The one who stayed //Sonadow//

Chapter five.

"Well," Sonic started "you show up to my house early like this. What did you want?" he waves his hand, as if gesturing Shadow to tell him what was on his mind. The dark hedgehog shrugged. "No idea. I just showed up"

Emerald eyes widened. Never once had the ultimate lifeform gone out of his way to see the blue hero. It was shocking, yet also flattering. "To...see me?" Sonic wondered as a blush washed over his face, "but you've never..."

The dark hedgehog inched closer and leaned his shoulders against the wall. He watched emerald eyes, studied them, got lost in them. "You called yourself nothing yesterday...I wanted to make sure you weren't doing anything stupid" Shadow said calmly, narrowing his eyes a little. Sonic shrugged.

"Define what you call stupid" he mused, shifting uncomfortably on the heels of his red sneakers. "Hurting yourself is pretty stupid" the ultimate lifeform frowned. That look, that frown, made Sonic think. Why was Shadow, the supposed emotionless being, looking at him as if Sonic would actually hurt himself and that his whole world would fall apart if the hero actually did? Did he actually care that much?

Sonic quickly waved him off. "I would never be that stupid Shadow." He reassured before feigning offence, "I'm offended."

Shadow smiled slightly. He was pleased that the blue hero wouldn't hurt himself, but that didn't mean that he wouldn't keep a close eye on him. Sonic seemed to have a lot hidden from the common eye and it bothered the ultimate lifeform. He wanted to know what was wrong and he was going to find out, that he was sure of.

"Good" Shadow mumbled, earning a pink blush from the blue hedgehog. The hero tried to distract himself from the small smile on Shadow's face as he ran his hands over his disheveled quills, a nervous tremor shaking him. "Well are you satisfied that I'm okay now?"

"If you want me to live then yes, I'm satisfied" the dark hedgehog uttered as he pushed himself off the wall, standing up straighter. Ironically, he didn't want to leave. That was strange. "Well...I don't exactly want you to leave Shads"

Shadow was stunned. Never once would Sonic say that openly, in his head maybe, but never out loud to his charcoal colored counterpart. It was now when Maria's words came back to haunt him, made him question everything. Were these thoughts and feelings telling him that Shadow was in love? He almost didn't want to think about it.

"Well maybe I should leave, you look...fine" Shadow knew that Sonic was far from fine, but in his mind, neither was Shadow. He was starting to get confused on how he saw the blue hero now. Before he hated him, always wanted him to go away, but now, he wanted to stay by his side to listen to him, talk to him, be with him. Shadow didn't want that now. He needed to run, to get away.

Sonic wasn't going to let him, though.

"Did you hear what I just said?!" the blue hero yelled, his emerald eyes wide. "Yes," Shadow replied with a frown, "and it would be a mistake if I stayed." Sonic was beyond irritated by now, throwing his hands out in an overdramatic way to show the emotion. "I said I don't want you to leave!"

"Why?" the ultimate lifeform questioned, crossing his arms firmly over his chest. Almost instantly Sonic calmed down, his wide eyes growing small and his loud voice withdrawn. "I-I don't know...I just...like your company, I guess"

That was the first time Shadow had ever heard those words spoken by a Mobian, and from the hero no less. "You like my company?" the dark hedgehog asked, mainly to himself in a way but the hero responded shortly after with a faint nod and a dark blush, whispering, "S-Sometimes"

"Sometimes..." Shadow chuckled "that's great news"

Sonic's ears went down. He felt like that laugh was forced, like he just hurt the so-called-emotionless being. "Great for...what?"