New Romantics

by love-ruins-everything

So maybe it took Amy a while to get over Sonic… Who doesn’t go off grid for a few years? Amy was doing her own thing now and make the best out of a bad reputation. So when she crosses paths with Shadow, will he be able to see her for who she has become? Or will he only know her for who she no longer is?

6. It’s Nice To Have A Friend

Chapter 6: It's Nice To Have a Friend

---

Shadows POV

Sunday morning sunlight came screaming through my window blinds.

Of course I'd forget to shut the fucking blinds!

I groaned heavily and rolled out of bed, scooping my Chao, Ammo into my arms and out of bed with me. I threw on a pair of gym shorts from my dresser drawer and decided to skip out on a shirt for now.

I head for the bathroom and place him on the counter beside the sink and begin preparing our toothbrushes. After placing the perfect amount of toothpaste on my regular toothbrush and his baby sized toothbrush, I hand him his brush and we begin cleaning our teeth.

After our early morning grooming session, I head into the kitchen with Ammo and prepare his breakfast for him.

We head to the living room afterwards and settle on the couch to watch some early morning cartoons.

Nothing can ruin a Sunday lazy day session except uninvited guests, and Murphy's Law is Knuckle's middle name.

Before I can even get interested in the cartoon's surprisingly complex plot line, I hear a frantic pounding at my front door.

When I open the door, Knuckles stumbles into my house, still dressed, very poorly, in the clothes he wore last night.

"What the hell are you doing?" I groan, as I slam my front door shut behind him.

"You! I'm here to talk to you!" He says, scrambling himself together.

"Why are you here so early?" I sigh, rubbing my eyes as I head back to the couch with Ammo.

Ammo understands the sacredness of Sunday mornings.. he would never be this annoying.

I snuggle the Chao sleepily, and his bulb turns into a big heart for a second then returns to its spiky norm as he ignores me to watch the tv.

I look at Knuckles who is trying to readjust his clothes, to not look so thrown together, but with no avel.

"Rouge called Amy for coffee and Amy agreed!" Knuckles said frantically.

"So?" I replied, utterly confused and slightly irritated.

How is she already fucking up my Sunday mornings?

"Sooooo! Rouge sent me here to see if Amy was leaving from here!" he said, and I almost face palmed right then and there.

"Why the hell would she be leaving from here?" I groaned, leaning back on the couch and rubbing my temples.

The hangover wasn't that bad, but the headache from listening to Knuckle's fucked up logic was brutal.

"Look, Rouge says 'jump', I say 'how high, babe?'. I don't question her logic, I just support it blindly!" The echidna said, crossing his arms over his chest before taking a seat beside me on the couch.

"Simp," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Damn right," he said proudly, without skipping a beat.

I rolled my eyes again and then leaned back into the couch to watch the tv again.

We sat there watching the show together for a few minutes before Knuckles said:

"So… what did happen last night?"

~~~

Amy's POV

I walked into the coffee shop and whined at the noise of the bell ringing above the door, signaling my entry.

Why is everything so damn loud?

Before I could start my search for her, Rouge shouted my name from across the coffee shop, waving her arms frantically.

Why is she being so louddd…

I made my way over to the small coffee shop table and slowly pulled out my seat so as to not make too much noise.

Before I could even sit down all the way, Rouge was inches from my face leaning over the coffee table, her great big teal colored eyes staring into my soul for answers.

"Soooooooo," she said, not blinking as she stared at me. I leaned back in my seat away from her and pulled my hoodie over my head, pulling the hoodie strings tight, leaving only a small hole for my mouth and nose to poke through.

"What do you want?" I groaned as I hung my head down not wanting to let in any light or noise at all.

"Don't play dumb with me! Tell me everything!" Rouge begged, as she slid me a coffee.

I tasted it and was surprised to find that it was just the way I like it. I slip the warm, dark goodness that is my roasted drink and fantasize about a coffee IV drip.

Rouge clears her throat on purpose and gives me a look and I know I've got to start talking or she'll take my sweet, beautiful, perfect cup of coffee away.

"Nothing happened!" I sighed and she groaned in response, slamming her head on the table.

She sat back up a few seconds after her dramatic head bang and said, "Fine, just tell me, in great detail, what happened when you left the bar!"

"Nothing, Rouge, I swear! We left the bar, we walked, we talked, we went home," I said, shrugging nonchalantly.

"Ah-ha! You guys went home! Who's place, his or yours?" She snapped back at me with a sly, devious smile and one pompously raised eyebrow.

"What?!—No, Rouge! He walked me to my house then he left, I'm presuming to his own home. But hey, if he's still wandering the city streets alone and hungover, that's on him, he said he only lived three blocks away." I said before returning to my coffee, hoping it would wash all my hangover pains away.

"Lame~" Rouge groaned again, but I could tell her brain was steadily thinking of ways to tear into my head.

"So what did you guys talk about~?" She cooed her words, giving me that same smirk look from earlier.

I sighed and rolled my eyes at her. I shouldn't have answered her text this early without at least one cup of coffee already in my system…

I just wanted to enjoy my coffee in peace and quiet until I could nurse this headache away. And yet here I was getting the third degree from Rouge instead.

She's your best friend, quit being such a bitch to her… You did agree to come out, and you knew she'd be like this when you left with him. Just tell her so you can enjoy your coffee…

"We talked about being drunk and drinking, we talked about what he's been doing for the last few years which was work, and we confirmed our friendship," I said cooly, taking another warm and glorious sip from my coffee cup.

Mhmmm… Coffee…

"Confirmed your friendship?" Rouge said back, just as cooly, raising an eyebrow at me as she took a sip from her coffee cup as well. She places the cup back down on the table and gives me a devilish smirk.

"I just asked if we were really friends," I shrugged, avoiding her eye contact.

I could feel her eyebrow still raised and a smirk still beaming on her face without even looking up at her. But when I made eye contact with Rouge, her look cut me to the core and I felt like I had to defend myself further.

"Well he's your friend, not mine… At least he wasn't until after last night… Look, I wasn't exactly everyone's cup of tea back in the day, including yours I might add," I said, giving her a sharp glance before continuing my statement.

"I knew he wasn't exactly a big fan of me back in the day and I didn't want him to feel strong-armed into being friends with me just because you guys were… I also didn't want to crash into your friend group if he wasn't okay with it either."

"The Amy I know doesn't take no for an answer," Rouge laughed but nodded her head in agreement with what I said.

"Yeah we'll that Amy isn't exactly little miss popular," I replied, nervously as I raised my eyebrows at my coffee cup in my hands, and an uncomfortable grin etched into my face.

"At my core, I love all my friends deerly and I just want them to be happy, I always have… I may have been a little aggressive with that notion in the past but I'm working on it now, starting with you guys," I said, a nervous grin still lingering on my face as I look up at Rouge.

"And Shadow~," Rouge pokes fun back at me with a smile and a wink.

"And Shadow," I confirm, rolling my eyes at her, but wearing a genuine smile.

~ Shadow's POV ~

"So… what did happen last night?" Knuckles asked. He was trying to act nonchalant about it but I could see right through him. He gazed lazily from the tv at me and when our eyes met he quickly turned back to the tv like he'd been caught.

"Why do you wanna know?" I rolled my eyes, frustrated with his and Rouge's sudden obsession with me and that pink airhead.

"Oh come on man! You know why!" Knuckles laughed, punching me lightly in the arm. His light punching still kind of hurts but I won't let on like it does.

"You totally had the hots for her before you knew who she was!" He laughed again.

I rolled my eyes hard and even though I wanted to avoid this conversation I had to defend myself.

"Yeah—Well——She was—-shut up!" I managed to stutter out, unsuccessful in my defense.

"You can't even deny it!" He laughed harder, and my face grew red and hot.

"From across the room she looked—! Well her dress was really short and I—! Ugh!" I groaned, sinking deeper into the couch.

"Hey, I get it! Amy's grown into a beautiful young lady…" Knuckles said with a kind smile that reached his eyes.

"Gross man, you say it like you're her grandpa or something," I rolled my eyes.

"I prefer 'Protective Older Brother'. Now that she's back, I'm gonna do a better job of being that friend for her. She deserves it." He said proudly to himself.

Good grief.

"Yeahhh," I say sarcastically, "and you're doing an amazing job already! What older brother wouldn't send some rude asshole looking for a one night stand straight for her!"

"Oh whatever man—I knew she wouldn't go home with your angry ass. You're like a walking red flag," he shot back at me. I could tell he was joking by the end of his sentence, but for some reason it still upset me.

Am I really that much of an asshole?

"So what, I'm a little gruff? I don't have time for idiots and fakers!" I cross my arms in frustration.

"Relax dude, I'm only Joshing you! We know you're not mean, you just act all big and tough," he said, before getting up and heading to the kitchen.

I could hear him rummaging around in the fridge but I was too busy caught up in my thoughts to fuss with him.

Does Amy know I'm not as mean as I come off?

I thought back to the events of the night… I remember saying certain things that made her get quiet or she'd get a far off look in her eyes. I remember saying things that made her apologize as if she'd done something wrong when I was just being rude.

Hell of course she thinks I'm an asshole, I told her I was straight to her face!… Why do I care if she thinks I'm an asshole or not?

"So what happened last night?" Knuckles said, sitting back down beside me and interrupting my thoughts. He was eating a bunch of green grapes as he looked dead at me, waiting for an answer.

"I walked her home and then I went home." I said, bluntly, not meeting his eyes.

"That's it?"

"She was drunk and giggly… we talked a little—"

"—What did you talk about?" The Echidna interrupted me, almost spitting out a mouthful of grapes.

"We talked about… I don't know… work and stuff?

"And stuff? What kinda stuff?" He said, still eating more grapes.

"I don't know, we talked about drinking and work and what we've been up to. Talked about us being friends and stuff…"

"Yawn! And here I thought I'd have some juicy tidbits," Knuckles sighed as he finished off all the grapes he had in his hand.

"Sorry bro, can't give ya what doesn't occur," I shrugged him off.

I thought back to last night again. I remembered her arguing that I wasn't drunk… and her trying to pronounce inebriated… I know I was drunk because I remember laughing with her. Me! Laughing!

I remembered her tripping and me catching her… She held onto me the rest of the walk home, we walked the majority of the way with her tucked up under my arm…

My chest grew tight at the thought of it and my stomach grew uncomfortable, like it did when she first tuckered herself up underneath my arm.

If someone had seen us like that they'd think—!

"Hey!" Knuckle's voice caught me by surprise and I realized that I had been tuning him out.

"What?" I snap back at him. I search his face for answers and am too late to figure out what is going on. I realize from the smirk and the arched eyebrow that he's realized something.

Worst of all I know it's got to be the raging blush that is heating up my face at the moment, because I'm only just now realizing I have it.

"You were thinking about something from last night!"

"No I wasn't!" I snap back, crossing my arms in frustration.

"You totally were! That's why you're turning so red!" He shouted with glee, pointing at my face.

"I am not," I turned away from him quickly, hiding my face.

"Tell me dude! Come onnnn!" He whined, and then smacked me with a pillow.

I snapped my head back around angrily and gave him an eat shit and die glare. He dropped the pillow instantly, holding up his hands in surrender.

"Come on man, just tell me! We're bros!… and I promise I won't tell Rouge," he said, crossing his heart with one hand, the other still raised up.

"Will you shut up about it if I tell you what I was thinking about?" I groaned in defeat.

"Yes, yes, yes! As soon as you spill all the dets," Knuckles clapped in excitement.

"And you won't try to connect any stupid dots?" I sighed, preparing myself for the worst.

"I swearrrrrrr! Just tell meeeee!"

"Okay," I replied, taking a deep breath.

"Early into our walk, Amy tripped and I caught her," I started but should've known I'd be interrupted.

"The classic trip and catch cliche! It's just like in the rom-com animes!"

"It is not like that at all! Shut up or I won't finish!" I growl at him, unamused by his cheesy comparison.

He doesn't say a word but nods his head excitedly.

I sigh deeply and shake my head before continuing.

"They way I caught her, she ended up under my arm. She wrapped her arm around my back and we walked like that the rest of the way home… her arm around me, my arm across her."

The Echidna stared at my blankly, mouth gaping open.

He blinked a couple of times and the shock eventually faded, slowly, off his face.

"What——why?—So what happened after that?" He managed to cough the words out, choked up.

I could tell he was trying really hard not to act completely ridiculous and appreciated it, even though the entire conversation annoyed me.

"We walked until we got to her house. She went inside. I went home. That's all."

"That's all?!?" Knuckles panicked, realizing his precious tea session was coming to an end.

"That's. All." I growled, my red eyes piercing into him.

I do not want to say any more... I've already said too much.

"Why did you let that happen?"

I sighed heavily. That was the question, wasn't it…

"I was drunk, she was drunk... It was cold and she stumbled too much. If she had fallen down she would've been a crying mess and I hate drunk-crying girls. I just let her stay so she'd make it home in one piece," I replied, begrudgingly.

"How did it make you feel?" He asked, catching me off guard.

"Feel?" I snapped back. "I don't know, nauseous? Annoyed? Who cares! It was a one time thing. A one in a million time thing. She's lucky I even agreed to walk her home…" I mumbled, picking up Ammo and placing him back in my lap to relax.

"You offered to walk her home, not the other way around," Knuckles mumbled back at me, but I could tell he was satisfied with himself.

"Shut up!" I growled back, annoyed. He laughed and got up, walking over to the game console by my tv and turning it on.

"Wanna play?" He asked me, picking up two of my console's controllers.

"Yeah, whatever," I muttered, holding my hand out for the controller he handed me.

We booted up the game and started playing. Just when I hoped we'd moved past the stupid Amy centered conversation Knuckles shot one last sentence my way.

"I wonder why drunk you likes talking with Amy more than sober you likes talking with me." The red echidna smirked at me and snickered when my face turned red.

~~~

"What are you doing the rest of the day?" Rouge whined as I paid for my coffee and prepared myself to leave.

"Prepping for work? I don't know… I've got a huge assignment coming up this week, I really shouldn't have partied so hard last night," I said, shrugging my shoulders at her.

"You're telling me! They've given me my third write up this month, if I don't get it together, they're gonna dock my pay!" Rouge huffed and crossed her arms angering across her chest.

"Can you blame them? You and Knuckles are suppose to be guarding the Master Emerald, not—"

"—Hey!" Rouge shouted back, cutting me off. "You're supposed to be on my side! Besides! It's not my fault they keep assigning up together, they should've known better! We presented our relationship to HR and everything!"

"Oh yes, very noble of you to disclose your relationship to work before you spend all your guard duty—"

"—Amyyyy!" Rouge cut me off again, her face red and flustered.

I was only teasing her but man was it funny. She thinks everyone at work knows and is a little self conscious of it. But in all honesty I only know because I have it in good with Gretta in HR.

Despite their inapt rendezvous during work hours, they have the best track records for keeping the Master Emerald safe when they're on the same work crew.

Work hard, play hard.

"Forget work, let's do something fun tonight! Why don't we grill at your place tonight and watch the season premiere of Hedgehogs & Heartbreak?" She said,

"All of us?! At my house?!?" I blushed red hot at the thought of Knuckles and Shadow in my house.

"Yes! Won't it be fun?! We need to get together as a group more often!" Rouge smiled and she stood up and I stood up with her.

As we made our way out of the coffee shop, my brain raced searching for any answer to save me, but came up with no good excuses.

"I just don't think my house is guest ready…" I whined, nervously.

"Your house is perfect!" Rouge shot back at me, looping her arm in mine as we walked down the sidewalk.

"You've finished remodeling and the carpenter crew finished installing the back deck, it's perfect for grilling!"

"We just hung out last night? Isn't back to back a little much?" I asked. My anxiety was growing as tall as a mountain and I was getting worried.

"Me, Knuckles, and Shadow hang out like every other day! We hang out every weekend and most nights after work. Shadows' been a little distant ever since me and Knuckles started dating and here lately he's been in a funk... But now that you're back and ready to re-enter the scene, we can finally close the missing piece on our group!" Rouge smiled as she rubbed her cheek into the top of my shoulder, holding my arm in her hands, and leaning on me.

Instantly my anxiety started to decrease and I felt more at ease. It was nice having a friend who is so physically affectionate with her friendship… Cream is very reserved and keeps mostly to herself. I respect it, but it's hard to feel comfortable with someone who is not comfortable touching or being touched by you.

Having a friend who matches my love language of physical affection was very nurturing. I've been touch starved these past few years on my own and having a friendly hug or hand hold to reassure me is nice.

I leaned my head against hers for a few seconds and then nodded.

"Okay yeah, let's do it!… but only if everyone's down. Please don't force the guys to come over if they don't want to?" I begged Rouge, gripping onto her arms tightly with mine.

"I swearrrr, I won'tttt!" Rouge replied as she gave me a tight squeeze and then took a step back.

"I'm gonna hit up the store and grab us some groceries, so don't worry about anything I'll be the chef tonight!" Rouge said with a wink.

"You okay to walk home alone?" She asked with a genuinely concerned look on her face.

"Yeah, no problem!" I reassured her and also myself.

"Great! I'll meet you back at your place!" Rouge said with a smile as she spread her wings and took off into the sky, leaving me behind on the sidewalk.

I wish I could fly, that must be so much fun… Damn, I should've drove my bike instead of catching an Uber this morning!

With that thought, I started my path down the street heading back to my house. Anxiety started to creep back up on me and before I knew it I was running home.

I've got to get the house ready!

~~~

Knuckles POV

We were welling into the early afternoon when my phone rang.

I picked up the device to see a message from Rouge.

Rouge3*

Rouge3: Hey Handsome~

She is so sweet when she wants to be.

I messaged back right away and when my character died, much to Shadows frustration, he got up and walked into the kitchen, leaving me to converse with Rouge.

Rouge3*

Me: Hey babe, what up *

Rouge3: Grocery shopping! Wanna get the gang together tonight for supper? ;*

Me: I'm down, let me ask Shadow.

"Hey man! You wanna get together with the gang for supper tonight?!" I yelled from the living room to Shadow in the kitchen.

"Sure!" He replied back to me without hesitation.

Rouge3*

Me: He said sure

Rouge3: yayyyyyy -

Rouge3: 6:30 pm, Amy's place, I'll pick you guys up at 6:15ishh ;*

Me: yes ma'am *

Rouge3: thank youuu loveee 333

Me: ;* 3

I shut off my photo and looked over at the Chao sitting beside me.

Ammo gave me a disapproving head shake, like he knew what we'd done and what was about to happen.

"Where we eating at?" Shadow said, as he sat back down on the couch with me, handing Ammo a celery stick and opening a water bottle for himself.

As he took a swallow of his water I knew it was the perfect time to strike as I nonchalantly said, "Amy's place at six-thirty."

A cough, gurgling-snort came out of Shadows body as he struggled to keep from spitting his water out everywhere. Tears shot to his eyes and he frantically pounded on his chest to keep from choking.

"Am—-," he coughed and gagged, "Amy's?!?" He shouted, with more coughing involved.

I wanted to laugh so hard but knew he'd kill me if I did.

I only wish I had filmed this.

"Yeah Amy, she's part of the group now, right? Only seems fair we go mess up our new stomping grounds at her house."

"We'll forgive me for forgetting, but we all just hung out last night. Isn't it a bit much?" Shadow glared back at me as he coughed and then took another sip of water then cleared his throat.

"We used to hang out like almost every day before you bailed on us!" I said, a little more hurt in my voice then I meant to let on.

I knew it was probably because me and Rouge were pretty heavy on pda back when we first got together...

But once we cooled off it was like pulling teeth trying to get him to come back out with us.

"Whatever, fine, but why does it have to be at her house? Why not your place or Rouges?" the hedgehog replied, not making eye contact with me as he crossed his arms like a frustrated toddler.

"We always go there! Amy's new and we gotta do our part to make her feel welcome. Let's give her and her place a chance."

Shadow didn't respond to my answer but kept his arms crossed. His stubbornness knows no end.

"Hey look, if it's lame hanging there like your place is, then we won't hang there any more. Just mine or Rouge's place, I swear!" I said, trying to convince him as I placed one hand on my heart and held the other hand up like a scouts honor.

"My place isn't lame!" He snapped back at me, opening his eyes to glare at me.

"You animals just don't know what 'go home' means! Or what a cup coaster is!" He said, before he stood up and walked off visibly frustrated.

I called out after him, "You're right! Totallyyyyy not lame! Just too many rules!"

I could hear him grumpily mumbling to himself from the kitchen and I snickered."

~~~

Amy's POV

The idea of having Knuckles and Shadow in my house was nerve wracking to say the least.

It had been years since I'd seen either of them, and here we are day two and their coming to my house!… The first time I let Rouge come over I was so nervous I had Cream come over for back up.

They ended up getting along okay but I don't think Rouge was expecting the extra company…

In my nervousness, I had managed to deep clean every room of the house… twice.

I also baked a homemade vanilla cake, made whipped cream from scratch, and diced and candied strawberries for a strawberry shortcake. I even cleaned all the dishes that I dirtied up making the cake and put them all back up.

Now a perfectly decorated cake sat in my fridge, waiting for guests to arrive and it was only six o'clock.

I decided to get ready so I went to my bedroom and I frantically searched for something nice to wear tonight.

I looked in the mirror and sighed as I wondered what the others would be wearing. I hated sticking out or overdressing. But right now I felt extremely under dressed and worried I'd look lazy.

I was wearing blue jeans, a white tank top, and a pink and white plaid button up. The sleeves were rolled up to my elbows and none of the buttons were buttoned.

I pondered for a moment before finally deciding to take off my weighted gold bracelets; I wanted to really relax tonight.

I laid back on the bed behind me, taking a deep breath in and out, trying to relax.

I groaned to myself, trying to calm down my mind. Rouge would get here soon and I'd feel much better.

Just then, I remember I had a pet Chao, as she was climbing onto my chest and looking at me worriedly.

In all my cooking and cleaning she must have felt so overwhelmed and overlooked.

I sat up and hugged her in my arms, scratching her under her chin. The pink Chaos red bulb turned from a sphere to a heart as she cooed under my snuggles.

"Mamas being a big worry-wart, huh?" I asked her and she nodded in agreement as I pet her.

The doorbell rang through the house as my Chaos bulb flashed into a large exclamation mark and I giggled.

"Time to get this started," I sighed nervously.

~~~

Rouges POV

"You two act like you have some sense!" I scolded Knuckles and Shadow as I met them outside on Amy's front porch.

"He's being an asshole," Knuckles shouted as he shoved Shadow.

"He's being an asshole!" Shadow growled, pushing Knuckles back.

They usually didn't argue like this unless Shadows temper was a little on the short side or Knuckles was being extra annoying. Or both.

I grabbed both of them by their biceps and gave them a stern look.

"Would you two knock it off?! You were best pals this morning, why do you two always act out when I go somewhere in public with you?"

"He started it!" they both said in unison before rolling their eyes at each other and crossing their arms simultaneously as well.

"Look, we don't need to scare Amy off before she even gets comfortable with us! Do something useful with yourselves and go bring all the groceries inside from my car!"

I reach in my pocket and mash a button on my keys, popping open the trunk of my car which is parked in Amy's drive way.

As the boys head for my car I knock on the door and smile when Amy's soft smiling face meets me.

She looks absolutely cute in her outfit, giving major 'girl next door', effortlessly pretty vibes.

I'm impressed by how easily she pulls off most any style she sets her mind to. She went from grunge queen to Sunday afternoon princess in less than twenty four hours.

"Rouge! I love your top, you look amazing!" Amy smiles as she gives me a big hug and motions me into her doorway.

I have to look down because I momentarily forgot what I was wearing when she complimented me.

I'm wearing an oversized Kurt Cobain the Racoon tshirt as a dress, with black leggings underneath. I matched it with some black and studded booties.

"Thanks Amy, I got it at—-Amy! It smells amazing in here! What are you cooking?" I say as I cross over her house's threshold and into the hallway. It smells sweet and warm like a bakery and I eye her skeptically.

"I told you I was cooking tonight!"

"I only baked!" She replied in defense, holding up her hands in defeat, "I just made dessert!"

"No more cooking!" I laughed as I nudged her playfully and she nodded in agreement.

"We should show the boys where to put the—"

"—hey babe! Where do we put the groceries?!" Knuckles yelled from outside the door behind me, cutting me off.

"In the kitchen, follow me sweetheart!" I called back out to him as kindly as I could.

He better use his inside voice when he steps through that door or so help me Gods!—

~~~

Shadows POV

Knuckles was really starting to piss me off, for no reason other than he wouldn't let go of the walking Amy home thing.

Plus he swore he wouldn't tell Rouge but I have no doubt in my mind he probably will.

I wanted to trip him on the way into Amy's house but decided against it because he was carrying a lot of groceries and I didn't wanna ruin dinner because I was starving.

As I stepped inside the house I was shocked to find that the walls weren't coated in an annoying shade of pink.

The living room walls were painted a very dark shade of green with dark brown wood for all the furniture, from the coffee table to tv stand entertainment piece. The living room was dressed with ivy and gold home decor and abstract art pieces.

I stared in amazement as I followed Knuckles and Rouge into Amy's kitchen.

It was black and white marble countertops with black tiled walls and floors. Black and chrome kitchen appliances and all kinds of fancy looking kitchen tools. She had fancy blinders, food processors, and knife sets on the floating island counter. All of her kitchen ware that was hanging up was either copper or stainless steel.

Through the sliding glass door behind the dining room table I could see a patio deck with a swimming pool and grill. A small fire pit caught my eye and I wondered momentarily if we'd all get to grill and swim and chill out there one day.

"Amy, this place is amazing!" Knuckles shouted before I could get the words out.

"Isn't it lovely? She said she's been working on it for the past six months, ever since she moved in!" Rouge boasted as she started taking the groceries out of the bags that me and Knuckles sat down.

"There wasn't that much to work on… the original owners took great care of it," Amy said, blushing slightly and avoiding our gaze.

"I just redecorated a little bit… picked out paints and decor and finally invested in the kitchen tools I've always wanted. The hard part was getting the place when it went on sale. I've been watching this house for years but never thought they'd actually sell."

"How did you afford this?" Knuckles asked, almost cutting Amy off as she spoke.

My palm twitched and before I knew it I had smacked him in the back of the head.

"That's rude!" I hissed at the red echidna, who turned around to glare at me as he rubbed his head. But I could see the blush on his face and knew he realized what he'd asked, because he didn't try to hit me back.

"Oh, it's okay!" Amy said, blushing. She looked nervous and I knew Knuckles had hit a nerve.

"I've been saving up these past few years. When all you do is work and come home you don't spend as much as you'd think… I also received a kinda big inheritance when my mother died last year. She had a life insurance plan that went with it and… I didn't know how to spend it so I just put it in my savings. But when the house came up for sale, it felt like a good thing to spend it on."

As soon as she answered, the atmosphere of the room sank. Rouge stared daggers at Knuckles and he fidgeted uncomfortably in front of me.

I watched Amy as she took a deep breath and smiled before rummaging through the grocery bags.

"I'm starving," she said, "what's on the menu for tonight?"

Rouge's ears immediately perked up. She plastered a smile on her face and turned to Amy saying, "Well! Since you have such a beautiful kitchen! I thought maybe we could have chicken pasta with creamy tomato pesto sauce! And for sides, hot bacon caprese salad and wild mushroom bruschetta!"

"That sounds amazing, Rouge! Let's get started!" Amy smiled as she went to work pulling out pans and spices from her cabinets.

"Noooo Amy! I told you, I'd cook this time! I don't want you to worry or fuss in your own house!" Rouge whined as she took a pan out of Amy's hands.

Uh-oh.

I looked from the girls to Knuckles who was already almost sweating bullets. He looked at me and we nodded in agreement because we both knew: Rouge cannot cook.

There was a reason Knuckles lived on take out and always came to my house to eat out of my fridge.

Rouge was always trying to cook something and what Knuckles couldn't stomach, she put in Tupperware and forced him to finish later.

I was a victim of Rouge's terrible cooking a time or two. It's why I always offered to cook at Knuckles place and why we always ordered take out or ate out before hanging at Rouges place.

I knew we'd have to act fast if we wanted to save this night.

Amy can't possibly be a worse cook than Rouge… right?

"Oh, come on Rougeee. Don't take away this prime opportunity for Amy to show us what she's made of!" I said, not really wanting to speak up but also not wanting to put out another kitchen fire.

"What?" Rouge asked, her ears dropped and her smile faded into a frown. She looked super taken aback, and I felt sorry for her, but there was no way I could stomach burnt Italian food tonight.

"Amy's part of the group now right? Well, let's see how she cooks. She's gotta prove herself and it's her first time hosting dinner plans, so let her cook dinner," I said as nonchalantly as possible.

I hated hurting Rouge's feelings. She's been my longest friend. But not even her boyfriend could bring himself to tell her she cooked horribly.

"That's a great idea babe! Here!" Knuckles said, popping the top off a bottle of wine that was with the groceries, "Why don't you relax with a nice glass of wine and let Amy take care of it?"

"But… Amy shouldn't have to cook on her first night… she doesn't know the recipes…" Rouge looked half convinced, half defeated.

Amy reached in one of her cabinets and grabbed a glass, handing it to Knuckles who poured the wine and handed it to Rouge.

"It'll be easier this way, I already know where everything is in the kitchen. Why don't you give them a tour of the house instead?" Amy said, smiling nervously.

Rouge's ears perked back up and she took a small sip from the wine glass before shining a huge smile.

"Well… okay! But next time I'm cooking!" The bat agreed, and we all agreed with her although half of us didn't mean it.

Rouge grabbed Knuckle's arm and started heading for the living room, as she said, "Knuckie, this living room is inspired by the Master Emerald, did you know that?! The dark green shades of the paint plus the dark Cherry wood furniture—"

Rouge's voice faded off into the house and she chatted with Knuckles, drinking her wine. Knuckles looked over his shoulder and gave me a quick thumbs up.

What, no tour for me? Now what will I do with—

"—Did you want to stay and help me?" Amy voice said, pulling me from my thoughts.

"I—uhmm—yeah, sure…" I mumbled, not really knowing what to say.

My stomach did that weird twisting thing again and for some reason the kitchen felt hotter than when I first walked in.

I peeled off my dark blue jean jacket and laid it across one of the dining room chairs and walked back into the kitchen.

Glancing down at my black jeans and my white t-shirt, I wondered momentarily if I would get dirty while cooking.

I looked up at Amy who was watching me with nervous eyes.

She was wearing light blue jeans with a white tank top, and a pink and white plaid button up. She looked comfortable and common in the clothes, but there was a charm to the way she wore it. Her jeans and tank top fit snugly around her curves, and the button up hung off one of her shoulders loosely and relaxed.

Surely if we were going to make a mess she'd put on an apron?

I decided to myself that my clothes would survive the cooking process and walked over to join Amy in the kitchen.

She started pulling various pans and utensils out and began unpacking the bags of fresh food before us.

"I'm going to cook the pasta and the chicken to start, can I have you clean the mushrooms and run them through the food processor?" She asked, nervously.

"Yeah, of course," I responded, and felt a warmth rise in my cheeks.

I saw her face catch a shade of red and she quickly turned her back to me, cutting on her burners before adding water to a pot and placing it on the stove. She washed and seasoned some chicken thigh meat and tossed it in a pain beside the pasta on the stove. Then she placed a knife and cutting board beside the sink for me.

"I like your kitchen…" I said quietly as I washed the mushrooms in the sink and then started chopping them up.

"Thank you…" she said from the stove as she turned the chicken pieces over and around in the pan.

"You've got some pretty expensive equipment here…" I said, more to myself than her, as I started placing the mushrooms in the food processor. It was a top quality brand, like one you'd see in a famous chef's home or restaurant.

"I love to cook, me and my mom use to cook all the time. I made sure that this kitchen was remodeled and stocked with everything I needed to keep cooking like I did with her," she said and she moved the chicken off the stove, letting it rest.

As I processed the mushrooms she drained the pasta and tossed some olive oil on them.

She gave me a pan for the mushrooms and asked me to season and sauté them on the stove. Then she washed out the food processor, dried it, and then set it back up.

She added sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, bay leaves, garlic cloves and a few other ingredients and spices to the food processor and started it back up.

She buttered and seasoned some fancy looking bread and placed them on a pan for me to toast the bread on.

Then she added the tomato processor mix to her pasta and then added heavy cream and chicken broth to the mix.

It turned into a delicious looking creamy dish before my eyes. She added back the chicken and then sat it on the back burner to stay warm but not cook.

When I finished toasting the bread she helped me spoon the mushrooms on each piece of bread and then added Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese on top.

"This is the easy part," she said with a smile.

She moved the empty pans to the sinks and then handed me a frying pan.

"I'll bring you the bacon and you cook it all yummy and crispy," she said.

I did as she said and watched her out of the corner of my eye.

She cut bacon in half strips and brought them to me, then moved to the sink to wash her hands thoroughly.

Then she cut heirloom tomatoes and fresh mozzarella cheese into half inch slices on a cutting board. She arranged them and basil leaves on a serving platter and then salted and peppered it.

When I was finished with the bacon she crumbled it over the serving platter. Then she quickly added vinegar and oil to the pan I had cooked the bacon with, and warmed up the mixture. Finally she drizzled the warm bacon dressing over the cheese and tomatoes on the serving tray.

She placed pot holders on the dining room table and asked me to move the warm serving trays and bowls of food to the dining room.

As I was doing so, I heard her moving the now emptied pans and pots in her kitchen. When I got back from setting up the dining room table, she was washing her dishes in the sink swiftly.

"Slow down there, I'll help," I said without thinking, and reached into the sink taking a pan away from her.

Her eyes grew wide and her face blushed red but she stepped to the side without a word as I started washing the dishes.

I handed them to her one at a time as she towel dried them and put them back in her cabinets where they belonged.

"You're very efficient in the kitchen. Let's hope the food tastes as good as it looks," I said, starting to compliment her but quickly switching over to teasing her.

Her lips puckered up at my comment like she was mad, but her face was still relaxed and sweet.

"Don't diss my cooking, besides, you helped me so it's on you too," she shot back with a smile.

"I don't mean to be an ass... you really seem amazing at-"

"-Amy this food smells awesome!" Knuckles shouted as he walked into the kitchen with Rouge, who was gripping a now empty wine glass.

"We're almost done here! Y'all head to the table and I'll bring some more wine," Amy smiled at them before turning back to the dishes.

They left for the dining room and we finished the last few dishes in the sink. When I looked at her, she nodded towards the dining room and I didn't even need to say a word to know she was telling me, "Head in there."

She grabbed a bottle of wine and went to work popping it open. Just when I sat down with Rouge and Knuckles at the table, Amy walked in with the bottle of wine and a glass pitcher of water.

"Amy, this looks incredible~!" Rouge cooed as she looked across the table at the food happily. "How'd you make it without the recipe though?"

"When you cook enough you can usually look at an arrangement of ingredients and make all kinds of things. But what you had in mind sounded so good so I went with that!" Amy said with a warm smile.

Rouge nodded with a look of admiration and impression.

"We can have girls night here once a week if you'd like? I can show you how to make all kinds of yummy things~" Amy said with a smile, "And before you know it you'll be able to cook and recipes won't hold you back either!"

Rouge's eyes sparkled like stars and her face grew red with excitement as she said, "O M G, yes Ames!"

I looked at Knuckles who sighed. He looked relieved. Probably thinking that Rouge's terrible cooking might have a shot in hell of improving now.

I looked from Rouge and Knuckles to Amy who seemed happy but when her eyes met mine, she frowned softly and her eyes dropped.

"Where are my manners?! You guys are probably starving, let's eat!" She said nervously, and a tense smile crept across her face.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Knuckles said as he reached out and started making a plate, taking a little bit of everything on the table.

Rouge poured more wine into her glass while he made his plate and then she fixed her own plate.

I made myself a plate afterwards, getting a happy helping of everything.

I couldn't lie, my mouth was watering and all the delicious aromas in the air were driving me crazy. As I gathered a forkful of the chicken pasta I thought my tongue might leap out my mouth. It smelled so good in front of my face and I had to keep myself from shoving it in like a starving caveman.

As I took a bite the creamy tomato pesto sauce melted in my mouth with the crispy seasoned chicken and perfectly cooked pasta. It was all I could manage not to shove more into my mouth as quickly as possible.

I had to try something else so I reached for a wild mushroom bruschetta. I'm not a big fan of mushrooms but after smelling them cooked and seasoned I knew I had to try them.

I took a bite of the little bread side dish and again melted into bliss. The crunch of the toasted bread mixed perfectly with the seasoned and sautéed mushrooms and melted cheese. I might not like mushrooms but I was definitely going to have another one of these bruschettas!

After that experience I turned to the hot bacon caprese salad. It wasn't hard to sell me on the bacon part but the salad part would take some winning over.

Thankful this didn't look like a regular 'salad'. The only green on it was the basil leaves. I loved tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. And bacon's close to every man's heart.

I decided not to be shocked that it tasted good but was still somehow caught off guard from how good it really was.

Before I realized it I had finished my whole plate without muttering a word. Not talking wasn't uncommon for me, but not being talked to by Rouge and Knuckles while I didn't want to be bothered was unheard of.

I snatched my eyes away from my empty plate to look at Rouge and Knuckles.

Rouge was smiling and chewing on a mouthful of food, her plate half eaten. She placed a hand on her cheek and muttered, "Soooo gooddd~", as she continued to eat.

Knuckles was almost finished with his plate too, and he looked like everything I was scared I'd look like. He was shoving the mushroom bruschetta and chicken pasta into his mouth at the same time, as if he couldn't pick which one to eat. He was sporting the starving caveman style as he obliterated everything on his plate.

I turned from them to look at Amy. She looked nervous and had hardly touched the food on her plate.

When her eyes met mine she took a deep swallow and nervously asked, "Did you not like it? No one's saying anything…"

My jaw dropped to the floor as I stared gaping at her.

Is she serious? She can't tell?

~~~

Amy's POV

Everyone was eating without saying a word. It was driving me insane.

How can they not have anything to say? Is it that bad?!

I glanced over at Shadow as I watched him eat. He has a stone cold impression on his face like he was deciding if it was even worth eating. He glared at the mushrooms on the bruschetta before finally taking a bite. No reaction on his face he just looked at the bread dish in his hand before taking another bite.

How does he eat so emotionlessly? Does he hate it that much?

I turned to look at Rouge. She was giving me a smile as she ate away at the chicken pasta. She seemed like she liked it but I had a feeling her cooking and food judgment wasn't the best around…

I looked to her side at Knuckles who was eating like it was a race. Does he always eat so quickly?

I looked down at my plate. I tried so hard… and Shadow did such a good job helping me. Why do I feel like I've messed up the night before it even began?

I felt eyes on me and when I looked up to see who was staring at me, I'm met with Shadows' intense gaze. His plate was empty but he wore a small frown on his face and he glared at the food on my plate. His face was stone cold; not even a hint of a blush like the ones I have grown used to seeing on his face.

I start speaking before I can stop myself—"Did you not like it? No one's saying anything…"

His jaw drops open and he's staring at me in disbelief. I'm scared I've irritated him and am about to backtrack when he replies, "I've cleaned my plate and Knuckles is choosing your food over breathing and you're asking if we like it?"

A warm blush rushes across my face. He always sounds so stern I can never tell if he's being nice or cruel. He worded the question like I'm an idiot and a spark of anger burns in my belly.

Where does he get off being such a smart ass about it? Can't he tell I'm stressed out?!

I stop myself before popping off at the mouth at him. Old Amy has a short temper and an aggressive streak. New Amy isn't going to swing a hammer across someone's head just because they're being a smart ass. New Amy is going to be calm and polite and not overbearing and—

—I watch in amazement as Shadow reaches across the table and makes a second plate. Knuckles follows suit and Rouge makes another small plate of the salad.

He turns to look at me before he starts eating and says, "Of course, it's good," with a small smile.

My heart skips a beat and my stomach ties in a knot. I can feel the blush rushing to my cheeks as my face heats up but thankfully he's too busy eating to see me.

He was being a smart ass to pick fun at me… like friends do… because we're friends... And my friends like my food!

"Ames! You better hurry up and eat before it's all gone!" Rouge says with a smile. "This food is so good, I can't keep Knuckles away from it for long!" She laughed.

I smiled brightly as I nodded in agreement and dug into the food on my plate .

"As good as this is, we can't miss the premiere of Hedgehogs & Heartbreak!" Knuckles said, through a mouth of food, much to Rouges disliking.

She rolled her eyes and whispered, "Not with your mouth full babe," before reaching over and lovingly rubbing his free hand on top of the table.

He swallowed his food and whispered back, "Sorry babe," before picking up her hand from the table and giving it a kiss.

She giggled and took a sip from her wine glass, batting her eyes at him the whole time.

"Hedgehogs & Heartbreak?" Shadow asked, as he raised an eyebrow at the two.

"You know it! We watched season seven last year together! You and Knuckles rooted for Zoey to win, but Drew picked May!" Rouge said, giving Shadow a sly look. Shadow and Knuckles both turned a deep shade of red and I was most interested to find out why.

I looked at Rouge who gave me a sly smile and explained, "Let me refresh your memory, Shadow. Drew, the smooth and confident green eyed, green furred hedgehog who came to the show claiming to be looking for love, but a woman can see through him in an instant. He loved being the bachelor of the show and all the attention from the women contestants that it afforded him. May was the sweet blue eyed, light brown furred girl with simi famous parents from a small town. She came on the show looking to make a connection after not finding luck with love on her own. This poor, sweet girl was played by Drew the first half of the season and had it not been for Drew's change of character in the last half of the season I would've quit watching out of spite."

I watched Knuckles and Shadow squirm in their seats as they munched on what was left of the diner before us.

"And then there's Zoey!" Rouge says, sending both the boys into a stiff freeze as they look uncomfortably amongst each other.

"This red eyed, vermillion quilled bad girl, who thinks she is too cool for anyone else and the hottest hedgehog since Marilyn Hedgehog! She walked all over the other girls in her attempt to win the show!" Rouge is almost shouting she is so passionate about describing this show.

The guys have a funny look on their face like they are remembering something fondly but are snapped back to reality when Rouge slams a hand down on the table, rattling the glasses and silverware and startling the guys.

"She hussied her way through the competition with no other motivation other than fame and fortune! She gives the show a bad name!" Rouge huffed as she glared from Shadow to Knuckles and back to me.

"… So the show that pits multiple woman against each other to compete for one man's love while he is lavished with attention by all of them, under the pretext that he'll marry one of them, is ruined by the fact that one of the girls doesn't actually want to fall in love with the guy?" I respond.

The show made no sense to me... Where's the romance? True love? One person dates multiple people who are fighting to be "worthy" enough for them, in the process of pretending to be the best version of themselves possible and trying to change anything about themselves that the person may not like?

"Exactly!" Rouge agreed to my review passionately, not realizing I was being cynical and disapproving.

"Do we really have to watch that crap again?" Shadow asked, crossing his arms nonchalantly over his chest but his face carried a warm red blush.

"Oh shut it hedgehog! Knuckie and I love it! And don't act like you weren't obsessed with it last season!" The bat replied, rolling her eyes at him and glaring from him to the Knuckles.

"You two are just sour that Zoey lost because you think she's soooo hot!" Rouge said, lowering her tone at the end to mock the boy's voices.

"Whatever! I only came for the food, if a show is included, I don't care," Shadow sneered at her.

I chuckled at the idea of Shadow and Knuckles obsessed over a primarily female demographic show, even if it was just so they could stare at all the hot women on the show.

"I've got dessert in the fridge! Strawberry shortcake! I'll fix everyone a plate and we can eat and watch it in the living room!" I said and everyone smiled and nodded in agreement, except for Shadow who only barely nodded his head at the idea.

With his arms crossed, he got up and followed Rouge and Knuckles into the living room.

I started deconstructing the table, gathering together all the dirty dishes to take them to the kitchen sink.

Rouge made her way back into the dinning room and gave me a smile.

"Let me help," she said and together we cleaned off the table.

As we walked to the kitchen she nudged me slight saying, "Hey, you did a great job with cooking tonight! It was amazing..."

"I can't take all the credit," I said, placing the dishes in the sink, "Shadow did help too."

"Yesss, I know~ Very interesting that he would do that," Rouge said to me slyly, raising an eyebrow at me with a huge smirk on her face.

"What, he's not helpful when asked?" I rolled my eyes at her, ignoring what she was implying.

I took the small cake saucers down from the kitchen cabinet and placed them on my kitchen island.

"Are you kidding? There's no way he'd help us cook and set a dining room table. You must have some magick spell on him," she shot back with a laugh.

I blushed red as I turned from her quickly and headed for my fridge, grabbing the cake and taking it back to my kitchen island with my head bowed slightly so as not to meet her eyes.

"I'm not magick, Rouge, I'm just nice. And new to the group, so he's probably just putting his best foot forward to help me feel relaxed," I said as I reached in my kitchen drawers and pulled out a cake knife to cut and portion out the dessert onto the saucers.

"Yes, because being friendly and nice are definitely Shadow's speciality," Rouge picked at me again, implying far too much.

As I placed each piece of cake on a saucer I thought back over the evening and the moment we spent together cooking.

Deciding nothing of it seemed odd to me, I pushed the feeling of butterflies in my belly and warmth in my cheeks away and gave Rouge a stern, playful look.

"Someone's just jealous I'm gonna be Shadow's new best friend," I said with a laugh as I grabbed two of the cake saucers and motioned to the other ones on the table.

Rouge grabbed the other two saucers and gave me a playful bump with her hip as she passed me heading towards the living room.

"In your dreams, pinky," she laughed playful and I laughed with her and followed.

~ Knuckles POV ~

"That food was sooooooo good," I said with a big stretch as I plopped down on Amy's loveseat.

Shadow said nothing but sat down on the couch closest to the loveseat and crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes closed.

"Oh, come on! You know that food was killer!" I laughed as I reached out and nudged him.

He peeked one eye open at me but his face remained stone cold. He slowly unwrapped his arms and leaned back against the couch, relaxing slightly as he spoke.

"Of course it was good, I helped make it."

"Did you? That's interesting." I replied with a grin and he scoffed at me.

"How did she talk you into that one?" I asked, digging for answers.

"You and Rouge left me alone with her! And it's not like I was gonna be rude and just stand there and do nothing," he said gruffly, rolling his eyes at me.

"Standing around, being rude, and doing nothing are your top three go to moves.

He growled at me and snapped back, "I do plenty! You're the one who does nothing, you lazy echidna!"

"Strike a nerve, did I?" I laughed at him, causing him to tense up and cross his arms again.

"Look man, I've got you pinned. It's always long sullen silences, followed by mean comments, followed by more silences," I said with a laugh and he growled again.

"Yeah! We'll it's better than bone headed idiocy and horny simping!" He snapped back at me, and I laughed.

"I knew it, mean comments!" I replied, to which he didn't. I waited and he glared at me, then turned from me, crossing his arms tighter.

"…… anddddd long sullen silences," I added after a good stretch of time passed with him ignoring me to stew angrily.

"Shut up," he muttered back, less hostile than before.

"You love me," I said, laughing back at him.

"Whatever," he said, rolling his eyes at me again.

Just then Rouge entered the room bringing with her a cute little plate with a big slice of cake on it.

She sat down on the loveseat beside me, throwing her legs over my lap and leaning her head on my shoulder.

"Isn't this little cake and cake plate so cuteee~?"

"Not as cute as you are," I said, snuggling the top of her head with my cheek.

"Barf," Shadow said, nonchalantly, and me and Rouge both ignored him as we were use to his bitterness by now.

Amy was standing at her couch holding two plates of cake in her hand.

She offered one to Shadow who muttered a quick, "thanks", as he took the dish from her outreached hand.

Amy turned to her coffee table and grabbed the remote, flipping on the XYZ channel.

A soap opera playing was coming to a close and a commercial started that was announcing the new season premier of Hedgehogs & Heartbreak.

~ Amy's POV ~

Oh gods, this feels so awkward! Why did Rogue have to go lay all over her boyfriend when we're supposed to be hanging out as a group!…

I looked at the huge empty couch in front of me.

It's be rude if I went and sat in the recliner, but Shadow looks annoyed and I don't wanna bother him by getting all up in his space.

Hoping I won't look rude, I sit on the couch cushion furthest from Shadow and the gang, leaving one couch cushion distance in between us.

He makes no facial expression to indicate that I've done anything approving or disapproving, so I stay where I'm at.

I catch Rouges eyes glaring at me and she rolls her eyes before smirking causing me to blush out of embarrassment.

It's not like that!— …What do I have to be nervous about, sitting next to Shadow on the couch? I just sat next to him for dinner!

Suddenly, the show clips on and a tv show host's voice comes blaring out the tv at us.

— "Hello everyone, my name is Chris Dylan Cooper Hedgehog, and tonight we're premiering the start of a journey of romance, angst, and love as one hedgehog searches for the love of his life in the new season of Hedgehogs & Heartbreak!"

Short clips and scenes of what were yet to see flashes across the tv as we get snippets of cute romance, intense arguments, and emotional breakdowns.

I look over to Rouge and Knuckles who seem content as they watch the tv and snack on their cake.

I look at Shadow who seems… bored? Annoyed? Uninterested? He's eating his cake at least, but just like dinner, I can't tell if he likes it or not because of his stone cold expression.

It's hard to get a read on him and I'm starting to doubt if this is the same hedgehog Rouge swears was obsessed with Hedgehogs & Heartbreak last season.

I'm starting to doubt if this is the same hedgehog from last night. He seemed a lot less intense and distant last night and I wondered momentarily if he really was drunk and I just couldn't tell because it made him less serious… Is this stone cold persona his norm? Thinking back I don't remember him being this stand-offish all those years ago…

"—How do I know he's being honest with me?—" One hedgehog says as she cries on the screen, then it flashes to another scene.

"—I'm a huge romantic at heart—" Another hedgehog says to a group of hedgehogs in a room, before it flashes to another scene.

"—Did you seriously just say that to me?!—" A hedgehog shouts as she throws a glass of wine in another hedgehogs face, before it flashes to a scene of the Bachelor walking barefoot on the beach by himself at sunset.

A monologue of his voice plays as we watch him walk, his unbuttoned white shirt flows in the wind as his bare chest shows.

He was a black hedgehog, with hair that favored a style similar to Silvers. He had green eyes and green stripes in his fur.

"—I'm ready to open myself up in the hopes of finding true love…"

The scenes plays through a montage of super quick clips, a plane flying over the ocean, a candlelit dinner date, the Bachelor and one of the girls making out on a picnic blanket in the dark, a jacuzzi full of girls, a police car pulling up in a driveway, two girls yelling at each other before one reaches out to slap another, a rose being handed to a girl, tears streaming down the face of the Bachelor, and then the title scene stays and the host, Chris Dylan Cooper's voice says, "Adrien's shocking Journey to find love begins right now !"

We all watch in silence as the host starts introducing women and they talk about their lives, work, hobbies, interests, and outlooks on love.

A couple of girls peak my interest but I don't know who will be the Bachelors type or how they'll react together.

We all throw out comments here or there— someone will mention if they think a girl is interested in actually finding love or just being on tv and we'll all laugh and debate it.

One girl seems a little overzealous and intense and Shadow makes the comment that she's one of those girls picked to cause tension and drama and we all agree.

"There's always that one crazy girl!" Knuckles laughs at the tv and my stomach drops.

I was that crazy girl…

Thinking back on my overzealous and downright obsessive years makes my guy twist in uncomfortable knots.

I try hard to push the thoughts of my past away and forget about his comment, but the bitter taste remains as we all continue watching the show.

Another girl seems so innocent and naive that Rouge mentions she'll probably end up getting hurt in the process of the show and we all agree.

Despite the seating arrangement causing some mild anxiety at the start of the show, I'm growing more comfortable as the show plays on.

Suddenly Rouge jumps up in shock, shouting "No way!" as a vermillion colored hedgehog wearing a skimpy tight black dress and black sunglasses pops up on the screen and I see Shadow and Knuckle shift uncomfortably in their spots.

"They brought Zoey back?!?" Rouge yells at the tv.

"—You loved her last season! After taking the year to get over the heartbreak of Drew," scenes flash from what looks like old episodes of Zoeys previous season as she cries and breaks down when she doesn't get the final rose. "—Now she's back to try her chance again at not only stealing Mobius's heart again but also our Bachelor, Adrien's heart as well !"

All things considered, she looked beautiful and I could see why the boys would like her. Her body was killer and she looked amazing in her dress.

But when she started talking I knew exactly why Rouge couldn't stand her.

She sounded disingenuous and snarky. It wasn't her confidence that was the issue, it was the backhanded, sneaky way she dissed the other contestants every time she talked. Major pick me vibes. I caught myself rolling my eyes a couple of times as she spoke in a manner that seemed kind but was insanely cruel all in the same sentence. This girl hid her intentions well from the bachelor but any woman a mile away could sniff out her crap.

"Ugggh!" Rouge groaned when Zoeys introduction ended. "I need a drink!—Got any more wine, Amy?" Rouge asked me.

"Oh! Yes, of course!" I answered, standing up quickly. I reached across the coffee table and grabbed everyone's empty plates and proceeded to head to the kitchen.

"Thanks love!~" Rouge cooed at me from Knuckles arms as she snuggled into him harder.

"Would you guys care for a beer?" I asked, looking between Shadow and Knuckles as I held the empty plates in my hand, standing between the kitchen entrance and the living room entrance.

Shock stumbled across both their faces, but Shadow recovered quickly, resetting back into his stone cold gaze.

"Really? Hell yeah!" Knuckles said, and I nodded at him then looked at Shadow.

"Please," he said finally and I nodded and turned on my heels leaving the kitchen.

I placed the dishes in the sink and then grabbed a bottle of white wine from the rack, opening it quickly.

I poured a glass for me and Rouge and grabbed two beers from the fridge before bringing them back into the living room.

I handed Rouge and Knuckles their drinks and they smiled and said thank you.

I handed Shadow the other beer and he muttered a quick "thanks" back at me.

I sat down on the couch beside him and we all continued to watch the show, everyone enjoying their drink.

~ Shadows POV ~

Why did she just sit down beside me?

I looked down at the line between us, her now sitting on the middle couch cushion.

I was wondering why she sat all the way on the opposite side of the couch from me, like I had the mange or something.

But now that she was sitting so close to me, I had a growing uncomfortable pull towards her coming from in my chest.

Why does she make me feel so weird everytime I'm around her?

My stomach felt all weird and tingly and I wondered momentarily if I shouldn't be drinking this beer after having that red wine with dinner… That was the only logical explanation I could come up with for why my stomach was doing flips.

We all watched the show in silence, sipping on our drinks and being entertained by the girls and bachelor on tv .

Amy and Rouge would chatter about the women every now and then, expressing their approval, and disapproval, of all the contestants.

Knuckles would make a comment here or there and I would nonverbally agree with him or chuckle at something he'd say in regards to the show or about the Bachelor.

The guy looked like a total tool and I couldn't see how thirty women would want to compete for his attention, but nevertheless, the mindless show proved to be entertaining nonetheless.

Every now and then I caught myself peeking at the space between Amy and me. The couch was huge and there was a good solid nine inches in between us but for some reason it felt oddly close.

My back started to ache so I shifted in my seat to relieve the pain, but struggled to find a comfortable position.

I gave up maintaining the space between us and moved to a more relaxed position.

I threw my right arm across the back of the couch, my forearm and hand resting just behind her head on the couch.

I rested my left arm on the arm of the couch closest to the love set that contained the tangled mess that is Rouge and Knuckles.

I left my right leg on the floor and lifted my left leg, laying the left side of my ankle across the top of my right knee. I leaned back and wiggled into the couch cushion behind me, satisfied with the comfort of my position.

I felt the annoying presence of someone's eyes on me, and looked up to see Rouge smirking at me. I rolled my eyes and quickly shot her the bird before turning my gaze to the tv.

Out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of Amy.

She looked anxious, her body tense on the couch. She was sitting straight up with her hands held together in her lap. Her back was far from the couch and she was sitting on the front edge of her seat.

Why are you so unrelaxed?

I shot my eyes back towards Rouge and Knuckles.

He was whispering in her ear and she was giggling quietly back at him. They were caught up in each other— the show, and I, were far from either of their minds now, I hoped.

I looked back at Amy who was still as stiff as a bored, and whispered a soft, "hey," to catch her attention.

She looked at me and gave a small, nervous smile. I looked back at the tv but whispered to her, "Relax."

I glanced back at Rouge and Knuckles who were still paying us no attention, and then back to Amy.

She seemed slightly surprised or maybe taken aback, but when our eyes locked she nodded and then slowly leaned back sinking into the couch.

She slipped her slide-on shoes off, revealing short pink socks. She pulled her feet onto the couch and tucked them to the side of her and leaned towards me a little bit.

She looked much more comfortable with her legs tucked up to the side of her and her head leaning away from her legs, towards me, resting on the couch.

I felt better about her being more relaxed but suddenly felt nervous and unrelaxed myself.

Looking down I realize we were almost leaning into each other and seemed far too friendly on the couch.

The space between us has closed drastically and her head is leaning against the back of the couch, now a mere few inches away from my chest.

Her hair is brushing the back of my forearm and I'm growing increasingly aware of the very little space between us.

I try to concentrate on the show again but the overwhelming feeling of eyes on me is bearing down on me again and I look up to meet Rouge's intense gaze.

The stupid bat is glaring at me with a huge, devious smile stretched across her face.

I want to flick her off again but don't, and instead roll my eyes at her and look back at the tv.

She chuckles lightly but I ignore her and the feeling of eyes on me intensifies.

I look back at her and Knuckles is now staring at me too, wide eyed and slack jawed.

I give him a 'What Are You Looking At? ' look and he holds up both his hands in defense, looks away from me, and chuckles quietly to himself with Rouge.

I wish you'd both go jump off a cliff! I wouldn't be in this situation if you two hadn't abandoned Amy over here so that you could canoodle on the loveseat!

I turn my attention back to the tv show and try hard to ignore the twisting feeling in my stomach and blush rising to my cheeks and ears.

I gotta stop drinking every time I get around Amy, this blushing thing is annoying…

~ Rouges POV ~

Amy and Shadow have stayed on the couch like that for the rest of the show…

While I must admit they weren't touching each other at all, they still sat mighty close and intimately near each other.

I'm sure they'll both blow this off but I can see what's happening here, even if they can't.

Shadow is getting way too friendly way too fast. It took him years to let himself relax in a room alone with me.

Our first few years of missions with Omega proved to be very tense and awkward. He was always stiff and cold, keeping a huge distance from me.

After years of warming up to me it took him even longer to warm up to Knuckles, who he didn't trust in the slightest for a very long time. Probably had something to do with Sonic, but still.

Here he is on his second day spent in Amy's presence and he's almost cuddled up on the couch with her!

I won't push it too hard, but I can't help but smirk every time I see them interacting with each other.

How can he be so clueless and yet so obvious at the same time?

How have neither of them picked up on what's happening here?

Before I knew it the show had ended and with that, the two hedgehogs slowly moved to less relaxed, more spacious positions.

Amy put her feet back on the ground, sitting straight up, and quickly sliding her white Vans back on.

Shadow pulled his arms off the couch and crossed them over his chest again as if he was annoyed.

He glanced at me with an intense glare so I stuck my tongue out at him, to which he replied by rolling his eyes and standing up to stretch.

Knuckles followed in his lead. He squeezed me gently as a sign to let him get up, so I pulled my legs off him so that he could stand up and stretch.

"My, that show was a mess!" Amy said nervously with a small laugh.

"You didn't like it?" I asked her, standing up with Knuckles.

She turned off the tv and stood up as well, facing me.

"It's a lot of tv drama and I question most of the 'love' aspects of the show," she replied.

"You didn't feel the love at first sight between him and Rachel?" I asked.

"Babe, come on. He's definitely got the hots for Zoey," Knuckles interjected.

The mere mention of her made my blood boil but I just rolled my eyes at him, waiting for Amy's response.

Surprisingly, Shadow spoke up catching me by surprise.

"You're both idiots, he's clearly gonna pick Marienette."

"Zoey will win this time for sure!" Knuckles argued with him.

"Amy! What do you think?" I interrupted the boys to figure out her opinion again.

"I don't know, I mean… I just think someone who wants real love wouldn't get caught up in letting tv dramatize their process of falling in love," she replied.

"Oh, come on, Amy! Not everyone can find love by themselves, sometimes they need a little push…" I replied, glancing at Shadow who was looking at her.

"I'm just skeptical I guess… Don't, like, less than twenty percent of couples on the show end up staying together?" She replied nervously.

"You're caught up in the details, you'll love it, just wait till next week's episode!" I said with a smile and she smiled back in agreement.

"We'll see," she said with a laugh and a smile.

"Hey, you got any more of that cake? It was so good!" Knuckles blurts out.

"Oh, yeah! Here I'll go get you some more it's—"

"—Amy!" I interrupt her, "Why don't I get it for him and we'll wash the dishes from dinner?" I ask.

She looks surprised but before she can say anything I intervene.

"You can give Shadow a tour of the house, since me and Knuckles already did earlier! We'll clean the dishes and meet back up with you!" I said, glancing quickly at Shadow who seemed taken aback by my plan, and then to Amy who also seemed taken aback.

"Oh uhhh… okay? But don't worry about doing the dishes, you can just load the dishwasher, yeah? You guys don't know where everything goes so I'll unload the dishwasher tomorrow," she says, and I nod in agreement.

I grab Knuckles arm and drag him into the kitchen, leaving them alone.

~ Shadows POV ~

What the hell was that?!? They left us so fast I could swear I saw a cartoon cloud of smoke behind them as they bolted from the room!

I look at Amy who's now wearing a sheepish grin, but I can tell she's nervous. She's rubbing her arm with one hand and her feet are turned inward, posture caving inward slightly.

Despite my annoyance I try to break the ice.

"So… the house?"

"Yeah! The house!" She blurts out in a flustered mess. She quickly turns on her heels and jesters to the room around us.

"This is my living room! Which you already know because we just watch Hedgehogs & Heartbreak in here…" she laughs nervously.

"Rouge said this room is inspired by the Master Emerald?" I asked, thinking back to when Amy and I were left alone in the kitchen together.

We keep being left alone by those two for some reason. Im hoping it's because they're lovestruck assholes and not cooking up some other kinda scheme…

"Yeahhh, just a little… I love a dark viridian green and the Master Emerald reminds me of all my friends… The gold represents rings and the cherry wood furniture represents Sakura."

"Who's Sakura?" I ask without thinking.

"My Chao! Would you like to meet her?" She asks, her eyes lighting up.

"Uhhh… sure."

She grabs my forearm gently and starts leading me down the hallway. Before I can shake her hand off me she lets go as if she knows I'll follow her the rest of the way.

For a second, I missed the feeling of her hand on mine, but pushed the thought away. I start tracing my memory, trying to count up how many drinks I've had tonight, to maybe explain why my mind is lingering on the feeling of her holding onto me.

Wine with dinner... a beer with the show...

She stops in front of a doorway and turns to face me.

"This is my room," she says, and a bright red blush rushes across her face.

The sight of her blush causes a chain reaction in me and before I know it, I've also broken out into a deep blush.

She turns back to the door and slowly opens the door, being careful not to make a sound.

She steps inside and turns back to me and nods, so I step in behind her, being sure to leave the door open behind us.

Her room is a dark red color, almost like a dark wine or garnet. I'm caught off guard once again by the lack of pink. Shades of dark and light tan colors help keep the room light in contrast with the dark red and I find myself comparing her room to a pomegranate.

There are very few decorative objects around her room that could give away her interest or personality. She has a small bookshelf with thick, old looking books on them. She has a huge mirror that looks to be the sliding door entrance to her closet… maybe? And on her night stand she has several different framed pictures. One is her Cream, Big, and Froggie. One picture has her, Cream, Cheese, and Vanilla in it. And the last one has a recent looking selfie of her and Rouge.

No signs of Sonic are anywhere in this room… Not one picture, not one memory, not one shade of blue…

When I finally look back at Amy, I see that she's been waiting and watching me look around her room.

For some reason I blush again, and I can't help but feel like I've snooped, even if she did invite me in.

I follow her eyes to the bed and see what she is talking about. A small pink Chao lays resting on the bed. Much like how Ammo resembles me, this Chao has an uncanny resemblance to Amy, its torso even resembling the popular red and white dress Amy used to sport.

Before I could look back at her, the Chao yawned deeply and slowly sits up, rubbing its eyes before letting out a soft cry.

Amy scooped the Chao up in her arms and rocked it gently.

"I'm sorry we woke you, Sakura! But we have visitors!" She cooed at the Chao, rubbing its head softly until the red bulb floating above its head turned into a heart.

The Chao stopped crying and opened its eyes slowly, looking dead at me.

I forced an uncomfortable smile and it turned its nose up at me, turning back into Amy's embrace.

"Sakura! Don't be so rude! First impressions are everything," Amy said, more lighthearted than the scolding sounded.

The Chao turned to look up at her.

"I know he looks grumpy, but Shadow is a very kind friend of mine. Be nice to him, okay?" she said with a smile.

A sharp tingle in my chest almost made me flinch.

Kind? I don't think anyones ever called me kind… No one except…

The Chao turned in Amy's arms again and looked up at me, her bulb turning into a question mark.

I smiled at it again and said, "Hi, Sakura."

The Chaos question mark turned into an exclamation point and it jumped from Amy's arms into mine.

Taken by surprise I held the Chao out at arms link, staring at it, and it wiggled in my arms and cheered.

Amy giggled and between the two, my face grew warm and flustered and my tummy felt weird.

There was too much going on at one time and I wasn't sure how to process it all.

Before I could say anything we heard a loud thud from the kitchen.

"Oops! Guess the tour is going to be cut short!" Ask said as she walked around me straight out the bedroom.

I placed the Chao back on the bed and rubbed its head softly before leaving the room, following Amy back into the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Knuckles was helping Rouge up off the floor.

"Sorry! We didn't mean to scare you guys! Rouge had a little too much to drink…" Knuckles said as he helped Rouge to her feet.

"I had too much to drink?!? Are you sure I didn't fall because you spilled water on the floor and didn't clean it up!" Rouge shot back at him, clearly annoyed.

"Rouge, that's not water, that's your wine you spilt," he said, and Rouge turned red as a tomato.

Flustered, she looked at the floor, and him, then back at us, then back to him.

"Oopsie~, my baddd~!" She said with a giggle.

Amy laughed, and Knuckles just rolled his eyes but smiled.

"Amy, this has been super fun but I think I better get her home," Knuckles said with a cheeky grin.

We all know why you wanna get her home!

I rolled my eyes at him and smirked. At least the night was finally coming to an end…

Amy nodded in agreement before saying, "It was great to have you guys over! I'll see y'all after work tomorrow!"

Rouge threw herself onto Amy, giving her a big hug goodbye. "Thank you so much for everything Ames! I'll see you tomorrow at work!~" Rouge said as I watched her squeeze Amy tight in her embrace.

"I'll see you tomorrow, be careful going home," Amy replied cheerfully.

Knuckles, in his height, leaned over Amy and gave her a quick side hug goodbye as well, saying, "See ya later, sis."

Amy turned a warmer shade of pink and she smiled brightly, patting the hand that he had used to hug her, saying, "See ya later, Big Red."

With that they turn and head for the door, Knuckles holding onto Rouge by her waist to support her.

We followed behind them and when I got to the front door, for some reason I turned around expecting something but I wasn't quite sure what.

I met Amy face to face, looking down at her slightly due to our height difference. She smiled up at me from her doorway, her face a slightly darker shade of pink than she already is.

"Thanks for coming, Shadow, it was nice," Amy said with a huge grin that reached ear to ear.

"Thanks for letting these idiots come over," I said, motioning to Rouge and Knuckles behind me, who were already walking over to Rouge's car.

"Come back again, okay?" She said, looking up to me with big emerald eyes that shined and my heart started to feel like it might swell up and burst.

"Okay," I said back, and before I knew it, she reached out and hugged me too. It was quick, too quick for me to react or even return the hug.

"Goodnight!" She said quickly as she let me go and turned back inside. She turned to face me as she started closing the door.

"Goodnight," I replied as I watched her red, blushing face close the door on me.

I turned around and headed for Rouge's car, hopping in the back seat.

"Did I just see her hug you~?" Rouge cooed at me from the front passenger seat.

"So what of it, she hugged both of you when she said goodbye to you too," I snapped back at her, crossing my arms over my chest and huffing.

"You didn't even push her off you~" Rouge laughed at me from the front of the car.

"She took me by surprise!" I said a little louder than I intended.

"You liked it~" Rouge sang at me, and Knuckles chuckled from the front as he pulled out of Amy's drive way.

"Shut up and take me home!" I growled at both of them.

The car grew quiet except for Rouge's faint giggling as we made our way down the road.

"Hey, Shadow~" she called out to me.

"What do you want, bat," I snapped back at her, annoyed as I glared out the back seat window.

"If you didn't like it, then why are you blushing?" She said.

I quickly look up to see her looking at me in the rearview mirror with an eat shit grin stretched across her face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am so sorry this is late!

I'm an ER nurse and I had to work Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Years! The holidays have been rough on me these past two months…

The next update WILL be for The Crown's Shadow, I swear!

Enjoy and please leave me a comment/review as I really, really enjoy reading your thoughts and comments!

Based on Taylor Swift song, It's Nice To Have A Friend