[[ Brit here! Hope you guys like this chapter. And the return of another character! I'm already working on the next chapter, so look forward to it! I love you guys. Comments give me life, and I could really use the encouragement for my writing right now! ]]

Living with the skeleton brothers had, initially, been a bit of a daunting task. Not that she was necessarily strict to a routine herself, but Papyrus was always awake at six o'clock in the morning...every single morning. And the poor thing, try as he might, just couldn't seem to be quiet as he moved about in his morning routine. Maybe it was from years of living with his brother, who seemed to be able to sleep anytime, anywhere, but it often wound up with Lena waking up far earlier than she would have liked. But she could hardly bring herself to be upset with him for it, especially when he usually had breakfast ready for her by the time she left her first time, she had been surprised, and he looked the slightest bit embarrassed when she asked him why he'd gone to so much trouble.

"I AM AN AMAZING BROTHER! AND, AS AN AMAZING BROTHER, IT IS ONLY RIGHT FOR ME TO MAKE SURE MY BROTHER'S HUMAN IS WELL TAKEN CARE OF!" He'd stated it so proudly that she couldn't help but smile, even though a part of her felt so incredibly flustered at being referred to that way. As Sans' human. It was strange, but a part of her really, really liked being referred to that way...but she would never say such outloud.

So her morning began with her waking up to Papyrus and clattering pots or pans. She'd drag herself into the shower in the attached bathroom she had in her room, get dressed, and go out to have breakfast with Papyrus...and Sans, oddly enough. He was usually half-asleep at the table, but he always made sure to try and spend a little time with her in the morning. Such a small gesture wasn't lost on her, and she would be sure to give him a thankful kiss on the cheekbone before he had to leave. Sans had a few part-time jobs and Papyrus had gotten the job working at Muffet's cafe, so she would see them off every morning with a smile, waiting until the door was closed to allow her expression to falter slightly. The apartment was always clean, because that's all she really knew to do. With nobody else there, the space was surprisingly lonesome. Sure, she'd lived there by herself, but even in such a short amount of time, she'd grown accustomed to the shuffling and sounds of other people living there. The television stayed on, even though she rarely watched it; it was more for the noise than anything else.

That was why, after a week and a half, she had been so overly excited when she got a call back about a job. She had long since given up on looking for school-related work, and even though that was what she'd always wanted, she was just thrilled to have work again, even if it was at a convenience store in Tristin. "Dress casual," the owner had said, "and wear comfortable shoes, because you'll be on your feet most of the day." She'd excitedly agreed to do just that, and promised to show up early the next day.

So she found herself standing in front of her mirror, pulling her long auburn hair back into a messy bun as her eyes glanced over her reflection. It was already beginning to grow warmer, so she'd picked out her favorite blank tank top and an emerald green cardigan, along with her most comfortable pair of jeans. Even if it was just a convenience store, she still wanted to make a good impression. She'd always been told to 'dress for the job you want, not the job you have.'

When she left her bedroom she was surprised to find Papyrus and Sans already sitting at the table, talking quietly to themselves. Sans was the first to notice her presence in the room, and she tried not to blush as his eyelights widened when he saw her. "Mornin' babe," he rumbled sleepily, raising a hand in a small wave, which she easily returned. He could sense her excitement, because when she sat down and started eating quickly, he chuckled. "Eager to get to work?" She nodded, pausing to chew and swallow the bite of pancake she had in her mouth.

"Yeah, I am! It'll be so great to finally work again... I can stop being a freeloader." She felt him elbow her gently, a small grunt the only admonishment he gave, and Papyrus slammed a hand on the table top, making the dishes clatter lightly.

"I AM ALSO EXCITED FOR YOU, HUMAN! YOU WILL BE THE BEST CONVENIENCE STORE EMPLOYEE, OF THAT I AM CERTAIN!" She beamed at him and nodded. It was hard not to feel sure of yourself when Papyrus believed in you so much, she realized. It was probably one of her favorite things about him.

"I'll do my best! I was actually going to try and get there early..." She finished her plate as quickly as possible, leaning over to give Sans his kiss on the cheek and an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I'll see you guys later, though, okay?" They both waved her off, Papyrus with far more gusto and Sans with a light of admiration in his eyes that made her heart flutter within her chest. Today was going to be a good day, she could feel it! With a new start and a new job, what could possibly go wrong?

The shop wasn't quite as lively as she would have hoped for a first day, and she spent the first couple hours sitting behind the counter, waiting. She tried to be attentive, organizing and reorganizing the things behind the glass display case of the counter, cleaning the bathrooms, sweeping...twice. By the time she'd looked around and realized there wasn't anything for her to do, she leaned against the counter with a small sigh. Maybe tomorrow she'd bring a book to keep herself occupied during the slow hours.

Just as that thought crossed her mind, the sliding doors opened, and the small chime playing over the speakers told her that someone had walked in. She felt her heart sink a bit when she saw who it was.

"Oh..." Brushing a lock of her razor-straight hair aside, Lena found herself locking eyes with a familiar (and not necessarily happy) sight. "It's you."

"H-hey, Kathleen..." The ex-coworker looked her over, ice-blue eyes critical for a moment, and she could've sworn that she saw the faintest hints of a sneer pulling up on the other woman's pink-painted lips.

"Lena! Why, I hardly recognized you. You usually hide yourself away in a big bulky sweater." The words were said so sweetly that, if you weren't listening, you might confuse her words for flattery. The smile that accompanied them helped the illusion, but Lena knew better. "We've missed you at the school. Such a shame that you got let go..." she cooed, the sympathy in her voice so false that it made Lena struggle to keep up her neutral expression.

"Yeah..."

"Oh well, water under the bridge! So, have you managed to find any other teaching jobs?" The way it was asked made it clear that the blond knew something Lena didn't, and she had to swallow past the hard lump of shame in her throat to answer.

"Not yet, no..."

"What? Such a shame, such a shame..." There was a pause, and Kathleen narrowed her eyes slightly, leaning forward and lowering her voice as if they were talking about something secret. "You know, the rumor going around is that you were seen escorting a monster and that...well, forgive me, but that it took you home! A few of the girls in the office were gossiping, and I couldn't help but overhear..." The auburn haired woman frowned, eyes widening as she took in this information. "That couldn't be true, though! The Lena I knew would never compromise her career to fraternize with monsters! Would you believe it, but they said that you even moved to the monster's city!"

"I...did," Lena muttered bravely, her voice barely above a whisper. "I live in Taobh now."

"What?! Oh my goodness... I don't know why you would do such a thing, darling. You were always a brilliant person, a little out of sorts physically, but you were always very smart. I can't believe you'd willingly associate with creatures-"

"Is there something I can help you with?" Lena cut the other woman off, her jaw clenched slightly as she put on her most convincing smile. The blond's eyes narrowed a bit further, reminding her of a cat's after it's just caught a mouse, and her smile widened.

"Oh, just these!" She placed a diet bar and nutrition shake on the counter, scooting them toward the other woman. "I'm sure you've never heard of these, but they're amazing!" 'Again, assuming I don't know what diet products are...' Lena grabbed the things and rang her up, setting them not quite so gently into a plastic bag, sliding it across the counter.

"That'll be $7.83..." She took the extended card and paused before sliding it. "Debit or credit?" The rest of the transaction went that way, Lena silently fuming, Kathleen looking positively smug while her tone dripped with false pleasantries. As the blond took her bag and slid her credit card back into her purse, she sent her a sickeningly sweet smile.

"It's been great seeing you! I can't wait to tell the girls what you've been up to!" With that, she turned on her too-high heel and her foosteps clicked out the door. As soon as she drove away and out of sight, Lena groaned quietly, leaning her head against her arms on the counter. So much about what the other woman had said made her angry...but she didn't feel right to lash out. Everyone was entitled to their opinions...even if they were hurtful. The bell rang again and she quickly sat up, pulling on a smile as a small group walked in.

It was going to be a long day...

If there was one thing that Papyrus was certain of, it was that he was a great friend. He'd already been thinking of a special dinner to celebrate the human's first day at her new job when his brother approached him, asking if he could go and check on her during her break. He'd wanted to do it himself, naturally, but it was one of those days where all of his part-time jobs had called him in, so he had no time to. "Can I count on ya to do it, bro?" Sans had asked, and, starry-eyed and eager, Papyrus had naturally agreed.

"OF COURSE I CAN BE COUNTED ON! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS, GREATEST OF FRIENDS AND GREATEST OF BROTHERS!" he announced loudly to himself, speaking his thoughts by accident and startling a mother who was walking with her son. The little boy looked up at him with eyes wide and full of wonder, and Papyrus had stopped, prepared to greet him. But his mother, apparently not excited about talking to a monster, quickly pulled him away. 'Oh well! It is their loss!' he told himself, continuing his stride as he headed determinedly in the direction of his destination. The little convenience store came into view and he quickened his pace, a wide grin splitting his skull. He had to duck to get into the sliding doors, and a little chime greeted him, making his expression brighten.

The human was sat slumped behind the counter, chin resting on her folded arms, her eyes downcast and looking the exact opposite of excited about her new job. This was no good! He would have to cheer her up. "GREETINGS, HUMAN!" he announced, watching as she flinched slightly and sat up stiffly, eyes widening before she realized it was him.

"Oh, h-hey Papyrus!" The smile pulling upward at her lips was uncomfortable and forced. Papyrus could see these things fairly well, but he didn't comment on it. Instead, he took a chance to walk around the small store, looking over the things they were selling. He didn't notice any of the products, which told him plenty about the store's owner. No monster products probably also meant no monsters. He would have to keep an eye on that. "What are you doing here...?" she asked, clearly confused, and he chuckled, his gloved hands on his hips.

"I HAVE COME TO KEEP YOU COMPANY DURING YOUR BREAK HOUR, OBVIOUSLY!" He frowned softly, crossing his bony arms over his chestplate. "AND IT IS A GOOD THING I DID. YOU SEEM TO BE IN MUCH POORER SPIRITS THAN I HAD EXPECTED YOU TO BE." This made her smile falter the slightest bit, like a flickering flame, before it burned even brighter. Sighing, he carefully walked around the counter and sat on the hard floor, crossing his legs and resting his hands on his ankles. "IS YOUR DAY NOT GOING AS WELL AS YOU HAD ANTICIPATED?" She didn't answer, and he just waited, watching her unblinking as the false smile slowly began to slip off of her face.

"...Is it that obvious?"

"ONLY TO SOMEONE AS PERCEPTIVE AS THE GREAT PAPYRUS! NYEH HEH HEH!" His victorious laugh made her chuckle a bit, and she breathed out a sigh. "IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO TALK ABOUT IT, THAT IS FINE. JUST REMEMBER THAT I AM YOUR FRIEND, AND I ONLY WISH FOR YOU TO BE HAPPY." After a second's pause, he continued, his voice softer. "You are my brother's human, and when you are happy, he is happy. So I not only want you happy for your sake, but for his, as well." Her face flushed a light red right across her freckled cheekbones and nose as he referred to her as his brother's human, and he cocked his head in question.

"I-It's nothing... Thanks, Pappy." She smiled, much more genuinely this time, and though whatever had her down was still lingering on her mind, he was happy with that.

"YOU ARE MOST WELCOME! NOW, ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT THIS ODD CUSTOMER WE HAD IN THE CAFE TODAY!" He dove into his story, gesturing wildly with his hands as he talks, and though she was still bothered by what Kathleen had said to her, Lena just couldn't help but feel significantly cheered up by his presence. He always knew just what to say or do in order to make her feel better, it seemed. He really was the best friend. "...AND, WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT, BUT THIS MONSTER WAS A FLY MONSTER! HE WALKED IN BY MISTAKE, AND FROM THE LOOK ON HIS FACE, YOU WOULD THINK HE WAS ABOUT TO PASS OUT ON THE SPOT! NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH!" His jubilant laughter was infectious, and she found herself giggling along with his story.

After her lunch hour was up, she found herself being pulled into a bony hug behind the counter, which she readily returned. It took a lot for her to ignore the looks that a few people walking by and around the store were giving them, but she did it, because she wasn't about to let them affect how she interacted with her friends. Once the towering skeleton left the store, the room felt so much bigger, without him there making everything look small. It felt...lonely, and she suddenly found herself wishing she had asked him to stay a bit longer. 'This isn't Taobh, though... It would be a risk to ask him to stay too much longer.' Sighing, she was about to return to her seat on the small stool behind the counter when a buzzing from her pocket caught her attention. With a small frown, she pulled her phone out of her pocket, turning on the screen to see she had a message waiting for her.

| Sans: * is it just me that usually ends up thinking around this time that i'd really rather be at home in bed? |

Smiling a bit, she quickly tapped back a reply, only looking away from her phone to greet a new customer that came in. Judging from the dirty look they gave her, they weren't too thrilled to have to talk to her, either, so she didn't feel quite as bad when her attention returned to the texts.

| Lena: Just at home in general, to be honest. I forgot what it's like to work a 'service' job. |

| Sans: * yeah, i was wonderin how your day went. did paps stop by? |

| Lena: Yeah, bless his heart. I was really happy to see him, actually. He told me this story all about something funny that happened at Muffet's. |

| Sans: * yeah, my bro's pretty cool. he's super fly. |

A snort escaped her before she could cover it, and when she glanced up to check the store, she saw the customer leveling her with a glare over the top of one of the shelves.

| Lena: So fly. He's aerial great friend. His visit was the only highlight of my entire shift so far. |

| Sans: * good one, babe. and i can't wait to hear all about it when i get home. |

| Sans: * everything's alright there right? i know that you said the place was in tristin. |

| Lena: Don't worry so much about it. I'll be okay. |

| Sans: * babe. |

| Lena: It's fine! Just one of my old coworkers came in and said some stuff, and I've gotten a few dirty looks. Nothing I can't handle. I'm a big girl, Sans. |

She flinched at the double-meaning of her own words, calling herself a big girl (which, she couldn't lie, she was).

| Sans: * yer right, i know ya are, but i still don't like it. |

| Sans: * 's not right. |

| Lena: Right or not, it is what it is. They don't make me doubt my feelings for you guys at all. |

| Sans: * that's nice to hear, but that isn't why i don't like it necessarily. |

| Sans: * anyway, i gotta be frank with ya. i gotta bounce. |

| Lena: Your job at the hot dog stand? |

| Sans: * woah, how'd you know? you mustard read my mind! |

| Lena: No, it was your crappy puns. They were a dead giveaway. |

| Sans: * and here i thought you used magic. i feel like a real weenie now. |

| Lena: Sans... |

| Sans: * as much as i relish talkin' to ya, i'm afraid i have to jet to work if i'm gonna ketchup in time. |

|Lena: You use shortcuts and you know it! But alright. I'll see you later tonight. |

| Sans: * sounds good. |

There was a moment where she sat, staring at her phone, heart fluttering as she waited. The ellipses periodically showed up to show that he was typing something, but then it disappeared, meaning he'd deleted what he'd written. It made her curious, wondering what he'd wanted to say, but changed his mind. After a few minutes of this, she breathed a quiet sigh through her nose.

| Lena: Alright. I love you, bonehead. 3 |

For a few seconds, there was no reply, the ellipses floating on the bottom of her screen, taunting her as he typed and erased, typed and erased something, though she'd never know what.

| Sans: * you too babe. Later. |

A smile pulled at her lips and she sighed, pulling her phone to rest against her chest, screen brushing against her sternum. "Um, you done? Because I'd like to pay sometime this year..." Her eyes snapped up to meet the impatient grey eyes of a middle-aged man, a thick brow quirked over the rims of his black glasses. She felt her face flush as she set her phone down on the counter, nodding.

"Sorry about that!" A small basket full of items was shoved across the counter at her, and the roughness of it made her flinch just a bit. "D-did you find everything okay?" She asked, trying to make conversation, but the man was having none of it. His lips were a thin, flat line as his arms crossed tightly over his chest, hands gripping at his own forearms.

"It was fine," he said shortly, and she wanted so badly to try and crack a joke to lighten the mood, but figured it wouldn't be received well. Once she got him rung up and his items paid for, she carefully put them into a plastic bag and held it out for him to take. He did, snatching it away and looping his wrist through the handles, his cold grey eyes roaming over her judgmentally. "...Monster whore," he grumbled, ignoring her shocked expression as he strode out of the store.

'...What just...?' She shook her head slightly, almost feeling dazed by it all, staring at the doorway he'd just left through. Whatever on earth had prompted a complete stranger to be so cruel to her, she didn't know...but she knew that she was starting to get tired of people speaking about her loved ones that way. Her teeth grit together quietly as she clenched her jaw, breathing a slow sigh out through her nose.

By the time that her shift was over and her replacement finally decided to show, she was already thinking about being at home, in her bed, or taking a shower. Maybe, she wondered, she could even find a movie that both brothers would fall in love with, and they could watch it together on the couch. Any excuse to lay close to her boyfriend and watch movies with her friend. She wasn't sure why, but she was tired. The lethargy hadn't faded since morning, and she wanted to just fall asleep and not wake up for a few weeks. And standing for so long had done a number on her. She could feel the muscles in her lower back and abdomen cramping already.

'The first day's always rough!' she told herself, forcing a bit of a smile as she got behind the wheel of her SUV, pulling out of her parking space and out onto the road. 'Tomorrow is sure to be a better day...'