Work Text:
Sonic and Amy were planning something—Shadow was sure of it. That whole week they'd been acting strange—being more...touchy with Shadow, inviting him over three days in a row, then refusing his company on the 13th, citing some big project they were working on. Then, February 14th, they avoided him the whole day (a difficult task, considering their apartment was across from Shadow's). On Saturdays like that one, Shadow would typically recieve a breakfast invite from the couple, but no such luck that day. By afternoon, Shadow was getting nervous.
"What's got you brooding today, hun?" Rouge queried while haggardly strutting to the kitchen, no doubt looking for coffee. Sure, it was 3:00 PM, but it was Rouge, resident night owl of the Team Dark apartment.
(Shadow was an early bird, despite what most thought. Omega didn't sleep per say, but rose from his shut-down state at seven every morning.)
Shadow was sitting on the couch some meters away, elbows on knees and head in hands. "Nothing," he softly growled. He was a lier.
"You're a lier," Rouge discerned easily and Shadow scoffed—the con of having someone truly know you. That, and Rouge could see through most of the lies said to her.
"Fine," was Shadow's reluctant admission. He slowly took air in through his nose, "Sonic and Rose are being weird around me. I don't know why."
Rouge walked over to the couch, abandoning her mandatory cup of black coffee with two sugars and a splash of cream to comfort the hedgehog-shaped mass of stress residing on the couch. She sat close to Shadow—closer than he'd normally allow, but some time ago, therapy convinced him to recieve comfort. She gingerly sat a hand on his shoulder, prompting him to lower his hands, but not his head. Rouge watched him stare, brows furrowed, at his now-clasped hands sitting in his lap.
The bat had a secret: she was over one hundred percent sure that Amy and Sonic were both head-over-heels in love with her roommate. She would tell said roommate, but gossiping about something this important was where she drew the line. If it was too personal, she left it alone. Shadow would either have to find out through Sonic and Amy confessing or figure it out on his own.
That didn't mean she couldn't give hints, or nudge him in the right direction.
"You are aware of what today is, right?" Rouge asked with an incredulous tint in her tone. She gently removed her hand when Shadow turned his head to give her a look equal parts sharp and confused. Rouge was happy to supply an answer: "It's Valentine's Day." She easily removed her excitement from her expression and tone—if the couple was planning what she suspected (which was likely, even with the lack of details from Shadow's end. They tended to border on predictable), Rouge would be over the moon. Her best friend deserved them.
(There was no question as to whether Shadow would accept a partnership with the two. He was painfully oblivious to his own blatant feelings for the both, and it showed.)
"Oh," Shadow acknowledged. "So it is." A beat. "What does this have to do with anything?"
It was cute how stupid he was sometimes (despite how frustrating it could be).
Rouge rolled her eyes in a lightheated manner. "They're probably planning something," she supplied. Perfect. Vague.
"What does that have to do with me?" Shadow echoed his previous sentiment. Rouge would have thought this was an act if she didn't know Shadow well enough, if she didn't know the confused innocence of the look on his face.
"You're smart," Rouge complimented, "you can figure it out." She gave Shadow's shoulder a couple encouraging pats, then made her exit, returning to her task of making coffee.
Shadow was left perplexed and staring blankly at the powerd-off TV in front of him. As he recalled, Valentine's Day was a celebration of love, typically of the romantic genre. That would mean that either Sonic, Amy, or both were planning a celebration or sorts for eachother. That theory made sense. What didn't make sense was Shadow's perceived role in this. Why must the two change their dynamic with Shadow while preparing their own date?
But Rouge was right; Shadow was smart. "Shit," he swore under his breath. "Are they...they're..," Shadow shuddered, unable to voice his suspicions.
"Painfully in love with you?" Rouge supplied, then dramatically complained, "Yes. Obviously. Oh my gosh, it was so obvious, I'm so glad you finally figured it out."
Shadow continued to stare straight ahead while blood rushed to his face. There was no way. Where they both...enamored (Shadow was too shock-stricken for the use of the word 'love' yet) with him separately? Was his existence going to screw up their relationship? Shadow enjoyed seeing the two together—no matter how much his gut twisted at the sight, which—
"Fuck," Shadow swore as the realization hit him slowly, then all too quickly. "I...," he blinked, unable to utter the incomprehensible. He tried again, "I'm...," to no avail, of course.
"Painfully in love with them?" Rouge asked from the kitchen. She flitted over, her coffee machine gurgling in the background, to answer the confounded grimace on Shadow's face. "Yeah, hun, it's been pretty obvious. None of you have concealed your feelings all that well."
Shadow buried his head in his hands, hoping that if he suffocated his face with his gloves hard enough, he'd dissapear (and he technically could, if he wanted to. Teleporting away from this conversation was tempting, but his therapist was adamant about not doing that during difficult conversations.) "I'm an idiot," he declared, muffled by his mittens.
"Yeah, you are," Rouge replied, walking back to her machine when it stopped making its horrendous noises. "But, if it helps, so are Sonic and Amy for not realizing how you feel. So it balances each other out, I'd say."
"It doesn't help, actually," Shadow scowled. All this time, Rouge knew how both parties felt and didn't say a single word? Though, on second thought, Shadow was actually glad for Rouge's unprompted secrecy. He'd be angrier if she did say something, as a matter of fact. "Why didn't you say anything?" he perked his head up, genuinely curious.
"I don't mess around in people's personal biz," Rouge claimed. After being shot a glare, because she was a filthy lier, she corrected, "Well, when it comes to friends, anyways. I value my relationships. Wouldn't want to break trust there."
That was the truth—Shadow knew Rouge well enough to distinguish what most couldn't, which was the difference between Rouge's truths, lies, and the large middle ground that she loved to occupy.
Rouge was joining Shadow's side on the couch when two distinct knocks could be heard on the apartment's front door: a polite and soft couple taps from one stranger, and what seemed like a million raps in quick succession from another. Rouge grinned at Shadow—both roommates knew who was there. She pushed his back (a little hard, she nearly shoved him off the couch) in encouragement, and he grimaced on his path to the door.
Before opening the door, he could hear the couples bickering just outside. "I thought I was the one knocking!" "Does it matter?" "Well it's weird when two people knock at the same time!" Their argument ceased the moment Shadow turned the handle, and he was faced with Sonic and Amy trying their best to look natural (and failing. Once Shadow knew what to look for, the cracks in their cool facade shined like kintsugi) upon opening the door fully.
"Shadow!" Amy greeted with a shine that betrayed the fact she was just arguing with her boyfriend. "How've you been?"
"The last two days?" Shadow held back his scoff, which was typically reserved for those other than Amy. He crossed his arms and leaned his shoulder against the door frame; he had a feeling that this conversation would be more than a quick hello. At least, he hoped it would.
Amy's grimace was only visible to the trained eye, which Shadow happened to have. He'd known her for years, and over the last few, he'd grown to know her on a level only those closest to her knew. It was a couple years into their friendship when Shadow developed a fixation on her, spotting the little things without abandon—recognizing every detail of her expressions, her body language, the way her fur's color changed depending on the placement... Just thinking about her made his cheeks burn.
So he really was in love with Amy Rose.
Sonic must have been able to tell that Amy relinquished her turn of the conversation, having biffed it early in, because he jumped in next. "So—uh—Ames and I have a proposal, nope, an invite!" Sonic nervously chuckled at his slip up. Shadow had never seen him like this. It was, no question about it, extremely endearing, and left Shadow desperate to tug him in by the face and kiss him.
Sonic was a different story from Amy. Shadow fell in love with him slowly—for what seemed to be the entire time they'd known each other, Shadow's admiration for him grew slightly every day. Sonic was the perfect rival, and Shadow could list one hundred other ways in which he was perfect. In fact, if he had to list everything he adored about Sonic and Amy, he'd end up with a novel.
It was strange, allowing himself to have these thoughts. It was like Rouge had the key to a hidden repression chest in Shadow's mind and decided to unlock it that day, causing all of his feelings about the couple before him to pour out. It wasn't like he'd never thought like this before (how could he not?), but now he felt like he could think about wanting to kiss Sonic, or hold Amy, or vice versa, or both, or something completely different.
"Anyways," Sonic intervened in Shadow's thoughts, placing a nervous hand behind his head. "Um, we wanted to see if you'd like to come over for dinner tonight, since we missed you at breakfast. Sorry about that, by the way, we got busy with...," Sonic turned to Amy, who looked back with an expression that read I can't help you, and concluded with, "the project."
Shadow resisted a smirk—teasing the couple was obligatory. "Isn't it Valentine's day?" Shadow asked in an unctuous drawl. Hah! How will they respond to that?
The answer to that question took the form of Sonic laying his left hand on Amy's shoulder, turning his head to her, shielding his mouth from Shadow's gaze with his right. In a soft tone (though one Shadow could hear clearly), he suggested, "Group huddle?"
Upon Amy's kurt nod, the two stepped away from Shadow's doorway and towards that of their apartment across the hall. They turned away from Shadow and Rouge, who had just materialized at the former's side. "So much for staying out of 'personal biz,'" Shadow quietly sneered. She was obviously there to listen in on Sonic and Amy's conversation—her ears weren't for show. It wasn't like Shadow was much better in that moment, however—the ultimate lifeform's hearing succeeded that of any human's, at the very least.
"Ah, you don't mind," Rouge replied at equal volume. "Now be quiet."
The couple across the hall had just settled, standing in a huddle formation, turned away from the two thirds of Team Dark. Finally, Sonic asked in a panic, "He knows today's Valentine's Day?"
"Shit," Rouge whispered. "Probably shouldn’t've told you."
"Calm down!" Amy commanded. "This doesn't change the plan. Everything will be the same. Essentially."
"I think it changes a lot," Sonic replied low and frantic. "He's gonna wonder why—"
Shadow dissapeared with a flash, reappearing on the couch in a millisecond. Rouge turned to raise an eyebrow, to which he replied in a cool tone, "I'd rather be suprised."
"Fair enough," Rouge shrugged. Turning back around to face the doorway and seeking cover using the door, she clarified, "I want to know."
Rouge gave up on listening in when the two apparently started discussing a show they were watching together, so the Team Dark door was closed, receiving two knocks for a second time that day after roughly ten minutes. Shadow was greeted with the same sight as earlier upon opening the door.
"So Amy and I kinda already did our Valentine's stuff earlier," Sonic excused bashfully. "And we really missed you, or like, we missed you just a normal amount, so we thought why not share a different meal to compensate? Y'know?"
"It was my understanding that evening celebrations were typically more romantic when it came to this holiday," Shadow pestered, taking delight in having something to hold over the couples' heads. No wonder Sonic was so annoying—it was admittedly pretty fun.
"We've never been much for tradition," Amy stepped in, because it was apparent that the question stumped Sonic. "But I'm sure you know that," she added with a wink. She was clearly caught off guard (if her widened eyes, shrinking pupils, and miniscule step backward was any indication) when Shadow gave a small smile and winked back. Her clear shock was satisfying to watch.
Shadow's smirk only grew when he heard Sonic's small (and likely unintentional, due to how embarrassing it sounded) 'eep,' after the former proclaimed, "Nor I. So that works nicely, doesn't it?" At that point, Shadow was growing cocky, but so long as there weren't any detriment (despite the draining of the couple's sanity, which was their problem to deal with, not his), why stop?
There was a minute of silence where Shadow basked in the glory of getting both Sonic and Amy to shut up, a feat rarely achieved. Sonic had to go and ruin it by taking in a very audible inhale, slapping his open hands together in a way where they sat in front of his waist, straight fingers pointed at Shadow, and impatiently asking, "Do you want to come over for dinner or not?"
Shadow forcefully rolled his eyes, though he couldn't prevent the small smile forming on his lips. "I'll be there," he proclaimed, watching the couple's collective faces light up at the declaration. "What time?"
Amy, who was grinning ear-to-ear with her hands clasped in front of her chest, replied excitedly, "Six." Sonic laid a hand on her shoulder, perhaps in an attempt to get her to calm down. Shadow hoped she wouldn't—it was adorable.
Shadow gave a kurt nod, locking in his RSVP. "See you then," he responded in a cool tone that he definitely for sure didn't force to sound that way, he just naturally sounded like that. And yet, he heard Rouge stifle a laugh from the couch.
The hand on Amy's shoulder was grabbed by the lady herself, forcing Sonic to hold hers in what Shadow observed to be a tight grip. Shadow couldn't ignore the way her eyes were locked on his right hand, her left hand slowly, possibly unconsciously, drifting towards him until she realized what she was doing and snatched her hand back. Shadow frowned subconsciously.
"Well, we'd better get going, then," Amy declared, with an undertone of slight-faux-sorrow. She turned around to start her and her boyfriend's long and treacherous journey to the other end of the hallway, dragging said boyfriend behind her. Said boyfriend, before whipping around to face the way he was heading, implored Shadow to, "Wear something pretty," earning a rare fond smile paired with a not-as-rare eye roll from Shadow. Apparently, that called for a fist-pump in Sonic's eyes, as he performed one when he likely thought Shadow wasn't watching. It was cute.
"'Wear something pretty?'" Rouge squealed with a delight typically reserved for finding jewels of medium-importance after Shadow shut the door.
Shadow walked over to the couch where the bat lied, and shoved her feet off of the last cushion so he could sit. Rouge cast him a dirty glance, but didn't object. Shadow wasn't really sure what to say, a million thoughts running through his brain and clogging up the tunnels, so he muttered what he knew with a stupid smile on his face that he couldn't seem to erase: "He's an idiot."
"Don't think you're exempt from my mocking," Rouge warned. She put on her famed 'Shadow voice,' as it had been come to be known, and added a heavy dose of forced-coolness for her imitation, "'See you then."" Shadow's lack of amusement didn't prevent her from cackling at her poor, but spiritually accurate, impression.
Shadow's hand hovered over Sonic and Amy's doorbell at 6:00 sharp. There wasn't any reason not to press it—it was just dinner with friends (or so he kept telling himself, over and over.) In truth, Shadow knew that this was much more than dinner with friends—this was a dinner that could turn their friendship into something different, something new entirely, and just as easily tear it apart. And that thought terrified him.
Before Shadow could get too wrapped up in his thoughts, however, he was snapped out of them when Sonic opened the door, Amy's arms loosely wrapped around his neck from behind. They were both wearing clothes Shadow had never seen them in, which prompted a self-centered thought in the back of his mind that said maybe they bought new clothes for this occasion, but he quickly shut down that line of thinking. Being the Ultimate Lifeform came with a mandatory amount of ego, but there had to be line.
Sonic was wearing a white long-sleeve button-down shirt not buttoned nearly high enough (his top surgery scars were showing, for Chaos' sake. And for those cofused, yes, it wasn't like he wore clothes often, but it was about the principle of things.) A black tie was hanging undone around neck in a pointless manner. Shadow didn't ask, because he knew the answer Sonic would give: "fashion." He'd also his traded his regular kicks for tasteful black dress shoes.
Amy was dressed more respectably, wearing a skin-tight red halter dress that ended just before her knees. Maroon tights and gloves helped contribute to the clear Valentine's theme of her outfit, along with the red and white heart-shaped clips in her quills. The white mary janes went well with the clips, each shoe having a gold heart for a buckle.
Shadow himself had refused Rouge's offers for a styling, instead opting to to wear what ticked the following boxes: comfortable to wear, Valentine's themed color-wise (for Amy points), and mildly fancy.
(Bonus points if his outfit was "pretty.")
He'd landed a dark red button down underneath a plain black blazer with some embroidered pattern in black thread on the bottom of the sleeves. He didn't own a lot of jewelry, but he decided to put on the few gold rings that he did own—if there was any opportunities to wear them, it'd be then. He didn't change shoes; the only pair of shoes he owned were his air shoes, and they went fine with his outfit already.
"You two look...nice," Shadow complimented, looking them up and down. In truth, they looked better than "nice," but Shadow wasn't sure how to voice that opinion. He asked himself 'what would Rouge do?' as he often did in social situations such as this, but he was coming up blank, so...nice would have cut it.
In turn, the couple reacted as if Shadow had compared them to Greek gods, gotten down on one knee, and proposed right on the spot. They likely thought they were concealing their shock and blushes well, but Shadow noticed the red tinting their muzzles immediately. It brought a slight smile to his lips.
Sonic was fairing worse of the two. While Amy's undertones were fairly pink, Sonic sported a slightly darker tan with yellowish undertones. That was all to say, his blush was either much more severe, or much more noticeable. Shadow concluded on a mix between the two. Not only that, but he was slack-jawed and wide-eyed. Amy was in a similar position, her eyes nearly bulging out of her skull, but wearing a grin so intense that it seemed physically impossible for her to smile any wider.
"...What?" Shadow asked eventually, tired of the silence and annoyed that neither of his hosts had invited him inside yet, instead staring at him with those cute stupid expressions.
"Nothing!" Amy was the first to snap out of her trance. "I mean, you just...don't give out compliments often." Her extreme grin was replaced with a sweet simper, and she almost seemed self-concious in the way she turned her head down and anxiously ran the hand of one arm against her other after letting them fall from Sonic's shoulders. "It feels special, coming from you. Is what I meant," Amy clarified, tone bashful.
It was Shadow's turn to blush—he prayed the two in front of him wouldn't notice. But then again, what did it matter? If the night went how Shadow wanted it to, which it would, it'd be clear how he thought about the couple. It was only a matter of time until Shadow's face could flush freely.
A minute of silence passed, Shadow deep in throught, when he realized that he should probably respond to Amy's explanation. Before he could, however, Shadow was being quickly pulled by the hand into the apartment by Sonic. The latter shoved him to the couch, and the former complied (it'd be easy not to, but he was in a good mood). Shadow then, after being pushed into the plush cushions, thought about the motion. More than what was most likely deemed normal. It seemed like Sonic felt a similar way, as he looked deep in thought for a second, his flush flairing up again.
"So!" Amy decided to take over after what Sonic made what was probably supposed to be a discreet gesture of his hand—an 'okay' symbol, but made with his middle finger instead of his index. It was endearing. "We don't have to eat now, but dinner is ready, whenever you're hungry. I hope you'll like it, Shadow, it's steak with caramelized onions."
Shadow scoffed, "You're well aware that's my second favorite food. Feigning ignorance doesn't suit you, Rose." He was really hoping that the joking element kicked in, because it rarely did and sounded rude out of context. Then again, Amy would likely assume it was a joke anyways, used to Shadow's tone difficulties.
It seemed that was the case, because she smiled sweetly with a slight tilt of her head. Before silence could follow, Sonic spoke up. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving."
Dinner was relatively uneventful, though the whole time, all seemed to be on-edge to some degree. Shadow thought himself to be the least nervous in the room—he had some sort of idea as to what was coming later. Sonic and Amy didn't, however, and it showed. Amy showed no outward signs—she placed her hands in her lap when not eating, but Shadow knew her well enough to know that she was anxiously twidling her thumbs under the table from the look on her face. Sonic was less subtle (as he was with most things)—quickly tapping his fingers one by one on the table, obviously eager for dinner to end.
Things only got interesting after the couple finished cleaning up, leaving Shadow on the couch despite his attempts to help. "Shads?" Sonic called from the kitchen. Shadow's ears perked up, unconsciously turning to hear better. "Would you mind coming back to the dining room?" There was a slight waver in Sonic's voice, so unlike his usual steady and bold pattern of speech.
For a moment, while Shadow strode over to the dining table and sat at his usual spot across from its owners, there was a break in his confidence about what this really all was. What if they invited him over to give him bad news? Butter him up with a meal only second to coffee beans and let him down easy? That lapse only lasted for a minute, however, because Shadow knew his judgement was reliable. That, and the couple that just sat across from him seemed to be buzzing with nervousness, but also excitement. There was a sense of joy to their expressions, one that cleared Shadow's doubts.
It was time.
"So—uh—Amy and I wanted to talk to you," Sonic started, his words unintentionally rushed. "Not gonna lie, it's kind of a serious conversation. But not bad!" Under his breath, he added, "At least I hope not."
Shadow propped his elbows on the table, arms bent so his hands weren't all that far from Sonic and Amy's reach—an indulgent offer for hand-holding. He wasn't surprised when Amy near-immediately took the bait, extending both arms to the midway point of the dining table where Shadow's hands lied and holding one of them with both of her hands. His soft smile could only be correctly interpreted by the two people in front of him.
"Okay," Shadow replied plainly, then sardonically, "I acknowledge and accept." Amy gave his hand a quick squeeze while Sonic flashed a toothy grin.
"With that out of the way, then," Amy began, a nervous but wide smile on her face, "let's start. Shadow...Sonic and I have—um—news for you. So, I'll start first."
Shadow looked her in the eyes, giving a kurt nod that said, "go ahead." Amy took a deep inhale through her nose, clearly gathering her bearings. And finally,
"I like you. A lot. Like...a lot a lot," Amy declared, forcing her eyes to meet Shadow's (and likely not noticing how intense she was staring at him as a result). "Well, actually, I...love you. And—and I needed to get that out there and in the open, and, well, it's Valentine's Day, and...," Amy's sentence tapered off as her reasons ran out.
"And I'm...also...sorta...very much in love with you," Sonic piped up, taking over for Amy, who was covering her face with her hands and making herself as small as possible. Sonic followed up his confession with a sigh of relief and, "Wow. Honestly, feels great to say it out loud, get it off my chest, you know?"
The room was silent for a few moments as it seemed to be Amy's turn in the conversation, but she was still recollecting herself. It gave Shadow a chance to reflect on all that just happened. The whole thing felt a little scripted and a bit stilted, but it was all the more adorable for it.
Shadow couldn't be happier, lucking out and charming not just one, but two wonderful hedgehogs into falling in love with him. His world felt like it was changing, shifting around and clicking into place, finally complete.
Now to relay that message competently.
"I...," Shadow had to swallow a lump in his throat. He never cried (with few exceptions), so why did he feel tears threatening to peak out? Especially during one of the happiest moments he can remember? What a joke. He stood up, hoping the motion would distract from whatever was happening with his eyes.
"Shit" Sonic, swore under his breath, likely noticing the condition Shadow was in. "We completely misjudged this, didn't we?"
The couple stood as well, walking around the dining table to near Shadow. He noticed Amy grab Sonic's hand in support. They both looked devastated, but were holding it together surprisingly well. No tears, no frowns, not much emotion at all. They had to know that being turned down held a possibility.
But that wasn't happening. And Shadow needed to convey that to the two in the quickest way he could, which just so happened to be grabbing one outside shoulder each and pulling them with an accidentally mild force (which was still enough to likely leave a bruise, but no one was focused on that in the moment) into a tight hug—one where Shadow's face was conveniently obscured between the heads of the two he was squeezing, his tears spilling over the moment his eyes were hidden.
"I...love...both of you," Shadow admitted, his voice mostly-successfully-unwavering. He heaved a sigh, "More than you could ever know."
Amy was quicker to the jump when hugging Shadow back, a tight squeeze around his abdomen that would've limited his oxygen were he not the Ultimate Lifeform. Her strength was often underestimated, even by him from time to time. Sonic's hand snaked its way up Shadow's back soon after, eventually settling on the latter's shoulder and pulling him closer and closer, until Shadow was practically facing Sonic, leaving Amy with far less of Shadow than she'd prefer. Her retaliation was swift—the arm around Shadow's abdomen tugging in one quick, hard motion. Shadow could tell that area would bruise in the morning.
"Can you both let go before I get sore?" Shadow growled in a semi-lighthearted manner. Both Sonic and Amy immediately relinquished their holds, backing away simultaneously.
"Sorry, Shadow," Amy apologized quickly after being alerted of her mistake. "I just—we just want you to know how special you are to us. Sonic and I, we love eachother more than anything, but both of us feel the exact same about you, too."
"Sooo," Sonic jumped in, drawing out the first word, "how do you feel about polyamous relationships?"
At that, Amy jabbed him in the side, "I told you to find a better segue!"
"I couldn't think of one! It's straight to the point, Shadow loves that!"
Shadow cleared his throat, annoyed being talked about in front of, "I'm still here."
"Right, sorry," Sonic gave Shadow an apologetic glance. After a beat, his expression shifted, "Oh, would you mind answering that question?"
Amy groaned, cutting off Shadow before he could speak. "What Sonic is trying to ask is...would you want to enter our relationship, to be another partner? Our," Amy gestured to herself and Sonic to clear any confusion, "relationship is non-negotiable. But our romantic lives being just us isn't a necessity."
Her request was well put, and utterly impossible to deny. That being said, there was a question on Shadow's mind: "What does this mean...for all of us?" It was a nondescript query, yes, but Sonic and Amy would understand it—at least, Shadow hoped.
"Well, nothing would change between Ames and I," Sonic started to answer, "but you'd do what we do, if you wanted to. Ugh, that...that's not well worded, I mean, like, we could hold hands and, like, kiss, if that's something you're interested in, and maybe we do other stuff, but only what you're comfortable with! And we can go as slow or as fast as you want, and—"
Sonic was cut short by Shadow's lips colliding with his, the impact firm. The latter wasn't really sure if he was doing it right, but watching Sonic's eyes widen impossibly large, then close with a sweet softness as he melted into the kiss gave him some confidence. Shadow kept his eyes open the whole time, unaware that closed eyes were widely considered the norm when it came to kissing. Shadow watched Sonic as the former pulled away after a minute, and was therefor able to see his saccharine expression shift into one of confusion mixed with desire and a hint of annoyance.
"You should do that more often," Sonic immediately suggested, then added a quick, "If you'd like."
Shadow wasn't able to keep the smile off of his face when replying, "It certainly proves useful for silencing you." When Sonic drew his hand to his chest in a forced-offended manner, Shadow gave him a quick peck on the lips, bringing a grin to Sonic's face—a new form of wordless apologization.
He loved it.
"Hey!" Amy complained. "What about me?" She turned to face Shadow and pushed Sonic, who was about a foot from her target, out of the way. She stepped into Sonic's previous position, intertwining her right hand's fingers with Shadow's left and using her free hand to cup his well-groomed quills. Before nearing Shadow's face with her own, she stared at him with wide, questioning eyes. Shadow gave a tiny nod, and suddenly Amy was pulling his head to hers, their lips grazing before she pressed forward.
Kissing Amy was very different from kissing Sonic (though Shadow supposed kissing anyone would be different. Especially because these were the first two kisses of his life). Both took charge showing Shadow the ropes, though it felt like while Shadow and Sonic were on even footing in terms of dominance, Amy took more control. Kissing Sonic was fast paced (who would've thought), loose, wild; kissing Amy was comparatively restrained, honeyed, but hiding an undertone of frenzy. Their next kiss would be more passionate, Shadow predicted/promised.
Amy took some extra time letting her new lover go, only relinquishing him when Shadow watched Sonic tap her on the shoulder. Speaking of, "Most people close their eyes, by the way," Sonic pointed out softly. "Doesn't mean you have to, just something you might wanna know."
"Right," Shadow accepted. "I'm not going to do that." He enjoyed looking at his brand new partners from a new angle, no matter how blurry they were and how much it strained his eyes to see them up so close. On second thought, "Maybe someday. When I get used to this."
"Wait, does that mean you'll be our partner?" Amy asked, giddy with potential glee. Shadow couldn't say no to her, even if he wanted. She was too delightful, with her hands clasped in front of her and her eyes glimmering with hope.
So, Shadow told the truth. "I couldn't say no. Not to you two." Amy looked like she could explode, grinning widely and clapping gently with her fingers to her palm. Sonic lunged forward, smashing his lips to Shadow's, then placing quick kisses to different parts of his face.
Shadow didn't laugh often, and when he did, it was typically from a plan going accordingly or an easy expression of joy. He certainly didn't laugh from Sonic's doing, and he certainly didn't giggle.
But there stood Shadow the Hedgehog, giggling with rosy cheeks and a warm, fuzzy feeling inside while Sonic held him tightly and planted soft kisses over his face and neck. After a minute, Sonic released him, letting an overeager Amy step in and press a long, passionate kiss to his lips. She wasn't as delicate that time, and Shadow was glad for it. In fact, she got bold enough to bite his lip, leaving a slightly sore spot in it's wake. Shadow found it invigorating.
Eventually, after a couple more kissing pass-arounds of Shadow, the three retired to the couch. Shadow was squeezed between Sonic and Amy, who refused to let him sit on one side or the other, with Sonic's arm around his shoulder and Amy tucked into his side, using the same shoulder as a pillow. It was a peaceful scene, no noise or distractions, just three hedgehogs enjoying eachothers' company and warmth.
The clock read 11:56 PM when Shadow woke up, his girlfriend's face buried in his quills and his boyfriend's arm still tucked around him. He guessed that they'd all fallen asleep on the couch. Shadow couldn't remember the last time he'd gone to sleep with so much ease.
He slowly peeled himself away from his partners, carefully removing Sonic's arm and repositioning Amy so her body didn't rely on his own. He teleported into the hallway, then, very quietly, snuck into his own home. Shadow was suprised to find the apartment to be dark, though he quickly rationalized the detail when he remembered that Rouge could see perfectly fine at night. No use in jacking up the electricity bill.
Before he could head to his room, however, a lamp on his path in the space between the kitchen and living room flicked on. There sat the previously mentioned bat, who was sitting legs crossed on a chair she'd no doubt wheeled over. "And what are you doing, coming home so late?" she questioned, staring with a menacing glint in her eyes.
"We fell asleep," Shadow answered plainly, attempting to walk past Rouge but getting blocked by her swiftly pushing her chair in front of him with her feet.
She stared up at him with wide eyes, asking astonished, "In bed?" She was way too excited, in Shadow's opinion.
"No," Shadow growled, glaring daggers at his roommate. He took misconceptions about his character seriously, and the characters of those close to him with even more intensity. (Though, if he was being honest, Rouge's misinterpretation of the situation wasn't all that off. If Shadow were a different hedgehog, her version of the night was possible.)
"Okay, okay," Rouge raised her hands in surrender. "Did everything go well, at least?"
"Yes," Shadow replied. Rouge rose to move the lamp back to its rightful spot in the living room and bring the chair back to wherever she got it. Shadow inhaled, preparing to drop the news: "We...I've now entered their relationship."
Rouge dropped the chair, way-to-loudly demanding, "Really?!" After being shushed by Shadow, she rolled her eyes and genuinely inquired, "Are you happy?"
And Shadow would given the same answer earlier that day, before anything had changed, but what he'd experienced that evening made it even easier to respond, "Yes."