[ARCHIVED] Heart Thief

Act of Kindness

His fingers clenched on the thick blanket on top of him, closing him in as he sank deeper into his bed. There was a heavy downpour that night; thunderstorms almost broke the sky, and rain fell on every wall of the castle. Shadow covered his ears to reduce the loud noise coming from outside, attempting to continue sleeping as he wanted- no.

He couldn't believe himself saying that he needed a break after the work he had finished, but he needed to. He knew he needed a full night's sleep. Only Maria would remind him of this, never advising him to lay down and rest.

He only told himself to because of the current events swirling around him, like rapid waves flooding his life out of the blue.

Especially after his encounter with the crazy thief.

During the past few days, he has been in contact with many interviewers and officers from newspaper agencies regarding the masquerade dance. Of course, it's about them.

Every time the crowd mentioned the one he danced with, he swears he could feel blood pouring from his ear tips. He knew he was exaggerating the situation, but he could feel his ears burning hot whenever they proclaimed him and Sonic as a couple.

All because of a damn dance.

But he knew this wouldn't be a problem if he did the same with someone else. The events of now might have been avoided if he had followed Maria's request, but instead, he disobeyed the rules and followed his judgment.

He has been free of guilt for days since she assured him it would be alright, but he could not erase the memories of what happened back then.

Is there any reason why he thought it was a clever idea to kiss the thief's hands to fool the crowd into thinking they were together? What kind of idiot does that?!

Besides shame, he felt ultimate embarrassment at what he had done.

He soon realized that it was never Sonic to blame, but him.

He didn't even have time to think before his body moved on its own. However, given the situation, he couldn't afford to think twice, especially since the whole crowd was already staring at him.

His actions will be judged. His decision will be remembered in everyone's memories. It was his day.

He knew that.

And now he is facing the consequences of his actions. He shouldn't be surprised.

He brought this dread on himself, yet all he does is blame Sonic.

He was never at fault. He was the one who walked up to him and dragged him to the back of a pillar to confront him privately. It was just a coincidence that everything happened after that, causing them to discuss their disagreements behind everyone's backs.

He was the one who fell to his knees, kissing his hands.

With his fingers, he stroked the thief's fidgeting palm, adjusting his awkward stance smoothly and holding him close. He was the one who raised his head to whisper in his ears, calming him down to follow his guidance.

Now that he realized it, the reason why he couldn't blame himself in the first place was that his mind was full of statements people made about him and Sonic, depicting their relationship and the identity of the thief. The smoke of the voices spread quickly like smoke from a burning fire, obscuring his vision and preventing him from seeing his way forward.

Just thinking about Sonic's existence drives him mad.

His mind wandered for a couple of days, and he was tired of denying all the questions asked by the interviewers. His focus on painting was off, even Maria could see it.