*Sonic's POV*
"Anything?" Rouge asked me, I had just come back from talking to Tails.

"He said Sally was the one that asked for him to fix it. He doesn't know who Maurice is." I lied. I had talked to Tails, trying to rush him to try and find anything.

"Is that so?" Rouge nodded as we both walked to Shadows office where he was working. I walked in and smiled at him. He stopped what he was doing so he could look at me. "Blue says Tails knows nothing. I guess we keep looking. Maybe another trip inside the castle, try to get the necklace."

"Right. It's better at night." Shadow offered. I was nervous.

"So we are going in tonight?" I asked, and they nodded. It gave me no time to talk to my family and tell them what was going on. Although I had already told Tails that Scourge had got caught, so he could call my family.

"Is there anything you'd like to tell us?" Rouge looked at me. "At all? Have you found anything that may help us?" She crossed her arms.

"No. Nothing." I said as calmly as I could.

"At all, Blue? You know if we come back with nothing, Shadow and I are going to get punished." I stayed quiet for a bit, this time looking at Shadow. My ears lowered, and I shook my head once more. "Fine. Then we shall go to the castle tonight. I will go get everything ready for us."

Rouge left Shadow and I alone. I walked closer to Shadow. He closed up a folder when he saw me walking to him. "What do you want?"

"A kiss." I grinned, there was a bit of nervousness under my teasing tone.

"What?" Shadows eyes narrowed as he looked at me.

"You heard me! Just one kiss. Is it too much to ask?" My grin grew wider as I leaned closer to his face. Shadow stared at me, his expression unreadable. I noticed he was about bit tense.

"You're ridiculous." He rolled his eyes. "You're still at this."

"Hmm, maybe a kiss would help you loosen up. You've been all tensed lately. Plus, you said yourself you wanted to learn about relationships. This is what couples do. Of course, if you're not comfortable with it, then I can stop." I pulled away.

"Fine. Just this once." Shadow sighed. His expression softened.

Before Shadow could even change his mind, I closed the distance between us, pressing my lips to Shadows in a gentle kiss. It wasn't rushed or playfully like I usually was. I was gentle, soft, wanting Shadow to enjoy this.

I could feel the shivers traveling down my back as I slowly pulled away and saw a hint of red across Shadows muzzle. He looked away almost immediately. 

"See? That wasn't so bad, was it?" My grin was back as I nudged Shadows arm lightly. I couldn't help my own blush, I could feel my face burning.

"It was fine." Shadow said as he looked back down at his work and continued.

"Just fine? Come on, admit you liked it." I laughed softly as I sat down on the floor beside his chair. Shadow looked down at me, our eyes meeting for a second before he quickly looked away. Cute. 

"Shut up, Sonic." Shadow huffed, although I could see a hint of a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

"I think I may ask for those more often." I laughed.

"Stop pushing your luck, Hedgehog." He shot me a glare.

I winked at him. "No promises, Shadz."

*Shadow's POV*
Sonic fell asleep on the floor, resting back on the wall as I kept doing my work. Rouge hadn't even tried to contact me at all, even when the night came. I was surprised since I was waiting for her so we could go to the castle but when I called her and she didn't answer, I thought maybe she had changed her mind.

I had noticed she had been in a mood when she had come over. The commander had been putting a lot of pressure on us lately. Maybe she was just tired and needed a break. It was understandable. 

Although I would usually go find her and try to get the mission done, right now, I wanted to spend some time with Sonic. This was the second time he fell asleep at my house, and none of those times had even been in a bed. He was starting to get too comfortable around me, and I actually didn't mind for once. I actually enjoyed it and wanted to have him around all the time.

The kiss we shared was proof enough to me that I had strong feelings for this hedgehog. It even made me not want to finish the mission, prolong it as much as possible so I could be with him more. But I couldn't do that. I needed to do my work and make sure we got out of this without getting hurt.

I knew Sonic was more than capable of taking care of himself, but I suddenly had an urge to keep him safe at all times. Something I tried not to show so much, but Sonic wanted me to. He was slowly but surely making me open up.

I looked down at him and picked him up. I carried him carefully and very gently, making sure I didn't wake him up. He suddenly took me off guard by burrowing his face on my shoulder and hugging me.

"You're awake?" I asked as I kept walking to my room.

"Yeah." He whispered, I could feel his breathing on my neck, making my muzzle get that shade again. It was a strange feeling.

"Go back to sleep. I still have a lot of work to do. You can take my bed." I tried to keep my blank expression, but I couldn't help and break a smile.

"Are you sure?" He yawned, I could feel his lips brushing my neck, making me tense and nearly dropped him, but I caught him. He didn't even flinch. It was as if he had all his trust in me and knew I wouldn't let him fall. How does that feel? To trust someone 100%? I was almost there with him.

"Yes." I placed him down on my bed gently. He immediately fell asleep.

I went back into my office to do work but I couldn't concentrate. I simply kept tapping the pen I held against the table as the kiss replayed in my mind.