??? pov (5 years later):
-A bouquet of white tulips? Means pure love, purity, forgiveness and honour. What a good choice, sir.
The cashier looked at her screen before raising her head with a slight smile.
-That'll be 19.99$.
I took the money out of my wallet and put it next to the cash register. The cashier took the money and said goodbye with a big smile. I made my way through the city, still wearing the same scarf around my neck. I walked to a restaurant where I saw Jimmy and Tolkien waving to me from the terrace.
-Dude, it's been a while. What's up?
-Not much, how about you?
-Well, you know I saw Nichole again not long ago? Remember I used to date her in highschool? Well, we decided to get back together.
-That's nice. And you Jimmy?
-Nothing new for me either.
Tolkien's gaze fell on the bouquet of flowers in my hand.
-Are you still stuck with that? You can't bring him flowers every week, you'll ruin yourself.
-He's right. You should m-m-move on and find s-someone.
-I can't, and I don't want to. I don't wanna forget him like that. We never broke up, it would be like cheating on him.
Jimmy and Tolkien looked at me with sad, compassionate eyes. I didn't want to worry them, but even so I couldn't pretend that everything was all right.
-Hi boys!
Wendy moved closer to us, her arms around Stan's arm. She looked so happy, her smile could light up the whole room. She hadn't changed at all, still wearing the same pink beret.
She handed us white cards. We all seemed confused as we each took one. Wendy laughed lightly, putting her hand in front of her mouth.
-Stan and I are getting married. You're one of the first to know.
-There's still Butters, Kenny, Heidi, Red, some parents and Kyle, but he's unreachable after leaving South Park. I think he changed his phone number maybe?
-You're already getting married!? That's fast. By the way, Wendy, you're still best friend with Bebe?
-Yep. We're studying together and share an apartment nearby.
-I need to go guys, sorry.
I told them, and they looked at me sadly after noticing the bouquet of flowers I was holding.
-No problem. Don't forget to rest, you don't look so good.
-Yeah dude. See ya.
-Bye.
I left the terrace and walked quietly along the road putting the white card in my bag. I admired the city, looking carefully at the snow-covered trees that had lost all their leaves due to winter. The Christmas decorations that had been hanging up for a few weeks now. Children running around and having fun, some having snowball fights, others building snowmen. I passed by the gate and continued walking until I stopped in front of a grave now covered by snow. My eyes fell on the writing on the grave. Engraved in black was "Tweek Tweak".
I couldn't control the hot tear that gently trickled from my eye and fell into the snow.
I regretted so many things. I regretted not telling how I honestly felt. I regretted never being able to tell him how much I cared about him. I regretted not telling him how much I loved him after he said that he loved me that day. I regretted never apologizing for the argument we had before his death. I regretted not having been able to protect him that day.
I would have hoped that our two graves would be side by side. I would have hoped that on his, would be written "Tweek Tucker".
-I should've hugged you as hard as I could, the last time I saw you.
I fell to my knees and placed the white tulips on the cold stone.
What he said that day, "Craig, I-I love you. If you can understand that, then let me go...see this person." I couldn't get this sentence out of my head. It kept repeating itself over and over in my head. So much that it sometimes kept me awake for hours. I felt like I was going crazy, but not in a good way.
I sighed as I stood up, staring at the motionless grave in front of me. I took the card out of my bag and started to read it in my head. It was very refined, with a sort of lace effect on the corners of the paper. The calligraphy was as elegant as the way the text was written. Water began to rise in my eyes, already red from crying.
-If only...If only it could have been the two of us.
I smiled weakly standing solemnly in front of Tweek's grave, feelings of grief and sadness engulfing me. I felt as though a piece of my soul had been torn away from me. I knew Tweek wouldn't have wanted me to feel this way, but I couldn't help but grieve for the loss of someone so important to me.
-What am I supposed to do without you, now?
I put my sleeve against my eyes to dry my tears. It was as if I could hear him pronounce my name every time I came here. I really felt like I was going crazy without him.
-Craig?
I raised my head to face a woman with brown hair starting to fade slightly, wearing a turquoise dress with a blue belt around her waist. She moved closer to me and put her hand on my shoulder. Her empty gaze fell on her son's grave.
-It's already been 5 years.
-Mrs. Tweak...
She looked at me with an apologetic smile, probably holding back her tears.
-Even after his death, you continue to take such good care of him...
She took me in her arms, I could hear her sobbing as her hands began to shake. I placed my hand on her back to comfort her.
-You're strong Craig, v-very strong.
I wasn't. I wasn't even able to say goodbye to him after so many years. I couldn't forget the pain I was feeling every time I see his grave. Every time I heard about him, a feeling of guilt was taking hold of me. I couldn't imagine ever finding the strength to move on, even as I knew I would have to. I wasn't strong at all.
Tweek's mom walked towards the grave and placed a small bouquet of roses on his grave. Every time she visited, I noticed she continued to leave these flowers as a sign of her love and dedication. She told me one day that the roses, so beautiful in full bloom, reminded her of Tweek's sweet and gentle nature. She wished she could still see his bright smile and feel his gentle embrace, but she knew he was always by her side, even if she couldn't see him.
I'd like to hear the sound of your voice one last time, just one last time. I remember perfectly the day I met you.
~Flashback~
-Please welcome our new student, Tweek. Be nice to him, okay?
A little blond boy approached the teacher, his hands trembling. He looked scared and tired at the same time, as if he hadn't slept all night.
-H-Hi, I'm huh...
He seemed to be losing his self-confidence bit by bit. He clenched his clothes into fists, obviously trying to hold back tears. The teacher looked at him with an apologetic expression and put a hand on his shoulder to reassure him with a smile.
-It's not always easy being a new student in a new school, so I'm counting on you all to get on well with Tweek.
My eyes met Tweek's for a brief moment. I frowned and immediately looked away, then sighed loudly to make sure he heard me.
What a freak.
Clyde next to me began whispering in my ear, giggling.
-He's so weird. Look at his hands.
Tweek moved across the classroom, walking with his head down. He sat alone at the back, looking terrified. Whispers could be heard throughout the room.
-...weird...
-...no way...
-...must be crazy...
-...acting like a fa-
-Cartman shut up...
The day passed normally, with no one visiting the new kid, who remained in his corner drinking hot coffee. I used to flip off everyone, but unlike the others, he didn't make me want to flip him off. It was one of the first times I ever felt pity for someone. It's not as if he was the only student in the class who was mocked by the others. That was weird.
The next day I arrived at school by bus with Tolkien. We walked toward school and greeted Clyde, who was playing with snow in front of the school. We entered the school and made our way to our classroom, greeting all our classmates. I sat next to Clyde as usual.
I looked around and my gaze naturally landed on my left, where Tweek was still sitting alone. It didn't seem to bother him that much. But then, why this feeling of...guilt?
-Well, students, let's continue to learn how to multiplicate two numbers-
The teacher paused, watching me rise from my chair. I walked over to Tweek's table and set my bag down beside it, under the insistent gaze of the whole class. I quickly sat down in the chair next to his as Tweek's eyes widened.
The teacher quietly resumed her lesson, a little confused. After a few hours, the bell rang to announce the end of classes. I felt a hand grab my arm and pull me through the corridors to the outside. The grip was strong, which surprised me even more when I noticed that Tweek was the person who had dragged me here.
-Why are you doing this?
-What do you mean?
-W-Why did you sit next to me in class? I know very well what this class thinks of me. A freak, huh? Did you do it because you felt sorry for me? Y-You pitied me?
His expression was so different from the one he'd worn until now. He looked angry, a little determined. That was...unexpected.
-Kind of, yeah-
-Well, keep your pity. I don't want to force you to sit next to someone "like me". I don't want people to think you're doing this because I made you! Now, let me!
My eyes widened slightly at Tweek's words. He...wasn't a freak at all. He was even kind of a cool guy. Despite his difficulty expressing himself, he knew how to think well. Was I completely wrong about him?
I didn't want to leave him in his solitude.
Tweek started to walk away, but I suddenly reached for his wrist to stop him.
-Wait...
He turned to face me, still wearing his serious expression. I locked my eyes with his.
-Can we...be friends? I mean if you want to?
-Still pitying me?
-No...
I took a deep breath, not sure how to express myself.
-No, not this time.
-You're sure? I mean you don't know anything about me-
-That's the point. I wanna get to know you, I wanna know your likes and dislikes. I don't know if that actually sounds weird?
I smiled stupidly, embarrassed, before he returned my smile, a little sad.
-No, not at all. That's not weird.
-Yeah. You're right.
Weird?
Nothing was weird. I knew some people thought that Tweek was weird, but to me he was more than that. He was a light, showing me new ways of seeing and understanding the world. He was my everything. I couldn't imagine a life without him. I didn't know how I was supposed to continue without him by my side.
Even if I went on with my life without him, that didn't mean I'd forgotten him. It hurt. It hurt to think that way, but I didn't have a choice.
Life was unfair. Yeah, it was unfair for everyone.
Maybe in another life I'll be able to face you, and honestly say the words "I love you" without this feeling of regret.
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Author words:
Thank you so much guys for reading the first story I wrote. I'm not really proud of the way I've written some parts of the story, for example in the first chapters and I had a bit of trouble at times, especially choosing the ending. I also had a bit of trouble because I started having other story ideas when I was supposed to write this one. But I still hope you enjoyed it.
I'd like to thank all the people who leave comments because it makes me super happy to know your opinion and reactions to certain passages, it helps a lot so thank you.
I'm sure I'll be doing other stories like this so feel free to check out my profile.
Just to say that I changed the name of the story from "A Creek Story" to "A Love So True || (Creek)"