It really wasn't my scene: the dark, smoke-filled atmosphere; the heavy techno beat; the bodies, shoulder to shoulder; and the voices, the eye-bulging, brain-numbing voices that dissolved into incoherent shouting. The colorful, neon bar spanned the whole side of the place. It was littered with glasses and some of the most beautiful mobians that I'd ever seen in real life. Yes, I was definitely way outside of my comfort zone.
I took a deep breath.
You can do this. I didn't quite believe it so I thought it again. Amy. You can do this.
So then how did I end up seventeen years old, and the only person I knew who has never had sex? Since Degrassi and Gossip Girl, it became unheard of for a girl to graduate High School with her V-Card still in hand. And now I was standing in the mass of a rave, regretting that I'd gathered the courage to admit it to my friend Rouge.
Losing my virginity in a one night stand was the last thing on my list. Of the five items, it was the hardest one for me. It wasn't a bucket list or anything like that—I wasn't thinking about death. It was a things-to-do-before-college list my best friend, Rouge, made for me.
Now, I know what you're thinking. This is going to be one of those stories about society spurring a girl down a path of conformity. It's not. My best friend is kind and understanding. The list was her way of preparing me for the wilds of college. Rouge was under the impression that I was entirely unprepared for the life of a coed.
"You're thinking too much," Rouge said.
"Better than not thinking enough."
"Not tonight it's not," she said.
I could do this. It was just a problem that needed to be solved, an item that needed to be checked off my to-do list.
It was that simple.
Simple.
Keep it simple.
We pushed our way through the crowd as my toes got stomped, my hair got pulled, and I couldn't help but think that I could have been at home, eating some Nutella and crying over chick flicks. We somehow managed to reach the bar where I made a beeline straight to the bar, wiggled myself onto a stool, and waved down the bartender.
"What can I get for you, ladies?" A familiar voice chirped, leaning on his elbows in front of us.
Rouge butted in, "We need two shots of tequila to start."
"Make it four," I croaked.
He whistled, and his eyes met mine. "You know how much trouble I can get in for this?"
Rouge and I looked at each other. She shrugged. "You won't, we got fake ID's."
He tensed. "Okay, I'll back down, but don't do anything stupid."
"I should be telling you that."
"You look great tonight."
Talk about a topic change. "Flattery isn't going to get you anywhere."
"That's the outfit you were wearing at Sally's get together, isn't it?"
He was right. "You remembered what outfit I was wearing?"
I eyed him suspiciously, looking him over, and taking in his appearance. My girly parts sat up and paid attention. I couldn't find words to describe how fine a man he was. He was almost beautiful. He looked completely different from the last time I'd seen him. He'd always been a little on the nerdy side—people had been surprised when he decided to go to Station Square University three years ago.
"How could I forget?" He laughed. "You wore the tiniest outfit that day to get my sexual attention. Unless that was for my brother."
Before I could respond, the snapping from Rouge's fingers stopped me from speaking. "We're waiting, bartender. Go do your job."
"I'll be back." And just like that he disappeared into the other side of the bar. I watched him pour the ruby-red tequila into a glass measuring out the liquor precisely, it's like he liked to pretend he was putting his chemistry major to good use when he made drinks. I then pulled out a twenty and moved it across the bar to him for when he returned.
It's not like Sonic wasn't good looking. Not at all. There were few girls that could resist the charming smile that belonged to my combat blue, green-eyed friend. I was one of them. My ability to joke about sex with Sonic was a new thing. We kind of broke the ice on it when we drunkenly kissed one night at a party my sophomore year of High School. It didn't take long to realize neither of us wanted that to happen again. We did, however, like to joke about the possibility. I don't know why, we just did.
"Look, Pinkie, that one."
I followed Rouge's gaze to the dark hedgehog standing near the bar. He was tall, and his quills were perfectly arranged. Even in his suit and tie, you could tell his body was built like a runner's with long, lean muscles. When his face turned in our direction, I saw that his eyes were crimson red in a face that was classically handsome.
"What do you think?"
I looked up at Rouge and realized that she had been studying me while I studied him.
I thought on it for a moment before answering. "I honestly don't know. He seems kind of grim for my liking."
She took a deep breath. "I think you're right, you're too picky to even try. Okay, new search."
I laughed. "Fine, I'll prove to you he's not my type.
I straightened to my full height and mustered all the courage I had to keep myself from running away from this stranger as I stood up.
"I'm ready." Rouge gave me a sympathetic smile.
"Go get him, girl!"
Her words made me feel like I was on a roller coaster, like the world had just dropped and all my organs were playing catch up. I just needed more time to adjust. That's it.
"Where's she going? I just got her drink done." I could barely hear out of earshot as I walked over to my target.
I stood awkwardly standing a few feet away from him, unable to think of anything good to say to start a conversation. He wasn't even looking at me. Feeling bold, I moved beside him and said the first thing I could think of.
"If that's supposed to be a way to pick up girls, sitting quietly and seeming alluringly mysterious? Because if it is, it's working." That's the best you could think of stupid? Could have just said a simple greeting like normal people do.
He looked up from his drink, and suddenly I found it hard to swallow. He was easily the most attractive guy I'd seen tonight— It was making me gawk. Why did I stop? Why did I always have to make an idiot of myself?
"Excuse me?"
My mind was still processing his perfect face and alluring eyes, so it took me a second to say, "The tux. No one wears a suit and tie to a rave unless it's a ploy to pick up girls."
He didn't say anything for a long beat, but then his mouth split in an unreadable expression revealing, what do you know, perfect teeth!
"It's not a ploy, but if it were, it seems to me that I'm having great luck right here."
He put his drink down, but not before marking his place on a seat.
"You're not trying to pick up a girl?"
"I wasn't."
My analytical brain did not miss his use of the past tense. As in… he hadn't been trying to seduce anyone before, but perhaps he was now.
I took another look at him. He was smirking now—white teeth, red strikes that made him look downright delectable. Yep, I was definitely seducible. And that thought alone was enough to send me into shock as I turned slightly away.
He grabbed my arm and turned my body to face him. His motion made every single internal alarm I had within me go off in a frenzy.
"Tell me your name," he commanded.
I was about to refuse but was horrified to find myself blurting out my name in response.
"Amy Rose."
As soon as I revealed my name, his eyes lit up with a kind of sinister approval. Then he reached for my face and traced his thumb over my jaw line.
"Hello, Amy Rose. What's a pretty little thing like you doing talking to a guy like me?"
Breathe. I needed to breathe.
Don't lose it, girl."
"You seemed like you could use the company," I whisper, turning back around. But sometimes I just don't know. Sometimes all my chest feels knotted and I think about what I'm about to do, and if I actually will do this.
"Is that so?" Shadow says.
I stare out in silence.
Rouge has been excited about this all month. Wondering if this, if I, if a girl, if not a virgin. I'd say yes to anything that made her voice more excited.
"Tu as de très beaux yeux." You have beautiful eyes.
A chill scattered over my body. He was French with the most alluring deep voice. What was he doing to me without even touching?
Wanting to dispel the darkness in his eyes, I murmured, "Thank you. I know you're passionate and generous."
He clenched his teeth as a flash of ferocity etched his features. "Do not assume things, Rose."
My shoulders hunched. I knew he seemed grim. When he'd gone to whisk me away only moments ago, I'd been hit by Cupid's arrow. Now his character had totally changed and he seemed to be building walls around himself which somehow made me feel more mesmerized by him. He was indeed mysterious and I wanted to figure him out.
"Then let me unravel you."
Shadow swallowed his temper, softening his voice. "You haven't asked for my name." His voice may be whisper-soft, but his body didn't relax.
I smiled, ducking my eyes to trace the sweeping lines of his chest. "Tell me your name."
"I'll tell you my name if you join me, Rosé."
A soft laugh escaped me. "Sure. You have the strangest way of interacting."
The sickly tension existing in the room and the fearful anxiety still thrumming in my blood dissipated. He not only put up with my awkwardness, but he knew just how to free me from the residue of such terror.
"I am Shadow the Hedgehog." He introduced when I took a seat next to him. His voice rasped, bringing comfort and reprimand.
"It's nice to meet you, Shadow."
He leaned forward on his elbows, and I noticed his broad shoulders, and the way his muscles moved beneath the fabric of his shirt. Then our eyes connected, and the bar around us went from dim to dark, while I was ensnared by those crimson ones.
"I'm going to buy you a drink." It wasn't meant to be a question. In fact, when he looked at me, there was nothing questioning in him at all, only confidence. "Then we can chat some more about generosity and… passion."
A shudder ran through me and it was enough to break the spell I seemed to be under and pry my eyes from his. I lowered my cup slowly, a slight tremble in my hand. Shadow didn't say a word, just continued to stare. Although I had lowered my eyes, I could still feel his on me, in me.
"Rosé?" Shadow prompted.
His voice sent shivers through me.
I looked up at him, then at the waiter, who happened to be Bartender Boy from earlier. I opened my mouth to ask for another tequila, but Sonic stopped me with a hand on my shoulder. "I remember—a tequila, right?"
"Yeah, thanks, Sonic."
He smiled in response, and stayed there staring at me for a few seconds before he turned to head back to the bar. I knew I had to look at Shadow again, but I was terrified I'd melt into a puddle of arousal and awkwardness if I met his gorgeous eyes again.
He said, "You know, you hide so much from me, but you forget I can smell fear."
I met his eyes then, and they were narrowed, studying me.
I swallowed my nerves and studied him back.
"If I smell of fear, it's because I feel intimidated your intensity and didn't know how to talk to you. Communication is key after all."
"Communication?" Shadow snarled.
"It could have solved a lot of problems."
"In that case, I'll communicate." He picked up his chair and placed it mere inches from mine. He slinked down beside me and said, "I'd rather you stay here with me."
My pulse thudded. The memories I never allowed to surface bombarded me: the reason I had come to speak with him.
He reached out a hand and pushed my hair over my shoulder. His hand skimmed across my neck, pausing at my pulse point, which must have been going crazy.
Shadow's eyes dropped to my mouth; I couldn't breathe. "What do you feel, Rose?" Slowly, his large hands landed on bare knees. His hands trailed higher, branding me beneath the heavy cotton. "Tell me. What do you feel?" His voice turned gruff and gravelly while his chest rose and fell.
I couldn't sit upright. My bones melted—my entire body became hypnotized by his spell. I let myself drift, trying so hard to stay in the moment, chasing the slow burn of lust in my blood. "Your fingers. I feel your heat. I feel your breath on my face. I feel your lips achingly close to mine."
Shadow's eyes darkened, and my breath hitched as his gaze dropped to my lips.
Shadow didn't hesitate.
His lips crashed against mine, pinning the back of my head against his hands. I moaned as his tongue speared into my mouth with domination. He tasted of darkness and sin, making me want to follow him to the ends of the earth.
Tilting his head, he licked my tongue, encouraging me to kiss him back. Willingly, I kissed harder, shivering in his hold as he groaned. Intensity built between us, wrapping us in a tight web of heat and want. Needing more—I wanted him.
His face appeared before mine, and I tried to keep my expression neutral. His hand slid out of my quills, and I shivered, my skin mourning the loss. I glanced over Shadow's shoulder in time to see Rouge's grin widen, and the crude hand gesture that followed when Shadow stood.
"What about our drinks?"
His gaze followed to where Sonic stood making our drinks. He met eyes with me and took my hand.
I'd gone from unwanted to wanted. The shift in my world was so earth-shattering, I didn't know how I stood or followed Shadow down the steps after we'd exited the place. I existed in a bubble of awe as Shadow guided me into a black sports car, and we pulled out of the rave. We hadn't spoken, it gave me a moment to recite the plan.
I, Amy Rose, was about to lose my virginity on a one night stand.
To anyone reading this, I hope you enjoyed it. :)