Only Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Trust me, if I did, you'd be the first to know.

This story features my favorite couple, KylexCartman. I based it off the scene in Disturbia where Kale tries to ruin Ashley's party. Rated T for the language. I just want to warn you, that I wrote this in one afternoon, so yeah. I just really had this one goin in my mind, and I couldn't get it out. Except, for some reason, my mind plays this story in a movie theater bathroom. But that story had an actual beginning part, and it was just too overdone, so I skipped it and moved it around. God, why am I babbling?

Just a note- this story -the flashback part, at least- takes place when the boys are about 17.

Please enjoy!

"Kahl?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you smiling about?"

Kyle turns his head to see his boyfriend looking at him from above. He props his head up just like Eric is doing. "I was just thinking."

"About what?" Eric prods, grinning at him.

The redhead rolls his eyes. "I don't know. About the day we fell in love, I guess."

Eric laughs. "You still remember?"

"You don't?" Kyle snaps, turning with wide eyes do the large boy.

The laugh fades as Eric begins to reminisce. "'Course I do, Ky."

*~*~*~*~*

"Great party, Kyle," Rebecca compliments, patting Kyle on the back.

He grins. "Thanks Becca." He gives her a quick hug.

Eric snarls and drops his binoculars. Stupid Jew has a party and doesn't invite him, huh? Well, we'll see how great his party can be without him.

He stands up from his seat and grabs his iPod. While he gets his speakers, he searches for a song that will ruin the party. Something by… Enya. Perfect. He climbs out onto his roof and looks at Kyle. The Jew is talking to Bebe now. He puts the iPod into the dock and presses shuffle on his Enya playlist. The song "Only Time" rings out through the night, drowning out Kyle's party music.

Eric grins to himself and climbs back into his window. Then he leans back, waiting for his favorite enemy to come through the window. Anytime now- the people at the party are already complaining loudly. He can almost see Kyle's angered face. But he isn't actually seeing it. Why? Where the hell is Kyle?

As if on cue, the music suddenly stops, allowing the party music to be heard. Eric jumps up and looks out his window. The Jew is carefully climbing down his roof.

"Get back here, asshole!" Eric shouts, running out onto the balcony, only a few feet from the other boy.

Kyle looks at him with disgust. "I'm the asshole? I'm just trying to have a party!"

"Yeah, a party I wasn't invited to!"

The redhead pulls himself onto the balcony and rolls his eyes. "Why the fuck would I invite you? You're a dick!"

"Yeah, a dick you've been hanging around with since we were little kids! I invite you to my parties!" Eric rebounds, folding his arms in front of his chest.

"Yes, you do. So you can play your favorite game, Pin The Tail On The Jewfro!"

Eric rolls his eyes and begins to retreat into his house before he realizes something. "Give me my iPod back."

"No way! You'll just start playing this new age shit again!" he retorts, jerking the iPod behind him.

"Yeah, it's the only way to keep those two sluts, Rebecca and Bebe, off of your ass!"

The smaller rolls his eyes again. "They aren't sluts, and I only invited them because we've known… wait- were you watching me?"

"Huh?" Eric says, confused by the sudden change of subject.

"You were watching my party! That's the only way you could have known about Becca and Bebe!" he accuses, his eyes glinting with anger.

Eric's eyes widen as he realizes that's he's been caught. Well, only this once, he can still get away with the other times he's watched. Like when Kyle was reading, when his mom was yelling at him, when he tutored his kid brother, when he watched daytime television. He only knew about this one time. "Fine. I wanted to see what I was missing out on, so I just started spying!"

"You just started spying?" Kyle repeated, "You didn't just get those binoculars, Cartman. How long have you been watching?"

Damn. Maybe he wasn't safe. "I… uh…"

"How long?" he repeats angrily.

"Okay, a long time!"

Kyle blinks in shock then his glare returns. "Did it ever occur to you how freakishly stalkerish that makes you?"

"I was just… interested, I guess. I wanted to see…"

"You what? Wanted to see what? What did you see?"

"Well, a lot, I guess." Kyle gives him a horrified glare. "Not like that, Jesus no! I mean… I just…"

Eric battles in his mind. If he tells Kyle what he wants to so badly, he'll also have to tell him about his feelings for him. But if he doesn't tell, he'll have to come up with another explanation as to why he's been spying on the Jew for the past few months.

Kyle is done waiting for an answer. "Fuck you, Cartman. Just stay the hell away from me!" He turns to walk away.

No! Eric's mind screams at him, He's leaving! Don't let him leave! "No, wait!"

The boy in question doesn't turn around, but says in an irritated voice, "What?"

"I'm not trying to creep you out, and I'm not stalking you. It's not anything bad. It's just because… I like you."

Eric scrunches his face up for the explosion from Kyle; none comes. He opens his eyes to see the Jew looking even angrier than before. "So now you're just trying to make me do something stupid, huh? Trying to make me say I'm gay or something, so you can go tell every person at school or me say I'm gay. I'm not falling for it, asshole!"

What? He doesn't believe it? Eric's mind continues to yell at him to not let him leave. Don't leave. "No, you have to believe me, please! I really do like you, and I have for a while."

"Fuck off, Cartman!" Kyle yells, a strange cracking in his voice Eric's never heard before.

"No! Listen to me! I think I love you! I do! I love you, Kyle! I fucking love you!"

Kyle turns around, glaring at him, and Eric realizes what the cracking sound was. The Jew had tears in his eyes. "Don't give me that shit, Cartman! You're just coming up with fucking excuses so I don't drop your iPod! I don't wanna play this game! I just want to know what you saw when you were spying!"

"You wanna know what I saw? You really wanna know? I saw one boy in probably a million that does his homework, and then helps his brother with his. I saw a boy who, when his mom criticizes him, looks in the mirror and tries to find something good about himself. And it's not a conceited or asshole thing either, it's just… reassuring yourself that something's gone right, and that there's something that you contribute to the world. I saw a boy who sits on his roof and doesn't just see trees and the blue sky and the green grass. You look outside and you wonder what else is out there, and if it's better or worse than here. You look at the stars and you don't just see little dots, you see something that's older than earth itself, and you try to wrap your mind around it, but you can't, and it frustrates you. Because you are one boy in millions that wants to know about everything that's out there. Who actually cares about the world more than TV or the computer. And for someone to try so hard to understand the impossible, that's just… it's really cool. It's really cool, dude."

Eric takes a deep breath and avoids Kyle's eyes. That was probably the most embarrassing thing he'd ever done, and nobody was laughing. Kyle was looking at him with almost an amused expression. "Cartman… Eric… that's one of the deepest things you've ever said. That was amazing."

The large boy glances into Kyle's eyes and his heart leaps. But then he notices the slight shine that covers the moss color, and remembers

"Dude, why were you so upset earlier… when I first told you how I felt?"

Kyle blinks and sighs. "Like I said, I thought you were just coming up with shit to get out of trouble. But I guess I feel the same way. And I knew you didn't feel the same way. And the part of my brain that knew just crushed the other part that had hope… the way it always does. And… I just didn't want to hear it if it wasn't true."

"You… loved me back?"

"God, this sounds like a part out of a cheesy romance movie. Yeah, I did. I don't know why, and I could never come up with reasons. It's just… the… passion you have for everything, I guess. I love when you are so involved with stuff. I usually go against you just to make it difficult. So I can see you push and push until you get what you want. And it really is a good quality… if you use it right. And you don't. Which is another thing I like." He grins sheepishly. "I never wanted to say it out loud, but I love you, Eric Cartman."

Eric didn't respond, he just caught Kyle's lips in his own. Part of his mind laughed at the first thing Kyle said, this was just like a romance movie with the fucking dramatic lines and the kissing. But it didn't bother him, because he knew that his movie would have a happy ending.

*~*~*~*~*

"Eric?"

Eric snaps out of his thoughts and turns to his boyfriend. "Huh?"

"Did you hear what I said?"

He blinks. "Uh…"

Kyle laughs. "I said that I never gave you your iPod back."

"You… what?"

He grins and reaches into his back pocket, pulling out the tiny black music player. "I guess I kept it in my hand when I climbed down to my house. I never gave it back… I don't know why."

Eric stares at the little device, the memories burning sharper in his mind.

"After I realized that I had it a few years ago, I charged it up, and I keep it charged." He plugs it into a speaker and presses play. Just like that night, eight years ago, on the very same roof, "Only Time" by Enya rang through the night.

I'm sorry if I caused any damage to your eyes and/or brain. *puke* I know it's kinda over the top, but it's kinda sweet too, I guess. I love KxC. I used to be a huuuge KyleXStan fan, but you would not believe how boring it gets and how predictable the stories are. KyCart is just funny and ironic, so yeah.

The beginning and end parts were when they were about 24 years old. I hate writing them as adults, but it was short. Thanks for wasting your life reading this, and feel free to waste a bit more reviewing. In fact, I insist you review!

I love you! Love Lori

REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!