The Long Road Ahead
CHAPTER ONE
I honestly don't know what to write about what happened in the last couple of weeks. No words could completely describe what went on but I suppose I will give it go. Let's start with before we all left for Cedar Falls. It didn't used to be called that as it was changed to hide its secrets. My secrets believe it or not. I know, I was surprised too.
I have never heard of Cedar Falls until I got the call that was filled of frantic girly screams about having a great time, drinking and dancing on a holiday. I was sat on the other line for, at least, two to three minutes in silence until Amy calmed down from all her excitement. I told her to take a few breaths before explaining what the hell is going on. All I got was: "Holiday. Cedar Falls. Five weeks. Sonic. Rouge. Shadow. Tails. Cream."
I really didn't get a say in whether I was going to join them or not. I didn't get a word in edge wise. I did go as you're readying whatever this is.
Let's get this over with, shall we?
DAY ONE
Kiera leant against the clean, white porch pillar. She stared blankly as her friends packed their suitcases and all the equipment they needed into three Chrysler Minivans. There were ten of them as a group and the minivans hold seven each but the last two seats were needed for luggage. They decided to spread out over three minivans. They had a lot of things and they would be spending a few long months away from the home they knew but would return to, eventually.
Most of their things were in the third minivan in which she would be driving. Kiera volunteered for the lonely job of driving all by herself at the back. Although, she was hoping to the driving the minivan alone but Shadow said she shouldn't drive all that way by herself especially during the night. No one objected. Kiera didn't really mind his company, they had a few things in common. Their love and protective nature for their family, they were both impulsive, on the spot thinkers but they were also very different. They both didn't mind that either.
She pushed herself off of the porch pillar and walked back into the house. Her small suitcase and bags were beside the door. She only had two. One for her clothes and shoes, and other necessities that she needed for the months ahead. The other held her phone, journal. A few large books to read to pass the time and a drawing pad along with pencils. She grabbed her bag and leant forward to get her suitcase when another hand beat her to it.
"I got that." Shadow said and picked up the suitcase by the handle. She gave him a thankful smile. They stepped down the porch steps and wandered over to the third minivan, opened up the back of the large vehicle and he put her suitcase and bag into it. Shadow shut the back of the minivan with ease and he turned to her.
She looked up at him. "How long now?"
"Under an hour, most likely. They're getting a drink down them before we set off for Cedar Falls." He informed her as he leant against the back of the minivan.
There was something more behind this trip Amy practically threw everyone on. "You know you can't lie to me, right?" He quickly switched confused and blindsided by that question.
"Um, what?" She looked at him as if he was an idiot for keeping something from her.
She sighed. "You wouldn't be going on this 'holiday' on your own free will, especially with Sonic." Shadow was backed up into a corner, he had nowhere to run. She was too smart for her own good. She would fit right in as an agent, he thought.
"Alright, alright. Just keep this to yourself." He warned her.
She stared blankly at him. "Who in the hell am I going to tell, Shadow? The tooth fairy?"
He chuckled, crossing his arms over his chest. He did love her wit. "Okay, Kiera. I've been sent on a mission with Rouge to Cedar Falls."
Her auburn eyes narrowed at him. "Of course, you have." Kiera looked back at the house and saw the others were still rushing about up and down the stairs.
She looked back at Shadow. "So, you two are here on a mission for god knows what, leaving me alone with the loved-up couples for five weeks." She threw her head back and groaned in annoyance. She didn't want to be the fifth wheel, sat in the corner and watching Sonic, Amy, Tails and Cream laughing, kissing and cuddling together.
"Great, that's just – great." Kiera mumbled, not entirely happy with the situation she will be in as soon as they land in Cedar Falls.
Shadow gently took hold of her hand to get her attention. "Hey, I won't leave you alone like that. The mission won't take long. I promise." Her eyes found his, and she nodded slightly holding him to that promise.
"Thank you." She mouthed to him.
They both stared at each other, sat in silence but that was interrupted with a yell. "Hey! Help with the bags, you two!" The two of them looked back to the house and saw Rouge and Amy calling them over at the door. Kiera glanced at Shadow, and met his gaze before leaving to help the girls with their bags.
The lads made quick work of putting the suitcases into the minivans. Kiera took her pair of keys and slipped into her own designated minivan. She wanted to just to put the keys in the ignition and drive off but she couldn't. She's sharing the vehicle with Shadow so she'll wait until he gets in the van before driving off. Rouge did volunteer to jump in the car with them but Amy wanted to have her in theirs – so that's how it was.
The passenger door opened and in jumped Shadow, clad in his leather jacket. "We're all set. We are all good to go." Kiera flipped the key in the ignition, put the van in first gear.
"Great."
The two other minivans followed her lead all throughout the day until night hit. Kiera read the sign that they drove passed. She looked over at Shadow for a second. "There's a diner coming up."
Shadow glanced at her with a raised an eyebrow. "How do you know?"
"I can actually read maps, thank you very much." She smirked.
He smiled at her, impressed with her. "Really?" She laughed at him.
"No – well, yeah actually – but I read the sign we just drove past. Now, ring them up to tell them we're stopping off at the diner. I'm hungry, I haven't eaten today," He chuckled, dragging a hand down his face. He pulled out his phone and rang up Amy.
"Hi, Shadow!" She quickly answered the phone.
He began to inform her on the current news. "Hey, Rose. We're going to stop off at a diner not too far from her. Kiera's getting hungry."
"So are we, actually! I'll call Tails and tell him what happening."
He ended the call after. "Alright, Rose. We'll see you in a bit."
"Why didn't you tell me you haven't eaten today?" Her brow furrowed, quite confused.
"My stomach, not yours. Plus, you didn't ask." Kiera justified herself but it wasn't really an answer he liked to begin with. He knows she disregards her health sometimes as she 'forgets' as she says. He doesn't know if its insecurity on her body image or if she does forget to eat every meal. He figured that if he asks that he'll get slapped for insinuating anything to do with her weight so he didn't ask that question at all. He asked Rouge that once and he got an instant elbow to the side – it wasn't pleasant.
"Next time, tell me, please?" He stared at her giving her his 'stern' and 'serious' face, she couldn't see that as she was behind the wheel but she felt it.
She rolled her eyes. "Fine. I will."
Kiera smirked as she switched on the left turn signal to turn into the diner's parking lot. "You care about my health." She said, happy that he did.
"Yes, I do. I don't want to lose you to starvation." Or lose you in general or anyone again, he thought as he stared at the rear-view mirror watching the other two minivans follow in suit. Kiera was the closest thing he had to family ever since Maria was taken from him so many years ago – she wasn't Maria at all but at least he had her.
"If you were going to lose me it wouldn't be by starvation. That's boring." She pulled into a spot and she made sure she fit perfectly in there before turning off the engine.
"Kiera." He warned.
She put the handbrake on. "If I did die then it would be by a blaze of glory. I want it to be spectacular, stunning and striking-"
Shadow gripped her hand as it went to unclip her seatbelt. "Kiera." She stopped talking and stared at his and then at him.
"Please, stop." He begged her, he didn't want to keep picturing her death in all these horrific ways.
Instead of being gentle with him, she was brutally honest. "Maybe you should find a different profession so the people who hate you don't come for me so they can hurt you." She ripped her arm from him, getting out the car and slamming the door shut. She left him with the truth. Criminals he put away in the years he was an agent hated him and knew he weakness. His friends and her.
They always went after her, they found her, they hurt her. They always hurt her and because of him. He always saved her but he put her in danger all the time. He said he would protect her but he keeps failing her. He failed her.
She was angry at him, and she had every right to be. She could scream at him, hit him and say she hates every fibre of him. He would let her. He deserved all that but she would never do any of that. She bottles everything up until something shakes it up and it all fizzles out in one go. When that happens, he finds her and just holds her as she cries. He doesn't say anything, he just lets her cry it all out.
They all need this holiday and right now, she needs it most of all.
He got out of the minivan and he came face to face with guys and the girls minus Kiera. He shut the passenger door behind him. "Where's Kiera?" Cream asked softly, imaging her to come out of the car after Shadow.
"Inside, most likely. She was really hungry." He made it seem like everything was okay with him and her. The others walked into the diner but Rouge stayed with Shadow.
She glared at him. "What did you say to her this time?" She was protective of Kiera as well. Shadow thought that she saw Kiera as a little sister.
"I didn't say anything."
Her blue eyes narrowed at him. "Right." They walked into the diner and found the others at a booth getting ordered. It was full round of burgers and fries, plus a ton of milkshakes. They devoured them and Kiera didn't say a word other than 'please' and 'thank you' – she still had manners after all.
All of them headed back to the minivans after paying for their meals. Shadow pulled Kiera aside before leaving. "I know you're angry at me."
She rolled her eyes. "I'm not angry at you. I can't be angry at you which is incredibly annoying." He smiled at her, secretly liking that she has a soft spot for him.
She pushed the van's keys to his chest. "You're driving." Kiera jumped into the passenger seat. Shadow hopped into the driver's seat and guided the others all the way to Cedar Falls. Kiera leant her head against the glass of the minivans window as the music coming from the radio filled the silence between the two of them. A slow and tender song came on which made her fall asleep. Shadow didn't disturb her and wouldn't until they reached the house they're renting in Cedar Falls. She needed the sleep and she looked kind of cute.
Shadow turned the high-beams on so he could see exactly where he was driving. He found the sign for the house and followed the road all the way up to the house. From what he could see, it was quite a big house and would certainly fit all of them in there. He parked up near the house and the others parked on either side of his minivan. He turned off the engine, putting the handbrake up and looked over at Kiera. He didn't want to wake her up but he didn't have to just yet.
He got out of the minivan and walked to the back of the vehicle. Opening the boot, he pulled out the suitcases and bags they've brought and carried them all to the front door of the house. Sonic did the same with his, Amy's and Rouge's bags. Tails brought Cream's bags and his own to the porch steps so they can tell which ones are whose.
Rouge asked the question everyone was thinking. "So, what's happening with the beds?"
Amy piped up with the answer. "When I booked the house, I made sure there were enough rooms for us all separately just in case we end up hating each other."
"I think that's already started." Shadow smirked.
Sonic laughed. "You love me really."
That smirked dropped quickly. "You can fuck off."
"Rooms?" Rouge brought them back.
Amy nodded. "Right. So, there is a king size bed in the attic, three bedrooms with double beds upstairs and two bedrooms with single beds on the ground floor."
Shadow already knew which one Kiera would want. "Attic is off limits."
"For your girlfriend, I assume?" Sonic grinned but that dropped when Rouge hit him in his side.
She glared at him. "Kiera is having the attic. The couples will take the double beds. Me and Shadow can flip a coin for the extra double bed."
"You can have it. I'm fine with a single bed." Shadow shrugged, lifting Kiera's bags and carrying them all the way to the attic. It was nice up here, full of neutral colours plus a desk with a bookshelf right next to it. Kiera loves her books and sleep. He lay her suitcase and bags at the end of her bed on the floor, then going all the way downstairs and out of the house to wake her up.
Shadow opened the passenger door and his eyes widen when Kiera nearly fell out, he forgot that she was leaning against the door. He quickly grabbed hold of her before anything bad happened. She groaned, her eyes slowly fluttering open. "What are you doing?" She mumbled, blinking a few times to come to terms at where she was exactly.
"We have arrived at Cedar Falls, and I'm getting you up to your room so you can sleep." She slowly took in what he was saying and just nodded, pushing herself out of the minivan.
She got her footing. "Guide me to my room then, you got my stuff there, right?" Kiera looked up at him after wiping the sleep from her eyes.
"Yeah, I did." He brought her up to her bedroom in the attic.
She mumbled her thanks. "I'll check up on you in a bit, alright?" He told her and she nodded. He left her to get settled with her new bedroom for the next five weeks.
Kiera opened her suitcase up and began to unpack all her clothes. She did notice all the dark colours of her wardrobe, she shrugged it off. She put her clothes in the wardrobe, hanging them all up ready for the upcoming weeks, putting her tights, socks and underwear in the set of drawers in the room. She was very happy when she saw the ensuite bathroom. She began to draw a bath as she felt she needed a bit of a cleanse after that long car ride.
A little knock on the door, and Kiera popped her head out of the bathroom and saw Rouge. "Hi." She smiled at her, and motioned her to come in.
Rouge walked over to her. "Hey, all settled in?"
"Yeah, I am. Just making a bath before bed." She told her.
Rouge sat down on the end of her bed. "Shadow told me you know about why we are really in Cedar Falls."
Kiera leant against the door frame. "I only know of it but I figured that you pushed the idea into Amy's head about a cute little holiday." Rouge laughed and nodded.
"Yeah, basically."
She looked back to check on the running water into her bath. "You don't need to worry, I won't spill the beans on the others."
"Thanks for the discretion." Kiera nodded.
Another knock on her door, it was Shadow. "Um, just checking on you."
Kiera laughed. "Looks like I'm famous tonight, and I'm okay, Shadow." He nodded.
"Goodnight then, see you two in the morning." He smiled slightly at them both he left to go downstairs to his own bedroom.
Rouge gets up from the end of her bed. "I'll leave you to your bath. Sleep well, Kiera." She headed to her bedroom door.
"You too." Kiera said with a smile, closing the door behind Rouge.
She walked into the bathroom, checked the temperature of the bath. It was near perfect but it will do. She undressed and slipped into the bath with all foam bubbles she could ask for. She slid down into the water, submerging her face in.
There goes day one. It was quite tame to begin with par from my little truthful moment in the minivan with Shadow. It's always the calm before the storm as they say.
I really did need that bath though.