Reasons

chapter 1

He doesn't know how this happened. He does, but he's not sure how he let it happen.

He's looming over him, hands restraining the other's wrists against the ground. Shadow remembers grinning, thinking he had the upper hand. The echidna's breathing had slowed, and Shadow could see a faint blush formed on his muzzle, as his eyes had gone wide and vacant. If the two hadn't been fighting just moments ago, Shadow would think this would've been the perfect opportunity to lean in for a kiss. He'd pressed the red one's wrists against the ground he'd pinned him on, tightening his grip on them. He felt warm. It was odd.

Then the ground beneath them opened up, swallowing them both whole, startling the two harshly into reality, and Shadow could see the other's lavender eyes light up with fear for a split second before they both delved into the darkness beneath them. Worry stricken voices echoed above them.

"Knuckles! Are you okay?" an energetic, yet harsh voice rang from above.

He hears rubble being shoved around, and a disgruntled groan from the other. "I'm fine!"

Another voice, smaller than the one before it calls, "Just hold on, I'll-" Concrete slabs shut above them, cutting off the young fox's voice.

"Aw, man. It looks like we're stuck here."

Shadow huffs. "Speak for yourself." After a few moments of silence, he growls, realizing how drained the previous fight had left him. He's unable to use his normal means of escape.

"What? You're not gonna teleport out or whatever?" the echidna mocks.

"I can't." he said through gritted teeth.

From what Shadow could make out in the dark, he sees a hand outstretched, offering to help him up. "We should work together then! There's gotta be some way outta here right?"

Shadow grumbles, begrudgedly accepting his hand. "Don't think this changes anything."
He could see a smile forming on Knuckles' face, despite the lack of lighting. He frowned.

---

"Do you know where you're going?"

Knuckles smiled. "Nope!"

Shadow growled. This will get them nowhere. They'd been walking aimlessly in the dark, no direction in mind, for what seemed like hours. 'This is ridiculous.'

He glared at the echidna in front of him. Shadow had never had too much interaction with Knuckles, besides fighting. From his fighting style, he'd assumed Knuckles was mostly brawn. He preferred to rush into every fight, throwing uncalculated punches towards his targets. Knuckles is strong, but he doesn't think before he acts. Shadow assumes the same is true for his personality.

Very different from his own personality, he'd noted.

Before he could dwell any further on the subject, they'd entered a dimly lit and barren room. There was no door, no passageway, just four walls surrounding them. Shadow stopped, prompting Knuckles to do the same.

"This doesn't look right." he said. As if on cue, the door behind them slid shut. The walls around them began to close in, slowly but surely insuring their demise.

Shadow attempted to kick the door behind them open. He tried prying it open to no avail. They were trapped. His back hit the wall, and Knuckles was pressed against the other. Crimson eyes darted around their surroundings, panic heavy in the air. A crash resounded above Shadow's head, his peripherals catching sight of two fists pounding into the brick on either side of him. His left ear twitched involuntarily.

He looked up to see Knuckles with his eyes squeezed shut, and brows pinched together in concentration. Knuckles spoke, strained and coarse, "Are you okay?"

Shadow felt his cheeks get hot, immediately uncomfortable with the close proximity to the other. He felt the same warmth from before, and attempted to brush the feeling off. "What are you doing?"

"Saving you!"

"You can't hold this forever."

"Then go!"

Shadow's voice grew in panic and confusion, "You'll die!"

He could see Knuckles' arms begin to shake, and feel the walls stutter against him.

Knuckles opened his eyes, brow furrowing in frustration. "Like you care!"

The wall behind Shadow jutted forward an inch. "Why would you risk your life for someone who doesn't even care about you?" he barked.

"I don't know!"

"There has to be some reason!" Shadow all but yelled. He shook his head furiously, and dashed underneath the other's arm. He spotted a loose brick in the lower part of the wall to his left, and kicked it loose, jamming it between the moving walls. "This should buy us time."

Knuckles un-jammed his fists from the opposing wall, and grabbed Shadow's wrist, leading the other to the wall at the end of the room. He delivered a hard blow to the bricks, revealing a large, empty corridor. He yanked Shadow along with him, hearing the walls behind them crush the brick and collide together.

The two collapse to the ground, panting. Knuckles looks up at the hedgehog, bewildered. Shadow notices his glance, and glares in return. "You were going to die."

"I thought you didn't-"

"Even if I didn't like you, I wouldn't want to be partly responsible for your death. That is not my burden to bear." He said, eyes downcast.

Knuckles huffed, and crossed his arms. Shadow looked up to see his lips pinched together and his cheeks puffed out. He was pouting. "Is that really the reason?"

Shadow averted his eyes again. "I don't know."

Though Knuckles wasn't satisfied with that answer, he didn't have the time to pry, as the ground began to quake, and the ceiling began to fall. The two jumped to their feet, panic rising again.

A piece of the ceiling collapsed onto Shadow, the left side of his body being trapped underneath it. He felt electricity course through his body, limbs becoming unresponsive and limp. His vision was fuzzy, ugly iridescent lines striking through the images before him in flashes. Knuckles lifts the rubble off of him, helping the other to his feet. "Are you alright?" his voice raised in concern.

Shadow looked up to him, dazed. "Yes, I-I-I'm-" his voice catches on itself, like a broken record. His senses overloaded. Sparks fly off his wrist, catching the echidna's attention. Knuckles reached for his hand. Shadow recoiled to his touch, shooting him a glare. "I'm fine it's just-t-t" he stutters again, "It's nothing, don't-t-" Knuckles grabs his hand, cutting him off. His violet eyes widen in surprise.

"Robot stuff! Tails knows robot stuff! We need to get you to Tails!" he reaches the others stare, catching the confusion on his face. The ground shudders beneath them.

"Forget-t-t me! Why do you even-n-n care?"

"Because I like you!" Knuckles shoots back.

This takes Shadow aback, his eyes widened in confusion. "Why?" he shouted.

"I don't know! Do I need a reason?"

Before Shadow could answer, his vision flashed into black, the red echidna fading along with it.