#boom!shadow

How did that happen?

Shadow would've never indulged in his craving for a burger if he knew what the day would bring.

But today, the ultimate life form entertained his stomach's demands, chaos controlling himself right in front of the cursed place.

He knew the citizens well, at least from afar. So the moment be laid your eyes on you he knew you were a new face. He hardly cared for newcomers, but something about you, your clothes, your attitude, seemed to draw him in.

Of course, he ignored the feeling at first, placing confident strides towards the counter.

His sharp voice cut through the silence. "One burger."

Whatever your response was, be it dull like the rest of the place, kind, or even shy, the mere sound of your voice as you handed him the bag with a burger inside, telling him the amount of money he owed, felt like a gut punch to his entire being. On the outside, his face remained hardened, but the frown he usually wore started to show a different emotion. Surprise? Confusion?

He grabbed the bag after paying for it, and then disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The cave did nothing to calm down his beating heart, his eyes hardly focusing on the glowing markings adorning the walls.

Why was this happening?

The hedgehog looked at the bag in his hand, fingers clutching the paper so tightly it caused creases to appear on it.

Even run-ins with the blue hedgehog didn't leave him so... exhausted? Like he was on the verge of falling down.

That stupid face of yours was etched into his brain, worming it's way into his thoughts.

It was all stupid.

He felt... anger.

Initially, he thought it was directed at you.

But the deeper he dug, he realized the anger was stemming from seeing himself as weak.

How could he react like that to a random Meh Burger employee?

It was embarrassing. And he couldn't even figure out why.

Struggling to confront his emotions, he carefully unwrapped the packaged item. The presence of the object reminding him of events that transpired moments ago.

He wasn't even hungry anymore.

Safe to say, you started to notice his face in the crowd more often. Always the same order, at the same time.

Shadow was not known for his predictable behavior, but from experience, you could swear he'd always be there to get his food on time. You always made sure to prepare the bag a few minutes before his arrival, starting to notice the approval in his poker face as he received the item. You had no idea about the sickening butterflies appearing in his stomach each time his hand brushed against yours as you passed him his order.

Every meeting of yours was simple. Shadow appeared to get the order. Took the goods. Then teleported back. No conversation exchanged besides except for the transaction.

Until the one time you got to work late and the first thing you saw after arriving there, was the ebony hedgehog, arguing with your coworker, Dave.

"This one is insufficient." His piercing gaze bore onto the burger as if trying to make it disappear. Some poor excuse of sustenance, not even served by you. "Where's (Y/N)?" He knew your name by heart now, catching a glimpse of it on your name tag.

"Sir, we ensure you all burgers are of the same quality. Fresh from the freezer." Dave explained, dead eyes staring back at the clearly annoyed customer.

"Not what I asked, fool." His sight narrowed, already impatient with this fruitless conversation.

Another lavender shirt with yellow leaf-markings came into his view, this time not as infuriating. You.

He felt the need to flinch but stood his ground, not moving a muscle as you approached closer.

Obviously confused, you asked about the commotion.

Shadow remained silent, glaring at Dave. He didn't have to explain himself.

"This guy asked about you." He shamelessly pointed at the hedgehog. "I'm taking my break." And then he was gone.

Your eyes met with his in a silent question.

Shadow wanted to speak, but no words were coming out. Why did he feel like was not the one in control of the situation?

It was hard for him not to sound like a fool when the reason for his annoyance was him not seeing you.

"I didn't like his attitude." He mumbled an explanation. It was close enough.

Seeing the smile appear on your face after was worth it.

It was official. You were a better employee than Dave. Which of course, wasn't a surprise, but it still fed your ego a bit.

You took the bag left by Dave, passing it over the counter.

Shadow almost hesitated to grab it, his brain flooded with several thought processes. Should he add something else?

The hedgehog slowly took the object out of your hand, fingers lightly brushing over your own. The contact was the final push for him to spill out the words.

"What time do you leave work?" His question sounded more intimidating than he planned to, the rushed rumble in his voice coming out almost like a growl.

You blinked, taken aback by the sudden question. Then quickly recovered, reminding yourself he waited for an answer. Looking at the time, you responded truthfully, be it curiosity, genuine fear or lack thereof.

Without breaking the eye contact, he asked, or more so commanded you to arrive at the destination and time chosen by him.

Without even waiting for your response, the last words you heard before him disappearing were "Don't be late."

And just like that, he was gone. Leaving you with... possibly a life or death situation. You really weren't sure whether the guy was asking you to hang out, or planned to murder you where no one could find your body. As a newcomer, you didn't know much about Shadow, but from the passing conversation, you knew he was not a creature to mess with. Why would he out of all people invite you to a hang-out? That question haunted your mind for the rest of the shift, but you'd be lying if you said you weren't interested. You had to know what was the hedgehog's deal, even if it killed you. Possibly, he wouldn't. By a stretch, you were his favorite employee, after all.

Shadow did not need to hear your response. He teleported somewhere calm where he could gather his thoughts. He didn't think he was able to hear the rejection coming from your mouth.

If you didn't accept his offer, you wouldn't show. All that was left to do was to wait for the time of the meeting.

Panic was not something he experienced often. Even fighting with the toughest foes was not as stressful as talking about his feelings. But at this moment, the place inbetween waiting for you to leave work and the meeting, Shadow couldn't escape the churning in his stomach. The dread reaching up his spine as he thought of his next course of action.

Shadow did not have a plan yet, but one thing was clear. He wanted you to stop invading his brain and making him feel distracted, weak. Wanted you to give him the attention he deserved. Wanted you.

Multiple scenarios played in his head, wanting to be prepared for every possibility. You running away, rejection, at worst, maybe laughter. None of them were positive, but he had to make sure he'd be able to accept the outcome, no matter the response.

He was rehearsing what to say in his mind. Wondering if he looks presentable. Checking the time over and over (he was not gonna be late). Picking where to stand so the lighting makes him look cooler, even if he wouldn't admit to that part. Everything had to be on his terms if he was gonna lower himself to be... vulnerable.

The time passed quicker than he'd like. He was already at the place, watching from afar, noting any movement that his eyes could catch. And alas, he had noticed your silhouette, approaching the meetup spot at the agreed on time.

He teleported behind you, earning a startled yelp that made a subtle smirk appear on his face for a moment.

“You’re late.”

You weren’t. It was just his way of managing the emotions threatening to rise to the surface.

Opening your mouth to respond, Shadow beat you to it and spoke first. He didn't wanna waste any time.

“Why did you smile?” His tone was flat, but the question held weight. “Earlier. When I said I didn’t like his attitude.”

He didn't know how else to ask "Do you like me?" without saying it out loud. He had to get some information before proceeding with the heavier stuff.

You hesitated for a second. Did he really have to get you out here just to ask that question? You decided to tell the truth.

“Well… it was nice to be appreciated.”

That caught him off guard.

His eyes widened slightly, just enough to be noticeable. His posture tensed, but not out of anger.

You gave a small shrug, trying to play it off, but the warmth in your voice betrayed you. “Nobody really notices when you do your job right. You noticed.”

He spoke after a second of suffocating silence. “That wasn’t the intention.”

You gave him a wry look. “You almost started a fight over a burger. Kinda seemed like it?"

His eyes narrowed, something in his expression shifting. His angry defensiveness was still there, but something else also shined through his attitude. Almost like he was... flustered.

“It wasn’t about the burger.” He grumbled, his voice keeping it's harshness. The questions were too much to bear.

“Then what was it about?” You couldn't stop the question from escaping your lips.

He looked away. Not down, but to the side, like your gaze was too much to handle. You could see the war behind his eyes. He wanted to retreat, teleport out, pretend this never happened. But he couldn't. His pride wouldn't let him.

“It wasn’t about the food. It was about you not being there.” The stiffness showed in the words that came out. Clearly, he wasn't used to spilling his thoughts like that.

You didn't know how to respond. Seeing your surprised and mildly confused expression, Shadow decided to continue.

"It shouldn't matter. Your absence should not distract me. And yet," he sighed bitterly, disappointed, more so at himself. "I can't get you out of my head."

His eyes returned to meet with yours with intimidating intensity. He took a step closer. "It's pissing me off."

You almost held your breath as the hedgehog approached, quiet yet heavy steps heading your way.

He stopped just a foot away from you. The silence between you both felt too loud, the lack of any response from him only adding to the rising tension in the air.

You swallowed, trying to make sense of the situation. “So… you like me, and that’s the problem?”

Shadow's cheeks get warmer, not used to such intimate matters in regards to him. It was uncomfortable.

“I don’t like you,” he snapped quickly, like a knee-jerk reflex. Then paused. A realization. “…I mean- I don’t just like you.” He mumbled the last sentence.

“I don’t know what this is. I don’t even know what I want from you,” he kept talking, not because he wanted to, but because now that the dam got broken, he couldn't stop. “I don’t even know why it’s you. But I can't keep pretending like it doesn’t affect me.”

Your silence stretched too long due to pure astonishment, hearing the raw sincerity in the hedgehog's words, and the hope for him to say something else

Shadow just stood there. His eyes searched your face, scanning for some sign, anything, that'd show him you weren’t about to laugh, dismiss, or worse, pity him.

But in that long several seconds, you were still quiet. Shadow was not satisfied with your "um"s and "uhh"s as you looked for a response that'd convey your opinion clearly.

His patience ran out prematurely and he took a single step back. Jaw tight, fists clenched at his sides, and voice filled with furious apprehension, barely keeping his cool.

“I didn’t say all that for nothing. You heard me. Now you deal with it.”

There was no warmth in his tone. Only a brittle edge, barely holding together the storm beneath it. He wasn’t angry at you. He was bracing himself. His harsh words were a desperate plea for you to do something.

Any hint of you reciprocating, be it approaching closer, a soft smile, physical touch or telling him about your feelings would give him the push he needed.

He'd close the leftover distance between you two, gaze locked into your eyes, your face, your lips. As if in disbelief. Adrenaline coursing through him like he was in the middle of a battle. Now that his emotions were fully on display, he had a hard time stopping them. The need to make you his. To express it.

He leaned in even closer. There was no doubt what the motion meant. He was about to kiss you, yet still gave you time to reject his advances, almost like a challenge.

When you didn't pull away, his lips finally pressed into yours.

The relief was immense, pulling his emotions out like a magnet to the surface. The kiss wasn't aggressive, but it was filled with restrained desire to devour you, now that he finally won.

Alternative take: if you'd be bold enough to kiss him first as your response (or showed obvious eagerness after he kissed you first)

One moment he was staring at your pretty face, next he felt the pressure on his lips.

It took him by a surprise, making him lose his cool for a second.

But as you showed him the extend of your approval, he quickly recovered, palms clinging to your sides, pulling you even closer.

Depending on your input, the kiss could get way more heated. You got this boy in the bag. Or vice versa.

As you parted ways, Shadow's expression was less guarded. He wore a satisfied smirk that went well with the gleam in his eye.

You were officially his.