I started this story a while ago but decided to finish it a a week ago. I was in the need for some Sonamy. This was supposed to be a oneshot, but it's kind of funny how 2,000 words can become more than 8,000. So there will be a few chapters.

Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog, Amy Rose, etc. belong to their respective owners, none of which are me.

My face flushed with the heat of the fire dancing only a few feet away. It licked at my fur, singeing the lovely pink to the color of coal. Tears burned in my eyes, and I choked on the soot-saturated air. I never imagined my first date ending like this, in my death. Maybe in danger—that always seemed to be around—but not death.

Though I could barely see through my tear-filled eyes, I felt a hand tightly take mine and deep green eyes captured my gaze. "We're going to make it, Amy," Sonic said, his voice hoarse for the smoke. "I promise we'll make it through this."

The way he said that, I believed we would make it through. Whether we would make it through alive was a different matter entirely.

OoOoO

Eight Hours Earlier

"I am not doing this!" Sonic complained again. He collapsed on the couch after his earlier erratic dash around the house. He struggled to burn off the steam of the frustration before he had a nervous breakdown.

Knuckles laughed, flipping past another channel on the television. "It's not my fault; you lost the bet."

Sonic groaned. "Oh c'mon, Knuckles. I'll do anything else."

Tails looked at the pair of them. His young face looked strangely old as he gave Sonic a no-nonsense glare. "Sonic, you can't back out now. You already agreed to Amy's date."

Sonic put his hand over his face. "Please don't say it out loud! It's bad enough without actually saying it."

"Where are you taking her?" Knuckles mocked, a sneer unhidden on his face.

"I don't know. I don't have the first IDEA what you even do on a date!" Sonic said. He slipped only further down in his seat as if hoping the couch would swallow him whole. He glanced up at Knuckles. "Seriously, it was a stupid bet. It shouldn't even count…."

"Oh, it counts all right," Knuckles said, obviously quite proud of himself. "It's not my fault you couldn't stay underwater for thirty seconds. Guess you hate water more than you hate Amy!"

"I don't hate her," Sonic corrected. He surprised himself, being so quick to her defense. "It's just…well…you know her!"

Sonic's head buzzed with thoughts of Amy. She was always filled with seemingly boundless energy. And while she acted cheerful like the child she still was, even if just barely, Sonic knew what angry ferocity could spark in those green eyes. If she ever found out the date was made because of a lost bet, she'd kill him in his sleep. He imagined her clutching his arm until it cut off his circulation, chattering on about how many kids they were going to have while staring at him with star-struck eyes. Sonic looked at Tails with a pale face. "You know where my will is, right?"

Tails smiled. "It's going to be fine, Sonic. What's the worst that could happen?"

Knuckles failed to smother his snicker, not that he was trying. "Did you forget about the hammer? Say one wrong word and you're going to be black on top of being blue."

Sonic gave a nervous half-smile. "She can't catch me with my speed."

"You won't escape her grip!" Knuckles exclaimed before erupting in laughter.

Sonic groaned again. Why had he made that stupid bet? Knuckles was just guarding the Master Emerald, and it wasn't that Sonic couldn't not mess with him; it was just way too tempting. Sonic just took it too far when Knuckles decided he needed some amusement and attacked Sonic's pride. It all came down to a bet: Sonic had to stay underwater for at least thirty seconds. Sonic's win? Knuckles would take back all he had said about Sonic being a coward. Knuckles's win? Sonic had to accept Amy's offer the next time she asked for a date.

Sonic stayed under for less than ten seconds.

And now Sonic was stuck in this stupid situation. He had never even cared about Knuckles calling him a coward. Sonic just wanted to see the look on Knuckles's face when Sonic made him eat his words. Instead, Sonic had to go on a date with the only girl too persistent to escape from.

xXx

"And then he looked down at my brand new shoes and said yes," Amy recollected to her captive audience of two.

"Oh, Amy, I'm so happy for you!" Cream exclaimed.

"Ch-chao!" Cheese added.

Amy twirled a circle on the vanilla-colored carpet of her living room. "I just knew he'd say yes eventually! If I had known he just didn't like my shoes, I would have replaced them months ago!"

Admittedly, Amy knew her new shoes barely differed from her old ones. Just a bright red bow on the outside of each one. But Amy supposed that Sonic liked the bow significantly more than no bow; he had always been quirky. Cream begged, "Tell us again the way he said yes; it's just so romantic!"

Amy grinned. "He got so bright red, like he was so lucky I even asked. He glanced back at Tails , and I just knew he was scared. Almost in shock. He needed Tail's permission before he looked back at me, and then he couldn't meet my eyes, which was so cute! And then he mumbled 'yes' in this really low voice which was so…cool."

Cream sighed. "You two are so perfect together!"

"I know, right?" Amy's heart fluttered in her chest, her body lighter than air. She closed her eyes, savoring the moment he said yes with her whole soul.

"What are going to wear?" Cream asked eagerly. Amy could see her own excitement shared by Cream in the young bunny's glittering eyes.

Amy paused a moment, looking down at her red dress. She took it in her hand and examined the fabric as though a riddle was sewn in the thread, waiting to tell her what Sonic would most like seeing her wearing. "Maybe a different hairband; I have one with a bow on it that'll match my shoes perfectly! But my dress…" Amy took another twirl, letting her dress flutter around her. "…I think this one will be perfect." She allowed herself another shining grin. "Sonic always smiles at me when I wear this."

As far as Amy could remember, Sonic was almost always smiling at her. Except maybe when Amy was in danger; then he just looked scared and really angry. She sighed. He loved her so much and now he was finally unafraid enough to admit it. Of course Sonic had been too afraid to admit his love before; it was a big step that Sonic didn't take lightly. Amy admired the nobility of Sonic's love. Now that he had finally decided that his love was true, Amy was thrilled. After this date, they would be together forever! Amy could only imagine the amazing dates that would follow this one: ice cream, a walk in the park, an amazing—not to mention fancy—dinner…. And then, someday, they'd get married and have two kids. Or maybe five. They would have to discuss that later.

Amy tried to slow down the heart beating heavily in her chest. She had to calm down; Sonic might be fast, but that only meant his thoughts moved so quickly that he would forget all the plans Amy had as soon as she told him.

Cream continued the interview excitedly, "Where do you think Sonic's taking you?"

Amy dropped down on the couch next to Cream and stared dreamily up at the ceiling. "He said it would be a surprise. I bet it'll be a big adventure! Sonic loves them so much, and I know he'd love to share that with me."

Amy imagined clinging onto Sonic for dear life as he sped the two of them across a wide meadow just as night fell. That would be so romantic…

"I hope you have a good time!" Cream said. "Sonic's so nice, I bet he'll make you really happy."

"I know he will," Amy said, turning her bright eyes to her young friend. "Destiny says that we're meant to be so there's no way anything can go wrong!"

xXx

"You can't stand at the door with him, Knuckles!" Tails insisted. "It would hurt Amy's feelings if she knew that Sonic's only going out with her because of a bet."

"The point is my amusement, not hers," Knuckles said with a grin.

Sonic glared at Knuckles out of the corner of his eye as the three of them walked down the street toward Amy's apartment. "Just because I'm going to be miserable doesn't mean she has to be."

Sonic ached to turn and sprint off the way he came. Or the way he was going. Or over the freaking rooftops. Just…away from Amy and the date. Instead, he walked steadily down the street toward his doom. As much as he knew that this was going to be just about the most miserable night of his life, he knew that it would matter to Amy. She may drive him crazy, but he hated to see her frown.

The sun glowed just over the horizon, turning the edge of the sky a wild orange color. It glared painfully in Sonic's eyes. He had the feeling that Amy would spend at least an hour raving about how beautiful a time of day it was, though even he believed it to be beautiful. They were going to have to find a way to enjoy it. So far, that was the only hint as to what he had planned for the date.

"Either way, I'm still watching this," Knuckles said. "I won fair and square, and I want to enjoy my reward of watching Sonic's misery."

Sonic rolled his eyes. The longer Knuckles spoke, the more Sonic regretted the bet. Never again would he allow himself to become so bored that it drove him to messing with Knuckles. That is, if he survived the night with Amy.

They stopped outside of Amy's apartment, and Tails offered Sonic a reassuring smile. "You know you're pretty much making Amy's night, right?"

Sonic sighed, looking at the ground beneath him. "Yeah, yeah."

"Just remember that," Tails said, "and you'll get through the night with minimal damage."

Sonic's eyes shot back to Tails's face. "Damage? What kind of damage?"

Tails just shook his head, smiling gently at his adopted big brother. "Don't tell her that it was a bet, okay? That should keep you alive." A grin flashed across Tails's face. "And good luck. You're going to need it."

Sonic grinned weakly, but it faded quickly. "Yeah, I'm going to die tonight." And with Knuckles's laughter ringing in his ears, he entered the building and climbed the stairs to Amy's apartment.

This is unlike how I typically write, but I enjoy the style. If you want to see more like this, leave me a review. In the meantime, if you're looking for more Sonamy, check out some of my other writing, particularly Frenzy and Metarex Rule. Until the next chapter!