Chapter 13: Acceptance

Kyle

My phone vibrated once, and I looked down. It was a number that wasn't in my contacts. I stared at it, and opened the text. Kyle. I miss you like hell. What are you up to?

I gasped. Kenny? Is that you? How the hell? What the fuck? Send.

Yessir. You're the first one I texted. I had to share the news. My brother came back.

Kevin? What? Why? Send.

He's movin' back in, Kyle. He's movin' back in. My life actually has a chance at sanity.

Kenny, I'm so happy for you! I can't believe this! Send.

Me neither. I kinda wanna let Stan know, but I don't wanna ruin the moment. Kyle, I need to meet you sometime. I need your picture.

Wait, so this is your phone? Send.

Yes, Kyle. A fucking gift from my brother. He wouldn't let me say no.

I have a gift for you, Kenny. And you can't say no to me and my parents either, or I'll never speak to you again. Send.

That's unfair, Kyle! I can't get you anything because you won't let me.

Kenny, your gift to me is unconditional love and friendship. My gift to you, is whatever it is that's hidden in my backpack. Send.

I'd like whatever it is that's hidden in your pants.

Kenny! Gross! Send.

Oh, Kyle. You have so much to learn.

Mom says dinner time. I'll add you to my contacts. Send.

Kyle? I fucking love you. Don't forget that. See you soon. Miss you.

I love you too Kenny. See you later. Bye. Text me, or I'll freak. Send.

I went back to the text he had sent before that. Kenny was mine. Kenny was everywhere for me. Yet, I didn't dare do anything about the feelings I was having inside. I couldn't bring myself to do anything about them.

The week was slow, and at a good pace. We all finally met up the Tuesday after Kevin returned, and Kenny showed us his new IPhone. I was so grateful to his brother for doing all he could to help. It looked like things were starting to brighten up for the boy. The boy with the golden messy hair. The boy with the deep cerulean eyes that seemed to hide and show so much all at once.

My mom's gift to him, was that she helped him get his driver's license. She made it clear she wanted him to have a way of getting around, if he ever needed it. He forever thanked her. So, he didn't have, or want, a car, but he did have a driver's license in case.

Kenny

I was never one to hide anything from any of my best friends. My sexuality came into question with all of them at points, I'm sure. None of them seemed to be able to broach the subject with me. I wouldn't have minded, but none of them seemed to ever want to touch that subject with an eighty foot pole. So, things had never really been said about it until now. It was Friday night, and I was once again, at Kyle's place. Sheila and Gerald were gone, and I was in the living room with Ike and Kyle. Kyle and I were playing a game on his gamesphere. Ike was lying in one of the arm chairs with his nose buried in my Hannibal Lecter book. Much to Kyle's surprise.

"Mom says you're gonna have nightmares." Kyle said gently. "You shouldn't be reading that, Ike."

"Shshshsh! I'm at the part where Francis gets the news reporter."

"Did you get to the part where he bit off the other guy's lips?" I asked.

"Eeeeeewww!" Kyle shrieked. He got up and ran away yelling at the top of his lungs. Oh, Kyle. You're so sensitive, but you have the mouth of a sailor. I fucking love you. The mood got really serious, and I quit the game, and turned off the television. Ike had likewise closed his book. Or, rather, my book.

"So?" we both said turning to face each other.

"About you and Kyle." he said simply.

"You don't beat around the bush, do you kid?" I asked.

"I didn't know you were gay." he said simply.

"Ike, you of all people. You gotta be more of a genius than that." I said sighing.

"How's that?" Ike asked.

"I jack off to straight porn. I don't do gay porn. I'm not gay in that sense. In fact, people are people, Ike. People suck, people fuck, people kiss, people do all kinds of things. Sometimes, it's for pay, and other times, because they just got really high."

"Yeah. I know this." Ike said smiling gently at me. "What does it have to do with my brother?"

"That whenever I look at porn, I try to find women with red curly hair. Preferably small, and skinny." I said smiling.

"My brother _is small, isn't he?" Ike said smiling. "If I outgrow him, I'm gonna laugh so hard."

"That's already a given, kid." I said looking at him. "Anyway, I don't consider myself gay. Why should I label myself just because I like one guy? Because that's all it ever has been. I've never-"

Kyle

"-Liked anyone like this in my whole cursed damned life." Kenny said as I walked into the hall. "Not as much as I have always loved Kyle. Subconsciously. It's always been there. That's why I don't consider myself gay. People put a label so as to fit you into a group that defines your dressing style, your lingo, your rules. Even your own set of stereotypes. And while Kyle is the stereotypical version of a gay teen, he shouldn't be labeled that way. I love Kyle, Ike. I don't like to look at mags and videos of other men for pleasure. It's all about Kyle."

"I guess I saw it coming even before you two did." Ike said smiling gently at Kenny. So, was Kenny my boyfriend? My lover? We hadn't even gone that far yet! Oh… my… God! And how was I gonna tell my mom?

"Yeah? I guess I've been pushing it down all this time. But it finally got the better of me. Because secretly, I tried as hard as I could to get him to fall in love with Mysterion."

"When are you guys gonna tell mom and dad?" Ike asked. "You know you have my blessing. Heaven knows Kyle needs a person like you in his life." Ike said sighing. "We try and give Kyle as much as we can, and give him credit for all the things he's able to do, but Ken, you gotta admit. My brother's very small, and very weak. And very temperamental." Ike said smiling. "Lord knows Eric Porker Cartman could've killed him that one day."

As if somehow there had been a machine that whisked me off to another time, I remembered everything that happened when he had finally almost succeeded in killing me. I felt something rip my stomach, and I felt warmth. I opened my eyes to see a pair of figures fighting in front of me. Soon, Mysterion had screamed so loudly, that mom and dad and Ike had awoken. I was so numb from the pain and blood loss that I had no clue what was going on. Mysterion came back after getting rid of Cartman, and he had been so anguished.

"Kyle!" Mysterion had sobbed. "Kyle, we'll get you to a hospital! I swear it, Kyle! You'll be okay! Please, be okay!" he sobbed as my family had called an ambulance. So, that had been Kenny? Kenny weeping for me? Wow.

"Mom will be glad." Ike was saying as I pulled myself back to the present. "She'll be glad to know Kyle has someone to take care of him. Not that he can't manage alone, but he is so… small."

I cleared my throat and glared daggers at Kenny. "It just so happens I can't be with you all the time, Kenny!" I said bitterly. "I'm going to college. NYU to be exact."

"And I'd follow you to hell and back just to be with you." Kenny said seriously. "My life depends on your existence, Kyle. That's the only way I can go on dying over and over and over again. Because when I do get back to my mortal state, I know you'll be there."

All anger and bitterness was forgotten as I saw Kenny's truthfulness. My heart fluttered ever so slightly and my stomach churned. I looked over at Ike as if daring him to make fun of me. But he smiled.

"Kyle, true keepers only come along once in a life time. And unless reincarnation is real, I'd take this one. Cuz who knows. You may never meet a Kenny so sweet." he said as I rushed forward and hugged my Kenny.

"You have my blessing, big brother." Ike said smiling at me. "Just make sure when he lets you out on your own, you have a homing device, and about seven layers of armor."

"Fuck you, Ike!" I yelled bitterly. "You can go to hell!"

"Don't be rude." Kenny said pulling me closer into him. "Ike just loves you."

"I'm not like Bella, you know?" I said still angry. "I don't need a bullet proof car, and all that other shit like she did before Edward and her got married."

"Bullet proof, huh?" Ike said smartly. "That's a good idea, big brother. I'll tell mom to get Caviler."

Kenny

Ike and I were laughing so hard as Kyle seethed in my grip. I smiled and leaned down to kiss him.

"Don't… touch… me… Kenny McCormick." he growled as he punched me right on the side of the face, trying to strike out. Although he did cause me a little bit of pain, I was able to subdue him, and had his hands in a tight one handed grip.

"See? It would be so easy for a rapist to get you, Kyle." Ike said smiling. "Let yourself be loved by your family, okay? We know what's best for you."

"Speaking of what's best." I said simply. "Here come the 'rents."

Sure enough, Sheila and Gerald came walking into the house. I looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was already eight in the evening. They both came in, and the door closed silently behind them.

"Hello, Kenny, dear. Hello, you two." she said ruffling are hair in turn.

"What if I cut my hair?" I asked.

"Young man, if you go anywhere near a pair of scissors with that hair of yours, I'll ground you!" shouted Sheila frantically. "My bubula looks fine just the way he is!"

"But you see this?" I asked reaching up and twisting my fingers into my golden hair. "It's messy, and can never be combed."

"You spend your life undah a hood, dawling. You'll be fine." she said slapping my hand. "You are not to cut that hair. Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am." I said smiling gently back.

"Kyle and Kenny have something they both need to say." Ike said as we all sat there in the living room.

"N-no, we d-don't." Kyle said starting to blush furiously.

"Oh, are you two finally past that whole super best friend stage?" Sheila asked smiling. "I must say, it was very sweet of you to keep him company all these years, Kenny. I still can't thank you enough for saving my son's life." she said taking my hand from across the couch. "In your little super hero costume. Mysterion." she said smiling. "Just like Mary Jane and-"

"Ma, please!" Kyle moaned. "Not Spider man. I hate him."

"How about Bella-"

"Mom, I hate twilight!" shot Kyle bitterly. "I'm not a weakling."

"No, bubby. You are a very strong young man." Sheila said smartly.

"It's just, Kyle, We want you to be out on your own as much as you can be. But none of that can happen when your temper flies off the charts. I think that comes from your mother's side of the family." Gerald said bitterly. "Plus, you have your diabetes, and you know how tough that can be to handle." Jerold said sighing. "It's better that we all know you're safe and always being taken care of. This doesn't mean you're completely co-dependent." he added seeing the look in Kyle's face. "This just means you're better off having that person in your life who's always gonna be there for you. You have such a good personality, Kyle, and you are handsome." Jerold said smiling.

"Gawl!" Kyle said getting up and running to his room.

"I asked Ned and Jimbo, if I can borrow their little cabin down-"