Chapter II – Kinesis And The Like
Undyne grins, and then stands up, her chair sliding violently across the floor. She stomps over to you, then pats you on the back. It's more of a slap, and is bound to leave a bruise later.
"This is (Y/N)! She's the one who saved Alphy at the bookstore!" She says, placing a hand on your back. You smile at the group, and give them a little wave. You're greeted with a chorus of "Hey!", "Howdy!", and "HELLO!"
The taller skeleton stands first, and walks up to you. He's about two feet taller than you. His skull is narrower that the other skeleton's and his jaw seems to almost become unhinged when he speaks. You think he's smiling, but you're not sure. Before you know it, you're being picked up and smooshed by the skeleton. You let out a little squeak as he squeezes you.
"HUMAN, IT IS AN HONOR TO MEET YOU! ANYONE WHO SAVES MY FRIEND'S LIFE IS BOUND TO BE ALMOST AS GREAT AS I! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! " He manages to squeeze you tighter, which knocks the air out of your lungs. "AND YOU ARE?"
"paps. we talked 'bout this. don't hurt her." You peer over Papyrus' shoulder to see that the shorter skeleton has come to your rescue. You shoot him a grateful glance as Papyrus sets you down. The blue-clad skeleton's toothy smile grows. You wobble on your feet for a second, trying to regain your balance, and catch your breath again.
"It's nice to meet you!" You respond after taking a few deep breaths. You notice that Papyrus is wearing a red scarf around his neck, and a cape that flutters in the gentle draft of air floating through the diner. You giggle; he's so...childish, it seems like. He almost reminds you of yourself, in a way. You refuse to grow up when it comes to pop-culture related things, but you are usually mature when reality needs you to be. Papyrus, on the other hand, just reeks of cinnamon.
"OF COURSE IT IS NICE TO MEET SUCH A COOL, AWESOME SKELETON SUCH AS MYSELF! NYEH. DID I HURT YOU, HUMAN? I DID NOT MEAN TO IF I DID, I WAS ONLY TRYING TO DISPLAY MY GRATITUDE FOR YOU, CONSIDERING YOU SAVED DR. ALPHYS' LIFE." He tilts his skull down to you, his empty sockets studying you. His eye sockets are curved to the point where he looks almost concerned.
"You didn't hurt me, Papyrus. You just caught me by surprise, is all." You reassure him.
He lights up again, then turns to the shorter skeleton. "SANS! INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO THE HUMAN PROPERLY!"
The shorter skeleton grins, giving you a lackadaisical wave. "'sup?"
"SANS, THAT WAS AWFUL. TRY AGAIN! AND QUIT BEING SO LAZY!" Papyrus admonishes, folding his arms across his chest.
"'sup? 'm sans. sans the skeleton. nice to meet ya." Sans still doesn't move.
You smile again, waving back. "Nice to meet you, too."
"THAT WASN'T TOO BAD. AT LEAST YOU DIDN'T USE ONE OF YOUR GOD-AWFUL PUNS." Papyrus turns to you, an apologetic expression written all over his skull. "I KNOW HE'S LAZY, HAS A TERRIBLE SENSE OF HUMOR, AND REFUSES TO PICK UP HIS DIRTY SOCKS, BUT SANS IS THE BEST BIG BROTHER EVER! HE'S VERY SMART, BUT HE NEVER REALLY APPLIES HIMSELF OUTSIDE OF HIS JOB..." Papyrus trails off, and shakes his head while Sans only chuckles. You want to squeal; after all, you're a sucker for brothers who love each other like this. You can tell Sans loves Papyrus by the way he looks at his little brother. Dammit, these two are fucking adorable.
"aw, bro. that was too sweet. ya shouldn't have." Sans props his feet onto the table. Papyrus immediately begins to scold him. The two brothers continue their little banter, so Undyne pushes you towards Toriel and Asgore.
"I can walk, you know." You say over your shoulder to Undyne, another smile threatening to break out on your lips. Undyne lets you go, a sheepish look on her face.
"Sorry! I'm just really pumped for you to meet the King!" She responds. "He's not as intimidating as he looks. Trust me on that."
You actually think Asgore isn't very intimidating at all. With his floral, multi-color Hawaiian shirt, fluffy fur, and his kind eyes, he looks more like a soccer dad than he does a king. You suppose he must look far more menacing when he has his armor on and his trident-like weapon out. When he spots you, he smiles. Toriel is next to him, and she greets you first.
"Hello, child. I'm glad you were able to make it. This is my husband, Asgore." She says, shifting in her seat a bit.
"Howdy, Miss (L/N)! It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" He says, offering his large paw. You shake it, a bit awkwardly because of the difference in size.
"It's great to meet you, King Asgore!" You say, your hand dropping to your side.
"Oh, just call me Asgore. I'm not one for formality when it comes to family and friends. Please, have a seat with us!" He gestures to the open seat next to Alphys. "Undyne, will you get Papyrus and Sans, please?"
"Yessir!" She replies, darting over to the brothers. Papyrus has Sans under his arms for some reason, and Sans is just kind of...limp. Papyrus is yelling something about god-awful puns, and Sans is not retaliating. You chuckle, then turn to Alphys.
"Are they always like this?" You ask, watching as Undyne joins the two. She starts trying to pull Sans away from Papyrus.
"P-pretty much." She replies. Man, is it just you or is it warm in here? You realize you're starting to sweat, so you pull your (f/c) hoodie off, and drape it over the chair you are assigned to.
"Oh my g-gosh. I love your sh-shirt!" Alphys squeals. You look down to see that you've chosen to wear your favorite anime fandom t-shirt. Excitement begins to boil in your veins. Yes! She likes your favorite anime! Maybe it won't be so difficult to be friends with them!
"Thank you so much!" You squeal. Undyne appears by Alphys' side. She glances at your shirt.
"That anime is pretty great!" She agrees, hooking an arm around the smaller monster. You hold back a victory screech; Undyne likes it too!
"Are we all ready to sit down?" Toriel asks, her question directed towards the brothers. Everyone, including you, begins to pull out their respective chair. You glance at the menu. It looks pretty impressive: there's a breakfast section, and it states underneath the header that breakfast is served all day, a lunch and dinner section, both of which are served all day as well. Oh man, there's so many options! More than the typical human restaurant, at least. Ugh, what should you get?! You turn the page. There isn't any human soda listed; instead, there is a list of...monster soda. From what the description tells you, it's homemade fresh every day. Your eyes wander over the different flavors: there are the typical fruit flavors, and then there are...stranger ones, like cucumber, peanut butter, lavender...the list goes on. Who drinks peanut butter flavored soda? You tilt your head in deep consideration. Your eyes run over the list of alcoholic beverages. The situation is similar here, too. Echo Elderflower? The description says it's made with refined sugar, elderflower, echo flower, and lemon. Echo Flower? What does that taste like?
You glance at Undyne. She appears to be finished browsing through the menu, and is now poking at the table cloth. You elbow her.
"What's up?" She asks, her gaze shifting towards you. She's twirling a fork between her webbed fingers.
"What do you recommend for drinks? There's so many options to choose from, and I've never been here before." You say, setting your menu down.
Undyne frowns for a second. "Are you talking about alcohol? Or just that boring, old monster soda?' She waggles her eye...scales...a little bit, making you laugh.
"Boring, old monster soda." You reply. As curious as you are about the alcohol, it's probably not a good idea to start drinking in front of the king and queen. Bad things happen when you get drunk.
"Aw, come on, punk! Try at least one!" She sighs, putting her elbow on the table.
"I can't drink in front of all of these important people!" You counter, trying to keep your voice hushed.
"One won't hurt, trust me. Listen, the king and queen are pretty chill when it comes to this stuff. As long as you don't overdo it, you can have a little bit of fun. C'mon, punk. Just one..." She says. You sigh, then look back down at the menu. She's right, one can't hurt, can it? But then again, you don't know what's in monster alcohol, or how it affects humans. Although, if the government made it legal for monsters to open a restaurant, then the food has to be safe. Besides, what's the worst that can happen? You get a little tipsy and make a fool out of yourself. Eh, worse has happened to you before. Embarrassing yourself is something that happens to you a lot.
"Fine. But just one, though. What do you recommend?" You ask, opening up the menu again. Undyne moves so she can peer over your shoulder.
"Hm...okay, you might want to start out with something a little gentle. Enough to get a little buzz going, but not enough to make you completely out of it. Let's see...oh! The Lady Lilac is pretty good! It's lilac extract mixed with a hint of sugar and a bit of magic to enhance the flavor, and zinfadel. It's sort of fruity and bitter-sweet, but it's pretty good. Grillby makes some kick-ass floral and herbal based alcohol."
You nod. "Okay. I'll try that." Now, you need to decide what to eat. If you're being honest with yourself, you're pretty appalled at the variety of food here. It takes you a while to decide, but you make a decision eventually, and Undyne seems pretty satisfied with your choice.
A younger monster walks by your table and stops at the head of it. You wouldn't be surprised if your eyes popped out of your head out of sheer surprise. This monster is absolutely stunning; she's literally on fire. Even better, her flames are green. Her flames are ombrè, going from a dark green at her legs to a pale green at the top of her head. She has small, shiny diamonds the color of coal that appear to serve as eyes, and she's wearing a dark black shirt, along with dark pants. She's beautiful! Dammit, why can't you be made out of fire?! Is it really too much to ask?! What the hell, this isn't fair! You want to be a monster!
"Good afternoon, friends! How may I serve you?" Her voice is light and warm, and it makes you want to float for some reason.
"Fuku! How are you?" Toriel asks, setting down her menu and folding her paws in her lap.
"Oh, I've been fine lately. And you?" The girl-Fuku-replies.
"We're doing well." The queen of monsters replies. Undyne waves at Fuku, then gestures to you.
"Fuku! This is (Y/N), she saved Alphys' life earlier today!" She explains. It's so hot in here... you think. Then, you remember that you're in the presence of a living flame.
Well, that explains a lot.
"It's nice to meet you!" Fuku says, giving you a small wave. She's carrying a small notepad. "I'm Grillby's daughter, and I usually help out around here."
"Nice to meet you too!" You say, straightening your posture a little bit.
"It's always great to have new customers! So, what can I get you all started with to drink?"
…
After you all have ordered, the small talk begins.
"So, how is progress on monster rights coming along?" You ask. You're genuinely curious; you don't have a lot of free time on your hands, so you only get to watch snippets of the news every now and then.
"From our last meeting with the president, they told us that they're beginning to write amendments for the Constitution. We've been told that we're going to receive the same rights as humans, and that the bill of rights will soon apply to us!" Asgore answers happily. "We can tell that it's going to take a while, though, as they're still debating on what rights monsters should have with magic, but it's progress nonetheless."
You frown, taking a sip of your drink. Undyne was right; it's a delicious combination of fruit, bitter-sweetness, and sweetened lilac. There's an underlying citric taste, and it's ice cold. There's a little orange umbrella in the glass, too. You giggle, for some reason those umbrellas have always been your favorite part of the drink. The drink itself is a beautiful shade of burgundy. When the liquid touches your lips, you swear you can feel a faint tingle. It must be the magic, you think.
"That's good to hear," you say, "but...the only kind of magic I've seen monsters wield so far is healing magic. Are there other types, too? And, if so, is that why the government is having trouble thinking of ways that monsters can legally use magic? How far too far would be?"
Asgore nods. "There are different types of magic. For example, Undyne can summon spears, Toriel and I can summon fireballs, Sans and Papyrus can summon and manipulate bones and blasters..." He sighs, shaking his head slightly. "There's an unlimited amount of different types of magic, and it varies for each Soul. No two Souls have the same kind of magic."
Your jaw practically becomes unhinged. "You and Toriel are pyrokinetic?! Undyne is curikinetic?! Sans and Papyrus are osteokinetic?! And you know healing magic?!" You nearly yell. This is so unfair!
"...What the hell is cu-ri-kin-e-sis?" Undyne is the first to say.
Your expression turns sheepish. "I'm sorry. I'm...really into magic. I made that name up, but curis is spear in Latin, so I just popped that with 'kinesis', and, I think it sounds pretty decent. I couldn't find anything about controlling spears online, but I did take a little bit of Latin in high school. So...yeah." You unconsciously rub the back of your neck. Ugh, why do you do this?
The group chuckles.
"THERE IS A NAME FOR OUR MAGIC? SANS, YOU DID NOT TELL ME THIS!" Papyrus says.
Sans looks mildly shocked at your little outburst. "didn't know is was called...osteokinesis. guess that makes sense. why osteo, though?" He asks you.
You bite your lip. "Osteo is a prefix that means 'relating to the bones'." You answer.
He squints, seemingly lost in thought. "interesting."
"BUT SANS CAN MOVE THINGS WITH HIS MIND! WHAT'S THAT CALLED?" Papyrus asks. You can hear the curiosity leaking from his voice, too. In Sans' voice, the curiosity wasn't nearly as evident as it is in Papyrus', but you could hear it. You chuckle gently. Sans can...move shit with his mind? What the hell? You can't do that!
"Hm...when you move stuff, do you have to focus or can you use mental effort alone?" You ask.
"mental effort alone." He answers. You tilt your head in thought as the two skeletons study you intently.
"Then you're psychokinetic. I think telekinesis requires focus, er, at least that's my interpretation of it." You reply. "Or maybe they're the same thing. It doesn't matter; in my opinion, it's all based off of interpretation alone."
"You seem to know a lot about magic." Asgore notes. "Or, at least human interpretations of it."
"A-anime does that t-to you." Alphys cuts in, a sheepish look on her face. You give her a nod of approval, and she smiles in response.
You chuckle. "It does." You take another sip of your drink. "What...is magic, exactly? I know several TV shows, books, and video games have established different depictions or explanations of it, but...I don't think humans really know what it is."
Alphys tilts her head in thought, while Sans turns towards you again. Toriel and Asgore glance at each other, and Undyne gives you an amused look.
"It's...difficult to explain," Toriel starts, "but I think...magic itself is still an enigma to even monsters. We can use it, wield it, and master it, but we cannot truly understand it. It is a vital part of monster Souls, and it is...powerful."
"I think it's like you said, (Y/N). It's solely based upon someone's own interpretation. Magic has no bounds or limits that we know of." Asgore says. His massive paws tap on the table for a second. "You might want to talk to Gerson. He's an old geezer like Toriel and myself, but he knows far more about magic than we do. I'll have Undyne send you his contact information later on."
Ooh, another old monster who might have a deeper understanding about magic? You're sold. "Oh, I'd love that! Thank you, Asgore!"
He smiles, a deep laugh escaping him. "You're quite welcome, Miss (Y/N)."
"I THINK MAGIC IS A WAY SOMEONE CAN EXPRESS THEMSELVES!" Papyrus adds. "IT'S A WAY FOR PEOPLE TO DISPLAY THEIR GREATNESS!"
"a way to communicate. if it's possible for humans to wield magic, then it's possible there could actually be a universal language amongst monsters and mankind. kinda mind blowin' when ya think about it." Sans says, taking the ketchup bottle and pouring an unnecessary amount of ketchup into his mouth. You think that's sort of funny, actually. He catches you staring at the absurd amount of ketchup and winks. "what? have ya mustard the courage to ketchup yet?"
You nearly choke on your sip of drink, then burst out laughing. Wordplay has always been funny to you, and you're always jealous of witty people. Toriel and Asgore are snickering, while Undyne, Papyrus, and Alphys are just groaning.
"I hope you...condiment that." Toriel manages to force out through her giggles. Sans grins.
"just relish this moment, tori." His permanent smile grows even larger. You laugh again. Puns are so stupid, yet somehow, they're extremely clever as well, but so damn funny at the same time. That's the magic of puns, isn't it?
"STOP IT! JUST STOP IT! SANS, YOU'RE RUINING LUNCH WITH YOUR TERRIBLE JOKES! STOP NOW!" Papyrus begs.
"Aw, come on, Papyrus." Toriel says. "Aioli want to make good fun."
"NYEEEEEEHHHHH!" Papyrus buries his skull faceplate in his gloved hands. You think Sans might be dying of laughter. You're not much better, as your cheeks are starting to hurt from smiling. You must look like a complete idiot right now.
You smirk. "With a little thyme, I can mustard up a decent response."
Yeah, Sans is definitely dying. His laughter is loud, and obnoxious, too, unlike his normal voice. It's kind of cute and definitely fits him. Is it just you or are his cheekbones turning slightly blue? How the hell is that even possible? Magic. It has to be the answer, right?
"NO! SANS, YOU'RE RUINING THE HUMAN!" Papyrus looks as if he might flip the table over.
"i'm just encurryaging her." You're sent into another fit of giggles. This is priceless.
"Papyrus, does this conversation have you in a pickle?" Toriel chimes in.
Undyne stands up suddenly. "NGAHHHH! STOP IT WITH THE DUMB JOKES OR I'M GONNA BREAK YOUR FACE, SANS!"
The shorter skeleton manages to calm himself down enough to speak. He sits up a little more, then his gaze turns to Undyne. "okay. i'll try to stop. no promises, though." Undyne seems relatively satisfied with this, then sits down again. She glares at you after you make eye contact with Sans and you both break out into another fit of giggles.
"Anyway," you start, "what anime do you guys watch?"
Alphys perks up and turns towards you. "O-oh! Let's see, we watch Mew Mew Kissy Cutie, One Punch Man..." She lists more names of anime titles, some of which are familiar to you, but you haven't watched, some you have watched, and some you've never heard of. Undyne joins in every now and then. She seems just as enthusiastic about anime as Alphys.
"Dude! You should totally come to our next Anime Night!" Undyne says suddenly.
"Y-yes! She should!" Alphys agrees.
"That sounds awesome!" You say, growing more and more excited by the second. It's been so long since you've watched anime with a group of people who understand!
"Here! L-let me see your phone and I'll give y-you our numbers so we can k-keep in touch!" Alphys says. You nod, then take out your phone from your purse. Undyne looks away for a second, then looks back at you. She's snickering, eyes narrowing in on you. She whispers something to Alphys that you don't catch. Alphys shakes her head, then nods.
Oh no. That look...I know that look all too well. This can't possibly be good.
The expression Undyne was wearing is what you call the Real-Life Shipper Expression. You've worn it yourself before; when you were trying to hook one of your friends up with one of their crushes.
Oh shit. What are they planning?
Your thoughts are interrupted when Fuku brings out a tray filled with everyone's orders. Alphys hands you your phone back, and you see that she added both her number and Undyne's number. They're listed under "Undyne the Undying ┌( ಠ_ಠ)┘" and "Alphys (✿◠‿◠)". You grin, shaking your head slightly before turning your phone off and putting it away. Alphys hands you her phone, which you type your number into and put it under your name.
Fuku passes out all of your food, and you thank you her. Her flames grow a little brighter when you compliment her pretty flames and she thanks you, telling you that you're too kind before leaving with the now empty tray under her arm.
Your dish looks gorgeous. It looks to be perfectly prepared. You dig in. It's love at first bite. Dammit, is it illegal to marry food? You'll have to google that later on. If it is, then that's bullshit, because you're in love.
"You like it?" Undyne asks. You can only nod in delight as you continue eating. Undyne chuckles at your expression. Everyone is silent as they eat. You're definitely going to come back to eat here again.
About ten or fifteen minutes later, everyone's respective plate has been cleared. Fuku comes to collect the dirty dishes, and asks about desert. Everyone's too stuffed to accept the offer, no matter how appealing the sweets look on the menu. Despite your protests, Asgore insists on paying for lunch.
"You saved Alphys' life. If you will not accept anything else, at least let me pay for lunch." He says. You groan. You hate it when people pay for your food, even though it's a kind gesture. It makes you feel dependent, and you aren't reliant on others at all.
"Thank you, Asgore." You say like a defeated child.
"You're quite welcome." He says, standing up. He checks his watch, then looks up at the group. "Well, I apologize, but Toriel and I must leave for another meeting. Miss (L/N), it was a pleasure to meet you."
You grin. Damn, you've been smiling a lot today. At least, more than usual. "It was a pleasure to meet you, too, Asgore."
"Alright. Well, goodbye, everyone!" Toriel says.
"See you all later!" Asgore waves.
"See ya later, King Fluffybuns!" Undyne roars, then bursts out laughing. You see Asgore slightly shaking his head. The two goat monsters link arms, then they walk out of the restaurant.
Without warning, Undyne grabs your bicep and pulls you aside from where Sans and Papyrus are still sitting and chatting with Alphys. None of them notice you or Undyne.
"Okay, punk," Undyne has The Real-Life Shipper Expression back on her face, "have you noticed that Sans keeps staring at you?"
You frown, every trace of a smile gone. "What? No, I haven't." Is he secretly some perverted skeleton creep? You can't help but wonder.
She snickers again. "Just stay aware and you might catch him." She cackles. What the fuck? He's staring? At me, of all people? Will I have to kick his ass-er, tailbone? Questions litter your mind, but you're too flustered to sort through them all right now. You're tempted to go confront him, but the more rational side of you tells you to slow down and think this through.
"He's not being creepy, if that's what you're thinking." Undyne says. You fiddle with the hem of your shirt. "He's a pretty nice guy, and he's just curious about humans. He won't do anything to hurt you as long as you aren't mean to any of us. 'Kay?" She asks. You nod, but still can't help but feel creeped out. Undyne glances back at the table, then turns back towards you.
"Three o' clock. He's not looking at your head." She snickers at this. Oh shit.
You turn slowly to see the accusing skeleton. Papyrus and Alphys are deep in conversation, and Sans, sure enough, is staring. More specifically, he's staring straight at your chest. You can hear Undyne's laughter from beside you, even though you can tell she's desperately trying to suppress it.
What that fuck?! You can already feel your cheeks heating up. You risk a glance down. The shirt you're wearing is covering your entire chest. So why...? Your thoughts come to a dead stop as you come to a sudden realization.
He's not staring at your chest. He's studying your Skyrim necklace. This brings a flood of relief through you; you're glad you won't have to deal with some creepy, perverted skeleton. You turn back to Undyne.
"It's not my chest he's staring at, it's my necklace." You tell her. Undyne shakes her head.
"What does it mean?" She asks, investigating the dragon-shaped charm hanging from your neck. "It looks familiar."
"It's from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It's a video game." You respond, taking the charm between your fingers. It's made of smooth, hard steel, and is warm from your body heat. You got it in middle school when one of your friends persuaded you to trade one of your nerd pins for the necklace.
"I think he plays that, actually." Undyne states. You sneak a glance back at the table. Sans has returned his attention to the conversation there. You sigh in relief. He seems like a cool guy, and you're glad he's not a creep. You've had too many creeper incidents in your life, and you don't want to get on Sans' bad side. "He's into video games." Her smirk grows. "Looks like you two have something in common."
You roll your eyes. "I'm going to confront him. I'll be right back." You walk over to the table, and Undyne follows you.
"Hey Papyrus!" Undyne yells, waving her arms around excitedly, "I gotta show you something! C'mere!"
Papyrus nods, then says a few quick words to the other two monsters next to him. He stands up and runs to Undyne. You give her a thankful glance, and she gives you a thumbs-up. As sweet as Papyrus is, he seems like the type to get uncomfortable in these types of situations. You don't want to cause him more discomfort than he'll get in life. You slide into your seat again.
Sans starts staring again. You chuckle.
"My eyes are up here." You joke, taking your necklace into your fingers again.
You weren't aware of how quickly skeletons could change color. His face turns as blue as his jacket.
"oh...um...'m sorry. i wasn't...looking...i was lookin' at your necklace, i swear i was lookin' at that. oh stars, 'm really sorry, i didn't mean that...i wasn't...ugh!" He flips his hoodie onto his head and pulls the drawstrings closed. You laugh again.
"I know, I know. I was just kidding. It's cool. You...don't have to hide." You're on the verge of a full-blown laugh attack, but for the sake of this poor skeleton's dignity, you refrain from laughing at him. He doesn't say anything, but you know he listened to you. Maybe he just needs time? Should you reassure him again?
"S-Sans, it's okay. You can come o-out now." Alphys is faring no better than you, it seems, and she's hiding her smile behind her hands, snout lightly dusted with red. Maybe you should change the subject?
"Do you play Skyrim?" You ask him. He peeks out from under his hood.
"...yeah." He mumbles.
"I do, too. What level are you? I'm only level twenty-four. I know I'm a noob, but it's such a good series! I've just been a bit busy lately." You look over to see if Undyne and Papyrus have yet to return, but they're still in the corner of the store, chatting away. Undyne spots you, then gestures to Sans. Papyrus sees this, then comes over to check on Sans.
"fifty-eight." Sans responds, still locked away in Hoodlovania.
"BROTHER! WHAT IS WRONG?" Papyrus asks, striding over with Undyne close in tow.
"nothin', bro." Sans replies. Papyrus yanks off the littler skeleton's hoodie and peers a little closer. Sans is still blue, but it's a paler shade than it was before. He blatantly refuses to look you in the eye.
"OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING IS WRONG! YOU'RE AS BLUE AS AN ECHO FLOWER! IT'S VERY HARD TO FLUSTER YOU, YOU KNOW, SO SOMETHING'S EVIDENTLY DISTURBING YOU!" Papyrus says, concern evident on his faceplate. You can't help but wonder how their skull can be so malleable for something made of bone. It must be their magic.
You phone begins to vibrate in your purse, so you excuse yourself, dig it out, then you slide your pointer finger across the bottoma and it answer it. You stand up and go somewhere quiet.
"Hello?" You ask into the receiver, stepping away from the crowd.
"Hey, (L/N)." You recognize this voice as your coach's.
"Hey, Coach. What's up?" You ask, leaning against the wall of the restaurant.
"Nothing as of right now. But, we just got a new swimmer on the team. They're pretty important, too. They're eleven years old, and their mother wants them to get some extra coaching time in for them. This is their first season of swimming ever, and I want you to tutor them. You up for it?" He asks.
You pause. A new swimmer, huh? Eleven years old, somehow important, and, it sounds like, inexperienced. You bite your lip.
"Okay. I'll do it. When are they coming in?" You ask.
"Tomorrow morning at practice. Nine and up session." He replies. A few humans pass you, not even attempting to hide their staring. This scar is going to take some getting used to, you think.
"Okay. I'll be there. See you tomorrow." You say, ignoring the number of humans staring at you.
"Bye, (L/N)." He hangs up first. You turn your phone off, then you shove it back inside your purse. You check the time; it's nearing one-thirty. You should probably get home; after all, you have manga to read before your evening job.
You turn, then head back inside the diner. Undyne, Papyrus, Sans, and Alphys are at the table. You approach the four.
"Hey guys. I have to head home, but thank you for inviting me! It was fun." You smile, grab your hoodie from off of the chair. "It was great to meet you all!"
Undyne and Alphys smile. "Heh. No problem, punk! We're gonna invite you over for an Anime Night, so keep your eyes peeled!" Undyne commands.
"(Y-Y/N)," Alphys starts, "I wish we could h-have met under d-different circumstances, but nonetheless, it was g-great to meet you, too!"
You grin, then wave at the two skeletons. Sans makes eye contact with you, and you give him a smile. He can't seem to hold eye contact with you, but he gives you a little smile, too. Papyrus gives you an enthusiastic little wave.
"See you guys!" You say. You turn around, then you take a moment to pull your hoodie over your head, flipping your hood on. You head out to your beloved Jeep, hop in, then zoom out into the rainy afternoon. When you get home, you decide to start on your manga. Burgerpants must have have left, so you decide to call him up later on to tell him what happened earlier. You chuckle; today's been one hell of a day.
You're excited to see what the future brings.