Chapter Text
"FUCK!"
You jumped back out of the way as the dumbbells crashed to the floor. You really needed to buy another shelf for those weights.
"Alex! What did I tell you about cursing in front of clients!" Your boss called out from her office.
You looked around, there was literally only one person in the gym, and they were on a treadmill, ipod blasting music through their headphones.
"Sorry!" You called out. Quickly, you stacked the weights in a better formation this time and made your way to the office.
Your boss was a middle-aged woman with a beautiful athletic build. She had been into sports and fitness all her life, and it showed. Her blonde ponytail swayed as she turned to face you.
"Hey, didn't you say something about an interview today?" You asked. She smiled at you.
"I did! The girl already brought over her resume. She doesn't have a ton of experience since, well, they must not have had gyms under ground..."
"Ooo, she's a monster?!" You perked up. You hadn't been around many monsters, but you were definitely interested in meeting some.
She nodded. "Yes, and she looks really fit, to be honest. Her job history says something about being captain of some sort of royal guard. It definitely piqued my interest."
You were about to say something when you heard the front door open. You stepped out and looked toward it. A large, fish-looking monster walked in. She had deep blue-green scales and bright red hair pulled back into a ponytail. You noticed that she had an eye patch covering her left eye.
It wasn't until you approached her that you realize she towered over your 5-foot form. You would be lying if you said you weren't a little intimidated.
"Hello." She greeted you. It was obvious she was trying to be as professional as possible. "I'm here for a job interview."
You smiled and nodded. "I will let Jade know that you are here."
You walked back into the office. "New potential meat is here!"
Jade got up and glanced out the door to the front of the gym, then glared back at you
"You aren't making that 'new meat' joke because she's a fish, are you??" She whispered.
You burst into laughter, you hadn't even made that connection. You called every interviewee that.
Jade rolled her eyes, "Get back to work and let me conduct this interview."
You smiled "Yes ma'am!" Turning on your heel, you made your way back over to the weight bench.
"Need any help there, little lady?"
You groaned mentally. The voice was from your fellow trainer, Nate. He was a decent guy, just a bit of a flirt.
"No, I think I can handle it." You said, putting the last weight on the rack after you finished wiping it down.
"Oh I know you can handle it." He said with a wink, running his hand through his short, black hair. You rolled your eyes at him, causing him to chuckle.
"So..." He started "Did you see the monster chick that came in for the interview?"
"Yeah, I did." You said flatly, you had a feeling you knew where this was going.
"I'm not too keen on a monster working here, but I will admit, she's kind of attractive."
You scoffed and shook your head. Nate was impossible.
"What? Is it so wrong?" He feigned offense.
"Nate. Can you do me a favor?"
"Anything for you, sweetheart."
You gritted your teeth, forcing an insult back down your throat, as you shoved some cleaning supplies into his arms.
"Be a dear and go scrub the bathroom. I've got a client coming in in around 10 minutes."
Before he could protest, you walked off, leaving him alone to do the dirty work.
Closing time came and Jade met with you and Nate before leaving for the night.
"Alright you two. As you both know, I have been conducting interviews for the past 2 weeks so we could bring another trainer onto the team. Well, I have finally made a decision."
You were very excited. The once-small gym was now bustling with clients and customers, which meant there was a demand for more trainers. You hoped the new employee was friendly.
"Our new trainer's name is Undyne. She was the monster that came in today, I'm sure you both saw her." Jade announced.
"Oh yeah, I saw her." Nate purred. You and Jade groaned in unison.
"Well, I for one, can't wait to meet her!" You perked up.
Jade smiled at you. "I know, Alex. That's why I want you to show her around when she starts here. She'll need a kind, patient person to help her become comfortable here."
Nate cleared his throat. "Why not me, I'm a nice guy."
"We want her to WANT to work here, not quit on the first day." You quipped. Nate glowered at you.
"Ok, children. Let's head out for the night. You'll have plenty of time to annoy one another tomorrow." Jade smiled, holding the front door open for the both of you.
--
You sighed as you walked into your small, two bedroom apartment. You set your purse on the kitchen counter and walked over to the fridge, pulling out a pre-made meal to cook. It looked like it was Salmon fillets and green beans tonight. Nothing fancy, but you enjoyed simple meals.
You opened up your laptop and started up a random playlist. The room was filled with music from one of your favorite bands.
"Hell yeah, I love this song!" You said aloud as you turned one of the eyes on the stove on.
Dragged ya down below
Down to the devil's show
To be his guest forever
(Peace of mind is less than never)
Hate to twist your mind
But God ain't on your side
An old acquaintance severed
(Burn the world your last endeavor)
Flesh is burning
You can smell it in the air
'Cause men like you have
Such easy soul to steal (steal)
So stand in line while
They ink numbers in your head
You're now a slave
Until the end of time here
Nothing stops the madness,
Turning, haunting, yearning
Pull the trigger
"YOU SHOULD HAVE KNOWN!" You sang at the top of your lungs. "THE PRICE OF EVIL. AND IT HURTS TO KNOW THAT YOU BELONG HERE, YEAHHH!"
"OHHHHH, ITS YOUR FUCKIN' NIGHTMARE!"
You heard a meow behind you and turned to see your little gray tabby. You laughed "Binx, don't judge me!"
He sat down and meowed again. You walked over and gave him a pet before continuing with your cooking, and your performance.
Can't wake up in a sweat
'Cause it ain't over yet
Still dancing with your demons
(Victim of your own creation)
Beyond the will to fight
Where all that's wrong is right
Where hate don't need a reason
(Loathing self-assassination)
You've been lied to
Just to rape you of your sight
And now they have the nerve
To tell you how to feel
So sedated as they
Medicate your brain
And while you slowly
Go insane they tell ya
"Given with the best intentions
Help you with your complications"
You sang the chorus again and used your kitchen utensils as drumsticks, even though you had no clue how to play drums. It didn't stop you from trying.
Binx stared at you, dancing around in front of the stove, making guitar riff noises and hitting things.
Fight
Not to fail
Not to fall
Or you'll end up like the others
Die
Die again
Drenched in sin
With no respect for another
Down
Feel the fire
Feel the hate
Your pain is what we desire
Lost
Hit the wall
Watch you crawl
Such a replaceable liar
"AND I KNOW YOU HEAR THEIR VOICES!!!"
Calling from above
"AND I KNOW THEY MAY SEEM REAL!!"
These signals of love
"BUT OUR LIFE'S MADE UP OF CHOICES!"
Some without appeal
"THEY TOOK FOR GRANTED YOUR SOUL. AND IT'S OURS NOW TO STEAL!"
With one more chorus, the song was finished and you took a wide legged-wide armed stance in front of your cat, breathless. You took a bow.
"Thank you, Thank you! I'll be here...well, forever!"
Binx rubbed up against your leg and purred. You chuckled and scratched his chin.
Once your food was done, you filled a small bowl with cat food and set it down for your fluffy companion, then you grabbed your plate and sat down in front of your computer. You had a tv, but didn't care to watch much. You preferred watching Youtube and looking for other ways to entertain yourself with the internet.
After your dinner, you grabbed a beer from the fridge. You knew that alcohol wasn't good for you, but a little every now and then didn't hurt....of course, you were having a bottle every night recently, but that's besides the point.
You loved being awake at night. You wish it was acceptable to be nocturnal as a human. You would much rather sleep while the sun was up. Too bad you had to work during the day.
But you loved fitness, and you wouldn't trade your career for the world.
You took your laptop into the bedroom and, after changing into some cute Star Wars pajamas, crawled into bed to try and finish up a chapter of the novel you were writing.
Binx hopped up onto the bed and curled up next to you, his purring helping you to relax. Soon, you could barely hold your eyes open. You gave up on the writing and closed your laptop, placing it on your nightstand.
You buried yourself under the covers and laid a hand on your cat's fur.
It wasn't long before you drifted off to dream land.
--
Ok, so it wasn't exactly dream land. Because you didn't dream at all.
You woke up in a funk, though. This wasn't anything new. Just take your meds and you'd be fine.
Binx was meowing for his breakfast, so you rolled out of bed, wrapped a blanket around your shoulders, and shuffled to the kitchen. Once you put down his food bowl, you grabbed a pan and a few eggs and began making yourself some food.
"Uggghhh." You groaned. "I hate this damn feeling." You grabbed the familiar bottle of pills and took one out, swallowing it dry.
Your phone vibrated on the counter. You grabbed it up and saw a message from your best friend.
Tara:
Hey ho! When you get off tonight?
You:
I'll be off around 7. Why?
Tara:
Charlie and I were going out for some drinks. Wanna join us?
You:
Sure. Don't have anything better to do.
Charlie was Tara's boyfriend, they were a cute couple, and this was the first relationship she had where you didn't feel like an awkward third wheel when you all hung out.
You weren't too big on the bar scene, you'd rather sit at home, but you knew that socializing was something you needed to do now and then, outside of work.
After pretty much inhaling the eggs, you threw on some exercise clothing (one of the perks of being a fitness instructor: Your 'uniform' is super comfy and cute!) and started for the door.
"I'll be back in a bit, Binxy!" You looked over at the cat, laying out across the back of the couch. "Don't get into too much trouble while I'm gone!"
With that, you grabbed your purse and made your way out the of apartment and to your car. The sky was cloudy and you could smell the moisture in the air.
You opened the driver side door to your junky little car. You had had the car since you were 18, it was very reliable and good on gas. It had never steered you wrong before.
But today, it wasn't starting.
"Oh, come on! Don't die on me now!" You grumbled, trying to start it again.
It sputtered and died.
"Fuckin' hell!" You hit the steering wheel with your hand and got out. You didn't have time to call anyone to come check it, and you really didn't know much about cars. You hoped it was just a dead battery, that was easy to replace.
Muttering to yourself, you admitted defeat and started toward the nearest bus stop. Halfway there, the rain started.
"It isn't even noon, and I already want to go back home and sleep the day away." You growled. And of course you left your umbrella in the apartment.
Distant yelling brings you out of your thoughts. You look up ahead and see a couple of men and what appears to be a tall...skeleton? (Man, how many different types of monsters were there?)
As you get closer you can make out the words
"Maybe you should watch where you're going, freak!"
"Your kind shouldn't even be here!"
The skeleton seemed to just stand there, frozen. Seeing one of the men take a jab at the poor monster, you were instantly filled with rage.
"HEY!" You yelled out, running over toward them. "The hell do you think you're doing?!"
The men spun around to you.
"Stay out of this little lady, it isn't any of your business." One of them said.
Oh no, he did NOT just call you little lady!
"You two better leave before you get hurt." You warned, your teeth clenched together.
The men laughed. "By who? You?"
You smiled and took the opportunity to swipe your leg into one of the douchebag's ankles, sending him straight into slippery sidewalk. You turned to the other and grabbed his arm, twisting and putting all your weight into the throw as you sent him over your shoulder. He landed on his back with a loud thud.
"I suggest you two run off before I suplex you both into next week!" You warned, body tense, preparing for a real fight.
The men staggered to their feet before mumbling something about you being a little bitch and walking off. You relaxed, smiling to yourself.
"WOWIE!" Came a booming voice behind you. You turned around and faced the skeleton, who was a good foot taller than you.
"I MUST THANK YOU, SMALL HUMAN, THAT WAS QUITE THE FIGHTING SKILL YOU SHOWED OFF!"
You ignored the "small human" bit, and the fact that he was nearly shouting, and smiled at the monster. "It was no problem! You just gotta know where to hit and how to manipulate body parts and all that. I'm sorry you had to deal with those jerks."
The skeleton shook his head. "IT WAS FINE! THIS ISN'T THE FIRST TIME THIS HAS HAPPENED! I USUALLY TRY TO BE NICE AND MAKE FRIENDS, BUT SOMETIMES THEY DON'T WANT THAT, SO I JUST LET THEM SAY WHAT THEY WANT AND THEY EVENTUALLY LEAVE."
You immediately felt sad for the guy. Did he just say he usually tried to make friends with bullies? He definitely had a bigger heart than you did.
"Well, I hope they learned their lesson." You stuck out a hand "I'm Alex, by the way!"
He grabbed your hand and shook it so hard you nearly lost your balance.
"I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! IT IS NICE TO MEET YOU HUM- I MEAN, ALEX!"
You laughed. "It is nice to meet you too uh... Great Papyrus."
"I HAVE A BRILLIANT IDEA!" Papyrus announced. He dug around in a small bag he had been carrying and grabbed out a pen and note pad. He scribbled something down, ripped out the paper, and handed it to you.
"THIS IS MY PHONE NUMBER! FEEL FREE TO CALL OR MESSAGE ME AT ANY TIME!"
"Oh!" You said, surprised. You grabbed out your phone and put the number in under "The Great Papyrus." and sent a message.
"Alright, I sent you a message so you have mine too!"
"NYEH HEH!" He laughed. "NOW I HAVE ANOTHER FRIEND I CAN SHARE MY LOVE OF FINE, NOODLY, CUISINE WITH!"
You had no clue what he was talking about, but looking down at your phone you jumped when you realized the time.
"Sorry to cut this short, but I gotta catch the bus. It was nice to meet you!" You started walking off, waving to him
"GOODBYE, ALEX!" He waved back.
You ran and got to the bus stop just in time, albeit a little soaked from the rain.
Your phone buzzed as you took a seat. You pulled it out and unlocked it.
The Great Papyrus:
I forgot to tell you, Alex, your fighting moves reminded me of a good friend of mine!
You smiled to yourself.
You:
your friend must be pretty awesome!
The Great Papyrus:
She really is! Her name is Undyne, I'll have to introduce you sometime.
Undyne? That was the name of the new trainer being hired today. Maybe it was the same person? How many people did you know with the name 'Undyne'?
You suddenly became really excited about going to work.