Normal POV:
“Okay…Got it!”
“Amy?”
“Yeah?”
“Why do you always have to hang up a mistletoe every Christmas party?”
“You know why: so I can get a kiss from my darling, Sonic.”
The pink hedgehog slid down the latter and moved it back to the closet. Darlene the Hedgehog followed her while setting up the streamers.
“Don’t you remember last year, when you had to kiss Knuckles?”
Amy nodded. “That’s why I’m gonna keep my distance from that redhead. He’s got Rouge anyway.” She then picked up the star and handed it to Tails, who was quietly listening to the girls’ conversation. The fox then flew up and placed the star on the tree.
“I don’t mean to sound rude, but do you actually think Sonic is interested in you, Amy?” Darlene asked as she taped the last streamer to the wall.
“Yep. He just doesn’t want to show it,” the pink hedgehog replied, “Do you think Sha-”
The brown hedgehog covered her friend’s mouth. “Amy!” she whisper yelled, “You said you wouldn’t talk about that to anyone! Tails is here, remember?” She gestured over to the fox, who was just standing there, watching their every move.
“Sorry,” she apologized once Darlene removed her hands. Just then, the front door to Sonic’s mansion opened, and Rouge and Shadow walked in. They obviously came back from G.U.N. as they were wearing their uniforms.
“Ooh~. Nice,” Rouge complimented, looking around the huge living room.
“Thank you,” Amy said, curtsying.
“Where’s the blue boy?” Shadow asked, looking around as well.
Tails flew over to the 4 and replied, “Out grocery shopping and getting the last few gifts.”
“Christmas shopping? Now? Talk about last minute; it’s Christmas Eve, isn’t it?” Shadow chuckled.
“Says the guy who didn’t go Christmas shopping until Darlene asked him if he would like to go shopping for gifts with her, which was about 4 days ago,” Rouge smirked.
Shadow’s cheeks turned a light pink. “You promised you wouldn’t tell anyone about that,” he growled through clenched teeth.
“Sorry. Couldn’t help it, but I found it so cute that you just couldn’t say no to her.”
“Rouge…”
“When you came back, you both were smiling at each other.”
“Rouge...”
“And didn’t you say you took her to an Italian restaurant afterwards?”
“Rouge. Shut. Up,” Shadow growled again, his blush glowing a bit brighter. Amy and Rouge giggled at Shadow’s shyness, only making him glare at them.
“Stop it, Shads. It’s okay to have a soft spot for Darlene,” Amy said, still giggling.
“Amy…” Darlene said, embarrassed, but before she could protest, the front door opened again, this time with Sonic, Knuckles, Silver and Blaze entering the room.
“Hey! Merry Christmas, everyone!” Silver said, waving to the other 5.
“Hey Silver!” Darlene said, running up to hug him.
Sonic, after closing the door, walked over to Darlene and hugged her as well.
“Good to see you again,” the blue hedgehog says, kissing Darlene behind her left ear, “Let me wrap thes last minute presents, and we can start the party.”
As Sonic ran over to the back of the mansion, Shadow chuckled once again. “What’s so funny?” Knuckles asked as he put his presents under the tree.
“The ‘fastest thing alive’ waited ‘till the last minute to get most of the gifts,” Shadow said, smirking.
“Okay. When did you get most of your gifts, Shadow?” Blaze questioned.
“4 days ago,” Rouge answered for him, much to Shadow’s embarrassment, “With Darlene!”
“Oh, so you went on a little date, huh?” Blaze asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking.
“I-I wouldn’t call it a-a d-date…” Darlene stammered, blushing and looking away.
“Oh, Darlene, you know you thought of it as a date. Don’t say you didn’t,” Rouge teased, causing the brown hedgehog’s cheeks to turn red.
“ROUGE! SHUT UP!” Darlene shouted.
“See? I’m right,” Rouge said proudly.
“No you’re not! Shut up!”
“Darlene and Shadow sittin’ in a tree,” Rouge sang, “K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love. Then comes marriage. Then comes the baby in the baby carriage.”
“Whoa whoa whoa, Rouge,” Shadow said in a serious tone, “You’ve got it all wrong. We’re just best friends. We can be best friends and not be in love with each other, right Darlene?” He glanced at her, waiting for her approval.
“Y-yeah…right,” Darlene said, smiling shyly and trying to sound convincing.
“How about we make some treats for the party, guys?” Amy asked, trying to change the subject. Tails, Rouge, Darlene and Blaze nodded and followed Amy into the kitchen. Knuckles and Silver looked at each other, shrugged, and followed Amy as well. Shadow just walked over to the couch and sat down. He placed his right hand on his chest and sighed; he felt as if a weight had been lifted off him.
Why do I feel so relieved? It’s not like I love Darlene. She’s a best friend to me… like her… Shadow thought to himself. He then let his mind wonder off to when he and Darlene went Christmas shopping. He remembered her smiling whenever she saw something she liked or the items she wanted to get for her friends. Seeing her smile had made him smile as well. He also remembered how nervous he felt when Darlene held his hand so they wouldn’t get separated. Then there was when they were heading home…
Darlene had thanked him for everything that they did that day since she figured that she was wasting his time and asked if there was anything she could do to repay him. He had said no, but then a cold breeze had begun to blow, causing the male hedgehog to shiver unconsciously.
That action did not go unnoticed by the female. “Shadow, are you cold?”
He shook his head again. “No, I’m not,” he replied, yet another shiver had proven her otherwise. She then took off her scarf and wrapped it around the black hedgehog’s neck.
“Better?” she asked, grinning. He nodded slowly; he was not afraid to admit that the scarf helped him feel warm inside and out. They then walked home, smiling at each other and feeling…happy…
“Shadow? Shadow!”
The black hedgehog was brought out of his thoughts by the Brown Blur.
“Hey. Sorry for interrupting your thoughts, but…I was wondering if you would like to…help out with the treats…” Darlene asked nervously, looking down at her lap and twiddling her thumbs.
Shadow sighed and shook his head. “No…not now…Maybe some other time,” he mumbled.
Darlene smiled sweetly at him. “Okay. Just wondering.” She then kissed him on the cheek and walked back into the kitchen, leaving Shadow speechless.
Then Sonic came back out with the newly wrapped presents. “Hey Shads,” he said as he put the presents under the tree. He then sat down next to the Black Blur. “Shadow? You alright?” He waved a hand in front of his face. “Your face is a bit...red…”
Shadow pulled himself out of his trance, and Sonic flinched. Uh oh. I’m so getting punched in the face!
Instead of punching Sonic, however, Shadow just said, “Uh, I’m fine. I think I spaced out for a second there.” He then looked over at the kitchen door, where he saw Darlene looking at the two rivals. She smiled and winked at him before she left.
Suddenly, he heard Sonic smirk and felt him playfully elbow his left arm. “Gotta crush on a certain someone, Faker?”
“W-what?!” Shadow said, turning his head to Sonic, “I’m not in love with anyone! What makes you think that?!”
“Well, you had a love struck look on your face that basically screamed ‘I love you!’”
That remark resulted in a punch to the face.
“Well, I haven’t,” Shadow hissed, crossing his arms.
Just then, everyone else came out with cookies, brownies, cupcakes, and chips and dip.
“Ready to start the party?” Silver asked excitedly. Everyone (except Shadow) cheered.
Then the party began. Everyone was dancing, playing games, eating. Even Shadow decided to sneak a couple cookies.
A bit later, Darlene was on the balcony, looking at the stars. Sonic then joined her and handed her a soda. After a minute of silence, Darlene finally broke it. “Hey Sonic?”
“Hm?”
“I’m curious…What’s it like to have a sidekick?”
