They didn't speak much while they cooked together, except for when she reminded him to put on his kiss the cook apron. Once they got into their groove, they just settled into autopilot. After watching her move around the kitchen so long he knew her cues to move out of the way and where to go. They walked around in perfect sync with each other as if they could see through each other's eyes. He admired her grace and elegance and got lost in the whirlwind of butterflies when her beautiful pink apron frills brushed his legs. He couldn't believe that he finally found someone, especially as beautiful as Amy.

He was terrified about dinner. His hands shook as he sliced the chicken open to stuff it, and he kept having to curse under his breath to get his shit together. Just thinking of the blonde made his heart ache, and he had convinced himself that he would never see her again and he accepted that; just for her to barge right back in his life. If it were the old Shadow, he would be a mess and thinking of ways to win her back, but now? He couldn't dream of it. He has tasted what true commitment and love feels like in just a few weeks with Amy and he wasn't willing to give it up. Not her Maria, not for anyone.

Maria. It made his throat burn

He swallowed the lump in his throat and mentally kicked himself. Get your shit together, you fucking idiot. He shook off his nerves and continued stuffing the chicken, taking a deep breath to compose himself. Tonight will be fine. Maria isn't coming here to win him back like Amy says. She couldn't win him back even if she wanted to. He was happy right where he was, and Maria wasn't going to ruin that. He'd been through enough pain when she left, and he wasn't willing to go back through those trenches.

Once he placed the chicken in the oven to bake, he wiped his hands on the kitchen towel that was tucked into his apron, and Amy smiled at him as she poured two glasses of wine. She handed one to him and gave him a quick kiss before downing her glass and heading to the dining room. Confused, he followed behind her sipping on his glass. She opened up the closet that he stored his extra blankets in, and pulled out an expensive looking white cloth. He arched his brow at her over the rim of his glass, and she rolled her eyes playfully.

"It's a tablecloth! My god men are so hopeless! I'm trying to set the table while you finish dinner!"

She exclaimed, fluffing the cloth out in a flourish before draping it over the table.

He's never seen that before in his life. When did she get that? "Since when have we had that?"

"My house before Sonic ran off. I always kept my dining room table dressed to the nines, but Sonic wasn't much for nice things. Plus, he ate chili cheese dogs more than actual food and ruined most of the ones I had," She murmured bitterly, smoothing out the fabric to fit the table, "I'm hosting this dinner so I will be doing it my way tonight. I hope that's okay."

She said the last part quietly, like she was scared he was going to be angry. It saddened him that someone made her nervous to voice her opinion, and he was working on fixing that. He shrugged nonchalantly and gave her an encouraging kiss on the cheek before retreating back into the kitchen to finish dinner and to give her space to work. He threw some pasta into a pot to boil for a simple garlic and herb pasta to pair with the chicken. While the pasta began to boil, he pulled out some arugula for a nice arugula salad appetizer. He never knew the importance of appetizers, but Amy made sure he would never forget it. Each nice meal needs an appetizer, an entrée, and a dessert. He didn't want Maria to stay long so he didn't even consider making a dessert.

He hoped Amy was wrong, and Maria was just trying to hang out because if she came here and flirted all night it would make Amy uncomfortable and that's the last thing he wanted. Especially in the home he shared with her. He could hear the beautiful woman in the other room humming to herself while she decorated the table in her image. Why would he want to be anywhere but here?

In the midst of falling in love with her all over again, he decided to go ahead and chop up the arugula to prepare it for the salad. Amy had told him what all was supposed to go in there, but he could only remember the parmesan and the lemon juice. Her cookbook was around the kitchen somewhere. He wiped his hand on the apron towel and began poking around the cabinets for where she stored her cookbooks. After a good minute of searching he couldn't find it, so he did what any normal person would do.

"Amy!"

He called out to her.

"What?"

She called back, seemingly startled.

"Where's the cookbook with the arugula salad?"

"In our room! I was writing new recipes in it the other night and never put it back!"

He chuckled under his breath at her and made his way to his room, not without giving her a quick kiss and firm butt slap as he went by. She giggled at him and continued what she was doing while he snatched up the book and made his way back to the kitchen. Once he got back to his post, he quickly checked on the chicken before turning back to his salad. Luckily for him the chicken would be done as soon as he was finished with the salad. So he did just that. Once he was done, he placed the salad in one of Amy's fancy crystal bowls with the petal designs and turned his attention to the oven. He used his apron towel to pull the baking sheet out and placed it on top of the oven to rest and cool. He wiped his hands again, tossed the towel on his shoulder, and admired his handiwork that was steaming in front of him.

"Oh wow! Look at you Shadow!"

A familiar voice made him jump and his heart crashed into his feet. His blood ran cold. Maria? Before he could turn completely around, he felt a familiar pair of arms wrap around his neck from behind. His stomach twisted in knots, leaving him feeling dizzy and nauseated.

"Hey...Maria."

He didn't know what to say.

He gave her arms around him an awkward pat and tried to wiggle out of her grip without making it too obvious he didn't want to touch her. When he fully turned around and faced her his heart jumped in his throat. A dull, familiar ache started to throb in his chest. A feeling of deep love and admiration used to reside there, but now it was just an echo of emptiness. Amy had picked up every single piece of his broken heart and took her time mending it while he did the same with her. Maria looked beautiful though. In place of her usual blue dress she wore an elegant evening dress that was a deep emerald green that complimented her fair skin. It wasn't anything too fancy; an over the shoulder dress that was tea length. Or, he hopes it's called tea length or Amy will kill him for not paying attention. Her hair was styled the same it always was, the only difference was the beautiful diamond and emerald hair clip that had one side of her bangs fastened behind her ear.

He watched Amy hug Maria and welcome her into her home, and he saw the flash of emotion in her eyes when Amy called this house hers. Was it... jealousy? Anger? He recognized that look, but it's been so long he couldn't remember what it was. Maria, who has never been confrontational in her life, smiled back and returned the warm introductions but he could taste the insincerity. He's seen that enough to know that was exactly what it was.

Amy gave him a smug glance when she noticed Shadow looking at how Maria was dressed. Shit. He was now at her mercy, and he was going to pay for it later.

"Shadow? You okay?"

Maria's voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he crashed back into reality. He had forgotten where he was for a second. "Hm?"

"I was asking you a question. Are you okay, Shadsy?"

Her old nickname for him used to make him so happy, but now he had to fight not to cringe. Amy, who was behind Maria, silently gagged and pretended to stick her finger in her mouth when she said the nickname. This made Shadow have to bite his lip to keep from laughing.

"Oh, uh, yeah sorry. I just haven't seen you in a while so it's a bit weird is all."

He lied, trying to keep himself composed.

"It has been forever hasn't it? Seeing your face reminds me of the days at the ARK, watching the Earth spin together..."

She murmured, caressing his cheek with her hand.

He jumped under her touch, and she noticed. There was another flash of emotion in her blue eyes, but this time it looked like... guilt? She gave him a small smile and pulled her hand away and looked around the kitchen.

"Amy, you have done such a great job with the place! He was so helpless when I lived here," she giggled, absentmindedly running her fingers over the countertops, "I tried forever to get him to at least get a microwave. So glad he actually listened!"

He and Amy shared a glance before she smiled knowingly. "Yeah, I know! We don't actually use the microwave a lot but it is a beautiful one. Would you like some wine? I have the table set up and Shadow can bring the food out."

Maria gave Amy a tight-lipped smile and nodded. Amy handed her a glass and walked into the dining room to sit down. Maria hovered for a moment, swirling the wine before turning back to him.

"It really is good to see you. You look great in those clothes! This place brings me back... to when I felt whole. You are the only thing..." she trailed off for a moment, seemingly lost in thought before composing herself and forcing a smile, "Anyway I'm so glad to see you happy Shadsy."

She turned on her heel and walked out of the room before he had a chance to respond. She left him in the middle of the kitchen confused and out of breath. He hadn't even realized he was holding his breath until she was gone. That aching was fading, and he was starting to feel normal again. The old Shadow would agonize over what she was trying to say, and go crazy at the thought of her wanting to get back together; the new Shadow could not wait until she was gone and he never had to think about her again. He didn't hate her or hold any hard feelings; in fact, he still loved her the same way everyone loves their first love. She would always be the one who made him who he was. He would never forget the Ark or the time he shared together with her, but those were meant to stay memories. He was happily moving on to better things, and one of those things was his princess in the other room.

A soft smile toyed at his lips as he pulled off his apron and hung it up next to Amys. He grabbed the salad bowl and some utensils and brought them to the table. Amy smiled at him as he entered the room, and she thanked him as he walked back toward the kitchen for the rest of the food. He put the pasta and the chicken on the fancy presentation plates so Amy didn't knock him out, and carried everything out to the table. Maria and Amy were talking, but by judging Amy's face he could tell she couldn't wait for her to leave. Did Amy harbor harsh feelings for Maria since she knew what Maria had done? Or was it just awkward for her to interact with someone he once had a close relationship with?

"Oh wow Shadow you cooked all this? Amy has done a great job whipping you in shape! Amy you are such an angel!"

Maria fawned as she admired the display of food.

"Oh, thank you Maria! Shadow picked it up so easily, isn't that right?"

She asked, turning her attention to him, begging him to say something.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Amy made it look so easy so I thought I'd give it a try."

He smiled at Amy, but he could feel Maria's eyes burning into the side of his face.

Maria tried the food, and fawned over it a little more, and Shadow took this time to down his entire glass of wine. If he was going to survive tonight, he was going to need a lot of it. Amy saw this, and gave him a sly smirk as she filled his glass again. The food smelled great, but he couldn't force himself to eat. His nerves were shot and Maria had only been in his house no more than 30 minutes.

"So, what brings you back in town Maria? Shadow tells me that you've been gone a while."

Amy said, sipping her wine. She looks so beautiful.

"Yeah I left a couple of years ago to travel and sight see. When Shadow and I were living on the Ark I dreamed of one day being able to live on Earth, so now that I'm here I'm taking every chance I get to see everything," she explained, sipping her wine and tucking her hair behind her ear, "but I came back because I missed home."

"Home?"

He didn't even mean to ask that. It just blurted out of him.

"I missed being surrounded by familiar faces that love me. I was at a beach by myself when your friend Sonic walked up to me and he wanted to have dinner. I didn't know he was so fast! He ran across the world where I was and asked me to dinner, it was so crazy!"

The blond giggled.

He and Amy shared a confused glance, but Sonic's last words to him rang through his mind like a bell. "You're going to regret this Shadow!" He rolled his eyes, of course Sonic would do this. This was his way to get back at him; It was almost comical. He searched Amy's face for any type of anger or jealousy, but all he found was amusement and annoyance. Now that face was familiar.

"That was really nice of him, Maria. I'm so happy for you guys. Are you going to be moving in with him since you're back for good?"

Amy asked, swirling her wine glass around. Her dress looked so beautiful on her.

"I don't know about that. Sonic really wanted to start dating but he isn't really my type. My type is..." her eyes darted to Shadow for a brief moment. So brief, in fact, he felt like he imagined it. "A loving soul, I guess. Sonic is very arrogant and selfish."

He forgot himself for a moment. He honestly thought Amy was lying when she said that Maria would come here to get him back, and she was right. He thought he knew Maria; thought she would never do something like that. Hearing her talk about his rival, he believed that she would date Sonic to get back at him. The Maria he knew wouldn't do that, and hearing her talk about him just confirmed that much. She wasn't trying to get back at him. The girl sitting across the table from him was alone and trying to regain what she lost. He honestly couldn't blame her for that, but it wouldn't work. It would've worked on the old Shadow, but not now. He was proud of how far he's come.

"Tell me about it! Let me save you the trouble. I dated that man for five years, and the cheating was nonstop! The selfishness, the blatant disregard for my feelings, and the constant reminder that I would never be enough. We broke up just a couple of months ago and he hasn't changed, I promise you that."

Amy explained, rolling her eyes. Her cheeks were flushed, she was getting tipsy.

"I got that feeling from him. He was so persistent to date me, but all he talked about was his ex which I'm now assuming is you, Amy."

Maria giggled. Her cheeks were flushed too.

"Eh, fuck him. I'm happy to be here with Shadow. He treats me like a princess."

Amy smiled, reached over and squeezing his hand.

The same emotion from the kitchen flooded Maria's eyes. She quickly masked it and nodded sharply at Amy. "I bet he does, he's always been like that. Whenever he looks at you it feels like you're the only girl in the world, and his arms around you feel like the warm sun. It's hard not to get addicted..."

Amy looked at him in confusion, but nodded at Maria's words. What could anyone say in response to that?

"...Yeah, it really does, doesn't it?"

Amy said it softly, as if she was just realizing it herself.

Maria took a deep breath and looked at the two of them, and he could see it in her eyes that there was something she wanted to say, but ultimately, she didn't. Instead, she stood up, holding on to the table to steady herself. She wasn't drunk by any means but she was tipsy.

"Thank you so much for this lovely dinner, you guys! I had a great time, and it was really good to see you two! It's getting late though, and I need to get back to my hotel. I'll see you around, okay?"

Her words wavered, like she was on the verge of tears. Amy noticed, he noticed.

"Oh, so soon? It was good to see you! Here, Shadow will help you with the front door, it gets sticky sometimes."

Amy said, looking at him and motioning him to follow her with her eyes.

Amy felt bad to see Maria such a mess. He did too. He had gotten used to the idea of never seeing her again, and now that he's seeing her, he felt bad.

Maria was thankful he followed her to the door, and she gave him a pitiful smile when he opened the door for her. He could see it in her eyes that there was something she wanted to say, but she still wasn't saying it. Was it because Amy was there? Did she need a moment alone with him to say what she needed to say? Did he really care about what she had to say. He looked back at Amy and she met his gaze, shooing him out with her hand. She knew that Maria needed this, and wanted him to talk to her. He nodded at her and stepped outside with Maria, closing the door behind him. She turned to face him, her eyes glistening with tears. They stood in silence, and he took that moment to really take it in.

In all honesty he didn't know what to expect when he saw her again. He thought a million feelings would wash over him and he would crumble under the weight of everything as the sight of her blue eyes, but now that she was standing in front of him he felt...nothing. Nothing that he used to, at least. It was bittersweet to think of all the fond memories he once cherished in his heart were now a dull ache that was a gentle throb in the back of his mind. It took years to get far enough to not fall apart at the thought of her name; the journey of grief he went through when she gently laid his heart next to the front door when she left was nothing like he ever experienced before. Not once did he ever believe that he would be able to look her in her sweet, innocent face and feel...nothing.

It was good for him, but he could see the pain it was causing her. She was sunshine personified; a beautiful ray of light that once filled him with a warmth that only she could give. A part of him was forlorn that he would never experience that warmth again, or hear her beautiful laughter at a dumb joke, or the nights she would lay his head on her lap and run her fingers through his quills. It was a chapter of his life that he will always remember with a fond sorrow that will haunt him for the rest of his life.

She let out a dry, forlorn laugh. "So... this is it, huh?"

He mustered a soft chuckle, and allowed himself a brief moment to memorize her face for the last time. She could sense the tension in the air, and she already knew. He knew that, and it goes without saying that she didn't want to break his heart again. It's too much on him, and he vowed that this would be the last time. The last time he got his hopes up, because the last time she just let him crash headfirst into the ground when she wasn't able to return his obvious feelings.

"Um, I guess so." He murmured softly, scratching the back of his head sheepishly, "I guess... this is it."

She flinched at his words, but nodded in understanding. She tried to be strong, he remembered that look on her face. She was trying not to cry, and she was never good at holding back tears. He knew that exactly 6 seconds after she tried not to cry, the tears would come; and right on queue they were. She looked away for a moment to take a deep breath before facing him again, and there was acute agony in her blue eyes. Normally just the sight would break him, but now that same dull aching appeared in the back of his throat. He was ready to let her go to pursue something that had true merit to his life, and after all of this he deserved it.

"... Everything must come to an end, doesn't it?"

Her forced smile was a futile attempt to comfort him, but he was unmoved.

He was proud of his growth. "It was nice while it lasted, right?"

She giggled as tears poured over her porcelain cheeks. The same cheeks that he once left under-the-sheet kisses on. The same cheeks that rested so perfectly in his hands. That feels like a million years ago now.

"Yeah, it was nice while it lasted. I'm so lucky to have known you, Shadow... you made my life brighter."

She smiled tearfully, wiping tears away.

"I was lucky to have known you as well, Maria. You enriched my life in so many ways, I'll always hold you in my heart."

His words filled the air, and she absorbed them like a sponge. She reached a trembling hand out and touched his arm for the last time, some desperate attempt to pull him from the ledge that he was ready to jump off of and into a new life with Amy.

She squeezed his arm, and gave one last brilliant smile. "Sayonara, Shadow..."

He felt a twinge of pain in his heart when she said that to him. The first time she said it she was gunned down in front of him, and now she was walking away from him forever. He never imagined their life together turning out like this, but all he could think about was the beautiful pink hedgehog that was waiting for him back in his living room. She turned around before he could say anything, and left him to say goodbye to her back.

"Sayonara, Maria..." he lifted his hand and gave her a small wave that she couldn't see and watched her walk away from him. She was walking away forever, and he felt bad that he... didn't feel bad.

He gave himself a moment of grief, and he quickly let it go. He had harbored it for far too long. He took a deep breath to pull himself together, his heart racing from his excitement to get back inside to Amy. The love of his life. He noticed that his hand was steady when he reached for his doorknob, and he smiled at himself. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him, and was greeted by a happy Amy. She jumped into his arms, welcoming him home.

He was home.

She was his home.

He held her tight, thanking the god that he didn't believe in for the woman that he shared his home with. With who he was going to spend his life with. Maria was right about one thing. Her arms felt like the sun enveloping him in her warmth. How did he get so lucky?

"Did you get what you needed?"

She asked, kissing his cheek.

He thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, I think I did."

"Is she going to be okay?"

"I... don't know, and that's okay."

She felt bad that Maria left in such a mess, but he could tell she was happy it was over. Both of their exes were gone for good, and they could finally move on to better things. They cleared the table in happy, content silence; dancing around each other flawlessly. It felt right, and he couldn't ask for anything better than that. After dishes were cleaned and put away, Amy sighed and leaned back against the counter, smirking at him.

He looked around, wondering what it was she was smirking at. Was it him? "... What?"

"Oh nothing, I'm just thinking of all the things I can make you do since you lost the bet and all."

She teased, giggling.

Oh shit! He had forgotten about that completely. Shit. "Oh please, you were just lucky. You didn't win anything!"

"Oh I think I won. That hairpiece? Come on! I totally won!"

He sighed in defeat, fighting the smile that threatened to creep over his face. "Alright, alright. What do you want?"

There was a twinkle in her eye, and she bit her lip. Her cheeks were flushed considerably more than when he left her to talk to Maria. Did she just guzzle the bottle of wine while he was out?

"I want..." She looked down, as if she was embarrassed, "I want you to take me to the bedroom, and make love to me..."

His heart started racing, and he smiled.

She took his hand.

Author's note: Thank you to everyone who take the time to read my work; it means more than you know! I'm thinking about doing a sequel one-shot to this story about their time in the bedroom on my other fanfiction site, if that is something you may be interested in, the link is in my bio! Until next time!