Work Text:
Kenny was eager to get some much-needed rest after an excruciatingly long day at work. He hated his job very much, but couldn't quit for many reasons. The main one being its location. It was within walking distance. It took him no more than ten minutes to get to work and to get back home. Whenever he was exhausted after work, like he was right now, he would take a breather at a park, something he was going to do at this very moment. He yawned loudly into the cool night air, wiping a tear from his hazel eye with a finger. A car whizzed past him, ruffling his long blonde locks across his face. He fixed his hair with a huff, then shoved his hands into his orange jacket pockets. There were times where he wished he had a vehicle. It wouldn't be driven to work since he walked there, and doing so in the mornings woke him up, so he could focus. It would be used to transport him to places like the grocery store or other destinations that weren't walking distance friendly. Screw taking public transportation, he'd rather give his money to a homeless person.
The man yawned again. He was so tired. As soon as he got to the park and found a bench he could relax on, there's no telling if he would doze off or be able to fight off the drowsiness. It wouldn't be the first time he slept at the park anyway, he was practically well-known for sleeping there on the weekdays. Many dubbed him an unfortunate homeless soul because he looked young and was always seen in an orange jacket, black trousers, and black loafers. He was in his mid-twenties and it was late Autumn, his workplace would always have the heat on like it's Winter. He only ever took his jacket off there and at home.
Fortunately for Kenny, he made it to the park. Finally. He yawned once more as he entered. He walked down a path made of loose gravel. There's a bench up ahead, however it's right next to a metal lamp post. He didn't want such bright lighting beaming near him, would disrupt his sleep. He searched for another bench, but stopped suddenly, getting the feeling that he wasn't alone. He spotted not one person around while he was looking for a bench. He looked back at the wooden seat by the lamp post, acquiring a strange urge to approach it. Despite his best judgement to ignore it and just go home instead, he gave in to his curiosity, no longer languor.
Stopping by the bench, hazel eyes looked over and down at it, then expanded. Not out of fear, not out of shock, but mystification and a hint of concern. It wasn't uncommon for homeless people to take refuge at a park, but Kenny had never seen a naked one before.
A grown ass man was out here in the nude, curled up on his side presumably in a deep sleep. At least, Kenny hoped the man was asleep. He looked...pretty handsome for a hobo, pale, and had not a single speck of grime on him. Kenny then realized that he'd been staring at the guy longer than necessary considering he wasn't wearing any clothes. Before he averted his gaze, he noticed something sticking out of the man's short black hair.
"What the hell?" Kenny thought. He bent down a little to get a closer look. They looked like...antennas with round tips. Kenny backed away covering his mouth with a hand, preventing himself from swearing aloud. No fucking way...Was that...Was that an alien?!
Kenny swallowed the lump in his throat. He...wanted to make sure—he had to make sure that what he saw just now wasn't a figment of his imagination. Steeling his nerves, Kenny went back to the bench, removing his hand from his mouth.
He saw one of the antennas twitch, and booked it for his apartment.
Come the next morning, Kenny was woken up by knocking at his front door. He groaned like he was dying. He had only gotten about an half hour of sleep. After discovering the existence of an extraterrestrial being, Kenny stayed up all night browsing the internet on his laptop, looking up if aliens were actually real. He found no fruitful information, just opinions and theories. He was tempted to make a post disclosing his finding of an alien, however he'd thought against doing that. He didn't have any proof. And besides, those antennas could've been fake.
The knocking was persistent. Kenny begrudgingly got out of bed, grumbling under his breath. He rubbed his eyes, then his arms up and down over flimsy long sleeves, the crisp morning air effortlessly seeping through his two-piece pajamas. He's glad, though, that the floors were plastered with nylon carpet. For some reason, the coolness of the fabric always felt nice underneath his bare feet. He went to use the toilet first. The knocking still didn't relent. How annoying. Done doing his business, he ambled to the front door. He checked the peephole, whom he saw knocked the sluggishness right out of him like a punch to the face.
"What the fuck?!" Kenny backed away from the door, his breathing labored and his eyes shaken. Standing out there was the guy-no, alien he'd seen last night! And he was still naked! How did he know where Kenny lived? Why was he even here? Such questions would be purposeful if asked out loud. "Goddamn it." Kenny unlocked the door and flung it open. He pulled the alien inside, quickly slamming the door shut. He'd surely angered his neighbors with the noise, but he didn't care. His sleep was disrupted, so they could have theirs ruined too.
The two men stared into each other's eyes in silence. The longer Kenny observed the other's face, the more he appeared...human. Aside from the antennas that now seemed very authentic, his eyes were also a bit unnatural, if not beautiful. They were the deepest shade of blue, like sapphires. Kenny knew for a fact the flickering in the alien's irises weren't from any lights, because none were on, and the window behind the alien was closed. This was an incredibly strange situation. Perhaps Kenny was dreaming. It wouldn't astound him since-
He panicked and bumped into the door. "What the hell are you doing?!"
The good-looking alien titled his head to the side with an innocent blink of the eyes. His finger was pointed at Kenny as if he was going to poke him on the forehead, or shoot a laser beam at him. "You were in a daze for five minutes. I thought you malfunctioned."
Kenny felt heat rising within his face, coloring his cheeks red. "I'm not some fucking robot."
"..."
Kenny wasn't fond of how he was being looked at. It's like the alien didn't believe him. "You can put your finger down." The male did. His blush fading, Kenny heaved a sigh. "Are you gonna tell me why you're here or should I just take you to the police station?"
The alien blinked again, puzzled by the threat at the end of his statement. "You're the one who brought me in here."
"Yeah, cuz you were standing outside my door fuckin' naked!"
"...So?"
"Wha-so?!" Exhaling sharply, Kenny massaged his temples. It's way too early to be dealing with this nonsense. "Alright, off to the police station we go." He bent down to put on some sneakers. The sooner he got rid of this guy, the quicker he could go back to his mundane life.
"What is a police station?"
Kenny paused tying his shoelaces. He's being too hasty, reasonably so. There's a fucking alien in his home. Instead of the police station, wouldn't a science lab be better? Even if it was, there's not one remotely close to his apartment. He didn't really have that many options to begin with. Shaking his head with a huff, Kenny untied his shoes. "Fuck it, never mind." He took them off and stood up straight. "You still haven't told me why you're here."
"Like I said, you-"
"I meant outside my door," Kenny reiterated angrily, his patience rapidly dwindling.
"I mean you no harm. I..." The alien frowned as he fell momentarily silent. "I do not know why I came to you." He felt a sense of familiarity from this stranger, as if they'd met once before.
Kenny furrowed his eyebrows. "Well, since you don't know, leave. I wanna enjoy my weekend without an alien here."
The aforementioned being was taken aback. "Alien? How did you know I'm not human?"
Kenny could not contain his disbelief. He pointed at the thin appendages. "You literally have antennas sticking out of your head."
The alien touched his head. "Oh. No wonder I drew in a lot of attention."
Kenny almost face-palmed. "I'm pretty sure your antennas weren't all they were lookin' at," he deadpanned. "Look, you see what I'm wearing?" He used both hands to gesture at his nightclothes.
Captivating blues examined Kenny's attire for some seconds. "Yes. Are those protective garments?"
"Uh, yeah, I guess so," Kenny replied uncertainly. At least it seemed like the aliens from his planet weren't all walking around indecently exposed. "These are clothes, pajamas technically but are still considered clothes, and right now you seriously need to wear something." He walked past the male towards his bedroom, only to realize he wasn't being followed. Kenny turned around and beckoned the alien to come with him by nudging his head. "C'mon."
"Oh, okay."
They entered Kenny's bedroom, stopping in front of a walk-in closet. He opened the door all of the way. Inside were a decent amount of clothes for a single person on hangers. Below them on one side were several pairs of shoes, the rest were by the front door. Kenny rarely got visitors, so he left them there. He went in and picked out a random plain T-shirt and blue jeans. He gave them to the now dumbfounded alien.
"Put those on," Kenny said, then he thought about giving the male some underwear and socks...Nah, just socks would do. Dude's going to have to go commando, he probably wouldn't mind anyway. While the alien stood there staring at the clothes in his arms like they were some strange creations, Kenny went over towards his dresser, pulled back a drawer, and got out some balled-up white socks. He tossed it at the alien, hitting him on the head but he didn't even flinch. Or notice it. "And those too. They go on your feet." With a yawn, Kenny left for the kitchen, hungry, although he's honestly surprised that he had an appetite for anything since he'd been looking at a naked male this entire time. Well, just his bare upper half. Nowhere else.
Kenny decided to cook pancakes. Making them didn't consume too much time and were very easy to prepare, thus, pancakes became his go-to meal for breakfast not every day, but for a lot of days which resulted into him having to go to the grocery store to restock on ingredients and other things while he was there.
It's only until after he was done cooking that he realized the alien hadn't left his bedroom yet. Shouldn't take anyone five minutes to put on some clothes...unless you're not human.
Sighing, Kenny set a plate of pancakes doused in syrup and melting butter down on his glass coffee table that's in between his sofa and flat screen television, and went to his room. The sight of an incorrectly dressed alien was very humorous, Kenny couldn't contain his laughter. The noirette's head was in one of the arm sleeves of the T-shirt, and the jeans weren't even pulled up, yet they were on backwards.
The alien frowned. "I don't think it's appropriate to laugh at someone in need of assistance." Kenny only laughed harder and louder. Someone next door yelled for him to keep it down. "You're disrupting your neighbors," the alien said.
Kenny gradually started calming down. The last time he'd laughed that much was back in high school. Ah, he missed pranking the students and teachers. Those were the days. Kenny wiped the tears from in his eyes. "I don't care. It's not my fault the walls are thin." He stifled a laugh. This guy looked so ridiculous.
"Are you going to help me or not?" The alien asked flatly.
Kenny grimaced, hesitant. He really didn't want to but at the same time, he couldn't just leave him like that. Or here. Plus, there's breakfast he needed to eat and all of that laughing made him hungrier. "Ugh, fine. Take everything off first." The alien did just that. Kenny faced the jeans the correct way on the floor. "Step there with your left foot," he pointed at the leg hole on left side of the pants. "Then your right foot in the other," he pointed at the leg hole on right side. The alien followed his instructions perfectly. Good to know he knew his left and right. "Now pull them up." The alien did as told, the jeans smoothly going up to his waist. "Oh good, they fit. Now pull up the zipper and fasten it." The alien only managed to zip up the jeans. Kenny quickly helped him fasten it, he didn't wanna be around another male's private area for no more than a second, or at all really but he had no choice. He grabbed the T-shirt from off the floor. "Alright, you put your head through here, through the big hole. Your arms go through the smaller ones." He gave the upper garment to the alien, who stuck his head in through the collar hole. "No, not like that, jeez." Kenny took the T-shirt from the alien. He raised his arms. "Raise your arms like this." Once the alien copied him, Kenny slipped the T-shirt over his head. The alien kept his arms up. "You can put your arms down."
The male was now fully dressed...Wait, Kenny forgot the socks. He looked around for them, but he didn't see them anywhere. "Where are the socks I gave you?"
"I do not know what socks are."
Kenny sighed a third time. They were probably under the bed. Oh well, he'd get them later. He went to get another pair from his dresser. This time he grabbed the alien's wrist—noting how cold he was—turned his palm upwards, and put the socks into his hand. "Feet," was all Kenny said, then he walked back to his hopefully not cold pancakes.
The alien gave the balled-up socks a look of confusion.
Thankfully, the pancakes were only warm. After Kenny poured himself a glass of orange juice, he sat down on the sofa, ready to dig in.
"How do I put these...Hm...what's that smell?"
Kenny gave an emerging alien a blank look, his face filled with wonder at the sweet scent wafting in the air. "I'm about to eat breakfast, so could you not talk to me?" Kenny grabbed the remote next to him and turned on the t.v. He didn't care what channel it was on, he just wanted some background noise while he ate.
"Breakfast?" That word intrigued the alien. "Is that the food you're about to eat?"
Kenny started enjoying his pancakes as if he didn't hear anything. But after awhile, it became unbearable to have eyes constantly fixated at him.
Inexplicably, Kenny decided to ask, "You want a bite?"
The male instantly appeared skeptical by the sudden offer. "Is this your attempt at trying to get rid of me? By poisoning me?"
"Pfft." The assumption was so preposterous that Kenny almost burst into hysterics again. "Do you seriously think I'm dumb enough to do something like that?"
The male eyed him, his expression relaxing. He felt no strong hostility from this human the entire time he'd been here. "I...suppose not."
"You're lucky no one tried to hurt you or anything yesterday, since you were naked and clearly not human." The humanoid alien tensed at his carelessness. "Actually, come have a seat." Kenny patted the cushion next to him on the sofa. "I got a looot of questions I might as well ask you."
"Likewise," the alien responded before approaching the sofa.
"I already figured that," Kenny said. Of course an alien would want to know about the earth and its over a billion inhabitants. He's going to have to be careful with his answers though, too much information could doom humanity and he certainly did not want to be the culprit of such a demise. The alien sat a bit too close to Kenny. "You're too close."
"Hm? But you told me to sit right here."
"Yeah, but not so close. Scoot over." When the noirette didn't budge, Kenny moved over instead. "Okay, first off, why are you here on earth?"
"Sightseeing." The answer was quick and spontaneous.
"Sight...seeing?" Kenny repeated incredulously.
The male nodded. "Yes. It is a word I'd overheard as I was learning your language. A sightseer is someone-"
"Stop, stop," Kenny interjected. "You don't have to explain since I know what it means." Well that answered his question regarding how this guy was articulate at using the human language, and his purpose for visiting earth. Seemed he was a fast learner. "Wait, so you've been on earth for how long?"
The alien knitted his eyebrows in deep thought. "Hmm...I believe for one week."
Kenny was momentarily at a loss for words. And here he thought the guy had arrived here just yesterday. "You know how to talk in human language, yet you didn't know what clothes were."
"Protective garments and clothes are the same thing," the black-haired male argued.
"Yeah, but calling them protective garments is hella weird," Kenny retorted.
The alien pouted a little. "Well where can I find 'clothes'?"
"In stores, the mall. You need a thing called money though-"
"Is this what it is?" The alien raised his other hand slightly similar to how he's holding the socks, and a green bill whizzed out of thin air onto his palm.
Kenny eyed the money in stunned disbelief. "What the-where'd that even come from?!" He got a closer look at it, it's a fifty-dollar bill.
"A kind human gave me this four days ago, but didn't tell me what it was or what to use it for. So I held onto it as a souvenir."
Kenny shook his head with a small smile. The person most likely gave him that big amount, so he could buy himself some clothes. "You were meant to spend that." Now Kenny wondered how he never heard anything about a streaker lurking the streets or parks on the news, or from any gossipers at his job.
"Spend it? On what?" The alien asked, confused.
"Clothes, obviously."
The alien frowned at his money. "Oh..."
Kenny completely understood the male's reluctance, but money had to be spent eventually. "Let's go clothes shopping in the afternoon."
The alien lifted an eyebrow at the blonde. "Shopping?"
"Yeah. You're wearing my clothes, remember? I'm gonna need them back tomorrow."
The male looked disappointed again. "Oh...I thought these were for me to keep."
Kenny shook his head. "I don't have that many clothes to give away, not for free especially."
"...I understand."
Kenny suddenly felt contrite. It's just clothes, yet this adult alien was moping like a child. It was kind of cute...Kenny was close to smacking himself for thinking that. "You can keep the socks. I have plenty of those."
The alien perked up at that. "Thank you. I'll treasure them well."
Kenny chuckled. "Yeah, by putting them on your feet already."
The male blinked in realization. "Oh, that's right." The money left his hand as if it was sucked up by a vacuum with a swooshing sound. "You didn't tell me how."
Kenny took the socks and unfolded them. He gave them back to the astonished alien, who took them with each hand. "Luckily for you, it's easy to tell which foot they go on." Was obvious how to wear the T-shirt and pants as well, but Kenny won't mention that.
The alien scrutinized the socks for a moment. "Lucky me indeed." He began to put one on each foot.
Kenny couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not. "What's your name?" Kenny asked.
"Straxnok Mux."
Kenny's brain failed to repeat the outlandish cognomen. "T-that's a really cool name, but you need a new one. One that sounds like it's from earth."
Straxnok sat up. "Well what do you suggest my earth name be?"
Kenny thought of a random name that started with an 'S'. "Stan," was what came to mind.
"Stan...Hmm..." Kenny couldn't decipher the male's countenance, however the tiny sparkles in his eyes seemed to have brightened faintly. "It'll do."
Kenny wouldn't have cared if he'd disliked the name, he would've given him a girl's name otherwise. "I'm gonna go freshen up. You can eat the rest of the pancakes if you want." Kenny stood up, but before he could take one step, he's grabbed by the wrist. He shuddered. The alien's hand somehow felt even colder than before.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Stan let him go.
Kenny gently rubbed his wrist to warm up his skin. "I-it's okay. What is it?"
"You didn't tell me your name, and I still have more questions to ask."
"You didn't ask, and you can ask them when I come back."
"I'll ask now, what's your name?"
"Kenny."
Stan smiled warm-heartedly. "That's also a cool name."
Kenny involuntarily blushed and clutched his wrist. "T-thanks. Anyway, I'll be back in twenty minutes." He hurried off to his bedroom.
Once the door shut, Stan looked back and forth between the food Kenny referred to as pancakes, which had two pieces left, and the electronic device displaying humans inside of it. Were they trapped in there? Even if that was the case, Kenny only told him that he could eat the pancakes, so Stan dared not touch anything else. He focused his attention to the plate of pancakes, carefully seized the fork, and stuck it in the middle of the soft batter. He raised it, lifting up the whole pancake, and bit into it. He chewed slowly, and his eyes widened and sparkled ardently.
The pancake was cold, sweet, and very delicious.
*Three Hours Later*
"Before we leave, you gotta hide those antennas," Kenny said. His hair was in a ponytail. He and Stan were standing by the front door preparing to leave to go clothes shopping for the noirette, however Kenny refused to go anywhere with Stan exposing himself as a nonhuman being. So, Kenny had looked around for a hat, grabbing a baseball cap he'd forgotten he even had. "Here, put this on your head."
Stan frowned curiously at the item. He took it and put it on his head, surprisingly without questioning what it was. The downside to the cap was that the sparkles in his eyes stood out more. Kenny didn't anticipate this.
"Uh, is there anything you can do about your eyes? Like, make them less sparkly?"
Stan shook his head. "I cannot consciously."
Well that's just great. "We're gonna have to be quick then." Kenny took his orange jacket from off the coat rack, then grabbed a black one for Stan. "Now put this on."
Stan's frown became slightly annoyed. "This is a lot to put on."
"It's really not," Kenny argued. "It's almost Winter, so it's cold outside. You might not care about the weather, but we can't have you going out underdressed otherwise you'll attract attention again." His reasoning swayed Stan somewhat. He took the jacket. Kenny demonstrated how to put the outer garments on, and Stan mimicked his arm movements flawlessly. They zipped up their jackets. "Shoes are the last thing we have to put on, then we can get outta here." Stan nodded, relieved. Kenny slipped on some white sneakers. He checked his other assortment of footwear on the floor, and decided to let Stan try on a pair of black boots. He placed the right boot in front of Stan's right foot. "See if this'll fit. Just stick your foot into it."
Stan did so, struggling a bit, but with some help from Kenny, he managed to get his foot all the way in. He put on the other boot, and with that, they exited Kenny's room.
As they ambled down the short hallway, a very late thought came to Kenny's mind. "How the hell did you slip past the reception desk this morning?"
"I went invisible, and-"
"Stop, that's all I needed to know." That's probably how Stan had been hiding himself for a week, well, on some occasions it seemed since he was seen this morning, someone gave him money, and Kenny found him last night at the park.
The two men were now outside, Kenny's room was on the first floor. They left the apartment complex. Kenny pulled the hood over his head and shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. They walked in silence.
After Kenny showered and put on casual clothes, he'd answered bountiful questions Stan had for him. He had asked one question about the technology on earth—having took an interest to the television in the living room, the next one was about human food—Kenny listed quite a few foods, which were his personal favorites—then the rest of Stan's queries centered around Kenny. At some point, Kenny couldn't help but think that the alien was not-so subtly hitting on him. It was a crazy assumption, sure, but that's what it felt like to Kenny for some reason. During that time, Kenny didn't get any opportunities to ask Stan anything. Now's the time since not many people were out.
"So, what's it like on your planet?"
Stan smiled a little at the question. "Planet azurelite is just like earth, peaceful and beautiful."
Kenny snorted. "Hate to break it to ya, but earth ain't all that nice. How long do you plan on being here for?"
"Until I visit every last State and country."
Kenny laughed a little. "That's gonna take a long time."
"Would you like to travel with me?"
Kenny pursed his lips, his chest feeling strangely warm. "As fun as that sounds, I'm gonna have to pass. Traveling is expensive, plus...how will you even be able to go to State to State?"
Stan cocked an eyebrow. "Can't I just use my ship?"
Kenny expressed mild shock. Of course an alien would have a spaceship, it's not like he crash landed here. "Depends. Can it go invisible?"
"Of course. It's got other functions too such as-"
"Stan," Kenny calmly said. "There're people coming our way." They're nearing the shopping district, so there were a bunch of pedestrians up ahead.
"R-right. Sorry," Stan apologized sheepishly.
They eventually came across a few clothing stores in the district, they went into the nearest one. It's warm inside. Kenny tried not to laugh at Stan's awestruck face, glancing around every aspect of the store, the lights overhead blocked out by the brim of his cap, yet his eyes still appeared brighter than they usually were.
"Start looking for some clothes you like," Kenny said.
Stan nodded. "What's that sound?" He asked, cognizant of the peculiar sounding instruments playing throughout the store.
"It's called music," Kenny answered, stopping in an area with a wide selection of shirts and pants for men. Stan stopped also. "There's good music and shitty music. What's playing right now is jazz, and well, it's not too bad." Kenny shrugged.
"Jazz..." Stan murmured thoughtfully. "It sounds lively. I like it."
"Good to know, now find a shirt and a pair of pants you like," Kenny said, reminding Stan of his task.
The noirette was the opposite of meticulous. He picked out the first shirt and pair of pants he saw—which were a blue designer shirt and black sweatpants.
Kenny sweatdropped. "I know I said we had to be quick, but you still could've took your time. You sure you like those?" Stan nodded. Kenny sighed. "Alright, let me see how much they are." Stan gave him the clothes, and he checked their price tags. The shirt was fifteen dollars, and the sweatpants were ten dollars. Stan had enough to pick out a few more clothes, if he wanted to, that is. "You wanna get some more?"
Stan didn't think he would need extra clothes, and it showed. "I'll need more?"
"Yeah, in case these get dirty," Kenny said gesturing the clothes he's carrying with his eyes. "And when that happens, you'll need to wash them."
"Hmm, okay. Easy enough."
Looked like Kenny was going to have to show him the washing machine when they got back to his...apartment. His smile dropped unsuspectingly.
Stan frowned confusedly and worriedly at the blonde's saddened mien. "Kenny, what's wrong?"
Kenny remained quiet for an additional moment, then cleared his head by shaking it. "Nothing. I'll tell you when we leave. Let's hurry up."
Stan's concern did not ebb in the slightest while they were getting him some more clothes. Less than five minutes later, they're approaching the checkout counter with a total of three shirts and three pants. There was one person currently getting her items scanned.
"The money is in your pocket, right?" Kenny asked. He didn't get a response. Stopping behind the lady, Kenny turned to face the noirette, who looked lost in thought. His eyes were dull. "Stan?" Still no acknowledgment. Kenny snapped his fingers in Stan's face, finally getting his attention. "What're you thinkin' so deeply about?"
Stan's frown softened. "You."
Kenny appeared perplexed, despite the butterflies in his stomach. "Me? Why?"
"Um, excuse me?"
Kenny spun around, it was their turn. A light blush tinted his cheeks. "S-sorry." He and Stan moved up a step while laying the clothes down on the counter. The female cashier began scanning them. Good thing no one was behind them.
Kenny faced Stan again. "Your money," Kenny said while they waited. Stan reached into one of his pants pockets and took out the fifty-dollar bill. He gave it to Kenny. "Also, bend your head down until we leave," Kenny advised in hush, then he turned back around while uncrumpling the bill. When all of the items were scanned and they were told the total price, Kenny handed the woman the cash. He was given change back, to which he gave to Stan.
"You two have a nice day."
"Thanks, you too," Kenny replied politely. He grabbed the bags in one hand and his other hand grabbed Stan's, they walked out of the warm store. Once they're outside, Kenny released Stan's freezing hand as they walked back the way they came.
"Aren't you going to tell me what's wrong?"
Kenny tensed, unable to look at Stan, who's walking beside him now. "Yeah, but not here. There're too many people."
"...Okay."
The walk was spent in silence between them. Kenny became engrossed in his thoughts. He wondered about his feelings towards Stan. They're mixed up at the moment. He's not entirely certain if he still wanted to get rid of Stan or keep him by his side until he decided to go to another State. Stan undoubtedly didn't have a place to live, unless it'd been the park Kenny found him at yesterday. The thought of him having spent a whole week at the park didn't sit right with Kenny. He had a spaceship, so what if he had been staying in there? Then again, Kenny shouldn't be so quick to assume Stan's living conditions.
"Stop."
Kenny was forced into a standstill by someone's arm. He gave Stan, who's glaring ahead, a bemused look. He followed the male's gaze. Scurrying across the sidewalk was a white feline.
"Stan...-"
"What is that?"
"A cat," Kenny answered tonelessly. "A harmless, stray cat."
Stan didn't look convinced. "Harmless?"
"In this case, yeah. Now could you move your arm? We're getting weird looks."
Stan watched the furry animal, slowly lowering his arm back to his side. They resumed their stroll.
Once there were less people around, Kenny asked, "Was that your first time seeing an animal?"
"Yes."
Yet he had been here for one week—outside, no less. "There aren't any on your planet?"
Faint lights ignited in Stan's irises. "We do not have species called cats there, especially none that small."
"Wow...So they're all big?"
Stan stopped, and so did Kenny. Stan pointed at a tall building across the street. "We call them beasts, and they can grow as large as that building."
Kenny couldn't even fathom any creature being humongous in real life. "Jesus...and you said your planet was peaceful."
Stan lowered his arm. "It is. The beasts do not pose any threat unless they feel threatened. They're very amiable."
This time, Kenny appeared flippantly unconvinced. "Suuure, they are." He resumed walking. Stan matched his pace beside him.
"I'm telling the truth."
Kenny looked over at Stan, experiencing a pang of guilt at his hurt expression. His eyes lost their shine again. "Okay, okay, I believe you. Don't look so down, alright?"
The emerging sparkles in Stan's eyes showcased his uplifted mood. "Okay."
Kenny pieced together what Stan meant about not being able to intentionally reduce the glints in his eyes. They reflected his emotions—when he's happy, they glimmered, but when he's upset, they darkened or faded away.
"Hm? Kenny?"
That's when Kenny realized he'd been staring into Stan's eyes too long. He quickly looked forward, painfully aware of the blush in his cheeks and Stan's confused gaze.
They reached Kenny's home half a minute later. Kenny dumped the bags on the sofa before unzipping his jacket, taking both that and his shoes off by the front door. Stan did the same, unsure what to do with the baseball cap, so he kept it on. Kenny went to sit on the sofa, Stan followed, once again sitting close to the blonde. They both sat there without saying a word to each other as the atmosphere around them steadily became bleak. However, the solemn ambience didn't effect Stan, rather, he didn't even perceive it.
"Is something else troubling you?"
Closing his eyes, Kenny slumped back with a heavy sigh, his face towards the ceiling. "...Stan?"
"Yes?"
"..." Kenny opened his eyes halfway. "Where do you plan to go tomorrow? Are you gonna stay here a little bit longer?"
Stan nodded. "Yes."
Kenny's frown hardened somberly. "I'm not talking about here with me in my apartment."
It took a couple of moments, but Stan comprehended what he meant dishearteningly. The miniature sparkles in his eyes swiftly dwindled. "Oh...I'm still going to remain here. I haven't fully explored yet."
"...Where are you gonna go tomorrow? Back to the park? Your spaceship?"
"I...I'm not sure..." Stan didn't want to return to neither.
They were enveloped in quietude once again.
Kenny kept a blank fixation on the ceiling. Why all of a sudden was it so difficult to tell Stan that he had to leave tomorrow morning? That was the plan in the first place. Perhaps Kenny shouldn't have proposed they went clothes shopping. They could've wasted the whole day inquiring each other more about their respective species and native lands. Had they done that instead, Kenny wouldn't be feeling so...conflicted.
"I understand now." Kenny looked over at Stan again after hearing those soft-spoken words. The bill of the baseball cap had casted a gloomy shadow over Stan's dark and hollow eyes. "It's been me...troubling you this entire time. I should've left when you told me to...no, I shouldn't have come looking for you in the first place. I'm sorry for being a burden...I'll leave." He stood up from the couch.
"Stan, wait." Kenny sat up to grab his wrist, to prevent him from going anywhere. However, it was futile. Stan left his grasp as if he teleported.
An intense hopelessness rendered Kenny stiff. He couldn't believe Stan just left without hearing him out. It's true that Kenny wanted him gone at first, but...he didn't feel that way anymore. He started to like his company. Stan's presence was quite refreshing, and that's when Kenny realized that his life was more mundane than he'd initially thought. He curled his outstretched hand into a shaky fist, his face pained. "Damn it..."
*That Night*
Only a full moon was high in the dark sky, looking ever so vibrant and beautiful. Kenny was heading to the park he frequented at this time on some weekdays. He'd thought long and hard about what to do, and this was the decision he came to. He was going to find Stan and tell him how he really felt about him. He just hoped Stan wasn't anywhere else except at the park.
It didn't take long for Kenny to reach his destination. Entering the recreation ground, it looked exactly like how it did last night—completely empty, at least, that's how it seemed to those passing by. Kenny wasted no time going to the bench he found Stan lying on. Sadly, even from a short distance thanks to the nearby lamp post, Kenny could tell that the seat was vacant. He tried not to succumb to despair, Stan could be sitting somewhere else. And he was after several minutes of scouring. He was occupying a bench in front of a pond, seemingly gazing at the moon.
Kenny was anxious to approach him. What was he supposed to say as a greeting? Should he start off with an apology? He massaged his forehead, annoyed at himself for stressing over a minor setback. It didn't matter what he said, as long as he set things straight between them that was what was most important. He took a silent deep breath to compose himself, then walked towards the bench Stan was sat on. His footsteps were dulled by the smooth grass. He sat down and observed Stan. He couldn't tell if Stan was transfixed on the moon or if he's refusing to look at him. Either were probable, his eyes were still devoid of their usual brilliance.
Pressing his lips into a line, Kenny stared across the pond. The moon was reflecting clearly off its surface. "I'm sorry." He waited for any sort of a reaction be it verbally or through expression, that way, he'd know he'd been heard.
"...Why are you apologizing?"
"Because I...I shouldn't have found you." His eyes saddening, Kenny looked at Stan again. "It's my fault you came looking for me, isn't it?"
A chilly breeze susurrated the tree branches. Stan slowly met hazel. The aloofness in the once sapphire eyes perturbed Kenny, but he didn't let it show. "I didn't know why in the beginning, but you've helped me confirm the familiarity I've been feeling ever since this morning." Stan looked away. "Even so, it still doesn't change the fact that I've been nothing but a nuisance to you."
Kenny cracked a small smile. "I'm not gonna lie, you were a pain in the ass to deal with." Stan's frown deepened. "I mean, I found an alien yesterday. I didn't even know beings like you existed...But...you were fun to hang around. It was fun learning about your planet..." Kenny's little smile turned into a frown. "I just realized that I barely know anything about you."
Stan widened his eyes. Kenny was right. The only thing Kenny knew about him was his name. Kenny took the baseball cap from off his head, his black hair swaying in the gentle wind. "How about we change that tonight?"
Stan's frown didn't leave his face even as he looked at the faint grin on Kenny's face. "What's the point wanting to know about me when we'll never see each other again?"
"Said who?" Kenny asked, an eyebrow raised.
"I...thought that's what you were implying earlier," Stan said, bewildered.
Kenny shook his head. "You left without giving me a chance to correct you. It's true I that wanted you gone at first, but not anymore. I was worried about you. Worried about how you would adapt on earth. I hated the thought of you living out on the streets, or in this park every day." With a developing blush, he gently took Stan's hand. "I...don't want you to leave. Not until you decide to go to another State."
Kenny's confession took Stan by surprise. He was concerned about his well-being. "You...want me to stay?"
Kenny's blush noticeably darkened. "Y-yeah...by my side..." His voice reduced to a whisper.
One by one, the diminutive stars twinkled in Stan's eyes. That's what they'd been all this time, Kenny discerned. "Okay."
Those eyes were so mesmerizing. "So...can I get to know more about you?" Kenny mustered out.
Stan beamed. "Sure."