Chapter Text
Tangled limbs, warmth, and a whole lot of drinking. That's about all Sonic could remember from the previous night.
Sonic groaned and sat up, holding his head and holding back the vomit that crept up his throat. He glanced around the room he was in- it was a hotel room, but not the one he checked into yesterday… his last clear memory was going to the bar to celebrate Eggman’s downfall with all of his friends… and… Shadow showed up and began slamming down drinks with the rest of them. Everything after that was a blur.
Who the hell did he sleep with last night?
Sonic knew he didn’t make up the fuzzy memories of sleeping with someone… the ache in his legs and the bites on his thighs were signs enough of that. He sighed, grabbed his phone, and went to the bathroom, trying to collect his thoughts. Once he saw himself in the mirror, he realized how much of a wreck he was. His quills jutted out in every direction, he had dark circles under his eyes, and bites littered his shoulders and neck. Great… he’d have to sneak out of the hotel and zoom on home before any of his friends saw… or worse, the paparazzi. He was officially famous after ending Eggman’s tyranny.
Sonic could no longer hold back the bile in his throat and knelt by the toilet, expelling the contents of his stomach into the basin. After doing that for a solid minute, he sighed and stood back up. He placed his phone on the bathroom counter, then turned on the shower and hopped in.
Sonic thoroughly cleaned himself off and tried to recall who he spent his night with. He heard his phone buzz a few times. He ignored it for now- probably just Knuckles or Amy asking about his hangover.
Sonic exited the shower and began to dry himself off before checking his phone, his towel wrapped around his body.
The first text he saw was from.. Rouge? Huh…
‘So, Blue, you and Shadow… what a cute couple. The media is eating you two up.’
What?!
Sonic furiously typed back.
‘What are you talking about?’
Rouge only responded to his text with a link to a taboo article.
Sonic the Hedgehog and Shadow the Hedgehog: Heated Rivals or Lovers?
Oh Gaia... And the pictures… Sonic’s arms wrapped around Shadow at the bar, him and Shadow making out in some corner, him and Shadow going to the hotel together. Well, that answered who he spent his night with. Sonic read through the article as he left the bathroom and sat on the bed. This must be Shadow’s room- the room Sonic checked into had just a window facing the front of the hotel and a single bed. This room had a bed, a couch, and a balcony.
The start of the article did have the facts- it was clear the two kissed, left together, and had their hands on one another all night. The rest was speculation- were they dating? Engaged? Eloped? Sonic rolled his eyes. The media loved to run with anything they saw… but they got one thing right with the speculation… Sonic did spend the night with Shadow. The hedgehog let out a deep sigh, already trying to guess how long it would take for this all to blow over.
That didn’t matter now. He just wanted to go home… Sonic’s few belongings that he had on him at the bar were neatly placed on the dresser. It was his jacket and wallet… He wondered if Shadow did that? There were no other signs of someone else being here- Shadow must have packed his things and left. Of course… Sonic was in no mood to see him later. His phone was blowing up, so he just silenced it, slipped his jacket on, and left the room.
…
Sonic just went back to living his life. Part of him wanted to text Shadow, meet up with him- but… Shadow would have stayed that morning if he cared, and he knew that any requests to meet up would fall on deaf ears.
There was no escaping his friends, either. Sonic still lived with Tails, who was a teenager. They just… didn’t talk about it, but he knew that sometimes when Tails looked at him, there were thoughts about what he and Shadow did. He was young, but not entirely innocent- he wasn't at the bar that night, of course, but he saw the articles- the photos- and any teen could put two and two together about what making out in a bar then checking into a hotel together meant.
Amy seemed a bit sad the next time she saw Sonic. They didn’t talk much about it either- he knew she still had feelings for him… but Knuckles? The next time he saw him, Knuckles laughed and smacked his back. “Scored with Shadow, huh? Didn’t think you swung that way!” Sonic just rolled his eyes. Sonic didn’t see Rouge in person, but of course, her teasing messages didn’t stop. Sonic took a break from social media in the meantime- he had DMs from news outlets, and every other post was some taboo article overanalyzing any picture of Sonic and Shadow together, whether it be from that night or before.
Sonic assumed that night would just be left behind, and any reminders would fizzle out sooner or later.
Or so he thought.
It was a month after his and Shadow’s… interaction, and Sonic was late. He was born with girl parts, something he hoped the media would never find out about… and because of those girl parts, he had to bleed every month. Sonic should have had his period almost two weeks ago. He didn’t realize he was late at first- but when he realized it had been almost a month and a half since his last period? He began to panic.
Of course, this happened after his night with Shadow… but he kept it to himself for now. No need to worry his friends if it all turned out to be a fluke.
So, Sonic threw on a hoodie and hid himself. He couldn't let someone capture a photo of him buying a pregnancy test. That would only end terribly.
Sonic swiftly went through the pharmacy, grabbing a few tests from different brands, using self-checkout, and running home faster than he had in a while. Sonic went straight to the bathroom… he used four different tests- one was digital and the other three traditional. He did his business and set each test on the bathroom counter.
He had to wait three minutes… just three minutes. 180 seconds. That was nothing.
Sonic paced the bathroom, checking his phone couple of seconds to see how much time had passed. He was going crazy. But… finally, the three minutes passed, and Sonic finally peered at the tests.
Oh Gaia…
One test could have been a fluke. Two could have been a coincidence… But four tests, all positive? They were even different brands… he was pregnant, and there was no denying it.
Sonic nearly jumped out of his skin when there was a knock at the door. “Sonic? Are you okay? You’ve been in there for a while-” Tails said. “O-oh- uhm- y-yeah! So totally fine. Better than fine. Finest I’ve ever been.” Sonic responded. Smooth… “You don’t sound fine,” Tails said.
Fuck… Sonic’s mind was racing… he was dead silent now.
Then- a click. Tails picked the bathroom lock and entered. It didn’t take long to spot the four tests- and Tails was tall enough now to see them and the pink lines… as well as the digital one that clearly read ‘pregnant.’
Tails looked at Sonic, a pitiful expression on his face. Sonic just held back a sob and crumpled to the ground, curling into a ball as tears spilled from his eyes. Why was he crying? He never cried- not when he almost died on Kronos island, not when he was face to face with danger- but he cried right now. Because stupid Shadow’s stupid baby was growing in his stupid womb.
“What… are you gonna do?” Tails asked as he knelt by Sonic’s side, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Sonic sucked in a deep breath. “I have to tell him.”
…
Getting Shadow to meet with him was not very easy.
As Sonic assumed, just texting him wasn’t enough. Shadow didn’t respond- and like rubbing salt in the wound, that asshole left him on read. So, despite not wanting to let her in on it yet… Sonic contacted Rouge.
She was surprised and delighted to hear of Sonic’s predicament- but she didn’t tease him too much. This was serious, and neither knew how Shadow might react. Of course, the bat agreed to help - and the only way Sonic would see Shadow face to face would be under the guise that he was meeting Rouge at a cafe to discuss important GUN matters.
Sonic spotted Shadow sitting on the patio of the restaurant. He remained hidden for now, glancing around. It was a nice, warm day- spring was just settling in, and flowers bloomed in the planter boxes scattered about. Luckily, it wasn’t super busy, and there was nobody who would be seated close and overhear their conversation. He just hoped there would be no more photos…
Sonic sucked in a deep breath before walking out onto the patio. Shadow was sipping a coffee and staring at his menu, not noticing Sonic at first. Sonic managed to make it to the table before Shadow finally noticed him.
“You-?” Shadow said, looking up at Sonic with a look that held some surprise and was mostly angry. “Rouge…” He grumbled. He stood up, clearly looking like he was ready to leave. “Wait-! No, this is super important. I don’t wanna see you as much as you don’t wanna see me. But this is something that I- you- we can’t ignore.” Sonic said. That just infuriated Shadow further. “There is no we,” He stated bluntly.
Sonic could see he was already reaching for the Chaos Emerald in his coat pocket as he stood up, ready to teleport away. He couldn’t leave! Not yet! No going back…
“I’m pregnant!” Sonic announced.
That stopped Shadow dead in his tracks. Shadow let go of the emerald and sank back in his seat, eyes wide as he stared at Sonic. He wasn’t sure he'd ever seen such an expression on Shadow- but… he didn’t look… mad… that’s good, right?
Sonic sat down across from Shadow.
“I know with 100% certainty that its yours…” Sonic added, staring down at the table. He wasn’t able to meet Shadow’s gaze any longer.
“Are you keeping it?” Shadow asked. Sonic looked up now. Shadow’s look was… complicated. Maybe disbelief? It wasn’t anger, though. That made Sonic relax a little. “Yeah- I… talked to Tails about it. Even if you don’t plan to be there, I’ll raise them myself.” Sonic said. “I never said I wasn’t going to be there for them,” Shadow responded. Sonic’s eyes widened.
“That’s my child, I have responsibility towards it. We were both inebriated during the conception, and both parents should be responsible. On top of that, black arms DNA will be coursing through that child’s veins… That’s not something I’d want a child to live through alone.” Shadow explained. “So- then- what are we gonna do about.. Like, raising it-?” Sonic asked, but the waitress interrupted him. “Welcome- What would you like to drink?” She asked. Sonic looked at her. “Oh- uh, I’ll take a latte.” The waitress nodded and wrote that down before walking away.
Shadow didn't speak until she left. “Is that even a question? We will raise it together. I will move you into my apartment.” He stated. This shocked Sonic- move in with him? Shadow left him on read and was now ready to move him in? “Whoa-whoa, that’s… a little quick. Plus, do you really want to live with me?” Sonic asked. “That's irrelevant. To properly parent this child, we’ll have to live together… right?” Shadow asked.
Sonic frowned. He never really had parents- just vague memories of caregivers who either abandoned him or died. And Shadow? He knew he never had proper parents, and his time with his caregivers was just as short-lived as Sonic’s. He felt he had a similar want to Sonic… to let this child have a much safer and happier childhood than either of them ever had.
“Well…uh, I guess we can try that out. But- I don’t think I’m ready to move out just yet. Tails is still a kid, and I’m not ready to leave my home.” Sonic said. “Alright, then I’ll be over regularly. It's best for the child’s incubation if the father is around… and you’ll need to be taken care of to ensure a healthy pregnancy.” Shadow said. Sonic turned his head to the side. “How do you know all of these things?” he asked.
Shadow cleared his throat. “On the ARK, I read books on Mobians. There were plenty of chapters about reproduction and pregnancy.” Shadow answered. Sonic let out a sigh. That’s why he sounded like an article.