It didn't take long for the three of them to make it back to Tails' house. Knuckles made himself at home in the guest room before coming downstairs, where Amy was just finishing a call with Sonic. "Thanks for understanding, Sonic," she said into the phone. "See you in a little bit!" She hung up the phone and turned to see Knuckles standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Oh, hey Knuckles! You all set in the guest room?"

"Yeah, all my stuff is in there," Knuckles replied. "Love that you guys brought me here just to ditch me," he said, sarcasm evident in his voice.

Amy frowned. "It's not like that, Knuckles. I just wanted to do something nice for Tails as an apology for bailing on him while we were hanging out yesterday and I'm busy the rest of the week."

Knuckles smiled. "I know, I'm just giving you a hard time. Besides, I haven't spoken to the blue guy in a while. It'll be nice to catch up."

The two's conversation was cut short by Tails entering from the hangar. He was on the phone and quite visibly frustrated. "No, I don't think you understand," he said into the phone, a hint of annoyance in his voice. "The reason the bill is so high is because I had to replace the engine and the motor. You told me you didn't care how much it costs as long as I fix it." There was a brief silence, before he continued. "No, I have it in writing. You told me that over e-mail. I went to you and said, 'Hey, this isn't a small issue, I think it's something major. That's going to cost more, is that ok? Do you need a ballpark estimate?' and you replied with, and I quote, 'lol, I don't care how much it costs as long as the thing gets fixed. Thanks, bro.' Those are your exact words, go check the e-mail. Do it right now, I'll wait." Tails leaned against the counter, tapping his finger rapidly as he waited for a response. He didn't even seem to notice Knuckles and Amy were staring at him. "Uh-huh, what did I tell ya?" the kitsune said with a smug expression. His smug look soon vanished and was replaced with one of disgust. "No, I am not ripping you off!" he shouted, clearly offended. "If you went to anyone else in the world with a problem like this, they'd charge you three times the rate and probably do a sloppier job than me."

Tails looked at the ceiling and stroked his chin, pondering something as he listened to the man on the other end scream so loud into the phone, even Knuckles and Amy could hear it, albeit muffled. At last, Tails shrugged and let out a sigh. "Do you know who I am?" he asked, annoyance ever present in his voice."

"Ooo, shit," Knuckles whispered to Amy. "This dude's gotta be a huge pain in the ass to make Tails drop a 'do you know who I am' on him. He never does that." Amy frowned at Knuckles' apparent excitement over the situation. Their attention turned to Tails, who had just slammed his fist on the counter in anger.

"I am not just his sidekick!" the kitsune yelled into the phone. "I am so much more than that, thank you very much. I'm one of the greatest mechanics in the world. I am my own person. I am Miles Prower, you hear me?! I'm Miles Prower. The guy fixing your hunk of junk plane for an unreasonably low price because fixing planes is all he's good for in the public eye these days." Tails' eyes started to get watery. "Hey, how about this? You know what? Twenty-five percent off just for you. Yeah, I'm serious. Twenty-five percent off and a life-long ban from ever coming here again, alright? So send me a check and pick up your plane and never show your face around here again. Good day, sir."

Tails hung up the phone and rested his head on the counter. He let out a long, frustrated sigh. Knuckles raised his hand and yelled from across the room, "So, is it too early for me to say I told you so? Because I totally did."

"Yeah, whatever," Tails muttered, not even bothering to look up.

"I told you the dude sounded like ass, but nah, you figured it was just gonna be a simple job why no-"

"Will you just shut up?!" Tails yelled, shooting his head up from the counter. Tears had begun rushing down his face.

"…Alright. Sorry bro," Knuckles said softly.

Amy looked to Tails with concern. "Tails, are you alright?" she asked. Tails looked over at Amy, but didn't say anything. The kitsune dried his eyes on his sleeves. An awkward silence filled the room as none of the three could think of what to say. The sound of the doorbell going off finally cut the silence in the air. "It's unlocked!" Tails yelled. The door opened, and a familiar blue hedgehog stepped in.

"Hey, guys!" Sonic said cheerfully. The smile on his face vanished as he looked around. "Woah, did I interrupt something?"

"Actually, you came at the perfect time," Tails replied coldly. He walked over to the front door. "Come on Amy, let's go," he muttered as he stepped outside.

"Uh, right…" Amy said softly. "Thank you for coming over, Sonic. We'll see you later." With that, she ran out the front door to catch up to Tails.

Sonic shut the door behind her, then turned to Knuckles. "So, what was that about?" he asked, pointing a thumb at the door behind him.

Knuckles shrugged. "It's partially my fault," he said. "I teased him at the wrong time."

"Oh?" Sonic asked, raising an eyebrow as he walked into the living room to take a seat.

"Yeah, he had just got off the phone with some jerk client who was making a fuss for no reason. Dude got him riled up so much, he dropped a 'do you know who I am' on him and that went about as well as you think it did."

Sonic sighed. "Ten years and people still just think of him as my sidekick. He's his own person, damn it. Why does he have to live in my shadow?"

Knuckles shrugged and took a seat on the couch next to Sonic. "No clue, bro. We all kinda live in your shadow, but at least we're lucky enough to not be labeled as 'the sidekick,' you know? Everyone knows me as the gullible idiot you fought once and became friends with. People know Amy as the obsessive fangirl who follows you around everywhere demanding you marry her, but she hasn't done that stuff since we were all kids. It's just how life is."

Sonic sighed. "Life is stupid. I wish I was the one in your guys' shadows. You guys don't get nearly enough credit for your work."

"Rouge told me the same thing when we started dating."

Sonic gave Knuckles a half-hearted smile. "Yeah… speaking of Rouge, you wanna talk about her big guy?"

"Not really," Knuckles grumbled. "But I feel like this is one of those conversations we're going to have whether I want to or not."

"You're dead on the money there, Knux," Sonic chuckled.

Knuckles sighed. "Alright, fine. So, everything started falling apart a few months back when she started acting all disinterested in me, right? Then she started acting all cold and we kept getting into fights all the time and- ugh…" Knuckles pinched his forehead and groaned.

"Take your time man," Sonic said, resting his hand on Knuckles' shoulder. "I'm here for you."

It was an awkward walk to the train station for the orange kitsune and pink hedgehog. Neither of them really said anything to each other. Tails was too angry to focus on a conversation, while Amy was too worried she might provoke him to say anything. As they got on the train to Station Square, Amy couldn't help it anymore. "Are you alright?" she asked, concern in her voice.

"I'm alright," Tails exhaled. "That guy just got on my nerves is all."

Amy fidgeted with her hair. "He called you Sonic's sidekick, didn't he?"

Tails nodded softly. "Yeah, but I'm used to it. I accepted that's all I'll ever be known for long ago." He let out a small sigh of exhaustion. "Nothing I can really do to change that notion at this point."

Amy looked up at her friend. Long gone were the days when she was the talker of the two, though she still forgot that sometimes. He wasn't a whole lot taller than her, but it was still enough that she had to turn her neck up a little to see the look of sadness on his face and defeat in his eyes. She turned her head forward, closed her eyes and exhaled softly. A somber, sad smile crossed her lips. "I know how you feel," she told the kitsune standing beside her.

Tails' ears perked up. "You do?" he asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.

Amy nodded. "It's kind of hard being known as 'Sonic's crazy stalker fangirl' your whole life. Thankfully, people know me more for being the name on the tag of the clothes they buy, but still." She opened her eyes and looked up at the fox. "I know what it's like to be known as something you're not. If it helps, I never thought of you as his sidekick."

A soft smile formed across the kitsune's lips. "Thanks, Amy," he said. He scratched the side of his head and glanced in another direction. "Although, I don't think the number one hit single 'My Sweet Passion' by Amy Rose helped with your reputation much."

Amy cringed a little upon hearing that, but had just the thing to fight back with. She crossed her arms and said, "Yeah, well, you're never gonna live down Bad Boy Miles."

Tails groaned. "Touché…"

The two laughed and spent the rest of the train ride in silence. Once they reached Station Square, the two walked down the street for a bit, with Amy taking the lead. "So, where exactly are you taking me anyways?" Tails asked.

Amy turned back and winked at him. "You'll see," she said, before turning her head forward again. Tails blushed, thankful she had turned away and couldn't see him. The two of them walked in silence a bit longer, before Amy stopped in front of a building. "Here we are!" she said as she turned to face Tails. "What do you think?"

Tails looked up at the sign on the building. The sign read, "Giorno's Pasta & Pizza." The kitsune turned to face his friend. "You're not taking me to a fancy, probably overpriced Italian place just because you had to go home early yesterday, are you?" he asked her, a bit surprised.

Amy smiled. "Not just because of that. Another reason is I'm a cool friend who wants her sad fox friend to smile."

Tails scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. "You don't have to take me somewhere expensive just because I've been sad today," he muttered.

"I know, but I want to," Amy replied. "And don't worry about how expensive it is. I don't know if you know this, but being a fashion designer is pretty well rewarding."

Tails raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure that's not the royalties you're collecting from your one-hit wonder pop song?"

"Do you still have that spiked choker in your room somewhere?" Amy asked with a smirk.

"I'm starting to understand what Knuckles meant when he told me that women know how to tear men apart with ease," Tails sighed.

Amy giggled to herself. "I'm only teasing you, Tails. Come on, let's go inside and get a table."

The two went into the restaurant and got a booth by a window. They sat opposite each other and read the menus for a bit. "Do you know what you want?" Amy asked after a few minutes.

Tails shook his head. "No, I'm still deciding. What are you getting?"

"Spaghetti and meatballs. They make them really good here. Ooo, maybe I should get us some garlic bread too…"

"That sounds good to me! Hmm…" The kitsune's eyes narrowed as he scanned the menu more intensely. "I think I'll just get a personal four cheese pizza," he said at last.

"That's all? Are you sure?"

"Yeah… it's childish, I know, but I can't stand toppings on pizza. It's either too greasy or the textures clash too much for my taste."

"I don't think it's childish, I think it's kinda cute that you stick to your guns. I didn't take you for a picky eater."

Tails couldn't help but blush when he called her cute. He quickly averted her gaze, looking around the restaurant. He couldn't help but notice a waitress speeding towards their table. "Oh hey, look!" Tails said quickly. "Our waitress is on her way."

Amy's eyes shrunk and her face turned pale. "W-waitress?" she stuttered.

Tails turned to face her, confused by her sudden shift in behavior. "Uh, yeah, why?"

Amy sighed. "I totally forgot she works Sundays…"

"Forgot who works Sundays?"

"Oh my GOSH!" a voice next to the two of them shouted. Tails turned his head, completely caught off guard. It was the waitress from before. She was a young jackal with a gold piercing in her left ear. Her attention was fixated entirely on the pink hedgehog that sat across from him. "Amy, I had like, nooo idea you would be here tonight!" the jackal squealed. "I haven't seen you in like, forever! It's like, almost like you were avoiding me or something. Craaaazy, right?"

"I have been avoiding you," Amy said in a monotone voice.

The waitress giggled furiously. "Oh Amy, you are like, soooo funny!"

Tails blinked. "This is such an odd sense of deja vú," he muttered.

The waitress turned to face Tails, suddenly realizing he was there. She grabbed the sides of her face and yelled, "Oh my GOSH! Are you the real Miles Prower?"

"Uh, yeah?" Tails responded, completely flabbergasted.

"That is soooooo crazy! My boyfriend is like, suuuuch a big fan of you. We recently got engaged, he's like, suuuuch a sweetheart. He'll be like, sooooo jealous when I tell him I saw you! He's sooooo busy telling planes where to land and stuff." The waitress grabbed the sides of her face again. "Oh my GOSH! I like, totally forgot to tell you my name! I'm Jackie, nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you, Jackie," Tails said, unable to shake a nagging feeling he'd heard her name before.

Jackie turned her attention back to Amy and spoke to her for fifteen minutes straight, completely ignoring Tails' presence. Eventually, she took their orders and left to attend to her other tables. Amy let out a long, loud exhale. "I thought she was never going to stop talking…" she groaned.

"I feel your pain," Tails said, giving her a look of sympathy. "There's a reason I don't like to fly in Station Square. They always connect me to a super fan of mine."

"I didn't know you had a super fan of your own! I guess I shouldn't be too surprised though- we're not exactly average people."

"Tell me about it. I didn't know you had a fangirl of your own, either! Though, I guess it's nice to know that you don't have some creepy guy stalking you."

Amy groaned. "No, I've had those guys show up before as well. That's what the hammer's for though."

Tails laughed. "Yeah you really know how to swing that."

The two made small talk for a bit, until Jackie returned with their meals. It took about ten minutes for her to leave, but when she did, the two finally dug into their meals.

"…And the worst part of it is, I don't know what I even did wrong!" Knuckles said in between sobs. Sonic rubbed his friend's back. He honestly didn't even know if he was helping. The most experience he had with people crying was Amy and Tails when they were younger, but Knuckles hardly ever shed a tear. He could really only remember him crying when Tikal left.

"I don't think you really did anything wrong, Knux," he said. "Sometimes relationships just don't work out, you know?"

"I just… why…" Knuckles' hands balled up into fists. "Why is she already going out with him?! Does our time together mean nothing to her?! What am I, chopped liver?!"

"Maybe she's moving on in her own way, man. Have you spoken to her at all since she moved out?"

"No. What do I have to say to her? All I'd do is beg her to take me back."

Sonic had no idea what to say. He'd never been much into relationships, and as such hadn't even been on a single date. He tried to think of something to say, but nothing came to mind. Nothing at all. "You got no clue how to respond, do ya man?" Knuckles asked him.

Sonic threw up his arms and shrugged. "Guilty as charged! Sorry bud."

"It's all good. I didn't really expect advice from you, I just wanted someone to talk to, I guess."

"It's good to talk about this kind of thing," the hedgehog said with a smile. "It helps ease your mind a bit."

Knuckles nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I do feel a bit better."

Sonic thought for a moment, then snapped his fingers. "Hey, you know what you need?" he asked. "A hobby. You need to do something in your free time that makes you feel good."

"A hobby?" Knuckles replied, confused. "But I already got hobbies. I train and diet every single day. Well, not this week, but still."

"That's more a lifestyle than a hobby, Knux. I'm talking something more along the lines of like… you know, drawing, or writing, or reviewing movies on YouTube and acting superior to everyone else because you think having an opinion on a movie makes you cool. Stuff like that."

The echidna thought for a moment, then shook his head. "None of that is really my thing. I thought about becoming a fitness guy on instagram, but then I saw Charmy make a video on fitness instagram people that were 'cringe,' whatever that means. I just know I don't wanna be like those weirdos."

Sonic frowned. "You watch Charmy's YouTube videos? Why?"

Knuckles shrugged. "They're funny sometimes. You know, when he's not screaming his head off for no reason. The intros are always annoying though, he always yells at the camera telling the viewer to hit the like button and subscribe if we haven't already."

"Why? What's the point in doing that?"

Knuckles shrugged. "Beats me, but I feel compelled to like the video every time he does it."

Sonic shook his head. "The point is, I think you should look into a hobby. I think that could be very beneficial to you."

The echidna nodded. "Yeah, I'll look into it man, for sure. Right now though, I wanna watch something stupid and violent."

"Let's see what's on Netflix then," Sonic said with a smile as he picked up the remote.

"Man, that place is great!" Tails said as he and Amy walked out of the restaurant. "I'll have to keep that place in mind. I'll also have to keep Jackie's schedule in mind in case you ever wanna go there with me."

Amy sighed. "Yeah, sorry about that. I completely forgot she worked there on Sundays…"

"Hey, it's alright! It's kind of reassuring that I'm not the only one with a super fan. Well, I feel bad that you have to put up with it, but like-"

"I understand what you mean, Tails," Amy said, cutting him off. "Don't worry, I still had fun with you tonight. You're a nice guy to be around, Tails."

Tails scratched his neck, a little embarrassed. "Gee, ya think so?"

"I know so. You're really sweet. Whenever you're ready to start dating again, I'm sure that your girlfriend will be super lucky," Amy teased.

A flustered feeling washed over Tails. He stopped dead in his tracks. His mind raced a million miles an hour, and he felt overwhelmingly that he had to tell her something. Amy stopped and turned to face him, a little worried. "Tails? Are you alright?" she asked.

"Amy…" Tails breathed. "I… I…"

"What the hell are you doing?" he thought to himself. "Just tell her. It's that simple. Just do it!"

"I was wondering if you're busy at work this week?" he blurted out. "I'm just really excited to start working on the outfit you came up with. It looks really cool, you know?"

"You idiot," he thought to himself. "You were right there."

Amy's eyes lit up. "Oh my gosh, I'd love to have you come in and design that outfit with me!" she squealed. "I'm so glad you love the outfit so much. I'm hoping that working alongside you will make it even better! I'll try and squeeze you in my schedule. Hmm… I think Wednesday would be good? It would have to be later on in the day, maybe even before we close up shop. Is that ok with you?"

A wave of excitement washed over the kitsune. "O-of course!" he yelled excitedly. "That's perfect!"

"Awesome! I'll make sure to fit you in on my time slots. Ooo, I can't wait to work on this! It's gonna be so much fun!"

A droplet of water hit the top of the kitsune's head. He looked up, realizing the sky was full of dark clouds. "Hey, Amy?" he said, maintaining his gaze on the sky.

"What's up?" Amy asked. Suddenly, the hedgehog felt a few droplets of water hit her head, and she followed his gaze.

"I think we should run," Tails said simply.

"Definitely," Amy replied. Without warning, she grabbed the kitsune's arm and began running towards the train station, Tails trailing behind. As the rain started coming down harder, the two of them started to get more and more soaked.

An idea crossed Tails' mind. Without telling Amy, he jumped up in the air, propelling his tails rapidly. He spun slow enough to where he wasn't too far above the ground but still higher than Amy and flew above her. The hedgehog stopped, confused as to what he was doing. She stopped and looked up, realizing that the rain wasn't hitting her as much anymore. Tails smiled down at her. "Just pretend I'm an umbrella and run," he shouted at her.

Amy stared at him for a moment, stunned, before bursting out in laughter. "For a genius, you sure are dumb sometimes!" she yelled as she started running again.

The two of them laughed as they headed towards the station, both soaking wet.

Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't worry, I know how and when Tails is gonna confess and it won't be for a bit. Gotta build up the romance. Thanks for reading! Don't forget to review and tell me your thoughts.