Here's to Another Try

The sound of your phone ringing woke you up and you grumbled as you took it to see who was calling. You must have forgotten to put it back on silent. As you checked the caller ID, you saw it was your boss and your fingers stumbled to enter the call.

“Ah, h-hello?” you answered in a groggy tone.

“Are you still not feeling well?” you boss asked from the other side, “you’re late, but you still don't sound too well, do you need another day off?”

“No!” you accidentally shouted, “I just forgot to set my alarm,” you laughed weakly.

“I’ll be there soon, I'm so sorry!” you apologized, hanging up soon after.

Great, you slept in and now you were late. You set your hand on the mattress of you bed to hoist yourself up, only to have it make contact with nothing, causing you to fall to the ground.

A groan of pain escaped your mouth as you hit the hardwood floor underneath you.

Wait, my bedroom has carpet, you had finally made the realization that you were not in your room.

This is not my beautiful apartment, and that was not my beautiful bed.

Panic rose up in your throat as you wondered exactly where you are until a familiar skeleton squatted in front of your form on the ground.

“geeze, if i knew you were as loud as Paps in the morning, i would have not let you stay the night,” he joked, holding his hand out to you.

The panic quickly subsided as you graciously took his hand. He helped you stand up and you brushed the non-existent dirt off of you.

“i know a shortcut to your apartment building if you wanna get there quicker,” he gave you a lopsided grin as you rushed to see if your bag that was on one of the tables next to the couch had all of its two items.

“Yes, that would be nice,” you said absentmindedly as you checked for the time. Ouch, two and a half hours late.

His fingers hesitantly brushed against your hand and you held onto his own hand as a response. You were glad you were warming up to him enough to allow contact.

Sans led you to the front door, and as the two of you stepped outside, you found yourself standing in front of your apartment complex. You gaped at him and turned back to the building.

How????

He gave you his classic shit eating grin and wiggled the fingers on his free hand, “magic.”

You barely contain a fit of laughter as you made your way up to your home. He was still holding you hand, but you weren't complaining.

Instead of making sure you were fed and clothed for the new day, (it was too late to shower now) you made sure your lilies were doing fine. Sans had let go of your hand as you watered them. He was looking around your apartment, closely examining everything without touching anything.

“Yeah, I know it's small, but then again I'm the only one who lives here,” you sighed as you closed the door to outside and strode over to your room.

“Feel free to look at anything as I get ready!”

The outfit today was going to be as flowy as you could make it. You haven't felt this genuinely happy for so long in such a long time. Your outfit was define going to match your mood.

Your dress was a light Orchid color with silvery pieces on the straps and waist. You twirled around and was pleased with how it fanned out.

Next was your scarf, you picked out a long and fluffy light blue one, that felt a little rough to touch.

Finally, your sweater. Sweater weather was fast approaching and you would take full advantage of it this year. It was a grayish blue, with a pastel rainbow lining the pockets and edges. And God did it make you look adorable.

Satisfied with your choices, you finally left your room and quickly brushed your teeth and hair.

Sans was sitting on your couch, flipping through the sketchbook that you had left yesterday. It took all your will to not rush over and snatch it away. Nothing personal was in that certain book, after all, it was just for your flowers. But you always got incredibly embarrassed when someone looked at your art.

“you’re pretty good,” the lights in his eyes moved to look at you when you left the bathroom.

“T-thanks,” you flushed and picked a banana up from the counter and peeled it. Such an easy food, the best for late days. You crossed your arms as you stood in front of him from the coffee table.

“I mean, all I really do is just look at the flowers and draw what I see, it's not that much of a talent,” you shrug and nibble at the banana. You know you should already be out the door and just eat as you walk, but you hate to admit you really want to spend more time with Sans.

“‘m pretty sure i couldn't do it as well as you.”

“Flattery will get you nowhere.”

“damn.”

You suppressed a laugh and lightly smacked him on the top of his skull before throwing the peel of your finished breakfast away.

“Hate to break it to you, but I really got to get to work. Gosh, how could I be so late?”

“life happens. want another shortcut?”

“Sure!” he gave you a soft look that vanished as soon as it came. It was probably just the lighting. That’s always a valid excuse.

You reached for his hand when he stood up next to you, and the next moment you're at the bookstore. The idea never came to you that you didn't need to hold his hand through his ‘shortcuts’, but the feeling made you feel warm and fuzzy so you never had a reason to think about it. Just in a platonic way of course!

“Thanks! I'll see you later?” you suggested before entering the store.

“are ya gunna be bonely if i don’t?”

You shot him a look, then shrugged into the store. He is nice and all, but you were already stalling enough.

Work today was pretty busy compared to previous days, but you just had so much energy that you didn’t mind. One of your coworkers had even commented on your unusually chipper mood during break. By the end of your shift, the fact you did seem so happy kept interrupting your train of thought. What if this was only temporary? What if a few days from now you would feel just as horrible you did the other day? That’s how it always seems to go. A never ending loop of feeling good, then absolutely miserable.

You shook those thoughts out of your head as you walked out the door. Sans wasn’t there, and you couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

He doesn’t have to always wait for you, you’re not the only one with a life.

Your unpleasant thoughts ticked you off. Blasting music from your earbuds seemed like the best solution, and your mind dissolved into the lyrics of the songs.

The apartment was as welcoming as usual. Tonight was a night to treat yourself, with Mac and Cheese of course. You checked your phone while waiting for the water to boil. One message.

Sans
*i forgot to mention
*paps and i are going to a friends tomorrow for dinner
*was wondering if you wanted to come

New people, what a wonderful thought. You sighed as you weighed your choices. You could either agree, and worry for the next twenty four hours, but be around someone you’re comfortable with. Or, you could reject and stay in your nice, welcoming, not-strange home, but be alone for the rest of the night. The latter option sounded very nice when you put it that way. You were at least attempting you come out of your shell though, and that option surely won’t help you.

You
-Sure! I’d love to meet your other friends!
-Do I need to bring anything??

Screw my anti-socialness

Sans
*nah just you is fine

You were slowly stirring your noodles as you read the message. Only a few minutes until you were going to get your favorite dish from childhood. It’s still your favorite.

Sans and you chatted as you ate and through the rest of the night about silly things, he mostly shot puns at you. The first five were fun, but he just wouldn’t stop. Man, as much as a cool friend he was, he sure knew how to mess with you and get the best results.

As you laid in bed, you read the last few messages again. They were still stupid puns, but they had gotten weirdly affectionate as the conversation progressed. The phone slipped out of your hands and onto your nose. You groaned in pain and realization.

Oh god, I really do have feelings for him.