A/N: Sorry this one took a while but I've had a lot of shit happen this week that i've had to deal with. Unfortunately, the christmas chapter (Chapter 12) won't arrive on christmas, sorry :P Anyway, read and review. Thank you for all the reviews and kind words, it means a lot.
Chapter 9:
Prying Eyes
"We will pick you boys up at 3:30. Don't be late," Vector snapped before stomping on the accelerator, sending it to the ground and the car rushed away, leaving the two boys in front of the amusement park.
The grand park stood atop a grassy mound, surrounded on two sides by a luscious park filled with exotic plant species and greenery as far as the eye could see. A paved road ran around to the east of the park and the great Mobian Ocean and the white, sandy beach lay to the south. The two boys stood at the entrance of the park, which was shaped like a large mouth of somebody by the name of Egg man. The entrance opened up to be the shape of his mouth, teeth lining the roof of the tunnel entrance. A large, wooden, orange structure jutted out to either side of the entrance to symbolize a flowing moustache, with the words 'Twinkle Park' etched on either side.
A large, eggshell white wooden coaster had been constructed around the park, acting as a kind of wall to the circular park inside, shielding the other attractions. Lights ran through the whole park, of all the different colours of the rainbow. It ranged from reds and blues to indigos and violets. Green and Pink flushed with orange. The whole park seemed to be out of a 6 year olds Christmas dream, but much, much more fun.
"Where to first, buddy?" Sonic asked, turning to look at his fox friend.
"What about that ride?" Tails pointed to a large ship like ride. Two, slime green dragon heads jutted out at either side of the boat and it rocked from side to side, shooting up many meters in the air.
Sonic nodded enthusiastically, grabbing Tails' gloved hand and sprinted over to the hawk behind the booth. Sonic and Tails flashed their orange wrist bands, signaling that they could enter the ride and took the seats at the far side of the boat.
Some quick turnings of cogs occurred as the hawk pulled down a lever in his work station and the boat roared off, swinging from side to side, progressively getting higher and higher. As the ride got higher and higher, Tails began to get more and more scared. He gulped down his fear, not wanting to show any sign of weakness to his friend. However, when the ship got to the top of its final ark, Tails let out a shriek of terror, closing his eyes tightly. Fear gripped him and dread filled his insides completely.
He had made a horrible mistake to choose this ride. He wasn't nearly brave enough. This was Sonic's thing, not his. Suddenly, the fear began to drain away as he felt something warm grab his hand. He slowly opened an eye and looked down at his hand. It was cupped tightly in Sonic's. He raised his head to look at Sonic's shimmering emerald eyes, filled with excitement and adventure. He winked, laughing as the ride began to slow down to a stop.
"Thanks, Sonic," Tails managed to say after they walked around the park in silence for a bit.
"No problem, buddy. Like I said, I'm always here for you." He smiled again and Tails had to look away to avoid the crimson colour that began washing over his muzzle. "How about we try the ghost train next?"
"Won't that be too scary?" Tails asked, nervous to try the ride.
"I can hug you all the way through to keep you safe?" Sonic mused seductively yet playfully, hastening over to the long, twisting line out the front.
"Sonic, you know we can't do that in public." Sonic laughed at Tails' response before explaining himself.
"It's dark the whole ride and we are inside, where nobody can see." This was enough to convince the young kit, who happily shuffled into the two man car ride before it shot off into the dark. As soon as they were out of sight, Tails felt the bony arm of Sonic fall on his shoulders, gripping around him. Tails leant to his right, snuggling under Sonic's arms and wrapping his around the cobalt hedgehog's waist. Sonic place his other hand around the fox, shielding him from the shrieks and screams of the ghostly figures that attempted to scare the riders for protection.
Tails was in heaven, being able to feel so safe and protected, even in the scariest part of Mobius. Yet it was cut too short. Only a few minutes after they had been shrouded in darkness, the wooden door slammed open and the two were bathed in light as they exited the ride. Sonic quickly shoved Tails off of him and Tails jumped to the side at the same time, barely breaking apart before the eyes of the rest of the park fell upon them.
They ran off the ride and down the exit ramp, laughing to themselves, filled with adrenaline after the close scare. It always seemed… hotter, when they were so close to getting caught. A dangerous feeling indeed. Suddenly, the colour drained from Sonic's face as he looked up at the four T.V screens that dotted the top of the ride, displayed for the line to see. On it they could see the pair in front of them caught on camera. On the bottom left screen, it showed the two boys get in the car and it was about to enter the ride. Luckily the footage was about 5 minutes behind real time but Sonic knew that any minute, an image of Tails and him snuggling close on the ride would be broadcast to the whole park.
"What's wrong, Sonic?" Tails asked, noticing the look on his face.
Sonic could only point to the screen, to which Tails gulped in fear when he understood what was so scary. "I can use my knowledge of electronics and mechanics to cancel the footage of us, but I can't have the person behind the counter stopping me." Tails said finally, a plan forming in his head. "We just need a distraction."
Before Tails had time to think of a plan, Sonic quickly ran to the center of the line, pushing past angry customers as they yelled profanities at him. Once he had everybody's attention, he fell to the ground, yelling in agony.
"AHHHHHH," he screamed, writhing in pain on the ground, clutching his stomach. "Help me, there is something in my stomach that feels like it's about to break out! HELP!" Everyone darted their head towards the hedgehog who was writhing around, screaming on the ground. All attention was on him. Tails took this opportunity to sneak around behind the velvet rope closing off the line and snuck behind the booth. He brought down the keyboard and began frantically typing in words, numbers and codes. Eventually, the screen that was now displaying the fox and hedgehog snuggling together faded to static. Sweat beaded on his forehead and fell as he sighed loudly, thankful that he was able to remove the footage.
Once Sonic saw that the coast was clear, he stood up, brushed off the dust and walked away. Everyone watched him leave after he said nothing. Confusion wafted on the breeze.
"Hey, you two! Get back here," a rat dressed in a suit ran up to them, fuming with anger. "I saw what you two did back there!"
The two boys swallowed deeply, scared for their lives. The rat grabbed them both by the scruff of their necks and carried them out of the park, throwing them on their asses outside the park's entrance.
"W…What was that for?" Tails asked, surprised that they had just been kicked out.
"I saw your blue friend over here fake sick and I saw you tamper with the ride. You are both banned for life!" The rat stormed off, ripping off their orange bands in the process.
The two boy looked at each other and couldn't help but break out in hysterical laughter, relief washing over them.
"I'm kind of disappointed that we didn't get to ride the giant Ferris wheel. It would have been so… romantic," Tails blushed, smiling at his cobalt companion.
"I think I have a place even better, and more private," Sonic said, walking down the red brick path into the lush green field adjacent to the park. The two walked, side by side, into the middle of the area and then darted off suddenly into a large, bamboo section of the park. Many tall, thin stalks of bamboo grew out of the soil, standing almost three meters high. Sonic led Tails through a secluded path way into a small clearing, barely big enough for both of them to sit down together.
"This is so… amazing," Tails marveled, enjoying the secret area and the serenity of it all. Sonic sat down and patted his lap, signaling for Tails to join him. The kit sat down on his lap and he wrapped his arms around the fox's middle, soaking up the warmth emanating from his golden fur, placing his chin on the kit's neck and kissing him gently on the cheek.
"By the way, how come you fainted in church today?" The kit asked, intrigued by the hedgehogs unusual behavior. He had never been known to faint before.
"Just the way everyone was talking about us. Calling us filth. When Big said they had an excuse to execute somebody just for being… like us. I couldn't take it," he sighed weakly. "They just don't understand that love is love, no matter who the target of affection is. Boy or girl, why should it matter to anybody as long as the love is real."
"Sonic, I need to talk to you," Tails sighed, leaning back and enjoying Sonic's calming embrace. He felt so safe. So secure.
"Anything bud," Sonic replied, squeezing the fox tightly.
"After that scare we had back there, y'know, almost being found out by everyone… and from what was said in the church… well, I don't know if we should keep doing this." Tails could almost feel the muscles in Sonic's arms tense as if holding Tails tighter would stop him from saying these words.
"But we only just found each other. How could you want to already go back to being friends? I know I got a little scared but still," Sonic retorted, his heart cracking slightly.
"I don't want to be just friends. I want to be so much more. I want to be with you forever. I love you, Sonic."
"I love you too, Tails."
"That's the problem though. If anyone found out then we would be excluded, outcasts. Or worse. If they didn't end up killing us on the spot, they would make us leave our community and after stepping across the border, there would be a war and we would be killed immediately. You heard Big say executed!" Tears filled the fox's eyes and he began sniffing softly. "I don't want to die, Sonic. I don't want you to die because of me."
"Shhh," Sonic soothed, wiping away the few stray tears that fell from the fox's eyes with his hand. "Death is just the absence of love, Tails. As long as we are together, we will never truly feel death. I'll never let anything happen to you."
Tails turned his head, swiveling his body around while still remaining in Sonic's lap and threw his arms around the hedgehog, connecting his fingers together behind his back. He tilted his head and closed his eyes, leaning in with puckered lips. He was met with Sonic's lips and the two shared an intimate, passionate kiss. Their tongues danced together, moving and swaying as two parts of one whole, completely in sync.
"Tails, Sonic? Are you guys in there?" A voice cut through the air. The two immediately broke the kiss, standing back from each other. They were gasping and breathing deeply, partly from the kiss and partly from the intruders who were nearing them. Their hearts pounded in their chests, sending the blood coursing through their veins faster and faster.
"There you guys are," the silver hedgehog smiled, pushing some bamboo aside. Silver stepped through, with Blaze following shortly behind, her hand placed neatly within his.
"We thought we saw you guys come in here from the other side of the park," Blaze smiled, looking over to Tails. "How are you doing Sonic? I heard you weren't the best yesterday," Blaze said, giving Sonic a big hug in the small clearing where the four still stood.
Sonic glared at Tails angrily, who kicked the dirt with his foot and refusing to meet his partners gaze.
"How did you know…?" Sonic asked cautiously, his gaze not leaving the fox.
"I was on a call with Tails when you called him yesterday," she smiled, still not understanding why Sonic was upset. Sonic relaxed a little, relieved that she had overheard the conversation instead of Tails telling her and breaking his trust.
"Are you guys on a date?" he replied, looking at Blaze and Silver.
"1 year anniversary today," Silver smiled, planting a wet, sloppy kiss on Blaze's cheek. "So what are you two doing here?"
The two looked at each other quickly, trying to think up some excuse when Tails suddenly broke the silence. "We got banned from Twinkle Park because I was tinkering with some of the machines to see how they worked so we came here. We were exploring when we found this cool little place."
Blaze and Silver laughed simultaneously. "Trust you to do that, Tails," Blaze laughed, beaming her warming smile at him.
"This place is really romantic," Silver said, staring at Blaze and winking.
"It's all yours," Sonic smiled, stepping aside and taking Tails hand. "We were just leaving anyway. Enjoy your anniversary. We'll see you guys at school tomorrow." Without anything else, Sonic grabbed Tails' wrist and ran off, leaving the two bewildered lovers alone in the clearing.
'First the call yesterday and now we catch them in a place like this. Something is definitely going on here, and I want to know what,' Blaze though but her train of thought was interrupted when Silver planted a passionate kiss on her lips.
Sonic looked back at the bamboo field getting smaller and smaller in the distance.
"Why'd you do that?" Tails asked. "That place was so nice. Why couldn't we stay there?"
"That was too close. We need to be more careful. They almost caught us!" Sonic warned, slightly concerned about how careless Tails had been becoming. Now that Blaze was on their case, they had to be extra cautious.
"Why don't we just go home and finish what we started there?" Sonic offered. He picked up Tails and sprinted off, heading to their secluded spot in their favourite park.