Tails swallowed nervously. Why would Sonic be calling him?

"Oh, hey Sonic!" the fox tried to sound cheerful. "What's up?"

"Just thought I call and check up on you! You didn't speak very much at the store today." Sonic replied. "Just wondering if everything is going okay?"

"Everything is going great, thanks for asking." Tails said. "The rogues aren't really as bad as you think. They are actually pretty good guys."

"Even though you're stuck doing their chores and…and…did those guys give you tattoos?!" the hedgehog's voice rose with both surprise and confusion.

"Chill out, they aren't real. They are just temporary. Jet said they will come off." Tails half-chuckled.

"Are you sure? I mean, Jet can be a little air-headed. He didn't make them permanent, did he?"

"I doubt it. But if they are real, I guess he's in big trouble, huh?" Tails laughed.

Sonic laughed as well. "What do you think?"

Tails continued laughing. "But overall, things are going pretty smooth around here."

"Well, that's good, I guess…Wave is doing pretty good too."

There was a short silence on the phone, both of them lost in words. Until Sonic finally sighed.

"Look, Tails. I know you're mad at me because of this whole situation. Please don't be. It isn't your fault." he said.

"How come it was so sudden?" Tails asked. "I'll admit it, I was beginning to think that you wanted Wave on the team because she was a better mechanic. The least you could've done was tell me what you were planning."

"I'm sorry, but I did this because I thought maybe it would help things between Jet and Wave. They've been at each other's throats for awhile now." the blue blur stated.

Tail's lifted an eyebrow. "Really? But…why?" he asked.

"I just told you why."

"No, why are we helping them?"

"We may be rivals, Tails. But that's why we aren't enemies. Enemies aren't friends; Enemies don't help one another out. But rivals can." Sonic explained simply.

The two-tailed fox smiled. "You're right. I guess this is supposed to give them both a break from one another?" he asked.

"Yep! Great plan, huh?"

"A plan you should have told me about." Tails chuckled.

"Again, sorry about that." Sonic said. There was a short silence between the two. Tails didn't really have anything else to talk about. But he did feel a lot better knowing that Sonic didn't start this bet just because he thinks of Tails as a lousy mechanic. This was all done out of friendship.

"Can I ask you one thing though?" Sonic's question came out of nowhere.

"What?"

"Are you…still the same?"

Tails narrowed his eyes in confusion. What kind of question was that?

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, are you still the same old Tails, or are you one of them?"

"Why are you asking?" Tails asked.

"I seen the news the other night. They said a local robbery was done by a hawk, an albatross, and a 'muddy' fox. That little gang there wasn't you guys, was it?"

Tails swallowed nervously. "…Maybe…" he said.

"Seriously? Tails, you were part of a robbery?!" Sonic asked in disbelief.

"No, no! Listen to me!" Tails said. "It wasn't my idea! I was trying to back out of it but Jet didn't give me a choice! I had to go with them by order!"

The young fox could hear his friend sigh. "Well…at least you tried to stay out of it…" he muttered. "He isn't making you steal anything else, is he?"

"No…I've been working on the gear since then." Tails said.

"So you're not turning into a little thief, right? You're not turning against Knuckles and I, right?"

"No."

"You better be telling the truth, little buddy." Sonic said.

Suddenly, Jet came stomping around the corner towards Tails. He didn't look happy. Not a surprise… Tails thought.

"Are you still talking to Sonic?" he demanded.

"Yeah, why?" Tails replied back.

"Are you talking about our gear?" Jet snapped. "Are you giving them info about our gear?"

"What?! No!" Tails shouted back.

"Tails, are you still there? What's wrong?" Sonic's voice sounded from the cell phone.

"I'm still here Sonic." Tails said.

"No you're not." Jet ripped the phone from Tails' hand. But Tails snatched it back.

"Sonic, I have to go!" Tails said while trying to block Jet from grabbing the phone again. But before he could hear the hedgehog's response, the leader managed to get his phone back and hang up.

Tails narrowed his eyes. "What was that for?!"

"How dare you give them hints on how you're making our gear! For all we know, he could be telling Wave what you're doing." the hawk yelled.

"Why would I do that? Do I look like a fool? I was just talking to him, and there was nothing said about anything that had to do with the race on Saturday."

"But I heard you saying that you were working on the gear and-"

"Yeah, just working on them! I said nothing about what they look like and/or how fast they go! No details were given, Jet!"

There was a silence as the hawk stood and glared at the young mechanic. It seemed like he was trying to look for any clues that Tails was giving away information to the other team. Finally, without a word, he pushed past him and started walking towards his office again.

Tails looked down to the ground, disappointed. It wasn't because Jet didn't believe him, but it was because Jet probably won't let him speak with Sonic until the race. The fox wished he could call Sonic back and assure him that he wasn't a thief like Jet and Storm. Even though the blue blur said he believed him, he didn't sound like he did. The last thing that the young fox wanted was for his best friend to think that he was a thief.

Because he wasn't.

And he will never be.

A/N: Sorry for a short chapter. The next ones will be longer! So, Tails says he will never be a thief. Will Sonic really believe that? Thanks for reading! Next chapter will be up soon! We're getting closer to the race! Review please!