Searching for Light
Nothing Normal, Nothing New
A/N: Sorry for the late update. I've had writer's block recently and I've also been starting another story with Reens as a Hispanic gamer girl. The story so far: Reens is still in the hospital, but in this chapter, she's almost ready to go home with Tobias. Sonic has lost Amy to Shadow but is determined to renew her love for him. Cream and Tails have started to blossom their romance, along with Silvaze and Knuxouge making their relationships stronger. What else will happen? Find out! Please read/review/suggest content for future chapters and/or fanfics. I really appreciate all your help and support.
"They're… dating."
Cream's voice took an uncharacteristic tone of mild disgust as she said the words. A record seemed to scratch as Sonic finally let Cream's words sink in.
"She's with Shadow… willingly?"
Knuckles cocked his head and sighed.
"Really? I didn't think Shadow cared."
Rouge patted Cream's back gently before peeling her away and onto the couch. "Shadow cares about everyone, Big Blue. It's just… he has an odd way of showing it."
"Oh, so he's showing Amy he cares about her by taking her away from me?" Sonic mocked Rouge sarcastically, getting up from the chair he was in.
"Now, don't go and do anything rash. You'll regret it-" Rouge was cut off as the door slammed on her unspoken words. She turned to Knuckles and Cream with a slightly appalled expression.
"That… could've gone better, couldn't it?"
Knuckles' answer was a fluffy pink pillow to the face and a huff.
With her release date fast approaching, Reens sat upright in her hospital bed, her quills tingling. She was excited not only to see Tobias and be with him, but also to finally escape the confines of her hospital room. Imagine her surprise when a gust of wind blew into the room and casually seated itself on the easy chair next to the bed, holding up a small gift box clumsily wrapped. For the hero of the world, he wasn't exactly the world's best gift wrapper; even so, Reens was apprehensive about his presence.
"Well, what brings you here, eh? I'm shocked you even decided to visit me." She flung the words at him like daggers with disdain. "You're the only guest I wasn't planning on seeing, you know."
He huffed and tossed the present lightly at her. She opened it carefully and gasped at its contents.
"A pair of … goggles?"
"Yeah, I wanted to make it up to you, you know, about the whole mall situation. And to think it's all because of Amy."
Reens settled the goggles onto her head and cocked it, looking at Sonic blankly. "What about Amy?"
Sonic twitched his ears and explained his situation to her, tapping his fingers on the arm of the chair. Reens didn't say anything as he talked, thinking, and shaking her head.
"So lemme get this straight. You guys made a promise not to lie to each other, right?"
Sonic grunted, slapping his hand on the armrest.
"Well, not to be rude, but that's a stupid promise to make, ya know."
"S-stupid?"
"Yeah. Don't get me wrong, but a relationship is mostly about trust, and everyone slips up now and again."
"But you and Tobias-"
She shook her head, smirking. "I haven't had a reason to lie to him yet, and as of late I don't think I'll find one."
Sonic sighed at this, drooping his head. "So, what do I gotta do?"
Reens' smirk faded as she thought, her robotic right arm clenching and slowly unclenching.
"If it were me, I'd settle for flowers, chocolates, promises you wouldn't intend to keep…"
"C'mon, you know I'm not exactly the most romantic guy out there. What else is there?"
With a shrug, Reens took off the goggles and laid them back in the box. "Well, what does she like?"
"… Me …"
Sonic then got up from the armchair and sat on the edge of Reens' bed, crossing his arms.
"I'm just… scared of losing her forever, you know? I love her, Reens."
"Rain."
"What?"
Her cheeks turned a soft red as she looked up at him. "If it's raining. It would be romantic, eh? You and her, standing in the rain, you confessing your undying love and she accepting it."
"Yeah, but there's not a cloud in the sky. Where am I supposed to get-"
A large rumble of thunder and flash of lightning streaked across the sky, making tiny raindrops fall from the heavens until they turned larger and heavier. Sonic looked over to Reens.
"How did you know-"
She chuckled and waved him off the bed. "Go get her, tiger. Ask questions later, kay?"
Amy and Shadow had been at a small cafe for the last few hours, chatting and eating baked goods. When the rain started, Amy looked outside the window, sighing.
"What's the matter, Rose?"
Amy looked over at the striped hedgehog, his ruby eyes seemingly trying to examine her feelings. She tried to make as if nothing was wrong and smiled, sipping her mug of hot chocolate.
"Oh, nothing, it's just the rain always dampens my mood a little bit, you know?"
He nodded, smirking as whipped cream ended up on her nose. He resisted the urge to lick it off, instead using a gloved finger to wipe it away and onto a napkin. Amy blushed a little and laughed as he ended up with the same problem, this time more like a full moustache than just a bit on his nose. She leaned in and wiped it off him gently.
Shadow grunted, but Amy couldn't tell if it was from pleasure or annoyance. Soft music began to play from onstage, and Shadow stood up to offer Amy his hand.
"Would you care to dance with me, Rose?"
She giggled and let him take her hand, walking with him to the dance floor. The two of them moved as one, gliding, dipping, and spinning. Amy laughed harder than she had in a long time, and even Shadow got a few chuckles in. The music slowed to a stop, and Shadow dipped Amy lower, ready for a kiss. Amy leaned up her face to do so, but noticed Sonic out of the corner of her eye. Her eyes slowly widened, and she gently pushed Shadow out of the way. Sonic was standing there, dripping wet, his shoes muddy and quills unkempt.
"S-Sonic? When did you get here?"
He didn't answer her; he was too ticked off at the ebony hedgehog to even speak.
"Why don't we take this outside?" He suggested in an eerily calm tone, one gloved hand pointing backwards to the door.
"Gladly," Shadow answered, pulling tightly on his gloves. "I'll be right back, Rose, once I find out what the faker wants with me. As always."
The two males exited the cafe and walked into a secluded alley, where Sonic shifted into an offensive stance.
"You want to battle me, right here, right now, Sonic? It's not like you," Shadow observed as he crouched into his own stance. "I enjoy our sparring sessions, but this is uncalled for."
"I'll tell you what's uncalled for," Sonic replied with a hint of venom as he lunged for Shadow's side. Shadow sidestepped him and delivered an uppercut to Sonic's chin. Sonic slid backwards and into a spin dash, which Shadow endured quietly.
"Hooking up with Amy is uncalled for!"
"Ah, so this is what it's all about," Shadow smirked as he threw Sonic against the wall. "You're jealous."
"A-Am not!"
"Then why do you care whether I am with Rose or not?"
"Because she doesn't deserve a guy like you!"
Sonic grunted, kicking out with his feet and flipping over Shadow's head.
"She doesn't deserve someone who can be a 'hero' one minute and an absolute jerk the next!"
"I think you are describing yourself, Faker," Shadow quipped, his smirk fading into his trademark frown of annoyance.
"What?"
"You loved Amy, right? Keyword, 'loved'. You treasured her like the jewel she is, always showering her with compliments and gifts and such. Why didn't you realize it sooner? Amy was with me because she wanted time with me. You gave her things, Sonic, but never your 15 minutes of fame."
"Just shut the hell up, Shadow!"
Sonic roared, slamming Shadow against the wall this time.
"You don't know anything about love because you can't love anyone!"
It was very subtle, but Sonic caught Shadow's eyes flash with hurt and sadness. He shrank back, letting Shadow go to the ground.
"For your information, Faker, I have loved before," Shadow whispered, getting his bearings. "A golden hedgehog with crystal blue eyes. Her name was Maria. We were always together, and she loved me like Amy adores you- just less fangirly."
Sonic scoffed at that. "What happened to her?"
"She had cancer - leukemia - and she died just before our 5-month anniversary as a couple. She… she was everything I had."
Sonic lowered his eyes to the ground, still fuming. "What does that have to do with Amy?"
"What I am saying, Sonic, is this: Don't let her fade away from your life like Maria did in mine."
Said sakura hedgehog was still waiting in the cafe booth, bored. She had torn up some napkins as she waited, but they didn't serve to ease her discomfort any. She had also tried texting Cream, Rouge, and Blaze, but none of them would answer her. Finally, Sonic shuffled back in, but Shadow was nowhere to be found.
"Hey, where'd he go?" Amy asked, slightly worried.
"Oh, Shadow? He went home," Sonic replied nonchalantly, sliding into the booth, and sitting across from Amy.
"Why? I thought everything was going great."
"Sure, you did. Can we … talk for a minute? As friends?"
Amy shrugged, and eventually the two of them talked, not romantically, but still cordial. Progress was made.
Cream hadn't answered Amy's texts because her phone was off, and Tails was currently over at her house for a study session. Rouge and Knuckles were still at his place, talking and eating some fruit salad he had bought. Blaze and Silver were on a date at the arcade, where she was currently kicking his butt at Dance Dance Revolution. Everyone was working on their relationships … but would it last?
