Amy noticed that Shadow was doing better. He stopped bringing in girls and he started to work out and take more rides on his bike. He was being more active overall.

Amy slowly wondered when Shadow was going to leave the Resistance but all hope of that happening faded away as soon as Shadow started sleeping on the same bed with her.

It all began days after Amy had gotten out of the hospital that Shadow  randomly decided to do that and he defended himself with a stupid excuse.

.

"I am glad you are in recovery now, babe."

"Drop the act Sonic, the nurse is no longer here."

"Hey I needed to say I was your boyfriend, or they wouldn't let me come to visit you nor pay the hospital bill," Sonic said as he sat on the chair that Shadow had previously seated on.

Amy had completely forgotten about that, she couldn't afford to be in a hospital.  She was unemployed and staying one night at the hospital was out of her reach.

"How much was it?" She asked but Sonic just shrugged.

"Don't worry about."

"I'll pay you! Just give me some time-"

"No, Ames, I got it"

"But-"

Shadow watched the two interact. Amy was stubborn, but Sonic as well. They began to raise their voices but not till the point that they were screaming at each other. Although Shadow didn't want to admit it, he was with Sonic in this one. Amy wouldn't let anyone help. her. Not Sonic, not Rouge, not him. It was as if she didn't want to be in debt to anyone but even so ...

Should you trust your friends? They are trying to help you because they love you ... so why do she feels like she owns them something?

Shadow's thoughts were interrupted as he heard Sonic sigh in defeat.

"Look, if you really want to 'pay me back', then let's have another sleepover. The last one was really fun."

.

It was a cold morning.

   Amy moved around her bed, trying to look for warmth and comfort under her heavy blankets. She tried her best to wake up but she found it difficult as her head landed on a soft fluffy pillow. She purred, letting herself get comforted by the softness of the pillow.

But there was only one thing bothering her.

She didn't have any fluff pillows.

Her eyes struck wide open as she saw Shadow sleeping comfortably with her. Now that Amy thinks about it, she should kicked Shadow out of her room.

   She took a few moments to appreciate Shadow's features. His chest moved up and down as a small snore came out of his lips. She felt the need to touch them but she restrains herself from doing so. His nose softly wrinkled and Amy thought that it was the cutest thing in the world.

Enough of appreciation, it was time to wake up.

"Get out of my bed!"

   Shadow moved away instantly the moment he heard Amy's voice resonate with his ears. He gave a gruff, and he covered himself again with her blankets. Amy sighed as she jumped from the bed to the floor, avoiding Shadow. It has been two weeks since he started doing this. He didn't do it every day and that bother Amy the most because she would get random surprises whenever she wakes up.

"Shadow, you gotta stop sleeping in my bed. How do you get in? I lock the door."

Amy went towards her small kitchen, ready to make some breakfast. Don't misunderstand her, she loved the company but it was getting harder to move on from him if he was this way with her.

"I have my ways ... besides these sleepovers... they are interesting." Shadow sat on her bed, as she watched Amy preparing cereal. It was strange for him since in the morning she would always eat bread.

"Sleepovers are not just about sleeping together," said Amy, "It's about doing fun things together."

"Like?"

"You know, watching movies, playing video games, skincare." Amy put her bowl of cereal down, she watched Shadow from afar as she directed herself to the restroom. "You know just having a nice time together."

"Let's do it." Shadow turned his head towards the restroom where Amy had popped out, brushing her teeth.

"Really?"

"Yes, I don't see why not."

"Alright, I'll see you tonight then." Amy gave him a smile, her lips still had toothpaste leftover and Shadow mentally smile at the sight.

"Also ..." Shadow stood up from the bed, heading towards the door. "I left my rent payment on your table."

"You don't need to pay me."

As if it was a life or death situation, Amy exited the restroom and headed towards her dinner table. She grabbed the money and walked towards Shadow with such an angry manner that it caught the black one off guard.

"Keep it," She said as she grabbed Shadow's hand and placed the money on his right hand. He watched her in silence but was fast to respond as well.

"You are going to let me live here for free?"

"Well, I thought you were only going to stay here for a couple of weeks and-"

Amy stopped herself as she watched Shadow's reaction. He wasn't one to show much expression, but when he does you can tell quickly by the way his ears moved. His frown was more noticeable and his eyes had a preoccupied look to them.

But just as fast as his expression came, it also went away.

"Yes, of course." Shadow said, "I'll be gone by the end of the week."

.

It didn't bother Shadow on the slightest that Amy was hanging out with Sonic. As her friend, he shouldn't get angry if Amy decided to spend time with other friends of hers.

What bothered him was that it seemed like Amy was hiding something from him and he didn't know what it was.

Yes, he was bothered by that ... but what extremely pissed him off was that Sonic seemed to be well aware of the secret Amy was hiding.

Sonic, not him.

Amy let Sonic help her, but when he tried doing it, she pushed him away?

Shadow had to admit that Amy seemed to be more opened when she was with Sonic. He didn't know if it was because Amy liked Sonic or just because they were good friends.

Really good friends.

Shadow didn't like that.

Amy could like Sonic for all he cares but he definitely didn't like how intimate they were. He knew that it was selfish of him, but he wanted Amy only to confide in him.

He wanted Amy to only be intimate with him.

Was that weird for a friendship?

Shadow shook his head. He knew that he didn't like Amy that way. She was just a friend, one that he cared, cherished and loved.

In a nonromantic way of course.

Like friends... very, very close friends.

Intimate friends.

Shadow arrived at G.U.N. It was his free day but since he didn't have anything better to do, he decided to check if he had any upcoming missions.

As he entered the building, he could instantly feel the looks and the stares of females, mentally undressing him. Shadow won't admit it but that low key busted his ego.

When he arrived at his desk, he once again found multiple love letters.

Shadow will never be able to understand females.

Shadow had probably talked to few girls at G.U.N. besides Rouge. Most of the time, he would ignore them and for what he considered, he was even rude to them from time to time. Even if he didn't want to intentionally.

Why were girls into guys who treated them badly?

He took care of Maria, protected her and loved her ... and she still betrayed him.

If he wanted to keep being friends with Amy, would he have to start to be mean and rude to her?

A letter caught Shadow's interest. This letter actually had a name on it.

From: Mia

To: Shadow

It was too soon. Shadow was still hurt and although he tried his best to forget, the letter still had his interest. All the letters he received were always by an anonymous person. This had to be the first time someone actually had the confidence to write a name on the paper.

To be courageous enough to express their love ... Shadow had to admire that.

Shadow put the letter in his jacket's pocket, so he could read it when he gets back home.

"Recognizing: Agent Shadow."

Shadow's thoughts were interrupted as Omega entered the office. Shadow gave him a small smirk, as he waited for the robot to approach him.

"Greetings Omega," Shadow said. "Anything new?"

"We have been assigned a new mission."

"Which one?"

"Commander said: Prepared for the Star festival."

Oh no ... It was that time of the year again. He enjoyed traveling, especially because he could take his bike for a long ride but the Star Festival wasn't something he was found of. Having to take care of royals wasn't his forte.

"Anything else?" He asked.

"Commander is asking for your presence as soon as possible."

.

Shadow found himself in the Commander's office more often than he would want to. Not that he didn't like the guy, but whenever he would speaking alone to him; things usually don't turn out the way he wants it.

His office was the epitome of professionalism, Shadow has heard stories about the amazing things he has done in the past. Ended hunger in Carthage, free slaves in Memphis, stoping an invasion in Sukhothai. And those were the only missions that were open to the public, everything else was confidential.

"You wanted to see me?" Shadow said as he walked through the automated doors. He noticed the room was extremely cold and Shadow didn't mind but it surprised him that a simple Mobian like the Commander withstands such temperatures.

"Yes, please take a seat."

"I prefer to stand."

"I insist ... Take a seat."

That didn't sound like a request, it was more like an order. Shadow didn't have an expression in his face, he knew it was one of the few times the Commander meant business.

"What is it?" Shadow asked.

"Remember that mission you took Amy Rose along with? The mission in Twinkle Star Village?" The commander asked, his hands were placed above his desk, strongly accommodating his seating position.

"Yes."

"When Sonic and Tails came back, they testified that they didn't remember anything about what happened to them." The Commander added, "This got my interest and I sent some agents to investigate the aftermath of the events."

"Get to the point, sir."

"I just received the reports of the results of the investigation ... Seems like Amy Rose is not as innocent as she seems."

.

Amy hated when her stomach growled. She would always eat bread for breakfast but she couldn't even afford to buy bread these days. 

Her job interview went well, it was as sewer assistant and although she wasn't hired in the spot, an 'I'll call you later' was better than being rejected.

After another job interview, she found herself craving a sandwich. Maybe she could spend a little bit of money to buy a sandwich at the convenience store.

"No, Amy you can't. You need to save money to pay this month's bill of the Resistance. You can't afford to be late anymore, or they will take it away from you."

As she walked through the streets of Central City, she began to feel dizzy, her eyesight was failing her and her heartbeat increased rapidly.

"No, Chaos, not again."

She was about to lose consciousness when she felt a hand being placed on her shoulder.

It was her rabbit friend, Cream.

"Amy, are you alright?"

No, she wasn't. However, Amy wasn't going to give her the pleasure to see agree with her.

"Yes, I am fine. I haven't seen you in a while. How you been?"

Cream looked at her friend, who was obviously lying. Her eyes were tired, dark circles were prominent. She was pale and if Cream dared to say it, Amy was way too skinny for her comfort.

"Would you like to get something to eat?"

.

They sat outside a small cafe. Cream had asked for an ice tea, while Amy, knowing that water was free, asked for a glass of it.

Cream was doing great, and it contented Amy's heart to an extent. As far as she knew, Cream was continuing her studies in another city. However, whenever she could she visits her two-tailed boyfriend.

Their friendship wasn't the same as before. They didn't hang out as much since Cream moved out of the city.

And after the last fight, things weren't just the same. However, they were civil with each other and casual friends.

"How is Resistance doing? Are you still trying to buy it?" Cream asked, trying to break the silence.

"Yes, hopefully by the end of this year I would be halfway done." Amy added, "And you? How are you doing in college?"

"It's a hassle, I can't wait to graduate. I hate going every day to learn about math, tell me whosever going to-"

Cream stopped herself as she noticed Amy's face turn into one of discomfort. She knew Amy would have loved to go to college but due to her circumstances, she wasn't able to.

And now she sounded like an ungrateful brat.

"But it's great." Cream added quickly. "I made a lot of friends."

"Of course you have." Amy took a sip of her water. She used to love to hang out with Cream but she grew distant. Whenever Cream sees her, she would-

"Please Amy," Cream said interrupting her thoughts. "Come live with me. There's nothing here for you."

There she goes again.

"I have the Resistance," said Amy. "That's all I need."

"Yes, because the Resistance has helped provide for you." Cream added, "Look at you Amy, you look horrible. You are to the bone, how you been eating properly?"

Amy was offended, she knew Cream was right. Cream was a beautiful rabbit, she had grown well. Her long lashes, soft fur, and nice physic ... she was everything Amy used to be. On the inside and outside. Amy had stopped caring for herself, she wasn't the same. She was tired all the time, and she didn't have the time to take care of herself as she would want to.

To an extent, Amy was jealous of Cream because all Amy wanted was to re-live the past when she was happy.

"We already had this talk. If you are not going to support me in my decisions, then I don't want to hear it," said Amy.

"How do you want me to support your decisions when I see you are killing yourself over a stupid place?" Cream raised her voice, more at the frustration that she couldn't help her friend.

"That stupid place is important to me!" Amy added, "But of course I wouldn't expect you to understand."

"Understand what? Amy, the Resistance is done for! Nobody cares for it and I am sure that the few agents you have are just there out of pity for you!" Cream tried to control herself, but she just couldn't. "Everyone has moved on! Why can't you?!"

"I can't and I won't move on!" Amy felt her voice crack, she wasn't ready to accept that. For her, the Resistance was her only home and she prefers to die than to give up on it.

This time Cream raised her voice, trying to get into the head of the pink one, "Why?!"

"Because it was the only place that made me happy after everyone left me!"

.

Amy doesn't remember crying this much since well ... after she realized everyone left her.

She cried in a public bathroom for a good hour before going back to the Resistance.

As she walked by on the streets, she could see her reflection on the shops' windows.

Chaos, she looked horrible. How could she ever think that someone like Shadow had a slight interest in her? She had given up on her appearance long ago but as she felt the stares of others on her, she began to feel embarrassed for herself.

Nobody deserved to look at her ugly face.

She finally arrived in her room, she was expecting some peace but instead, she found Shadow seating on her coach.

"What are you doing my room?" Amy asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Sleepover."

Oh yeah, she had forgotten.

"I am not really in the mood. Can we do this another time?" She said as she placed her room keys on the dining table.

"But I even bought us a TV," Shadow replied and he had to admit he had never seen Amy flip her head so fast. It was even comical.

"You did what-" Amy didn't notice but in front of her coach was a plasma TV, the biggest one she has seen in her life.

"Shadow, you can't!"

"What? Is it too small? I would have gotten a bigger one but your room is kinda small."

"It's not that! I can't afford it, please return it!" Amy walked towards Shadow who was sitting comfortably in the coach.

"You said that a sleepover is about watching movies and playing video games," Shadow added as he watched Amy place herself in front of him, still not seating down.

"That's why I bought it for us."

"Well, you are going to take it with you when you move out, right?" Amy had a softer voice now, her concern slightly disappearing.

"Does she want me out that badly?"

"No, I am getting a bigger one for my apartment." Shadow looked away, a bit of hurt in his voice. "So I thought I would just give you this one when I move out."

"No, Shadow, please just return it already."

"But the sleepover-"

"Well, if we are having a sleepover in my room then we follow my rules. We are not using the TV!"

Shadow noticed that Amy was acting differently. There was something off about her and if he didn't know better, he could tell she was crying. Her eyes were red and her eyes were puffy. Even her nose and cheeks had a light pink tone to them.

Shadow sighed defeated, "What do you have in mind then?"

Amy sat on the couch, relieved. There wasn't much to do and if she was lucky enough, Shadow would get bored and leave.

"I don't have much, only a radio," Amy said as she pointed at it. It was a very old one and it was on top of a small table counter.

"That would do." Shadow stood up from his seat and went to the old radio. Shadow recognized this type of radio very well; it was a blue Motorola 1950s model. He still remembers the first time the scientists at the ARK showed him a radio, he was freaking out completely.

"What are we going to do? Dance?" Amy asked sarcastically as he watched the black one with amusement.

"Dancing is fun ... Aren't we supposed to do fun things in a sleepover?" Shadow added as he turned on the radio, "Besides, we didn't get to do this last time."

Amy knew what he meant. They didn't get to dance at G.U.N's New Year's dance ball. She appreciated the thought but as she watched Shadow change the radio station, she found herself not wanting to do it.

Suddenly, a song caught Shadow's attention. He recognized this song very well. It was Elvis Presley's Jailhouse Rock.

Amy was freaking out. Shadow wasn't only showing interest in the song, he was tapping his right foot and snapping his fingers.

"In the ARK, Maria and I would always listen to this human's music." Shadow added, "Even today, I still listen to his music."

Shadow was full of surprises, Amy was having a bad day but she was happy that at least Shadow was enjoying himself.

"Yes, his music is good," Amy added. "Probably the best cultural exchange we had with the humans was their music."

"It was." Shadow walked towards Amy as he extended his hand at her. "Now, will you dance with me?"

"I don't um I don't know how to." Amy stumbles with her words a little, she felt her cheeks get warmer the more she looked at Shadow.

"It's rock and roll, you don't need to know how to dance," Shadow said as he grabbed her hand, making her stand.

Amy smiled, Shadow was trying his best to cheer her up. He was doing most of the job, moving her around the room, turning her and moving her place to place. She let out small laughs in between the dace. Never in her life, she would have thought Shadow was a dancer.

And a good one on the least.

Shadow smiled as he heard Amy laugh. Shadow enjoyed dancing, back in the ARK, Maria and he would practice all the time. After Maria's death, he had stopped himself from listening to 50s music. Now, here he was, laughing and smiling as he dance and created new memories with Amy.

This was the best sleepover he has ever had.

The song finished and they both stopped a little to rest. However, their rest didn't last long, the radio's static was strong but it began to subside as 'Can't Help Falling In Love' by Elvis Presley began to play.

To Shadow, it was almost like an instinct. He placed his hands on Amy's waist. He didn't noticed before but she felt so delicate in his hands that he was scared that he might break her.

Amy placed her hands in Shadow's shoulder, feeling his strong physic. They kept their distance as they began to move at the compass of the music.

Wise men say only fools rush in

But I can't help falling in love with you

For a moment, the sadness that resided in Amy's heart was no longer there. No one matter at the moment but she would be lying if she said she wasn't scared. She was utterly scared that her feelings for Shadow were growing to the point she couldn't stop them.

Shall I stay

Would it be a sin

But she didn't care now. She didn't care if Shadow didn't like her that way. She doesn't care if Shadow doesn't feel the same way she does for him. There was no turning back for her, but she just didn't care anymore. She loved Shadow and she loved the way he displayed his friendship at her. Even if it hurts her, she only cares that Shadow was there for her as a friend, as a companionship.

If I can't help falling in love with you

Amy closed their gap as she placed her head in Shadow's chest. Now they were dancing in a sweet embrace. She closed her eyes, letting herself get lost in Shadow's scent. She loved everything about him. And if a part of him didn't love her then,

She will love that part just as much.

Because that was Shadow ... and she wouldn't want it any other way.

Like a river flows surely to the sea

Darling, so it goes

Some things are meant to be

Shadow never thought he would be in such a state of bliss. He didn't want to change anything about this moment. If he had one wish, it will be for him to stay with Amy. Just like this, enjoying each other's warmness as their heartbeats sync perfectly. 

Take my hand, take my whole life too

For I can't help falling in love with you

He couldn't have asked for anything more than Amy's friendship. Shadow wanted this to last forever. He didn't want to change anything, if he could stay like this forever, with her in his arms ... If there was a heaven, Shadow knew this was it for him.

Like a river flows surely to the sea

Darling, so it goes

Some things are meant to be

Shadow got closer to Amy's ear. Softly he began to sing the song almost as if he was dedicating it to her.

Take my hand, take my whole life too

She just meant so much to him and he just couldn't imagine his life without her.

Amy found herself singing the song to him as well, meaning each word that left her mouth.

For I can't help falling in love with you

Shadow and Amy felt two different types of love for each other ... but they were equally strong.

They separated, their faces only a few centimeters apart. They looked at each other's eyes, emerald met rubies. Their space began to close as they whispered the last sentence to each other.

For I can't help falling in love with you.

.

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A/N: Another long fic but I really enjoyed writing this. Now we are discovering Amy's side of the story and are we are going to see her struggles in more in-depth.

We are opening up for some upcoming drama as well and we are developing Shadow's emotions and character.

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! Until next time!