SEND IN “FLASHBACK” FOR A SCENARIO OF MY MUSE’S PAST.
Light spots mottle the even surface of the coffee. Beautiful, calm. Peaceful.So very different from their pinprick cousins that tremble inside their sockets as they jump left, right, left and right again.
Over and over they skim through the calculations on the yellowed papers on his desk.
Failed attempts — so many failed attempts — turn the sheets into a messy battleground, a chaotic cacophony of crossed out notes and underlined results; all of them melting away before his tired eyes.
No matter how many frantic efforts he makes in hopes of finding just one mistake, their work has simply been too thorough, too determined, the leftover numbers, operators, and graphs too accurate to allow for any overlooked loopholes now.
And so, he sinks back into his seat, coming to terms with their new reality. “heh. all right then”, he murmurs to himself, “i see how it is.” I can live with that. But can he? Can Alphys? His brother?
One last time, he gazes up at the flickering screen, timeline over timeline looking back at him. And in the middle, surrounded by all the different Undergrounds, nothing. Darkness. A hauntingly eerie smile.
He smiles back at it, and watches as the command he enters into the console erases picture after picture from its digital imageboard.
It’s better like that. Better, if he sabotages the papers on his desk, only to tell Alphys that all their efforts have been in vain. That delving deeper into the possibilities of the different universes has only proved to be another dead end. That everything — he — is alright.
Stepping through the door, he almost crumbles the only picture left. The only timeline he’s willing to hold on for.
“S-sans, are you a-alright? You sh-shouldn’t strain yourself after…”
“nah, don’t sweat it, alphy”, he interrupts the other scientist, his knuckles turning white from the tightness of his grip. “‘bout the timelines, though…” Closing his eye sockets, he prepares for what, maybe, was going to be his biggest lie yet. “let’s just say, we, uh, gotta talk.”