January 1st, midnight.

There could be many different reasons as to why he had just kissed Amy Rose: he was drunk, it was the end of the year and he needed someone to kiss at midnight, or he loved her. Sonic was leaning towards the first one. Why else would he lock lips with the rosy hedgehog that he had been running away from for all of these years?

One minute they had been conversing and reminiscing about the past year, and the next he had leaned over and planted his lips upon hers. Really, he had no idea what the heck was wrong with him. Obviously he had way too many drinks that night because he couldn't stop staring at her succulent, rosy, plump lips as she was talking to him. Something had stirred inside of him, like a fire deep within, warming him in places he didn't even know existed. His body burned with a thirst that could not be quenched. The more he stared at her lips, the more the thirst grew until he finally cracked. He had drawn her body close to his, bent his head down, and captured her lips with his, like an animal would with its prey.

To his surprise, the thirst only grew worse with the simple kiss. The fire raged throughout his body wildly as he deepened the kiss, his fingers roaming her backside. His mind was in a fog and all he knew was that he wanted her. He had never experienced intense feelings like this before. He felt like he was going to explode. A slap to his face quickly brought him back to his senses.

He stumbled back, rubbing his throbbing skin as he stared at the pink beauty that had somehow suddenly caught his attention. She stood there, looking like a doe caught in headlights. Her jade eyes were wide with what he thought might be shock and maybe a little bit of fear. Her cheeks were painted with splotches of pink and red. Tentatively, her shaky hand came up and touched her lips. She let out a little squeak, the blush spreading throughout her face.

"You…you just…kissed me?" she sputtered, eyes looking around wildly as if to check if anyone else had seen them kiss. "Oh my goodness, you just kissed me!"

Sonic scratched the back of his head, thinking about the implications of what she just said. "I 'spose so."

Amy wrinkled her nose, smelling the alcohol upon his breath. "Sonic, are you drunk?" She went from being stunned to looking positively embarrassed and livid.

"I've had a couple of drinks," he admitted.

"Is that why you kissed me?" the pink hedgehog asked, stabbing a finger at his chest. "I finally get my hopes up and it's because you're drunk?"

Sonic opened his mouth and then closed it, thinking it would be better to not saying anything at all. He honestly had no idea why he had just kissed her like he did. Something had overcome him and had taken control over his body. He hated to admit it, but he liked the kiss very much. He was blaming it on the alcohol.

"Well?"

Amy's voice brought him back to the scene at hand. She was standing there in front of him, hands upon her hips, her foot tapping on the floor as she awaited his answer impatiently. Typical Amy Rose.

"I…uh…well, you see…" When it came to this particular girl and her feelings about him, there was only one response he was comfortable with.

He ran away.

He could faintly hear her call after him in a raised voice, but he kept on running. He had no idea where he was running to, but he had to get away from her and this feeling that was lingering inside of him. Sonic felt guilty for leaving her like he did in the days when they were younger, but old habits die hard. This feeling, though, was new. He was terrified that this had nothing to do with the alcohol.

One thing was for certain; it was going to be extremely awkward the next time he had to face her.

February 14th, 7:35 p.m.

To Sonic's relief, Amy had acted like the whole New Year incident had never happened. He was sure that she was still upset with him for the drunken kiss, but he tried his best not to think about that little incident. Every once in a while, he caught her staring at him with a pained expression in her eyes, but he tried his best to shrug it off. Those looks only made him want to go over and make her feel better, to take her in his arms and sweep her off her….

Holy shit, these thoughts need to stop! Sonic shook his head as if to rid himself of the deluded daydreams. He was starting to wonder if he was having feelings for Amy Rose, as absurd as it sounded. It had been over a month and those emotions from that night still lingered deep inside of him. At times they were annoying. At others, they raged up like a tsunami, threatening to engulf his whole entire being. He did his best to shove the intense feelings away, but there were moments when all he wanted to do was kiss her again.

Of course, he never did. He was Sonic the Hedgehog. He was a free spirit that could never be tied down by someone like Amy Rose. That didn't stop him from thinking about it from time to time, though. Sometimes he pictured what it would be like to go on dates with her or just sit at her house by the fire, holding hands….

Oh dear lord, he was seriously losing his mind!

At least he hadn't seen the pink beauty today. He had half expected her to come knocking at his door bright and early in the morning, demanding that he take her on a date for Valentine's Day. He was surprised that she hadn't shown up at least once, though. He frowned and then told himself that it was a good thing. He needed a day to himself.

Suddenly, there was a soft and hesitant knock on his door. Sonic peaked over from where he sat on his couch, seeing a shade of pink peeking through the window in the door. He sighed inwardly, cursing his luck. "Speak of the devil…."

He got up and made his way to the door, swinging it open. Amy stood there, looking positively anxious as she hopped from one foot to the other. The first thought that ran through his head was that she looked adorable and absolutely beautiful. He chastised himself for thinking such things.

She wore a knitted red hat that covered her hair. A few curls of pink peaked out at the bottom of the hat. She had on a deep red pea coat over what he deduced was a black skirt. Her cheeks were pink from the cold, or maybe flushed at the sight of him. She was holding a small package in her hands, possibly something she had made for him for Valentine's Day. She sent him a shy, warm smile that made him want to melt.

He suddenly felt very hot. He tugged at the scarf that she had made for him some time ago as he invited her inside of his house. She bowed her head in thanks and walked in. He shut the door behind him and faced her, wishing he could run far away.

"Um…what's up?" he asked, cursing himself for sounding so much like an idiot and then chiding himself for even caring what he sounded like.

"Oh, you know, the usual," she said in a voice that sounded very unlike her. It was quiet, timid, and withdrawn. She chewed on her lip slightly, refusing to make eye contact with him. Instead she diverted her attention to the interior of his house. "I haven't been to your place in a while. It looks nice. Did you redecorate?"

"No."

She let out a shaky laugh. "Oh, of course you didn't. What was I thinking? You're hardly ever in your home, anyway." She readjusted her hat and then smoothed down the fabric of her coat.

Sonic raised an eyebrow, staring at her. "You feelin' alright, Ames?"

Her head bobbed up and down, still avoiding his gaze. "Yeah. I'm great!"

Something, once again, stirred within him. This time, it was softer, less intense. With an overpowering desire that took over, he reached out his gloved hand, touching her chin. Amy froze instantly, but he didn't let that deter him. He gently lifted her face so they were staring at each other, eye level. His thumb, having a mind of its own, stroked up from her chin to her cheek. In turn, her cheeks warmed underneath him as she blushed, eyes never leaving his.

With a jolt, he pulled his hand back as if it were on fire. He broke the eye contact, staring at his thumb in shock. He had not just caressed Amy's cheek. He realized that she was watching his actions carefully, so he let his arm fall back to his side as if nothing had happened.

Nothing, he told himself, had happened.

Amy abruptly shoved the package into his chest, letting go of it so quickly he had to use his reflexes to catch it before it fell to the ground. "Here," she said. "Happy Valentine's day." She paused as if she were contemplating doing something else, but seemed to think better of it. She made her way around him towards the door.

"Wait!" Sonic called out, suddenly not wanting her to leave. He clamped his mouth shut, biting down on his tongue so he wouldn't say anything he would regret.

She did as he said, stopping in front of the door. She turned her head back towards him, eyes wide with various emotions. Her hand was in a fist in front of her mouth, which reminded him of the time they first met when she was younger. She always was in that position, looking like a little lost deer.

He wondered why she was looking like that right now.

Sonic opened his mouth, but the words got stuck. He had an overwhelming compulsion to say words he knew should never leave his lips. At last, after moments of a silent battle in his mind, he managed to mutter a small thank you. At this, her eyes softened. Her fist dropped so he could see a small smile before she turned around and left him.

As soon as the door closed behind her, Sonic let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He returned his attention to the package in his hands. Delicately, he opened it and stopped. Inside were seven small sized chocolate pieces that were shaped in emerald form, all colored to represent the seven chaos emeralds. There was even a larger piece that replicated the master emerald.

He was confused, to say the least. Amy was acting strange and she hadn't done something romantic like she was known to do, like decorated hearts. This, he thought to himself, suits me a lot better.

He wondered if this was what she did when she gave Valentines gifts to their friends. He felt his heart drop at that thought, and shook his head. He was being absolutely ridiculous for caring about this. After all, they were just friends. She probably just wanted to forget about the whole New Year's incident and move on.

He walked over to the kitchen table and put the package down. He took one last glance at the chocolates, wondering when Amy had begun to make more of an attempt to learn more about him.

Sonic decided he wanted to learn more about her as well.

March 14th, 4:00 p.m.

He couldn't believe he was doing this for her. Well, he assumed it was what he was supposed to do since she got him a gift last month, but he had found himself wanting to get her something. He desired to give her a gift that meant something to her, just as she had done with him. He wanted to see that smile of hers that she reserved only for him to see.

When he had confided in Tails about this, Tails had responded that he thought Sonic was in love. The hedgehog, on the other hand, did not think so. In fact, he thought that he was going positively insane.

Regardless, he had finally reached a decision on what to get her, after some sound advice from Tails. The little fox was getting some white lilies for Cream, since she loved flowers so much. He had thought for some time about what Amy loved, besides him. It was a lot harder than he imagined it was going to be.

With shaky hands, he reached out and knocked on her door. Although the chilly wind swept through his body, he felt unreasonably hot. It seemed like he had been standing there for hours before she finally opened her door, looking surprised to see him there.

"Sonic," she breathed, staring up at him with dazzling green emeralds. For a moment, he thought her eyes rivaled that of the master emerald, but it went as quickly as it came.

"Can I come in?"

It looked as if she nearly jumped out of her skin at his question. "Of course! Where are my manners? I'm so sorry, come in!" She backed away so he had room to walk. He bowed his head in thanks, strolling into her house.

"It looks nice. Did you redecorate?" he teased, grinning at her.

She flushed in return, but smiled. "No," she stuck her tongue out at him. "Meanie."

He laughed at this. "Meanie? Is that anyway to treat anyone who brought you a gift?"

Instantly, her smile vanished. That doe eyed look she wore lately returned. Her mouth made the shape of an 'O'. Finally, she spoke. "You bought me a gift?" Her cheeks turned bright red. She brought her hands up to her face as if to cover the blush, and moved her head to one side and then the other, as if doing a silent celebration dance.

She was so freaking adorable.

Sonic felt something else he had never experienced before. A feeling of shyness and terror overcame him. Multiple thoughts raced through his head. What if she didn't like it? What if she rejected the gift? Or worse, what if she laughed at him?

Sonic figured he should probably give her the gift before he lost his nerve. "Here," he said, shoving the gift at her, like she had done for him a month ago.

"For me?" she asked, staring at the gift. She touched the package tenderly, as if she were afraid it was going to disappear at any moment. Hesitantly, she opened the container. She reached her hand inside, and pulled out a pure white silk ribbon. He watched as she felt the material in her hands. "It's beautiful," she said in a whisper, still staring at her present.

Without asking, Sonic took off her red hairband, his fingers brushing her forehead accidentally. The contact sent a jolt through him and he wasn't so sure if he trusted himself. Still, he continued on. He put her hairband down on a nearby table and took the ribbon from her hand with her permission. Wordlessly, staring into her eyes, he tied the ribbon in place of the hairband. Amy observed him the entire time, looking as if she were in a trance.

Satisfied with his work, he let his hands linger in her hair for a moment before pulling away. They continued to stare at each other before Amy murmured a quiet thanks. He barely heard it from the pounding of his heart in his ears. Hunger crept through his body like a lurking predator, reading to pounce. He could feel his face being drawn towards hers. There was no denying it. He wanted to kiss her. This time, it was not because he was drunk.

That revelation terrified him.

Sonic was suddenly aware of how close he was to her body. Fire erupted within him, threatening to take control of his body. He needed to stop, but it was so hard to make his body listen to his screaming mind. At the last moment, Sonic turned his head away from hers.

He was unnerved, to say the very least. "I...I should get going."

Her lips turned down in a small frown. "All right."

The blue blur ran out of her house without another word, hoping that his gift would make up for his rude exit. She was probably used to it by now. That, instead of comforting him, made him feel guilty. He knew before he saw her again, he needed to figure out what was happening to him, and soon.

Hey all :) Thank you so much for reading the first chapter of Changing Seasons! If you would please leave a review or constructive criticism I would really appreciate it! This idea has been in the works since March. There will be either 4 or 5 chapters, and I'm almost done with the second which is almost double this chapter in length.

Also, thank you to 01SonAmy01 for being my Beta for this chapter :) You're amazing!

Thanks again and see you for the next chapter "Spring"