Chapter Ten
Shadow was just exiting his bathroom and switched the light off in there before rushing to his bed. He jumped into it with excitement filling his being. The thought of seeing and talking to Maria again made him all happy and filled with innocent joy. He quickly got two pills out and downed them both with one gulp. He placed the pot back on his side table then turned the lamp off.
"Now to see Maria again." Shadow thought as he snuggled into his covers and laid on his side facing the open bedroom door.
Shadow closed his eyes and couldn't help but to smile as he patiently waiting to fall asleep…
"Shadow come on wake up grandpa has some news for you." Maria called down to Shadow, making Shadow slowly open his eyes.
"What was that Maria?" Shadow lazily asked as he sat up rubbing one eye gently.
"Grandpa has something very important to tell you but first you need to get up." Maria repeated with excitement.
"Really, what is it?" Shadow asked with a small grin, having a feeling Maria knew.
"Nah-ah Shadow I'm not saying anything, you will just have to get up and go find out." Maria said in a semi serious and matter-of-fact tone.
"Are you allowed to give me a clue?" Shadow asked while he removed his covers and began to get out of bed.
"Erm...nope now come on." Maria faked a look of thought then grabbed Shadow's hand and made him move quicker.
"So mean but fair I suppose. Is it really that good I need dragging there before getting something on?" Shadow asked with a light laugh and feeling amused by his best friend's excited behaviour.
"It's very good news for you Shadow." Maria laughed back then dragged Shadow into the living room where Gerald was standing in front of a sofa waiting for the two.
Gerald smiled warmly while holding something behind his back. He motioned for the two to take a seat on the sofa in front of him with his free hand, which they did, and cleared his throat before announcing the news he had for Shadow.
"Ok first thank you Maria for dragging Shadow out of bed for this announcement." Gerald said with a bigger grin on his face.
"Technical professor I wasn't dragged out of bed just out of my room and in here." Shadow pointed out with a teasing smirk.
"I was close to dragging you out. For someone who can break the sound barrier when running, you sure can be slow at times." Maria teased her friend with a slightly devious grin.
"Well I was told I don't have to rush in the mornings any more so there." Shadow matter-of-fact said with a smug smirk at Maria.
"Ok you two that's enough I still need to make my announcement." Gerald rolled his eyes with a chuckle.
"Sorry grandpa." Maria said with an apologetic smile.
"Yes sorry professor, please continue." Shadow added with the same smile as Maria.
"Well we have spent down here together for almost one month and I feel we have settled in very nicely. As a bonus those in our neighbourhood are getting used to you Shadow, far quicker than I first suspected." Gerald began and took a moment to pause as he tried to find the right words for his big news for Shadow.
"Yeah I too have noticed this, it's nice knowing I am being excepted." Shadow happily said with a joyful smile.
"Yep because you are so adorable Shadow." Maria giggled as she grabbed Shadow into a hug.
"Ahh, no, girl germs." Shadow faked unpleasantness but the laughter showed he was simply teasing then soon hugged back with a bright smile.
"Yes it is something to celebrate and so it this. Shadow you have grown and developed so much since you were brought to life seven months ago and with every day that passed you became so much more to me than just my creation. I began to see you as a son so to make it official I filed adoption papers. It took some time but they finally were delivered this morning. This here in my hand states you are my legal son and I your father." Gerald said with a soft loving tone then held up the official adoption papers so Shadow could see it.
"What?" Shadow whispered as he widened his eyes in shock, a feeling of pure happiness began to burst inside of him as he had always saw Gerald as his father but thought he shouldn't say anything about that.
"You are now Shadow Robotnik and if you want you can call me dad." Gerald said with happiness while watching the hug break and Shadow stand up.
Shadow stood right in front of Gerald and was given the papers to look at. He took them, scanned the information and smiled softly. What Shadow did next slightly shocked Gerald as Shadow threw himself at him and hugged his lower half affectionately.
"I've always thought of you as my father." Shadow softly said as he hugged his, now official, father.
Gerald kept his smile in place as he placed his hands on Shadow's shoulders then lightly pulled the hedgehog away. He then kneeled down and brought Shadow in front a proper hug which Shadow excepted happily.
"Now we are a proper family." Gerald whispered with closed eyes and kept hugging Shadow.
Shadows only response to that was nuzzling into Gerald's neck while closing his eyes in contentment...
Shadow moaned as he was starting to wake up, slowly opening his eyes as reality came crashing down once more. Only this time when he had fully opened his eyes he saw both Rouge and Sonic standing there looking very worried and scared.
"What's the matter?" Shadow asked as he pushed himself to sit up in bed.
"We have been trying to wake you up for the past half an hour Shadow. It's almost eleven o'clock." Rouge said as she kept her scared worried look at Shadow.
"Seriously?" Shadow said with shock then turned his head to look at his clock.
A small smile crept upon his muzzle as he had achieved the late lay in and therefore spent longer in his perfect happy dream world.
"Yeah so glad you find our worry worth something to smile about Shadow." Sonic said with a small frown at Shadow, crossing his arms and looking very annoyed.
"I'm sorry for worrying you both but look it's almost eleven." Shadow said and was beginning to look a little happy at that fact.
"Huh, what are we going to do with you?" Rouge sighed with a shake of her head.
"Well if you are asking you could go get me a coffee." Shadow smirked playfully at the two.
"With you not for you." Sonic rolled his eyes but couldn't help but to smile.
"What was that? You would be honoured to do such a task, well if it pleases you I guess. Black with two sugars please and thank you, I'm getting my butt into the shower." Shadow pleasantly said then jumped out of bed and rushed into his personal bathroom, only closing the door up by half.
"And to think you will be dealing with this on a day to day basis when you finally tell him how you feel." Rouge quietly whispered into Sonic's ear then left to put the kettle on for the coffee in the pot was stone cold now.
Sonic smiled warmly at that thought then soon began to blush as he heard the shower turn on, now imagining Shadow washing in the shower all naked and wet.
"Oh man I need to calm down." Sonic thought and turned around to walk out of Shadows bedroom.
"Hey is someone still out there!" Shadow called out just as Sonic was about to step out into the hallway.
"Er yeah you caught me just in time, what's up!" Sonic called back and was curious to know what Shadow wanted.
"Could you do me a favour please? I forgot to put a towel in here, can you get me one from the closet in the hallway!?" Shadow asked as he stood in his shower, getting wet and had his head poking out from the curtain.
"O-of course, I'll be right back." Sonic nervously said as his blush darkened.
Sonic dashed to get that towel and ran back inside Shadow's bedroom. He stood in front of the personal bathroom, taking a deep calm breath before entering. Sonic slowly walked in and couldn't help but to look at the closed curtains of the shower.
"W-where do you, do you want me to put it?" Sonic asked with a lot of nerves flowing throughout his body as he could see Shadow's shadow behind the curtain and saw him running his hands along his quills with his head tipped standing right under the flow of water.
"Mind hooking it near the shower please and thanks for this. I would have got it myself but I didn't want to walk water everywhere." Shadow calmly asked with a thankful voice then changed position in the shower.
"Yeah...sure." Sonic half whispered as he stood there watching Shadow turn around and bowed his head to allow his quills to get a good soak in the water.
"Oh chaos I am just so close yet so far away at the same time." Sonic thought as he willed himself to walk forward then hooked the towel at the end of the shower so Shadow could reach.
"Th-there you go, anything else before I leave you too it?" Sonic asked then swallowed hard as he just couldn't keep his mind from wondering to what Shadows wet sexy form might look like.
"I could take a very quick peep when he turns back to face the shower or fake tripping up and fall into the curtain, accidentally opening them." Sonic thought as he moved to the side so he was directly in front of Shadow washing.
"Actually there is one thing." Shadow called out then opened the shower curtain to look at Sonic.
Sonic widened his eyes as now he knows what Shadow looks like soaking wet while standing in the shower. An even darker blush appeared on Sonic's muzzle as he unintentionally gave Shadow the once over with his eyes.
"Yeah I know it's shocking, well can't help how wet fur makes me look like a drowned cat in the rain. I'm sure yours does too when soaking wet." Shadow groaned as he thought that that's what Sonic was thinking right now.
Even though it was the complete opposite. Going through Sonic's head was how perfect Shadows fur sticks to his body when wet, how sexy he looks because of that and how much he really wanted to jump in there and pin Shadow to the wall and kiss the inhibitor rings off him.
"Er...er y-yeah it does." Sonic just about managed to say as he made himself direct his eyes above Shadow neck.
"Anyway my look will get better once my fur is dried, could you go into that cupboard and pass me the new quill shampoo please. It seems I am very forgetful this morning." Shadow asked as he pointed to the mentioned cupboard under the sink.
Sonic said nothing and just nodded while walking where Shadow was pointing. He bent down, opened the door and grabbed the quill shampoo. He made his way back to Shadow while looking down at the bottle.
"This new?" Sonic asked as he needed a distraction.
"Actually yeah, thought I might try it and see if it does do what the bottle says. I want silky soft quills and it better deliver." Shadow answered while smirking at Sonic, holding his hand out to take the bottle.
"Hey I can judge that if ya want." Sonic said as he handed the bottle over while diverting his eyes from Shadow.
"Ok so he gets uncomfortable seeing me in just my fur when dry and when wet now? Am I seriously missing something here or is that just how Sonic is with others when they do not wear any kind of clothing?" Shadow thought as he took the bottle and closed the curtain.
"Yeah sure if you really want to and thanks for the assistance." Shadow said with a casual tone as he opened the cap and squirted a generous amount into his palm.
"Yeah that's great, I'll leave you to it and see you in a bit ok!" Sonic called as he backed up towards the door to leave.
Sonic, when fully out and had closed the door up, bolted out and didn't stop until he reached the kitchen where Rouge had just finished brewing coffee.
"Ok and what's wrong with you?" Rouge asked as Sonic stopped at the sink and held onto the sides while breathing deeply.
"Shadow, shower, naked, wet, so sexy." Sonic said and was unable to form a proper sentence.
"Right you saw him all wet and sexy in the shower huh? Did ya peep or did he show you?" Rouge asked with high interest to know the answer.
"Needed quill shampoo, opened curtain, asked me to get it...so damn sexy." Sonic explained as best as he could as his mind was going on overtime from the non-stop images inside of his head that he will never forget.
"You are such a sweetheart to your boyfriend, bet it took a lot of willpower to not just dash in there with him and have a little fun together." Rouge teased deviously as she could see Sonic was moment away from a nose bleed.
"Was so hard to stay away, I'm not sure how long I can keep this up. A part of me just wants to scream out to the world, I love Shadow the hedgehog, but the other part is shouting don't do it you will lose him forever. I don't know what to do Rouge, this is seriously making me go insane." Sonic said as he looked down into the sink with his eyes watering with sadness and frustration.