That night, Tweek left on a high note. He left feeling secure in his newly developed relationship with Craig, which, for a person tormented by crippling anxiety, was a relief for the mind. His absence left Craig with an undying need to be near him again, and because of that, he sensed things were finally falling into place between them.
The rest of the night was boring for Craig. He watched some television with his sister and Clyde, before being guilt tripped into blowing up the air bed for his unwell friend. After that, he was tired enough to endeavour an attempt at sleep, though, it was easier said than done, considering Clyde did nothing but toss and turn in his sleep, across the other side of the bedroom.
The ceiling became increasingly enticing, the more time Craig spent staring up at it. He'd stared at this exact ceiling so many times during his life, only now, it felt different. Before, he watched as the moon light eliminates the bedroom, enough to see the tiny lines speckled above his head. He'd ponder in silence, avoiding the gut wrenching ache he felt on a daily basis. So many times before, he forced his eyes to remain glued to the one spot that had a little mark, forever drawing in his attention as his fathers rough voice faded out into the background.
Now though, he stared up in content as he thought about the best thing that could've possibly happened to him. He questioned everything he'd done in life, that made him worthy to be admired by someone as gentle as Tweek. There wasn't a single thing he could think of that could explain why, because so far, for so long, all he'd done was make things harder for Tweek. It made him wonder why Tweek still saw a light in the darkness, but whatever the reason, Craig was glad for it.
The next day of school went by too incredibly slow for Craig's liking. He had no classes with any of his friends, and had to endure two hours of sitting behind Stan Marsh. It wasn't all that bad, though. He'd managed to catch up on his work, now that he had no distractions, which meant his teachers would finally get off his back.
It was later in the day, when things progressed. Both he and Clyde walked the bone dry streets, side by side, as the wind fought to make an appearance. The sun was lowering in the sky, and shades of blue and grey casted outwards. Neither of the friends were paying attention to the beauty of their surroundings though. Today, Clyde was feeling a little better, but his mood was below average as they made their way to his moms resting place.
Conversation wasn't flowing so easily between the two, but when they finally arrived at the graveyard, conversation was the last thing on either of their minds. Taking the lead, Clyde took calculated steps, following a path he'd taken so many times beforehand, whilst Craig idly followed behind. A wall of trees surrounded the area, making it a secluded moment, once they'd reached their destination.
With shaky eyes, Clyde looked over his shoulder to Craig, before looking back over to his mothers grave, presented a few meters away. "Would you mind waiting here?" He asked, with a slight crack in his voice.
"Yeah, sure thing." Craig nodded, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he waited by a tree. He tried to look elsewhere when Clyde shuffled closer to his moms grave. They'd stopped by the flower stall before coming over, and as Clyde crouched down, he gently laid them out for her.
"These are for you, mom." Clyde whispered as he forced his breathing to remain even. His eyes skimmed over the words engraved into her tombstone, breaking something inside his mournful being, once again. It was the same every year, never becoming any easier. Tears brimmed over his eyelids as he remembered her face, her voice, and her smile. "I miss you so much." He shakily sighed. "I really do."
A small, blue bird, landed on the stone, chirping peacefully. As Clyde watched the innocent creature, perched before him, he sniffed, wiping the tears from his eyes. He ignored the bird as he glanced back over to his mothers name, and with a gentle finger, he reached out to touch it. "I love you, mom. See you soon."
It took him a few moments to compose himself, but soon, Clyde was stalking away, back over to his friend. His eyes remained low as he kept on walking, with Craig cautiously falling into step.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine." Clyde replied, inhaling deeply as they exited the graveyard.
They were soon back at Craig's house, and it wasn't long before the mood was lifted to its usual self, again. For the majority of the night, they took turns playing video games, downing energy drinks, and snacking on what ever they could get their hands on. They laughed together, annoyed each other, and in the end, found themselves bonding as they once would've done, a long time ago.
Clyde was laying on Craig's bed, despite being told he wasn't allowed to. His brown hair fell downwards as his head dangled over the side. Music played quietly in the background, and the light outside soon turned into darkness. On the opposite side of the room, Craig sat on the floor, leaning his back against the door as he looked over to Clyde.
"Then why do you put up with her?"
"Because," Clyde scoffed, scratching his elbow against the bed. "I really like her. Yeah, she's bossy and controlling, but nobody sees what she's like when it's just us. She likes the same things as me, dude. Do you know how hard it is, to find a girl who likes the hobbit, as much as I do?"
"Everybody likes the hobbit." Craig rolled his eyes. "Just ask around. You'll find at least half the girls at our school who like it."
"Doubtful." Clyde furrowed his thick brows. "I only want to watch it with Bebe, anyway."
"How cheesy."
"Whatever." Clyde chuckled, tossing a pillow across the room, in what he hoped was Craig's direction. "What about you? When do we finally get to see the lovestruck side of Craig Tucker? Or does it not exist?"
"Are we really going to have this conversation? What are we, twelve year old girls?"
"It's okay." Clyde assured, rolling over onto his side. "We can go do some manly stuff afterwards, like drink a beer, whilst punching something."
Grinning, Craig shook his head as he looked down towards his lap.
"Come on," Clyde pestered. "We're both going away to college, soon. At least let me know if I should send some blind dates your way, so I know that you're not going to die alone, some day."
The side of Craig's mind that hindered the truth, began to seep back to life, fighting to keep his affection for Tweek a secret. Only now, the side that wanted people to know, was stronger, and as Craig hesitantly parted his lips, that side of his mind won the everlasting battle. "I like someone." He confessed.
Intrigued, Clyde sat up properly, staring at his friend with hawk eyes. "Who?"
Their eyes briefly met, and though it was only a short moment, Clyde sensed something in those weakly guarded pupils of Craig's. He wasn't sure what exactly it was, but he could tell how nervous it made his friend. With a released breath, Craig looked away, forcing his eyes to remain on the carpet as his jaw worked itself. He could feel Clyde's expectant stare still on him, waiting to be enlightened by his confession, and so he let go of everything holding him back.
"It's Tweek."
Silence met the space between them, as Clyde's eyebrows furrowed slightly. He continued to stare at Craig, despite it being obvious that it wasn't a welcomed act, but in this moment, he was stunned. So much had happened over this past year, that Clyde could barely keep up. First, Tweek liked Craig, then, Token and Nicole broke up, and now, Craig likes Tweek. It was hard to remember who liked who, but after a few seconds of thought, he went back to laying on the bed.
"Weird." He mumbled to himself, missing the confused look that Craig sent his way. "I just always figured Tweek would end up with someone smart."
"I'm smart."
"Yeah, right." Clyde snickered. He leaned on his elbows to glance over to Craig, with a serious look in his eye. "Do you actually like him, though? You're not just saying you do, because it's easier?"
"Why would I lie about that?" Craig scowled.
"Only a few months ago, you were saying you didn't."
"I was— it's different now."
"How is it?"
"It's like you wanting to only watch the hobbit with Bebe." Craig said, running fingers through his hair in distress. "I only want to watch it with Tweek."
With a small smile, Clyde looked away, leaving Craig to feel entirely too flustered by the topic. He didn't like talking about feelings or things related, and this moment only solidified his opinion on the matter.
"Want to go drink beer, and punch something?" Clyde asked after a short pause, glancing back over to see Craig's stoic expression as he subtly nodded his head. Though, they did nothing of the sort. Instead, they left the topic way behind them, and found amusement in the blue controller sitting on the side.