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Suddenly, it was dark. Shadow's mind clouded, he felt dizzy, and it was so dark. Yet the world moved on around him, and Shadow felt his cold sweat bead down his forehead.
Shadow fidgeted with his hands while the counselor talked, his eyes focused on the computer screen but his mind in another reality. He checked his grades once a month, and as luck would have it, he checked them the night before they were turned in for the year and realized every single one of them had been changed to "F". Every single assignment was gone. Every homework, every project, every essay, gone. He thanked the lord that there were nighttime counselors who were able to help him, that they believed him when he showed them the assignments deleted from the grade book. But it wouldn't be enough. He knew it too. His ears twitched nervously, watching as his life slipped into the next level of hell.
"Well, I've managed all that I can," the counselor said with a sigh, her voice sounding tired. "But only teachers can modify grades without a passcode."
Shadow couldn't tell if this was real or if he just couldn't accept it as reality.
"I was only able to access to your elective classes, your core classes like math and biology are locked. Out of the sixteen credit hours you've taken, you'll only receive credit for four of them."
Of course. Biology. What other class, or teacher, could cause him such agony?
Shadow felt his eyes drying, but couldn't bring himself to blink. His throat felt dry and generally dehydrated, and he wasn't sure if he could cry if he wanted to. He couldn't remember the last time he'd drunk water, or anything besides coffee.
"I'm so sorry Shadow." The counselor massaged his shoulder tenderly, her voice sincere yet Shadow could barely hear it.
"We'll keep investigating the case, but for now there's nothing we can do. I'll contact you if I find anything else, okay?"
Shadow didn't say anything. He didn't know if he could. Instead, he stood up, his trembling hands managing to lift his backpack off the ground and over his shoulder.
"If I were you, I wouldn't bother going to class for the last week of school."
Shadow was already halfway through the doorframe, and he still hadn't blinked. He was relieved that his eyes did eventually produce tears, though he knew they couldn't be sweet.
"Get some rest Shadow. I'll arrange for you to stay here for the rest of the week, but after that you can't live here."
Shadow closed the door quietly, teleporting to his dorm room. Rouge wasn't there, no one was. His dark quills blended seamlessly with the dark as he stumbled into the bathroom, turned the shower to its coldest setting, and stood fully clothed in a torrent of water. It was dark and cold, but he found it soothing. His tears felt hot on his cheeks, an odd feeling against the freezing water pouring over him. He wasn't sure how long he stayed like this, or when he had crumpled against the wall, but as the exhaustion in his mind tore through the back of his eyes, he finally slept in what felt like years.
~*~
Shadow woke up to warm yellows fading through the blinds. He was dry and warm, swaddled in blankets, in his own bed. He shifted, turning away from the curtain, meeting a spiky blue head and a peach muzzle.
"Sonic?" Shadow mumbled out, his azure counterpart bolting upright. The fur on his cheeks was wet, and the sparkle in his eyes was laced with fear and sadness. Shadow felt his heart pinch in response, cursing himself for eliciting such an emotion in Sonic's stunning emerald eyes.
"You're awake!" Sonic cried, relieved, petting Shadow's ears. "Thank god! You were bluer than me when we found you!"
Shadow blinked in confusion. "What happened? I don't remember."
Sonic shook his head, "you were in the shower, the water was freezing. You were passed out, you wouldn't wake up..." Sonic trailed off, obviously imagining what could have happened. "Rouge called me in a panic at two AM so I rushed over here. Rouge had to go to class, but she left you this."
Sonic pulled a small plastic bag out from behind him, a small carton of food inside. Shadow sat up, pulling one of his arms free, and opened it. A sweet doughnut sat inside, a glaze doughnut to be exact. It's aroma suddenly making Shadow realize he hadn't eaten in at least twelve hours. He quickly brought it to his mouth, the sensation of something other than ramen in his mouth almost enough to make him start crying again.
"Shadow- I um, I'm sorry."
Shadow paused mid bite. "For what?"
"All this time I've been on your ass trying to get into your pants, I didn't realize how much you were struggling." Sonic shifted to sit next to him on the bed. "I hardly know you. I know where you work, I know you study botany, and I know you're stressed, but that's about it. I need to be a better friend to you Shadow."
Sonic smiled at him, no teeth, no show, just pure love, and if it weren't for the blankets mummifying him he'd have surely exploded from emotion. Instead, he pulled his other arm free and took Sonic's hand in his own. Sonic squeezed it lovingly, and he squeezed back.
"I'll help you find a counselor, if that's what you need. I'll help you get any medicinal help your need, anything at all, okay? And then we can start over, when you're feeling better."
Shadow wiped some crumbs from his mouth. "It wasn't a suicide attempt, if that's what you're thinking."
Sonic glanced at him, disbelief evident on his features.
"It wasn't!" Shadow defended. "I was trying to calm down, and fell asleep on accident."
"Whatever you say." Sonic rolled his eyes. "Anyway, we explained to Marie what happened, and she agreed that you need some rest. She's given you the day off."
"But I-"
"Shush!" Sonic pushed a finger to Shadow's lips, "I won't have you overworking yourself any longer! You're spending the day doing something other than work!"
Shadow frowned at the stubborn hedgehog, glaring daggers before finally succumbing, leaning his head on said stubborn hedgehog's shoulder. Sonic froze, but slipped an arm around Shadow's shoulders nevertheless.
"To be honest, all I want to do is sleep, watch movies and forget about school for a while."
Sonic massaged his shoulder, squeezing him close. "Sure dude. I have my laptop. Netflix or Hulu?"
Shadow looked up at him. "Why do you have both?"
"Because in a grown-ass man and I like both."
"But why though?"
"Answer my question first bucko."
"Netflix I guess, I like Cutthroat kitchen."
"Oh dude me too. Finally, someone who appreciates good television."
Sonic reached behind the edge of the bed and yanked his backpack onto his lap. Fishing his laptop out awkwardly with one hand, he managed to pull his laptop out and onto his lap. Shadow wasn't really watching though. He focused more on the gentle rise and fall of Sonic's chest and found his own breathing syncing to the rhythm. His heartbeat was strong and slow, powerful.
Suddenly, it was dark. Shadow's mind clouded, he felt dizzy, and it was so dark. But just this once, the world slowed down and waited for him, and Shadow felt a soft pair of lips press themselves against his forehead.