I was nervous about the last letter I gave Metal. It was, um... Maybe a bit gushier than the previous one. Way gushier. I... ugh, I was hopeless!



I had to be honest. I completely fell for Metal. It was hard for me to remember how much I loved Sonic before. My whole thing with Metal felt so much more real, and him returning the affection made me feel so complete as a person. He opened up to me on his own... I hoped he could one day learn that he'd find meaning outside of Eggman. At least he learned that he wouldn't find meaning by killing Sonic. The more I learned about him, the more I realized exactly how on point Belle was when she explained their relationship the first time.



Sigh...~ I felt so refreshed from our beach date. I pressed the opalescent flower in the same book I pressed my very first. The drying process takes a few weeks, so I had plenty of time to figure out where and how I'd want to display it. Maybe something involving the first flower, since both were incredibly significant to me.



I wanted to see him again so badly... He visited me a few times now, so I thought it'd be nice to visit him instead. I ventured over to the old base with his garden. Did I know what I wanted to do? Nope! But... wasn't figuring it out part of the fun?



He could find me a bit easier, though... if Metal was called back to Eggman, I could do nothing. I hoped there would be a more boring day for him so I could have him all to myself. At least finding the old base was super easy for me at this point.



I strolled in and knocked on the garden door. "Special delivery!" I shouted.



... No response. Aw, was he not here? I considered checking through the skylights again--



Krr-chunk! The door opened!



Metal stepped out and I just as easily jumped into his arms. He was knocked off balance a little, but he quickly corrected himself. I swayed my legs and gave him a big smooch on the muzzle.



I giggled at his reaction, then rubbed our cheeks together. "I'm the delivery," I said, caressing the other side of his head with my hand. He let out some cute beeps, so I assumed he couldn't talk.



He squeezed me into his hold a little, and then he gently put me down. We gazed at each other... He leaned in and kissed me back. My heart fluttered like crazy...!



Krr-chunk! What--



He vanished behind the door again! "Hey!" I snapped. It was locked!



I grumbled to myself and waited for him to come back out. After a few minutes, he re-entered the hall. "Hello, Rosy," he said.



I could never stay mad. My heart melted again. "Metal...!" I held both of his hands with mine. I was just so happy to see him.



He tilted his head as he watched me. "Why are you here?"



I huffed. "So I could see you, dummy."



"You just wanted to see me...?"



"Mmhm." I grinned. Oh, my tail was wagging. Luckily, he couldn't see it. I needed to calm down!



"I want to see you too," he said, calm. "I'm unlikely to be called back to the base today. There's not much to do here, though..." He glanced around.



"That's okay. We don't need to go on big dates every time we hang out." I laced my fingers with his and pressed myself against him, letting out a soft sigh. "How are you doing~?"



"I'm fine... You seem to be in very high spirits. Is there a reason?"



"I'm happy to see you, that's all," I said. "Don't let me interrupt whatever you were doing, though."



"If I leave you alone, you'll yell at me." He glanced back to the garden door. "... Nothing requires my immediate attention, though... Other than you."



I giggled. "Maybe I'm a little needy."



He watched me for a moment. I learned well what he was thinking about depending on where his focus was. He let go of one of my hands, but kept the other, gently guiding me down the hall. "I have an idea," he said.



He went to a door at the very end, then tapped in a sequence of buttons on a panel. The door opened, revealing a huge, circular room. There was a tall, empty chair in the middle, a bunch of dark monitors, and even more doorways to different areas.



"Just how big is this place?" I asked, lifting a brow.



"It's a full base, just most of it is locked since I have no use for all the rooms. More areas are deeper underground."



"Wow. What was this base for? If you can answer."



Metal examined our surroundings, taking a bit of time to reply. "Research, projects. Nothing you wouldn't expect." He glanced at me, then averted his eyes. "I was created here."



"Really?" I looked around. "Is that why you like to hang around here?"



"It's more of a coincidence... The cave soil is good for the flowers, and Dr. Eggman did his own research on Little Planet here at some point, so the rooms have solid environmental control."



"Oooh..." I walked around on my own and kinda tugged Metal behind me. He followed me without issue; I felt his gaze on me while I focused on the objects around us. "Why'd he abandon such a huge area?"



Metal shrugged at me. "He's not one who likes to stay in the same place for long. He takes everything important with him... There's nothing here anymore."



"Wow," I said with a raised brow.



"... It's peaceful."



I smiled at him. "Yeah? I guess it's nice there aren't a bunch of robots to deal with, friend or not."



When I was done looking around, he guided me through another doorway. We went down yet another long, winding hallway... and then we stopped at uncharacteristically fancy double wooden doors. On both halves was a huge white Eggman insignia. Subtle.



"Let me guess," I said. "Is this Eggman's room?"



"How did you know?" he deadpanned. Metal typed in an incredibly long sequence of numbers to open this door, but it did slide open mechanically like the others did. Inside was another huge room, but the colors were a lot warmer, more homelike. There was a huge bed on one side of the room, a large, fancy rug... Hell, there was a fireplace, a cushy loveseat, big blankets and a giant television on the wall. Wow.



I honestly expected the decor to look a lot worse. The room actually looked lived in, just a little emptier. Metal did mention nothing important was here, so I guess the fancy furniture didn't have any significance to Eggman. I was surprised his abandoned bases weren't looted, to be honest... but I guess the security was pretty tight even with no one around.



"I'll leave this area open for you if you visit again. I assume standing around in a hallway is less stimulating," Metal explained to me. He let go of my hand and went over to a huge cupboard beside the TV. I let my vision wander over to another door... I opened it. Hah! It was a closet.



"Metal, have you seen Eggman walk around with this?" I snorted, holding up the ugliest fluffy robe I've ever seen. The base of the robe was dark red with yellow accents, while it had gray and black spotted cuffs.



He rotated his head fully to look back at me. "Many times. He has those at the current base."



"Poor you. We have to get some nicer images in your head," I joked, putting the robe back in the closet. "It's hard for me to imagine Eggman having some normal downtime... But I guess it'd be hard for us to hang out if he didn't." I let out a sweet sigh and collapsed against the bed. I rested my head on my hand while watching Metal. "What are you looking at?"



"Movies."



I lifted my head a little more. He returned to me with a handful of cases, then spread them out in front of me.



"He took most of the good ones."



I smirked, sitting up to get a better look. A lot of the movies were pretty old looking. I hummed as I examined the front and backs of the cases. A few mystery movies, some cheesy thrillers... Ooh! This one looked like a romance. While I was reading the case, Metal walked off to some other part of the room again. More lights flickered on and the TV lit up the whole area with a solid blue screen.



"I think he left a game console somewhere, too..." Metal checked another cabinet near the TV.



"Have you ever had your own room?" I asked.



"Not really."



"Seems a little unfair..."



He looked back at me. "I appreciate the sentiment, but I'm a machine. I don't need a personal room like you or my Master."



"Oh, whatever. If that's what you wanna tell yourself," I yawned.



He stood up, staring at me with his hands on his hips. "What are you getting at?" he asked.



"You have that room where you keep all the--" Oops. I realized I didn't tell him I've been to that room beside the garden.



He pointed at me. "Finish your sentence," he said, firm.



"That was the end of my sentence," I said lightly, rolling away from him on the bed so my back was facing him. I suddenly felt his claws on my shoulder. He pinned me to my back, his glare bearing down on me as he leaned over me. My face felt a little hot.



"Say it."



"Yeah? What are you gonna do if I don't?" I huffed. I was totally faking my confidence. My heart was pounding like crazy.



"Y...You..." Metal's voice faltered, averting his eyes, but then he refocused and glared at me again. "You've been somewhere you shouldn't have been."



"You're just describing our relationship," I replied proudly. Hahaha. I was winning! He was totally clamming up.



"You are infuriating me," he said in a lower, almost hushed voice. I wiggled a little under his hold. He leaned in like he was gonna kiss me... and then he let go of me completely. Wh-- he walked away! I felt so... deflated!



"Hey...! Come back!" I whined a little, sitting up. His back was turned to me as he focused on the cabinet again. He brought out an old game system and hooked it up to the TV hanging on the wall.



He didn't react to me at all.



"Metal...!"



He was ignoring me! No! He learned my weakness. I flopped helplessly backwards.



"I'm so cold... Brrr..."



Nothing. Not even a slight turn... Ugh!



"Fine...! I've been to the room by your garden. And this was before you said I wasn't allowed in the garden, so you can't technically get mad at me," I huffed.



Metal walked back over to me. "... I always lock that room, though. And the lock isn't one of those pitiful bolts you have at your house." He squinted at me. "How?"



I sat back up and looked up at him. He seemed more surprised than angry. "Okay, so... It's my turn to open up, I guess." I patted the spot beside me on the bed, and he eventually joined me. "I mean... alright, it's no secret that I had some trouble accepting your confession," I mumbled, blushing a little. "Even though you gave me the flower and letter yourself, I... I mean, you know... I'm... stubborn."



"Yes," he said, giving a solid nod. He didn't have to confirm it like that!



I crossed my arms. "Anyways, I learned that this area was one of the places that could grow flowers from Little Planet. I came across this base and wandered in, saw the garden... and then you showed up."



"What?"



"It's fine!" I exclaimed. "J-just let me finish! This is hard!"



He looked tense, but he didn't say anything else. I continued:



"I hid while you were there. At some point, you disappeared into that room, but then Eggman called for you and you left. The door was still open. So, I uh, I went in." I sighed, rubbing the back of my head. "I saw Belle's plushie and a box of the letters I gave you. I'm sorry for going through your things, but... if I never saw it, I probably would still be in some type of denial..." I sighed. "I was too stubborn to read your letter until afterwards, but I did read it. Give me a break, okay?" I said, frowning.



He was quiet for so long. I felt awful.



"The point is, there are things you want to keep. You deserve to have your own room, a space you like. That's all," I muttered. "I've honored your space since then. You've respected my requests, so I'm doing the same. I really am sorry."



"You were there the whole time I was in the garden that day?" he asked.



I nodded. "Please understand... I don't want to have a real fight or anything. We're just starting to get along so well," I said, frowning.



"I understand, Rosy. Caution towards your enemy is expected. I'm not mad at you," he said, his voice calm. "I love you."



My eyes went wide.



"But I should've seen you!" he growled, standing up fully and clawing his face. "I must be malfunctioning! This is the third time! Four times! Despicable!"



"Uh, I'm confused," I mumbled. I've genuinely never heard him so mad. "Are you upset because I was able to hide from you?"



"Yes!" he exclaimed. He let out some machine-sounding beeps. Damn, I wondered what he was saying. He suddenly stopped, then pointed aggressively at me. "You. I am less perceptive because of you. This has to stop."



He was really good at putting me through an emotional roller coaster. I couldn't help but laugh a little. He was mad at himself.



"This is no laughing matter!" he snapped.



"I know," I giggled back. "It's just an automatic response... Um, what were the other times?"



He growled again, like the very thoughts were sending him into a total fit. "I was ambushed by that insufferable Hedgehog after leaving you the flower before my confession... Then I didn't know he was following me when I located you at that amusement park. Rrrrgh... I left the base too open! I let you in the garden so carelessly for you to leave that note!"



"Oh...!" I remembered the day he referred to; Sonic was punched pretty hard in the face. Well, okay, I guess my description didn't narrow down any encounter between them. That day already felt like a lifetime ago at this point... "Metal, relax."



"No!"



"Those 'mistakes' all led to good things," I reiterated. "You let yourself be a little vulnerable. That's okay."



"It's not okay, but I'll let you explain why you think otherwise," he scoffed, gesturing to me and rolling his eyes.



"Well... The first thing you mentioned is what caused me to ask about you to Belle. Don't worry, she didn't say anything private. She just explained that you're not so bad." I leaned back a little as I remembered those conversations. Some heat returned to my face. "It made me remember the time I helped you in the snow."



He looked at me and his arms dropped. He quietly listened to me.



"The second time had me realize Sonic didn't know me as well as you did. I didn't like that fact at the time, but... you found me and he had to follow you for you to do that. It's a lot harder to deny how it all happened... I didn't have many excuses to hide behind my unrequited crush on Sonic." I shrugged. "And the last time... How would you know I wanted to talk to you otherwise? You would've just been moping all by yourself."



"I don't mope," he softly mumbled.



I grinned. "If you say so. I mean... Feelings are hard," I said, my smile dropping again. "Knowing you're going through them doesn't make them easier. I made mistakes, too. But, you know, we're here together. So... Will you calm yourself?"



He didn't answer, but he did sit beside me again, his arms crossed. I hugged him over to me.



He didn't look at me. "You've consumed my thoughts for so long, and it's steadily worsened. I can't function normally anymore," he said.



I struggled to speak. "You're so..."



God, my face was on fire.



"Effortlessly romantic," I finished.



He looked at me then. I'm sure he was confused, but I didn't care. I kissed him.



"I love you too, Metal," I said.



I nuzzled him with my head a little. I couldn't meet his gaze...! I needed a second to center myself. He said he loved me so freely, so sure of himself. I couldn't confront my feelings so easily... but he struggled with other aspects of being in love that I didn't, so we balanced each other out that way...



I finally glanced his way again. He was just staring, but I had a feeling he wasn't actually looking at me. I waved my hand in front of him. He didn't move at all. "Uh... Metal?" I asked. I snapped my fingers. Still no response.



Pop!



An abrupt popping sound just came from Metal, kinda like a door breaking off its hinges. Uh, seeing as he wasn't a door, it... didn't sound good. I touched Metal's face and wow he was really hot. Like, I've never felt that from him before, even when he was going at top speed. I blinked.



His turbine began whirring, but he hadn't moved an inch. I glanced to his back and hovered my hand near the turbine to realize it was just dispelling hot air. I think he actually was malfunctioning...



After an entire minute, his eyes moved. He actually focused on me.



"Are you okay?" I asked. I was actually a bit worried.



"You love me...?" he asked.



D-did he really take a minute to... I... How did he still manage to make me the wreck here?! "Y...Yes," I muttered. There was so much hope in his voice... It was so cute...



His eyes very briefly darted away, then back to me. "... And I'm your favorite?"



I giggled and nodded. He was too much! I couldn't handle when his tone of voice was that soft.



He was still for a while longer, but I was more confident he wasn't going to suddenly deactivate. I think he was just... processing. I felt his head again; he was still incredibly hot, but not as bad as a moment ago--



He suddenly wrapped his arms around me, tugged my body tightly to his and pressed down against me. I lay back again, then felt a shock from his muzzle as it collided to mine. It was more intense than before, but it felt nice... I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling. Not a single thought went through my head for a solid minute. I thought I was the one malfunctioning...!



I moved my mouth away to take a breath and he nuzzled more against me, peppering me with his unique kisses. I squealed with laughter and tried to move him away, but he was relentless! I couldn't help but kiss him back...



Satisfied with his affection, he settled his head on my chest. I ran one of my hands down his metallic quills. When I glanced down at his face, his eyes were horizontal bars. He was so cute... We didn't need to exchange any more words. He was so happy to receive love and so happy to give it in turn. I got to see such a vulnerable side of him...



"Are you relaxed for real now?" I teased.



"Yes," he sighed in return. "Your heartbeat soothes me."



"Aww..." I grinned and caressed the side of his head. "What was that popping sound I heard earlier?"



"One of my circuits fried. Non-essential. I'll fix it later."



"Haha... does that happen often?" I asked.



"No. I am Dr. Eggman's greatest creation." He adjusted himself a little, holding me a little tighter as he rested against me. "Even more impressive, I am Rosy's favorite person."



How could I not love him when he viewed being my favorite as such a source of pride? I put my arms back around him. I wanted to see how long he would stay there with me... Which, to his credit, was a long time. I didn't mind at all... He belonged there with me.



He eventually got off of me and loomed over me while on his hands and knees. I was suddenly aware of our positioning and I didn't know how it missed me until that moment. He gave me a serious, unflinching stare. I was burning up.



"Um..." I couldn't keep his gaze. My heart was ringing in my ears.



"Rosy," he said, his voice firm. "My infatuation with you cannot be a weakness. I will continue to hone my perception around you." His eyes flashed red. "You are sorely mistaken if you think this provides you any sort of advantage."



...



"Are you serious?!" I screamed. He was lucky I couldn't choke the life out of him!!! "You're still thinking about how I was able to hide from you?! Get over yourself!!"



I tackled him and got him off of me, ready to show him some perception, alright! He chuckled, which took all the wind out of me. Oh no... That was another weakness of mine. Maybe I needed to work on my focus around him, too...



"... We can fight another time," Metal said with averted eyes, his tone calm again. His gaze went back to me, curious instead. "What do you want to do?"



"M...Movie!" I huffed. "We're watching a movie. Then we're making out, and then I'm going home." I got up and snatched the romance movie on the bed, walking over to the TV to find whatever media player it had.



I had so much fun spending time with Metal... We just had a normal day together, but it was special to me. To think there would be more days where we enjoyed each other's company and stayed close to each other... Even just thinking about it made my heart skip a beat.



Unlike him, though, I needed to eat some dinner. When we were done hanging out, we walked back towards the entrance to the old base. I kissed him goodbye, and only then did he let go of my hand. I grinned back at him, giving him a little wave before leaving his sight.



I heard some crackling, and then a boom! A streak of pink light went into the sky above me... There he went. Someone was excited.



... I was, too. I couldn't stop smiling to myself after that.