Home at last, I thought with a sigh. After a long day of collecting rings and beating up badniks, a little time with my special someone was just what I needed. I blushed at the thought of spending time with him.
I wonder what Mini-me has been up to, I wondered. He's probably been spending the whole day with Classic Tails or something. I snickered at such a thought.
Coming mere paces away from my Green-Hill home, I put a smile on my face and turned the doorknob. Immediately upon doing so, I felt a familiar rush of wind billow past my ears. "Mini-me!" I called into the house. "I'm here!"
As if on cue, Mini-me ran up to me as fast as he could and practically tackled me. The force of it all nearly pushed me off my feet—forcing me to stumble backwards.
Feeling as he nuzzled me playfully, I ran my fingers through Mini-me's spines. "How was your day?" I asked in curiosity.
Mini-me responded with a thumbs-up—to which I chuckled.
"Hey," I began, scratching behind my ear, "I might be going crazy, but weren't you a bit chubbier last night?"
In response to my question, Mini-me blushed—his face turning redder than it was blue. He took a look down and patted his belly.
As I watched the love of my life fool around with his tummy, I let out a huge yawn—the likes of which nearly pierced my own ears. It was while yawning when I felt Mini-me nuzzle against my chest once again.
Seeing the obvious playfulness in his eyes, I took a look down at him and smirked. I touched my nose to his when I asked, "Let's say we take this to the bed, huh?"
Placing an amused grin on his face, Mini-me jumped into my arms—throwing me off-balance all the while. "Whoa!" I chuckled, stumbling over to the bed while holding him in my arms. He seemed to be growing heavier and heavier by the second! Fortunately for me, it didn't take long for me to reach the bed.
"And—here we are!" Those words flying from my mouth, I dropped Mini-me into our bed.
With a smile on his chubby face, Mini-me pulled me down to him. Before I knew it, my nose was touching his once again.
I returned my younger self's smile as I dragged a finger along his chest. The result of such an action made him release an inaudible giggle. "So," I began, continuing to drag my finger. "Do you want to talk or get down to business?"
His eyes hungry, his chest ticklish, Mini-me wrapped his arms around my neck. To such a notion, I pulled myself toward him and stuck my tongue in his mouth. He did the same—only with much less force than me.
Pulling away, I murmured, "I love you, Mini-me!"
My young counterpart replied with a quick nod—then resumed kissing me.
Nothing could ruin this moment for me; I had the greatest hedgehog in the world right beneath my grasp. Funny to think about—considering he's just my younger self—but I didn't care. I could love whoever I wanted—no matter what time or dimension they came from!
In the midst of my happiness, I witnessed something blue poking out from the window. At first I thought it was a part of Mini-me—but its skin was too light a blue to be a part of Classic Sonic's body.
Pulling my lips away from Mini-me, I looked over at the blue creature in question. What is that? With further investigation, I discovered said creature was a chao. "What in the—?"
Clearly curious as to why I had stopped kissing him, Mini-me turned his gaze toward the window and caught sight of the chao, as well. It was while staring at the little blue animal when his ears flattened against his head and his teeth ground together.
I knew this day was coming. I didn't want it to come—but it was looming over us like a cloud. There was nothing I could have done to stop it; the warning signs were sitting under my nose the whole time. A sigh escaped from my lungs before I muttered, "I guess it's that time, huh?"
His ears twitching, Mini-me put a finger to his lip. Sadness showed in his eyes as he rubbed my cheek. Without any way to talk, that was all he could do.
Taking notice of his obvious confusion, I decided it was time to explain just what was going on. "Right around your age—" I began. "—or, uh, however old you are—I started becoming the hedgehog that I am today. Just earlier I noticed your belly was getting smaller. That's just phase one. Soon you will have longer hair and green eyes. And before you know it, you'll be talking!"
An almost amused smile plastered upon Classic's face upon hearing those words. "You really think so?" At that moment, Mini-me froze—his face turning red and his eyes widening.
My mouth hung open before I stammered, "You—you just—!"
Finishing the sentence for me, Classic giggled, "I—I talked!"
Despite being able to talk to my younger self for the first time ever, I couldn't help but let a shiver run down my spine. It's not that bad, I reassured myself, hoping to alleviate my fears. After all, now I can talk with him! "Well hey," I began, "you're still my Mini-me!"
It's strange though, I thought while scratching the back of my head. I don't remember my voice being that—that perfect blend between nasally and squeaky.
"And now I have a voice," Mini-me added with a chuckle. And with that, he hugged me tight—nearly squeezing the breath out of me—and murmured, "Now then—where were we, Older-me?"
Almost as if out of nowhere, I hesitantly responded, "Sleeping." Without further ado, I pulled the blankets over me—enveloping myself in its warm embrace.
Even though I was faced opposite of Classic I could practically see the undeveloped tears ready to form in his eyes. "O-older me?" he stuttered in confusion.
"Goodnight," I responded.
In a desperate attempt to remove my anchor on the bed, Mini-me started nudging my shoulder. He did this once—then twice—until I found myself shouting, "I said goodnight!"
The sound of my roar made Mini-me jump—shaking the bed all the while. I could practically hear him crying—very silently, but he was crying nevertheless.
Letting out a sigh, I muttered, "I'm sorry," and turned around to plant a kiss on his forehead. Much to my well-deserved surprise, the only thing my ice-cold lips touched was a blanket. "Mini-me?" he was nowhere to be seen. He's probably in the living room, I thought with a sigh.
It was maybe six in the morning when I woke up—almost surprised to notice Classic was nowhere to be seen. Did he spend the whole night in the living room? Really? Shaking my head, I pulled the blankets off my body and furtively made my way to the living room.
Lying before me was my lover—using the floor as his own bed. There were no pillows under him and no blankets sitting on top of him.
He's still asleep, I thought with a sigh. I guess now is the best time. I fought back tears as I reached for a pen and piece of paper. Every word I wrote down spelled the truth—the harsh, painful truth. I would have to tell it to Mini-me at one point or another—and as I said earlier: now was the best time.
Rubbing my moist eye, I ended off my note. Hoping to put all my regrets behind me, I tip-toed my way over to Mini-me and gently set it upon him as he slept.