VII: Storm

"I can't find my shit!" Stan was saying as he ran around looking for all his stuff.

"What exactly did you bring with you?" Kenny asked as he helped the boy look for his belongings.

"Just my jacket!" Stan shouted as he stamped his foot. "It had my car keys, and phone in it!" he shouted.

The group all got to eat their food, but the storm came in while Ike and Eric were roasting marshmallows. Butters wasn't too happy about it, and neither was Bebe. Everyone had gathered up all they had brought with them, and they all waited for Stan to try and find his things. Kenny pulled his hood up over his head, and sank back into his jacket as he started to notice how the rain was coming down fast.

"Stan," Wendy said as she clutched Token's arm. "Why don't you go down to the lake and see if your stuff landed up there." She suggested as a bolt of lightning hit the tree a few feet away from Kenny.

"Don't die, Kinny." Cartman said as he walked right by the blond.

"Why would my shit be over there?" Stan asked looking like he was about to kill someone. "I never went down to the lake in the first place!" he shouted as the rain started to fall harder.

"Just go look!" Kyle shouted as he began to lose his temper. "Kenny, go help him down there."

Kenny had no choice. He started walking down the path with Stan, and made it all the way down without dying, thank the Lord. He and Stan checked everywhere. Even the lake itself.

"Just fuck it, Kenny!" Stan shouted as a thunder clap was heard far off. "The stuff's not here." He said as he walked over to his friend. "Let's just go back."

They both walked up to the clearing, and Kenny let out a shriek as he saw that no one was there.

"What's-" Stan shouted out as he too spotted the empty clearing. "Maybe they're at the parking lot!" he shouted as he and Kenny took off running.

There was no one there. Kyle, Eric, Butters…, they were all gone.

"Kill me!" Stan shouted as he became extremely frustrated.

"Don't kill me." Kenny said looking upwards. He knew he was going to die. He just knew it. He was deadly afraid of storms. He hated thunder storms. He knew he couldn't tell anyone, because he was the only boy on earth, (Or at least that he knew of.), that knew how it felt to die as he was being struck by lightning. He really didn't want to go through that again if he could help it.

"Did you bring your phone? Stan asked as he stood there soaked from head to foot.

"No." Kenny sighed as he looked up at the sky. "I left my phone at my house." He muttered. "I don't get it!" he moaned. "Butters was gonna give me a ride home!" he whined.

"Kenny, you're a good lock picker." Stan reasoned. "Why don't you break into my car, and we'll hot wire it out of here." He said as he began to shiver.

"Oh, sweet idea." Kenny said smiling brightly at Stan. "What do I pick the lock with?" he asked. "A stick?"

"Never mind." Stan said bitterly. "I'm sure they'll call back, figure you're not answering, and come back and get us." He said as he started to pace the parking lot.

"Yeah." Kenny said hopefully. "They'll come back as soon as they see we're not answering the phone."

… … … … …

"I'm sure they'll come back." Stan said a half hour later as the rain fell even harder and the lightning got worse.

"Please come back." Kenny said as he began to cry into his hood.

"Let's just start walking." Stan said after another ten minutes went by. "It doesn't look like they're coming back for us at all."

If this had been a different time, and a different day, Kenny and Stan would've both stopped to look at why they were left alone. Maybe they would've seen that this had been a plan. But the two of them just kept going.

"Okay!" Stan shouted as Kenny lead the way to his place. "This is officially bad!" For the storm had gotten progressively worse. It was now hailing quite hard. "Kenny, how much do we have to go?" Stan asked as he felt a hail hit him in the back of the head.

"We have at least another forty-five minutes until we hit the main street that will take us into South Park." Kenny explained. "Ow!" he shouted as he tripped and held his face.

"Ken?" Stan asked a little anguished. "Are you okay?" he asked as he saw his friend holding his face.

"I got some stupid hail in my fuckin' eye!" he shouted as he started walking again.

They walked for a little bit longer, before Kenny started to shiver. His jacket was soaking through, and he was really starting to get cold. He was about to turn and ask Stan a question as they came up to a cross walk. But the car in front of him made a right turn, and drove through the puddle soaking him all the way through, and covering his entire body.

"I hope you go to hell, you fucking son of a bitch!" Kenny shouted as he stumbled back almost falling. "Fucking bastard!" he shouted.

"Kenny!" Stan shouted as he walked up to him. "Stop!" he shouted. Kenny looked like he really wanted the driver of the car to hear what he was saying.

Kenny turned around and walked over to a nearby grass area. He shivered and shook as he tried not to cry. Stan couldn't help his next move. He ran over to him and hugged him tightly. Kenny was so small, and so thin. If anything happened to him, Stan wanted to be the one to make him feel better. He held Kenny as the tears finally fell down the blond's face. Stan sighed as another piece of hail fell from the sky and hit Kenny on the top of his head. Stan brushed it off as he held his best friend tight.

"It's okay, Kenny." He said trying to cheer him up. "We don't have that long to go." He lied. Actually, he really didn't know how long they had until they got back into South Park

"I wanna go home." Kenny said through the jacket. "I don't wanna play this game anymore." He mumbled.

Stan took the lead for a little while this time. He made sure Kenny was okay, and kept his arm wrapped around the smaller boy as they walked. He really didn't want anything happening to his best friend. Stan wanted to ask if they were even best friends anymore, but he refrained from doing so. He was too afraid this was an inappropriate time.

"How long do you think we've been walking?" Stan asked.

"I don't know." Kenny said as he and Stan kept going. "Hey, Stan?" he asked. "How badly do you think Kyle and Cartman should get it when we see them again?"

"Get it for what?" Stan asked as he pulled Kenny closer to him.

"Well," Kenny said looking at Stan through the rain. "Isn't it obvious?" he asked looking at the floor.

"Not really." Stan said as he yawned. "Maybe it's cuz I'm really sleepy." He muttered trying to see what Kenny was talking about.

"Dude, it was them that planned it all out like this. I'd bet you anything they took your shit, so that you'd have no way home, and they made Butters leave me here with no ride to my place." Kenny said smartly. "They just wanted us to talk to each other, but I have a feeling I'll be very sick after this."

"When we see them again," Stan assured. "I will make sure that I personally get them back for what is happening to us." He said sweetly to Kenny as he patted the other boy's hood.

"Look" Kenny said trying to stop himself from shivering. "There's some stores. I think we're almost there."

They both kept walking again. This time things weren't as bad as before. At least they were talking, Kenny thought. It wasn't so bad now that he knew Stan still wanted to talk to him.

"St-Stan?" Kenny stuttered as he and his friend ran through the streets. He recognized where they were now and saw the didn't have much to go. "I know we don't really have that much longer, but I'm like…, really cold here." He explained. "Is it okay if-"

"Yes." Stan said as he dragged Kenny with him into a Starbucks.

They both walked into the warm shop, and walked over to some seats. Stan looked at the lady selling coffee at the bar, and sighed.

"I'll buy you a coffee." He offered.

"Nah." Kenny said as he clutched his body tightly to him. "I really don't want any."

"At least have a hot chocolate on the house." The lady said coming over to them. She set cups of steamy drinks in front of them. "It's freezing, hailing, and thunder out there, and you boys aren't even gonna have a drink?" she asked looking sadly at them. "No, no, no. I can't have that, my pretties." She said as she walked back to her standing place.