Goodnight, Kiddo... (Adopted by Sans! Reader Fanfic)

Eight

Your PoV

I stayed awake for a long time.

Sans sat on the other end of the couch, watching tv until he fell asleep. I peeked out of the covers I'd been using to keep myself warm, my eyes locking with the bright screen.

The sound was low, barely audible from where I was. Sans snored softly, sunk into the comfy couch.

I sat up, careful not to disturb the silence. Reaching for the remote, I flipped channels until I found a news broadcast.

I waited through the weather predictions for the surface and the Underground, a flood warning in Tennessee, and a few commercials about getting old and diabetic socks. It seemed they'd never get to what I was waiting for.

Maybe I'm just getting worked up over nothing, I tried to reassure myself. Ms. Bell can't be that insane, right?

At that very moment, Ms. Bell's pinched face came onto the screen.

"Breaking news," a reporter said firmly into the camera, clutching a microphone. "An orphaned girl by the name of (Y/n) (L/n) has gone missing from this woman's custody. She was last seen at a Giant Eagle in the Rosewood Street Plaza, and allegedly ran away and tried to hide within the store while Ms. Anastasia Bell at my right side attempted to chase her. The two were shopping alone at 2 o'clock pm, and few other customers were there to witness the action. Ms. Bell, what do you have to say about this?"

She turns to Ms. Bell, sticking the microphone in her face. Ms. Bell took it out of her hand and tried to look distraught.

"Oh, she was one of my first kids, and she's been with me the longest," Ms. Bell wailed. "It's such a tragedy to have her missing, I can barely stand it! She was always my sweet little baby."

That's a laugh, I smirk to myself.

"Can you elaborate on her appearance, please?" the reporter says, trying to get a hold on the microphone so she can speak into it.

Ms. Bell tugs it out of her reach. "She's about (vague height estimate) tall, um, and she has (h/l), (h/c) hair," she murmurs hesitantly.

"Perhaps if we could have a look at a physical form or a photograph, we could be able to know?" the broadcaster woman sniffs, finally grabbing the microphone with one hand.

Ms. Bell gives her a nasty look. "Physical forms are private information, ma'am. I might have a picture somewhere in my office, if you'd really like to know what she looks like."

"It's critical information to set up a search," the reporter sighs.

"Oh, of course!" Ms. Bell returns, a fake smile appearing on her face. "I'll get a picture to you as fast as I can. Now, if you'll excuse me, my girls and I have places to be."

She trots off with the hands of three younger girls clenched in her fists, as they look longingly behind them at the camera. The reporter finishes up the interview, and the camera switches to a different story. I sigh and turn off the television.

"I'll be back, Ms. Bell," I whisper, glancing over at Sans, who's still fast asleep. "I guess you can count on it."
~

I wake up the next morning when something cold touches my face. I swat at it, but it keeps stroking against my cheekbone until I open my eyes.

"c'mon, kid, you gotta get up at some point," Sans says, grinning.

I pull the blanket over my face. "Your hands are cold!"

He puts his face close to my ear, the blanket our only in-between. In a soft whisper, he says, "it'll be ice cubes down your shirt next."

I leap up from the couch as his finger starts to stroke the nape of my neck, sending shivers down my back. Keeping a wary eye on the now laughing skeleton, I walk into the kitchen to see what's been cooked up for breakfast.

"There you are!" (G/n) says, hugging me as I sit down at the table. "I was beginning to think you'd never get up!"

"YOU SLEPT FOR A LONG TIME, LITTLE HUMAN!" Papyrus agrees.

(G/n) stacks a few slices of French toast on a plate and hands it to me, assorted toppings lying about on the countertop. When I've finished, Sans tells them that we'll be off in a bit and sends me up to get dressed.

When I reach the bathroom, I find a black bag with the clothes I'd arrived in inside, freshly washed, and a pair of soft jeans and a (f/c) shirt folded up on the bathroom counter. A note on top of that read that I could keep everything I'd been wearing while in the Underground, and the new clothes were the same sizes as the pajamas I'd worn, so they'd fit me. After putting them on, I ran downstairs to say thank you to everyone.

"You're welcome," (G/n) said, pulling me into another hug. "Come around sometime. We'll make whatever you want."

"YOU'RE WELCOME, (Y/N)!" Papyrus had answered. He lifted me off the ground and up onto his shoulder. "YOU'LL HAVE TO COME BY WHENEVER YOU CAN!"

But Sans had acted differently.

"don't thank me yet, kiddo," he murmured as we walked out the front door. "there's still a few things we need to do."

He touched my sleeve, and the Underground was gone in the blink of an eye.
~