Kyle opened his eyes.
Or at least he thinks he did.
The darkness surrounded the boy. Nothing. That's what he could see. He attempted to sit up, but it was difficult to tell if he actually was.
The cold was getting to him. Kyle could barely feel anything, if at all. Grass. He was sitting on grass. Kyle knew he was in the tent, so that must mean Cartman was here too. Kyle tried to call out for him, but it was useless. He was tired, that was the one thing he knew for certain out of everything.
Kyle laid back down, whether it was grass, a blanket, or a sleeping bag was a completely other question. A question that Kyle wasn't sure if he'd be able to answer, even after some serious thought.
The Jewish boy laid there for what seemed like hours, but in reality was probably only five minutes. Who knows really at this point?
All Kyle knew was that it was dark, and most likely very, very cold. He was almost glad that he'd lost feeling in most his body at this point. Better that feeling cold, he thought. Or maybe not, who know? Kyle certainly couldn't decide.
He closed his eyes, desperately trying to obtain sleep, but being denied by his body. He was tired, so very tired. All he wished for was sleep.
A faint sound was heard. So quiet that Kyle almost thought it was his imagination. The only reason he knew it was real is that he heard it again, and again, and again, coming closer and closer each time.
Eventually it became clear- orclearer at the very least. It was a voice. A voice calling out for something. Someone. Slowly it became more and more clear, until it was recognizable.
"Kyle?!" The voice called out, as if awaiting a response.e It was his mom.
"Kyle?!"
Had she been looking for him? Had she actually cared about him missing? I mean of course she had, but more than ever Kyle was glad to hear her voice.
"Kyle?!"
He decided that answering was probably a good idea. It was kind of a life or death situation right now, Kyle decided.
"Kyle?! If you're out there please answer me!" The voice grew quieter.
Kyle knew he needed to speak, now or never. He opened his mouth to try and say something. The crunch of leaves grew fainter. His mom was leaving. His chance of survival was leaving, growing slimmer and slimmer. He opened his mouth again to try and force something out. Failing. It's now or never, it's now or never, it's now or-
"Mom!" He finally cried out, his voice was rough and lifeless. Sleep was finally trying to claim him, but he couldn't sleep now. He needed to stay awake!
"Kyle?! Kyle sweetie is that you?!" Kyle's mom spoke frantically as the leaves crackled under her frantically moving feet.
Light was shone on the tent, illuminating the inside of their "cozy" shelter. Kyle could vaguely make out where Cartman was sleeping, wrapped around a mess of blanket, possibly multiple blankets.
Kyle finally rested his eyes when he heard footsteps growing closer and closer, knowing that he and Cartman would be safe.
It was if his eyes were glued together, desperately trying to force themselves open as the cement kept them as shut as ever. To Kyle's surprise, his eyes weren't glued together.
White.
That is the first thing Kyle saw as his slowly opened his droopy eyelids. Sleep was beckoning him to come back to it's sweet embrace, but Kyle refused. Snoozing, for once, didn't sound pleasant.
Soon he realized he now had feeling in his body once more. Kyle had almost forgot that his body normally was supposed to feel things. The night before had been cold enough to make him forget.
Below him was plush, not quite comfortable, but still more comfortable than the previous situation. He no longer sat atop grass and blankets. It was no longer cold.
Cold, Kyle remembered, was all he felt the last few nights. Warmth was a foreign thing to him now. Kyle closed his eyes and sucked the warm, toasty air into his lungs. He could feel the air inside of him. Kyle exhaled as he reopened his eyes.
Then flashes- memories- of the night before came back to him. His mom. His mom had found him! She had found him while he was barely still alive.
Kyle sat up, quickly regretting it as his body felt as if a sword had stabbed him in every part of his body seventy three different times. He laid back down, the new pain not completely leaving him, but subsiding nevertheless. That was good enough for him. Though it was not the nicest reminder that he could feel again, it was certainly a reminder. Kyle didn't completely hate it though, it was enjoyable to know his body still functioned correctly.
The small Jewish boy turned his attention to the left. Cartman laid in a similar situation to him- laying on an almost- but not quite- comfy bed- yet still asleep. He was laying on his side, facing away from Kyle. To the right was two empty chairs. A purse sat soundly on the outer chair. He quickly recognized it as his mom's purse. She must be here.
Kyle looked back over to Cartman's side, unsurprisingly seeing no sign of Cartman's mom. Kyle felt a weight on his chest. The whole reason Cartman wanted to run away was because of his mom, Kyle knew that much.
And yet, Kyle still had believed that Cartman's mom would have cared enough to visit him at the hospital.
The door to Kyle and Cartman's hospital room slowly opened as Kyle's mom walked in, shutting it behind her.
"Kyle, Bubbie, You're awake!" His mom hugged Kyle, careful not to hurt him.
Kyle hummed in response, felling too weak to properly respond. He shifted his gaze over to Cartman, still sleeping soundly. Unmoving besides the rise and fall of breathing.
"Liane has been notified of the situation, but so far hasn't shown up at all," His mom told him.
"Oh," Kyle responded.
Kyle's mom checked her phone, "I'm sorry, Kyle, Bubbie, I have to go home now. I'll come back tomorrow, sleep well okay?" She quickly stood up and grabbed the purse with her empty hand.
Kyle nodded his head as his mom shuffled towards the door and left him. The room was quiet once more. His mom really does care about him, doesn't she? It was nice knowing that someone cared about him.
Silence filled the room. Kyle would have enjoyed it if silence hadn't been around so often previously.
"She's not coming... Is she?" Cartman desperately asked, breaking the silence. His voice was hoarse. Cartman sounded like he was in pain, physically or mentally was the real question. Though in the current situation, Kyle assumed it was a mixture of both.
"I don't know..." Kyle replied. Honestly? Kyle really didn't know. He didn't think Cartman's mom would ever come at this rate. She never cared about him before, why would she now? But he still hoped she would, for Cartman's sake, "How long have you been awake?" Kyle finally said, wanting to change the subject to something slightly less saddening. Kyle couldn't help Cartman feel physically better, but he sure as hell was going to try and make him feel mentally better.
"Not long. How are you feeling?" Cartman asked. His voice was still rough, but he sounded slightly less upset. Only slightly. Cartman turned his body to face Kyle, hissing in pain as he shifted his position.
"Oh- I'm feeling... Okay..." Kyle responded. He certainly wasn't feeling good, but he was alive. That was at least okay, especially after the situation they some how just survived.
After a small spell of silence, Cartman spoke up, "so... Just making sure, we did have a very emotional conversation at the campfire last night right? It wasn't just some weird ass dream?"
Memories of the night before flashed before Kyle's eyes. He remembered the cold and the fire, especially how the fire didn't do anything to aid them in the cold. Cartman, he had admitted something to Kyle. Cartman said that he was in love with him. They were together now. They were boyfriends.
That felt weird to think about, but not a bad weird, Kyle decided.
"No, no. That was definitely real," Kyle confirmed.
"And..." Cartman paused, trying desperately to shove his nervousness down, "you don't regret anything? We're still... You know..."
"Together?" Kyle finished, earning a nod from Cartman, "I don't regret a thing."
THE END
Huh, looks like that's all, how fun!
Okay but seriously, thank you all so much for sticking around this long?? This story went on a year long hiatus and the fact that this many people were waiting patiently for the next chapters brings warmth to my heart. This story is way more popular than I could have ever imagined. 9k reads?? Like that's insane! I remember when this story had 400 and I thought that was a lot!! Boy was I wrong!
I'm not sure if this story will ever have a continuation or if I'll even make more Kyman fanfics, but that doesn't change how thankful I am for everything!!
One last thank you before we part ways, friends. Thank you for motivating me to actually finish this. Knowing that this many people were waiting for an update really inspired me to write more. I honestly probably wouldn't have finished it if people didn't ask for it-
(I just really hope people are pleased with this ending because it wasn't very "spectacular" but I mean the whole story was just leading up to them getting together, so technically the purpose was complete?)