The Woods (A South Park Craig x Reader Fan-fiction)

Chapter 6

Third Person POV Craig

His legs are in overdrive now. He doesn't even know where he's going but an underlying force seems to tell him the way. He is almost sure it's not humanly possible to run this fast but somehow he is. He runs completely in the dark and seemingly through the trees that once stood to block his way. The sounds of heavy breathing and leaves and sticks crunching beneath his feet are all he can hear. His mind seems to fall asleep while his body stays awake and alert.

The collision from her soft hand was like electricity.

Through all the tears and hopeless thoughts he saw two big (e/c) eyes peering over the desk where he sat. They found a way through his arm barricade which had been designed to shield his emotions and excuse his behavior as lack of sleep. The disguise was convincing yet, his teary, red eyes revealed themselves to the comforting ones across the desk from behind his barricade until he was completely vulnerable to the gaze.

"Are you okay?" Her gentle voice asked him and he instinctively recoiled, tried to glare but he couldn't.

He shook his head and said with a wobbly voice, "Stripe died... this morning," He saw her expression waver confusion and he realized he needed to elaborate, "He was my pet guinea pig," His voice was unexpectedly steady despite his heart speeding up from what he could only guess was from his embarrassment. He expected her to laugh and make fun of the situation but she did neither.

"I'm so sorry," She murmured, "It's really difficult losing someone you care about," She spoke as if he had lost a member of his family and to him, he had, but how could she possibly understand that?

The feeling welling up in his chest almost gave him difficulty breathing like Butters when he tried to run laps during PE.

He's pretty sure he knew back then but refused to admit it to himself; he has done this whole time, since you first stumbled into his mind to the point where he found your phone on the ground.

The mud slide flies into view almost too fast. His mind goes rabid with possible scenarios, so much so that he almost flinches away. He takes a deep breath and pulls his hat further over his ears, running his hand across his forehead. He bends down and switches his phone's flash to flashlight mode, ignoring the mud that covers his jeans.

Then he sees you and his heart climbs out of his mouth. He feels sick when he sees you curled into yourself so tightly, as though you're minimizing your size to a microscopic scale. Your whole body is damp and your clothes cling to you, limp as your (h/c) hair. Thankfully, the water isn't deep enough to submerge your head and stop you breathing but you look so pale and rigid, like a skeleton; like you're... dead.

His body moves by itself, controlled automatically by something else. You're perched in ankle deep water, the shallow part of the lake, and he climbs down careful to avoid falling in. It's at this point where he's thankful for his long limbs and all the trees he used to climb as a kid. He just about lands ankle deep at the very edge of the lake which sends shivers down his spine and he bends down, picking you up by means of holding your upper back and the bend at the back of your knees. Your head slumps lazily on his shoulder and your skin is so cold to the touch, he can only pray you aren't dead.

He glances up out of the alcove and his hope immediately dissipates. There's no way he can get you out without help. He would have to climb and he can't risk injuring you in doing so, even if he did have the strength to hold both you and himself up.

His cheeks feel damp and he realizes he's crying. His eyes travel around desperately and they land on a dryer, slightly sheltered area further along the lake. He carries you across and almost buckles over as his limbs go frigid. The area is slightly elevated from the lake with a base made of mostly rocks. It will be uncomfortable but hopefully, it'll be dry. He gently lowers you back down, supporting your head, and leans against the rock face, wrapping his body around you like an envelope. You likely have hypothermia and the best he can do for you now is keep you warm with his body heat. He can feel himself sob and he gently rocks your body, tearing off his hat and pulling it over your damp hair.