𝘽𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙙𝙤𝙢 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣

      Autumn. The most wonderful time of the year among all other times. This is the time of year when the foliage on the trees turns various shades, from yellow to red, a cool wind tickles your nose, and under your feet you can hear the soft rustling of fallen leaves on the ground. By that time it was already October, although at first glance it didn’t seem so. In the mornings it can be warm, and in the evening the weather changes to cooler, and therefore, it would be worth taking care of yourself and your loved ones. Usually, at such moments, everyone always carries some kind of unfortunate sweater or warm coat with them, so as not to freeze on evening walks, or when returning home from work. The only one who did not listen to all these reproaches of nature, and even when the hedgehog closest to him forced him to put on at least something, he never listened to him on this topic — Shadow. So what? He considers himself a ultimate life form, as he always brags about himself to everyone. This means that he is essentially not afraid of getting sick, because he knows that since he is a ultimate life form, he will never catch any disease. Never follow his example, kids! There was one day when October became much cooler than in the evening. The sky was covered with large clouds and a cold shower began... Rain. Sonic usually never liked to stand still and always liked to run around outside. However, because of this, he will have to sit at home all day and get bored, since he is super-fast, and he has nowhere to put all his energy to warm up due to such bad weather. Moreover, his favorite red sneakers can get wet and become rags for absorbing water. And he had no other shoes. There was no other way out either; he had to stay at home. Shadow was somewhat unfazed by this change in weather. And even when he was getting ready for work again. — Shadow, it's pouring rain outside. At least put on a robe with a hood or take an umbrella with you. — the blue hedgehog commented, looking around and sitting on the red sofa, reading a newspaper, before Shadow managed to reach the exit door from the house. — Fi. — the black-scarlet snorted gloomily in response. — I will never wear these rags. I… — Yes Yes Yes. I've heard this a million times. — Sonic interrupted jokingly. — You are a ultimate life form and you are not even afraid of catching a cold. — Don't make things up! — Shadow said sternly. — I’ve never caught anything like this in my life and I’ve always been as healthy as an ox. — Well, it’s okay, when you return home, even if you just sneeze, then you will remember my words! — Sonic grinned. — Oh well. — Shadow smiled mockingly for a second. — Let's see! With that word, he left the house almost naked and slammed the door. — Jerk. — Sonic whispered to himself about Shadow, grinning. — I hear everything. — The black-and-scarlet man looked out the exit door and said grumpily. — Close the door! It's blowing. — said the blue one and the door slammed again. Having forgotten the conversation between him and his lover, Sonic continued to lie on the couch and read the newspaper. There was nothing particularly interesting, because he had known all the news written in it for a long time, because the newspaper had been around since last month. Well, he needed to somehow entertain himself so that the time would fly by quickly. After reading the entire newspaper for the first time, he looked at the electronic alarm clock and noticed that only three measly minutes had passed. This is not enough. The crossword puzzle could have distracted him longer if he had not already solved all the answers in it last week. Out of anger, he throws the newspaper against the wall. — I don’t understand how ordinary people who don’t have my abilities endure these boring days? — he spoke to himself, for he was now alone at home. — Maybe I should do the laundry? Although no, I washed the clothes yesterday. I can cook lunch, but then I will quickly eat it right away and have to wait a very long time until dinner. I can go and shower to pass the time a little, but I washed this morning and haven't gotten dirty yet. O! Maybe call my friends? I haven't contacted them for a long time. Taking out his blue cell phone, he first called his most trusted friend and partner. — Hello, Tails, how are you doing there?.. Busy? Can't talk yet? Okay, sorry. He dials Knuckles next. — Damn, when you need me, I’m always available to you, and you?.. Next he dials Eggman's phone number. — Yes... Yes, I know that you are retired now, it’s just raining outside, and I’m bored... There’s really no one to talk to... Oh, you is that so? Do you care about you?.. I... Hello!.. Hello!.. Eggman hung up the phone himself, and Sonic dials Sonya's phone next. — Doesn’t exist?.. Damn I forgot, I don’t have any sister... It was only in one animated series, and then everyone forgot about her. Amy Rose dials next. — Hello, Amy, I haven’t called you for a long time... Oh... Uh-uh... Amy, I’ll call you back later! — With these words, he immediately hung up the phone, without even allowing her to finish. Next he calls Vector, but for the telephone conversation he asks for money through the phone. Then he calls Sally. — Sally, I... — (Censored) you, I'm sleeping! — she screams at the top of her lungs, which could be heard from the phone throughout the entire room of the house, after which she hung up. Sonic just grinned: — Stupid baba! The last phone number he had stored in his contacts list was Shadow's. But there was no point in calling him at work. With a heavy sigh, he sits down on the sofa and again suffers from bullshit. Until the thought of watching TV comes into his head to distract himself. But here's the problem! Rain, thunder and lightning interrupted the signals from the antennas near the house, which is why all the TV channels on TV lost connection and showed only interference with pixelated snow. It’s like this on every TV channel, no matter how many times he switches it on the remote control. — Are you kidding me? — he grumbled out loud, and out of anger he threw the remote control against the TV itself, almost breaking it. Usually this sometimes helped and the signal appeared immediately. However, now even this did not help. He lay down on the sofa again and sighed heavily: — O-o-oh and boring! Suddenly he felt a rumbling grumble in his stomach. A warning that it's time for lunch. There was nothing to do. You'll have to go to the kitchen and prepare lunch. It is to walk, and not to run, in order to at least pass the time a little. A small step, another, another and another... Sometimes he imagined people on either side of each other, like servants, and he was like a king and with every step he stopped and bowed to emptiness. So by the time he reached the kitchen, only two minutes had passed, six minutes had passed for the idea of what to cook for lunch, five minutes for cooking, and three minutes for eating. And that's sixteen. And there are four more minutes to wash the dishes. He was already yawning from boredom and wanted to sleep. He decided that this is exactly what he would do. He went to the sofa and decided to take a nap for at least an hour or two, which would fly by unnoticed for him while he slept. To be honest, he slept very poorly because of the nightmare. He dreamed of how he tried to run to his business so that he would have something to do, but with every step they moved further and further away from him. At the same time, he himself was running away from the darkness from which came thunder, lightning and rain, which pursued him, no matter how quickly he ran. Sonic himself grew old very quickly while running, and therefore slowed down his run, afraid of catching sciatica, which usually appears in elderly people. In addition to slowing down, his hearing slowly disappeared and he became almost deaf, his vision was blurred, as if he was slowly starting to go blind, and a gray and long beard began to grow between the lips under his nose on his muzzle. The blue needles all over his body and on his head turned pale and also turned gray. For him, it seemed as if time was passing too quickly and that if he didn't have time to do something to avoid dying of boredom, he would most likely die of old age much earlier. Then he stopped and a large cane appeared in both hands, on which he was holding on, standing still. It seemed that if he took a couple more steps, he would die of old age. He takes another small step forward, the cane disappears from his hands, and he himself is already sitting in a wheelchair on wheels. Just as he was about to scream at the top of his lungs, all his teeth began to fall out of his mouth. Sonic woke up with a start right after that and stood up from the couch with a loud cry. Taking a breath, he looks all over himself and sees that all his fur and needles on his head are blue. Realizing that he had all dreamed, he slowly quickened his breathing and lay back on the sofa with relief. Looking at the electronic alarm clock, he realized that he had slept even longer than he had planned. Two and a half hours. He already looked quite cheerful, so there was no way to sleep any further. However, there was also nothing to do. Looks like there was only one way out. Learn to be patient and be able to wait for time to fly by. Sitting down on the sofa, he crosses his legs, stretches his arms out to his sides, connecting his thumbs and index fingers in a circle, and spreading the rest as far as he can, closes his eyes and begins to act using Espio’s method... Meditate and learn inner patience. At first he had a hard time concentrating. Each time, inhaling air and exhaling, while humming something under his breath. However, he remembered how Espio himself did it very slowly and over time. About half an hour passed. He had already begun to get used to it and did not even notice how much time had passed. As he very slowly took in air again, suddenly his soul suddenly flew upward from his body. His body now itself began to breathe and moo for him, and his disembodied spirit flew inexplicably where and not understanding what to do, he began to scream heart-rendingly at the top of his lungs, since he could not control himself. Even without super form, he was flying to an unknown destination. At that moment, the disembodied spirit of Espio flew by his side, who noticed Sonic and flew up and shouted: — HOLD ON, SONIC!!! Semi-transparent bodies were flying straight into the volcanic planet and flying straight towards the lava. — YOU CAN DO IT, SONIC, COME ON!!! Sonic just screams and closes his eyes, afraid that he will fall into the lava and burn. But suddenly he flew up and stopped in the air. Opening his eyes and noticing this, he almost died of fright. Espio just laughed at him. — Why are you laughing? — Little fool, meditation is a difficult matter. Here you need to prepare for a long time before you start doing it yourself. Espio explains. — Otherwise, the soul can die from any dangerous thing. — So I really could have died? — Sonic panicked. — Yes, I was joking. You would simply fly through the lava and fly further. Meditation is not life-threatening. You just need to be able to control yourself and your spirit. — Espio explained and stood in exactly the same meditating position. Sonic did the same, but he looks around out of curiosity. — But how did I even get here? Am I dead? — No, you just left your body into the astral plane. This side stage in meditation is for inner peace and patience. And in ancient times, for example, the same Chinese used meditation to communicate with each other over a long distance in the form of disembodied spirits on the clouds. Simply put, outgoing fortitude. Espio explained. — A! Now I understand everything. There’s just one thing I didn’t understand... How can I go back now? — You'll be back! Just do the same thing you did before. Or wait until someone wakes you from your trance. For example, some loud sound next to your body. — Espio answers. Suddenly, something in Sonic's head made a loud BOOM, causing him to immediately fly back to Mobius, into his body. Having moved back in, he abruptly flew back out of meditation and fell on his head, feet up. And at this time the large clock in the corridor with a pendulum was striking a race. They interrupted him from meditation with their sound. By the clock it was already six o'clock, and in the window it was already evening. Plus the rain has finally stopped. Apparently he meditated late into the night without noticing it. Realizing that evening had already come and Shadow was about to return from work, Sonic immediately ran to the kitchen to prepare dinner. A calm evening was approaching night, Sonic finished cooking dinner and eagerly runs to the exit, meeting the naughty black and scarlet hedgehog who has returned and is tired after work. The latter looked seriously at the blue hedgehog, but literally greeted him with a cold hug. He really was cold to the touch. Although he himself stood normally, as if he were healthy. The blue hedgehog, however, when the black and scarlet one walked into the kitchen, notices that the ultimate life form periodically shudders, as if something was subtly frightening him. — I warned you! By evening the weather worsens. — he remarks, hinting at the inappropriate appearance of the ULF standing opposite him for such weather. — Why are you saying this now? — asks the owner of scarlet eyes, turning his gaze to the hedgehog accompanying him. — You’re trembling all over. — the green-eyed guy, without thinking for a long time, takes out a warm jacket from the hanger, carefully placing it on the shoulders of the dark hedgehog, and then completely wrapping the fragile, at first glance, body in a fluffy, cozy fabric. — Nothing like this! — he denies, looking away while the ultramarine hedgehog smiles softly, studying him with his suspicious gaze. — I saw that you were trembling. Don't deny it! — Sonic grinned, looking at him with suspicion. — Yes, everything is fine with me, I tell you. — he almost shouted at his lover. — Look at me! — Sonic replaced his optimism with severity. — If you just sneeze, then you’ll remember my words! — he added then, whistling the song from My Little Pony: Friendship is magic! went to the kitchen first. — Yes Yes. You already told me this. — he muttered sternly to himself, taking off his warm fur coat and putting it back on the hanger. — Nonsense! — Suddenly, he didn’t notice how he immediately sneezed quietly to the side, which surprised him and made his eyes bulge out. — Oh! — Did you say something? — Sonic asked, sticking his head out of the kitchen. — No, no, I didn't say anything. — Shadow lied, holding a smile with his teeth exposed. — Strange! — Sonic answered suspiciously and returned to the kitchen. The black-scarlet hedgehog immediately tried to control himself, slowly walked up to the closet and took out an electronic thermometer from there to measure his temperature. Part of him didn’t believe that he could get sick. He just wanted to make sure of this and that he had probably just sneezed because of the dust. The thermometer beeped and he looked at his temperature. His temperature was thirty-nine point five degrees. He was shocked. He still got sick. — No, no, no, no, no, no, no. — he repeated to himself, until he said the last two repetitions hoarsely. Why did he cover his mouth and couldn’t even scream. He felt that his throat also hurt. — “I’m a ultimate life form... Wha-a-at?..” — he asked himself hoarsely. He couldn't believe it. Suddenly, Sonic himself flashed through his head, looking at him sternly and saying: — When you return home, even if you just sneeze, then you will remember my words! Shaking his head, he shook himself off these words and wanted to run away somewhere, but he was no longer able to run. His legs were already like cotton wool, and his heels were rising and it was as if someone was tickling them. At the same time, he held on and tried to stand still. Then Sonic comes up and asks: — Why have you been here so long, dinner is getting cold! Shadow stood with his back to Sonic and did not want to show that he was sick. Maybe he won't notice. — Shadow?..Are you deaf? — the blue hedgehog asks the black-scarlet one, but the latter is silent and even holds his mouth with his hands when he felt like he wanted to sneeze again. — What are you hiding from me? Are you still sick? — but Shadow just shakes his head in response, hoping that he will fuck off. — Well, yes. So I believed you. Now, if you just sneeze, then you’ll understand. — said the blue one and the black-scarlet one could no longer stand it. He immediately sneezed and tried to yell at him. However, instead of screaming, he simply spoke hoarsely, as if he was simply trying to whisper in his ear: — Yes, you’ve already bothered me with your teachings. I’ve already sneezed a couple of times already... — he coughed on the last word. The blue hedgehog did not hear him and did not understand what he said. However, he noticed that he had sneezed before that, and after he croaked something he immediately coughed. — Yeah! I knew it. — Sonic stated boldly, pointing his finger at Shadow. — But I warned you... Did you finish your game? Shadow didn’t answer anything this time, he just growled angrily, clenching his hands into fists. Then, realizing that he no longer has anything to hide from him, he makes a sour face and nods in shame. The blue hedgehog, noticing the black and scarlet blush on his cheeks, realizes that he is ashamed of the fact that he tried to hide from him that he was sick. This means there is no point in swearing at him. — I warned you. That's why you didn't listen to me? Out of shame, Shadow only turned his head to the left side and with his right palm grabbed the shoulder of his left hand, rubbing it. Feeling weakness in his legs, he almost fell, when Sonic immediately managed to grab him from the floor and slowly lay him on the red sofa. Taking out a warm, large blanket and pillow from the closet, he covers his sick hedgehog with the blanket and places the pillow behind the back of his head. — No, you’re not a ultimate life form. How can you be called one, if you even catch diseases and get sick, just like ordinary life forms? — he turns to the patient, barely holding back his tears, and the latter is even more ashamed and watches him almost cry. — Now I seem to understand why you’re crying... But... I’ll probably never be able to do that myself? — hoarsely, but somehow he tried to say it out loud. — Am I probably going to die now? — Do not say that! You can still be saved, the main thing is to promise that you will always obey me from now on! — Sonic said sternly, and Shadow didn’t answer. He just thought with cold emotions and, closing his eyes, nodded. While Shadow lay there and thought that he would die from an ordinary illness, his entire life from the past flew before his eyes, covered with eyelids, from the moment when he was created on the ARC colony to the moment when Maria sacrificed herself and saved him, sending him to escape capsule to Earth. Watching these memories as if in a dream, he smiled and thought that at least he would die with full knowledge of his past, which he still could not remember. His memories in his dream were immediately interrupted by Sonic, who placed a tray of hot tea and a bowl of hot soup on his stomach. Sitting down next to him and taking some soup from the bowl with a large spoon, he pushes it towards the black-scarlet’s muzzle. — Drink...! Just be careful, he's hot. Shadow did not argue with Sonic. First, he blew lightly on the spoon, and then took a sip of hot soup with it. With a sore throat, it was a little painful to swallow, but the soup warmed him from the inside. It was as if my soul felt warm, literally. His face still looked cold and serious, but inside he was truly ashamed that he had not listened to the blue hedgehog’s advice in vain. He was even ashamed to turn his gaze towards him, what if he was angry with him? After fifteen spoons of soup, he still dared to turn at least one eye towards him and... Sonic looked at him smiling and continued to feed him soup from a spoon, like a caring mother of a baby. Having drunk all the soup, and then carefully drinking hot tea from a mug, the black-scarlet almost fell asleep in bed during dinner. It even seemed to him that he had probably already died and found himself in heaven, where the one he loved fed him himself without outside help. — Clever boy. — Sonic whispered in his ear and put a wet, cold rag on his hot forehead. — Now get some sleep! Ultimate life form did not contradict here either and, having obeyed, immediately closed his eyes and fell asleep. Sonic did not leave him, he stood in place for some time and watched him for a long time. On the one hand, he was very worried about him, and on the other hand, it was nice for him to watch him sleep. In addition, for the first time he saw how Shadow smiled in an instant in his sleep and did not remove his smile for a second. It even seemed to him that he was probably dreaming about something. — You’re just incorrigible, Shadow... Actually, like me... You don’t listen to anyone, and I don’t like sitting in the same place with nothing to do... But we were nevertheless able to overcome ourselves... I finally understood what it means to endure and wait, and now, when you got sick for the first time in your life, you finally listened to me... At least in some ways we are the same... Perhaps that’s why I married you. — the blue hedgehog tried to whisper all this as quietly as he could so as not to wake him up, thinking that he could already hear him. However, he did not wake up. Shadow continued to sleep and even turned over on his side, facing the corner of the sofa. At the same time, he clutched the blanket tightly to himself and wrapped himself in it, as if a caterpillar was turning into a chrysalis, and then turning into a butterfly. The caring hedgehog had no choice but to lightly run his palm over the needles on his head, get up and leave the room.

***

      The next morning, Shadow already felt a little better. His throat no longer hurt, he could still sit up a little, but on rare occasions he still shuddered a little from the slight cold. Apparently he hasn't fully recovered yet. Sonic comes into his room and brings him breakfast in bed. Another bowl of hot soup and a cup of hot tea to make sure he gets well soon. — Rise and shine, sleepyhead! Now you have breakfast and you can go to work. — he told him. However, the black-scarlet didn’t think about work, he thought, maybe he should take a day off from work today and stay at home with his lover? Moreover, what if he doesn’t fully recover this afternoon? — Maybe I’ll stay at home for now... Weren’t you bored here yesterday?.. You must have been sitting at home all day?” — It's nothing, Shad. — Sonic waved it off and began to spoon-feed the patient. — I think we both... Well, that is, each of us learned our own lesson? For example, I have now learned to endure and wait, and now, I hope, you will listen to me? Is it true? — I promise... From this day on, I will definitely listen to your advice. - says ULF, taking another spoonful of soup. — Now I understand that even ultimate life forms can get sick... It turns out... I am becoming, almost like all of you?.. Mortal?.. — No, Shadow... You are much better... You are Shadow the hedgehog... That's who you are. — the blue hedgehog answers and runs his free hand along the black-scarlet’s cheek. The latter accepts the caress of the first, enjoying the way he runs his hand over his cheek. — Thank you.