(( Alright so a few things before you read: One, I do NOT own Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters, names, places, etc. But I DO own Shellshock the Turtle and Boom the Hedgehog.
Also, there is a prequal in the works to this story because as I wrote this I found it may be a bit confusing. So no worries, its being written soon.
Anyways, enjoy!))

Boom the Hedgehog never liked it when he was called at three o'clock in the morning. But then again, the only person that really called him was his friend Shellshock the Turtle and he liked knowing the little guy trusted him enough to ask for his assistance when he needed it.

Zipping up his leather jacket and taking out his black fingerless gloves, the red hedgehog thought about what route would be the fastest way to the turtle's house and after a few more minutes, jumped out of the tree he was sleeping in and started running down Green Hill towards the Downtown District. In only five minutes, Boom was already at Shellshock's front door and he knocked quietly before entering the house in case he was already asleep. He may have been a clone of Sonic, but he had learned the hard way that you can't rush into everything no matter how important. Sometimes, you need to slow down.

"Shock?" Boom walked through the house as he tried to find his friend, but the turtle and his parents were nowhere to be found. His parents not being home were common though, since they both worked and traveled everywhere. He put his hands to his hips and thought for a bit on where Shellshock might be before rolling his eyes and walking outside to stare at the roof of the house. Sure enough, Shellshock was sitting on the roof gazing at the stars, oblivious to everything else.

"Hey, aren't you cold up there?""

Shellshock blinked a few times and looked down at Boom from where he was sitting, "Hey Boom! When did you get here?"

Boom smirked and crossed his arms, "Well I WAS here for about ten minutes trying to look for you; should have realized you would be on the roof. Anyways, you want to come down from there so we can talk?"

The turtle nodded and he hopped off the roof and landed in a roll before getting to his feet, dusting the dirt he had gotten on his blue jeans. The yellow bandanna he wore over the top of his head and half of his face down to his nose almost fell off and Shellshock secured it back in its place. "Yeah come on in, bro! I can make you some hot cocoa if you want?"

Boom nodded eagerly at the sound of cocoa and walked into the house after the turtle, placing his jacket on a coat hanger in the closet before walking to the kitchen, his shoes clicking on the tile floor. Shellshock had already taken off his mask and had placed it on the counter, his brown eyes narrowed as he tried to find the cocoa mix. Boom went over to the dining table and sat down, his feet crossed on the table top as he waited for his friend to join him.

"Where are your folks? Are they out of town again?"

Shellshock nodded as he took the chocolate mix down and went to the fridge for some milk, "Yup, they left early this morning. Yet again, I'm in charge."

Boom smiled, "Guess you proved to them that you could handle things yourself, huh?"

Shellshock shrugged, finally sitting down with two mugs of rich hot chocolate with marshmallows. Boom took his and sipped a little happily, sighing with relaxation as he warmed up a bit. Cocoa to the red hedgehog was like chili dogs to Sonic; he just couldn't resist it.

"So…..you're probably wondering why I called you, huh?"

Boom shrugged. "It was on my mind as I ran over here. What's up, kid?"

Shellshock bit his lip a bit. He was trying to find the right words to describe it but none seemed to form in his mind. "Um…Well….I….Uh…"

Boom waited patiently for Shellshock to respond, sipping the cocoa slowly and eating a few of the marshmallows. He knew that if he pressured him, he would clam up and say nothing. And in Shellshock's case, not talking about something was the worst thing to do.

"Well….I kind of wanted to talk to you about something."

Boom sat the mug down on the table. His friend's tone and expression on his face read that something was up. "Is something wrong?" His purple eyes narrowed in a bit of anger, "Someone giving you a hard time?"

When Boom had first met Shellshock about a year or so ago, the turtle was an outcast due to the large crack in his shell from an accident that happened when Shellshock was younger. And to turtles, their shell was like tails on a fox; their pride and symbol of being what they are. Nowadays he didn't get as much torment for it, but Boom once in a while had to put someone in their place. He never liked physical force, but he found great pleasure in dishing out pain when he had to; he and a few of Sonic's friends got along pretty well because of that.

Shellshock quickly put his hands up and waved them about frantically. "No, no! Everything is fine! No one is giving me a hard time or anything!"

Boom considered his response and the look on his face left him. "Okay…so then what is it?"

The turtle rubbed his left arm nervously. "I…I think I'm in love Boom."

Boom blinked in confusion. "…Love?"

"Lately I've been thinking about someone. At first I thought it was nothing but now I can't stop."

"…I see…" Boom sipped his hot chocolate and his brow furrowed as he began to think. "Who is the girl?"

The turtle blushed and tried to hide it as he got up to grab something from the fridge. "Erm…I've known her for a year now."

Boom sighed as he took his feet off the table. "That isn't what I asked. Now, WHO is it that you are talking about?"

Shellshock bit his lip and blushed slightly, staring at the fridge unmoving until he sighed in defeat. He could never hide anything from Boom no matter how hard he tried.

"Amy…Amy Rose."

For a split second Boom's face was still as stone as he registered the name, but then his jaw slackened and his eyes grew wide from shock. He recoiled with a gasp and the chair fell backwards, making Shellshock chuckle nervously.

"AMY?" Boom scrambled back onto the chair and stared at Shellshock with disbelief. "Out of all the girls you could choose from, why pick her?"

"Why not," Shellshock stated with frustration in his voice as he turned to his friend. "She's cute, sweet, is actually pretty cool once you get to know her..."

Boom rolled his eyes. "In case you can't remember, is only interested in Sonic. And me, since I'm the blue guy's clone; which pisses me off to no end."

The turtle's face contorted to one of anger for a few seconds and Boom was ready for his friend to explode at him. But instead, Shellshock sighed sadly and looked down at the floor. Boom stared at Shellshock for a bit, slowly feeling guilt over how he had taken the news. He sighed deeply and took a large sip of his drink before standing up, walking over to Shellshock and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Look Shellshock. I'm not saying I disapprove of your choice. I'm actually happy that you like someone and you wanna pursue her. I have never been in love before, so I can't give you any pointers….but I will help you as best as I can, okay?"

Shellshock slowly nodded and huffed. His frustration had gone away now and he turned to the hedgehog and smirked, "So….you gonna stay here tonight? It's kinda cold out there and I'd hate to wake up tomorrow knowing my bro was frozen solid."

Boom cracked a grin and stood up, "You still have those videogames I bought?"

The turtle nodded. "Heck yeah I do! I'm not about to get rid of the videogames you actually got up and bought for yourself to play when your over here. Besides," he stood up at stared upwards at the hedgehog seriously, "You owe me a rematch in Mobian Kombat."

Boom grinned evilly, crossing his arms as he stared the turtle down. "Still sore over how I whooped ya? Alrighty then, get the system ready I gotta use the restroom first."

The hedgehog walked out of the kitchen and went up the stairs to the bathroom. He chuckled as he heard Shellshock run down the stairs that led from the kitchen to the living room, jumping down to the floor as he reached halfway. The turtle had certainly grown up since he had first met him, and Boom knew that it was fate that brought their lives together that one year.

Shellshock was the only true family he had. And he knew that the turtle considered Boom like an older brother, which secretly made the hedgehog glad he wasn't alone in the world.