Eyes Wide Open

Chapter 1 – Tears fall Down

By: ContraryKira

(Author's Note: This is my first Fanfiction, so forgive me if I'm not entirely descriptive or if I don't portray the characters exactly as they are in the show. I became a huge fan of South Park not that long ago and fell in love with the characters and story line, as I'm sure most of you who are reading this have. The idea for this Fanfic has been banging around in my brain for quite some time, though, so I'd like to give it a go and see how it turns out. Okay, I hope you enjoy^.^)

As he entered the narrow hallway of South Park Junior/Senior Highschool, Eric Cartman was in the mood for fun. But then, when wasn't he? There wasn't a day that went by where he wasn't thinking up some hilarious, ridiculous scheme to entertain himself. If he wasn't tricking Butters into doing something stupid, he was picking on the Jew. After seeing his life-long enemy Kyle Broflovski walk into the men's bathroom with a smug look on his face, he immediately had a hankering for some entertainment. Teasing Kyle was the closest to good entertainment he could find in this boring establishment. Not really sure where the other members of their little group were, he decided it would suit him best to just go ahead and do it. Who knew how little time he had left until he was forced to listen to another one of Mr. Garrison's lectures? Actually, looking down at the new watch his mother had bought him just recently, he realized that he really didn't have much time. Whoever thought a half an hour is a long enough break from classes had to have been dropped on their head way too many times when they were a baby. Or maybe they had done a lot of drugs when they were growing up.

Plastering a mischievous smirk onto his chubby, round face, Cartman pushed his way into the bathroom, closing it firmly behind him so that he could swiftly lock it, to be sure his Jewish victim would not escape before he could have his fun with him. When Eric stepped into the boy's bathroom, he expected to see Kyle at one of the mirrors, examining his pail, freckled skin, or perhaps utilizing one of the urinals on the left wall of the bathroom. What he didn't expect to find was his curly, red-headed friend and nemesis leaning against the far wall, tears flowing down his cheeks and soft sobs escaping his lips, which he had covered with his left hand. Kyle was obviously trying to drown out the sound of his cries, but what wasn't obvious to Cartman was the reason behind the tears. He was smiling just a moment ago, Eric was sure of it. So, what had him so upset all of a sudden? Was he just now finding out how small of a dick he had? Cartman couldn't help but smile at that thought, though he knew that couldn't possibly be the reason. It was just something funny to think about.

Normally he would have just waltzed over to Kyle and started making fun of him, calling him a "baby" or a "whiny, baby, prissy pants." But something about the way he was crying, and the way he was slumped over, holding his own stomach as if it would detach itself from his body, had Cartman thinking better of it. He'd actually never seen the Jew so upset. At least, not since those Canadian bastards tried to take his little brother Ike away from him and his family.

Deciding that he could at least attempt to be the caring friend for once in his god-damned life, he forced back the snide comments lining themselves up in his head and strained to think of some kind of response or inquiry as to why he was in the bathroom crying when he should be outside playing some basketball or in the cafeteria eating some lunch with his Stan and the others; not to assume that that's where they are, of course. As he approached his seemingly very upset friend and enemy, he found himself at a loss of words. It wasn't often that Kyle Broflovski allowed himself to cry in front of others. Come to think of it, Eric didn't think he'd ever seen Kyle cry before. Of course, that might have been the reason for him going into the bathroom in the first place, to get away from the critical, prying eyes of his fellow classmates. Why he chose the bathroom for such a thing, he really didn't understand. It wasn't as if he could be completely alone in here, there were always kids needing to make use of the toilets and sinks.

Looking back at the door and remembering that he had just locked it, he mused that Kyle could be alone, but not entirely. He'd have to endure Eric's company. At least, until he was able to figure out what was going on. He'd never seen Kyle cry like this, not for a very long time. Something really terrible must have happened for him to react like this.

Not taking any more time to think the situation over, Cartman made his way further into the bathroom until he was standing just a few feet away from his young friend. Looking down at him, he took in Kyle's appearance. He was thinner than he had been just a year ago, having grown a couple feet since Junior High. Other than that, he didn't look much different. He was still pail skinned with freckles and fiery red hair, just long enough to hang over his eyes. He liked being able to hide them. His fat, bitch of a mother had told him once that the eyes were the windows to the soul. So, of course, Kyle took that to mean that by allowing others to pear deeply into his eyes, his soul and heart were vulnerable. Honestly, Cartman had no idea why Kyle listened to those Jew bastard parents of his. They were always filling his head with ridiculous fears and Ludacris religious non-sense. Being an atheist, Eric never really could understand the appeal of religion. From his experience with going to churches, religions were all about filling people's heads with false hope and knowledge of people never proven to ever have existed.

"Kawl," Cartman spoke, his accent creeping through the first time in a long time. He'd tried for a long while to force it out of himself, but he'd come to realize that it was no easy feat. An accent was a hard thing to lose. So, he'd learned to just accept it, it wasn't like any of his friends cared. They never made fun of him for it, actually quite the opposite. They seemed to like it sometimes, telling him that if he really did lose his accent, he'd be losing a distinguishing characteristic, one that made him who he was.

Kyle looked up, finally noticing another presence in the bathroom. His eyes were glazed over as he gazed up at his slightly chubby friend, not knowing he was at first. Once his eyes came into focus, he spoke softly, his voice cracking a bit.

"Oh…Hey, Cartman," he said, forcing a smile and trying to wipe his tears away. He didn't like being seen crying. It made him feel vulnerable somehow. And the fact that it was Eric Cartman who was witnessing his moment of weakness made it even worse. He really didn't need to give Eric anything else to rag on him about.

"Hey, Jew…What's up?" Cartman asked, leaning casually against the wall behind him. He wasn't sure what else to say, he'd never been in this situation before.

Kyle looked up at Eric, raising an eyebrow and trying to look as if he didn't understand.

"What do you mean?"

Cartman scoffed, rolling his eyes to the ceiling. Lowering his gaze back to Kyle's, he tries again. "I mean what the hell is wrong with you? Why are you in the boy's bathroom crying your eyes out? More simply, what the fuck happened?" He hated the whole "I don't know what you're talking about" routine. He got it enough from his mother when he caught her doing things she shouldn't have been doing, especially with him still in the house.

Getting to his feet and rubbing his eyes more thoroughly with his sleep, Kyle stepped around Eric and started making his way towards the door. It was obvious he didn't want to discuss it, least of all with his old friend and nemesis, Eric Cartman. Eric was the last person he wanted to talk to right now, especially since he was the only person in the world that was able to make him feel like total shit with just one or two words.

"Fuck off, Cartman. I don't want to be messed with right now" he said, his hand reaching out to unlock the door, an obvious sign that Cartman had intended to do just that. "I'm out of here."

Before Kyle could even place a finger onto the door handle, Eric grabbed him by the arm and swung him around. A look of shock appeared on Kyle's face as he was pulled further into the bathroom, away from the exit. He struggled to pry Cartman's hand from his arm but he was unable, as Cartman was considerably stronger than Kyle, due to all of the working out he'd been doing these past few years. "Goddammit, Cartman, let me go!" But before he could even finish his sentence, Cartman had already let him go and was now standing between him and his only way out.

Kyle glared intensely at him, before crossing his arms in front of his chest and looking away with a frustrated sigh. Annoyance creeped its way into his brain and made him feel like punching this fat, racist piece of shit right in his face. A small part of him felt pleasure at the thought of bringing this asshole to his knees.

"Kyle, why won't you talk to me? You always talk to that hippie Stan about everything and Kenny"—(Kyle winces at the mention of Kenny's name)—"is always helping you with shit, but you never talk to ME. Aren't I your friend, too, Kawl?"

Kyle turns away from his stupid asshole of a friend and walks over to the sinks, gripping one of them tightly with both hands, hanging his head. He felt like crying again but he didn't want to give Cartman the satisfaction of seeing him be a pussy. Crying was for girls and weak little boys who ran to their mommies whenever they got hurt. At least, that's what he was always told.

"Of course you're my friend, fatass. I just don't want to talk to you right now. Besides, even if I did, you'd just make fun of me or tell everyone else what I said. I'm not falling into another one of your stupid traps, Cartman. You've never been a real friend to me, anyways, so why the fuck do you care all of a sudden?" Kyle raised his head, looking at Cartman through the mirror, his eyes questioning his motives and holding Eric where he stood.

Caught off guard by Kyle's question, he averted his eyes and started stammering, not sure himself why he all of a sudden felt like he cared about Kyle. "I…uh…because, um…"

He didn't really know. Why did he care? He'd always just thought of Kyle as a rat Jew bastard who always listened to authority and never went against his parents. Never had he thought he would ever actually care about Kyle. It wasn't as if they weren't friends, they were. They'd known each other since they were in diapers. All of them had, but he never really paid Kyle any mind accept for when he was making fun of his Jewish heritage and ginger appearance. Maybe he was just maturing. After all, none of them were as immature as they had been when they were kids. Maybe the complete asshole Eric Cartman was finally growing up…Maybe.

Not wanting to end the conversation in failure, he thought of a response, anything to satisfy the Jew's curiosity. "I just do. It irritates me that you only talk to Stan and Kenny. I want you to open up to me, for once. It's not like it would kill you."

Kyle scoffs once more, rolling his eyes to the ceiling and down again. 'Or maybe it will,' he thought to himself, a rueful smile appearing where his frown had been. But then the smile disappears just as quickly as it came, leaving nothing but an empty expression on his face. As thoughts flooded his mind about the cause of this turmoil, he again felt like he wanted to cry. Biting his lips, he held back the tears, tightening his grip on the sink as he did so. Why did it have to be like this? Why did it have to be Cartman, of all people, who found him crying? Why was the world so cruel? As these gut-wrenching questions flitted through Kyle's mind, he barely noticed that Eric had come up beside him, a look of concern on his pudgy face.

"Just tell me what's wrong, Kyle. If you do, I'll leave you alone for the rest of the day. I promise." He pleads, putting a hand on Kyle's shoulder, which he flinches away from. Eric notices this and gives Kyle an odd look, unsure why being touched bothered him. He was beginning to think that this problem of his was worse than he thought. What could be so bad that he didn't want to be touched? It's not like he hurt him, he couldn't have. Eric wasn't even applying any pressure. "Kyle, what's wrong?" he asked, panic creeping into his voice suddenly.

"Just leave me alone!" Kyle screamed, turning to sprint towards the door and escape. Cartman runs after him, reaching his hand out to grab the back of Kyle's jacket before he can open the door. As Kyle swings the door open wide, Eric expects him to run out into the hallway, but instead he stops dead in his tracks, causing Cartman to bump right into him. Having run into people many times, he grabs Kyle before he can be sent flying forward. He might not have liked the Jew very much, but he certainly didn't want to send him flying through a wall.

As he ponders why Kyle has stopped all of a sudden, Eric becomes increasingly aware of something: Kyle was trembling. His entire body was shaking in fear. But of what? What the hell was going on with this kid? One second he's booking it towards the bathroom door, trying to get out of having to tell him what was wrong and the next he was shaking like a leaf and unable to move. He seemed to be frozen in place, as if something was holding him where he stood, scaring the shit out of him. What at school could be so fucking scary? Eric craned his neck to peer around Kyle, instantly realizing what was in his path: Or who to be precise.

Standing in front of Kyle was a blonde haired boy in a bright orange coat, a look of surprise on his young face. It was Kenny McCormick, one of their longtime friends. And, shockingly enough, he didn't have his hood up. He usually always had his hood up and tied so tight that it covered his mouth, making it hard for people to understand him when he talked. 'What's the occasion?' Eric wondered. Feeling a little uncomfortable at the increasing silence, Cartman decided to say something.

"Hey, Kenny. What's up?" he said, nonchalance in his tone as always.

Kenny didn't answer him; in fact, he didn't seem to notice Cartman at all. He just stood there staring at Kyle with a very odd look in his eyes. Kyle continued to shake uncontrollably, unable to speak.

"Hey, Kyle," he suddenly said, waving his hand slightly and smiling. "I thought you were gonna come to the cafeteria and eat with me and Stan. Chef made fish-sticks and tater-tots for lunch today."

Eric watched Kyle to see if he would respond or at least stop shaking. Kenny wasn't anything to be afraid of. He was just a harmless little poor boy, whose single goal in life was to not die of starvation. From where Eric was standing, he couldn't see the look of complete fear on Kyle's face as he stood there looking into the eyes of a person he'd always called a friend. But at that moment, for Kyle, Kenny was anything but.

"I…I…I have to get to class" Eric listened as Kyle stammered, making an excuse to leave. It was apparent he didn't want to be there anymore, but he wasn't sure why. He watched as Kyle turned and walked away from them down the hallway, speeding up the farther he got. Eric was becoming increasingly worried about his Jewish friend and thought that maybe he should follow after him. He didn't think it was a good idea to leave Kyle alone while he was acting this way, in such fear. Just as he was about to run to catch up with Kyle, Kenny finally acknowledged Cartman's presence. "Hey, Cartman. What's up with him?" He inquired, pointing in the direction Kyle just went.

Cartman shrugged, turning to look at his orange clad friend. "I don't know. I was hoping you could tell me." He said, chuckling. "I've never seen him act like that."

"Me either," Kenny said, turning away from Cartman. Eric finally noticed the strange look on Kenny's face and started to wonder if he was hiding something. Maybe he knew something about Kyle that Eric didn't. It was a possibility. Kenny was always more close to the Jew than Cartman was. It made him feel a little envious. He didn't have anyone who really opened up to him, which was exactly why he was trying so hard to get Kyle to open up and tell him what was going on: That and the fact that Cartman was beginning to care a little more about his Jewish friend. He still wasn't sure why that was. He probably would never find out. It's not like it mattered. Kyle would never give him a chance at real friendship. And he could hardly blame him. Cartman had been a complete asshole to Kyle since they were old enough to talk. It was something he was beginning to regret.

After saying goodbye to Kenny, Cartman made his way down the hall and to his own classroom, having no interest in chatting with the poor blonde boy.

The rest of the day went by quickly and before he knew it, he was on his way home. Walking down the snow covered sidewalk, he couldn't help but think about Kyle. He wondered if he was doing okay or if he was crying his eyes out again. He didn't see him in school after he ran away from them at lunch time. Maybe he decided to skip the rest of his classes and go home. Pulling his coat more tightly around him, Eric turned the corner onto his street and made his way up to his driveway. His mom's car was gone so he figured she was still at work. He tried not to think about what that entailed. He didn't like the thought of his mother dancing and selling her body just so she could keep a roof over their heads. He'd offered to get a job so that she wouldn't have to do it anymore, but after she refused, he soon realized that it was a life she actually wanted for herself. So, he tried to just ignore it.

After unlocking the front door with his key, Eric stepped into the warmth of his home and closed the door firmly behind him. He wasn't really in the mood for doing homework or even getting a snack for himself, so he decided to just go to bed. Throwing his backpack onto the couch, Cartman walked through the living room and made his way up the stairs to his room, where he laid down on his bed, thoughts of fiery red hair the last thing on his mind before sleep claimed him for its own…