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9 - denial

Eric had calmed down in Kenny's embrace. Kenny whispered sweet nothings as he gently stroked his hair and rubbed small circles into his back. "It's gonna be okay..I'm right here for you..you don't have to go through this by yourself..." he comforted.

"I'm so scared Kenny..." Eric mumbled.

"I know, I know babe. It's alright though, I've got you."

He occasionally pressed gentle kisses into the side of his head. He held him like that until he started to calm down, which he did pretty quickly. Kenny was amazing at that.

The door opened and the doctor and Liane stepped in. Eric and Kenny let go, but still kept some sort of physical contact.

"Eric, we aren't going to send you to the institution," the doctor started. Eric breathed a sigh of relief. They weren't sending him back, he didn't have to go through that hell anymore. Kenny gave him a warm smile. "When I say treatment, I mean therapy, controlled medications, we're not sending you anywhere," he explained.

Eric felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. They weren't sending him back. He had to repeat that a few times until he could actually process the information.

"Kyle!" Stan exclaimed, running up to his friend who had left the hospital. The red-head threw himself on a bench and hid his face in his hands. Stan sighed and went up to him, sitting next to his friend. "Kyle..." Stan started, "What's wrong, dude...?" Kyle didn't respond, keeping his face in his hands. "Dude..." Stan tried again, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Kyle huffed. "I don't know..." he said, voice muffled by his hands.

"What?" Stan asked.

"I said I don't know!" Kyle repeated, sitting up. The dark haired boy backed up a bit, surprised at the sudden outburst. Kyle sighed. "I don't know...I don't understand...it's all so confusing," he explained, his tone quieter.

"What's confusing? You've been acting strange dude, ever since we got here," Stan said.

Kyle turned to look at him. "I feel bad, Stan! I feel bad!" He said, like it was something new and insanely crazy.

"Feel bad? For who? Eric?"

"Yeah!!"

Stan didn't know how to respond. His look was pure confusion. "I don't think I'm following..."

"I feel bad for Cartman!! That alone should say something!!" Kyle continued. Stan still had a hard time understanding. He was their friend, right? Wasn't it normal to feel bad for a friend who's in the hospital? Kyle must've noticed the still lost expression on his friend's face. "Dude! I have sympathy for fucking Eric Cartman! Do you seriously not get it?"

Stan thought for a moment, and suddenly, he understood. "Dude...Kyle-"

"Why would I, out of all people, feel bad for him?! After everything he's done! I don't need to feel bad! So why do I-"

"Because you care," Stan said, stopping Kyle in his tracks.

Kyle hated the sentence that fell from his mouth. "I. Don't. Care, Stan-"
"Yeah you do, otherwise you wouldn't have gone out your way to come to the hospital."

"....I did it for Kenny-"

"Face it, Kyle, you know damn well that you also wanted to make sure he was okay," Stan interrupted.

Kyle's expression seemed to fall, but he shook his head and it returned. "I have no reason to care for him, he's a terrible person! He did terrible things! To me! To South Park! To even Kenny!!"

"You know deep down that wasn't him.."

"Don't tell me it's this MPD shi-"

"It's a real thing, Kyle. I know you don't believe me, but it's real. Look it up, ask one of the doctors in there. Shit, ask Eric! That's what I did!"

Kyle didn't say anything. He knew he was right, even though he didn't want to admit it. "I just...I just think it's too...easy. You're telling me that my whole childhood around him wasn't him? That every terrible and inhumane thing he did and said, it wasn't him? That's like..." Kyle couldn't figure out what to say. He couldn't word it. He just couldn't believe that he didn't do any of that shit. It was almost like one big excuse. As messed up as it sounds, it wouldn't surprise him if Cartman did use MPD as an excuse. This whole thing just didn't sit right with him. Ever since he came back after being gone for 3 years, he kept his distance. Did everyone expect Kyle to just forget everything, forgive him, and move on? That it was all some "alter personality"? Hell no, he wasn't that gullible. He didn't trust him. And he hated how quickly Stan and Kenny did. Nothing sat right with him.

"Kenny's your friend, right?" Stan suddenly asked.

Kyle looked at him, confused. "What? Yeah of course. Why?"

"And I'm your friend too, yeah?" He asked.

"Yeah dude, always. You're my best friend." Kyle didn't know why he was asking such obvious questions.

"Then trust us when we say this is serious, that this is real," Stan said.

Kyle looked away from him, staring at the cracked concrete again. He still wasn't sure, he couldn't be sure. So far, Eric hasn't done anything horrible since he got back, up until he hit Kenny. Kenny. Kyle thought back to how distressed the blonde was; at the party, on the way to the hospital, in the waiting room. He remembered the hurt in his eyes when he held Eric. It was strange seeing such a sorrowful expression on such an optimistic and care-free person. Maybe. Maybe if Kenny and Stan could move on and understand, maybe he could to.