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Part 1 of BWEMS
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2020-06-24
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2023-10-05
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40/?
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Babysitting with Extra Morbid Steps

Chapter 23: Attachment and surprises

Summary:

The long-dreaded conversation with Patch. Names for the horror bros! Quality time with Red.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 23

Lunch was had in the dining area and you tried your hardest not to appear too stiff when Latin and Hip Hop entered.

You were back to ignoring them again.

I’m shameless, god, you thought with a sigh.

The kitchen was more chaotic than before; Black and Blue were arguing over something with Edge judging them both, Ace was serving the food with the help of Stretch, and Red was already subtly stuffing his face.

You and Hop made eye contact with each other. You could feel that he wanted to talk to you again but you glanced away, hoping he’d get the picture. You saw Latin coming over to you but Hop caught his top and stopped him, silently shaking his head.

As much as you wanted to not be an asshole, you couldn’t help but run away from your problems when you knew you couldn’t handle them. You strove to do your best but more often than not, your best wasn’t the greatest.

You found yourself in Stretch’s and Ace’s company where Stretch was telling a story about how his foot got stuck in a tree hole back then. Patch entered the kitchen halfway through lunch. He whistled low, eyes roaming once around the room. Nobody really paid him any attention. “what is this, a party?” He grabbed his own serving before leaning over a counter next to you. You also ignored him. “really, doll? you’re doing this to me?”

Stretch raised a brow bone as he paused in the middle of his sentence. “is this guy bothering you?” he asked you, half-jokingly. “sorry bud, y/n said no.”

“they don’t even know what i’m gonna say yet,” Patch replied.

“I have an inkling,” you said, a little down. You continued to ignore him as you ate the rest of your meal.

“bro, come on, help me here,” Patch asked Ace for help. “help your little bro out.”

Ace stopped his spoon in mid-air. “And what do you suggest I do, brother?”

“Can we just eat in peace and talk later?” you interrupted, showing them that you were a little annoyed.

Stretch was surprised and then shrugged, staring Patch down. Patch didn’t give much of a fight and went to eat his lunch elsewhere since every seat was occupied.

If Patch thought he could talk to you without difficulty, that was where he was wrong. You weren’t in a forgiving mood as of lately and anything remotely prodding outside of your comfort zone was a no-no. You dodged him as much as you can, using every possible excuse in the book. You were in the bathroom. You were with the newcomers. You were with Blue. You were with Stretch. You had to go to the bank. You were in the bathroom again, this time with diarrhea.

It has been three days. He was getting frustrated.

He was waiting outside your room this time, with a less-than-happy expression. And you had just woken up this morning.

“I’m—”

He put his palm (or non-palm) to your face and you stopped talking. “i’m not putting up with your excuses anymore. we talk now.” He was unusually serious; the playful tone in his voice was gone.

That didn’t faze you. You were used to deadpan skeletons talking to you. You immediately tried to swerve him and he caught the hem of your shirt.

“right now, y/n.”

“I’ve got things to do,” you muttered, matching his expression with a serious one. “I have skeletons to visit, Patch.”

“and you promised me we’d talk.”

“I don’t wanna talk to you.”

“why not?”

“Because—” You realized you almost took his bait and pursed your lips, pulling away from his grasp and starting to walk away when you suddenly felt heavy. A familiar pressure on your soul kept you from moving and your annoyance quickly turned real. “Patch, I swear if you don’t let me go right now—”

Something cold and hard was placed around your wrist and you paled, your head snapping around to look at what it was until you heard a click.

“Are you kidding me right now?” you said in shock, “Where the heck did you get handcuffs?!”

Patch cuffed his left hand with the other one and winked at you, his playfulness coming back in full swing. “sorry, doll, a magician never tells his secrets.”

“You are not a magician!” You tugged on the cuffed, scowling at your situation. “This isn’t funny, Patch!”

“i’m not joking,” he said with a grin. “i’m serious, we need to talk or you’re not getting out of the cuffs!”

“Fine!” You huffed, trying to think of ways to make him regret his decision. “Let’s go to the bathroom then.”

His grin widened. “sure.”

You stomped your feet in frustration. “Patch!”

“what? i said yes, didn’t i?”

“Oh my god,” you groaned. You couldn’t think of anything; he’d have fun with anything somewhat embarrassing. This was a win-win for him.

“y’know there’s literally a way to just end this right now.”

“Shut up.” You can’t give up now; you just have to hold on until he gives up.

You started to walk and the cuff dug into your skin since you and Patch don’t walk in the same speed. You paused and glanced at him, and he had the audacity to give you puppy dog eyes. It doesn’t work quite as well as Blue’s. You held his hand in order for the handcuff not to chafe you.

“should’ve done this ages ago,” he mused happily.

“Shut it. I’m mad at you.”

“you’re mad because you won’t talk to me?”

You ignored him.

You were contemplating between showering with him or not. On one hand, he’d enjoy it. Not showering seemed like the best course for you. You’d just have to not shower until this was over. Changing clothes was also out of the option. Ugh, why did he have to be this frustrating?

You entered the kitchen, immediately lighting up when you saw the usual group occupying it. “Blue, help me!” you cried out, raising your and Patch’s hand up to emphasize the cuffs.

“GOOD MORNING TO BOTH OF YOU, TOO!” Blue greeted with a big smile. “WHAT DO YOU NEED HELP WITH, FRIEND?”

“I need to get out of these cuffs!”

Stretch was having coffee and reading a magazine, glanced up for a second, chuckled, then continued reading. Ace didn’t seem to mind, as if finding you handcuffed to his brother was an everyday occurrence.

“OH? BUT THE CUFFS WERE MY IDEA!”

“What?” you asked in horror. “But why?”

“I ONLY WANTED TO HELP. PATCH WAS HAVING TROUBLE CATCHING YOU SO I TOLD HIM TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN’T GO ANYWHERE.” He was acting oblivious to what this meant for you. “WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?”

Patch snickered behind you.

“I cannot believe you betrayed me like this, Blue. I thought we were best friends.”

“BUT WE ARE! THAT’S WHY I’M HELPING YOU CLEAR UP YOUR MISUNDERSTANDINGS WITH PATCH! THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS DO, RIGHT?” Blue placed a mug in front of you.

“I hate you,” you said.

“I ADORE YOU, TOO, FRIEND.”

Edge entered the kitchen to pour himself coffee and sneered at the sight of you. “WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?”

You almost clung to Edge but stopped an inch away from him. “Edge, help me.”

Edge gave you a look that said ‘what-the-fuck-do-you-want-me-to-do?’ “I’M NOT CLEANING UP YOUR MESS, HUMAN. LEAVE ME OUT OF THIS.”

“But, Edge!” you whined.

“give it up, cupcake. let’s just have our conversation and this would be over in a jiffy,” Patch cooed.

Why was everyone unconcerned about your problem right now? They were all literally vouching for Patch! “I thought you guys were my friends!”

“just go talk to the poor skeleton, honey,” Stretch piped up without looking up from the magazine. “communication or whatnot.”

As much as you want to say ‘I only promised you and Blue that, not the others’, that sounded like an asshole thing to say so you kept your mouth shut instead.

“what do you say, doll?”

The clock was ticking. The other Sans and Papyrus were waiting for you to give them their food. If no one was willing to help you, then you’d fix this yourself.

“Let’s go to the shed.”

The others shared glances but didn’t say anything as you dragged Patch out of the building. Patch felt the shift in the mood.

“you’re not actually mad at me, are you?” he asked.

You passed Rus whose sockets went wide when he saw you but deflated when you didn’t acknowledge him. That doused a little of the fire brewing inside you and made a mental note to make it up to him later. You were a little preoccupied at the moment.

“How could I not be mad if I’m being held against my will?” You regretted it the moment the words came out of your mouth.

How could you be mad at something that you’ve done to others?

Patch stopped walking and tugged you back. “okay, i know that look,” he said softly. “i’m sorry, i don’t mean to make you mad.”

You were still mad, but not at him. At yourself. You were being immature. You knew that. But that didn’t stop you from still giving him the cold shoulder. You didn’t want to address whatever he was going to say.

You bit your lower lip and shook your head, not wanting to blurt anything stupid again. You stomped your way over to the shed where you locked the wooden door behind him.

“are you willing to talk now?”

You shook your head.

Patch sighed. “look, y/n. you don’t really have a choice. hear me out right now before you start blaming me for disappearing.”

Your fists were clenched so tightly you could feel your nails dig into your palm. Patch grabbed your hand, the one cuffed to him, and sighed. You glowered at him, hopelessly praying that looks could kill. Patch wasn’t fazed one bit and instead brought your hand to his teeth and grazed his teeth over your knuckles.

Tears slid across your cheeks as you felt your entire body give out. “You promised me.”

“you know full well i didn’t. i told you i’d stay until the machine’s free but it doesn’t look like it’d be happening soon.” He talked to you with patience and understanding and you hated it.

You’ve been eyeing the machete hanging on the wall at the corner of your eye. Patch caught your attention, gripping your shoulder firmly.

“talk to me. don’t shut me out.”

You pulled away, detaching yourself from the situation, from your emotions, from him. You placed your hand flat on the table before grabbing the machete fluidly and with a swift motion, you brought it down with all the force you can muster.

Almost.

Patch was faster and stronger than you thought he was, successfully catching your wrist and twisting it, making you drop the machete on the floor.

“I said… I don’t wanna talk about it,” you muttered. With your free hand, you hit him on his chest. There was no intent to hurt him and you had hit him so poorly but it was like a surge of emotions were unlocked at the moment.

You were crying. “I don’t want you to leave. You told me you wouldn’t leave. Why would you lie to me? You…” You were muttering incoherently, weakly hitting him on the chest.

Patch pulled you into his arms and let you cry your heart out. He pressed his teeth to your cheek, kissing away your tears. “really, doll? crying for this?” he teased. “you’re such a crybaby.”

“That’s tearable,” you croaked out in the middle of your tears, hurting and laughing at the same time.

Patch was smiling, too, and pressed an endearing kiss on your forehead. “you’re just something, cupcake. you got me worried for a second there.” He nuzzled you once more, this time going for more of a kiss than a nuzzle. He kissed the edge of your mouth, his hand snaking behind your head to steady you.

You didn’t push him away. You returned his kisses, almost getting dizzy from how slow and tender it was. Your heart was pounding in your rib cage and you gripped his jacket like you weren’t intending to let him go.

Surprisingly, he was the first one to pull away. “kinda got carried away there,” he chuckled, “your fault, cupcake. you got too emotional.”

“Of course, everything’s my fault.”

He stole one last kiss, cheekily grinning at you when you scowled. “if you thought you could anchor me down by kissing me, well, you’ve got another thing coming.”

If ‘????’ was an expression, that was the exact expression you were wearing. “You kissed me first!”

“yeah, because you wouldn’t calm down.”

“If you tried to calm down any other people with that technique, you’re getting hit with a sexual assault case, buddy.”

“good thing you’re not ‘other people’ then,” he answered. “are you sensible now?”

“When am I not?” you muttered, trying to cross your arms only to realize you were still cuffed. Patch snorted and lifted your arm to place it on his shoulder instead.

“i don’t know, when did you think that you could chop off the handcuff with a machete?”

You pursed your lips as you avoided his eye contact.

“i can wait here all night, darling.”

You bit back a sigh, burying your face into his chest. You still have skeletons to visit and feed. “Okay,” you said, not bothering to hide your upset.

“sorry if this isn’t what you wanted,” he said gently, kissing your forehead again.

“I’m kinda disappointed my kisses aren’t enough to make you stay,” you half-joked.

He chuckled. “doll, i could be hopelessly and wholeheartedly in love with you and it wouldn’t make me stay. you wanna know why? because i wouldn’t be happy. and you’d blame yourself if i’m miserable.”

You have been ignoring him because you didn’t want another person leaving your life again. You thought that by putting off this conversation, he wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye to you and you could have him around for one more day. You thought, you thought. All your thoughts were selfish. You haven’t been thinking about what he would’ve been feeling throughout all of this at all.

He’s gonna come back to work on the machine once Sans was done with it. He wasn’t going away forever. But why did it feel like it did?

Your lips trembled as you pulled away from his arms so you could properly look at him. You stared at him, teary-eyed and all, as you forced your mouth to speak. “I… I’ve been selfish. I’m sorry.” You struggled not to glance away and say this without looking at him, but that was the cowardly way out. Facing him and acknowledging your fear was one step closer to regaining control of your emotions. “I didn’t want you to leave.”

His face softened. He waited for you to finish.

“The days before I met you were the loneliest I have ever been and even if our meeting was messed up, you guys were a blessing. It feels like my life suddenly has a direction when all I’ve ever felt was lost and I guess,” you inhaled, “I guess I just didn’t want to feel alone again. You’re right, of course, you are. I’d beat myself up if I knew that I’m keeping you here just because of my own greediness. You are your own person and I should respect that.”

Patch’s smile was so wide. He held your hand and kissed your palm. “my, you’ve grown. y’know, i’ve never thought of myself as a ‘feelings’ kind of guy but you changed that. it’s been a pleasure learning a different perspective from you.” He winked. “don’t worry, doll. i won’t ‘follow my heart’ for anyone else, just you.”

“Whatever,” you said with a laugh as tears rolled down your cheeks. “Find a mate or whatever, I don’t care. You deserve to be happy.”

“you know i’m not one for settling down, doll. i’ll come back for you.” The machine, not me, right?

“I don’t know, someone else could have swept me off my feet before you come back,” you said playfully. You can play pretend with him. “What’s with that face? I’m joking, I’m joking.”

Patch sighed. “as long as they aren’t an asshole. but what can i say, you’re attracted to assholes.”

“Rude!” You smacked his shoulder. You paused before asking, “When do you plan on leaving?”

“as soon as possible.” He tilted his head to the side. “mind sleeping with me tonight? it’s gonna be a long time before you see me again.”

You ignored him. “What about your brother?” You were afraid of asking ‘Is he coming with you?’

Patch watched your expression and huffed a laugh. “he’s his own person, cupcake. he can come with me if he likes but it seems like he’s taken a liking to taking care of the others. plus he’s the only one who knows how to contact me when it’s time to come back.”

“But,” you said, frowning, “you guys have never been apart.”

He laughed louder this time. “what are we, twelve? we’ve been apart hundreds of times before. it just so happened we were traveling together when we, uh, came here.” He scratched his cheek with a finger. “he’s gonna be fine without me. you’ll take care of him.”

“Are you gonna be fine without him?”

“as long as i know he’s ok, then i’m gonna be fine.” He raised a brow bone. “are you gonna be okay? because you know full well that if you want to go with me, i’ll whisk you away.”

You smiled. “I’m gonna be fine.” You patted his chest. “And you’re gonna be fine. We’ll be okay. Keep in touch, yeah?”

“give me your number and i’ll find a way to contact you,” he said with a wink.

“I’ll miss you.”

“stop acting like i’m gonna be gone forever, i’m sticking nearby so i can run back fast enough when something happens.” He kissed the tip of your nose. “i miss you already, too.”

The two of you stayed for a couple more minutes in the shed, talking about things other than his leaving. He didn’t know how long he’ll stay away, from what you both know, he could come back earlier than expected if he wanted to. He just wanted to explore more without having to come back every night to the same place. More freedom.

Exactly what Blue and Red were planning to do as well with them looking for jobs in the city.

You apologized for overreacting. He said you shouldn’t undermine your feelings. It was heartbreaking but you knew you can’t control them. It was only right.

Patch finally unlocked the cuffs before both of you emerged from the shed. It was half an hour past lunch; you were already running late with giving the two locked-up skeletons their food.

You had no time to update what had happened with Blue, Stretch, and Ace’s concern regarding your talk with Patch. But you hoped that the promising look on your face was enough as a temporary answer.

The past three days with the imprisoned Papyrus were spent exchanging stories. This Papyrus loved to talk about everything; as he always did, but more often than not, he’d get sidetrack and would be telling you a whole other story before stopping and asking what he was talking about in the first place. Your time with your original version of the brothers had you skilled enough to follow through with everything he’d been saying. His brother Sans, on the other hand, would spout random threats out of nowhere to scare you and nothing else. He didn’t want to talk; he was guarded, unlike the others. He doesn’t trust you and you understood. Not everyone had to like you.

Papyrus had brought up the idea of gardening and how Snowdin was so bland because there was only one kind of tree in throughout the whole area. He looked so happy when you told him that you’d bring him an encyclopedia of trees the next time you visit. You liked giving them books on subjects they were interested in. You did as soon as possible and he created a little bubble for himself. He couldn’t hear you no matter how loud you tried to call his name.

Guess there goes his hyper fixation.

You spent the rest of the days with his brother even though he doesn’t talk much. You found yourself pouring over your old life with him since you don’t dare break the news to him yet. He still didn’t know what was happening outside of the safe, little room he was in.

You sometimes remember things like, “Huh, my old classmate used to hide my wallet because he thought it was funny. What goes on in the minds of kids? Why would they think that’s funny?” And talk to yourself out loud. It felt as if you were keeping him company with your words even if the two of you weren’t conversing. Sometimes, you’d ask him a question and then act as if he gave you an answer even when he didn’t. His company was a treat if you look at it differently.

Maybe you should just become a professional listener or something. Someone you could pay to keep you company or vice versa. Was that a thing? You’d be good at that, you think.

It was Papyrus’ turn now—

“BAOBAB!”

“Huh?” You paused before fully entering the room.

“IT IS KNOWN AS THE TREE OF LIFE! IT HAS A DIAMETER OF 30 FEET AND IT REACHES A HEIGHT OF 59 FEET! IT ADAPTS QUICKLY TO ITS ENVIRONMENT; ABSORBING WATER IN ITS HUGE TRUNK DURING LOTS OF RAIN AND PRODUCES FRUITS WHEN IT IS DRY! IT IS ONE OF THE TALLEST AND STRONGEST TREES IN THE WORLD!”

You blinked, slowly nodding your head. “Okay?”

Papyrus stood majestically with his gloved hands on his hip bone. “THAT’S THE NAME I WISH TO BE CALLED! BAOBAB!”

“Baobab?”

“YES?”

You couldn’t help but grin as you shook your head. It kinda suits him. He named himself after a tree? “Nothing. If you find another name you like in the future, don’t worry about changing it, yeah?”

“I DON’T THINK I’M GONNA CHANGE IT, HUMAN! I LIKE IT VERY MUCH!”

“I see that.” You grinned. “Mind if I call you Bao for short?”

“OF COURSE NOT!” He looked so excited. “A NAME OTHER THAN PAPYRUS! WOW!”

“Now that you chose a name, have you chosen one for your brother?”

Papyrus—or Baobab didn’t look particularly bothered about it. “NOPE! I WOULD HATE TO PICK A NAME FOR HIM MYSELF BECAUSE I WOULDN’T KNOW IF HE LIKES IT OR NOT! IT’S BETTER IF YOU ASK HIM YOURSELF!”

“But what if he doesn’t want to pick?”

“YOU’LL FIND WHAT TO CALL HIM, HUMAN Y/N. I TRUST IN YOU.”

You stared at him with wide eyes. He didn’t look troubled with what he said to you at all. He had known you for a couple of days and he… trusts you?

It shouldn’t be that easy.

What was it with these skeletons and trusting you so easily?

There must be something that was influencing this. This was too atypical that it makes you uncomfortable if you think too long on it.

You found yourself talking with Paps- Baobab for two hours long about different topics ranging from cooking to sightseeing to human jobs to a little bit of his past. But he makes sure not to dwell too long on the topic, immediately changing it when he has the chance.

You swung by his brother’s room after dinner so you could tell him the news. You waited until he had finished eating before you sat down cross-legged in front of him and made yourself comfortable. “Your brother had picked a name to call him this afternoon. He named himself after a tree, Baobab! He said it was one of the tallest and strongest trees in the world.” You leaned back. “Do you want a similar tree name? I could search names for you if you don’t want to choose anything.”

Sans huffed and looked like he rolled his eyes; though it was hard to tell with one eye light. “i’m not a tree,” he, surprisingly, answered. Looked like you caught him in a good enough mood. “if anything, i chop ‘em down.”

You remember Baobab telling you his brother carries an axe wherever he goes. He didn’t clarify what for. You focus on it being a defensive weapon instead, even though it could obviously be the opposite. You tell him the first thing that comes to mind. “If you wanted an intimidating name along with your intimidating personality, how about Axe, then? I’ll give you three days to think about what you want to be called. If you don’t decide on anything, I’ll start calling you Axe.”

He stared at you menacingly but you merely dusted it off like it was nothing. Being around terrorizing skeletons was your pastime. It had little to no effect on you now after getting used to it. He grunted and then turned his back against you, choosing to stare at a corner instead.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

Looks like names won’t be an issue anymore.

 

You woke up in the middle of the night in your room with the need to go to the bathroom. You shivered as the blanket slid down as you sat up and you fixed your jacket. Your eyes traveled to Stretch’s who was too used to sleeping in your room now; especially after that incident when Sans suddenly appeared and you locked him out. He was acting like a guard dog but also relishing in the fact that he’s close to your presence.

You didn’t have the heart to say no to him.  

Especially now when Sans was in an unstable mood.

Sans being closer to the results he wanted made him unpredictable to anything that could go wrong. Him being unpredictable scared you than all the other times he acted unreasonably. Him having the power to destroy everyone you were afraid to lose in one blink was frightening. 

“where are you going?” he slurred. Despite being a very sleepy person, he sure was a light sleeper. Maybe it depends on whether or not he felt safe at the moment.

“Bathroom.” It was your go-to excuse and one that didn’t need any explanation.

He fell back to sleep after that while you slinked out of your room. You went to the bathroom and then to the kitchen where you made yourself coffee. You were tired out of your senses but you had trouble falling asleep. Sometimes, you liked lying there and listening to Stretch’s breathing, wondering if he had lungs made by magic or he just did that because he was used to it. Other times, you take a walk along the dirt road that led to the highway and coming back halfway through before the sun comes up.

You closed your eyes as you sipped from your mug, quietly thinking about what to do this time.

You hear the shuffling of footsteps from outside the apartment door and your eyes snapped open. You left your mug and half-jogged out of the apartment to see who was walking around at night. You barely caught Red’s short stature and fluffy jacket going out the doors.

You ran up to him and he turned back at the sound of your footsteps.

“sweetheart, ya still up?” he asked, surprised.

“Where are you going?”

“i, uh,” he rubbed the back of his head and cleared his throat, “’m goin’ to my job.”

“You already got one?”

“yesterday, yeah.”

“At this time of night?” It was almost 1 am.

“i’m on a night shift.”

Like Patch, you wanted to talk about this with Red but never had the time to do so. You don’t know what you were expecting with talking to him about it. Did you think he was gonna give in to your wish for him to just stay indoors forever? Probably not.

“What time do you start?”

“around 2, 2:30.” He shrugged. “have ta walk all the way there. i’m already runnin’ late.”

“What time do you get off?”

“9. or 10, ‘m not sure.”

“Okay, I’ll drive you there. Wait here.” You took off before he could get a word in. You grabbed a coat from the back of your room door, making sure you were careful to not wake Stretch.

Red didn’t even try to argue as the two of you went to your car and then drove off into the night. The windows were rolled down and the wind whipped your face.

“ya ok?” he asked.

“Why do you ask?”

“y’er quiet.”

You chuckled. “Am I usually talking your ear off? Oh wait, you don’t have those.”

“har har.” He glanced at you. “anythin’ bothering you? i may not be able to do something about it but ya can tell me anything.”

“That’s sweet of you, Red. And awfully uncharacteristic. Are you ok?”

He grunted and leaned back, hitting his head on the seat. “i’m asking you.” There was silence. “i… i just thought y’er mad at me or something…”

You made a face. “Why would you think that? Of course, I’m not mad.”

“well, ya kinda were when ya first learned about me and blue lookin’ for city jobs.”

“Oh. Yeah, that’s true.” You smiled tight-lipped. “But that’s before Patch and I talked. And he left. So… there’s that. Wait, were you asking about how I felt about Patch leaving?”

“err, somethin’ like that.”

“Aww, how sweet,” you cooed.

He glared at you. “shut up.”

There was another silence where it was just you driving and him staring out the window. You drove out of the forest and into the highway.

Patch left just hours before, after dinner. He said goodbye pretty quickly and only packed anything he can fit in a backpack. He and Ace hugged. You hugged him, too, a bit longer than normal. Blue cried. You tried not to. Everyone went to see him off, except for Black and Rus. You didn’t hold it against them; they weren’t close with each other.

You finally answered. “I guess I feel upset and sad that he decided to leave. I felt mostly afraid that this will prompt everyone to start leaving, too, since all of you have no obligations to stay.” You tapped the steering wheel nervously. “I’m afraid that I’ll be alone one day and I won’t feel complete again.”

He didn’t say anything. You weren’t expecting a reply and this was exactly the reaction you anticipated from him. “But I’m fine,” you continued, “I’m gonna be okay. Though I do feel like crap right now, time’ll heal. Or something like that. If you guys do decide not to stay, then I’ll just have to suck it up and accept it. I should be able to accept it. You guys aren’t hostages. You’re my—”

Friends? Family? You didn’t know what to say. You didn’t want to be weird. The last thing you’d wanna know was they don’t feel that way about you the way you felt about them. You’d rather stay in the middle, where it was safe.

Red didn’t make you clarify, thankfully. He just nodded along and then awkwardly said, “it doesn’t look like the others are gonna leave anytime soon so don’t- don’t feel upset anymore.”

You huff out a laugh. “That actually lifted up my spirits a little. Thanks, Red.”

“don’t mention it.” He then followed it up with, “no, i’m serious. don’t mention it, ever.”

The mood was lighter and you were able to joke around with Red. You told him about Baobab and Axe, too, since you haven’t had the chance to tell anyone yet. Red said Baobab’s name sounded funny, and you told him to say that to Axe’s face.

You reached the small publishing house that Red was hired to guard. He was the only one on duty during this time. No one was willing enough to be sitting around at this hour in a dead street. Since you came by car, Red was early by an hour, so you invited him to the nearby convenience store.

You bought yourself coffee and offered to buy Red anything but he refused. The two of you sat outside in the cold night by the tables, with only the crickets and the sound of a passing car the only accompanying noises.  You closed your eyes as you sipped your coffee, warming up your fingers around the plastic cup. The coffee was bland and you think of the coffee you left in the apartment.

“This is nice. Do you want me to drive you here every night? I’m worried about you walking alone.”

Red has a smug grin on his stupid face. “worried ‘bout me?”

“Shut up. I just don’t want to wake up one day to find out that you’ve been dusted or something,” you said, almost bitterly. If you weren’t talking to Red about dusting, this conversation would’ve taken a heavy tone. But this was Red. He was used to violence in his universe. He wasn’t fazed one bit.

“eh, you get used to it.” He tapped his fingers on the table. “ya ever talk to the weird-ass dancers yet?”

You stiffened before relaxing again. “You’re the only one who knows what happened that night, you know,” you suddenly said. “I’ve never spoken to it about Blue or Stretch and they know everything.”

“must mean y’er still iffy about them,” Red said, surprisingly perceptive. Red at 1 a.m. was a different monster from normal Red.

“Yep.” You stretched your arms as you think about how to answer him. “Yeah, I haven’t. Been avoiding them. I feel a little bad but it’s not my fault. But it’s also not their fault.” You smacked your lips together. “Trauma, am I right?”

“mhm.” He doesn’t know what to say despite him being the one who brought it up. “don’t beat y’erself up about it. you’ll come around.”

“And what if I don’t? Maybe I can’t get along with everyone. Maybe they’ll just be left out all the time.”

Red glanced at you as though observing your face. “y’er too nice to do that.”

You huffed out a laugh. “Just because I managed to tame you doesn’t mean I can befriend everyone.”

You heard him choke on air. “—tame me?! you’ve got some fuckin’ nerve!—”

You barked a laugh. “Sorry, don’t get too worked up over it. I was just saying it as it is.”

Red crossed his arms and grumbled under his breath. “y’er getting a little too comfortable,” he spat.

“I mean, yeah? You took care of me when I was sick. You’ve seen me burst out crying about two times now. We slept together in your bed—”

His whole face was red. “stop! don’t say weird shit like that!”

“What’s weird about it? It’s true!”

“shut it, i’m serious!”

“You get embarrassed so easily,” you said in an amused tone. “Adorable.”

“don’t call me adorable?!”

“Fine, fine. Stop shouting.”

You and Red hanged around until he had to clock in. You said you’ll fetch him later when he goes out but he reminded you he could teleport back.

Disappointment hit you like a ton of bricks. Oh, right. He could teleport. He said he only needed to walk here today because he wasn’t paying attention the first time. Now that he’s spent a reasonable amount of time here, he’d scouted out which areas work where he could teleport into without being spotted.

You somehow thought you could make this into a thing. Maybe not.

“if you want company, just say so,” Red grumbled at the sight of your expression. “it’s not like i’m busy. you’d be surprised at what a skeleton can do in his free time.”

You smiled. “Yeah, sure. I’ll let you know. Good luck. Don’t die.”

“i don’t plan to, sweetheart.”

 

When you arrive back at the apartment, you were dead tired. You crashed next to Stretch who stirred at the sudden disturbance. You immediately fell asleep.

You woke up, still tired. It was a constant cycle.

It was the first day that Patch was gone, for sure. He was always absent before he decided to leave, but today, it was exceptionally lonely.

You bumped into Rus as you walked to the kitchen and you greeted him. You haven’t seen him around that much after that day in the forest. “Hey, Rus. What’re you up to?”

Rus switched demeanor, looking a bit nervous around you. He kept fiddling with his fingers. “h-hi, y/n,” he greeted back in a low volume, probably to avoid the others from finding out that he does talk. “i, uh, well, nothing much. actually, i wanna show you something… if that’s okay?”

“Oh? What is it? Can we have breakfast first?”

He tailed you as you walked into the kitchen where Ace and Blue were having a discussion.  

“—CHEDULE WORK WITH THE REST SO EVERYTHING DOESN’T HAVE TO FALL UPON US. IT’S JUST THE RESPONSIBLE THING TO DO!” Blue remarked.

“But you would not force people to participate if they do not want to. It is not their fault; they are in unfamiliar territory.”

“BUT IT’S MORE FAIR IF EVERYONE HAS CHORES TO DO!”

“You guys talking about chores?” you spoke up as you made yourself toasted bread. Rus was back to looking aloof, pretending that he wasn’t listening in to the conversation. “Do you guys need help on it? I could take on a few more if you guys do too much.”

“THAT’S NOT IT, FRIEND!” Blue sighed. “IT’S JUST THAT THE OTHERS LOITER AROUND ALL DAY, HELPING NO ONE BUT THEMSELVES! I JUST WANT TO OFFER THEM SOMETHING TO DO, ESPECIALLY IF I’M NOT GONNA BE AROUND MUCH WHEN I START WORK NEXT WEEK!”

You stiffened and then hoped that you weren’t that obvious. “You start next week? What are you doing?”

“OH, RIGHT! I GOT HIRED TO DO CASHIER WORK IN A SMALL STORE!” he answered proudly. “YOU CAN COME TO VISIT IF YOU WANT!”

You struggled to hide the way your stomach dropped. “Yeah, sure. Congrats.” Were you so busy in the past days that you didn’t even notice they had already come this far? Maybe you were too distracted by Patch’s leaving.

Blue, having been here the longest, caught on quickly. “DON’T LOOK SO DOWN, FRIEND! I’M NOT LEAVING LIKE PATCH DID.” Blue looked to Ace. “I HOPE THAT DOESN’T OFFEND YOU, ACE.”

“Of course it doesn’t. It’s a plain fact that my brother did leave. Though that’s not to say that he won’t be back sooner rather than later.” He sipped his tea. “I’m certain he’s not fully ready to leave and venture far yet, so he’ll come back in a couple of days.”

“You think so?” you asked. Patch said something similar.

“Yes, dear. Brooding will do you no good.”

“I’m not brooding,” you said, pouty.

“Say, Rus,” Ace said, “Is your brother coming for tea? He hasn’t come in yet and I brewed an extra for him.”

Rus gazed blankly at Ace and then shrugged one shoulder. “prolly not.” His tone was deeper than one he uses around his brother and when alone with you.

You wonder why he was still keeping up his façade and in the end, decided that it wasn’t your business. “Black comes around for tea in the morning?”

“OH, YOU’D BE SURPRISED!” Blue said cheerfully, keeping his hands busy by wiping down the kitchen counters. “HE COMES REALLY EARLY AND HE USED TO STEAL ACE’S TEA! HE DOESN’T DRINK COFFEE LIKE THE REST OF US. ACE AND I E CAUGHT HIM AND INVITED HIM FOR TEA IN THE MORNING. HE’S A VERY CURIOUS SKELETON, HE ASKS SO MANY QUESTIONS.”

“He is? I thought he didn’t like being around the others.”

“THAT WAS AT FIRST!” Blue continued. “HE’S VERY MUCH LIKE EDGE THOUGH HE PREFERS TO HANG AROUND US INSTEAD OF AVOIDING US LIKE EDGE DOES. HE IS VERY CLEAR ON THE PART THAT HE DOESN’T LIKE ANY ONE OF US.”

Hearing Edge wasn’t as close to the other skeletons as you’d hope made you a little sad. He’d still much rather do things by himself than get to know the others. You haven’t gotten to see him that much now that you thought about it. Clearly, you had other priorities in mind. Edge can handle himself. That doesn’t mean you won’t like to hang out with him soon.

You were surprised it wasn’t Edge who was looking for a job. Red was the lazy brother. But it does make sense. Red is a Sans, and in the past, Sans had the habit of having multiple jobs at once to support himself and his brother. If you’d guess, they had a deal. Edge would stay here while Red gets a job in place of his brother.

“What questions does he ask?” you asked Blue.

“ALL SORTS OF QUESTIONS! HE ASKS ABOUT THE ROOMS, YOUR APARTMENT, THE VAULT. HE ASKS ABOUT THE OUTSIDE, HOW MANY MILES DOES THE FOREST STRETCH AROUND US, HE ASKS ABOUT THE DEVICE ON HIS WRIST!” Blue hummed thoughtfully. “HE ASKS MANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT.”

“Really? What’s he asking for?” You look at Blue to Ace to Rus. Rus wouldn’t meet your eyes but it was his normal reaction.

“Curiosity, I guess,” Ace answered. “I answered most of his queries. He mentioned they did not have the kind of technology and knowledge that we have and wanted to learn more about it.”

“Maybe he’d like to learn more?” you suggested. “We can teach him more if he’d like.”

“IF HE’D LIKE!” Blue repeated, nodding in satisfaction.

After having your breakfast, you turned to Rus. “You said you have something to show me?” Rus nodded and made his way out of the building. You wondered if you should bring a coat but it didn’t feel like you’ll be out too long so you didn’t. You trust Rus would tell you if you needed one.

You passed by Hop along the way. He glanced at you, hoping that you’d acknowledge him. You didn’t. You weren’t ready.

Rus led you into the forest and you wondered if he was leading you to the same clearing that the dance brothers took you to. Maybe they’d plan a similar picnic as well.

You were starting to get nervous when you wonder how long you were walking through the forest. You might be around the edge of the safe zone and you were worried that it might incapacitate Rus again. You were about to ask if you were close when you saw a half-finished cabin in the distance.

“What? Whose cabin is that?” you mused out loud. It was only a little larger than the shed in the back of the building and the windows weren’t finished. Construction materials lay scattered in front. “Wait, were you building this?”

Rus laughed nervously. “uh…”

“HUMAN, YOU’RE HERE AT LONG LAST.” Black emerged from inside, his hands clasped behind his back. “COME IN, COME IN.”

As soon as you stepped into the small cabin, Rus locked the door behind you.

Notes:

finding names for the horror bros are hard, especially since there are SO MANY VERSIONS of them. i initially wanted to go with ash and poplar but ash and poplar acts so differently with the version in my head so i didn't want that. i think about going with the usual space-themed nicknames, mars and jupiter, but what if i wanted an outertale cameo in the future?? ;((

so baobab and axe are the names i decided to go with! i actually like baobab though, it's growing on me :')

thanks so much for the comments and support! i know i don't reply but only because i get overwhelmed and blank out lmao sorry! i'm not ignoring you guys, i swear qwq. i read and appreciate everyone of you!!! <33