Papyrus had put your bag neatly on the bed of the spare room.

When you came inside the house, Papyrus had grabbed your other hand and led you and Sans towards the room immediately. It was quite a big room, considering it was used as a spare, with a queen sized bed in the middle of it. The bed was decorated with a floral patterned quilt and sewed pillows, which Sans explained Toriel had all made.

Apparently Toriel and Frisk had lived in this room for the first few months of living in the "Overworld", which was a nickname monsters used for the surface at first, before leaving for the house they lived at now. It was an hour away from there, however, as that was the only teaching job Toriel could find that was closest. They came to visit the skeletons, as well as Undyne and Alphys, quite often though.

It felt a bit like intruding on their personal, almost familial, life. Sans apparently had noticed an odd look on your face, and tried to reassure you that it was completely fine for you to stay here as long as you'd like. It was a nice gesture and you tried to smile in response.

Papyrus and Sans showed you the hangers in the closet and the bathroom that was connected straight to the room. They had let Frisk and Toriel take the master bedroom, you assumed, and that they had both gotten used to the smaller rooms they called theirs.

After they were all finished, the skeletons left you alone to get packed and make the room 'feel like home'.

Despite yourself, you felt a bit awkward. You had felt so confident about this all earlier, but yet... Maybe this was a bad idea.

You shook your head.

Maybes never got you anywhere. You knew that.

You sighed and unzipped your bag, pulling out your clothes and starting to hang them up. Most of your sweaters seemed to mix into the same ones, and you wondered if all of your clothes look so blah. You weren't sure, but you blamed it on your bad attitude at the moment.

You sat your laptop and phone onto the desk, and plugged them both in.

Sighing, you went to go put a hand through your hair and stopped. You didn't remember putting in a hair tie this morning, and it was obvious now that you hadn't.

You went to the bathroom and gaped at your reflection in the mirror.

Well.

You looked like you just had... Um, "sexual intercourse"?

Your hair was standing up everywhere, wind had made it even more messier than before. It looked completely wild, a look you'd assume would only work on someone like Undyne. You didn't look awful, per say, just completely... Well.

Blushing, you wondered what Papyrus had thought when he walked in on both of you. Even a precious cinnamon roll couldn't be that naive, right...? Maybe. You were talking about Papyrus here.

Sans hadn't said anything though, and you felt torn between thoughts: did he just not realize the connotation behind messy hair like this, didn't care, or thought you looked cute? You felt your face heat up more as you quickly ignored that last one.

Your hair was a problem that you felt needed to be addressed quickly, although you felt a bit narcissistic saying so. You grabbed a few clothes out of the spare bedroom, a towel, and turned on the water for a shower.

Throughout so, you realized how hard it was to shower without one of your arms. (Also, hint to yourself, ask Sans if he could rebandage it for you.)

"HOW WAS YOUR SHOWER, COFFEE HUMAN?" Papyrus said enthusiastically, hovering over a saucepan which you were almost certain contained spaghetti sauce in.

The hardwood flooring was cold on your bare feet as you walked next to the skeletons. Papyrus was cooking and Sans was sitting on the counter, watching his younger brother cooked. From what Sans had told you, apparently Papyrus used to be an awful cook. And, honestly, that was really hard to believe.

"It was good, Papyrus," you said shyly, sitting next to Sans, "Thank you for asking."

You turned toward your attention towards Sans, who hadn't said anything yet, waiting for some silly pun. What you hadn't expected was that small blue flush that adorned his cheeks. He stared at you for a second before you realized what was wrong.

Ah, yes, perhaps a pair of shorts weren't the most appropriate thing to wear during your first night at your potential boyfriend's house. (Why are you saying boyfriend? Oh dear goodness!) You flushed brightly realizing that, putting your hands on your knees in vain.

Everything else you were wearing seemed decent, at which you took a deep breath in relief at. You just wore a simple black shirt with a red flannel jacket.

But, damn, you were having so many closet issues today, oh gosh. It wouldn't surprise you if you ended up putting on disco pants with a suit jacket. Although, you hoped that you weren't that stupid...

Sans's eyes flashed with realization and he suddenly coughed, turning his gaze away from you.

"N-No silly puns, Sans?" You said, stuttering over your words awkwardly, "Also... Can I ask you to do something for me?"

You saw Papyrus smirk from the corner of his eyes, "_! DO NOT ENCOURAGE HIM!"

"i like shower puns, but i-i'm not a big fan of bath puns," Sans replied, smiling.

You giggled softly, "What are you making, Papyrus?"

Papyrus's smile turned even wide, "SOMETHING CALLED FETTUCCINE ALFREDO! SANS AND FRISK, LAST TIME THEY WERE OVER, TOLD ME ABOUT THE MANY KINDS OF PASTA THERE IS! NOT JUST SPAGHETTI!"

"Have you ever tried ziti before?" You smiled softly, "Maybe I can teach you the recipe one day."

"ZITI?!" Papyrus exclaimed, putting his hands (adorned by silly oven mitts) over his face, "WHAT IS ZITI? SANS, WHY HAVE YOU NEVER TOLD ME ABOUT THIS? AND, HUMAN, HOW MANY TYPES OF ZITI IS THERE! IS THERE AN ENTIRE WORLD OF PASTAS THAT I WAS NEVER TOLD ABOUT! THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!"

You put your hand over your mouth, laughing, "If I had a penne for every time someone asked me that..."

Sans's laughter was added loudly into the mix.

"WHAT? WHAT IS THIS 'PENNY'? DON'T YOU MEAN THE HUMAN MONEY COIN?" Papyrus narrowed his eyes, "WAIT! THAT WAS A PUN! HOW DARE YOU!"

You took a deep breath to calm down, "I'm sorry, Paps."

"what do you call a fake noodle?" Sans asked, wide grin plastered all over his face.
"An impasta!" You added, and Sans nodded happily.

Papyrus groaned, "WHY MUST YOU TWO TORMENT ME AS SUCH!"

But before either you or Sans could answer, the sound of the front door being open (and then, following suit, shut) turned your attention away from the cooking skeleton.

"Hello Sans, Papyrus!" A warm, familiar voice said as you turned around, "And, _, it's sadly been a long time since we've last seen you all."

You suddenly shot out of your chair, unable to contain a smile. Your wet hair hit the back of your neck cooly, "Toriel! Frisk!" Oh god, you are being too loud- "I-It's so awesome to see you!"

Frisk ran up to you and embraced your torso, squeezing. They looked up at you and grinned innocently.

You hugged them back, "How's school been?"

Frisk signed a few words, and your vague knowledge of ASL was able to slightly(?) interpret it, "Teacher says that I'm doing... Math is... I've missed seeing... What's Papyrus cooking?"

"He said he wanted to try something else," You told them, "It's still pasta though, so don't worry!"

"Papyrus... Cooking... Awful," Frisk signed, frowning.

You laughed slightly and ruffled their hair.

"Sans has told me you've moved in with them, _," Toriel said, her motherly smile happily adorned on her features, "I hope this means that we'll see each other more!"

You nodded as Frisk went to go talk with Sans, who was in the kitchen with Papyrus by now.

"I tried that wonderful pumpkin casserole you've texted me," Toriel beamed, "It was absolutely wonderful! Where did you learn it?"

A dull ache appeared in your heart, but you quickly tried to move it to the side, "My mom did... She used to make it for Thanksgiving every year."

"Does your mother have any other wonderful recipes such as this?" Toriel inquired, "Perhaps the two of us could trade recipes! Asgore has been asking me for months if he could get the recipe to my butterscotch-cinnamon pie."

You smiled, "I'd love that. Although I don't cook very often..."

You pondered it for a moment.

"I think I might have a recipe for coffee cream eclairs. Have you ever had those before?" You asked as Toriel shook her head, "I'll see if I can remember it! Sometimes they can be difficult to make though, but I'd love to help you make them if you'd like."
"That sounds wonderful, my friend," Toriel's smile felt like it would rot your teeth out, it was so sweet.

You turned your head around, watching Sans and Papyrus conversing with Frisk. They acted so much like a family, it honestly made your heart swell.

Toriel's voice brought your attention back to her.

"However, I'd not be the first one to admit..." Toriel turned her voice low, "That we care about you. Please try not to get shot again."

You blinked in surprise, "Toriel-"

She put a hand, effectively stopping your speech, "I appreciate what you did for Undyne and Sans. I don't know what might've happened without you there. But... Don't forget that we care for you too, alright? Frisk overheard Sans calling me about it too... I eventually had to tell them, and they kept nagging at me to see you. We love you, darling, but don't make us worry like that again!"

"Toriel..." You smiled shyly, "Thank you."

"It's no problem, my friend," She shrugged her shoulders in response, "Do not forget to give me that eclair recipe, that sounds absolutely wonderful!"

"tori? you going already?" Sans suddenly reappeared next to you.

She nodded sorrowfully, "I'd hate to go, especially after the promise of new recipes..." She winked at you, "But I don't want to keep..."

Her face went bright red, a stark contrast to her snow white fur.

Sans chuckled, "asgore? tell the big, furry pushover i said hi. and that if he hurts you, king or not, me and paps will go after his ass-"

"Sans!" Toriel scolded, teasingly, "Frisk is right behind you!"

Frisk turned around in surprise of hearing the their name.

Finally, it clicked.

Eventually, you'd have to meet this Asgore. You'd admit, though, that you were a bit intimidated from what you've heard.

"Goodbye everyone," She waved as she started walking back towards the door, "Frisk, honey, I love you. And, _? Keep yourself safe."

Frisk waved back, a bright smile on their childish face. "Love you..."

With a slam of the front door, Toriel was gone.

"so, kiddo," Sans turned his attention towards the kid, "what do you want to do tonight? papyrus can give up his movie pickings for tonight."

"BUT SANS-" Papyrus laughed, "IT'S COMPLETELY FINE, HUMAN! WHATEVER DO YOU WISH TO DO AFTER DINNER IS OVER?"

"Dinner?" you said quietly, shocked, "What time is it?"

"Seven! ...Silly," Frisk signed to you, giggling.

You gasped dramatically in shock, "Oh dear! How did time pass me this quickly?"

"You were too... Sans..." Frisk had a hand over their mouth in a vain attempt to stop laughing.

You flushed and shook your head, "Are you watching too many of Mettaton's movies?"

"No! We... Hung... Says hello!" You barely got any of what they said, but understood the main gist of it.

"hey, _," Sans said, poking your shoulder, "you said you needed to ask me something a minute ago?"

Frisk shook their head, still giggling, and ran to the living room. They turned on one of the TV channels which, conveniently, was playing a show with Mettaton in it. Legitimately wearing a bright, fluffy, blue dress. (It was obvious why Papyrus liked him so.)

"I, uhm," Did you forget? "Oh, wait!"

Sans raised an eyebrow at you, amused.

"It might be kind of gross, actually," You twiddled your fingers together, "So, uh."

Sans shook his head, "i'm a skeleton. i dont have anything that can react to being 'grossed out'."

You rolled your eyes, "I was just going to ask if you might help me rebandage this." You pointed to your arm, "I got it wet when I took a shower."

Sans laughed, then shrugged, "no problem, dork. c'mon, i think we've got bandages in the bathroom."

You followed him into the bathroom, and shut the door behind you. You didn't want Frisk to walk in on the, likely, bloodied display.

You threw off your flannel and tie it around your waist.

You sat on the bathtub's edge as Sans grabbed the first aid kit out of the cabinet, sitting it next to you soundlessly. He sat on your other side and held your arm cautiously.

"did you make sure to bring your pain medication with ya?" Sans began to unwrap the bandages.

"I brought a few bottles," You sounded like a drug addict... "I remember, though, that if it gets worse than I'll go to the hospital."

Sans nodded.

"But I don't need to worry about that, do I?" you smirked, "Living here, I'll have you to watch over me. I'm afraid if I wince then you'll drive me to the hospital immediately."

Sans took in a deep breath, his face amused.

"teleport," Sans corrected, "if you wince, i'll teleport you there. perks of living with an overbearing skeleton."

"Not overbearing," It was your turn to correct, "I'd say caring."

Suddenly, there was a cool feeling on your wound.

Sans's face turned dark, the amusement rushed out of his face.

You didn't want to ask, "How bad does it look?"

The skeleton looked intently at your arm before sighing, "it's okay. it looks like it hurts like a bitch though. you sure you don't want to go to the hospital? they might be able to prescribe something for the pain."

"I can deal with it," you admitted, biting your cheek.

"yeah, i know you can," Sans grabbed a wet towel, washing away the blood, "but doesn't mean i want you too."

"you'd say the same for me too."

Sans quickly was able to disinfect your arm without much pain, wash away the excess blood, and rebandage your wound. He explained to you that, yeah, it'd leave a big scar but, no, it wasn't bleeding anymore. You sighed deeply in relief of it all.

"Can't believe that was only yesterday..." You said, watching Sans throw away the bloodied bandages in the garbage.

"c'mon, let's not leave the kids waiting," Sans teased.

When you walked out, Papyrus eagerly served you all his new pasta. It wasn't bad for his first time! Sure, it might've been overcooked a tad but it was much better than you felt you could do. Besides, the sauce was to die for.

Frisk ate some seconds, then thirds, then fourths.

You wondered if you ever were able to eat that much as a kid.

After dinner, Frisk insisted that you all play some board games with them. Papyrus and Frisk were almost always in the lead, and you didn't have the excuse that you weren't trying - because dear god believe that you were, but it was fun to see the excitement on everyone's faces as you all played.

Frisk ultimately won, but that wasn't a big surprise. Papyrus, although childish at sometimes, was really just a big sweetheart.

After a few more games and a few more board games, Papyrus announced that it was bedtime for him. Sans walked with him upstairs, likely to read him a bedtime story, as the tall skeleton yelled goodnight to both of you humans.

It was getting late, in all honesty, and you asked Frisk if they were getting tired.

They nodded, "Toriel... Doesn't... Late..."

You smiled, "Do you want to watch a movie then?"

Frisk giggled, "What... Movie do you?"

"I'm..." You paused, "I don't know, actually. I don't watch a lot of movies."

The sweatered kid giggled at you, "No movies?"

"Not a lot of them."

"What's your favorite movie, Frisk?" you asked, genuinely curious, "Maybe you can help me get back into some of them."

Frisk nodded at you excitedly before grabbing a silly movie out of their backpack you hadn't noticed before. You weren't quite sure what it was, but happily sat alongside Frisk as they put it into the disc player.

The sounds were quiet on the television but it was at a perfect setting for a sleepy kid. Didn't they need their well deserved rest? Winning all those board games might take a lot out of you. (Not that you would know...)

Frisk grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around both of you, the bright colors of another Toriel quilt, shone in the illuminated darkness.

"Is it okay?" Frisk signed, laying their small head down on your thighs.

You smiled softly, "Of course it is."