Thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews, the favorites, the follows. I appreciate each and every one of them. Can you believe this story is four years old? Oh, how time flies! Three more chapters till chapter fifty and this story will be officially halfway done! I'm excited, and thanks for joining me on this journey ^^

47. Perfection

"I want you to know that I despise you," Shadow spat, glaring daggers at the current thorn in his side. Amy, for her part, looked completely unbothered, clearly too immune to his antics, unfortunately. Perched comfortably on her bed, she regarded him with a smug look on her face, her jade eyes brimming with mirth.

"Now, we both know you don't mean that," was her cheeky response, and Shadow resisted the urge to wring her neck, despite how true her words were. He knew she meant well, and Chaos knew it wasn't always dealing with him and his prickliness, so he appreciated her for that. That didn't mean he wanted her meddling in her nonexistent love life and set him up on a date with someone.

Still, he refrained from further voicing his opinions and kept his mouth shut. The last thing he needed was to incite her into an argument. It would do no one any good for their tempers to flare up, and damn, did Amy have quite the temper on her. He forced himself to look at himself through her floor-length mirror, regarding his appearance almost warily.

Since Amy made reservations at some fancy ass restaurant, where he was to meet his date, it meant he had to look the part. So, instead of dressing casually like he initially planned, he had to do the opposite and wear something fancier. Donning on a fitting tuxedo, a deep red color that matched the color of his eyes, black, polished dress shoes and plain, white gloves, he looked well put together. His Inhibitor Rings glinted whenever the light struck them, and his quills were worn in its usual style. His attire was neat and expensive, the perks of working as an agent of G.U.N., and he figured if he was going to suffer through what would surely be a disastrous date, he might as well suffer in style.

"Aw, why so glum, chum? You're acting as if I sentenced you to your doom." He met Amy's gaze in the mirror, and he felt his anger extinguish at the earnest, hopeful look in her eyes. She meant well, and he knew she had his best interest at heart. She was like a sister to him, and he knew she looked up to him in some ways too. She was such a cheerful, optimistic person with a firm belief in love, and he knew all she wanted was for him to be happy. He refused to be angry with her for something like that.

"I apologize, and while I wish you had gone about it differently, I do appreciate your efforts," he smiled, his smile widening at the happy look on her face. Reaching for his motorcycle keys and wallet and tucked both items into his pocket. Cellphone held firmly within his grasp, he unlocked it and check the time. He had roughly ten minutes until it was seven o' clock, which meant he only had ten minutes to get to where he needed to go without being late.

With that in mind, he waved her goodbye and hurried along. It would do him no good to be late. First impressions were, after all, pretty important, and he didn't want his date to think poorly of him.

"Have fun, Shadow!" Amy's voice was smug, like she knew she was right and that would enjoy himself in the end. She was a pretty damn good matchmaker, but Shadow refused to give her the satisfaction of being right. He was sure he would be indifferent at best towards his date.

"I make no promises!" He called back, ignoring whatever smartass reply Amy no doubt made.

Paradise Found was the name of the restaurant Amy chose. It was a large, pretty brick building that was located halfway across town. It took Shadow no more than a minute, two minutes top, to get there. The parking lot was crowded as hell, but he managed to find a parking spot for his motorcycle nonetheless. As he made his way towards the building, he saw a figure sitting on one of the benches under the awning of the building. When he got closer, he could make out their appearance, and he felt his breath catch in his throat.

She was, without a shadow of a doubt, beautiful. Her auburn hair fell down her back in thick, bouncy curls. Her red evening gown did nothing to hide her lovely figure to his greedy gaze, and he felt his heartbeat threatening to stutter to a stop. She wore ruby earrings and matching bracelets, and the red lipstick she wore made her lips look made her lips look divine.

She looked up, her eyes, a deep, rich, sapphire blue, meeting his. Her lips curled into a smile so bright and beautiful, and Shadow hoped and hoped and prayed that she was the one he was supposed to be meeting. His steps led him to her, and he took a seat beside her, suddenly feeling shy, which was weird as hell because hello! He's the Ultimate Life Form! He doesn't do shy and nervous, but that was exactly how he was feeling all of a sudden.

"Hello! I don't think Amy told you who I am, but I'm Princess Sally Acorn, and I'm your date for the night. It's very nice to meet you, Shadow!" She held her hand out for him to shake it, but it was like his body had a mind of its own because rather than shaking her hand, he kissed her on her lips instead.

And yeah, maybe that's not something one should do on a blind date, and a first date at that, but Shadow couldn't help himself. He didn't expect her to be this damn enchanting, like she bewitched him and he was helplessly under a spell he didn't want to get break. He felt a connection with her as soon as he laid eyes on her, and maybe Amy was right about that "love at first sight" shit, which meant he would never hear the end of it from her.

When he finally pulled away, Sally's eyes were still closed, her lipstick slightly smudged from that unexpected kiss, and he felt the urge to smudge it up some more. When her eyes slowly fluttered open, he inwardly smirked at the dazed look in them. It was nice to know that he had that effect on her. He knew it wouldn't take long for her to realize the effect she had on him.

Hands cupping her face, he leaned forward so that their foreheads touched, their lips brushing against each other. Sparks were flying, angels were singing, and he was definitely feeling the love tonight.

"Nice to meet you, princess."