laughter and exaggerated humor filled the usually bustling environment of the local saloon — where a never dull moment lived. tucked behind the bar, an average-sized man stood, nimble digits buffing any imperfections on glass. his blond locks were fixed into a high ponytail, with only a few strands of loose hair framing his face. that’d be the saloon owner, tweek. a good friend of the sheriff.

“hah! pass another over, my good pal.” kyle’s voice cut the young man from his work, though he obeyed the sheriff’s orders. he slid a mug of sloshing liquid over where kyle’s hand caught it effortlessly.

he swung the mug up, downing the liquid, ignoring how badly it stung and left a bitter taste in his mouth. he set the mug down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. his lips formed into a crooked grin, confidence radiating off of him in strong waves. “and as they were roundin’ in, i hit ‘em with a POW! and a BANG! golly, they had no earthly idea i was even there! criminals these days? dumber than my old man’s cattle, i’m tellin’ ya.”

his hand theatrics aligned with his sound effects, eliciting cheers and applause from other cowboys and lawmen around the area. another successful day for sheriff kyle, no doubt. his effortless cleansing skills for criminals went unmatched. the town’s goody-two-shoes. the town’s mighty sheriff. highly praised for anything he does.

deputy stan marsh sat beside him, expression blank, but an underlying hint of annoyance could be spotted in those eyes of his. kyle’s tendency to overshadow him always irked him. though? his best friend was the sheriff. he couldn’t tell him.

so all the credit went to him majority of the time. kyle took major pride in the town’s blossoming economy after all. what’s a sheriff without gloating, hm?

kyle tipped the brim of his hat down as he whistled loud and cheerfully. he nudged stan with his elbow, probably a sign to at least look happy. for their—his—success. storytelling always went like this: people gathered to listen, tweek chuckling every now and then, stan brooding, and kyle gloating as if it were another day.

and it was.

he took off his jacket and draped it on the backrest of his chair, crossing one leg over the other. relaxed. as he should be.

“alright, alright. who wants to hear another tale? i have plenty.”

his crooked grin full-on turned into a mocking smile. toward stan. stan only rolled his eyes in response.

another day in south park. typical, even…