Rus picked up the rag that rested on his bench and wiped his hands clean of oil and grease. He gave a light sigh as he took a seat and pulled out a cigarette pack along with his cell phone. Twenty plus missed calls and even more text messages. Rus flicked his lighter and took a deep drag from his smoke once it was lit. His eye lights scanned through the slew of messages that he had missed.
-I'm sorry what I said offended you.
-I can't understand where your anger comes from
-Weren't things going well?
-Papyrus?
-I understand you're upset, but you don't need to ignore me.
-You didn't answer my call…
-You're not home?
-Where are you Papyrus?
-Please answer.
-Answer me please.
-I'm worried.
-If I find out you've done something stupid…
-This isn't funny.
-Papyrus, I'm being serious now. You need to answer me.
-PAPYRUS
The messages trail into a blur of panicked texts and spam of his name. Rus rubbed his palm against his foreskull and exhaled a large cloud of smoke.
"For fuck's sake…" the skeleton murmured quietly to himself. His thumb hovered over the contact. He closed his sockets for but a moment before he hit the call button.
"Papyrus! What the hell were you thinking!? I've been driving all over town looking for you!" Grillby screamed after picking up within the first ring, "Where are you? Are you hurt?"
"Jeez Grillbz," Rus groaned into the phone. He leaned over to rest an arm on his knee, "I'm fine. Ya don't gotta worry."
There was a moment of silence, then a sigh from the other end, "Alright. Just tell me where you are so I can come get you." There was another long moment of silence, "Papyrus? Are you still there."
Rus exhaled another cloud of smoke. The fingers of his free hand rubbed against his foreskull, "I- Grillbz, I don't think that's a good idea…"
There was a pause of silence, "What do you mean?"
Rus' leg bounced softly, "... I think we need some time apart."
The skeleton could hear Grillby's car screech to a stop from the other end. There was another long moment of silence, "... Don't say that…" It was hardly a whisper on the other end.
"Grillbz-"
"DON'T SAY THAT." Grillby roared, forcing Rus to move the phone away in order to save his hearing. A chorus of unintelligible yelling soon followed as Rus sat there. Once the line grew quiet, Rus brought the phone closer to his skull.
"Grillbz… I gotta go back. There's no negotiating it. I'm so close to a break through. You'll only get in the way-"
"So you're at the lab then?" Grillby interrupted.
Rus' sockets widened a bit, "Grillbz-" but the line went dead. Rus scowled before heaving a sigh and finished his cigarette. "Great…" he grumbled to himself. He put the smoke out on the bench next to him before he stood.
Rus grabbed his hoodie and slipped it on. He walked upstairs and stepped outside to a now abandoned Snowdin. The crunch of snow echoed across the empty cavern as he made his way in front of the house. He took a seat on the front steps and began his wait.
After forty-five minutes, the sound of a crackling fire rang through the town. Rus opened his sockets and glanced over as Grillby approached. With every step, the snow around him melted away. Rus could already tell he was pissed despite the calm expression he carried. The skeleton rose to his feet with a groan and stepped down to meet the fire.
However, before he could speak a word, a fist connected with his jaw and sent the skeleton stumbling back against the porch. Rus cursed and winced before he glared up at the other monster, "What the fuck, Grillbz!?"
"Where is it?" Grillby asked lowly.
Rus pushed himself back to his feet as he held onto the railing and skimmed his fingers over the newly blacked bone from Grillby's fiery punch, "Where is what?"
"The machine!" Grillby barked, the flames of his head rose with his increased agitation, "The one you're breaking up with me for."
Rus scowled and sighed. He moved a hand to his face to rub the bridge of his nasal cavity, "Grillbz… That's not it."
Grillby closed the distance between them. He grabbed a fist full of Rus' hoodie and tugged him close so that their faces were mere inches apart, "You're not leaving me Papyrus…"
Rus tried to push him off, "You don't get to make that choice for me."
Grillby held tighter as smoke began to rise from under his curled fingers, "I will tear that house apart to find it… So you can either make this simple, or we can do this the hard way."
Rus' sockets widened before he slapped away Grillby's hand, finally prying his fingers off his hoodie. The front of the fabric was now singed, "Watch it," he snapped, "Dontcha think you're overreacting a bit?"
"Overreacting!?" Grillby roared, the monster's flames turned a dark shade of red as they crackled wildly, "We've been through so much, Papyrus. We went from hating one another to being lovers. You said you loved me. And now you're just… Just dropping me."
The eye lights in Rus' sockets softened before he glanced off to the side. His rib cage felt heavy with guilt, "I'm sorry Grillbz… I do care about ya… But… My brother-"
"HE'S DEAD PAPYRUS!" Grillby snapped.
Rus' sockets widened as he looked back at Grillby, "No, I can-"
"He's dead. Dust. Why can't you get that through your thick skull?" Grillby hissed, "I'm not. I'm right here. What are you going to do if you go back and everyone is still gone? And you can't come back here. You'll be stuck there all alone. You should just stay here. Everyone is alive here. You're not alone here."
Rus fell silent as the lights in his sockets went out, "...I think you should leave, Grillbz." he murmured.
Grillby glared down at him with glowing embers, "No."
Rus' hands balled into fists, "We're done. Even if I did stay, I don't want nothin' to do with ya. Now, I got work to do." the skeleton attempted to turn away and return to the lab. But Grillby grabbed a hold of him. The elemental monster's arms wrapped tightly around his waist.
Rus blinked and tried to pull away, "Grillbz, I'm serious now," he growled.
Grillby lifted the skeleton with ease, "So am I," he spoke softly.
In one quick motion, Rus brought his elbow back and smashed Grillby in the face. As Grillby dropped him from the shock of the blow, Rus immediately took off in a sprint. He flung the back door open and ran inside before slamming it behind him. He quickly locked it before giving a small pant.
He heard Grillby give an enraged roar outside and muttered a curse under his breath. He wasn't going to get out of this without a few more burns. The lights in his sockets returned as he opened the secret entrance into the true lab. He made sure the panel closed before he went downstairs.
He removed his hoodie once more and tossed the burnt clothes aside. He adjusted the black tank top that was hidden underneath. He started toward his invention before, Ka-BOOM. A loud explosion followed by the sound of the metal panel crashing down the stairs.
Rus turned with wide sockets as Grillby stormed down the steps, "How the fuck-" he yelped.
"You really think Sans never told me about this place," Grillby growled in response.
Rus swallowed and prepared for a fight. However, to his surprise, Grillby B-lined it for the other side of the lab. Rus' brow furrowed as he watched. But as Grillby began kicking over oil drums, the lights in his sockets turned to pin pricks.
"Grillbz. Wait, Grillbz!" Rus exclaimed, "Listen, I know you're pissed. Ya can take it out on me, that's fine. But think about what you're doing for a sec-"
As he rolled the oil drums across the lab and spilled the dark liquid over the tiled floor, the fire elemental glared at Rus, "I know exactly what I'm doing."
Rus felt his chest tighten with the rising panic in his throat, "Grillbz, this is years of work. Ya can't-"
Grillby marched over to Rus, a heated hand clamping down on his humerus. Rus hissed with pain and tried to dig his heels into the ground. But the slick of the oil only made it easier for Grillby to drag him over to the stairs.
"This is punishment for crossing me, Papyrus," Grillby stated lowly as he shoved the skeleton ahead of himself. He made Rus turn toward him and opened his free hand. A large ball of fire formed in his palm as he looked Rus in the sockets, "You've forced my hand and have no one to blame but yourself."
Grillby turned and tossed the fireball into the oil below them. The lab quickly erupted into flames. Rus' jaw dropped as he watched all his hard work become devoured in flames before Grillby tugged him up the stairs. Once outside, Grillby shoved the skeleton down into the snow. The elemental glared down from behind broken glasses, "I hope you're happy… I'm going to wait outside Mt. Ebbot. Follow along once you realize your mistakes."
With that, Grillby turned on his heels and left. Rus laid in the snow as he cradled his injured arm and watched as his home filled with smoke and went up in flames. Everything he worked and cared for crumbled before his very eyes. Yet he couldn't feel anything. The lights in his sockets faded as he slowly got to his feet. And he turned to follow Grillby out of the Underground.