A/N: "All you gotta do is, man, hold her where you want her. Squeeze her, don't tease her, never leave her." – Otis Redding "Try a Little Tenderness"

"If you let me, here's what I'll do: I'll take care of you." – Rihanna in Drake's "Take Care"

I do not talk, I am just a writer.

Chapter Six: Expressing

(With Silver, approx. 11 AM)

The hedgehog cast a tortured glance at the house of his best friend before trudging off of the porch and down the driveway, heading towards the curb; he was still in disbelief that Blaze had kicked him out over a petty argument. He had gotten riled up and had let his emotions speak for him, rather than keeping his cool and letting the subject drop itself. Now he was stuck an hour's walk away from his apartment; and he knew for a fact that Blaze was definitely not going to give him a ride home. Giving a defeated sigh, he pulled out his smartphone and scrolled through his contacts, selecting a number and then putting the phone to his ear.

Not soon after he dialed the number did a receptionist pick up. "Station Square Attorneys at Law, how may I help you?" A female voice asked in a professional tone.

"May I speak to Malique the Hedgehog?"

"You may, just hold on one second."

Soon the other end of the line was filled with soothing classical music as Silver patiently waited on the receptionist to transfer his call.

Then, the music stopped and in a very professional tone, Malique stated, "This is Malique."

"'Lique, you busy?"

An irritated sigh escaped the older hedgehog and the professional tone of his voice was replaced with his usual irritation. "I'm at work, what do you think?"

"I don't know, that's why I asked."

"What do you want?"

"Okay so, you know how Rod was supposed to drop me off at Blaze's house? And how I was supposed to be like her shoulder to cry on for the day?"

"Yeah."

"So, when I got here, Blaze and I sort of got into a little argument and she kicked me out."

"An argument, huh? What'd you say?"

"Nothing. She was bitching at me for not coming to her wedding and saying that my reasons for leaving town weren't important and I told her that if she wanted to be conceited and ignorant…"

"You dumbass," Malique interrupted in a hushed tone so that no one else would be able to hear the profanity that was escaping his mouth. "You never, ever, part your lips to call a woman anything but her name or to compliment her. And this is why you called me, to tell me about your woman troubles?"

"No, I called to ask if you could maybe take me home."

"What part of 'I'm at work' do you not understand?"

"Isn't your lunch break in, like, thirty minutes?"

"You expect me to sacrifice my lunch break to take drive all the way across town to Blaze's house, pick you up, and take you back across town to your apartment?"

"Yeah…"

"Hell no."

"Please Malique? My apartment is over an hour's walk from here."

The older hedgehog sighed before caving. "Fine. If you walk to the office, I'll take you home."

Silver rose a fist in victory before thanking his brother and then hanging up, walking towards downtown Station Square.

(Meanwhile, with Blaze)

Conceited? Ignorant?

Did Silver really think that?

Was her wanting to see him amongst the family and friends in the crowd at her wedding six years ago making her conceited? Was wanting to see her best friend happy for her selfish? Was she considered ignorant for not being able to understand his reason for disappearing form her life and then reappearing six years later?

Who wouldn't want their best friend to be at their wedding? Who wouldn't feel destroyed when they walked down the aisle and found that the seat reserved for their best friend was the only empty seat in the building? Who wouldn't feel betrayed to know that the person that had stuck with them through thick and thin, the person that they could rely on, the person that was always supposed to have their back had walked right out of their life as if they could care less? And who wouldn't be absolutely baffled when they show up out of the blue and explain that they left because they were in love with you.

If not finding the logic in Silver's explanation of why he left town and never came to her wedding was considered conceited and ignorant, then Blaze was by all means the most selfish and stupid being on the planet. If…

The ringing of a cell phone drew the feline out of her deep thoughts and she took a seat on her son's bed before checking the caller ID, which read "Daddy".

"Hey," She answered, crossing her arms over her bosom and her legs over one another.

"Hey Sweetie. Your son misses you," Inferno said, his voice sounding tired for it to only be eleven in the morning.

This caused Blaze to chuckle. Shift could never be away from her for an extended period of time without getting homesick. "Really now?"

"Yep. Every five minutes I'm hearing 'I miss mommy' or 'I wanna go home'. It was cute the first few times, but now it's irritating. I don't think I could put up with it for another day. You mind if I bring him home early?"

"No, I don't mind. I'm surprised he made it this long, I never really expected for him to stay the entire weekend."

"Okay, good. I can tell him to get ready to go home and maybe he'll stop whining." Inferno sighed. "I wanna talk to you about why you sent him here too. What's going on at your house to where you had to bring Shift here for the weekend?"

Blaze frowned before shaking her head, her anger for Silver being replaced with her heartbreak for Sonic. "Is Shift anywhere around?"

"No, he's in the back playing his game. Why, what is it?"

"Daddy, I found out last night that Sonic was cheating on me. I didn't want Shift to be home when I confronted him about it."

"Wait, wait, wait, what?"

"Sonic is having an affair. I don't know how long it's been going on. I just found out about it last night."

"How'd you find out?"

"Silver and Malique told me. At first I didn't believe them, because Silver was stammering and Malique was the one who actually told me; but then when they gave me the details, I started to put the pieces together. They said that he was at Graffiti's with some girl and they ordered a drink for the girl and Sonic came over ready to fight them."

"Okay, okay, okay Blaze, don't cry. Calm down. I'll be over there in a few, okay?"

The feline reached a hand up to her face, noticing that her cheek was wet. When had she started crying? Hurriedly wiping her eyes, she managed to choke out an "Okay" before hanging up the phone.

Blaze was not one to cry. In fact, she rarely cried. Something absolutely devastating had to happen in order to get her to shed a tear. Had finding out about Sonic's affair really cut her that deep to where she was crying without even noticing? Was it that much of a blow to her well-being? Could it have hurt her that bad?

(With Silver, approx. noon)

It was hot. No, hot was an understatement. It was roasting. Heat waves shimmered on the horizon, the grass wilted and turned brown, even the insects ceased to fly around due to the extreme heat. And yet, there was Silver, sitting out in the sun in jeans.

C'mon Malique, hurry up. It's hot as hell, Silver thought as he stood near his brother's car and eyed the back entrance of the building, somewhat impatiently awaiting the appearance of his brother.

After what seemed like an eternity, Malique emerged from the building in his usual suit and tie and headed for his car, shaking his head at his brother. "It's hot. Why do you have on jeans?"

"I didn't expect to be outside much today."

The older hedgehog gave and understanding nod as he unlocked his car, letting his brother get in and away from the harsh glare of the sun. Then, as he got into the driver's side, he drew back and gave Silver a hard slap to the back of his head.

Silver winced and reached up to the spot where his brother hit him, covering it with both hands before glaring daggers at the older hedgehog. "What the hell man?!"

"Don't give me that. You deserve it for making me miss my lunch and getting kicked out of Blaze's house. What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"What are you talking about? You agreed to take me home."

Malique sighed before starting his car and pulling out of his parking space. "I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about what you said to Blaze that got you kicked out? Why would you say something like that to her, especially when she's going through this shit with Sonic?"

"Well, she was being conceited and kinda ignorant for downplaying and not understanding my reasons for dipping out…"

"I don't understand your reasons for dipping out. If you really truly love her like you say you do, why in the hell did you scoot out of her life for six years?"

"I told you: I couldn't stand to see her stand at the altar and pledge her life to someone that she didn't deserve. I could barely contain myself at her wedding rehearsal, why would I torture myself at her actual wedding?"

"Because you're her best friend. You're the only person other than her husband that she can trust with her life. You're supposed to have her back."

"I do have her back. I've always had her back…"

"Stop lying. You didn't have her back when you moved to Angel Island, and don't say you did because it's impossible to have someone's back if you don't speak to them. Silver, she trusted you. She trusted that you would be there to share the biggest moment of her life with her because she thought that you cared about her; so you running off without so much as saying goodbye on the biggest day of her life tells her that you couldn't give two fucks about her. Don't you think that had to hurt her? Don't you think that it gashed her heart to not see you at her wedding? And you then pop up out of nowhere and tell her that you love her, like it wouldn't confuse the shit outta her.

"You left without saying a damn thing, you just walked right outta her life like she didn't matter, and you didn't even as much as text her for six years. Do you know how long that is? That's over two thousand days without hearing from someone that's supposed to always have your back, that's supposed to care about you, and that's supposed to be there for you. So all of this is running through her head and you expect her to be fine with you just showing up and saying that you love her? How can she believe you when you hurt her like this? You don't do that to the people you love man. You don't just disappear like that, when they need you the most. And, after all of this that you put her through, she is still willing to talk to you and be friends with you like old times. But she's the conceited and stupid one? Boy, if I wasn't driving I'd hit you in your head again."

Silver was speechless. How could he counter what his brother had just told him? He did walk out of Blaze's life when she needed him the most, he did go six years without even attempting to speak to her, and he did come out of nowhere and throw his feelings onto her, expecting her to be okay with it. And it seemed like she was. It seemed like she was trying to pick up right where they had left off; she had introduced him to her son, she spent an entire day with him, she hugged him, she talked with him, she laughed with him. She had done everything that a normal best friend would do, even though he had hurt her almost beyond repair. And he had the nerve, the audacity to call her conceited and ignorant, when it was really him that was deserving of those insults. He was wrong. "You know what Malique," the younger hedgehog began, his gaze going out of the car's window. "You're right. I was wrong. I was wrong to walk out of her life because of my feelings for her. I was wrong to not speak to her for six years. I was wrong to just appear and tell her how I felt and expect her to be okay with it. And I was dead wrong to call her conceited when I've been the one who was only thinking about myself. I mean, she's going through something traumatic, and she needs me there to help her through it, and I'm being a dick."

"You need to apologize, before you lose the only reason you came back to Station Square."

(Meanwhile, with Blaze)

Blaze silently watched from her chair on the porch as her father pulled into the driveway, the tip of her tail impatiently twitching back and forth. She didn't want to discuss the previous night's situation with her dad because he had a tendency to lecture and a lecture was something that she didn't feel like hearing. She wanted someone that she could cry and vent to, not someone that was going to tell her what she needed to do. But she did need someone to talk to, so she was willing to play the hand she was dealt and have this conversation with her father.

Shift was the first to get out of the car, running over to his mother and jumping into her lap. "Mommy, I missed you!" He exclaimed, nuzzling into his mother's neck.

Despite the anxiety running through her, Blaze gave a small smile and hugged her son. "Shift, it hasn't even been a whole day since you've seen me."

"I know, but I missed you."

Inferno cleared his throat as he walked up to the porch, carrying the young hedgecat's duffel bag. "Shift, do you mind going in and unpacking while I talk to your mom?"

Blaze nodded. "Yeah Sweetie, go unpack your stuff while I talk to Grandpa."

Shift nodded before sliding off of his mother's lap and going into the house while his grandfather took a seat next to Blaze. "So, is he having an affair or were your friends just pulling your leg?"

A sigh escaped Blaze. "He's having an affair. He came home last night smelling like sex and perfume."

"And you confronted him about it?"

She nodded.

"And?"

"I kicked him out and had the locks changed today so that he couldn't come back without my permission."

"So, where is he now?"

"With her."

Inferno nodded before placing a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "C'mon Blaze, stop trying to be tough. It's okay to cry, especially over something like this."

Blaze shook her head as if to say that she wouldn't cry, but the tears were already making their way down her face. "What am I gonna do?"

"Get a divorce."

"I knew you'd say that. But I don't think that I should."

"Why not? It's the ideal thing to do."

"I know that, but what about Shift?"

"He'll be fine. You were fine when your mother and I got divorced."

"Daddy, I was eighteen when you and mom got divorced. I was able to understand why you two got divorced. Shift is six; all this is gonna do is stress him out and immensely confuse him because he's way too young to understand something like this. I don't wanna do that to him."

Inferno sighed, resting his head in his hands. "You have a point, but let me ask you this: has Sonic came to you in any way, shape, or form to apologize for hurting you? Has he called you to tell you that he's sorry and that he's not with his mistress and that he's at a hotel instead?"

The younger feline shook her head. "No."

"Well then that should tell you something about Sonic in regards to his marriage. If you wanna stay in the relationship even though he's clearly not breaking things off with his sideline, then be my guest. I'm not gonna try and force you to do something that you don't feel you should do. But I will ask you to be honest with your son when he asks where his father is."

"What? Daddy, he's way too young to understand…"

"I know, but in the future, when he is old enough to understand, would you rather want him upset at you because you lied to him for years, or sympathetic because he knows what you went through was tough?"

"How could I possibly explain adultery to a six year old?"

"Dumb it down. Get on his level. Use words that he'll understand. But by all means, don't lie to the boy."

"But if I lie to him it would be for his own good."

"You know damn well that lies never work out for anyone's good. You tell your son the truth Blaze. He's being taught by you, Sonic, and his teacher that lying is bad. What would it look like for his own mother to lie to him?"

And with that final question, Inferno rose from his chair and kissed his daughter on the jewel centered in her forehead before setting Shift's duffel back down and walking towards his car, leaving Blaze on the porch.

It was a few seconds before Blaze was able to collect herself and go inside, bringing her son's bag with her. As she made her way down the hall into his room, she could hear him indulging in his usual playing activities. She entered the room to see the child holding a Tyrannosaurus Rex toy in one hand and what she guessed to be a Lego space ship in the other hand.

"Hi Mommy. Wanna help me play?" The hedgecat asked, looking up at his mother.

Blaze set the bag down and kneeled by his bed. "Sure. What can I do?"

Shift soon went to his toy box and pulled out a Barbie doll, giving it to his mother. "You can be her."

The feline gave her son a baffled expression. "Why do you have a Barbie doll? Where did you get that from?"

"The park. I found it under a bench."

Her confused expression soon turned to one of irritation as a sigh escaped her. "It was that time you went with your daddy wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"And he let you keep it?"

"Yes. He said 'Finders Keepers'."

"Next time you go to the park with your daddy, don't bring home a toy you found on the ground."

"Where is Daddy? I thought he was home on Saturdays."

"Your daddy is…gone. He's not coming home," Blaze said, figuring that her father was right about not lying to her son. Though it would've been a quick fix for the situation now, it would've caused problems in the future.

"Why?"

"Because I told him that he couldn't come back home."

"Why'd you do that?"

"Because your daddy did something that a married man isn't supposed to do."

"What was that?"

Blaze moved to where she was sitting in her son's bed and she lifted him up into her lap. "Okay Shift, when two people really love each other, they get married, and when you get married, you give each other rings." She then showed her son the rings on her finger to emphasize her point before continuing. "You also make promises to always love each other no matter what happens and to only keep yourselves for each other; which means that you don't fall in love and date other people. Well, your daddy did that, and it made me really sad and really mad at him so I told him to go stay with the other person that he loves and not to come back home."

Shift tilted his head to the side. "Why did Daddy do that?"

"I…" Blaze began before shaking her head. And then the tears came, rushing out of her eyes like a burst dam and causing her to look away from her son. "I don't know." She managed to choke out.

The hedgecat frowned before sliding off of his mother's lap and running to the bathroom, getting her a handful of tissue to dry her eyes with. He watched as she took the tissue from him and began to wipe her eyes before clutching it to her chest, causing Shift to become more confused than he was earlier.

Why was she crying?

A/N: Thanks for reading and please don't hesitate to leave a review. But remember that you can leave flames like propane but none of you can gas me. Also, if you like this story, I recommend you checking out "Murder in the Name of Love"; it's Anti-Sonaze like this one.

I do not talk, I am just a writer.