008. Crush

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There was a hint of joy in him when going to work after classes.

However, he was Shadow the Hedgehog. There wasn't supposed to be any joy in working unless you loved your job that much. That wasn't to say he didn't, he did. Working in a library meant people were quiet, wouldn't dare to disturb anyone unless questions were asked and everyone to read and write peacefully.

One of the perks was that there was a coffee shop built into it. So whenever he was on his break, he'd go there to get his drink and whip out a book he'd be currently reading. Call him old fashioned, but he'd rather do something useful for himself than slacking off.

On his late shift, he was at the front desk and was sat down on the computer, organising the list of the returned and borrowed books.

"Excuse me?"

A soft voice interrupted him and immediately his concentration vanished. He inwardly let out a gruff before standing up to help the person. When he turned around however, all his thoughts about the unfinished work vanished when his eyes locked onto a newcomer.

Her smile was radiant. "Sorry for disturbing you."

Shadow practically stood there like an idiot as he continued to stare at the girl in front of him, feeling completely taken aback. When he realised that he was probably looking stupid, he shook his head and cleared his throat. "Can I help you?"

She didn't question his spacing out, thankfully. "Could you show me where you keep the fantasy novels?" she sheepishly held onto a leaflet, "I'm new to this place."

He didn't know why he asked this, he didn't know what instinct caused him to do it, but he did it anyway. "Would you like a guide around here?" Usually, he wouldn't normally do this role for that was another person's job. But it was an optional choice for him and he never considered to take it.

Well, until now.

She seemed surprised by his request and wanted to protest. "I-I don't want to take much of your time—"

"It's fine," he interjected, causing her sentence to cut off. Shadow walked around the front and looked at her once more before motioning to come along. She obediently followed him as she clutched her bag tightly around her shoulder.

The hedgehog gave her a miniature tour around the library, simply showing her where the returned books went, where different genres and fictions were placed and a machine which made it easier for people to find their books.

He suddenly felt nervous. Okay, so he was showing a stranger around the library. Big deal. Whatever. But why did he even bother? He could've easily sent her off to one of his co-workers.

Someone's in love.

Immediately, he snapped out of the sudden infatuation. The thought of love at first sight was ridiculous. How could anyone fall in love with someone who they don't even know?

It's possible.

"Shut up," he hissed at his conscious before stopping at the requested book section. Slowly turning his head to the orange echidna, he gestured his hand over to the books. "Here."

Her face brightened. "Thank you!" she said, clasping her hands and looked over to him, "Uh, Mister..."

"Shadow," he said with a somewhat hesitant nod, "Just Shadow's fine."

She smiled and stretched out her hand. "Tikal."

Shadow trailed his eyes down at it before shaking it. "...Nice to meet you."

Told you.

He grunted and walked off, leaving the girl to look around.

...

The next day Shadow walked around the building with a cart of returned books, lighting a red scan over them to make sure they went back correctly.

"Shadow?"

He froze at the time when he was putting a book back into its shelf. He shifted his attention to the owner of the familiar voice.

Tikal smiled bashfully, fiddling with the ends of her skirt. "Could you come with me for a moment?"

Shadow blinked before nodding, walking around his cart to follow the echidna into another aisle.

"I-I can't reach it," she said, pointing and Shadow followed her finger to a book with a purple spine, "And there isn't a stool nearby..."

Since he was taller than her, he pulled the book out with no problem and gave it to her.

"Thank you," she took the book gingerly, feeling embarrassed, "I couldn't find anybody around so I apologise for interrupting you."

He shook his head. "It's fine," she was too caring for his own good, "I'll make sure a stool is put here next time."

Her lips curled into that innocent smile again as she thanked him and walked off. Shadow's eyes longingly stared after her, the feeling of what seemed to be like butterflies fluttering in his stomach.

Crap. Was this what it felt like?

Of course he didn't want to say what 'it' was, for he was too stubborn. But now that was the case, he had to do something other than be a lovesick fool.

...

On Friday, he was becoming impatient. Shadow had a lot of patience but today? No. He was practically banging his knee underneath the table from time to time. He wanted class to be over, which was a surprise, because he loved biology. But none of the notes he was writing down was going into his head.

The only thing in his head was Tikal.

He didn't even have a shift today, but he still wanted to see her. He wanted to see that smile, hear her soft voice, get lost into those blue eyes and—

"Duuuude, stop daydreaming and help me out here!"

Shadow paused his thoughts and paid attention to the waving hand in front of his face. With a groan, he put his pen down and looked across to the blue hedgehog. "What is it?"

Sonic raised an eyebrow. "Wow, that was easy. Usually I'd have to annoy you so you could help me," he crossed his arms, his finger underneath his chin, "Hmm, something's up."

The black hedgehog didn't shift the look on his face, however there was a sense of hesitation piling up in his stomach and he hoped to God that the lecturer would dismiss them anytime from now.

"If you don't want help, then stop wasting my time," Shadow said, going back to reading his notes.

The other rolled his eyes. "Whatever. After this, I'm gonna go collect notes from Tikal and study with Amy."

The sound of her name made him snap his head up, his mind fading away from his work. "Tikal?"

Sonic shrugged, tapping away on his phone. "Yeah."

Shadow pressed on. "You know her?"

Hearing the curiosity in his voice, Sonic looked up at Shadow with suspicion. "Uh, yeah. She's in my Literature class," he paused, blinking at the other hedgehog, "Why?"

"Nothing," Shadow said immediately and uttered a curse when he realised how nervous he sounded.

The blue blur didn't say anything. Instead, there was a somewhat staring competition between the two hedgehogs. Shadow felt uncomfortable. Sonic never intimidated him in the least. However, he unfortunately seemed to be catching on. And that was never a good sign.

Sonic finally spoke. "Do you like—"

"Don't say it," Shadow cut him off, regaining his glare.

His eyes widened. "Holy—"

The lecturer dismissed the class.

In a flash, Shadow quickly packed up his things and walked out.

Then he forgot that Sonic was much like him, so the blue hedgehog had no problem with catching up. "You like Tikal?"

He looked around before he stopped walking. Shadow turned to face Sonic, giving up on his guard. "Is that a crime?"

The other smirked. "I'm just surprised is all," Sonic said as he looked up at the ceiling, "Tikal, huh? Wonder what made you like her," he stared back at him, "I mean, you're impossible to talk to and you're grumpy as hell all the time and—"

"Okay, I'd rather not have this conversation with you of all people," Shadow said and began to walk off again.

"Wait!" Sonic sped up and blocked him from going any further, "Are you gonna ask her out?"

"I've only just met her a few days ago in the library," Shadow shook his head, "That would be weird."

"Yeah well," Sonic rolled his eyes, "Stop being so anti-social and get to know her better."

He huffed. "Whatever."

"Hey, I'm giving you bro to bro advice," the blue hedgehog put his arm around his shoulder and grinned, "The ladies love it when a guy makes the first move."

"And I'm suppose to be taking advice from someone who took his girlfriend to a chilli dog stand on the first date," Shadow said dryly as he shrugged off his arm, "Real smooth."

"Shut up!" Sonic barked, feeling heavily insulted, "Amy loves eating them too ya know!"

Shadow only just rolled his eyes as they continued to walk out of the campus.

Someone called them. "Guys!"

The hedgehogs turned around to see a pink hedgehog waving at them, gesturing to come over.

"Hey Ames!" Sonic grinned as they did so.

Shadow's walking became relatively slower when he noticed an orange frame behind Amy. From the corner of his eye, he could see Sonic just smirking, confirming his suspicions as to who it was.

Amy hugged Sonic for a brief moment before pulling away. "How was class?"

"Eh, it was okay," Sonic scratched the back of his head and turned his attention to the orange echidna, "Hey Tikal! Do you have the notes?"

Tikal stopped rummaging through her bag on the bench as she looked over. However her eyesight stopped on Shadow, making him stiffen. He saw her eyes widen and really, all the black hedgehog could do was look away.

Little did he know she was smiling though.

"I do," Tikal pulled out pieces of slightly crinkled up paper and handed it over to her friend, "I left the rest at my dorm, but I could email them to you."

"It's no problem, thanks!" Sonic took the notes and shuffled them into his bag before noticing the situation, "Hey uh, Amy? You wanna come to my dorm and study?"

Damn that hog.

Amy seemed to be oblivious to it and nodded. "Sure!" she went to Tikal, giving her a hug, "I'll see you on Monday," Tikal nodded with another smile. The pink hedgehog sent a farewell to Shadow before Sonic took her hand, the happy couple walking off.

One of these days he'll get revenge. One of these days.

Tikal stood up, clutching her bag around her shoulder. "Hi."

He pocketed his hands and gave her a nod.

"Do you have a shift today?" she chirped, a hint of hope in her voice.

"I don't," he said and saw the tad bit of hope fading away from her eyes, but he quickly regained himself, "But I'm going to get a drink. Would you like to accompany me?"

Honestly, it sounded like he was asking her out on a date. And the thought of it caused unwanted heat to spike across his cheeks.

"That would be nice," she said, her expression looking uplifting.

Seriously, angels weren't suppose to be on earth, were they?

As corny as it sounded, he couldn't help to think that she was one.

Oh god, she was making him feel things.

...

"You didn't have to pay for me," Tikal told him as they were sat in a quiet area of the coffeehouse, "I-If anything I should be the one repaying you for helping me."

"It's okay," he said, putting down his cup, "It's rare that I'd invite someone to join me anyway."

"You like being alone?" she asked, voice sparking a bit of interest yet sincerity.

"I like being able to concentrate," Shadow replied, "I get my work done better."

The echidna nodded. "That's fair enough. Is that why you wanted to come here today? I don't mind if you want to get things done."

His grip on the cup loosened when he looked at her. "No, I..."

Want to hang out with you, he wanted to say.

Shadow didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable though, saying something so weird and intimate out of the blue.

"I have some unfinished papers, but I can do those tomorrow," he said instead, inwardly praising himself for the response, "I'm nearly done with them so they won't take long."

Nice save.

"Ah," Tikal understood and gave him a smile, "Good luck on those papers then!"

Shadow cracked a smile of his own. "Thanks."

"Oh," she leaned down and pulled out something from her bag, "Do you think you could extend my borrowing time for this?" Tikal presented a book in her hand, "It's due in two days, but I haven't finished reading it yet because of my assignments."

"Of course," he held out his hand so she could give it to him, "How long would you like it for?"

The echidna handed over the book. "I think a week would be enough," she giggled, "It's a slow burn so I want to be able to read it properly."

He took a look at the book's cover before flipping it over to scan the blurb. "Is it good so far?"

"Mhm," Tikal answered whilst taking a sip of her coffee, "It's about a girl named Lily, and she loves to draw!" she beamed, clasping her hands together in excitement, "Unknowingly to her friends, she's also a wizard! So whenever she draws something, she can bring it to life and create her own fantasy world! I haven't gotten far into it yet but she seems like such a sweet character and—"

She continued to ramble on about the book and Shadow took notice of her happy expressions. Her eyes and smile all looked so innocent and real that he couldn't help but gawk at the girl. Her uplifting attitude sent tingles down his spine and left that unsettling feel of butterflies in his stomach again.

Chaos, and her voice.

He could listen to her talk all day.

Shadow shook his head. Was he officially becoming some lovesick fool?

He peaked to see that she was smiling at him as she ended her talk. And it suddenly felt warm against his muzzle, in which the heat was impossible to fight back.

Oh dear. He was.

"Shadow?" he heard her call, and the hedgehog snapped out of his trance and stared at her concerned face, "Are you okay? You look... red."

He wanted to choke on his drink but managed to hold it back and down it slowly. Stupid emotions. "It's just a little hot in here."

Which was true since everyone orders mostly a warm drink rather than an iced one. Steam always flew through the air. But still, it was a stupid answer to give. Though judging from her face, she seemed to have bought it.

"Oh," she was genuinely concerned, "Would you like me to get you a glass of water then?"

"It'll pass," he said, waving the kind gesture off, "But thank you."

Tikal slightly tilted her head at him before nodding. "All right."

...

Sonic came over to the counter and slammed his pile of books down in front of him. Shadow calmly averted his eyes towards them before darting his gaze at the male. "What?"

"So, how'd it gooo?" the blue hedgehog asked him, leaning against the counter, "Did you get to know her better?"'

He sighed. "She likes to read in her spare time, she loves writing and she wants to become an author," he then got up from his chair and began to register the books, "There, happy?"

Sonic nodded. "I'm guessing she hasn't noticed that you like her yet?"

"I'd rather not rush things," he said, "Hell, we haven't even called ourselves friends yet."

The other rolled his eyes. "If you two are seeing each other in a library and hanging out, then you're already friends! It speaks for itself!"

"Shut up," Shadow hissed after hearing some muttered complaints, "And okay. But on the contrary, I'm not like you so I'm taking things my own pace."

"Taking things your own pace, huh?" his rival crossed his arms, "What if someone else takes her before you do?"

The sudden question made him stop what he was doing. "Someone else?"

"Really, what if someone else was interested in her?" Sonic shrugged, "Amy told me she isn't with anybody, but that could change in due time. And that person changing it may not be you."

Shadow stalled for a moment. Another guy with Tikal? For some reason, the thought of it disturbed him. From what he'd seen and heard, a lot of guys have been taking several advantages towards girls, and there was no doubt that someone would do the same to echidna. She was far too kind and forgiving, probably even oblivious as he was when it came to romantic relationships. "I guess that would be unfortunate..."

"It would," the other hedgehog shook his head and pulled out his phone, quickly texting something.

Shadow felt his phone buzz from his pocket and he dug it out. "Whose number is this?"

"It's Tikal's," Sonic replied, "I usually text her if she wants to hang out with Amy and I or if I need help with my assignments."

He glanced at him. "I don't think I would need it right now."

"Look, Twinkle Park let's couples go in for free," Sonic put his phone away before he leaned in slightly, "Text her and ask if she's available this Saturday. If she is, then meet up with her and hang out."

"What if she isn't?" Honestly, he saw how engrossed she was when she was working. He didn't want to be in the way of that.

"Pfft I doubt it," the speedster seemed to have thought it'd be ridiculous, "Plus, she already has a liking towards you so there's no way she'd say she can't."

Shadow eyed at the number on his screen before letting out a longing sigh. "Fine, whatever. I'll ask her."

"That's the spirit!"

He rolled his eyes whilst pocketing his phone. "Get out. You're annoying me."

Sonic grinned, picking up his books. "Good luck!"

"Yeah, yeah."

...

On that Saturday, Shadow had been sat on the bench distracting himself by playing a mini game on his phone. Tikal had agreed that she'd be able to go with him, and the anticipation and nerves started to kick in. What if she found it to be boring? Twinkle Park wasn't exactly boring but wouldn't she find him boring? He wasn't exactly the type of person to get overly excited about certain things that most people would. And he's never been on a date before, though he had a rough idea what to do in them. The park was packed with many things, so it should be fairly easy, right?

Ugh, all this overthinking nonsense was hurting his head. Who knew liking someone could send you off to your limits?

"Shadow?"

His attention on his phone quickly faded when he heard the familiar angelic voice. He looked up to see Tikal standing in front of him, and immediately took notice of her outfit. It was different from what she'd usually wear for the female echidna was wearing a light green dress.

Shadow didn't mean to stare for so long and when he realised the duration, he stood up as he cleared his throat. "Hey."

Were their greetings always going to be this awkward?

"Have you been here before?" she asked, looking towards the entrance of the park with curiosity.

"No," he answered. He's only ever heard Sonic and Amy talk about it when they go out on their dates. Rouge would sometimes talk about it whenever she went with Knuckles. He had sped past it a few times but never really paid attention to it, "It's my first time."

Tikal let out a soft laugh. "That's okay. In that case, I guess we could look around?"

"Sure," Shadow answered with a nod, phone in his pocket. She gave him a smile before they made their way to the gate.

"Do you have the tickets?" she queried.

He gave her an awkward gaze but before he could answer, the lady at the front desk beat him to it.

"Couples go in for free!" she loudly stated, making the echidna flinch over to the female fox, "Twinkle Park offers exclusive items and discounts for cute couples, so enjoy!"

Way to go, fox woman.

"O-Oh!" Tikal felt her cheeks heating up as she looked at Shadow. He didn't say anything, in fact he refused to look at her as he started to walk inside the park. Tikal thanked the lady and obediently followed him.

"Sorry," he apologised, "I should've told you beforehand."

She shook her head with a giggle. "No, it's fine."

Shadow smiled a little and then looked around. It was quite busy, which was expected since it was Saturday. Truthfully, he didn't know where to start. It was a little too soon to go on the rollercoasters. It was nearly lunch time, so perhaps they could eat first? He turned his head around to ask Tikal where she would like to go, only to see the girl's attention had diverted towards a stand full of stuffed chao toys. He trailed his eyes over to the game that was required to win one.

"Do you want one?" he asked her. It seemed pretty simple. All you had to do was shoot a couple of darts perfectly into the middle.

"I'm not really good at aiming," Tikal said sheepishly when she too gazed over to the game.

Shadow gave her a side glance before slowly making his way towards the stand. He paid the worker the cash as the darts were given out to him.

When Tikal saw what he had done, she quickly wanted to protest. "Shadow—!"

He calmly threw the darts without fail, and a few seconds later, the sound of the bell dinging indicated that he had won the prize.

"Congratulations!" the worker said and walked around the stand to grab one of the stuffed chao. He handed it over to Shadow before serving the next customer.

"Here," he held out the chao to her, which she hesitantly took.

"Sh-Shadow..." Tikal was flustered, her eyes widening, "I-I appreciate it! But..."

"But what?"

She then laughed at his oblivious manner. "You don't have to pay for me for everything. It's okay if I can't afford it."

He felt confused at that. Wasn't the guy suppose to spoil the girl as much as possible on dates? Then again, Tikal probably just saw this as a friendly outing, not a date.

"But thank you!" Tikal hugged the chao with joy and Shadow found the sight to be... adorable.

Yes, the word was out of his usual vocabulary. But there was no point denying it to himself.

"She's so cute!" she beamed, letting it rest against her stomach.

"You like chao?" he asked, making her look up at him.

"I do," she smiled, "I visit the Chao Garden frequently to give them company."

Such a kind hearted soul she had. Seriously, why did fate even let him near this girl? "I see."

"If you want, we could go there together someday," Tikal said, gently stuffing away the toy, "I'm sure they'd love to see you!"

He wasn't entirely on the fence about that. Sure, chao were innocent little creatures but they were excessively hyper all the time, wanting you to play with them. But if it was for her, then he wouldn't mind. That way he could see her smile a lot more.

Boy, what a man would do for a woman.

"Sure," he said before looking at the time, "Would you like to go eat now? We can explore more after."

"All right," she said, "But please don't pay for me this time?"

Shadow narrowed his eyes at her, but then remembered what she said before. "We'll split it."

Hearing that there was no room for argument in his voice, she sighed as she shook her head with another smile. "Fair enough."

...

"Where do you want to go next?" Shadow asked, eyeing around the park. He glanced over to the echidna, but didn't find her immediately. He turned around completely to see her apologising to someone before running up to him.

"I'm sorry. It's just really crowded here, " Tikal said, uncomfortably rubbing her shoulder, "I guess around after lunch it gets really packed."

She wasn't wrong. They were lucky enough that they easily found a seat when they ate, because as soon as they sat down, floods of people came through the doors. He didn't think they'd make it out of the food court alive.

Shadow wasn't much of a people's person so he understood how she must've felt. "We can go to a quieter place if you'd like."

"You don't want to go on any of the rides?" she questioned him.

He shrugged. "That's if you want to."

Tikal looked over to the rollercoasters. Many went upside down in circles while there were others dropping you down fast. "I-I'm not a big fan of rides," she said sheepishly and looked back at him, "But I'm not stopping you from going!"

"I'm not into them," he said, letting out a chuckle. That's because he could already go ten times faster than those rollercoasters. It'd be pointless.

She seemed relieved by his answer. "I remember seeing an empty spot we went passed."

The black hedgehog nodded, knowing exactly what spot she was talking about. "Just walk close to me so you don't get lost."

He was about to start moving again until the feeling of her hand stopped him.

"Actually I," her hand reached for his own, and held it and Shadow swore his whole arm just fell off. She glanced up at him, blushing deeply, "D-Do you mind?"

Did he mind? What the—of course not! Throughout this whole date, he had been having little mini arguments with himself whether to make a subtle move or not. This went far beyond his expectations.

"I don't mind," he replied smoothly, fighting off the tickling sensation in his stomach.

Tikal was grateful. "Thank you!"

Shadow quickly looked away as they started walking. The more they walked, the more busier it got. He felt her squeeze his hand, possibly for comfort. So being the gentlemen he was, he squeezed back.

Now they really looked like a couple.

And the redness on his cheeks was really taking its toll.

Chaos, just slap him. He could be sweating beads right now. Seriously, how does one even do this? How does Sonic, of all people, deal with all this with Amy everyday? Hell, how does Knuckles even manage do this? The guy was hard-headed as a bull, but he still managed to sweep Rouge off her feet. And here he was, Shadow the Hedgehog, surprised he could even stand when his hand is being held by a beautiful echidna.

Once they got through the crowd, they both simultaneously let go. He quietly grimaced, missing the warmth. The two got to the spot and sat down on the table. Since most people were at the centre of the park, there was hardly anybody around the outside, making it a perfect opportunity for him to sort his thoughts out and have a proper conversation with her.

"Maybe Twinkle Park isn't the best place for us," Tikal laughed out, "Perhaps next time we can go to a normal park."

He couldn't agree more. "Yeah."

After that, there was some silence. Tikal managed to distract herself as she sorted out her bag.

Shadow frowned slightly, wondering in his head if he could do this. If she was happy about his feelings and accepted them, then it'd be a dream come true. He wouldn't have to worry about anybody else taking her, he'd pretty much be less gloomy all the time, and most of all, his friends wouldn't constantly nag him about not getting a girlfriend.

His frown deepened. Then there were the consequences. Rejection. The word left a sour taste in his mouth. What if he got rejected? They've formed a friendship, but just confessing and her not feeling the same way would cause an awkward barrier between them, and possibly a shot of his pride. She probably wouldn't even spare a look at him.

It's now or never, Shadow.

"Tikal."

The echidna stopped fiddling with the things in her bag and paid her attention to him. "Yes?"

He saw her put her bag away and straighten her posture. "I would... like to talk to you about something."

"Of course," she smiled, her expression not shifting, "Anything!"

Shadow blushed openly in front of her, because there was no excuse or reason to hide it now.

His stomach started to do backflips, his fingers were shaking. Lord, he could even feel his teeth threatening to chatter.

So much for big talk.

Damn it all.

"Actually," he changed his mind, "...Never mind."

Wasted a day, and realised he wasn't ready. All that self debating didn't teach him a thing or two. Just perfect.

Tikal's smile slowly vanished as she tilted her head, before sitting up again, her lips curling once more. "May I talk to you about something then?"

It wasn't something he expected for her to say, so when he darted his eyes over her, the sudden anxiety and anticipation crept in him again. "Go ahead."

"You're a nice person to hang out with," she stated suddenly, "Sonic and Amy have told me a lot about you," Shadow's eyes widened slightly at that but she reassured him quickly, "But they never said anything bad! In fact, they said you were intelligent, patient and fun to be with!" Tikal's smile widened, "Which I agree!" she reached for his hand without his resistance, and laced their fingers together, "I felt intrigued when I first met you, because you looked like you seemed down," Tikal laughed gently, "I think you're really sweet and—"

"I like you," he blurted out.

And it felt like a glass just shattered onto the floor.

Tikal stopped talking and her blue eyes widened at him, her grip on his hand loosening. Shadow stared back at her, his mouth slightly apart. He blinked, twice, and looked down at their hands. He gritted his teeth before clearing his throat. "Excuse me," Shadow said, getting up from his chair in an attempt to try and find a nearby bathroom or somewhere to flee the horrid scene.

Just when he was about to walk off, she stopped him. She stopped him by getting a hold of his hand again and making the hedgehog turn around to face her.

The smile he'd always be yearning to see plastered her lips once more as she intertwined their fingers.

"I think you're really sweet," she continued from where she had left off, "And I feel like I want to get to know you better, because you're an interesting person to me," Tikal blushed, but regained her confidence as she observed their locked hands and glanced back up at him, "I'm just happy you feel the same way."

Shadow felt his heart thumping quickly, like it could rip out of his chest any second. "Are you saying...?"

She laughed, cupping his face with her free hand before placing a soft kiss on his cheek. Tikal pulled away, and leaned her forehead against his, her arms around his neck. "Yes."

...

A few weeks later

Shadow was the last to step out of the library as he locked up for the night. Sticking the keys into his pocket, he went down the steps just in time to catch a glimpse of orange at the bottom of the staircase.

Tikal stopped reading when she caught him walking down. "Hey," she said, putting her book away and smiled up at him.

"How long have you been waiting out here?" he asked, grabbing a hold of her hand as their fingers slowly laced together.

"Not long," Tikal replied, gently pecking his lips, "How are you?"

"Fine," Shadow murmured, eyes half-lidded as their lips connected once more, "How was class?"

"Okay," she giggled, "I've handed in all of my assignments, so I guess I have that weight off my shoulders now."

He chuckled lowly and placed another kiss on her forehead. "I'm glad."

Smiling again at the affection, Tikal looked up at him. "Coffee?"

Shadow smiled back, squeezing their hands. "Yeah."

Author's note:

And then freaking Sonic is yelling in the back saying "I SHIIIIIIIP" and Amy embarrassingly drags her blue bby away, giving a supportive thumbs up to OUR PRECIOUS BABIES!

I like this one, but at the same time, I kinda don't. It seems so cheesy but I'm still proud of it no matter what! I hope you guys enjoyed it and thank you for the continuous reviews, favs and follows! I'm gonna go play Sonic Mania and GET THROUGH THESE DAMN SPECIAL STAGES.