Drifted - Stan and Kyle

[Chapter 3]

His lights are on. I glanced up at his room and see his shadow pacing around. Stan and I used to flash lights in each other's windows because he accidentally broke mine with a rock once. I pulled out my phone flashlight and flashed it in his window a couple of times. I watched as his shadow stopped moving, then turned off the lights. Shit. I rubbed my forehead and just went inside.

I stumbled up to my room, still a bit tipsy, and slumped into my bed. I read the clock on my phone,

1:54 A.M. Fuck. I rolled over and immediately fell asleep, exhausted from all of the drunken partying. 

----

"Stan~," I said, moving next to him, caressing his cheek, "Not a day went by where I didn't think of you." Stan looked up at me sheepishly, his face reddening. He shoved my hand off his face.

"Damn it Kyle you're so drunk. Go home, man."  He ran a hand through his hair, taking a sip of his beer. I grabbed his face with my free hand, kissing him softly. Stan's eyes went wide. 

"Fuck Kyle- what's your problem?" His face was flushed red, he grabbed my hand but didn't let go.

"I missed you, Stanley Marsh." I gazed down at him, kissing him once more. He used his other hand and put it on my jaw, deepening the kiss, before pulling away.

"Fuck off Kyle, what the hell is your damage." He pushed me away from him and I watched as he left Tolkien's party. 

----

I gasped and sat up, sweating. I ran my hands through my curls and checked the time. 12:02 P.M. I got up and swayed a bit. My head was pounding from all the alcohol. I smelt my shirt- my nose was instantly overwhelmed by beer and weed. I have to throw this one out. I took it off and immediately threw it in my trash can. I opened the window to air out the residual smell of beer and saw Stan skateboarding in the street. I stared at him out my window before going into the bathroom to shower. I didn't know he skated...

I let the hot water wash away the sins of last night. Kissing Stan? I shook my head. The thought of that kind of grossed me out. Stan was an asshole, but he's also been my best friend, my super best friend my whole life, romantic feelings had never crossed my mind.

"Kyle?" My father said, banging on the bathroom door.

"Showering, dad!" I yelled back, 

"Okay kiddo! Just making sure you're doing good!" I shook my head. My parents were always nagging me a bit, but it was more relaxed now that we've lived in Jersey as a family. My first few teenage years in Trenton were pretty unregulated, so I learned what was good for me and what wasn't on my own. It allowed me to know my limitations more, without worrying about getting punished for my actions. Though I guess those boundaries didn't really stand at Tolkien's party last night. 

I turned the water off and took my contacts out. I put my glasses on and brushed my teeth. I had to brush my teeth a couple of times to get the taste of whatever was in that drink out. I went back to my room and put on clean clothes. I had to go to the store today to get some stuff for school tomorrow, so I grabbed my phone, which had a notification from Kenny!

Ken: KY KY!!! Wanna hang 2day? Ur probably hungover as fuck, but me too, so let's fuck some shit up, yeah?

I smiled. Kenny had always had my back, even when Stan didn't, which proved true since I've returned. 

K: On my way to your house! Be ready ;)

I went downstairs and into the kitchen. There sat both of my parents, neither one looked particularly angry though, which surprised me. I had gotten home nearly an hour after curfew. 

"Did you have fun hanging out with your friends, bubbie?" My mom asked, not looking up from her knitting project. 

"Yes ma," I kissed her cheek before grabbing my car keys and heading out to see Kenny. 

I drove to his house, honking the horn twice before Kenny exited his house. He smiled at me, showing his tooth gap. It was now that I realized his blonde hair was long and grown out, scars covered his face, he was oddly tan, and I could see he was pretty lean under his big parka. He looked good, I understood why people called him a man whore. Kenny swung the door open, he was surprisingly energetic for being super hungover.

"Kyle my man-" He clapped my shoulder,  I laughed. "How are you feeling?" He beamed brightly at me.

"Shitty," I shook my head, shifting gears. My car was a shift stick, a hand me down from my father. 

"That bad? It makes sense, you went all out last night." He mimicked a kissing sound.

"You too? I guess I forgot." I replied, turning into the mall parking lot.

"Oh was I that unmemorable?" He said flirtatiously, I blushed. It's so embarrassing, coming back home after 5 years and hoeing around. 

"Shut the fuck up, I need new supplies for school tomorrow. I got you, too." I said, shutting off the car. 

Kenny and I fucked around in the mall for like 4 1/2 hours. We went into a bunch of clothing stores and tried stuff on, and got new school supplies for our Junior year. I got Kenny a new pair of jeans and some new shirts that weren't stained- and didn't have blood on them. 

We pulled into the McDonalds' drive-through and ordered some dinner, if you could call it that. 

We just sat and talked in my car while we ate. It was nice, Kenny's presence was comforting. Though Stan and I were 'super best friends', Kenny and I were always close, too. 

"So what's new with you, Ken?" I asked, mid-chew. 

"Wmehl Im dphelinifely nhat a fvrgin" He said, food still in his mouth.

"Sick dude," I swallowed my burger, making a disgusted face.

"Well, I'm definitely not a virgin," He laughed. I'd heard about his sex-crazed activities, but not directly from him. 

"Shit, what's your body count?" I looked over at him,

"Basically all of our class, some randos too. Doesn't really matter to me, it's just an activity to pass the time, like basketball!" He smiled, but I could tell there were some underlying issues there. Kenny had had a difficult life, I feel like it got worse when I left. Stan and my's houses were like safe havens for Kenny whenever he needed them, and when I moved, that was lost too. 

"God I thought that was just a rumor- you are a slut, McCormick," I smirked, turning my car back on. "Ready for school tomorrow?" I asked, already knowing his answer.

"Hell no dude, fuck that. Thank god you're back though, it'll make this year more bearable. It'll be just us this year unless you leave me too." He looked ahead, not at me. I know something happened between Stan and him, but I didn't know exactly what. 

"What happened with Stan? Why is he so distanced now?" I asked, beginning to drive back to Kenny's house.

"Long story, dude." Kenny sighed, "It all started when he and Wendy broke up for good. He got super lost, especially since he didn't have you. We were all friends, sure, but you and he were best friends. I think he felt- I don't know- alone? Even though I was always reaching out, even though I had all my own shit to do too but I still made an effort to check up on him. It pissed me off so much, and then he just ghosted me out of nowhere. I kept trying to go over to his house and check up on him, but he was always drunk or high or something, especially during our Freshman year. He was- is, broken, and nothing can fix him."