A Second Chance (Papyrus X Flowey/Asriel)

'Crushing' Revelations

All too soon day came again, Papyrus and Asriel already falling into the routine of getting out of bed and changing in their designated spots. Though, the gasp from Papyrus caused Asriel to turn to him quickly, thankfully having fully changed.
"Papyr- woah, where's your top?" He corrected his gaze to anywhere but the others ribs as he spoke, hearing a frustrated huff from the other. "Oh to hell with decency for once, look at this!" He said, pointing to the spot on the center of his ribcage. Hesitating, Asriel peeked where he pointed, soon realizing what the fuss was about. "A scar? I've never seen you scar like that before," he said curiously, approaching to get a better look. It wasn't anything too impressive, a small four-point star patch indented into his otherwise pristine bones. In the light it almost shined like an opal, Papyrus's cheeks gaining colour at the sentiment. "Thats exactly it! I usually never scar, my magic just- fixes it!" He groaned as he waved his arms to accentuate his point. First his room changes, now his healing? couldn't he just catch a break?
The negativity oozed from Papyrus as he stared at his ribs with somewhat disgust, something Asriel wasn't too familiar with dealing with.
Back when he was Flowey, his 'condolences' were always perfect, a set of lines he put together to get the best outcome. Or at least, the outcome he wanted. It was so much more complicated, and yet in that moment, it felt so simple. Still, a rising frustration in his chest pushed him to at least say something.

"Well, I think it's beautiful."

..Asriel suddenly wanted to punch himself in the mouth. He wanted to say something but not whatever that was, that's what you'd say to your girlfriend! Papyrus, as pretty as he was, would never be Asriels girlfriend.
Still, the frozen face of shock, mixed with his now obviously flushed face, made Asriel wish Papyrus was a girl at that moment.
"No- it's uh- badass! let's get breakfast now, yeah?" He quickly shuffled out of the room, his chest pounding as he shut the door behind him with an accidental slam.

'Wish.. I was a girl?' Papyrus pondered to himself for a second, only thinking to tune into the others thoughts all too late. That, plus the quick escape, left a mark in his mind similar to the scar now permanent on his chest. He couldn't help look down one more time, seeing it reflect the light like an opal. The look of disdain he once held now replaced by a sheepish puzzled wonder.
He only took a moment before realizing that Doggely was probably alone out there with his brother, and finally found a sweater to quickly throw on for the day.
He kept a wide smile as he left his room, though it faltered when he looked down to see nobody there. Making his way to the kitchen, the look of perplexity on his face only furthered.
"why the long face?"
"Brother! Goodmorning to you too, I was just looking for Doggely!"
"oh, must've just missed him leaving then." the shorter skeleton yawned as he walked past him to the fridge, still in his pajamas.
"Leaving?" His 'heart' sunk a little, though he didn't let that show through to his chipper look. "..Must be getting a headstart on the day!" He chirped, his brother chuckling in response.
"figures you'd make buds with an earlybird. but hey, i still think he's pretty fly" He joked as he grabbed a takeout box from the fridge, sauntering towards the couch where his 'morning routine' would commence.
Papyrus, now at a loss for what to do with himself, joined him as he switched on the TV.
His thoughts overtook him as he stared blankly at the screen, his soul aching somewhat as tried to think of where Asriel would go.
"-pyrus, you there pal?" Sans spoke him out of his train of thought, worry present in his voice.
"Here! Sorry Brother, just.. lost in thought" his energy dwindled, he assumed it was a a mix of emotion and Asriel growing further in distance. His brother put down the remote as he found a channel, stuffing a fork into what looked like mushy fries drowned in condiments. "penny for your thoughts?" He casually pried, only half paying attention to the commercial break happening on the tv.
"I suppose there's something on my mind, but you can keep your money."
"good one!"
"Hardy har. I've just been having- lots of thoughts lately."
The suddenly serious shift in tone caught the shorter skeletons attention, his head turning to face Papyrus as he continued. "Things I've never had to think of before, and some of the opinions I've heard are.. confusing." His attempt at being vague only made his brother more curious what the topic was, nodding for him to continue once more. With a final calming breath, Papyrus finally talked over the repetitive jingle playing from the TV.
"..is it wrong for some monsters to like eachother?" The question caught Sans so off guard he almost choked on a fork-full of fries, quickly covering his teeth with his hand as he coughed out an interruption. "woah, heavy topic for so early in the morning buddy, isn't that a little.. oldschool?" He quickly tried to pivot, awkwardly putting down his breakfast on the table.
"Is it? Some monsters don't seem to think to think so, what if they're right?" Papyrus rebuked in a moment of weakness, his carefully crafted mask cracking just slightly. Seeing his brothers confused look, he quickly fixed it.
"maybe you should talk to fish-sticks about that kind of thing papyrus, she's got more experience than i probably ever will." he tried to ease the mood with the self burn, though it went over Papyrus's skull as he felt a worse worry seeping in.

'..Not even my own brother will talk to me about it, is something.. wrong with me then?'

He didn't give much room for any other conversation, heading for the door to put his boots on.  "hey, no matter what, you're my brother. you'll get through this bud." His older brother called from the couch, eye lights shifting with worry. "Thank you, Brother, don't forget to go to work today!" Papyrus was able to choke out before leaving, standing on the other side of the closed door for what felt like minutes.

'What did he do before everything?' He pondered, looking down the empty road in the glow of the early morning. He'd wake up early, make his way to his post and-
..Talk to Flowey.

He shook his skull of the thought, deciding maybe his brothers advice would come in handy, Undyne being a much more socially inclined person in his sockets anyways. He knew her schedule like the back of his glove, so it didn't take long for him to figure out exactly where she'd be.

"PAPS?" Echoed in the cavern as Papyrus heard his teacher and friend scramble up from bed inside her home, answering the door with a half-asleep stare. "Buddy it's like- way too early for surprise training, what's the big deal?" She said, straining to be chill about being awake at such an hour.
"I know you don't wake up for.." checking his phone, he did realize he was probably intruding, but at a loss for any other options he kept on path. "..awhile, but I'm in need of some advice." He tried to remain somewhat chipper, but even the exhausted guardswoman saw right through the ploy, standing out of the way to let him in.
It was hardly awkward waiting for her to make her morning tea, a familiar comfortable silence making the situation a little more bearable for Papyrus. As she sat down, mug in hand, she stared in a 'get on with it' manner. Under her gaze, the problem almost seemed trivial, like he was making a big deal of nothing. But, Undyne was his friend, and Papyrus trusted she would try to help.
Even if a little silly.
"I tried to talk to Sans about it but.."
"He's doing his 'cool mysterious guy' act again?"
"Not really! He just said you'd be.. better for this sort of thing, I guess."
"Sheesh, if he were any lazier I'd assume you were his dad instead of little brother." She jokingly insulted, though a tinge of a glare in her eye didn't escape Papyrus's notice.
"But what I came here for, well- I don't know how to say it without- you know-" he cut his own sentences off, trying to compute a way to not sound like he was going mad. The stuttering didn't help his case as his face darkened in colour, Undyne catching on to what the topic may be. "Hold on, does this have anything to do with that dog monster you've been stuck at the hip with?" She cut into his rambling, the silent, bright-faced look she received answering it enough without words. "YOU HAVE A CRUSH ON-" She shouted in amazement, only stopping when Papyrus practically leaped over the table to cover her mouth with a gloved hand. "Hush will you!! I have no idea where he is, he could be nearby!" He tried to hide his sheepish grin, but he couldn't help feel a little giddy. He sat back down with an uncharacteristic somber tone, his uppercase way of wording things seeming like it was on the verge of lowercase. "besides, we're boys anyways," he mumbled with a hint of bitterness, like it hurt just to say. Then, Undynes toothy smile faded, a look of shock replacing the sharp grin. "What's.. that got to do with it, Paps?" She asked carefully, grimacing at the empty look that filled her best friends sockets afterwards. "I'm not his girlfriend, I'd have to be- well-" he gestured vaguely to finish the statement. Undyne could only sigh as she took her seat properly again, sipping from the tea she'd made. "He doesn't like guys? That's your problem?"
"Well he's never said it, but-"
"I-I GOT HIM UNDY-"

crash.

Suddenly, the door was on the ground, and an exhausted Alphys held the cuffed arms of Doggely, whose hood now revealed his short yet immediately apparent horns. It took a moment for the dust to settle, only interrupted as Asriel cleared his throat. "Hey Undyne." "Hey.. Doggely."

1782 words
(Welcome to chapter 18, Look at all those words! Ive been in a writing class so my layout may change, but the storyline will continue as planned! I hope the story only improves from here! Happy reading folks)