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Amy chased the tail end of her dream, kicking up fallen white blossoms into the air as she wove between the trees of an orchard. A quick whistle of air sung out to her left before she caught the flash of blue light shooting ahead. With a daring smile she ran faster to meet the challenge. Reaching the edge of the orchard, she burst out into rolling hills of grass, sun blinding her eyes until she spotted the whip of light again, the Blue Blur, barely a stretch ahead. With a renewed push of energy she managed to dash past, catching the stunned splutter of disbelief that escaped his next breath. That pulled a small giggle from her, and propelled her forward. She was almost there, getting closer and closer to that perpetually illusive finish line…
Until the dream finally ran out of her reach, fading like a sunset over the horizon.
Eyes blinking open, Amy woke up. Cool blue morning light streamed through the thin curtains.
Her left hand flattened slightly atop the empty bed space next to her. She stared at it for a time, and felt the bittersweet sense of longing as she remembered the night before. There was the foggy recollection she had of Sonic carrying her to the bed and staying just that little bit longer to talk; laying on the space beside her, hand clasped with hers. She supposed he’d left the house not too long after she’d fallen back to sleep. Hopefully he’d made it home in time to have some pleasant dreams of his own. Sonic could race along for hours showing absolutely no sign of tiring before dropping like a log the second his head met a pillow.
Amy pulled herself up and stretched out a yawn, then pushed away the throw rug. It was time to start the day.
She opened the bedroom door and walked into the hallway, before quickly freezing. Her ears twitched alert. Muffled noises were coming from the kitchen. The clattering and clanging of metal utensils, drawers being pulled open and the thump of the fridge door closing. Her breath caught for a moment, feeling the disquiet of having someone – or perhaps more than just someone – inside her house without invitation. Gulping down a dry swallow, Amy steadied her nerves and pulled forth her hammer as a precaution.
Quietly, she crept further down the hallway while keeping an ear out for any voices. The only sounds breaking through at present seemed to be the occasional cupboard door being opened and some steps about the wooden floorboards. If she were to take a guess, the intruder was searching for something specific from her possessions. A polite request at the front door would have been tolerated, but burglary? That went well and truly over the line. She could feel the fire of her irritation quickly stoke into courage as she’d passed across the living room.
When she reached the closed kitchen door Amy threw her back flat against the wall beside it, keeping still to listen. The steps on the kitchen floorboards sounded clearer now – definitely not a robot, and almost certainly a single person. She could handle this, easy.
Reaching out her free hand, she rapped a loud knock against the kitchen door before snapping back into her position with the hammer raised. It was a weak lure she supposed, but it was all she could think of trying.
Several seconds passed by, a weight of silence having dropped inside the kitchen. She heard the muffled sound of steps move again, approaching the closed doorway before coming to a stop on the other side. The handle turned and the door pushed open fully.
Teeth gritted, Amy jumped out from hiding and she threw the hammer’s weight towards—SONIC?!
“WOAH!” Sonic made a startled grab for the door frame and Amy’s eyes flared in alarm as she strained to freeze her hammer mid-swing. It stopped in the air a split second away from impacting the blue hedgehog’s dumbstruck face. They both stood frigid in that moment.
Amy huffed and let the hammer drop to her side, leaning over it as she let her head catch up with her body. She turned an exasperated look up at him.
Off-balance from the ambush, Sonic took a clumsy step backwards, gripping the wood of the frame in effort to stay upright. Amy’s house carried with it the natural assumption of safety, and somewhat embarrassingly he’d been caught off-guard when she came at him swinging. Letting go a breathy laugh, he made it past the shock of a hammer-to-face version of a good morning.
“What are you doing here?” Amy asked, retrieving the power in her voice as she pushed off from the hammer and straightened herself back up. “I thought you were a thief! Or an Eggman robot, or—”
She stopped, then swallowed, and took a few seconds to find her breath. During the break, she noted the sheepish expression that had suddenly appeared on Sonic’s face.
“Hah, yeah...” He rubbed the back of his neck slowly, while his eyes darted away from hers. “Wanted to let you sleep in a lil’ longer before the surprise.” He let his arm drop down again, shoulders relaxing slightly
“Wait—surprise?” A confused look remained stuck on Amy’s face.
Sonic turned and stepped back towards the kitchen, beckoning her with a wave. “Easier if I show you.”
Still half dazed, Amy dismissed her hammer before following after him. Ahead, Sonic circled around the table in the middle of the room, retrieving a small tea towel as he passed. He slung it over one shoulder and stopped near the sink at the opposite side, turning to lean back against the bench top. Arms crossed casually in front, he smiled at Amy and gave her a moment to take it all in.
On top of the kitchen table was an assortment of bowls, a metal grater, a mixing spoon, and a chef’s knife resting on top of a chopping board, all scavenged from Amy’s drawers and cupboards. Next to the cooking utensils was an array of food stock – flour, eggs, breadcrumbs, onion, dill...courgettes. As soon as her eyes fell upon on the green marrows, she had her guess at what he’d been busy putting together. A quick glance to her cookbook at the opposite end of the table confirmed her thoughts. It was currently sitting open on the page for courgette fritters.
“Picked somethin’ to match whatever I could pull from the kitchen,” Sonic said, eyes lifting from the cookbook to rest on Amy with affection.
She didn’t notice him looking. Her focus was occupied entirely by the contents of the table, and she still wore a rather bewildered expression. It left Sonic feeling a little uncertain of it all, and so he quickly scrambled for more words. “But, ah..guessin’ I probably should’ve asked first before I raided your shelves.” He unfolded his arms to put them behind himself, then began drumming his palms lightly against the wood of the bench cupboards. There was a twist in his stomach that was either due to hunger or an irrational sense of panic setting in over how stupid this idea this had been from the start. “Would’ve stolen the element of the surprise though,” he continued, with an innocent look, “planned to wake you with breakfast.”
Amy took a moment longer assessing the situation. She tilted her eyes higher, looking further ahead and noting the baking tray out ready on the bench top beside her pre-heated oven. She had to admit Sonic was the last person she’d ever leave in her kitchen with the task of making breakfast. But contrary to those reservations she held, he appeared surprisingly well organised.
“I see,” Amy said evenly, resting a hand on her hip as she thought to herself. “Well, given I’m up now, how about I help you make them?” And without waiting for a response, she walked to the kitchen door where two aprons hung on a hook. She tugged them away and tossed one to Sonic.
Unprepared for the flying apron, Sonic received it with an awkward hand clutching it to his chest. He huffed a breath in acquiescence, then nodded at Amy, offering up a smile as he looped the apron over his head and secured it from the back.
Amy tied up the back of her own apron, keen to get to work. “I’ll chop the onion while you tackle the courgettes.”
Sonic pulled another chopping board from the nearby rack then set up his space at the table. He placed the metal grater firmly on top and reached for a courgette to begin. Amy approached the table and placed her board a little distance along from his, positioning the onion in the centre of it.
As she went about peeling the top layer off, she glanced to her left and quietly noted the level of confidence Sonic held while grating, movements fast but precise. She’d never seen him engage with the kitchen much beyond the instant-cook setting of a microwave, so witnessing him prepare anything from scratch was unusual to say the least. It was a pleasant surprise that begged some questions. Right after her first concern was addressed though.
“I enjoy having you round and all,” Amy said, as she began slicing the onion. “And it’s been great spending more time together. But next time you plan to let yourself inside the house, could you give me an early heads up?”
Sonic stopped then and held still, staring intently at half a courgette pressed against the grater. His brow furrowed while he processed Amy’s words in silence. Then, after a few moments had passed by, he cleared his throat and continued grating.
Amy spared a short glance his way before focusing back on the onion. “So that I don’t freak and knock your lights out,” she added.
“Yeah, ‘bout that…” Sonic finished grating the first courgette and reached for another. Up until about thirty seconds ago he hadn’t paused to consider why Amy had rushed him with her hammer in the first place. Obvious enough now, on proper reflection. “I didn’t exactly let myself in, so to speak. Wouldn’t try it without your say-so, or outside of an emergency.”
Without moving her head, Amy’s eyes flicked to him. She hoped to deliver a warm look of reassurance, but Sonic’s attention was fixed to his work on the chopping board.
“It’s still an open door for you if you really need a place to go,” she offered kindly.
Sonic smiled at that. “Thanks. But to straighten things out here, I didn’t let myself in this morning. After you fell asleep last night…” he sniffed, hesitating, “I uh...kinda did as well, straight after.” It took a second before he heard the words play back in his head. “On the couch!” He shot the last words out with desperate urgency and felt embarrassment strike heat into his face.
This time it was Amy who stilled, holding the knife steady after its last chop. She turned a slight sideways glance to Sonic again. He still didn’t notice, or was simply reluctant to meet her face right there.
“It was pretty late when you knocked out the second time,” he continued, focusing back again on the task of grating the courgette. “Guess I was feeling more than a little tired afterwards. Accidentally crashed before making it to the front door. Woke up early this morning realising I never left yours.” A shrug lifted his shoulders. “Wanted to make you breakfast, given I’m here early ‘n all.”
Amy took a moment to consider his explanation. “Well, this whole gesture is very thoughtful. Quite sweet.” She beamed a rosy smile towards him. Sonic turned his head at that moment, meeting Amy’s bright green eyes with his own. She held that gaze until she saw his own smile finally surface. Feeling satisfied, she shifted focus back to chopping as she spoke. “But you know it’s all right to sleep on the bed next time you crash here.”
Sonic chuckled lightly. “Come on, wouldn’t expect ya to take the couch. If I’m not fast enough to make it to my own bed before I drop, that one’s on me.”
“Not exactly what I meant,” Amy said, huffing a small laugh. “It’s just…” she hesitated, and coughed softly, “well, if you’d like to, anyway...um – it’s fine, for you to sleep on my bed. Next to me.”
Sonic’s courgette grating dwindled to a distracted crawl as he considered Amy’s suggestion. “You mean, staying overnight at yours sometimes – like a sleepover?”
“I guess so,” Amy said, with a touch of uncertainty. “That is...if you want that sort of thing right now. It’s okay if you’d rather take things—”
“Slow.” Sonic finished, huffing a weary smile. The irony of that word dropped on him like ton of metal scrap. They’d both taken this relationship of theirs slow for its entire run up to now. Mostly because of his own stubborn indecisiveness. He’d only recently managed to break away from that.
With the last courgette finished, Sonic set the grater aside. He lifted the chopping board with its decently sized mound of shredded courgette and scraped it into the bowl at the centre of the table. After placing the chopping board back down, Sonic picked up an egg and placed it on the wood’s centre.
Slightly lost in thought, he gave it a casual spin and watched it twirl before it slowed to a perfect stop in place.
“You’ve always been patient when it comes to me.”
“Often, not always,” Amy corrected.
“Heh, fair’nuff. Guess I don’t make it easy sometimes.” He tilted his eyes towards her, and Amy paused her work to meet them. It made him feel oddly exposed, and he quickly diverted his gaze back down to his chopping board. “Appreciate that part of you, ‘course. But to the point here…” he hesitated, drumming fingers lightly on the table. “I’m kinda done with slow.”
He moved a glass bowl near, then cracked the egg neatly over it. Reaching for the next egg, he repeated the motion again as he kept talking. “Your bed’s cosy, and it’s easy driftin’ off next to you there.” His voice had gone quiet, sounding a little more shy than before. “I’d like sleeping over.”
Amy kept slicing the onion, but spared a soft look towards him. “Really?”
Sonic let forth a small laugh, feeling more sure of himself now. He cracked the last egg, then discarded the egg shell fragments before replying. “Really really.”
They finished off the rest of the ingredient prep in comfortable silence, stealing side glances at one another every so often, failing to hide the wayward smiles that surfaced each time. When everything had been added to the bowl, Sonic set to mixing while Amy tidied the utensils from the kitchen table. Together, they shaped the fritters out as neat circles on the baking tray.
“Not an expert on fritters, admittedly,” Sonic said while they worked, “but aren’t they usually fried?”
Amy hid her giggle behind a hand. “Yes. But Shamar fritters are baked. Perhaps that means they lose the true definition of a ‘fritter’ in effect,” she placed her last one on the tray, then stepped aside to get the oven gloves, “but I guess that just makes them a little more unique.”
She picked up the tray, and walked over to the oven with it, pulling its glass door down. A rush of hot air spilled out and she quickly slid the tray inside before shutting the door again. Setting the timer for half an hour, she dusted her hands at a job well done before turning around again to see Sonic carting dirty utensils to the kitchen sink. Determined to keep it half and half with cleaning, Amy swiped a tea towel for herself along with the cleaner spray bottle. Giving a few quick squirts atop the kitchen table, she got to work wiping its wooden surface down.
“Truth be told, I didn’t take you for much of a cook until now,” Amy said as she tidied. She watched Sonic clean each utensil thoroughly, and noticed how he set each shining piece of equipment on the drying rack with the utmost care – all while moving at record pace. “I’ve never seen you make anything like courgette fritters before.”
“Well, I know I can’t keep surviving on chilli dogs and noodles,” Sonic replied over-shoulder. “Figured I’d get someone to teach me a few tricks in the kitchen. Always liked your cooking, and obviously would’ve approached you ‘bout it first. But…”
“...I was half way around the world at the time?” Amy asked, a weak smile on her face.
Sonic paused briefly, holding the bowl in the soapy water, scrubbing brush in the other hand. He’d never properly come out with it himself to tell Amy how much he’d missed her during those long months of her solo adventuring. Even after everything they’d been through since then, and finding their way back to each other. He didn’t want her regretting any of it. Not one second.
“Yeah,” he said, trying to keep his voice light. He quickly gathered himself, and resumed scrubbing the bowl. “But that’s okay. In the end, I went to Vanilla for a crash course on all things cooking. She was great. And now...”
He placed the bowl on the drying rack, and returned the scrubbing brush to its holder. With a pull of the plug, he let the sink’s water drain away. He turned around to lean back, elbows planted on top of the sink as he cast a steady look towards Amy. “Well, let the results speak for themselves. Those fritters are gonna be awesome!”
Amy nodded in approval. “Guess I’ve got myself a new apprentice in the kitchen.”
“Call me and I’ll come running, Chef Rose,” Sonic said, charming her with a smile. He looked forward to that prospect. Making all sorts of cool dishes from Amy’s recipe book, side by side. Those sorts of dates sounded fun.
Holding the counter behind him, he rested his weight back to slouch casually. “But y’know, maybe lemme cook solo for you sometime, okay? You’ve always been hosting meals for me, and everyone else. Wanted to return the favour some day. And now, after Vanilla’s help building up my cooking skills” – Sonic picked up a nearby spatula and spun it about in his fingers – “I think I’m up for the challenge.”
His brow tilted up on the side, and Amy was suddenly pinned by that magnetic gaze he shot her way. Despite the familiar sense of giddiness it set rushing through her chest, she managed to get a hold of herself. Her eyes lowered playfully, and her expression became something much cooler than before. She stepped over and positioned herself in front of Sonic, leaning forward to plant her hands upon the kitchen bench either side of him.
Sonic tilted his smug gaze down to meet hers, perfectly comfortable being trapped this way by Amy. That depth in her eyes reached every part of him, even the pieces he sometimes struggled to understand himself. In the next beat, Sonic felt his head moving forward. His hand on the table was shuffling closer to the hand she had planted next to it. She kept staring at him like she was challenging something inside to properly emerge. His fingers stilled atop hers, and he hovered there on an invisible precipice, tilting towards the space between them.
Amy saw it in his eyes right there – that look of adoration he kept only for her. He held her in his gaze a moment longer before his face dipped towards hers, eyes slowly closing.
And she knew that if she just pressed forward that small gap between them would…
She smiled gently, then pulled herself back to restore some breathing space between them. Her hand slipped softly out from under his own.
Sonic’s eyes flickered open, feeling displaced for a second until he found Amy’s face, her brow cunningly arched.
“Hold that thought,” she said, neatly composed. Sonic coughed, then scratched the back of his neck. His eyes dashed up frantically to some far off corner in the room as he avoided Amy’s gaze. His old bashfulness had seemingly made a return, and the cute look on his face encouraged a tiny giggle out of her.
Raising a hand, Amy delivered a soft stroke against his cheek, and it pulled Sonic’s attention back to her in a snap. But before he could capture her hand and hold it there a little longer, she was already ducking away from him in a playful spin and walking towards the crockery cupboard across the room.
“I’m going to make some tea.”
While her back was turned to him she heard Sonic whistle out a puff of air. Despite the breathless appearance seconds ago, he clearly had something left.