Amy Rose tapped her fingers on the red tablecloth, sighing deeply. There was a gentle ocean breeze blowing in the otherwise quiet environment, rustling the beautiful palm fronds over the deck of the restaurant. The pink hedgehog looked out over the wooden railing of the deck at the moonlit beach and the calm sea, then turned back to the table at which she was seated.
It was set accordingly, prepared for a special and romantic evening. There were candles burning in candlesticks in the center of the round table, and both of the porcelain plates were positioned on opposite ends, each one placed between two sets of silverware. It was a beautiful arrangement, one that Amy had always dreamed of enjoying since she was a little girl. There was only one thing missing, the key element of the hedgehog's fantasy: her boyfriend.
Ever since she was twelve years old, Amy had been chasing after a famous hero, who happened to be one of her closest friends: Sonic the Hedgehog. For years she had been madly in love with him, and had tried to get him to notice her as more than a friend. But in four years, Amy had her heart broken countless times by the elusive blue hedgehog; he simply refused to acknowledge the fact that they should be together, or so the pink hedgehog thought.
Shortly after turning sixteen, Amy had finally received acknowledgement from Sonic, but it wasn't what she had hoped for. The 19-year-old blue hedgehog had taken her aside one day, in order to have a serious discussion with her, something he had never done before.
"Amy..." Sonic had said slowly, organizing his thoughts. "...there's something I feel needs to be said. I know how you feel about me, and honestly, I'm really flattered, but..."
That was the word: "but". That one word felt to Amy like a small nail lodging itself in her heart. It only took that one word to make the pink hedgehog's spirits and hopes drop like a stone into the pit of her stomach. She had felt almost sick at the sound of it, and hadn't wanted to hear any more words her crush had to say after that, but nonetheless she had swallowed her pain and repeated:
"'But'...?"
"But..." Sonic continued, though he was sure that Amy already knew what he was going to say next, "... we can't be together. You're a very special girl, and you should be with someone who can give you all the attention you deserve. I'm not that 'someone'. I'm always preoccupied with being a hero, with saving the world. I don't have time for a relationship. So we can't be together, Amy. I'm sorry."
Amy had lowered her head at these words, at least grateful that Sonic had tried to soften the blow by telling her she was special and deserved someone better than him. She hadn't said anything, but instead simply accepted the sympathetic hug the blue hedgehog had given her. When he released her, the pink hedgehog had run away, tears streaming down her cheeks.
In time, Amy had managed to accept Sonic's words, and had finally begun trying to move on from him. She started dating other guys, in the hopes that one of them was the person her previous crush had referred to, the one she was supposed to be with. But none of the guys she went out with was right for her, because Amy couldn't shake the feeling that she was walking down the wrong path, and that she had somehow made the wrong decision.
Amy was not the only one affected by the switch of pace; Sonic's attitude had also changed when the pink hedgehog started dating. He became noticeably colder towards her, and always seemed to avoid looking her in the eyes. Every time Amy would bid her friends goodbye before leaving on a date, the blue hedgehog would do no more than nod his head curtly while staring blankly in another direction. It drove his former admirer crazy, and one day it had come to a point where she couldn't stand it any longer.
"Sonic, what is the matter with you?" Amy had shouted at him, confronting him at last. "Why don't you look me in the eyes anymore? Why don't you talk to me anymore?"
For the first time in months, Sonic had stared Amy straight in her green eyes, but still he would say nothing to her. He didn't need to; the pink hedgehog understood why he was upset.
"This is about me dating, isn't it?" she had said angrily. "You don't like seeing me go out with other guys."
Sonic had turned his face away from her at those words, remaining silent. It was only too clear that Amy had hit the mark.
"I don't get you, Sonic!" Amy had said incredulously, angrier than ever. "You're the one who said you didn't want to be with me! You're the one who said we couldn't be together, that I deserved someone better than you! So how can you possibly be jealous?!"
Sonic turned to face Amy again, stared at her coldly in silence for a minute, then finally opened his mouth and spoke in a low voice.
"You're right, Amy; I did say you deserved someone better than me. And I did say I couldn't be with you. But I never said I didn't want to."
Both hedgehogs, too enraged to exchange any more words, had then gone their separate ways. Amy had stayed frozen to the spot, staring blankly ahead as confusion began to mingle with her anger, while Sonic had simply stepped past the pink hedgehog to whom he had just made an open confession and walked away, unable to look her in the eyes anymore. It was the last time they would see each other for another month.
As fate would have it, Sonic and Amy would cross paths again. Sonic's arch enemy, Dr. Eggman, in another of his power-hungry schemes for world domination, had built an enormous contraption in outer space powered by the Chaos Emeralds and had kidnapped all of the blue hedgehog's closest friends, including Amy. Sonic had successfully managed to rescue his friends and destroy Eggman's space station, and the resulting explosion was enough to convince everyone that Eggman was dead.
Watching the explosion from their home planet below, Sonic and his friends had begun to celebrate. Completely forgetting about their fight, Amy had embraced her hero in a potentially bone-crushing hug, which he had gladly accepted. When she moved to kiss his cheek, however, Sonic had purposely moved his own head, and the pink hedgehog kissed his lips instead. From that day forward, Sonic and Amy were officially a couple.
In the present time, sitting alone at the restaurant table, Amy smiled fondly as she remembered that day. Today she knew that Sonic had changed his mind about being with her because he no longer felt he had an obligation as a hero; Eggman was gone for good. Blushing a little at the memory of that kiss, the pink hedgehog continued through the timeline of her relationship with her current boyfriend.
Amy remembered the first time Sonic had said he loved her. It had been an accident; the pink hedgehog was teaching her boyfriend how to make her best dessert in the kitchen of her house, and when she confessed to him what her secret ingredient was, he couldn't help but laugh.
"That's clever!" he had told her, grinning. "You're amazing! This is why I love you."
As soon as the words were out of Sonic's mouth, both hedgehogs froze. Amy turned sharply to her boyfriend in shock, while he stared straight ahead blankly and wide-eyed, suddenly realizing what he had just said. The pink hedgehog had then replied to the remark with a follow-up question:
"What did you just say?"
Sonic had turned slowly to face Amy, and tried to cover up his mistake.
"I said 'you're amazing'", was his answer. But a smile had already begun to creep along Amy's lips.
"No, after that."
"Then you asked me what I said, and I repeated it."
"No, no", Amy had said, laughing. "Before that."
"Amy..." Sonic said, his cheeks turning red. The two hedgehogs had continued their discussion for another minute, until Sonic finally admitted to his girlfriend that he wasn't ready to repeat the words on purpose just yet. Amy had given him a meaningful look, then replied by saying that, if this was the case, he too would have to wait to hear her say them back. So they both waited.
Some time later, Sonic finally did say the words on purpose. The couple was sitting on the beach at the time, looking out over the ocean towards the setting sun. Taking advantage of the romantic setting and his girlfriend's distraction by the beautiful scene before them, the blue hedgehog had leaned in close to her ear and whispered:
"I love you, Amy."
It was probably the single happiest moment of Amy's life. She had finally gotten exactly what she had always wanted since she was twelve years old. Grinning broadly at the sound of her name succeeding those magical words, the pink hedgehog turned to her right to face her boyfriend, and almost immediately reciprocated.
"I love you too, Sonic."
Leaning back in her chair in the present date, Amy blushed even more profusely as she recalled the kiss that had followed the confessions. It had been the most romantic moment she could ever remember living. She had never been so happy in her entire life, mostly because it was an occurrence that she had been sure would never really happen.
But as she continued once more through the next couple of years of the timeline in her mind, the pink hedgehog sighed deeply, her smile fading. She was thinking now about the past few months, which unfortunately had not been the easiest on the hedgehogs' relationship. They had included a few arguments with one another, frustration on Amy's part, and a renewed attitude of indifference on Sonic's. He didn't seem to want to spend as much time with his girlfriend anymore, and would often take off after having made plans on his own or with his friends. The pink hedgehog was beginning to feel awfully lonely.
Amy gazed out over the beach sadly, wondering once again where her boyfriend could be now. It was common knowledge that Sonic was incredibly fast, and that his favorite mode of transportation was running. Therefore, if he wasn't here yet, it most likely meant that he hadn't even starting making his way over. This fact made Amy extremely nervous; she thought maybe that Sonic was going to give her bad news of some kind, and he still hadn't gotten up the courage to arrive at the restaurant and face her with it.
"Well", she thought, her eyes beginning to tear up, "if he hasn't arrived yet, then he's probably not coming at all."
And with that thought, Amy stood up slowly and leaned forward towards the candles in the center of the table, inhaling a deep breath in order to blow them out.
But the next breath that left her lips would not be the gust of wind that would extinguish the flames. At that exact moment, a great rush passed over the sandy shore by the restaurant, catching the pink hedgehog off guard. She recoiled slightly as a surprisingly strong gust of wind hit her, ruffling her ruby-red evening gown and blowing out the candles on the table.
Amy dusted sand off her dress as the wind subsided, muttering under her breath. This evening was not going at all the way she had planned. Straightening the rose in her quills behind her ear, the pink hedgehog looked towards the beach and noticed a small sand cloud floating over the portion of the shore where the rushing motion had passed only seconds before. Whatever it was that had caused the disruption, it had vanished as quickly as it had come.
Her hopes picking up as she realized something incredibly agile had just passed by, Amy squinted down at the beach expectantly. Her view was slightly blocked by a tall palm tree next to the deck, so the hedgehog stepped around the table to gaze upon the shore from its other side. She leaned against the railing as she watched the sand cloud settle, hoping that, once it was gone, she would be looking at Sonic standing on the beach below.
In a matter of seconds, the sand cloud vanished completely. The full moon above shone brightly upon the sandy shore, illuminating everything that was left in the cloud's wake. The pink hedgehog suddenly gasped as the sight met her eyes, subconsciously covering her mouth with her hand. It wasn't Sonic she was seeing; instead, it was something so incredible, she had never dreamed she would ever see such a sight in her life.
Suddenly, somebody stepped onto the restaurant deck from the small flight of steps leading to the beach. It was a blue hedgehog with eyes of emerald green, which were staring straight at the pink hedgehog standing a short distance away from him. A smile formed on the hedgehog's lips as he leaned against the railing of the deck, watching his girlfriend turn slowly to face him.
Amy stared to her right at Sonic, tears in her eyes. She saw he was wearing the suit she had once mentioned made him look charming, as well as the red running shoes he almost never removed from his feet. These shoes, the pink hedgehog noticed, were spotted with sand. Closed in Sonic's right hand was a small black box.
It suddenly became clear to Amy why her boyfriend had been so elusive for the past few months. As Sonic began to walk slowly towards her, she recalled all their arguments and all the frustration he had put her through. The pink hedgehog found herself forgiving her boyfriend for everything, as well as feeling embarrassed for having thought he would bring her bad news. It had all been explained by the single romantic gesture he had fulfilled for her tonight.
Written across the beach, in large letters treaded into the sand by Sonic's shoes, was the following phrase:
"AMY ROSE, WILL YOU MARRY ME?"
When Sonic finally reached Amy, he used his free hand to gently take hers, smiling brightly at her. The blue hedgehog then lowered himself onto one knee, opening the black box in his hand as he did so. Inside was a golden ring with a beautifully cut diamond, gleaming in the moonlight. Sonic winked at his girlfriend and spoke in a soft voice.
"So... how about it, Rosy? Will you spend the rest of your life with me?"
Amy stared down at her boyfriend in shock, one hand in Sonic's and the other still over her mouth, then glanced briefly back at the writing on the beach below. Because the tide was low and the air was warm and humid, there was plenty of space on the shore to easily make the letters large and deep. The hedgehog found herself wondering just how long it had taken her boyfriend to practice writing those words perfectly, though she presumed it had taken some months. The beautiful phrase sparkled in the sand as the light of the full moon reflected off the beach and the ocean. It was a sight Amy would never forget for as long as she lived.
Turning back to face her boyfriend, the pink hedgehog moved her hand from over her mouth to cover her eyes instead. Tears were now streaming from them rapidly, and for a minute she did nothing more than sob quietly while Sonic waited patiently, something he rarely ever did. When she finally found her voice, Amy slid her hand to her cheek, slowly smiled, and nodded.
"Yes", she whispered happily. "Yes, of course I will, Sonic!"
The blue hedgehog grinned, then briefly released his girlfriend's hand in order to take the ring from its box and slip it onto her finger. Another sob of excess emotion escaped from Amy's lips as she gazed at the perfectly cut diamond on her ring finger. Sonic stood up without taking his eyes off the pink hedgehog, and laughed as he wiped the tears off her cheek.
Amy laughed softly as she looked from the engagement ring on her finger to Sonic. The blue hedgehog gazed back into her green eyes for a moment, then leaned in and kissed his fiancé on the lips. The pink hedgehog blushed as she kissed her boyfriend back, feeling as though she would melt in his arms.
When the kiss was over, Amy threw her arms around Sonic, and the two silently embraced each other for a minute. Both hedgehogs suddenly felt light-headed and ecstatic at the idea of the future they would have together. The real adventure of their lives had only just begun.