a hedgehogs unlikely crush

ch 28

A loud thunderclap shattered the calm night, making the entire house shake. Shadow flinched slightly, not from fear, but from the suddenness of the noise. He glanced down at Perci, who looked up at him with wide eyes. Before he could say anything, the rain started to pour, pounding against the windows like an onslaught.

"Boom, boom, boom!" Sticks' voice rang out from outside as the front door flung open, letting in the rest of the group—completely drenched.

"W-We're coming back in!" Sonic called as they stumbled into the living room. "It's fucking freezing out there!"

Amy, Tails, Knuckles, and Sticks followed behind him, all soaking wet, their clothes clinging to them, water dripping everywhere.

Shadow's eyes narrowed as he shut the door behind them, visibly irritated. "Great. Just great."

Perci sighed softly, standing up. "I guess you guys can stay until the rain stops."

Sonic, already feeling bold after the dinner, smirked. "You know, Shadow, I didn't know you were such a good host."

Shadow gritted his teeth but didn't respond, his eyes flicking to the group as they huddled together in the living room, shivering. He felt his patience being tested by the second, but for Perci's sake, he held it together. For now.

Knuckles flopped down on the couch like he owned the place. "So... where's dessert?"

Shadow twitched, his eyes narrowing into slits. "What?"

"You know, dessert," Knuckles repeated, looking around innocently. "You can't just serve dinner without dessert."

Perci shot Shadow a warning glance as his hand clenched into a fist. "Breathe," her eyes seemed to say.

Meanwhile, Sonic was rubbing his arms. "It's cold in here, man. Can't you turn up the heat or something?"

Shadow exhaled slowly, trying to remain calm. "It's not cold."

"It is cold," Sonic argued, clearly trying to get a rise out of him again. "Or maybe you're just immune to it, considering you're always walking around with no shirt like some kind of... wannabe tough guy."

Shadow's eyebrow twitched. "Shut the hell up, Sonic."

As if things couldn't get worse, Sticks started pacing around the room, glancing toward the stairs. "Hey, hey! This is the perfect time to investigate upstairs. I just know you've got some secret stuff hiding up there, Shadow!"

Before she could dart toward the stairs, Amy grabbed her arm, pulling her back. "Sticks, no. We're guests. We're not going through Shadow's things."

"Why not?" Sticks whined, her eyes wide with curiosity. "It's the perfect opportunity! He's probably got weapons or maybe some chaos energy stored up in a secret compartment!"

Shadow's patience was officially running thin. "Sticks, if you go upstairs, I'll throw you out in the rain."

Undeterred, Sticks huffed. "I'd fight the rain to get to the truth!"

Tails, who had been trying to stay out of the chaos, glanced at Perci sympathetically. "I'm sorry about all this... We didn't mean to ruin your night."

Perci smiled at him kindly. "It's okay, Tails. You guys couldn't help the weather."

Suddenly, another loud thunderclap shook the house, and Knuckles yelped, jumping off the couch. "Whoa! That one was loud!"

Sonic, rubbing his arms, glanced at the TV. "Hey, can we turn that on or something? There's nothing to do in here."

Shadow gritted his teeth, the constant noise from the group pushing him to the edge. "No, Sonic, we're not watching TV."

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Come on, Shadow. It's just TV. It's not like it's gonna kill you to let us watch."

"It'll kill me if I have to listen to you complain for one more goddamn second," Shadow snapped, his voice sharp with irritation.

Amy sighed, rubbing her temples. "Guys, can we please not do this tonight?"

Knuckles, completely oblivious, leaned back on the couch. "If there's no TV, can we at least get dessert? I'm starving again."

Shadow's eye twitched. "There's no dessert, Knuckles."

Knuckles blinked. "No dessert? What kind of host doesn't serve dessert?"

At that moment, Shadow was about two seconds away from losing it completely. He could feel the anger bubbling up inside him, threatening to explode. His fists clenched, and Perci, sensing his rising temper, quickly stepped between him and the others.

"Shady, it's okay," she whispered, putting a calming hand on his arm. "They're just being... themselves. Don't let it get to you."

Shadow took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. But it was hard—so damn hard—when Sonic was sitting there, smirking like he had won something, Knuckles was still asking for dessert, and Sticks was practically vibrating with the need to go upstairs and snoop.

"You guys..." Shadow began, his voice low and dangerous. "Are driving me up the fucking wall."

Sonic grinned, clearly enjoying the chaos he had caused. "Hey, we're just having fun. Lighten up, Shadow."

Shadow's eyes flashed. "Fun? You think this is fun?"

"Yeah," Sonic said, leaning back in his chair. "I mean, come on. We're all stuck here. Might as well make the best of it."

Shadow took a slow, steadying breath, his hands shaking with barely contained rage. "Sonic, if you don't shut the hell up right now, I swear I'll—"

Before he could finish the threat, there was another crash of thunder, followed by the lights flickering for a moment. The rain outside had turned into a full-blown storm, and it didn't seem like it was going to let up anytime soon.

Perci sighed, looking at the group with a resigned smile. "I guess you guys are stuck here for the night."

Amy nodded, though her expression was sympathetic. "Yeah, it looks like it."

Shadow, on the other hand, was already planning his escape route. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take before he lost it completely. But as he looked down at Perci, who smiled up at him with those warm, gentle eyes, he knew he had to try. For her.

Sonic, still smirking, leaned back in his chair, clearly satisfied with how the night had turned out. "Well, Shadow, looks like you're stuck with us. Hope you're ready for a long night."

Shadow clenched his jaw, his entire body tense with frustration. But as he looked down at Perci's calm smile, he forced himself to take a deep breath and focus on what mattered.

Even if it meant dealing with Sonic's bullshit.