Prompt: Undyne with "not just a cold" - written for the Bad Things Happen bingo on Tumblr
'Sick days' aren't in Undyne's vocabulary. She knows because she checked twice.
So she ignored the persistent throbbing in her head when she woke up that morning, and when the world starts spinning she ignores that even harder.
"I don't think-" Papyrus starts, and she braces one hand against his shoulder, partly to stop him from finishing his sentence and partly because if she doesn't she might keel over.
"Good. You're not here for thinking. You're here for cooking! And as we well established, that requires minimal thought and maximum resolve."
He nods but doesn't stop squinting at her suspiciously and Undyne sighs, transferring her hand from his shoulder to the counter instead. The smell of the food is making her sick, something tight that crawls up her chest and settles at the back of her throat.
It tastes like bile.
"How about you do it alone this time and I'll supervise?" she says, shoving the vegetables over to him and Papyrus squints for a moment more, before taking on his new task with gusto. She watches him quite literally attack the ingredients with a sigh, ignoring the way it splatters all over the floor and walls.
Every sound seems amplified inside her skull, bouncing around unpleasantly. Her entire body is leaning against the counter now.
Papyrus stops.
"Undyne..." he says, and she hates it because it sounds like his 'I'm trying to be patient while dealing with a stubborn fool' voice. He uses it quite often around her. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'm fine," she lies. Despite there being two Papyri now, both looking extremely skeptical. She blinks until he stops being doubled. "Perfectly spectacular."
Then the world does a weird thing where it tips sideways, giving gravity the good ol' middle finger it seems. Except it's her that is tipping and the floor isn't stagnant anymore. It rushes up to meet her with a sickening thud before everything goes black.
She wakes up.
Of course, it would have been too much to ask to die right then and there, except for slowly expiring of humiliation like she now will be forced to.
The world never did Undyne any favors.
The lights are too bright, her head aches as if the entire Underground collapsed on top of it, so she pulls the blanket up over her face instead.
Papyrus laughs.
If she had the energy Undyne would love to throttle him, but alas. She'll have to put it on her to-do list for later.
"Please tell me you haven't called her."
Because that would be too much to bear. She might just have to faint all over again.
Papyrus pulls away the blanket gently and his face is soft, like he takes pity on her situation. Just not enough to put her out of her misery.
"Of course I did. She was very worried, you know."
Undyne bolts upright then regrets it immediately when the ache shoots down the back of her neck, making her hunch over miserably.
"Papyrus, as soon as I'm able to move again I am going to murder you."
"I know."
She sighs, lies back down because there really is nothing else to do but give in to what is obviously inevitably going to happen. At least it's going to be the cutest girl in the Underground fussing over her, which will make this slightly more tolerable.
"Tell me you at least told her I blacked out while doing something incredibly cool. Like fighting a hurricane or something."
"I told her the truth," Papyrus says.
Undyne throws him a look, rolling her eyes. "Of all times."
He looks mildly offended, but is interrupted by a knock on the door. They stare at each other a moment longer and then he shakes his head, getting up to answer while Undyne burrows deeper beneath the blankets, resigning to her at-least-very-adorable fate.
Tumblr: sharada-n
