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Sonic stared intensely at his bowling partner's back, his eyes never leaving the way Shadow’s muscles moved as he released the bowling ball. After Sonic had thrown his third gutter ball in a row, he was feeling raw, his pride decimated. Shadow, on the other hand, had gotten three strikes. They were on their fourth round, and Sonic resisted pounding a fist on the table when neon purple, humiliatingly bolded, letters flashed ‘STRIKE,’ on the TV screen above their lane after Shadow took his turn.
“Chaos, Shadow, what the hell?” Sonic cried, his nerves frayed. Maybe he was being a little over-dramatic, but with all the beer he had consumed (courtesy of the alley owner since him and Shadow were, well, the Hedgehogs) he was giving in to his anger a little too carelessly. “Are you cheating or something? Do you want to fight?”
Shadow turned around, his nose in the air and a self-satisfied smirk on his face. Sonic crossed his arms to stop himself from flailing them around when he saw Shadow flash his fangs.
“Dumbass,” Shadow said as he motioned toward the ball return. “I believe it is your turn. Unfortunately for you, it seems all that bark before we started had no bite… you’re just a faker after all.”
Sonic saw red, but before he could react to Shadow’s taunts, a child shrieked behind him. His ears pinned back at the sound, his tail flinching. Shadow merely glared past Sonic, most likely at the offending party.
“Don’t glare at the baby, Shads,” Sonic attempted to intervene, waving a hand over Shadow’s eyes. Shadow reached out and grabbed Sonic’s wrist before he could wave again and directed his ire toward his companion.
“Don’t do that again.”
Smirking, Sonic brought his gripped hand directly in front of Shadow’s face and positioned his fingers. With the look Shadow was giving him, he knew that there was a 50/50 chance of their relations spiraling down to a public brawl at an all-ages bowling alley, but Sonic was never one to shy away from taking risks. “Alright, chuckles,” Sonic teased before blinking, surprised at how gentle his own voice sounded, “what about this?”
He lightly flicked Shadow’s forehead, his unoccupied hand resting on his hip. Suddenly, the grip on his wrist turned into a crushing vice and Sonic bit on his tongue to stop himself from growling.
“So,” Sonic let out a hoarse laugh, “you don’t like that one either, huh? Whoops, sorry, Shads!”
“Don’t push your luck!” Shadow growled, but before the pain became too unbearable for the hero, Sonic felt the pressure release and a sharp, stinging flick where Shadow had been strangling his wrist.
Shadow had just flicked him back.
There was a light, pleasant sound from the biohog, and Sonic felt his eyes widen to the point where it hurt when he saw the other hedgehog’s attractive smile.
“Though, I suppose with how much alcohol you’ve consumed, and how badly your ass must hurt from getting kicked, you can’t help but be a little more ridiculous than usual," Shadow finished.
Sonic laughed sheepishly, nervously twirling the end of one of his quills before reddening at the juvenile action. “Thanks for being understanding, Shadow. Beer really brings the party outta me.”
“Party?” Shadow said amusingly. “You just like to fight, menace.”
“You know, those nicknames are getting meaner by the sentence,” Sonic mused, taking a deep breath and sliding past Shadow before picking up an orange bowling ball. “Alright, here goes nothing!”
Sonic went to release the ball, but felt the lightest touch on his hip before he could. The space behind him emanated warmth and he knew it was Shadow, his hand now firmly on Sonic’s hip and his rocket shoe pressed against Sonic’s own.
“Your form is wrong, hero,” Sonic saw Shadow’s hand engulf his aching wrist, the touch tender but firm. His wrist felt electrified and his tail perked up, his quills struggling to relax. ”Like this…” Shadow murmured.
With Shadow’s instruction, Sonic released the ball and watched it barrel down straight to the middle, knocking down all the pins over. The television flashed ‘STRIKE’ as Sonic turned around, his eyes bright and muzzle beet red.
“Gee, does this mean you’re my personal bowling trainer now?” he said, pleased with how Shadow hadn’t moved an inch and their chests brushing up against one another. “I gotta admit, if the answer is ‘yes,’ I might have to take ya out for dinner to celebrate.”
Shadow rolled his eyes and sighed in exhaustion. “So corny,” he lamented before pointing to the untouched nachos and chili dogs on their table, “and unfortunately for you, you already bought me… dinner so consider this session free of charge.”
Sonic tsked and nudged Shadow’s hips with his own. The other hedgehog didn’t react, his stance unmoved. “Hmph! No fun. Who said we can’t have two dinners.”
“Me,” Shadow said as if it should be obvious.
Glancing back at their unfinished game and nodding to himself, Sonic motioned for Shadow to follow him to the table. “Let’s take a break so I don’t go Super on the next round. Sound good?”
Shadow chuckled lowly, taking note of the way Sonic’s ears perked up at the sound, a faraway look in his eyes. The biohog felt his cheeks warm ever-so-slightly at the sight. “Yes, I suppose I could humor you tonight.”
“Thanks for being so gracious, Shads,” Sonic said with an exasperated smile, “What would I do without you?”
Looking distastefully at the cheese sauce on the nachos, Shadow eyed Sonic in disgust. “You would eat this crap,” he said before asking the table over if they wanted them, my friend doesn’t want them anymore. take them, and of course, no normal person would say ‘no’ to Shadow.
Sonic watched in horror as the kid at the chosen table laid their entire hand over the nachos, smearing the cheese on their palm and fingers. He felt sick. Maybe he should still fight Shadow.
“You... you!” Sonic hissed when Shadow sat back down at their table and picked up his chili dog, taking a massive bite as his blue companion fumed. “Ugh! And now you’re eating that chili dog so smugly! It’s horrible!”
Shadow swallowed and bared his teeth before frowning. “Perhaps a race to settle this then? You obviously are intent on goading me on so, as I said earlier, I’ll humor you and give you want.”
Give me what I want, huh? Whether it was the alcohol that made him bold or the cold, handsome glare Shadow was giving him, Sonic would never know. Regardless, he leaned forward on his elbows, feeling his quills slide against his arms, and winked at Shadow.
“But do you even know what I want?” he asked, his voice lowered so only Shadow could hear. “Cause if not, those are bold words.”
The biohog regarded him closely, his lips pursed and his red eyes shining. Sonic sat back down in his chair and started to eat his own chili dog. He was mid-chew when Shadow spoke up.
“Let’s race,” Shadow responded, his voice a little rougher than before, “and at the end, we'll see if what we want is the same thing.”
Sonic hastily swallowed, narrowly missing choking on his food. He felt his forehead start to sweat and his heart thump like it was about to evacuate his chest. With an excited gleam to his eyes, Sonic crossed his arms and leaned toward his friend again.
“Lookin’ forward to it,” he whispered, his ears twitching back and forth as he looked at the other.
Shadow’s gaze was hopeful as he nodded. “Me too, Sonic.”