Silver the Hedgehog gazed out the window, head resting in his palm. It had been raining hard for the past 10 minutes or so. He rather enjoyed watching the raindrops running down the window glass, like fat tears it was crying. Lightning suddenly flashed a little ways away and thunder boomed over his head, making the windowpanes shudder. This startled Silver from his daze. He sighed and looked around the den. He was the only one in the room, actually in the whole house. Sonic had a date with Amy today, and Shadow had to complete a mission at G.U.N. with Rouge. He promised though, that he would come over once he was finished.
Yawning widely, Silver stared at a red tulip in a pink vase Amy gave him last week. He admired touching the soft petals, and sniffing its exotic scent. He took his eyes off the flower, and used his psychokinetic powers to grab a book from the shelf. The History of Soleanna: The City of Water it said. Silver had read this numerous times, ever since his encounters with Sonic, Shadow, Mephiles the Dark, and the others. Being from the future, he had to brush up on his lessons daily.
He opened the book to the first chapter, until someone knocked on his door. Setting his book down, he walked over and opened the door. There stood Shadow in his usual stance; stern look, crossed arms…well, except for his soaking wet quills.
"Shadow." Silver exclaimed.
"Took you long enough…" He said.
"Sorry, come on in." He ushered the black hedgehog into the den. He rushed into his bathroom and grabbed a dry towel from the closet.
"Here." He said, tossing it to Shadow.
"Thanks."
"Do you want anything?" Silver asked as he went into the kitchen.
"How 'bout something hot?" He laughed and put a kettle of water onto the stove. He reached into his cabinet, and pulled out a package of green tea, as well as an Earl Grey tea for Shadow. Before long, the kettle began to whistle. Silver grabbed 2 large mugs, and began to pour the water into them. He suddenly missed, and a splash of hot water fell onto his hand. He yelped out, and nearly dropped the kettle onto his foot.
"Ah," He inhaled sharply, "Dammit…" He tugged his glove off, and noticed a reddened area on his hand. He ran to the sink and tried to rinse with cold water. He did this for about a minute, but the pain came back in no time. Silver rubbed his hand to soothe it, cursing under his breath. He felt so humiliated; he was always this clumsy.
Shadow, meanwhile, watched this with a strange look on his face. He walked over to the gray hedgehog, who was still rubbing his hand.
He scoffed, "Let me see." He grasped Silver's hand, but gently. He skimmed his fingers over the burn, but not so hard that it would be painful for Silver.
"It's not that bad." He finally answered, "Just put some ice on it for a few hours. You should be fine by then." His voice was calm, but melancholy. Silver could see his eyes were a bit opaque, but shining at the same time. With gentle hands, Shadow placed a small bag of ice onto Silver's burn. Silver felt his face get a little hot.
"Thanks, Shadow." He turned his back around.
"No problem." Shadow left the kitchen, walked through the hallway, and sat down on the chair in the den. Silver joined him soon after, and they talked for the rest of the afternoon.
Shadow suddenly opened his eyes. His chin was rested in his hand that was placed on the arm of the chair. He yawned, and rose from his seat. The T.V. was on, playing a late comedy show. He couldn't remember the name of it though; he didn't watch T.V. that often. He looked to Silver, who was laying on the couch, stretched out. Shadow smiled a little, and walked over to him.
He shook his shoulder lightly as he whispered, "Silver, I'm leaving." Obviously, Silver was sound asleep, and didn't seem to acknowledge. Figuring it would be weird if he found him on the couch, cold the next morning, Shadow used his strong arms to carry him to his room. As he walked down the hallway, he felt the hedgehog's hands wrap around his neck. At least he was half-awake, he thought. He helped him get into bed, and covered him with the blankets. Silver seemed to snuggle tightly.
"Good night, Shadow." He murmured.
Shadow sighed as he closed the door, "G'night."
Silver's eyes opened quickly as he nearly yelled. He sat up straight in his bed, breathing heavily. At first, he couldn't figure out where he was, since random thoughts ran through his mind. Tears almost welled up in his eyes. He couldn't remember it very well, but it was the worst nightmare he ever had. It had him, Sonic, and Shadow fighting something, and one by one the each died in their own blood. Shadow! Silver jumped out of the bed, and ran out the door. He hoped Shadow didn't leave yet, not now when he needed him. He rushed into the den, and nearly ran into Shadow himself.
"Hey," the hedgehog said, putting his hands onto his shoulders, "What happened? I heard you yelling."
Silver panted, and looked into his red eyes. He could feel himself shaking, and Shadow's steady hands trying to calm him.
"Sh-Shadow?" He stammered, tears welling up again.
"What is it?"
He tried his best to keep himself from crying, but couldn't. He gripped onto Shadow's chest, and literally sobbed.
Shadow stood there, shocked. He had never seen Silver cry before. Something must have really scared him. He rubbed Silver's arm lightly.
"Hey, what's wrong? You have a nightmare or something?"
Silver nodded in response, "A…a bad one…" He cried again, and fell to the floor, dragging Shadow with him. In between sobs, he explained what he remembered. When he was done, he cried, "Shadow, don't leave me now! I…I'm scared!" He pushed his head under Shadow's chin, his tears falling onto his hands.
The black hedgehog's face was now covered with sympathy. Holding his arms, Shadow said soothingly, "It's okay, Silver. I won't leave you. Nothing will happen to me, okay?" Silver's sobs lightened up a little as his friend's head rested on top of his. Slowly, he rocked him back and forth, and quietly shushed him calmly, "I'm here for you. Don't cry it's over. Shhhh, it's all right. I'm here for you." He continued this as Silver sniffed and murmured incoherently, his face almost buried in his white chest fur. Shadow nuzzled the top of his head, and began to stroke his quills. They were so smooth between his fingers, and it seemed to calm Silver down gradually. They pulled each other closer, and the whole house was quiet, except for Silver's deep breaths.
He finally sighed shakily, "Thank you, Shadow." He pulled apart a bit to stare into his eyes. They glistened in the light brightly, like he was a completely different person.
Shadow smiled and ran his fingers through the quills behind the hedgehog's ear. "It's okay."
They embraced once more, with Silver wrapping his arms around, and Shadow cuddling him close to his chest. He closed his eyes, feeling Shadow's body warmth wearing off his shivering feeling. He tightened his grip around him, making sure he wouldn't leave him.
Shadow was telling the truth.
Shadow sat on the floor with him, and he returned the tightness of the hug. He placed his cheek on Silver's head, and took a deep breath. Silver heard his heartbeat steadily pounding, and his light breathing softly, and Shadow repeating once more in his ear, "I'm here for you." They separated again, and Shadow put a finger under Silver's chin, and lifted his head. His soft golden eyes looked pale, and he blinked twice, a little pink showing on his muzzle.
After a few minutes, Shadow slightly tousled Silver's quills as he asked quietly, "You think you can go back to sleep?"
Silver nodded lightly, "Yeah."
They both stood up, and Shadow patted his shoulder, "Well, I guess I'm leaving."
He let go of Silver as he replied, "Oh, okay. I suppose I'll see you tomorrow."
"Sure."
Shadow waved, and walked out the front door. Silver just stood there, smiling. That was the greatest experience ever, and he would never forget what he said:
"I'm here for you."
