It had been a month since Craig Tucker had killed himself. Well, almost a month. The next day, Christmas, would be the official anniversary. Knowing they wouldn't be able to get away from their families on the actual holiday, however, Token and Clyde had planned to visit his grave on Christmas Eve instead. They slipped out of the church after the midnight mass had ended, letting their parents know they would be home soon.

The whole town had been sombered by the events of the school year thus far. Two suicides within months of each other were a tragedy South Park had never seen. There was no way the school district could get away with it, and the high school was still under investigation by some board of directors none of the kids had ever heard of. While all of their teachers were being scrutinized (a few well-liked ones had admitted to their classes that the entire faculty faced the threat of being fired), a new grief counselor had been hired to combat the notion that all Park County students were severely depressed with no one to seek help from.

No one, aside from Clyde and Token, knew that Craig would never have seen a counselor even if a decent one had been available. Nobody knew anything about what had happened, really. The story had been picked up by the local news—while Tweek's name hadn't originally been released, Craig had not been a minor, and with his name in the press Tweek's soon leaked out as well—and gone viral across various social media platforms with the help of Park County students who hadn't known Tweek at all and had barely known Craig. The most-shared post on Facebook told the story of poor Tweek, an innocent gay youth, and his secret boyfriend Craig, who had like Juliet followed his star-crossed lover into a premature grave. Even the football team who had known the truth about Tweek and Craig throughout high school began whispering amongst themselves about whether or not it was true that the two had secretly been fucking the whole time.

South Park loved gossip, after all, and this story was a juicy one. Still, Token and Clyde were disgusted by the way the townsfolk relished the whole event. Sure, students and parents alike all cried at Craig's funeral (a closed-casket affair) and vowed to stay vigilant, watching for warning signs in their friends and families. But they didn't even know how Craig had suddenly become a different person. They hadn't even noticed. Meanwhile, Craig had pushed his closest friends away in spite of their best efforts. It wasn't like they hadn't tried to help.

This knowledge didn't make them feel any better, though. They were still "the best friends" who got stared at in the cafeteria and while gaining thousands of new followers on Twitter.

Their own feelings and confusion aside, however, nothing overcame the intense pain that filled their stomachs when they had heard the news. Craig had been so close, after all. They felt they should have pushed harder. They should have held him closer. They should never have let him leave Clyde's house that day.

And so it was regularly that they visited their friend's grave. Tweek's family had never told anyone where their son was buried, but it wasn't in South Park, for which they felt grateful. Once upon a time, Tweek had been their friend, too, but it was hard to ignore the idea that Craig's obsession with Tweek's death had inspired his own. There was no evidence for this, but they couldn't shake the feeling.

"Cold out here," grunted Clyde unnecessarily. Token nodded in agreement and paused just outside the church to zip up his coat. Snowfall had come early this winter, and several feet of it had already built up in the church's backyard, which opened into the cemetery. Undeterred by frozen toes, together they waded through the snow towards the back left corner.

As they got closer, though, Token stopped. Clyde did the same a few steps ahead. "Do you see that?" he asked lowly.

"Yeah," murmured Token. "Who are they?"

"It almost looks like—"

"Yeah."

What they saw were two backs turned to them, standing hand-in-hand in front of the headstone they knew was Craig's. One figure, blond, wore only a blue t-shirt. The other, with dark hair, wore a navy hooded sweatshirt. Both appeared to be male. The blond's hair was wild in a familiar way that had prompted Clyde to double-check that he wasn't dreaming.

Clyde turned around to look at Token and they wordlessly agreed to continue forward. Their curiosity quickened their paces. Rapidly approaching the tombstone, Clyde called out, "Hey!"

And like something out of a horror movie, Tweek Tweak turned his head to stare at them.

Token and Clyde stopped short, having come about ten feet away. They watched unnerved as Tweek turned around, pulling the second figure with him by the hand.

Craig.

"What the fuck is this?" asked Token hoarsely. He nudged at Clyde as if to confirm that the vision was real; as far as Clyde knew, it was, for he saw the same thing. Tweek and Craig, holding hands, their entire images faded as if out of an old newspaper, stood watching them. Tweek, whose outline was shaking eerily in a way that simply could not be human, smiled pleasantly. Craig just stared.

"Is this a dream?" asked Clyde. He didn't know who he was asking, but the figure of Tweek answered.

"No." The look on his face seemed more smug with each passing second. "Craig wanted to visit."

"…How is this possible?" Token tried. He looked at Craig. "You're dead."

"We're ghosts," answered Tweek. The grin never left his face as he looked to Token. "Spooky, huh?"

"There's no such thing as ghosts," Token whispered in response.

"False," rejoindered Tweek. "Craig and I didn't fake our deaths and you're not dreaming, Token. It just so happens that I was given permission to come back from the afterlife for a while." Looking at Craig, his smile grew. "Actually, it's not my first time. I spent a couple of months alone with Craig, you see. While he was alive, I mean."

Clyde's mind was racing and he tried to stay calm. "That doesn't make any sense," he argued. "We never saw you."

"As you wouldn't. I was only visible to Craig back then. But now that he and I are, you know, in the same boat, I thought it would be nice if you could see us. I figured you would be here." Tweek looked back at Clyde and Token, who were shivering from both the cold and the fear. "You guys are so loyal. I mean, not to me, ever. Ha ha." His smile faded slightly. "But Craig could always count on you. Lucky for me, he didn't. He trusted me more than you." The grin returned. "He loved me more than you."

"Wait," said Token. "Did he—did you go to heaven? Is there a heaven?"

Tweek tilted his head. "There is! But I went to hell. As did Craig." All three of them looked at Craig, who was still silent. "Let's just say he wanted to be with me."

"No way," put in Clyde. "He didn't love you like that. Right, Craig?" Receiving no answer, he looked impatiently at Tweek. "Why isn't he talking?"

"…He doesn't talk much," said Tweek slowly after a pause. "He doesn't need to. He has me."

"What did you do to him?" asked Clyde angrily.

Tweek's eyes narrowed and he finally frowned, glaring at Token and Clyde. "I didn't do anything, thank you very much. Craig is very safe with me. Safer than he was with you." Lifting his free hand, he rubbed Craig's chest affectionately. "I love you," he said to him quietly.

"I love you," repeated Craig immediately, as if reflexively.

Clyde and Token were startled to hear Craig's voice. It was dull and somewhat muted, as though they were hearing him through a bad phone connection. "Did you make him say that?" Clyde demanded.

"No," spat Tweek, looking back at Clyde. "He fell in love with me. I told you." Before Clyde or Token could answer, he went on irritably, "He got to know me again when I came back. He realized we belonged together. That's it!"

Token was watching Craig intently now. Craig was looking between him and Clyde repeatedly. With his brow furrowed he looked slightly frustrated, as though he had something he wanted to say or couldn't quite put his finger on where he had seen them before, and Token felt an immense sadness. Putting aside the absurdity of the idea that ghosts might be real, his lost friend was right in front of him, and yet wouldn't say anything. (Or, perhaps, couldn't say anything.) The left side of his forehead was dark, as if bruised, which made Token sicker—Craig's mother, in the hospital after the fatal car crash, had told them the official cause of Craig's death was blunt force trauma. Could it be…? He grimaced.

Meanwhile, Clyde and Tweek were still glaring at each other. "That's not Craig!" Clyde yelled. "Look at him! There's nothing in his eyes, Tweek!"

"You're just confusing him!" Tweek snarled. "He's happy when he's with me. When's the last time either of you saw him happy? You can't even remember, can you?"

"We're his best friends! We actually cared about him, unlike you, who just wanted to own him." Clyde's face was bright red, typical when he was angry. "You honestly think he's better off dead?"

Tweek scowled. "Not dead, but with me. And to be with me, he had to die. It was his decision. I didn't kill him; I couldn't even touch him back then." He gripped Craig's hand firmer and the latter looked at him again, which made Tweek smile slightly. "Now I can touch him all I want, though."

At this Clyde, fuming, bolted forward a few steps. To his and Token's surprise, however, Craig moved in front of Tweek defensively. He didn't look angry or threatening, but simply gazed at Clyde with the same perplexed expression Token had noticed. "What, you make him act like your security guard now, too?" Clyde demanded.

With a snort, Tweek answered, "Oh, please. You knew he would do that, if you ever knew him at all." He pulled Craig back, saying quietly, "It's okay."

Token spoke again. "That's not love," he said carefully, "it's instinct. You know that that's not him anymore, don't you?"

Tweek turned his frown to Token. "No offense, Token, but you don't know shit about our situation." He leaned his head on Craig's shoulder with a mocking grin. "You know what, Craig?" he said. "I think I've heard about enough of this. Are you ready to go home?"

Clyde and Token looked on helplessly as Craig nodded silently. He never took his eyes off of them as Tweek pulled him away toward the pine trees that bordered the cemetery. Eventually they disappeared.

"Jesus Christ," said Clyde, and he fell to his knees in the snow.

Token moved closer to the headstone marking Craig's grave. The back of it read, "Life is the toughest course you'll ever race," a Red Racer quote, but Token was focused on the base of the headstone. From his pocket he retrieved a small candle and a lighter, which he placed atop the cement, removing the last candle they had left. He paused before lighting it. "Do you think that's what he meant in the suicide note?" he asked quietly. "Stuff he couldn't tell us about?"

After a brief pause, Clyde fished out the looseleaf page that had been found in Craig's totaled car. Craig's parents had given it to them, the clue that had led the police into ruling the accident a suicide. Squinting in the darkness to reread the words he had nearly memorized, he choked, "I don't even know if this is a suicide note, now."

The two fell into silence. There was nothing they could do for Craig now, and both knew it well. Their only hope was that the whole thing had been a shared hallucination, but this seemed even less likely than the idea that Tweek had chosen to spite them by returning with Craig. Honestly, even as kids, Tweek had always been hateful in a way that was hard to catch unless you really knew him. Craig had never seen it, or at least claimed not to when they'd brought it up in middle school. Still…ghosts?

Pained but not knowing what to believe, Token lit the candle. He and Clyde watched the flame flicker for a moment but left quickly; usually, they would stay and talk about everything that had happened. Now, this place felt tainted. The air seemed colder.

At the cemetery gate, Token and Clyde turned for one last glance at the distant sight of the burning candle. They hoped desperately that there was some light for Craig where he was.

AN: Argh! That was a long voyage, mateys. I'm in kind of a hurry to post this now, so I will keep this quick and maybe update later (probably not, I be a lazy pirate!).

If you are interested in reading about the background/conceptualization of the story and my final thoughts on it, please check out essex-cole on tumblr. (Can't find me? PM me.) This blog is the home of the waffling I mentioned last time around. It is a lot of nonsense, but I felt good sharing it. Over there I will also be periodically updating with various bits and pieces that helped me put all of this together, including photographs of real-life humans who represent the main characters to me, more details about characters, and more stuff that probably no one cares about but I just want to release!

Thank you all so much for reading, sharing, and communicating with me. I would love to hear your thoughts on the story as a whole now that it's done. Thanks everybody!

-Cpt. Essex Cole