You and I (Shadaze)

A mistake

Shadow raised a brow. "Seriously? You're gonna play dumb now?"

Blaze exhaled, rubbing her temple. "Fine. What do you wanna say?"

Shadow hesitated, glancing around to make sure no one was eavesdropping. "Look, I know it was-" He paused, choosing his words carefully. "It just... happened. And I'm not saying it meant anything, but..."

Blaze folded her arms. "But?"

Shadow exhaled. "It's not like we can just pretend it didn't happen."

Blaze bit her lip. "Why not? It was just a moment, right?"

Shadow looked at her, something unreadable in his expression. "Was it?"

That question hung between them, heavy and unspoken.

Before Blaze could respond, Shadow exhaled sharply and nodded.

"You know what? You're right," he said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "It was just a mistake. No need to make things awkward."

Blaze felt something twist in her chest at how easily he said it, but she forced herself to nod along. "Exactly. We were just caught up in the moment. Nothing more."

"Right."

"Right."

They stood there for a moment, an odd tension lingering between them despite their agreement. Blaze cleared her throat. "Well... I should get going. Amy's probably looking for me."

Shadow nodded. "Yeah, and Knuckles is waiting on me."

Neither of them moved.

After an awkward pause, Blaze turned on her heel. "See you in class," she muttered, walking away as quickly as she could without making it obvious.

Shadow watched her go, running a hand through his hair.

Just a mistake, he told himself.

So why did it feel like something more?

Frustration bubbled inside him, and without thinking, he swung his fist into the bookshelf beside him.

Thud!

Several books tumbled down, hitting the floor with loud thumps.

The librarian's sharp voice rang out from across the room. "Shadow! Since you made the mess, you're rearranging all of it."

Shadow exhaled through his nose, forcing an awkward laugh. "Yeah, yeah, I got it." He rolled his eyes and crouched down to pick up the fallen books.

Just as he started stacking them, Mark walked in, hands in his pockets. He stopped in front of Shadow and raised an eyebrow.

"It wasn't a mistake, and you know it."

Shadow barely looked up. "Relax. I didn't mean to knock all these books down. I just-" He sighed. "I acted on my anger, okay?"

Mark smirked, bending down to help him. "I wasn't talking about the books."

Shadow froze for a second, then slowly turned his head to Mark. "What?"

Mark glanced at him knowingly. "I was talking about you and Blaze. The kiss. Last night."

Shadow's eyes widened. "How the hell do you know about that?"

Mark chuckled. "You two have been acting off since this morning. And I overheard your little 'it was just a mistake' conversation before she left."

Shadow ran a hand through his hair, cursing under his breath. "Damn it."