Fallen Star - (Kyle Broflovski X Reader)

Chapter 14: Just the way you look, tonight (Kyle)

The roaring fire in front of Kyle is nothing compared to how he feels inside. But it's a nice distraction from all the worries that are soon to plague his mind about what just happened with Y/N, so he leans into the flames of the burning barrel, and Kenny and Stan do the same. They had fun playing with the fireworks for a little, but the cool July wind set in as the sun disappeared, so they decided to dump a bunch of wood in an empty gas drum and set it ablaze.

"So, what's been going on in your life?" Kenny asks Kyle, but Stan answers for him before he can get a word out.

"Kyle's got a girlfriend," he sings in a way that makes him sound about 5 years old.

"Yeah, not anymore," Kyle corrects, and Stan's expression turns from playful to baffled.

"Something happen?" Kenny asks, and Kyle just sighs.

"I don't know man. I guess she just wasn't my... someone right," he says, softly grazing his hand across the cheek Y/N kissed moments earlier.

"That's too bad man," Kenny replies, and Stan pats his best friend on the back reassuringly. Kyle shrugs him off and clears his throat.

"What about you Kenny? Where the hell have you been for the past 7 years?"

He laughs.

"Traveling dude."

Kenny spends the next few minutes regaling the boys with tales of the wonders of the earth he set out to explore, the odd jobs he worked to get by, how he never spent more than a month in one place, all the while Stan and Kyle uttered remarks over how cool it all sounded. But when he finishes, an awkward silence looms over the three.

The friends hadn't seen each other in almost a decade, yet were inseparable for nearly two. Kyle wasn't sure if they could get back to where they were after years apart. And more importantly, he wasn't sure if he wanted them too. Yes, he'd been letting people into his life more easily after meeting Y/N, yet the sudden arrival of Kenny brought everything he was risking back to him. He had put off thinking about killing so far, yet he knew the choice would one day come when he had to choose between protecting the world or protecting himself.

He knew there was no way the other guys were mulling over the same thoughts as him, but their tense faces would suggest otherwise. Stan stares unblinking into the flames, while Kenny anxiously twitches before taking a deep breath and using a loud voice to pronounce his next words.

"I'm gay."

Huh, Kyle thinks, while Kenny's statement pulls Stan out of his stern stupor. Kenny being gay brings out no profound emotion in Kyle other than slight surprise, but Stan is bewildered.

"You're... gay? Like in the liking men way?" He asks, and Kenny nods.

"That's uhh... great dude. Really, it's just that... I never really pegged you as gay. I mean, you were always so obsessed with women growing up... You understand why I'm a little shocked."

"No, I totally get it," Kenny replies, any previous nervousness gone as he stands proud and explains. "Getting out of South Park made me realize that I never actually liked looking at naked women, I just liked to have something I could share with my dad. Having something in common with him made it feel like we could have a normal father-son relationship. But no matter how many things we share, he'll always be an abusive piece of shit. I took the time traveling to reflect back on what I really wanted, and I realized I shouldn't have to live up to someone else's expectations of what I should be."

Kenny lets out a huge sigh, and both the boys congratulate him on coming to terms with his sexuality.

"Any special guy in your life now?" Stan asks sportively, and Kenny excitedly laughs.