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Amy Rose loved the winter. To be honest, she was a fan of pretty much every season but there was just something magical about wintertime. Especially when it was snowing just the right amount, not heavy enough to be a storm but not light enough to be barely visible. Big heavy flakes were the best kind and as she walked along the path, shopping bags dangling from either arm, she marveled as they fell softly, coating her and her surroundings in a gentle way.
Ah yes, this was worth getting out of bed this morning. The last couple days Amy had unfortunately caught a nasty cold, one that quite frankly left her bed ridden. But when she woke up this morning and saw how much of a beautiful day it was outside she decided she was going to force herself out of the house. Being cooped up for so long wasn’t healthy and sometimes just moving around in the fresh air can do a lot of good, sick or not. She stopped a moment and lifted her face to the sky, closing her eyes and holding her tongue out. As a few snowflakes landed and melted on her tongue, she smiled. Yes this was worth it, even if she still wasn’t’ feeling the best.
Her communicator then beeped a few times, causing her to stop and look at her wrist. It was alarming her of the time – the antibiotics she was on needed to be taken like clockwork and it was almost time for her dosage. She glanced at her surroundings; no problem, she wasn’t too far away, she’d be back at home in no time. Amy picked up her pace, walking with intent rather than leisurely strolling like before.
The path reached a steep incline and she began going up the slighted hill. She felt herself getting out of breath and had to stop about halfway, coughing a few times into her elbow. Jeez, going down this hill on the way there was definitely easier than going up on the way back. The wind began to pick up as she rested, the cold piercing through her jacket. She coughed again while trying to shield her face from the bitter breeze. Once it died down she started her hike up the rest of the hill, a shiver running down her spine. She could feel a headache starting to form, possibly from overexerting herself.
Amy finally reached the top, out of breath once again. Stopping to regain her breath she noticed how suddenly grey the sky was. The snow was beginning to come down harder, much harder than it was mere minutes ago. She coughed harshly again and decided she would push on despite being a little winded. As she continued to walk, her arms felt increasingly strained under the weight of her shopping bags, which was not helping her exhaustion. Groaning, she squinted to see ahead - just a small stretch left to go, her house should be just a ways down and around the corner. Walking at a much slower pace she felt herself getting weaker by the second. Amy had to pause to have a coughing fit again, this time dropping her bags in the process. Looking around she noticed the snow was falling more rapidly now. Bending over to pick them up, she groaned, the wind coming in again with another large gust. The large flakes of snow seemed to turn on her, the winds force causing them to harshly sting her face. Where was this coming from!? The weather turned so nasty out of nowhere! She must have jinxed it.
Amy pushed herself to walk a few more feet, the gusts of wind becoming so strong now that she had to have a hand held up to her face in order to block it. Beginning to feel extremely light headed, she knew her energy levels were depleting fast; she needed to act. Looking to her side she saw a cluster of pine trees – perfect, she’d cover behind them until the wind dies down. Or at least until she gets some of her strength back. Amy stumbled over, plopping her bags down and breathlessly falling onto her side, successfully landing behind the trees. But she was slowly loosing focus of her surroundings. Soon, her head lulled and everything went black.
The harsh wind was suddenly on her face again as she felt herself being picked up. Her eyes tried to open fully but her body wouldn’t allow it. Only seeing a blur of the white snow, they shut again. She tried once more, this time seeing a blur of blue - she could vaguely hear a male voice shouting at her, but it was muffled. Her eyes closed again and she was out cold.
A loud banging sound was what finally began make Amy stir. It wasn’t loud enough to jolt herself awake, but loud enough to bring her out of her deep slumber. Her eyes slowly started to flutter open. Her vision was still blurred and it took a few blinks for things to come into focus. She knew she was somewhere warm and comfortable, there was also some sort of table directly in front of her line of sight. She was laying on her side and tried to lift herself to get a better look but there was an incredible weight on top of her. The attempt didn’t get her far and she was pushed back down. Annoyed yet still groggy, she let out a small groan. Amy wiggled and discovered she could at least move her arms from this cocooned prison. Bringing her hands up to her face she rubbed her eyes. When she opened them her vision was clear once again and she realized the table in front of her face was actually her own coffee table.
Amy glanced around further; she was laying on her couch in her living room. She tried to sit up again to no avail and let out another groan of frustration, this time much louder.
SMASH
The sound of pots and pans clattering and falling to the ground rang loudly throughout the room. Soon to follow was a distant voice cursing before suddenly a shadow loomed over her, followed by a slight breeze. Someone was obstructing the light from her face. She turned her body so she was laying on her back rather than her side and looked up at the culprit.
“Sonic…?” she mustered; quite often he appeared before the wind of his speed caught up to him.
“Ames!! You’re awake!! I thought I heard you!”
He went from peering over the back of the couch to zipping around to the other side, kneeling down beside her. He placed a hand on her forehead.
“How are you feeling?” he said quickly, worry thick in his tone. “You’ve been knocked out for a while...”
Amy let out a small moan; the warmth of his hand on her forehead felt amazing.
“What happened…?” she murmured, looking at him slightly confused. “I just remember feeling tired and...”
Sonic, much to her dismay, moved his hand from her forehead and rested it on the cushion. He spoke softly, his brows drawn together in a sympathetic concern. “I found you down the road, you were passed out in the snow behind some trees. Scared the crap outta me, you’re lucky I happened to find you.”
Amy blinked a few times, her memory slowly coming back. “Oh, that’s right… Thank you…” her face was still scrunched in confusion. She tried to sit up again to no avail, the second attempt getting on her nerves. Her temper was about flare at the obstruction when she realized what was hindering her movement.
“Why is there a mountain of blankets on me?”
They both looked at the heap of blankets on top of her, the layers towering high enough to almost be Sonic’s height as he remained crouched beside her. Sonic rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, chuckling with a small grin.
“Heh, well, you see, you were freezing when I found you and I panicked so… I found just about anything I could to make sure you were warm enough.”
Amy, finally beginning to feel the grogginess fade away slightly, couldn’t help but smile at the blue hedgehog. His effort to make sure she was warm enough was incredibly cute, despite the load of blankets being boarder line suffocating – being under all of this weight was making it hard to breath!
“Awh, thank you Sonic, but… Could you help take some off of me please? I think I’m developing claustrophobia..”
“Oh! Yeah absolutely!“ he quickly stood up and lifted most of the pile off of her, leaving her with only one blanket. She began to sit up but immediately put a hand to her head, feeling a wave of dizziness hit her. Sonic noticed right away and crouched down in front of her again, placing one hand on her back and another on her leg, helping to support her.
“Hey, hey don’t rush, you sure you’re okay to sit?”
“Mmhn, just give me a minute…” she mumbled, shutting her eyes tightly to fight the faint feeling. It took a few moments but once her head adjusted to sitting up rather than laying down, she opened her eyes. She looked over to her left and much to her surprise Sonic was extremely close to her, his eyes searching hers with a gentle concern. His arm and hand was propping her back up tenderly but his body was tight and rigid, ready to help her at a moment’s notice in case she passed out again. Amy noticed Sonic’s chest was touching her shoulder, his face only a few inches away from hers. Their eyes locked and Sonic smiled,
“You okay?”
Amy could feel a deep blush raising to her cheeks. He was so handsome it wasn’t fair. She was definitely fully coherent now, the fluttering heart in her chest was awakening all her senses to full alert. It took her a few seconds to reply and Sonic patiently waited, his face never changing from his sweet, concerned expression.
“Yeah, I’m okay… Thanks…” she breathed out, unable to look away from his eyes; those emeralds orbs hypnotized her. Sonic placed a hand on her cheek and rubbed his thumb for a few strokes, a soft smile on his lips. A look of relief washed over his features.
“Good. Sit tight, I’ll be right back okay?” he stood up and proceeded to walk to the kitchen, unknowingly leaving the pink hedgehog to catch her breath. Amy readjusted herself so she was sitting up properly, leaning her back against the couch. She held her hand up to the cheek he had just touched, a little dazed. Maybe it was because she was still recovering from fainting but that exchange took her by surprise. Letting out a sneeze she curled her knees up to her chest and rearranged the blankets to fall more comfortably around her. A shiver rippled through her body and she clung to the blanket tightly. Maybe one blanket wasn’t enough after all; she still felt frozen.
Sonic appeared before her once more with a mug in his hands. He crouched down again, carefully passing the beverage to Amy who happily accepted.
“Got you some tea. I hope you don’t mind, I’ve been rummaging around your kitchen a bit.”
“Oh, of course not. Thanks, this is just what I needed…” she held the mug close to her lips, taking a tiny sip of the hot liquid. The steam radiating from the drink to her face alone was already helping to warm her up. Sonic moved to sit on the table across from her, he leaned forward so both his elbows were resting on his legs, his hands coming together naturally. His expression became a more serious one, “Ames, what the hell were you doing out there like that?”
She looked up at him, the large mug still covering the lower half of her face. She suddenly felt timid with her answer. “Well… I had been sick the last few days but I decided I was okay enough to go out today.”
Sonic raised an eyebrow, “In a storm?” he asked skeptically.
Amy brought her mug down slightly, “I didn’t realize it was going to storm, the weather was perfectly fine when I was first out there.”
“But you didn’t think to check before you went out? Or call one of us to do your shopping for you?”
Amy took a sip of the tea, avoiding his eye contact. “I was Christmas shopping, I couldn’t ask any of you to help. Besides, I was perfectly capable of doing it myself…”
Sonic sat up straight, giving her an incredulous look. “I found you unconscious and covered in a foot of snow! There’s still plenty of time to Christmas shop, what were you thinking?”
Amy, while still holding the mug in her hands, rested it on her lap. “Really? The King of Reckless Behaviour is going to sit there and lecture me about not thinking?” her tone was heavy with sarcasm; she couldn’t help the attitude, he had her on the defence. And it was true! Sonic was always doing stupid things without a second thought, who was he to preach to her any different?
Sonic lips pressed into a hard line. It looked like he wanted to say something but was biting his tongue. After a long moment of quiet contemplation he stood up, rubbing his ear with a hand on his hip.
“Yeeeeah, alright alright, you got me there…” Sonic admitted with a sigh. He looked back at her, "I don’t have much of a leg to stand on with that one, do I?”
Amy lips curled up into a tiny smile and she shook her head, only a trace of smugness on her face. Sonic couldn’t help but smile back with a chuckle.
“Guess we both need help in that department then, huh?” Humour was twinkling in his eyes at the irony of the situation.
Amy took another sip of her tea, starring up at him with feigned innocence. “Mhmm, well one of us more than the other but… Yes I suppose so.” She felt grateful at how easy going Sonic was. That could have easily been a big argument and she felt guilty for giving him attitude - he did save her after all. Amy placed her mug down and reached to grab his hand. He gave her a small questioning look at the sudden gesture.
“But in all seriousness, thank you… Really, I’m sorry to have worried you. I’m thankful you were there.”
Sonic stared at her, a slight dumbfounded look on his face, before he squeezed her hand back with a smile. “Yeah, of course Ames, don’t mention it.”
Suddenly from the kitchen, boiling water could be heard bubbling over and sizzling on the stove. Both hedgehogs ears perked up and Sonic’s face dropped,
“Oh, errr- be right back!” he hurried away, Amy feeling suddenly nervous about what exactly he was doing in her kitchen. She peered over the couch trying to get a look in the room down the hall.
“Nothing to worry about, everything is under control!!” he called out to her, the sound of utensils and pans clanging about in the background. Based on who was operating in the kitchen and the sounds emitting from it, she somehow believed just the opposite. Amy thought the faint smell of something burning was wafting in the air, but before she had a chance to try and get a better look, her nose began to feel tingly. A series of sneezes erupted out of her providing a not so gentle reminder that she was yet to take her meds. Amy glanced at her communicator – crap, it’s been hours since she was supposed to take the dosage.
Amy stood up, keeping her blanket wrapped around her and began to make her way to the bathroom where the medicine cabinet was. A sudden wave of dizziness hit her hard and she had to stop walking, her eyes closing briefly to stop the spinning going on in her mind. Ugh she hated feeling like this, it was so frustrating. She swayed from side to side slightly before opening her eyes again, focusing on the bathroom door. The original plan was stopping by the kitchen first to observe the chaos that Sonic was no doubt causing but after realizing how weak she was, her full attention was solely on making it to the cabinet. Amy stubbornly continued her walk but it proved to be pushing her limits; the room began to spin again and with one misstep, she wobbled too hard and started to fall.
Sonic had stepped out to the hallway; unbeknownst to Amy he was actually talking to her the entire time from the other room, clueless his rambling was falling onto deaf ears. He wasn’t getting any responses from her so he thought he would check to see if she had gone back asleep. That’s when he saw her mid-fall, about to crash onto the floor. In a flash he was by her side, his fast reflexes allowing him to catch her without a second thought.
He held her gingerly in his arms as her eyes fluttered open. “Jeez Amy, I can’t turn my back on you for a second!” Again, she found Sonic’s sweet face mere inches from her own, their noses almost touching. She could feel his warm breath on her, his eyes once again looking down into hers with too much concern. Amy’s brain, whether it be from the head cold or Sonic, was not willing her to speak, so she just stared. He must have been too worried to realize just how close they were again - normally he’d be redder than a tomato by now. Sonic scooped her up into his arms, blanket and all, and brought her back to the couch, setting her down gently. At first he laid her down completely but she found her voice,
“I don’t want to lay down…” she squeaked. Sonic looked at her, almost surprised, and obliged to her request. He lifted her so she was sitting up and put a finger under her chin.
“Alright, but you promise to stay put?” he smiled warmly at her, “I don’t think getting a concussion would be the best thing for ya.”
Amy nodded in agreement, rubbing her eye as she did so. He stayed leaning in close, his focus on rearranging the blanket so it was comfy but tight around her; essentially tucking her in. While he hovered over her all she could smell was his scent, the scent that was so undeniably his, the scent that brought her back to a million different memoires. It was intoxicating yet comforting at the same time.
“What did you need, why were you up walking around?” he asked softly, still focusing on the blanket.
Amy, completely forgetting about her mission for a hot minute, replied. “Oh! That’s right, I need to take my medication. It’s in the bathroom.”
Sonic smiled and winked, “Comin’ right up!”
Amy watched him walk away and come back with two bottles; one the antibiotics and one cough syrup. Her face scrunched up, “I really only need the antibiotics…”
Sonic laughed, placing both down on the table. “Well, well, well, look at Nurse Amy refusing her medicine. C’mon, it will make you feel better.”
“Sonic, the cough syrup is just going to make me drowsy….” She whined, keeping to herself that the taste is also a big factor to her refusal. Another chill ran down her spine, her body visibly shivering for a few seconds; she clutched her blanket a little tighter. Sonic, noticing this, grabbed another blanket and rested it on top, rubbing her shoulder.
“That’s alright, sleep will be good for you. Just hold on though, you can’t take it on an empty stomach.” He disappeared once more into the kitchen, more loud clattering noises surfacing again. She coughed some more, resting her head on the back of the couch with her eyes closed. She couldn’t believe how awful she was feeling compared to this morning, it’s like the cold hit her ten times harder. She would be in a lot worse condition if Sonic didn’t find her though… Or if he didn’t stick around to take care of her.
“Here you go.” His voice drifted into her ears like a soft melody. She opened her eyes to see Sonic standing in front of her, offering a bowl of soup. Amy looked at him surprised, shocked even. She took the bowl graciously, taking in a whiff of the delicious scent.
“Wow… This smells great, you made this yourself?”
Sonic grinned, shrugging in a smug way. “Eh, what can I say? My talents are truly endless.”
Amy couldn’t help but laugh, “I was honestly expecting a chili dog.”
“Just because I can cook a mean chili dog doesn’t mean other delicacies are off the table.” He gave her a cocky smile before noticing her drink, “Oh, let me get you some more tea.”
Sonic grabbed the empty mug and left before she could say anything. Her stomach let out a low growl – she didn’t realize it until now but she was actually starving, this soup couldn’t have come at a better time. Amy raised her spoon and blew on the liquid before putting it in her mouth. Her face screwed up instantly – it’s not that the soup tasted disgusting but it just… Wasn’t exactly the taste she was expecting. There was some questionably bold flavours in it and she could definitely taste whatever she smelt burning in the kitchen earlier.
Sonic came back with her tea and sat down on the table in front of her again.
“So? Whatcha think?” he smiled, an excited look gracing his features.
She hesitated for only a moment before smiling, “It’s delicious.” She took another spoonful, swallowing the soup while doing her best to not grimace. It honestly wasn’t that bad, maybe she was just being harsh. Amy herself was very well versed in the kitchen; her cooking and baking was sought after by everyone, so it was possible she was just being a snob about it.
Sonic grinned, clearly proud of himself. “Thanks!”
“I’m actually surprised you know how to make soup.” She said genuinely – she couldn’t recall seeing Sonic ever cook in the time she knew him.
“Well, someone had to feed Tails when we were younger. I actually know how to cook quite a few things, although I really don’t like to.” He laughed lightly, “Cooking is so boring.”
Something clicked in her mind when he said that – she remembered Tails once telling her that Sonic’s cooking was usually atrocious but he never had the heart to tell him. So maybe she wasn’t being too harsh…
Sonic kept talking, “But yeah, Tails told me that my soup is like ‘no other he’s ever had’! So I knew you’d like it!”
A big smile spread across Amy’s face. Well, Tails was right, this was definitely not like any soup she’s ever had either. She took another spoonful; for one she was still starving and two she couldn’t bear to hurt Sonic’s feelings. At least it was still edible and it would fill her belly, giving her the much needed energy.
“Thank you Sonic, you’ve been so wonderful this whole time, taking care of me like this. You really didn’t have to…” Amy said softly.
Sonic waved his hand at her dismissively, “Ah don’t sweat it! Really, it’s no big deal.” He leaned back on his hands, a knowing smirk on his face, ”Just next time you decide to go shopping in a storm while you’re sick as a dog, call me ahead of time, ok?”
Amy, swallowing another spoonful, rolled her eyes at him with a smile. “Aright fine, deal.” She trailed off, resting the bowl of soup in her lap for a moment in thought. She suddenly looked at him alarmed.
“Oh my Gods, my shopping bags! Did you grab them?!”
Sonic looked at her apologetically, “Uhhhhh…”
Amy was visibly upset – not at Sonic, but at the prospect that her Christmas gifts were now lost.
“Oh noooooo! I can’t believe it, all that money and work down the drain – I picked out the most perfect things, some were the last of its kind! I don’t think the store will have any more left, oh no-“
Sonic stood up, “Don’t worry Ames, I’ll go find them!” He raced to the door and with his hand on the doorknob, he turned back to her, “Just eat up, take your medicine and I’ll be back in no time!” he opened the door, the snow immediately blowing into the house violently.
“….Eh, on second thought, I might be a bit longer than expected.” He chuckled nervously, not realizing how bad it got outside.
“Sonic, please don’t. The storm is awful out there, just stay here.” Amy said, “You’re so sweet to offer but really, it’s okay. It’s not the end of the world if I don’t get them back. ”
“Nah it’s really not that bad out there. You passed out just around the corner, I won’t have to go far.” He gave her a thumbs up, “You just focus on getting better, I’ll be back in a flash.” And at that, he went out the door.
Amy let out a sigh, feeling guilty for letting him go out in this weather. But once Sonic has set something in his mind it was almost impossible to convince him otherwise. She ate a few more spoonfuls of soup before placing the bowl down and reaching for the antibiotics. She downed two pills and sat back again, another violent shiver rolling through her body. Despite all the blanket’s, soup and tea, she still felt frozen to her core. Pulling her knees up to her chest, she hugged her legs attempting to create a bit more warmth once more. Hopefully Sonic doesn’t get too cold being out there. Sonic…
He was being so unbelievably sweet to her today. Of course he was a caring guy and always looked out for everyone, but she had never really seen this side of him before. He was being so nurturing and openly affectionate. It made her heart feel so full that he choose to stay and look after her. Sonic’s signature was more so protect and save, and then once whoever it was was safe, he was on to the next thing. It was throwing her for a loop that he had stuck around so long after she had woken up. Even going as far to make his homemade soup for her? To bring her tea and tuck the blankets around her? His hand caressing her cheek lovingly…
Was she crazy or did this mean something? Maybe she was thinking too much into it.
Amy glanced at the coffee table where the cough syrup bottle was glaring at her. She groaned, leaning forward to grab it. The least she could do to repay Sonic’s kindness was take the dumb cough syrup. The stuff made her drowsy and loopy at times, but he did have a point, sleeping off the cold is the better option. It would also aid in getting rid of that annoying tickle in her throat, the one that no matter how many times she coughed, would just not go away. Amy took the appropriate dosage, her face screwing up in disgust as she tried to wash away the taste with her tea. Sonic’s soup was heaven compared to this crap.
Sighing again, she leaned back on the couch, bringing up the blankets to her chin. She tried to close her eyes and relax but she couldn’t stop her shivering. Maybe that tower of blankets wasn’t such a bad idea. Amy reach over and grabbed two more, making sure to cover her whole body but it didn’t seem to help all that much. She closed her eyes again, trying her best to rest.
Only about 15 minutes went by until she was startled by the door flinging open, the unforgiving winter wind blustering into the house for a few seconds before Sonic managed to shut it again.
“Wow, Mother Nature is NOT playing around out there!” Sonic called out as she could hear him shuffling his shoes off. He walked into view, shaking his head to get the snow off. Amy smiled,
“That was fast, I really can’t thank you enough!”
Sonic grinned, “Of course it was fast, who do you think you’re talkin’ to here?” taking a few more steps into the room, he continued “They were buried pretty deep but no match for me! Although, the wetness from the snow kinda of destroyed some of the bags…” he held out his hands showing some bags intact while others were worse for wear, ripped and barely held together. “Don’t worry though, whatever items were in ‘em I saved.”
He placed the bags down and began to put the loose items that no longer had a bag on the table, one by one. “Hmm, lemme take a guess…” He placed a giant, novelty sized mint candy down, still undisturbed in the box. “Tails?”
Amy giggled and nodded as Sonic continued with a grin.
“Let’s see, next item is…. A book about mobian history?” Sonic quirked his eyebrow, stumped. Amy smiled, pausing to see if he would ventured a guess, and then replied.
“It’s for Knuckles.”
“Knuckles?!” Sonic laughed, “Can he even read?”
Amy threw a pillow at him playfully, laughing along. “Yes! He’s a lot smarter than you give him credit for. He knows a ton about the echidna culture but barely nothing about any other culture, so I thought he’d like to learn. He enjoys history.”
Sonic nodded, looking impressed, “Wow, alright cool.” He opened it and leafed through the pages, “I still think you should have gotten him a picture book though….” He laughed as she went to throw another pillow at him, “I’m Kidding!! Okay, okay I’ll stop.”
He inspected the last bag-less gift; a red winter scarf. “Ah, last but not least, an astounding scarf, one of the upmost quality I see…”
Amy froze, her face falling. He glanced over to see her reaction at his goofy commentary and instantly stopped his charade when he noticed her face.
“What? What’s wrong?”
Amy put her face in her hands, “Ugh, I’m such an idiot, I didn’t even realize, how could I have not realized….” She mumbled. This cough syrup was already getting to her head.
“Earth to Ames, hello? What’s going on?”
She could tell by his voice that he was now right in front of her. She then felt his hands delicately hold her wrists and slowly guide them down from her face. She looked at him, trying her hardest not to let the tears build up in her eyes from her disappointment in herself.
“I’m so stupid… I forgot that I bought you a gift today too…”
Sonic let out a small ‘oh’ and looked down at the scarf in his hands and then back to her.
“Awh Ames… I’m sorry, I didn’t-“ he struggled, trying to find a way to correct it, wishing he could un-see the gift for her. “Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I friggen love it.” He wrapped the scarf around his neck. “And MAN is it ever soft!” he looked off to the side and placed his thumb and finger under his chin for a dramatic pose “How did you know red brings out the colour of my eyes? I look BALLIN’ in this!!”
A giggled slipped out of her lips and Sonic grinned at his success of making her smile, “I think I’m going to have to wear this thing year round!”
“Sonic, that’s not even the special part about it…” she said, still looking a little sad. “Look at the one end of it.”
Sonic inspected the end of the scarf and noticed for the first time an emblem of sorts sewn in. It was the crest of Christmas Island, the place that he was born. He just stared at it for a long moment, blown away at the reveal. It had been a long, long time since he’d seen that symbol…
“I know you don’t really consider that island your home but… I thought you would appreciate having a little something to remind you of it.”
Sonic looked up at her; she could tell by his face that he was truly touched at the gift and it made her heart soar.
“Amy, I… I don’t know what to say… This is really somethin’…” he looked down at the symbol and rubbed the stitching with his thumb a few times before looking back at her. It took a lot to make the blue hedgehog speechless. “Thank you…”
Amy smiled, realizing it didn’t matter if he got the gift early, just knowing how much it meant to him and seeing his reaction was all that mattered. As she said ‘you’re welcome’ he suddenly went in to hug her, holding her tightly as he propped himself up on the couch with one knee. She hugged back and heard him whisper another ‘thank you’ into her ear. Amy felt whole. Gift giving was one of her favourite things to do, she loved giving thoughtful gifts to her friends, but when she managed to pull a home run like this, especially to someone as special as Sonic, it was an incredible feeling. Love pumped through her veins, she felt euphoric. Or maybe that was just the cough syrup; she also felt kind of loopy and could feel her eyes starting to droop.
Sonic pulled away and took off the scarf, examining it again with a reminiscent look on his face, before placing it down carefully on the table. Once thing Amy noticed for sure is when Sonic pulled away, she was instantly cold again. That small amount of body heat from the hug had helped warm her up and she only realized it once it was gone.
“Sonic…” her small voice called out softly. “I’m so tired… but I’m so cold…”
“Oh, do you want me to get you more blankets?”
She shook her head, another shiver rippling through her body. “Could you maybe just… sit with me for a bit? Just until I can fall asleep?”
Sonic looked a little hesitant at first, “Uhmn... Well… Yeah, sure, I suppose so.” He sat down and put an arm around her as she leaned into him, laying her head down on his chest, her arms still hugging her knees. He could feel her body shivering lightly against him – before he couldn’t tell she was this cold by looking at her but he could definitely feel it now.
“Jeez Amy, you’re like a little frozen ball! You should have said something!” Putting his nerves aside, he lifted the blanket and placed it over him so they were both wrapped under it together. He shifted so he was closer to her and she did the same; her legs were now bent over his thighs and her body was as close to his as possible. She nuzzled into his chest, already feeling the warmth of his body heat defrosting her frigid one. Sonic wrapped both arms around her, rubbing one hand against her softly to create some friction on her arm.
Amy let out a little content sigh, closing her eyes at the instant warmth.
“Feel better now?” he asked softly, peering down at her. All she did was nod, her eyes too heavy from exhaustion to open. Sonic could feel her body shivering less and less which at least put his mind at ease. He was worried he might have had to take her to the hospital if she couldn’t get rid of the chill. Realising how sleepy she was also helped him relax a bit – this was extremely intimate and if circumstances were any different his nerves would be through the roof. He had managed to keep his cool thus far, but this cuddle session was kind of pushing it. But as he was able to relax, he also realized it was actually quite nice, being like this. It just felt right, like they were two puzzle pieces fitting perfectly together. He let his cheek rest against her head gently, just taking in the soft moment until he heard her pipe up.
“What were you doing out here anyway?” she mumbled, half asleep.
Sonic perked his head up slightly, glancing down. “Hmm? What do you mean?”
“When you found me… In the snow… Why were you even in the area?”
“Oh, I uh…” Sonic paused, debating making something up but decided to just spill the truth. “I was honestly coming to check on you.”
“Check on me….?” Amy yawned, snuggling deeper into his chest. “You never check on me…”
Sonic smiled, letting out a small sigh. “I check on you often, Ames. I always want to make sure you’re okay. And it’s a good thing I did today, Chaos knows what would have happened to you if I didn’t…”
“You never woulda gotten your Christmas present…” she mumbled, barely coherently at this point.
Sonic let out a soft chuckle. He could feel her body finally stop shivering, her breaths becoming slow and even. He gave her a small kiss on the top of her head,
“You are my Christmas present. Every year.”
His words fell short as the pink hedgehog was already peacefully asleep against him. He leaned his cheek on her head again, closing his eyes as a small smile curled up on his lips. Yeah, this wasn’t so bad after all. He could get used to this.