A WEEK LATER...

Shadow and I have been hanging throughout the week, and I thought it would have sucked. Majorly.
But I was wrong. In fact, I actually, I dunno...had fun? Weird, I know. Fun...with Shadow. Who knew?

First, we decided to hit the arcade. There wasn't much to do there, considering neither one of us had any money for tokens, so we left. Then, we headed down to the park, took a seat on one of the benches, and just...started talking. About everything.

Shadow spoke of how he and Maria Robotnik met, after he was created...and how they became good friends. He talked of Gerald Robotnik, his creator, and of how he was sent to Earth...

I told him of the first day I met Amy Rose, of when I met Cream and Cheese, of when I met Knuckles, and of course, Tails. I spoke of my parents, and spoke about most of my life.

I never talked this much about myself before, not to anyone. Not even to Tails.

Why was it so different with Shadow?

I've known the black and red hedgehog for a while, but that didn't mean we were friends. In fact, we kicked off to an extremely rough start. We weren't enemies...we were rivals.

My cheeks grew hot as I began to watch Shadow; he was staring up toward the darkening sky, not saying a word.
Then...his gaze met my own. The blush spread across my muzzle, and swiftly, my eyes flew shut.

"Did you hear me, blue hedgehog?" Shadow grumbled gruffly.

"...what?"

"I said, what's wrong? Your face is as red as a lobster."

I opened my eyes and gave a thumbs-up, "Couldn't be better."

I was feeling better; the pain of losing Amy hadn't vanished completely, but slowly, the wound was beginning to heal. And I owed it to Shadow.

"Then why are you blushing?" Shadow asked, eying me suspiciously.

"No reason." I mumbled, standing to my feet.

Shadow stood up, and grabbed my arm, spinning me to face him. His eyes studied my eyes, "You're lying, Faker. Now...tell me what's the matter."

"I dunno." I answered honestly, shrugging my shoulders, eyes looking at the ground. And it WAS true! During this week...Shadow's been, well...sympathetic, kind...and fun to be around. It...really wasn't like him.
But I admired his candidness, and determination...I think I always had.

Maybe...my hormones are spiraling out of control. That could be the reason that I'm growing attracted to my more aggressive...counterpart.
Or it could be the fact...that I wasn't as straight as I thought I was.

Confusion swept over me; was I bisexual? I had to be! I mean, I was still attracted to girls!
And now...I'm attracted to Shadow.
Why wasn't I attracted to him before?

Shadow leaned forward a little, "...Sonic?" His voice became a hushed whisper, and his eyelids began to droop.

I wasn't ready for this; I just wasn't.

I shook his hands off me, before I took off in the other direction.

I'd never been so confused in my entire life! This was something I couldn't explain. And it was driving me nuts.

Today was the Halloween Bash at Rouge's place. Nothing new; the bat's been throwing the bash every year, for four years in a row. And every year, we went.

This year, it was different. Amy wouldn't be attending it with us. Usually, she'd be dressed up as a princess, and make me go as a knight or something.

I really didn't want to go.

But Tails and Cream were counting on me, and I had to stay strong. Not only for my sake. Both of them knew how much this had taken it's toll on me.

"Sonic? Got your costume ready?"

Tails was standing in the center of the room, dresses as a co-pilot of a plane. A brown piloting scarf hung around his neck, and he wore a pair of brown boots, along with dark brown gloves with finger slits in them.

"Yeah, it's ready."

I picked something easy; maybe a bit too easy. I found an old cowboy hat in the basement, and a pair of black cowboy boots. It would have to do. It seemed boring...but simple.

"...are...you sure? You used to dress as...well, someone more...exciting." Tails noted, eying me in my costume. "You don't want to go as Superman, or-"

"-no. This is fine. Is everyone ready?"

"Yes." Cream walked down the stairs, dressed as a young witch, complete with a purple dress with cobweb patterns, a tall, black hat, and a broom. Cheese, of course, was dressed as a black cat.

"Awesome; wait...where's Knuckles?" Tails asked.

"...here." Knuckles stood beside the door. He was dressed as a vampire. His eyes were maroon, and he had fake fangs, and even wore a black cape. "Let's get this over with." He grumbled, opening the door.

"So glad you guys could make it~" As expected, Rouge answered her door.

Knuckles' body went rigid and a small blush rose to his muzzle. He entered the house first, then Tails, Cream and Cheese, and finally, me.

"Decided to go as a Vegas show girl, I see." I smirked, still watching Knuckles' facial expression. It was quite funny.

Rouge nodded, "Do you like it?" Her tight, black outfit clung to her curvaceous body, and the fishnet stockings showed off her legs. She wore black eyeshadow, and her signature pink lip stick.

And the echidna looked as if he were about to have a heart attack.

"Yes, we do...especially Knuckles." I waggled my eyebrows, then headed for the punch bowl before Knuckles could punch me. Chuckling to myself, I picked up a cup, and poured some of the punch into it.

"I wouldn't drink that, if I were you, blue hedgehog."

"Shadow." I turned to see the black and red hedgehog standing behind me, wearing a white tuxedo, and half of a white masquerade mask on one side of his face.

"Who are you supposed to be?" I couldn't help but ask.

Shadow grinned, "Never heard of the Phantom of The Opera?" He frowned a bit, "I need to talk to you about last night, Sonic."

Oh no, here it comes...I knew what he was going to say. That I shouldn't think of him in that way...we were just friends, or...maybe not even that? Rivals, still. He was simply comforting me in my loss...that's it.
There was no way we could be together...he wasn't even bisexual. Was he? He couldn't be!

"I think I know why you were blushing...why you seemed so skittish and nervous." Shadow replied, watching my every move. To my utter surprise, he stepped forward and gently took hold of my wrist, "Sonic..."

"S...Shadow?"

"Listen to me; Maria was a sister to me...nothing more, nothing less. I...never had any real experience with romantic affection of any sort. All these terms...gay, straight...bisexual...they confused the hell out of me, because for the longest time, I couldn't figure out which one I was.
But spending more and more time with you...I realized something. You are no longer my rival. You're someone I care about...more than a friend." His tanned muzzle was growing redder by the second.

"Sonic...I want you...to be my partner."