#btw papyrus totally ditched them to set them up

[llamagoddessofficial]

@aizawasluckylady commissioned a part 2 to adorable Skull rescuing you. I love this dork, he's such a joy to write.

--

You couldn’t help it. You’d been staring on and off for almost half an hour, at the two skeletons sat a few tables from you at the cafe. It took all the courage you had in you- but it was now or never, right? You'd paid for your food, you couldn't linger any longer. You finally took a breath, shifting your bag onto your shoulder... then you walked over, approaching their table.

You didn’t know who the lanky skeleton in the orange scarf was. He had nice, straight teeth, probably thanks to the hard work of his neat silver braces- a pair of glasses were perched on his face, taped into position on the sides of his skull. He was talking excitedly to Skull, who you absolutely recognised; he was your saviour, after all. Skull had a blue beanie pulled over his cracked cranium, and wore a comfortable looking chunky grey turtleneck. He had a relaxed expression on his face as the other skeleton talked on... his mug was empty, the tall skeleton’s still full of what appeared to be hot chocolate.

Even sat down, they were both tremendously tall. Skull was your height while sitting, and the taller skeleton had a few inches on you, they dwarfed every other person in the cafe. Looking at Skull, you couldn’t help but replay being carried by him, in your mind... all you could think about was how warm his arms he had been. How secure you felt when he carried you, the sensation of relief and gratitude that rushed over you. How nice he had smelled, how lovely his voice was... how intently he’d listened to you go on and on about the most menial of subjects.

... You tried to shut the thoughts up. You didn’t want to be obviously blushing when you said hi. 

“H-hey!” Your voice cracked- embarrassing. But you tried to make up for it with friendliness, fiddling with your bag strap. “Skull, right? It’s great to see you again.”

... The tall skeleton stopped talking. Both of them looked at you.

...

... Then they had very different reactions. 

The tall skeleton’s face lit up like a Christmas tree, his braced grin rising and sockets immediately sparkling as he set down his cup. Skull, on the other hand, went absolutely stone still; his big red eyelight shrank, he stared blankly at you.

“OH!! MY GOODNESS!!!!” Not-Skull turned in his chair to face you, leaning forward and grabbing your hand with both of his, shaking enthusiastically and unintentionally pulling you closer as your whole arm ragdolled in his excited shake. “IT’S SO GOOD TO MEET YOU! I’M PAPYRUS! YOU MUST BE THE HUMAN I’VE HEARD SO MUCH ABOUT!”

You blinked. “H... heard about...?”

Skull’s eyelight jumped from you to the other skeleton. You saw his grip increase on his cup. He made a panicked noise in the back of his throat- ‘Papyrus’ did not hear it.

“YES, OF COURSE!” He sounded absolutely delighted. “MY BROTHER RESCUED YOU WHILE WALKING, RIGHT? OH, HOW ROMANTIC! LITERALLY SWEPT OFF YOUR FEET! IT’S SO GOOD TO MEET YOU, GOSH I ALREADY SAID ‘GOOD TO MEET YOU’, DIDN’T IT? I’M JUST VERY EXCITED! HE REALLY LIKES YOU, YOU KNOW, HE HASN’T STOPPED TALKING ABOUT YOU- WHICH IS VERY UNUSUAL, SINCE HE USUALLY DOESN’T TALK MUCH AT ALL!” 

Your face flushed. What? Skull talked about you? “Uh,”

“pap.” Skull mumbled, iris all but boring a hole into his brother. Sweat had appeared on his head, his expression was completely unreadable.

“HOW IS YOUR FOOT? I’M GLAD YOU GOT HOME SAFELY, IT SOUNDED LIKE YOU HAD QUITE THE INJURY. HAVE YOU BEEN RESTING AND EATING WELL? GOSH, YOU’RE JUST LIKE HE DESCRIBED! YOU SEE, I RECOGNISED YOU IMMEDIATELY BECAUSE HE DESCRIBED YOU IN GREAT DETAIL!” 

... The informational overload was getting greater by the moment. Talked about you? Described you? Was that true? You glanced over at Skull, ears burning, overwhelmed and unsure of what to say or think. He looked equally as shaken as you- he was now staring at the table, slightly quivering.

“YOU DEFINITELY MATCH HIS DESCRIPTION!” Papyrus beamed. “THOUGH MOSTLY HE JUST WENT ON AND ON ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU WERE VERY PRETTY, AND HAD A VERY NICE VOICE-!”

CRUNCH!

... You both startled, Pap looked over his shoulder. Skull had shattered his cup, shards of ceramic falling from his clenched fist. 

...

Some people were staring. Skull didn’t move.

“OH MY STARS, SANS!” Papyrus tutted. “YOU NEED TO BE MORE GENTLE. WAIT HERE, HUMAN, I’LL GO ASK FOR SOME HELP CLEANING THIS UP.”

Papyrus stood up, and quickly pushed you into his now unoccupied seat; right next to Skull. Then he rushed away.

...

You and Skull sat in stunned silence. You were still holding your bag like you were about to leave. Your face was beet red- you were absolutely mortified, you couldn’t read Skull’s expression. It felt like a hurricane had just passed through.

... That was not how you expected that to go. You’d been imagining a relaxed meeting, a few words, maybe one or two jokes and you doing most of the talking. Maybe, hopefully, getting his number. You didn’t anticipate something like that- through all the fluster you felt terrible, like you just embarrassed Skull in front of the entire cafe.

...

“... I’m sorry, I didn’t mean-” “i-i’m sorry, he’s-”

... You both closed your mouths at the same time. You also both sank into your seats, with equal amounts of ‘how do I do this?’ written on your faces.

...

“... That’s, erm... that was your brother, right?” 

Skull nodded. His iris was laser-focused on the table as he continued to sweat. You tried not to think too hard about what Papyrus had said- maybe it was a prank? Siblings did that to one another, right? You had no idea what their relationship was like. As much as your heart fluttered at the idea that Skull had liked you so much that he’d gushed about you to his brother, you had to bear in mind the possibility that Papyrus was pulling Skull’s leg. Teasing him in front of someone he knew.

(... Though for some reason, you got the sense Pap wasn’t like that.)

“He seems really nice.” You said, honestly.

“he is.” Skull replied softly.

...

“... i’m sorry.” He mumbled, using his other hand to reach up, pulling his beanie down over his face, suddenly seeming like he wanted to completely vanish. “you... h-had to hear... all that...”

Is he embarrassed because it was true? You hoped so.

“... It’s okay. Really.” You tilted your head. “I-is your hand...?”

... He finally unclenched it, only now remembering his fist was still closed, shards of ceramic falling out. Luckily, he still had the tray from his order, and all the pieces bounced onto that. There wasn't much of a mess, just a sad ruined cup.

“s’fine.” Solid bone probably didn’t have much trouble with pottery. 

He looked overwhelmed.

...

“Do you wanna stand outside for a bit?”

His eyelight finally flickered over to you, widening- like clouds parting, you could see readable emotions appearing on his face. Mostly positive ones, and a flash of relief.

“yes.” He wheezed, grin raising. “please.”

The two of you stood up together, Skull leaving his coat over the back of his chair to indicate that he was coming back and wasn’t just fleeing the scene of the mug-breaking crime. It took a few seconds of navigating the small maze of chairs and tables, but eventually you found yourself outside again with your back resting against the wall adjacent to the cafe door. You gratefully took in the fresh air, Skull quickly shuffling in beside you and shaking his hand of the remaining cup fragments.

“This is much nicer.” You said, enjoying the sudden sense of space. You always felt better outside. “... Uhm... how have you been recently? We haven’t spoken since the walk.”

... Skull’s cheekbones started to colour. That lovely gentle ultramarine flush. “... good.”

...

“your... leg?” He sounded hopelessly shy. Like he was trying.

“... Oh! My leg! It’s fine now.” You looked down at the foot, tapping the toe of your shoe against the ground. “Wasn’t broken after all, just sprained. I’m so lucky you found me when you did, it didn’t get any worse and it’s healing great. It still feels a bit sore, but it should be fine in a week or so, so long as I’m gentle with it. I think I’m going nuts, though, I was told not to hike until it was healed and I haven’t seen my favourite trails once after the injury. I don’t know what to do with myself now that I can’t go walking. I’m desperate to go out, it’s...”

... You stopped yourself, losing steam, looking up to meet Skull’s staring. 

As much as his comment about liking listening to you had stuck with you... you doubted he wanted to hear an in-depth recounting of how your sprained ankle had impacted your outdooring schedule.

You glanced away. Your head was a total mess. You embarrassed Skull in front of a cafe of people, and now you were talking his nonexistent ear off about your stupid leg. You were sure you’d be lying awake at night replaying this scenario for the next several years, and though you were sure there were other ways to approach this, you were reaching the end of your ability to deal with yourself. Flustered was an understatement.

(You didn’t hear his mumble- “i’d carry you.”)

You took a breath, forcing your tone into something more easygoing, shoving your hands in your pockets and plastering a smile on your face. “Well! I-I should... get going. I've paid and all. I’m sure you and your brother have stuff to be getting on with. I’ll-”

... Skull reached out, and snagged the end of your sweater sleeve with a claw. Like a kid holding onto their parent’s arm to make sure they didn’t get too far away.

His eyelight was huge, warm in his socket and intense in its gaze. “wait.”

... He suddenly didn’t sound so nervous. Or... look so nervous. He drew a bit closer, and your breath caught in your throat.

“Oh,” you felt your heart rate pick up again, at his proximity. Did you forget something? “uhm...”

“... m’not... lettin’ you escape again.” He said, with a softly determined and unabashed look. “i like you. how you talk. and look.”

...

You went pink pink. Why... why did you like hearing that so much? The idea that he could want you around made your head buzz.

“I-I,” you so eloquently declared, brain running on fumes. “I also... like how you talk and look.”

...

If his smile was anything to go by, despite your fear he'd be let down by your brainless response... he apparently really, really liked that reaction.

“could... i, mh... ... your number?”