Two Weeks Later..

I could hear Rouge knocking for about the hundredth time, yet I refused to come out of my hiding spot. I had decided that that the storage cupboard would be a suitable place for me to reside from now on.

Funnily enough, it wasn't fear of disapproval from the public that kept me hiding, but quite the opposite. As soon as the word got out that I had killed Eggman, I had turned into some kind of.. celebrity. Just a day before people were cowering behind shopping tills each time I just wanted to buy a banana, but now people are cheering me like I'm a hero, something to be admired rather than feared.

I knew I should really be grateful. The fact that people were finally willing to look at me positively, rather than making judgements of what I did in the past, should make me feel grateful that I can finally start over. However, it does not.

The day everyone found out about the doctor's death, the town decided to knock on my door, and drag me into town for a huge party. I know lots of people would find this a good thing, and are probably confused at my lack of enthusiasm. The simple reason was, I hated crowds of obnoxious people, and the addition of loud music was not a good combination. Still, I attempted to tolerate it, but as soon as the opportunity presented itself I was out of there.

Then, for the next few days, the paparazzi decided to follow me everywhere I went. It came to the point where I would just step outside the house and immediately get swarmed with interviewers. They would always ask the same questions, "How does it feel to be a hero?", "What made you take action against Eggman unlike the Freedom Fighters?", "What do you plan to do next?", "How much power do you exactly possess?", and bizarrely, people would ask me stupid questions like "What's your favourite colour?" Naturally, I responded with the smallest amount of words possible, if I even answered at all.

I soon learnt to just teleport everywhere I needed to go, avoiding the interviewers so I could get where I needed to be. This seemed to be efficient enough, until I realised that still, somehow, I was appearing in newspapers and magazines constantly, with pictures I didn't recall ever being taken. It didn't take me long to realise that I was being followed. How did Sonic deal with this all the time? Heck, he said he likes the fame and attention! I, however, prefer to have my privacy. I'm not comfortable with people knowing my thoughts and mannerisms, you don't know how they're going to use it against you.

It soon became apparent that I had absolutely no privacy left. So I decided to lock myself in the storage cupboard. It was surprisingly warm, and the darkness was strangely comforting, I also didn't exactly have to worry about coming out for food and water since I was immortal.

"You can't hide in the cupboard forever!" Rouge called out frustratingly, rapidly knocking on the door.

"Yes I can." I replied simply, she should've realised that my immortality would perfectly allow me to stay there.

"You're not the first person who's had to deal with the paparazzi!" Her patience was withering with every word.

"And that means what exactly?"

"It means if those people were able to deal with it, you can too."

"You forget those people wanted the fame, and the fact they had numerous bodyguards."

Rouge sighed. "Just try to reason with them! Say you don't want to be in the news and they should stop."

"They'll find some way to twist that story and make me appear like a villain. They're annoying like that."

Rouge sighed more aggressively this time. "I'll get Omega to blow down the door." She warned.

"Why do that when you could just kick the door yourself."

There was a pause. "Fair point." The door then almost landed on top of him, and a pissed Rouge stood with her arms crossed in the doorway. She stomped forward and grabbed my hand, dragging me behind her like a rag doll. I didn't attempt to resist, I couldn't be bothered, she still wasn't going to make me leave the house. She then threw me on the couch in the living room.

"I assume I'm in for a lecture?" I inquired, slowly sitting up into a straighter posture, meeting Rouge's gaze. She was standing in the middle of the room, looking down on me with her hands on her hips. If she were in a cartoon, smoke would be fuming out of her ears. She stared at me with a glare that could rival my own.

Rouge ignored my comment. "What would you have done if there was a city under attack?"

"It depends."

"Depends on what?" Rouge snarled.

"Depends if the attack was major enough for me to get involved."

"What would you claim as major enough?"

I shrugged. "Only the stuff that everyone else couldn't deal with."

Rouge suddenly slammed down her hands on the coffee table. The mug that was already on there fell over, but luckily no contents were spilled because it was empty.

"Didn't the thought occur to you it might be too late by then? You can't hide forever! People need you! Or do I have to remind you of Maria's wish again?" Rouge snapped.

I flinched. Of course I didn't forget. I could never forget. The gruesome image of Maria's dead body filled my vision, and then I was overcome with a wave of guilt. Rouge knew me too well. She knew exactly where to hit me the hardest. Yet I was grateful for that. Rouge got through to me when no one else could, she made me realise when I was doing something wrong. She had the balls to call me out when I was acting stupid.

I admitted defeat as I dipped my head to Rouge. "You know I haven't forgotten, and I do care about those in need, it's just.."

"I know you're uncomfortable with your situation right now," Rouge's voice was now more sympathetic, "but you have to work your way round it."

Suddenly, I felt a smile spreading on my face. "I hate it when you're right."

Rouge laughed slightly. "I don't."

I looked up at the pale ceiling, taking a deep breath in, and then a deep breath out. "Why is this so hard?" I began, mainly to myself. "Fighting against super villains is nothing for me, yet trying to avoid interviewers is a huge challenge."

Rouge pondered for a bit. "Maybe you could ask Sonic how he deals with it."

I groaned, Sonic was the last person I wanted to talk to. "You know I try to avoid that hedgehog like the plague, so no."

Rouge rolled her eyes. "It doesn't have to be Sonic! It could be any Freedom Fighter."

"Maybe not a Freedom Fighter.." My voice trailed off as I began to think.

The bat tilted her head curiously. "Who are you thinking?"

"Blaze." I said as I got up.

Rouge blinked in shock. "Why her?"

"She's a princess isn't she? Then there's no doubt she's had to deal with the media."

"With that logic, you could ask Sally, that would save you travelling all the way to the Sol dimension." Rouge reasoned.

"I prefer Blaze." I simply remarked. Blaze was one of the few people I've met that wasn't annoying. She was sensible, practical, not obnoxious or loud, and composed. I decided that Blaze would have the best answers, Sally would probably just tell him that he shouldn't worry. Blaze, however, being a quiet and reserved person herself, would probably understand my situation, and offer actually decent advice.

"Besides," I summoned the green Chaos Emerald. "Chaos portal!" A portal appeared in the middle of the room, and Rouge had to violently jump aside to avoid getting sucked in. "It gives me a chance to use this." I grinned.

"I know, you have to boost your own ego by showing off what new Chaos Energy things you've learnt." Rouge shook her head in disappointment.

"I might as well do something with it." I responded. I began walking to the portal. "I shouldn't be long."

"Shame." The bat muttered.

I couldn't help but grin slightly at her remark as I entered the portal.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

HOLY SHOOT, I WASN'T EXPECTING THIS STORY TO HAVE FAVS AND FOLLOWS ALREADY, BUT I'M REALLY GRATEFUL FOR IT! THANK YOU!

I KNOW THINGS ARE SLOW RIGHT NOW, AND BELIEVE ME I WANT TO GET TO THE GOOD STUFF TO, BUT SET UP IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO OVERALL MAKE THE STORY FEEL MORE COMPLETE AND SATISFYING, IN THIS CASE AT LEAST.

REVIEWS AND CRITIQUES ARE ALWAYS GREATLY APPRECIATED. I AM A NEW WRITER, AND CRITIQUES WILL HELP ME IMPROVE AND HOPEFULLY MAKE THESE STORIES MORE ENTERTAINING FOR YOU GUYS!

HAVE A NICE DAY FOLKS!