Author's Note: This is basically just a filler chapter. Some stuff happens, but...nothing too exciting, to be perfectly honest. XD

Don't worry, though, because the next chapter is going to be a lot more interesting. You'll seeeee~ ;D

Because I Love You

Chapter Four: The Phantom of the Opera

The sun was peeking in from the window as Stan cracked one eyelid open, followed slowly by the other. He looked around at his surroundings – well, her surroundings, really – in a daze, his blue eyes scanning the lavender walls of the bedroom and the rest of its sophisticated decor. It had a warm, mature atmosphere to it, and the room itself was so perfectly neat and tidy – aside, that is, from some clothing that had been thrown onto the floor last night in a moment of great passion.

After their nice little walk last night, Wendy had taken Stan back to her apartment, upstairs into her bedroom, where their clothes were eagerly torn off, their hands running all over every inch of each other's bodies, re-exploring places they had nearly forgotten over the years. They kissed each other hungrily, making up for all the years they had been apart. They got so caught up in the moment – the heat, the laughter, the undeniable desire – that they ended up sleeping together. It was an unspoken, spur-of-the-moment agreement. There were no questions, no doubts or uncertainties. Just a wild, crazy, lust-driven night.

And it was all just so...amazing. Stan couldn't have asked for anything better. Especially right now, as he was looking around her room, soaking in the warmth of the atmosphere, until his gaze finally landed on Wendy herself. She was lying right beside him, still sleeping peacefully. Her long black hair was sprawled out across her pillow, some of it covering her bare shoulders, while a few strands hung loosely around her pretty face. Her lips were parted slightly as she breathed in and out, slowly and quietly. Stan felt a familiar warm tickling feeling inside his stomach – it was those goddamn butterflies again, what else? – as he stared at her, silently watching her as she slept. He couldn't help but notice how beautiful she looked, and it was at that exact moment that he felt his heart jump, the feelings suddenly hitting him all at once.

He was still in love with her. There was no doubt in his mind.

The realization caused him to blink in surprise. Fuck, dude. He was still in love with Wendy. Shit. That wasn't good. He couldn't be having these feelings for her again. He just couldn't. Because even if she did, hypothetically, feel the same way about him, and they decided to get back together, there was just no way in hell that it would ever be able to work out between them. She lived here in Colorado, and he lived all the way in New York. It would be impossible to maintain a long distance relationship, especially with their busy lives...

Well, it wouldn't necessarily be impossible, but it would still be really difficult. And that would just suck.

Stan let out a quiet sigh, and on his own impulse, he leaned in towards Wendy, placing a soft, gentle kiss right on her lips. He stayed like that for a moment, his eyes closed as he pressed his lips gently against hers. When he pulled back, he opened his eyes to see her lips curving upward into a tiny smile. Her eyes slowly fluttered open to look at him. She exhaled happily, the smile on her face immediately widening.

"Hey," Wendy whispered playfully.

Stan returned the enormous grin. "Hey," he whispered back.

Wendy reached up, stretching both of her arms above her head and making an 'mmmm' type of sound before bringing them back down and slipping them underneath the covers. The sheets rustled around softly as she moved her body closer to Stan's, pressing her naked chest against his. She rested her head right underneath his chin, cuddling up to him. Stan slid his arm comfortably around her waist, pulling her in even closer to him. Oh, yeah. This felt nice. This felt...right. He missed this a lot. He decided to tell her just that.

"I really missed this," Stan mumbled sleepily, his eyes drifting shut again.

Wendy draped her arms over Stan's back, closing her eyes as well. "So did I," she confessed, her warm breath tickling his chest as she spoke.

Stan started stroking her back, his fingers running over her soft hair. He hesitated for a moment before deciding to slide his fingers through her hair, raking them slowly through her raven locks. He wished he could just hold onto this moment forever, with them lying together in bed like this, silently holding each other, and hearing nothing but the sounds of some birds chirping outside and their soft breathing. After a while, he stopped moving his hand, allowing it to simply rest against the middle of her back, his fingers still tangled in her hair. He could feel the warm feeling inside the pit of his stomach growing.

Yeah, he was definitely in love.

"So..." Stan spoke up after a while, deciding to try and start up a conversation. He paused as he tried to think of something to ask her, which was pretty hard, since he was completely distracted by the warmth of Wendy's body pressing against his. It was beginning to cloud his thoughts, but he tried his best to ignore it. "What time do you have to be back at the theater?" he finally settled on asking.

"Hmmm..." Wendy hummed against his chest, her fingers playing with a few strands of his hair. "Around four," she answered. "Why?"

Stan cleared his throat, finding himself starting to feel a little nervous. 'Goddammit,' he cursed himself.

"Well," he started, his voice practically cracking as he tried to keep himself from sounding like a total idiot. It wasn't really working too well. "I was just thinking that maybe we could, uh...you know..."

Wendy smiled and let out a soft chuckle, the vibration of her body buzzing against Stan's chest. She slowly lifted her head off of his chest so she could look him in the eyes. "...Hang out?" she offered, a suggestive look crossing her face.

Stan could feel the blood rushing up to his cheeks as he stared back at her. "...Yeah," he answered hesitantly.

The suggestive grin on Wendy's face only grew wider as she leaned in a bit closer to him.

"Like a date?" she asked playfully, an eyebrow arched.

Stan's own eyebrows shot up. "W-Well, not, uh...I didn't mean–"

"Stan," Wendy suddenly cut him off. The teasing look on her face disappeared instantly, replacing itself with a much more serious look now. "Come on. It's me."

Stan blinked, somewhat taken aback by her sudden boldness. It's her. It's...her. The only girl he'd ever been in a serious relationship with. The only girl he'd ever slept with. The only girl he'd ever been in love with. And, of course, the only girl who'd ever broken his heart – many times.

He continued staring at her for a moment, his mind racing with all of those old memories of him and Wendy when they were together. When they were in high school and very much in love. When he gave her that promise ring, sealing their love for each other, and making that stupid promise that they'd be together forever...

Ugh. Damn these feelings.

"Okay, fine," Stan said, officially giving up. He couldn't help but smile then. "Like a date."

Wendy stared at him blankly for a split-second before breaking out into the biggest, most beautiful smile he'd ever seen from her in a long time. "I thought so," she said as she lowered her head back down, resting it on top of his bare chest once more. She felt Stan's other arm slink around her waist, wrapping perfectly around her body. She smiled wider, relaxing herself in his hold. He always knew just how to hold her. She loved the fact that they could cuddle like this without it being awkward, even after all these years and everything they'd been through together.

But for some reason, despite the fact that Wendy was feeling happy that she was with Stan right now, and that the way he was holding her so gently was practically melting her heart, and that last night was so undeniably amazing...there was still something else in the back of her mind that was bothering her.

Or someone, really.

She felt a strange twinge in her heart then, and she absentmindedly tightened her fingers against her hand, her long fingernails digging into her palm. Her stomach dropped, and before she knew it, she found herself speaking again.

"Hey, Stan?"

There was a brief pause before Stan simply replied, "Yeah?"

Wendy clenched her fingers together even tighter, now fully aware that she was leaving tiny fingernail marks in her palm, but she didn't care. She bit down on her lower lip, her thoughts racing in her mind. Should she tell him? He'd be the first person to know if she did. She hadn't told anyone else about it yet. Not even Bebe. But what would Stan even say is she told him? Would he be pissed? Upset? Hurt?

She sighed, slowly unclenching her fingers.

"Never mind," she said in a meek voice.

It wasn't worth the risk. She would just be hurting him if she told him, so what the hell was the point?

"You sure?" Stan asked.

"Yeah, it's not important," Wendy lied, wishing more than anything that it really was the truth.

"Okay, here's the part I still don't get," Kenny said as he slammed his refrigerator door shut and walked over to Kyle, handing him a can of beer.

The two were currently at Kenny's house, having decided that it would just be easier to stay there for the night, since Kenny lived in Denver, and they didn't feel like driving all the way back to Kyle's house.

Kenny's house was surprisingly larger than Kyle's, although it definitely didn't have that same appealing look to it. There were nasty dishes in the sink and random clothes all over the floor of Kenny's living room – Kyle wasn't even sure if they were Kenny's clothes. He'd swore he saw a bright blue bra hanging on the couch when he walked in last night.

Not to mention, the jet black counters and cabinets in the kitchen seriously clashed with the neon orange walls. That just looked tacky.

Kyle watched as Kenny cracked open his beer can and took a long swig from it, gulping it down noisily.

"And what's that?" Kyle asked, fiddling with the can in his hands. He never really liked beer. He was more of a wine kind of guy. It was much classier.

Kenny slammed his beer can down on his black marble counter. Without a coaster.

"You and Cartman are seriously fucking friends now?" he asked for probably the fifth time that day. He just couldn't bring himself to believe it, even after Kyle explained everything to him last night. Kyle didn't want to do it, of course, but Kenny somehow forced it out of him, so Kyle ended up telling him pretty much everything, about how Cartman lived in some crappy apartment in South Park, and that he and Kyle saw each other every once in a while, and that they pretty much talked all the time now.

Kyle rolled his eyes for the fifth time that day. "Yes, dude, we're seriously fucking friends now," he said in an annoyed tone.

Kenny stared at him with a blank expression on his face. "But...isn't he the same manipulative asshole who always rips on you for being a Jew?" he asked.

"Well, he's..." Kyle began, but he suddenly paused, deciding to actually ponder the question for a moment. Well, technically Cartman was still a manipulative asshole...and he did still call Kyle 'Jew' sometimes...but that didn't mean he hadn't changed. He was pretty different now...sort of...not really.

Huh.

"Look, dude," Kyle started again, placing his unopened beer can next to Kenny's on the counter. He wasn't going to drink it. "It's hard to explain, but...I don't know, we really are friends now. He's...matured, I guess you can say, since high school."

Kenny shrugged. "Whatever, dude," he said, reaching for his beer again. "I just can't believe you two are actually fucking friends. That shit seems impossible." He brought the can up to his mouth, about to take another sip, when he stopped himself, an interesting thought suddenly popping into his head. "Hey, wait, you guys aren't secretly dating or something, are you?"

Kyle froze. What?

"...Dude, are you retarded?" he asked, somewhat jokingly, but not really.

"Well, it kinda makes sense," Kenny said, still being completely serious. "Like maybe you're just using your crush on Bebe as a cover-up, when really, you and Cartman are, like...fuck buddies."

Kyle's jaw dropped. "Dude!" he shrieked in horror. "Don't you ever refer to me and Cartman as 'fuck buddies' ever again!"

Kenny held up a hand defensively, the other still clutching his beer can. "Look, I was just saying that–"

"WE'RE NOT FUCK BUDDIES, IDIOT!" Kyle shouted, interrupting Kenny before he even had the chance to further explain himself.

"Well then how come he's always calling you and asking you to do him favors or whatever the fuck you said?" Kenny asked.

Kyle groaned. Again with these annoying fucking questions. It never ended with Kenny. "I can't tell you that," he said, which unfortunately for him, only spiked Kenny's interest that much more.

"Why not?" the blonde asked, his eyes practically lighting up. He knew it must've been something good if it had to be kept a secret.

"Because Cartman would kill me if he found out that I told you," Kyle said bluntly, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. Well, at the very least, he'd be super pissed. That much was true.

"Oh, come on, just fucking tell me," Kenny prodded. "The fatass ain't here."

Kyle stared at him silently for a few seconds before finally letting out a long sigh. Why did Kenny have to be so goddamn persistent?

"All right, I'll tell you, but you gotta promise me you won't tell anyone else," Kyle said, his voice practically falling to a whisper as he added, "Especially not Stan."

Kenny's light blue eyes really lit up then. They were shimmering with excitement as Kyle stared at him, instantly regretting what he'd just said. He scowled as Kenny flashed him a mischievous smile.

"Especially not Stan, huh?" Kenny echoed, raising an eyebrow. "Okay, deal."

Kyle let out another sigh. Well, he really had no choice now, did he? Bastard. "Okay–" he began, but he suddenly silenced himself when he heard his cell phone ringing. Oh, thank God.

"Aww, come on!" Kenny whined, watching as Kyle picked up his cell phone from the counter to see who was calling him. "Goddammit, Kyle, just tell whoever the fuck it is that you'll call them back!"

Kyle ignored his request, however, and flipped open his cell phone anyway, grinning as he put it to his ear. "Hey, Bebe," he greeted cheerfully.

And just like that, Kenny's sour mood instantly melted away. His ears perked up as he propped his elbows up on his counter and rested his chin in his hands. He leaned in a bit, preparing himself to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"...Yeah, I know, Kenny told me," Kyle said, briefly making eye contact with the blonde, who simply raised his eyebrows at him in a suggestive manner. Kyle lowered his, giving Kenny a quick glare before simply looking away from him again. "Well, what do you expect? You know how those two are."

The smirk on Kenny's face began to fade a little. Shit, this wasn't a very interesting conversation like he was hoping it'd be. It was pretty fucking boring, actually. Kyle definitely needed some help if he ever wanted to get anywhere with Bebe...

Looking down, Kenny reached for an old receipt lying on his counter and picked up a chewed up pencil. He started scribbling something on the paper, still listening intently to everything Kyle was saying.

Kyle let out a small laugh. "I know," he said in an amused voice. "You're right, they probably are."

Kenny smiled to himself as he read over his note. He quietly set the pencil down and held up the receipt, hoping to get Kyle's attention with it.

"Listen, I..." Kyle started, his voice trailing off when he looked at the receipt and read what it said. His eyes widened, and without saying a word, he reached up and smacked Kenny's arm. Kenny flinched, giving Kyle a 'what'd I do?!' type of look as he put a hand on his arm.

"Sorry," Kyle said, finally turning his back towards Kenny so he couldn't distract him anymore. "No, no, it was just...never mind. Well, anyway, I was gonna say that you were really awesome in the ballet last night." He didn't have to turn around to know that Kenny was probably smirking like crazy now. "Oh, come on, you were the best one there...Yeah, I wanted to tell you last night, but...oh, you were? Shit, I didn't know that. I would've waited longer then..." Kyle paused then, and at that point, Kenny gave up on trying to make out what Bebe was saying on the other line. "Yeah, totally...Okay, cool, I'll see you then. Bye, Bebe." He brought the phone away from his ear and closed it, waiting a few seconds before whipping around to look at his sick, sick friend. "Dude, what the hell is wrong with you?!"

"What?!" Kenny asked defensively. "What's so bad about what I wrote?"

Kyle blinked. "What's so bad?!" he exploded, hastily reaching for the note on the counter. He cleared his throat and read it: "Damn, baby, you looked so fucking sexy in your leotard. I totally wanted to honk your boobs." There was a brief, awkward pause as Kyle just stared at the note, his eyebrows furrowed. He finally looked up at Kenny, expecting to hear a good explanation from him.

"...I don't see what's so wrong about that," Kenny said honestly. "It's a compliment."

"You're disgusting," Kyle said, crumpling up the receipt and tossing the tiny ball of paper at Kenny. It bounced off his head and landed on the floor.

"Oh, shut up," Kenny retorted, starting to get fed up with Kyle's bullshit. "You know you were totally thinking it."

"Um, no, not really," Kyle said bluntly. "I'm not a sick pervert like you, Kenny."

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Whatever, man," he said, deciding to let it go and somewhat change the subject. "You were still totally flirting with her."

"What?" Kyle said, completely taken aback. "I was not–"

"Yeah," Kenny interrupted. "You were. Seriously, Kyle, why do you keep fucking denying everything? God, you're worse than Cartman."

Kyle froze again. What the hell did that mean? "What, uh..." he said with new found uncertainty in his voice. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on, Kyle," Kenny said in the most dead serious tone Kyle had ever heard from him. There wasn't even the slightest hint of amusement in his voice, which was very, very rare for Kenny. It was more than enough to get Kyle's full attention, and even scare him a little bit. "Do you really think I don't know? Seriously, I'm not an idiot. I know Cartman wants to bang Wendy. He's wanted to since high school."

Kyle just kept staring at him, eyes wide and mouth agape. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "So...wait...let me get this straight," he started, his mind trying to put all the pieces together. "You knew this whole time?"

"Yeah," Kenny answered simply.

"But...how?" Kyle asked.

Kenny couldn't help but grin then. "Dude, it's me," he said, his usual playful demeanor returning once more. "I've slept with enough chicks to know when another guy wants to get with one of 'em. Plus, Cartman made it super fucking obvious...I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if Stan knew all along and just never said anything about it."

Kyle just had to comment on that one. "But, dude...you knew all along and never said anything about it," he pointed out.

Kenny grinned wider. "So did you," he countered.

Kyle's jaw dropped. Fuck, how the hell did he know that?!

"Dude, shut up, that's different!" Kyle said defensively. "I promised Cartman, and...oh, whatever, don't try to turn this back around on me!"

"Holy shit, chill out, Kyle," Kenny said as he gave Kyle's shoulder a light shove. "I'm just messing with you."

Kyle brought up his hand, throwing a soft punch back at Kenny. "I really fucking hate you, dude," he said in the nicest way he possibly could.

"Aww," Kenny said, now reaching out with both arms and wrapping them around Kyle's body. "I love you, too, my darling Kyle."

Kyle smiled, wrapping his own arms around Kenny on instinct. "Dude, this is really gay, Kenny."

Kenny chuckled. "Yeah, you're right," he said as he pulled away from him. "We should stop. After all, you can't be cheating on Cartman now, can you?"

This time, Kyle joined in with Kenny as he started to laugh.

The entire audience was once again flourishing in a loud, enthusiastic applause after yet another successful performance. The ballerinas curtseyed on stage for a while until the curtains finally closed, the sounds of people clapping and whistling eventually quieting down. Everyone backstage all hugged one another, congratulating each other on yet another job well done. After giving each of her fellow ballerinas a hug, Bebe broke away from that group and rushed over to Wendy.

"Oh my God!" she squealed in excitement. "That was even better than last night's performance!"

"It was!" Wendy agreed, a huge smile on her face as she gave her best friend a big hug. "You did an amazing job, Bebe."

"Aww, you were even more amazing," Bebe said with a grin on her face as well. "Come on, we have to celebrate! Let's go out!"

Wendy couldn't help but giggle. "Sure, sounds like fun," she said, unable to take the grin off her face.

Bebe brought her hands up and rapidly clapped them together. "Yay!" she exclaimed. "Okay, so I just have to get changed first. You wanna just meet outside in like a half hour?"

"Okay," Wendy said. "I have to change, too, anyway."

"All right," Bebe said as she turned to leave. "See you in a few, girl!"

They both waved at each other before heading off towards their respective dressing rooms.

Wendy stared at herself in the mirror, looking herself up and down. She had changed out of her costume and was now wearing a black cocktail dress that hugged her body snugly, showing off her slim figure. Her long hair was perfectly straightened, looking even silkier and shinier than it normally looked. She had also re-applied most of her makeup, a fresh coat of dark cherry red lipstick, some black mascara, a bit of smoky, silvery eye shadow...

She looked gorgeous. Even more so than usual.

"The fuck are you all dressed up for, Wendy?" he asked.

Wendy froze, her heart nearly stopping in her chest as she turned around and looked up, and sure enough, there he was, staring down at her from the opening in the vent. She stared back up at him with those gorgeous brown eyes of hers, crossing her skinny arms over her chest.

"What now, Cartman?" Wendy asked impatiently.

He dropped to the floor, landing with his usual loud crash.

"Ow," he mumbled to himself, hoping she didn't actually hear him say that. He slowly pushed himself off the floor and stood up. "Where are you going?" he asked as he approached her.

Wendy rolled her eyes. Those stupid, beautiful eyes of hers. "Why should I have to tell you? It's none of your fucking business."

He stopped and leaned in close to her face, their noses practically brushing together.

"I believe..." he began in his low, seductive voice, "I told you to be here when I got back last night...or else."

Wendy's eyes widened as he finished off the threat with a smirk.