Sans's POV:

Where did it all start?

Well, I think it all started when my brother, Papyrus, came home after he attempted to capture the human. I was lazily slumped up on the couch watching M.T.V.

I was pondering about the dream I had last night while slurping from a ketchup bottle with a straw.

I was trying to keep myself distracted and tried not to worry about Papyrus not coming home like in the other timelines. Some morbid part of me couldn't help but wonder if the kid turned him to dust yet.

But that thought completely vanished when the door swung open, and none other than Papyrus marched in with an excited look on his face. Very proudly, he put his gloved hands to his waist and announced loudly:

"SANS! YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BELIEVE THIS!" He expresses, seemingly ecstatic.

"Oh, hey bro, successful in capturing the human?" I guessed, sitting upright on the couch. Papyrus just beamed.

"NO, YOU LAZY BONES! THE HUMAN ASKED ME OUT ON A DATE!" he announced enthusiastically.

It caught me off guard, so much so that my grip on the bottle had squeezed so hard ketchup started to leak out from the straw. 'wait...what?'

"BUT OF COURSE, IT WOULD HAVE ONLY BEEN A MATTER OF TIME, AFTER ALL, THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS VERY ATTRACTIVE AND-"

I had stopped listening because my whole body had tensed up.

'the human... asked Papyrus to go on a date with them?'

"Oh..."

I didn't know how to describe what went over me. Was I worried? was I jealous? Did I feel Betrayed? However, those words just didn't sit well for me.

'or maybe just confused. Yeah, maybe I'm just a bit confused.'

"SERIOUSLY SANS? ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY IS JUST: 'Oh?'"

"I don't know. It's just you've never been asked out on a date before. Way to go, bro," I said with a smug smile and giving him a thumb's up.

"IT WAS THE HUMAN WHO FLIRTED WITH ME, ANYWAY I'M OFF TO THE LIBRARY FOR SOMETHING. BE BACK IN A FEW!" and just like that, he left.

My head was still kind of out of it. It was a weird, unnerving feeling.

"Maybe I'm just a bit concerned, I mean Papyrus has never been on a date before, at least none that I'd know of..."

'maybe I should chaperon. Not directly, of course, but it wouldn't hurt to be careful.'

I started to scratch my skull in thought.

'still, why is this bothering me so much?"

...

Things didn't feel any better when Papyrus invited the human into their home for their date. So I hid away in my room and listened through my bedroom door. It seemed like Papyrus was giving the human a tour of their house. It was when they were in the kitchen I heard the sound of the silly white dog, that always managed to irritate Papyrus, that I couldn't help myself.

I opened the door and wiped out my trombone and played a little tune.

"SANS!" Pap yelled at me from below

"what?" I asked leaning from our second-floor balcony

"STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC!"

"I'm sorry, bro, but you know I got a thing for the trombone!"

I could hear the human chuckled at my pun, and just to drive it home, I winked at them before going back into my room. I found myself grinning in amusement.

'that must of embarrassed him, but it was too good to resist.' I sighed, somewhat satisfied.

Not long after that, I heard them go into my brother's room, and I started to sweat.

I immediately left my room, crept silently toward Papyrus's bedroom, and I listened.

'I swear to god if the human much less lays a finger on my bro...' but when Pap's voice came through the door, it halted my train of thought.

"DATING START! HERE WE ARE!! ON OUR DATE!! I NEVER ACTUALLY DONE THIS BEFORE BUT DON'T WORRY! YOU CAN'T SPELL "PREPARED" WITHOUT SEVERAL LETTERS FROM MY NAME!!!"

There was a pause.

"I SNAGGED AN OFFICIAL DATING RULE BOOK FROM THE LIBRARY!"

'Oh, so that's why he went to the library. I was wondering about that. well, as long as this book didn't go too far...'

"WE'RE READY TO HAVE A GREAT TIME!"

I started to lean my back upon the door, still listening.

"LET ME SEE HERE... STEP ONE ASK THEM ON A DATE."

As the date continued, I started to relax a little 'sounds like the book is acceptable enough.'

I mean, each step was about basic innocent things like dressing up or giving gifts. Innocent things.

'Guess there was nothing to worry about, ha,' after all of that, suddenly it struck me.

'I'm...very protective of my brother, aren't I?'

'I mean, this is basically what they call eavesdropping, right?'

'isn't it kind of weird to be spying on your brother while he's on his date?' I shook my head and stopped leaning on the door.

"what am I doing?" I mutter.

'Even if this is his first time dating, Papyrus is old enough to date whoever he wants. So who am I to spy on him on his date?'

My gaze lingers Papyrus's bedroom door. 'I am too overprotective, he's fine.'

I shrugged off my uneasiness, distance myself from the door, and teleported.

...

It bothered me.

It bothered me a lot!

I don't know why, but I was very uncomfortable with the idea of Papyrus in a romantic relationship with anyone.

I begin hearing this deep cracking from inside of my skull. I didn't notice when my voice began to sound so monotone. Strangely, It became hard for me to make my dull grin into a smile.

I had no idea why I was feeling this way, but I know it felt deep and suffocating.

It was heavy and black.

It encloses my vision sometimes and showed in my eyes too. The little pricks of light within my eye sockets would flicker until they just disappear now and again.

My curiosity reached its peak, and these dark feelings became too much. A week had passed when I finally caved, and I asked about it.

I was sitting on the couch when Papyrus passed by. He was pacing, and I had turned it to a random channel. I wasn't paying attention to what was displayed. I think I was just staring blankly ahead. I found myself doing that a lot that week, staring off into space.

I tried to keep my voice casual and not so monotone.

"So, how did the date go?" I asked, barely able to keep the sorry excuse for a grin on my face and my voice steady.

"Oh, ABOUT THAT! WELL..." Papyrus looked like he wasn't expecting that question. I would have held my breath in suspense if I had lungs.

"AS OF THIS MOMENT WE... um... WILL REMAIN FRIENDS FOR NOW!" Papyrus stated.

The minute he finished speaking, it was like magic.

I couldn't explain why, but suddenly, everything became significantly less of a struggle. That cracking sound dulled into nothing, and that compressed feeling had exhaled and I felt much lighter.

I could feel the light in my eyes returning from the darkness.

It was a refreshing feeling, pleasant even. Everything came back in sharp focus.

So, even though Papyrus had his back turned to me, I quickly noticed how uncomfortable my brother was as he nervously waited for my response.

Smiling took little to no effort now, and I expressed my silly grin wholesomely. Also, I got my voice back too, which was as deep and carefree as it was before.

"Aw, don't worry bro, there are a ton of others out there."

There was a pause, and my brother knew all too well what I was about to say. Heck, it even showed in his face.

"a skeleton," I said even added a little wink, and the look on my brother's face was priceless. Papyrus was irritated beyond words.

"OH MY GOD SANS!" his whole face became red like ketchup, fuming profusely. I'm tempted to say another pun, just to see what he might do. He must have read my mind.

"SANS NO!" he yelled in protest.

"sans yes," I replied, my eyes shining like stars expressing my amusement.

'One could say I was happy. yeah.'

"What's the matter, bro? didn't tickle your funny bone?" I said, grinning away.

Papyrus was losing his mind. He was enraged and was yelling in frustration to the top of his nonexistent lungs, and even his face was screaming: 'I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU JUST SAID THAT!'

I just kept laughing.

'Is this what I sound like?'

'I never laughed so much in my life.'