Chapter 25: Beloved

Amy didn't quite know why, but she was nervous about the date. No, nervous didn't quite fit in the situation, for it was much too calm of a term. Rather than nervous, she felt scared for some reason. She was utterly terrified of the thought—the mere image—of her messing up the date and through it somehow, the friendship that Shadow and she had built over their journey. What if she screwed up and Shadow didn't want anything to do with her? What if she did something that would make him hate her? What if, what if, what if—

Growling, Amy shook her head. How ridiculous! How absolutely insane! How totally and incredibly stupid of her! Even after everything the two of them had been through, everything they had both learned, Amy still didn't have enough faith in Shadow! She still somehow managed to believe that he found her annoying, even after every little event that had proved that he didn't! What on Mobius was wrong with her? What on Mobius was her—?

"Amy, there is no way I can do your make-up if you keep making faces at yourself like that."

The girl froze in her place at the sound of Maria's voice, and within an instant, she was dragged back to reality (or rather, chucked back into it). She took a moment to glance up carefully, shrugging apologetically as her eyes met Maria. "Sorry. Lost in the moment."

Maria simply huffed, though she did so jokingly, as she was in a great mood. "I don't care if you're lost in the rain forest Amy; if you want to look nice, you're going to have to keep a straight face, alright?"

Amy quickly nodded, "Sorry." And with that, she stayed still.

As Maria carefully applied a light layer of eye shadow to Amy's eyelids, she smiled softly. "It's okay. I know you're nervous, and you tend to act… oddly when you're nervous."

"Only slightly, and I'm not as nervous as you think I am."

Chuckling to herself, Maria shook her head. "I don't believe you one bit, Amy. I know just about as well as Shadow does when it comes to how you act when you're nervous, and let me tell you, I think you'd be calmer right now if you were jumping out of an airplane without a parachute into a valley of burning thorns."

Silence taking over for just a second, Amy nodded once again and hummed. "You're just about spot on."

"Just about?"

Slumping her shoulders in defeat, Amy sighed. "Okay, so you are spot on, big deal."

Chuckling, Maria grabbed for the small pack of eye-shadow once again, narrowing her eyes as she leaned in close to apply a bit more to Amy's eyelid. "I have a feeling that that added big deal was merely put in for dramatic effect."

"Even so, Maria, I'm as nervous as heck and I feel like throwing up. So yes, you were right, I'm a nervous wreck, and I just know that I'm going to mess this up."

Rolling her eyes, the yellow hedgehog shook her head. "If you say that one more time, I'm going to tie you this chair and ruin your make-up, which would be such a shame since I just finished."

"Wait, it's done? Let me see, let me see!" Amy exclaimed, her gaze whipping around furiously in an attempt to find any mirror in the room. "Ugh, why don't you have any mirrors in here? Where is the—oh, right." She smiled sheepishly when she remembered about the large vanity mirror that had been behind her the entire time, but the half-nervous grin quickly melted away when she saw herself in the mirror. Within half a second, she was unable to find any words to describe it.

The yellow hedgehog however, had an easier time responding to the silence. A smug smile on her lips and an aura of achievement and pride surrounding her, Maria folded her arms and laughed as Amy stared at her reflection. "Well?"

It took Amy a few long moments to find the right words. "It's… it's perfect!" She exclaimed, an uncontrollable smile finding its way onto her face. "It's not too much, it's not too little; just the right amount of accents here and there!" Spinning in her spot, she grinned at Maria. "How did you do it?"

Placing her hands on her hips, Maria smiled and flipped her hair off to the side. "Years of practice, my friend."

"Right! I forgot how old you—I did not mean it like that, I swear." Amy suddenly swallowed, throwing her hands up as if she expected Maria to attack her on the spot.

Her left eye twitching in a half-joking, half-I'm-going-to-beat-you-senseless sort of way, Maria simply smiled her sugar coated grin once again. "Since it's such a special day for you, I'm going to let you go for that one, Amy. Just remember that if you say it again, I'm seriously going to beat the living tar out of you, and it's not going to be pretty."

Amy merely stared wide-eyed at her friend, shivering jokingly once her mini speech was over. "You're really scary when you want to be."

Maria let out a simple "ha" and nodded. "That's the beauty of forever being fourteen; well, physically anyway. I'm frozen in the scariest state known to Man and Mobian; the teenage girl." Amy laughed at that statement, and Maria's smile widened into a fully fledged grin as a result.

"Well," Amy breathed, her spirit light and happy, "If I'm the scariest thing alive, then I know one thing for sure."

"And that is?"

A soft smile on her lips, Amy looked at Maria hopefully. "I can definitely handle a date with the Ultimate Life Form."

He wasn't wearing any fancy clothes, hadn't put on any pricey cologne, hadn't even taken a moment to examine himself in the mirror to make sure he was socially acceptable for the day; and yet he felt as if he had never looked—or felt—better. It was the very way he was holding himself that made his confidence bloom, the quiet joy booming throughout his entire being, and the utter and uncontainable excitement (goodness, he felt like a child) that made his outer appearance so appealing. Even those that weren't sharing his mood agreed with him in that aspect; the happier he was, which was still odd, knowing Shadow, the much better he looked, and the more enjoyable it was to be around him.

Of course, this rule was generally true to most living things, but for Shadow, it rung even louder in truth. As someone who had once been known as the "grumpiest thing alive," even the slightest smirk of sarcasm or domination was something monumental, since it acted as proof that he could at least grin once in awhile. In his current state of mind, though, it was almost rare for him not to at least smile once during the day.

It was funny, in a way, almost ironic. If someone two years ago would have seen him as he was presently, they would have questioned him on the spot, "Who are you and what have you done with Shadow the Hedgehog?" The very thought made him smirk and nearly chuckle to himself. How amusing, the situation really was. It nearly—

"What are you smiling at?"

Shadow blinked once at the sound of his mother's voice, which had effectively cut through his brain-storming and derailed his train of thought. His eyes instantly shot back at her to where she was sitting, smiling in her chair with her arms neatly folded over her chest. Her head was tilted slightly, an aura of fake curiosity hanging over her as she stared at him.

Taking a moment to rearrange and gather his thoughts, Shadow sighed and took in a deep breath. "Just about, um, smiling, I believe."

She raised her eyebrows, readjusting her position in the chair at the same time as she smirked. "Smiling?" Nearly laughing, she nodded and unfolded her arms. "I can see why. Amy is a very pretty girl—you've found quite the keeper, haven't you?"

His cheeks nearly turning red, Shadow nodded, a quiet smile resting on his lips. "Well—"

"What's this about me being pretty, Shadow the Hedgehog?"At the very sound of her voice Shadow jumped (though it was barely noticeable) and turned to her, his heart skipping a beat when his eyes found hers. "Because if you were saying that, you'd be spot on."

The young hedgehog before him was wearing a casual outfit of pink and yellow (which was identical to her original ensemble that she had had before Eggman's attack had ruined it) and a bright smile that easily matched it in terms of splendor. She was also sporting a bit more makeup that usual, though it definitely wasn't over-kill in her case. It was just enough to highlight her features, make her eyes pop, and leave her face with a slight glow that caught everyone's attention.

And for Shadow's case, it—somehow, miraculously—left him without words. Well, intelligent words, anyway. "You lurf neh."

Amy simply raised her eyebrows, a surprised expression over-coming her face. What on Mobius…? As soon as Shadow had realized what he had done, his eyes grew wide and he quickly put his hand over his face in shame. Oh, if he was going to talk like this the entire time, it was going to be a veeeeeerrrry long day, much less, a long date.

Luckily for him, though, he quickly rediscovered that Amy was very forgiving when it came to verbal screw-ups. She started laughing soon after he had finished talking, and the moment he heard her fist giggle, Shadow felt his spirits lighten. He carefully looked back up, smiling softly as he listened to her light, happy, and carefree laugh.

"I don't get you Shadow, I really don't." Amy chuckled, holding her sides as she did her best to stand up straight. "Can really tie his tongue in a knot sometimes; needs others to take his shovel from him."

Raising an eyebrow, Shadow folded his arms and smirked, the embarrassment having already melted away. "Take my shovel?"

"It means that you're digging yourself a grave of shame, my friend." Maria explained as she rounded the corner and entered the room, carrying a large basket on one arm, and cell phone in the other hand. "So in Layman's terms… you failed."

"Epically!" Amy added, quickly receiving one of those "looks" from Shadow as a result, which made her laugh nervously in turn. "What? I was just jumping the bandwagon! Or… is it on the bandwagon. I don't know. I really just don't know."

"That's okay; I won't judge you for it. Well, I won't judge you too harshly. Yet."

"Shadow, do you even have a heart?"

Shadow merely shrugged. "I don't know. I think I sold it on the black market forty-six years ago to a man from the desert."

Amy gasped dramatically, "What? Then how—"

"Hey! Hey, hey, hey! Guess what guys?" Both Amy and Shadow paused at the sound of Maria's voice, turning to see her holding the basket out towards both of them enthusiastically. "You guys should get going! You kind of have a date planned today, remember?"

Staring blankly for a moment at the yellow hedgehog, the two spoke in unison. "Right. Sorry." They both exchanged several looks immediately after they had finished before Shadow took the basket from her grasp and spoke again. "We'll leave. Alright?"

"Alright! I hope you two have fun!" Maria exclaimed as she walked around them, putting a hand on both of their backs. "And please, feel free to call if you need anything! Don't be out too late, don't talk to strangers, and whatever you do, don't take the cake. It is a lie."

"I'm sorry, what?" Shadow asked, raising an eyebrow as he quickly stored the basket away with a chaos incantation.

"No time to explain, you two need to go! So with that being said," And with that, Maria started pushing them towards the front door. "Enjoy yourselves!"

Laughing as Maria pushed them forward, Amy nodded. "We will! And don't worry about Shadow; I'll take good care of him!"

Shadow merely rolled his eyes as he opened the door for her, and within a few moments the two hedgehogs were gone. The moment they closed the door behind them, Maria turned to Rita, a smile on her face. "I hope they get married one day."

Rita smirked. "Amy's fourteen, Maria."

"I don't really care. I think they'll end up together one day, and when they do, I hope they have cute children. I would love to have cute nieces and nephews."

Rolling her eyes like Shadow had, Rita shook her head and reached for the book on the table next to her. "Whatever you say."

"Plus," Maria added as Rita opened her book, "I want plan their wedding."

Rita simply smiled and shook her head again.

As soon as the two had started their walk to the spot Shadow had picked out, a very calm and recognizable aura had settled upon them. No longer did nervousness plague them like a swarm of bloody-thirsty, going-to-enact-revenge-on-you-because-you-looked-at-me-funny mosquitoes, or strike them as a very angry girlfriend would after having her new shoes dissed. No, the two felt very at home and very—surprisingly—comfortable.

When Shadow thought about it, though, it made a lot of sense. This was Amy he was going on a date with for crying out loud; one of the friendliest and happiest people he had ever met. She wasn't one to make things awkward—even involuntarily—and she especially wasn't one to be rude to others. There was absolutely no way on Mobius that she'd ever hurt him, because it simply wasn't in Amy's nature. And besides; what could she have said that would have hurt him?

Amy had also fallen back on her happier state of mind, but something seemed slightly off about the atmosphere around them. Though she couldn't quite her finger on it, it seemed as if the clouds had grown darker, and the air around them colder, and it made Amy shiver. Why on Mobius did it feel as if something was going to go terribly and horribly wrong? It felt as if there was something other than bad luck preying on her and Shadow, but… what could it have been?

She shook off the idea after a few minutes of pondering, though the thought still lingered in the back of her mind as the two walked down the path of the park, talking and chatting about whatever came to mind. Hand-in-hand, they spoke of the beauty of the sunset, the simplicity of the park, their favorite flavors of ice cream, cabbage trees, the plants that were probably dead at Amy's house due to obvious neglect, and many other simple, silly things that made them laugh.

It didn't take long for the two to reach the spot Shadow had chosen, and the moment Amy saw it, her eyes lit up. The small green hill was nearly flawless in its sea of light green, the only blemish on the surface being a small tree that stood proudly by itself on the peak of the mound. The tree was covered in luscious green growth which rustled together ever so slightly in the soft breeze, making Amy smile as she glanced at Shadow.

"It's perfect, Shadow!" She told him, making him smile as she wrapped her arm around his. "How long did it take you to find it?"

Smiling, Shadow shrugged. "Not too long. About… ten minutes, fifteen tops."

"Well, it looks very nice." She told him as she looked up at the hill once again. "We'll have a lovely view of the sunset. Don't you think?"

Shadow simply nodded, glancing once at her before he spoke. "Yeah."

Amy grinned once again at Shadow, letting out a loud, "Ha!" as she tightened her grip on Shadow's arm and without a single warning, began to run up the hill. Shadow merely smirked as he sped up to match her speed, laughing when she almost tripped.

"Shut it! You can't mock me!" Amy exclaimed, making Shadow laugh.

"Can't or shouldn't, Amy?"

"Is there even a difference?" Amy asked, panting softly when she stopped at the top of the hill.

Humming, Shadow nodded, taking his arm out from Amy's grasp. "Yes there is." Shadow told her, whispering a quick chaos incantation in-between his sentences. As soon as the last syllable had been uttered, the picnic basket reappeared in his hand. "The word 'can' pertains to my physical and mental capability to do something, but the word 'should' pertains to my desire to do something. I can mock you no matter what you do or say, Amy Rose, but the real question presented is simple; should I mock you?"

Amy simply stared at the hedgehog in silence, as if she was trying her very hardest to figure out what to say. "When you think, does it take you forever to get to your point because your thoughts are so complicated, or do you always think like this in over-drive so it only takes a few seconds?"

Shadow merely rolled his eyes as put the basket down, pulling the picnic blanket off the top once it was steadily placed on the ground. "You ask too many questions, Amy." He told her as he grabbed two corners of the picnic blanket, flipping it up the air in an attempt to spread it quickly and carefully over the grass. His attempt failed, sadly, and the blanket crumpled to one side, making the black hedgehog growl and scowl to himself as he reached down to try yet again.

"And you don't answer enough!" Amy countered, reaching down for the other two corners of the blanket as Shadow wrapped his hands around the original two. "In my opinion, you need to be willing to answer more questions in life. You can only be an enigma for so long, you know."

Their hands gripping the corners tightly, the two hedgehogs flipped the blanket up in unison, letting in descend slowly and carefully as Shadow smirked and shook his head. "I have forever, Amy. I can be an enigma for as long as I want to."

"Not around me, you can't!" Amy exclaimed, smiling and nodding in approval at the perfection of the blanket's placement. "If you even try to be enigmatic around me, Shadow, you know as well as I do that it's not going to end well. It might just end up in major catastrophe, and we wouldn't want that, would we?"

Shadow merely rolled his eyes and shook his head as Amy plopped down on the blanket, sitting down gracefully next to her as she took in heavy breathes. "I think that you can make anything into a catastrophe if you really try hard enough, Amy."

The pink hedgehog gasped dramatically in reply to his words, and with that, she smacked his shoulder. "You cow!" She exclaimed, making Shadow laugh out loud in response. "I should smack you for that comment."

"You already did."

"Well then, I should smack you again!" She exclaimed, throwing her hand out in an attempt to hit him again, which ultimately failed when he caught her hand. When he stared at her with that signature smirk of his, she sighed and shook her head. "Maybe I won't. It's too much effort anyway."

"Good girl." Shadow laughed, patting her head shortly after he had released her hand.

Rolling her eyes, Amy simply smirked. "Just makes the sandwiches, you cow."

"I find that offensive."

"Good!" Amy cried out. "I was—"

"To cows, that is."

Shadow merely smiled at Amy as she stared at him, her gaze almost a scowl. "You make it difficult to diss you."

"I try, Amy. I really do." He told her, looking over at the picnic basket once again. A few moments were spent examining it before the light-bulb went off in his head, nearly making him jump for some reason. Turning back to Amy, he spoke. "What kind of sandwich do you want?"

"What kind of sandwiches are there?" Amy asked as she readjusted her position yet again, glancing down at her outfit—a short pink dress with a yellow ribbon that wrapped itself just above her abdomen, yellow leggings, long pink converse sneakers—before she nodded once to herself in approval.

Digging through the contents of the basket, Shadow raised an eyebrow. "Peanut butter, bologna, ham… take your pick."

Raising her eyebrows, Amy nearly laughed. "Wow! So many choices! I simply can't decide!"

Rolling his eyes, Shadow shook his head. "Just for that comment, I'm going to decide for you. You're going to eat peanut butter."

"Yay!"

"Okay, make that ham."

"Woo-hoo!"

Shadow merely smirked and shook his head. "I forget. Your optimism has no limit, does it?"

"I run on sun-light, moon-light, star-light; so long as something's shining, you can't get me down." Amy told him, "Unless, of course, puppies stopped being born. Then I'll be miserable for the rest of my life."

Shadow let out another laugh at that, and Amy smiled and laughed along as a result. After several moments of it, Shadow finally sighed and smiled. "Amy, you never stop to amaze me." He told her, taking out the two litter bottle of Sprite he had packed along in the basket.

"Good! That means I filled my quota for this month."

Raising an eyebrow yet again, Shadow smirked and spoke. "I don't know why I question you anymore."

"Me neither, Shadow. Give me a peanut butter sandwich!"

Letting out a quick, "ha," Shadow reached for one of the many sandwiches and handed it to her, that same grin still sitting plainly on his face as he continued to search through the basket. "Amy, those subjects are barely related, and to be honest, I'm not sure why you didn't put a transition sentence in there."

"Shadow, you're over-thinking again." Amy told him, a smirk on her face as she tore the wrapping off the sandwich. "Think simple thoughts! Like; the sunset looks so pretty right now! I just love it!"

Humming, Shadow furrowed his brow. "I forgot to grab cups."

"Well, that is a simple thought, but not what I had in mind." Amy said, nearly laughing to herself as she took a bite of her sandwich.

Nodding quietly (possibly in agreement, possibly to himself), Shadow took in a deep breath, sighing as he looked at Amy. "I need to go grab some cups. You alright with waiting for a few minutes?" Amy simply nodded, and with that, Shadow smiled. "Great!" He exclaimed, "I'll be right back, alright?"

Amy nodded yet again, swallowing her mouthful of food in the process so she could speak one last time. "Alright." Shadow grinned at her, and with that he stood and dashed off, leaving Amy with only her thoughts as a companion.

For what must have been forever and a half, Amy was breathless as she stared off in the direction Shadow had taken off in, and then, at the world around her, still somewhat in awe at everything having to do with the date. The atmosphere of the air around her, the wonderful mood that had taken her, the simplistic sophistication in their plans; everything simply felt perfect. No, everything simply was perfect.

The thought made Amy smile once again, her cheeks burning red in the process. Oh, how happy it made her, just the silly thought of everything! To think that a few months ago, she had barely even known Shadow. And now she was on a date with him—a date of all things! She had never expected to become so close to Shadow… never in a thousand years! Even with Shadow being a much more optimistic person, she still would never have imagined him befriending her, much less ever going on a date with her.

It was funny, in a way. To think that the position of the enigma had been so suddenly switched with—of all people—Sonic the Hedgehog. One day, she had been able to in the very least chat with him, and the next day, he didn't even acknowledge her presence. It was beyond odd in her opinion, and yet at the same time, it sort of made sense. She had gained a friend and lost a friend on the same day; it was logical in her mind, but when she really thought about it… it bugged her. It bugged her a lot, even though she had promised herself that she had gotten over it.

Growling, Amy shook her head. "Oh, stop it." She exclaimed, her heart skipping a beat at the realization and in the shock of where her thoughts had traveled so quickly. "This isn't about Sonic. Why am I even bringing him up?"

In the back of her mind, there was a quiet whisper going off, nearly sinister in its nature, though soft in its tone. It's because I don't want to lose him, even if he's only a friend. He's always been a big part of my life; I can't just throw him out, even if I want to.

Taking in another deep breath, Amy shook her head. Just because she had been a part of a little spat with him, it didn't mean that she had totally and completely lost him as a friend, right? You never know, especially since he didn't seem to remember me when I last saw him. Amy simply sighed at that thought. Either he really did forget about me, or maybe… maybe he was just trying to ignore me. Maybe he was trying to make me mad.

A flare of anger taking root inside her, Amy shook her head again furiously, nearly growling in the process. How dare he even think of—no! No, no, no! Why on Mobius was she letting such negative thoughts cloud her mind, and on such a great occasion too? She was on a date with Shadow the Hedgehog—the hedgehog that she had fallen in love with over the previous weeks, mind you—and all she could think about was the possibility of losing Sonic's friendship!

Her brow furrowing, Amy took another furious bite of her sandwich. Why did such stupid things always have to plague her mind? It made her want to smack herself in the middle of the forehead. Did she really always have to be so… ah, how did she put it? Clingy to pleasant memories? Unable to move past unpleasant things? So unwilling to forget?

Well, this is Sonic I'm talk—well, thinking about. It's kind of hard to move past him... But she had Shadow now! Shadow was a gentleman, and he always at least had the courtesy to tell her when something was on his mind. But Sonic was, well, Sonic! He never cared enough to apologize for anything he did, and he never stuck around for anything whatsoever. Sometimes, he just made Amy so—

Ugh. What on Mobius was wrong with her? Taking in a deep breath, Amy closed her eyes. She needed to calm down. She had already promised herself that she wouldn't worry about Sonic anymore, and besides; she had already gotten over her issues with Sonic. Only just barely had the thought of him bothered her, and for what reason? What possible idea could have melted her calm state of mind into such a fragile state?

For a moment she had been taken by her rage, and to be honest, it frightened her a bit. Why did she freak out so quickly? Hadn't she already found peace with the subject? The thoughts that had come into her mind where few in number, but they were powerful all the same. And yet they were dark and foreign for some reason, as if it wasn't her thoughts, but something else. It was something cruel and dark and almost evil. It was something scary…

"Hey Amy!" But the moment Shadow's voice reached her, she forgot about that whisper in the back of her head, and her spirits were lifted. A smile on her face, Amy turned to Shadow.

"Took you long enough!" She exclaimed, nearly laughing to herself when he rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"I could have just never come instead." He said, sitting down next to her carefully as he recited a quick chaos incantation. "You know, just let you stay out here. Wonder if I'm ever going to come back. Stuff like that."

As the two cups appeared before their eyes, Amy smiled. "Well, I know you wouldn't do that, Shadow."

Raising an eyebrow, Shadow let out a simple "Ha," and shook his head. "And why wouldn't I do that, Amy Rose?"

"Because if you did that, I'd have to give you a high-five to the face with my hammer."

Shadow shrugged in reply. "Fair enough."

For awhile after that, the two ate their food in silence. Despite this, though, there was no awkwardness present between them. Instead, there was an aura of peace and content drifting through the air. It felt as if the two had been best friends for years rather than for a few weeks… as if they had known each other their whole lives. Every time they exchanged a look—whether it was an amused raised eyebrow or whether it was a simple smile—the other instantly replied with some sort of goofy grin or soft smirk.

It was absolutely wonderful to Amy. Rarely did she ever enjoy silence so much; even more extraordinary than that, though, was the fact that she a participant of it. Usually, she was the one who couldn't stop talking, even if someone would have offered her a million rings, or the world's cutest puppy. The idea itself, that Amy could be quiet, left the whole world speechless.

The peace that was ruling them for some reason, though, felt somewhat weak for some reason. No, not weak, but… fake. Fake like the calm before the storm. There was something in the air, something drifting, wafting, and waiting for the right moment to strike. It was something that for some reason, only Amy could detect. Or to be more accurate, it was something that only Amy could hear. That quiet whisper in her head, though silenced, was still present in the back of her mind. It had been pushed down, drowned, and nearly cut off, but it was still there. Just like it used to be with Sonic… but with Shadow.

"Amy," Shadow spoke, suddenly snapping her out of her blank stare and her empty state of mind. "Can I ask you something?"

Her gaze glued to the black and red hedgehog for what must have been forever and a half, Amy nodded. "Of course." She said, taking a moment to glance up at the sky. Clouds had taken over the air above them, and a slightly metallic smell was descended upon them. It was going to rain soon. Had that been the cause of Amy's worries?

Shadow took a moment with a furrowed brow to think, sifting through the words until he found the perfect way to produce the sounds as he too took a moment to look up toward the on-coming storm. "What do you think of me?"

Amy's heart skipped a beat at his words, though they were simple. Why was he asking her that? Had he figured out that she—? Swallowing, Amy glanced off to the side, her cheeks very suddenly turning red. "Why do you ask?"

The black and red hedgehog smiled. "Just wondering."

Just wondering? Taking in a deep breath, Amy closed her eyes. All she had to do was tell him what she thought of him. Just tell him the truth! Well, not the whole truth. She didn't want to tell him everything, for Heaven knew how Shadow would have reacted if he knew that she had fallen for him. The very last thing that she wanted to do was ruin a friendship with yet another hedgehog hero.

Before Amy could even think of opening her mouth to talk, though, Shadow continued speaking. "Because I've been meaning to tell you something. About what I think about you. I mean it's about how I feel about you. I mean, um…" Shadow paused, his brow furrowing as he did his very best to wear a somewhat dignified expression. "I'm, well, I guess I'm just—ugh! Why was this so much easier in my head?"

Amy simply stared at the black and red hedgehog in surprise, her eyes a bit wider than usual. What was wrong with Shadow? Was he okay? Just as she was about to ask him, Shadow grabbed Amy's hands, making her heart skip a beat and a half. What on Mobius was going on? Why was Shadow freaking out? In the back of her mind, that tiny seed of doubt and fright began to grow stronger.

"I'm sorry I'm acting so odd, I'm just not quite sure on how to word this. I've been meaning to tell you something, and I've been waiting for the right time to tell you. So," Taking in a deep breath, Shadow swallowed and nodded to himself. "I'm just going to say it."

Say it…?

"You drive me insane sometimes Amy, but I really care about you. There may be days where you can be a little selfish, but you always do your best to help others, and I really admire that about you." What did he mean by that? At the moment, Amy's mind was racing faster than Shadow's. Any and every thought concerning the matter directly at hand soared through her psyche at the speed of light. Is he having a hard day? Does he just want to rant to me? What if he's going to tell me that he likes someone? What if it's me?

What if it isn't me?

"There are days when we don't get along, and there are days where we drive each other up the wall, but we always manage to work it out in the end. You're always willing to forgive others, and you do your best not to judge them because of their mistakes. With all the crap I've done in my, well, existence, that means a lot to me Amy. And, well…" He smirked letting go of her hands, "It makes me really happy. It sounds kind of funny, but it really does."

Her heart nearly pausing once again, Amy smiled. "I'm glad it does, Shadow."

He nodded in approval, smirking as he once again took one of her hands. "And I guess that's why I l—" the word caught in his throat and Shadow sighed, shaking his head and taking his hand to his forehead. "Heaven help me."

Was… he? Whatever he's going to say has to be a lie. Doing her best to push the thought away, Amy swallowed. He was going to tell her something important. Why would he lie to her? Shadow didn't lie to her. Shadow was her friend! No matter what, Shadow would always be her friend.

"Amy Rose, I'm going to be honest. I love you. Yeah, it's cliché, but… well, yeah. I do. And stuff." He would… always… be her… friend. Right?

Just like it used to be with Sonic… but with Shadow.

"Amy, did I actually say it out loud that time? Or did it come out as gibberish again?"

Within a half a second, Amy's heart and stomach were tied in a thousand knots. Her mind was going in so many different directions—joy, shock, relief, curiosity—but for some reason, something else had taken her. It was loud and angry and for some reason, it over-powered every other emotion and notion in her system. He... he… he was teasing her! He had to be! People didn't just like, well, love Amy Rose, especially not Shadow! She was loud and annoying and obnoxious and rude and dumb! How dare he tease her about her feelings? How dare he?

A complete lack of reasoning took control of her at that moment (coupled with a good few pounds of stress). With one swift movement, Amy's hand flew across Shadow's face with a loud CRACK, knocking both the breath from his lungs and the smile from his face. As he fell back from the shock of the action, Amy shot up off the grass.

"How dare you, Shadow the Hedgehog! How dare you mock me? You good-for-nothing creep!"

The hedgehog that was being yelled at simply sat back in his spot on the grass, holding his cheek as he stared wide-eyed into the distance. "I hate it when people tease me! Why do you have to be so rude, Shadow? You know you don't do that to me, you—you jerk! You heartless, insensitive jerk! Idiot!"

Rather than replying, Shadow took in several heavy breaths. For a moment he just sat there, a blank stare sitting on his face as droplets of rain began to descend on the world. Silence ruled even as he stood up, turning away from her once he was on his feet. He took in a deep and heavy breath once he was steady, and with that, he very carefully (and very quietly) began to walk away.

And as to be expected, Amy didn't like that. "What on Mobius are you doing? I'm talking to you, Shadow the Hedgehog! Show me at least a little respect and—"

The second his gaze met hers, her heart stopped, and all of the anger in her body melted away. The look in his eyes, the way he held himself, the stiffness in his body; it was beyond cold. It was something that would have made ice itself shiver. His stare was border-lining on blank and angry (leaning toward the angry side, of course), but behind that was a carefully hidden accumulation of pain. He was hurt.

And it was Amy's fault.

The cruel thoughts dying off within a moment, Amy swallowed. What on Mobius had possessed to say something so incredibly heartless to Shadow? She loved him for crying out loud, and she had called him out on saying that very thing she wanted to hear—oh, what was wrong with her? How could she have so little faith in him? How? Swallowing, Amy took a step forward.

"Shadow, I didn't—"

He raised a hand, and that was all he needed to do to silence her. The breath caught in the back of her throat, and Amy watched as Shadow opened his mouth to speak.

"I hope you enjoy being alone." He said, his voice as dark and lifeless as it had been so many years ago. "Brat."

His words pierced her in every single way imaginable. She gasped as the tears began to take root, but before she could say anything, Shadow turned and without another word, ran.

It was at that moment when the undeniable and terrible truth struck her: she was going to lose him. "Shadow!" She cried out, taking off after him. "Wait! I didn't mean it, I swear! I'm sorry!" But he didn't stop. The Ultimate Life Form simply continued running, moving so fast that within several seconds, he was already out of sight. "Shadow, wait! WAIT!"

Even when moving at full speed, Amy couldn't even move at a fourth of the speed that Shadow could. Within less than a minute she had totally lost track of him, and countless tears had streamed down her face. Oh, why did she do that? Why? So stupid! Why did she have to be so stupid?

The blurriness of her tears, the lack of control she had on her body, and the sudden accompaniment of the rain were far too much on her. After running for a few minutes, her instability left her without any balance and with far too little instinct to react properly. Within the blink of an eye, Amy had tripped on the uneven asphalt path, her arms and knees banging on its surface with a sharp pain. A cry escaped from her lips, and at that point, all energy left her body.

For a moment, all Amy could do was lay there on the ground. She had no drive to move, and at the moment, that lack of motivation was draining her. There was no point to trying. No point, no point, no point. There was no way on Mobius that she could catch him; no way in all of creation that she could ever even dream of it. He was one of the fastest moving things alive. It was simply impossible.

A single thought—her one sliver of a silver lining—suddenly struck her after a few long moments of laying there. What if he had gone back to the house? What if he was back at Henry and Rita's? Her heart suddenly racing, Amy swallowed and with as much energy as she could muster, she pushed herself off the ground. She cringed once at the pain of moving her now-bruised elbows and knees, but she did her best to ignore it as she stood up on her feet.

She had to find him; she simply had to.

Faster. FASTER. He had to go faster. No matter what, he simply had to get away.

He couldn't stay, not as long as she was there. She had made him believe even stronger in those fairy-tale endings. He needed to stop believing in stupid little stories. Happy endings weren't for him. Happiness wasn't his to claim. Only heroes deserved joy, and he wasn't a hero. Or was he?

No. He deserved his own joy. Everyone did. There was just no way he was going to earn it with her. She was selfish and bratty and rude. She didn't believe him when he told her the truth, and she mocked him about it too. Right?

Oh no, she hadn't mocked him. She had simply refused his feelings. Right? RIGHT? He growled, gritting his teeth as he sped up once again. Maybe. Or maybe she had just been scared. Maybe she was just scared of someone taking her heart and smashing it into little pieces again. Maybe she was scared that he had been lying. Or maybe she was just scared of him.

That was the last thing he needed; the last thing he wanted in his happily ever after, as cliché as it sounded. He simply wanted everything to be okay. To be honest, he had wanted Amy to reciprocate those feelings, but if it wasn't meant to be… so be it.

He had done just fine on his own before. Who was to say that he couldn't do it again?

The moment Amy burst through the front door, soaking wet, make-up smudged, and her elbows and knees banged up, all eyes instantly shot towards her in surprise.

"Is he here?" She asked, her voice frantic and hoarse. "Did he come here?"

The three others in the room—Henry, Rita, and Maria—simply stared at her in surprise. "Shadow?" Rita finally asked after several long moments of silence.

Amy nodded anxiously; swallowing as her heart skipped a beat in pure anticipation—fear—for the answer.

Rita shook her head cautiously in response. "No, he didn't. Why do you ask? Aren't you two supposed to be out on your date still?"

Both her face and her heart fell at Rita's answer, and within moments, a heart-breaking look formed in her eyes. Tears began to run down her cheeks and without a fair warning, she broke down in sobs.

Surprise quickly being over-ridden by an instinct to help her friend, Maria dashed over to Amy. "Amy, what's the matter?" She asked as she carefully led Amy to the couch to sit.

"He's gone!" She cried bitterly, "I didn't mean to say it, it just came out! I didn't really mean it, I didn't! I tried to apologize, but he… he…" But before she could finish, she was taken over once again by her tears.

Her eyes growing wide, Maria's ears fell. "What do you mean, gone?"

Amy didn't—rather, she couldn't—answer. Instead, she continued to cry as both Henry and Rita stood up, exchanging quick glances before they took off in separate direction. Rita towards the kitchen to prepare some hot chocolate, and Henry towards the hallway where the first-aid kit was located.

"Amy, just answer me. What do you mean by gone?"

Letting out a sad cry, Amy turned to Maria. "He's gone back to Station Square, Maria. He's gone back to his apartment, and I'm probably never going to see him again. He hates me Maria, he hates me!"

Maria, still a little confused, gave Amy an empathetic glance, opening her mouth before Rita suddenly called from the kitchen. "Maria, can I get a little help in here?"

Sending Amy another apologetic look before she turned back to the kitchen, Maria nodded. "I'm coming!" And with that, Maria took off, leaving Amy to only her bitter thoughts.

The black and red hedgehog ran, faster and faster with each moment.

The angry words that swirled in her mind struck at each other and any lasting piece of joy, causing her to cry heavier and harder with each moment. How could she have said something so unkind? Why hadn't she stopped to think? Couldn't she have at least checked the Glass Rose to see if he was lying or not? Oh, why hadn't she thought of it?

His breathing patterns were irregular and heavy, and a deep set frown had found a humble abode on his face.

The Glass Rose. It was all she had left of him; the only proof of his existence to her. Oh, she needed it. Without another thought, Amy recovered the rose, nearly gasping when her eyes set upon it.

He was furious and heart-broken, and he needed to get away.

The rose was shriveled like a real rose near the end of its life. Its petals were barely hanging on, the thorns were tiny and stubby, and to her shock, there was a crack running up its stem. It… it was nearly dead.

Get away from her. From the stupidity of "love," from the illusions it created, everything. He hated it, he hated—

Oh. Oh no, no ,no. Clamping her eyes shut, Amy wrapped her hands around the rose, shaking her head in the process. Why was she so stupid? Oh why, oh why, oh why?

An unseen root caught his foot, and within less than a second, the hedgehog fell, face-first in the mud.

Why? Couldn't she for once think for herself?

The moment he was on his hands and knees, he gritted his teeth, glaring at the mud in-between his fingers. Stupid root. Stupid mud. Stupid rain. He hated it all!

Letting her grip loosen just once, Amy swallowed—

Fed up with the rage and heartache, Shadow threw his fist down on the ground once, letting out a single heart-wrenching cry.

And with that, the Glass Rose shattered.

I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. (I just had to make the Doctor Who reference. Heh heh-)

Anyways, I'm seriously sorry that it took so long for me to update! :O I just hope that this long chapter made up for the lack of update. This one was actually pretty hard to right, and for good reason.

Oh, and yeah, cliff-hanger! :D I'm terrible, aren't I? The road to happiness is always rough... but it's well worth it in the end.

Until next time! :D