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THE DAY AFTER
18. A change in plans.
[SONIC, Stephen Zacharus]
"Sure you don't need a spotter, Hedgehog? Those weights look a bit heavy for you."
Laughter.
"Yeah, that's right," snickers another voice, slightly higher, nasal. "Probably spends too much time running around to be worth a shit on the bench press."
"Hurry up, will ya?" snaps a deeper voice--not without a hint of cynical enjoyment. "You can't keep *hoggin'* the weights all afternoon! Heh heh."
More laughter, wilder.
Oh, they're regular comedians, these guys. Ahyuck hyuck hyuck.
I try to ignore them, but I just end up losing my concentration. Fuck it. I'm finished. After I put the bar in its place, stack the weights against the cold, gray wall, I turn and see my witty observers standing in a semi-circle around me.
!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wha--?!.
Vector Crocodile. Mighty Armadillo. Charmy Bee. Espio Chameleon.
The fucking Chaotix.
What the hell are *they* doing here…?
"Funny," Vector says, stepping apart forward a bit, "you're shorter in person. I guess Knux was right."
Well, damn, ain't he da shit.
"Gee," I say, stepping up to him, "and here he was telling me you pumped up a bit. I guess Knux was wrong."
"Is that so? Well, you two probably talked about my body all the time."
"Wouldn't surprise me. He ever tell you about this time we went to the movie theater and… well, I shouldn't say anything. I'm sure you and Knuckles were close."
I have this funny habit of pissing everybody off lately, don't I?
Vector snickers, glancing to his backup. "You have a fast mouth, Hedgehog. That's not healthy around here. Guess you haven't smartened up any since you got high and banged the shit out of that little girl. Hell of a fuck up, if you'll excuse the pun."
I don't want to fight. Damn it, Vector, I *don't* want to fight.
I try not to let his comment get the better of me. I say nothing.
"Sure not the model citizen they made you out to be," Charmy pipes in. Oh, they all think it's fucking hilarious.
"Guess not. So, what the hell are *you* all in for?"
"We were short on cash," says Charmy, laughing. "Armed robbery."
"And manslaughter," Espio mutters.
"Vector shot a guy," Mighty says.
"And that was YOUR fault," Vector says, turning to Mighty. "YOU didn't fucking tell me there were real bullets in that gun."
"Well fuck me till I cry, Vec, doesn't do us any good to point fingers *now*, does it?"
Suddenly I don't like the air in here anymore. Hell, the guard across the room isn't even paying attention to us.
"Well guys," I say, turning, "nice meeting you, but I think I'm goin' back to my cell…"
A grip on my shoulder--Vector's.
"Not so fast, Hedgehog. We keep hearin' from everybody that you're not very polite around here. That you act like you're *better* than everyone else or somethin'. You better watch your back. We can make your life pretty damn miserable, and I guarantee the guards won't do *shit.* "
Fuck you, Vector. I *am* better than everyone else.
"Well," I say lightly, "that's not gonna matter in a few days, is it?"
Vector and the Chaotix are silent. It seems like we're the only people in the universe right now.
Only when Vector edges closer to me do I realize what I just said.
…FUCK.
I did NOT say that out loud. God, please tell me I didn't say that out loud…
"You plannin' somethin', Hedgehog?"
SHIT.
Vector lowers his voice. "You bustin' out of here, ain't you?"
I try to brush past him.
"Fuck you."
He doesn't budge. He grabs me by the arm.
"We're in on it."
WHAT?!
This is NOT happening.
"The hell you are."
"We have friends, Hedgehog--friends that we could hire to toast you, even in prison. You let us in on this or you're fucking dead."
"Listen, asshole, we've already planned our--"
"You let us in on this," Vector breathes, steadily, "or we'll do worse than kill you."
I scoff. "Oh yeah? You'll do what?"
Vector nods to the security guard in the doorway.
"We'll tell HIM."
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