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Another three weeks passed before Butters was discharged from the hospital. All the casts had been removed by then.
A new schedule switch off emerged between Cartman and Linda. Early mornings Eric would arrive to pick Butters up and take him to school, Tuesdays and Thursdays he would drive him straight home, the other three days he would take Butters downtown to physical therapy.
"You really don't have to do this," Butters told Eric after his first week of therapy. "My mom can drive me, isn't it boring waiting an hour for me to finish?"
"If I drove you back home then we have to go through all that trouble and then your mom's going to have to speed over to downtown to make sure you get there on time. It's too much of a nuisance, driving you straight from school is so much easier."
Butters was about to say his mom could just as easily pick him up from school, but bit his tongue. Eric wanted to help, he didn't want to take that away from him.
"Well, if it doesn't bother you then I guess it's okay…" Butters said instead.
. . . . .
It was Saturday morning and they were at the park where the empty public gym equipment was set up. There were two metal poles parallel to each other and waist high, they were meant for people to lift themselves using just their upper body strength, but Eric planned on using them as crutches for Butters.
Cartman helped Butters stand and grip the poles on either side of him.
"I don't know about this, Eric," Butters said, already feeling the strain on his arms.
"Butters, I'm not going to let you fall, okay? I'm right behind you. We won't be here that long but it's good for you to practice more than just three times a week."
As Cartman said that Butters could feel him stand right behind him. The blond did feel more at ease.
"Okay, so just step one leg forward," Eric told him.
Slowly Butters moved a leg up and extended it forward. His first step of the day.
"Good, now the other one," Cartman said gently.
Butters was able to walk about three steps, Cartman walking behind him as well, before he stepped awkwardly into a hole in the ground and tripped forward. Just when he thought he was going to land face first on the concrete he felt an arm around his waist.
"It's okay, I got you," Eric said, lifting Butters back up. "Okay, we'll need to look out for that hole."
Butters blushed. Eric's arm was around him and he was leaning his back on the brunette as well. He quickly tried to right himself and stand on his own again.
The two continued on like this for half an hour before Butters complained he was getting too exhausted.
"Okay, we'll just do one last round and we'll call it a day," Eric told him, leaving his post from behind Butters and walking to stand on the other side.
"Eric?" Butters didn't like this. He felt more secure with Cartman behind him, and he needed that now that he was exhausted.
"Don't worry, I can still catch you from here, but I want you to walk towards me now."
Butters hesitated, but slowly, one step at a time, he began walking towards Eric. Reaching the end he could feel his arms and legs trembling from all the force and almost collapsed. He fell forward and Eric was able to easily grab him. Again, Butters blushed at how close he was, he had fallen right into Cartman's arms, which were wrapped protectively around him.
"That was awesome Butters! You did so much work on your own today," Eric said, easing Butters back into his chair and wheeling him towards his car.
"Thanks," Butters replied, unaccustomed to hearing praises from Cartman.
Once they reached the truck Eric carried Butters and gently put him in the front seat. When he was going to pull away Butters' grip tightened around his neck. He looked up to see what the problem was but Butters was just staring at him. They looked at each other for a moment, their faces just inches apart, before Eric leaned in and kissed Butters. The blond pulled him closer, gripping Eric's hair with his hands. After a moment longer Eric pulled away and Butters dropped his hands onto his lap. Cartman closed the door. He put Butters' wheelchair in the bed of the truck and then got in to the driver's side.
The two were silent during the car ride, and it wasn't until they passed downtown did Butters realize they weren't heading to his house. He turned to Eric, but the brunette's gaze was set on the road. Butters kept quiet, waiting to see where Cartman was taking him.