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"Phew! I think that's everything," you sighed as Papyrus followed you out the front door of your local mall and zipped up his jacket. You deeply inhaled the chilly air outside, catching your breath after escaping the masses of people still stuck in crowded shops.
Cloudy skies above seemed to have greatly darkened since you two had last been outside – the day was nearing an end and you felt fatigue tugging at your feet. Running around in the city from shop to shop, twisting your head at what to get your loved ones for the holidays and cringing at overplayed Christmas song covers echoing in every store had you more than ready to go home, fill your stomachs with warm dinner and dessert, and cuddle up with Papyrus on your comfy couch.
"Wait, no, we forgot the groceries.." you furrowed your brows and groaned. "I really thought that was everything."
"AH, YOU'RE RIGHT. WHAT DO WE NEED, AGAIN?" Papyrus' voice came out muffled from under his scarf, as he was still bent down, trying to pull up the zipper of his jacket, which seemed to be stuck.
"Hmm... What if," you gently pushed away his hands from the zipper and carefully pulled it up as you spoke, "we tried something new for dinner?"
"I'D LIKE THAT! NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD SAY THIS BUT," he frowned and nodded in agreement, "I'M GROWING TIRED OF HAVING WRAPS AND BURRITOS EVERY NIGHT."
You chuckled to yourself at his confession, knowing deep down, you agreed. It was definitely time the both of you found a new recipe to obsess over.
It was one of the quirks you shared that made living together easy since neither of you had to worry about boring the other with the same dinner choice fifth night in a row. Your kitchen has seen you switch between dishes like pasta, soups, salads and anything else customisable. Though you could tell Papyrus's favourite was probably the era of rice – in those two weeks or so he managed to cook them in at least twenty different substances. Who knew Gatorade rice could be so good!
You pondered for a while, racking your brain for any conversation, article or ad that had caught your eye.
"What if we tried that one recipe Sans was talking about? I think it was shrimp, honey and-"
"AND KETCHUP. YES, I REMEMBER THAT ONE. BUT I DON'T THINK I WANT SEAFOOD," he shook his head, fatigue visible in his face as much as yours. As you watched his expressions, his face sprung back up again.
"HEY! WHAT ABOUT THAT SUPER SECRET DISH DR. ALPHYS SWEARS BY?" Papyrus' voice slightly lowered as he leaned down to mischievously whisper in your ear. "I COULD TOTALLY CALL AND ASK HER WHAT'S IN IT! SURELY, SHE'LL LET US IN ON HER SECRETS IF WE ASK NICELY, NYEH HEH!"
"Honey, I think that secret dish is just instant noodles.. If you wanna have that, I'm down. But we should probably do the shopping tonight anyway since we're already in town", you looked at him and raised your eyebrows expectantly. Papyrus lightly smiled.
"THAT'S TRUE, I'LL HELP YOU GET EVERYTHING TO THE CAR FIRST", he said as he took a couple of heavier bags from your hands into his, which were already carrying more than is comfortable.
As you two made your way across the parking lot and back to the mall, folding up your empty shopping bags, you continued your discussion about dinner.
"I THINK I'LL PASS ON THE RAMEN, ACTUALLY..." he sighed, breath visible in the chilly winter air. "ALAS! WE MAY BE GOOD COOKS, BUT WE DID NOT WRITE THE MENU. HOW ABOUT WE JUST WALKED AROUND UNTIL AN IDEA STRUCK?"
Papyrus glanced at you for a reaction. You smiled at his joke and nodded. "I mean," you raised your eyebrows, "that never fails to work, I guess!"
And that's exactly what you did – soon enough you two were back in the store, walking hand-in-hand from aisle to aisle, pointing out discounted prices to each other and occasionally splitting up to pick up items which were running low at home.
While you were checking cartons for cracked eggs, Papyrus pulled up a box of mushroom dumplings in front of your face.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK?" His voice rang across the empty aisle. You could hear a hint of pride in the way he asked the question, even more evident in how he practically shoved the box in your face.
You took it from his large hand, feeling the cardboard fog up and soften as the cold contents inside started defrosting.
"Oooh, looks good!" You handed him back the box. "Any other flavours?"
"THIS WAS ONLY ONE LEFT, ACTUALLY. WELL, THIS AND ONE OTHER BOX. IT'S A GREAT DISCOUNT!"
"Perfect, grab the other box too, it'll be for later", you gestured at the freezers behind him and Papyrus' gaze followed your hand. "And I think we have just enough cheese at home for sauce – remind me to grab extra!"
Finally, all shopping for the day was done. You two were walking back to the car, Papyrus following you with a spring in his step and two heavy bags of groceries in both of his gloved hands. You were absentmindedly humming some silly holiday song that was stuck in your head and skimming the receipt for errors with your eyes. The tall skeleton walking beside was towering over you, looking around for your car.
You opened the trunk and made space for grocery bags while Papyrus patiently waited behind you. You sat down in the passenger's seat and your eyes instinctively drifted to the rearview mirror, where you checked out Papyrus as he slammed the trunk shut and looked around, rubbing his hands together and bringing them to his face for warmth.
The ride home was as jolly as it could get – as if the hours of Christmas songs you were forced to listen to weren't enough, Papyrus put on your shared holiday playlist on the aux. Suddenly, as the familiar melody filled the interior of the car, you both slowly turned to each other and shared a mischievous, knowing look – it was time.
Time to deliver the best talent show this town has ever seen.
(here's a link to the famous Sans and Papyrus's cover of the song I'm writing about, though I think you have a feeling on what it is ;)
You could swear Mariah Carey herself possessed Papyrus every time he sang "All I Want for Christmas is You" – the first time you were there to see him sing his lungs out, way before you two started dating, he stole your heart in an instant.
You gladly joined him in the duet and before you could even notice, the both of you were already home.
It took a few trips to bring everything you'd bought home from the car – you thought to complain about overspending, but as if he was reading your mind, Papyrus chimed in.
"WOWIE!! LOOK AT ALL THESE BAGS! WHAT A BLESSING TO HAVE SO MANY LOVED ONES TO GIFT TO!!!"
His smile was infectious. You couldn't help but agree – you'll make the money back anyway. And seeing your friends so happy as they rip open the pretty boxes full of treats is priceless.
"I'LL START WITH THE DUMPLINGS, PLEASE GRATE THE CHEESE! I'M PUTTING YOU IN CHARGE OF THE SAUCE, CAPTAIN!", Papyrus exclaimed as he handed you the cheese grater and a bowl. It was obvious he was excited to try this recipe and frankly, you were too.
Not twenty minutes later, the whole house was filled with the most appetising smells, the table was set, and fresh, hot dumplings were steaming on each end. Papyrus took out a bottle of red wine (or grape juice if that's your preference) and poured you both a glass.
"TO... EHMM...." you watched him as his eye sockets hurriedly darted around the room for a hint and landed on the piles of presents.
"TO CHRISTMAS!!! CHEERS!" You giggled. You could say this sort of toast was a bit early and, frankly, silly. But it was adorable how the skeleton's toothy smile betrayed his excitement for the holidays.
"To Christmas! And to us. Cheers!!" You returned Papyrus' smile and brought your glass to his.
Clank!
The wine was good, but the dinner was even better. They say food's tastier when you're tired, and while you can't exactly prove how true the saying is, it felt pretty damn right at the moment.
The plates were empty in no time, and while Papyrus collected the dishes for washing, you chopped up some fresh fruit for dessert. It was almost nine at this point, and with nothing left to do, you decided to chill out and watch a cozy movie.
You snuggled up on the couch, feeling Papyrus' firm, yet light arms gently wrap around your waist and his chest, rising and falling, press against your back. Melting into the warmth radiating through his soft sweater, you synced your breathing to his and closed your eyes. It was pure bliss.
It wasn't worth trying to fight the urge to fall asleep – the Mettaton's Christmas Special Papyrus picked out wasn't exactly what you'd call engaging, and you knew he wouldn't mind if you drifted off.
You stayed there, peacefully sleeping in the skeleton's arms until the very end of the show. Not wanting to wake you up, Papyrus turned the TV off, then carefully picked you up and carried you to the bedroom. He left you laying to finish cleaning the kitchen and get ready for bed, and as he returned, you were still sound asleep.
Carefully, he got into the bed next to you, placed a kiss on your forehead and hugged you. Your body instinctively reached back towards him for warmth, arms barely wrapping around his wide frame.
As a snowy storm quietly howled outside your window, the two of you, snug like a couple of bugs in a rug, rested uninterrupted until noon and dreamed about winter adventures with your family and friends.
Truly, with Papyrus by your side, this night could not have been any better.