8
"What were you thinking Sonic, I'm pretty sure we told you guys not to track him down and bombard him" she sounded more worried than angry but Sonic knew to feel ashamed for what he did.
"I just wanted to see him again, and I thought a race would cheer him up, I didn't know he messed up his leg." Sonic muttered in response as he absentmindedly ran his hand through Shadow's quills. He just fell asleep but his expression was still pained, makes sense, his ankle is broken. If you look closely you can see the bone pushing against his skin, not enough pressure to come out but it is visible, and it looks super painful.
"I know you didn't mean for him to get hurt but you should have given him time, not just showed up and challenged him to a race."
She had panicked when Sonic burst through the front door saying something about Shadow needing help, and then proceeded to lead her halfway across town. He spooked the rest of the family too but Tom had kept the other two home, saying she would update them.
"I'm sorry"
"It's not your fault sweetheart, just try and give him some time. Time to get comfortable and tine to heal, he's been through a lot, physically, mentally, emotionally. Im sure you're aware of that just as much as I am."
"Yeah... He's pretty messed up huh?"
"Kinda yeah."
"I'll be more careful with him." He promised as they pulled up to the clinic.
While Sonic grabbed Maddie's phone and texted Tom, Maddie picked Shadow up bridal style, carrying him into the thankfully empty clinic. They ignored the looks the other employees gave them as they went into one of the surgery rooms and set Shadow on the table.
How are shadow and sonic?
We're okay
He broke his ankle
Were are.you right now?
At theclinic
Madeie is helping him
Amd hes asleep
I guess thats good.
Are you okay?
Yeah just a bit upset he dint tell me he was hurt and he still raced me
You two raced!
Yesh i wanted to raise his sour miod and he didnt tell me he was hurt
Or i wouldnt have reaced him
Its unfair
Alright alright
Just update us regularly
Please
....
Sonic
Yep ok
Sonic sat on a chair in the waiting room, swinging his feet as he waited for maddie to finish up with Shadow. It had been about an hour when she finally came out with her partner, Selene, both smiling.
"He's gonna be fine, we just gotta keep him off his bad leg for a bit. Wanna help with that?"
"Of course! You can count on me to keep him off his feet. Is he gonna stay with us?
"He'll have to yeah, unless someone else is gonna take him. He'll have to sleep on the couch though, there's no more room for another one of you three running around."
"If he wants he can have my bed, we can share but if he doesn't want to I can sleep on the couch."
"It's alright sonic," Maddie crouched down to Sonic's height while Selene went to get shadow from the other room. "Im sure he'll be perfectly fine sleeping on the couch for a bit bud."
"Alright"
"And here he is, the man of the hour!" Selene smiled as she helped Shadow stumble along with his crutches.
Sonic could see the rising fury on Shadow's face, probably from the crutches and needing them to walk. He walked over and put one of Shadow's arms over his shoulder and his own arm around the ebony hedgehog's waist. maddie grabbed the crutches and led them out the door as Sonic helped a grumpy Shadow follow her to the car.
"This is ridiculous, I'm the ultimate life form, I should not need this help."
Sonic chuckled lightly, trying to ease the tension. "Well, even the ultimate life form needs a little assistance sometimes. I promise it’s just temporary, Shadow. Think of it as a new training method, crutch agility!"
Shadow shot him a glare. "You think this is funny?"
"Not funny, just... practical. Besides, look on the bright side—now you have an excuse to take it easy for a while."
As they reached the car, Maddie opened the back door, allowing Shadow to carefully settle in. She handed him a small pillow to support his leg. "There you go. Comfort first, right?"
"Yeah, right," Shadow grumbled, crossing his arms defiantly. But Sonic could see the fatigue in his eyes; the pain was clearly taking a toll on him.
Maddie climbed into the front seat, and Sonic hopped in beside Shadow, ensuring he was comfortable. "So, what do you want to do once we get home? We could watch some movies or play a game?"
Shadow sighed, leaning back against the seat. "I think I’d rather just rest in the fort but since we're driving away from that I'm assuming it's not an option. "
"Nope!"
"Then I suppose games don't seem too bad."
"Awesome! We can take turns, and I promise not to go easy on you just because you’re injured." Sonic winked, earning a half-hearted glare from Shadow.
As Maddie drove them to her home, Sonic kept glancing over at Shadow, who was trying to maintain his stoic demeanor but was clearly struggling. The silence in the car was thick, filled with unspoken thoughts and emotions. Sonic felt a pang of guilt again; he didn’t want Shadow to feel like a burden, but he also knew that he had to be there for him.
When they arrived, Maddie helped Shadow out of the car, and Sonic was right beside him, ready to support him again as they made their way into the house.
"When are you leaving?" Shadow asked.
"What do you mean?" Sonic looked at him confused as Maddie settled a spot on the couch for Shadow to sit.
"I mean you don't live here do you?" Shadow tilted his head as he asked.
"Where did you get that idea from" Sonic laughed, nudging Shadow playfully. "This is my home."
"I thought this was Maddie's house?"
"... It is," Sonic paused while Maddie watched from the sidelines. "Maddie's my mom." This made Shadow's eyes widen.
"Oh, so... Why would she help me?"
"What do you mean?" Sonic looked between the two of them.
" Well I hurt your Tom and If she is your mother than she would know him as well, why would you help me if you knew I hurt him?" He turned the last half towards Maddie herself.
"Well, he healed up perfectly fine. And he explained that he didn't look like himself when you attacked him. You hadn't meant to harm him and I'm sure you wouldn't have if he looked like himself in that moment." She put a hand in his shoulder as she explained this.
"But why?"
"Cause you're not really a bad guy, you're just misunderstood." Sonic smiled at Shadow while maddie pulled a blanket over him.
"Why don't you get some sleep? You have had a long day." Maddie gently pushed his shoulders till he was laying down.
"I'm not tired," he yawned. "I've basically slept all day." His eyelids suddenly felt heavy and he was asleep before he knew who was walking in the room.