It Started with a Tab

The Question

The short skeleton began to shake, his bones rattling with nerves. His skull was crowded with overwhelming thoughts, nervous as all hell. He was pacing back and forth, and eventually flopped face first onto the soft couch. It absorbed his weight, allowing him to sink in. "Oh this is not a good ideaaa." His words became a groan, muffled by couch cushions. Sans could feel his soul pounding, the intense pulse making it harder to calm down. All he could hear was his soul, and his fears of rejection. He closed his eye sockets trying to breathe, feeling his soul's beat through the couch.

"Oh Sans! There's nothing to worry about, there's no way Grillby will say no!" Frisk tried to cheer him up, but wasn't having much luck. They leaned over the arm of the sofa, their feet kicking in the air. "Papyrus!" Frisk hollered like a pouting child. "Help me tell Sans he's is overreacting!"

Without poking his head in the room, Papyrus did indeed holler. He kept at his current task, proudly multitasking. "Sans you know I wouldn't lie to you, so believe me when I tell you that you are very great! Maybe even better than me sometimes...maybe." Even with words, both Sans and Frisk could hear Papyrus narrow his eyes sockets in thought. "So don't hold back from what you want to do, just be brave and use your greatness and stop being so worried about this! Everything is going to be fine."

Frisk lifted their head to the sound of footsteps, and backed away when Papyrus stormed into the room with an irritated look. "Oh come on, brother! You do know you're overreacting, right? Grillby really cares about you, even back in the Underground, he still really cared about you. No one can take away your fears, and I know that this seems scary, but you should be confident. You love Grillby, right? And he loves you, so that's all that should matter." The younger skeleton gently patted Sans' back, kneeling to be at eye level.

"You always know how to help me, Pap." Sans laughed into the couch, pushing himself up with his arms so he could look at his brother. "And you're always right."

Frisk felt their chest swell, as if their heart had melted seeing such a strong brotherly bond. They giggled as Sans rolled, hugging Papyrus at a weird angle.

"Don't worry bro, I won't let anythin' get under my skin." Sans winked, looking up to his brother with a smirk.

Papyrus seemed as if he had ignored the pun, having no initial reaction towards it. Then, a second later he dropped his brother, letting out an angry 'NYEH' and walking away. He turned back to Sans, watching his brother slowly slide off the couch, his entire upper body laying on the floor.

Frisk helped him get up, looking at a clock in the process. Their eyes widened at how late it was becoming. They peeked outside, the sun had set, and stars were beginning to come out. "Sans! It's getting late, c'mon let's go get you dressed!" They pushed on his back, the older brother's slippers lacking of traction making the task easy.

Sans eventually just teleported into his room, Frisk stumbling to the sudden change in surroundings. They shook their head, rushing to Sans' closet where his suit hung nicely. They pulled out the black blazer and slacks, folding the pale blue shirt over it. They rushed over to the bed, laying them all down neatly, then pulled out a bow tie, throwing it atop the pile.

Frisk ran to the door, hand on the knob as they began walking out. "Be quick, you don't want to be late, do you?"

"You sound like Toriel." Sans snickered, tossing his blue hoodie onto his bed.

Frisk closed the door without another word, they knew it was true, though they'd never admit it.

Sans was left to his own devices, taking Frisk's advice and changing rather quickly. He slid on the shirt and pants, then adjusted the blazer. Lastly was the bow tie, though he didn't wear one often enough to know how to tie it. Instead he wrapped it around his neck, allowing it to dangle as if it were meant to give a more casual look to suit his style. With shoes as a final touch, he began his walk downstairs. As always, his hands were buried in his pockets, though this time, his left hand was fidgeting with a small box.