His Dream

Sorting Things Out

Sans opened his eyes to a sudden weight on the bed. Papyrus had laid down next to him, vibrant red and white making him squint. Frisk was gone, and the sun sat high in the sky. A lovely glow filled the room, Sans' eyes slowly adjusting to the bright light. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky as far as the eye could see. Or eye socket anyway. 

"Paps?" Sans asked in a groggy voice.

"Yes, Sans?" Papyrus asked with worry clearly present. The taller brother lay on his back, hands resting on his ribcage.

"How late is it?"

"It's three in the afternoon. The human went to Toriel's this morning, and when I came to check on you, you were still sleeping! You've been quite lazy these past few days...I'm worried." Papyrus looked over at his brother whose eye sockets drooped heavily. He could tell Sans was very tired, and there had to be more to it than physicality. "Has anything happened?"

Sans smiled, closing his eyes. "Yeah, but I'm ok, I've just been really tired lately."

"That's what happens when you work yourself, down to the bone! Nyeh heh heh." Papyrus laughed at his own pun, smiling when Sans did too.

"Thanks, Paps. I can always use a good pun." Sans rolled onto his side, wrapping an arm across his bro's chest. Mid hug, his phone buzzed. The smaller skeleton jumped, then rolled. He reached over, his lower body still as he pressed a button to turn it on. 

"Who is it?"

"Uh, Grillby." Sans answered flatly, then set his phone onto his side table, not even looking at the message. He rolled over once, facing Papyrus, and away from his phone.

Papyrus lifted his arms when Sans hugged him again, lowering them once the smaller monster settled. His own smile drooped, wishing he could help more. "Did...did something happen between you and Grillby?"

Sans groaned and covered his face.

"I'll take that as a yes..." He placed a hand on the shorter skeleton's head, his own fingers curling to cup the back of Sans' head. "May I ask what happened?" Papyrus gently stroked Sans' skull, attempting to soothe him, along with his own worry.

Sans only sat up and read the text avoiding the question. "I...paps it's...I just need to talk to him is all." Sans sighed, then stood up. He approached his closet, slipping on his slippers and folded his hoodie over his forearm. He looked to Papyrus, with a sad smile. "Would you mind if I went out?"

Papyrus frowned, promptly followed by a sigh. With an expression seeming to say 'I'm too nice to say no,' he walked over and gave his a brother a hug. "Just don't drink too much, Sans. I hope the two of you sort things out, whatever it is."

Sans nodded, waiting until Papyrus got downstairs. Sans pulled out his phone, rereading Grillby's text. "Hey can we talk?" His chest felt like it was on fire. A fire that drained him of energy and froze him in place. Sans typed a few words out, deleting them quick. He tried again, the words not seeming to fit. He let out another sigh, at a loss for words.

Sans put a hand on the back his neck, a nervous expression taking over his face. He took a deep breath, glancing to his window. Greeted with a warm and welcoming sky, he calmed down and warped to Grillby's.

Sans was well aware that he'd have to talk to the fire elemental eventually to tell him the truth, at the very least, explain why he'd been avoiding him. No matter how badly Sans wanted to disappear, he knew the bartender deserved answers, and a negative reaction was not guaranteed. Either way, Grillby needed to know how Sans felt before any further mistakes occurred. Sans looked down at his phone, giving his smile a chance to fix itself. With not even the slightest change, he slid it into his ocean blue pocket.