Chapter Text
at first, it was only you and alyza. alyza was a brat who always wanted what she demanded, but she offered a place for you to stay at a reasonable price, and you both never spoke together much anyways, so you didn’t care. there were, of course, a few arguments. one of the most memorable ones were when you came out to her as a nonbinary lesbian. you thought she wouldn’t have cared, but apparently you were wrong.
first, she asked how you were nonbinary since the only genders were girl and boy which led to you arguing over how much genders there are. then she proceeded to ask how you could be nonbinary but be lesbian since lesbians are females who strictly like females to which you corrected as lesbians are non—males who are attracted to non—males. after that, she dropped the lesbian topic, but still said she didn’t care for your pronouns and would simply use she / her.
without any energy to argue about being invalidated, you made an agreement to let her use she / her pronouns as long as she doesn’t assume anything since you’re lesbian.
you both left it at that, but you still are uncomfortable with being considered female when you aren’t. you weren’t going to lose a place to live over pronouns though.
whatever alyza says is pretty much irrelevant, anyway.
—
a few months in and alyza comes home, sighing dramatically near you. you ignored her, blatantly showing her that you didn’t care about anything she had to tell you. after a few more loud sighs, you gave up. “ what do you want. “ you said more than asked.
” oh my gosh! thanks for asking! “ she beamed, stopping her stupid pouting. “ i met the most cutest skeleton today! he is sooo cute and sooo funny and sooo... “ she babbled on.
you stopped listening.
you couldn’t give a shit about who alyza dated. her relationships never lasted a few months at most. besides, it’s not your problem who she sleeps with or falls in love with. that’s all on her. “ and so, i was thinking of letting them bunk with us! “ she ended. you blinked. “ what? “ “ were you not listening! they’re filthy fucking rich! they were one of the first monsters to convert their gold or whatever into surface currency and so now, they are drowning in money. they agreed to pay for the house if they stay as well! “ then it hit you.
she only wanted them for their money. “ so i stop paying rent if they come? “ you raised a brow. she scoffed. “ of course! i don’t need your petty little rent money anymore. “ she rolled her eyes. you shrugged. “ cool. “
—
when the skeletons, [ which you figured out were called sans and papyrus from alyza ], arrived, you didn’t care much. papyrus was a sweetheart, you couldn’t lie. when he entered the door, tall and proud, standing at seven feet tall, you could tell from just his bright smile that he was as great as he presented himself. and he was.
he gave alyza and you a big hug. alyza seemed to appreciate it more than you did. his brother, sans, the skeleton alyza was talking about, seemed lazy but kept an eye on— eye socket on you. he had eye lights that were bright in contrast to his brother’s dim eye lights. you concluded that was because papyrus’ sockets were smaller.
alyza told you to introduce yourself while she went to use the bathroom, so you did. introducing your name, you went to tell them your gender and sexuality, but papyrus interrupted. “ WHAT A LOVELY NAME FOR A LOVELY LADY! “
“ ew. no. “ you blurted. sans’ eye lights dimmed a little. “ sorry. i’m not a woman. “ you averted your gaze, suddenly uncomfortable with the accusation and the sudden glaring from sans. “ YOU AREN’T? “ he asked with a tilt of his skull. “ i’m nonbinary. i’d appreciate it if you’d use they / them pronouns to refer to me. and, uh, i’m a lesbian. so, thought i’d let you both know, uh, i guess. “ you shrugged. the silence was deafening, making you majorly uncomfortable.
well, until you were suddenly lifted. “ THAT IS COMPLETELY OKAY MY THEY FRIEND! “
you blinked before exhaling a giggle from your nose, smiling softly. “ good enough. “ papyrus looked at you with wide sockets, you suppose, but quickly hugged you. “ I AM HONORED TO BE ABLE TO LEARN ABOUT THIS NEW GENDER FROM THE SOURCE! “ his voice was even louder since you were pressed against his collarbone, but you didn’t mind. “ mhm. “ you hummed. you didn’t have the heart to tell him he used the pronouns incorrectly, but you hadn’t minded.
you felt as though papyrus and you were going to get along quite fine.
—
one month into the skeleton’s stay and a lot of changes. one of them being the house. there were only three rooms in the previous house which meant papyrus and sans had to share a room, but alyza had suggested they bought a mansion with more than enough space.
sans and papyrus didn’t mind, and you didn’t either, so, sans bought the mansion and you moved in. papyrus instantly liked it because the living room was large enough for him to do indoor training without causing damage to any furniture. alyza instantly liked it because it was big, pretty, and expensive. sans liked it because alyza and papyrus were happy.
you? eh, you didn’t care. after the house purchase, alyza and sans were much closer and in the span of only a month, sans asked her out, which she replied with yes. papyrus and you had also gotten closer. it was mostly because now that sans and alyza have been going out on dates, papyrus was left out of the picture. you noticed and thought it wouldn’t hurt to befriend papyrus a little more.
you enjoyed his company.
he would always rant about his day and his adventures in the underground. he spoke of how he always wanted to be in the royal guard which disbanded since there was no need for it on the surface. he also spoke of how he loved to cook and how terrible he was while underground. it dawned onto you that you had never tasted papyrus’ cooking.
so, you suggested to eat some when he cooked.
he looked completely shocked, gaping at you before squealing and pushing both hands on his cheekbones. “ WOWIE! OH BOY, WOULD I LOVE TO! I’LL GET TO COOKING SOME PASTA RIGHT AWAY! “ he sprinted to the kitchen and you could automatically hear the sounds of pots being taken out and ingredients being used. alyza and sans were still out on their date, so you decided to go and watch papyrus whip up a dish for you. you weren’t an expert at cooking, but you weren’t clueless. you could make a mean bowl of cereal if you wanted to.
and maybe a good plate of fried rice if you watched a tutorial on how to make it on youtube.
watching papyrus in focus was amusing though. that happy—go—lucky, everyone—in—the—world—deserves—a—pat—on—the—shoulder—and—a—pint—of—nice cream facade disappears. he looks focused and seems to be putting one hundred percent into cooking a simple pot of spaghetti.
possibly one hundred and one percent.
“ AAAAND VOILA! THE PERFECTLY CRAFTED PLATE OF PASTA TOPPED WITH HOMEMADE TOMATO SAUCE AND COOKED TO PERFECTION! “ papyrus turned around with an appetizing plate of so spaghetti. you must admit, it smelt even more heavenly. you took the plate of food with a thank you and picked up the fork. twirling the fork in the noodles to gather up to eat, you took a bite and chewed. papyrus stood patiently but seemed a little nervous.
you dropped the fork onto the plate with a clatter.
” no way. this shit is fucking good. it’s actually so fucking good. “ you covered your mouth while complimenting, swallowing. papyrus lit up. “ REALLY? I MEAN, AHEM, OF COURSE IT IS! “ papyrus put his hands on his hips.
” there’s no way you were that bad to have mastered cooking in just one month. “
” ON THE CONTRARY, I WAS SO BAD, THE TASTE WAS... “ he paused. “ INDESCRIBABLE. “ he finished. “ well now, your food tastes so good and i am going to have that whole pot to myself, thank you. “ you continued to eat, talking between chews. “ NYEH HEH HEH HEH! WE, OF COURSE, MUST LEAVE SOME FO— “
” was that your laugh? “
papyrus was cut off by you asking your question, you swallowing the food left in your mouth to point it out.
” NYEH HEH HEH? YES, IT IS! “
“ it’s adorable. you should laugh more. “
you continued shoving food into your plate, nearly done with the food still left on it. papyrus took this time to think about you a little. every time you complimented him, his soul fluttered, but he never felt anything past platonic for you. perhaps it was just because you were one of the first nicest humans to him? maybe? he couldn’t tell, but in all honesty, he hadn’t minded. there was something telling him that he should savor the time he had with you. something in his soul. something deep within him, telling him that he should soak up all the happy moments with you.
he didn’t know why, but he wasn’t complaining.
—
when sans had come to the mansion telling alyza and you that he had a few cousins from out of town arriving here and that they needed a place to stay, you hadn’t cared.
in all honesty, you were a little relieved. it meant that as papyrus was soon going to go to college, he had someone else other than you to keep him company. you still had to work to purchase items of your own and whatnot.
when sans said few, you thought two or three.
not eight. eight is not a few, sans.
alyza was ecstatic to meet sans’ family, probably hoping they were as rich as he was. alyza has been using sans ever since they started dating. buying, taking her places, pleasure. [ they hadn’t fucked yet but had loud and intense make out sessions... somehow... you weren’t going to get into it. ]
when they arrived, alyza took the lead to introduce herself and giving them a tour. you were going to join them, but you decided not to. papyrus was cooking again and you were all ready to have the first plate. “ sup pap. “ you pulled out a chair from the massive dining room table to sit on. papyrus turned away from the now boiling pot of water. “ OH HELLO! HOW ARE YOU WITH OUR ADDITIONAL FAMILY? “ papyrus asked before turning back to pour the hard noodles into the pot.
” eh, haven’t met them. they are taking a tour with alyza and sans around th’ house. “ you propped your elbow onto the table, your hand curled into a fist while you rested your cheek against your knuckles. “ AH... IS THAT SO? “ he asked, still focused on cooking. “ yeah, but i came here because i want to be the first to eat your heavenly spaghetti...ly. “ you snorted.
papyrus let out a few NYEH HEH HEH’s. onwards, you both idly chatted about whatever came to mind when papyrus finished his, always delicious, spaghetti. being handed a plate of the food, you immediately dug in. “ where has this been all my liiife. “ you groaned, already stuffing your face with spaghetti.
” i smell food. “ “ back off sans, this piece of heaven is mii— you’re not sans. “ you rolled your eyes at the somewhat familiar voice behind you, but when turning around, you paused, correcting yourself at the sight of the cousin that was behind you.
” i am not sans. “ he said to you, but his one, big, red, eye light was focused on your food. your gaze flicked from your food to the unknown skeleton. “ you want it, skeleton with the cool eye light? “ you held the plate up to him. his eye light immediately started tracking your movement, but went back to the food. after a moment of silence, he snatched the plate and completely swallowed the entire plate of spaghetti as though he had swallowed it, thankfully leaving out the metal fork.
” holy fuck. “ you muttered. you wondered how he practically breathed your plate of spaghetti and leaving only a little bit of spaghetti stains near the bottom of his mandible. “ DID YOU ENJOY IT? “ papyrus asked hopefully. the odd skeleton’s eye light slowly looked towards papyrus. “ one a’ th’ best things i’ve eaten... in a long time. “ at this, papyrus looked a little better.
” how the fuck did you taste it when you breathed the whole thing in? “
his eye light snapped to you. “ i didn’t... breathe it in. human. “ he said human as he tilted his head down a bit. this is when you realized that he was massive and tall. sans was only five foot two, but this guy was bordering six feet. “ yeah, but it looked like yo— is that a hole in your skull? “ you narrowed your eyes at the skeleton but then immediately widened them when you saw the cracks along the top of his skull.
” ...yes. “ he answered. “ hey pap, can you plate us some more spaghetti? “ you said as you stood up. the eye light never left you. “ OF COURSE! “ papyrus grabbed two more plates [ since this new skeleton still had your previous one ] and started scooping more spaghetti into two more plates. you took his cheekbones and stood on the tips of your toes to see a gaping hole in his right side of his skull. “ holy shit, this is cool as fuck. “ you muttered.
” ...cool? heh... you must be blind if you think it’s cool. “ he backed away from you, red eye light gone and in place a black abyss. you raised a brow, unfazed. “ i’m not blind. i’m telling the truth. had my sans taken that hit, he’d be dusted as soon as the blow hit. “
from the corner of your eye, you noticed papyrus flinch.
” obviously you aren’t as weak, plus, a cool looking scar never hurt anyone. you’re still standing from an obviously fatal blow to the head, and that, my friend, is cool. “ you explained, arms crossed. the skeleton stared at you, analyzing you almost. soon, the big red eye light reappeared [ which you noticed was to the side where the injury wasn’t on ]. “ i musta... underestimated ya’ human. “
you correct him but stating your name.
” huh... i’m no good with memory, cause a, “ he knocked the side of his skull, inches away from his injury. “ this. but i’ll try ta’ remember. “
“ i think we’ll get along. anyone who can devour papyrus’ spaghetti faster than me is an instant friend of mine. “ you joked. papyrus took this cue as a way to insert himself to the conversation. “ HERE YOU BOTH ARE! TWO PLATES OF MY WHOPPING, INCREDULOUS DISH, SPAGHETTI! “
you and your newfound friend ate the food like no tomorrow.
Chapter 2
Summary:
— character evaluation, how is your friendship with everyone?
— special little interactions with some of the skeletons that you’ve befriended the most
Notes:
— i might have to add more chapters than five, lmao
— it was supposed to be short, but i dont think i’ll be able to fit the story all in only five chapters
— time will tell
— this chapter was unintentionally longer, lmao
— enjoy
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
its been another month with the new additional family and you can’t tell if your relationships with the additional family is running smoothly or not, starting with you being nonbinary and lesbian. they all practically gave no shits about you being nonbinary. some of the ruder ones such as red, edge, and scar determined it as, “ not my business and useless information so i don’t care. “ you could live with that, despite the fact it wasn’t useless.
they all also didn’t have any problems with your pronouns which was great.
when you said you were lesbian, you got an annoying question from a not—so—annoying skeleton. blue. “ EXCUSE ME BUT HAVE YOU EVER DATED A GIRL BEFORE? “ blue asked. you could tell he was just being curious, but you couldn’t help but sigh through your nose. “ uh, yes. i did. but she died. so. yeah. “ you shrugged. everyone except alyza, red, edge, scar, rum, and axe tensed up. “ well, anyways! “ alyza directed the conversation away to a different point such as where everyone would sleep, off limited places, etc.
that was that.
you had to make a little note on your phone about which brother was who and what you’d call them. when you figured at that axe’s brother [ who was admittedly fucking tall, scary—looking, but just as much of a sweetheart ] was named crooks, you immediately decided to call him something else. he didn’t look happy with it and you know that deadnames suck ass.
sans was the shorter brother to papyrus. blue is the shorter brother to stretch. red was the short brother to edge. scar was the shorter brother to rum. axe is the shorter brother to crooks.
you’d have to remember to get back to them on that.
—
it was hard determining where you stood with everyone. for sans and papyrus, it was easy to tell since you already know them.
sans sees no problem with you, so you both really just stay out of each others way. you aren’t hurting his brother, girlfriend, nor him, and sometimes he gets a chuckle out of you with his puns. what more could he ask for?
papyrus is a friend. maybe a best friend. he is the closest person to you. ever since sans’ ever growing absence, papyrus has been sticking with you for the past months. he makes amazing food and you keep him company when you’re out of work. you can’t help but ask if he’s okay sometimes. at first, he brushed it off with a, “ I’M GREAT! AS ALWAYS! “, but you’ve been noticing some off behavior about him.
you should add that to your list of things to do.
blue was the skeleton with big blue eye lights and baby blue bandana. he was a little over excitable to you. maybe a tad bit over—the—top. he was annoying at first, you wouldn’t lie, but over time, it seemed like he was misunderstood. he held a facade up. you thought his brother, stretch, was older, but then concluded that blue was actually the older brother. when you brought this to his attention, he was glad to talk about it.
he said that he was the older brother, but because of his appearance and personality, everyone treated him like a ‘ babybones ‘ and that he was the most precious and most innocent thing on earth. he also said that he hated it; he hated being seen that way, but he didn’t want to change. if being seen as a child meant that he shouldn’t change, then so be it, because he doesn’t want to change for anyone else.
you two grew closer after that discussion, and he could tell that you were putting more respect on his name. you think you both are friends.
stretch was a taller skeleton with an oversized orange hoodie. he much like sans, but probably more of when he just started to know you. before your conversation with blue, he seemed to just ignore you, which was fine since you never spoke to him anyways. afterwards though, when he noticed that you were hanging out with blue more, when he deemed you got too close, he’d pull blue aside and talk with him or whatnot. you didn’t care. blue did, though. he told you that that was a prime example of his brother trying to protect him. as much as he appreciated being cared for, you’re no threat and you wouldn’t hurt him.
you suggested blue to talk to stretch about it. blue agreed and said he would soon.
red was a shorter skeleton with a spiked collar and red and black jacket. you both were on good terms. or so you assumed. he was flirty, an asshole, and loud. you were catcalled from him a few times. it irked you, but you never showed that you cared. you suppose he took this as a sign that you were friends or something because he invited you to drink once. when you asked why and if he thought you were friends, he laughed in your face. he said back where he was from, friends didn’t exist. he only invited you because you looked like you needed to forget something. you declined his offer, walking away saying, “ i’ve been clean for years, i don’t need anything else to be addicted to. “
after that, he started hitting on alyza, which sans didn’t take lightly. it caused a few scuffles, but never anything threatening.
edge was a taller skeleton with a scar on his eye socket and red heels. he seemed to despise you respectfully. it was like he hated you but was respectful about it. at first, he didn’t care for you. he’r insult you any time he got. after a while when he noticed it didn’t affect you, he called you out on it. he asked why you never responded when someone of higher class was talking to you. you responded with just because you’re taller doesn’t classify you as higher class. he looked taken aback for a moment but just scoffed. after a little back and forth argument, he said, “ WHY DO YOU DARE TAKE ALL THOSE INSULTS THEN? WHY NOT TAKE ACTION YOU BRAINDEAD SLUG? YOU’RE EVEN WORSE THAN MY BROTHER! “
“ i know you’d beat my ass so what’s the point? “ then you walked away.
after that, his insults were minimal.
scar was a shorter skeleton who had a scar over his eye socket much like edge but had a purple bandana. he didn’t like you at all. he said you were much too lazy like his brother. much like edge. if you did one thing he didn’t like, he’d call it out and talk about it forever. when he did, you’d listen. not because you want to, but because it was entertaining. you hated being yelled at, but you couldn’t lie, it was funny sometimes. once, you dropped a plate but it didn’t break. he called you weak and said your ancestors would be disappointed. another time, just to see what would happen, you dropped a plate and actually broke it. he said you were dumb and that you were a, “ BUMBLING IDIOT? MORE LIKE BREAKING IDIOT. I SWEAR TO TORIEL. “
you stopped showing up near him soon after because he called you a woman. you hated it.
rum is a taller skeleton with a purple and black jacket. you and him were chill. after you found him out back smoking a cigarette, you joked that they would kill his lungs. he joked back saying why did you think he didn’t have lungs. that got you to laugh. ever since then, he made it his goal to get you to laugh every time you came to him. it became a thing. every saturday night, you’d find him in the backyard smoking, and you’d join him. talk about anything, then he’d get you to laugh at some point. it was fun. he’d throw a mindless flirt at you a few times. you went along with it. he seems happy in those moments. you like that. every other day, he’s ordered around by his brother and being called mutt.
i mean, whatever floats your boat, rum.
axe, who you still need a nickname for, and you were friends. after sharing your love for papyrus’ food, he seemed to stalk you for a while before you confronted him and asked why you didn’t just come to you. he told you he didn’t know how, and every time he would try, he’d forget your name or your pronouns and he didn’t want to do that.
you told him that he didn’t need to worry and that he should just ask. he stared at you for a moment. out of the blue, you suggested for him to have a notebook to write anecdotes in. he said he’d had one but he left it somewhere. you told him you’d buy him a new one or two and could write notes in them. he requested two. you bought him two. he proceeded to make one notebook about things he had to remember in general and other notebook about notes on the residents of the house and anyone else if need be. you started helping him when he got to start writing about you, you giving him your name, gender, pronouns, age, birthday, general information.
he wrote it down. under your information, he wrote ‘ things to remember ‘. under that, he wrote that you weren’t a threat, that you would help him remember, and that you were nice to his brother. you two became closer ever since. he’d made cannibalism jokes, which you thought were hilarious. you asked why he made those jokes. he told you he’d tell you soon.
crooks, a tall skeleton with interesting teeth and was the tallest skeleton of them all, was an absolute sweetheart. there wasn’t any words to describe him other than that. he looks terrifying, but when he came to you saying hi sheepishly and introducing himself, you could tell that he was nothing but nice. at some point, he came up to you when you were alone. he asked if your name was the name you were born with or if it were a name you chose. you said a name you chose, then asked why. he said he overheard alyza talk about you, call you a name he was unfamiliar with, but corrected herself.
your brow twitched. she probably deadnamed you. you told him that, which earned a, “ What’s A Deadname? “. you explained it’s the past name of someone who’s changed their name. most people hate their deadnames and it makes them uncomfortable. he asked you if you if you hated it and made you uncomfortable. you told him you didn’t hate it, but it did make you uncomfortable. a few beats of silence.
” So... If I Hate My... ‘ Name ‘... And It Makes Me Uncomfortable, Should I Change It? “
” absolutely. “
he thanked you, then left. ever since, he’d spend more time with you and his brother when you two were waiting for papyrus to finish cooking any delicious meals he had in store.
—
“ I Want To Change My Name. “ you glanced at crooks, then back to the screen where you were drawing sketches. you were sitting alone on the couch when crooks joined you. “ to what? “ you asked. “ I... I’m Not Sure... “ he admitted. “ hm. unfortunate. “ you said. it was silent.
” what do you like to do? “ “ Huh? “ “ hobbies, random things, anything. what do you like to do. “
crooks blinked at you, but spoke. “ Well... “ and he went on with things he’d like doing. then he said, “ And I Think I’d Like To Take Up Gardening! But Why? “
“ coreopsis. “
crooks tilted his head. “ Huh? “ “ it’s a type of flower. it means cheerfulness, always, in, uh, flower language? i guess. uhm, everything you’d told me right now screams sweetheart and that you try to stay positive. i don’t think you’d want to actually be called a flower, so reop? or opsis? coreo? then again, reop is spelt similar to reap, like, the grim reaper. dunno if you know ‘im, but like, it’s like a skeleton that have contact to the dead ‘n whatnot. “ you paused. “ or is that rude? i’m sorry. i’ll, uh, stop... stop talking. “ throughout your blabbering, you stopped sketching with your art tablet, but once you stopped, you immediately started up again.
” Reop. I Think... I Think I Like That One! “ you looked towards ‘ reop ‘ and saw him give you a smile. with his teeth, it looked terrifying, but you scooted closer to him, with your art tablet and laptop on the coffee table, and gave him a hug.
or you tried.
the skeleton chuckled before lifting you up and standing up with you in him arms, giving you a big bear hug. you held in a sigh but hugged back.
you got him a new name.
—
it was saturday, and as usual, you found rum in the backyard, sitting on the swinging chair. your week has been rough. work was a little more daring, you got catcalled by some random guy on the way home while wearing your work uniform, and during the day, alyza and scar had misgendered you. the dysphoria was hitting you hard, but you felt too... masculine in your binder. you wished you could have wore it, but it made you feel a tad bit worse than before. you took the binder off [ with some struggle ] and wore two sports bras.
looking at yourself in the mirror, you wore a black t—shirt, an oversized grey jacket, black, woolen thigh highs, and shorts. making your way downstairs and to the back, rum glanced at you before taking another inhale of his cigarette.
“ hey. “
” hey. “
he greeted, you responding. he blew smoke out from the gaps of his teeth, and you watched. “ how, “ you coughed into your fist. “ how does that shit not go through your nose and eye sockets? “ you asked, bringing your knees up to you chest and resting your chin on top, looking to rum. he raised a bonebrow, you liked to call it. “ what nose? “
that got a snort from you and a quirk of the end of your lips, raising upwards. “ y’know what i mean. “ you rolled your eyes. rum chuckled. “ it’s a monster—based cigarette. infused with magic. different types of magic produce many different flavors and side effects. you get a cigarette with healing magic, you’ll start to feel healed, but you won’t actually be healed or regain any hp. you get a cigarette with fire magic, it’s like a human cigarette, except it lights on it’s own when in contact to a being with high levels of magic. so on, so forth. i don’t want to have a lighter if i can have a self lighting cigarette, so i have the fire magic cigarette. since it is in contact with magic, i can determine where the smoke is. it’s like i am bending smoke or... whatever term humans call it. once i release it though, it’s no longer in contact with a being of high levels of magic, it releases like regular smoke does from a normal cigarette. “ he explained.
when you were silent, he looked towards you. you were staring at him. “ i have. so much to say. “ you blinked owlishly. “ heh, go ahead. “ rum shrugged. “ first off, that’s most i’ve heard you talk in one sitting. actually, thats the most i’ve heard you talk ever. “
rum averted his gaze. “ i, uh, ‘m sorry ‘bout th— “ “ no, it’s a good thing. “ you cut him off.
“ i mean, you always look like you wanna do something or say something but you’re always... silenced. or, you don’t have someone to talk to. “ when rum didn’t reply, you continued.
“ also, i, uh, like hearing you talk. you aren’t annoying. so, it’s a change of pace. i dunno much about the monster industry and honestly that can cure a lot of addictions in humans so... i—i... fuck. i can’t rant like you, i feel stupid and shit. “ you dug your head in your knees, ruffling and messing with your hair. “
he chuckled again. “ nah, you’re good. i know what ya’ tryn’ ta say. “ you sighed. “ yeah... okay. “ you rubbed your eyes, hoping that you weren’t boring rum out with your nonsense.
” you okay? “ “ huh? “ “ are you okay? “
you raised your head, gaping at rum. “ i— uh— “ you stammered. “ yes? “ “ you sound unsure of yourself there. “ he points out. you snort. “ i know. i haven’t been asked that, in like, years. “
rum made a sound of confusion. “ you must be exaggerating. “ “ i, uh, i’m not. the last person who asked me that, uh, died. she, uh, died three years ago. so, yeah. “ you furrowed your brows. it dawned on you that no one really cared for your well—being. well, cared enough to ask. did rum care? did it matter? “ sorry for your loss. “ “ you’re only sorry cause you heard it. it doesn’t change anything. but hey, maybe she’s one of you now. heh. “ you humorlessly chuckled.
” fuck. i’m sorry. we were talking about cool ass cigarettes and i somehow twisted it to my dead girlfriend. i’m sorry. i could go inside or— “
“ you talk a lot without realizing it. “ you flinched. “ sorry, i’ll go. “ you were going to get up when he stopped you. “ no, it’s a good thing. “
“ i— hey, you used my words on me didn’t you. “ you said. you sat back down. “ bingo. “ he winked. “ you say i’m silenced ‘n don’t talk much, but you silence yourself and won’t let yourself talk a lot. that's hypocrisy if i know it. “
you scoffed. “ well. i’m a boring human. and you’re a bad ass fucking skeleton. spit the difference. “ “ you have the same problems as this bad ass fucking skeleton. “ “ put a cigarette in it. “ you rolled your eyes. “ c’mon, throw me a bone. “
” that was terrible. “
” you’re smiling. “
” i am and i hate it. “
rum chuckled. “ alright, how about this. this is our therapy sessions from now on. you talk about whatever. i talk about whatever. deal? “ he held a skeletal hand out. you glanced at it before taking it. “ alright skele—boy. “
” deal. “
—
tonight, you couldn’t sleep. it was near one am, nearing two. you were throwing a squishy mesh stress ball up in the air and catching it repeatedly. you tuned out of everything as you laid still, throwing and catching the ball. throwing and catching. throwing and catching. throwing and—
two soft knocks snapped you from your stupor and the ball landed on your face and bounced to your pillow. sighing, you got up. hoping it wasn’t alyza [ who you haven’t talked to in a while, thank goodness ], you opened the door. there, stood blue. he looked tired, dressed in pajamas and with a blue blanket wrapped around him. “ I’m Sorry For Intruding. May I Come In? “ he asked. it might’ve been just his tiredness affecting him, but he sounded much quieter than ever. you nodded sleepily, walking to the side so he could get inside.
closing the door you flopped on your bed. “ Wowie! Your Room Is Super Clean! Super Duper Clean! “ blue inspected a shelf that held miscellaneous items. “ i stress clean... “ you mumbled. he looked towards you. “ Really? That Must Mean You Stress A Lot. “ blue said worriedly. “ mmmn. “ you groaned. “ yeah... i do but... i like it clean, too... so... i don’t care. “ your mind was foggy, your words coming out slower than you’d like.
“ you came? ...why? not that i don’t mind... i wasn’t sleeping... “ blue made his way over, asking if he could sit on the bed or on the floor. you scooted over and patted the side of the bed next to you, grabbing your stress ball.
entering that cycle of tossing and catching, you felt the bed dip beside you. “ I Wanted To Know If You Were Okay With A Midnight Talk. “ he said. “ sure. “ you woke up a little more, bit by bit. “ Well. I Wanted To Ask. Do You See Me As A Child? “
“ mmmmm, nah. “ you hummed before answering. “ you’re like, a midget? kinda. just cause you’re small and like, cute, doesn’t mean you are in fact a child. the only thing that defines maturity really is just mindset and personality. you can wear baby diapers and be the most mature person ever. “ you said while tossing and catching.
tossing and catching.
” Huh. “ he grunted. “ Do You Think You Know Why Everyone Else Sees Me As A Child? “
” because you’re small and cute. when someone sees something small and cute, most people wanna protect it because they don’t want it to get hurt. most people make it seem less than it is because it looks weaker. they base maturity on what they see, not what they know and how they act. eh, it’s bullshit. “ you wanted to roll your eyes, but you were to focused on tossing and catching.
” What Should I Do To Fix That? Without Changing? “
” do you, but when someone tries degrading you to a child, retaliate. you aren’t a child. let them know that you aren’t the innocent little shit you are. “ you snort. “ besides, if they don’t see to it, fuck them. not everyone’s opinions matter. some people are sick fucks and i’d rather them hate me than like me. like, i dunno, ted bundy. “
” Thanks For The Advice, But, Who’s Ted Bundy? “
” some sick rapist murderer fuckass. he’s dead though. deserved. “ you caught the ball but didn’t throw it back up. “ if you ever get stressed over how you’re perceived, take this. squeeze it, throw it, break it, cut it, whatever. “ you tossed the ball to blue, who caught it.
” Wow. Y’know, You’re Good At Advice. “
” meh, advice is just people’s opinions on something and its up to someone else to deem that opinion helpful or not. advice can be bended and twisted so that there’s no right or wrong answer. there’s no way to be good at giving advice. it’s only helpful for you, so you deem it good enough. “
silence.
” i should sleep. “
” You Should. “
” ughh, my head hurts. too much thinking. g’night blue. “ you pulled the blanket over you.
” Huh? Oh, Should I Leave? “
” i don’t care. “
you didn’t feel weight leave the bed that night.
Notes:
— fun fact ; horrortale papyrus is my favorite papyrus from all aus
— next chapter is when things get a little ditzy
Chapter 3
Summary:
— the beginning of a polyamorous relationship starts
— although, love is better when it’s not forced
— you’re trapped in the midst of things
Notes:
— ! warning ! this chapter contains active manipulation , transphobia , and implications of self harm !
— enjoy
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
wow. you had no words but wow. maybe you’d jinxed it when you said that alyza hasn’t crossed passed with you recently. karma is a bitch and she works at her hardest.
they all fell in love with her.
well, not really.
alyza had been seeing the other skeletons awhile and eventually, one thing led to another, she called a ‘ mansion meeting ‘ to address what should be done. everyone had gathered in the living room to assess the issue, all the skeletons sitting on the couches with their respective brother, you standing behind the couch axe and reop was on, and alyza in the middle near the coffee table.
” i have called this mansion meeting to address the elephant in the room. “ she started. “ it seems as though everyone has fallen in love with me and i have fallen in love with them! “ she exasperated. sans was looking off to the side, an unreadable expression on his skull.
poor guy, he is being used, and now his family will be, too.
“ i wouldn’t even be surprised if the lesbian fell in love with me! “ she boasted. you gagged, everyone turning to face you. some of them looked angry at you. “ in your dreams. “ you rolled your eyes. alyza’s eye twitched before turning her attention to the skeletons. “ aaanyways! i have put some thought into it and spoke with sans and he gave the okay for us to be in a polyamorous relationship! i’ll be sure to give it my best to give you my best as this is new to all of us. i love you guys so much! you make me so happy and i’m glad to have met you guys! “ she went on.
some skeletons looked lovestruck at her ‘ heartfelt ‘ speech. others, not so much. alyza turned her gaze to axe and reop and scowled. “ uhm, you two don’t, like, like me, right? “ she sized up reop, making him shuffle in his seat. axe spoke up. “ not at all. “ he responded.
her smile returned. “ great! “ she rolled her eyes but played it off as looking at red and edge. you narrowed your eyes are her.
bitch.
” now, of course, as a good girlfriend, i must ensure that everyone is okay with this! well? “ she left the question open and got some quick answers, they all being yes, the only one who haven’t answered yet were papyrus, blue, and rum.
“ well? papyrus? how about you? your brother is all in for it and i think it’d be a great opportunity for you to spend time with him again! “
fucking hell, she’s using sans to bait papyrus into dating her. you wish you could step in, but that’d only get some of the more aggressive skeletons on your ass. you wish you could help him. you really did.
nothing you said mattered to most of them anyways.
” y... YES! OF COURSE! I LOOK FORWARD TO IT! “ papyrus looked a little uncomfortable but smiled anyway, saying yes. it annoyed you. greatly. you wouldn’t care usually. most of the skeletons either didn’t pay you any mind or disliked you. you didn’t care what happened to them.
but papyrus? he cooks you food and, on a good day, he’d cook early enough or have some leftovers for you to eat at lunch break. blue? you two bonded well. he would come to your room sometimes at night and tell you stories of stretch and him, of random things he’d think up, and you’d tell him random things you’d thought of two. you’d discuss it and give your honest opinion. it was relaxing. it wasn’t stressful. you’re glad you gave your stress relieving ball to blue. it’s in better phalanges now. rum? you were each other’s therapist. you both would talk about what’s bothering you and the other would give their input or thoughts or plainly listen. it was comforting.
they were comforting.
they didn’t deserve alyza and her bullshit manipulation. they really didn’t.
” that’s great papyrus! after all, you are the greatest! “ she complimented, papyrus answering with a, “ THAT’S ME! “ and a smile, but his smile didn’t reach his eye lights. he averted his gaze, shuffled here and there, adjusted his scarf a couple times.
he was anxious. anxious about saying he’d loved someone without really loving them.
” and you blue? my baby blue! i’ll be sure to take good care of you and your brother! your safety us guaranteed. “ she nodded in fake sympathy. blue’s eye lights dimmed for a moment when she said ‘ baby blue ‘.
“ SURE! “ he answered simply. his smile was strained and it seemed almost painful. that seemed to suffice for alyza though because she clapped, saying a few words of affirmation before looking to rum. “ and lastly, you rum? “ she smiled sweetly. sickingly, sweetly.
” no. “
well shit, rum. her sweet grin fell but she masked her disappointment at the answer with crocodile tears. “ really?! i thought... i thought we had something... i mean, after what your brother says about you, i just— i thought that’d we’d, y’know... “ she trailed off.
rum winced. “ ‘m sorry a— “ “ YOU IMBECILE! “ scar yelled at rum. rum cowered, being a tad bit shorter than scar since he was sitting and scar stood up abruptly. “ HOW DARE YOU? AFTER SHE GAVE US A PLACE TO STAY? WHAT, DO YOU LIKE HER NOW? “ scar pointed at you. everything went quiet. rum’s eye lights were out and you were glaring at scar. “ i am. not. a her. “ you growled before storming your way to the front door.
you heard someone call your name, but you hadn’t cared. you needed to get out that house. you could tell things would only get worse from then.
you ordered a burger and fries with a drink at a fast food restaurant before going to a park and staying there until no one else was left except you. thankfully, there were some owners that allowed you to pet their dogs and it helped calming you down.
when you got home, everyone else was asleep.
—
everything was your fault, huh? everything— everything was your fault. the days went on, a few more months went by. some skeletons got themselves a job, papyrus was in college, and you were left buddy—less. papyrus was on top of all his work, as expected, but because of this, he always tried finishing work as early as possible. that left him without much time to cook. you hadn’t had any of his spaghetti ever since. blue got a job at a bakery.
he initially wanted to become a police officer, but when he found out he had a talent for baking [ since he helped you bake a cake for papyrus since he was so busy and was overworking himself lately and was incredibly good ], he’d taken up baking and ever since, he’d been a master while being taught by a spider, you think.
when he would come home, he would try and get to talk to you about his day, but stretch would distract him away from you, or alyza wanted to go on a date, or he was too tired.
he didn’t come by your room at night.
rum never went out to back anymore. ever since scar yelled at him, he avoided you. teleported away even. he didn’t stay in a room alone with you and never spoke to you. you noticed though that he seemed to have made up with his brother.
good for him.
the only skeletons that had leisure time for you were axe and reop. reop has taken it into his hands to make a beautiful garden in the backyard. so far, it was amazing. he was a miracle worker, and you watched him work sometimes. sadly, he mainly worked while you had work, and you only got to him around once a week. axe had been journaling and was doing great. his remembrance was getting a tad bit better.
he no longer had to axe you about your name or pronouns. you chuckled shakily at that joke. you wish you would stop crying already. you wish that the dipshit skeletons would stop misgendering you. it got even worse when alyza told them your deadname. now, they’d go out of their way to use your deadname and you absolutely hated it. you clawed at your arms for some form of distraction. ever since everyone was busy, you took a few chores to keep the house stable. cooking, cleaning [ although it was from stress ], washing dishes, few necessities or so.
but when you were suddenly given more tasks to do such as wash and dry clothes, buy groceries with your own money, and a lot more other tasks, you couldn’t handle it. stress piled up with having to and get all this tasks done. if you did even one thing incorrectly, you’d get bashed and scolded until you couldn’t take it. so, you broke down in the bathroom.
which is now.
constantly wiping tears just for new ones to form and fall, you tried steadying your breathing. your breathing hitched and you had a little struggle, but you managed. grabbing your phone with less shaky hands and inputting the passcode, you went onto your music app and searched up a comfort song. this song was one of the songs that the ex—queen, toriel, personally asked one of many talented monsters, napstablook, to make for her. she requested a song that was soothing and was played on piano.
napstablook took this vague description and made it into a song that is one of the most well—known songs for both monsters and humans. napstablook took his song and made many alternate versions as requested by humans and monsters alike.
daycore, nightcore, reverbed, slowed, bass—boosted, vaporwave, futurewave, and many more. napstablook only made reverbed, slowed, and then reverbed + slowed. he let humans do the rest. you quickly tapped the song.
fallen down. slowed. by napstablook.
taking deep breaths, giving yourself positive affirmations, and letting the soothing music play, you were slowly recovering. it stayed this way. it did, until something touched you. scooting forward from your position sitting back against the bathroom door, you turned to see what touched you.
and your breath caught in throat.
it was a blue sticky note attached to a familiar item that you hated so much. on the sticky note, it read: heard your obnoxious crying from outside and thought you’d need some help, so rum helped me pick out a clean razor for you! hope it helps! xoxo <3
what. what the. actual. fuck. so rum is with alyza now? or is he just being a dick? it didn’t matter. rum didn’t like you. you had... you had axe and reop. or, maybe you had axe more than reop. you don’t need that stupid razor.
it’s tempting. but you do not need it. you picked the razor up, along with the sticky note.
you left the bathroom without any new cuts.
—
“ sup axe. “ you were going to chill with axe on your day off since you had no one else you wanted to talk to. papyrus had given reop a new scarf to cover his teeth so they could both go out and see if reop could land a job that included botany in anyway. he had an interview and you bid him a goodbye and good luck. he gave you a quick hug before leaving.
what a darling.
” ...hey. “ he responded. “ can i come in? “ you asked, still in his doorway to his room. he grunted an, “ mhm. “ and you walked in, shutting the door behind you. axe’s room was similar to sans’ except axe didn’t have a treadmill but he did have a cool ass cleaver leaned against his desk.
” woah, sick cleaver. “ you complimented, flopping down on the messy mattress next to axe. you want to clean it, but it’s not yours.
“ mn... thanks... “ he grunted again. “ tired? “
” of everything... except... you ‘n m’ bro. “ my answered. “ thanks bud. “ “ how... ‘bout you? “ that’d been the second time in three years someone asked for your well—being. you decided not to count rum anymore.
he doesn’t care anymore. not after what he did back in the bathroom.
” rough. really, very, extraordinarily rough. “ you sighed. “ ... “ sans was silent. you didn’t say anything back. it stayed that way. you didn’t mind, but you didn’t know why he hadn’t said anything. well, it wasn’t your place to think. you’d probably think up some terrible reason anyways.
” i think... “ he finally spoke up.
” i know... someone... who can help ya... when ya needa, y’know... talk ta’ s’mone. “ you snorted. “ and who might that be? “ axe shifted on his side to face you, so you decided to do the same. his red eye light was fuzzy. “ y’know... the place... ah— grillby’s. that’s th’ name. “ he smiled a little wider at the name. “ that doesn’t sound like a therapist. “ “ naahhh. “ he closed his eye sockets with a hum.
” he’s a bartender at his own place... n’ he’s a great listener. “ the familiarity in his tone made you think that axe’s met this guy before. “ huh. i might consider it. “
“ cool. “ and then he was out like a light.
.
grillby’s, huh?
Notes:
— fun fact ; sans , grillby , toriel , and muffet are my favorite original undertale characters [ in that order ]
— this chapter was meant to be longer but i got lazy, lol
Chapter 4
Summary:
— talking with someone who doesn’t talk much, makes sense
— talking with someone who do talk much, makes sense
— be careful who you trust
Notes:
— ! warning ! this chapter includes transphobia and implications of self harm !
— this chapter sums up everything that’d happened
— buckle in, you’ll be surprised
— enjoy
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
you looked at the neon sign, sighing. normally, you wouldn’t have taken up this offer, but since one of the only people you sort of trust recommended to you and you technically didn’t have to pay this whoever it is person to listen to your problems, you were down. it wasn’t hard to miss. the sign read the name of the guy you were supposed to see.
axe didn’t really tell you in fact who it was, so you hoped you’d figure it out.
you walked in, the warmth of the establishment immediately kicking in. there were only monsters and you were the only human inside. many of them minded their business, some were playing poker [ scratch that, one dog monster was playing poker with itself and was losing somehow ], some gave you a glance before returning to their own devices.
alright.
walking up to the bar, you might as well have a shot or two before letting your heart and soul out to a stranger. maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. you sat on the stool, sighing heavily. you glared at the counter, thinking that maybe you were stupid in coming here without more details. you didn’t even know who this person was.
should you ask? how embarrassing and stupid you’d look asking for someone that might not even be h—
a light shone from in front of you behind the bar. looking up lazily, you inhaled to start talking but stopped.
it was fire. in a suit. literal fucking fire in a suit. you might as well not even be surprised. you live with walking and talking and whatever more skeletons. but this was a fucking elemental. you never seen an elemental monster before.
actually, you don’t know a lot of monsters outside of the skeletons and some of papyrus’ friends. “ hold on, give me a moment, you’re... you’re fire. i just need to know if i’m not actually tripping my balls off. “ you rubbed your eyes and looked at him again and he was still there.
he stood quietly and stared but slightly nodded.
” and i will go out on a limb here but are you grillby? “
another silent nod.
” nice. a friend of mine suggested i come here to talk about my shitty life because you’re a great listener but you also have some drinks behind you and i’d like a shot or two. “ you dragged a hand across your face. course this guy is a good listener, probably; he doesn’t even talk. wow axe, thanks.
he stood still in front of you and it took you a moment to realize why. “ oh shit, uh, give me the lightest and tastiest thing you got. i drove here, i’m not looking forward to crashing, and there’s no point in drinking shitty tasting alcohol to get drunk anyways. “ you rolled your eyes, looking to the side to see a bird monster beside you with a burger. “ you sell burgers ‘n shit here, too? “ you asked.
another nod. this is the greatest conversation ever.
“ i’ll get a burger too then, because what’s better than a burger and alcohol. “ you said sarcastically. looking at grillby, a thin, white line that was slightly curved on the edges was formed where normally a mouth would be on a human. was he smiling? you would admit, it was cute. he gave you another nod before walking through a door that had words on it that you didn’t bother reading.
it was only a few minutes, like two or three, when grillby came back. he handed you a wrapped [ and seemingly fresh ] burger. “ thanks bud. “ you thanked grillby, getting another nod. while he turned to pick you out a drink, you unwrapped the burger and picked it up. it looked like a regular burger. perhaps more authentic than mcdonald’s. grillby turned back around, pouring you a shot of a purple liquid of some sort. you didn’t think much about it; you didn’t want to. turning back to your burger, you bit into it.
.
” no way. “ you covered your mouth as you spoke while chewing. placing the burger down you looked at grillby. he seemed nonchalant. “ there’s no way a burger can be that fucking good. “ you narrowed your eyes at him with no ill intent. grillby‘s smile returned.
” you’re smiling but i’m so fucking serious. “ you said, swallowed, and immediately took another big bite. it reminded you of how you felt when you first ate papyrus’ spaghetti. absolutely mind breaking but delicious. before you knew it, you finished your burger. “ hot damn, this is my new favorite place. “ you crossed your arms against the bar, grillby’s smile never wavering.
” i should pay for this, huh. “ you mumbled. you dug through your pocket and fished out a five dollar bill. “ this enough? “
he nodded.
” keep the change, you deserve it. “ you held the bill between your index and middle finger up to him. grillby took it, the warmth of his fingers near yours. you watched as he took the money and passed you your shot. “ does the bill cover this, too? “ you raised a brow.
nod.
” cool. “ you swirled the purple liquid around the shot glass before downing it. the drink tasted bubbly and sweet, but good. you gently placed the now empty shot glass down. “ huh, good. “ you tapped your nails on the glass. looking to grillby, he was now cleaning a seemingly already clean glass with a white rag.
“ i don’t... know if, you uh, want to listen to some random person talk about themselves... so... “ you awkwardly shrugged.
” i.... don’t mind. “
your eyes snapped to grillby who was still cleaning the clean glass. his voice was smooth and deep, not as deep as sans’, but deep nonetheless. there were slight crackles [?] in his voice, most likely because he was fire, and you wouldn’t lie.
it was hot as shit. pun intended.
” ......thanks. “
“ i said that out loud, didn’t i. “ you groaned.
he nodded, chuckling softly. “ ughh. “ you let your head fall onto the bar. “ man, home life sucks. “ you chuckled humorlessly. “ i guess i start talking. “ your words were muffled but you didn’t think grillby minded.
“ well, starting at the beginning, i lived with this bitch. she was rude and disrespectful but i was paying rent to have a roof over my head, so i couldn’t complain. one day, bitch meets a skeleton and they hit it off, but bitch only wants him because he’s filthy rich for converting his g. she let’s them stay with us and it’s fine i guess. “ you started.
“ question.........is the skeleton’s name........sans? “ you raised your head, eyebrow raised. “ yeah? how’d ya know? “ “ .........he.....used to be a regular here........but after telling me....he had a girlfriend.......he stopped coming. “ grillby took time between words then kept speaking. you sorta liked how he spoke. “ huh, so you know his brother, too? any cousins? “ you asked.
” brother, yes, cousins........no. “ grillby said. his glasses made seeing where his eyes were pretty difficult, but by tone of voice, he seemed a little confused. “ huh, “ you hummed.
” well, he went out with this chick, and started becoming distant with papyrus. so, i started hangin’ with him and eating his yummy spaghetti. month passes and sans shows up with, like, eight cousins at the house staying in town or something. i befriended five of ‘em? i’m friends with papyrus, then i befriended blue, then... “ you paused. “ rum, and also axe and reop. he has a deadname that i won’t say. “ grillby seemed attentive the whole time. “ and it was cool until, like, all of ‘em fell in love with the bitch other than the five i named. axe and reop didn’t fall in love with her, thank god. she manipulated blue and papyrus into dating her, and rum said no at first, but then when i was having a panic attack because of stress, i got a note slid to me with a razor attached to it saying that rum helped whoever wrote the note pick out a razor for me. which is super fucked up since— uh, for reasons. and, i’ve grown so far from papyrus since he is in college, rum ever since that razor note, blue since he’s gotten a job, and reop since he took up gardening. the only person i really have time for is axe, but axe has memory issues and he spends most of his time writing and i hate interrupting him. and all this, and i haven’t even spoke about the fucking cousin’s enough. “ you took a deep breath a let it out.
” anything to say before i continue? “ you asked grillby, he paused in his cleaning. “ they all are......dating her? “ he asked. “ yup. big polyamory. everyone in the house except me, axe, and reop. “ he was silent but then nodded after a moment and resumed cleaning.
” so the cousins are... assholes. that’s it. they insult me, they misgender me, they assume things about me, they put responsibilities on me, they yell and scream and point out any little thing that i do. at first, they weren’t so bad. one of ‘em were annoying, but other than that, i was pretty chill with everyone. but when they started dating the bitch, that’s when things turned. i was washing dishes and doing laundry and cooking because everyone took on a job or wouldn’t do things themselves, so when i started doing a little bit here and there, they assumed i was just going to do everything for them. if i didn’t do it, they’d get mad. that’s why i had a panic attack, by the way. the whole.. razor thing. i still don’t know who wrote it but, i’m sure it was alyza. “ you paused. “ alyza is the bitch, by the way. “
grillby had a slight frown on his fire—like lips [ if you would call them that ] and started speaking.
” misgender....you? “ oh right, you didn’t tell him. “ right, i uh, i’m nonbinary. they / them pronouns please and thank you. despite me saying so multiple times, some of them still call me she and her and i hate it. “ grillby nodded. “ i’ll be sure.......to remember. “
” thanks... i shouldn’t have to thank you for common decency but obviously since some humans and monsters don’t have that, thanks. “
” ..........did sans ever misgender you. “ the tone sent a chill down your spine. yes, there’d been some instances where he’d misgender you and not correct himself after being told wrong, and you kind of felt bad for sans, but lying felt just as bad. “ i, uh, a few times, yeah. “
” ............... “ grillby’s silence made you feel like you’d been the one in trouble. “ g— uhm, grillb— “
the glass in his hand cracked, but didn’t break. “ ....my apologies. “ he put the broken glass away from under the bar and pulled out another clean glass to wipe. “ .......if you ever need a safe place........grillby’s is always open for you..... “
your eyes widened a little before sighing. “ thanks, i’ll probably need it. “ you chuckled softly. after that, the two of you kept talking, at some point, you gave grillby the address of the mansion you were currently living in, and grillby thanked you, saying that one day, he’d maybe stop by. you both continued along with idle chatter, learning that he was a single father with a daughter, wiping glasses was out of habit, he worked here alone, and many more little unnecessary but cool things to know about grillby. he learned that you were lesbian, you told him that one story how you and some other girl faked being a couple at a party so that some fuckboys would leave you two alone, and how that girl ended up being a past lover.
talking with grillby was refreshing. he wasn’t talkative but he wasn’t completely silent. he input his ideas at times and others, he would just stay quiet and listen. you enjoyed talking with him since it wasn’t awkward and it was fun. you both exchanged numbers at some point as well.
” i think i’ve over stayed my welcome. i think i’ma go home. “ you stood from the stool, stretching. “ thanks for the chat. definitely will be comin’ here more often. “ you gave him a soft smile, grillby nodding in return. “ ..........have a good rest of the day. “ he smiled.
you were happy you spoke with him, and you had to thank axe for suggesting grillby to you.
—
finally making it home, you entered the mansion. you immediately were set on going to alyza to confront her about that shitty note she and rum gave you [ assuming it was alyza ] and give them both a piece of your mind when you saw papyrus in the kitchen.
the back of your mind reminded you that you wanted to go talk with him for a while now and ask how he was. deciding that the note can wait, you walked into the kitchen, sitting down in the chair you used to sit at all the time before he went to college. he turned around, his expression changing immediately and he plopped the wooden spoon in the boiling water of noodles and picked you swiftly, hugging you close.
” wOAH— “
” OH MY FRIEND, I NEVER THOUGHT YOU’D COME HOME! I WANTED TO SEE YOU ALL DAY BUT WHEN I ARRIVED, YOU WEREN’T HERE, AND EVERYONE I ASKED DIDN’T KNOW WHERE YOU WERE! “ papyrus wailed. “ p—pap?! i was at grillby’s— “ papyrus held you away from him with an annoyed look on his face and set you down gently on the chair. “ NEVERMIND! I WAS NEVER WORRIED. “ papyrus went back to his pot. you burst out laughing, not really loud, but enough to make papyrus smile a little wider without you realizing it. “ oh shit, that was funny. i wasn’t there for the, as you call it, greasy food. “ you shook your head.
” even though said greasy food is heaven. “ you quickly added.
” i was only there to talk with him. “ “ REALLY? IF YOU WOULDN’T MIND, TALK ABOUT WHAT? AS FAR AS I KNOW, GRILLBY ISN’T MUCH OF A SPEAKER! “ papyrus raised a finger with one hand while the other stirred before being brought back down to hold the pot’s handle.
” eh, not much. but really. i wanted to ask you, how are you? “ papyrus seemed to stiffen a little at the question. “ I HAVE BEEN GREAT! WHY? “ he asked.
there he goes saying he’s great. you don’t doubt that papyrus is great, but you do doubt that he’s feeling great.
” well, i noticed that even with being tricked into dating alyza, “ you checked around before you spoke. “ you haven’t been able to spend time with your brother. “ you finished. papyrus paused. “ I Haven’t. “ he said softly. it was close to how reop spoke. “ BUT I’D RATHER CONTINUE THIS CONVERSATION ELSE WHERE. “ papyrus turned around with a beaming smile. but something was off.
a translucent orange tears rolled from his eye socket to his cheekbone.
—
“ alyza. “ you sighed. you dreaded this moment, but you had to address it. you wouldn’t let alyza get away with that shit, assuming it was alyza. you didn’t think anyone else in the house would write xoxo and a heart. “ what? “ alyza opened her room door, stepping out and closing it behind her.
“ the sticky note from yesterday. what the actual fuck. “ you crossed your arms, glaring at her. “ what sticky note? “ she put her hands on her hips, glaring back. “ the fucking sticky you slid under the door. you called my fucking panic attack cries obnoxious. “ “ and they are. but i didn’t write that note. i never knew you were in the bathroom crying your ugly eyes out since i just got back from a date with scar. “ she smiled sweetly, but it looked sinister and bittersweet to you. “ if you didn’t write it, who did. “ you raised a brow, shifting your weight from one foot to another.
” listen girl— “
” don’t. call me that. “ you growled.
” yeah yeah, whatever. go ask blue or one of your friends. i know where everyone was at the time of getting back from the date. the only people who could of written it was blue, rum, or axe. now leave me alone. “ she walked back into her room, slamming the door.
there was no way. there couldn’t be anyway. that handwriting most definitely wasn’t axe’s. you have been helping him with journaling to practically memorize his handwriting. that meant...
blue?
—
“ stretch. where’s blue? “ you wouldn’t believe it. you wouldn’t. it couldn’t have been. blue wouldn’t write a note like that. blue wasn’t a child. he wouldn’t write xoxo. at least, he wouldn’t because he believed it was childish and he hated being perceived as such. right?
” why. “ stretch was leaned against his doorframe, staring at you with lazy but focused eye lights.
“ alyza said he wrote me a note and i wanted to confirm it was him. “ you put your hands in your pockets and clenched them in a fist, unraveling them just to do the same over and over. you didn’t want to believe that blue had written such a triggering note. you really didn’t.
” you don’t trust our datemate? “ stretch said in a tone that sounded like a warning. “ there’s nothing wrong with double checking. “ you retaliated. stretch started speaking, using a name to address you, a name you knew too well but hated all the same. as soon as you heard it from him, you left, saying you’d find him yourself.
you didn’t want help from someone who’d deadname you.
—
“ blue, there you are. and... rum. “ you walked up to the pair who were outside. blue was on the swinging chair while rum stood near him with a cigarette. “ OH... HI! “ blue seemed a little apprehensive to speak to you. you knew why, but you didn’t want to jump to conclusions.
” i wanted to ask, were you the one that slid me that note yesterday. “ you clenched your hands in your pockets that it almost hurt.
” I DID! “
he. he did.
huh.
” I HOPE IT WAS OF USE TO YOU! I DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO HELP BUT RUM THANKFULLY HAD A CLEAN RAZOR TO LEND YOU. YOU DIDN’T GET CUT, DID YOU? “
taunting. it was taunting. you knew that you were probably missing something. blue... blue didn’t seem like he was doing this on purpose. rum? maybe, but blue wasn’t... he wasn’t the type of person to do that. you didn’t believe that he’d openly talk about trying to get you to cut yourself.
but it was still taunting. still so fucking stupid. you didn’t know what was going through rum and his skull when they thought it was a good idea to give a crying person a fucking blade.
” i didn’t. “ you said through gritted teeth. blue blinked twice. “ ARE YOU OKA— “
“ just. peachy. “ you left inside, not waiting to listen to whatever blue had to say to you.
no matter how good your intentions are, what gave him the nerves to give you something like that.
heh, nerves.
he doesn’t have any.
Notes:
fun fact ; grillby and toriel are my comfort characters
— how was that ending?
— officially, this story will be lengthened because what i have in mind will most definitely not fit in just five chapters
Chapter 5: what did we do?
Chapter Text
“ RUM... DO YOU... Did They Not Like Our Gift? “
” she musta misinterpreted it. “
“ They. “
” right. they. “
” Well, I Thought That Alyza Said That We Should Give Them A Nice Note And A Razor Because They Thought Their Body Hair Was Too Masculine? “
” she did say that. “
” Then Why Did They Hate It? “
” i dunno blue. i dunno. “
Notes:
oh. that’s why.
Chapter 6
Summary:
— grillby? not new, but her? she’s new
— making friends is okay sometimes
— talking about your feelings is okay all the time
— maybe that last one is a lie
Notes:
— ! warning ! this chapter includes transphobia , homophobia , implications of self harm , murder , and suicide !
— you guys don’t like alyza at all
— you’ll hate her even more after this, lol
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
you found yourself on a stool at a familiar bar the next day. work called you to say that changes to the building would require around two to three business days. therefore, you’re basically off for the next two to three business days.
an even more so familiar fire elemental monster came from a door in the back and to you. “ welcome.......back. “ he greeted. “ ‘sup grillby. “ you sighed. “ i have some more boney business up my sleeve if you really want to sacrifice an ear that i’m just now realizing you don’t have to hear it. “ you didn’t really recognize the lack of ears on grillby.
then again, you live with skeletons.
grillby nodded, cleaning another glass. was that a habit?
“ turns out blue and rum were the ones who gave me that god damned note. i can’t believe they would. even though i know they were the one who slipped it to me, i can’t help but feel like i’m missing something. and then i was asking about how papyrus was yesterday while he was cooking and he said that he’d rather talk elsewhere and he was crying. “ you sighed deeply. “ i want to move out but there’s no apartments available in the area near my job and i can’t afford a house on my own, let alone even raise the money to buy it. which reminds me, i need to go grocery shopping for the mansion today. “ you groaned.
the thought of having to get a new job away from here wasn’t ideal. as much as getting away from the skeletons was something you wouldn’t want to turn down [ seeing as now more than half the house makes you uncomfortable ], you didn’t want to live far from grillby. you also didn’t want to live alone which made buying your own house even more so out of the question. being alone sucked, you don’t want to be alone again.
grillby hadn’t replied, but nodded away at what you were saying. “ well, anyways, can i get a burger and fries please? “ you took a twenty dollar bill from your pocket, handing it over.
grillby didn’t take it.
” taaake iiiit. “ you waved the dollar in front of his face, fanning him. grillby huffed, the faint trace of smoke floating near the flicks of fire atop his head. is that how you can tell he’s annoyed? it was a little funny. grillby took the bill and walked into the back room. you giggled softly.
“ oh, i thought i’d be th’ only human here. “
“ huh? “
you quickly whipped your head to look beside you. there, a woman sat beside you. you couldn’t help but stare. she was undeniably pretty.
she had dark skin, but her shoulders were white with lack of melanin. some parts were blotchy, but for the most part, it faded into her dark skin tone. her eyes were a golden brown and her hair was dark brown in a messy pixie cut. her bangs fell beside her cheeks and one sharp tuft of hair falling between her eyes and rested on the bridge of her nose. the hair to her left was dyed a dirty magenta. a dusty pink scar running from her right eyebrow, across the bridge of her nose, slanted, and stopped near her cheek. she had a septum piercing and a skull tattoo on her shoulder that looked like the skull was shot and had blood spurting out the side.
y’know, if it was legal and not monsterphobic, you’d do the same to most of the skeletons in the mansion.
she wore a white, long sleeved, loose—fitting blouse that was lazily buttoned and hung off one shoulder so that the black bra underneath was quite visible. lastly, she wore black cargo pants and black platform ankle boots.
“ hey. “ she greeted. “ well damn, hi. “ you shuffled in your seat. it dawned on you that you haven’t spoken to any human that wasn’t a bitch that you could possibly become friends with in quite some time. not that you’d want to be friends with this chick.
well, maybe. you’d like to have at least one human friend. maybe.
the lady took one look of you up and down, making you nervous. maybe this lady wasn’t going to be that one human. maybe she’s a creep and or a pick me girl or something. “ divon, she / he, you? “ she held out her hand for you to shake. it took you a short moment, but you snapped out of your stupor.
giving her your name and pronouns, you shook her hand. “ nice to meet you. “ you stupidly blurted. she chuckled, her white teeth revealing a small gap between her two front teeth. “ nice ta’ meet you too babe. “
” babe? wow, you haven’t even taken me out to dinner and were on babe now? “ you joked. she smiled wider. “ you’re right, you wanna change that? “ you tensed up for a moment, not expecting the flirt. “ you’re playing in dangerous waters here. keep that up and i might fall in love with you. “
why did you say that. why. did you say that. that you shouldn’t have said that. you shouldn’t have—
“ oh really? i might keep playing in those dangerous waters if it gets me laid with you. “ she winked.
nevermind, you take everything back. you [ begrudgingly ] blushed a little, averting your gaze from the person beside you. “ smooth fucker. “ you mumbled, not trying to hide that you were mumbling. she laughed.
grillby returned, a burger and a container of fries in his hands.
he placed them down in front of you, then turned to the new girl. “ who knew fire could be hot. “ divon snorted, making you snort, making you both laugh. “ oh my god, don’t hit on the bartender. “ you playfully shoved divon which was much harder than anticipated since she felt like a brick. “ shit, do you like, exercise? “ you squeezed her bicep a few times, and it was hard like rock.
” uh, yeah. “ she flexed her arm while your hand was still on her and you felt the muscle move as she moved, her arm becoming much more defined. “ god, you’re hot... “ you mumbled. “ i know. “ she smirked at you. “ fuck, i didn’t know you’d hear me. “ you let your head fall on the bar. she cackled, lifting your he—
no wait, your body. she was picking your body up bridal style. this was most definitely out of your comfort zone, but was also most definitely in your touch—starved zone. “ huh— “ “ hot people must stick together. you, me, ‘n grillb here’ll make a flaming trio. “ she winked. you playfully pouted, rolling your eyes but stifled a laugh.
grillby looked at you, then divon, then you again. “ are you two........dating? “ he asked.
” no. “
” nah. “
you both answered. “ we don’t even know each other. “ you shrugged. grillby’s silence stretched on. “ you both.......act like you know each other........since birth. “ “ do we? “ you asked. “ that’s my fault, i love pretty people who aren’t male. “ “ oh, shut up. “
grillby looked between you both once more, then stared at you. “ okay, i can see why you think so. “ you admitted before crawling off of divon’s lap and onto the stool you were sitting on earlier. you took a fry and ate it. “ but were strangers. “
” strangers to friends to lovers. “
” in your wattpad dreams. “
divon wheezed. “ STOP, THAT’S GREAT! “ she wiped an imaginary tear from her eye.
it was great. it was like back then. you didn’t have any worries as you just ate and spoke with some friends. you three chatted up a storm, grillby leaving occasionally to take orders from entering monsters. it was nostalgic. it was relieving. meeting and getting to know a human who isn’t an asshole and understands how it is to be misgendered or being assumed of for their sexuality [ since divon revealed she was bisexual ]. her stories were interesting. she used to be seen as a guy and hated it to her core, so she tried her best to look feminine.
that only made people think she was a feminine gay guy. people would stress calling her a he and she was sick of it to the point where she didn’t care and it grew on her. therefore, her pronouns are she / he [ but she did mention she preferred she / her pronouns ].
it reminded you of... you. of being sick of being called something you’re not. it was great to find someone who understands enough, but not all, because then it makes for great conversation and you felt, most importantly, safe.
you couldn’t ask for anyone better. grillby and divon. and you.
in this moment you were happy. in this moment, you hoped this feeling would last a lifetime. sadly, things don’t go your way. sadness is evident and feelings become mumbled.
it’s inevitable.
—
it’s been a few weeks since you’ve met divon. you exchanged numbers and took the rest of your off days to actually get to know her, and divon was just as great and a pleasure to be with as she was at grillby’s. her jokes and flirts were always hilarious and she loved your quick retorts and sarcastic answers.
when you both had talked about addresses, she said she lived in an apartment not far from here, and you replied with where you lived and that you lived with a bunch of roommates that were dating one person. she sucked in a harsh breath. “ a bunch? how much? “ “ ten. “ “ te— talk about polyamorous! that’s decayamorous. “
you groaned. “ i was never good at math, don’t pull the names out. “ divon chuckled. “ hey, are you thinking of moving out soon? “
” i’m thinking of moving out now. “ you corrected. a butterfly landed on your knee and you gently caressed its wings with your finger. “ i just have no money for a house and i hate living alone. “
divon gasped loudly, the butterfly fluttering away in a second from the loud noise. “ divon?! what was that f— “ “ live with me you idiot! “ divon grabbed your shoulders and shook you back and forth. “ if you would stop shaking me— maybe i would answer!— “
divon stopped shaking you but kept her hands on your shoulders. “ well?! you could room with your nontoxic bestie with no fees! what do ya say? “ “ grip me even harder than you are now and im throwing you across the park. “ divon chuckled and let your shoulders go.
“ weeeell? “
” well, it sounds tempting. but, i dunno, i could help with rent. i’m not gunna freeload off of you. that shit’s stupid if you can help it. “ you scoffed.
“ can you cook? “
” mediocre at it. “
” good enough for me. “
you snorted. “ what the fuck ever. when should i move in. “ you asked with a small smile. “ whenever you can. there’s no rush on my end, but you need to get out of that house pronto. “ she shrugged, clicking her tongue twice at the end of her sentence.
“ gotchu. i’ll tell the house and pack my things. i’ma go now. “ you stood from the blanket, dusting yourself off. “ i’ll stay here, call me if you need anything. “
“ mhm. “
and off you went.
maybe, you should have stayed with divon. better yet slept over at her apartment. you shouldn’t have gone home at that time and at that moment.
you should have known better.
—
closing the door behind you, you sighed. you’d need to get to packing your shit soon, tell the house you’re moving out, talk to papyrus about his feelings once and for all, and maybe give blue and rum a piece of your mind.
they need it, seeing as they don’t have brains.
you headed straight for the kitchen, hoping there was some left over spaghetti papyrus had saved you. you wondered how papyrus always managed to make food while busy. what could you say? he was the greatest.
he is the greatest.
footsteps can be heard outside of the kitchen, but you ignored it, not wanting to interact with anyone at the moment [ save for papyrus, axe, and reop ]. “ heeeey! “
you flinched at the familiar voice, closing the refrigerator door. “ yes. alyza. “ you said through gritted teeth. you didn’t want to deal with any bullshit alyza had in store. “ well girl— “ “ don’t call me that. “ “ yeah yeah sure, anyways we need you for a meeting! “
you bit back a groan, reluctantly turning around slowly, seeing the grin on the other girl’s face. you sighed heavily before forcing yourself to walk towards her. she bounced her way to the living room with you in tow. your stomach felt queasy and your heart started beating at a faster pace.
you had a bad, terrible, uneasy feeling about this.
everyone was sitting at the living room and, like the last time you all had this stupid meeting, you stood behind a couch and alyza stood in the middle.
” so! i think it’s finally time to discuss the elephant in the room! “ alyza started. you crossed your arms on the couch, already feeling even more queasy.
you shouldn’t let her make you feel this way.
alyza called your name and you groaned quietly in acknowledgment. “ the house has decided to kick you out. “ her smile turned devilish. “ …..what. “ you deadpanned. “ well, obviously you’re a menace towards us. you contribute nothing to the house, you do nothing for the house, and you make practically all of us uncomfortable. “ she whined. “ wh— how? what do you mean? “ your eye twitched.
” well, if i recall correctly, you made papyrus cry, blue and rum tried helping you through a panic attack and you didn’t even give a thank you, you don’t pay any bills, you’re just useless! “ she listed.
“ okay, first off, i didn’t make papyrus cry— “
” papyrus, did she make you cry? “
” they. “ you growled.
” … “
papyrus wrung his fingers through his gloves. “ well? we’re waiting papy. “ she stared at papyrus. “ W.. WELL YES, THEY DID MAKE ME CRY… “
you blinked.
“ okay, yes, he did shed a tear but i— “
” i asked if you made him cry and you said no. “
“ you didn’t even let me finish speaking?! “
a hand was placed on your shoulder behind you, making you wince and turn around quickly, revealing stretch. “ don’t raise your voice. “
” wh— “ you grumbled. it wasn’t worth arguing over. you shrugged his hand off and he didn’t touch you again, but stayed behind you. “ you didn’t let me finish. “ you said as calmly as you could.
” really? then how would you explain blue and rum? they were just trying to help. “
“ they gave me a fucking blade! who the fuck does tha— “
” watch. it. “ the warning tone said from behind you. “ wha—? but i didn’t— “
” and not to mention how no one likes you. you’re unwanted and worthless. a deadweight. “ she spat.
” i am not. worthless. i have reop and axe. “ you looked around and saw that…
” where… where are they. where’s reop and axe. “ “ we kicked the cannibalistic murderers out. “ red growled. “ what? why?! “ a yank from your chest dragged you back, making you stumble backwards. you felt glued to the ground. “ i said. watch. it. “ stretch’s left socket glowed a bright and flaming orange, his hand incased in the same light.
” they would never. “ “ i was a victim! they tried to eat me! those stupid! animals! tried to eat me! “
” don’t you dare call them fucking animals. “
” animals hunt for their prey. i saw them pounce on alyza, don’t call us a liar. “ sans input.
” exactly! because that’s what they are! just like you! you’re a freak and you keep correcting us when we call you what you are! a girl. woman up and stop whining over some fucking pronouns! “
” i am not. a. woman. just because your small brain can’t comprehend it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist and your opinion doesn’t fucking matter to me. “
” but i bet hers did. “
a chill ran up your spine.
“ she knew you were a woman and you killed her for it. “
you chuckled humorlessly. “ don’t you dare accuse me of murdering someone i loved you bitch. “
” then where’d you get that LOVE from? “ red appeared in front of you, sockets devoid of light. you knew what he meant. and you weren’t going into it.
never.
” that’s none of your business. “
“ huh, really? none of my business, my ass. “
“ you don’t have one, dumb shit. “
a bone shot in front of you, had you been even a few seconds from dodging, you would have had your head skewered. small murmurs could be heard in the back, but you didn’t pay attention, all you could pay attention to was the warmth that dripped from your top lip to your chin.
he cut it.
” don’t talk all smart with me you whore. alyza told us everything. how she saw you as what you were and you murdered her for it. you pushed her off that bridge. you dirty, filthy killer.
you couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe. all you needed to do was to get out of there.
get out of here.
your breathing quickened and you couldn’t focus. there was so much happening. you couldn’t concentrate. what were they talking about? something about bills now? you couldn’t tell. you don’t care anyways. you can’t breathe and you need to breathe.
breathe.
it’s not working. someone’s yelling. more people are yelling. you think your eyes are shut because you can’t see a thing. yeah, they must be shut, then why does your head hurt? really your everything hurts.
your thoughts fade in and out and the last thing you feel in someone touching you.
—
“ ……..ou Hear Me? “
” …….Pl……se Be Okay……. “
” I Didn’t Mean To Hurt You… “
you groaned. man your head was killing you. what the fuck happened? someone just called your name. excitedly. “ ..huh?…. who?…. “
you squinted and saw a familiar skull with an orange scarf around him. “ papyrus?…. “ “ Yes! It’s Me! “ blinking your eyes open, you found it easy because it was dark. “ what… happened? why am i moving? why does everything hurt? “ you groaned. “ You Were Hyperventilating So I Knocked You Out And Took You To Your Room. It Was The Only Way I Could Have Thought Of To Get You In My Hold Without Breaking My Cover. We’re Moving To, Divon? Was It? Their Living Space. Everything Hurts Because I Knocked You Out And I Apologize. “ papyrus said.
you blinked.
” you what. “
” Allow Me To Explain. They Were Talking About How You Don’t Pay Bills And When Alyza Saw You Hyperventilating, She Said You Were Faking It. Everyone Else Joined In On Hating You Except Blue, Rum, and I And I Took This Opportunity To “ Accidentally “ Lodge A Strong But Harmless Attack At You. It Knocked You Out And I Made It My Duty To Care For You Until You Woke Up. “
” wow. “ you breathed. you thought back on what he said and snorted. “ you said duty. “ “ I Did! “ he said enthusiastically which got a giggle out of you. he seemed happy with the fact he got you to laugh, letting out a small “ Nyeh Heh Heh! “.
“ well, uh, how do you know about divon? “ you asked. “ Whilst In Your Room, They Called And Asked About… Uhm… You Moving? “ papyrus said, a little fidgety as he walked along the side walk while he practically cradled you like a baby.
” yeah, i was going to say that i was leaving today but alyza and her crew beat me to it. “ you said.
it was silent before papyrus spoke. “ We Have A While Before We Get To Our Destination. Can We… Talk? “ you looked up at papyrus, but he was looking straight ahead. “ sure… “ you answered. “ I’m Sorry. “ he said. “ about saying i made you cry? it’s whatever. “ you dismissed the thought. you made him cry, but it wasn’t purposefully.
“ Alyza… She’s A Bad Person. “
” no fucking shit. “ you rolled your eyes.
” She Threatened To Call HPS On Us All If I Didn’t Defend Her. “
hps, human protection services, a monsterphobic organization made to “ protect “ humans when in reality, it’s an excuse to try and murder innocent monsters. luckily, they haven’t been successful at all, but better safe than sorry.
” She Told Me If I Told Anyone Then She’d… She’d Start Hurting My Brother… “ papyrus’s voice sounded like he was on the verge of tears. “ She’d Make Him Hate Me… She Said That He Loved Her More Than Me. That… And… And I Was Scared… I Am Scared. I’m So— “
” don’t you dare apologize. “
you felt papyrus flinch, and he looked down at you. orange transparent tears that glowed in the night threatened to fall from his eye sockets. “ you did nothing wrong. i mean, you’re taking me to safety, you’re apologizing for some bitch’s actions that you had no control over, you were just trying to be a good little brother by keeping your older brother happy, it’s not your fault. it’s alyza’s. do not, and i mean, not, apologize for something out of your control. “ you reprimanded. the globs of orange fell slowly as papyrus softly sniffled.
” thank you. “ he whispered. it was the quietest you’ve ever heard him to be. “ I Ask That You Lose All Contact Of Us. “ he spoke.
” huh? why? “
” I Overheard Alyza Speaking On The Phone With… With A Male. Assumably, Her Significant Other Besides Us… “ so she was cheating on them. all eight of them? “ She Is Going To Break Up With Us And Somehow Blame It On You. She Kicked You Out Thinking You Had Nowhere Else To Go And That You’d Beg To Stay To Avoid Being Homeless. I Wasn’t Able To Hear The Entire Conversation, But It Has To Do With You Having Contact With Us So Please, Forget About Us. Delete All Contacts And Messages, I Beg Of You. “
” wait— so, so i have to just— forget about you? no way in hell pap, i can’t just— “
” It’s For Our Safety. Yours and Ours. “
” … “
” Please… “
” okay… tell axe and reop that i’ll miss them… and i’ll miss you… tell blue i’ll miss him, too. i cant wrap my head around why they thought trusting alyza was a good idea. i don’t trust rum but, i’ll spare blue. “
” Didn’t Blue Give You A Razor? “
” razor blade. “ you corrected.
papyrus rose a bone brow. “ No, He Said He Slid The Entire Razor For You Along With A Blue Note. “ you blinked. “ i got a razor blade with a note saying i was crying obnoxiously and that the razor blade would help me. “
” Did You Go To Blue About It? “
” yeah, and he said he gave me a razor with a note. “
” Did He Say A Razor Blade? “
” i… no. but he did say that alyza told him to give me a razor because she told him i was crying because i was too masculine or some shit. “
” Maybe Alyza Swapped The Razor with a Razor Blade When Blue Slid The Razor For You. It’s Plausible She Took It And Took The Razor’s Blade Out, Then Slid It Back To You. “
” so that would mean that she changed the note, too. blue isn’t heartless— actually yes he is but, he isn’t rude. he wouldn’t call my crying obnoxious. “
so blue wasn’t the bad guy. blue wanted to help but alyza tinkered with it. you sighed, happy that blue wasn’t at fault. it all tracked back to alyza. rum, you wouldn’t forgive him just yet. he still ignored you to no end.
“ Possible. It’s All Alyza’s Fault. Sans Thinks I’m A Babybones And Can’t Handle Myself When He Doesn’t Even Realize He Is Getting Himself Played Thoroughly Like A Trombone! “ papyrus rolled his eye lights, but you could tell he was genuinely upset. you chuckled, but upon seeing the apartments in view, your mind flew to not seeing papyrus, axe, and blue, and reop. possibly not ever again.
” pap… i will see you again, right? after all this blows over? “ you mumbled. papyrus was silent.
” Hopefully. “
Notes:
— fun fact ; divon and alyza are both my oc’s
— divon and alyza are ocs based on my own world inspired by the game “ fran bow “
— no, my alyza isn’t as bitchy as this alyza is, i only reused the name
— yes, my divon is as gay as this divon is
— i’m not sure if you can tell but i suck at writing arguments
— its possible i rewrite this chapter / the argument
Chapter 7
Summary:
— you’d never thought you’d see him again
— welp, might as well cut him and the rest some slack
— john quiñones
Notes:
— how did i lose motivation for so long then just bounce right up
— dunno
— here you go though
— finally getting to the story’s summary part of the story
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
you remember that night vividly. the night papyrus took you to divon’s place with your clothes in a bag on his back and you in his arms. it was almost one year ago. you haven’t heard from any of the skeletons since.
you deleted any contacts, messages, anything that involves around the skeletons. you were told by divon that sometimes, skeleton monsters who she described were actually sans, red, and rarely rum, would go to grillby’s, which meant you couldn’t go there either.
luckily, you got grillby’s number and was able to talk with him still. it was hilarious talking to him about new trends or celebrity drama or teaching him slang. you, divon, and he talks in a groupchat and you always have a great time on a bad day.
you and divon moved from the apartment to a house a bit further from where you both originally were. it was still in reach with your and divon’s current jobs and it was much better looking. there was a roomy basement that you both used for movie nights by laying down a bunch of unnecessary pillows and blankets and eating popcorn and candy while commenting on whatever you’d watch.
it was relaxing. for the first time in almost three years, you were free to work on yourself since you had no one bugging you, no one nagging you, no one yelling at you, no one but yourself, divon, grillby, and the world.
you still think of the skeletons sometimes and hope they’re doing just as well as you are. not all of them, but papyrus, blue, axe, reop, you hoped they were doing well. hopefully alyza left them already and they can relax.
hopefully.
—
“ heeeey! bestie baeeee! can you go shopping for some candy and snaaacks! i would but i don’t want to get uuuuup. “ divon groaned while slouched over on the couch. you rolled your eyes. “ you’re lucky we need more cleaning and laundry supplies or else i wouldn’t have gotten up either. “ you slipped your shoes on at the door, clutching your purse that hung on your shoulder. “ thaaank yooou. “
“ fuck off. “ exiting the house, you heard the laughter behind you and smiled. papyrus was nice enough to bring you your car the next day when you were still bunking with divon at her apartment, and you couldn’t bring yourself to change it. hopping inside, you put the key in the ignition, backed up, and drove off.
when at the store, you lazily grabbed a cart and leaned against it while pushing it, making all the necessary stops and grabbing laundry detergent, dish soap, cleaning sponges, etcetera. it was boring, and you couldn’t wait to buy snacks, you could tell that divon was planning a movie night soon.
when walking past an aisle, you stopped. there was no way it was him. there was absolutely no way. letting go of the cart and peeking through to the next aisle, your jaw almost dropped.
it was papyrus.
in the nonexistent flesh. of course it was the aisle that had pasta. it made you smile that he was still cooking pasta. grabbing the cart, you walked into the aisle you were originally going to, just to u—turn into the aisle papyrus was in. his back was facing you, so you figured you’d surprise him.
fuck it, no one’s stopping you.
creeping quietly, silently hoping he wouldn’t turn around, you thought of how you’d announce your presence.
“ hey, ya’ gunna make me some food like the old days, pap? “ you settled on saying. the first thing that you thought of doing was yelling, “ I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS. “ but you decided against it.
papyrus swerved around and when he saw you, tears immediately pricked his eye sockets. he whispered your name questioningly, almost as if he were dreaming.
” well? i wanna be the first one for your spaghetti. “ you smiled. papyrus dropped all the boxes of pasta noodles into his cart haphazardly and ran up to you, hugging and spinning you around. “ IT’S YOU! OH, IT’S YOU! I NEVER THOUGHT I’D SEE YOU AGAIN! “
“ it’s me!— do you want the whole walmart to know it’s me, too? i mean— i’m no animatronic bear but— “
” MY APOLOGIES! I DIDN’T REALIZE I WAS YELLING SO LOUD! “ papyrus said in the same tone of voice he did before. few tears fell but he had his always radiant smile on his face. he set you down, but you hugged him again. “ god, it’s great to see you! how are you? “
papyrus rubbed your back before you both pulled away. “ I AM DOING AMAZING HONESTLY! I AM STILL IN COLLEGE, WORKING ON MY STUDIES, AND I HAVE GOTTEN BETTER AT COOKING! SO GOOD THAT I HAVE LEARNED MULTIPLE FANTASTIC DISHES! “ papyrus said proudly. “ awhh, man i’m happy for you pap! you’re greater than you’ve ever been. “ a light orange tint dusted papyrus’ cheekbones. he chuckled a small “ Nyeh Heh! “ and cleared his nonexistent. “ AHEM, HOW ARE YOU? “ he returned the question.
” i’m doing great, too! mental health is in check, i don’t have much panic attacks, i’m living with divon in a house now, it’s just— amazing. “ you bashfully chuckled. “ OH I’M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!! “ papyrus picked you up again in another hug.
“ awh, thank you, thank you, i’ll be here all afternoon. “ you patted papyrus’ back.
“ NYEH HEH HEH! “ papyrus laughed as he set you down for the second time.
” what brings you to the wonderful world of wal—mart, papyrus? “ you grabbed your cart’s handle and directed it so it was parallel with papyrus’. “ WHY, I AM BUYING PASTA AND OTHER NECESSITIES FOR THE HOUSE. “ papyrus started walking while beginning to browse the shelves. you practically had everything you needed so you just went along with him. “ huh, the house. how’s everyone else doin’? “ you asked.
papyrus paused before furrowing his bone brows.
that can’t be good.
” NOT… Not So Well. “ papyrus admitted. “ you wanna talk about it? “ you asked. you wanted to know how the assholes and blue, axe, and reop were doing, more the latter than the former. you didn’t wish they were doing terrible, but if they just so happened to drop a nice cream on a hot day, you would laugh.
” Well, It’s About Alyza… When She Finally Milked Sans And The Rest Of Their Money, She Left For Her Other Boyfriend. Almost Everyone Had To Get A Job To Keep The House Afloat But As Of Late, Red, Edge, Wine, And Stretch Have Been Fired And By The End Of This Month, We’ll… We’ll Be Kicked Out… “ papyrus explained.
well shit.
that was way worse than you expected.
” well fuck. you don’t have anywhere to go? “
” Well!— No. “ papyrus tried to smile but it was in vain when he had no answer. “ so… how has that effected the skeletons personally? “
“ Ah, Well, Sans, Stretch, Red, And Rum Have Become Very… Distant. They Have Been Camping Out In The Basement And I Barely See Them… “ papyrus had a troubled look on his skull. he hasn’t been seeing his brother at all. as far as you know, papyrus and sans used to stick like glue even before alyza but… ever since, they have been apart. it must have been tearing both of them up inside.
even though they don’t have insides.
“ Wine And Edge Have Been Quite Hostile. Everyone Has Stayed Clear Of Them. It Has Come To The Point Where They Both Coop Themselves In Their Rooms. Stretch Says They Won’t Admit It, But They Both Feel Guilty For Driving Their Brothers Away. “
“ and axe n’ reop? “
” From What I’ve Heard, They’re Doing Well! I Don’t Know Where They’ve Went Specifically But Once A Month, Reop Visits Us! “ papyrus seemed a bit happier with saying something more positive. it relieved you that those two were doing well.
you sighed.
” sheesh… and blue? “
papyrus was silent for a moment. “ Blue… Blue Is… Blue Is Using Work To Cope But It Isn’t Healthy… He Works Overtime, Always Comes Home Late And Going Early. His Optimism He Used To Have Has Gone. His Eye Lights Even Shrunk To Blue Dots! “ papyrus exclaimed.
well shit. blue without big blue eye lights? fuck.
” It Seems Like I’m The Only One Making An Effort To Bring Us Together But No One Else Wants To. I’m Tired. I Might Stop Trying. “ papyrus sighed. you both long have stopped moving, no one passing you both as you spoke. “ that’s… that’s a lot pap. i don’t think you should force yourself to be optimistic, but don’t force yourself to try and bring everyone together. it would be nice if everyone was how they were before alyza, but you have college! you’re a busy guy. it seems pretty stale right now, but, it won’t stay this way forever. it can’t. as for the living situation… i don’t know if i can he— “
you trailed off. well. there was a way.
but you’d be damned if you went with it.
” [ NAME ]? “ papyrus called.
well? pap needs a place to stay. they all do. you really don’t want to stand back and hear all of this go down. besides, they housed you, too.
shouldn’t you return the favor?
no. no, it’s a bad idea. as much as you love pap and the three others, there are the rest. was it worth letting them live with you considering your past with them? especially with this mindset?
.
fuck it.
” yo pap? “ you finally spoke. papyrus perked up. “ Yes? “
“ i miiiiiiight have a place where you can stay. “
“ REALLY? “ papyrus abandoned his cart to turn you and hold your shoulders withs stern expression.
” well! if my roommate agrees then… “
” WE’LL LIVE WITH YOU?! “
” if she says ye— “
” [ NAME ], I HAVE NEVER PLATONICALLY LOVED YOU MORE THEN AT THIS VERY MOMENT. “ papyrus squealed.
“ i have a feeling you’re going to hug m— “
papyrus swept you up for the third time, but this time, he twirled in a [ almost oddly ] graceful way. squeezing you in his grasp, he continued to squeal. “ THANK YOU SO MUCH [ NAME ]! I’LL TELL EVERYONE AT HOME AMD THEY’LL BE SO HAPPY TO HEAR THE NEWS! “ papyrus set you down. “ THEY’LL ALSO BE ABLE TO APOLOGIZE TO YOU SINCE OUR… LAST ENCOUNTER. “ papyrus looked around sneakily, but still, no one was present.
” alright big guy, give me that phone, i needa way to contact you. “ you held your palm out. papyrus enthusiastically dug out his phone from his jean pocket and handed it to you.
” sheesh pap, this phone new? “
papyrus lit up at that question. “ WHY YES INDEED MY FRIEND. THIS CELLULAR COMMUNICATION DEVICE IS NEW! IT IS CALLED AN “ I PHONE “! I SUPPOSE IT’S BECAUSE IT BELONGS TO I! THE GREAT PAPYRUS! “ he boasted.
you input your number and made your contact your name. “ i think so, too. i mean, being the monster mascot and all, a lot of people know you. you’re very papular. “ you grinned.
“ YOU THINK SO— AHEM, WELL! I THINK SO TOO! “
your grin grew.
” I AM A SMILING FACE FOR ALL AND AN IDOL FOR MANY. “
3
“ EVERYONE ON UNDERNET AND OTHER HUMAN SOCIAL MEDIAS KNOW MY NAME! “
2
” I AM INDEED VERY POPU— “
1
” Wait. “
you burst out laughing at papyrus late awareness of your pun. doubling over and holding your midsection, you wheezed. papyrus glared at you with an unamused look. “ Ha Ha. Very Funny. “ he groaned.
you couldn’t form words as you coughed for air.
man, you wouldn’t change papyrus for the world.
—
“ yo! von! “ you called out into the house. you set the bags of groceries on the table, immediately set on taking out snacks. “ heyyyy bestie babe— oooh! hot fries! “ divon jogged over, snatching the chip back and opening it. “ that’s supposed to be for the movie night, dumbass. “ you raised a brow.
” yeah huh, whatever you say. totally listening. “ divon said before stuffing her mouth with chips. you rolled your eyes, taking out more groceries and cleaning supplies. “ oh yeah, divon? you wont believe who i met today. “ you nudged her side with an elbow. “ john quiñones? tell me you weren’t on fucking what would you do and made a fool of yourself. “ divon deadpanned.
” nO?— i met papyrus! the skeleton that took me to our old apartment? wait, why would you assume john quiñones? “
” hey! you never know! i’m scared to be an ass in public because of that dude. “
” the show ended last september. “
” you never know [ name ]. i’m telling you! one day you’re littering and another john quiñones pops up with his camera crew saying, “ hi, i’m john quiñones and this is what would you do; the sequel. “ divon mocked.
“ help me unload these groceries, stupid. besides. we have something more important to discuss than whether john quiñones will release a sequel to what would you do. “ you took a slim jim from a bag and hit divon lightly on the head.
” oh yeah? like what? “
” getting your approval on letting the skeleton crew i used to live with stay with us because they won’t have anywhere by the end of this month. “
divon blinked.
” well i was not expecting that. “
“ i know. i gave the okay to papyrus but now i need your answer. “ you tore open the slim jim and took a bite. “ sheesh. i mean. i am okay with it, but are you sure you’re okay with all of ‘em stayin’ here? “ she leaned down and took another bite of your slim jim.
” you just indirectly kissed me. “
” i’m cool with that. “
” i’m also cool with them living here. “
” well, if you’re sure than i am. “
” i am sure, now, let’s go eat junk food in our basement and watch terrible cliche movies. “
—
“ SANS! SANS! YOU LAZY BONES WHERE ARE YOU? “ papyrus hollered. the new pot of spaghetti laid untouched by anyone, but papyrus knew that soon, one by one, the skeletons in the house would file in and take a plate.
unfortunately, [ or fortunately for all the skeletons, ] papyrus’ brother had to come a tad bit early. papyrus waited just a second when sans appeared in front of him, his usual grin found no where on his skull. it upset papyrus to no end but soon, maybe, just maybe, sans would look happier by next month.
“ yes pap? “ sans said, yawning afterwards. papyrus didn’t let it show that he was upset at the lack of sleep sans was getting.
that everyone was getting.
” I WILL METAPHORICALLY CUT RIGHT TO THE CHASE. I FOUND US A NEW PLACE TO LIVE. “
sans was immediately alert. “ wait hu— “
“ BUT! “ papyrus cut sans off. “ METAPHORICALLY CUTTING TO THE CHASE ONCE MORE, IT WAS BECAUSE [ NAME ], THE NICE HUMAN THAT USED TO LIVE WITH US, OFFERED. “
“ no. “
” SANS. “
” we’re not living with her. “
” THEM. “
” them. “
” WHY NOT. “
sans averted his gaze from his brother. “ they might’ve been cool before, n’, yeah, we didn’t know that— “
” CORRECTION. YOU, RED, EDGE, STRETCH, AND WINE DIDN’T KNOW THAT. “
” right, thanks bro, but after everything, you didn’t consider that maybe sh— they, they don’t like us anymore. what if they actually are like how we thought they were before? what if— “
” Sans. “
sans flinched at the tone of papyrus’ voice. never had sans ever heard papyrus use such a stern tone with him. of course, there were a few lectures here and there, some or a lot about his socks, but he could tell that papyrus wasn’t going to leave him scot-free.
“ I’m Not A Child. None Of Us Are. Not Every Human Is Dangerous. If You Are Going To Worry About Every Human Except The Dangerous Ones, Then You Can Stay Here While I And Whomever Has The Brains To Leave With Me, Leaves. “
sans wanted to retort. to say something back. to say that he knows that papyrus isn’t a child, but he is still his little brother. to say that he knows not every human is dangerous, but it’s better safe than sorry. to say they wouldn’t have to live with another human.
but he couldn’t, because although sans knows this, he hasn’t shown it. none of them have.
papyrus sighed. “ Sans. Give This Human A Chance. They’ve Done Nothing Wrong. “
sans and papyrus stood in silence for a moment.
“ i’ll run it by the others. “
papyrus smiled. “ Thank You, Sans. “
” what can i say? you’re the best bro, house am i supposed to slack off with you around? “
” I Hate You. “
” love ya too, bro. “
Notes:
— no more alyza
— kind of
— yayyyyy