Bittersweet
You don’t scream. You don’t spring up. You don’t start hyperventilating. All you do is open your eyes, and look at the ceiling above you. You sit there for a moment, staring up at the bland ceiling of the tv room, taking deep, even breaths. It’s peaceful almost, until a loud voice shouts, “OH SANS YOU’RE AWAKE!”
Someone stirs next to you on the couch, obviously having been sleeping before that rude awakening.
“OH, SORRY ALPHYS…” Papyrus says sheepishly, “I JUST SAW THAT SANS WAS AWAKE! FINALLY, LAZYBONES, IT’S ALMOST TEN!”
“paps... you do realize that’s early for me.” Alphys just groans next to you.
“WELL! YES! BUT, I HAD TO MAKE BREAKFAST ESPECIALLY QUIET! SO YOU WOULDN’T WAKE UP BECAUSE YOU BOTH FELL ASLEEP ON THE COUCH.” He gives you a faux stern look, “YOU SHOULD COME UP AND SLEEP IN YOUR BED NEXT TIME.”
You playfully retort, “my bed? but the couch is so much more comfy ya know? right alph?” Her response is to stare at you with lidded eyes and a poker face. “see?”
“SANS!” He huffs, “SAVE YOUR SHENANIGANS FOR LATER! IT’S TIME FOR BOTH OF YOU TO HAVE BREAKFAST! AND AFTER YOU FINISH WE’RE HEADING OUT.”
“to... uh.... where?”
“WELL SINCE WE’RE NOT UNDERGROUND ANYMORE I FIGURED NOW WOULD BE AS GOOD A TIME AS ANY TO GET NEW GYFTMAS DECORATIONS. TORIEL SAID I’M IN CHARGE OF DECORATING THE HOUSE!” He gleams with a sense of pride, “AND FRISK ALSO WANTS TO COME WITH US TO GET OUR FESTIVE DECORATIONS BECAUSE IT’S GOING TO BE OUR FIRST GYFTMAS AS A FAMILY TOGETHER.” Huh. A family.
Papyrus adds as an afterthought, “THEY DID MENTION SOMETHING ABOUT A CHRIS...MAS? LIKE THE MAS OF CHRIS??? BUT I DON’T KNOW A CHRIS, DO YOU KNOW SOMEBODY NAMED CHRIS SANS?” You shrug. “WELL NEVERMIND THEN! ALPHYS I WOULD ASK YOU TO COME WITH US, BUT I BELIEVE YOU AND UNDYNE ARE IN CHARGE OF GETTING THE TREE.”
“K. Cool.” Alphys mumbles, still looking half asleep.
“um, Papyrus? ain’t it a little early to be starting to celebrate Gyftmas? don’t we always start decorating on the first?” You ask hesitantly.
It’s not like you forget your Gyftmas traditions with Papyrus, but… It’s been so long since you’ve celebrated. Yes, technically it’s been less than a year, but the kid fell right after Gyftmas had ended. The decorations were still up and everything. So it’s… it’s been a while.
Papyrus shoots you a look that is just pure disbelief. “SANS!? DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS!? HAVE YOU NOT BEEN USING THAT CALENDAR I GOT YOU?”
You try and remember what day you marked off the calendar yesterday. Now that Papyrus mentions it, you’re kind of surprised you didn’t freak out when you didn’t immediately see the calendar as you woke up. “...is today the first?”
“NYEH HEH HEH HEH! OF COURSE IT IS!” He scoops you up from off the couch, and carries you into the kitchen, placing you lightly in front of a plate of waffles.
Alphys drags herself into the room and sits down at the table besides you. Everyone else seems to have finished eating already.
You look at your plate and can’t help but really smile. There’s three mini waffles on your plate, and each one has a whipped cream smiley face, same with Alphys’. Papyrus sure is something.
You eat two, not really hungry having just gotten up, but you enjoy them nevertheless, and afterwards you excuse yourself t go get ready, as does Alphys. Papyrus stays in the kitchen and tells you to get Frisk and come meet him downstairs when you’re ready.
You get ready, and by that you mean you put a sweatshirt over the tshirt you slept in, and you wash up. As you go to get Frisk from their room, yo find them ready and waiting in the hallway right outside their door. They’re dressed in a sweater, as per usual, but it’s brown and green, and they have a matching homemade looking scarf.
You hold out your hand to their mittened one and you say, “is it blizzarding outside or somethin’?”
They giggle and sign, ‘Mom made me wear all this. It’s also supposed to snow later.’ Before taking your hand and you both walk downstairs.
Before you can even wonder why Papyrus isn’t inside, he shouts, muffled by the wall, “SANS! HUMAN FRISK! I AM OUTSIDE BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WOULD APPRECIATE ME WARMING THE CAR UP! I AM READY TO GO NOW THOUGH!”
The car ride is pretty fun honestly. Frisk tells you about this “Chris-mas”, which actually is called Christmas, and how it’s basically the same thing Gyftmas is. Same month, same traditions, the only thing different is apparently the religious undertones the holiday apparently has on the surface. But the kid tells you it’s not really about that stuff, and more the holiday spirit.
Papyrus asks them if they celebrated Christmas before. You’re surprised the kid actually answers, as they’ve been so hesitant in talking about their life before falling.
“I celebrate Hanukkah.” They say out loud.
“han-oo-ka? how’s it spelled?”
They switch back to signing, and you translate what they say to Papyrus, since he’s driving.
‘Well…' They laugh, 'You can spell it H-A-N-U-K-K-A-H, or C-H-A-N-U-K-A-H…'
You interrupt them. “cha-noo-ka?”
They shake their head. ‘It’s pronounced the same.’ “Hanukkah.” They say clearly.
“so why is it spelled like that?”
‘Well it’s also spelt like…’
You learned many things about Hanukkah that car ride.
Papyrus promises Frisk if there is this thing they call a menorah at the store, he’ll get it and the family will celebrate Hanukkah with them.
The family. It’s a weird term. You’re… family. Yeah. It’s been almost a year on the surface, living with your family. The kid hasn’t RESET yet, and for once, you think, things are actually looking up.
“Sans, open your gift.” Your father says.
The package is layed in front of you, neatly wrapped in red wrapping paper. Well, not exactly neatly, but you know your dad tried. Well ‘Santa’ tried, although both you and your dad only say that for the sake of Papyrus.
Said monster is hugging multiple stuffed animals, surrounded in wrapping paper of all different colors from his surplus of presents strewn around him. He smiling, contently, and you can’t help but smile back at him. He’s so cute. Only three and a half years old, but still able to bring a smile to both you and your dad’s faces.
Papyrus has finished opening up his gifts, eager as always, and you were nearly done, just the one present in front of you left. Unlike your brother, you carefully tear the wrapping off, starting at the bottom so you don’t immediately see what’s inside.
You throw the wrapping to the side, and flip the box that you have over. It’s…
You grab your father and hug him tightly, and he hugs you back. He got you a telescope. And not just some junky one thrown together from spare parts. This looks professional, like something from the surface almost. Your father’s really great at building stuff. Your father's really great.
“thank you thank you thank you thank you!” You say, almost squealing because of how excited you are. You think the rocks in waterfall look cool from a distance? Wait till you see them up close! It’s going to be incredible!
Your father smiles gently at you as you pull out of the hug. “I guess it’s time for dinner?”
He looks like he’s about to stand up, but you stop him by shouting “wait!” and excitedly running upstairs to your room.
You go under Papyrus’ bed and grab the present that you both made for dad. Well mostly you made it, but again, Papyrus is only three.
“wait!” You shout again as you run down the stairs, almost tripping over yourself.
“Be careful!” Your father says nervously, but you pay him no mind, and race over to put the package on the floor in front of him.
It looks hastily wrapped, messily covered in brown paper. It’s too bad you couldn’t find where dad keeps the wrapping paper, because he hides it from Papyrus and you couldn’t ask him where it was, as that would ruin the surprise.
Your dad looks taken aback. “Is this… for me?”
You nod vigorously.
He smiles at you again, and you can’t contain yourself, and give him a very wide smile back. Even Papyrus has abandoned his toys now, crawling over to where you’re at. He looks expectantly at dad. “OPEN IT! OPEN IT!” He chants, waving his arms in the air and giggling.
“Well, alright.” Your father says, obviously flustered having not been expecting a present.
He carefully tears at the wrapping like you did, except maybe a bit more careful. He places the paper aside and grabs the white box contained inside. He stares at it a moment, and then opens the lid.
“Sans. Papyrus.” You nervously wait in anticipation at his words. “I love it.”
He pulls both you and Papyrus into a big hug, and you stay there for a long time before he breaks it, saying that he’s got to hang it up on the fridge.
“Now go sit at the table, I’ll be right there.”
You grab Papyrus in your arms and go into the kitchen, placing him in his high chair that he sure to outgrow soon. You sit in an adult seat next to him, and your father soon returns with food and places it all on the table, a real feast. You all dig into your Gyftmas dinner, and in the corner of your eyes you see the fridge, with your gift on it.
A small magnet holds in place a poorly drawn picture of three smiling people.