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Rouge was sick worried. But she wouldn't show it. It wouldn't help anyone, to have it be known how fucking scared she was as she watched her wooden floor get rapidly stained bright green as she dragged a half conscious Shadow across what none of them would admit was now their shared livingroom.
She tried not to look back at Shadow's half present stare, nor his almost cut off arm, which was barely holding onto his shoulder, the deep cut almost disappearing under the unnatural green blood that came out of his unnatural body. She would never let Shadow know how terrified she was as she felt him slowly lean more and more against her, becoming more and more weak and unable to hold his own weight.
The bat girl got the young hedgehog to lay down on the couch, and then she looked around everywhere for anything that could help her.
She should have a first-aid kit somewhere… But what could she do with it to help with an almost amputated limb?
Ugh, whatever, that was a problem for future Rouge, right now she should just look for the kit, and quickly, because she was sure Shadow was going to pass out soon due to blood loss.
When she got back to the living room, she found Shadow holding his head up with his hand, as if trying not to fall asleep, as if he were just casually watching a movie and got a bit sleepy. She bit her tongue and approached the hedgehog.
"Let me see that." She muttered, reaching for Shadow's barely-there shoulder, however, the hybrid barely gave any signs that he had heard her. "Shadow?" She called, worried, absolutely terrified.
Shadow groaned. "I'll heal." He slurred his words out, his eyelids fluttering shut for a second before he forced them open once again.
Rouge wanted to cry.
"I don't want your arm falling out on my couch." She quickly made up an excuse. She normally would be a better liar, but this time, if Shadow hadn't been so out of it he would've definitely been able to tell she was lying. She wasn't sure whether she was thankful or not.
"Wouldn't be the worst thing that's happened to me." Shadow whispered, his voice barely hanging on by a thread.
The bat bit her lip.
She wanted to cry so bad.
When had she come to care so much for this guy? Why did she even care at all? She could just throw him out, believe him when he said he'll be alright, and if it were anyone else, she might as well do just that, but when she looked at Shadow, bleeding out every last bit of blood in his system, she felt so guilty. She couldn't leave him, not like this. Not ever.
He was a child, dear Chaos, and children shouldn't have to go through this kind of shit. Children shouldn't be sent to suicide missions, they shouldn't be so used to seeing themselves bleed that they barely have a reaction to it. Children shouldn't have their entire fucking arm barely hanging onto their body while they try to hang onto their own consciousness. Children shouldn't see their sister get shot and die. Children shouldn't fall to their own death after sacrificing themselves with a promise fulfilled only to be brought back to such a cruel world that would do nothing but torture them.
And yet there he was, barely fifteen years old -if he isn't even younger, who knows at this point-, sitting on her couch while she was almost having a crisis because of how disturbing that scene was.
He was only a child and had already faced worse terrors than any adult ever had.
Rouge silently set the first-aid kit onto the tea table in front of the couch, and when she found some painkillers, she immediately offered those to Shadow.
He looked at them in silence for a second before raising her gaze to her.
His eyes looked so lifeless.
"They won't help." He said quietly, and Rouge frowned.
"They will at least relieve the pain." But the hybrid shook his head.
"They don't work for me." He said, and the bat was about to answer, however, she then understood what he meant, so she bit her tongue, holding her words back.
Curse you, Gerald Robotnik.
"Then what will help?" Rouge asked after a second of silence. The hedgehog didn't answer. "Shadow." She called again, and noticed how he quickly opened his eyes again, not realizing when he closed them in the first place
"I don't need anything." He answered, and Rouge groaned.
"Yes, you do." She answered, but when Shadow once again preferred to keep quiet, she sighed and sat herself next to him.
She grabbed bandages, and put a pillow on her lap, to then reach for Shadow's arm and place it on top of the pillow. The hybrid silently hissed in pain, and the bat silently apologized, wishing to be able to speak her thoughts.
But she couldn't, because Rouge the Bat didn't care about anyone but herself, Rouge the Bat didn't need anyone but herself. Rouge the Bat shouldn't need anyone but herself, but when she thought of the possibility of Shadow literally dying there and then, she didn't know what would come next. She didn't know what she would do, she didn't know what she could do. She didn't want to imagine a life without Shadow, even if that had been her life for the longest time.
That damn kid really had a way of inserting himself into her life. She needed to make sure that he was okay, she needed to make sure that he was safe. She hated it, she hated how attached she had gotten to this boy. She hated how the idea of him being hurt scared her, and also hated how the fact that he was currently terribly hurt absolutely terrified her.
She started bandaging Shadow's shoulder, pushing his arm back in its right position, hoping that the hybrid's weird regeneration ability would stick his arm back to his body. She did the best she could while her vision got blurrier by every second that passed by, as her throat started to close and sting and her hands started to shake.
She was almost done when finally one lonely tear made its way out of Rouge's eye, and landed in Shadow's fingertips. He was apparently regaining sense in his fingers, since he clearly noticed this.
That was good, right? He was getting better. He would be okay. He will be okay…
Then why?
"Why are you crying?" Shadow asked quietly, as if scared to ask such a thing.
That got Rouge to finally break.
The tears started pouring out with apparently no way to stop them, and she then started sobbing as she strongly gripped Shadow's hand. She could tell he was trying to hold hers back by the way his fingers twitched.
She sobbed loudly, her hands shaking and her back raising and dropping to the rhythm of her crying. She felt Shadow scoot closer, and looked up at him.
"Why aren't you more scared? You could've lost your arm." She asked, trying her hardest to keep her voice steady.
Shadow seemed surprised by the question.
"It would've grown back." He stated as if it were obvious. As if it were completely normal, losing a limb.
How had he even gotten so hurt in the first place?
He took a shot for her. A hit that was directed towards Rouge, that would surely have left her wingless, and unable to fly ever again. Shadow had put himself in front of the shot, being the one on the receiving end instead. Why had he even done that? Why had he put himself in danger? For her? How did that even make sense?
She squeezed Shadow's hand. Shadow was finally able to hold hers back.
"Why do you even care?" He asked in a whisper.
"W-Why don't you?" She asked back. Shadow frowned, as if actually thinking of his answer.
"I prefer it this way." He finally said.
"As opposed to what, Shadow?" She asked, and apparently the worry was recognizable in her voice, as the hybrid grimaced at her question.
"As opposed to you getting hurt." Shadow admitted.
"Why?" Rouge's voice broke in the middle of the word.
And apparently, Shadow did too.
It didn't matter how quickly he turned his head to the side and brought a hand up to cover his face and rub at his eyes. Rouge still saw the tears building up and threatening to fall. She still saw the pain in his face and the pout in his lips.
When the hybrid choked back a small sob, the bat decided that it was enough.
As long as she was around, Shadow would never have to hide his feelings ever again. He would never have to try to keep his sobs as quiet as he could, he would never have to cover his face as he cried. That was a promise she was silently making to the poor kid, crying and bleeding on her couch.
Rouge cupped Shadow's face with her hands and forced him to look at her. She could clearly see how embarrassed he was, now that she was seeing him cry without a filter, and the only thing she thought to do was smile.
"You can cry if you need to." She muttered, and before she could even realize, the boy was hugging her tightly, hiding his face in her shoulder and sobbing as loudly as his pride would let him.
Rouge sighed as she hugged him back.
She wasn't good at comforting people, but she knew that was what Shadow needed the most at the moment, so she simply retorted to run her hands through his quills, smoothing them down.
The bat just let the kid cry and sob and shake all he needed. She knew he probably had a few reasons to be crying at that moment, so she just let him. It went on for a few minutes before the shaky sobs and agitated breaths finally calmed down to something more manageable.
Rouge took a quick breath before she spoke. "Shadow?" She called softly, and when she heard him hum, she squeezed him a bit tighter. She could feel his agitated heartbeat, or maybe it was her own. Were their hearts synced up?
"I love you." She admitted in a soft whisper. She was still crying as well, her voice shaky and raw, but it only helped her words have that much more force.
Shadow stayed quiet for a moment, before his hold around the bat tightened a bit.
"I-I love you too." He answered.
Rouge's heart almost burst out of her chest.
She didn't think she had ever loved someone as strongly as she loved Shadow. She couldn't remember, and she also wasn't sure if she had ever been loved in the same way Shadow had shown to love her.
It didn't matter. She loved this boy and she would do everything she could to make sure he's safe, and okay, and happy, because Chaos knows how much Shadow needs at least a bit of happiness in his unfair and cruel life.
"Well." Rouge sniffed as she spoke up, trying to stop her crying. "This means we're a team now." She stated, and when Shadow didn't answer, she pushed him back softly. Lovingly gazing at his disheveled face, his puffy eyes and pouty mouth. She brought a hand up to his cheek and wiped the tears away with the most tender touch she had ever given to anyone. "Do you know what that means?" She asked.
Shadow simply hummed as he melted into Rouge's touch, leaning his face onto her hand. She wasn't even sure if he noticed this at all.
"We'll take care of each other." The bat explained, a small smile on her face. "I'll make sure you're safe just like you did for me today. Got it?"
The hybrid nodded with his head. "Got it." He muttered.
Rouge chuckled softly before she gave a sweet kiss to Shadow's forehead. She had never done that to anyone, but with him, it just came naturally. She needed Shadow to know how much she cared. She believed Shadow also needed to know this.
"From now on it'll be you and I against the world." The girl said half jokingly, rubbing her face and wiping her tears away. She knew her makeup was absolutely ruined by now, but she didn't care. They matched, now both of them looked like a mess.
Rouge stood up from the couch, and offered a hand out to the hedgehog.
"Come on, sweetheart. We gotta clean all that blood off your quills." She said as she placed a hand on her hip, suddenly regaining her usually sassy and confident attitude. Her mask had already slipped off though, so it didn't matter how much of an act she put up, Shadow already knew what was behind. He had seen it. And for the first time in forever, Rouge didn't care.
Shadow gave a short nod as he grabbed Rouge's hand with his good one. He was then pulled up by the bat girl, and guided towards the bathroom, where he sat down and simply let himself be cleaned up by his friend.
Maybe Rouge was more than a friend, though. He didn't know.
She kind of reminded him of Maria.
She was nice. And he loved her.