Thursday, April 19, 2012

"My Name is Kenny" Chapter 8: Just Like Me



South Park fanfiction. 
Rated T for swearing, violence, and some sexual themes.



"Hi, Kenny…" she said, timidly. "May I come in?"

I was too shocked to refuse, so I let her in. How did she know me? How had she found me?

Then I realized it: she must have seen the broadcast, and, more importantly, remembered. My heart leaped in my chest.

She stood there, looking at me. I looked at her. Neither of us seemed really sure what to say. Finally I broke the silence. "I don't want to seem rude, but I don't think I know you. Have we met?"

"Yes," she said. "We used to go to school together, but I've been homeschooled since fourth grade, so you probably don't remember me. My name is Elizabeth Brown, but everyone calls me Lizzy."

Lizzy? The name sounded familiar, but I still couldn't put my finger on it.

"I just wanted to tell you that I remembered when you died on TV, and when you killed yourself an hour ago in the street. I was really shocked that everyone else just seemed to forget about it a few hours after it happened." she said.

YES! "You don't know how glad I am to hear that, Lizzy," I said. "I was starting to think that no one remembered besides my parents." Then a thought occurred to me. "Do you have any idea why you might remember?"

"Actually, I do," she said. But then her mouth clammed up, and she started shaking. I guess it hadn't occurred to me how traumatizing the whole experience might have been for her. Seeing someone die meant little to me, since I had died so many times, but I guess if you saw someone come back to life after seeing them die, you might be frightened out of your wits.

But I had to get her to talk. I didn't want to spook her, or force her to speak, but I was desperate to hear what she knew. It could be the answers I had been looking for all this time. "Don't be scared," I whispered. "Whatever it is, you can tell me."

"Well, I think I might be like you…" she finally said.

Wait. "As in?"

"As in, I don't think I can die, either."

Wow. That hadn't been the answer I had expected to hear. I had been hoping I might find someone who remembered, or even more people who believed me, like Tammy. I had never dreamed I would find someone who was actually immortal, like me.

Or "might be" immortal, like she said. I needed to not get my hopes up.

"Like I said," she continued, "I used to go to South Park Elementary with you. In third grade, me and some of the girls challenged you guys to a sledding race."

I thought about it. Trying to remember.

"The fat kid on your team got in trouble with the police, and was put in juvie, and we thought we were sure to win."

Oh yeah! Eric had hit Token with a rock, and people had accused him of a hate crime. The racist bastard probably deserved it, but we needed his fat ass for that race. So I had tried to smuggle him out of the country so he wouldn't be arrested, but we got caught.

Now that I think about it, I wasn't at the actual race, having been accidentally killed by Stan and Kyle during a test run (those bastards). When I finally got there, they told me that Cartman had been released, and they had won the race, and then they asked me why I had ditched them. I wanted to punch them in the face. But I was also pretty sure I remembered Lizzy, now.

"What happened?" I asked.

Lizzy started to shake again, but she pressed on. "During the race, there was an accident, and our sled crashed. All of us fell off, dazed. And then something picked me up from behind. The girls all looked at whatever was carrying me in shock, but couldn't do anything to help. I finally twisted around enough to see what was holding me.

"It was a bear. A big, brown (she quivered even more), grizzly bear. I got so scared that I fainted.

"When I woke up, I was at my house, in my bed, and I had no idea how I had gotten there. I talked to the girls, but they didn't know anything about it. Neither did my parents, and neither did anyone else that I asked. But what was really strange was how pale I looked whenever I saw myself in the mirror. Almost like…a ghost.

"I was so shaken by what had happened that I quit school the next year, and took lessons at the Cotswolds' house; they were glad to teach me along with Rebecca. I tried to stay inside as much as possible, because I was so scared of the world. And that's how I was for years.

"Then, yesterday, Rebecca and I were watching TV and we saw your program. When you killed yourself, I was so shocked at first, but after about two hours I brought it up, and Rebecca had no idea what I was talking about. I realized that I remembered, and I was scared. And then I remembered the bear, and I started to wonder if I had actually died then, and come back, just like you did. Do you think there is anything you can do to help me?"

Well, this was all a lot to take in. Everything she said sounded like my situation, but there was no way to be sure.

"So, it was just the one time?" I asked.

"Yes," Lizzy said. "If I had known there was someone else, I would have spoken up sooner, but I was never around."

"That's okay," I said. "Don't blame yourself for that."

Suddenly, I got this feeling. It had just occurred to me how very attractive this girl was. And I don't mean the way I'm normally attracted to girls; just because I'm a sex addict doesn't mean I don't know what the difference between lust and love is (I just choose to ignore it most of the time). It wasn't an aroused feeling like I get when I read Playboy. It was that warm feeling, like…she was the one! Not quite love at first sight, but almost. She was someone I needed to keep close, just in case I ever gave up my normal habits, and needed a real relationship.

"Hey, Lizzy…"

"Yes?" She looked at me with glistening eyes, not seeing me as someone who has "cool powers" or is a freak who can't die, but someone who knows my pain, understands it, and looks up to me for my strength. That's something that no one's really done before. I liked it.

"I was wondering if you would like to go to the high school Homecoming Dance with me?"

"Because that other girl turned you down?" she said, smiling.

Well, yeah. That too.

"I think I want to get to know you better. If you are like me, and there is some answer to our curse, I think it's only fitting that we try and solve this mystery together. What do you say?"

Lizzy looked at me for a minute. Then she threw her arms around me.

Damn, I'm good.

"Kenny, maybe if we go to the TV station, they'll have proof, since you died in front of the cameras," Lizzy said into my ear. "If you show that to your friends, then they'll have to believe you."

Wow! Why had I never thought of that? I guess homeschooled kids really were smart. We immediately set off for the TV station. I practically skipped down the street (something I had never done before), because today I was the happiest man on the face of the earth.



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