A/N: Based on nasty-bones's lovely AU Underclass. Technically a sister fic to my previous, Enemy Mine, but you don't have to read it to get what's going on. In my headcanon for this AU, Underfell Sans (Red) and classic Sans are cousins. The Papses and Sanses are not related to each other, just classmates, but I'm tagging Fontcest anyway just in case.

PS: if anyone's interested, Red's listening to My House by Pvris in the car.

Darling Mine

So. Visiting the cousin, nearly a state away. Red would be lying if he said he wasn't even a little nervous-he hadn't seen the little squirt since they were small, barely into elementary school.

But...Honestly? With everything that's happened to him recently, he was more than happy to get away. And it wasn't like he hated the idea-they'd gotten along well enough as kids, both equally obsessed with science, as their fathers were. And, bonus, the kid lived alone, so it wasn't like there would be an adult to breathe down their necks. His neck. And right now, that sounded like heaven.

In the passenger seat, his phone went off. He didn't have to look at it to know who it was. He ignored it, rolling down the windows and turning up the radio.

This was more than just an escape. This was him turning over a new leaf. Starting fresh. Cutting off old relationships for good, putting his big brainpower back into school and being a better monster. No more fuck ups for him, accidental or otherwise.

This was gonna be his best semester yet, he was sure of it.

Sans's house was a cute, modest two-story in an older, quieter neighborhood. Despite driving like a bat out of hell, racing the sun itself, Red arrived well into the evening; a small light glowed in what he guessed was the living room. He shut off the car, inhaling deeply before pushing open the door.

Any nervousness about his reception was immediately blasted away. A blue blur launched off the porch, yanking him into a hug.

"Hi Red!" Sans squeezed around his middle. A laugh bubbled out from somewhere deep inside as Red hugged back, lifting his smaller cousin up easily.

"Hey, squirt. Glad to see you're still so tiny. Like a lil doll!"

Sans playfully smacked his shoulder, wiggling until he was put back down. "You're not much taller, jerk. Come on. I'll show you your room."

"'Kay." Red grabbed his duffle, trotting after.

"Oh! Bags!" Sans turned on the spot, blinking in surprise at Red's one bag. "Um. That's not the only one, right?"

"Pssht, 'course not. The other one can wait, though. I'm bushed. And I'm sure it's past your bedtime."

Sans made a face-it was way too cute and nonthreatening to be called a glare. "We're the same age, Red. I don't have or need a bedtime."

"Sure you don't, squirt."

The guest room was really nice, with a big bed and its own bathroom. Sans was spoiling him-he'd have been happy with a couch and a closet to dump his crap in.

"Hey-" he began, turning. Sans's eyes widened-Red had caught him in the middle of suppressing a yawn. He snorted. "Go to bed, squirt. We're family, ya don't have to be a good host."

Sans smiled sheepishly, but didn't protest. "Night, Red."

"Night. And...hey." Sans stopped at the doorway, turning back curiously. "Thanks, Sans."

Sans smiled back softly. "No problem. Like you said, we're family."

"Right. G'night."

Sans waved, continuing on, back to his room. Red listened to his footsteps pad away, smile dropping. He blew out a breath, rubbing his face. Alone, with no road to distract, earlier's bravado slipped. He felt his phone in his jacket pocket, it's slim form seemingly as heavy as a brick.

...He wouldn't call him. Fuck no. But the asshole would've left more messages, and if he didn't delete 'em, they'd pile up and fill his inbox. Yeah.

He sank down on the bed, pulling it out.

Yep. 10 missed calls, two voicemail messages. His thumb hovered over the delete button…

...He pressed play.

The first, left this morning, was brief and to the point: "Red! Answer your fucking phone, for fuck's sake!"

Hearing Boss's voice, unchanged despite everything, felt like a hug followed by a punch to the gut. Red deleted it.

The second, left not too long ago, was less so: "Thanks a lot, asshole. Thanks for letting me know you were still fucking alive. I had to find out from that nosy bitch Dogaressa. Fucking Dogaressa! By the time she told me, the entire fucking school knew-"

"Ohwhy the fuck do you care, anyway?" Red growled, even though he knew his boyf-former boyfriend couldn't hear. There was more, but Red deleted it, too pissed off to care.

He tossed the phone onto the nightstand, flopping back on the soft blankets. He wasn't going to cry. He wasn't. Going. To fucking cry. Getting upset is what got him here in the first place.

He kicked off his shoes, ripping off his jacket. He never bothered with pajamas; an undershirt and boxers worked just fine. He dropped his shirt and pants on the floor, getting under the blankets and throwing an arm over his eye sockets.

It didn't work. He still felt the treacherous prickle underneath his arm. He groaned, pulling himself out of bed.

Only one thing would keep crybaby tears at bay, and that was getting plastered. Before he'd left, he 'helped himself' to a bottle of his dad's best monster moonshine. Served the old ass right for sending him away. He'd meant to share it with Sans, as a thank you for letting him crash here on such short notice, but fuck it. Little goody goody squirt probably didn't even drink anyway.

He didn't bother with fetching a glass, just took the whole bottle back to bed with him. He closed his eye sockets, taking the biggest pull off of it he could manage. He shivered at the burn, welcoming the slight pain. Normal human liquor could get even a skeleton monster drunk, but it took a lot of it-enough to kill a human-and the buzz never lasted long. Magic burned it out of the system fairly quickly, just like human food. If he drank this whole bottle of magic-based liquor, though, the buzz might last him till lunch tomorrow, if he didn't pass out or sleep it off first.

It was a game he played often, and knew all too well.