Chapter Text
“For the last time, Shadow. I’m fine!” The bat paced back and forth across the bedroom floor. Her husband, who’d been following her around for almost four hours, reluctantly backed away from her.
It was eleven o’clock on a Wednesday. Usually, the couple would’ve been curled up together in bed around this time. They were already dressed for the occasion, with Rouge in her silk nightgown and Shadow in a pair of soft lounge pants. But neither of them was thinking about sleep at the moment.
Shadow sat on the edge of the mattress, his pupils darting back and forth in time with his wife’s movements. She shut her eyes tightly and began to take several deep breaths. She rubbed her hand over her swollen abdomen in a circular motion. In the corner of the room, the gigantic E-series robot beeped loudly, signaling that his stopwatch was beginning to count down.
The hedgehog tensed. She’s having another contraction!
Rouge paused momentarily and leaned over, a pathetic whimper escaping her lips. Although faint, Shadow could see her belly tightening beneath her nightgown. He knew from the childbirth courses they attended that her uterus was squeezing so their son could be born. It was a perfectly natural thing that happened to women’s bodies. But, like many things in nature, it wasn’t exactly pleasant.
After almost an eternity passed, Rouge took one final exhale. She gingerly patted her stomach before winking at her robot companion. “Omega, stop the timer!”
“AFFIRMATIVE! THIS ONE LASTED ONE MINUTE AND FIFTY-THREE SECONDS.” Another beep went off, this time tracking the downtime between contractions.
Shadow practically leaped from the bed to give Rouge a comforting embrace. Her baby bump pressed up against his torso, as it often did nowadays.
“ Should we go soon?” the hedgehog glanced at his phone, which was charging on top of the nightstand.
Rouge shook her head. “Doctor Romero is just going to tell you the same thing he said last time you called him.”
Shadow groaned. Don’t bring your wife to the hospital until her contractions are a minimum of five minutes apart. The one before came fifteen minutes ago.
The bat broke from her husband’s arms. “I think I’m ready for bed,” She yawned, stretching her arms high over her head.
“Are you sure?” Shadow trailed behind the bat, who slowly waddled to her side of the bed.
Rouge smiled at the anxious hedgehog as she began to crawl under the covers. “Shadow, babies take several hours to be born. It’s probably better to sleep through the early boring parts.”
Boring ? BORING? Ever since the contractions started during dinner, Shadow had been filled to the brim with nervous excitement.
Realizing her husband wasn’t remotely ready to settle in for the night, Rouge grabbed his hand. “ Why don’t you and Omega go check on Maria.”
“BUT I MUST TIME YOUR CONTRACTIONS! “
“You can do that when I wake up.” Rouge patted the robot’s chest, causing a hollow metallic sound to ring out.
Omega stomped towards the door. “COME, SHADOW! LET’S TUCK IN YOUR OFFSPRING.”
“Make sure she’s asleep.” Rouge rolled over onto her left side. “It’s a school night.”
As much as he didn’t want to leave, Shadow knew arguing against his wife was a lost cause. It didn’t help that she gave him a pleading look, like a sad Chao. Besides, she was right. Their daughter had started middle school a few days ago, and she had an algebra quiz early tomorrow morning.
With a heavy sigh, the anxious hedgehog gave the bat a goodnight kiss on the cheek. “Sleep tight, Rouge.”
Maria’s room was the second door down the hall. Omega nearly trampled a few half-empty moving boxes on the way over. All the house’s essential rooms were unpacked and furnished last month, leaving a bunch of bare hallways desperately waiting for some decorations. At least everyone has a bed to sleep on now, Shadow thought, remembering how Sonic’s four-year-old twins nearly broke the mattress frame of the bed Rouge was now sleeping in.
A soft light glowed through the cracks in Maria’s door frame. Just as he suspected, she was still awake. She usually liked to stay up late, streaming TV shows on her laptop. Right when the hedgehog was about to turn the knob, the E-series robot blocked his way.
“MARIA SOUNDS TROUBLED. LISTEN.”
Shadow pressed his ear to the door. He could hear a muffled whimper which soon grew into a series of quiet sobs. Suddenly, he was glad Rouge forced him to come here.
“Omega, why don’t you wait out in the hallway.” Without protest, Omega opened the door for his longtime companion.
Carefully, Shadow stepped into his daughter’s room. Her dirty clothes from earlier today were strewn about the floor, along with her already overstuffed backpack. The wall decorations were pretty typical for a 12-year-old girl. Mostly posters of a bunch of punk bands and pop idols Shadow never heard of before. A display hung over her desk of the ribbons and medals she’d won in gymnastics over the years. No doubt she’d have her first gold up there before the end of the year.
The instant he stepped on the hardwood floors, the sobbing noises ceased. Maria’s ears poked out from beneath her hot pink comforter. Once she noticed her father’s presence, she rolled over in bed to face the wall.
“Go away,” she groaned, “I’m sleeping!”
Shadow raised his brow. “With the lamp on?”
No answer. The preteen just hugged the blankets closer to her body, refusing to give her father any eye contact. Whatever was bothering her was something she likely wasn’t in the mood to discuss. But that wasn’t going to stop Shadow.
The hedgehog nudged the bat’s shoulder. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
A few silent seconds passed. Afterward, the young bat sat up in bed and stared at her dad. Damp streaks were visible on her cheeks, confirming that she’d been crying.
“Mom’s not gonna die, is she?” Maria whispered. Her bottom lip began to quiver slightly.
Alarmed by her question, the hedgehog sat down beside her on the bed. “Where would you get an idea like that?”
With those words, Maria’s quivering lip broke into loud sobs. Shadow’s paternal side quickly took over, and he pulled his daughter into a hug. He started to rub her back, just as she did when she was a baby.
That’s when it dawned on him. Nearly thirteen years ago, while he returned from a two-week-long mission, Rouge suffered severe complications with her first pregnancy. Maria had to be delivered two months early by emergency C-section.
A hard lump formed in Shadow’s throat. Had Omega not rushed the bat to the hospital in the nick of time, she and their daughter likely wouldn’t have made it. He wouldn’t have had his lifelong companion by his side. Nor would he have this incredible young girl resting her head on his white patch of chest fur. And he certainly wouldn’t have the unnamed baby boy growing in his wife’s belly.
Now, Shadow’s dear daughter—the impossible child who defied the odds since the day of her birth—was scared of losing her mother. The worst thing was, Shadow didn’t know how to make that fear go away. Granted, Rouge’s current pregnancy had been pretty uneventful. But, in the hours leading up to the birth, a whole multitude of complications could arise. Their son’s Black Arms DNA cast a dark cloud of uncertainty over everything, even when things were going smoothly.
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” Shadow whispered, “but what I do know is that your mom is one tough woman. Whatever happens, she’s gonna find a way to pull through.”
“You think so?” Maria sniffed.
Shadow brushed his fingers through his daughter’s bangs. “I know so.”
That’s when the young bat gave her dad a crooked grin. A few tears still slipped from the corner of her eye, but she barely even noticed.
Figuring things would be fine for the night, Shadow gave his daughter a kiss on the forehead. But, just as he opened the door, he heard Maria clear her throat.
“Dad, I know that Mom wants me to go to bed.” She chirped.
The hedgehog nodded.
“The thing is,” Maria glanced up at the ceiling, “I’m really not that tired right now…”
Shadow smiled as he realized what his daughter wanted. “You want me to stay up and watch a movie with you?”
She nodded eagerly and jumped out of bed to grab her laptop. That’s when her attention turned to the large hunk of metal waiting out in the hall. “Omega can watch, too. If he wants.”
The robot didn’t even hesitate at her offer. “ONLY IF I CAN PICK THE FILM!”