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No one would ever guess that Shadow the Hedgehog was a cuddler. With his stand offish tendencies and quickly ignited temperament, it would come as a shock for most to realize just how much he enjoyed wrapping his arms around Amy. Whether they were just out and about or at one of their houses, Shadow tended to prefer to have some form of physical contact with her-either with his arm around her waist or holding her hand. But there were times where he found it to be a bit inconvenient.
Like now.
He was lying in bed, blinking blearily. The sky was still dark, it was late, and Amy had decided to come over to his place to spend the night. While he didn't think his little apartment was as comfortable as her home-or as nicely decorated-Shadow didn't mind seeing Amy asleep in his bed, wearing his oversized shirt. At first, he didn't know what had woken him up. His girlfriend was fast asleep on his chest, snuggled close to him with his arm wrapped around her. Then he heard his phone notifications going off in short intervals. Groaning, he reached over and snatched the damn thing off his nightstand, opening his phone as he squinted irritably at the blinding light.
It was Sonic, of course. "What does that dumbass want...?" He grumbled, voice rough with fatigue, opening their messages.
"Hey, Shads, you up?"
"Now I am. And I'm gonna kick your ass for waking me up."
"Sure, sure. Look, can we meet up? I gotta talk."
"Who says I wanna listen?"
"Please? We'll meet at that one bar we found in Apotos. I'll buy you a drink."
Shadow sighed, this meant he wasn't playing around. Sonic usually left him alone after he rejected his invites the first time around, so to be bribed like this meant Sonic really had something to say. He clicked his tongue and replied, "fine. I'll meet you there." Now he had to dislodge himself from Amy's iron grip without-
"Shadow, honey...?" Waking her. He winced as Amy's emerald eyes opened, piercing his heart. Fuck, he loved her so much. She whined, rubbing her face as she sat up, clad in nothing but his large Hot Honey shirt and a pair of his boxers. "What's going on...? Why are you up so late?" Shadow leaned over, giving her a chaste kiss.
"Did I wake you?" She hummed, pulling him back down into the bed. The week had been long and tiring, plus Shadow had to make up for the whole beach fiasco. So they had decided to have a nice night in at his place where he pampered and spoiled Amy all night long. A feeling of pride swelled in his chest as his shirt shifted on her, showing a series of love bites on her neck and chest.
Oh, he had spoiled her plenty.
"Go back to sleep, Shadow..." she whispered. He shook his head.
"Sonic texted me to meet up, he said he had something to talk about." She raised an eyebrow, "I'll be back soon, I promise."
"Shadow, be nice." Her boyfriend scrunched his face as if he was thinking hard about it.
Finally, he said, "I'll try."
"Shadow."
"I'll try really hard."
The white brick buildings of Apotos looked like little pieces of moonlight in the night. Shadow walked through the alley towards a small entryway, tucked away from the main roads. He could hear soft music playing from the bar as he stepped in to find a simple metal stairway, leading up to the top of one of the buildings. Stepping up, Shadow appeared and instinctively surveyed his surroundings. The small rooftop bar had stone and mortar white flooring and a matching stone bar filled with the latest equipment and bar tools. The metal stools were aligned in different areas and tables. The only people here were alcoholics and those who needed to get away from their lives for a few hours. Spotting a familiar blue blur, Shadow went to the bar and simply said "whiskey, neat" before heading over to the rooftop ledge where Sonic was lounging on an outdoor couch with some chips and dip.
"Took you long enough, Shads." Sonic held out his hand and Shadow slapped it away, a bit of an unofficial greeting. "Guess the missus didn't want you to go?"
Shadow hmphed, "you'll have to answer to her for getting me out like this." Shadow sat down and the two were silent, watching the ocean crash below the city. Sonic hated hard conversations, especially when it came to having them with Shadow. But, after everything that happened, he felt like he had to have an honest talk with the Ultimate Lifeform. The server came up with Shadow's drink and Sonic held up his own.
"Cheers." Their glasses clinked and they each took a swig. "Mmmm...man, I gotta say, this place has the best booze! And I've had that really old stuff from the palace." Shadow nodded. Not many knew this, but when it came to bar hopping, Shadow and Sonic tended to go together. As the years went by, they just grew an appreciation for alcohol and would share a drink from time to time. Shadow liked things like whiskey and bourbon, maybe a gin if he was in the mood. Sonic, however, preferred brandies and rum. Both agreed that vodka wasn't their speed. "You remember that one place with the peanut butter whiskey? The really good stuff that they only made a few bottles of per year?"
Shadow sucked in a breathe, "that stuff was delicious. If only I wasn't on duty, I could have tried to wait out the line for a bottle." His blue companion laughed before reaching behind him and producing a glass bottle with an amber brown liquid in it. The label was hand written with the name, Glyphic Spirits, in cursive and the year. "Wait? How did you get this?" Sonic grinned.
"I've been in Glyphic Canyons all day, waiting for it." Shadow took the bottle, eyes sparkling at the drink before he blinked and looked at Sonic in confusion. He had a bit of an embarrassed on his face, "it's an apology...look, Shadow, I was a complete dick about you and Amy...I'm sorry." He stayed quiet as Sonic spoke. Leaning back in his seat, Sonic chugged the rest of his drink. As soon as it was empty, Shadow popped open the bottle and poured the whiskey into Sonic's glass. "...Thanks."
"Well, Amy doesn't like whiskey, so you might as well drink it with me." Shadow chugged his own whiskey before pouring some more in. "So, what changed your mind about me and Amy?" He watched as Sonic sighed, swishing his drink in his glass.
"I guess...I realized how much of a bitch I was being," Sonic wasn't one to swear so often, so the alcohol must be working. "Amy's been chasing after me for years and I never gave her feelings about me a second thought. She was just my friend...but that doesn't mean I get to decide who she dates...I guess I was just scared of her getting hurt...and of not having her around."
Shadow hummed, taking a drink, "you know I'd never hurt her. She's...far too precious to hurt."
"I know...but you gotta understand, I've known Amy since we were kids. I guess, even if I didn't love her the way she wanted...I still did." He understood. Amy may not have been on Sonic's list of potential lovers, but he still cared about her. Shadow couldn't deny him that. Amy Rose had a habit of being absolutely loveable, it's what had helped guide him away from the path of destruction before. "But I'm sorry for making things weird between us."
"Hmph. When have things not been weird between us?" Despite his words, Shadow's tone was much more relaxed, almost joking. Sonic snorted before offering out his glass.
"We cool?"
"...For now." The two tapped glasses before Sonic said.
"We should go check out Casino City, night's still young.”
"Still young? It's almost 1 AM in Green Hills."
"But it's only 10 PM in Casino City~"
Shadow shook his head, "I promised Amy I'd be back soon." Sonic nudged him.
"Come on, Shads, let's mess around a bit. Have little guys' night out." He growled, not budging. "We'll be back before the girls realize how late we're out~"
That raised a question, "does Princess Sally know you're out this late?" Sonic smirked.
"She had work in Mobotropolis, so I'm free for the next few days. Come on, Shadow, let loose and come hit the slots with me!" Shadow sighed before taking another swig.
"...Last hedgehog there buys the next round."
The blaring chimes of slot machines and bingo rang through his ears as he skidded to a stop in front of the casino. The lights were flashing everywhere as people walked around in their clubwear, taking part in the city's many festive attractions. Casinos, bars, restaurants, and clubs littered the streets with flashing signs and giggling servers dressed in various, scantily clad outfits. Shadow felt like this was already a bad idea, but Sonic grabbed him by the arm. "Ready have some fun?"
"Sonic, this is a horrible idea. Both Sally and Amy will kill us."
"Relax, we're not even doing anything wrong. Just blowing off some steam," Sonic waltzed in and Shadow, deciding it was best to keep an eye on him, followed. The whiskey bottle was now about halfway gone, so that would explain why the two were acting so moronic. Lines of slot machines, roulette tables, black jack, and poker rooms were spread before the two heroes. "Let's see...should we hit the machines first or poker?" Shadow scoffed.
"You, poker? You'll be bankrupt before the night is through." He looked around before nudging him, "let's go for some roulette." Sonic whistled.
"Feel like testing your luck?"
Shadow smirked, "luck has nothing to do with it." The two hedgehogs went into the crowd, casually greeting anyone who gushed over the two famous heroes' sudden appearance. The blaring music was drowned out by the machines and laughter, servers walked around with smiles and bubbling champagne, and Shadow felt like fuzzy from the buzz of his whiskey. Sonic was hamming it up, with onlookers following the popular blue hedgehog as he schmoozed with other patrons as easily as if they were friends. They finally made it to the table, watching as a current group played with a American-style roulette wheel. Eyeing the croupier as they spun the red and black wheel, Shadow subtly studied the woman's movements down to the the twitch of her fingers.
For the uninitiated, roulette was a simple game of luck. A player will choose to bet on a number and if the ball falls on the number, that player wins. They had zero chance of increasing or decreasing the trajectory of the ball because the croupier was the one who tossed the ball. And, of course, all current casinos had very advanced anti-cheating systems and security to ensure that players didn't mess with the results.
However, those players weren't a genetically engineered hedgehog who was created to be a living weapon of mass destruction. Shadow had one trick up his sleeve that could aid them in winning a few rounds. After securing their chips, Sonic and Shadow waited until a pair of players left, muttering about the game being rigged. Then they took their spots, opposite of each other in the table. "Joining in, handsome?" A pretty cat dressed in burlesque clothing cooed at Shadow, who simply huffed.
Sonic winked at her, "my friend isn't the talkative type, kitty. Don't mind him." The cat pouted before the croupier announced that it was time to place their bets. Shadow, after calculating from what he observed from the croupier's movements and the way they angled their wrist, made his bet with Sonic following suit. Once all bets were placed, the ball was cast. Round and round it went across the wheel, bopping and hopping across red and black tiles until it finally settled against a black tile.
"Seventeen black." A smirk crossed his face while Sonic cheered.
"Hell yeah!" They sat at the table, playing a few rounds before moving onto poker. Sonic, heeding Shadow's warning about his 'fuck awful' poker face, instead joined a craps table. Booze was flowing and people were laughing while Shadow kept a straight face as he eyed his cards. He didn't know how long he had been at this table. His chips were towering, and the people around him weren't the kind he would normally tolerate around him. He eyed the others above his cards, a pretty decent hand. He hadn't folded for the past few deals, cutting and calling with seemingly no pattern. He could see the nervousness of the other players, shifting fingers and eyes, grinding teeth, slight fidgeting.
"...Re-raise." He said simply, his voice like a gong in the night with how it kept the table's attention. A second past before one woman swore and threw her cards down, followed by another person. One by one they folded, with various hands showing different varieties of cards. Finally, the house called it and pushed the winnings to Shadow, who put his cards down. "Full house." Groans and swearing erupted as a few patrons actually had hands to beat him, but failed when they chickened out. Shadow simply gathered his winnings and was about to sit for another game when he thought to check his phone and swore silently. It was almost 6:30 AM back at Green Hills. He left around 11 PM. "I'm calling it."
"Aw come on, Red!"
"Another game! Let me win something back!" He waved them off and checked in his chips, hoping that the fact he hadn't really lost any money might appease his sure to be furious girlfriend. After that, he went back into the casino where Sonic was at the Big Six Wheel, cracking jokes and making bets as it spun. He grabbed his shoulder, shaking the drunk hero.
"Oi! Moron, we gotta go! It's almost 6 AM back home and Amy will kill us." Sonic groaned as he checked his phone to see several missed calls.
"Fuck...Sally's gonna kill me too...alright, I'm out, guys!" The two left, sprinting out of the casino while laughing about how fucking busted they were.
His head was pounding and he felt like he was going to die. A groan escaped his throat as he stretched his sore muscles, sitting up slowly on his couch...wait, how did he get here? Shadow blearily opened his eyes, seeing his ceiling above his head. His shoes were off, though he didn't remember taking them off, and a blanket was thrown over him with an ibuprofen and a glass of water on the coffee table. "Fuck, my head..." He groaned, fighting the vertigo that swamped his brain. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sonic passed out on his recliner with another blanket and an ibuprofen/water combo beside him.
Now, he knew he was too tipsy to set them up like this...which meant-
"Good morning." Amy stood in the doorway, still clad in his Hot Honey shirt and boxers, with her hands on her hips. She gave him a disapproving stare as he groaned.
"...Good morning, Amy..."
"So, when you said you'd be back soon, did you mean by this evening or...?" He sighed, taking the medicine and chugging the water. "Where were you all night? I woke up again at like three and you were still gone! I was worried." Amy walked over, handing him a plate with toast and eggs. "And then you both come in here, drunk and smelling like cigarettes and booze!"
Sonic groaned, "where am I?"
"In trouble, that's where you are!" Amy turned on him too, "Sally says there's pics of you two at the casino all over social media! Did you guys go gambling?" Sonic lazily took his ibuprofen, nodding.
"We met up for a few drinks and decided to have some fun...no biggie." Amy's eyelid twitched as she glared at both of them.
"At 2 AM in the morning?!" They winced at her shout. "What in Gaia's name made you think of doing that?" Sonic gave her an apologetic smile as he watched the irate pink hedgehog go on about being irresponsible and reputation, etc. Shadow sighed and laid back down, deciding that he would be calling into work. He should have never listened to Sonic. "Shadow, are you listening to me?"
"Of course, Rose, I'm listening...I'm sorry for staying out so late."
Sonic stepped in, "it's my fault, Ames. I dragged Shadow to the casino so we could have some fun together after I messed up the get together last week. I wanted to make it up to him for being such an asshole." Shadow huffed.
"It's not like you forced me, idiot. I went just as willingly," he got up then and walked over to Amy, taking her hands. "But you're right, I should have at least let you know where I was. I'm sorry for worrying you." Amy glanced between the two hedgehogs she loved the most. Sonic was one of her best friends and Shadow was her lover. But she never thought she'd see them both refuse to let the other go down for their mistakes. It was nice to see them get along like this. And besides, they were grown adults. It's not like they broke any rules. She pouted at Shadow.
"...You didn't meet any other girls?" Sonic laughed.
"Well, there was that one cat who seemed to like him." Before Amy could respond, Shadow looked at him blankly.
"I thought that was a guy." That single sentence earned him Amy's forgiveness and a kiss before she made him go shower and get back in bed.
Life in Green Hills was changing and, like all others, Sonic and his friends were not immune to it. Everyone knew that Amy Rose was Sonic's girl, but now she was Shadow's lover. Everyone knew Sonic was Amy's Dream Guy, but now Shadow was her reality. And while Sonic may not have taken it well at first, it didn't change the fact that they were all still friends.