I'll admit, I was getting worried. I had spent all day switching between watching story driven shows on the T.V. and the news of the area. When those bored me, I did attempt to read one of the books on the shelf. I had found the plot boring and the girl in it was immature and dumb for her decisions to try to get the attention of the boy. And the boy was not a good guy as well. How did that story become a best seller when it gave the wrong impressions to those who read it.

But my worry was about Esme, she was late. It was an hour after the time she said she would be home. Was she safe? Did something happen? I began to pace about and think on what to do. I would go search for her myself, but I didn't know the area, and my injuries were still severe enough that moving at the speeds I wanted to was not a good plan.

I could try to call her. She did leave me her number by the phone. I began to walk over to the kitchen. As I reached for the phone, I heard the front door open. My instincts kicked in and I ran out to protect my temporary home. I let out a growl as I charged up my chaos power.

Esme froze at the door and looked at me with concern. "Shadow?"

My face immediately fell and my power dispersed. "Esme, you're okay."

"Yeah," she put down her bag. "Sorry, I'm late. Work when a bit longer than expected and I wanted to stop and get you something."

She got me a gift?

Using her freed hand, she grabbed the box from under her arm and presented it to me. I gingerly took it in my hands. The box showed a smaller version of the T.V. It would easily fit in my hand. The side stated iPhone. I looked up at her confused.

She walked by me and went to the kitchen to start dinner. "I figured you would eventually want to do stuff outside the house when you got better. This way you would still be able to contact me."

"This couldn't have been a cheap item to get me." I retorted.

"Well, no." She admitted. "But I like the product, and I want to make sure you're okay. So, I got it for you. You'll be able to call or text me whenever you need. And you can put whatever you want on the phone. So, if there's a game you want to play, you can add it on there."

This phone had the capability to be more than just a phone? I knew technology had changed a lot since I went into stasis, but this was quite impressive considering what I knew. Though, not as impressive as some of Robotnik's technology. But that tech wasn't as widespread as the rest of the items.

"So," Esme broke my thoughts. "What do you want for dinner? I bought some stuff on the way home to make Chili Dogs."

"I've never had those before." I responded.

She smiled. "They're pretty good. I'll start making them up. And after we can do something fun."

A small smile crept to my face.

After dinner, we decided to leave the house for a little bit. Esme said she wanted to introduce me to a local hotspot. A drive-in movie theater. She said they were playing on of her favorite movies. Being outside for the first time since I got here was a nice change of pace. I started to take in the smaller town. Though it was getting darker, I could easily make out red rocks and interesting structures in the distance. It was quite an interesting location.

After a while of driving, we pulled into the theater and found a parking spot. Esme got out of the car and setup the speakers that were supposed to go into the car. Before the movie started, she went and got us some snacks. Popcorn, drinks, and some candy.

The movie was not what I expected. It followed a blue alien who was labeled the villain, but by the end was praised as a hero. Many parts were silly and childish, but there were a lot of parts that were heartwarming and it resonated with me.

Though after I saw the movie with Maria, I feared that I was a danger to those I cared about. But this movie, I resonated with because though, I was not of this planet and was a villain, I was able to make the right decision to protect this planet and all that Maria loved. I could see why Esme enjoyed it.

After the movie ended, Esme began to drive me to another location. "Man, that movie never gets old. I love the jokes and I love the message."

I sat silently as she drove, my head still filled with thoughts about what I watched. Did she choose this movie on purpose? Or was it pure coincidence? As I thought, we pulled into another location. It had a lot of overhanging covers for parking spots and bright white lights. Esme pulled into one and pressed a button on the screen next to her car window.

"Okay, what flavor ice cream do you want?" She asked me.

I looked at her for a second and thought. There was a flavor of dessert that I enjoyed back at the base, I wondered if they had that in ice cream. Esme was putting in her order and I waited patiently. When she finished, she looked at me expectantly.

I hesitated for a bit. "Do they have brownie?"

Her smile got big. "Yes, that's one of their best. They have a chocolate shake with brownie pieces in it. I'm sure you'll love it."

She turned around and input my order as well. After paying for it, it was a short wait till a young lady in skates came over with our order. As she placed them on the window of the car, she looked in and saw me. Her eyes got wide.

"Woah," she exclaimed, and I ducked down a bit, my ears dropping in worry. "You're one of those alien creatures that save the world recently, right? You were with that blue one, right?"

My ears relaxed. She wasn't scared? And she… liked me?

"Thanks, Tori." Esme said to her.

The girl's attention shifted from me to Esme. "No problem, Mrs. Hunter. Good to see you again."

Tori skated off to continue her work.

Esme grabbed the cups filled with ice cream and handed me mine. I stared down at the treat and remained silent for a bit. If Tori knew about me, then Esme must know about me, and what I did. Why was she being so kind?

"Esme…" I started hesitantly.

"How's your ice cream shake?" She asked before I could go much further. She looked at me like taking a bite of her own. Her eyebrows creased when she saw I hadn't started eating it. "Is something wrong?"

"Why are you being so kind to me?" I finally got out.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Because…" I stopped myself from blurting out everything.

She placed her spoon in her shake, and reached over to grab mine. "Look, Shadow. I know that you have a lot going on. And yes, I know that you are connected to…" She pointed at the moon that was recently cut in two. "But I also know that there's a lot more going on that what is told to us in the media. You don't have to tell me until you are ready, if you ever are ready. I'm helping you because I help people, it's who I am.

"When I found you, I saw a helpless creature who needed medical attention. I didn't see a monster, or an alien. I saw someone needing help." She explained. "So, I took you in to make sure you got that help. I was worried that I wouldn't be good enough to provide you the assistance you needed, but as long as I can do that. I'll be here for you. My husband wouldn't want any less."

"Husband?" I had never seen another person around Esme's home before. Not even a photo. But I did recall Tori calling Esme 'Mrs. Hunter.'

Her caring smile ever so slightly became sad. "Yeah. My husband, Orion Hunter, he was a Wildlife Ranger. He wanted to help every living being, no matter who they were. From the smallest and most harmless creatures, to the largest and most dangerous. He just wanted to help them and make sure they had a happy and full life."

"Is he away?" I dared to ask.

Her smile fell to a frown. "No… He's no longer here."

My heart fell for her.

"He was diagnosed with Chordoma. It's a cancer that grows from the tissue inside the spine." Esme let out a shaky breath. "It's rare and difficult to treat. By the time we found it, it was pretty much too late. He passed away last year."

"Esme…"

She took in a harsh breath. "But it's okay, I'm taking it one day at a time and have the support of my family and friends. But I had to take down all of the pictures that he was in. I would get too depressed when I would see him. It wasn't helping my mental health. Eventually, I'll get to the point where I can put them up again."

She had been so vulnerable to me. And she still wished to be selfless and help me. Someone she knew was connected to why the moon was split and there's a residue of an explosion in the sky. To have that kind of trust for someone you barely know, how did she do that?

A cold sensation suddenly pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked over at Esme and she held in a laugh as she was holding my spoon with ice cream on it. The sensation on my nose.

"Come on broody," she said in a playful voice. "Let's move on from the sad topics and enjoy the ice cream before it melts completely."

Though I wasn't quite sure how to change completely from one topic to another after something that heavy, I complied and took my spoon from her. The ice cream was better than I imagined. It reminded me of when I was happiest.