If they get together before the war ends, then their first date is a late sea-side picnic dinner. Suki and Toph arrange for them to be in town with Sokka and Aang, and Katara surprises Zuko with a simple, but delicious meal that she prepared while he was busy training with Aang or taking care of some other chores. The date end with a short sparring match.
If they get together after the war, then Zuko goes all out trying to impress Katara with a fancy dinner and theater tickets. He even manages to sneak out of the palace so they can go incognito (how the citizens don't recognize their Fire Lord is something I'd have to figure out, but they don't have photography yet, so it's somewhat plausible, I think). The date is an unmitigated disaster. There's a fire at the restaurant, so they only get to have drinks before everyone's evacuated. Zuko forgot the tickets for the show, and since he's not letting anyone know who he is, he doesn't want to ruin it by playing the Fire Lord card. He tries to take Katara dancing, but the place he wanted to go is outside, and it starts raining. So instead of the romantic evening of dinner, a show, and dancing he had planned, they end up wandering around the city, hungry and damp. Zuko feels awful, but Katara finds the whole thing hilarious and eventually she gets Zuko to laugh about it, too. They end up at a hole in the wall diner with greasy, delicious food and spend hours just talking. When they leave the restaurant, it's late but the rain has stopped, and they're not ready to go home. There's a street musician that's just about to pack it in and go home, but Zuko pays him to keep playing a little longer, and asks Katara to dance with him. Eventually, they do the big romantic evening Zuko planned, but they agree that first date was the best either of them had ever been on.
MTT’s book in the trash where it belongs, you and Sans are about to head out on your first date. However, even before it begins, it seems like the universe is very much against you and him dating. Nothing goes right....
But sometimes, that is where the most fun can be found.
A commission for @mavi-mav who asked for a continuation of Sans unlucky wooing! Hopefully you all enjoy!
Sans hummed excitedly as he threw in the laundry into the machine. No, he wasn’t excited about doing laundry in the campus’ community laundry bay, that would be weird and something that his brother would be excited about. Something about “FINALLY TAKING CARE OF THE FUCKING, NASTY, SOCK.”
There were a few things wrong with that following statement.
One – the sock was in its rightful place. The floor of the living room. Right where everyone could see it and marvel at the artistic curves of the fabric.
Two – the sock was clean, not gross or nasty. Well, as clean as clean could be for sitting on the floor for a few months.
Three – well, three was the reason why he was excited. Again, not for laundry day.
No, today was the day. Today was The Day.
Starting the machine, Sans looked around the small, empty room. For once there were no other students in the area. The possibilities. He could possibly go upstairs and have a quick nap, leaving his clothes where they are to finish washing, but Papyrus would just bitch about leaving the laundry unattended. Like someone would steal a load of once white t-shirts. There were free chairs by the lost laundry notices that looked comfortable. So instead of his preferred nap, he settled himself on one of the nearby chairs next to a newer looking sign advertising a lost red hiking sock. As broke-ass college students, everything was preciously expensive, especially wool socks. Oh well, he decided, sucks to be that person and others who had lost things.
Pulling his phone out of his pocket, grinning as he realized he had a message from you. He eyed your snapchat as it came through, eye lights sparkling with mischief. You were just about to finish a shift at the restaurant you were working at and you had snapped a picture of some sort of dessert that you had decorated yourself with what to be his face on it. You had even used a small chunk of pineapple to resemble his golden fang. The overall look was rather sweet and charming he had to admit. Chuckling, he snapped a quick photo of himself and captioned it, “Which looks better to eat though, Doll?” he could already imagine your face blushing as you read the message. Putting the phone away, he leaned back in the chair, pulling his dark jacket into a more comfortable position, sighing softly.
He was excited but surprisingly relaxed today. None of the anxiety that he had been battling the days prior had made an appearance – not that he was complaining. Perhaps it was because he had already taken care of almost everything? He had already secured reservations for tonight at the new restaurant in town that you had mentioned that you might want to try (after making sure that they were monster friendly). The table wouldn’t be ready for you guys until about an hour after the movie, giving you plenty of time to take a romantic stroll through town or grab a coffee from your favourite coffee shop, whichever you preferred. He hadn’t been able to purchase the tickets ahead of time, but it would be more fun to secure the seats there at the theatre together he supposed. For now, all he had to do is wait for the laundry to be finished, and then move it into the dryer.
The small ping of the washing machine woke him up. Yawning and stretching, Sans felt all the bones in his body pop. Ok, those chairs were not meant for napping. They weren’t that comfortable. Shuffling over to the machines, he reached into the washer and pulled out his t-shirts.
Only to find that his t-shirts had changed colours during the load.
Gone were the white t-shirts, gone were the grease marks and mustard stains. Instead, they were replaced with clean, fresh smelling pink t-shirts. Blinking rapidly, Sans looked through each piece of clothing. Yes, this was his load. These were his t-shirts…. But why were they…
He pulled a red sock out of one of the arms of the t-shirts.
Cursing, he placed the offending sock in the middle of the folding table and threw the rest of his wash into the drying machine. His jacket would cover most of the pink, he would just need to keep it closed. And it looks like that he was going shopping afterwards.
* * * * *
Sans teleported just outside the restaurant that you worked at, pulling the fur of his jacket up to hide the smallest hint of pink. Papyrus was working on the rest of the shirts now, putting them through another wash cycle with a small dash of baking soda. He made a new rule of checking all machines for lost and found items before using.
Still, Sans sighed softly, leaning against the building. Soon he would see you and all would be well. You and him had been planning this date for weeks now, there was always something that seemed to get in the way. Between school and the work schedules for the both of you, it was hard enough to sneak in a study session in the library. And now, there was nothing in your way.
“Hey,” your voice startled Sans, causing him to jump away from the wall. He couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face when he saw you.
“Hey sweetheart,” he said, taking your change of clothes from you, “did you have a good shift?”
You sighed and rolled your eyes. “Give me a moment to answer,” you told him before you walked over to the nearby recycling bin. Digging deep into your pockets you tossed more than a couple shiny pamphlets, and what looked to be a couple of business cards into the bin. “Ok. Now I’m ready to go. Does this theatre serve alcohol?” You sounded irritated.
Sans offered you his arm, still looking at the bin in confusion. “I mean, there is an option for that…” he said. “Or do you want to skip the movie and just go to the bar instead?”
Slinging your arm through his, you sighed but shook your head. “No, no… theatre first. Just… just a rough day.”
“Tell me about it,” Sans said, drawing you closer to him as he walked you down the sidewalk. Pink shirts could be ignored for now. Your day was more important than his.
Shaking your head, you smiled at him, resting your head against his shoulder as the two of you walked together. “Just same shit, different day,” you told him. “First, a couple businessmen came through and think that leaving me their business card with their phone number is a good replacement for a tip.”
Sans snorted at that, easily pushing the small tinge of jealousy that he felt. It was rather obvious that you weren’t interested in them. “Of course… Those who can afford to buy an expensive meal for themselves or for their friends or clients and do not have enough to tip you can clearly spoil you rotten should you guys date.”
Success. You giggled, gazing up at him with those wonderful green eyes of yours. “Oh yes. Clearly he has all the money in the world to show me all that fifty dollars and twenty-five cents can get me.”
Wrapping his arm around you tighter, Sans gave you a tight side hug. “I hear that is a fantastic view of his driveway.” He smiled as you laughed at it. Good. There was the you that he knew and…
Well. Fill in the blank later.
“But you said that those guys were first. What else happened?” Sans asked you.
You rolled your eyes. “Father Simon was in today. The shimmering grey BMW? Crisp, name-brand clothing on himself, wife and three kids? Heck, he even has a Rolex that he hides under his suit. Anyways, he and some of his followers came in today after the sermon. Between the twelve of them, they easily ordered a couple hundred dollars worth of food and drink. Came in preaching the good word, God and His Son shall save us and that we are loved. I enjoyed that part,” you said, looking at Sans. “It’s just when every single one of them refuses to leave a tip and instead only leaves a stupid pamphlet on how both my coworkers and I could be saved… well. You see where I am coming from.” Sighing, you scratched under your eye. “Because obviously I don’t need money for food or rent. Apparently, long-term salvation can take care of all my needs immediately.”
Sans opened the theatre’s door, letting you slide in first. “I’m sorry you had a rough day, babes. Hopefully, I can help make it better.”
Looking back at him, you shot him one of the most beautiful smiles he had ever seen. “Believe me when I say that it is already better.”
Oh, you knew just how to make his soul flutter. Pink shirts were forgotten now. You were all that mattered in his eyes. Gently squeezing your hand, he led you to the ticket counter. “Remember, it is my treat.” He said.
“You really don’t have to Sans. I don’t mind splitting the costs.” You smiled at him. He loved that, loved when your eyes met his… sent a tingle down his spine.
The acne-ridden, greasy haired teenager looked positively terrified of them. His eyes flickered between Sans and you, and then to the door, like he wanted to escape. “Am I that terrifying tonight?” Sans asked, turning towards him.
“Oh you always look intimidating,” you teased him, squeezing his hand, “but I’m more worried that he is one of those who distrusts monsters…”
The teenager gulped slightly as you guys came up to the counter. He looked pale, like he was about to pass out. “I… I… I should warn you…. that… that today’s paper was wrong…. The show times were for yesterday…. And weren’t updated… the… the current times are on the board now….” he shakily pointed to the board behind him, showing the times of the movies.
Sans looked up at the board and groaned. The times and movies had been changed in a very noticeable way. “Looks like we missed the last showing of the movie, sweetheart.”
Your face crumpled in disappointment. “Really? God damn it….” Sans hated that look on your face. He wanted to help but was unsure how. You guys could always try and come back another night for the movie, but who knew how long that would be. The teenager was still watching them, grease shining in the low light. The poor guy had probably already been screamed at more than a few times tonight for something that wasn’t his fault. “Well how about we see the other one we were thinking about? It starts in ten minutes.”
With a nod, Sans agreed. “We could always see it when it comes out on Netflix or whenever one of our neighbours buys it.” There, problem solved. Quick and painless.
The ticket master relaxed notably as he punched in your new order. “That would be ten dollars, please.” he squeaked.
Nodding, Sans dug his hand into his pocket before freezing. He could positively feel his bones freezing in horror. Really? After everything that had already happened to the both of you, this had to happen? You looked at him, confused for a moment before his horrified face started to make sense. You giggled softly, pulling out your own wallet. “Dutch it is.” You said, pulling out a bill and handing it to the worker.
Sans felt so ashamed at that moment. He knew exactly what had happened. By the door, right beside the key bowl, his wallet sat. Just so he wouldn’t forget to grab it when he grabbed his keys.
Looks like he would need to teleport home and grab that after the movie. After all, you couldn’t do Dutch on your first date! That just wasn’t right!
* * * * *
You and Red left the movie quietly, following the other patrons out. You guys were quiet, lost in your own little world, thinking about the movie. Red was slowly moving his head, trying to crack the vertebrae without scaring you. His previous nap in the laundry room was beginning to come back to haunt him as the movie seats had been less than overly comfortable.
“Well,” Red finally offered, feeling his neck give slightly, “that was… interesting? They had an… unusual plot to it. Really kept you guessing throughout the entire film.”
Bursting out into laughter, you gently whacked his arm. “Oh, come on. You can be honest with me. That movie was terrible! The trailers totally showed it to be some next generation science-fiction, the new era of the combining power of the human and technology. Not some desperate cash grab with a few A grade actors!”
Sans chuckled, relieved that you were of the same opinion as him. He wasn’t the best or most confident liar around. “Well now that you mention it, they had more green screens than a weather station.”
Laughing, you smiled up at him. “I’m glad to be here,” you said simply.
Sans couldn’t help the wince that came to his skull at your words. So far nothing was going right for the both of you. It was the wrong movie and it had been awful, and you had ended up paying thanks to him. “Hey now. Save those words until I take you out to eat,” he said, smiling quickly at you. You were going to say something else, perhaps argue with him, when he nodded towards the poor admissions worker. He was surrounded by a horde of angry patrons, probably looking for their money back. “Want to try and get your money back on a refund?” he asked.
You shook your head. “Poor guy is busy enough. Besides, his manager would probably give us free tickets at best, or at worst tell us that we sat through the entire movie. Already past some ‘money-back guarantee’ period.” As much as he wanted to disagree and try to get your money back, the skeleton had to admit that you had a point. The two of you would spend ages in line for next nothing. Sans watched as an older, bored looking gentleman finally came down to the area. Presumably the manager at last. “Ready to grab something to eat? I’m hungry. Popcorn didn’t fill me up.” On cue your stomach growled.
Smiling at you, Sans drew you close to him, preparing to teleport the two of you. “Ready when you are, sweetheart. Just let me grab my wallet first.”
* * * * *
The little side-trip took almost an hour to complete. Of course something as simple as ‘grab the wallet and go’ couldn’t be that easy. Not today of all days. Papyrus had decided to take advantage of Sans’ absence and do some needed cleaning around the little apartment and had moved his wallet, and then had left to study in the library. You and Sans had almost torn the apartment into its previous state of disarray until you had found his wallet… in the key bowl.
Sans grit his teeth, angry that it had taken so long and that he hadn’t noticed the wallet before. Nothing was going his way tonight. And stars, you were along for a ride now. If it had just been him, Sans might have just given up and gone home, napped for a week and then tried again. But no. Here he was, pulling you out to a shitty movie after your crappy day at work, and now you had to try and help him find his stupid wallet because he decided to leave that at home.
Your stomach growled, reminding Sans that the popcorn that the two of you had had wasn’t exactly the most filling of dinners. Pulling you close to him, wallet safe in his jacket pocket, he teleported directly to the restaurant. No time for anything else.
The restaurant was just about to give your table when the two of you guys appeared. The hostess rolled her eyes and sighed loudly when Sans had approached the stand. She had begrudgingly looked through her computer for Sans’ reservation (at least that had been done correctly). When his name appeared on the computer, she had reluctantly led the two of you to an open table. As she showed them around, Sans took in the restaurant The restaurant seemed to be decorated in an odd mixture of disco and Hawaiian. Frankly Sans didn’t know what they were going for, nor was he sure if this is how they advertised themselves. Perhaps it was the remains of his Fell nature, but Sans couldn’t help himself from looking wildly around, staring at everything. The waitress noticed his observations and rolled her eyes again. She placed the two of you in a small corner table, right next to the kitchen.
Great… this was not what he meant by secluded… Sans sighed back at the hostess, biting back his comments about her attitude. He opened his menu, peeking at you. Already you were pouring over the menu, reading carefully, your lips pressed into a thin line. Seems like you weren’t having the best time… wincing, Sans peered at his menu.
Only to be met with the smallest, most descriptive text that he could imagine. “Bloody hell,” he said, “I wonder if they wrote our textbooks.”
You let out a tiny giggle. “Would explain how our textbooks always seemed to give vivid food descriptions. Juicy hearts. Tasty love…” you snorted, smiling at Sans before returning your attention back to the menu.
Sans let out a relieved sigh. Well, you were still talking to him and cracking jokes. That was a good sign.
A waiter, dressed in the odd combination of a Hawaiian shirt and dress pants, approached the table. “My name is Jolly John but you can call me HOOOSIAH,” he yelled out, making the both of you jump, “and I will be your waiter today. Can I start you off with any drinks?”
The skeleton was tempted to order a bottle of mustard to drink, but, as the rest of the date was going ‘swimmingly’, he decided not to add his drunken ass to the mix. “Water,” he croaked out.
“Make it two, please. Also, what sort of oils do you use in your cooking?”
John made a note of your drinks on his little notepad. “I believe we use sunflower oil. The boss likes how it gives a different taste to the food. Makes it light, fresher… fills your soul with…”
“Perfect. Thank you.” you smiled at him causing John to hurry away. Right, you had that slight sensitivity to soybeans… Sans had almost forgotten about that. Luckily you knew the right questions to ask.
“Perhaps we should avoid drinking the water at all…” Sans muttered, looking back at the menu. Geeze, what would it take to order a simple hot dog or hamburger around this joint?
Your laughter reached him again, causing the sharp-toothed monster to smile. “Aw, be gentle Sans. He just enjoys his job. Hasn’t had the soul sucked out of him by the general public just yet.”
He couldn’t help the dopy look that crossed his skull. You really were perfect.
Jolly John returned with your water. It seems like he had decorated the rims of your glasses with a variety of tropical fruits. It looked like a Hawaiian goddess threw up. Sans stared at it, wondering how he was supposed to take a drink without disrupting the rest of the glass. It reminded him of Papyrus’ overzealous attempts at platting food. You had pushed the food to one side of the rim, allowing you to take a sip of it. “Are you two ready to order?”
“A couple more minutes,” the two of you said in sync, causing John to scurry away again. As the two of you poured over your menus, Sans’ decided to make his move. Slowly, Sans reached across the table to take your hand, gently squeezing it.
It took a breathless moment, but you squeezed back too. He couldn’t help the little stutter in his soul as you returned to soft pressure. Perhaps everything was going to be ok after all.
A few minutes later, Sans was looking for John again when he noticed that you seemed to be in some distress. You cleared your throat once, twice and then three times, growing more confused as you couldn’t remove the tickle from within your throat. Rubbing at your throat, you slowly began to look around. “Is it hot in here, or is it just me?”
Avoiding the obvious pickup line, Sans chose to answer honestly. “It is a little warm in here, but I think you’re the only flushed one,” he said, growing worried over your heating flesh.
John had come up to the table again. “Is everything ok here?” he had asked, looking between you and Sans.
“Have these fruits come into contact with soybeans or any by-product?”
John nodded. “My boss soaks the fruits in their water and…”
Shit… you were having an allergic reaction.
Sans reacted immediately. Getting up, he propelled himself around the table, grabbing hold of your hips and legs, somehow tossing your purse onto your lap, and teleporting into the hospital that was nearest to the campus.
* * * * *
The two of you were sitting on hard, pink chairs, Sans’ arm wrapped around you as you shivered. Upon teleporting the two of you directly into the hospital, your throat had closed up further, making it borderline impossible for you to talk. You had gasped and wheezed for breath, terrifying the nurses and the doctors that saw you appear. Luckily, Sans was there to answer their questions, explaining all that he possibly could to them as they wheeled you into a nearby room. Telling them about your sensitivity to soybeans and what you had come into contact with, and warning them that Advil tended to give you stomach ulcers.
You had made it just in time to the hospital as to not require an oxygen mask. Instead, they had shot you with an Epi-Pen, given you normal water to drink, and now had you under mandatory health watch. If you went into another allergic attack you would be hooked up to oxygen in a heartbeat and be given more allergy medicine.
But for now, it seems like the worst had passed.
“So…” Sans said, breaking the slightly awkward silence, “worst date, ever?” he asked slightly nervously. There was pale red sweat dripping down his skull and even the crack in his skull seemed to droop slightly.
Turning your head, you looked at him. “What do you mean?” You were still slightly pale, your voice weak, but overall, in good health.
Leaning back against the chair, Sans sighed. “Well, I forget my wallet, we see a terrible movie, almost miss our table and end up in the hospital at the end of it. Doesn’t seem exactly what you had in mind for our date.” He rubbed the side of his face, his eye lights down. “I seem to have bad luck with anything I touch. I would totally understand if you never want to see me again…”
You couldn’t help yourself. Laughter peeled from your mouth, causing him to jump and look over at you with a shocked expression. Your laughter sounded beautiful as always, like music to his ears. “Oh, Sans,” you giggled, wiping your tears from your eyes, “thank you. I needed the laugh.” He couldn’t respond. He stared at you, mouth agape. Smiling, you explained yourself. “All I wanted to do was spend time with you. Forget the shitty day at work, forget about school for a bit…” you flushed slightly. “Honestly, I haven’t seen any negatives with the day. All it has is made it more memorable for me…
“And I’m sure that you are never going to forget our first date either.” You smiled at him, watching the relief cross over his face.
Sans couldn’t help himself. Chuckling, he pulled you closer. “How about we call this the practice date, and, once I get my shit together, I’ll take you out on a real date. One without the restaurant that chooses to use fruit soaked in soybean water, a movie with real plot, and a wallet with real money in it?”
Giggling, you nodded. “I can agree to that.” Looking at his sharpened teeth quickly, you seized the front of his jacket, pulling him towards you. Giving him a short, very sweet kiss. “Just as long as you agree that that was our first kiss.”
Eye lights hazy and faintly resembling hearts, his cheekbones slightly pink, Sans stared dumbly at you. “Gosh damnit, here you are in a hospital, and it is my breath being stolen away…”
How he could spin such jokes in a heartbeat, you would never know. Resting your head on his jacket, you smiled. “It is a gift….” You explained to him. Grinning, he wrapped his arm tightly around you again, pulling you against him.
For a few minutes you sat in comfortable silence, listening to the sounds of the emergency department. Nurses and doctors ran, papers rustling and machines were beeping. This was far better than any movie. “Sans? Do you mind if I ask you a quick question?”
Man! This is going less than great. Don’t you have a mandate for proper behaviour on a first date? Like knowing how to carry a conversation … to reciprocate?
For starters, enough about how much time you spend at the gym. And please, I don’t need to see your pecs flex again. I don’t care about how much you can press—hmm. That rhymes with acquiesce and suggest.
I digress.
When did a muscle vest…
