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The workshop's quiet. The only thing that Sonic can hear is his own breathing, the occasional rustle of paper as he turns a page of the book he's reading. He's laid out on Tails’ couch, ignoring the shaking of his hands and he comes down from the adrenalin high.
The last fight against Eggman had been… rough. Too many close calls. They'd won, he and Tails, of course they did, but it had taken a lot out of both of them.
He hears the floorboards creak behind him, and he cranes his neck to see Tails standing at the base of the stairs - he must have finished with his shower. He seems smaller somehow, ears drooping down, shoulders hunched.Sonic smiles at him, gently, but before he can even open his mouth to ask if he's okay, Tails rushes towards him.
He suddenly has a lap full of fox, and he groans dramatically as Tails wiggles his way under Sonic’s arms, knocking his book away.
"Well, hey there, big guy," he greets, ignoring the way Tails' knee seems to be digging directly into his ribs in order to set the book down and properly wrap his arms around Tails. "What's up?"
Tails doesn't answer, just tucks his head under Sonic's chin, hiding his face. His tails wrap around his body as if he's trying to hide.
“Oh, buddy…” Sonic sighs, sitting up enough that he can lean against the arm rest, still holding Tails. “It's okay. Its all over now. We're both safe.”
Tails shudders. Sonic can feel him sniffle against his neck.
Sonic grabs the throw blanket thats draped on the back of the couch, tugging it down. It falls on both of them, and, making sure to not let go of Tails, wraps it around them both. Tails makes a small noise, but some of the tension leaves his shoulders, relaxing into Sonic's hold. He sniffs again, and Sonic sighs, dropping his cheek to rest against the top of Tails' head.
“Were you worried? About Eggman?”
A small nod.
“That's okay. It was a really scary fight. But its over now, and he's not gonna come back for a while. We did a good job at stopping him.”
Tails doesn't answer, but reaches out slowly, brushing his fingers across the cover of the book Sonic was reading. Sonic's confused for a second, but guesses - “do you want to read it?”
Tails nods again, before ducking his face back into Sonic's neck.
Sonic laughs quietly, grabbing the book and opening it. “I guess I'll read it out loud then? I'm kinda in the middle of it, but I'm pretty sure you've read this one before so that's okay.”
He reads, slow and steady, like he used to do for Tails back when they first met years ago. With each chapter, he can feel Tails relax more and more, until finally Sonic can hear soft little snores. He puts the book down, combing his fingers through Tails’ hair.
He's not sure why Tails gets like this, sometimes. It's like the kit just gets… smaller. It reminds Sonic of when they first met, when Tails was barely more than a toddler, and looked around as if the world was a thousand times bigger than him.
Sonic doesn't understand why, but it doesn't matter. Tails always eventually bounces back, and for now, Sonic is content to rock him back and forth as he sleeps.