"Call him."

That's what the text message from Sans said. It had been sitting unanswered on her phone for five hours now. Toriel hadn't known what to say. She didn't know why Sans was pushing her to make some kind of contact with Asgore. Most of their conversations were fun and lighthearted. They'd make jokes, talk about their day, discuss when they would have dinner together again, but then, out of nowhere, Sans would get oddly serious and start talking about Asgore and asking her what she was going to do.

After staring at the phone screen for twenty minutes, she had set it on the side table next to her cozy green armchair and tried to distract herself with a book. She'd very much wanted to read 72 More Uses for Snails (after all, one could never have too many different ways to use snails), but no matter how many times her eyes read and reread the second fact's passage, she just couldn't focus on it. Her mind was on other things, particularly the drama that had suddenly entered her life.

Two weeks had passed since her "date" with Asgore, and she still hadn't deciphered her emotions. At first, she thought the answer would come to her, so she returned to her everyday life. She'd wake up in the morning and get ready for the day by getting dressed and cooking breakfast while Frisk got dressed. Once they were ready to go, they'd walk to the elementary school, where Frisk would go to class for the day and Toriel would teach a lively bunch of students. At the end of the school day, she would walk home with Frisk. They would often talk about their day while Frisk did homework and she cooked dinner. After a delicious meal, they'd read together in the living room, and then they'd retire to bed. It was easy to get lost in her everyday routine, a simple but enjoyable way of life, but eventually, she realized that her problems weren't going answer themselves. As if that wasn't bad enough, Sans began asking questions.

A ding from her phone pulled Toriel from her thoughts. With a sigh, she closed her book and set it on her lap. It didn't appear that she would get any reading done today after all. She reached for her discarded phone and opened the new text message. She wasn't surprised in the least to see it was from Sans. Apparently he'd finally realized she wasn't answering him, so he sent the message again. "Call him."

Frowning, she tapped on the phone's screen, typing out her response and sending it as soon as it was finished. "I have nothing to say to him."

She'd barely set her phone down on the table again when she heard a knock at the door. "Who could that be?" she wondered aloud, setting her book on the table next to her phone and standing up from her chair. She wasn't expecting anyone, after all.

She passed the small kitchen on her way to the door and paused. She couldn't help but smile as she watched Frisk sitting at the kitchen table, a blue crayon in hand, carefully coloring inside the lines of a picture of a flower inside a coloring book. Happiness filled her heart and she felt proud. She didn't linger long, however, as whoever was on the other side of the door knocked yet again. With a sigh, she continued down the hallway, calling out, "I'm coming."

She turned the handle after unlocking the door, pulling it open to reveal Sans waiting with his usual smile. A frown crossed her face and she narrowed her eyes.

Sans shifted nervously. "I know it's not our planned day for dinner, but I thought I'd stop by and-"

"And push me for details about Asgore and I?" she finished, staring down at him.

He held up his hands cautiously. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"I really don't." With a sigh, she stepped back to give him room to come inside. "But I will."

He dropped his hands and walked into the apartment, heading for the kitchen.

Closing the door and locking it, Toriel followed him. She stopped once she reached the refrigerator, opening the freezer door and pulling out a fresh package of ground beef. "Hamburger?" she asked him with a raised eyebrow.

"Please," he answered. "With fries."

Remaining silent, she set the meat on the counter and tore open the paper surrounding it. She pulled open a drawer to grab a knife, and then she cut into the slab of beef. It was too frozen to cook, since she hadn't had a chance to dethaw it yet, so she warmed up her hands with a bit of fire magic and set them on the meat. Within seconds, it was soft enough. She moved to the sink and washed her hands before returning to the counter.

"Hey, Frisk," she heard Sans say behind her. "What are you doing, kid? Coloring? Mind if I watch you?"

She glanced at the kitchen table, where Frisk was coloring. Sans stood on the opposite side of the table, watching closely with genuine interest. She cracked a smile and turned away, grabbing a skillet from a lower cabinet. She set it on the stove and turned the heat on high. Since she had to wait for the pan to warm up anyway, she figured now would be as good a time as any to start talking to Sans about the feelings she'd been bottling up and denying for the past two weeks. She turned around again and leaned against the counter, crossing her arms over her chest.

Sans looked up from the coloring book page Frisk was intently working on.

Realizing he'd caught on to her silent cue, Toriel sighed and began. "I don't know how I can begin to move past what he's done. I want nothing more than to leave the past in the past and continue forward, but…." She trailed off, unsure of how to continue.

Frisk looked up at her curiously for a moment before returning to the coloring book.

"Well, you've got to figure out how you feel and what you want to do. Even if you don't want to try to reconnect, you should still at least give him an answer."

Last week, during their dinner, they'd briefly discussed how the date had gone. Toriel had withheld most details, but she did mention that she'd told Asgore she needed time to think and would call him when she knew what she wanted. Apparently, Sans thought she was taking too much time, which would explain his text messages pushing her to contact him.

"I know that. But I don't know what to say. I don't know how to feel about it. About him." She turned around, feeling flustered. She wasn't used to talking about her thoughts and emotions openly like this. She focused her attention on the meat, grabbing the portion she'd cut and patting it into a burger patty before setting it on the pan. It sizzled on contact, signaling that the stove was hot enough.

"Well, do you miss him?"

She did. She hated to admit it, but she did. She'd realized this during their "date". It had been in the back of her mind ever since. Reluctantly, she nodded.

"Enough to try again?"

Was it enough to try to start over? She missed Asgore, but she didn't want to get hurt again. Maybe that was what was holding her back. She was afraid to get hurt.

Grabbing a spatula, Toriel lifted the burger patty to check the bottom. It was still pink, so she let it drop back onto the skillet.

"What's keeping you from taking the first step?" Sans asked.

She turned around again to face him. She scrunched her brow in worry. "I don't want to be in pain anymore. I miss my husband, it's true, but what if he doesn't change? What if he's still the same old, selfish-"

"Hey now," he shrugged, a playful expression on his face. "Is that any way to talk about your husband?"

It was such a silly thing to say, but it made her smile nonetheless. Even in such a serious conversation, Sans had a way of making her smile and feel like life wasn't as dramatic as it sometimes seemed. "I suppose it isn't nice to say. Oh, I'm just frustrated with how he acted."

Sans shrugged again. "You'll never know if you don't try."

"That's an odd piece of advice, coming from you," she teased with a knowing smile.

"Hey," he pointed at her, "I'd try if I wanted. But that takes too much effort."

Toriel had cooked hamburgers and fries for Sans, Frisk, and herself for dinner. After the constant state of worry she'd been in, it was refreshing to be able to relax again. Sans shared joke after joke while they ate, making both Toriel and Frisk laugh so hard that it took them twice as long as normal to finish their burgers. Afterwards, they'd sat in the living room together and watched Mettaton's talk show, which aired every evening at 7 P.M. Mettaton continued to live the life of a star with his own show, where special guests would join him to share funny stories about their lives. Each episode ended with Mettaton dancing with the guests before striking a pose. It was kind of silly, but somehow, Mettaton had a way of charming his audiences. He was a natural in the spotlight, and monsters and humans everywhere loved him.

When the show ended, Toriel sent Frisk off to get changed into pajamas. Sans left, saying he had to read Papyrus a bedtime story, but not before thanking her for dinner and making her promise to call Asgore as soon as he left.

After the door had been locked securely and she had tucked Frisk into bed, she grabbed her phone from the side table she'd left it on earlier. "Come on, Toriel," she whispered to herself. "You can do this. It's just Asgore." Taking a deep breath, she opened her phone's contacts and tapped on his name. "It's now or never. And you promised Sans you would." She exhaled the breath she'd been holding in and tapped on the phone symbol next to his name.

The phone rang twice before he answered. "Hello?"

His voice made her nervous, so she sat down in her armchair. "Hello? This is Toriel."

"Tori, hi!" His voice was full of excitement. She could practically see the big grin on his face. "I was starting to think you would never call."

"I'm sorry it took so long. I had quite a bit to think about."

"I know. I'm glad you did call though."

An awkward silence passed for a few moments. She wasn't sure what to say. Was he expecting an answer?

As though he'd read her mind, he broke the silence and asked, "Did you call just to chat, or did you make a decision?"

Right to the point, then. "Yes, I have made a decision."

"Oh!" Asgore paused before meekly asking, "What have you decided?"

There was no point in trying to beat around the bush. She'd come this far already. "I miss you, Asgore. I want to try to reconnect, to see if things will work with us again, but I'm afraid. I've already been through so much pain, and I don't want to be hurt again. Especially not by you, or because of you."

"I understand."

"I can't promise I will stay this time, but maybe if we take things slow-"

He interrupted her, his voice excited again. "Oh, Tori, I'll show you I deserve you. I'll show you I'm willing to change and be a better monster."

"I hope you are. I hope you will change. I want things to work with us, Asgore. But, please, let's take it slow, okay?"

"Okay. Slow. I'll do whatever you need me to."

Toriel's stomach was a mess of twisted knots, but she felt a fluttering happiness in her chest. They were starting over, and that made her both anxious and cheerful. She wasn't sure if it would feel the same, or if they would even click like they used to, but his promises reassured her. "Let's just start by talking. We can talk on the phone and send text messages. I'll let you know when I think I'm ready for the next step."

"What's the next step?" he asked cautiously.

"A date. A real date. And this time somewhere normal. Not that silly café."

Asgore laughed deeply. "Alphys suggested it to me. She swore it was the best place to take you, but we don't ever have to go there again."

Toriel sighed in relief. "Okay, good."

A brief moment of silence passed again before Asgore confessed, "I'm glad you called, Tori."

"I'm glad too."

"I'll text you tomorrow. I promise."

"Okay. I'll answer. I promise."

"Goodnight, Toriel."

"Goodnight, Asgore."

The stillness that filled the apartment after they'd ended the call was sudden, and Toriel realized she wished they were still talking. She took it as a good sign for the future and began walking towards her room to get ready to sleep for the night. She changed into her pajamas, brushed her teeth, and crawled into her bed, pulling the blankets over her. Before she fell asleep, she sent a text message to Sans. "Thank you for talking to me. You are a true friend."