The crisp mountain air bit at my face, turnin' it red. I sure wasn't dressed for a Colorado winter. I pulled my jacket tighter around me and continued down the street. I wasn't sure were I was goin' exactly, but I had a couple 'a hours to kill until my parents cooled off. They'd developed a new habit 'a kickin' me out when they got mad instead 'a groundin' me. I think it's 'cause they got used to livin' without me and just didn't want to deal with havin' me in the house.

I never did learn to behave myself.

I wandered over to Skeeter's Bar, hesitatin' before openin' the door. I hadn't had a drink in 'a couple 'a months—I was tryin' to keep outta trouble. Then again, it was a warm place to hold up for a while and maybe have a soda while I waited. But that wasn't why I finally decided to go in.

I didn't want to get my hopes up, so I avoided lookin' in the direction of the bar for as long as possible. He's probably not workin' today, I told myself. 'Sides, he only mentioned tryin' to get a job here a few months ago. There's no tellin' if he actually did.

But sure enough, when I took a seat at the far side of the bar and looked up to order a coke, Kenny was grinnin' down at me with his gap-tooth smile, just like old times. Just like it hadn't been years since I'd last seen him in person.

"H-h-hiya, Kenny!" My stomach did a little flip in my gut. "H-how ya b-been?" My voice came out all small and nervous. Figures, years 'a buildin' up my confidence, takin' actin' classes, becomin' an Orientation Leader, and sweet talkin' my way into the beds of so many 'a my peers, all it took was one smile from Kenny and I was back to the nervous, stutterin' ol' Melvin I was in elementary school.

"Butters! Jesus Christ, dude, what the fuck are you doing back in South Park?" he asked, ignorin' his other customers in favor of leanin' over the bar to get a better look at my face. "I gotta tell you, your Facebook pictures do not do you justice." I blushed and smiled, unable to contain my obvious glee.

"W-well, gosh, thanks, Ken," I stammered. "You're lookin' pretty good yourself. I-I'm stayin' with my parents for the holidays." He raised an eyebrow.

"The holidays? Butters you haven't been home for the holidays in five years." His expression darkened. "You haven't been home in five years, period."

"Wuh-well, tell ya the truth, Kenny…" My knuckles started knockin' together of their own accord. "…I ain't in the best place financially right now. I, uh, used up all 'a my Mahalo reward points, so I'm stayin' with my folks until I can get on my feet a-and get my own place."

"Your own place where?" Kenny asked slowly.

"Hey, bartender, am I gettin' a refill over here or what?" A man shouted from the other side of the bar. Kenny glanced back and gave a half wave in acknowledgement.

"'Cuse me a sec," he muttered to me. He quickly tended to his other customers before returnin' to his spot by across from me.

"Your own place where?" he repeated, not missin' a beat.

"I-I'm not sure," I admitted. "I got family in L.A. so maybe I'll head out there…"

"Oh, okay," Kenny mumbled, disheartened. "You want anything, by the way?" He gestured to the empty counter space in front 'a me. I nodded sheepishly.

"Y-yeah, just a coke, please." He raised an eyebrow but didn't question my choice. "Thanks," I muttered as he set a glass down in front of me. I took a few sips while he took care of a group 'a girls that just walked in. They fawned and giggled over Kenny's smooth smile and striking tattoos as I glowered at them over my soda.

"Those dresses are a little short for a Wednesday night, ain't they?" I mumbled. Kenny chuckled quietly.

"Butters Stotch, you aren't jealous, are you?" Kenny accused with a sly smirk. I felt my cheeks heat up in response.

"Don't flatter yourself, y-ya jerk." Kenny snorted and leaned over, restin' his arms on the counter.

"Why are you so anxious to leave, Butters?" he asked. "Why don't you give South Park another chance?" I looked down at my drink, tracin' patterns in the condensation. He sighed when I didn't answer. "What is it you wanna do, anyway? In L.A. or wherever you end up?"

I thought about it for a moment. I had an answer, I just wasn't sure how to explain it to Kenny. "A-actually I was thinkin' about openin' my own daycare center." I peeked at his face to gauge his reaction. He looked contemplative.

"Yeah, that kinda makes sense," he said, considerin'.

"I-I just think I'd like to make a positive impact on kids, know what I mean? I was kinda kicked a-around so much, a-and I wanna be there to help other kids through that if it happens to them." Kenny's eye softened. Tentatively, he reached out to touch my hand. It was a fleeting gesture, but it did not go unnoticed.

"I think you'd be wonderful with kids," he said softly. "But L.A. probably has a lot of daycares already…" he straightened up and stretched, groanin' a little when his back cracked. "…And, ya know, within the next few years, South Park's gonna see a bit of a baby boom. A lot of our old friends are making the migration home, so, there's a market…"

I gave him a jaunty grin. "And you're suggestin' this purely outta concern for my career stability?"

He winked at me. "I may have ulterior motives."

I put a hand on my hip. "And what might those be?"

He glanced back at the other customers at the bar. "Tell you what—how about I tell you all about when I get off at eleven?"

"It's a date," I said, takin' a sip of my Coke.

I stayed in Skeeter's until eleven, munchin' on pretzels and drinkin' my coke. I hung back in a booth, though, tryin' to stay outta Kenny's hair while he was workin'. When Skeeter himself finally arrived to relieve him, Kenny waved goodbye to his regulars, slipped on an old coat, and made a beeline for my table. We walked out 'a the bar together, hand in hand. I'm not sure why, it just seemed natural.

"So, you, uh, seein' anyone?" I asked hesitantly as we walked down the sidewalk.

Kenny laughed. "Subtle. But, no, not really." He pulled up his hood around his face. "You?"

"Nah, you know that," I said. "I ain't really dated anyone since the beginin' a' high school."

He nodded. "Had a bit of fling with Red after graduation, but that didn't last."

"Why's that?" I asked, glancin' over at him.

He shrugged. "She went away to school. Things kind of fizzled. I don't know, I wasn't really invested anyway." I nodded.

We walked in silence for a minute. It wasn't awkward, just a comfortable understanding. That's how we were, Kenny and I. We hadn't seen each other in years, but every time we talked on the phone or happened to text each other, we would find ourselves slippin' back into that easy friendship. It was like no time had passed at all.

"Do you ever wonder about…?" He trailed off quietly.

"Yeah," I sighed, catchin' his drift. "I wondered. But, I guess I'm glad things turned out the way they did. I mean, I glad we got that memory, you know? And it wasn't tainted by a long distance thing that ended horribly."

He thought about this for a moment. "Yeah, I get what you mean. I just…" He searched for words. "Sometimes I wonder if the reason I never got involved with anyone else was because I was still hung up on you."

"I know what you mean," I murmured. I know it seems weird how easily we were able to talk about this sort 'a thing, but that's how Kenny and I always were. We never felt the need to hide our feelings, 'specially not with each other. There was no reason to.

"But what if it didn't end horribly?" He wondered aloud. "What if we'd given it a shot—"

"There's no use questionin' that," I said, stoppin' beneath a streetlight. "It's not like we can change it." He searched my face, lookin' for something.

"Well, no, but…" He shifted his feet, lookin' nervous. "We can change things, going forward."

"What'dya mean by that?"

"There's no reason why we can't start over, right? I mean, if you'd be willing to give South Park another chance, then…" He lifted a hand to my face, touchin' my cheek gently. "Why can't we give us a chance?"

I smiled. "You sound like you're in a chick flick or somethin'." Kenny rolled his eyes.

"I'm serious, Butters," he took a half step towards me so our faces inches apart. "We've been through so much together. No one knows me as well as you do. And even though we haven't seen each other in a while, you're still my best friend…I want to be with you, Butters." His fingers traced my face before he took a step back. I felt cold without him pressed against me. "But if you're leaving again, I…like you said, I'm glad we have that memory." He began to retreat toward the other side of the street.

I stood there for a second, blinkin' under the florescent light of the street lamp. "Kenny…" I started after him. "Ken, wait!" He turned around.

"I-I don't wanna fuck things up," I admitted. His expression flickered from confusion to understanding. "I mess everything up. Always have. A-and I just want somethin'…I want this to stay perfect." He smiled sadly.

"So do I." He sighed softly. "That's why I want to stop wondering." He closed the distance between us with two steps, pressed his lips against mine, and wrapped an arm around my waist. As we kissed, his free hand found my cheek, and he started strokin' my face gently. I felt like somethin' inside 'a me just let go, and all the sudden I was a hundred pounds lighter. In an instant, I was back on the beach, under a sun that set over five years ago. I was back in the sand, layin' on top 'a Kenny and kissin' him like he was the only thing in my world. And I was seventeen again, sittin' on the floor in Bebe's closet while Kenny held my hand and sent my stomach into a flurry. I was a little kid, and Kenny was sittin' next to me at a pep rally, not talkin', just keepin' me company.

Kenny had always been there. Maybe he was my character foil, or pipe dream, or whatever. But he was most definitely my best friend. And why wouldn't I want him to be my future as well?

We pulled apart slowly, darin' to make eye contact. "Alright," I said, a little breathless. He smiled at me. "I s'pose we can make new memories."

And we did.

The End.

A/N: A little cheesy at the end, but I think I'm satisfied with it

I'm considering writing a sequel, but I'm not sure. I don't know if I have enough ideas to continue with this one. Maybe it'll be more of a spin-off…

We'll see.

I also have some AU ideas that I'm batting around in my head, so be on the look out

Thank you, to all of my reviewers, my favoriters (?), followers, lurkers, and everyone who clicked on this story at all in the first place. I've had so much fun writing this, and I'm so happy to be able to share it with everyone!

Much love,

~Annie