he was having a difficult time getting cozy so he took it upon himself to help if he wanted, "You can rest your head on me... if you... if you're still tired..." he suggested.
"Uuumm, no? That'd be pretty gay," he refused.
"Oh. Okay. Fair enough..." Kyle face-palmed himself and questioned internally what came over him to suggest that.
Kyle luckily found and dug out his earbuds, finally, so he could listen to his music. Whilst he retrieved them, Stan rolled his head over and silently peeked at the contents inside the bag. One item, in particular, intrigued him. He obtained the slightest glimpse of what looked like a green-colored portfolio. He then watched as Kyle closed his bag and placed it on the floor, after which, he sagged down to relax the rest of the way.
Kyle jolted slightly, glanced down, and discovered Stan resting on his shoulder after all—despite the fact he said no earlier. No matter. Kyle let him rest there and continued to look out the window the remainder of the way to school.
In the back of the bus, Kenny sat in the second last seat on the right side; Clyde was right across from him. Kenny sat there silently while Clyde acted like he was secretly going to pass something to him.
Clyde cleared his throat to get his attention and then quickly placed three $10 bills in his hand before he readjusted himself.
"That's for, uh... this morning. Don't tell Bebe. She'd kill me," Clyde whispered.
"No worries. Secret's safe with me," he promised.
"Thanks. It's just... Bebe hardly wants to do it anymore. I mean, a man has needs so what's he supposed to do? But, Kenny. If she's busy again, I'd um... pay you again. Just sayin'. You're not the same at all... but you're the best I have," Clyde got in closer.
Kenny looked at him weirdly for a second before he brushed what he thought off of him, "You know the drill: time and a place and show the money first. It's what I need to get by," he said.
"Right, right. Uhh... thanks..." Clyde slid away and gazed out the window for the rest of the bus ride.
The bus dropped them all off and the boys met up at their lockers before the first bell.
Once they got them opened, Kyle faced them all, "So guys. I was thinking—"
"—We all know that's never good..." Eric muttered.
"I've been thinking that the four of us should go spend the rest of our day hanging out at Stark's Pond; after school."
"Mmm, I don't know if I can make it," Kenny told Kyle as he placed books into his locker. "I don't wish to say why because—"
"—I get it; don't worry. Fatass? Wanna go after school? Even for a little bit?"
"Pfft. Yeah. Like I'd want to sit at a boring ass fucking pond," Eric responded as he closed his locker.
"Oh... o-okay," Kyle looked disappointed.
It was time to head to class once the bell rang so Kenny and Cartman both left. There was only Stan and Kyle now; the two walked down the hall together to Data Management class. As the two made their way, Stan could not help but realize that Kyle had not even asked him if he wanted to go to the pond yet.
Naturally, Stan brought it upon himself to point that out.
"Hey, Kyle," he started off. "I can talk with my boss and book it off and then... you and I could hang there if you want."
"Aw, well, it's okay, Stan," he shrugged. "You don't have to do that. We can go another time; no big deal."
"You sure? You sounded like you really wanted to. Plus, it would honestly just allow us to hang out together after school for once. Seriously. I'll text the manager and tell him I am taking a sick day... Aaand there. All set," Stan showed the message he sent as proof that he legitimately wanted to go.
Kyle had no choice now. He released a sigh and ultimately accepted that they could go right after school.
Data Management was the specific math course Stan, Kyle, Craig, Tweek, and the other students all had the first period. It was a class that covered material related to managing data. Over the whole semester specifically, they would be taught ways to analyze and organize information, and how to solve probability and statistic-related problems.
Today was their second day, and therefore, their second lesson. Their first unit called Statistics of One Variable was briefly spoken about yesterday but not much was touched on. This time, it was an actual lesson all about Sampling Techniques.
"Alright, class: today, we are going to discover all of the sampling techniques you will need to be aware of in this unit. Would anyone like to read the text in the table regarding what a population is and what a sample is? How about... you, Mr. Scotch," Mr. Sucksmyballs picked on Butters to read aloud from the textbook.
"Yes, sir. It says under the population column: 'all individuals who belong to a group being studied', and the examples of those in a population include members a high school, a team, or even a country," Butters read.
"Perfect. Now, Phoebe?" the teacher and most of the students regarded the girl behind Clyde, who had a slender and attractive appearance. Nothing the boys would drool over but still pretty. Once attention was given, Mr. Sucksmyballs continued, "You read the points in the second column, please."
"Oh, uh, I can't, sir..." she responded.
"And why not?" Mr. Sucksmyballs irritatedly glowered.
"Uh," she gleamed with timorousness in her response, "I-I fell asleep doing homework last night... and when I woke up, I couldn't find it, and—"
"—So, you're telling me you lost a 140-dollar textbook I issued to you yesterday? Is that the explanation that is baffling my flipping brain right now?"
"Psst. Hey," Clyde was nice enough to pass his back to the girl so she could simply read the text and move the class along.
The teacher noticed the kind gesture but was in the mood for none of that. He swatted the book to the floor and issued a signature glare to both of them; almost like a death glare.
"Nuh-uh, I don't think so. Do you really want to hand your own book to the vortex of doom here? I forbid it. Not unless you want to pay for a book too."
"With all due respect, I never said I lost it once!"
"Saying you could not find something is pretty much losing it, sweetheart. Thanks for playing. Unless you can somehow salvage it from your house, intact, you can leave $140 on my desk tomorrow morning before school starts," he declared. "Clyde, pick your thing up and read what I asked Phoebe to read, please."
As the instructor motioned back up to the front of the room, Phoebe sat there and sulked in her chair.
"Geez, what a bitch," Kyle muttered quietly to Stan.
"I know, right? We definitely gotta teach him who he is dealing with," he acknowledged equally as soft, that way further outbursts from Mr. Sucksmyballs could be avoided.
The next period rolled along to the class the four main boys all had: Family Studies.
The classroom was small and was located on the third floor. The educator's desk was located in the back corner while all of the students' desks were grouped together into fours. All of them were paying attention to Mrs. Hoppenger—the name of their teacher. She sat at a computer located in the front corner and a Smart Board was right next to her. The board displayed their current task for that class was going to be.
But before that, Mrs, Hoppenger began by talking about what they discussed last time. "Okay. So yesterday, we went over more-or-less what's to be expected out of this course. On top of that, I assigned you an easy little task to come up with your own definition of a family. I asked you to write down a sentence about it so why don't we get those out and we can put down ideas for what our class definition could be."
Not a hint of emotion came out of the teacher's mouth; it seemed like she was kind of lifeless. However, that did not phase anyone at all as they simply got out what she requested.
"Quick. What did you guys write down?" Cartman whispered.
"Were you seriously too lazy last night that you could not write a single sentence down?" Kyle asked.
"Don't start with me, Kyhal!"
"It's... Kyle. Not... Kyhal," Kyle corrected him.
"Ah, screw you. Kenny? What'd you write?" Cartman reached over to try and see.
"Hey, you're supposed to write your own," Kenny said as he covered up his response.
"Yeah, it's really not that hard to write. Just think of something, dude," Stan then replied.
"Everyone got them out? Great. Would anyone like to share first?" Mrs. Hoppenger asked. A few hands raised slowly but she only nodded her head toward one of them. "Young lady in the blue shirt. What is your name please?"
"Samantha," she replied.
"Right. Please share," the teacher insisted.
"I wrote down that family is defined as anyone who is closely related to you, your relatives, and close friends you love like family. All of these kinds of people love you no matter what and can always count on them for anything," Samantha said.
"Very nice. Okay. So I'll just type in 'Samantha: includes people related by blood or very close friends who love you unconditionally always'. That about right?" she looked back for clarification. Once she confirmed, Mrs. Hoppenger moved on to someone else. "Stan. Let's hear yours."
"Oh, uh. I just said it's a group of people related by blood or not that genuinely loves, trusts, and looks out for each other," Stan read from his paper.
"Terrific. Now, I'll have you talk to the people at your desks. Place in the middle the definition you all like the best. That way we don't take all class doing this," Mrs. Hoppinger said before she let them talk.
And so, the students immediately began conversing with their table.
Kyle got the ball rolling at theirs by reading his first, "Okay, sooo... mine was pretty much similar to what Stan said. I just said: 'It's not necessarily about who's blood you have, or who you're forced to spend the holidays with. It's about people you love and they love you back. You'll always be there for your family when they need you, and they'll always be there for you. Blood-related or not'. I thought that was important to say because all family dynamics are different, you know?"
"I just wrote that family is 'a bunch of people who hate each other and eat dinner together'," Kenny commented next.
"Meh," Stan shrugged, "it's kinda true."
From behind Kyle and Stan, Clyde popped into view and hunched over so the conversation could be kept quiet, "Hey. Craig, Token and I have been talking and I wanted to let you in on what we're planning," he spoke quietly so only they could hear.
"What're you talkin' about, Clyde?" Cartman irritatedly stared.
"Our first-period DM teacher," he replied.
"Oh yeah. That guy was a major dick, man. You should've heard him," Stan responded.
"Exactly. So we're thinking of egging his car at lunch. You guys should come," Clyde said.
"Who's the teacher?" Kenny asked.
"His name's Mr. Sucksmyballs," Stan answered.
The second his name entered Cartman's ears, he burst out laughing, disrupting others who were talking about the task at hand, "Oh man, that's too sweet not to mess with," he wiped away the tears that formed in his eye and got ahold of himself.
"We gotta teach that asshole some respect. He totally freaked out on that poor girl today. You bet I'm in," Stan said to Clyde before Kyle and Kenny nodded in agreeance afterward.
"But seriously, if you're looking to get back at this douche, why don't you listen to my priceless plans?" Cartman got in closer and devilishly grinned.
"Because I don't want to go to jail or get expelled," Clyde retorted.
"Well, they're all better than your stupid plan. Egging his car? What are we, 10? At least up the ante!"
"Alright, fine. Then you tell us what we should do that won't result in us getting in really big trouble?" Kyle said.
"Don't worry, guys..." Cartman stood up. "Have everyone who wants revenge at my new apartment on Main Street tomorrow night... and you'll have yourselves a brilliant master plan..." he slyly grinned.
The end of the second school day lapsed along. The students came bursting out the front doors of the school and in time, the four boys moved on up and became the full focus rather quickly.
"I'm telling you, man: Mrs. Davis may be a pretty weird English teacher, but is by far the best," Kyle said looking at Stan mostly.
"Yeah. So hey. We still going to Stark's Pond to hang out?" Stan asked his curly red-headed friend.
"As long as you're free. I wouldn't want you to risk your job or..."
"No sweat, Kyle. I told my manager the truth instead of lying that I was sick and he said it was fine. I just gotta work a little longer tomorrow instead. He's super chill; it helps that I'm his best employee," he smiled.
Kenny and Cartman meanwhile listened to them talk and stared at each other; both made the gesture that mocked their relationship by basically saying the two should just screw already.
Unfortunately, Kyle saw them with his peripheral vision and passed a mean glare, "What're you two looking at each other for?"
"N-Nothing, Kaal. Enjoy your time with your date..." Cartman responded before he and Kenny wandered away laughing together, leaving Kyle bitter in the face.
Stan stepped up behind a little bit and nudged him lightly. "Those two are idiots. Don't let it affect you."
"I'm not, I'm not. It's just getting really annoying these days," he sighed.
And with that, Stan followed up by saying what he needed to in order to hurry them along to Stark's Pond, as he was really excited to spend that time with Kyle instead of at work or visiting his parents. So the two concluded their conversation and proceeded walk onward to their planned destination.
Along the way to the pond, through a brief montage of sorts, Stan and Kyle goofed around in tons of ways. They pushed each other into ditches causing that person to usually trip and get all dirty, they almost passed by the basketball court at the park until Stan pointed it out, resulting into the two detouring for a moment. They played for a few minutes before they got back on their way.
As time pressed on, Stan and Kyle arrived a little later than they had anticipated but the trek there in itself was something they had not done in a while and thus had a blast. The pair eventually sat themselves down on a nice patch of grass that was not wet or anything and relaxed the rest of the time.
"What a great idea coming here... Sure beats working right after school. That's for sure," Stan smiled.
His smile secretly always warmed Kyle's heart every time he observed it. He seriously was head over heels for him. It was hard to pinpoint when specifically the fascination overcame him; but when it did, it came hard. He loved everything about Stan. His personality, the sound of his calming voice, his black hair... everything. But he knew well that Stan would not react well if he found out his true feelings; so he hid them away for the longest time.
Kyle finally answered him before things got weird with the staring and whatnot, "I'm really glad you could make it. It's the little things but you really do grow to miss it the older you get. I miss us just having fun like this after school. Part of me hopes we can do this again sometime..."
"Well, I forgot to tell you but I'm off this coming weekend so we could come back here and even go fishing if we wanted to. If the weather permits, we should act on it," Stan suggested.
"Oh yeah! We definitely should!" he smiled.
They both eventually laid their heads down and gazed up to the partly cloudy blue sky.
After a while, Stan got his attention, "Kyle?"
"Yeah, Stan?"
"I need to ask you something," he said.
"Well, you can talk to me about anything. Ask me whatever you need to," Kyle sat up and looked down at the black-haired 18-year-old, who sat upright afterward.
"Okay. Well, this is going to sound so stupid... but... do you... have a portfolio hidden somewhere in your room?"
Stan asked the question Kyle dreaded and feared he would ask. Immediately, he heavily gulped and tried to play it off.
"Why would I hide a stupid portfolio, Stan?"
"I don't know, I was just wondering!" Stan answered.
"Well, I don't have any portfolio or anything that I'm hiding in my room."
"You sure? Because... Butters came to me and asked me why you had a lot of pictures of me hidden inside it. You can tell me if you do. It's not like I care—"
"Stan," Kyle interrupted him, "trust me. This is stupid Butters you're talking about. And he clearly wasn't seeing straight because I was simply clipping lined paper into my green binder. No portfolio there," he said with a convincing demeanor.
"Okay, okay. I understand now..." Stan replied before he was caught off guard by the sudden sensation of a hand on top of his own. The boy dipped down and found Kyle's hand, for some reason, interlocking with his. The boy blushed a little bit before he questioned. "Uh-hum," he lightly chuckled awkwardly, "what're you doin', Kyle?".
Kyle brought his attention down to their hands and immediately gasped. He yanked it away as soon as possible before he too blushed, "Gah, Stan! I'm sorry; I didn't even know it was on there!" he freaked.
That was when Kyle almost attempted to turn right away from him due to all of the embarrassment he felt. Therefore, Stan did what thought he had to do. He pulled Kyle back by the front of his orange jacket immediately brought his so close to his face that they could have practically kissed.
Their faces both turned a deep red while they gazed at one another.
That was when it happened.
The next thing he knew:
Stan leaned closer...
My notes
Thought I'd try to end on a cliff-hanger this time lol.
Alright. I'd like to notify that I've been fixing up the previous chapters as I had problems regarding tenses. I had issues deciding between present and past tense. I already did chapters 1 & 2 so expect chapters 3 & 4 to get the same treatment.
I'll be off now. After next week's chapter, I will be taking the following week off so please be mindful of that if you're reading this around the time of release.
Enjoy!
[Edited: -].