After deciding that wallowing in his confusing feelings and obsessing over every little detail of the encounter wasn't doing him any favors or assisting in solving the mystery at hand, he stood up and began heading towards Dr. Eggman's office. Surely, if his complex database and hardware couldn't find an explanation for all this, his creator certainly must have the answer.
"Father?"
"Hmm?" Eggman muttered, not bothering to look up from the blueprints spread across the cluttered table.
"What could potentially cause a reddening in the face due to internally produced heat, electricity shooting down one's spine, inability to vocalize, a flustered state of being, and a general desire to be in another person's presence?"
After mulling the query over in his head, the inventor simply muttered "Love, I suppose."
"...I beg your pardon?"
"Ya know, romance. The whole week in your knees, tongue tied, lovey dovey deal. The heart's in your eyes," Strange, he recalled pixelated hearts flashing on his visual monitor during the battle and simply chalking it up as a malfunction or leftover coding. "Cupid's work, the reason that annoying pink girl with the hammer's convinced that pesky blue hedgehog is dreamy." Metal shuddered at the realization that he agreed with her. "That sort of thing."
"...I see. I would also like to know what would prompt Priority 1: Sonic the Hedgehog to request to spend time with one of his multiple enemies."
He shrugged. "Beats me. Maybe he'd wanna be friends? Or lose some enemies? Or maybe it'd be, like, a date or something? I dunno."
Maybe it'd be a date.
Maybe it was a date.
Holy shit, Sonic asked him out on a date. And he genuinely wanted to attend it. Because he was undoubtedly attracted to him. And, if the resulted yield from his internal computer search on dates were accurate, the feeling was mutual.
"Say, where are all these questions coming from, anyway?"
"They stem from my newfound knowledge regarding my romantic attraction for Sonic."
"...Oh. I see."
"...Sir, are you ok? You're shaking and gritting your teeth 63.6% more than usual."
"...This is fine." he explained, despite just receiving the news that one of his greatest weapons fell in love with his mortal enemy and that this was clearly Not Fine™.
"...I understand." He did not understand, and, frankly, was quite concerned, but seemed too afraid to push the issue any further. "Thank you for your input, Doctor." he added while swinging the office door open.
"Emm...Metal?"
He froze. "Yes, Sir?"
"Can I trust you to prevent your...feelings for Sonic from interfering with my plans and your initiative to annihilate him for the time being? I may need some time to find a solution to this...situation."
He smiled (internally, of course, since he had no mouth). "I promise I will, father." He answered, earning a miniature smile from Robotnick and closing the door behind him.
