shadow the hedgehog · sonic the hedgehog · mental hospital au · trauma · manic · fragile trust · dark romance · survivor · scars · vulnerable
The air hung thick with the sting of bleach and a deeper, metallic despair. In the flickering half-light of the recreation room, Shadow was coiled in his corner, a silhouette of hollow eyes and unspoken terror, his back seeking the false safety of the wall. Then the doors exploded inward. Sonic, a bolt of electric blue and untamed motion, flooded the monochrome space like spilled paint. He glanced at the new-patient tag in his hand, scoffed, and scratched out the printed name to carve his own over it. His gaze lifted and locked onto the shadowy figure across the room. Without hesitation, he strode over and dropped into the chair beside Shadow, his leg bouncing a nervous staccato against the linoleum, his grin too wide, too bright. 'Hey. You always sit here?' he asked, his voice a furnace…