"Shadow...are you alright?" Sonic asked suspiciously. Shadow sat on his sofa eating a pickle and tomato sandwich with some chicken somewhere in the middle.
"Yup, yup, everything's fine Sonic," replied Shadow confidently. He smiled at his secret lover for the past two years and continued to flip through channels and eat his sandwich. He smiled remembering why he couldn't tell Sonic his secret. It was Sonic's birthday in two days and he wanted it to be a surprise for him.
Shadow smiled as he watched the opening to Dora the Explorer. He was already trying to find patience enough to sit through these annoyingly perky children's shows for his unborn baby. 'I hope you can learn while you're in there, then maybe I won't have to watch these when you are born,' Shadow thought taking a sip of his favorite Jones Soda.
"Dora the Explorer? What's up lately Shadz...did egghead swap your brains with someone?"
"No," said Shadow smiling innocently, "I want to learn some of this new stuff they teach here on Earth."
"Riiiight," said Sonic sitting next to Shadow and biting into a PB&J sandwich. He smiled over at Shadow as he took another bite of his specially made pickle and tomato sandwich. Sonic still thought something was wrong, but he wouldn't press any further, knowing his companion got easily irritated.
"Sonic...loook," said Shadow putting on a heavily pouted face, "Look how cute the baby is!"
"Oh jeeze, not this again Shadz, I told ya, we can't have kids! We can adopt but you said you didn't want to remember? 'It wouldn't be the same!'"
"Yeah Yeah," said Shadow half grinning, 'that's what you think Sonikku.' Shadow wrapped his arms around himself as if protecting his baby from something awful and Sonic sat up.
"Stomachache Shadz?"
"No, I'm good sonic, can I watch dora in peace?...please sonikku," Shadow pouted as he lifted one hand from his seemingly thin torso.
As soon as Sonic left he sat up and called Tails to consult him about how to take charge of the situation.
"Just act like you're giving him something like your usual day...and then tell him," exclaimed Tails for, what seemed like, the hundredth time. Poor Tails was stuck in the middle of this. Shadow called him every time he had a shadow of a doubt (no pun intended) about telling Sonic about his baby.
"Just think," said Tails confidently, "one of these days he's gonna know anyway, so why not tell him when you got the chance!"
Shadow nodded slowly on his end of the line and traced the couch pattern with his finger. "I see Tails-kun, thank you. Goodbye and see you soon!"
As soon as he hung up he stared at the couch cushion and grinned as he suddenly had the urge to jump on it. He quickly glanced around making sure Sonic wasn't near enough to see him and stood on his feet and began bouncing gleefully.
Sonic sat on his bed smiling to himself as he watched shapes form in the clouds outside his window. Then he heard an odd noise in the living room. He crept down the hall and peeked around the corner to find his lover bouncing up and down on the couch and looked at the TV as Dora and Boots bounced up and down on the screen. He chuckled slightly making Shadow look at him and immediately sit down in mid-bounce.
"Hi Sonikku, how're you?" He greeted Sonic bashfully and took a sip of his soda on the table.
"I'm fine Shadz... I take it you got a lil, carried away watching Dora?"
"Heh, you caught me Sonikku." Shadow glanced around smiling cutely then curled up against the arm of the couch and continued watching Dora with Sonic sitting only a few inches away and squinting at the screen in disbelief that Shadow would ever watch that specific show.
