In Sepia tone Flickies tweeted and flapped. Rouge was fast asleep upside-down on a palm-tree when the ground rumbled, dropping coconuts off the tree and waking her up.
"Huh? Whoa-!" Rouge said, fell and landed on the ground.
Trees in the background were being plowed and knocked down, creating huge clouds of dust from behind. Rouge got caught in the tree stampede, by a group of Eggforcers pushing the trees away. Rouge, hanging on, flew up while dust clouds scatter and cover the ground to her horror. She shook her head, but heard Knuckles screaming over by the pier, taking on a swarm of Eggforcers followed by Sonic.
"Get away!" Knuckles said and grunted "Stop destroying our forest!" he said and she flew and carried him away to safety with Sonic following.
They saw the devastation of their land from above as fires and smoke were scattered all over Green Hill at various points. A variety of shots show areas of Green Hill transform into metal buildings, roads and rails.
"It's gone. All of it." Knuckles said.
"We'll get it back." Rouge said.
"How? It's... it's hopeless."
"It looks like we'll need to get the whole team back together." Sonic said and they looked at her.
Knuckles knew that look anywhere and nodded.
Six months later.
In New Yoke City a weakened Sonic was in the middle of a street painfully, rising to her feet after being hit and groaned.
"That's a sonic boom of a headache." she said and started walking through the city, but was interrupted by a vehicle with a loud horn and bright lights coming her way. "Huh? Aah!" she said and was hit by the vehicle, but climbed up its front to reach the top. "Uh..." she said and was interrupted by another horn, coming from a monorail-like vehicle above him and quickly ducked. "Aah! Close one." she said and the vehicle hit a bump, and she was knocked off, landing next to a bleak-faced citizen on a moving sidewalk. "Aah! Ow!" she said, hit the bend of the sidewalk and fell off into the street, where she was swept around by a street sweeping robot. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" she said and was launched away into a wall.
Then she walked off to a different sidewalk and noticed Big with Froggy.
Suddenly a spotlight appeared on them and Big put his hands up, while Sonic looked up.
"Unidentified citizen. Alert! Alert!" Security Drone said and played a siren while Big and the other nearby citizens fled from Sonic.
"Shit." Sonic muttered and several Eggforcers dropped down from above.
"You are in violation of city ordinance 27 B/6." Eggforcer said.
"Sorry, I don't speak robot."
"By the authority of the Chaos Council, stand down or be disassembled." Eggforcer said and the robot arms its two cannons.
"Give me directions, and I'll take it from there." she said as two more Eggforcers arrived behind her and she tried to dash off.
But was blast away at incredible speed, leaving a trail of energy in her wake.
She dashed through the city, and into an alleyway, slammed into a wall, and picked herself up.
"Ugh! I'm sick of all these walls." she said and looked around to see two Eggforcers approach her, and started firing laser blasts.
She defeated them both with a jumping Spin Attack, but more Eggforcers arrive and shot lasers, narrowly missing her. She dashed off again, but was blocked by a transport vehicle.
Then she took a sharp turn, causing some of the Eggforcers to slam into the vehicle.
"Wha...!" Sonic said and dodged another vehicle, but started slipping towards another one, which quickly approached.
She slid inter the vehicle, and kept running while avoiding lasers.
"This is not. Working! I gotta get off the ground!" she said, took a running jump off a vehicle and grabbed onto the underside of a monorail.
It brought her to the top of a building, with the Eggforces still in pursuit firing lasers and she barely dodged them.
Then she noticed a giant machine lowering a new floor onto a building, jumped off the monorail, and landed on the building, with the new floor lowering above her. The Eggforcers followed her, chasing her to the edge of the building. She dodged laser fire, and jumped off just before the new floor was added, crushing the Eggforcers.
Then she was thrown from the building by the explosion, and performed a Spin Attack to land safely on the streets with a camera watching her.
In a lab, Rusty Rose was watching Sonic through the camera in real-time.
"Smog, concrete, evil robots. It's like everything I hate all in one place again!" Sonic said.
Back with Sonic.
Sonic sighed when she saw a wall with a checkered texture similar to the soil of Green Hill.
Then she dashed off through the city and up a tall building.
When she reached the top, she jumped and spun, launching herself in the air, and looked at the city. She looked down to see a checkered loop-de-loop.
"The Loop-de-Loop..." she said remembering a similar loop from Green Hill, before darting her eyes to another part of the city. "Hedgehog's Pass..." she said and gazed to a small building, with Sentry Drones heading towards it. "Tails' lab!" she said and started falling from the building.
Then she landed flat on the ground with a thud, and groaned.
Then she saw a wall adorned with the Chaos Council's symbol, and started walking towards it.
The eyes on the symbol glow bright red, and sound a siren followed by several Eggforcers arrive, and fire lasers.
Sonic dashed off while another camera was watching her.
At the same lab as before, Rusty Rose was watching Sonic through the camera in real-time.
"Badniks. I gotta find Tails." Sonic said.
A light flashed on in the lab's hallway, and the shadow of Eggman was projected onto the scene. Rusty started watching footage of Sonic's earlier actions in New Yoke City.
"Who are you?" Rusty asked.
"More ungrateful rebels?" Eggman asked.
"No. Sonic the Hedgehog. Not in the databanks." Rusty said, typed on the control panel in front of her, and a visual of Sonic's energy profile was brought up. "Her energy profile is... intriguing. The Unidentified Running Organism has outrun the Eggforcers and is heading towards Babble's area." she said and Babble's logo was shown of a screen of the panel.
Meanwhile Sonic was dashing through Babble's area of the city. She ran straight by a citizen being threatened by a gray Eggforcer. The Eggforcer noticed her, and gave chase.
"Finding Tails would be a lot easier if everything was covered in grass and palm trees, like it should be." Sonic said and Babble in his mech hovered down right in front of her, who skid to a halt. "Whoa!" she said and the mech drops to the ground with a thud. "Oh great."
Babble laughed and pressed the button on the door of his mech suit, causing the color roulette to start, much to Sonic's annoyance. The color roulette slowed down and landed on the yellow icon. The baby rattle shaped mace arm appeared out of the funnel of the mech suit's arm as Babble shook it.
Then Babble used his mech suit to uppercut Sonic, sending her flying to the wall as he kept laughing. The purple icon on his mech started ringing as the mace-arm retracts as he crawled towards Sonic who tried to run, but slipped.
"Whoa! Come on!" she said and Babble leapt at her, barely missing.
She jumped over him, and kept running.
"Ha ha!" she said and slipped again, sending her into a wall. "Ow!" she said, jumped another punch from Babble, and ran up the mech's arm, but slipped again.
She picked himself up and kept dodging, then ran up a building, allowing her to slam down on Babble, knocking the mech on its back helpless. She circled the mech at high speed, creating a tornado which spun it around into the air. Then she slipped again, causing her to veer off into a wall.
"Whoa! Unh!" she said
Babble whined as his mech dropped to the ground and slid into a wall while Sonic dashed off.
The cockpit on Babble's mech closed again, and the mech sprung into action again, pursuing Sonic through the city, and slamming into several walls along the way. The color roulette started spinning again, while he made baby noises.
"Ugh! Sorry, kid, I don't bust up babies." Sonic said, looking in front of him and saw several Security Drones dragging citizens into a large pipe. "Go home, change your diaper, think about your choices, and tell Eggman I'll deal with him later. Right now, I got a fox friend to find!" she said and quickly changed direction, running into the pipe.
Babble tried to follow, but didn't fit in due to the size of his mech, and was stuck in the opening. He reached the mech's hand through, but failed to grab anything. He whined, as several Eggforcers arrive to pull him out. He started crying and punched one Eggforcer away in a fit. From a ledge above, Rouge AKA Rebel and Knuckles AKA Renegade witnessed the situation.
They had created nicknames for each other.
Sonic is Leader, Knuckles is Renegade, Tails is Nine and Rouge is Rebel.
"She's fast, powerful and hates the egg more and more." Rebel said.
"I know." Renegade said. "What if she gets into the hands of the Chaos Council?"
"When has she ever steered us wrong?" she asked and he sighed.
"Never."
On the Subway tunnel Sentry Drones flew past, carrying captured citizens. Sonic followed close behind. Soon, they arrived at the Scareport, and Sonic jumped off the tracks onto a platform.
"Departing trainsport from Circle Station arriving in the Scareport..." PA voice said.
Several monorails were present nearby, as well as tubes leading to other parts of the city.
Sonic looked around, and noticed a citizen resembling Tails with mechanical tails, who enter one of the tubes.
"Tails? Buddy?" Sonic said and dashed off after Tails.
After exiting the pipe, she weaved through the crowd in an attempt to keep up.
"Tails! Tails!" she said and Tails moved around a corner into a tunnel with Sonic following but found no sign of him.
She walked through the tunnel and noticed a door and keypad resembling those on Tails' Lab.
Then she typed "1992" into the keypad and the door clanked and slid open.
She walked into the room and noticed the devices and equipment in the room then Tails typing away on a control panel.
She smiled and spun around the chair he was sitting on.
"Hey buddy." she said and he gasped, raised his wrench aggressively and growled.
Then he saw Sonic, sighed, walked forwards slowly and calmed down.
"What are you doing here?" he asked and pressed a button on his belt, extending all seven of his mechanical tails.
Sonic fell onto some cylindrical containers, picked one off herself, and started dodging Nine's rapid strikes.
"Whoa! Heck! How many tails do you have?" she asked.
"Nine!" he said and she got to her feat, and kicked him away.
Nine dashed back, and grabbed her legs with his robotic tails. Then he swung her around, tossing her out of the room and over the subway tracks. A monorail sped by at that exact moment, catching Sonic on the roof of its cars. Nine quickly grabbed on. As the monorail sped through the Tunnel, Nine kept fighting Sonic, chasing her across cars.
"Tails, stop! We're buds! Amigos!" Sonic said, spun off the monorail and onto the beam it ran along. "Best friends!" she said and he jumped off the monorail onto the beam, and charged at her.
"I have no friends!"
""No friends"? You have the best friends." she said dodging his strikes while slowly walking backwards.
Another monorail sped by, and they jumped onto it. At a platform below, a Rebel Denizen was recording the situation on a device, which has Rebel on the line.
"Target located. We're at the Scareport." Denizen said.
On a building in New Yoke City. Rebel and Renegade were operating from on top of it.
"Loud and clear. On our way." Rebel said, spread her wings and flew off with Renegade close behind.
Meanwhile Sonic and Nine were fighting on the monorail when Nine hoped in front of Sonic, and kept attacking.
"You've been working out? Who's your trainer?" Sonic said dodging then was struck from Nine. "Ow!"
"I was trained by the misery of life and this foul and heartless city." Nine said and charged directly at her, hurling her backwards.
"Snap out of it! We go way back." she said, hopped off the monorail and onto another one passing by on the second track, speeding in the opposite direction with him following. "All my best memories of Green Hill have you in 'em, and you're not punching me." she said and he lunged at her again.
Sonic kept dodging by jumping around the monorail. Soon, they both jumped off onto the beam the second monorail ran along and Sonic slowly backed up as Nine crawled forwards.
"Don't you want to go home? Blue skies, sunny beaches, palm trees?"
Another rebel was recording the incident from a platform below. Another monorail sped by, and Sonic and Nine jumped on it. Nine kept crawling forwards.
"I don't know what kind of mind games you're playing, but it won't work!" Nine said and lunged at Sonic, who dodged, causing him to slip and topple off the monorail.
Nine managed to grab on with two of his tails, leaving him dangling from the side with his other tails scraping the ground.
"Whoa!" he said.
As he tried to climb back up, and horn blares, headlight shine directly at him signifying another monorail approaching swiftly on the other track. Just before the other monorail would hit Nine, Sonic spun into action, and grabbed him out of harm's way, leaping though the air to a platform, which they land on and tumble across, before coming to a halt.
"You saved me?" he said panting.
"I've been trying to tell you that we are friends." Sonic said. "What's wrong with you?" she asked gently.
"Fabricated stories won't keep me from beating you back, intruder!" he said angrily.
"Stop. Just... stop. We're friends. Best friends. This has to ring a bell. From the very moment we first met, you were a happy, brainy little fox doing happy, brainy little fox things." she said and saw Tails walking through Emerald Hill Zone then two bully foxes jump out from behind a bush and one pulled on Tails' tails, while the other jeers. "Some blockhead bullies were picking on you for having an extra tail. I ran by, and they lost interest in being jerks." she said and she ran by, knocking the bullies out of the way and winked at Tails as she kept running, and Tails flashed a thumbs up gesture before flying after her.
"How do you know about that?"
"You are Tails." she said and he looked at her.
"Prove it." he said and she stopped pondering the situation, and turned to him.
"Well, first of all, you have the coolest plane." she said. "It's called..."The Tornado"." she said and started running and punching in place. "And we fought and busted Eggman like, so many times, I've lost track."
"You mean the Chaos Council?"
"Yes but we call him Eggman."
"So, Mr. Doctor Eggman, then?"
"Sure. Sounds good. Look, we've had our share of ups and downs, but when we stick together, we never lose." she said and patted him on the back. "And when all's said and done, there's no better reward than sharing a chili dog with your best pal. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. We've got a lifetime of adventures and memories together."
"Um, I... I think your shoes are smoldering." he said pointing down at her shoes and she looked down in surprise.
"Of course they are. What else can go wrong in this crazy place?" she said and sat down in frustration.
"The only thing I despise more than people in my space is whiners. he said and one of his robotic tails put a gun-like device in his arms and he pointed it at her.
"Wait! I thought we just had a bonding moment." she said and panicked.
"Stay still." he said, activated the device and it shot a cyan light which he gradually directs down her body, stopping at her shoes.
The gun then projected a holographic display of her energy levels, which he read.
"Curious. There's low-level energy throughout your entire body. But possibly a Regulator could... Follow me!" he said, used his mechanical tails to crawl off and she followed.
Soon they were in his lab and Sonic was examining Nine's inventions, while he typed away at a computer.
"I, uh, like them by the way." Sonic said.
"Those ratty old sneakers? Obviously." Nine said.
"No, I mean I always thought your extra tail was cool, but the metal ones? Man, you're amazing."
"Uh, sure. One last touch." he said, swiveled his chair around to face Sonic and handed her four Regulators. "Attach these. They might be able to regulate the excess energy coming off your gear so the don't explode."
""Might"?"
"This energy is still a mystery." he said, attached a Regulator to each of her gloves and a Regulator to each of her shoes.
The Regulators started to glow with blue energy, and make a mechanical whirring sound. They watched in suspense. Suddenly, Sonic glowed brightly, and her shoes and gloves transform into more stylized forms.
"Whoa! What are these?" she asked and dashed back and forth. "No energy overflow, and the look." she said and gazed appreciatively at her new attire. "I mean, come on. Mwah!"
"Ah, curious. They're still your gloves and shoes, only now they seem to have attuned with the energy in your body instead of resisting it. I wonder why that is." Nine said and she dashed up to him.
"Oh-ho, these are killer! No more slipping and sliding, no smoke. Thanks, Tails. I mean, Nine. Time for a test drive." she said and dashed out of the lab.
"No, wait, you dope! It's not safe."
Sonic emerged from a pipe in the streets of New Yoke City and Nine followed close behind.
"Hey, if the mad scientist/loner thing doesn't work out, you should get into fashion accessories. Stylin'!" Sonic said.
"Shhh! We need to maintain a low profile. The Council has eyes everywhere." Nine said.
"When you get your memory back, you'll remember that low profile isn't my thing. Want to run up the walls?" she said and slowly walked backwards.
"What? No!"
Suddenly they were grabbed by the first of Babble's mech, which emerged from behind a corner followed by Several Eggforcers.
Babbles held Sonic and Tails threateningly near the cockpit of his mech.
"Ugh. Not the baby." Sonic said.
"I told you to keep a low profile." Nine said and Babble's mech blast off, with them still in its left fist and the Eggforcers follow.
"No, you didn't."
"Are you sure we were best friends?"
'What happened to you Tails?' she thought.
From atop a building, Renegade and Rebel watched.
"Sonic, Tails." Renegade said and Rebel covered her mouth. "What happened to him?"
"I don't know." Rebel said shaking her head.
At a giant building in New Yoke City, adorned with the logo of the Chaos Council.
Inside, Sonic's limbs were restrained by electronic shackles from a restraining device. The room was in total darkness when footsteps were heard.
"Who's there? Hello? Hello?" she said and a bright light suddenly shone directly at her and she she said and grunted. "Ow! A little warning. Man, that's bright." she said, blinked a few times as her eyes started to water and started to notice this. "Hello? Tissue?"
Then a door opened and in walk two Eggforcers, along with a captured Nine.
"You're wasting your breath." Nine said.
"Nine, is that you? she asked and her vision became blurred. "Are you the small blurry thing or the medium blurry thing?" she asked and Rust Rose walked by. "Or the big blurry..." she said and gasped. "Amy?! Amy! All right. Now we're getting somewhere. Got a key?"
"Negative. My identification is... Rusty Rose." Rusty said and typed at a computer.
"You're a robot!" Sonic said aghast.
"No. Mechanically enhanced. Survival required adaptation, as you will soon learn."
"Oh, Amy."
"Rusty Rose. Cease talking. You will need all the breath you can muster if you are to survive."
Then the door opened and five figures on hovering chairs enter, obscured by the shadows.
"More silhouettes? Who does your lighting?" Sonic said.
"The Chaos Council." Rusty said and pressed a key, turning on a spotlight on above Done-It. "Dr. Done-It."
Dr. Done-It grumbled and his sleep, then woke up.
"I'm awake, I'm awake. Go on, you were saying." he said and she pressed a key, turning on a spotlight on above Deep.
"Dr. Deep."
"The philosophical ramifications of this discovery rock my very core." Deep said and she pressed a key, turning on a spotlight on above Don't.
"Dr. Don't."
"Whatevs." Don't said playing on a handheld gaming system.
"And you have already met the baby, Dr. Babble." she said and pressed a key, turning on a spotlight on above Babble babbling angrily. "And finally, Mr. Dr. Eggman." she said and pressed a key, turning on a spotlight on above Eggman.
"By the dumbfounded look in your eyes, I gather you've come to grips with the gravity of your situation." Eggman said.
"Looks like an Eggman family reunion. When did you call in reinforcements, Eggy?" Sonic said.
"We are not a family, rodent. We are The Council. One makes five." he said and the four other members of the council moved their chairs directly behind him, making it the only one visible then they move them back. "Five makes one." he said and they laughed maniacally while she groaned.
"So many Eggmans, so many questions." she said and sighed. "Does anyone have an aspirin?"
"How could you not know?!" Done-It asked angry.
"We're famous." Don't said.
"We are what we are. Always have been, always will be." Eggman said.
"So this creature made all that fuss?" Done-It said and moved his chair up to Sonic. "Doesn't look like much..." he said and poked Sonic with his cane. "...To..." he said and poked her with his cane again. "...Me." he said and poked her with his cane a third time.
"Hey! I respect creaky old stuff, but poke me again, and I'll crack your antique shell, Egg-gramps." Sonic said and Babble pointed at her, and babbled.
"I told you. It seems to know who we are, yet we have no information on it in our databanks." Eggman said to Babble.
""It"? Really?"
"Like it popped into existence from nowhere." Deep said.
"What? I've been here the whole time, dude."
"Perhaps answers lie in the energy signature the creature exhibits." Rusty said, pressed a key, and footage from earlier of Sonic outrunning Eggforcers plays on a TV screen in the room. "May I suggest a series of grueling life-endangering diagnostic tests?"
"Not helping, Amy. You know I don't do well on tests."
"Those in favor of stress-testing this blue rabbit, say yes." Done-It said and all of the Chaos Council members except Dr. Don't raise their hands.
"Oh, yes, please." Eggman said and Babbles babbled happily]
Instead of raising his hand, Don't pressed a "yes" button on his device. The device restraining Sonic was lifted off from its base, and put in a sealed chamber with a glass wall for the Chaos Council to watch through.
"Hey, hey!" Sonic said.
"Rusty, put him through the paces. Let's see how powerful he is." Eggman said and Rusty pressed a key on the access panel.
Sonic grunted, and struggled against the electronic shackles binding him.
"Do not fight them. It will only end badly for him." Rusty said and pointed to Nine.
An Eggforcer prodded him with an electric weapon, electrocuting him.
Nine grunted.
"Nine!" Sonic said and Rusty pressed a key, and the shackles deactivate, causing her to drop to the floor of the chamber. "Okay, let's start the test. The sooner we do this, the sooner Nine and I can get out of here." she said and Rusty pressed another key, and two laser turrets emerge from opposite walls and one fired at Sonic, and she barely dodged out of the way. "Lasers. I hate lasers." she said and both turrets started firing rapidly, and she kept running to dodge.
The Chaos Council laughed
"Nice!" Eggman said.
Sonic ran up a wall, and rapidly circles the turret there, causing it to lose focus on her. The other turret prepared to fire. Sonic then jumped in the space between the two turrets, causing both to fire. She dodged at the last minute, which lead to the laser cannons shooting each other. Eggman snapped his fingers, and Rusty pressed a hey to re-capture Sonic. The entire chamber then moved upwards, while Sonic was forced to the one below through a hole in the floor. In the new chamber was a curved conveyor belt. After being released, Sonic ran on the belt, avoiding moving laser beams while the belt ripples and bends.
Later Sonic ran past a crusher and between a set of Spikes to bounce on a Spring. In mid-air, she avoided several more sets of spikes, before landing on a fan, which she ran on to make it rotate and carry him upwards. Then she kicked it away, sending it spinning into the crusher, which it cut in half. She wiped her hands, while the Chaos Council looked on in interest. Rusty pressed another button, and the shot cut to Sonic running in a rotating hollow glass sphere with spiked balls bouncing around inside it.
"Seriously? A hamster ball? What is wrong with you people?" Sonic said.
"The tests are still inconclusive. His maximum limits remain unknown." Rusty said to the Chaos Council.
"Make the blue badger run." Done-It said and she pressed a key, and the rotation of the glass sphere sped up.
Sonic grunted.
"Come on, Amy! Some compassion for your girl Sonic!" she said and grunted. "You can't suddenly be this heartless."
"Birdie would disagree." Rusty said and walked up to the glass barrier of the chamber
A portion of Rusty's robotic torse opened up, revealing a defeated-looking Birdie inside.
Birdie chirped sadly.
"That's so messed up." Sonic said, got hit by a Spiked Ball, tumbled around the sphere and grunted
"Sonic!" Nine said and was electrocuted again by the Eggforcers.
"You want to test me, Eggheads? Question: How do you tick off a hedgehog? Answer: Mess with his friends!" Sonic said running faster and faster.
Then she performed a Spin Attack, and started speeding along the interior of the sphere at rapid speed.
The computer showed her energy level rising. A repeated beeping was heard and the Chaos Council except for Don't watched on in interest.
"I totally call dibs on his quills." Don't said and Sonic grunted.
A mass of blue energy was forming in the sphere.
The computer showed Sonic's energy reaching dangerous levels and the building started shaking.
"I knew it. She's got the same energy that powers the city." Nine said.
"The energy field is supercharging our systems." Eggman said and the computer started to spark so Rusty backed away.
"Turns out the blue possum has some juice after all." Done-It said.
Sonic was straining while the energy generated a great white light and kept running.
Then Sonic woke up panting and looked around to see she was at HQ and sighed.
Then she got up, went outside and thought about her true family.
"You should be asleep." someone said and she turned around to see Knuckles.
"Same with you." she said and he stood next to her.
"You had another nightmare didn't you?" he said and she nodded.
"Yeah. I don't know how much longer I can do this Knux. I've been fighting him since I was a kid and now look at him. I left to protect them and I'm clearly failing."
"No you're not. He hasn't done anything to them." he said and she sighed.
"I just wanna go home." she said and covered her face.
"I know you do." he said gently and took her face. "And you will one day." he said and they looked at each other.
Then they kissed, holding each other close and started having sex.
When they were done they looked at each other red.
"Sorry." Sonic said. "You're with Sonia not me."
"I'm sure she'd understand how stressed out you are." Knuckles said gently.
"I should get to bed. I have another mission tomorrow." she said and he nodded. "Night Knux."
"Night." he said and she left. "What the hell did I just do?" he said and sighed.
It had been two months since the accident and Sonic and Knuckles hadn't said anything.
Sonic had been feeling sick for the past few weeks and was in the bathroom looking at something in shock.
"Oh shit." she said and covered her mouth. "Shit. Shit. Shit!" she repeated.
Then there was a knock on the door and she jumped.
"Sonic?" Knuckles said.
"Yeah?"
"You OK? You've been in here for twenty minutes."
"Um, yeah but I need you to come in here."
Then the door opened and he walked in.
"What's going on?" he asked and she handed him something and he froze. "W-what?"
"What do I do Knux?" she asked and started to panic.
She was pregnant.
Then he came back and put his hands on her cheeks.
"Relax. It's gonna be fine. I'm right here and not going anywhere. We will figure this out together." he said and she nodded starting to calm down.
"Don't leave me." she said and he smiled.
"I won't."