sᴏɴɪᴄ ᴛᴏʏ: 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐀𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞

      Karl Daun escorted his new acquaintances to his home, went to the intercom and pressed the button with his apartment, and then waited for the phone to be answered. Unless of course there is someone at home. And strangely enough, my mother was at home, she picked up the phone and asked in Japanese who had come. The teenager also answered her in pure Japanese that it was he who returned home to her and not alone, but also brought friends, warning that they were Russian and perhaps did not understand Japanese well. The door to the entrance opened and the Draytons continued following Karl. — By the way, I have a younger brother, Xuen. He still speaks Russian poorly and barely knows it. If suddenly you do not understand what he says, then just contact me and I will translate. — Karl Daun answered. — Okay, whatever you say. — Ivan answered, and David laughed slightly to the side at the name he heard. — David! It's not polite to laugh at someone's name! — Lili heard her son’s giggle and wanted to scold him, but Karl stopped her. — It's okay, Aunt Lili. It's not David's fault. To be honest, we ourselves find some foreign names funny. — Daun stopped on one of the flights of stairs and looked at his cousin. — But mom is right, buddy. A person will be offended if he finds out that they are laughing at his name. — Sorry... — David apologized guiltily, lowering his head. He imagined how he would feel if they laughed at him because of his name. — And forgive me, David. Looks like the long flight is taking its toll. — Mom was also embarrassed that she scolded her son over such a trifle. — It’s okay, we’ll come now and you can rest from the road. We're almost there. — said Karl and everyone followed him again. After walking a few more floors, they found themselves at the desired apartment. The door was slightly open, so the teenager pulled it slightly towards himself, not forgetting to knock on it to notify him of his arrival. The boy’s father immediately ran to the meeting first, kissing him on both cheeks. Apparently in this family the father loves his son very much. Then the mother came in an apron, hugging her son. But little brother Xuen was in no hurry to meet his older brother when he himself mistakenly thought he was on a business trip. — Welcome, Draytons! — said the father of the Daun family in Russian. — Make yourself at home! — Where is your brother? — David asked, and Karl’s mother answered for him: — Don't worry, he's in his room. He plays the console as always. Having undressed and hung their fur coats on hangers, after which they took off their shoes, they walked around the apartment, examining it, noticing in one of the rooms how the little brother with narrow eyes was trying to pass a very difficult level in the game on the new Sony PlayStation 6 console, which apparently released just recently. The beauty of that console was that the game characters in the games now looked like real actors from films. — How does he play if the console is not connected? — David thought out loud, deciding that it was just a movie. — Stupid, it's connected to the TV. This is the game. It just looks too real. — Karl explained. — How far has the graphics come? — David was surprised. By that time, the younger brother had almost defeated the final boss, and when he heard that his mother was calling everyone to the table for breakfast, he paused and rushed like a bullet to the kitchen. He knew that his mother would give him his favorite broccoli to eat as usual. But not just broccoli, but mixed with rice and crushed potatoes. Even David's mom and dad wanted to try this dish. Only David, a little reluctantly, but still forced himself to eat broccoli, since he didn’t really like it. — What's wrong with you, David? Why do you eat broccoli so sour? — asked Karl. — I don’t really like them. — Well, in vain! They are very helpful. All our children love them... Except for sweet peppers... — the teenager explained. — Even I couldn’t stand him as a child. Buea. The younger brother also bueaked in response, mistakenly deciding that he was teasing. Karl just smiled, no offense, and started sticking his tongue out at his brother, to which Xuen laughed. — Karl, you know the rules. There is no mischief at the table. — his father scolded him. — Sorry, dad. After this, breakfast passed quietly. David decided to eat at least a little broccoli so as not to offend his owners. After breakfast, the families began to communicate, talking about each other. Suen sometimes asked David something, and Karl calmly translated the words, since the boys did not understand each other. At one point, Ivan translated another question from his younger brother Karl, as he quickly understood the question, and then translated his son’s answer back into Japanese. — Wow! I didn't know you could speak Japanese too, Mr. Drayton. — the elder Daeun was surprised. looking at him with interest. — There is a little... I studied Japanese at school. I’ve been wanting to visit this country for a long time, and I’ve been preparing for this. And it’s somehow inconvenient for me to ask Karl... — Come on, Uncle Vanya. I'm happy to help if needed. — the teenager reassured, after which he noticed that his father was thinking about something. — Is everything okay, dad? The man remained thoughtful for a few more minutes and cast quick glances at David’s dad. After which I peered at his face for a long time. — Are you the same Ivan Drayton? Michael Drayton's son? — Daun asked, trying to understand whether he understood everything correctly or not. — Well why? — the elder Drayton did not understand what these questions were about, but a minute later, he remembered the conversation with Karl. — It can’t be... Brother... — said Karl’s father, looking at everyone practically without blinking. — I understand what we're talking about. Karl has already shown me those old photographs, but I don’t really believe that we are relatives. — the man admitted honestly, as suspicions still tormented him. — That is? — the teenager didn’t understand. — I'm sorry, Karl. Those photos do look convincing, but I still doubt that your grandfather and my father are brothers. — Well... It's not scary. This whole story is really too complicated, so I won't blame you. — Daun turned to his eldest son. — Karl, call Grandpa James. Tell him to come tonight. — For what? We can explain everything to them ourselves. Besides, grandpa was going to play mahjong with his friends. — Yeah, you are right. — Daun agreed, and then turned to his wife. — Akira, show the guests the room so they can rest. — Whatever you say, Eugene. The woman replied, then led the Draytons into the guest bedroom.

Meanwhile

      All the toys, tired from the fun, went back to David’s room and all went into the chest together. Usually Sonic, Shadow and Silver lie on David’s bed, since now he leaves them there most often, but since there was no one at home among the owners and people, they decided to also sleep with the others in the chest so that it would not be boring. Everyone slept in the chest. Everyone except Cream and Amy. Cream, upset, sat on the fifth step from the bottom of the stairs, was a little sad and even sighed heavily from time to time, and Amy, holding Blaze’s hand, which glowed in the dark, walked with her around the house and talked to themselves. — I keep thinking about what Shadow said this afternoon. He mentioned that perhaps there are arts and videos on the Internet where they do the same thing with him and Sonic, only about you and me. It’s even a little disgusting for me to imagine this, but I couldn’t even think that this could happen. — Amy said. — Relax, Amy! This is all just stupid crap that is shoved onto the Internet for sick bastards who love other vulgarity. We know that we are not really like that. — I know, but it’s hard for me to believe it. Here you and I are now walking around the room and holding each other’s hands. It seems like we are friends, but if someone sees that we are walking with our rent, they will think that we are supposedly... Allegedly... A couple. — What difference does it make to you who we are, a couple or just friends? I don't care who we are either. Besides, we all know very well that you really love Sonic the most. Even Sonic himself knows this and accepts it, unlike the original, who constantly ran away from your prototype and did not reciprocate. Just because we are based on our prototypes does not mean that we should behave like the originals or behave differently. Each of us decides for himself who to be and how to behave. — Blaze explained, then she also thought, looking somewhere to the side and asked: — Listen, Amy. And if we didn’t have Sonic in our family, and I wouldn’t be a girl, but a guy. That... Just be honest!... Would you consider me just a friend or would you fall in love with me? — What a stupid question, Blaise? I'm not your lesbian. — the hedgehog waved her off. — No, no, just answer me honestly. If I were suddenly a man, then you would be my girlfriend or just a friend. — the cat repeated her question. Amy Rose scratched the back of her head with her free hand, thought about the question and answered smiling: — Yes, Blaze. If you were a man, you would probably become my favorite guy. Honestly. — she answered honestly and received a warm hug from her friend in return. At that moment it stopped glowing, and outside the window the sun was already beginning to slowly rise and morning was coming. — What already? Is it dawn? Blaze let go of her friend and looked out the window, where the dark blue sky was slowly turning orange from the rays of the sun. — Hm-m. Apparently we got carried away too late, and besides, you and I walked here for a long time and talked. — the cat thought out loud. — It’s a pity that the morning has come so quickly. I would like to talk to you a little more alone while everyone is sleeping. —Amy was a little upset. — What are you, Amy? There's still a whole week ahead. Besides, don’t forget that we also have our closest friends. Same Sonic and Silver. You and Sonic can chat about one or another topic that worries you, if you want. — That's not the point. — the hedgehog waved her off. — It’s just that sometimes women’s questions bother me, the answers to which only you and I know and to which only you and I can talk, and preferably in secret from men. And Sonic, for example, hardly understands any of this. After all, when I am alone with you and communicate, my soul somehow becomes warm and it’s as if I’m not in reality, but as if I’m dreaming and I’m only dreaming of all this. Besides, you are not just like a friend to me, you are almost like an older sister to me, who will always listen to me, understand and support me in difficult situations. — I know. — Blaze answers briefly. Now the friends are returning to their place on the second floor, and on the way they see that Cream is still sitting on the step and is sad, sighing heavily from time to time. — Cream, why are you sad? — Amy asked, concerned about the rabbit's condition. — It’s a pity that the surprise didn’t work out. I wanted to pleasantly surprise them... — Cream answered, sighing heavily again. — We ourselves want to surprise David and his parents. But such surprises are too risky. They may see us and then our secret will end. — Blaze explained. — I know... I'm so ashamed... Sonic and Knuckles were right. — the rabbit sighed sadly again. — Don't worry! We still have time to make a surprise! We still have a lot of time, because the vacation has just begun! — Amy tried to cheer her up. — You just need to agree on this with the Omarovs so that it doesn’t become too suspicious. — the cat noticed. After these words, Cream cheered up a little and her friends headed into the room. Approaching her, they noticed how the others began to wake up and crawl out of the chest. — Vector, where are you going? — asked Cream, believing that everyone would sleep for a long time, since they went to bed late. — Omega, Metal Sonic and Knuckles and I will go and take the pizza we received yesterday to our neighbors. — answered the crocodile. — Although, I wouldn’t give it to them after what Rouge did. — Knuckles said quietly, but a minute later a dissatisfied — I heard everything! — was heard. — It's clear. One question. How do you get the box through the door? — Blaze asked, because the box was too big for a pet door. All the toys came out to the edge of the stairs and looked at the exit door and thought. Everyone thought in their own way. Some scratched their chins, some scratched the back of their heads, and some simply stood still and thought without unnecessary movements.