Sonic clutched his pillow tight and opened his eyes, his ear twitching sporadically at the knocking at his door. He groggily sat up, then stared at the time on his clock.
Who could be up this late? he wondered, tossing the covers off of himself and walking out of his bedroom.
He went over to his apartment door, then yawned and opened it up. He was surprised to see Knuckles standing there.
"Knux?" he asked, leaning against the open door slightly. "It's so late. What's up?"
"I, um..." Knuckles began nervously. "I-I had a bad dream."
Sonic raised a brow. "A bad dream?" He felt flattered that Knuckles seemed to have come to him first, but he was still confused.
Knuckles nodded. "I-it's just, um... you were in the dream, and... well..." He looked anxious just by remembering it.
"Yeah? Did somethin' happen to me?" Sonic asked, crossing his arms.
Knuckles nodded again, whimpering slightly. "Y-yeah, you...you d-died... a-and I couldn't d-do anything..." He hoped Sonic didn't notice him tearing up.
Sonic frowned, saddened by Knuckles' worried state. "So... what, y'came here just to make sure I was alright?" he asked.
"W-well, yeah..." Knuckles gulped. "But I also can't fall back asleep n-now..."
"Oh..." Sonic took a moment to think. "Is there... anything I can do to help?" he questioned. Knuckles was his friend after all, so it hurt to see him in such a state.
"Well, um... I-I was wondering if I could, um... s-sleep here with you?" Knuckles' face flushed in embarrassment as he asked this.
Sonic's ears perked. "Uh, what? Y'mean, with me... on the same bed?"
Knuckles flushed even more. "W-well, if you're not comfortable with that, i-it's okay..."
"No no! Er..." Sonic nervously scratched the back of his head, then side-stepped and gestured inside his apartment. "Come on in."
Knuckles smiled sheepishly as he stepped inside. "Thanks, Sonic."
"No problem." Sonic shut the apartment door, then pointed. "The bedroom's this way," he told him, walking through a hall and into his decently-sized bedroom.
"You've got a nice apartment," Knuckles mused.
"Hm? Thanks," Sonic said, sitting down on his bed. "Gotta keep it clean in case you visit, heh," he added playfully, pointing to Knuckles.
Knuckles blushed a little, though he wasn't sure why.
"So... think there'll be room for both of us?" Sonic asked, looking down at the bed, then back to Knuckles. "I guess we could squeeze together if we have to."
"Yeah, I think there's enough room," Knuckles replied.
"Then what are ya waitin' for?" Sonic asked with a smile, patting the bed. "Come on over!" He wanted to help Knuckles feel better as soon as possible.
Knuckles smiled back. He carefully crawled into the bed and snuggled under the covers.
Sonic yawned and relaxed back on the bed, being sure to give Knuckles his space. "Comfy?"
"Mmhmm..." Knuckles mumbled sleepily. "Thanks."
Sonic shook his head. "Don't mention it." He rolled over, then drifted off to sleep.
Knuckles also drifted off to sleep, a small smile on his face.
As morning came, Sonic groaned and slowly woke up, then attempted to get out of bed.
...Only to feel two arms around him, preventing him from doing so.
"H-hm?" He turned his head, seeing Knuckles sound asleep and hugging him tight. He blushed. "Um... Knuckles?"
Knuckles didn't answer. He was still sound asleep.
Though his other arm was awkwardly trapped in Knuckles' hold, Sonic used his free one to lightly shake the echidna. "Y-yo, Knux!" he called.
Knuckles' eyes slowly fluttered open. "Hm? Morning already?" he said sleepily.
Sonic nodded. "Y-yeah... ur..." He looked away shyly. "Would ya mind lettin' go of me?"
"Hm?"
Knuckles realized what was going on. "Oh, sorry!" He let go of Sonic, blushing in embarrassment.
Sonic smiled sheepishly. "Don't worry about it. You keep restin', alright? I'm gonna go make breakfast." He sped out of the room before giving Knuckles a chance to respond.
He began to gather ingredients, singing a small song to himself as he did so; it always perked him up in the morning.
Meanwhile, Knuckles had already gotten out of bed. He was watching Sonic through the open bedroom door, smiling as he listened to Sonic sing.
Completely oblivious to the fact that Knuckles was awake and watching him, Sonic continued to speed around the kitchen, cooking to the best of his abilities while doing other things to keep himself entertained while he waited, like juggling eggs. All the while, his singing voice echoed throughout the room.
Once he felt he'd gotten a feel for the song, Knuckles walked into the kitchen, softly singing a harmony.
Sonic jumped slightly as he heard Knuckles joining in, turning to the echidna with a slightly red face; he'd nearly dropped the bag of pancake batter. "O-oh! Uh, you were listenin' to that?" he asked.
"Yeah," Knuckles replied with a smile. "It was beautiful!"
Sonic's blush reddened; he didn't sing for others often. "H-heh, thanks."
He turned to the pan of pancake batter, then smiled at Knuckles, a container of grapes in his hand. "So, how many grapes do you want in your pancake?" he asked. He dropped one grape in, then two, as if waiting for Knuckles to say 'when', then just dumped an entire handful into the batter, leaving just enough pancake batter covering the grapes so it'd still be considered a pancake.
"That's perfect!" Knuckles giggled.
Sonic giggled along with him, then quickly finished up their breakfast. It was simple - eggs and pancakes - but he hoped that Knuckles would appreciate it.
"Here ya go," Sonic said, holding a plate out to Knuckles with his breakfast on it.
"Thanks!" Knuckles took the plate and sat down at the table, then began to eat.
"Mmm, this is good!"
Sonic smiled, sitting down next to him and eating as well. "Glad ya like it!"
He took another bite of his food, then looked around. "I'm gettin' pretty low on stuff though. I'll probably have to go grocery shoppin', ugh," he said with a groan, clearly not interested in making the trip.
"I could come with you," Knuckles offered. "I can carry the heavier stuff for you!" he added, playfully flexing his muscles.
"Really?" Sonic asked, raising a brow and chuckling at Knuckles. "Y'know that it's gonna be completely boring, right?"
"Not when you're with a friend," Knuckles replied with a wink.
"Hm... true," Sonic agreed, quickly scarfing down his pancake. "We'll head down there after breakfast, alright?"
"'Kay!"
Knuckles soon devoured the rest of his breakfast, smiling contentedly.
Sonic put their plates away, then headed out with Knuckles. "Whenever we get there, don't be shy to pick out anything ya like, okay?" he asked. "I just wanna be prepared in case you ever feel like chillin' at my place."
Knuckles smiled. "Okay!"
He blushed a little. "Um, thanks, by the way. For...for letting me sleep over."
Sonic smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. "Like I said, it's no problem!"
He looked ahead to focus on where they were going, but was forced to stop as a girl stepped in front of them, somewhere between his height and Knuckles'.
"Uh... can I help you?" Sonic asked, raising a brow.
"Oh, no no no," the girl said, waving a hand dismissively. "Buuut..." She leaned towards Knuckles and giggled, "…your cute friend might be able to!"
Knuckles blushed. "C-cute? I, u-um..." he stammered nervously.
Sonic huffed under his breath, glancing away. He didn't know why a random girl talking to Knuckles bothered him so much, but he pretended not to care.
"Yeah, reaaally cute," the girl cooed. She gently grabbed the echidna's hands, then smiled. "See, I've been looking for someone to date for a long while now—" She paid no attention to Sonic's ear twitching at the word 'date'. "—and I think you'd make the perfect candidate. Strong, handsome..." She winked. "What more could a girl want?"
Knuckles glanced away uncomfortably. "W-well, I, i-it's just... I-I don't even know you, a-and, um..."
"Oh, but you'll give me a chance, won't you?" the girl begged.
Sonic didn't understand why he heart was suddenly wrenching, but he could sense that his friend was uncomfortable. He cleared his throat, then looked up at the girl.
"Leave 'im alone."
The girl turned her head to him, looking mildly annoyed that he'd interrupted her attempt at wooing Knuckles. "Excuse me?"
"He doesn't wanna date you," Sonic replied plainly.
"How do you know?" the girl asked. "It's like he said; he doesn't even know me! We could be the perfect match once we get to know each other! Besides, he hasn't said 'no' to me at all, so what makes you think you know what he's gonna say?"
This girl's persistent, Sonic thought with a mental groan. He paused, formulating a response, then smirked.
"'Cause he's taken."
The girl raised a brow. "'Taken'?" She shook her head. "I don't believe you. He wouldn't react the way he did if he was already taken. Unless he can call his girlfriend up right now and have her tell me that he's already dating her, then I won't—"
Sonic reached up and clasped Knuckles' hand in his own. "He's already dating me," he said, giving her a blank expression. "Don't appreciate the 'girl' comment, by the way. T'least you could do is get my gender right."
The girl's mouth dropped, but Sonic's expression remained cold and serious. She stepped back, then walked away from the two without another word.
Sonic waited for her to disappear from sight, then laughed lightly and released Knuckles' hand, blushing pink. "Sorry about that, Knux, but I had to get her to go away somehow."
Knuckles' face was flushed. "I-it's okay... th-thanks."
Sonic smiled, then continued walking with him until they got into the grocery store.
"Alright, first order of business; grab at least five bags of grapes for you," Sonic said, grabbing a small cart and heading for the produce aisle.
Knuckles grinned as he followed Sonic. "Just let me know if you need me you need me to carry anything!"
Sonic nodded. The two picked up some grapes and a few other things they needed, then headed down another aisle.
"Hey, Knux. Could y'reach that thing up there?" Sonic asked, pointing to something on the top shelf.
"Sure!" Knuckles reached up and grabbed it.
Sonic reached his hand out, waiting for Knuckles to give it to him.
Knuckles went to hand it to him, but then an idea came to his mind. He smirked, holding the object above his head.
Sonic blinked, realizing what Knuckles was pulling. "H-hey!"
He left the cart and did his best to pout without chuckling. "Knucklllles... hand it over," he told him, holding his hand out again.
Knuckles snickered. "Try and take it from me!" he teased.
"Maybe I will!" Sonic said.
He tried to reach for it, but Knuckles was far too tall for him. He smirked, then leapt at Knuckles, putting all of his weight on him and knocking him over. However, the fall surprised him a bit too, and as Knuckles hit the ground, he fell forward, causing his forehead to meet with Knuckles'. It wasn't too hard of a fall, so neither were hurt, but Sonic blushed slightly at the closeness and sat up, retrieving the item. "H-heh, gotcha!"
He heard a few giggles, then looked around shyly, noticing a few people watching them. He flushed further, quickly getting off of Knuckles.
Knuckles flushed too. "H-heh, I guess you win." He chuckled sheepishly.
"Yes!" Sonic cheered, putting the item in the cart.
The two finished up their shopping, then headed out, shopping bags in hand; Knuckles carried six while Sonic carried two.
"You sure about carryin' all that?" Sonic asked. "I mean, not that I don't think you can carry 'em, but..." He felt bad about having Knuckles carry most of the stuff.
"I'm sure," Knuckles replied. "I can carry even heavier things than this!" he bragged, grinning.
Sonic smiled, amused at how proud he was. "Ah, nevermind. Guess it doesn't matter," he said with a chuckle.
They returned to Sonic's apartment, putting all of the groceries away and managing to completely fill up the cupboards and fridge with what Sonic was missing.
"Sweet! Perfect fit!" Sonic exclaimed.
He went over to the couch in the living room, then sat down and turned on the TV. "Wanna see if there's anything good on, Knux?" he asked.
"Sure!"
Knuckles sat down next to Sonic.
Sonic stared back at the TV, then began to flip through the channels. The change between each channel was almost instantaneous, but Sonic's sharp eyes probably caught each millisecond of the channels' half-second long showings.
However, he stopped after passing one, instantly going back. It was the news.
"As you can see behind me, there's a serious fire going on at the local building. Fire fighters are struggling to get through and put the fire out, while many people are also still trapped inside."
Sonic glared, quickly putting the remote down and standing up. "Sit tight, Knux! I'll be back!"
He charged out of the house, not wanting to hear Knuckles argue with him.
"Sonic, wait!" Knuckles called.
But Sonic was already gone. It made him was a bit worried, since his friend could be very reckless at times, so he decided to get up and follow him.
Unfortunately, this proved to be very difficult.
He had no idea which way Sonic had gone, so he wandered aimlessly for a few minutes. Then, he smelled it: smoke!
He followed the horrible smell as it grew stronger and stronger, until he came to the burning building that he'd seen on television.
One of the fire fighters noticed him and walked over. "You should stay back. It's dangerous," he warned.
"Where's my friend?" Knuckles asked, worried. "Uh... he's blue, about this tall—" he showed Sonic's approximate height with his hands, "—and he came running here some minutes ago."
The fire fighter gazed back at the building. "Oh, him! Yeah, he saved us a lot of trouble. Came charging in and brought at least six people out of the building," he explained. "We did a count of how many people everyone said was in the building, but there was a little girl missing, so he went right back inside to look for her."
He frowned, clearly worried but not wanting to concern Knuckles in fear of him going after Sonic. "He's just... taking a while this time. Even if we wanted to go in, we have to wait for the fire to lessen; it's too dangerous to enter now."
Knuckles, however, had stopped listening beyond "he's just taking a while this time". He rushed into the building in a panic, despite the fire fighters shouting at him to come back.
The echidna searched and searched, finally managing to find Sonic, though certainly not in a state he wanted him to be in. The blue hedgehog was unconscious, a few large wooden boards having fallen on him. He was barely moving, and a young girl was laying under one of his arms, equally unconscious. Knuckles rushed towards them, not caring if he was putting himself in danger. He lifted the boards off of Sonic and the girl, then carefully scooped them both up in his arms. He could barely see the exit through the smoke, but he managed to carry them outside to safety.
The fire fighter from earlier quickly ran up to him. "What were you thinking? That was crazy!" he yelled. "...But..."
He took the girl off of him, then smiled. "You did it, so thanks."
He gazed down at Sonic, as if examining him, then called a doctor over. Judging by how Knuckles was holding onto him, he wouldn't have been very willing to let him go, and luckily, the doctor's analysis was positive. "He should be fine with some rest; looks like he just got hit around a little. You can take him home."
"Thanks," Knuckles said gratefully. He breathed a sigh of relief, then he began the journey back to Sonic's apartment, tenderly carrying Sonic in his arms.
Though out cold, Sonic's seemed to feel someone carrying him, and slowly leaned onto the echidna's chest. His hand reached up slightly, then gripped a patch of Knuckles' fur.
"...K-Knu...ckles..." he mumbled, coughing slightly. "...D'n't... follow me... b-be safe..."
Knuckles blushed lightly, flattered that Sonic cared so much for his safety.
"No way I'm gonna leave you hangin'," he replied, smiling softly. "If you're in danger, I'll always come and help, whether you like it or not!"
Sonic let out a small groan, a blush coming to his cheeks. "Y'mean... it?" Could he actually hear him?
"Of course!" Knuckles answered. "We're friends, aren't we?"
Sonic went unusually silent at that. "...Yeah."
Knuckles wasn't sure why Sonic had gone so quiet. Was it something he'd said?
"Don't worry, you'll be back home soon," he said to the hedgehog.
Sonic nodded, but didn't say anything beyond that, relaxing further into Knuckles' chest.
Pretty soon, they arrived at Sonic's apartment. Once inside, Knuckles laid Sonic down onto the couch.
It took a few hours, but Sonic finally woke up, opening his eyes slowly and looking around. "H-huh?" he muttered in a daze, slightly out of it.
"Welcome back," Knuckles said with a chuckle. "You feeling okay?"
Sonic nodded. "Y-yeah..."
He paused, then suddenly began to look around more frantically. "Wait! T-the girl!" he shouted, remembering what had happened before he passed out.
"She's fine," Knuckles assured him, "thanks to you."
Sonic breathed a sigh of relief. "I went back in for her... and then..." He put a hand to his head.
"You got knocked out," Knuckles explained. "But I saved both of you!" he added proudly.
"You did?" Sonic asked. His expression fell; he clearly hadn't wanted Knuckles to put himself in danger.
Knuckles seemed to sense Sonic's worry. "Yes, and I'm totally fine. I wasn't about to let anything bad happen to my best buddy!" He blushed a little as he said this.
Sonic blushed as well. "T-thanks..." He looked away sheepishly. "Don't worry. I feel fine too."
"So... anything I can get you?" Knuckles asked.
Sonic shook his head, then placed a hand on his stomach as it growled. "Nah. Think I'll just go make us some lunch."
He got up, but quickly staggered, letting out a stifled grunt. Ugh, what hit my back?
"No no, I'll get the lunch," Knuckles insisted. He couldn't cook, but he figured he could make sandwich or something.
Sonic tried to walk, but quickly fell to the ground. "Ngh... at least take me with ya so I can show you where everything is," he said.
Knuckles shook his head, but he complied. He lifted Sonic onto his shoulders.
"You okay up there?"
Sonic hung on slightly. "Y-yeah, I'm alright," he said, relaxing somewhat. "Toooo the kitchen!" He pointed to the kitchen, trying to sound as enthusiastic as possible.
Knuckles smiled. He headed into the kitchen.
"We've got a lot of fruit," Sonic reminded him. "We could just have a ton of that for lunch." He really didn't want to make Knuckles cook anything.
"Sounds good to me," Knuckles replied. To tell the truth, he was relieved that he didn't need to try making anything.
Sonic directed Knuckles' head towards the fridge. "All of it should be in there."
"'Kay!" Knuckles went over to the fridge and opened it. He grinned when he saw the grapes, and grabbed them first.
"What do you want?" he asked Sonic.
"A few apples and some strawberries," Sonic replied. "Uh... please." He blushed, not using that word often.
Knuckles smiled. "As you wish," he said playfully. He grabbed Sonic's food as well, then went and put everything on the table.
Sonic got himself down and managed to sit down at one of the chairs. He leaned forward, holding himself up with an elbow against the table, then picked up an apple and started to eat.
Knuckles also sat down, and began devouring the grapes.
"How's your lunch?" he asked Sonic.
Sonic smiled at him. "Juicy!"
He discarded the apple core, then picked up a strawberry and began to nibble on it.
Knuckles soon finished eating his lunch. "Mmm, yummy!"
Sonic finished as well, then sheepishly reached out to Knuckles in hopes of being carried back to the living room. "Should we watch some TV now like we planned to before?" he asked.
"Sure!" Knuckles carefully scooped up Sonic in his arms and carried him back to the couch.
Sonic rested down on the couch, but struggled to find a comfortable position laying down. He relaxed on his stomach, his head turned slightly to the TV. "Sorry if I'm takin' up too much space," he told Knuckles. "Don't mean to."
"It's fine," Knuckles assured him. "Anything you want me to do for ya?"
"Ah..." Sonic averted his gaze. "N-nah. I think I'm—" He winced as he tried to roll over to his side. "...fine."
"You sure?" Knuckles asked, concern visible on his face.
Sonic nodded, obviously trying to hide the pain. "Y-yeah, no big deal. I've been through worse."
Knuckles was silent for a moment. Then an idea came to him.
"Where does it hurt exactly?"
Sonic pouted, hesitating before responding, "Mostly my back, I guess."
Knuckles nodded thoughtfully. Then he gently reached over and... began massaging Sonic?
Sonic's ears perked on alert, surprised by the sudden treatment. "K-Knux—" A soft rumbling noise emerged from his throat, almost purr-like as he relaxed to Knuckles' touch.
Knuckles smiled at his reaction. "That's it, just relax..."
Sonic nodded, unable to help giving into Knuckles' request. The two spent a little longer on the massage, then watched TV for the remainder of the day, as Sonic was unable to do much besides that.
After dinner and a movie, they decided to head over to Knuckles' apartment to sleep, though Sonic was resistant as he was taken into the echidna's bedroom.
"Knuuux, c'mon," he said. "It's your room. You should get the bed."
"Nah, it's fine," Knuckles replied. "You should have the bed."
Sonic sat down on the floor and crossed his arms, giving Knuckles a stubborn glare. "No way! I'm not takin' it."
"You're my guest!" Knuckles argued. "You get the bed!"
"Not happenin'!" Sonic said. "I'm sleepin' on the couch!"
Knuckles picked up Sonic and set him down on the bed.
"You're getting the bed, and that's final!"
He then turned around to head outside of the room. Unfortunately, the door was only open very slightly, and he happened to run right into it with a loud "SMACK".
"Hello, door..." He wobbled around for a bit, then fell to the ground.
"Knux!" Sonic shouted, quickly going to Knuckles' side.
"Are you alright?" he asked. "Look... just... let me have the couch for tonight, okay?"
He blushed. "Please?"
Knuckles groaned. "Fine, you win..." he mumbled, once the room stopped spinning.
Sonic nodded, then forced himself up, heading out and flopping down on the couch.
Reluctantly, Knuckles got up and went to the bed. As he crawled under the covers, his eyes drooped, and he soon fell asleep.
Sonic got comfortable on the couch, then slowly fell asleep as well.
Sometime later, Knuckles woke up in a sweat. He'd had another nightmare. Sighing, he climbed out of bed and went into the living room.
"Sonic?" he whispered nervously.
Sonic stirred, then opened an eye. Seeing Knuckles in a state of distress, he looked at him worriedly. "Knux? What's goin' on?" he asked.
"I...I had another nightmare." The echidna blushed in embarrassment.
"Oh." Sonic was clearly concerned. Two nightmares in a row? "Was it the same nightmare...?" he asked.
"K-kinda..." Knuckles replied, turning his gaze nervously. One detail had been different, but it was something that he just couldn't tell Sonic.
"...Y'wanna sleep with me again then?" Sonic questioned, albeit hesitantly.
Knuckles nodded. "Is...is that okay?"
"'Course it is," Sonic said simply. "...You wanna take me back to bed with ya, or...?" He patted the couch.
"I think there's enough room for both us here," Knuckles replied.
He climbed onto the couch and snuggled next to Sonic. "How's this?"
Sonic blushed at Knuckles' closeness. "Y-yeah, that's alright," he muttered softly.
Knuckles blushed as he felt the warmth of Sonic's body against his.
"Mm... goodnight..." he mumbled sleepily.
Hours later, well into the morning, a knock came at the door.
"Knuckles! Are you home?" Amy's voice rang from behind said door.
Sonic let out a small groan, but didn't wake up in the slightest, only curling up against Knuckles further.
Knuckles, meanwhile, began to stir. He groaned sleepily and got up off the couch, careful not to wake Sonic. He went to the door and opened it.
"Hey, Knuckles!" Amy greeted with a smile. "I was watching the news yesterday. I was so worried when I saw you dash into that building!"
"Y-you saw that?"
I guess I was so worried about Sonic that I forgot the news people were there, Knuckles realized.
"Yeah, are you okay?" Amy asked. She then noticed Sonic on the couch. "Oh! Has he not woken up since you got him out?"
"Oh, no, he did; he just stayed over for the night," Knuckles explained.
"That's good," Amy said with a sigh of relief. She took another look at the hedgehog, then leaned onto Knuckles. "Aaaand... did you tell him yet?" she asked.
"Tell him what?" Knuckles tilted his head in confusion.
"Don't play dumb," Amy told him, giggling. "Him waking up would've been the perfect moment to tell him how you feel!"
She did a small twirl and clasped her hands together. "You could've told him that you'd never leave him behind and cradled him in your arms, then said it all romantically, 'I love you'!" she cooed.
Knuckles blushed. "O-oh... I guess I didn't think of that."
Amy frowned. "Knuckles, you know it's just going to get harder the longer you wait, right?" she asked.
Knuckles looked down at his shoes and sighed. "I know..."
Amy lightly patted his arm. "What's the problem? You just can't say it?"
"Yeah," Knuckles admitted, "I just chicken out every time I try to!"
"...Then you don't have to say it!" Amy exclaimed, getting an idea. "You can make him a cake and write the words 'I love you' on it with icing! I'll help you make the cake, but you have to write the words yourself," she told him. "How does that sound?"
"B-but... I don't know how to write..." Knuckles reminded her, looking ashamed.
"Oh, I know," Amy said. "I'll give you a reference and you can just try to imitate it!"
She grabbed his hand, then led him into the kitchen. "Don't worry. How could someone resist an 'I love you' cake?"
Knuckles smiled. "You're right!" he replied. "Let's get started!"
And so they did. Amy instructed Knuckles and each and every little thing he needed to do. The cake flavor didn't matter much, so they went with vanilla.
As it came out of the oven, Amy wrote down 'I love you' on a piece of paper and showed it to Knuckles. "Like this," she told him, pointing to it. "You can do it!"
"O-okay," Knuckles replied.
Once the main frosting was put on the cake, he nervously began to copy Amy's writing with blue frosting.
It was a bit sloppy, but that was to be expected.
"That'll do," She told him. She picked up the cake, then handed it to Knuckles. "I shouldn't be here when he sees. We still have our party at Tails' apartment later though, so I'll see ya then!"
She walked out happily, hoping that everything went well.
Knuckles took a deep breath.
Okay, I can do this. Just give him the cake...
As Knuckles headed for Sonic, the hedgehog almost seemed to sense his presence. He stirred, his eyes shooting open as he gazed up at him. Knuckles was startled, not expecting Sonic to be awake. Before he could react, the cake fell right out of his hands and landed on the floor, writing side down.
Sonic's eyes widened at the falling cake. He stared at it for a while, then chuckled, covering his mouth slightly. "I guess that's one way to distract me from the pain! Poor waste of cake though," he joked.
Knuckles, however, barely heard him. His heart sank as he stared at the cake. All his work had been for nothing. He sniffled, tears forming in his eyes.
Sonic stopped chuckling immediately. "K-Knux?"
He got up from the couch, slightly confused but wanting comfort his friend anyway. "It's just a cake..."
"B-but I-I made it f-for y-you..." Knuckles' voice shook as he began to cry. He didn't even mention what had made the cake so special in the first place.
Sonic blushed, flattered that Knuckles was getting so emotional over such a thing.
"H-hey, it's alright." He held Knuckles' hand gently. "Look, I don't mind, okay? Just the fact that you made me a cake in the first place is good enough for me!" he said.
Knuckles turned his gaze away. You don't understand...
"Hey," Sonic said, though a little more sternly this time. He placed a hand on Knuckles' cheek, then forced him to look at him. "It's okay... I mean it."
Knuckles blushed at the touch. He still felt miserable that his confession hadn't happened, though.
I guess I could still tell him now, Knuckles realized. I...I dunno. Having him read it is one thing, but actually saying it?
He just couldn't bring himself to speak.
Sonic gave him a reassuring smile. He still didn't understand Knuckles' feelings, but he wanted to help.
Knuckles said nothing for a while. He just continued to sob quietly, wishing that he could just tell Sonic what was wrong.
Sonic frowned, hating to see his friend like this. He hesitated, then slowly brought his arms around Knuckles' waist and hugged him, his face turning a light shade of red.
Knuckles' face flushed as well, but he accepted the hug. He continued to cry for quite some time.
Sonic tightened the hug, then gazed up at Knuckles. "Hey... how 'bout I make ya more of those grape-filled pancakes?" he asked, giving him a smile. "Will that cheer ya up?"
Knuckles' eyes brightened a bit, and he nodded.
Sonic let go of Knuckles, then headed for the kitchen, happy that he was able to get a positive reaction out of his friend.
"And don't worry 'bout the mess!" Sonic told him from the kitchen. "I'll clean it up!"
Knuckles nodded. He stared down at the ruined cake and sighed.
So much for confessing...
Sonic cleaned up the mess, then got to making the pancakes. He made three large ones, then stacked them onto a plate and held said plate out to Knuckles. "Is this enough?" he asked.
Knuckles nodded, taking the plate. "Th-thanks."
Sonic handed him a fork, then went back to make his own breakfast.
As Knuckles ate the pancakes, he still felt somewhat sad, but he had to admit that he was cheered up a little now.
After they were done with breakfast, the two hung out as usual. They waited until it was time to head out to Tails' apartment, then did just that.
The two approached the door, and Amy instantly opened it without them even knocking.
"C'mon in, guys! We were just talking about you," she said, gesturing for them to walk inside.
"Oh yeah?" Sonic chuckled and walked inside.
As Knuckles attempted to follow, Amy stopped him, lowering her voice. "So? How'd it go?" she asked quietly, looking excited.
Knuckles sighed sadly. "Terrible. I...I dropped the cake before he could see it..."
He turned his gaze away in embarrassment.
"Oh no!" Amy gasped, saddening at the news. "B-but... did you still try to tell him anyway?"
Knuckles shook his head. "No, I was too nervous," he admitted.
And too busy crying my eyes out, he added mentally.
Amy frowned. "I see..."
She paused, looking around as if gears were turning in her head, then turned. "Hey, Sonic?"
Sonic glanced over. "Yeah, Ames?"
Amy pointed to a closet nearby. "Can you and Knuckles go grab all the board games from in there? Tails and I want all options available to us, you know?"
Sonic raised a brow, then shrugged. "Sure, I guess. Must be a ton of board games if it takes two." He headed for the closet.
Knuckles followed him into the closet, not sure what Amy was up to.
As the two got in and started searching for the board games, then door was suddenly slammed shut behind them, a soft 'click' sound following. Sonic checked just to be sure, and the door was locked.
"Whoa! Ames, what's the big idea?" Sonic asked, banging on the door slightly.
"Neither of you are coming out until you talk!" Amy responded.
"Huh? 'Talk'?" Sonic was so confused by her wording.
Knuckles had a feeling he knew what Amy meant, but he pretended to be oblivious to it.
"T-talk? About what?"
"Yeah, talk about what?" Sonic asked.
"Knuckles knows!" Amy replied plainly.
Sonic looked up at Knuckles in confusion. "What's she mean?"
Knuckles blushed, shrugging.
"I-I dunno what she's talking about!" He laughed nervously.
Sonic frowned at the tone in his voice. "Knux, what's up?" He turned a small light on in the closet, then gazed up at him. "You hidin' something from me?"
"H-hiding something? N-no way!" Knuckles' breathing became heavier.
Sonic saddened. "You're lying."
Knuckles looked down at his shoes, sighing. He was starting to tremble.
Sonic frowned worriedly. "Bud..."
He grabbed Knuckles' hand gently. "Y'can tell me anything..." he said softly.
Knuckles blushed at the gesture. He was shaking horribly now.
I guess I don't really have a choice now, he realized. I just hope Sonic doesn't hate me for this...
He took a deep breath. "Y-you know how I've been... h-having nightmares a lot?"
Sonic nodded. "Yeah, I've been wantin' to ask about that," he said. "Why did both of your nightmares involve me? Did I do something?"
"N-no!" Knuckles replied. "I-in my nightmares, s-something bad always happens to y-you..."
He hesitated. "And in one of them, y-you... you also ended up h-hating me..."
Sonic was shocked by this. "Wha? Knux, I'd never hate you!" he assured. "We're best buds, aren't we?"
"Y-yeah..."
Knuckles' heart was pounding. "I-it's just... you know that cake I made for you?"
Sonic nodded. "Yeah, what about it?" he asked, tilting his head.
Knuckles took a few deep breaths, then gulped nervously.
It's now or never... he told himself.
"It was an 'I love you' cake!" he blurted out. "I was going to u-use it to... c-confess to you..."
He shut his eyes tightly, bracing himself for Sonic's reaction.
Sonic's heart skipped a beat, his expression being more than enough to show how stunned he was. "Y-you...?"
He took a moment to process the information. He really cared for Knuckles, but he never imagined that he'd ever fall in love with someone. He figured it was a choice and he didn't think such a thing would happen to him.
But he also knew that he got flustered around the echidna; that he got annoyed when he saw that girl flirting with him and that he didn't mind one bit when Knuckles wanted to sleep next to him.
He took a breath, then grabbed a nearby stool and placed it in front of Knuckles. He climbed on, then reached his hands up and lightly touched Knuckles' cheeks.
He pulled him in and kissed him.
Knuckles let out a muffled surprised noise, his eyes shooting open. He could barely believe what was happening. His face flushed as he realized: Sonic was actually kissing him. A swarm of butterflies erupted in his stomach as he did his best to kiss back, never having done this with anyone before.
Sonic was blushing as well, his arms encircling Knuckles' neck as he attempted to pull himself closer. He knew he'd wanted to kiss him, but he didn't know it'd feel so amazing. His knees nearly buckled from the sensation.
Knuckles wrapped his arms around Sonic in a hug as they continued to kiss. He wished that this moment could last forever and ever.
Sonic blushed further at the hug, letting out a small sound of surprise.
However, their moment was interrupted as another 'click' sound was heard. The door opened, and Sonic pulled away, turning to see Amy standing in the closet doorway with a big smile on her face.
Sonic became absolutely red.
"I, um, uh..." Knuckles stammered. He had no idea what to say.
Amy giggled. "Don't worry. Come on out, Tails and I already have a game set up."
"H-hey," Sonic said with a pout, "I thought you wanted to wait until we had all of the games out to decide."
"I lied," Amy replied with a wide grin.
"So, can we come out of the closet now?" Knuckles asked, unaware of the double meaning of that sentence.
Sonic giggled. "Yeah, let's go."
He climbed off the stool, then grabbed Knuckles' hand and led him out.
They didn't leave each other's side for the rest of the day.