Once the hedgehogs had finished their dinner, Sonic sighed contently and let out a belch before leaning back against his chair. "Ah, that was so yummy, if I do say so myself~" The black blur smirked and shook his head as he stood up from his chair and waited for Sonic to do the same. "Indeed, it was~ Thank you for such a delightful meal, Sonic... I had no idea that you were such a good chef~" Sonic grinned proudly as he picked up his plate, cutlery and wine glass, before carrying them over to the kitchen. "No problem, Shadsy~! I know I can be full of surprises sometimes...~" The black blur smirked and wagged his tail as he placed the dishes into the sink before gently pulling Sonic closer to him, and whispering softly into his ear. [i]"Full of surprises, hmm~? Well, so am I, Sonikku..~ Would you like me to show you some of them~?"[/i] Before Sonic could even react, or speak, he let out a small yelp as Shadow lifted him from the ground and held him in his arms, bridal style. The blue blur pouted and puffed out his cheeks as a dark blush was now plastered across them. "H-hey! I didn't even say my answer yet!" Shadow let out a small chuckle as he blew out the candles on the table before carrying Sonic into their bedroom and gently laying him onto the bed, before crawling over him. "There's no need for me to hear it, sweetheart... since I already know that you want to snuggle with me~" The blue blur continued to pout as he looked up at Shadow, feeling somewhat shy about the position he was currently in. [i]Damnit, I hate it when he's right...[/i] "Well, I do like getting cuddles from you..." Shadow smirked and nodded as he leaned in closer to Sonic and tenderly kissed his muzzle. "Exactly... and you also deserve a reward for making me dinner, my sweet~" Just seconds after placing gentle kisses upon the blue blur's muzzle, Shadow decided to swap said kisses for licks instead. hoping to earn a cute response from his blue-furred lover. As soon as Shadow's tongue touched Sonic's muzzle, he couldn't help but let out a small giggle and wriggle around from the ticklish sensation. "S-Shadsy, quit it~! You know I'm ticklish on my muzzle~!" Shadow chuckled as he got up from his position and rolled onto his side, so that he was now facing the blue blur. He then gently placed a hand onto the tan-coloured muzzle of his beloved before brushing his fingers against it, in a tender manner. "I know you are, sweetheart... but, your giggles are just so adorable that I can't resist doing it~" Sonic purred as he leaned in closer to Shadow and gently began to ruffle his chest fur with his ungloved hand, watching closely for any potential reactions from the black blur. "You know that I can't resist doing this to you either, Shads~" Shadow soon slowly began to close his eyes as he felt the familiar sensation of his fur being caressed by the blue blur. Unable to hold it back any longer, the black blur soon gave in and smiled contently as he let out a small purring sound and leaned back, allowing Sonic to continue the action. "Seems that you found one of my weaknesses, sweetheart..~" Sonic let out a small chuckle as he removed his hand before nuzzling his cheek against Shadow's soft chest fur. Shadow sighed contently as he wrapped an arm around Sonic and rested his head against the blue blur's. As he fiddled with Sonic's quills, the black blur couldn't help but think about what was on his mind, earlier that day. [i]This is so perfect, being here with my beloved Sonic. But, why does it still feel like we have something missing in our lives..? I just can't figure it out...[/i] "Shads? Are you okay...?" Shadow soon opened his eyes and let out a small gasp as he noticed that the blue blur was looking up at him, with a worried expression, as if he could sense that the black blur was feeling troubled by something. Feeling as though he had been caught in the act, Shadow sighed sadly as he slowly began to sit up on the bed and lowered his ears in a nervous manner. "Well, I... d-do you feel happy with the way things are right now... with us, I mean? I just keep getting this thought lately... like there's something missing from our lives... but, I have no idea what it is." The blue blur soon followed suit, sitting up beside Shadow, before smiling sweetly in his direction. "Weirdly enough, Shads... I've been feeling the same way too lately. But, I think I might know what it is that's missing." Shadow couldn't believe what he was hearing. Sonic, his beloved, was feeling the exact same way as him; almost as if they were both completely in synch with each other. The black blur leaned in closer to Sonic, desperately wanting to hear the answer that he'd been waiting for. "Y-you do...? What is it we're missing, Sonic? Please, tell me." Sonic let out a small chuckle as he shuffled closer to Shadow and looked at him with a sincere expression. "I know this is gonna sound really weird, Shads... especially since it's coming from me, but, I feel as though a baby may be the answer we're looking for. Egghead's been attacking a lot less frequently recently, so I feel as though now would be a good time to start looking for one. What do you think..?" [i]A child, of course! Why the hell didn't I think of that before?! Sonic had always talked about having one before, but we weren't ready back then. Now that the doctor isn't around as much, we can be sure that the child will be safe, and that we would be able to focus our full attention to it.[/i] Shadow nodded in agreement as he gently took Sonic's hands into his own and looked into his emerald-coloured eyes, with a shared expression of sincerity. "I agree, Sonic. I know that we spoke about this topic before, but I don't think we were ready back then. But, now I feel as though I'm ready to become a father, and focus all of my time on the child, as well as to you, my love." The blue blur smiled as he leaned in closer and nuzzled his nose against Shadow's, in a loving manner. "I feel the same way, Shads. But, since we can't have a baby the old-fashioned way, maybe we should start by looking around the orphanage?" The black blur smiled and nodded as he pulled Sonic closer to him and kissed his forehead before laying back down on the pillow below him. "We can start looking, first thing tomorrow." Sonic excitedly wagged his tail as he soon followed suit and nuzzled against Shadow for comfort. "Yay~! Good night, sweetie~" Shadow let out a small chuckle as he held onto Sonic and slowly began to drift off to sleep. "Good night, Sonic~" ------------------------------------- A small groan emitted from the blue blur as he shielded his eyes from the sunlight, coming in through the window. "Mnn... Shads? Are you awake..?" As Sonic slowly began to sit up, he looked to his side, but was confused to find that Shadow wasn't in the bed beside him. After letting out a small yawn, the blue blur stretched and got out of bed before heading down the stairs, to the living room. "Shadow...?" The black-furred hedgehog's ear twitched as he looked up from a book he was reading and smiled in Sonic's direction. "Good morning, my love." Still feeling confused, Sonic sluggishly walked over to Shadow's position and let out another yawn, before checking the clock on the wall above him. "What are you doing up so early, Shads..?" Shadow chuckled as he closed the book he was reading and held it up in front of Sonic, so he could see the cover. "Well, I thought that I would get a head-start on parenting. This book lists a lot of advice and tips, as well as possible adoption and fostering agencies that are nearby here..." Sonic smiled as he placed his hands on his hips and shook his head in disbelief. "Geez Shads, I know you're excited... but, getting up at 5am to do it? That seems a little bit too keen, dontcha think~?" The black blur smirked as he placed the book onto a table beside him before standing up and walking over to kitchen, to make both himself, and Sonic, a cup of coffee. "Well, unlike you, I'm an early bird... and I don't sleep in until lunchtime either~" The blue blur blushes and pouts as he crosses his arms and leans back against the wall behind him. "H-hey! Heroes like me need loads of sleep, otherwise they'd be too tired to save the day..." Shadow chuckled as he prepared the coffee and poured it into two mugs before handing one to the blue blur. "Whatever you say, love. But, since you're up, how about I make us some breakfast~?" Sonic's eyes immediately lit up and his tail began to wag as he noticed some eggs, flour, caster sugar, baking powder, milk and plain flour, resting on the counterspace, signalling to him that Shadow was planning on making pancakes for them. "Alright, you've convinced me to stay up~" ------------------- After finishing their breakfast, both hedgehogs continued to research into the local orphanages and agencies around, before, finally, deciding upon one of them to go and visit. By the time they had finished their research and washed themselves up, the sun had come up over the horizon, and the clock was now reading 10am. "I'm so excited, Shads~! We get to see loads of cute babies and adopt one for ourselves~!" Shadow chuckled as he noticed that Sonic was now fully awake and tapping his foot impatiently against the floor, as he waited for Shadow to put his shoes and jacket on. "I know exactly how you feel, sweetheart~ Now, let's get going..." The blue blur could hardly contain his excitement as he locked the door behind them before grabbing Shadow's hand and running out of the complex, and down Station Square's main street area. Many of the citizens were used to seeing Sonic running back and forth down the street, but they were still occasionally caught off-guard whenever his running caused a large gust of wind to hit them. After making sure that the citizens were okay, Sonic dragged Shadow a bit further until coming to a complete stop outside the orphanage. "Well, here we are, Shads... now, let's go and see some cute babies~!"