They were treating him weirdly. That was how he woke up. Smile Dog seemed to be trying to cuddle with Sans more, Jeff even offered to learn to start cooking so Sans wouldn't have to work as much. Sally was the same as ever, though, eagerly playing with Sans as much as she could.

Then, there were his normal friends, who were also acting weird lately. Was it because he didn't believe their bluff? Temporarily for a few months they canceled dinner night. Maybe that was a good thing. After all, Sally and them... they should take some more time before they meet up.

Sans tried to text them more, but they were becoming increasingly busy. That... also made sense. With an awkward dinner like that, why wouldn't they avoid him? He might as well spend that time focusing on the CreepyPasta within his house. He had to start getting things settled out.

Jeff looked back at Sans after he saw what he was writing. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Nah," Sans said, "You guys can stay here, but you need'a start contributing more. And yer offered to cook, so you're cooking some dinners now."

Once Jeff realized that was all he had to do so far, he glanced down back at the list. "Oh. Wait, why the fuck is Ben not on here?"

"I pay," Ben said from in front of the T.V.

"He pays," Sans confirmed.

"... Fine," Jeff muttered.

The list wasn't that complicated. Just to get some sort of start on having some sort of standards in his house. Jeff would cook dinners while Sans (and mostly the internet) taught him. Sally would make her bed and clean her room. Ben paid for groceries. Smile Dog made sure there was no trash on the floor. The house wasn't going to be super clean, but this was a start. Especially since, at this rate, apparently Sans was going to adopt in so many serial killer children that his house should be nice and tidy by next week with the amount of chores he could have them do.

"Are there any other kids like you guys so I can get someone to clean the kitchen?" Sans asked them, looking over.

"No, no more, this is a good number!" Jeff said.

Hopefully it did stay this way. Sans went from having one dog to having one teenage boy, then things kind of went out of hand. It should stop now. He did have a good selection of people, and it was good. Now he just had to get things under control again.

Suddenly, Ben paused, then stuck his head into the T.V.

"Uh..."

"He probably noticed something, that's why he is... more talented at spying than me, he can sense things separate from the electronics," Smile Dog muttered, "But he is, in fact, copying me. I was created first."

Whatever Ben said from inside the T.V was muffled, so instead he put up another middle finger. Sans just covered Sally's eyes from it.

"Heyyyy Sans," Ben said, pulling back out of the T.V. "So, um, well, you see, I had a watch on a certain group of CreepyPasta and it seems like we're going to have some guests soon. So, if you want to go and do literally anything far away from the house like, right now, that'd be awesome."

"Is it the sluts and whores?" Jeff asked.

"It's Jane and her girlfriends."

"Then yeah, it's them."

Oh. Jeff's moral enemies, or whatever he said before. That wasn't very good.

"Wait, you guys want me to leave you all here alone?" Sans asked.

"Sally and I can't die, and I can't exactly feel pain," Ben said, shrugging.

"Ah."

What would Sans even do right now? All of his friends were busy. Should he just drive around? The curse would kick in without any of them with him.

When Sans explained his worried, Ben just smiled. "Nah. Go visit Jason, you'll be fine."

Realizing who Ben was talking about, Smile Dog whipped his head towards the totally not Link copy. "He met Jason the Toymaker? Why the fuck didn't you tell me?"

"Wait, you know him?" Sans asked. "I mean, he fixed Sally's toy and..." Ben said he'd be fine if he went over there. Smile Dog knew him in an instant. "Oh god damn it, he's another CreepyPasta, isn't he?"

Jeff, realizing Sans met yet another killer, couldn't contain himself. He immediately burst out laughing, rolling over onto his side as he wheezed loudly.

Ben awkwardly did jazz hands. "Surprise?"

Sans was so fucking done he could not even right now.

"Is every new person I meet at this point a CreepyPasta? Was the pizza guy from yesterday a CreepyPasta?"

Ben averted his gaze as Jeff laughed harder.

"You. Are. Joking."

"He wasn't one, we swear."

~~~~~~

Sans felt a little uneasy leaving them all there to fend for his house, but had to put his trust into them. And try not to roll into a ball and stress about his relationship with his friends and brother seeming to rapidly deteriorate around him. The best Sans could do was fight the urge to pick up his phone and stalk them on social media to try and understand why the fuck Undyne would act out so suddenly. And why Papyrus would defend her even after Sans uncovered the truth.

A small incident was starting to become a mess. Sans wasn't sure if they could completely recover for awhile after this. It was becoming quite a stain in their conversations now. Especially since neither was willing to backdown. Which was odd, because Sans usually didn't push in arguments.

Arriving at the toy store once again made him feel better, resting his forehead against the top of the steering wheel. Ugh. This whole thing was a mess, now. Should he just fold? Let it pass just so they could stop talking about it? Pretend to have a talk with Sally over it?

Sans decided to ignore his problems for a bit and instead confront another... problem? Was Jason a problem? Hopefully not. Annoying when they first met, sure, but he did do something nice for Sans at the end. And also didn't try to kill him. That was a nice start.

"I'm going to be upfront right away, as I've had a really long day and I just want to go back home and nap," Sans said as he walked in, placing his hands onto the counter and staring at Jason. "I've been housing Smile Dog. You know who that is, don't you?"

Jason's smile quickly fell when he heard that name. "I hate that little animal. Three years ago he tried to sneak into one of my stores and steal an action figure. Found out real quick who he was messing with."

"So... You are a CreepyPasta, then."

"I don't like that word. I'm a toymaker, always first. No last name, no family, and no affiliation to those other people, either. I'm Jason the Toymaker. That's it. A fantastic friend who has lots of other friends!"

Yup. Another CreepyPasta. How was he running into them so much? Was he just a CreepyPasta magnet?

"Thanks for the sloth again," Sans said, rubbing the back of his neck.

It surprisingly meant a lot more than Sans thought it would. Considering the complete lack of comfort his Father gave him, any sort of toy was a blessing. And considering he gave it to Sans without any secret agenda Sans knew of, it came off as nice. Especially after their beginning.

"Of course a toymaker would supply their people properly!" Jason said.

Yup. As Sans expected. There it was. Why did he expect anything different.

"Do you mind if I just chill here for a couple of hours?" Sans asked, lightly tapping the counter. "I need to hang near a CreepyPasta right now while everyone at my house gets into a fight or something."

"I could help with that."

Uh huh. Of course he could. Because he was one.

"Yeah, that's why I'm here," Sans said, pointing towards the ground.

"Oh." Jason tilted his head. "So you already knew about the box?"

"The... what?" Sans asked.

A soft click of a clock passed over the silence between them. Jason, letting the height between them fade as he leaned down, grinned. "The most pathetic toy I've ever seen. And I have to watch the bastard so I don't have to worry about my clients being murdered."

Bastard? Box? What did this have to do with him being here?

"I have a gift to give you. Another one. This one will be... far more fun."

Sans didn't trust that tone. This wasn't a gift like the first one. It was definitely... something not good. His tone, that slight smirk, he definitely had some sort of agenda.

"What is it?" Sans asked.

He didn't say anything. Instead, he reached into his pocket and set an object onto the counter.

A small jack in a box.

Monochrome, plain, and it looked... like a simple box. That was it. Then again, if Jason was a CreepyPasta and he looked normal. Like a plain human who just wanted to sell toys. Of course, his attitude kinda gave it away.

"Why does a box help me? Does it have a cure in it for whatever's going on with my soul?" Sans asked.

Jason kept staring at him, grin only growing wider. Sans had a particular feeling that grin was not one of kindness.

"Is this..." He silently swore. It better not be or else he was going to lose his mind at this point. "Another CreepyPasta?"

"Yeah."

Sans was now considering face planting himself into any nearby window. Like Papyrus did when he had an awkward encounter at Undyne's, because honestly, that sounded better than everything that's been going on recently. Apparently Sans has been having a wild time of collecting serial killers. Was it like a collection game at this point? Pokemon, but with crazy, insane people. Such fun.

"Well, to say, it's a CreepyPasta trapped in the box," Jason said, "And he's the only other person in the CreepyPasta community strong enough to stand up to Slenderman. Though I don't recommend letting him out by opening up the box. If even Slenderman is afraid of him, then -"

"He's just that much more terrifying," Sans finished in a slight mutter, staring at the object in question. If the person that sent Sans' life into a hurricane of chaos, that powerful being, was afraid of whoever was trapped in this box, then Sans was almost horrified to see what he's capable of.

"Basically, this guy can be like your free travel companion," Jason said. His palm hovered, but fingers remained pressed against the material, as if it would grow legs and run away at any possible moment. "He's a CreepyPasta. So you could just carry this everywhere in your pocket without having to worry about the curse."

Shit. That was good. A very, very tempting offer. To never have to worry about who was with him again? Freedom to just... finally live? Normally?

"But that means I'd have to carry around a serial killer than even Slenderman is afraid of at all times?" Sans asked. "Sounds kinda risky, dude."

"Isn't living with Sally a risk, too? All of the CreepyPasta in the area know what she looks like. Bringing her into public is like an invitation to being attacked."

Right. Yeah. Sans forgot that was why he was out. Because him being outside with Sally gained some attention from Jeff's moral enemy, or whatever she was to him. He didn't know the full story, and didn't want to learn it.

"Why are you giving this to me, then? I know there's a reason."

Neither decision for Sans sounded particularly fun. Either he continued to constantly stick around Creepypasta, lest he break down into a sobbing paranoid mess, or he decided to carry around a massive risk to his and everyone else's safety around him. One that would utterly murder him if they escaped from a tiny little box.

"I have to watch him, and that means I have to keep my store here. And I hate, hate -" Jason paused, throwing up his arms, "- Despise staying here! Much less babysitting a box! So, if you watched over his box, then I could go somewhere else."

"Why do you have to watch him here?"

No response. None. Jason only glared down at the box.

"Okay, fine, ya won't tell me, whatever," Sans said, sticking up his hands.

Should he? Just as long as he didn't open up the box he'd be fine, right?

"No, I can't take it," Sans said, shaking his head and turning away from the counter. Arms crossed, he sighed. "I already have way too much on my plate. I have to watch over everyone I already have in my house, and try to fix whatever the hell is going on between my friends and me right now. And taking on the responsibility of watching over a serial killer in a box, possibly stronger than someone I have to constantly fight in my soul is not very appealing. Maybe after I settle everything out, but right now? Not a good time."

No response. Maybe Jason was a little upset. And why wouldn't he be? Stuck with that kind of responsibility must be awful. But Sans couldn't do it.

"... Jason?"

When he turned around, Sans realized his tolerance for shit was growing thinner and thinner by the day from these serial killers. Because the bastard was just gone. A new blue door, out of nowhere, now closed firmly shut behind the counter. And the box resting next to a note.

"Good luck watching him! Make sure not to open his box!"

"God fucking -!" Sans shouted, throwing up his arms. "Really?"