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Before monsters left the Underground, Sans had no friends. Yes, he had Papyrus, but it was different - they're brothers, even though their relationship is not what you would call friendly. There was that crazy lady behind the Ruins door, but he didn't consider her his friend either. If you wanted to survive in the Underworld, you couldn't afford to have a friend.Who would want to be friends with him anyway?Annoying skeleton with lame puns did not inspire good feelings in people. Hell, Sans didn't even know well enough about this friendship crap anyway. In his head, it was just more work, and, well, a lazybones like him didn't need more of that in his life.A human changed everything. A girl who freed the Underground, gifted every monster Mercy and offered her friendship. After so many years of withering in the world, where the main rule was 'kill or be killed', the concept of friendship was new for every monster.When the barrier was destroyed, Sans didn't hurry to go out there and see the sun for the first time in his life. A strange sense of fear clawed at his soul - out there was a new, giant world with its own set of survival rules, for which the skeleton didn't feel prepared."Sans?" The human whose name they all recently learned - Frisk, approached him.She probably noticed his uneasiness, so she patiently stood near him. She was claiming that they were friends before and Sans once again thought about the implications of that. How was he supposed to act with her? He tried to voice his thoughts, hiding his hesitation behind a confident, uncaring façade. He didn't look in her direction, but from the corner of his eye socket he could see that she was listening to him. After he muttered the last of his words and was ready to teleport away to literally anywhere just to run away from here, he felt warm fingers carefully wrapping around his palm. When the skeleton turned his skull to her, he made eye contact with the very determined looking girl.
"Let's go." Frisk smiled, tugging his hand slightly. "I'll teach you friendship."It was a day, when they left the Underground, and from that day on, Sans relayed on Frisk for all the friendship stuff. He didn't ask any particular questions, instead analysed their interactions, meeting, the way she talked and acted around him.Frisk visited the skelebrothers frequently in their new house on the surface, and loved praying Sans off the couch and taking him outside. He didn't really mind - he found this human girl amusing, and their walks on the streets or in the park weren't very energy-consuming. Well, alone he surely wouldn't do that, ever. He doubted he would go in the company of his brother either.All Frisk's friends gathered occasionally and hung out together, watching films or anime. Usually Sans fell asleep very quickly, just to be jolted awake by shouting Papyrus or the sounds of Undyne breaking furniture, but one day, when everyone gathered in skelebrothers' home, the older skeleton couldn't sleep. He was sandwiched between Frisk and Undyne, who couldn't stop fidgeting while the human girl tried to calm her down, so the only thing left for Sans to do was watch what was happening on TV screen. The film turned out to be so ridiculous, that not only Sans thought it was silly - Undyne kept arguing with Papyrus, ranting about the crap he insisted on watching, and the tall skeleton answered with insulting comments about the anime they all previously watched. Sans found this film hilarious and, without really thinking about it, started whispering to Frisk little jokes, pointing out some ridiculous scenes and moments. To his pleasure, the young woman quietly laughed and started to make some jokes in return.Most monsters found his jokes annoying and never laughed, just hissed or cursed, and the best response he could get was a heavy sign. Surprisingly, he discovered that Frisk didn't mind that side of him. Yes, she winced when his jokes crossed the line into dark humor, but usually, to his own amusement, she smiled, sometimes giggled or even laughed. Sans started to feel more free with himself and instinctively tried to come up with more jokes just to see her smile again.Sans liked that warm atmosphere between the two of them. He finally felt what it was like to have a friend, and started to cherish the time he spent with the human girl.But one day, he became confused.It was an ordinary, little, cold evening. Sans and Frisk were slowly walking in the park near the young woman's home, talking about nothing in particular, exchanging jokes and breathing in the fresh air. It wasn't anything unusual, and Sans didn't even notice at first how Frisk's hand slid in his own.The human girl continued talking like nothing happened, walking closer to his side, while Sans started to feel embarrassment rising in his chest. He always thought that hand holding was a couple's thing, but then remembered how Frisk took his hand when they walked out of the Underground for the first time. She told him that day that she'll teach him friendship. So, it was just a friendship gesture? Sans couldn't remember if he ever saw her holding hands with one of her numerous friends. Maybe she just felt cold?
That's why she grabbed your cold, hard hand, you, genius.
Sans decided not to pay much mind to it. The feeling of her warm fingers in between his bone ones wasn't unpleasant, and reminded him of the day when monsters abandoned their violent ways and stepped into the sunlight.Next time they hanged out, Frisk intertwined their hands again, causing Sans to frown in confusion. He decided to try his idea out, shrugging his coat off and throwing it on her shoulders. It caused her to look at him with surprise, and when their gazes locked Frisk gave him a happy smile. Sans expected her to let go of his hand, but she just gave it a light squeeze in appreciation and tagged him further.When their 'friendship group' was heading to the Japanese restaurant that Undyne and Alphys wanted to try in a very long time, Frisk, looking more hesitantly than usual, took the older skeleton's hand in hers. Sans, without a second thought, squeezed it in return, accustomed to the warmth of her fingers. He felt weird, maybe even embarrassed, walking with Frisk like that when they were surrounded by their friends. The skeleton noticed how they shot surprised looks at them, heard how Papyrus whispered something incoherent and Alphys' annoying laugh in response, the notes of which made him nervous for some unknown reason. Sans didn't pay them much attention, busy swimming in his thoughts.Frisk took his hand. Her other hand remained free on her side, periodically rising when she gestured or pointed at something. She didn't reach for someone else's and approached Sans specifically. He looked at their friends - even Alphys and Undyne, being an actual couple, didn't hold hands. Fish-warrior liked to sweep her girlfriend under her muscular arm and carry her all-together.Sans didn't know if he was overthinking it, or on the contrary, actively ignored the fact that something unusual was happening between him and Frisk. Did he really know that little about friendship? He ran his thumb across the back of her hand, feeling the little bones through her warm skin.
Nah, he is surely overthinking things. Why would Frisk want to date someone like him-He almost stopped in place. Did he want to date Frisk? Sans didn't understand friendship, and a relationship was a whole different can of worms. Frisk was a human, and what human would want to date a monster? And monsters-
He wasn't against the idea of dating a human.
But it was Frisk, Frisk - a young woman who broke the barrier and freed all the monsters from their dark prison, gifted them the sunlight, gave the second chance to everyone. There was no monster who did not respect her. Her adoptive parents were the monsters’ King and Queen. She was like an angel in flesh.And there was him. Useless lazy skeleton with dumb jokes, failed scientist, worthless Judge. He was lucky that someone like her wants to be his friend and so he decided not to look for more, squeezing her hand in his.Sans ignored that warm feeling, that burned in his chest every time Frisk hugged him when they met, laughed melodically at his jokes, found his hand with hers when they walked together side by side, carefully placed her head on his shoulder when they watched a movie... And one day, he couldn't keep it in himself anymore.They sat at the roof of the skeleton-brother's house, waiting for the sky to darken and little bright dots of stars to appear. Sans wrapped Frisk up in his coat, partially to save her from the cold night air, partially because they were friends and it was a friendly thing of him to do... And partially because he liked the way she looked in his coat. Frisk sat between his half-crossed legs, her back pressed against him. She was saying something to him, her hand on top of his, her hair tickling the side of his skull, so close that her aroma filled his senses."Frisk?" He cut her off in the middle of the sentence, fighting the urge to shift his hand to hold hers. She turned her head to face him, leaning it against his shoulder."Yes?" The young woman looked at the skeleton with curiosity, not bothered at all with him interrupting her."I... We..." Sans suddenly found talking to be a hard task - words turned into a lump that got stuck in his throat and he felt like her staring eyes were making a hole in his skull. He turned his head away and tried to form his thoughts into sentences."Is what we’re doing, normal?"He felt how she turned to face him better, letting go of his hand and placing her own near his clavicle for balance."What do you mean?"Sans gulped, even though skeletons didn't need to do that."What we are doing," he repeated, instinctively pressing her closer to himself to keep her in his arms, feeling the fur of his coat tickling his vertebrae. "is it normal for friends?"He couldn't look her in the eyes, but felt her body go stiff. Awkward silence hung over them. With every second Sans grew more nervous, droplets of sweat started to form on the side of his skull.After some time the skeleton felt her grasp on his turtleneck getting stronger. He turned his head and ended up face to face with Frisk and her determined stare. They were apart by just a few inches, and Sans couldn't look away."What will you do if I say no?" He would have felt the bright shining of her soul if his own didn't burn with a red flame inside his chest."I'll call you a liar." Sans smirked, whispering. If not the circumstances he would chuckle, but right now he just tried to keep his voice even."You said you'll teach me friendship, and instead you lead me on the wrong path."Frisk smiled, blushing, but if she looked guiltily, then no more than a cat who ate all the food without permission."Do you mind?" Her hands snaked around his neck, and he brought her closer in return."Sweetheart, next time just tell me straight, without any hints." Sans touched her forehead with his. "So I won't have doubts."He heard her quiet giggle and the feeling of her soft lips pressing against his teeth erased all doubts he ever had.