021. A sweet addiction

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Tikal had a small problem.

She loved sweets.

Cakes, cheesecakes, cookies, apple pies. Practically an entire bakery's menu.

When she appeared out of the Master Emerald and finalised her decision that she would be staying for good, Knuckles had shown her around Station Square. That included taking her to one of the bakeries that she had her eyes set on when they were walking past it. He bought her a muffin and when Tikal first took a bite, she immediately wanted another one after chomping it down in seconds. Knuckles obligated of course, buying her another as it was her first time eating in a millennium and because of the fact that she never had anything like it.

When she lived with Knuckles, he never restricted her eating habits the first time. However when she became more comfortable with the world and started to go out by herself, he realised that it was becoming a bit of an issue and made sure that she'd only buy one thing three days a week from the bakery. He went with her too so she wouldn't sneak an extra one in. On the days he wasn't with her or wasn't able to make it due to his recent work with the G.U.N about the ancestry of the Master Emerald, Knuckles would usually make sure someone was tagged along with her so she wouldn't break the rule. Those people would consist of Amy, Rouge, Tails and even Sonic when he wasn't doing anything that involved fighting Eggman.

Tikal would sulk quietly about it but knew Knuckles was just looking out for her health.

Many months later, something bloomed between her and Shadow the Hedgehog. The unspoken yet familiar connection they had with one another was a mystery. Mind boggling as Knuckles and Rouge liked to call it. Shadow somehow convinced Knuckles to let her move in with him. Knuckles thought the hedgehog was crazy and immediately said no because he didn't want her away from the Master Emerald. But when he saw how serious Shadow was about it, also saying things like: I'll protect her with my life and I'll make sure she sees the Master Emerald everyday, he grudgingly gave him the okay. Not without the 'If anything happens to her, I will hunt you down Shadow' remark though.

Tikal got used to Shadow's living patterns quickly. He went off to work at nine in the morning and would come back around late noon, sometimes later if G.U.N needed him for something urgent. His days off were on the weekend and he'd stay home or take her out on either day.

She'd make sure she would set off to the bakery just before he came back and hide the evidence of her guilty pleasure in the trash can.

Today was Friday. Tikal was humming a quiet tune as she walked the streets with two loaded bags in her arms. She held a chocolate chip cupcake against her lips as chewed on it happily. Inserting the key inside its lock, she stepped inside the house and closed the door before glancing at the clock.

Good. Shadow won't be home in another-

Just as she entered the kitchen, a loud squeak escaped her lips when she saw Shadow finishing up drinking a glass of water. He heard her and turned around as her bags and cupcake hit the floor.

"I-I thought you'd be home later..." Tikal said in slight panic.

Shadow's crimson gaze seared into hers when he put the glass down. "The investigation was cut off till Monday," he replied, his eyes cautiously travelling down to the bags in front of her feet, "So I came back early..."

"Oh..."

For a while, the hedgehog just stared at the contents that showed themselves from inside the bags. Tikal, not knowing what to say or do, stood there sheepishly.

"It looks like you bought the entire bakery," Shadow said whilst looking back up at her, "I'm assuming you used almost, if not all, your pennies this week."

"Not all of it..."

"I see," he continued to watch her carefully, already spotting the guilty features showing across her face, "You're shaking, Tikal."

"W-What?!" Tikal yelped and nervously rubbed her arms together, "I-I'm... I'm not!"

Shadow sighed and walked towards the dropped items. He picked the bags up and placed them onto the countertop. Turning back around to her, he took hold of her arms to calm her down.

When she did, Tikal blushed and sheepishly looked up at him whispering, "I-I have a small problem..."

"I kept thinking you were having friends over because the amount of cake wrappers I saw in the trash can last week..." he trailed off before momentarily pausing, "But I don't think that's the case, is it?"

"Please don't tell Knuckles..." Tikal pleaded, her voice small, "He won't be happy..."

Shadow shook his head and sent her a wry gaze. "I don't even plan to. If he ever found out, I'd be the one getting shouted at and probably be given a death sentence."

Her lips twitched into a small smile. "It's just... really hard to control."

"I understand," he put his hand against her cheek, "How about," Shadow pulled away kneeling down to pick up the muffin she dropped and put it aside, "We start fresh then? No more sweet things for a while until you're able to lower your sugar levels and control those habits."

"Okay," Tikal agreed, "But how?"

"Well for starters," Shadow grabbed the bags and gestured her to follow him outside. As if she saw something horrific, her eyes widened as he threw the bags filled with her treats into the dumpster, "They need to be out of your sight so you don't fall into any temptations."

Her throat became dry as she tried to refrain herself from getting deflated. It was futile though.

The hedgehog saw and raised his eye in slight amusement. "You're upset."

Tikal sulked. "I didn't realise how much I was eating."

Shadow playfully rolled his eyes and took her back into their house. "Believe me, you're not the only one with atrocious eating habits. Amy forced Sonic on a Keto diet for a month due to the abnormal amount of chilli dogs he was eating."

"...Keto... diet?" she repeated, baffled as the words were not familar to her.

"Don't worry," the hedgehog waved it off and had themselves sat down on the couch in the living room, "Are you feeling tired?"

Tikal shook her head. "No, why?"

"Just asking," Shadow said but continued on, "Did you ever have days where you were just really tired though? You know, not doing particularly anything in the day but just felt exhausted anyway?"

She thought about his question for a moment. "Yes... sort of. I-I did feel tired the other night even though I stayed home all day."

He nodded. "That's called a sugar crash. People tend to get more tired than usual if they eat masses amount of sugar."

Tikal blinked before slowly nodding as well. "Okay..."

"Best thing to do for you is that we should start replacing your treats with healthier alternatives. Like fruit for instance."

"You mean apples and strawberries? Stuff like that?" she asked, smiling a little.

"Exactly like that. Which I'm sure you won't have a problem with, will you?"

Eyes suddenly beaming, Tikal leaned in closer to intertwine their hands. "Can honey mangoes be added onto that list as well?"

He had to smile. "Yes, honey mangoes will definitely be on that list too."