Dependance Chapter 28: The Aftermath & The Wedding, a sonic the hedgehog fanfic

Chapter 28

The Aftermath & The Wedding

Before I start this, I took Misery and Dependence (up to Chapter 27) and put them all onto one blank word processor document, cleaned them up, took out all the spacing between paragraphs and Author's Notes, and all together, there are 228 pages counting both stories. Why? Just wondering how much I've done to this point. Anyway, read, enjoy and if you feel like it, review; A/N at the end. P.S. I won't be able to upload anything for a while, so this will be the last one for a while. I'll try to finish it as soon as possible, so please hang in there. Rated T for language.

The next morning when Sonic woke up, it was just after ten; his head was pounding and his mouth felt like a desert. "Shit." He mumbled as his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. He smacked his mouth together to try to get some kind of moisture in it, but it was pointless. Need water. He thought as he went to get up, but he was pinned down. When he passed out, Shadow was on his right side and Knuckles was on his left. Now, Shadow was hanging halfway off the arm of the couch, his head nearly touching the floor. Knuckles on the other hand, had fallen over Sonic's legs and was sleeping soundly.

"Knucks." Sonic said. Knuckles didn't move. "Knucks." Sonic repeated, this time reaching out and shaking him. Knuckles stirred a little, letting a "mmmmm" escape, then slowly woke up. "Wha- oh God." Knuckles moaned, sitting up fully and clutching the side of his head.

Sonic was feeling it as well, but not to the extreme Knuckles was. "What happened?" Knuckles asked, leaning forward and rubbing his forehead. "We got wasted." Sonic said. "Don't you remember?"

Knuckles shook his head. "Not really. All I remember is we played cards for a while, then I woke up to you shaking me." Now Shadow, having been woken up from his slumber, sat up and leaned his head back against the back of the couch. "Will you two keep it down?" He said without opening his eyes.

"I know what you mean." Knuckles said. "Shhhh." Shadow hissed. Sonic shook his head and walked into the bathroom. This should be fun. He thought as he opened the door. When he did, he looked down and saw the puddle of puke that was still around the toilet. "Oh God, that's right." He said. "I wonder how he's gonna feel this morning." Sonic said to himself as he stepped to the side that didn't have vomit on it and proceeded to go.

When he finished, he decided to check on the fox; he flushed and walked over to the door to Tails' bedroom and knocked on it. The door hadn't been closed, only pulled shut and when he knocked, it swung open slightly and he looked inside, but didn't see Tails lying on the bed. Don't tell me...he thought as he turned and went back to the bathroom.

Sonic walked over to the shower and gently pulled the glass door back and when he looked down, he saw Tails passed out and spread eagle in the tub. Apparently, Tails had managed to get into the shower and start cleaning himself up and even managed to turn the water off, but passed out before he was finished. I'm surprised he managed to stand up in the shower without falling, let alone remember to turn the water off. Sonic thought and quickly reached over, grabbed a towel and tossed it over Tails lower half. "That's refreshing to see first thing in the morning." He said as he leaned down.

"Tails." He called out, gently nudging Tails. The fox moved slightly, but didn't wake up. "Hey." Sonic said, gently rocking him again. "Hmmmm." Tails moaned; it was obvious that he was going to have a massive hangover like Knuckles and Shadow had; but it was their own fault. If they had eaten more than a couple of slices of pizza last night, their hangover's wouldn't be so bad.

"Wha..." Tails trailed off and he slowly sat up. He looked around and saw Sonic standing in front of him. "What happened?" Tails asked, his voice a little hoarse.

"Well, we all had a little too much fun last night." Sonic replied. Tails began to wake up now and began remembering bits and pieces. "So how the hell did I end up in here?" Tails asked. He started to stand up and Sonic helped him up. The towel Sonic had thrown over Tails dropped to the bottom of the tub and the fox quickly realized why he had it and reached down and covered himself up again; he blushed out of embarrassment. "Sorry." Tails said.

"Hey, it happens to most guys in the morning." Sonic replied. "So what happened last night?" Tails asked as he stepped out of the tub, rubbing the side of his head. "You don't remember?" Sonic asked. Tails shook his head.

Sonic simply pointed to the partially dried puddle of vomit next to the toilet and let him figure it out. "Me?" Tails asked, his eyes wide. Sonic nodded. "Yeah. You got it all over your clothes and when you went to take your shirt off... well, you got some of it on you."

Tails shook his head, looking down at the puddle next to the bowl. He let out a silent wow and went to change. Sonic walked out and grabbed the bag with his clothes and took out a fresh set. "You guys gonna be ok?" Sonic asked Knuckles and Shadow, who looked like they both had pretty good hangovers. "Yes." Knuckles hissed. "Just keep it quiet."

*RING* "Oh God!" Shadow moaned as Sonic's phone began to sound off on the table beside him. "Sorry." Sonic mumbled as he grabbed it and answered. "Hello?" Sonic said. Shadow angrily motioned for him to move away and he did. "Hey, Sal." Sonic said as he went to the back of the house. "What's up?"

"You ok? You sound a little... odd."

"Yeah. Just had a little bit to drink last night." Sonic said. Sally laughed. "Yeah. Cream told me they had something planned for you. So what'd you do?"

"Oh, you know," Sonic said as he wondered into a spare room. "Cards, drinking. The usual."

"No stripper?" Sally asked. Sonic laughed. "You know you're the only one I want stripping for me. Besides, I don't think it be right to do it in front of the others." Sonic said.

"Well you know they wouldn't be able to handle me." Sally said. "So, you ready for today?"

"For what?" Sonic asked. There was a short silence, then he heard Sally huff. "How much did you have last night? We've only been planning this for months." She said.

In the aftermath of last night, he forgotten about the wedding and when he realized what she was talking about, he almost dropped the phone. "No-no. I didn't forget." He said, somehow maintaining his composure. "I'll be ready. We're still doing it at five today, right?" Sonic asked.

"Well, no. We had to move it up to one." She said. Oh shit! Sonic thought. "Don't worry. We'll be there. What happened?" Sonic asked.

"Well, th- what?" Sally stopped talking. "Be right there. I got to go. Something came up. Love you." She said quickly. "Love you-" *click*

"Fuck me." Sonic said as he walked out of the back room. Shadow and Knuckles were still sitting on the couch and Tails was in the kitchen, eating a small breakfast of eggs and toast, sipping on a cup of coffee. "I've got good news." He announced.

"Is it that you found a pair of earplugs?" Knuckles asked. "No." Sonic laughed. "It's even better. Something came up and Cream had to move the wedding up to one." He said, still laughing. "We've got three hours to get ready." He said.

Tails looked up from his plate. "You're serious?" He asked, his voice still slightly gravely. Sonic nodded. "We still need to get our stuff so we can change." Knuckles said from the couch. Shadow nodded. "Do I have to move?" Shadow asked. "Yeah. You do." Knuckles replied. "I'll take you guys. Just give me a minute." Tails said, getting up and grabbing his keys off the wall. "You sure you feel up to driving right away?" Sonic asked. Tails nodded. "I'm fine. Just a little headache." Tails said. Reluctantly, Shadow and Knuckles began stirring and in a minute, they were heading to the door. "Can we stop and get some aspirin or something? My head is killing me."

"I already planned on it." Tails said as the three walked out the door. "We'll be back." He said as he walked out to his car. Sonic laughed. "Either he's fine, or he's hiding a pretty big hangover." Sonic said as he started to get ready himself. Nice to hear her voice. Kinda odd her calling before the wedding. He thought as he went into the hall and opened the closet where he'd hung his suit when he came over a few days before. I thought we weren't supposed to see or talk to each other until we actually go through with it. He grabbed his suit and went into the bathroom and hung it up on another hook behind the door and began to strip when he saw the puddle of vomit still on the floor.

There was still a slight smell and Sonic reached over and flicked the switch for the exhaust fan and turned it on. "That's gotta go." He said as he walked out and into the kitchen. He wanted to clean it up not only because it was just disgusting and he was afraid he might step in it, but because he was partially responsible for it being there. Walking into the kitchen, he grabbed the broom and the large standing dustpan and started cleaning it up.

It was messy, but he managed to sweep a good amount of it up and dump it in the bowl, flushed, then repeated until the bulk of it was gone. Then it was a matter of grabbing some cleaner and quickly going over the spot. He managed to get it cleaned up and he was in the shower in less than ten minutes.

He finished and stepped out and dried off completely, then reached over to start putting his suit on when he drew his hand back. No. I'll do it when I get there. He thought as he started putting his clothes back on. Don't want to get it dirty. God knows what she'll do to me if that happens.

Sonic walked back into the kitchen and poured another cup of coffee to help sober him up and Tails pulled into the driveway, Shadow and Knuckles in tow. Sonic noticed Shadow was still feeling the effects of last night since he was having a hard time dealing with the sun. But at least they were all wearing their suits. They matched the color scheme of Sonic's, red tie, black vest, pants and white shirt; and they all looked good, but Shadow managed to pull it off a bit better than the four of them since it was in his natural color.

They all walked in and Shadow sat back down in the exact same spot and laid his head against the back of the couch. It was just like he never left. "Jeez. You're really feeling it, aren't ya?" Tails asked as Knuckles sat down in the recliner. Shadow nodded. "This is why I don't drink very much." He said slowly.

"I think this is why we all don't drink very much." Sonic said. He had drank his share of beer before, but that was because in Metropolis there was no water or soda for him to drink and he had no choice; but he had never drank enough to get drunk like he had last night.

"You're not ready?" Tails asked Sonic.

"I did take a shower, but I'm gonna change when we get there." He said. "Don't want to take a chance of getting the suit dirty."

Tails nodded. "We still have a little under... two hours. I'll hop in and I guess we can head over. Unless you wanted to take one Knuckles." Tails said. "That'd be nice." He said. "Shadow?" Tails asked. Shadow shook his head yes. "Guess I better get to it." Tails said, walking back to the bathroom. Knuckles laughed. "Now I gotta take this damn thing off and put it back on." He muttered. "Why the hell didn't I think about getting a shower in?" He asked himself. "Because you're a genius." Shadow popped off.

After Tails, Knuckles and Shadow finished up, they were finally ready; they even had an hour to spare. Sonic grabbed his bag and threw it in the car, making sure to grab one of his pills out and stick it in his pocket in case he needed it and they were off. They all piled into Tails' car and headed off, rock music coming from the radio.

"Nervous? Tails asked as they drove back to Sonic's. "Eh, a little." He said. "I'd be lying if I said no. But I just want to get it over with."

"I guess now you'll be tied down." Tails said. Shadow and Knuckles were in the back, heads lying against the head rests. They were still trying to get over their own hangovers, but Sonic knew them well and when it was show time, they'd come around at the last minute. "Tied down?" Sonic said, looking over at Tails. "We've been living together for three years. We might as well have been married this whole time. Now we'll have a piece of paper that says we are." Sonic said.

"That doesn't make sense. You need a license to hunt, fish, drive, and own a gun. I'm pretty sure a piece of paper's not gonna render you unable to do any of those things." Tails said. He slowed down to make a turn. "And what happens if you get married and get the license and it gets ripped or destroyed? You're not married until you get another one?" Tails said.

After a minute, Sonic turned to Tails and said, "So when are you and Cream gonna tie the knot?" From under the fur on his face, Sonic noticed it turned beet red and he giggled. "I don't know. I'm not even sure if I'll ever get married." Tails said. He loved getting Tails into these kinds of conversations and it really help at that moment to relieve the nervousness.

Fifteen minutes later, they pulled into Sonic's driveway and Tails shut the car off and proceeded to wake Knuckles and Shadow up. Cream saw them pull up and she came out to greet them. She was wearing a nice purple dress, flowing in the wind as she walked up to Sonic. "Hey Cream." He said to her. She looked in the back of the car and saw Tails trying to deal with Knuckles and Shadow. "What's wrong with them?" She asked.

Sonic laughed. "They had a little too much last night." He said. She shook her head. "You boys... Anyway, Sally still wants to wait until the wedding gets underway to see you so she wants you to wait in the back room." She said. Sonic nodded; understandable to keep tradition until it was time. "Is there a TV in there?" He asked Cream. She nodded. "She told me you'd ask that."

Sonic went around to the back of the car and retrieved his bag and his suit and before he went inside he poked his head through the back window. Shadow and Knuckles were still passed out and Sonic simply tapped Knuckles on the shoulder and said, "Hey Shads."

Knuckles rose up, looking around angrily. "I told you not to call me that." He said, glaring at Sonic. "You should've woken up then." Sonic said and walked into the house. Knuckles reached over and poked Shadow on the shoulder. "Hey, Shads." Knuckles said. Just like Knuckles, he woke up quickly. "Don't call me that." He said, rubbing his eyes.

Sonic walked inside, Cream following close behind him to make sure he and Sally didn't see each other until it was time. Before he went to his 'room', he stopped and took a look outside at the setup. Sally wanted a small, simple wedding and that's how it was setup; there were only ten chairs set up, a small table with food and the cake, which was covered to keep bugs away from it. There was a small stereo and a table with their wedding gifts as well, and the altar, which was a wooden trellis curved at the top, covered in red and white roses and a carpet leading from the door to said altar. It was simple and that's what she wanted. "Not bad." Sonic said as he headed off to his 'room'.

"I'll let her know you're here." Cream said. "Thanks." Sonic said and she shut the door and left him alone. The room he was in was used mainly as a guest bedroom, but went mainly unused since they hardly ever had guests. Sonic locked the door, sat on the bed, turned on the TV and started getting ready. He completely stripped except for his boxers and began to put the suit on. It got a little stifling when he got to the vest since his quills were pressed down, but he'd just have to suffer with it until he could change. He tied the tie, which proved to be a little difficult and threw the jacket on. As he began to lace up the shoes that came with it, there was a knock at the door.

"Yeah?" Sonic called out as he laced up the final shoe. "It's me." Tails voice came from the other side of the door. Sonic went over and unlocked it and making sure he was dressed, walked inside. "Damn." He said, getting his first look at Sonic. "Nice."

"That's what I thought when I picked it out." He said, sitting back down and tying up the untied shoe. "Whatcha need?" Sonic asked. "Cream wanted me to tell you were going in about twenty." He said. "Still not nervous?" Tails asked.

Sonic shook his head. "I'm keeping it under control." Sonic said. "Have you seen her yet?" Sonic asked, sitting down on the bed. "No. She's still in your room. Guess she's getting ready." Tails said, sitting down beside Sonic.

Tails let out a sigh. "Sonic?" Tails asked. "Yeah?" Sonic replied. "Thanks for making me the best man." Tails said. Sonic put an arm around Tails. "No problem." Sonic said. In truth, Tails hadn't been his first choice. It wasn't because he didn't want Tails to be his best man; Sonic didn't want it to seem like he was playing favorites. He asked Knuckles, but Knuckles declined. Then he asked Shadow, who did the same thing as Knuckles. Deep down, Sonic figured they were saying no since they both knew how close he and Tails were to each other, but he kept it to himself.

They talked for a few more minutes, then Cream came looking for Tails and he left Sonic alone. Sonic flicked the TV on, but he really couldn't settle in and watch it. He was just too nervous. He turned it off and laid it on the bed and closed his eyes, trying to calm his nerves. Meditation. It was something he did a long time ago, something to calm him down when he was on a mission and he was feeling overwhelmed. It really came in handy at night when he was alone. It kept his mind from racing around and picturing God knows what.

His hands were shaking and he had his little 'friend' in his coat pocket just in case. He closed his eyes and began to breathe slowly, in and out, in and out. He could feel his pulse throughout his body and it was beating pretty fast, but it began slowing down which was a relief. *Knock-knock*

The sudden noise startled Sonic and his eyes shot open. "W-what?" He said, getting up and unlocking the door. He poked his head out and saw Cream standing in front of him. "Are you ready?" She asked. Sonic let out a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. Follow me."

Sonic was surprised at how professional she had been through the entire thing. She was organized and well-mannered, two traits which stuck out in Sonic's mind. "Hold on." He said, going back into the room. He opened the bag and searched for the vows he had taken with him. He found them and stuck them in his pocket and followed Cream outside.

When she opened the sliding glass door, Tails, Shadow and Knuckles were standing at the altar, along with a few of Sally's friends, and she disappeared back in the house again. Sonic greeted them, then walked over to the altar. "Damn man. Looking good." Knuckles said. Shadow nodded. "I said the same thing." Tails chimed in.

"So," Knuckles said. "You're still a free man. Still time to run." He joked. Sonic shook his head. "I don't think that's happening." He said.

"Yeah. The only thing stopping this wedding is if he dropped dead." Shadow said. A chill ran down Sonic's spine. "Y-yeah." He said nervously.

Cream came out the door and closed it and pointed over to Knuckles. "Looks like its time." He said and wandered off into the house, while Shadow sat down. "Where's he going?" Sonic whispered in Tails ear. "Since there's no one to give Sally away, Knuckles stepped in and filled in." He replied.

"Kinda odd, don't you think?" Sonic asked Tails. The fox nodded. "Well, she said Sally asked four people before him and he was the only one that agreed to it. Besides, have you ever heard of a wedding where no one gave the bride away?"

Sonic nodded. "Makes sense." He said.

There was a kid standing over by the radio that was on the table and Cream walked over to him, Sonic figured he belonged to one of Sally's friends and whispered something in his ear. He nodded and she walked back over to the door and poked her head in and when she drew it back out, she nodded over at the kid and he pressed a button on the radio.

The 'Wedding March' started up and everyone sat down and waited for Sally to walk out. Sonic's pulse increased and he began to feel shaky and nervous. God, he closed his eyes and silently prayed in his head, I know I'm asking a lot, but if I'm going to have one of those damn bouts of pain right now, I'm asking you if you can to hold it off until after this is over. If it's gonna happen, I can't stop you and I know I deserve it for what I've done, but if you can keep it from happening until this is over, that's all I ask.

When he opened them, as if it was planned, the glass door slid open and Sally walked out. The few people that were gathered there stood as she walked out, accompanied by Knuckles around his arm. "Wow." Sonic said silently. Her dress was amazing. It was more of an evening gown, white, with the bottom slightly bowing out and a silver pattern which shined when the light hit it at just the right angle. She was holding a bouquet of different colored flowers, reds and blues with a singe white rose in the center. Their eyes met and Sonic's heart sped up. Please God, let me make it through this.

Sally and Knuckles walked slowly toward the altar and when they reached it, Knuckles let go of her and he looked at Sonic and said a silent, "Congratulations.", then sat down by Shadow.

Sonic turned to her and took her hand as the music stopped. "You look beautiful." He mouthed. She was smiling as well and she simply nodded.

The minister, who had appeared as Sally made her way to the altar, bible in hand, looked out at the small gathering of people.

"You may be seated." He said, and they sat in unison, then he turned to Sally and Sonic and began the ceremony.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join these two in Holy Matrimony. Marriage is a sacred tradition and should not be entered lightly; I ask now if anyone here objects to this wedding, let them speak now or forever hold your peace." No one said a word.

The minister went on, giving a small speech about the sacred institute of marriage and all that good stuff, and then he turned to Sally and Sonic. "I understand that you two have written your own vows." He said. They both nodded. He held out a hand and said, "Proceed."

Cream stood up and handed her a single piece of paper. "Sonic," She began. "When we met seven years ago, I didn't know that we'd be taking this step together. But I love you and I'm willing to walk with you as far as we can go and I will walk with you until that journey ends." She folded the piece of paper up and handed it back to Cream. It was a little shorter than he thought it would be, but she managed to say a lot more to him in those two sentences than most people could.

Now it was his turn. Sonic reached into his pocket and pulled his out, which he had trimmed down from the original three pages. His hands were shaking and he almost dropped it, but managed to steady his hands and began reading.

"Sally, I love you more than anything in this world. If not for you, I don't know where I'd be in my life. I know I've done things that would've driven anyone else away long ago, but you stayed by my side even when I wasn't by yours. I look at you and even now, at this moment, I'm still trying to figure out what I've done to deserve you, your love, you're understanding. I know every second I'm with you is one second that I know I've spent well. When I'm sick, you make me feel better. When I'm sad, you make me happy. I love you." Sonic smiled and folded the paper back up and stuck it back in his pocket.

The minister nodded and he continued with the ceremony. "Turn toward each other." They did.

"The rings?" The minister asked. Tails stepped forward and produced them, each in their own box and Sonic and Sally took one each.

Sonic opened the box and took the ring out. It was a beautiful ring, gold with a small diamond in the setting. It cost him over $500 bucks but she was worth it. He slipped the ring on her finger. "Now repeat after me: I, Sonic,"

"I, Sonic,"

"Do solemnly swear,"

"To take this woman as your lawful wedded wife,"

"To take this woman as my lawful wedded wife,"

"In sickness and in health,"

"As long as you both shall live."

"As long as we both shall live."

Sonic placed the ring on her finger, then it was her turn. "Sally, repeat after me." She nodded.

"I Sally,"

"Do solemnly swear,"

"To take this man as your lawful wedded husband,"

"To take this man as my lawful wedded husband,"

"In sickness and in health,"

"As long as you both shall live."

"As long as we both shall live." Sally opened the box and took out the one for Sonic. It was a simple gold ring and slipped it on his finger.

"Ladies and Gentleman, what God hath brought together let no man tear apart. I present to you, Mr. & Mrs. Acorn. You may now kiss the bride."

Sonic and Sally moved close together and gently kissed, their first as husband and wife. Everyone applauded and Sonic's knees finally began to stop shaking. "I love you, Sonic." Sally said. "I love you too." Sonic replied as they kissed one final time, then turned to everybody. Applause broke out from the small group of onlookers and the newlywed couple walked down from the altar.

Cream walked over to them. "Congratulations." She said. "Thanks Cream." Sally said. "Yeah. I don't think we could've done this without you." Sonic said. "Thank you. Now, the last thing you need is your picture." She said, going over to her purse and grabbing a camera. "Can you stand back up on the altar?" She asked. Sonic and Sally nodded and they stood back in their spots and Cream readied the camera. "Ready?" Cream asked.

They nodded again and just as she hit the button, they kissed. Cream took one more of them, this time both of them were looking at the camera. Then she took one of Sonic, Sally, Knuckles, Tails and Shadow. "That should do it." Cream said. She started to put the camera away when Sonic stopped her. "What're you doing?" He asked.

Cream looked at him. "We need one with you." Sonic said. She smiled, thrilled and honored that they would include her and asked one of Sally's girlfriends to take one and her, Tails, Knuckles, Shadow, Sally and Sonic stood together and the woman took it, along with another one for good measure.

Once that was don e, they walked over to the table with the food and the cake (is a lie; had to stick that in. Sorry.) was sitting. The food took up an entire table, which was a picnic table and everyone dug in. There were the standard Chili-Dogs, but also other things to eat as well. Everyone ate, then it was time to cut the cake. Since it was outside, it was all covered and the cake had a domed metal lid over it, which stood about a foot high. Cream carefully removed it and Sonic gasped. It was a beautiful three-tiered cake. The first layer was blue, which represented Sonic, the second was red. Sally's favorite color, and the top layer was purple to symbolize their marriage.

"Wow." Sonic said. Sally grabbed the knife and cut into the blue layer and cut a piece for herself, then she cut a piece of the red for Sonic. Then, they locked arms and ate at the same time, Sally eating the blue piece, Sonic eating the red. When they pulled away from each other, Sonic went to set his piece down, then suddenly shoved it in her face. Everyone laughed and she got even, shoving her piece in his face. Everyone laughed, and once the bride and groom had theirs, everyone else dug it.

The cake had been eaten finished off, save for the top layer, which had been stored in their freezer, and the gifts had been unwrapped. They were all wonderful gifts, but the one that stood out the most was the one Tails had slipped to Sonic secretly. It was an envelope that said: From Tails, Cream, Sonic and Shadow. He made sure no one was watching when he handed it off to Sonic and when he handed it to Sonic, he said quietly, "Open it when you and Sally are alone." Sonic didn't know what to say, but Tails just smiled and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

The party wound down around six that evening. Cream, Tails, Knuckles and Shadow hung around until seven, but left, citing they all wanted the newlywed couple to have some privacy and enjoy the rest of the night together. Sally shut the door and when she turned around, she saw him going out the back door. "Where are you going?" She asked. "I'll be right back." He said.

Sonic came back in a few seconds later, carrying the radio that was outside and set it on the breakfast bar in the dining room and plugged it in. Once that was done, he walked into their bedroom. "What're you doing?" Sally asked, wondering what he was up to.

He came back a minute later, his hand behind his back, smile on his face. "Close your eyes." He said. She did and she heard strange clicking noises, then nothing. "Okay. Open them." He said. Sally looked around but didn't notice anything different. "Am I missing something here?" She asked.

"Well," Sonic said, "I thought we'd have our first dance." He said, holding out his hand to her. She smiled and walked over, taking his hand and he pulled her close. "I thought you hated dancing." Sally said. She tried to get him to on more than one occasion, but it just wasn't his sort of thing. "Well in this case I made an exception." Sonic said, reaching over and hitting the play button and a few seconds later, the music started to play. (Faithfully by Journey, lyrics © Journey & Steve Perry)

Faithfully

Highway run

Into the midnight sun

Wheels go round and round

In my mind

Restless hearts

Sleep alone tonight

Sending all my love

Along the wire

They say that the road ain't no place to start a family

Right down the line it's been you and me

And loving a music man ain't always what it's supposed to be

Oh girl

You stand by me

Faithfully

Circus life

Under the big top world

We all need the clowns

To make us laugh

Through space and time

Always another show

Wondering where I am

Lost without you

And being apart ain't easy on this love affair

Two strangers learn to fall in love again

I get the joy of rediscovering you

Oh girl

You stand, by me

I'm forever yours

Faithfully

When it was finished, they stood in the middle of the dining room embraced together for a minute, then they broke apart. "Shall we break open the bottle of champagne?" She asked. Sonic nodded and she grabbed the bottle of champagne while he grabbed two glasses. He had planned ahead and had her get a bottle of non-alcoholic champagne, since he wasn't supposed to have alcohol. When she asked why, he said he wanted to remember their wedding day with a sober memory.

They went back to the living room and sat down, Sally setting the glasses on the table. She popped the cork and filled each glass halfway and she handed one to Sonic and took one for herself. Just like the cake, they locked arms and took a long drink, then shared another kiss. "So how do you feel, Mr. Acorn?" Sally asked.

Having her last name hit his ears wrong, but he had already begun to accept it. "Perfectly fine. How about you, Mrs. Acorn?"

"Like the luckiest girl in the world." She said, taking another sip from her glass. "Oh, I almost forgot." Sonic said, setting his glass down and reaching into his jacket pocket. "Tails gave me this and told me to open it when we were alone." He said, pulling the envelope out. When Tails handed it to him earlier, Sonic didn't see it then, but he noticed the envelope was a little bigger than a normal envelope. "What do you think is it?" Sally asked.

Sonic stuck his finger underneath the small opening under the flap where the glue didn't stick and he ran his finger across the length of it, ripping it open. Once it was open and he parted it, he took a look inside. "It looks like... a note?" It was dim and he reached over and turned on the lamp beside the couch. He took out a singe piece of paper and another smaller envelope.

"What the..." Sonic trailed off as he opened the paper. A letter? "What's it say?" Sally asked, eager to know what it said.

"To Sonic and Sally," Sonic said as he started reading out loud. "We know we gave you your wedding gifts already, but we didn't wanted you two to open this one while you were alone. Cream, Knuckles, Shadow and myself pooled some of our money together and got you a little something. Inside the envelope, you'll find $250 and a room key that'll get you a six-day, seven-night stay at the West Mobius Casino and Hotel. Just hand them the room key when you check in.

Your friends, Tails, Cream, Knuckles and Shadow."

Sonic and Sally looked at each other in disbelief and Sally took the smaller envelope and opened it. Inside was the cash and room key, just like it said in the letter. "I can't believe..." Sally trailed off, her eyes welling up from the surprise. Sonic laughed. I guess that's why they didn't give it to us in person. Sonic thought. If they had, Sonic and Sally wouldn't have accepted it. They would've felt weird about it, taking something so lavish. Since they were given it like this, there wouldn't be that awkward 'I can't, it's too expensive' routine.

"They didn't have to do this." Sonic said. "I don't even want to know how they managed to get the money together, let alone the room." It wasn't like their friends had money put away for something like this. Sonic and Sally could afford something like this since they had a pretty padded bank account. Together, her and Sonic had close to $12,000 together; Sally had close to $8000 from her parents that had been left to her upon her death and Sonic had just over $4000 left from his novels and the royalty checks that trickled in every now and then. But even though they had that kind of cash, they didn't flaunt it around. They wore sensible clothes, had nice, but not expensive things, affordable car and a moderately sized three bedroom house.

"We're gonna have to do something like this for them one day." Sally said. "Yeah." Sonic nodded. "Since we have it, you want to go ahead and go?" Sonic asked. Sally nodded. "Might as well. I'd hate to waste something like that." She said. They nodded and both changed out of their wedding clothes and began packing. In ten minutes, they were both ready and they tossed their bags in the car, locked the house and headed off to the casino.

An Hour Later

Sally pulled into the parking lot of the casino and they were both awestruck. The casino was inside a good sized two story building and the hotel part was in a five story building, the top and corners of both buildings had red and blue neon running around and down the length of it. "Wow." Sonic said as she drove around looking for a parking spot. She found one in a few minutes, parked the car and shut the engine off. They both got out and took it all in. "How much do you think one of those rooms goes for?" Sally asked. "Can't be cheap." Sonic said.

Sally popped the trunk and Sonic got their bags out of the trunk and while his back was turned, a guy in a golf cart drove up that had the words 'Courtesy Shuttle' stenciled on the side. "Evening folks. Need a lift?" He asked. "Sure. Thanks." Sally nodded. "Hotel or casino?" He asked. "Hotel." Sally said as they climbed on and the driver drove up to the front doors of the hotel and let them off. "You folks have a good one." He said and drove off. Sonic and Sally walked inside and the view was breathtaking.

The front desk was directly in front of the doors about twenty feet away. The room branched off to two separate hallways, which led to the first floor rooms and elevators. A strip of red carpet led up to the front desk and branched off, going the entire length of both hallways; the walls were a lovely black and white marble with various plants along the walls. "Looks a hell of a lot different today than it used to." Sonic said as they walked up to the front desk. The hotel and casino had been a front for Robotnik's schemes years before and when he was defeated, it became a legitimate business. The casino was renovated, but the owners decided to leave the hotel as it was, except they removed all traces of Robotnik's presence from it.

There was a man working behind the desk that night and he greeted Sonic and Sally with a warm smile. "Good evening." He said. "Checking in?" He asked. "Yes." Sally nodded. "All right then. Do you have a reservation?" He asked. Sally reached in her pocket and pulled the key out. "Sort of." She said, handing the clerk the room key. He took it and swiped it through the computer; a few faint beeps followed, then two louder beeps followed the quiet ones. "Ah, yes. Acorn, right?" The clerk asked, checking the computer screen.

"Yes." Sally replied. "We have your room on file." He handed the card back to Sally then reached over and slapped a bell that was on the counter. *Ding-ding* "Service!" He called out. A few seconds later, a bellboy walked up to them pushing a baggage cart; the clerk behind the desk pointed at Sonic and Sally and the bellboy grabbed their luggage and put it on the cart. "You'll be on the forth floor, room 223... Honeymoon suite?" He grinned. "Congratulations." He said with a smile. "Thank you." Sally said. Sonic nodded and they along with the bellboy headed off to the elevators.

The three took the elevator up to the forth floor and they walked down to their room, which was pretty far down the hall. "You guys really did a lot with the place." Sonic said as they walked down the hall. "Thank you, sir." The bellboy said. "The new owners made sure that there wasn't a trace of him left." The bellboy said. When they got to their room, Sally took the room key out of her pocket and swiped it in the slot and when the door unlocked, they were shocked at what they saw. King size bed, large flat screen TV with a couch facing the set. A mini-fridge sat off in one corner of the room and a bar in front of it; it was a small bar, about five feet long which came up to Sonic's chest. The room itself was quite large, about twice the size of a standard hotel room.

"They really didn't have to do this." Sonic said as they walked in further. The walls were a peach color and the carpet was off white and in pristine condition. The bellboy brought their bags into the room and sat them down on the bed. "The remote for the TV is on the nightstand and if you need anything, just dial 0 and we'll do what we can to make your stay more enjoyable." The bellboy said. Sally slipped him a ten and he smiled, nodded and left the room, Sally locking the door behind him. Sonic went over and sat on the bed and Sally went into the bathroom. The sheets felt like silk and they were cool to the touch. It was an incredible gift and he didn't know if he could ever repay them for their kindness. "Sonic!" Sally called out.

"What?" He said as he came through the door; he saw why she had called him. The bathroom was just as nice as the rest of the room. The tub was big enough for two and was sunken into the floor and the shower was just as big, both had small bottles of shampoo, conditioner and other essentials. On the counter were little soaps, toothpaste and individually wrapped toothbrushes along with two plastic glasses, also wrapped in protective plastic. "I don't even want to know how much they put down on this." Sally said, walking out of the bathroom. "But you know what, let's just enjoy it now and figure out how to return the favor later." He said.

Sonic shut the light off and walked out, going over to the fridge and opening it up out of curiosity. It was filled with a variety of sodas, beer and champagne; small candy bars and tiny bags of nuts and probably all ridiculously priced. He didn't even want to touch one for fear of setting off some kind of alarm and getting charged for it by accident. He shut the fridge and sat down on the bed next to Sally. "You're right." She said. "There's not much point in sitting here worrying about it." She giggled and moved closer to him. "Now, where did we leave off?" She said, grinning and leaning in, giving him a small kiss.

"If I remember right," he said, returning the gesture, "we were somewhere around here." They began making out, hands and tongues running wild. When they broke a few minutes later, Sally whispered in his ear, "I've got an idea. Why don't you see if you can find a movie while I go slip into something a little more... comfortable." She said quietly, biting his ear lightly; she stood up and grabbed her bag and went into the bathroom to change.

Sonic smiled and stripped down completely and folded his clothes neatly and laid them in a chair, then crawled into bed. The sheets felt cool against his skin. Oh, we have got to get some of these. He thought. Sonic picked the remote up off the nightstand, but it was attached to a long chord, which either kept people from stealing it, or knocking it off the nightstand during the night.

Sonic scrolled through the list on the TV, which were all high-end adult movies. These were the kind that had a plot, but with people that could halfway act instead of just screw. He was still scrolling through the list when she came out and when he noticed her; his jaw almost hit the floor. She was wearing a nightie, one that he hadn't seen before. It was black lace, all see through with a small band of red fur running across the top around her breasts and along the bottom. "Holy hell." Sonic said breathlessly and she walked over to the bed and slipped in, snuggling up to him and throwing one leg over his.

"When did you get that?" He asked. *Hee* "I picked this up when Cream and me were picking up the wedding stuff." She said. "I thought you might like it." She said. "Like it, I might have to put my peep in a sling." He joked. She laughed and looked at the TV. "Anything good?"

"I don't know. From the looks of it, these are those high-class porno movies. I was thinking about choosing one at random." He said. She leaned in and kissed him. *Hmm-hmm* "I don't think we'll be watching it much." She said. To hell with this. Sonic thought and scrolled up to the top and selected the most watched one. He accepted the charges and when the movie started, Sonic and Sally began watching it until the couple on screen started going at it, which was their cue to start.

A/N: While I was writing this chapter, I knew I wanted to include Sonic and Sally having their first dance as a married couple. I didn't put it in during the wedding since I feel that a newlywed couple should have their first dance together alone and it should be between them. As I was looking through the songs I have on my computer, Journey's 'Faithfully' kept standing out in my mind. It made sense because to me, it represented their love for each other, especially the final verse. And if you haven't heard that song, give it a shot. Thanks for reading this, and feel free to leave a review.