Chapter 40
A/N: Welp, it took me long enough but here's the final chapter and I know those of you that have been following this you deserve an explanation as to why it took me so long and at the end I will explain everything. For now, I hope you enjoy this.
*EEEEEEEE* The car's brakes squealed as Cream turned into the Ambulance bay of the hospital by accident, assuming it was for patients coming in on their own; the car came to a sudden stop and everyone jerked forward, Sally letting out a loud grunt. "Sorry!" she said, shoving it into park.
"I'll go get someone!" Tails said quickly as he jumped out and ran for the emergency entrance about ten feet away from the large doors meant for patients coming in by ambulance. He didn't stop and hit the doors hard, bracing his arms in front of him as he plowed through.
A couple of nurses rushed out within a minute, one pushing a gurney. Working with the skill of true professionals, they had her out quickly, Sally screaming as a labor pain hit. When it did, it felt like her abdomen was ripping in half, causing her to bolt almost upright, hands gripping the side rails with enough pressure she swore she could bend the steel bars on the sides; she fell back against the bed, breathing heavy and quick. "I can't do this." she said breathlessly, tears flowing as they wheeled her back to the exam rooms. Shadow and the others tried to follow her but another nurse stopped them.
"Sorry guys." he said. "There's a waiting room down this way you can sit in." They nodded and followed him. "Shouldn't one of us be in there?" Shadow asked as they turned a corner. "Unless you're the father or immediate family we can't let you in." he said, opening a door for them. "But we keep everyone updated as soon as we get news."
Shadow huffed but kept his cool as they were shuttled into a small, intimate room. A couch and a couple chairs sat against the walls, TV bolted into the wall; nothing special. Having no choice but to wait, they all sat down aside from Shadow.
"I'll be back when I get any news; there's coffee down the hall in the cafeteria if you need it." he said. Tails and Cream nodded and he excused himself. Shadow meanwhile, was pacing the floor, his mind racing. "They should've let one of us back there at least." he said.
"You know her." Cream said. "She'll demand to have one of us back there with her."
He nodded but ignored her for the most part. Seeing him in such a vulnerable state was more unnerving than anything they'd ever seen. It was one of those rare opportunities where he allowed his true feelings and emotions to be out in the open. "It'll be okay. She's made it through a lot, she'll make it through this." he said. Suddenly, the door opened.
"Shadow?" the same nurse said as he poked his head inside.
The hedgehog's head whipped around almost as fast as he could run. "Yeah?!"
"She's asking for you."
Without hesitation, Shadow headed over to the door. "Wish her luck for us." Tails said. Shadow nodded as he headed out of the room, the nurse following close behind him. "Hopefully that'll calm him down." Cream said as she sat back down.
"Hopefully. Weird seeing him like that. Can't say I blame him." Tails said with a sigh. "You want some coffee?" he asked. She nodded.
"This way." the nurse said as he turned down a hallway that led deeper into the hospital.
"She's not in the ER?" Shadow asked, dodging a janitor pushing a cart.
"No. When it's an actual birth, we take them right back to a room." he said, turning yet another corner.
"Right here." the nurse said as they reached the end of the hall and inside the room was a single nurse and Sally. The nurse, a female feline Mobian, stood by monitoring Sally's vitals while Sally tried to keep from screaming. She was panting, sweating and from the way she looked was almost at her limit. However, when she noticed Shadow rush in, she tried to hide it by putting on a weak smile, her head lifting just off the pillow. 'Even now she won't show weakness.'
"H... hi..." she said weakly as he grabbed her hand; she squeezed it in response, her grip weak. The nurses had already removed her clothing and draped a gown over her, an IV sticking out of her arm providing fluids from a bag.
"How you feeling?" he asked, wiping a bead of sweat off her face that managed to push it's way through her fur.
"B... been bet- NNGH!" she yelled as the need to push struck suddenly and hard. Her body tensed, one hand gripping the side railing and the other the hand of the hedgehog.
It lasted for about ten seconds and when it passed, Sally fell back against the mattress hard, tears falling from her eyes. "NNGH! Get it out of me!" she pleaded with the nurse. "It's too much." Shadow meanwhile had to keep from screaming himself. Her grip in those moments felt like it could crush a billiard ball.
"I know ma'am." the nurse said gently as she placed a hand on her shoulder. "The doctor's on his way and we should be able to give you something for the pain when he does. In the meantime," she said, going over to a cabinet and opening it. "Could you put this on?" she asked, handing Shadow a yellow gown. He nodded and began to pull it over his head.
"This your first, hon?" the nurse asked Sally.
"Mmm- NNGH!" she screamed as another pain hit, causing her to jolt upright; when she fell back against the bed, the nurse started hooking her up to the monitor. "I- it's coming..." she panted, her eyes half open. "NNGH!"
Running into the room, white coat billowing from behind him was the ever present Dr. Anderson.
"Do you live here or something?" Shadow asked jokingly while Sally's face lit up with a weak smile.
"No, just good timing." he replied. "You doing ok Sally?"
"Been bett- NNNNNNGH!" she screamed, hands clamping down on the railing and Shadow's hand again.
"How far apart are the contractions?" Dr. Anderson asked Shadow who muffled another scream deep inside his throat.
"Bout 45 seconds apart. I think."
Sally flopped back down on the bed again, crying. "Give me something! I... it's too much!"
"Can you put your feet up here?" he asked, pulling out the bed's stirrups. She did, her knees in the air. Dr. Anderson grabbed a stool, pulling it in front of the bed. Grabbing a penlight out of his coat pocket, he shined it on her. "Ok folks," he said, clicking the light off and sticking it back in his pocket. "this baby's coming. Get a BP on her." Dr. Anderson told the nurse.
Without a word, the nurse nodded and grabbed a cuff from a basket on the wall and began wrapping it around Sally's arm. "Can I... get- NNNNNNNGH!" she screamed as her stomach felt like it had a car set on top of it.
"Sally, I know it's hard to do, but I need you to stop pushing until we're ready." Dr. Anderson said, rolling over to a phone on the wall; nurse managed to get the cuff on and hit a button on the monitor. "Something... pain..." Sally mumbled.
"Code pink in 402." Dr. Anderson said into the phone. "I know you want something but I can't do that." he said, wheeling back in front of her bed. "You're too deep into labor. If you would've gotten here earlier we could've but if I do it now it could compromise things; I know it's hard but you need to bear it for a bit longer."
"But it hurts..." she cried. "I ca- NNNNNGH! *sob sob*"
"Hey, hey." Shadow said softly. "You've made it this far, don't give up now."
*BEEP BEEP BEEP* "BP is 134/108."
"Bit high..." he trailed off.
Just then, two other nurses came rushing into the room, one carrying a white package. The one carrying it set it on a small metal table and wheeled it over to her bedside while the other took position next to Dr. Anderson. "Contractions are about 45 seconds apart." he said to them. The one next to him nodded while the other opened the package. Inside was a pair of scissors. gauze, sponges and two metal tools. One that resembled a pair of salad tongs and the other the bill of a duck.
Covering her knees with a sheet, the male nurse stepped over to the monitor to keep an eye on it. Shadow saw her heart rate was around 126 and a chill ran down his spine. "Is that normal?" he asked; his voice had a tinge of worry in it.
"Yes. The body is under a lot of stress and an elevated heart rate is common." Dr. Anderson told him as he pulled on a pair of gloves; the nurse beside him doing the same. Grabbing the metal device, Dr. Anderson griped it in his hand for several seconds. "Okay Sally. I'm trying to warm this up but it may be a bit cold."
"Mmm..." she moaned, her eyes half open. She was beyond exhaustion and could barely pay attention to anything other than the pain in her belly; "Nnngh..." she moaned again as she felt the metal device press against her. It was uncomfortable but she didn't have the strength to protest it and just lay there panting.
"I can see the head." Dr. Anderson said to the nurse as he pulled out the device. "Okay Sally, it's time. On my count, I need you to push. Can you do that?"
"I ca...mmm..." she mumbled in agreement.
"Okay, on three. One... two... three."
"NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGHHHH!" she screamed as she pushed as hard as her body would allow. Her hand tightened around Shadow's and he squeezed back in a show of support for her, completely ignoring the pressure on his hand. "Forceps." he said and the nurse handed them over. When she couldn't push any longer, Sally crashed back to the bed, her heart rate at 130 and openly crying. She tried to speak but it only came out in a whimper.
"I know it's hard, but you're doing great." Shadow told her, his voice calm and she nodded slowly.
"One more push and I should be able to grab the head; whenever you're ready Sally."
She was weak and could barely hold her eyes open but it was a 'now or never' situation and summoning what little strength she felt was left, she gave another push. "Hgh..." she grunted quickly, but only made noise for a few seconds. 'Please...' she thought, giving off a silent prayer.
"Got it! Don't stop!" he said, his shoulders bumping into the sheet draped over her knees. Sally, somehow digging down into the deepest pits of her body, kept straining then in a flash, every bit of pain and stress melted away in an instance. Flopping back against the bed one final time, her head lifted up to try to get a glimpse of her baby. "It's a boy." he said with a smile; the other nurse standing beside him had his back turned, his arms moving quickly. "A boy..." she said, breaking out in tears of joy and relief.
"You did well." Shadow said to her, wiping her cheek with his hand. But both him and Sally noticed something was odd: it was quiet.
"Why... why isn't he crying?" she asked as she tried to prop herself up on her elbows.
"What's wrong?" Shadow demanded, his heart rate raising again.
Dr. Anderson turned to them. "Don't be alarmed. He's got a bit of amniotic fluid in his lungs."
"Fluid in his lungs?!" Shadow yelled. "Get it out!" Sally began whimpering, a feeling of helplessness washing over her.
Dr. Anderson took one of the sponges on the table and began wiping off the baby's mouth and face.
"He's not going to make it!" Sally cried.
"Yes he will." Shadow retorted quickly.
Grabbing the newborn by the ankles and holding him upside down, gently but firmly smacked the newborns back. "C'mon..." he muttered, slapping again and again. Sally began to breakdown and even Shadow had a couple tears begin welling up.
"C'mon!" Dr. Anderson yelled as he slapped yet again. "C'm-"
*hack hack* "Aaaaaaahhhh! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Suddenly, the newborn came to life, half coughing and crying.
"Nnng... nnng... Thank you God." Sally mumbled, floodgates opening again; Shadow smiled and both breathed a sigh of relief.
The nurse took hold of him and carried him over to a table close to the door, setting him in a metal basket of some kind. "Can I see him? I want to see him!" she demanded.
"Don't worry." he said calmly. "He's fine but we need to weigh him and write down a couple things but we'll go as quick as we can." Dr. Anderson said to her. "You did just fine. And if it means anything, that was one of the easiest births I've ever seen." he said with a smile then went over to where the newborn was. "Weight?"
"4... point 2 pounds, 1.90 kilograms; 13.5 inches, 33.6 centimeters." the nurse said. The other nurse jotted it down.
"Time of birth..." Dr. Anderson looked at the clock, subtracting the time from when the baby was born until that moment. "10:12 pm." The other nurse jotted that down and then grabbed a small ink pad. Pressing the baby's foot onto it, they pressed it against a space on the paper, then did the same with his right hand; the newborn fidgeted a bit but they managed to get a print.
"Alright hon." the female nurse said quietly as she picked up the baby carefully and wrapped him in a clean white blanket. He cooed as she carried him over to Sally. "Congratulations."
Sally took hold of him and broke down in tears of joy. "He's beautiful." she said, her voice breaking, giving him a kiss on the forehead; she took notice right away that he looked a lot like Sonic. His fur was a lighter shade of blue than his, almost a powder blue, however he had inherited Sally's eye color. She kissed him gently on the forehead and he cooed again, staring at Sally blankly at first, then kicking around. "Easy." she whispered to him.
"And what is the baby's name going to be?" the female nurse asked.
Without hesitation, she said "Maurice. Maurice Acorn." The nurse nodded and wrote it down.
When she finished, the other nurse left with her and Dr. Anderson stood up. "How are you feeling? No shortness of breath? Pain?" he asked as he removed his gloves.
Sally nodded quickly. "No. Just tired, but better."
"I'll get something to help you relax and let you get some rest."
She nodded. "Can we have visitors?"
"Hmm, I suppose... if you feel up to it that is. How many?"
"Just two."
"Okay, but not too long. You need to rest up."
"I plan on it."
Dr. Anderson nodded. "Good. I'll be back in a minute." he said and walked out of the room. Alone, Shadow looked down at the baby. "Looks like his father."
The newborn looked up at her, now having calmed down a bit yawned and leaned his head back against Sally's arm. "But, I've got to ask, why did you name him Maurice?"
She looked up at hi."Well that was his father's name." she replied with the same smile on her face.
"Really?!" Shadow said. "You can't be serious."
"No, it's true. He told me once and I couldn't believe it myself at first. 'Sonic' was just his nickname cause of his speed, you know; preferred that since he never felt that Maurice fit him. I figure this way if he doesn't inherit the speed he can at least carry his name on."
"Knowing him, I think the only thing that matters is the baby is healthy." Shadow reached out to Maurice and he smiled then somehow managed to get one of his hands free, grabbing Shadow's finger. "I think he likes you." Sally said.
"Yeah, strong too." Maurice griped Shadow's finger, squeezing surprisingly tight. "Just like Dad."
Sally yawned then turned to Shadow. "Can you go let them know they can come in?"
"Yeah, I'll be right back." he said and walked out the room, Sally talking to Maurice.
"Hey." Cream said quietly as she walked in, Tails and Shadow following close behind; they went to one side and Shadow the other.
"He's beautiful." she said, reaching over toward Maurice; he fidgeted a bit. "You feeling ok?"
"Just tired." she replied.
"Well, we won't stay long. Just wanted to make sure you were ok. And him too." she said laughing a bit and waving a finger gently at him.
"Did you give him a name?" Tails asked.
Sally nodded. "Maurice."
"Maurice?" Tails said, hesitating slightly. "Why?"
"Well, like father like son."
Tails' mouth dropped open. "His name... was Maurice? I didn't think he had an actual name."
"I didn't either." Shadow said.
"Well, he wasn't very close to it; said it never felt like it fit him. But I figure this way if he didn't inherit the speed, he'd at least be carrying the name on."
"I don't think Sonic would mind." Cream said.
*knock knock* Everyone turned around as Dr. Anderson walked in holding a small, clear IV bag.
"Hi folks." They nodded as he walked over to Sally's bedside, Tails and Cream moving down. "Okay, this..." he trailed off as he hung it and began attaching it to Sally's IV. "should help you relax. Still no pain?"
"No." she replied shaking her head as the needle went into her arm.
"This should keep any from popping up."
As he did, Tails and Cream stepped back. "We'll be back tomorrow." she mouthed. Both Sally and Shadow nodded and the walked out the room.
"If you- they left... hope it wasn't cause of me." he said laughing.
"No... they just wanted to pop in and make sure everything was ok."
Dr. Anderson glanced over at the monitor then back at Sally. "Go ahead and get some rest and in the morning, we'll see if you're up to going home."
"Tomorrow? Shouldn't she stay a couple days at the least?" Shadow asked.
"Not usually. The time it take from the body to recover from birth is quicker than most people think. We only monitor new mothers for a day at the most and if there are no complications, they get to go home. But for now, just get some rest and we'll go from there." Yet another nurse came into the room, this one pushing a crib which he parked beside Sally's bed and walked out. "Thank you." she said with a sigh of relief. "I thought I was going to have to hold him all night."
"Well if you have everything, I'll let you get some rest."
Sally nodded and Dr. Anderson left and Shadow pulled a recliner up close to the bed. "You don't think Tails thought his name was weird, do you?" she asked as Maurice wiggled slightly and yawned. "Oh, he just yawned." she said smiling.
"I think he was just surprised that Sonic actually had a name. I know I was." He sat down beside her, the chair making a 'whoosh' as he did.
"You think you were surprised? The first time he told me I laughed." she said with a smile. "He made me promise to not laugh and I said I would, but I just couldn't help it." Sally jiggled the baby just slightly to get him in a better position in her arms.
"Was he mad?"
"Little bit, but he calmed down quickly... he knew I didn't mean it seriously..." she trailed off yawning.
"Maybe you should get some sleep." Shadow said.
"I know. I just want to hold him some... *yawn* more."
Shadow shook his head. "You can see him in the morning." he said, getting up and taking Maurice in his arms. He smiled when Shadow picked him up and he cooed in response. "Hmm." he chuckled with a smirk on his face. "He does have his father's eyes." He hadn't seen him up close until now, but he looked like Sonic in almost every way, save for a patch on his chest that was a dark cream, almost light brown color he'd obviously inherited from Sally, the rest of him was a deep blue. Shadow put him gently in to his crib and when he turned back to Sally, she looked relaxed, but growing ever more tired with every passing second. "Sleep well." he said, and set himself gently down into the recliner, popped the footrest out and turned in himself.
*click* Being a lite sleeper, Shadow woke immediately. Looking around, he saw the door open slowly and to his surprise, Tails popped his head inside. "Hey." he whispered when he saw Sally still asleep; Shadow motioned for him to come inside. "She doing ok?" Tails whispered.
"Far as I know." he said. "Were you both here all night?"
"Yeah." he said. "Cream wanted me to check in and see if she was awake before we both came in." He looked over and both baby and mother were still sleeping. "She already looks better."
"Lot better." Shadow said after looking at her himself. He noticed her color had improved and she even looked more relaxed even in her sleeping state. Tails walked up to Maurice's crib and peered in. "That's Sonic 2.0." he said. Taking his phone out, he snapped a picture for Cream then slipped it back into his pocket.
"She didn't want to come in if she was asleep so we'll come back later."
"I'll let her know you stopped by." he said; Tails nodded and backed out the door. Shadow yawned and looked at the clock. "Nine thirty one?" he whispered and shook his head as he got up and walked into the small bathroom in the room. When he came out, he saw Sally sitting up in the bed, a smile on her face. "Morning." she said.
"You look better this morning."
"Feel better." she said, her voice chipper. "Haven't felt this good in awhile."
Shadow went over to get the baby for her but Sally stopped him. "No. Let him sleep."
After a breakfast which seemed like it would be what food would eat, various nurses came in and out, taking her vitals, getting blood pressure along with drawing a couple vials of blood. A few hours passed as the staff awaited for the results of her tests and around 3 that afternoon, Dr. Anderson made an appearance.
"I've got good news. You get to go home." he said with a smile. "Everything checks out ok. Baby is doing well, and your blood count is near perfect. Your PT INR is around 2.7 so there's no chance of internal bleeding. Vitals are stable and your blood pressure is fantastic. I don't see any reason to keep you here." He opened her chart and marked a few things down. "I've already signed off on your discharge and I'll have the nurse go over everything with you. If you have any pain just take an asprin but I am going to write you a prescription for a multivitamin and an antibiotic. Also... going to set you up with a good pediatrician we have, Dr. Stevens; you'll see him in a week or so and I'll see you in two weeks. Any questions?"
Sally thought for a moment. "Why the antibiotic?"
"Just a precaution." he said. "You're body just went through a strenuous process so your body is a bit stressed. That'll strenghen your immune system until your body fully recovers; shouldn't be more than a couple weeks. When you leave, just go straight home and rest; at least a few days. Do you have any questions?"
She nodded. "I know it's a little too soon to worry but should I breastfeed or go with the bottle?"
Shadow blushed a little. "I'm gonna step outside." he said quickly excusing himself.
"He gets so embarrassed." she said with a laugh as he walked outside.
"I wouldn't worry about that right now. Your body will take another day, maybe two before you start noticing any milk production. When your breasts start getting larger and sore you'll know it's time. But for now, just get him a bottle and some formula. I'll make sure you get instructions on how to warm a bottle and how to feed him. Anything else?"
"No, I think that's about it."
"I'll let you get dressed then. Call if you need help."
"Thank you Doctor."
He nodded as he walked out of the room.
Thirty minutes later, Sally was in a wheelchair, a nurse pushing her down the hallway. Various people walked by offering her their congratulations and she politely nodded. They reached the entrance and Sally gasped as the air hit her. It was cool and she bundled Maurice up a bit better. "What's with the weather lately?" she said out loud. "Almost as bad as it was when we came in early this morning."
"Way the sky looked coming in I thought it was gonna snow." the nurse pushing her said while they waited for Shadow to pull her car around. "Which one's yours?"
"The white one." she said pointing at her car coming down the driveway. He pulled up and got out, opening the door for her. The nurse pushed her up to the car and locked the brakes as Shadow took the baby from her. "Careful now." the nurse said as Sally braced herself on the arms of the chair and pushed herself up. She was still weak from the birth and her arms shook as she pushed herself up but she managed to get in the car.
"Here ya go." Shadow said as he handed her the baby. She took him as he fidgeted from the cold and Sally turned the heater down to low.
"Thank you." Shadow said to the nurse as she folded the wheelchair up.
"You folks be careful now."
The black hedgehog buckled up and put the car into gear and pulled out on the road. Maurice cooed as the heater warmed the car up. "Think we have time to go by the store?" she asked.
"Yeah, if you want to." he said. "But I don't think it's a good idea to stay out too long. Dr. Anderson said you needed to get as much rest as possible."
"I'll be fine." she said. "I just want something to drink. Don't care what it is." she said, clearing her throat. "Mouth feels like a desert."
"Might as well get some diapers and formula." Shadow said.
"Bottle too." she added.
Shadow pulled to the stop as a red light popped up. "Sorry about dropping that one. Too bad they can't be aluminum."
"Least we have the crib."
She laughed. "Can you imagine us trying to put one together?"
"Hey, that wouldn't be a problem. It'd be lopsided and missing at least six parts but we could do it."
Sally laughed again. "How people manage to stay sane after pu-"
"What?" Shadow asked as she suddenly stopped talking.
"Pull in there." she said, pointing out of her side of the car.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes." she said, nodding her head.
He didn't want to but he wasn't going to argue with her and obliged. Pulling into a long driveway, he slowed down to a crawl, both of them scanning the area. "Was around here." he asked, his eyes shifting back and forth.
"No, it's down there." she pointed toward a large tree off to their left.
"Looks like they finally got it finished." he said as he turned down another access road. "Looks nice."
"They did do a good job." she said as Shadow pulled the car up, parked it and shut the engine off. Sally stared out her window, her free hand tapping the door nervously.
"You want me to go with you?" he asked.
"If you want." she said.
There was a short silence while Shadow decided. "No, you go first. I think you need this more than me. I'll go after you." he said. Sally nodded and he got out and went around and took the baby while she got out; once she was, he handed Maurice back to her. "Take your time." he said and she nodded; Sally pulled Maurice's blanket around him a little tighter as the cool air hit him.
"Thank you." she said and headed toward a small area. It had a few benches surrounding a small plot of flowers in a circle that had been cut out of the cement. Shadow leaned up against the car and watched as she walked out to it. 'I hope she knows what she's doing.'
As she approached the two benches, she sat on the one on the right. The air went still, quiet but very peaceful; Maurice even stopped fussing, looking up at Sally, eyes bright. "Look." she said quietly to Maurice. "That's your daddy." Just in front of her was a bronze statue of Sonic, posing with his arms crossed and the almost ever present smile on his face. It had been erected by the city as recognition for all he had done for Mobius and the fight against Robotnik. Just underneath, a plaque with the date of his birth and death were inscribed, along with a brief history. A single flame fed by a gas line was lit underneath his statue just in front of his feet. It was the first time she had visited his grave since the private funeral they held for him.
Almost immediately after word got out he passed, the public went to work to ensure there would be a proper memorial to him as a way to thank him for all he done and to keep the stories of what had happened in the war in the minds of future generations. Sally had yearned to come back before but being pregnant and the fact she couldn't handle seeing his grave prevented her from doing so. It was only now that she had the baby could she return.
"Isn't he beautiful?" she said to his statue. "I named him Maurice. Thought you'd like to meet him." she said, smiling as a couple tears fell down her face. "I don't know if you would've agreed to the name though." she reached up and wiped her face.
"God I miss you." she said, reaching over and touching his statue. When she did, the wind picked up, sending a chill through her spine and causing Maurice to shake and whimper. "We'll go in a minute." Sally said to him as she held him a bit tighter in an effort to keep him warm.
"I know you wouldn't want me out here but I wanted to make sure he saw his daddy."
Maurice fidgeted again and in the most touching gesture she had ever saw, Maurice got one of his hands free and reached out toward the statue of his father and Sally swallowed the lump in her throat. "We'll be back in a couple days. I love you." she whispered as she caressed Sonic's statue one final time and slowly walked back to the car.
Shadow saw her coming and opened the door for her. "You ok?" She nodded but didn't say a word as she handed him the baby and climbed in. Thankfully the car was still warm inside and Shadow handed Maurice back to her.
"Be right back." he said and she shut the door. The black hedgehog slowly made his way across the grass, standing on the opposite side Sally had.
"Haven't seen her that happy in awhile. She was so worried about that baby."
He stopped a minute, taking a deep breath. "I don't know how she made it through all of this. I mean, there were so many times I thought she was going to lose it; all those sleepless nights spent crying. But she always managed to pull though. I don't know how but she did. Anyone else and they would've cracked under the stress." Another cold blast of air hit and Shadow pulled his jacket tighter.
"But I want you to know I'm going to watch over her no matter how long it takes. I made that promise and I'm not breaking it for anything. But," he exclaimed, "I'm not going to replace you. I couldn't do that. I'll keep doing what I've been doing and when that kid gets older and calls me daddy, I'll tell him to call me uncle. He only has one father and I'm going to make sure he knows that." He stopped and checked on Sally. She yawned as she held Maurice up against her shoulder.
"I guess that's a cue for me to get her home." he said, reaching out and touching the statue as well. "Next time I'll try to get the whole gang out here. I'll uh... see you around." Shadow took one last look at his monument and headed for the car.
He climbed back in, the warm air hitting him and he shuddered as a chill ran up his spine. "You ok?" she asked as she put Maurice across her arms.
"Yeah. You?"
"Better."
Shadow buckled up. "Ready to go?"
Sally looked out the window toward Sonic's statue, the flame dancing in the wind, flowers in the holder buried in the ground swaying. "Yeah. I think so."
"Ok." Shadow said, started the car and drove off.
Well, that's it. I can finally say it's done. I can't even remember when I started writing this since the computer I started writing this on died, but thankfully I managed to save it in time. But anyway, there were a few reasons as to why it took so long. Sometime's I'd get stuck on a certain part, sometimes for a couple weeks, or I wouldn't have the urge to. But the main reason was health related. I was in and out of the hospital periodically for serious heart issues which I used in the story. As it turned out, what I had could actually happen to someone that uses hard drugs as I had Sonic doing in the story; while it's not likely to happen though, it could happen and I thought it would make for an entertaining story as well as share a bit of my own personal experiences.
But now, I'm left with what to do for my next one. I thought awhile back after this one I was finished and writing fic's was a one time thing but now I have a renewed sense of energy about it. And I've decided to use my own experiences as the basis. Everyone has said I should write about what I've been through and when I tell the story, they listen so why not put it on paper so to speak? If you will indulge me, I hope you'll follow me to that venture.