{Handplates chapter references: Well it's a start, Not to alarm you or anything}

Gaster strode down the hallway, his broken arm in a sling to support it. He was still slightly in pain, his face occasionally scrunching up a little whenever he moved a little too fast.

He put his hand on the touchpad, shutting off the laser's to the brothers' cell: "Subject 2, come with me."

The brothers immediately turned to him as he spoke up, visible confusion on their faces from the recent events. What happened and most importantly, what Gaster had done for them.
It didn't make sense. It wasn't like him.

"UH...OKAY.", 2-P stepped out of the cell and Gaster immediately turned to walk the entire hallway down again. Gaster's steps were slow and he seemed to sometimes lose his balance, swaying back and forth ever so slightly.

"I HOPE WE'RE GOING TO DO SOME PUZZLES...ARE WE GOING TO DO PUZZLES?"

"No."

"OH...UM WELL...THEN, I HOPE IT WON'T HURT TOO BAD...", 2-P replied in a quieter tone, worry written all over his face and the fear of the upcoming, probably painful, session.

"You won't be hurt either.", said Gaster in a monotonous voice. This statement hovered in the air for a while until they reached another door and Gaster moved to open it with the hand reader.

"I WON'T? THEN...WHAT ARE WE DOING?" Gaster stopped in his motion, his palm still resting against the cold surface of the touchpad as he thought for a moment.

He didn't want to admit it. He wanted to toughen it out and get through it by himself like he usually did but...he couldn't deny that he needed help.

He had finally realized it, even though his pride and shame were still nagging on him for asking for it.

Gaster let out a small sigh, his head lowering in shame as he mumbled the next words: "I need you to heal me."

2-P was shocked as he heard these words. Was he really asking for help? Gaster's voice sounded so unfamiliar and soft, almost vulnerable.
It was as if 2-P was seeing an entirely different side of him...was he finally warming up to them?

"YOU...YOU'RE ASKING ME TO...? BUT, LAST TIME-"

"Believe me, I don't want you to either."

And there was this immediate defensiveness again.
2-P frowned: "I DIDN'T SAY-"

"But I don't have a choice."

Gaster walked further into the room, sitting down on a bed as 2-P followed and climbed onto it himself.

"WHY NOT? WHAT ABOUT THE PEOPLE OUTSIDE? CAN'T THEY HEAL YOU?"

Gaster hesitated, looking back down on the floor again as he mustered the courage to answer 2-P's question. Once again, there was something about him that made him let down his guard.

"...I don't want them to know I'm hurt. I can't...handle it right now."

2-P looked at Gaster with a puzzled but empathetic gaze: "WHY? ARE THEY BAD?"

"No."

Gaster's heart felt heavy, as he turned to 2-P. He did not have the courage to look him into the eyes but...he really did want to talk to him: "No...They're not like me."

2-P furrowed his brows for a moment, trying to think of a response and he fully turned to Gaster as well to face him: "...YOU KNOW...I'VE TOLD MY BROTHER THIS-"

"I know-"

"AND I KNOW YOU'VE DONE BAD THING...A LOT OF BAD THINGS...A LOT A LOT OF BAD THINGS-"

"Yes, I know-"

Hearing 2-P say repeatedly how bad he was made Gaster's chest tighten. God, he was awful.
He truly hated himself for everything he did but there was no turning back. He would have to live with these consequences. He-

Gaster suddenly felt something graze his hand and he looked down to see 2-P take his hand into his own: "BUT, I DON'T THINK THAT MEANS YOU CAN ONLY DO BAD THINGS. I DON'T THINK THAT MEANS YOU HAVE TO GIVE UP."

Gaster's hand started glowing green as 2-P began to heal him. He finally had the courage and strength to look up at him, a pained expression on his face.

Gaster was broken. Fully beaten down by his own decisions and his trauma.
All these bottled up feelings made him feel like he would choke and die soon. He thought it would be for the best. It would be what he deserved but there was still this tiny skeleton...who had endured so much pain and suffering because of him and still refused to give up on him.

How could he not give up on him, when Gaster himself had given up so long ago already..?

He wanted to reach out, enjoy this kindness and be comforted with such words.

He wanted to move on, forget about all that has happened – all he had done – and maybe...be happy. Have someone to love and care for...and have someone who cared about him in return.

But deep down, Gaster knew he didn't deserve this. And those words, those things that this strange creature had said to him troubled him.

He could already almost guess what it would mean but he wouldn't know when or how.

ᴱᵛᵉʳʸᵗʰⁱⁿᵍ ʸᵒᵘ'ᵛᵉ ʷᵒʳᵏᵉᵈ ᵒⁿ, ᵉᵛᵉʳʸᵗʰⁱⁿᵍ ʸᵒᵘ'ᵛᵉ ᶜʳᵉᵃᵗᵉᵈ...ⁿᵒⁿᵉ ᵒᶠ ⁱᵗ ⁿᵉᵉᵈˢ ʸᵒᵘ.

Would that also mean the two skeleton brothers? Does he have no place in their lives? What would happen to him?
No, he couldn't let this small sense of security lower his guard. He couldn't. Not now.

"...You see things that aren't there. Just what you wish was true. There's nothing good left in me. It all went into you two. Everything else is ashes."

2-P looked at him with a pained expression as he said that and he spoke up again: "...I THINK, WHEN YOU MAKE CHOICES, YOU MAKE BAD CHOICES A LOT OF THE TIME...ALMOST ALL THE TIME, EVEN..."

The small skeleton's face brightened slightly as he continued: "BUT WHEN THAT THING WAS GONNA KILL US...YOU HAD TO MAKE A CHOICE. AND YOU MADE A GOOD CHOICE. YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO PROTECT US BUT YOU DID.
AND, IF THERE WAS REALLY NOTHING GOOD IN YOU...IF YOU REALLY DIDN'T CARE ABOUT US AT ALL LIKE YOU KEEP SAYING, YOU WOULDN'T HAVE DONE THAT."

Gaster looked at 2-P in surprise for a moment. Then, his face changed into a small, almost amused smile: "...So, which is it? Is fighting good or bad? I recall, when we talked about a young skeleton during the war..."

2-P immediately panicked: "UM, IT...IT DEPENDS. THAT'S NOT THE SAME THING, IT'S COMPLICATED"

2-P frowned slightly, pointing his finger at Gaster: "AND STOP TRYING TO TICK ME, THAT'S NOT THE POINT ANYWAY AND YOU KNOW IT."

Gaster couldn't help but let out a soft huff, slightly amused by the skeleton's reaction.

"I KNOW WHAT YOU DID THIS TIME WAS GOOD, I JUST KNOW IT.
AND I KNOW THAT MEANS SOMETHING EVEN IF YOU DON'T WANT IT TO. AND I THINK IF YOU REALLY WANTED TO, YOU COULD DO IT AGAIN.
AND YOU COULD KEEP DOING IT, IF YOU TRIED. IF YOU REALLY TRIED."

2-P's words caused something to stir inside Gaster. For a brief moment, he wanted to believe these words he said but he hesitated.

He was still too afraid and he also truly felt like he was beyond hope.
That he could never be who 2-P wanted him to be. He messed up way too often already for anyone else to forgive him.

Gaster lowered his gaze again, his voice almost cracking as he spoke up: "...I can never be what you want me to be."

"I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT, BUT...YOU CAN BE BETTER THAN YOU ARE RIGHT NOW.
AND I THINK YOU KNOW THAT TOO.
YOU CAN TRY A LITTLE HARDER, EVEN IF YOU DON'T THINK SO."

How did 2-P know so well what he was thinking about. It was as if he was able to read Gaster's worries and eliminate them before he even spoke them out loud. As he looked back down on 2-P's hands that were still holding Gaster's, he saw faint sparks of [s/c] emit from the healing glow.

You are here. He knows it.

Perhaps, after that fight, he saw a silhouette of you after all.

You are around...connected deep within the souls of the two brothers. He was almost sure of it.

Somehow his act of bravery gave him the ability to see you, even if it was briefly...perhaps if he would try to see more with his heart, he could make it permanent.

But for that, he had to learn how to see with his heart again. It happened almost so naturally before, he had no idea how he triggered it and now...he was just lost but maybe....maybe everything would get better now that he knew you were truly there.

In some way and shape.

The cryptic warning of the creature suddenly replayed in his mind. What it said about you and what it said about Gaster.

"You're foolish for believing in me. I'm not your brother."

Gaster sighed: "...Even if I did...When you Look Forward, can you see me?"

"...NO....

....I NEVER SEE YOU."

"Even now?"

"...NO..."

"How about her?"

There was only silence. But 2-P's hesitation was more than enough of an answer for him.

He knew from the sessions before that 2-P had never seen him in his visions before, but he assumed it was only some kind of...anomaly.

But now, especially after this warning from the creature. Perhaps...he shouldn't hold onto hope after all.

Gaster let out a small hum of understanding. It was foolish for him to believe either of them had a chance.

"I-"

"Please, enough. That's enough."

.

.

.

2-P groggily sat up as he woke up from his sleep, immediately spotting 1-S on the ground, writing on some papers: "OH BROTHER YOU'RE BACK! WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP?"

You sat right next to 1-S watching him with a smile as he drew pictures of him and his brother.

There was a moment of silence as 1-S continued to scribble and write onto the papers, his eyes fully focused on them: "eh, didn't wanna bother you. you don't get enough sleep anyway."

"WHAT HAPPENED? WHAT DID HE DO THIS TIME?"

1-S finally looked up from the papers, a somewhat bored expression on his face: "oh...nothin, really. just did some iq tests and then he let me go. he gave me some more paper, i guess.
you know, i don't think he's ever ghonna come back for the others, i think he was lying-"

2-P suddenly scurried out of the bed and hugged 1-S tightly: "OH BROTHER, BROTHER!! THIS IS WONDERFUL!!!"

~🤍~

Gaster stood there, slumped over some of the safety railings as he stared down at the lava, contemplating.

Lately, his mind has been everywhere at once and he was so out of it, he stopped all the experiments and test sessions with the two skeleton brothers altogether.
He just gave them small, manageable tasks and then went off to think again.

He casually flicked the ash of his cigarette, watching it slowly descend into the glowing hot lava beneath him.

The elevator doors nearby made him turn his head and he saw the small lizard scientist step out of the door nervously.

'Dr. Alphys?'

"U-um, yeah, I thought I'd find you here, uh...hi."

Gaster fully turned to her now: 'Did you want something? Congratulations on your robotics works, by the way. Everyone's very impressed with your latest model.'

Alphys nervously scratched the back of her neck, awkwardly shuffling from one foot to the other: "U-uh thanks but, um, that's not why I..."

Gaster was about to bring his cigarette back to his lips again as realization suddenly hit him.
He quickly tossed the cigarette down the ledge: 'Er, don't tell the king I've been smoking, please.'

"...Uh, I- I won't, but I mean, h-he already knows...", Alphys replied, stepping closer to Gaster and nervously fiddling with her hands.

"Uh, I just...wanted to ask about...how you're doing."

Gaster was slightly taken aback by her statement: 'You want to know about my emotional state?'

Horrible. Devastatingly bad.
He couldn't even begin to comprehend what was going on in his head and in his heart.

But...someone legitimately cared about him. Both Alphys and Asgore made it rather obvious, even before but now, he felt like a veil has been lifted off his eyes and he could finally see clearly that they really were there for him.

Alphys continued to explain herself, clearly overwhelmed and somewhat nervous about the entire situation.

Generally, touching on such sensitive topics were nerve-wrecking for her: "Uh, well...I guess in so many words...I mean the king's really worried about and uh, he's not, he's not the only one, you know, I uh, I told you, uh a while back that l-lots of people care about you. And uh....we're just..."

Gaster's face dropped slightly. This was the opposite of what he wanted to happen.

'I am worrying people, am I?'

~🧡💙~

"HAVEN'T YOU BEEN COUNTING, BROTHER? IT'S BEEN SIX DAYS! SIX WHOLE DAYS!!!", 2-P shouted in excitement, hugging his brother even closer.

"uh...six days since what?"

"SIX DAYS SINCE HE'S HURT US, BROTHER! SIX WHOLE DAYS WHERE HE HASN'T HURT US EVEN A LITTLE!!"

~🤍~

"We just...want to know you're okay."

Gaster sighed and turned away from Alphys, leaning against the railing once more and staring down.

There was a moment of silence until he finally had the courage to speak up: '...Do you ever think about... non-existence?'

"W...what? What do you mean?"

'Do you ever think about what this world would be like if you didn't exist? If it just...forgot about you?'

"G...D-Dr. Gaster..."

'Not even death but something worse...'

Alphys looked up at him with a horrified expression on her face: "Dr. Gaster, what...what are you talking about?"

~🧡💙~

"huh...huh you're right, i wasn't even..."

"OH I KNEW IT, I KNEW HE COULD MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE! I KNEW HE COULD DO IT!"

2-P lifted up 1-S even more, beaming up at him: "OH BROTHER, I'M SO HAPPY! THINGS ARE GOING TO CHANGE, YOU'LL SEE!"

~🤍~

It was silent for a moment before Gaster turned back to his colleague: 'Alphys. You've been a stellar colleague. Thank you.
And...thank you for caring about me. You didn't have to do that, and I know I didn't make it easy at times.'

Alphys could feel the heat rise into her cheeks at Gaster's kind and genuine words and she quickly put her paws onto her face to attempt and hide the blush: "W-well, you're...you're so...how could I not, uh...and-and thank you too, for being so nice to me, even when I'm, I'm nothing compared to you-"

'My main worry now is how you'll be hurt by what comes next. And for that I'm sorry.'

Alphys' face immediately twisted back into one of lingering fear and uncertainty: "Wh...what? What are you talking about. What..."

Gaster sighed, his expression unreadable as his eyes remained on Alphys' small form: 'I've said too much. Goodbye Alphys. Please, don't think about this anymore.'

With those words, Gaster turned and walked away, leaving behind Alphys in worry and a really bad feeling.

~🧡💙~

"EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE DIFFERENT NOW!", 2-P said with excitement in his voice, nuzzling his cheek against 1-S's face.

"EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE GOOD!"

"heh, well...

let's hope so, huh?"