Work Text:
Shadow remembers those days well.
Sitting at a table in a decently furnished restaurant, being practically forced to participate in a blind date event by Rouge. He’d be paired up by an AI with someone who would theoretically be their soulmate.
Shadow doesn’t really believe in soulmates anymore. Hasn’t for a long time and it would take a lot of work to change that outlook. Until someone sits down at his table, the man across from him is wearing a red blazer that contrasts heavily with his cobalt blue fur, the most amazing emerald eyes looking at him and a smile that’s as radiant as the sun.
“Hi there.” The blue hedgehog says as he extends a hand “My name is Sonic.” It takes Shadow a second to register the name but returns the gesture “I’m Shadow, nice to meet you Sonic.” While having dinner it appears there’s an instant connection between the two, they laugh about jokes and anecdotes they tell while enjoying a nice meal. Shadow really wants to continue seeing this gorgeous specimen across the table, so he decides to make the first move. Grabbing Sonic’s hand and asking if they can meet up another time.
Sonic gladly agrees and they exchange contact details before departing. While on his walk back to his apartment Shadow gets a feeling he’s seen this hedgehog before but cannot recall where or when. Its not like a guy like that would be easy to forget with such a distinct fur color.
Later in the evening Shadow is pulled from his trance of scrolling through social media by a message from Sonic. “Hey there Shadow, I had a great time today. Maybe you want to come over to my place tomorrow afternoon?” He chuckles at the directness of the blue guy, wanting to hang out the day after meeting sure isn’t something a person does so easily. So he replies “Sounds great, what time would you like me to be there?” almost immediately after hitting send there is another message. “Great, how does 2pm sound? Here’s my address,” attached is a google maps link to a house on the other side of town. “Sure see you then :)” Shadow chuckles as he puts his phone on the charger and goes to sleep.
The next day he is up bright and early, getting everything ready for his second date with Sonic. Making sure he looks the part he decides to be bold and wear white today. Pairing a white leather jacket, jeans of the same color and a pair of maroon boots he adds a dark purple V-neck shirt so his chest fur sticks out. After checking himself over in the mirror for the 3rd time in the last hour he finally heads out to Sonic’s place.
He arrives at a house in the suburbs. A modest little house that seems to suit the occupant that just opened the door. Shadow feels a lot more confident about his choice of outfit as he sees Sonic’s jaw basically hit the floor. Laughing he puts his hand under Sonic’s jaw, softly closing it, “watch it cutie, you’ll catch flies that way.” Sonic blinks before vigorously shaking his head, finally getting his train of thought back on track “Wow Shadow, you look… Fantastic” he sighs. Shadow spins around in place, both to show Sonic all sides of him but to also take a look around the room when something abruptly stops him. A photo on the wall pulls his attention almost like a cat would react to the dot of a laser pointer. Hanging between photo’s of what seems to be friends and family of Sonic there’s a class photo from what seems to be 7th grade. Obviously on it is the blue hedgehog in question but there’s another that actually draws his focus. In the back, near the teacher is a black hedgehog with red markings. Himself. That is when it finally clicks in his mind:
Sonic was his classmate, the same classmate he had a massive crush on back in school. At the time he was too nervous to say anything, but he had a feeling Sonic felt the same. They did practically everything together, so much so that Shadow considered Sonic his soulmate. Everything was easy around him, unfortunately for them it was very much frowned upon to have feelings for the same gender so Shadow decided that it wasn’t worth chasing a so called Soulmate if it wasn’t accepted. He still hung out with Sonic but once he graduated they drifted apart. Going to different schools and basically becoming strangers. Until fate, or well an AI, put them back on the same path.
Sonic notices Shadow tense up and study a picture on the wall; The class photo he placed there this morning. A faint smirk showing on his face. To be honest he tried blind dating to get over his feelings for Shadow, little did he expect to be matched up with him almost immediately. From the second he sat down he noticed the black hedgehog tense and study him intensely, almost fearing that Shadow recognized him, that thought quickly disappearing when he introduced himself and the hedgehog snapped out of a trance and shook his hand.
The feelings for Shadow never passed, he was Sonic’s soulmate ever since they met in school. But one day Shadow changed and it became like he was no longer interested. It hurt a lot but Sonic realized that their environment would need to change for them to be themselves. So he gave Shadow the time and space. Eventually losing track of him when they changed schools and not hearing from him for years. But the actual tenseness in the black hedgehog’s shoulders is telling Sonic he should do something.
He calmly approaches Shadow and puts an arm around him “I see you spotted the picture” he says calmly. Not knowing what to expect he braces himself for the worst, imagine his surprise as he is pulled into a hug and kissed all over his face. “Whoa, hey, what are you doing Shadow?” he exclaims between giggles and yelps as he tries to escape the grasp of the other hedgehog. Not that Sonic minds. His soulmate is finally back in his arms and giggling like a little kid.
Shadow doesn’t know what to do but just attack the blue hedgehog with affection. As if years of emotions he’s fought suddenly have come racing back up from the depths. The one he wrote off as a lost love, the fate thought was too hard to reach at that young age, was back in his life. Renewing faith in the one thing he thought didn’t exist anymore. His soulmate.
It’s a fantastic memory to look back on. Its been two years since that day and the pair are currently standing at the edge of a pier overlooking the sun setting into the ocean. Sonic’s face bathed in the warm orange glow makes him look just as stunning as he did when they met. Luckily he is too busy looking at the dolphins in the distance so he doesn’t notice the small black box Shadow pulls from his jacket as he calls his lover’s name and gets on one knee.
“Sonic my love, will you marry me?”
Shadow's outfit in the story was fully inspired from tumblr user The-Hydroxian-Artblog who made a fantastic drawing and i couldn't resist putting it in here