Knuckles' POV

I watched as Sonic and Tails ran off as if they were being chased by a mob, not that they were, since everyone else took it upon themselves to start bombarding me instead!
"Ok, when did this happen? How did you find out? And who is this lucky girl!?" Rouge started, Blaze nodding her head in consent at every question Rouge spat into my face. I sweatdropped. 'Lucky girl? They don't even know that Sonic is gay, why me!?' I thought as I watched her peer at me, begging me to answer her unanswered questions.
"I don't know... Ask Sonic."
"Knuckles!" The two girls in the group yelled in unison, causing me to raise a questioning eye ridge.
"Uh... Ok? Look, I don't know any more than he has a mate." I explained with a sigh. Only making her more curious about the situation. "This is going to get out of hand faster than Super Sonic."

Rouge's POV

I watched as Knuckles started walking away from us, most likely following the trail of softly flowing grass that Sonic and Tails had trampled over during their escape. 
"You only know the fact that he has a mate, but you don't know who she is..." She pondered as Knuckles disappeared into the distance.

Sonic's POV

Tails and I got to a safe enough distance to stop running, we had already ran all the way down the green pastures of Green Hill anyway. It was silent for a short while before Tails finally spoke a question everyone else would have asked."Um... Hey Sonic? How come I didn't know anything about your mate? Did something happen to them?"

"No... Not really... I guess." I answered as best as I could- without getting emotional. "I just.. don't like talking about it." I let out a deep sigh. Tails being my best friend noticed the depression hidden in my eyes.

"It's ok if you don't want to talk about it, I'd understand." He replied with his ears drooping downwards, his namesakes stopping the cherry movement it had during our escape act to caress the soft grass below our feet. I felt guilty, I considered him my little brother, we weren't by blood, but close enough to know just about everything... So why do this to him?

My mind rushed for a simple answer to all my problems at the moment. How do I tell him? What do I say to him? How do even start?

I gave in, I couldn't do this to him, anyone else, just not Tails.

"Alright, I'll tell you, but you can't utter a word to anyone else, ok?" I asked in a dreadfully serious tone. "Ok! I promise." He answered back with a worried expression on his face, but his happily wagging tails said otherwise.

"Alright then, when I was younge-" Our conversation was cut off by a red echidna running up to use with vengeful intent. "On second thought..." "Let's run? He looks angry!" Tails finished my sentence and we were right back to running for our lives.