[[ Brit here! And I wanted to take the time to thank you all for reading thus far. It means the world to me to see your comments, and it inspires and encourages me to continue writing for you. I love you guys so much! 3 Now, I got this chapter done today, and I was going to wait to post it, but I just couldn't wait. I'm so eager to see your reactions, so please, PLEASE, leave me a comment! PM me! Something! Let me know! I'm dying to know how it makes you feel! Now, prepare for more feels. ;) Enjoy! ]]

It was an unseasonably warm day as Lena returned from her short walk to the convenience store, bags looped around her wrists holding a variety of different snacks. She'd tried to grab as many monster brands as she could find, filling her shopping basket with sodas and chips and candy. She'd even made an extra trip, picking up a dozen cinnamon bunnies because she remembered how much Frisk liked them. A thought of having a few herself had crossed her mind but, when she remembered how she'd had to squeeze into her jeans, bitterly decided to leave the snacks for Papyrus and Frisk. 'And Sans...' she thought, feeling a small ache in her chest, but she pushed past it. It wouldn't do any good to act all heartbroken tonight. She didn't want to lose a good friend. It was with those thoughts that she paused in the store, her eyes widening slightly as she spied an industrial-sized bottle of ketchup, complete with a push pump on top. She'd never spent so much on a single condiment in one store trip.

Once she made it back to her apartment, she struggled up the stairs with the heavy bags, grunting slightly and pausing once she reached the top step to lean against the wall. She struggled to lift her arm enough to reach her apartment door, arm trembling under the weight of the bags and under the exertion she put forward. She'd nearly made it, but her hand slipped over it, unable to grasp it. Sticking her tongue out slightly, she tried again, only to slip again. Sighing, she stepped back, prepared to set the bags down, when they suddenly felt much lighter. Taking the opportunity, she quickly reached and opened her apartment door, shoving it open and stepping in. She glanced down and felt a funny little flutter in her stomach as she noticed the faint blue aura surrounding the bags. 'Sans...?'

"HUMAN, THERE YOU ARE! ALLOW ME TO ASSIST YOU WITH THOSE!" She was pulled from her thoughts when Papyrus' voice came from behind her, so suddenly that she jumped, and he quickly took the bags of of her arms. She rubbed her sore wrists, mumbling a grateful 'thank you' before turning to look out her door? No one was there. The faint smell of ozone lingered in the air, but she decided to ignore it. It wouldn't do to have her suddenly imagining things.

Just inside his bedroom door, Sans sighed, raising a hand to rub at his eyesockets wearily. He had it bad.

"Can I have another soda?" A flurry of hand movements caught Lena's eye and she chuckled faintly, giving a small nod and watching as Frisk hopped up from the couch to run into the kitchen. They came back with an open bottle, already greedily drinking from it, and she laughed.

"Hey, careful now. You don't want an upset tummy!" she warned, ignoring the 'yes ma'am' she got in response as the sarcasm it was. Papyrus was sitting cross-legged on the couch next to her, practically squishing her into the couch, but she couldn't bring herself to mind it much. Papyrus had been far more affectionate than usual, and it helped the ache hurt just a little bit less. "Papy, do you need more milk?" she asked, glancing over at him and seeing his cup, once again, empty.

"IF IT IS NOT TOO MUCH TROUBLE, YES!" he exclaimed. He sounded far too eager for just a glass of milk, and his smile was stretched just a little too wide. Raising a brow, she took his glass and pushed herself up from the couch, going into the kitchen to refill it. "BROTHER, DO NOT BALANCE POPATO CHISPS ON THE HUMAN'S HEAD!"

"Aw geez, bro, now I feel just crummy," Sans drawled, chuckling at his brother's screech of discontent. "No need to get salty bro-"

"THAT IS ENOUGH OF THAT!" Lena giggled softly to herself as she tipped the gallon of milk, pouring a hefty amount into the cup before recapping it and putting it back into the fridge. She had just managed to return to the living room when Papyrus suddenly scooted over to the far side of the couch, opposite of the side Sans was on. Leaving only room for her to sit in the middle, between him and Sans. "I AM RELINQUISHING YOUR 'SITTING BY PAPYRUS' RIGHTS UNTIL I HAVE FORGIVEN YOU FOR YOUR AWFUL PUNS." A bead of sweat began to gather on Sans' skull but he shrugged, giving a tense chuckle. Papyrus took his glass from the human woman and pulled her to sit between them, and was it just her, or did he look pleased with himself?

"Can we watch another movie now?" Frisk suddenly asked, and Papyrus nodded, spouting something about the wonders of Disney and telling the child to pick out another. They picked out Tarzan, a classic, as Lena commented, and she waited for Papyrus to get up to put the disk in...but he didn't. In fact, he seemed to be fully intent on remaining in his spot. Frisk put the disk in and tossed the remote to Papyrus with a small wink, who gave a wink in return, pressing 'play'.

Of course he'd had to pick Tarzan. Sans next to her scooted a little closer to his arm of the couch before leaning back, relaxing, and she tried not to feel hurt by the movement, pressing past it to grab a bag of popato chisps (wow, that was weird to say) for herself. She popped the bag open and grabbed a handful without thinking, before catching herself, releasing them and picking up only one to put in her mouth.

"Hey, kid, gimme one of those chips," Sans mumbled, reaching for the ones stacked on the child's head, but they darted away from him, chips remarkably remaining balanced on their head. He frowned slightly, raising a browbone in question. Frisk stuck their tongue out at him and scooted to sit in front of Papyrus. "'kay then..." Looking down at her bag, she hesitantly held it out to Sans, keeping her eyes firmly focused on the television. There was a long moment where he didn't move, and she felt stupid suddenly, holding a bag of chips out for someone who didn't want them. 'Not from me...' Her heart ached in her chest, but she was pulled from her thoughts when a hand suddenly reached into the bag. She heard a small mumbled 'thanks' and she smiled, setting the bag between them on the couch so they could reach easier.

The movie carried on, Papyrus and Frisk both completely entranced by the movie. Papyrus started trying to sing along, even though he didn't know the words, and Frisk shushed him with a frown. (There may or may not have been a pouting 'nyeh' that followed it.) Then the questions started.

"I DO NOT UNDERSTAND, HUMAN. WHY IS IT SUCH A BIG DEAL THAT THE TARZAN HUMAN SPENDS TIME WITH THE JANE HUMAN AND HER WRINKLY FATHER?" he asked loudly, and Frisk rolled their eyes and gave a breathy huff as they settled back against the couch, apparently accepting the fact that hearing all of the movie was out of the question.

"Well, he was raised by the apes, and, to apes, humans are dangerous... So he's not supposed to want to be around her."

"BUT WHY? THAT SEEMS AWFULLY SILLY. WHO CARES IF SHE IS HUMAN?" Lena could faintly feel Sans stiffen from the other side of the couch, but when she looked over, he looked as if he'd fallen asleep.

"Well... I don't know," she admitted. "He doesn't care that she's human, but...he's trying to protect her, and his family..."

"HMMM... THAT SOUNDS AWFULLY SELFISH TO ME!" he said nonchalantly, but his eyes were glancing over at his brother, a bit of a smirk pulling up at the corners of his mouth as he saw Sans' browbone tick in irritation. "IF HE LIKES THE HUMAN JANE, THEN THE TARZAN HUMAN SHOULD JUST SAY SO AND NOT BE DIFFICULT!" Why did this suddenly seem to her like it wasn't so much about the movie anymore? She gave a nervous laugh and shrugged her shoulders, to which Papyrus gave a small hum. It wasn't really the company so much as the small vibe of passive-aggression in the air that started making her feel nervous. She reached a hand into the bag of chips, only to feel something warm and smooth against her fingertips. Sans ripped his hand out of the bag as if he'd just touched fire, sending chips flying everywhere.

"Ah..." She looked over at him, eyes widened in surprise. He was very pointedly not looking at her, and god, it hurt. Pulling a smile onto her face, she forced out a little laugh and folded her hands in her lap. "Sorry about that..." He frowned, pulling his hood up to hide his face, and she released a silent breath.

Right. Was this just how things were going to be from now on...? The heaviness in her chest twisted into something painful, and her smile widened as she stared at the television, eyes open and focused toward it without really seeing it.

After a while, Frisk and Papyrus both began to doze off, and Lena grabbed the remote from them and made the judicial decision that it was bedtime. They both whined and seemed very adamant to staying up with them, but she'd put her hands on her hips, giving them her best 'mom look', and they relented. After they'd gotten changed into their pajamas (Papyrus wearing a pair of footie jammies with bones printed on them, adorable), the taller skeleton strode over to her and gave her a big hug, planting another skeleton-kiss against the top of her head. His smile was bright but not entirely innocent as he followed Frisk into one of the guest rooms. As the door closed, she suddenly felt like she was out of place in her own home.

"Well, I'm going to bed... Goodnight." She headed into her room and only just barely caught the muttered 'goodnight' from Sans behind her. Her door closed and she sighed, letting her head fall slightly as she gripped tightly at the hem of her shirt. 'This is just how things are gonna be from now on, I guess...' She changed into a nightgown and crawled into bed, closing her eyes tightly and praying for a dreamless sleep.

Her door closed, and Sans sighed heavily, his eyesockets prying open as another wave of pain crashed over his soul. He shouldn't have come. If Papyrus hadn't been acting so strangely and insisted, he wouldn't have.

"YOU ARE COMING TO THE HUMAN'S SLEEPOVER TONIGHT! YOU HAVE BEEN AVOIDING ME ENOUGH AS OF LATE, I THINK, AND I WANT TO SPEND TIME WITH MY BROTHER."

That had hurt. A lot. It wasn't as if the words weren't true, though, which only made him feel worse. But then, as the night had progressed, he'd started to see what Papyrus was actually doing. Stealing her spot so she had to sit next to him; Frisk picking the movie they did; him giving her that kiss on the head. His chest ached as he remembered how ridiculously jealous he'd felt. But he wasn't, because he had nothing to be jealous of. It wasn't like she belonged to him. He was just being foolish.

Closing his eyes tightly, he took in a deep, slow breath, trying to calm the chaos in his soul. Sleep... Maybe going to sleep would help. Get away from the thoughts and the feelings and just...drift away.

Yeah...that sounded like a good idea...

"...ans?"

"...Sans?"

"Sans! Wake up!"

His eyes snapped open and he saw Lena, hovering over his bedside, a smile on her face. A smile like the one she used to have. He felt his soul flutter in his chest and he couldn't help but return it. "Sans, you bonehead, you've slept through breakfast! How can you sleep so much?"

"Heh...Sorry. Guess I'm so good at it, I can even do it with my eyes closed." She giggled and rolled her eyes at him, her smile widening.

"Well, come on. I've gone ahead and made lunch, so you might as well get up and eat." She stood and held a hand out to him, offering to help him up. He reached up to take her hand, but instead gave a quick tug on her arm, sending her falling down onto the bed next to him. Her eyes widened in surprise before she laughed, throwing her arms around his neck as his slid around her waist. "Whatever happened to eating lunch, Sans? You can't stay in bed all day..." He leaned forward and nuzzled against her neck, her shoulder, fingers digging into her waist, and she made a small noise of question. "Sans?"

"Just...let me have this, for right now..." She huffed a sigh and rolled her eyes but relented, allowing him to hold her. After a few moments, there was a knock on the door, and Sans groaned as she tried to pull away. "It's not important..." he insisted, but she shook her head, getting up.

"I'll just be a minute, whiny-bones! Be right back~" She blew him a kiss and closed her bedroom door- or was it his bedroom door? He couldn't tell. The room was familiar, but also not. It was so...non-descript, that he knew it was a dream. It had to have been. Things like this only ever happened in his dreams, afterall. Where they could be together and happy, and she was safe, and he wasn't constantly fucking things up. Hopefully he wouldn't wake up before she got back.

...Except that, as the minutes dragged by, she didn't come back. Frowning, he called out for her, and he heard shuffling outside the door. He pushed himself into a sitting position, about to get up to go look for her, when the door opened, and Lena re-entered, smiling.

"Sorry about that, you were right. It wasn't important," she said, her grin widening, and he felt himself settle as she returned to bed, snuggling up against his side. He draped his arm around her and pulled her close, sighing contentedly. They stayed that way for a good long while, and Sans almost dozed off (can you sleep in a dream?) when sudden movement from beside him shook him awake. She'd climbed atop him, her leg thrown over his pelvis so she was straddling him, smiling, eyes half-lidded in an expression that was difficult to place. His face flushed a deep blue and he chuckled, hands hovering over her thighs and waist as he tried to think of where to place them.

"What's up...? Somethin' eatin' at ya?"

"Oh...yes...you could say that..." she mumbled softly, eyes narrowing and grin widening. "Perhaps you'd like to take a stab at it?" The gleam of a knife came from behind her back, and Sans narrowly managed to roll out from under her in time to avoid the blow. The blade sunk deep into the mattress, and she sighed. Inside his chest his soul hammered with fear, confusion, betrayal.

"Lena, what the fuck?! What're you doing?!" he shouted, his one, glowing blue eyelight flickering between her face and the knife. Her lips spread into a cruel grin, and it was only in that moment that he realized her eyes. Emeralds were not supposed to turn to rubies, not in his dreams. Only in his nightmares.

"Are you really surprised, smiley trash-bag? I told you! The barrier is broken! What's to stop me from finding you~?" she- no, they asked, giggling as they watched him back away, eyesockets wide with fear.

"No... No no no no no nonono..."

"You can deny it all you want. Face it! Everyone you love will be hurt eventually, so long as you are around them, plaguing them with your worthless existance." The words cut deeper than any knife, and he flinched physically from their blow. "All you do is taint and destroy the things you touch. Even her! Her soul was so weak from your betrayal that I was able to take over her so easily!"

"This... This is a nightmare. This isn't real! She's not!"

"When will you learn, you idiot?" Chara/Lena approached, and he found his body frozen, unable to move. The knife was raised over their head, the face he so loved morphing into a grotesque expression of blood lust, evil, cruel, dark. "Your existance is a nightmare. Now... DIE!"

Lena stared up at her ceiling, blinking in confusion for a moment. She was awake. Why was she awake? She turned onto her side, curling up and pulling her knees to her chest as she clung to her pillow, breathing out a sigh. It wasn't anything new. She'd been having trouble sleeping a lot lately...not that she ever told anyone. Toriel had noticed, and Papyrus had been more pushy towards her taking naps (which was strange for him), but it was just something that she had to deal with. Most nights, it was because she woke up from a dream about a certain someone, and she would lie awake for hours, thinking.

Thinking was the worst, particularly during the midnight hours.

A soft noise caught her attention and she glanced towards the door, seeing a blue and yellow light flickering underneath the gap of the door. 'Maybe Sans forgot to turn the television off...' she wondered, throwing the blankets off of herself and slipping off of her bed, padding quietly across her carpet to open her door. The living room was dark, save for the flickering light, which wasn't coming from the TV, but from...the guest room? She frowned, pausing as she debated between going back to bed or not, when a small noise caught her attention.

"No..."

'Sans..?' Feeling her chest clench nervously, she stepped closer to the door, raising a hand to knock, when a sound she'd never heard before startled her. A scream, piercing and loud, cut through the air like a knife, and she flinched away from the door. That made up her mind for her. She pushed the door open and stumbled into the guest bedroom, and her eyes widened at what she saw. Sans was thrashing against the mattress, blankets all a tangled mess, sweat soaking through every bit of clothing he had on. His left eye, though closed, was emitting a bright blue and gold light, flashing quickly between the two, and it was almost too much for her to even look at. It hurt her eyes, and she squinted against it. His spine was arched so far off the bed that she thought it would break, and his fingers tore through the blankets as he grabbed at something, anything to hold onto. "Sans!" She rushed forward, hovering just at his side, unsure of what to do. Steeling herself, she reached out and shook his shoulder, but he gave no reaction. He jerked away from her hands, and his teeth ground together so roughly as he groaned out in such pain that it sounded like they would crack. She climbed onto the bed beside him and grabbed his shoulders, giving him a rough shake, desperate to wake him. "Sans!"

His eyes shot open, then they narrowed, and the last thing she saw was a flash of blue. She felt her soul being tugged violently from her chest, then she found herself flying towards the furthest wall. She crashed into it, the drywall cracking, and she collapsed into a heap against the dresser, completely limp.

"You think you can hurt them? Well think again," he growled, such a deep, terrifying sound that she trembled, struggling to lift her head to look at him. His body was surrounded by an ethereal blue glow, his mouth opened as he snarled. Her soul fell to the ground, and her body quickly followed. It was as if the gravity was increased suddenly, sending her forcibly to the ground. Her cheek ground against the carpet and her eyes watered from the pain. And the fear...but it wasn't for herself. No, she was worried about him, waking up and realizing what he was doing. She had to wake him up.

"S-Sans...!" Her voice was difficult to grasp, air pulled more sluggishly into her lungs from the pressure being exerted upon her body. "P-please... Sans!" He stiffened, as if an electric current had just been run through his body, and for a long while he stood there, frozen. The magic slowly began to lessen until, finally, he opened his eyes. The blue and gold iris in his left eye snapped out of existance, and the familiar soft white eyelights reappeared, and they widened as he looked at her. The pressure immediately lifted, and she gasped, pulling in a breath.

"Oh f-fuck... Lena, I... Sh-shit..." He looked terrified, and so, so remorseful. He was staring not at her, but at the ground right in front of her, and when her eyes followed his, she could see why. Her soul was still laying there, outside of her body, a deep blue color instead of its usual green. He stumbled forward, reaching out for her, but then jerked back, as if afraid to touch her. "I-I didn't mean it-" She nodded and struggled to sit up, leaning against the dresser she'd very nearly toppled over. Her back screamed in pain against the action, but she ignored it. He looked unsure of what to do, torn between running and grabbing her.

"BROTHER, WHAT IS THE MATTER-?!" Papyrus suddenly stormed into the room and, when he saw the state the two of them were in, his eyesockets widened. Sans looked up at him desperately.

"I-It was an accident, bro. I-I had a nightmare, a-and-"

"WELL?" Sans blinked, startled at being interrupted, and confused. "YOU DROPPED IT, SANS," Papyrus said shortly, pointing at the human's soul, a suddenly stern expression on his face. "YOU DROPPED IT, SO PICK IT UP." Sans flinched, glancing back at Lena and her fallen soul, and he closed his eyes tightly, shoulders shaking. "PICK. IT. UP." The tone of voice was so authoritative, it was surprising coming from him; Lena tried to open her mouth to say it was okay, but she couldn't. With that said, Papyrus turned on the heel of his footie pajamas and closed the door behind him, and they could hear him return to the room he shared with Frisk.

"I'm...I'm sorry," the shorter skeleton mumbled, browbones furrowed deeply and his usual smile turned down into a grimace. "This...heh. This is the kinda shit I'm tryin' to protect you from... I'm nothin' but trouble." After a moment, he reached his trembling hands out, tentatively, scooping up the soul in his hands. His body jerked violently and he held onto it tightly as a ragged breath was torn from his nonexistant lungs.

He really was an idiot, wasn't he?

Even battered, even abandoned, brushed off, she still had so much love in her soul. Even if there was more pain on the surface than he remembered before, even if it was dimmer, even if it was blue now, he could feel it. The amount of warmth and comfort that reached out from the depths of her soul, trying to reach his own. He could feel how she felt, all of those times he avoided her, all those times he ignored her. He could feel her pain, but even in that, there was love. 'I don't deserve this.' He pulled the soul close to his chest, cradling it against his rib cage, and it felt so right. The amount of longing, of painful yearning that had filled his soul, felt lessened like this. By being around her, he felt better. He had hurt her so many times trying to keep her safe from something that she didn't need protection from in the first place.

"I'm a f-fucking idiot," he muttered, voice breaking halfway through, and he didn't realize that he was crying until he felt her hands reaching out to wipe at his cheekbones.

"Bonehead..." she murmured, and the burst of warmth he felt from her soul made him release a shuddery sigh, one that tried to turn into a laugh in the middle. "I'm...I'm sorry-"

"Don't," he said suddenly, holding her soul close with one hand while he reached forward with the other, looping his arm around her neck and pulling her into him. He could feel her surprise from the way her soul shuddered a little in his palm, but then there was more warmth, and everything felt okay the moment she gripped at his sweat-soaked shirt, trying to pull herself even closer. "...Did ya mean what you said before?" His voice was suddenly so small and hesitant, and even though he knew the answer, he needed to hear it. She rested her forehead against his cervical vertebrae and tightened her grip on him, fingers digging into his ribs slightly.

"I did. I... I care a lot about you, Sans." A soul fluttered, and he couldn't tell if it was hers or his own, or both. She seemed like she was crying, and maybe it was because of the fact that he was touching her soul, but it felt like more than that.

"...Knock knock." She made a small, confused sound, but he said nothing.

"Who's there?"

"Olive."

"...Olive who?"

He pulled her back and gently touched his teeth to her lips in the closest thing to a kiss he could manage. "...Olive you."

A burst of green and gold light spread out from her soul, and it pressed more earnestly against his chest, reaching out. His own soul was trying to do the same, but he kept it in check as he gently urged her soul to return to her body. It moved into her chest until it disappeared from view, the light fading to a soft green glow before vanishing completely, leaving the room in darkness.

"Was that...a kiss?" came the innocent question, and his cheekbones suddenly burned with a light blue glow. He gave a shrug of his shoulders, releasing his hold on her and instead reaching to grab her hand.

"Don't got lips. Sorry, that's the best I got..." She gave his hand a small squeeze and leaned forward to press another kiss to his cheek, and the glow there brightened the slightest bit.

"It was perfect." He chuckled awkwardly, raising his free hand to rub the tears from his eyesockets. She was giving him the warmest smile he'd ever seen, and his soul fluttered madly in his chest as he was compelled to return it.

"YOU HAD TO RUIN IT WITH A PUN. SANS, I AM DISAPPOINTED IN YOU." The two stiffened as Papyrus opened the door, poking his skull in and giving Sans a disapproving look. The older brother blushed more brightly, looking torn between telling him to get out and trying to play it cool.

"Aw, c'mon bro, I was just tryin' to be affectpunate-"

"YOU CANNOT JUST INSERT THE WORD 'PUN' INTO THE MIDDLE OF ANOTHER WORD! THAT IS NOT A JOKE! THAT IS STUPID!" A snort broke the banter between the two, and the skeleton brothers turned to look at Lena, who was holding her sides and laughing. The smile on her face was so untied, so unfiltered, and the happiness radiating from her soul in light green waves was as gentle and bright as the ocean waves. Sans found himself staring, and Papyrus took the opportunity to slip out of the room again.

"And when her smile came back,
And I didn't feel half as horrible
She gave me a heart attack
Because she looked so adorable..."

-Sunburn, by Owl City

Sans was never very good at green magic, but Papyrus had gone back to bed, apparently, and so he sat there, struggling to get a grasp on the healing magic he very rarely ever had the practice to use. Lena was laid spread out on her stomach on his newly changed sheets, and as he pulled her shirt up the slightest bit to look at her back, he hissed. There were already angry-looking purple and red bruises forming underneath her skin. His eyelights faded into darkness and he gripped at the blanket, staring at it and feeling his soul ache with guilt. 'All I did was hurt her... Fuck. Is this gonna happen again? What if-' His thoughts were put to a stop when she reached back and laid a hand on his, and it immediately loosened its grip, relaxing.

"It's okay," she said softly, and he sighed, leaning down and pressing an apologetic skeleton kiss to her lower back. She flinched slightly from it and buried her face in the blankets, and he pulled away immediately, afraid he'd hurt her again.

"Alright, I'm not the greatest with healing magic...so, sorry if I suck," he grumbled, holding his hands out over her back, hovering just above it.

"Hey, you haven't even tried yet. Hoover you to say you suck?" He snorted and felt a smile creep up on his face. How was she able to soothe him so easily? He carefully placed his hands on her back, and she arched her back slightly, making a small sound of protest. "Your hands are cold." Chuckling, he closed his eyes and tried to focus on his magic.

"Sorry, babe, but I'm sure it won't chill ya." The use of the nickname made her freckled cheeks flush a light red, and she turned her neck to glance back at him, blinking. He seemed to then realize what he said, too, as a light blue flush appeared just over his cheekbones. "Lay still, 'm havin' to concentrate a lot to do this." She nodded and laid back down, and he released a slow breath. For a few moments, there was nothing, and he started to feel frustrated by his lack of control over green magic. But then he felt her soul reaching out to him, calling out to him, and suddenly his hands began to glow a faint green. The bruises slowly began to fade in color, and he could tell it was working because of the way she relaxed into the mattress. "That should do it. How do you feel...?" he asked, feeling a small spike of guilt when she winced as she turned over to sit up.

"Just a little sore. I'll be okay, though." He stared down at his hands, frowning slightly, and she reached out to grasp his cheeks, turning his head up to look at her. "Okay? I already forgave you, Sans. It's okay." He drew in a short breath and grinned, leaning forward and hesitantly wrapping his arms around her in a more proper hug.

"Thanks..." She leaned into him, and stars, the way his soul soared when she did. He wondered why he ever tried to deny himself this.

"So...are you okay?" she asked hesitantly, and he was confused for a moment, before he remembered the thing that had caused the whole ordeal. The look on his face must have told her something, because she pulled away and gently grasped his hand. "Do you wanna talk about it..?" He grunted quietly, shaking his head.

"Nah, not really... Just wanna go back to sleep, actually," he said, mid-yawn, and she blinked in surprise as his jaw opened comically wide as he did so. "You should probably go to sleep, too."

"Um..." He raised a browbone at her, questioning. "Can...I sleep in here?" she asked shyly, subconsciously squeezing his hand. His eyesockets widened and he glanced away from her, raising his free hand to scratch at the back of his skull.

"I mean...if you want?" Her smile was all the answer he needed, and she immediately burrowed beneath the blankets, poking her head out, and he couldn't help but chuckle. His human was the most adorable. He climbed under after her, laying awkwardly on his side and staring at her for a moment as she tried to get comfortable. She looked up at him and, shyly, he held his arms open. She immediately scooted closer as he tucked one arm under the pillow beneath their heads, his other arm draping across her waist over the blankets.

"Goodnight, bonehead." She nuzzled her forehead against his sternum and his face practically glowed, chuckling as he pulled her a little bit closer.

"... G'night, babe."

[[ AND THERE YOU HAVE IT! I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Now the fun shall commence. I've been squirming and so eager to write the two of them being affectionate and adorable. The fluff is coming. Prepare yourselves to be buried in it. Ahhhhhh 3 Love you guys! ]]

Hey! You! Yes, you! If you like this fic, you should follow it on Tumblr! You'll get updates about chapter dates, fanart, and sooooo much more!