By the time Monday morning arrived, Tweek was already feeling more like himself again. In a hurry, he got ready for school, deciding he was going to walk today, rather than taking the bus as he occasionally would. He felt as though he'd missed out on too much already, but now, he was ready to pick up where he'd left off.
The rare sun hung high in the sky, gently warming up the side of Tweek's face as he walked. He breathed in the fresh air, feeling it fill his lungs as it forced the anxiety away. It was the first time in a while that it wasn't either raining or snowing, and he noticed more students, like himself, were walking today. Stan was amongst those people, with Wendy by his side as she handed over her left earphone to show him her favourite song. Behind them, Tweek tried not to stare, but he was envious of the way Stan smiled back at his girlfriend, leaving the earphone in place as they walked together. They were slow walkers, whilst Tweek was not. In the end, he forced himself to slow down so that he wouldn't catch up to them, but the entire journey was torture as he awkwardly trailed a short distance behind.
When they reached South Park High, with the couple still in front of Tweek, he decided to just go for it, and after mentally counting down to one, he forced himself to look ahead as he passed the two of them. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Wendy glancing over at him, and before he could speed away, out of sight and mind, he heard Stan's voice call out. "Hey, Tweek."
Forcing himself to smile slightly, Tweek looked over his shoulder, feeling pressured as the couple stared at him. "Oh, hi." He replied, shaking his hand in a wave. He could tell Stan was going to continue talking to him, so Tweek quickly looked away, before picking up his pace.
"Since when were you two friendly?" He heard Wendy whisper to Stan behind him. Without sticking around to hear the answer, Tweek walked off, soon noticing both Craig and Token hanging out by the entrance as they conversed. Neither had seen Tweek yet, which gave him the time he required to contain his nerves. He hadn't seen Craig in two days, since their talk, whereas he hadn't seen Token in over a month.
After subtly shaking his hands at his sides, he casually walked over to his friends. Before he could even get the chance to speak, Token smiled wide, with his teeth on display he pulled Tweek into a side hug. "Good to have you back, Tweek." He says. "Craig was just filling me in."
"Oh, um... yeah." Tweek struggled to find any words.
"Had me worried for a while," Token confessed as he adjusted the strap of his backpack. "Wasn't sure we were going to see you again."
"Well," Tweek shrugged, momentarily glancing over to Craig. "Here I am..."
"We were just about to meet up with Clyde. Do you want to come?" Craig asked hopefully. The undivided attention he was giving Tweek, was making the blondes stomach flip. All he could manage in reply, was an unsure nod.
"I can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees you." Token chuckled beside him, before leading the way inside.
At the thought of seeing Clyde, Tweek's nerves spiked. He could remember their argument, only now, it seemed entirely stupid. They were like brothers, so for something as dumb as this to get in the way of their friendship, it was mind blowing. He wondered whether Clyde would even want to be his friend anymore, after all, it had been a while, and for him to forgive Craig before Clyde, it must've been like a kick in the teeth. Thoughts of 'what if' raced through his mind as he followed Token throughout the busy hallways. He noticed how close Craig was walking beside him, and though it would've usually brought comfort, at the moment, nothing could settle the anxiety Tweek was feeling.
Students swarmed around the lockers as the three friends made their way by, with the only recognisable sound being that of combined voices. Not only was Tweek nervous about seeing Clyde, but also to be back at school after his recovery period. He wasn't used to the loud volume. Instead, he was trained by the silence of his bedroom as he painted by himself. To be back at school was hectic, but still, he forced his legs to move.
At the end of the hallway, he could see Clyde leaned against a locker as he talked to one of his teammates. They must've had practice, because the two of them were in uniform, making them stand out from the crowd. As soon as Tweek's eyes landed on his friend, it was almost as though every other voice around him faded out, and all he could hear was Clyde's.
His legs stopped working, and so Tweek stood still in the middle of the hallway as students passed him. It only took a moment for Craig and Token to noticed, and as they themselves stopped to wait for him, wearing similar looks of confusion, it was hard not to turn around and leave.
All of a sudden, Tweek couldn't breathe, and his chest felt incredibly tight. His blood heated within a matter of seconds, making him feel as though he'd stepped into a sauna. The voices that had faded out, all returned at once, and as fast as he could blink, an excruciating pain formed in his head. He knew what was happening. He'd known it was coming, the second his eyes landed on the back of Clyde's head. Tweek was having a panic attack, and though internally he felt as though he was going to combust into thousands of tiny little pieces, to the rest of the students, he was completely, and utterly still.
Token frowned in concern as he stepped closer to Tweek, watching as the blonde struggled to catch his breath. He looked over to Craig for assistance, but surely enough, he was already making his way over to Tweek's side. The two of them dragged their friend over to the side, away from the swarm of people, but Tweek still looked as though he was going to throw up any second.
The commotion had gained the attention of the two jocks not far away, and soon enough, Clyde was pushing his way through the tide of students to join his friends. In concern, he carefully put his hand on Tweek's shoulder, but he had his eyes closed as he rested his forehead against a locker. "What's wrong with him?"
Both Craig and Token looked to one another. Neither knew for sure, but they certainly had an idea. "I uh-" Token began, scratching his forehead as he glanced over at Tweek. "It's just a bit overwhelming to be back."
"Yeah," Craig nodded sheepishly. "It's probably the crowd."
Looking away from those two, Clyde frowned as he focused on Tweek. Neither Craig, nor Token spoke as they watched Clyde putting his arm around Tweek to lead him away, through the chaos and to a place much quieter. "It's okay." He quietly mumbled to his friend.
He'd lead them to the music room, which was currently vacant and not to be used for another two hours. Trailing closely behind, Token and Craig entered the room, carefully closing the door behind themselves as they silently watched their other two friends from a short distance. Clyde had sat Tweek down on the small stage that Token and his band had played on many times before.
For a moment, Token considered leaving him to it. After all, it would give the two of them the time and space they needed, but then thought about what he'd want if he was in Tweek's position, and if he was, then he'd want his friends to stay. So he did. He and Craig quietly moved around to sit at the back of the room, watching the scene unfold before their eyes.
"Tweek." Clyde said, forcing himself not to glance over to his other two friends, who he had no doubt were curiously watching. "Are you okay?"
"I'm-" Tweek breathed in deeply, reminding himself how to take back control. "I'm fine." He nodded unsurely.
"You don't look fine."
"No, I am." He assured, wiping the back of his hand over his sweat covered forehead. Daring himself to nervously glance over at the others, then to Clyde, Tweek rubbed his hands together. "I'm okay, I'm fine."
"Positive?" Clyde asked, unconvinced, whilst Tweek nodded in return. "What happened?"
"I need to talk to you."
From the back of the room, Craig cleared his throat, kicking his shoe against Tokens as he stood up. "We're going to head out," He announced, looking to Token as he quickly stood up himself. "See you at lunch."
"Yeah," Token agreed, dragging the strap of his bag over his shoulder. "Don't touch the drums!"
Clyde and Tweek watched as they fumbled their way out of the door, before they were left alone in near silence. "What about?" Clyde asked, though he had an idea. He looked down at his lap as he chewed the nail to his thumb, awaiting the sound of Tweek's voice.
"I'm sorry." Tweek says, whilst exhaling deeply. "I should've said that so long ago. I should've accepted your apology that day, but I didn't and I should have because you're one of my best friends."
"Relax," Clyde quietly chuckled to himself. He looked across the room, to where a row of seats laid out neatly, and as he drew in a long breath in thought, his foot tapped against the polished floor. "It's me who should be saying sorry. I was a complete asshole that day, and it was uncalled for.
"No, you had every right to be mad. I should've told you straight away. I know how frustrating it feels to not know what's happening."
Dude, listen," Clyde said, standing up from the stage as he looked down at Tweek. "Let's Just chalk it up to us both having a shitty week."
A small smile of relief tugged on Tweek's lips as he watched Clyde extending his enclosed fist, awaiting a fist pump, and after Tweek stood up, standing in front of his friend, he brought his own up to meet Clyde's. They clashed together with a quiet thud, and the smile Tweek wore became contagious, causing a goofy grin to spread across Clyde's face.