style - the fractured but whole

- part 4 -

DISCLAIMER : any superhero names that are slurs will be slightly changed. Please keep in mind while reading!!

| Stan |

My headset was removed and I was saved from this awful nightmare. I wasn't planning on reliving my worst moment today, it caught me off guard. I looked around frantically until emerald green eyes met mine. I never noticed Kyle's eyes were so pretty, it distracted me for about 3 seconds until I was brought back to reality. Beads of sweat ran down my face and my heart was beating so fast I could feel it through my chest.

"Dude. Are you okay?"

I let my face fall into my palms and sobbed. I had tried so hard to push that memory to the back of my head. I felt pressure on my shoulders and looked up. It was Kyle, I had forgotten he had been standing there the entire time. He helped me stand up and pulled me into a hug. He was two or three inches than me so his shoulder was a comfortable place to rest my head. As my breathing steadied I pulled away from the embrace.

| Kyle |

I wasn't going to ask about anything just yet, Stan seemed pretty shaken up by it. I wrapped my arm around Stan and we walked out of the hospital wing. I was sure Heidi had gathered enough information from the testing.
-
Neither of us said a word on the walk back to the quarters. As we neared Stan's room I noticed the keypad. I looked at Stan with a confused expression, he typed in the code "1234".

"The Racoon left it here." He explained.

Typical Cartman. Stan opened the door and walked in, he turned around and looked at me expectantly.

"Could you maybe come in? If you're not busy that is. I don't want to be alone."

"Sure dude."

I was happy to spend more time with Stan. I really hoped he was the ninth wielder. If not we'd have to brainwash him and he'd forget he ever came to HQ. I followed him into his dorm, it looked like mine except undecorated. The Racoon took every last thing with him. He walked over to the couch and sat down with his head in his hands. I stood awkwardly for a few seconds before deciding to get him a drink. I opened the fridge and grabbed a water bottle. I walked over to the couch and sat down next to Stan. Hesitantly, I handed him the bottle. He thanked me and took a sip.

"Sorry about all this." He said, giving me an apologetic look.

"No don't worry about it, I'm happy to be here."

I debated asking about the situation earlier before he broke the silence.

"It was the end of the year party. He insulted my dads drinking problem, said I was going to turn out to be just like him. I just... lost control. One punch after another, I sent him to the hospital. All of my friends lost contact, almost like they were scared of me. They had a right to be, I was scared of myself... because he was right, I am turning out to be just like my dad. I drink alcohol like it's water and I'm drunk almost all hours of the day. It started out just skipping just 3rd period to drink, then 1st and 2nd, now I don't even go to school at all. I don't even plan on going to college. If I'm not really a wielder I don't know what I'll end up doing with my life."

I put a hand on his shoulder. I wasn't sure what to say. I couldn't guarantee he'd be a wielder, and even with my powers, I could fix his life at the snap of a finger.

"Well we can't loose hope. And hey, maybe your not a wielder. Doesn't mean your life is over. I'm sure you can fix things and maybe apologize to the people you hurt. I'm sure they'd forgive you, you're a good guy Stan."

"Thanks Kyle."

He rested his head on my shoulder and
I put my arm around him. I rubbed his arm in an effort to comfort him. I felt bad for Stan, it seemed like he had a pretty hard life. Even though we had just met yesterday, the situation wasn't awkward. Stan and I had this immediate connection, it was almost like we had known each other forever. I leaned my head on his and we fell asleep like that. I'm starting to think we fell asleep on each other too often.