Archive of Our Own

You stretched your arms high, popping the joints as a feeling of immediate relief flood the area, all the way down to your bones. You sighed, going down the line and doing the same thing to your other areas. Soon, your neck, shoulders, wrists, fingers and even ankles seemed to move much more efficiently.

How long had you been up here, anyway, just sitting all cooped up in your room -- well, guest bedroom -- by yourself? It must have been a long time, probably hours, judging by the stiffened state of each of your limbs. Oh, and the fact that you had just finished the season finale of some anime Alphys recommended to you a few days ago.

And to top it all off, there was that over-encompassing feeling of boredom that you couldn't shake off if even you tried.

Well, that settled it. You resolutely kicked off the blankets from your legs and swung them over the side of the bed, forcing the movement no matter how jarring it felt. If you were too lazy to get up and go outside on your day off (which you totally were), then you'd just have to stretch your legs around the house. Anything to get the blood flowing.

You exited the room almost groggily, as if you'd woken up from a decent nap. As soon as you were in earshot of the kitchen, you instantly heard the familiar sound of clanging pots and pans, along with the warm and savory smell of dinner being cooked. All the same, you scrunched up your face in confusion.

Wasn't Papyrus supposed to be on guard duty right now? He usually got home much later in the evening at this point in the week, if you recalled correctly. However, once you descended the stairs and the delicious smell became much stronger, that thought was pushed out of your mind in an instant. Your stomach growled softly, solidifying that fact.

Getting off that last step, you finally took notice of Sans' usual and familiar lazy slump to his posture as he dozed away on the couch. He was laid back peacefully, his skull resting on the couch arm, one of his legs dangling off the cushion, and both of his hands stuffed in his jacket pockets. Playfully, you rolled your eyes and smiled. At least you had the drive to get yourself up and about most of the time; you sometimes wondered how he did it, relaxing almost every day away without feeling the itch to get up off of his bony butt and do something. You couldn't help but envy him a small bit.

Crossing the living room, you stood at the entrance to the kitchen. You didn't dare venture further, due to the size of the mess surrounding the stove and countertops. You winced slightly, knowing you'd have to help clean this up later -- sans (heh) an obvious member of the household, of course. At least the younger skeleton brother was greatly improving in his cooking skills; now you could soundly say that they were indescribable in another sense entirely.

"Hey, Pap. Didn't know you were coming home early today." You called over to him in greeting.

The monster turned around from his place at the stove, a splatter of sauce adorably marking his cheekbone. "GREETINGS, HUMAN Y/N!" He said with a smile. "I HOPE YOUR DAY OFF HAS BEEN REFRESHING! HOWEVER, I DIDN'T COME HOME FROM WORK EARLY. IN FACT, I WAS PREVENTED FROM GOING AT ALL!" That smile slowly dissipated, signifying obvious disappointment that really didn't suit Papyrus well at all. "I WOULD HAVE TOLD YOU EARLIER, BUT I FELT YOU NEEDED THE REST."

You frowned. "I wouldn't have minded, Pap, you know that. But, why did you stay home? Did something happen with you and Undyne?" You couldn't help the worry seeping into your tone. You knew the fish woman could be very rough in her 'training exercises' when she wanted to be, and that always was a concern that you hoped would never negatively present itself, especially with Papyrus.

But he quickly shook his head, hastily holding his hands up. "NO, NO, IT WASN'T ANYTHING LIKE THAT, I ASSURE YOU! UNDYNE AND I ARE STILL ON THE BESTEST OF TERMS." You only now noticed where the skeleton's gaze was directed at. It wasn't completely on you, like he was looking at something just behind you instead. "THE REASON IS, WELL..." Sure enough, he pointed with his cooking spoon to someplace in the living room. "THAT. OUT THE WINDOW."

Unconsciously fearing the worst, you whipped your head to face the big, rectangular window just above the couch. What you saw was an unmistakable blanket of white, stretching from one end of the pane to the other. It would have been pretty normal, if it wasn't piled up to almost cover the entire windowpane -- which was just about as high as the front door, no less.

Your eyes widened only slightly. This had certainly never happened before, at least, not after you'd moved in. You hadn't even taken notice of it a minute ago. "Is that...?"

"snow." came the deep-voiced, groggy reply from the couch. Sans had finally woken up, by your conversation with Papyrus most likely, and was moving to sit back upright with a soft groan accompanying the effort. "m'pretty sure there was a blizzard last night. nothin' that hasn't happened before, don't worry."

Despite his calm and collective state about the situation -- one that you didn't know came from his nap or not -- you were still staring at the powdery blanket with slight awe. "So, we're snowed in?" You asked, seeking confirmation from either brother.

It was Sans that answered you, his words riding on a rumble of laughter. "'course we're in snowdin, kid. what, did ya forget already?"

You glared at the older brother, albeit lightly. "Not Snowdin the town, smartass. I mean we're snowed in."

"s'what i just said."

"Ugh..." you sighed, fighting to ignore his poking fun. "Well, it's a good thing I wasn't planning on leaving the house, anyway. Though now, it's not just because I'm feeling lazy, but because I don't want to turn into a human snow poff." You shrugged.

Sans smirked, a telltale sign you knew all too well. "didn't want ya flake-ing out on us, anyway." Of course.

You just shook your head and smiled, giving in like you always did. It was certainly much calmer than Papyrus' reaction, who groaned loudly and stomped back into the cluttered kitchen.

"I'LL CALL YOU BOTH WHEN DINNER IS READY!" He yelled back, irritation evident in his usual boisterous mannerisms.

Now that the conversation had died down, you fully realized that now you really had nothing to do for the rest of the night, unless you suddenly found digging through human-sized piles of snow to be interesting. You looked over at the older skeleton, who was going right back to relaxing in his same spot. He sighed deeply, shifting around until he found that perfect position, before settling back, the back of his skull resting on the back of the couch this time.

You sighed as well, though for a different reason. You had literally just gotten up from relaxing not an hour ago, but Papyrus seemed in too bad of a mood to be offered help with dinner. Besides, that couch was always incredibly comfortable when you needed it to be...

"hey, are you gonna sit down, or what?" Sans got your attention right then, raising a bony brow with his hand curled around the tv remote. His free hand patted the space next to him, inviting you to pop a squat.

Well, you always had tomorrow to be productive.

"Make room." You contested, plopping yourself down on the middle cushion, right where his hand just was. Like Sans, you wiggled and shifted your hips in search of that perfect spot. Without a word, he switched on the tv, settling on another one of Mettaton's mindless specials.

He sighed once more. You echoed him.

And time passed on.

Neither of you really payed attention to the robot on the screen, in favor of keeping the thing on as background noise while you both stared at nowhere in particular. The drone from the tv moved to blend almost seamlessly with the clamor going on in the adjoining kitchen, and it was as if you had slipped into some form of otherworldly meditation after only a few minutes of that had passed.

Jeez, was this what Sans felt like all the time? You weren't sure what to think of that.

But you didn't have to anyway; you were finally distracted by the skeleton shifting slightly on his couch cushion. He looked almost uncomfortable, and he kept sneaking side-glances at you when he thought you weren't looking. Was he trying to get your attention?

You lolled your head over to the side, turning to him with a half-casual, half-reassuring expression. "You okay there, bonehead?"

He startled slightly, at the sound of your voice, before turning back to you. He didn't just look uncomfortable, he looked downright nervous. But about what? "yeah, don't sweat it, kiddo. i'm fine," he shrugged it off, the malleable bone of his face turning back to his trademark grin. You weren't surprised; it was typical of him to simply brush things like this under the carpet.

"but, uh, hey, would ya mind...scootin' over? just a bit?" He added, and you could tell he was forcing that grin on his face at that point.

Oh, now you understood. It was something about you that he wasn't liking right then. But, what was it? You didn't smell that bad from laying in bed all day, did you? Discreetly, you lowered your head to sniff at the collar of your shirt, and you felt instant relief when you only smelled the powdery deodorant underneath. If it wasn't that, then, what was setting him off?

Nonetheless, you kept your face neutral as you went to give him some space.

But he reached out a hand to stop you. "no, no, not over there. i meant a bit closer," a single droplet of blue-tinged sweat betrayed any sense of casual Sans tried to portray. He patted a spot right next to him, on his side of the couch. "right here."

Now you were deep in thought for another reason. So, you weren't the one setting him off? That was great and all, but why was he still nervous? He wasn't somehow secretly claustrophobic, or anything, right? He would have told you, you were sure of it--

You stopped your brain from going any further. You were obviously overthinking things, like normal, and whatever was bugging him was probably something that would go away on its own. All he wanted was a little more sense of company. What was wrong with that?

So you complied, mirroring his earlier shrug and scooting over to sit right next to him, in the divot between your cushion and his. Almost immediately, Sans did something that even furthered your surprise: one of his arms wound around your back, the other crossed over your front to move you even closer, and his skull went to rest against the junction between your neck and your shoulder.

You stiffened only for a moment, choosing to let him do his thing out of sheer curiosity. In all honesty, you never pegged the guy to be the snuggling type, like at all. He was scarce to ever initiate hugs, or any other form of affection other than clasps on your shoulder, or ruffling your hair every once in a while. But yet here he was, going full-on cuddle mode as if you were a life-sized stuffed animal!

You heard him let out another groan, much more content than the others, as he went to nuzzle his nasal ridge along the fabric of your shirt. "theeeere we go...much better..." he sighed, holding onto you tighter than before.

In your surprise (and partly due to the fact that you were somewhat ticklish), you couldn't help but bark out a laugh at his sudden actions. "Is that all? What, you just needed a cuddle-buddy, or something?" You snickered, shifting around to get comfortable under his grip.

Thankfully, all of his prior nervousness seemed completely gone at that moment. "that's exactly what i need," he said matter-of-factly. You couldn't see from this viewpoint, but you could tell his eyesockets were closed. "huggin' a pillow just ain't doin' it for me anymore. an' i know that humans have got all that skin on 'em...looks pretty soft to me. just didn't know if you'd be up for it." he mumbled, his voice muffled by your shirt.

In response, you wrapped your own arms around his bony frame as much as you could, giving him a light squeeze. "'Course I'd be up for it, I'm always up for cuddles!" Wow, you really weren't expecting him to be this...soft.

"yeah?" he presses, and you could feel the slight movement of his grin widening into a smirk. "do i gotta start callin' ya 'cuddle-bug', now? every time i wanna bug you for some cuddles?" 

You rolled your eyes at the pun; it almost seemed like second nature to you now. "Only if I get to call you 'cuddle-bone'," you countered.

But your heart wasn't all in that joke, regardless of Sans' resounding chuckle. You were too distracted from wondering how in the fresh heck a skeleton could feel this soft, this warm, and this downright huggable! You didn't even have to know about basic anatomy to know that bare bones were most certainly not like that at all, even if they were covered by a fluffy-looking jacket.

You really wanted to ask how that was possible, but you didn't want to pry. Not while he was this comfortable, at least--

...Was that a purr you just heard...? No wait, that was just him snoring.

You fought to hold back any laughs or awwww's at the sound, or at the feeling of his ribcage rumbling with the action. This was just too cute!

You both found yourselves in comfortable silence once again, only this time, you were rewarded with seeing your best friend act like a damn cat, purring and nuzzling further into your shirt in your cuddle pile. The tv was drowned out once more, and you almost felt yourself dozing off like Sans had just did. You really didn't want to, after such a lazy day in bed, but that hoodie of his -- especially the layer of fluff lining the inside -- was feeling too warm and cozy for you think about anything otherwise.

You found your head lolling to the side again, this time to lightly rest your cheek on the top of his skull. Maybe a power nap wouldn't be so bad...

The loud stomping of Papyrus' boots woke you right back up, to find said tol skele marching into the living room. Dinner was most likely ready, and he looked just about ready to announce it to the both of you. But as soon as his eyesockets rolled over the cuddle pile on the couch, he stopped himself before he made another sound. A warm smile spread across his teeth, and you could have sworn you saw the lights in his sockets twinkle with a brilliant orange gleam.

To your surprise, he back paced a few steps into the kitchen, exaggeratedly walking on his tiptoes to stay quiet. "I'll just bring the plates over to you two!" He whisper-yelled, disappearing around the corner and out of sight.

The next day was much more eventful. The large piles of snow outside the house had been cleared by some very eager-to-work royal guard dogs, and you finally found an excuse to get out of the house. You went to work like normal, did your usual chores around the house when you got back, nothing too out of the ordinary.

The only problem was that the events of the day before had caught up to you, and you were sluggishly moving around for what felt like all day. Your limbs were stiff and sore, and your head pounded with constant headaches that made you crankier than you'd been in a while. That was the last time you were having a non-productive day that extreme, that was for sure.

You exited your room, after finding some stars-fallen time to finally stretch, to the smell of dinner being cooked downstairs. You tromped down the stairs, almost to the rhythm of the thrumming in your head -- you had just popped in another ibuprofen pill to counteract it. You overheard Papyrus humming a little tune from the kitchen, and that lifted your mood only slightly.

This time, Sans was nowhere to be found on the couch, so you plopped down unceremoniously, squeaking the couch springs, kicking your feet up and laying with your head on the arm. You placed two fingers to both of your temples, rubbing in soft circles to ease the ache.

Apparently, the younger skele-brother had heard you. "Y/N, IS THAT YOU? DINNER IS ALMOST READY, SO PREPARE THOSE FLESHY TASTEBUDS OF YOURS!" Papyrus exclaimed gleefully.

Despite his cheerful tone, which would have normally caused an unconscious smile to form every time, it only served to make you groan slightly at his normal loud volume. That pill was sure taking its sweet time kicking in... "Thanks, Papyrus." You called back to him, though the action made your head throb even harder.

You managed to let the clattering in the kitchen fade into blissful white noise after a few minutes, and you made to rest your eyes for only a moment. This time, you were determined not to fall into another three-hour nap like a certain lazy sack of--

Pop. "hey, not cool, bud. i thought i dibs'ed the couch this morning."

Speak of the devil, and he will shortcut.

"Mmnn, I'm calling off your dibs. Just let me rest until this headache goes away." You moaned groggily, not even bothering to open your eyes. You were thankful for the only slight throb that occurred when Sans' lower voice hit your ears -- and much closer than you expected, too.

"jeez, what happened that made ya so deep-rest, anyway?" He quipped, and you peeked open an eye to glare at the skeleton. Just as you thought, he was standing right in front of your face, practically leaning over into your personal bubble, in fact. His punning-grin was unmistakable, yet you were pleased to find a hint of worry that lowered its edges some.

You supposed you could indulge him. "What happened is that I matched your laziness yesterday practically snore-for-snore, and I am never trying that again." You answered, opening your other eye back up; at least keeping your eyes open wasn't contributing to your headache anymore. "For a human, it can only lead to...how would you put it? A bad time?" That last part made him snort, and your own lips quirked up a bit.

Now his face back to showing all humor. "hey, didn't ya know that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?" Sans shot back, crossing his arms playfully. Then he shrugged, about to turn away. "which, in your case, can always get'cha somewhere. so, fine, i'll let'cha off the hook just this once, okay?"

You smiled in gratitude, snuggling further into the couch cushions. You could practically feel the pill's effects already. "Thanks, dude. I owe you one."

Apparently that was somehow the wrong thing to say, because Sans stopped in his tracks and turned right back around again. "oh?" He challenged, actually having the nerve to stoop down to eye-level with you. "well, in that case, i've got just the perfect thing to make me cash that in right now..."

Your smile almost comically deflated, leaving the first makings of a grimace in its wake. This could not be good. "...What...?" You sighed in exasperation.

But instead of stating something along the lines of 'doing his half of the chores for a week' or something similar, Sans only straightened back up, let his grin turn more easy-going, and spread out his arms. He looked like he was offering you a hug--

Wait.

Sure enough, the next words coming softly and lazily out of his mouth were, "heyyy, cuddle-bug."

You blinked, having completely forgotten about your little cuddling episode yesterday. It seemed that he definitely still remembered that pun-promise he made you about bugging you for cuddles, and he wasn't taking that promise lightly. Though his adamancy surprised you, was that really all he wanted...?

Eh, what the heck. You could use the added warmth after such a shit day.

So you smiled, responding in kind. "Heyyy, cuddle-bone." You shifted around in your spot, not quite sitting up, as you mimicked his open-armed gesture.

With that, the skeleton practically flopped down right on top of you, immediately righting himself and scooting over to accommodate your current position. You let out a faint squeak as his arms brought you even closer, moving your head to rest on top of his ribcage and allowing for his mandible to rest on the top of your head. Just as you thought, the jacket was just as warm and the bones underneath were surprisingly just as soft as they were before, and it didn't take long for you both to get comfortable.

You knew you really didn't want to pry, but your curiosity was currently getting the better of you. So you spoke that unasked question you'd been having on your mind since yesterday. "Hey, Sans? I'm a bit curious: I know you're a skeleton, and all...so how in the world do your bones feel this soft?" You ignored the sudden rush of color to your cheeks. "I mean, I expected you to feel a lot more...well, boney!"

Sans chuckled openly at your inquiry, and you could feel the movement rumbling through his ribcage; at least he wasn't offended by this sort of thing. In response, he raised one of his arms and waggled his fingers in the air, mysterious and playful.

"mmmagic~" He said simply.

You rolled your eyes in response, hiding your face in his shirt so he wouldn't see your smile.

"but hey, for real: is this helpin' you relax a bit?" He asked, both of his hands gripping you the slightest bit tighter. "you looked pretty bummed, and i dunno if my boney ass -- as soft as it might be, heh -- is somethin' you want to--"

"Just shaddup already," you cut him off, before his yammering could somehow counteract the pill's effects on your headache, "a cuddle-buddy is just what I needed right now, and as long as you quit worrying and do what you do best, I'll be fine." You nuzzled further into his jacket to prove your point, sighing as your cheek brushed against the fluff on the inside.

A pause of silence, before Sans went right back to that trademark lazy tone to his voice -- a welcome change. "heh, i hope you mean 'doing absolutely nothing' as my best, 'cause you know i'm all over that."

You both lied there in comfortable silence afterwards, much like the last time. This time, however, you were determined not to sleep just yet, and you fought to keep your eyes open for as long as you could.

Sans, on the other hand, didn't even try to stay awake for longer than a few minutes. Sure enough, after barely any time at all had passed, you could hear the soft sounds of snoring coming from him. Thankfully, he never snored too loud when he slept, and even this close to your ear, you found the sound oddly relaxing. Just as before, you allowed time to pass without pause.

And then one of his legs randomly spasmed for half a second, before just as quickly falling still and lax. You fought to contain a snort.

There was no stopping your wandering mind now; near infinite possibilities of what other displays of cuteness you would see from the monster were multiplying with every thought, and you simply had to indulge yourself to find out. Just once.

Trying the first thing you could think of, you slowly freed your arm from Sans' grip. Maybe you could get him to do more than just purr at you, this time. Tentatively, you raised your hand to the side of his skull where an ear could have been, and with the lightest of pressure, you softly scratched at the bone there.

To your delight, the response was immediate and pretty much what you expected. His same leg that spasmed before started to kick softly at open air with each scratch. As you slightly increased the pressure on his skull, it sped up just as much. Another soft groan bubbled up from his ribcage, and his arms feebly grasped at you as he slept.

You mentally cursed yourself for not having your phone on you. This was too good of an opportunity to not take a picture, what with seeing Sans act just as cat-like as before, and now you had nothing to tease him with when he wakes up!

"mmnnn..." he sighed, and you could feel the edge of his nasal ridge nuzzle deep into your hair. He inhaled deeply, letting it out on another sigh, "mn, y.../n..."

Your hand froze, and your smile dropped just as quickly. Did he just say your name...?

You barely even noticed that his skull moved from under your hand, letting your fingers lightly rest on his cheekbone -- wavering this close to the side of his mouth. Why would he say your name in his sleep? Was he dreaming already? And...was it about you?

You suddenly heard Papyrus announce to you both that dinner was ready from the kitchen, causing Sans to wake up mid-snore. You abruptly jerked your hand down, hoping that by some miracle, the older brother hadn't noticed your ministrations.

Sans stretched his limbs wide, and an uncovered yawn escaped his mouth, exposing a surprising set of canines you had never noticed before. You looked away as he opened his eyes.

His normal smile was back. Just as you'd hoped: he didn't suspect a thing. Now if only your obvious blush would settle down enough for it to stay that way... "hey, cuddle-bug. how long was i out?" He drawled, helping you both sit upright on the couch again. "did'ja have time to relax a bit?"

You merely nodded, pointedly avoiding his eyesockets. "Uh, you were only asleep for a few minutes. I'm fine, though." You answered simply. You could feel that his gaze refused to leave you, so you quickly changed the subject. "Hey, uh, Paps said dinner was ready! Let's go, I'm starving." You practically leapt off the couch, making a beeline for the kitchen.

Thankfully, Sans didn't say anything on the matter during dinner.

For once true to his word, Sans kept to his cuddle-requests every day since, at almost any time, without fail. It didn't matter if you happened to be sprawled on the couch watching the tv, sitting cross-legged on the floor with a game controller grasped in your hands, sitting on the steps with your nose buried in a book, or even standing at the sink doing the dishes. Hell, he once even walked in on you when you were changing in the guest room -- you were thankful that you had gotten the essentials on before he had barged in, turning the brightest shade of blue you had ever seen on him when he realized his mistake.

Every time, he would always start with those three little words before anything else:

"heyyy, cuddle-bug."

And every time, without fail, you would always relent.

Sometimes, there would be a reason behind his asks. He was 'bummed out' from a slow day at the hotdog stand. There was nothing on tv. Grillby had kicked him out of the pub. He was only buttering you up for a favor he would ask for minutes later (you hated it when that would happen). He didn't get to see you all day.

Other times -- and more often than not -- there wouldn't even be a reason at all. When you would ask what was bugging him (and after he would laugh at your unintentional pun), he would simply shrug, dismissing the query with something like, 'eh, i'm just in the mood,' or, 'do i need a reason for a cuddle party now? didn't know there was a form to fill out for this sort of thing.'

You knew that Sans would always hold out for your approval before any snuggling would occur, but no matter what (yes, even after the changing episode), you found yourself absolutely unable to refuse. No matter what you were doing, nothing seemed to appeal to you more than dropping it and jumping into the monster's lap.

Still, that didn't mean you were letting him initiate things all the time. Granted, you would usually always have a reason, but that never stopped you from catching him off guard right before his request, only for you to counter with your own:

"Heyyy, cuddle-bone."

Sans wouldn't even waste his time with verbal responses, showing his immediate consent by smiling and yanking you over to the couch, his spot on the carpet, or wherever you would find him, and pulling you into his arms like a koala. Like you, there didn't seem like there was anything he'd rather be doing in that moment.

In your happy moods, you would join in with his soothing laughter, occasionally starting a tickle war or a pillow fight in the process. You didn't care if you would always lose.

In your gloomy moods, you would be straddling his lap with your face buried in his jacket, occasionally dirtying the fabric with tears and saliva as both of his hands went to rub softly on your back and at your scalp, words of comfort ready at your ear. He didn't care if those sessions lasted longer than the others.

In your grumpy moods, you would cross your arms and sulk, while Sans would either rub at your shoulders to relieve the tension, or do anything and everything he could to make you laugh while keeping the cuddle-pile going. You didn't care when he would eventually catch you smiling.

In your lazy moods, you would flop down on top of his bony frame, thankful that he was bigger than you so you could lie on him like a pillow that hugged you back. He didn't care if you fell asleep before he did.

One time, you even convinced Papyrus to join the both of you during your cuddle session. His eyesockets had boggled with excitement, and he ran right to his room, gathering armfuls of pillows and blankets when he reemerged. He had seen your cuddle-pile, and raised you one of the biggest pillow-fort-slumber-parties you'd ever seen. Needless to say, neither of you had objected to that.

Also during your sessions, you were sometimes rewarded with Sans doing something particularly cute, usually in his sleep, but you tried to refrain from pushing your luck again. You didn't need to be caught when you wanted to take note of how his face looked as he slept, or feel at the bones of his hands, or press your ear to his ribcage to hear and feel the steady beat of his soul.

...Okay, maybe you explored a little bit. And judging by the way your face heated up every time you would do this, you felt like you really shouldn’t be.

These sessions were now a routine, kept alive by a seemingly touch-starved Sans and an apparently far-too-accepting you. Neither of you questioned it beyond that first day, and neither of you were privy to changing such a comforting schedule.

But one day, the cuddle-monster surprised you by not showing up at all. When you had come down for dinner, like usual, you were expecting to see Sans on the couch, in the kitchen with Papyrus, or...anywhere really, when he came home from work. You then expected for him to come shortcutting in out of nowhere, as he sometimes did to get a rise out of you, but after waiting for some very slow minutes, not even that happened.

Confused, but only slightly, you went to talk to the younger skele-brother. Certainly he would have seen him, at least once.

He had turned to address you without his usual goofy grin he would wear while he cooked. Again, not suiting him well at all. "SANS ACTUALLY TOOK THE DAY OFF TODAY." He had said, almost somberly. "HE'S UP IN HIS BEDROOM, BUT I STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST GOING IN THERE; HE SPECIFICALLY ASKED TO BE ALONE FOR THE DAY."

You were so concerned in that moment -- the grinning pun-master had never acted like this before around you -- that you almost ignored him and went straight upstairs. Papyrus seemed to sense this, because he added, "I KNOW HE'LL COME AROUND TOMORROW. HE SOMETIMES NEEDS THESE TIMES TO HIMSELF, BUT THEY NEVER LAST TOO LONG."

He smiled, but even you could tell that it looked slightly forced. "I'M SURE HE'S ALREADY GOTTEN DINNER AT GRILLBY'S. SIT DOWN, HUMAN Y/N, YOU MUST BE FAMISHED!" You didn't want to upset the monster, so you reluctantly took your place at the table as he doled out your serving, humming to himself.

You found yourself almost rushing through dinner, feigning a yawn and mumbling about being unusually tired, before you quickly made your way up the stairs. You passed the guest room, reaching out for Sans' doorknob...but you stopped yourself.

Maybe Papyrus was right. You and Sans had spent practically no time apart for weeks since that first cuddle-pile, and what were you going to do? Completely invade his personal space when he clearly needed some stars-fallen time to himself for once? Had this routine really made you that selfish?

You lowered your hand, frowning. No. You weren't going to deny him that. If you were in his place, you were sure he would keep his distance if you wanted him to. The least you could do was give him that much, and (hopefully) go about the next day like normal.

Decided, you trudged back to your room instead. You knew Papyrus would be fine cleaning up by himself this one time, but you had put yourself in too glum of a mood to face him again. Maybe sleep was the best thing for you right now.

...You soon realized it was easier said than done after only a couple minutes had gone by. You had faked being tired, after all, and now you had nothing to do but lay on your bed and pass the time until you could actually fall asleep. Thankfully, Papyrus hadn't seen through your lie, or didn't take it to heart, given his muffled "GOODNIGHT, Y/N, SEE YOU IN THE MORNING!" from beyond your door before you heard his own door close.

You sighed, tossing and turning on your mattress and trying to get as comfortable as you could, even if it wasn't as comfortable as Sans' lap--

You buried your face in your pillow and groaned loudly to cancel out that thought. You were not going to disturb him, not now. You could talk to him tomorrow, when he actually would want to see you.

Eventually, you somehow managed to doze off for a little while. It only felt like you had just closed your eyes, but when you woke again, your trusty digital clock told you it was well beyond midnight, at least a few hours after.

But you hadn't woken up on your own. A noise had worked its way into your dream and brought you awake. Groggily, you lifted your head and strained to listen for it again...

There it was! It was muffled -- hard to make out exactly what it was -- but it was there. It came from one of your side walls, the walls that were so thin that it was difficult to get through a very deep sleep on a normal night. The wall that bordered Sans' bedroom.

You pressed your ear to the wall. Again, you heard it. You could hear it better now, realizing that it was continuous -- strung together with other similar noises. The next time, it was even louder, and--

That was a sob. There was no one in Sans' room but him. He was crying.

Not even thinking, you flung off your covers and crept for the door, crossing the hallway on tiptoe. Once again, your hand lingered at the older brother's doorknob. You only hesitated a fraction of a second before you heard another heart-wrenching sob. You turned the knob -- surprisingly unlocked -- and peered inside.

The blue overwhelmed you. Wispy spirals of royal-blue magic were weaving through the air, catching onto random objects. All of those objects were hovering well above the ground: assorted clean and dirty clothes, crumpled papers, a much bigger treadmill in the middle of the room, even that small white dog that showed up inside the house on occasion.

Looking past all that, at the epicenter, was the hunched, bony form of Sans, sitting on his ratty mattress at the far end of the room. The glow was the brightest there, the magic obviously coming from him. His knees were pulled up to his ribcage, his face buried in his arms as his body shuddered and wracked with his cries.

Your mouth hung, and you unconsciously took half a step backwards. You had never seen Sans like this before, so secluded, so vulnerable, and so at-one with his magic that you were honestly the most scared you had been of him. Even so, you knew that you couldn't leave him alone like this.

"...S-Sans...?" You whispered, but the glow kept going. "...Sans?" You called louder, but he still didn't hear you. You gulped, walking inside and closing the door behind you. "Sans?"

Nothing. He was worse than you thought, for him to be this out of it. You tread carefully across the room, over to his bedside, and put a hand on his back. "Sans!"

The skeleton jolted sharply, and his head snapped up, eyesockets wide and unblinking. You had never seen his sockets like this: the right one was pitch black, without a familiar eyelight to be seen, while the left's eyelight was much larger than normal, glowing a bright cyan and magic wisping from it like the tendrils of a flame. Both of them had blue-tinted tears streaming from them, and running down his cheekbones in soft rivulets. All the while, Sans gasped for breath, taking in lungfuls of air at a time as that vacant stare continued on into nowhere.

It was too much for you to take, and it didn't take long for tears to prick at your own eyes. "Sans! Sans! Snap out of it!!" You reached out and shook him by the shoulders, kneeling on the mattress to look directly into his eyes. "It's me, it's Y/n! Come back to me, Sans!!"

That frightening stare finally stopped after you had shaken him enough, and he blinked, his one eyelight finally training on you. His breathing slowed considerably, and your hands left his shoulders to steady him from the sides of his skull.

"...y/n..." he breathed, his one eyelight trembling in shock. "wha...? what are you doing in here? i thought i..." he trailed off, looking past you to the door. He must have forgotten to lock it before.

"Sans, are you okay? Please tell me you're okay!" Your voice shook, and your cheeks felt wet as a few tears managed to escape. "Don't scare me like that!"

Sans finally seemed to realize the situation, because the glow of his magic almost instantly vanished, and everything that was floating was lowered back down to the ground. With another blink of his eyesockets, they were suddenly back to having the normal eyelights you had grown used to. His hands went to frantically wipe the tear tracks off of his face, as if he didn't think you had seen them yet.

"i'm...of course i'm okay, buddy. why wouldn't i be?" He plastered a grin on his face. You couldn't believe him! He was just going to play this off like it was no big deal?! "i just had to deal with my magic goin' into overdrive. s'pretty normal for monsters, y'know--"

"Sans, don't lie to me," you firmly cut him off, glaring through your tears. "not after what I just saw. You can't keep hiding these things if something is wrong! I thought that we were friends, that we could talk to each other about these things!" You cried, shaking him gently by his skull.

You could see the guilt start to take form on his face, and his smile disappeared. He sighed, allowing another tear to fall. "kid, you don't have to worry about it. you wouldn't even understand anyway." He muttered, looking down at the mattress.

You weren't giving up. "Then help me understand. I've never seen you like this before, and I want to help you! That's what friends are supposed to do!"

"trust me, y/n, you aren't able to help. no one is. not you not paps, not anyone else but me. i don't want to drag you into something you can't control!" The both of you were almost shouting right then, regardless of who could have heard.

"Then at least tell me so I can be there for you! Tell Papyrus! Can't you trust me, or your own brother, that we'll help you in any small way we can?!"

"what does it even matter?! none of you will remember any of it, anyway!"

You paused, for so long that the silence was almost worse than the shouting. Sans realized what he had said, and stared back down at the mattress, fresh new tears plinking onto the fabric of his blanket.

"you...won't...none of you will...remember..." his voice grew smaller and smaller, and his breathing grew ragged once again."i'm...the only one..."

He lowered his skull into his hands, crying much more softly than before, and you found yourself tempted to join him. But you knew that he wouldn't feel better, or trust you better, if he didn't open up.

You scooted the both of you to the edge of his mattress, letting both of your legs dangle off the edge. Your hand rested on his back, and your other went to his kneecap in reassurance. "Tell me everything." You whispered. "I'm listening."

And he did. Most of what he said was near uninteligible through his gasps and sniffles, but you were true to your word, staying right at his side and doing your best to understand what was troubling him. Frequent words and phrases that kept recurring ranged from, 'left us', 'fell in', and 'never got to say goodbye', to 'kid', 'dust', 'it never ends', and 'reset'. Every time one of those words popped up in his story, he seemed to take a while just to fully compose himself before he continued; obviously these were the things that were troubling him the most.

Sans cried all throughout his rant and after it was finished, choosing to sit in silence and wipe the occasional tear away with his pajama shirt when it was over. You didn't know what you could say after a story like that, especially a story that, you admit, you didn't quite understand. All you could do was to keep sitting there with him, until you were sure it was okay for him to be alone once more.

You sighed after a long pause; you had to say something. "I..." you struggled to find the words, "you're right, Sans, I don't fully understand. But that doesn't mean that I won't be here to listen to it again, and again, and again, no matter how many times it takes for me to properly know how to get my best friend back." You gently tilted his skull for him to face you. His eyelights were dim, barely there at all, and no more tears fell from his sockets. He looked almost lifeless, like a shell of the monster he once was. "I'm that determined to see that again, and I won't stop until you won't ever feel like this again. You get me?"

It took Sans a moment before he silently nodded, going back to stare at the floor. You felt like he hadn't even listened to you, until one of his hands went to cover your hand that rested on his femur. You softly smiled at that, before you got another idea.

You gulped, leaving not a moment to think twice before you cleared your throat. Sans looked back to you with that same expression, and you knew you couldn't back down then.

Tentatively, you stretched your arms out wide, in the semblance of a hug. You made sure that soft smile was still present, ever friendly and assuring.

"Heyyy, cuddle-bone..."

…It took a moment for Sans to stop staring at you blankly and to finally respond. He sighed, looking back down at the floor instead of answering you.

You backed down almost instantly. Of course he wouldn’t have been up for that after a night terror, why in the world would he be? What he needed was to be alone, without you bothering him any more than you were already. He was fine now that he had gotten his worries off of his chest; you had done your job. Instead, you clasped him on the shoulder reassuringly for a moment, before turning away to leave.

“y/n.”

His voice surprised you, rougher and scratchier after he had been crying for some time. You turned back to find his head still lowered, refusing to look at you, but both of his arms slowly outstretching as yours just did.

He had said nothing, but he didn’t need to. You obliged, sitting right back down next to him and letting him wrap his arms around you. The familiar feeling made the dismal setting instantly more welcoming, and you returned his embrace with just as much enthusiasm.

“Are you feeling better – woah!” You cried as Sans suddenly moved the both of you so you were laying down on the bed, keeping you in his arms as he held onto you tightly. Still, he said nothing, choosing only to reposition his skeletal hands to hold you better from his position.

You squeaked, following his lead so you wouldn’t be crushed from under him, and extremely thankful that the room was dark enough to conceal your obvious blush. It looked like he wouldn’t let you go for a while, so you settled down as much as you could to fall asleep on his unkempt mess of a bed.

You weren’t surprised when you heard the monster snore a few minutes later, soft and assuring in your ear. You weren’t even surprised that you heard your name ride on a sigh or two, or that you felt his arms wind around you tighter when it happened…or that you smiled goofily because of it.

Sure enough, Sans was back to his usual lazy, punning, ketchup-slugging self the next day. To his credit, he didn’t even make the morning after your impromptu sleepover any more awkward, giving you a simple hug when you were both awake, and thanking you before asking you to leave so he could get dressed (he added that last part with a wink, and you quickly did as he asked, so he wouldn’t have been able to see another blush from you).

He showed no signs that he was distressed all throughout the day, and you were delighted when you both could unwind comfortably after the episode. Somehow, both of your days off had intercepted, and as soon as Papyrus waved goodbye to the both of you, shutting the front door on his way to work, the both of you turned to each other on your respective sides of the couch with matching telltale expressions.

Sans initiated the routine this time. “hey, cuddle-bug, c’mon over here.” A different use of dialogue than usual, but you smiled all the same. You practically leapt off of your cushion and jumped into the skeleton’s lap, straddling him like you would sometimes do. His arms wound around you in seconds, and you both didn’t take long to get comfortable.

You were so glad things could go back to normal, and you were pretty damn sure Sans felt the same, at least to some extent. Oddly enough, though, you didn’t notice the usual signs of him dozing off after only a few minutes, but you weren’t worried enough to care.

What you did notice were the skeleton’s hands gently ghosting over your back, leaving feather-light impressions in their wake. One snaked up to your neck and tangled itself in your hair, softly massaging at your scalp, while the other wrapped around your lower back, settling at your hip. You sighed contently, resting your cheek on his broad ribcage as he kept doing his thing. Light touches like these weren’t usually included in your routinely cuddle-pile-packages, but they certainly weren’t unwelcome.

Then Sans broke the silence. "hey, uh, ki...sweetheart...?" Well, that was certainly new. Now you were at full attention, slightly raising your head to acknowledge him, while also hoping to any deity out there that he couldn't see yet another blush from you. Where in the world were all those coming from, anyway?

"i know i thanked you before, earlier, but i never really went into detail about it." He chuckled nervously, and you were brought back to that first cuddle-pile all over again. "what you saw back there...i tried to keep a secret from everyone for so long. i guess you could say that i was gettin' pretty bone-tired of it, heh heh..."

You knew the monster enough to know that laugh wasn't at all genuine. You lifted your head higher, implying that he get to his point.

He sighed. "what i'm saying is that...i really need to learn to count on you and paps a whole lot more than i do. that little stunt ya pulled yesterday, it really opened my eyesockets for the first time in a while. you and my bro...you really are too good to me, y'know."

And now you were this close to splitting your face in two with how wide your smile had gotten. You raised your head up fully, meeting his eyelights with your own irises, and catching him with a healthy amount of blue magic dusting over his cheekbones. "You sure about that, Sans? You aren't just ribbing me, here?"

You actually managed to catch the skeleton off guard with your joke, and he quickly raised a hand up to his mouth to conceal his sudden bark of laughter. He wordlessly shook his head 'no' as your answer, and his eyelights were flashing brightly as his mood elevated, but you still weren't having it. "You sure? This isn't some other fibula?" you pressed, your grin turning Sans-levels of shit-eating for once.

The skeleton couldn't hold back anymore, and let his lovely laughter ring loudly and heartily in your ear. You couldn't help but join him, playfully shoving him backwards into the couch. You were delighted that he brought you in once more for an almost bone-crushing hug, and you returned it back just as tightly.

"what did i ever do to deserve you, huh?" He muttered, aloud but to himself. "i've gotta be the luckiest skeleton in the underground...heh heh, all things a-side."

With that emphasis, you knew he had said a pun, and you finally got it when the jokester used both of his hands to suddenly taser-jab you in your sides, right above your ticklish spots. You jumped and let out a squeak, much to your embarrassment, and you glared at him. But Sans was drinking it up with that trademark grin of his back on his face, almost letting it become a knowing smirk.

"heh, that was really cute." He suddenly commented, nullifying your glare to replace it with more wide-eyed embarrassment.

Wh-where in the world did that come from?! You thought in a daze, flushing an even darker red than before.

Sans didn't give you a chance to retaliate, not even trying to conceal a smirk this time. "what, you can say that to me, but i can't say it to you? i may be thanking you, but that doesn't mean i'm not above a little payback..." One of his hands was suddenly behind your ear, scratching lightly at the shell and making you scrunch up your neck reflexively.

Oh. 

Oh, jeez.

He knew that you had been playing with him all those times? How had you never noticed that before?! You should have just stopped while you had the chance! But no, you simply had to keep poking and prodding at him to get a stupid cute reaction out of him every damn time he fell asleep--!

"Ah--!" You yelped as one of his fingers left your ear to leave feather-light trails down to your chin. At the same time, his other hand came around your front to lightly boop you on the nose, making you stop and blink twice.

Meanwhile, Sans' eyelights were practically twinkling in his sockets, and he laughed lightly at every reaction you gave him. He went all out in finding ways to tease you: poking you, tickling you, and anything else that would make you let out a noise.

You didn't let him get very far, lightly shoving his hands away as you covered your face with your own, groaning softly and hiding most of your blushing mess of a face. Why did payback have to be so embarrassing, but so rightly deserved at the same time...?

"jeez, sweetheart, are all humans up there as cute as you?" He drawled, and you would have shrunk down to bury your face in his jacket, had he not stopped you by lightly bumping his teeth against your forehead in the semblance of a kiss.

You froze, faintly gasping behind your hands. Between your fingers, your golf-ball-sized eyes could catch glimpses of the grinning monster staring right back at you. He waved a hand at you playfully. "hellooo...anybody home in there?"

Before you could do anything else, Sans reached out and took one of your hands away from your face, holding it in his and revealing one of your eyes. He grinned wider, even though you kept still, as if you were in front of a t-rex instead of a skeleton monster with that blue blush still marking his cheekbones in just the right way...wait, what did you just think?

"heya, there you are." he breathed, his face coming dangerously close to yours. "you feelin' better, cutie?" It took you a moment too long for you to process that question, and Sans didn't wait for an answer before moving in to give you a skeleton kiss on your cheek. "how about now?"

Your jaw was almost comically slack as you continued to stare at him like a complete idiot. Wasting no time, he took hold of your other hand and pulled it away, leaning in a third time to kiss your other cheek. "how about...now?" His smile was growing softer by the minute, while you begged your dazed mind to make you do something, anything, in retaliation.

"hmm, nothing, huh?" He pressed. "how about..." he nudged his teeth right on the tip of your nose, and you made a noise halfway between another squeak and a whimper. "...now?" he finished, and for a split second, you could have sworn you saw his eyelights take the shape of tiny hearts.

"U-uhh..." was all you could provide. You were all but stunned into silence at Sans' bold actions, and part of you struggled to keep yourself like that to see what he would do next.

Sans' sockets dropped to a lazy hood, and his smile grew just a bit wider. "okay, sweetheart, this has got to get something out of you." He leaned in a final time, and you only just closed your mouth as his teeth slowly pressed themselves against your lips.

He stayed like that for only a few seconds before he pulled back, while you internally screamed for him to stay. His eyelights were definitely hearts right then, and you were sure you were mimicking that dopey look on his face exactly.

"...uh, heh heh. how about now...?" Sans asked again, trying desperately to save face.

Again, you paused in your answer, choosing to bury your face in his jacket like you wanted, holding him closely even though it certainly wasn't close enough. Sans let out a noise of surprise, but you made sure that he could hear you when you let out a muffled, "...Uh huh..." into his ribcage.

The skeleton thankfully granted you mercy, chuckling as his arms went right back to holding you.

After this was over, you planned to make a not-so-subtle request to add this as a new 'special session' for your cuddling routines.