Hotshot

by Leggo_My_Eggo50

Summary:

Tenna thinks Mettaton is his flashy new replacement, any time he sees a billboard or a magazine featuring him he's reminded of his own fading fame. He's endlessly jealous, going as far as to despise him entirely.

However, Tenna is quickly proven wrong once they finally meet, and Mettaton isn't anything like he seems,

Notes:

Help me ive been infested with these two, the brainworms. its horrible. All I think of is mettatenna please god save me.

Chapter 1: I'll hex you, and possess you

There was something about seeing your replacement out in public thats both incredibly awkward, and infuriating. 

Now, nobody had ever directly said that Mettaton was a replacement, but Tenna knew. Every turn had Mettaton, every magazine, every channel, every billboard. He was slowly- no, rapidly pushing Tenna out of the spotlight. It fried the old CRTs wires, caused air to blow out of his vents. Even mentioning the name significantly tanked Tennas mood. It was a reminder that he was obsolete and desperate. 

Tenna had been going to events more often to grasp the last bits of fame he had left, so of course eventually they would meet. Tenna just wasn’t prepared for it to happen so soon. Its like the world stopped once Mettaton entered the room, as if he were the only thing in the universe that mattered. Tenna could have sworn he even saw a spotlight shining down onto him, but that was just in his head. 

His shining smile, his perfect hair, his flawless makeup, his incredible fashion sense. Tenna caught himself staring, rage boiled slowly in him. It made sense why Mettaton would replace him so quickly, and it made Tenna feel useless. 

He hadn’t noticed the smaller robot approaching him until it was too late, mettaton stared wide eyed up at Tenna, silent. He had heart shaped sunglasses propped up on his head, a fluffy pink jacket, skin tight leather shorts, and of course thigh high pink heels. Tenna laughed nervously and pulled at his collar. 

“Uh- could I…help you?” Tenna felt incredibly tense. Perhaps Mettaton was judging him, Tenna couldn’t blame him. He was all rusty, his wires archaic and faulty, he was covered in dents and divots. It was clear he was past his prime, and here he was in the gaze of the worlds hottest celebrity. 

“Oh! Forgive me, I hadn’t realized I was staring!” Mettatons voice was soft, yet sultry. Tenna almost couldn’t hear him from how quiet it was. Despite this, it was confident. “Mister Tenna, right? I’ve seen your show hundreds of times. I never thought I’d meet you in the flesh!” 

Now Tenna was the one staring, almost bewildered that Mettaton had come directly to him rather than anybody else more deserving. 

“Mister Tenna?” Mettaton repeated. 

“Oh! Yes! Sorry I just- well I guess you can say the same for me!” Tenna tried his best to hide the fact that he was absolutely green with envy. The very presence of Mettaton made him want to scream. Mettaton giggled lowly, he was probably laughing at Tenna. 

“Well it was very nice meeting you Mister Tenna, I hope we’ll cross paths again soon,” with that, Mettaton politely waved and disappeared into the crowded event. 

…

Tenna could have sworn he was cursed ever since that day, because now Mettaton refuses to get out of his actual life as well as his TV one. They’ll run into each other almost everywhere, Mettaton always being polite, and Tenna always trying to keep it together when he sees him. 

Mettaton also had to keep it together, but for the opposite reason. He was good at acting composed, but the moment he dashed away he had to find somewhere to calm down. The Tenna was speaking to him, and he was being such a gentleman! All of their encounters, while extremely brief, were oh so pleasant. Mettaton was much too starstruck to keep up a conversation with him, let alone be in his presence. Tenna had seemed to be such a sweetheart, always stuttering and tugging at his collar. Mettaton was almost in disbelief that Tenna would have such a hard time speaking with him, but he couldn’t exactly blame him. Mettaton had risen to fame so fast that he was sure it would overwhelm everybody he spoke to. 

Whenever Mettaton would arrive to events or award ceremonies, he’d actively look for Tenna just so they could have one more conversation. Unfortunately for Mettaton, this event happened to have a seating chart. Each chair had a slip of paper with a name on it, which lowered Mettatons chance of seeing Tenna unless he managed to catch him on the way out. 

He hadn’t even tried to look at who would be next to him as he took his seat, for it didn’t really matter. The chances of him knowing them anyway would be slim to none because of how new he was. 

Until a familiar yellow and red clad CRT television awkwardly sat down next to him. 

Mettatons face immediately lit up, he tried to suppress his excitement, but his usually soft voice nearly broke as he raised his voice. 

“Oh! Mister Tenna! What a pleasant surprise! I was almost thinking I wouldn’t see you the entire event!” 

Tenna avoided eye contact (not that Mettaton could tell he was) and grumbled something quietly. This was just his luck, wasn’t it? Of course he’d end up next to the one person he hated most. 

“Oh, yes, I suppose,” Tennas response was short, but he tried to make his tone sound like he was totally interested in whatever Mettaton had to say. He didn’t like him, sure, but he wouldn’t make him feel bad just for existing. This was something between Tenna and his inner self. 

Mettaton was once again wearing a very flashy outfit. He had on razor sharp black shoulder blades that Tenna was concerned would cut his arm if he sat too close, so he slightly leaned away from Mettaton. Instead of the pink high heels he usually sported, he had knee high black boots, his legs crossed neatly. Instead of a big fuzzy jacket, it was a pink leather one that clung tightly to Mettatons arms. Tenna was staring. 

As much as he tried to avoid the pink and black clad robot next to him, Mettaton made it nearly impossible by constantly leaning in to make comments on whomever was on stage. It was mostly gossip, but not the bad kind. Just hearsay on what they’ll be starring in next, or a tweet they made last week that made him burst out laughing. This alone made Tennas view on Mettaton shift ever so slightly. 

“I truly am glad they sat us together, I don’t know a single soul here,” Mettaton smiled so brightly up at Tenna. He almost didn’t believe a word Mettaton was saying just now, it must be small talk, just something to say while they’re stuck together. But oh, there was such a sincere look in the little starlets eyes…

“Thats surprising, I thought you’d know half of the industry by now!” Tenna was truthfully shocked. Everyone adored Mettaton, so the fact that he hadn’t made a single friend yet… 

Mettaton giggled, but Tenna caught a sad look cross his face for a moment. “Well, I’m still considered new and all…” 

For a moment, Tenna saw himself. 

“I ought to introduce you to everyone I know then!” Tenna had no idea what he was saying, but he sure as hell meant it in the moment. It was worth it to see Mettatons eyes light up as bright as they did. 

“Oh, aren’t you a dear? You really don’t have to do that for me, you know,” Tennas screen went pink at being called dear, he had never looked away from someone so fast in his life. 

“And besides, I doubt I could find a meaningful way to thank you,” Mettatons smile faded once again and he stared down into his lap. 

“There would be no need! You don’t have to thank me for-”

“But I’d like to.”

Both of them went dead silent as they stared, a habit both of them had picked up the day they met. Tenna felt something bubble in his chest, but it wasn’t the usual pang of jealousy or rage he usually felt towards Mettaton. He had him all wrong, Mettaton wasn’t anything like Tenna had assumed. He pictured this diva who always wanted things to go his way, as thats how people spoke about him. Right now though? Tenna could stay here forever. 

Mettatons name was called to claim his award. 

…

Tenna was trying to worm his way out of the event as it ended, he knew Mettaton most likely wouldn’t come searching for him. 

That was until he was dragged back by an arm wrapping around his midsection and yanking him back with a yelp. 

“Oh come on darling, you didn’t really think I’d let you run away on me did you?” Mettatons seductive voice filled Tennas ears as he regained his balance, the arm unwrapping from his waist and returning to its normal length at Mettatons side. 

“Ah- well-”

“I’m just kidding darling! I wanted to talk to you before we left. Thankfully you aren’t that hard to spot,” Tenna had to kneel down in order to hear Mettatons soft voice in the chaos of the people exiting around them. “Now about introducing me to people…”

“I already said you wouldn’t have to thank me, really!” Tenna reassured, assuming thats where Mettaton would be going with this. Mettaton laughed in response and smiled. 

“Oh no, I didn’t mean that at all. I have a much better proposition in mind,” Mettaton lit up like a christmas tree as he began to speak. “Why don’t we step outside?”

Mettaton oh so casually grabbed onto Tennas hand and led him out, Tenna trying his best to stay calm and normal about it. Mettaton methodically weaved through the crowd, avoiding running into people so many times. He was graceful in all of his movements, as if he had planned this out and practiced a hundred times over. Once in the parking lot, Mettaton went to his limo and leaned on it, Tenna standing in front of him with his arms locked to his sides. 

“I’ve truthfully been meaning to bring this up with you for a while, but I keep backing down,” Tenna didn’t believe him again, Mettaton being nervous ? Don’t make him laugh. “Mister Tenna, did you know that being on TV Time has been a dream of mine?” 

Tenna slowly shook his head. Mettaton was a walking contradiction, everything he said was the complete opposite of what he seemed to be. Why on earth would superstar Mettaton want to be anywhere near Tenna, let alone on his show? He was pathetic in comparison. Tenna was in disbelief at his own thoughts, since when did he think so lowly of himself? Of TV Time? 

“It truly is! I’d love to be a guest on your show sometime, I think it would be a marvelous opportunity for me,” Oh. So thats what Mettaton wanted from this. Just an opportunity for his own career. Tenna was foolish to think otherwise. 

Mettaton noticed Tenna acting like a deer in headlights, perhaps he said something wrong? Mettatons brows furrowed as he tried to think of what he said to offend the CRT. “Mister Tenna, its important to me that you know I’m being serious.” 

Tenna had a change in expression, it looked like relief to Mettaton, but it was hard to tell from his lack of eyes. Mettaton took out a notepad and scribbled a number down on it, then tore out the page and handed it to Tenna. “Have your people call my people, alright dear?” 

Tenna looked at the paper for a moment too long before nodding his head rapidly. “Yes! Okay! I will! I’d love to have you on TV Time!” 

Mettaton smiled and opened the door to his limo. “And I will love being there,” Mettaton blew a kiss to Tenna before disappearing into the tinted windows of the vehicle. 

…

It was a bit of a hassle to get ahold of Mettatons agent. There were several setbacks, but here they were! It only took three entire months. Mettaton would finally be appearing on TV Time beside Tenna. The whole experience made Tenna only more curious about Mettaton. He was such a dear to everyone, Tenna began to doubt he had any bad intentions ever. As soon as the curtains closed, Mettaton dashed to find Tenna backstage. 

“That was wonderful, dear!” Mettaton wrapped an arm around Tenna absentmindedly. “I’m so glad you went through all of that for me.” 

“Well, what am I besides a man of my word?” Tenna, in fact, did hesitate, and considered backing down and ghosting Mettaton. He wasn’t entirely sure why he went along with it, maybe it was him who had selfish motives. After all, Mettaton appearing on TV Time would skyrocket ratings. 

Tenna was being so unfair to Mettaton, wasn’t he? He didn’t even give him a chance. 

“Oh of course dear, how could I forget that?” 

Mettaton had given him a chance. Mettaton had been so kind and considerate, even going out of his way to talk to Tenna. 

It finally hit him. The realization he had been delaying and pushing down. He and Mettaton weren’t enemies, or rivals, no no, they were equals. The first equal Tenna had in years. 

Maybe Tenna could get used to the sight of the younger robot-

“I’d love for you to be on the show a second time,” Tenna spoke without really thinking. So, his natural defense was to backtrack. “I-I mean- if you want to of course! You don’t have to show up ever again if you-”

Mettaton took Tennas hands in his own and blinked slowly at him. 

“You overthink too much, darling. I’d be honored to show up as many times as you’d like.”

“Okay- yeah! Yeah I will uh…” Tenna trailed off as he looked down at their intertwined hands. “I will get right on that!” 

Tenna didn’t know what was worse, Mettatons obvious flirting in front of everybody, or the fact that he had taken it hook line and sinker. 

“I wouldn’t doubt you for a moment,” Mettaton did that thing where he lowered his chin and looked up, something Tenna had become used to at this point in time. Mettaton took his hands away from Tenna, but not before he slipped something into them. Tenna looked down in confusion, and was met with yet another phone number, with flashy cursive “Call me” written underneath. 

Mettatons personal number. 

…

Mettaton paced back and forth in his penthouse, it had been a few days since he co-starred on TV Time, and Tenna still hadn’t called. Thats okay, maybe he’s just busy. Or nervous. Or a secret third option Mettaton hadn’t figured out. Maybe giving his number to Tenna was a bad idea. When did Mettaton become so filled with anxiety? It was downright uncharacteristic! 

Mettaton slumped down on his couch and sighed heavily. Maybe he read the room wrong, maybe Tenna was always that adorable and easy to fluster and he had made the biggest mistake of his-

Mettatons phone began to ring. 

He scrambled off the couch in such a manner that he ended up face first on his floor. He pushed himself up and continued his clumsy and adrenaline fueled dash to his cellphone. 

It was an unknown number, this could be it! This could be him! 

“Mettaton speaking!” His voice was loud and chipper, something rarely heard by anybody. 

“O-Oh you- uhm! Hello!” The ever so anxious voice of Tenna rang through the other end. Mettaton sighed in content as he plopped himself down on his bed. “Sorry for not reaching out sooner- I really wanted to! But I just got busy!”

“Never apologize darling, I wasn’t worried for a second,” said Mettaton, the liar. “In fact, this was the most perfect time for you to reach out!”

Mettaton could hear Tenna clear his throat. “Good! I was uhm..thinking that- uh- I hope this doesn’t sound weird, but- uh-”

“Out with it, darling. I promise I won’t judge.” 

Tenna went quiet on the other end for a long moment, Mettaton was about to speak again when he was interrupted. 

“I’d like for us to...uh- Go out! N-Not like that! I mean to discuss your next appearance on TV Time,” Tenna paused. “If you still want to, of course.”

Mettaton couldn’t believe what he was hearing. How on earth was Tenna being this cute??

“Oh of course I do!” Mettaton was absolutely over the moon. “Its a date!” 

Chapter 2: I'll be waiting right here, when you're ready come through

Summary:

Plans are quickly Tboned by Tennas horrible cable management

Notes:

I looked up how to repair and solder wires for this SOS

Im a firm believer that Mettaton lives in the royal high apartment. Just hear me out

I listened to a fuck ton of ayesha erotica while writing this because her music reminds me so much of mettaton. She's in fact my voice claim for him.

fics that make mettaton ignore tennas damage drive me crazy so I wrote this

Mettaton was absolutely not freaking out, why do you ask?

He was currently digging around his closet for something nice to wear, swearing every few seconds as he once again checked the time. He had one hour before his dinner with Tenna. Okay, that's fine, he’d have to rush his makeup but it would be fine! 

Mettaton had never had so much anxiety in his entire life, he’s Mettaton for crying out loud! A superstar! Yet when it came to Tenna, he’d crumble and second guess himself. Maybe it was just intimidation, Tenna had been a celebrity for decades before Mettaton, he surely knows more than Mettaton does. Maybe he’s just afraid of embarrassing himself. 

Maybe, he should call Alphys. 

He needed to talk to somebody, and she’s the only one who really gets him. She could calm his nerves while he scrambled to get ready. 

Mettaton picked up his phone and scrambled to dial her, running his fingers through his synthetic hair. 

“H-Hey Mettaton!” Alphys voice sounded nervous, as it always did whenever she was on the phone. Mettaton hit the speaker button and placed his phone down on the side table next to his bed. 

“Sorry I didn’t text first dear, but I’m in a bit of a pinch,” Mettaton pulled out one of his jackets, this one was styled with heart patches on the shoulders of each sleeve, and had sharp shoulder pads. He placed it on his bed.

“Wh-Why? Is there something wrong?” Alphys concerned voice rang through the room. Mettaton sighed. 

“I’m not malfunctioning or anything, don’t be so worried!” Mettaton dug through all of the shoes in his closet, trying to find a pair to match the jacket perfectly . “I just- I have a date tonight,” Mettatons voice came out slightly muffled on Alphys end. “And its stressing me out really bad.” 

“You? Stressed?” Alphys seemed genuinely surprised, something Mettaton was quickly getting used to. “S-Sorry! That was rude of me…Who’s your date?” 

“Oh you’re fine darling, I’m quite surprised myself,” Mettaton made an 

‘Ah-ha!’ sound once he found a pair of black heels with pink on the bottom. “Its Mister Tenna, the one I told you about.” Mettaton heard a gasp on the other end. 

“R-Really?? You a-actually did it?” Alphys sounded much more confident now, her voice raised slightly. 

“I know, I know! We’re going to discuss my next appearance on TV Time,” Mettaton quickly threw on the jacket and unzipped the heels. “He’s taking me to this really nice restaurant, its somewhere downtown.” Once the clothes were on, he dashed to his vanity and began to quickly throw on his eyeshadow and lipstick combo. 

“I-I’m sure you’ll be fine Mettaton! I-I be-believe in you! H-he must al-already like you if he’s t-taking you somewhere nice,” Alphys was right…Mettaton just needed to get out of his own head. 

“You’re right dear, you’re right,” Mettaton glanced over at the time, 15 minutes. “I’m dreadfully sorry, but I have to go or else I’ll be late,” Mettaton glanced at himself in the mirror quickly before he darted over to his phone. 

“G-Goodluck!” Alphys said cheerfully. 

“Thank you darling, I fear I’ll need it. I’ll call you afterwards, okay?” 

“O-Okay! Bye-bye!” 

Mettaton hit the red hang up button and hastily shoved his phone into his pocket, then ran to the elevator. 

…

If Mettaton was nervous, then Tenna was a complete and total wreck. He almost called to cancel at least 15 times, and spent a whole 30 minutes talking to himself to hopefully ease his nerves. It didn’t work. 

Tenna wasn’t too concerned with what outfit he wore, but he still wanted to look his best for Mettaton. Should he present him with a gift? He should definitely present him with a gift. Perhaps he should pick up flowers on his way to pick Mettaton up… 

Thats exactly what Tenna did the moment he deemed himself ‘good enough’. The only problem now was to find flowers that would match Mettatons tastes. Maybe something pink?? Did it have to be a specific hue? Surely Mettaton wasn’t that pretentious! 

However, what caught Tennas eye wasn’t pink at all. They were purple roses, a kind that would compliment Mettatons magenta eyes. There were a few burgundy roses mixed in with the bouquet Tenna had his eyes on, it was perfect. 

With only 15 minutes to spare, he dashed to Mettatons penthouse with the flowers neatly sitting in the passenger seat. 

…

“Starstruck” was an understatement. Tenna was absolutely and completely blown away by Mettatons appearance. His eyeshadow was black today, and it glittered when the sunset hit it just right. His hair was fluffier than usual, and had a new pink streak going through it on his bangs. He had on a jacket that seemed to have been made by Mettaton himself, a little embroidered “MTT” was sewn into the left breast pocket, and it had pink heart patches sewn on each side of his arms. His heels were also a spectacle, the bottoms were a hot pink that matched the heart patches on the jacket, and they were black as night. 

Tenna lost all words as he stood there like an idiot, clutching the bouquet of flowers tightly as the click-clack of Mettatons heels approached him. 

“Oh, are these for me?” Mettaton dramatically gasped. “You’re too much, Mister Tenna!” 

Tenna laughed nervously, then faked a cough. “I just thought I should get you something! For our uh…date,” he avoided looking at Mettaton as he handed him the flowers. “You can drop the mister…I wouldn’t mind.”

“Well thank you, Tenna~” The way Mettaton said Tennas name made a shiver go down his spine. 

“Oh its- its no big deal, really. We should get going!” Tenna swiftly strided to the other side of his car and opened the door for Mettaton.

“You’re such a gentleman!” Mettaton had trouble climbing inside due to the cars absurd size, of course to accommodate Tennas absurd size. But he didn’t pay any mind to it. 

Mettaton felt much more confident now. Tenna was being so adorable and nervous that it made him forget his own nerves. They were both scared, it seemed. Besides, the man bought him flowers, that's always a good sign. 

The car ride was relatively silent, Tenna was focused on not crashing from how nervous he was, and Mettaton stared out the window and bounced his leg. He should start up a conversation, that should calm them both down surely. 

“You know Tenna, I can’t recall the last time I’ve been out to dinner,” Mettaton turned to the large CRT and smiled. “I’m glad you picked such a nice place for me.” 

“Oh- about that actually. Our reservation isn’t until 8:30…so I was thinking we could make a quick stop! If you want to, of course, we could always arrive early..” Tennas voice trailed off near the end as he lost confidence in his plan, Mettaton probably wouldn’t like to be lied to like that…

Mettaton on the other hand smiled and nodded. “Of course I would! Tenna, hunny, I’m down for anything you have planned.” 

That seemed to calm Tenna down, as his shoulders went slack and he relaxed into his seat. “Well then, you’re going to love this! There's a reason I grabbed you right before sunset!” 

Tenna pulled up to a random tall building, and Mettaton was (rightfully) confused as he got out. 

“I used to climb the fire exit to watch the sunset,” Tenna quickly explained once he saw Mettatons expression. 

“Are you…allowed to do that?” Mettaton tilted his head, but the smile spreading across his face told that he didn’t really care how allowed it was. 

“Lets…not dwell on that!” Tenna got out and went to help Mettaton out. 

“Oh look at you, first date and already breaking the rules for me,” Mettaton giggled and intertwined his arm with Tennas. “Lead the way~” 

Tenna made an audible gulp (which Mettaton found extremely adorable and refrained from pulling him down by his tie and kissing him right then) and began to climb the fire escape stairs, he was able to reach every ladder flawlessly due to his height and they were up in no time. Tenna walked over to the ledge of the roof and sat down with his legs dangling over, and patted the space next to him. Mettaton felt his metaphorical heart drop to his metaphorical stomach. This was a much better idea 100 feet below on the ground, but right now he felt like the smallest gust of wind would blow him away. He took his seat next to Tenna despite this, however he refused to dangle his feet over the edge. 

“So?” Tenna asked as Mettaton finally got a look at what he wanted to show him. They made it just in time to fully see the sun creeping downwards into the horizon. Mettatons jaw went slack as he stared in awe. It was a perfect view, something he thought was only possible to see on a beach.

“Oh Tenna…” Mettaton found words caught in his throat as he stared at the pink clouds and golden sky. “Its so beautiful.” 

Tenna laughed next to Mettaton. “Thats why I picked it! Its been forever since I’ve been up here, I used to-” Tenna cut himself off and looked down. “Uh- I used to come all the time.” 

Mettaton went silent and smirked at Tenna. “What??” 

“This is very unprofessional of you, darling,” Mettaton held a teasing tone in his voice. He didn’t really care how unprofessional any of this was considering he was the one to call it a date first, but seeing Tenna get all flustered was such a treat. 

“I-I thought-” Tenna sputtered, but was shushed by Mettaton extending his arm and placing a finger over his lip. 

“Tenna, I was messing with you.”

Tenna went quiet and his screen turned pink. “Oh.” 

For a moment, Mettaton considered ditching the dinner and just staying here with Tenna forever. He could get used to this…he really, really could. All he has to do is bat his eyelashes and Tenna would do anything for him. 

But, Tenna seemed really excited for this, how could he ever deny him? 

“I do believe its almost time for our dinner,” Mettaton said as he stood up and dusted his legs off where he sat. 

“Oh yes! We wouldn’t want to be late now!” Tenna hopped up and intertwined his arm with Mettatons. “Shall we?”

“We shall!”

 

…

Mettaton seriously underestimated just how fancy the place they’d be going was. He was in awe at the lengths Tenna was willing to go for him in such a short amount of time of knowing each other. It made him absolutely swoon. 

Tenna was much more confident now seeing how much Mettaton was enjoying himself, he didn’t even need to ask him! Mettaton was constantly commenting on the decor, or someone's flashy outfit. He seemed to be in his element here. 

“Forgive me if this is strange to ask but…can you actually eat? I-I’m just wondering because my technician could barely figure out a way to make it work for me,” Mettaton was leaning onto the table, head propped up in his hands. Very impolite for where he was, but nobody cared because it was Mettaton. 

“Well, sort of. I’m just not allowed to eat too much in a day, so I rarely do. Its not like I need to so I don’t dwell on it!” Tenna was clearly dancing around something, Mettaton assumed it was gross, as it was certainly gross for him. Anything he ate got dumped into a tank he had to clean out himself at the end of the day, or else everything within would rot. Alphys tried her best, and this was apparently the best compromise she could make. 

“I’m the same way! Oh, it really grinds my gears- no pun intended- but its a necessary sacrifice to have a little fun in life!” As if on cue, their food arrived. Mettaton got the most expensive thing on the menu (why wouldn’t he?) and Tenna got a simple salad, probably has something to do with it being “complicated” when it comes to eating. 

“So, Mettaton,” Tenna began after a few minutes of eating. “About that second appearance on TV Time-”

“Oh yes! I was just about to mention that, I’ve been thinking of a few ideas. Mister Tenna, do you consider yourself an artist?” 

Tenna was caught off guard by the question, it seemed out of left field and not on topic at all. Surely, Mettaton had a reason to ask. 

“Oh absolutely not! I’d be lucky if I could draw a square correctly!” Tenna answered truthfully, curious as to where this would be headed. Mettaton giggled. 

“I was thinking we could do an art challenge of sorts, where the point is to draw quick and fast. I think it would be hilarious, don’t you?” Mettaton lowered his chin and looked up at Tenna. “What I have in mind is a tad hard to explain, think you can keep up?” 

Tenna nodded vigorously. 

“Good! So, it starts with each contestant writing down a prompt on a slip of paper, then said paper is passed around randomly. Do you know the game of telephone?” 

Tenna nodded again, hanging on Mettatons every last word. 

“It’ll be like that. Once the timer is done, everyone will pass their drawings to each other, and then do their best to describe whats going on in it before passing on that prompt. Once its over, we’ll show the whole chain of drawings that started from each first prompt.” 

“My God…you’re a genius!” Tenna exclaimed, a bit too loudly as people around them went quiet and turned to their table. Mettaton laughed hard enough to snort, which caused him to gasp and cover his mouth. Tenna stared at him in confusion. 

“Oh- Oh thats so embarrassing! You’d think I’d have that under control by-”

“That was adorable.” 

Mettaton was stunned. His ugly snort? Seriously ? Tenna has to be lying to make him feel better, come on. 

…Or maybe he wasn’t. It was hard to tell with Tenna. 

“I-I’m sorry! That was so stupid of me to say! I won’t do it again, I swear!” Tenna looked like he had seen a ghost (horrible simile to be using) and all doubt washed from Mettatons head. 

“Oh Tenna…” Mettaton reached his hand across the table to hold Tennas shaking one. “Nothing you say is stupid.” 

Tenna looked absolutely dumbfounded at this. Mettaton has got to take that TV home. 

“You…mean it?” Tenna sounded like a wounded puppy, as if nobody had ever thought to give him a compliment a day in his life. 

“Darling, I mean everything I say!” Mettaton smiled big at Tenna. “Believe me when I say its the truth.” 

“Oh…” a sheepish smile crept across Tennas face, and Mettaton could’ve sworn he saw the flash of a fang. 

…

“Why don't you come inside darling? It's much too late for you to be driving…”

Mettaton was leaning on Tennas car, just outside of his window. It was just slightly too big for him to loom over it like he envisioned, but it would have to do. Tennas screen turned almost completely red as he stared at Mettaton. 

“Are…are you sure?” Poor thing sounded so nervous, Mettaton had to be sure to take extra good care of him. 

“Darling, I’ve never been more sure in my entire life.” 

Tenna was smiling like a dope as he opened his car door and got out, letting Mettaton lead the way. Getting him up to Mettatons penthouse was easier said than done, especially considering Mettaton was trying to usher him quickly so they wouldn’t be spotted. Having dinner is one thing, but going to his place afterwards…ohh, the rumors. It was like the world wasn’t built for Tenna, Mettaton felt horrible for him. 

Eventually, Tenna managed to be successfully smuggled to Mettatons apartment that thankfully, had high ceilings and plenty of space to go around. 

“Gosh Mettaton, you have such a-” Tenna was cut off by Mettaton finally yanking his tie and pulling him down into a kiss. Tenna didn’t know what to do with himself, let alone where to put his hands. He supposes just kissing back would do, Mettaton could lead the way! 

And oh, lead the way he did. Tenna was folding like origami as Mettaton led him straight to his bed, covering his entire screen with black and pink kiss marks. 

“Stay put,” Mettaton commanded as he began to rummage through his bedside table. Well shit, you didn’t have to tell Tenna twice. Tenna was absolutely over the moon and smiling as wide as he possibly could. Mettaton was correct, he did have fangs! 

Mettaton pulled out something small from the drawer, but hid it behind his back so Tenna couldn’t see. He climbed on top of his bed and put a hand to Tennas chest to push him down into the sheets. Tenna didn’t resist one bit, letting Mettaton do whatever the hell he wanted. Tenna was his for the rest of the night and he wasn’t about to complain whatsoever. 

Mettatons lips were back on Tennas, this time Tenna threw his arms around Mettaton in surprise and kept them there. One hand slowly creeped up to the back of Mettatons head, gently gripping his raven black hair. He hoped Mettaton couldn’t feel that. 

Mettaton pulled away, but he didn’t go far. He kept his face close to Tennas with his eyes halfway closed, his expression was one of absolute adoration. 

“Do you mind if I take off your shirt, dear?” Mettatons voice was quieter than usual, and oh so soft. Tenna was on cloud nine, barely registering anything around him besides Mettaton. 

“O-Oh uh- of course not! Go ahead…” Tenna was content with letting Mettaton have his way entirely, every word he said would drill into Tennas brain and make a permanent mark there, like a lovely parasite. 

Mettaton began to slowly unbutton Tennas dress shirt, his red jacket lost long ago at the entrance to the apartment. He was taking it as slow as possible on purpose to tease the CRT, smiling at all of his pathetic little sighs. 

Finally, Mettaton had fully unbuttoned Tennas shirt, and was staring in awe at his chest and stomach. He honestly didn’t have that much of a different build from Mettaton, the only true difference being what they were made of. His midsection was exactly like Mettatons, and his chest was a bulky box that had a shock hazard symbol on it. 

Tenna noticed that Mettaton was staring in silence, and he went to cover himself up on instinct. Oh no no, that wouldn’t do. Mettaton gripped Tennas wrists and smiled at him.

“I didn’t say you could do that,” Mettatons voice was hypnotic and so very low, he sounded like he hadn’t spoken in years with the way it rasped. 

“I’m sorry- you stopped and I-” Tenna was interrupted by Mettaton again, this time with his mouth. The kiss was so sweet, much different from the feverish making out from earlier. 

“You’re absolutely perfect. I was admiring you, dear,” Mettaton placed one more kiss on his screen, then scooted down to get back to work. 

Mettaton finally revealed to Tenna what he had hidden behind his back, a small screwdriver. Tenna had suddenly become very unsure.

“Relax darling, I promise I know what I’m doing,” Mettaton assessed the screws on Tennas chest. Four of them, all near the corners of his chest. Lucky for Mettaton, the screwdriver was a perfect match and was able to slot itself into the screw flawlessly. 

“Please be careful,” Tennas voice was so small Mettaton almost missed it. He froze mid twist and extended his arm to gently hold the side of Tennas head. 

“I will be the most careful I can possibly be. Okay?” Mettaton refused to move. “Say okay, Tenna.”

“O-Okay! Yes! I trust you..” 

“Good boy.”

Mettaton got back to work, slowly unscrewing Tennas chest cavity, looking up every few seconds to make sure Tenna was still okay with it. Each screw was placed neatly onto Mettatons bedside table, where he was sure he wouldn’t lose them. Finally, he was able to lift the hatch and-

Mettaton tried not to gasp as he saw what was waiting for him inside. Several wires exposed, a few even severed . Many had bite marks, or at least the damage looked like bite marks. Dents, divots, all in the worst places to be.

It looked like a massacre. 

“Tenna…” Mettaton was at a complete loss. He was pissed . He wanted to find whoever did this to Tenna and rip open their-

“I knew you wouldn’t like it. This was such a bad idea, what was I thinking?? I’m- I’m so sorry I’m not-” 

“Tenna!” Mettaton could suddenly infer why Tenna had been so apprehensive about every second of this- somebody hurt him, and hurt him badly. “I’m going to fix this, just- please don’t move!” 

“Wh- Mettaton I’m fine, really! You don’t have to-” 

“I want to.” 

Mettaton was in his closet before Tenna could say anything else and rummaging around for his emergency repair kit- except Mettaton was so well built that he rarely needed to use it, so now god knows where the hell he threw it. 

“Mettaton-” The aforementioned robot jumped as he heard Tenna at the entrance of his closet. 

“Tenna! I said to stay put!” Mettaton sounded exasperated as he continued to dig for the repair kit he probably buried while looking for something to wear. 

“You don’t have to- its fine, really, you don’t have to worry about me! I’ll just leave and-”

 

“Tenna! Go sit down on my bed right now! You aren’t-” Mettaton finally spotted the kit, under a pile of shoes, and yanked it. “-Going anywhere!”

Tenna, again, couldn’t say no to Mettaton, and ended up sitting right back down on his bed as Mettaton assessed the damage further. 

“You should have gotten this fixed long ago. One short circuit and-” Mettaton didn’t dare to finish that sentence. Tenna stayed silent, his hands balled into fists as he tried not to look at Mettaton in shame. “Tell me if I hurt you at any point, okay?”

“I will, I promise,” Tenna couldn’t worm his way out of this, Mettaton had him wrapped around his finger tight. 

Mettaton got out a wire stripper tool, and carefully made sure to take off just enough to be able to mend the wires. Tenna flinched, but he didn’t tell him to stop. So far, so good. 

“Who’s your technician?” Mettaton kept working, now moving on to measuring and cutting the heat shrink tubes. 

“I-I- I don’t know,” Tenna replied. It was true, he never actually met them. If he did, it was extremely brief and he doesn’t remember it. Mettaton raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Oh, that won’t do. They haven’t reached out a single time for repairs? Routine maintenance?” Mettaton was now pissed at Tennas manufacturers for just abandoning him, how horrible!

“Is that- Normal?” 

“Of course it is!” Mettaton raised his voice, perhaps a bit too much as it caused Tenna to jump back. “Darling, I’m not upset at you, I’m upset at them for failing you.” 

Mettaton began to gently stroke Tennas undamaged wires as a way to comfort him, get him to just relax and focus. This whole process was to help him, and he needed to show that to Tenna the best he could. 

“I wouldn’t ever hurt you, Tenna,” Mettaton grabbed onto both ends of the exposed wire and intertwined them, twisting them together until they were tightly clung together. A shiver went down Tennas spine at the sensation, but there was still no pain. He began to believe Mettaton, slowly but surely. 

Mettaton stopped what he was doing to place a kiss onto Tennas screen, another act of reassurance. The repair was going at a snails pace, but it was worth it to see Tenna melt into his touches and relax. Tenna raised up his hands as if on instinct, and rested them on Mettatons hips. The smaller robot hummed in content and began to gently stroke Tennas less damaged wires again, slowly, in a circular motion with his thumb. 

Once Tennas shoulders had dropped, Mettaton was right back to it. He dug into his repair kit until he found a small tin of rosin flux. Dipping his finger in, he spread the substance onto the exposed part of Tennas wires with a featherlite touch. 

“How are we doing?” Mettaton stopped again, as he planned to after each step to make sure Tenna was still on board and not in pain. 

“Keep going, I barely feel anything. I swear!” 

Mettaton smiled and kissed Tennas neck. “Good.” 

Putting the rosin flux back, Mettaton got out another tin, and something that looked like a hot glue gun. 

“I’ll be right back dear, I need to go to a surface less likely to burst into flames for this,” Mettaton gestured to the sheets below them. Tenna nodded, but he didn’t want Mettaton to get off of his lap, he didn’t want to let go of him. “Come on dear, I need to do this.”

Tenna finally let go of Mettaton and as he was told, stayed put. God, this night couldn’t go any worse. This was completely embarrassing. How was he supposed to know that he was in unacceptable shape?? This wasn’t going how he planned at all. They were supposed to have a nice dinner, and a nice night. Tenna should have just told him no- stupid- stupid-

“Oh darling…” Mettaton was back, and it seemed like the gun was ready. “Now now, don’t get so lost in your thoughts,” Mettaton straddled Tenna again, careful not to burn either of them. “Remember, I want this. I want to help you. You aren't a burden to me.” 

“But- but-” 

“No buts! Let me take care of you, please .” 

Tenna shut his mouth and nodded. Sir yes sir.  

Mettaton smiled and placed the gun underneath the exposed wires to heat them up. “Do you know what soldering is?” 

“Yeah- uh- its what you’re doing. Right? Am I right?” Tenna was completely focused on Mettatons beautiful face, the way he slightly squinted his eyes as he focused. The sensation felt a little tingly, like he had just swallowed some warm tea and it was passing through his chest. Mettaton really knew what he was doing. 

“Mhm! Good,” Mettaton grabbed another tool, this one labeled rosin core, and began to drip solder on top of the wires. “I’ve needed this done to me quite a few times, you know. You wouldn’t believe the amount of accidents I had when I first-” Mettaton cut himself off. “Uh, when I was first made.” 

“Really?” Tenna could barely believe that. Mettaton was so well put together, and new! Tenna couldn’t fathom the idea of him having any accidents, let alone with his inner parts. 

“I swear it! I’m very clumsy, you know. I’ve slammed my face into a wall so many times I can’t keep track!” Tenna knew what Mettaton was doing. He was telling him this as a comfort, a way to say that he isn’t alone, and Mettaton knows how he feels right now. 

Mettaton retracted from what he was doing. “That needs to cool down for a bit, I’ll be back,” Mettaton disappeared to the other room, once again, then emerged a second later and sat next to Tenna. 

“Not so scary, right?” Mettaton snuggled into the taller man, wrapping his metal arms around Tennas torso. 

“I suppose you’re right..” Tenna smiled down at Mettaton. He was happy right now. He was so happy that somebody finally cared, that somebody was willing to do this for him. He wouldn’t ever say that out loud, though. Not for now. He didn’t want to chase Mettaton away by coming on too strongly. Even now, before Mettaton was fully done, Tenna felt much better. He could feel parts of himself that went numb ages ago. 

“Oh, you know what? I should get to work on some of your other wires!” Mettaton got right back on Tennas lap. “Some of them only need some tape, and then you’re set!” 

Mettaton pulled out a small roll of mechanical tape and began to wrap it around the wires that were only semi-damaged. Specifically, the ones with the bite marks. 

“There! Now we’re almost done! Think you can handle sitting here for just a little longer, dear?” 

“Absolutely,” Tenna tried not to sound desperate, but failed miserably. 

Mettaton finished the repair on Tennas severed wire, sealing the heat shrink tube, and closing him up with brand new screws. 

“How do you feel, darling?” Mettaton couldn’t hide the pride in his voice, he had fixed Tenna right up in just an hour! 

Tenna could feel everything. He could actually feel his limbs again! For so long, he lacked…well…everything! He could move just fine, but if someone touched him he wouldn’t be able to feel it. He gripped onto Mettatons bedsheets, just to feel. 

“I feel…wonderful.” 

…

Mettaton let Tenna stay the night. They didn’t get up to any fooling around like planned, but neither of them wanted to at that point. Mettaton didn’t want to mess with Tennas wires so soon after repairs, and Tenna desperately needed to recharge. Mettaton kissed Tenna one last time, before turning off the lamp. 

Chapter 3: Where do you get off, being so god damn beautiful?

Summary:

Mettaton bothers respectable citizens and commits petty crimes. More at 8.

Notes:

While writing this I revoked my boyfriends british. I also divorced him and took the bird in the settlement. I also removed my eyeshadow and got that shit everywhere. 10/10

Mettaton and Tenna formed an unspoken sort of bond that day. They’d call often, make plans, meet backstage or in their dressing rooms whenever they could. Mettaton was almost always at Tennas studio, coming over after shoots or events to talk to him before he left or during a commercial break. 

This was one of those times. Mettaton was making himself at home in Tennas dressing room, which now held some of Mettatons favorite lipsticks within the drawers of the vanity and his jackets in the closet. He was told that Tenna should be off air soon, yet his foot still tapped impatiently. He had a surprise for the man, and he hated to be kept waiting!

Finally, Tenna stepped into his dressing room, and his expression instantly changed from stressed to relaxed and happy. 

“Mettaton! What a lovely surprise! I had no idea you were in here! Wait, how did you-” Tenna was the only one with keys to his dressing room, and he kept it locked. Mettaton was allowed in, but never without Tenna being the one to open the door. Mettaton laughed and batted his hands. 

“I asked Mike to let me in, don’t worry! I’m above breaking and entering. Sometimes,” Mettaton was absolutely beaming, his smile contagious to Tenna, who was now fully bearing his fangs. 

“Mettaton! You really should ask, you know! What if you catch me on a bad day?” Tenna took his jacket off and hung it up in the closet, right next to one of Mettatons pink fluffy scarves. 

“Then I’ll just have to deal,” Mettaton fell backwards dramatically onto the couch, huffing loudly. “Hurry dear, we’ve got plans!”

 

“We- we do??”

“You’d bet we do!” Mettaton suddenly sat up straight. “You’ve been so good to me dear, it's only fair that I repay you with a surprise of my own!” 

“Mettaton!” Tenna raised his voice in shock. He had been getting so much more comfortable expressing himself these past few weeks, it made Mettaton so happy. “You really don’t have to take me anywhere!” 

“I don’t have to,” Mettaton repeated, lowering his voice. “But I want to.” 

Mettaton finally stood up fully, and Tenna was able to get a good look at him. Not that he was looking in a weird way- he just tended to stare at Mettaton sometimes! A normal friend thing to do! Mettaton was wearing a hot pink tight dress, with a heart cut out in the middle right where the heart on Mettatons body was placed so it could shine through the hole; he also had on his signature razor sharp shoulder blades. His eyeshadow was a dark purple, and his lashes were definitely longer than usual, extensions perhaps? His lipstick was fully black, instead of the usual split Mettaton did with a black top lip and a pink bottom lip. 

Catching himself staring, Tenna looked up and away from Mettaton. He really needed to break that habit- he was sure that it made Mettaton uncomfortable, why wouldn’t it?? 

“Where-” Tenna forced himself to look back down at Mettaton, who seemed enamored by Tennas nervousness. “Where are we going?” 

“Darling, it wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you,” Mettaton wrapped his arm around Tennas waist a couple of times over then began to walk out, nearly dragging the poor man. “You’re driving.” 

“I- I am?? But how will I know how to get there? Why can’t you drive??” Tenna was swept off his feet, once again, by Mettaton and his irresistible smile. 

“Ah- well-” flashes of drifting down a street while blasting music with Mew in the passenger seat entered Mettatons mind. “I’ll give you directions, of course! Besides, my ride already left.” 

Tenna had no room to say no as Mettatons grip on him only tightened as he dragged Tenna out to his car. Tenna wanted to go, of course he did, but Mettaton was very pushy about anything and everything. Even the most simple chat was somehow turned into Mettaton commanding Tenna. 

Tenna had no idea that was only the case because he was the problem. 

Mettaton retracted his arm and hopped into Tennas car like he owned the damn thing. You know what? He might as well. Mettaton never asked permission anymore, because he knew the answer would be yes. 

“Alright darling, are you ready?” Mettaton flipped down the sunvisor to check his makeup in the mirror- flawless, as always. 

“Oh that really depends, how much trouble are you getting me in this time?”

Mettaton barked out laughing and snapped the sunvisor shut, snorting all the way. He had stopped hiding it around Tenna. 

“Whats the most trouble there is?” 

…

“Okay darling, one final left up here and we’ll arrive!” 

The car ride was much longer than Tenna had expected. Mettaton must have put in a lot of effort into finding this place. It wasn’t the tallest building in the city, but Tenna recognized the familiar dangling lights of a rooftop bar. Its somewhere that…. he used to take him. Tenna shook his head violently to hopefully knock that thought right out of his skull. What he didn’t realize was how his antenna brushed against the roof of his car. 

“I will admit, it's not the fanciest place you’ll ever see, but it's so nice for getting away from the press,” Mettaton opened his car door and his heels hit the ground with a loud clack . Tenna could infer what Mettaton meant. He looked for a place away from where any paparazzi would be on purpose so they wouldn’t be bothered. Clever. 

When they went on their initial date, the press imploded in on itself with rumors and hearsay. Most of it was all about Mettaton, as it normally was. Whenever Mettaton did anything they’d be on him like a pack of wolves. You’d think they’d be used to his antics by now. 

By now it wasn’t old news that he and Tenna had a…thing…or whatever you could call it. Everyone assumed they were an item, and Mettaton really couldn’t blame them. Normal friends don’t do most of the things they do…

However, they each decided to cool it down ever since that first date. They agreed it would be better to just be friends for now, and Mettaton was so sick of constantly walking on broken glass to dodge rumors. God knows he wasn’t about to get in front of the world and let them in on his personal situationship business, so he’d have to settle for sneaking around and going by what he knows to be the truth. Who cared about what fans were saying anyway, most of them were wrong, and its not like they’d listen. Coming out about it unprompted would just raise suspicions even more. So why bother? 

He’d go to seedy bars with Tenna a million times over if it meant a five second break from cameras. 

The staircase up to the bar was pretty steep and narrow, Mettaton was pretty sure the bar itself was a complete afterthought and not planned for whatsoever when the building was originally planned out. He was starting to regret wearing heels as they dug into his feet with each step. 

They did eventually make it all the way up, and in one piece. It looked like your average dive bar, with a few people already drunk and loud as some shitty popular music played from the slightly waterlogged speakers. Mettaton glanced up at Tenna as anxiety welled up in his chest. He’d better like it here. 

“Do you want me to grab us a table, or do you want to sit at the bar?” Mettaton knew Tenna was probably much too big for either, but they’ll burn that bridge when they get there. 

Tenna glanced around. Mettaton could tell he was thinking the exact same thing. “The bar has the highest seats,” Tenna remarked. 

“Then to the bar we shall go! Come, dear,” Mettaton's arm found itself snugly wrapped around Tenna's midsection again. He did it completely absentmindedly, like it were the most natural thing in the world to hold Tenna close on a tight leash. 

Tenna looked like someone sitting at a kids table with the way his knees were at his chest even while sitting on the barstool. Mettaton suppressed a laugh, trying so hard not to make him feel worse than he already probably does. 

The bartender flashed them a funny look once they witnessed the CRT trying his best to fit in the seat. Mettaton noticed immediately and returned the favor with an ice cold stare that told them to mind their manners, to put it lightly. 

“What can I get you folks?” They said in a voice that made it clear they were trying not to question it. 

“Vodka soda,” Mettaton replied quickly and without hesitation. Tenna stayed quiet and looked down at Mettaton with a helpless expression. “Make that two vodka sodas.” 

“Are you okay, dear? You’ve been so silent, its unlike you!” Mettaton regretted his decision even more now. 

“Me? Oh- No, no I’m fine! I just…I haven’t been out like this in ages!” Tenna told a half truth. He hadn’t been to a dive bar since the early days in his career, back when he was relevant. Back when…

Tenna couldn’t hide the dejected expression on his face, so he turned away from Mettaton completely. “Really, I’m fine. There's no need to worry!” 

Mettaton had every right to worry! In fact, he’d worry so much that Tenna would forget any definition of worry he knew prior. The bartender returned with their drinks, but Mettaton barely even looked at his as he sighed. 

“Okay, whats wrong? Seriously, whats wrong?” Mettatons voice was flat, serious, and he lacked any pet names. Tenna froze and stared down into the drink that was just slid over to him. A serious Mettaton is never someone to cross. Or so he’s heard, not that he’s ever seen it in action. Until right now. 

“Look its…its nothing, really. I promise-”

“ Tenna .” 

He winced at that. Oh, if looks could kill. Mettaton of course meant no harm to Tenna, but the glare said it all. ‘I see right through you’. 

“Its- Mettaton, please, just drop it. Okay?? Drop it.” Tenna came off stronger than he had intended, but what else was he to do?? Just- vent to Mettaton so soon into their friendship? No, he wasn't a damn fool! “We- we came here to have a nice time, so let's just focus on that.” 

Mettaton was astonished at the way he was being spoken to, but rather than going off on Tenna, he sighed and took a sip of his drink. 

“You know I care for you darling,” Mettaton slid his stool closer to Tenna. “I just want to make sure you’re having a good time without worrying that something is wrong,” he moved his hand to rest on top of Tennas-

“ I said to drop it !” 

Mettaton retracted himself and jumped back. He had never seen Tenna snap like that before, let alone even raise his voice at Mettaton. Tenna was just as surprised as Mettaton. 

Just one look at Mettatons somber expression, the way he looked at Tenna with fear in his eyes. Tenna knew he had ruined it, he knew there was no going back from this. He ruined the one good thing he had because he couldn’t keep his worthless emotions in check. Tenna stood up and ran down the stairs. 

“Tenna! Wait!” 

It was stupid to think this could ever work, even as a friendship. Tenna was too messed up for someone as wonderful as Mettaton. It would be easy if he was the one who left first, because then he wouldn’t have to deal with the inevitable sting of losing him. Tenna lost everybody, thats just how it went. Thats how the world worked. Tennas existence was one cruel joke brought on by a sick god who wanted nothing more than to see him suffer. He didn’t deserve any friends, Mettaton should be at some party right now with all of his friends, not worrying over Tennas meaningless problems. 

Tenna finally reached his car and yanked the handle, ripping the door open. He didn’t make it inside before he broke out into a sob. He was so pathetic, crying out in the open like this, crying over some boy who’d just leave him like everybody always did. He didn’t deserve to walk the same earth as Mettaton-

“Tenna!” Mettaton had caught up to him just in time to see his full breakdown, that was just his luck wasn’t it? His final impression with the super star would be losing his mind in a parking lot. Ain’t that just an absolute bitch? 

Tenna was expecting some snide remark, Mettaton admitting that he was just a hunk of junk, a rust bucket, a no good, worthless-

Tenna didn’t expect a tight hug, and Mettatons face to be buried into his lower stomach. 

“M-M-M-” Tenna couldn’t manage to say anything as Mettatons arms snaked around his entire body, holding him so dearly, like precious cargo that would shatter and break if not handled carefully. No words were spoken between them besides broken sobs and the sound of static coming from Tenna. 

Mettaton was going to kill whomever had hurt him this badly. He was going to find them, somehow, and give them a taste of their own medicine. The way Tenna was scared just to face Mettaton said it all. He needed to dwell on that later, for now all that mattered was helping Tenna calm down and become coherent again. 

“Hey- Darling, look at me,” Mettatons voice was soft, gentle, understanding. Everything Tenna needed right now. “Please, look at me.” 

Tennas screen was almost entirely static as he slowly shifted his head down, his antennas drooped as if they were a tail being tucked between Tennas legs. Mettatons heart shattered into a million little aching pieces at the sight. 

“Tenna- whoever did this to you, I promise they’re long gone. Whatever harm they caused can’t get you for as long as I’m here. Do you understand?” Mettatons voice was still gentle, but it carried that bite to it he got whenever he was particularly upset or passionate. 

Tenna nodded weakly. He knew Mettaton meant it in the best way possible, but that was the entire problem. The person who hurt him wouldn’t be coming back, and it was horrible. Tenna didn’t care if what they had was toxic, Tenna didn’t care if he was used. Tenna just wanted him back. He wanted Spamton back more than anything, and there was nothing Mettaton could do or say to make him change his mind. 

All of those late nights, all of those talks, all of those bars, all of those bad drug trips, all of that time spent smoking, it meant nothing to Spamton.

It meant everything to Tenna. 

 

And now he would never have it back

Never

Never

Never

Never

Never

Tenna felt a hand touch his screen, and he was swiftly brought back to reality by Mettaton. He was looking up at Tenna with such care in his eyes that it almost made Tennas wires skip a circuit. 

“Why- why are you still here?” Tenna didn’t want to believe that Mettaton was going to stay, he wanted Mettaton to just leave him already and make it easier for both of them. He needed Mettaton to leave before he got too attached. He needed Mettaton to leave before he did something stupid. He needed Mettaton to leave before he showed him how much he loved him. 

“I’ve already told you,” Mettaton smiled so fondly at him, like Tenna was all that mattered in his glitter filled world. “Because I want to.” 

How could Tenna ever escape the firm hold that Mettaton had on him…

“Mettaton I-”

CRRRKKK 

“Mettaton I-” CRRK “Mettaton I-” CRRK “Mettaton I-” 

Tenna was in an endless loop of repetition as his screen was now completely static. Mettaton was terrified that something serious had broken for a moment. 

Then, he saw the bent antenna on top of the TV. 

“Hold tight dear, I’ve got you-” 

Mettaton narrowed his eyes as he extended his arm nearly to its limits to assess the bend; it wasn’t too bad, just crooked to the left. He carefully and slowly straightened it until- 

Tennas face was back with a flash, and he looked terrified. 

“I-I’m sorry! I ruined the entire night for you! You- you just wanted-” Tenna sounded so weak, so ruined, so sad. Mettaton felt his heart breaking for a second time. 

“Tenna, Tenna, please! I’d care for you any time of day! Don’t be so ridiculous!” Mettaton meant that, he really did. Tenna could call him at 2 in the morning in crisis and Mettaton would still pick up immediately and dash over, no questions asked. 

“Do…you actually mean it?” There was light in Tennas voice again, not much, but it was noticeable. 

“Darling, you should know better by now! I always mean it when I tell you things!” Mettaton smiled. “Come on, lets get you home.” 

Mettaton retracted his arms back and Tenna got into his car, then he jumped up in alarm. 

“Wait! What about the drinks?? Don’t you have to pay for them still??” Tenna looked scared at the idea of breaking the law, especially when there were already so many eyes on them. 

“Do you truly think so little of me?” Mettaton replied in a teasing voice. “I threw the bartender 20 bucks, we’ll be fine!” 

Mettaton slid into the passenger seat. “I’ve hit my dine and dashing quota for the day anyway.” 

…

Mettaton insisted that they went to Tennas place instead of his own. He said something about it ‘being closer’, but he really just wanted Tenna to be in a familiar and comfortable place while he calmed down. 

The interior was about what Mettaton expected. Large, yet incredibly cozy. The furniture had to be giant to match Tenna, go figure. Deep browns and reds covered the house, and Tenna had his fair share of plants which came as a shock. It looked like it hadn’t been updated since 1972. 

“You can uh- make yourself comfortable,” Tenna was extremely awkward about this. He hadn’t even been able to clean before Mettaton came over (despite the place being spotless), nor did he have anything to offer him. Maybe he could dig for some tea?? Did he even have a kettle? 

“Tenna…You’re the one who needs to be comfortable. Let me take care of you,” Mettaton instantly clocked that Tenna had been overthinking again . Rather than trying to protest or stammer anything out, Tenna stopped. He took one good long moment and just stopped. 

“Mettaton-” Tenna wanted to be careful with his words, with his thoughts. He didn’t want to project how worthless he felt onto Mettaton. He didn’t deserve to have any of that dumped onto him. Not now, not ever. “You keep doing that for me.” 

Tenna sat down on his couch, Mettaton followed next to him and clung to his arm. “Of course, dear, of course. It's what I do best!” 

“I- I know, I know,” Mettaton always seemed to know what was best for Tenna, even when he didn’t understand any of his larger than life emotions. “You really don’t have to, though! You don’t have to care about me, or listen to my stupid problems-”

“Your problems aren’t stupid,” Mettaton interjected. “Look…I want to help you. Whatever you’re going through, whatever happened, I want to help.” 

And seriously, I will kill whomever made you feel like this . 

“Tenna I-” Mettaton had so much he could say, he had so much he wanted to tell Tenna. Most of which he himself wanted to keep under wraps until the end of time. Maybe he was a massive hypocrite, but he didn’t care right now. He wanted to help Tenna. “Darling, I might not know what happened, but I do know I’ve felt a very similar way.” 

If Mettaton weren’t so sincere, Tenna would have thrown him out ages ago for constantly lying to him. Everything about Mettatons current expression screamed understanding, his voice cracked as he spoke. These weren’t emotions you could just fake. 

“Tenna…I- I used to be very lonely, you know,” words spilled out of Mettatons mouth, words he never thought he’d utter to anybody on the planet besides himself. “It used to just be me against the world before I became Mettaton!” he forced out a dry laugh as he stared down. Tenna didn’t speak, he didn’t know if he could speak anymore. 

Mettaton took both of Tennas hands in his own and held them as he stared deep into the screen above him. Tenna didn’t have eyes, but Mettaton was sure he got the memo of what he was trying to do here. “You don’t have to say a word if you don’t want to, but I need you to know that I understand. I know what its like to feel so…”

“Abandoned?” 

Mettaton felt a dagger rip through his chest as he heard how small Tenna sounded. He looked up and moved his hand to the side of his screen, the static felt fuzzy on his fingers as he gently caressed Tenna. 

“...Yeah…” 

It had only been a month and a half since Mettatons first appearance on TV Time, when they had finally begun talking more as friends rather than acquaintances at awards and events, but neither of them had felt more seen than they did now. Maybe thats why they each had been so quick to trust each other, they each understood. They’ve each been alone. They’ve each been insecure. They each had to fight tooth and nail to get where they are right now. 

Tenna leaned down slightly, praying to whatever god was up there that he was reading the room correctly. Mettaton put his arms around the CRTs neck and happily drew him in closer. 

It was the sweetest kiss either of them had ever shared with anybody. A kiss of complete understanding, of complete willingness to stay. Mettaton found himself pressed into the couch, but he didn’t say a word. He kept his hands planted firmly on the sides of Tennas head, as Tennas own hands found homage at Mettatons hips. There was nothing rough or messy about the way they were intertwined, as they went so slowly, held each other so carefully. Mettaton didn’t care what the future held, as long as Tenna was willing to stay in it. 

The kiss broke, but they didn’t move. Tenna stayed on top of Mettaton, inches from his face. They just stared at each other for a long moment before Tenna sighed deeply and cuddled up into Mettaton, the edge of his screen resting in the crook of the starlet's neck. Mettaton closed his eyes and rested his hands on Tennas back, gently rubbing it. He wouldn’t mind staying the night, after all. 

“You’re- such an angel…” Tennas voice was as quiet as could be, like he were the smallest being on the planet. 

“Darling, you deserve it,” Mettaton smiled softly. “You’re so much more than you give yourself credit for.” He planted a kiss against the side of Tennas head, shivering at the slight static shock he received. 

“I’m sorry this didn’t go as planned- I’ll make it up to you-”

“Tenna you really don’t have to. In fact dear, this night went perfectly,” Tenna lifted himself up and loomed over Mettaton again, seeking clarification. “I never planned to end up in your arms like this, so I’d say it was a success!” 

Tenna chuckled, he felt so calm. So…at peace. This was unusual for him. Normally he’d be a big ball of anxiety constantly tearing himself down from the inside. It was like Mettaton was a long awaited medication he could no longer live without. 

“Can we uh-” Tennas screen suddenly turned pink. “Kiss again? If thats-”

Tenna didn’t finish before Mettaton had pulled him down into another soft and gentle kiss. He could really get used to that. 

“Tenna..” Mettaton broke away from the kiss, a desperate look on his face. “Darling, sweetie, it's getting rather late…” he had such a sultry tone of voice, it was almost a whine. “Won’t you take me to bed?” 

You did not have to tell Tenna twice. 

Chapter 4: What if the fear of darkness gave way to the fear of color?

Summary:

They're both scared.

Notes:

I KEEP FORGETTING TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR ALL THE COMMENTS IN THE NOTES!! I love checking my email to see everyone as insane about these two as I am.

“And we’ll see you on the next episode of T-V Timeee ~!” 

With that, the curtains closed, and Mettaton sighed a breath of relief. This concluded his second appearance on TV Time, right next to Tenna. Mettaton wanted to be happy, he should be happy. This is all he’s ever wanted, to be on TV Time next to his idol, his inspiration, his muse. 

The problem was the fact that Mettaton had a small malfunction early in the day. It didn’t impact how he could move, so he didn’t try to figure out whats wrong. Things like this happened all the time anyway! He could survive one small glitch. 

Mettaton was extremely wrong. 

It got worse as the day went on, and by the time the curtains closed he had to hold himself up on a prop (subtly, he couldn’t let anybody know he was actively breaking down) 

It was like he was completely useless from the waist down. He could walk a little bit, but he had a clear limp in both legs. He assumed he had somehow pinched a wire or fried a circuit. He just needed to call Alphys so she could look at it, and then get Mew to pick him up. 

Mettaton stumbled to his dressing room and tried his very best to avoid absolutely everybody. He didn’t notice Tenna following close behind him. Tenna blocked Mettatons door from closing and shoved it back open all the way, which made Mettaton stumble back and directly onto his butt. 

“Tenna! What gives??” 

Tenna jumped back. Oh god, did he do something wrong?? Did he hurt Mettaton? Oh god, this was a bad idea, oh god oh god oh-

“Tenna, darling-” Mettaton tried to stand, but fell right back down onto the floor. “I’m sorry, you just startled me. I’m not mad at you!” 

Tenna watched Mettaton wiggle around on the floor, and without thinking picked him up by his hips and set him right on his feet. Mettaton looked up at him, absolutely speechless. Tenna was once again oblivious to any awkward situation he had caused. 

“Did- something break when you fell? I didn’t hurt you, did I??” Tenna sounded so wounded, so panicked. Mettaton rolled his eyes and smiled softly. 

“No, sweetheart. I’ve uh-” Mettaton sucked it up, oh well, he was caught, Tenna surely wouldn’t leave him alone now. “I had a malfunction this morning.” 

“And you didn’t tell me??” Tenna sounded so concerned, it would have made Mettaton swoon if he weren’t trying so hard to stay upright. “I would have canceled the show! You could have really hurt yourself, Mettaton!”

“But I didn’t. I’m calling my technician, don’t worry your pretty little head darling!” Mettaton struggled over to his vanity and picked up his phone. 

“How will you get home? You won’t be able to make it out to the parking lot!” Tennas voice shook. He sounded so genuinely wounded at the idea of Mettaton hurting himself for so long, he even slightly blamed himself for not asking how Mettaton was doing (despite the fact that he couldn’t have known). It was his duty to make sure his guests were comfortable, wasn’t it? Making him go on air while hurt…

“Its not your fault, I’m the one who didn’t tell you dollface,” it was like Mettaton could read Tennas mind whenever his thoughts began racing. It was normally comforting and nice to hear, a wrecking ball to the sturdy wall of intrusive and horrible thoughts that built itself up faster than he could stop. 

But right now, Tenna couldn’t find any comfort in the way Mettatons voice shook. The way it was so defeated and tired, the way he was using all of his might to keep himself upright and steady. 

Tenna wouldn’t let this slide, he wouldn’t just let Mettaton continue hurting. Tenna scooped the smaller robot up without a second thought, causing Mettaton to yelp and drop his phone right before he was able to dial Alphys. 

Tenna gently placed him down on the couch inside of the dressing room, laying him flat. 

“What on earth are you doing??” Mettaton was sure he’d be used to Tennas lack of personal space boundaries by now, but he was so confused and taken aback that it was like every thought was knocked clean out of his skull. 

“It's your legs that are hurt, right?” Tenna spoke so calmly, like this was completely normal to him. Mettaton wouldn’t be shocked if it was, actually. Mettaton slowly nodded. 

“Are you sure you’d be able to fix it? Not even I know what's wrong…” Mettaton was starting to lose all feeling he had in his legs. Shoot, maybe Tenna was right. He wouldn’t be able to make it home, even if Mew helped him. She’d need to stay with him so he could get around, and there was the problem that she probably wouldn’t be able to haul him around without accidentally hurting something else . 

“I’ll figure it out! I’d just need to ah…uhm….” Tenna kneeled down next to the couch and shifted Mettaton onto his side. “Wheres your service panel?” 

Mettaton tried not to make a noise at how Tenna was handling him like he weighed nothing at all.

“Its…ah…its on my thigh. I’ll show you. I asked Alphys to make it subtle so nobody could see it. For aesthetic reasons,” Mettaton let it slip that he somehow designed himself. Tenna raised an eyebrow at that, but didn’t question it. That could be a conversation for later. Mettaton twisted himself and clicked a black button located halfway down his thigh. With a click, a panel on Mettatons thigh slid aside and revealed a bunch of wiring, plugs, switches, and lights. 

“So?” Mettaton did his best to look over at Tenna, but he couldn’t turn himself enough. 

“Uh-” Tenna assessed Mettatons wiring. It was…incomprehensible to Tenna. It felt like looking at an eldritch. “Well- uhm…” he had no idea what he was doing. Mettaton sighed and rolled his eyes. 

“I’m calling Alphys,” Mettaton tried to get up to grab his phone, but he couldn’t. His legs wouldn’t budge. “Could you hand me my phone? Please?” 

“No!” Tenna raised his voice, and instantly covered his mouth with his hands. “I-I mean- let me do this for you! You…you always help me so…so…” 

Mettaton wanted to kiss Tenna so badly. He was doing that adorable thing where he got nervous and sputtered out, it drove Mettaton crazy. Absolutely crazy. 

“...I trust you,” Mettaton smiled so contently as he relaxed back into the couch. “I’ll help you, just tell me what you see.” 

Tenna looked back down at the neatly labeled wires in Mettatons thigh. “Uh- There's a few lights.”

“Are any of them turned off?” Mettaton stood as still as possible. 

“No,” Tenna ran his fingers along some of the wires. He couldn’t see the writing very well, but he assumed the thickest wire was the main one that allowed Mettatons legs to move. He frowned slightly as he noticed it was bent to the side. “That won’t do..” 

Tenna carefully grabbed onto the wire. Mettaton didn’t even notice he was touching it, which was an immediate red flag. “Tenna?” 

Tenna didn’t reply to Mettaton as he began to straighten out the wire. It looked like it had shifted under another wire and got trapped that way, possibly for a really long time before it finally got cut off. 

Suddenly, Mettatons leg kicked out. “Oh!” Mettaton exclaimed as he was able to move again. “You actually did it!” 

Tenna smiled. The wire wasn’t fully straight, but he fought it enough to get it to be able to flow electricity once again. “One of your wires was bent, you should probably get it replaced-” Mettaton jumped up and threw his arms around Tenna. 

“Oh! Mettaton-” Tenna smiled wide and put his arms around Mettaton in kind. “Its not that big of a deal, I’d do this anytime.” 

Mettaton giggled and kissed the side of Tennas screen. “You’re too sweet, Mister Tenna.” 

Woah Mama!  

“Ah- I’m just- I’m-” Mettaton chortled loudly at Tennas stammering. Oh, he was so perfect. “Hey- Don’t laugh at me!” 

Tennas voice held no offense as he looked as happy as he could possibly be. Mettaton began to attack him with even more kisses all over his screen, pink marks quickly stained Tennas entire face as he giggled uncontrollably and let Mettaton have his way. 

“You really didn’t have to do this for me, darling. Alphys would have been happy to help…” Mettatons eyelids were halfway shut as he stared into Tenna, like he were searching for something within. Tenna found himself once again blown away. 

“Well..” Tenna felt Mettatons hand gently rubbing the back of his head. It was a gesture that never failed to make the CRT melt like putty in Mettatons arms. “You’re always taking care of me, its only fair that I take care of you too!” 

Mettaton blinked a few times, and then leaned in to kiss Tenna again on the mouth. Every kiss they shared was so sweet, so wonderful. Tenna never wanted them to end. He wanted Mettaton to hold him here forever. 

Every kiss also brought on confusion, fear. They hadn’t put a label on their relationship yet, but they were sure as hell there for each other. Any time Tenna needed Mettaton, he’d be there. Any time he needed help on a script, Mettaton would be there. They were practically a couple, but neither of them wanted to say that. Tenna was afraid that suggesting such a thing would chase Mettaton away, that he was reading this entire situation completely wrong. Maybe this is just how Mettaton treated his friends, and Tenna was being a fool. 

Tenna was scared that making it official would only break them apart. Its happened before… 

Mettaton noticed that Tennas grip on him had loosened, and he pulled away. Tenna was doing it again. Any time they’d kiss, or end up on a bed, Tenna would become so apprehensive. So scared. Mettaton knew that Tenna had faced a very bad experience in his past, but Tenna would never reveal what exactly it was, and how Mettaton could avoid triggering it. Mettaton never got mad at him for this because of his own skeletons in the closet, but that didn’t mean it didn’t frustrate him. 

“Sweetheart, haven’t we spoken about this?” Mettatons hands were placed on both sides of Tennas head, the taller man looked so scared. 

“A-About what?? I’m completely fine! You’re just- I got entranced!” Tenna lied, and horribly at that. Mettaton was beautiful, but he doubted that was the case at all. 

“Lying is bad, you know,” Mettaton moved away from Tenna and patted the space on the couch beside him. Tenna moved to sit on the couch next to Mettaton, like a well trained dog. 

Let's not think about it like that . 

Mettaton straddled Tennas lap. Tenna turned his head to the ground below the couch and gripped onto the cushions. “Ah-Ah, look at me doll,” Mettaton commanded as he extended an arm and tilted Tennas head. “I’m not going anywhere, you know that right? Darling, absolutely nothing could scare me away from you!” 

“You’re right- I’m sorry I just-” Tenna stopped himself. He needed to collect his words before he broke down in front of Mettaton again. “Whenever we get like this, I get…really scared.” 

“Scared?” Mettaton echoed his words. He was suddenly very helpless in this situation. Mettaton was scared too, thats why he never tried to make anything official or call Tenna his boyfriend despite how they very much were boyfriends at this point. He had a horrible feeling that deep down, someday Tenna would find out about his past. Someday, he would meet his cousins, someday, he would find out that Mettaton didn’t always exist. Why would Tenna ever want to be with someone as insecure as Mettaton? 

Tenna noticed Mettatons shift in demeanor. The normally confident robot shrunk in on himself a bit as his face turned into one of deep thought. 

“Mettaton?” It was Tennas turn to be concerned now. Mettaton suddenly avoided looking at Tennas screen and looked down at the CRTs stomach instead. 

“Did I say something wrong?” Tenna was properly confused now. It was like a switched flipped in Mettaton. 

“No! No, of course not darling!” Mettaton suddenly felt horrible for making Tenna feel like he did something wrong. “I’m just-” 

Mettaton trailed off again. He could never be honest with Tenna. He’d never understand, nor would Tenna be on board. He was playing a fools game by pining over him, spending so much time together, when he knows they’re doomed. 

Mettaton felt Tenna shift under him, sitting up straight and running his thumb under the smaller robots chin. Tenna felt his heart breaking at how sad Mettaton looked right now. He seemed broken, like he had just remembered something horrible. Then it clicked in Tennas mind. 

“Are you scared too?” 

Mettaton couldn’t bring himself to speak, out of fear that his voice would shake, out of fear that Tenna would see him in a new light. So, he just nodded silently. 

Tenna didn’t need anything else from Mettaton as he pulled him into a tight embrace. 

“Hey- its okay, I’ve got you..” Tenna wasn’t used to this, but that doesn’t mean he was complaining. He loved how much they took care of one another, he loved how much Mettaton trusted him to be able to completely shatter his persona like this. 

Its like he said earlier, he wanted to be there for Mettaton the same way Mettaton was there for him. It was only fair, wasn’t it? He would return the favor again, and again, and again, until the end of time. 

“I-I’m so sorry about this, dear,” Mettatons voice was breaking. “I don’t know what came over me!” 

“Don’t be sorry,” Tenna held Mettatons face, the superstar was awestruck. “This only comes naturally.” 

Mettaton found himself smiling at that. He was wrong. He knew his thoughts were wrong. Tenna wouldn’t just leave him over something as silly as being a ghost. He just…needed to make himself believe it before he told him. 

Positive affirmations were so much easier said than done, both of them knew this fact intimately. Mettaton felt like such a hypocrite for always preaching to Tenna about being kinder to himself, yet breaking down the first chance he gets once he realizes that someday he will have to tell the truth. It shouldn’t matter though, if he was helping Tenna then that was all that mattered. 

He supposes it wouldn’t hurt if Tenna helped him back, just a tiny bit. 

“Thank you,” Mettatons voice was a whisper. “For everything.” 

Tenna was taken so completely aback that he almost thought that he had misheard Mettaton. It should be completely the other way around, with Tenna thanking him for everything!

“Don’t give me more credit than I need, I should be the one thanking you,” Tenna caught Mettaton rolling his eyes. “Its true! You’ve- you’ve-” 

“Spit it out, darling.” 

“I’m going to! Jeez!” Tennas hands were on Mettatons hips as he smiled bright enough to show his fangs. “I’m trying to say that you’ve shown me a lot, that…its..going to be okay.” Tenna took a deep breath before adding on, “That you won’t leave.” 

“Did-” Mettaton already knew the answer, so he changed the question. “ Who left you?” 

Tenna froze up. “Well- ah-” he didn’t want to be having this talk so soon, but…if it meant he and Mettaton could work something out then…how bad could it hurt? 

“You have to promise me that-” 

“I promise I won’t judge, or leave, or see you any differently,” Mettaton beat Tenna to the punch, once again. He was so in tune with the CRT that Tenna had no idea what to do with himself, with his own thoughts. 

It was Tennas turn to be nervous. He had planned to keep this hidden from Mettaton, but he could never say no to those pleading eyes…to the promise of some sort of future together. All he had to do was tell the truth, be open. It…

It was so much easier said than done. 

“I- I don’t know Mettaton, its really-” 

“Tenna…” Mettaton wrapped both of his arms around Tennas neck and clung onto it. “Please, you can trust me. I want to help you.” 

“Okay! Okay- a…while ago, I-” Tenna went quiet, then tried to restart. “The last time I was with somebody like… this ,” Tenna gestured to how he and Mettaton were intertwined. “It ended badly,” he couldn’t find it in himself to say more, or to elaborate. 

Mettaton was wounded at this. What kind of twisted creature would hurt Tenna like this? To make him see himself as so replaceable, so obsolete. 

“And the worst part is-” Tenna finally found it in himself to keep going. “He didn’t say a word. He didn’t say a damn word…” 

A swear word from Tenna. Something so unnatural and uncommon that Mettaton thought for a moment that he hadn’t actually said it. Mettaton smiled sadly and held onto Tenna as dearly as he could. 

“I will never do such a thing to you,” Mettaton stood up so he could kiss Tenna on his screen. “Never ever, never.” 

Tenna was swept up into another kiss attack as Mettaton took hold of his screen and left no space uncovered. Eventually he ran out of lipstick to continue leaving marks, but that didn’t deter him whatsoever. He kept going until Tenna was completely pink and so incredibly happy. 

Finally satisfied, Mettaton sat back down in Tennas lap. “I promise he won’t ever hurt you ever again.” 

Tenna believed Mettaton with every current of his wires. 

Chapter 5: Beat that boy with a bat, SMACK!

Summary:

Spamton finally dies and they all live happily ever after.

Notes:

Can you tell I don't know shit about celebrities yet

if this is shit thats because my beta reader was MIA and I got impatient

Neither of them could avoid rumors anymore. At this point they just agreed on the fact that the press was right about them this entire time. This was only proven more as Mettaton helped pull Tenna out of his limo. They were each invited to some party by some other hot name, not that Mettaton cared. He just saw an opportunity to have a nice night with Tenna and get drunk off his ass. 

Mettaton had on a pink leather jacket and thigh-high black heels, and a black dress to match. He had ditched the side swoop for once and had replaced it with one of his other hairs, this one much longer and reached down to his feet. He had heart shaped sunglasses propped on his head (Which gave Tenna deja vu to the night they met). He was wearing glittery pink eyeshadow, sharp eyeliner, and black lipstick. Tenna was also dressed in a very flashy way, donning a glittery red suit instead of his usual solid one. Mettaton was actually the one to help pick it out. 

They barely paid any mind to flashing cameras as they stepped inside the building. It was a pretty packed event, easy to get lost in. Tenna felt a similar way as he clasped his hand around Mettatons. 

“Oh relax, would you?” Tenna had to lean down in order to hear Mettaton amidst the chaos. 

“I’m relaxed!” Tenna protested. Mettaton rolled his eyes and continued on away from the entrance. 

“You’ll be fine darling! We’re going to have a good night,” Mettaton smiled up at Tenna, who seemed so bashful. “I won’t leave your side for a single second.” 

“Mettaton, really, you don’t have to worry about me. This is far from my first rodeo you know!” Tennas voice was confident, but Mettaton had learned how to pick up on when he was faking it over the past four months. Mettaton could deal with him by now, Tenna just needed some extra reassurance. 

“Lets go get drinks, sweetheart,” Mettaton led Tenna through the crowd, gracefully and knowledgeably. Tenna really would lose him if they weren’t always attached at the hip. 

Mettaton slid into the bar seat like it was completely natural to him. Tenna stood beside him awkwardly, deciding its not worth it to struggle into one of the stools. Mettaton got what he always did- two vodka sodas. Tenna never usually drank (or did any substances) unless someone offered it to him, and boy did Mettaton do exactly that. Tenna was pretty sure Mettaton bordered on a drinking problem, but he never commented on it.

Mettaton could gulp down his alcohol in under a minute while Tenna clutched the same glass for an entire evening. He felt like he shouldn’t drink too much anyway after the time Mettaton called him drunk at a party and Tenna had to help him get home. One of them needed to be sober, and it sure as hell wasn’t going to be Mettaton. 

Mettaton also happened to be a lightweight. That or just extremely dramatic. Tenna felt like it was both at play. Mettaton would be loud and acting a fool of himself within an hour, Tenna was sure of it. 

Suddenly, Mettaton gasped extremely dramatically and stood up from his chair. “TENNA! OH MY GOD!” He grabbed onto the poor confused CRT and began to run. 

“Mettaton?? What-” Tenna tried to fight back against Mettatons pull to get him to stop and slow down before he ran headfirst into another batch of events. Ever since they began to officially date, Mettaton would have a new “Incident of the week" and Tenna would be flung headfirst directly into it. He usually found it endearing, but Mettaton was known for being a bit much . 

“My favorite song is on! Pick up your feet!” 

Mettaton was giggling like a child as they finally made it to the dance floor. The song that was playing was nothing that Tenna would listen to, but that didn’t mean it was bad. It definitely fit Mettaton. Tenna did his best to keep up with Mettaton, but found himself yanked around as the smaller robot tried to keep up with the song while slightly tipsy. Despite the clunkiness of their movements, both of them were smiling so wide like it was the best day of their lives. Tenna was truly happy with Mettaton, he finally felt safe with somebody. He looked back and felt foolish that he could ever even imagine that Mettaton didn’t like him when he was in his arms like this. 

Tenna lifted Mettaton up by his hips and spun him around, Mettaton breaking out into a fit of laughter as he clung to Tennas arms. Anybody else around them moved away because of how oblivious they were to the world. The only thing that mattered was the smile on each other's face. 

“-LIMITED TIME OFFER]!” 

Mettaton whipped his head around to see…nothing. 

“Mettaton?” Tenna slowly began to put the man down as he stopped laughing and a look of distress crossed his face. 

“Oh- I’m sorry dear! I just thought I heard someone! Please, lets keep going!” 

…

About two weeks ago

Mettaton had actually managed to get Tenna drunk. He wasn’t completely gone, but it was to the point where he was noticeably louder and had much less of a filter on himself. 

“He had this- this- weird speech impediment.”

What better time to shit talk their exes? 

The two were laying on Tennas floor, Mettaton collapsed not too long ago and Tenna laid down next to him. Neither were thinking completely straight. 

“What kind of speech impediment? Like, a lisp?” Mettaton looked over at Tenna next to him, his hair brushing on the floor and getting even more messed up than it already was. 

“No no, not a lisp. He’d randomly blurt out advertisements,” Tenna chuckled to himself a bit. “We could be in the middle of an important conversation, and he’d say something like- uh- “One time offer 99% off”. It was even worse when we were on air!” 

Tenna sighed and the smile on his face died. He didn’t even know how coherent Mettaton was right now, if his words were heard. He felt bad for dumping this all on him when he wasn’t likely to remember. It felt like he was using Mettaton, so he tried to change the subject. 

“Whats…whats a…” Tenna didn’t finish his sentence before his screen turned to static, and he forgot what happened the rest of the night. 

…

Mettaton heard it again, and again, and again. Every so often, someone would blurt something that sounded like a scammy advertisement out. Surely, it was the alcohol making him lose it. Surely, that fourth vodka soda was a really bad idea. Even Tenna was drunk, clinging onto Mettaton as he got slightly crushed.

“Darling, come on-” Mettaton helped Tenna sit down on a chair near the entrance. “I’ll call my driver, stay put.” 

“I’m fine , Mettaton!” Tenna began to giggle. His promise of not getting himself drunk was quickly blindsided by how impulsive he was, and he ended up drinking every time Mettaton did. “You don’t gotta…care so much…you’re so sweet…”

Mettaton rolled his eyes. “ Stay .” 

It was late and the party had begun to die off as people left or were too drunk to move anymore. Mettaton checked the time on his phone, 3 am. Thank god Mews sleep schedule was abhorrent.  

Mettaton was about to dial her, when he saw someone out of the corner of his eye. He almost entirely missed them because of how out of it he was, but he was able to make out a black and white suit. They were walking with someone who was just barely coherent enough to hold a conversation. 

“LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE [[All Alone On A Late Night?]]”

Mettaton felt something within him spark as he heard that. The voice he had been chasing the whole night. Surely, Tenna could hold his own. He knew to listen to Mettaton, he wouldn’t wander off…please god don’t wander off. 

Mettaton began to follow him around as subtly as he could. Spamton was his name, Mettaton recalled Tenna mentioning it before. He was as slimy as he sounded, going from person to person to talk to them about some hot deals or some other scam of his. Mettaton couldn’t fathom how someone as ratty as Spamton could end up with Tenna in any way shape or form. He must have conned him or…something. Mettaton was finding it very hard to think, all he knew was wanting to rip and tear. 

He didn’t have time to think about how weird it was to be stalking his boyfriends ex through an event, but he didn’t care. Wasn’t this place invite only?? How the hell did he get in?? Did he sneak in? God, when does the shadiness on this guy end? 

Mettaton held himself up on a wall as that last drink finally began to nail into him. He was coherent enough to keep following, that's all that mattered. Maybe he could call Mew while he was at it. Mettaton grabbed his phone from his pocket and put every fiber of effort into finding her contact and calling her. Maybe she could show up and get to Tenna so he wouldn’t begin freaking out. 

As he went to hit the phone button on her contact, he noticed Spamton suddenly scurry away, look around to make sure nobody saw him, then he darted into a room Mettaton could have sworn was locked. Oh no, that wouldn’t do. He wouldn’t get away from him like that. 

Mettaton made a b-line for the room. He took off his jacket and shoved it into the hands of the nearest person. He asked for a hair tie from a random lady and put his long hair into a bun so it wouldn’t get into his face. He removed bobby pins from the part of his hair he styled and used them to instead hold his bangs back. Then, he kicked the door open and Spamton froze as he was in the middle of scurrying out a window. 

“ You! ” Mettaton could barely stand straight, but he was determined to absolutely wreck Spamtons whole world. He wanted to kick his teeth in, rip his organs in half and see how he liked it! He wanted to do everything to him that he did to Tenna tenfold . 

“Ah! [HOT SHIT] I wasn’t expecting-” before Spamton could finish his sentence Mettaton had charged. He didn’t care for grace or putting on a show, he wanted him dead . 

“[DON’T WAIT! ACT NOW!] I can explain-” Mettaton slammed his fist into the wall where Spamton was standing, the roach was just barely able to move out of the way. He wasn’t even trying to fight, he was running! Like a coward! 

Removing his hand, Mettaton groaned in frustration. “Oh absolutely not !” Mettaton extended his arm and wrapped it around Spamton, then flung him as hard as he could into the wall. Spamton hit the floor with a thud, his everything hurt after that one. He got up in time to see Mettaton looming over him, his magenta eyes almost looked red in the dim lighting of the room. 

“Just…let me..” Spamton tried to slow his words down so he could actually say what he needed to, but Mettaton really wasn’t having it. He pounced on Spamton and started mindlessly clawing at him, as if to rip him completely in half. Spamton kicked at Mettaton as hard as he could, but it was no use. He was pinned down and helpless against the killer robot. 

Until he got the bright idea to poke Mettaton in the eye. 

Mettaton shot back and held onto the eye that was prodded, if he wasn’t pissed before, he absolutely was now. He grabbed at Spamtons leg as he tried again to scurry away to safety and yanked him up, dangling upside down. 

“You’ve got some nerve ,” Mettatons voice came out obviously drunk, but it had such a sinister bite to it. He truly wanted to see Spamton splattered on the sidewalk. 

“[HOT SHIT] let me-” Spamton was desperately trying to find a way to take control of his voice before he was slammed into another wall. “Talk. To. T- T- Te- T- T-[RASH HEAP]” 

Mettaton was quiet for a moment. His face was completely unamused and not having it. Spamton was slammed into a wall again. 

“You have no right to call him that!” Mettaton picked Spamton up again, and threw him against the opposite wall. This time, directly next to a vent that had two broken screws at the side. “I’m not your ‘ hot shit ’ either, darling!” 

Spamton decided it was time to go, as reasoning with Mettaton would very clearly end up with him dead (or worse). He ripped open the vent and climbed inside, scurrying as fast as he could up the shaft. Mettaton ran over and shoved his hand in, going after Spamton as fast as he could. It was no use, as he quickly ran out of arm to extend. Cursing, Mettaton retracted it back and fell over onto his back. 

Shit, he forgot about Tenna. 

…

“You’re such a moron Mettaton!” 

Turns out Tenna did wander off. He got worried once Mettaton was missing for more than… 30 seconds . Mettaton did finally make that call to Mew, but it was full of mostly her scolding him, and then running after Tenna before he did something stupid. Right now Mettaton was in her passenger seat as Tenna wallowed in the backseat. 

“I mean seriously ! This shouldn’t be how I meet your new boyfriend!”

“Darling you know me!” 

“Thats the problem !”

Mew would most likely be over it in the morning. She was rarely ever actually mad at Mettaton whenever he did something stupid. In fact, she orchestrated most of his bad behavior. She just liked to scold him sometimes. Right now, he definitely deserved it. 

“Its 4 in the morning Mettaton! I shouldn’t have to babysit you guys! You’re all grown up!” Mew kept going off as she drove. Mettaton shot her an ice cold glare as she accidentally slipped up about being able to grow up. “Oh come on, he can barely comprehend he’s in a car right now.” 

“Its not like you would have been asleep anyway. Why do you think I called you of all people?” Mettaton huffed as he crossed his arms. 

“Jeez! Have a little faith in me!” Mew nudged Mettaton. Like he said, she was never actually mad at him. 

Mettaton had told her to take him to his penthouse. It would be easier to keep an eye on Tenna, and his beds outlet had two plugs on it, unlike Tennas that only had one. Whenever Mettaton stayed over he had to sleep on the floor. 

“Do you need help inside or can you handle yourself for once?” 

“Oh I’m pretty sober now, him though…” Mettaton looked in the backseat and saw Tennas screen was black. He had passed out. Mew groaned dramatically, but got out of the car with no questions asked to help haul her stupid cousins boyfriend to their apartment. 

Mettaton climbed into the backseat and gently knocked on Tennas screen. “Anybody home?” 

Tennas screen jumped to life and flipped through a few channels before finally showing his actual face. 

“Mettaton?” Tenna sounded completely wrecked. Mettaton made a mental note to stop him before he drank more than one shot ever again. Mew groaned and began tapping her foot to indicate Mettaton to hurry up. 

It was a team effort to haul Tenna up to Mettatons penthouse. Not only was he completely wasted, but he was heavy. Mew kept complaining about being smushed and Tenna would jump back and apologize, just to then smush Mettaton. 

“You are never doing this again, I swear!” Mew exclaimed as they finally managed to make it to the elevator. “I better not be in any newspapers or articles or I’ll kill you. I’m serious!” 

“Oh I’m sure you will,” Mettaton retorted with an eyeroll. 

Mew and Mettaton got Tenna to the bed, then Mew dropped him and crossed her arms. “I’m telling Napstablook.” 

“I thought you said we were grown up,” Mettaton teased, which made Mew begin to stutter out before she huffed. 

“We are but…” Mew looked down as she couldn’t find a good response. “Whatever! I’m out! Have fun with your sad sack!” 

Mettaton sighed as she left, and then climbed onto his bed and tried to pull Tenna into the optimal position to reach the outlet. 

“Mettaton?” Tenna was somewhat back to reality after his nap in the car. “Who was that?” 

Mettaton didn’t answer. He stayed focused on plugging in Tenna so he’d get some real sleep. Mettaton wasn’t fully sober himself, not to mention the Spamton incident, so coming up with a lie was like trying to swim through honey. 

“She’s my cousin,” Mettaton smiled as he gently held onto Tennas head and caressed the side of his screen. “I truly hope she didn’t offend you. She can come off very…strongly.” 

Mettaton kissed Tennas screen, giggling at the static shock he received on his lips. Tenna just smiled back like a dope as he sprawled out on Mettatons bed, still not very coherent. 

Mettaton slid off the bed and began to remove his clothes, when he realized he had left his jacket and sunglasses at the party.

Chapter 6: I'm not afraid of happy endings, I'm just afraid my life won't work that way

Summary:

Mettaton is glooby

Notes:

This was originally going to be MUCH different but then I got blasted with horrific events and realized I could project onto Mettaton.

I think it makes SO much sense for him to have depression all jokes aside. He is a serial bedrotter trust me I'm the part of toby fox that broke off and mutated into a horrible homunculus

Nobody had seen Mettaton for days. Not even Tenna, who was so used to Mettaton by now that his lack of appearance was jarring. He had been co-starring on TV Time very frequently ever since his second appearance. Actually making him a permanent edition was a bitch, but they were currently working out all the contracts and obligations. It would be another year before Mettaton could make a full switch, but he was determined. 

So, why had he completely vanished without a word? It was completely uncharacteristic, not to mention concerning. Mettaton was always so open and sincere, he’d at least leave Tenna a call. But nothing. Nobody had heard from him, not even his own agent. Tenna would know, he asked them…about ten times a day. 

Tenna wished he could remember who that girl was that helped them get home the night of the party, maybe she could help. Without a way to contact her though, he was helpless. Tenna then got the idea that maybe something horrible had happened, and that caused him to not be able to focus on anything he did. He’d been told Mettaton just “does this” sometimes, but he refused to accept that! He needed to make sure he was okay, it was what any good boyfriend would do!

 

…He really wasn’t used to that. 

He and Mettaton had been official ever since the leg incident, and it was all still so surreal to Tenna. He couldn’t believe it was actually happening! It was going so well too, he didn’t know how to act! 

He was doing his best to be a good boyfriend, all things considered. He was trying not to be pushy, or make Mettaton feel like he needed to walk on eggshells. He wanted to improve. 

That's why he needed to visit him and make sure he was okay. It would also be nice to have some reassurance…but Tenna pushed that down, this was about Mettaton, not his own problems. 

…

3 days alone in the dark, with many more to come. Mettaton thought he’d be over all of this once he got his body, and he thought being with Tenna would make it poof entirely. He was wrong, and horribly so as he spaced out and stared at the ceiling high above his bed. 

This was a much more common occurrence when he was stuck as a ghost, but as he became who he truly was, it began to fade. He’d still have the occasional raincloud, but it would go away by the next day. This was excessive, he hadn’t been holed up like this in over a year!

He wanted to call Tenna, he really did, but the idea of holding up a conversation just made that ache in his chest worsen and the need to rot heighten. He tried to distract himself with mindless scrolling, but even that taxed his mental health. 

This wasn’t something he could run from, so he laid there and accepted his fate. In a few days it should be gone, he told himself. He’d be back like never before! It's not like he hadn’t gone completely MIA before, everyone was used to the occasional disappearance!

Everyone but Tenna. 

Mettaton felt horrible leaving him with nothing. He was trying so hard to convince himself that he was doing the right thing by not involving anybody, they shouldn’t have to care about a fit of depression. He was Mettaton, he could get through it by himself. Like he always did. He was pretty sure his phone was dead by now anyway, and getting up to charge it just wasn’t worth it. 

He was sure Tenna was informed that this just happened sometimes, and he prayed that he wouldn’t come looking for him. Mettaton needed to be completely alone. He couldn’t let anybody see him so weak, and especially not Tenna. 

Mettaton heard his buzzer go off. Oh who was he kidding, this was Tenna we’re talking about. He always had to be so extra. Mettaton normally loved that about him, but now he wanted so badly to just rot. 

With a groan, Mettaton managed to drag himself off of his bed and to hit the button to let Tenna in just to get it over with. He’d feel horrible ignoring him any longer anyway. Then, he dragged himself back to bed and flopped down. Tenna would find him eventually. 

It didn’t take long for Mettaton to hear the ding of his elevator as Tenna squeezed his way into the penthouse. He groaned again, dreading the next interaction. Tenna wasn’t supposed to know yet, or ever. 

“Mettaton-?” Tenna walked down the steps and walked over to Mettatons bedside, hesitantly holding out his hand like he wanted to put it on Mettaton, ultimately deciding to put it back at his side. “Whats wrong?” 

Mettaton sighed and stayed under his blankets, only shifting his eyes up to look at Tenna. He was so worried…a pang of guilt twisted in Mettatons chest. He could have at least texted him. Tenna wouldn’t know how to respond, but he could read sure enough. 

Mettaton found it in him to sit up and look at Tenna fully. He looked completely disheveled, his hair a mess, his makeup nonexistent, he hadn’t even put any effort into pajamas. Tenna kneeled down. 

“Oh..” Tenna sounded so worried as he cupped Mettatons face, the smaller robot leaning into it. Maybe he did need somebody here…just for a little bit. 

“You weren’t supposed to see this, darling,” Mettaton sounded so small, it broke Tennas heart. He pulled Mettaton into an embrace without a word, Mettaton initially keeping his arms at his sides before giving in and shoving his face into Tenna. 

“Hey..it's no big deal, really!” Tenna held on tighter to Mettaton, as if he would slip away. “Everyone gets a little glooby sometimes!” 

Mettaton opened his eyes and pushed away from Tenna, one of his eyebrows raised. “Glooby?” 

“You know!” Tenna gestured to Mettaton. “Glooby.” 

“Tenna…do…do you mean gloomy ??” 

“...” 

Mettaton sighed and rolled his eyes. He scooted back fully onto his bed. “Come here.” 

Tenna took off his shoes and obliged, climbing onto the bed next to Mettaton. He felt Mettaton begin to snake his arms around his entire body, until he ran out of arm to extend. 

“Just so you know, what I’m going through isn’t normal,” Mettaton sighed and leaned his head onto Tenna. “I’m so sorry for not saying anything, sweetheart. I- I wanted to, but…” 

Mettaton couldn’t come up with a good excuse. He just really didn’t want to talk to anybody until it all blew over, and in the process he forgot to consider how Tenna may feel. He knows of his abandonment issues, he shouldn’t have been so…

Selfish . 

“Mettaton..” Tenna wished he had sought him out much sooner. He should have been at Mettatons door the second he was gone for more than a few hours. That's what a good boyfriend does. “It's okay, I knew you didn’t…leave me.” 

Truth be told, if Tenna didn’t have access to Mettatons agent, he would have assumed the worst. He probably would have gone insane thinking that Mettaton didn’t want him around anymore. He wouldn’t let Mettaton hear that while he was already so low. 

“I still should have called you, darling,” Mettaton wanted so badly to withhold how he felt, he shouldn’t drop this all on Tenna, it wasn’t fair. 

Where would he start anyway? He couldn’t tell Tenna the truth about what he was, and these feelings all stemmed straight from it. Even if he really wanted to, he wouldn’t. His fear of Tenna leaving was just as great as Tennas fear of Mettaton leaving. 

“I understand what you’re going through! I get like this all the time, it’ll blow over soon!” Tenna said this all too casually. He couldn’t be this oblivious, right? One look at Tenna proved Mettaton wrong. He was dead serious. 

“Tenna, darling, light of my life, that isn’t normal.” 

“It's not?” Tenna looked like Mettaton just told him Santa Claus isn’t real. Mettaton sighed. He had no choice, he needed to be honest, especially if Tenna felt the same way. They help one another, no matter what. Mettaton retracted his arms and sat up against his bed frame. 

“For…as long as I can remember, I’ve been like this,” Mettaton was struggling to keep his voice straight. Tenna looked down at him so attentively, he was listening. He was here. He was everything Mettaton needed these past few days. “Whenever I think I’m over it, it’ll come back and there's nothing I can do about it. It's like I’m trapped.” 

Tenna didn’t say a word as he pulled Mettaton in close and held him dearly. It was his turn to be there for Mettaton at a low point, and he’d do it over and over again. 

Mettaton felt guilty. He was keeping so many secrets from Tenna, from the most wonderful man on the planet. He wished he could be honest but the thought made him sick. The fear of Tenna not understanding, or being put off outweighed his common sense. Tenna had come so far when it came to communication because of Mettaton, and yet here he was. Mettaton felt like such a massive hypocrite. What was the point of this if he wouldn’t be honest…

Tennas arm was right below his chin, making it hard to move his head. He tried his best to look up at Tenna. His screen was dimmed, he seemed so…upset. Upset at the idea of Mettaton hurting. 

Tenna wouldn’t do something to hurt him, he wouldn’t dream of it. This did nothing to ease Mettatons fears. He had been misunderstood and dismissed his entire life, no matter how much reassurance he got, he just wouldn’t budge. He had always been stubborn. 

Being Mettaton was his one chance to finally own his life, to finally be in control of his own body and what he did. It was his chance to choose what he wanted, not what anybody else wanted for him. Losing that would be…

Telling Tenna would revoke that. He would know, and Mettaton wouldn’t be the one in control anymore because all he would remember is the fact that Mettaton was just some insecure ghost pretending to be confident. 

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner,” Tenna finally spoke. “I should have been here with you the entire time, and you wouldn’t have been alone,” Tenna paused, then quickly added “I know how that feels.” 

“You don’t have to apologize darling! I didn’t want company, which is why I never reached out,” Mettaton shifted so he was laying on top of Tenna and smiled. “However, I’m so glad you showed up.” 

Tennas hands went to Mettatons hips as he smiled back. There he was, his true self shining through even if only for a moment. 

“I love you so much.” 

Everything froze for a moment as those words left Tennas lips. Mettatons eyes went wide and Tenna was about to take it back out of fear he said it too soon, or did it wrong, but then Mettaton leaned down and kissed Tenna with such a passion that the CRT thought he was going to short circuit. 

It was as wonderful as every other kiss they’ve ever shared, but to Mettaton it was extra special. He loved him, he really did love him. He wanted to hear Tenna say it again, and again, and again. 

Mettaton pulled away, and Tenna swore the world turned pink for a moment. Mettaton was practically glowing with how happy he was, Tenna didn’t think anybody could smile as wide as Mettaton was right now. It was absolutely infectious as Tenna smiled back, fangs and all. 

“I love you too, darling.” 

Mettaton placed his forehead against Tennas screen and began giggling. Yeah, letting him in was the best idea he’s had in days. 

“And I love TV!” 

Mettaton kissed Tenna again and held him tight . Tenna could feel the pressure in his arms and legs, but he loved it. He loved being wrapped up in Mettatons arms, he loved being here in his bed. He almost never wanted to return to his own home, opting to just move to Mettatons penthouse and stay with him forever. 

All doom and gloom was lost on Mettaton as he pulled away from Tenna again. He still had much work to do, but he wouldn’t mind staying like this for just a bit longer. He was being much too hard on himself, and needed to get it together. For him . 

…

Tenna ended up staying through the night. He didn’t have any pajamas to change into, so he slept without clothes on. Not that it really mattered, but Tenna still felt weird about it. Both of them lacked any actual genitalia, yet Tenna was still so insistent on covering himself. Mettaton just rolled his eyes and threw him a robe. They had seen each other without clothes several times by now, but Tenna would never stop being awkward and adorable. 

Mettaton barely slept that night. He was rehearsing what he’d say to Tenna over and over and over, then revising that, then rehearsing again. He wanted to make sure he did this perfectly. He needed it to be simple enough for Tenna to understand while still being 100% open and honest. He owed it to Tenna for being so good to him despite the bumps in the road. If Tenna could be honest, then so could Mettaton. He just needed to work on it. 

Mettaton stayed up late enough to watch the sunrise. He got up from his bed as carefully as he could so as not to disturb Tenna, and then walked out to his balcony. He couldn’t actually breathe fresh air, but he still felt like he needed it. Maybe he should make some coffee or tea to keep himself busy before Tenna awoke. Mettaton felt a pit in his stomach as he realized this was really going to happen, he was really going to reveal his deepest darkest secret to someone who wasn’t a family member or knew him before he was Mettaton. 

…

7 am, Mettaton finally heard shuffling coming from his bedroom. He didn’t have to say it straight away, did he? He could wait a bit. Everything would be fine. 

Tenna walked out to the kitchen and saw Mettaton sitting on a barstool and staring down into a cup of coffee that most certainly wasn’t warm anymore and had been barely drunk from. Tenna was still very tired, only able to smile at him and kiss him on his forehead (which made Mettatons hair stand up from the static) 

“I was wondering when you’d get up, sweetheart,” Mettaton smiled fondly at him as Tenna fell backwards on the couch behind him. Mettaton spun his chair around to face the groggy CRT. 

“I wasn’t going to but you weren’t in bed so…” Tenna sounded so adorable. Mettaton could get used to his morning voice. 

“Aww, you missed me already?” Mettaton finally took a sip of his coffee as some of his nerves calmed. He had nothing to be afraid of when it came to Tenna. 

Mettaton got up from his chair and snuggled up next to Tenna, causing the older man to smile and put an arm around him. Another sip of coffee, before Mettaton leaned to put the cup down on a tray sitting on the foot rest. 

“Tenna…” Mettaton stopped himself. All of his rehearsals suddenly left his mind as he finally began to reveal everything. He wasn’t worried about that however, he knew he would nail this. He had nothing to be afraid of. 

Tenna was suddenly alert and looking at Mettaton, sitting up straight. 

“There's something you need to know. Something very important,” Mettaton felt anxiety spark in his chest. He had no reason to be afraid, everything would be okay. Tenna wouldn’t have a negative reaction. 

Tenna put his hand on Mettatons face. “You can tell me anything…” Tenna smiled so softly, so warmly. Mettaton leaned into the touch, something he was getting a lot more used to doing these past few months. 

“This-” Mettaton moved his hands down his robotic body. “Its not…real. Of course, dear, who I am is real, but it wasn’t this way from the start.” 

Mettaton looked up at the confused look on Tennas face. He knew exactly what he was thinking. But weren’t you built for this? But aren’t you an entertainment robot? 

“Mettaton hasn’t existed for as long as I have. At least the body hasn’t. A..while ago, I realized something dreadful- I wasn’t comfortable with the body I had. Oh, it was horrible all of those years I couldn’t be who I wanted to be,” Mettaton reclined into the couch as he stared up at the ceiling, his hair getting even more messed up and frizzy. “But, that all changed when I met Alphys. She’s such a dear, and she was so patient with me when I needed it most. She listened to my demands and wants…and she built this for me. She built all of this for me.” 

Tenna was silent. Mettaton looked over at him and saw his expression hadn’t changed- he was still confused. 

“I don’t get it. How did you become a robot then?” Tennas voice held no malice, he was truly trying to understand Mettaton. It brought a smile to the starlets face.

“Truth be told, Tenna, I’m a ghost. That whole ‘robot built for entertainment’ thing was just a fabrication, my little white lie. This is a body I’m possessing,” Mettaton noticed Tennas expression shift as it clicked in his mind. 

“Well, I’d love you no matter what body you have!” Tenna scooped up Mettaton and began to kiss all over his face, something Mettaton usually did to him.

“Ah- hey!” Mettaton smiled as he was attacked by static kisses, he threw his arms around Tenna and clung to his neck. 

“Its true!” 

Mettaton suddenly felt so silly for thinking that Tenna would ever feel any differently about him, no matter what body he had, no matter what he was, Tenna was just happy to hold him tight and be together. 

“Oh sweetheart, I wouldn’t doubt that for a moment.” 

Chapter 7: Family Feud

Summary:

Tenna and Spamton die for real this time I promise!!

Notes:

SO YOU KNOW HOW BIG SHOT HAS LEMOTIFS FROM DUMMY IN IT?? I've decided this means that Spamton and mad mew mew HAVE to be best friends. Also sorry this took forever to write, my boyfriend got me deltarune and I've been addicted. My nectar...

 

Be warned, this is the dumbest and funniest shit ive ever written

6 months. They had known one another for about a year and a half, but 6 months ago is when they officially became a constant in each other's life. Tenna was quickly forgetting a time where he didn’t have Mettaton by his side to scold him for breaking the tea kettle, or to help him write a script for next week's episode. 

Tenna didn’t have any family besides those he considered friends. Whatever manufacturer he had never stuck around in his life, and due to being a robot he had no siblings or cousins. He only had the family he chose. 

Mettaton was different. He had a plethora of cousins, all of which he adored. Ever since he told Tenna about the ghost stuff he’s begun to talk about them nearly every day. Tenna pretty much knew them all by heart by now! 

The only problem was he had never actually met any of them. Mettaton told him that girl was his cousin, but Tenna only remembered pictures in his mind. He was sure she didn’t like him much because of their…rocky meeting. Mettaton was determined to convince him otherwise. 

Which is how Tenna ended up in a car leaving the city with Mettaton at the wheel. 

“I’m sure Blooky is going to adore you, darling!” Mettaton was beaming. His outfit was much less flashy today. He only had on pink heels and sunglasses on his face. “They’re not much for conversation though.” 

Tenna was trying really hard to focus on what Mettaton was saying, however as the car swerved to the left a bit he began to wonder if Mettaton was even allowed to drive. 

“Mew uh…she’s…” Mettaton trailed off. “Just don’t make direct eye contact.” 

Suddenly, Tenna felt a lot less confident meeting these people. 

“Uh..I don’t have eyes so that shouldn’t be a problem! Ha-” 

“She can sense it,” Suddenly, the car became dead silent. “Blooky doesn’t like eye contact either but they’re at least not violent about it!” 

Okay, that's fine! The chances of Tenna dying with Mettaton by his side were low so he had no reason to worry whatsoever! 

Upon arrival, Tennas mind began racing. What if he made a horrible first impression and they hated him? What if he said something dumb, or offended them, or looked at them funny? Tenna has never had an actual family, how is he supposed to know how to act?? 

“Come on darling, everything is going to be okay,” Mettaton put an arm around Tenna. “They’re really not that bad.” 

Mettaton gently opened the door. 

Before they could enter, Mettaton was swept up by a cat girl who was waiting right behind the door for an unclear amount of time. She began squealing and jumping up and down. 

“You’re home! You’re home! You’re home!” She yelled as she clung tighter. 

“Darling you knew I was coming,” Mettaton smiled fondly as he extended an arm out of her grip and patted the top of her head. Tenna recognized her as Mew and suddenly became very awkward. His first impression on her was absolutely horrid, not to mention Mettaton was very open about her tendency to be violent. This was only solidified when she let go of Mettaton and scowled at Tenna. 

“Yeah yeah yeah, well, shut up and come in!” Mew beamed as she finally stepped back and let Mettaton and Tenna inside of the house. 

The inside was much bigger than the outside, which threw Tenna for a loop. Overall, it wasn’t very remarkable, but it was very clear that they each clashed very hard on what the decorations should be. Tenna couldn’t tell if this was the most uncomfortable situation he’s ever been in, or the most tense. He settled on a firm “both” as Mew glared into a handheld mirror, then turned to him with the same expression. 

“Tenna, this is Napstablook and Mew!” Mettaton presented his cousins to Tenna like they were precious jewels. Mettaton held his cousins in very high regard, they were the most important thing in the world to him, which only made Tenna even more nervous. If he messed this up… 

Tenna awkwardly smiled and waved to them. He didn’t want to speak out of fear that his voice would crack, or he’d say something wrong. He needed 100% approval, or else he’d…

What were the chances of Mettaton leaving if they didn’t like him? Probably extremely high…he wouldn’t doubt it if Mettaton would favor them over him. Not that Tenna was jealous! He had barely even met these people! That lingering fear, however… 

“I’ll be right back, you behave dear!” Mettaton patted Tenna on the shoulder. “Oh don’t look so down! I won’t even be a minute.” 

“What- Why- You-” Tenna sputtered as Mew gritted her teeth. 

“I need to grab my bag, you’ll be fine ,” Mettaton turned to Mew. “Try not to hurt him.” 

Mew cracked her knuckles as Mettaton exited the door. “No promises~!” 

The moment the door shut, both Mew and Napstablook had a change of expression. Mews face was one of pure anger and aggression, and Napstablook did their best to look intimidating. Oh god, maybe this was all one elaborate ploy to murder Tenna. 

“Well well WELL!” Mew grinned in an almost psychotic manner. “You’re totally cornered now and there's no escape!” 

“Uh…Mew…Mettaton just said not to hurt him..” Napstablook interjected. Tenna couldn’t tell if they were on his side or not…he didn’t want to ask though. 

“Huh? THIS IS FOR HIS SAKE!!! Anthony here-” 

“Thats not my na-” 

“SILENCE!!!” Mew shouted a lot louder than was necessary. “What's your game here, HUH???” 

“Mew…we’re only supposed to talk to him…” That at least answered Tennas question, but he wasn’t sure if Napstablook would stop her if she cornered him. 

“I am talking!” Mew stamped her foot. “Theres no point in it though! He’s already corrupted our baby cousin-” 

“He’s 37…” 

“EXACTLY!” 

Tenna watched the back and forth and began to wonder what on earth was taking Mettaton so long. He really regretted not offering to help with the bags. Maybe if he stayed silent they’d forget about him and he wouldn’t end up torn to shreds by a vengeful ghost. 

“Enough, enough, ENOUGH!” Mew tried to crack her knuckles again, but nothing happened because she already did a few moments before. “I’m making my stand right here, right now!” 

Mew launched herself at Tenna, however it didn’t do much. It was like a hamster running into a dog. Despite this, she was extremely resilient and managed to begin climbing his leg and trying to claw at where she knew his wires would be. It was useless without a screwdriver, but she wasn’t letting up. 

…

Mettaton opened the trunk of the car and pulled out a hot pink luggage bag. He had been planning on staying for a few days, it would be nice to just get out of the damn city for a bit. Besides, he was always a bit homesick. 

As he lifted a second bag, he saw a familiar face underneath it. Multicolored glasses, black and white suit. 

Mettaton slammed the trunk of the car and stared down at it in horror and disbelief. First of all, what the fuck. Second of all, what the fuck???  

Mettaton opened the trunk again and stared down at Spamton. He couldn’t tell if he was angry or extremely confused. It was a mix of both that made it so Mettaton had no idea what to do with himself. 

“[HOT SHIT] I can explain!” 

Mettaton pulled Spamton out of the trunk by his hair and held him up, the rat wiggled and struggled in his grasp. 

“How did you get in my car?” Mettatons voice was flat and a little shaky as he tried to rationalize this. 

“It was a [CAR ACCIDENT? SEEK COMPENSATION HERE!]” Mettaton took a moment to process what she meant. Tenna did say that she tended to speak through advertisements…oh! Wait! He just got it. 

“How the hell do you accidentally end up in the trunk of my car??” Mettaton's voice suddenly had that bite to it. She probably snuck in to get to Tenna and got trapped. He almost wished he left her out here longer so she’d die. 

“I..” Spamton stopped itself and breathed in deep. “Got. shoved. In. by…by….by…” it couldn’t seem to be able to finish its sentence. It was trying really hard to speak slowly and carefully. 

So, Mettaton slammed him into the ground. 

Spamton squirmed as her head hit the concrete behind Mettatons car. “#@$%!” 

“I don’t know what you think is going on here,” Mettaton shoved her further into the concrete, squishing her to an unbearable extent. “But I’m ending it here!” 

Wrapping his arms around Spamton like a snake restricting its prey, Mettaton held him up in the air as he dug around in his car for something. Spamton didn’t stop struggling, knowing it was very much over for her if she didn’t think fast. 

Suddenly, she was dropped to the ground, and looked up to see Mettaton holding a very bedazzled chainsaw with “MTT” labeled on it. Spamton took his opportunity to run . 

…

Tenna was trying extremely hard to not hurt Mew as she assaulted him, but she was making that incredibly difficult. Tenna moved out of the way just in time for a projectile to barely scrape past his arm. 

“You’re- you’re- you’re-” Mew let out a frustrated cry as she began to helplessly claw at Tennas leg. “JUST DIE ALREADY!” 

“Mettatons going to be back in any second- Hey!” Tenna was cut off as Mew began to bite him. 

“He’ll have to understand that this is whats best for him!” Mew grabbed a vase and threw it at Tenna. It missed and shattered on the wall next to him. 

“I really don’t think killing me would do any good for him!” Tenna dodged another projectile. “He’s- he’s been happy…” 

Has he been happy? Maybe Tenna was wrong about what they had. Mettaton probably led him here so that Mew and Napstablook could break the news to him- Mettaton wasn’t happy. He was so unhappy that he was willing to let his cousins murder Tenna. That's why he wasn’t back yet. 

…

Spamton had to climb a tree to get away from Mettaton, and now he was stuck on one of the highest branches. What else was he supposed to do?? It was either climb to the top, or get beheaded. He’d rather be stuck. 

Surely Mettaton wasn’t crazy enough to cut the tree down with his chainsaw, right? It's public property and he’s a celebrity! What if this got out? Spamton believed he had hit the jackpot. 

Then he saw Mettaton begin cutting down the tree. Oh. 

Spamton looked around for a possible way out, when he came up with the grand idea of dropping from the tree and on top of Mettaton. So he did exactly that, and landed right on his shoulders. Mettaton dropped his chainsaw in surprise and went to pry Spamton off, when she covered his eyes. 

“Hey!” Mettaton grabbed onto Spamton and threw her against the half cut down tree. 

“YOU’RE SUCH A [little sponge]!” 

“ Excuse me?? ” 

Oh shit, he should take that back- it was too late as Mettaton extended his arms out and wrapped Spamton up again, then squeezed him like a stress toy. Then, Spamton bit Mettatons hand really hard, if it were made of flesh he’d probably take the skin clean off. Mettaton screamed and dropped him, which gave Spamton another opportunity to run. 

Mettaton picked up his chainsaw again and chased after him as fast as he could, but Spamton was ridiculously elusive and kept slipping away behind houses and objects. He was running circles around Mettaton, and the robot couldn’t keep up if he tried. After losing him the third time, Mettaton turned his chainsaw off and looked at his surroundings. Nothing. 

“You can’t run forever, darling!” Mettatons voice was completely sinister. “Don’t worry your pretty little head, I’ll make sure your death is as slow and painful as possible .” 

There was a crash beside Mettaton as he approached a garbage can. Mettaton smiled and raised up his chainsaw and turned it back on, swinging down. 

Quickly scurrying out of the can was a raccoon. Still no Spamton in sight. Mettaton let out a cry of frustration and slammed his fist into the wall of the nearest house. 

…

It had been 10 minutes since Mettaton left, and Tenna was at his wits end. He could tell Mew was getting tired, but she just wouldn’t give up. His antennas were bent, his tie was off, his jacket was in shreds. Napstablook had backed off the moment Mew got violent, and Tenna could really see why. He wouldn’t want to get caught in the crossfire of this either. 

He considered just laying down and giving up, to let Mew break him down and rip out his wires. Accept his fate. Who was he kidding, anyway? Mettaton could see through him. This was evident as a projectile hit Tenna square in the chest. Maybe he should just die, it would be better on everyone. Nobody wanted him around. 

Suddenly, the door swung open, and a very disheveled Mettaton walked inside and paused as he saw the… interesting scene before him. Vases shattered, the coffee table broken in half, and Tenna on the ground looking like he had just been run over. 

“Mew! What did I say??” Mettaton already seemed ticked off, not to mention how messed up his hair and makeup were. 

“Well- I was just- what the hell happened to you??” Mew derailed the topic to Mettatons appearance, which was completely fair. He looked like he just had the worst experience of his life. “You were gone for ages too.” 

“That's none of your business. What is my business is how you were just trying to kill my boyfriend!” 

Napstablook finally came back from the other room and Mettaton whipped his head to them. “Napstablook! Why didn’t you stop her??” 

“Oh uh…I didn’t know I was supposed to…” Napstablook didn’t mention how they were in on it until Mew got violent. Probably so they wouldn’t be next. 

Rather than pushing, Mettaton grumbled something to himself and then sat down in front of Tenna. Tenna just let him grab onto him and asess the damages- it honestly wasn’t too bad, but Mettaton just needed to be sure. He pulled a screwdriver from a hidden compartment on his leg and began to unscrew Tennas chest cavity. 

“Mettaton, I’m fine, you really don’t have to do this for me,” Tennas words fell on deaf ears. He knew better than to get Mettaton to not help. That's all he did, really. He’d always rush to Tennas side to help him for the smallest dent and the tiniest scratch. 

“You’re fragile, if she hit you just right, darling, I’d-” Mettaton looked up at Tenna with such sad eyes, as if he’d felt any pain Tenna did. “I’m sorry about this, sweetheart, I really am.” 

“It's no big deal really! She was just-” 

“But it is a big deal,” Mettaton finally got Tenna opened up, and sighed in relief when he saw no damage to his wires or inner parts. “Sit tight, I’m going to go have a friendly chat with my dear cousin.” 

Mew suddenly regretted everything she had ever done as Mettaton yanked her by the tail into their kitchen. 

Tenna frowned down at himself. He was a complete mess. He hadn’t looked this bad in ages, and thats really saying something. Thank whatever sick twisted god out there that Mettaton suggested they stay for the weekend and packed their bags to the brim, at least he’d have a change of clothes. 

Napstablook was still in the room with him. Tenna didn’t want to say anything because of how incredibly tense today has been, he’d just make it worse by trying to hold up a conversation. 

Napstablook slowly sank down next to Tenna and didn’t say a word. They each heard shouting from the kitchen, but neither dared to intervene. The silence between them kept getting more awkward as Tenna noticed Napstablooks constant glancing at him. Did they want to say something? Should Tenna say something? Are they still mad at him? If they were, he’d probably be getting yelled at. 

“Mettaton…uh…” Tenna wasn’t very confident in speaking with them, but he wanted to try. He still wanted to prove himself. “Mettaton says you like music!” 

Napstablooks demeanor suddenly changed. It was like their eyes lit up at just the mention of it. “Uh..yeah….we used to play together before…” Napstablook stopped speaking entirely. 

“You know, I make my own music for TV Time!” Tenna smiled brightly as he became more comfortable with talking about something familiar to him. “I will admit, Mettaton has taught me a lot ever since he began to co-host with me!” 

“That sounds about right…he used to help me all the time…” Tenna noticed the sudden somber tone in Napstablooks voice, and then it clicked. They didn’t hate him, they just wanted Mettaton back. Tenna understood that in his own way. He knew what it was like to feel abandoned by somebody. 

“You can always join us!” Tenna spoke before he could think, his voice shone with confidence. “I’m always looking for more talent on my side, and you wouldn’t show up anywhere but the credits if you don’t want to!” 

Napstablook sank again. “Uh- that would be nice but…I don’t think Mettaton wants us interfering with his life…” 

“What do you mean? I’m sure he’d love your help!” Tenna was oblivious to the situation he had put himself in. “He's always talking about how talented you are!”

“But…then people would know what he really is…he doesn’t want anybody to know we exist…” 

Tenna couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Mettaton adored his cousins, all he spoke about was Mew and Napstablook shortly after telling Tenna his little secret. 

“Thats- not true at all…he’s-”

Tenna was interrupted by Mew and Mettaton coming back into the room. Mew, with a look of defeat, approached Tenna and sighed. 

“I’m sorry for trying to kill you, it won’t happen again,” her tone of voice was flat and slightly bitter. Mettaton stood close behind her like a disappointed parent. 

“You’re uh-” Tenna almost didn’t want to accept the apology, but looking at Mettaton…. “It's fine!” Tenna spoke through gritted teeth. 

“Yeah yeah yeah,” Mew tried to think of something to say. “You’re not that bad.” 

Wow, thanks. 

Maybe they could pretend to get along, and everything will be fine. That's easy enough, it's nothing Tenna hasn’t done before. It's for Mettaton's sake anyway. 

Mew began to clean up the mess she made as Mettaton glared daggers into her. “Okay now seriously, where were you?” 

Mettatons expression changed for a moment, something Tenna noticed immediately, and then went back to glaring at her. “Just an old friend, I got distracted talking to them!” 

“You didn’t have any friends here.” Mew smiled at Mettaton smugly. 

“Fine, an acquaintance , better??” 

Tenna finally stood up from the ground and took off his mangled jacket. He'd throw that away later. “You didn’t have friends?” Tennas voice was quiet. 

“I truly am glad they sat us together, I don’t know a single soul here.”

Mettaton avoided looking at Tenna. “Well- that's not important, things are different now!” He looked down and smiled fondly. “I have you, darling, that's all that matters.” 

Tenna kept staring at Mettaton. Even now, he was still alone. Tenna hadn’t introduced him to anybody besides his employees when he had promised … 

“Come on dear, lets get you into less shredded clothes.” 

…

Tenna was sitting on the bed of Mettatons old bedroom, it looked exactly as he would expect. The walls were pink, there were posters lining the walls, the furniture was all nice and decorated. Maybe it wasn’t exactly Mettaton as he was now, but it still suited him. 

“I haven’t stayed in here for years,” Mettaton was looking through his drawers and smiling fondly at all of his old items and makeup. “Its kind of…weird.”

Mettaton opened his closet and inside had a bunch of scarves and hats. “Oh! That's where it went!” Mettaton pulled out a very fluffy pink scarf. “Mew got this for me ages ago, I thought I brought it with me to the city..” Mettaton put the scarf on and looked at himself in the mirror. He seemed so happy. 

“Its so nice of your cousins to keep all of your stuff! Once I moved dressing rooms, and Mike completely rearranged my old one before I could get it all cleared out,” Tenna smiled at the memory, but stopped once he saw Mettatons expression. 

“That's not a good thing, darling. Nobody should touch your stuff without permission,” Mettaton dug around for another scarf and tried it on, absolutely giddy with excitement. 

“Oh…” Tenna sat back on Mettatons bed and watched his little fashion show fondly, he was smiling like an idiot. Mettaton put on a purple scarf next and frowned slightly. 

“This would be so cute if it didn’t clash with the pink,” Mettaton turned to Tenna. “What do you think?” 

“I think you look good in absolutely everything!” 

“Oh of course you do,” Mettaton rolled his eyes playfully and fell backwards onto his bed next to Tenna, dramatically sprawling his arms out. Tenna laid on his side so he could face Mettaton. “A lot of these were gifts from Blooky, they’re such a dear,” Mettaton put his hands on the scarf around his neck. “They did everything they could to make me comfortable in my body but…” 

Mettaton sighed and sat up. He took the scarf off and set it on his bedside table. “I never wore any of this because I didn’t…like how it looked on me,” Mettaton laid back down and snuggled into Tenna, the CRTs antennas sparked with electricity as he wrapped his arms around Mettaton. “They were always so excited to give me these but…then they never saw me in it again.” 

“I’m sure they understand! They’re a ghost too-” Tenna stopped once he saw the sad look on Mettatons face. 

“I wish they did darling, I really do. I’ve tried to speak with them about it but I don’t think they’ve ever understood. They’re the only one who doesn’t care for a corporeal form,” Mettaton extended one of their arms so they could play with Tennas antennas, Tenna didn’t think Mettaton was even aware he was doing so. 

Mettaton was happy with Tenna, he really really was. Even though he knew Tenna didn’t get it, he listened. He sympathised. That's all Mettaton needed, someone on his side. His cousins loved him, and he loved his cousins, but neither of them got it. Maybe Mew did, but she seemed fine in anything she possessed. Mettaton never did. He tried, and he tried, and he tried, but nothing ever felt right. Hell she was only Mew now because she happened to like that body the most. Mettaton only felt happy as…well, Mettaton. That's the only body that was right, the only body that felt like home. 

“They must be glad to see you happy now! I know I am!” Tenna kissed Mettaton on his forehead, making his hair stand up and stick to his screen. 

“You’re right dear, I bet they are,” Mettaton smiled with half lidded eyes. “By the way, you missed.” 

Tenna looked confused, but then Mettaton pulled him down by the shirt collar and kissed him on the lips. 

Mettaton was happy. 

…

“Jeez! I’m going, I’m going, I’m going!” Mew rolled her eyes as she tied a trashbag and dragged it behind her. 

Napstablook had asked her to take out the trash about…four hours ago. Its not her fault she didn’t take it out already, she was occupied! Beating up Tenna and then having dinner took a lot of energy dammit! 

She did feel bad for trying to kill him just a little bit, but it was so unfair how Mettaton reacted! Doesn’t he know she’s just trying to protect him from being hurt again? 

Mew grumbled as she opened the garbage can. “I hate being the olde- AHH WHAT IS THAT?? ” 

Inside of the dumpster was some kind of…creature. Wait no, that was a person. “Who are you?? Who are you?? WHO ARE YOU??” 

“[TIRED OF WAITING? ACT NOW!] don’t [crush] ME!” Spamton was more unkempt than usual ever since his little scuffle with Mettaton. He was hiding in the garbage to hopefully be safe until they drove home, but he forgot that they weren’t the only ones here. 

“Answer me!” Mew had dropped the garbage bag and put her hands on her hips. “Or I just might!” 

“Look. I’m. [#1 rated salesman 1997!]” 

“What is that? What are you doing with your voice??” 

“I. can’t. Control. It.” Spamton was about to worm her way out of the trashcan when Mew grabbed onto her and held her up. 

“Well- go find another trash can to live in!” Mew didn’t drop her despite commanding her to leave. “Or…uh…actually, why haven’t I seen you before?” 

“I’m [NEW] in town!” Spamton told a half truth so that hopefully she could get out of this before Mettaton came out. 

“Oh.” Mew put Spamton back into the trashcan. “Well you should have said so! I can totally show you around! It’ll be fun fun FUN!” 

Mew lifted up the trash bag again. “Oh wait, can you move?” 

Spamton scurried to the side of the garbage can. 

“Actually, you know what? Come with me!” 

Spamton wasn’t able to reply before it was picked up by a crazy catgirl. He didn’t even try to fight back, hoping wherever she put him would be better than a trashcan. He’d take literally anything.

“Here! Nobody goes in here, and its better than smelling like rotting-” Mew stopped. “Uh- rotting food! Yeeaaahhh… food ” 

Mew dropped Spamton in front of a weird shed behind her house, and began to mess with the lock on the door. “Aw come on! I swear to god, Blooky keeps changing this just to spite me!” 

“I can [HELP]” Spamton had…experience with opening locks, to say the absolute least. 

“What, do you have a hairpin or something?” 

Spamton dug in his pocket and pulled out a legitimate lockpick. 

“Well well well! Look at you! We’re going to get along great!” Mew picked up Spamton so he could reach the lock and effectively pick it. Once the door was open, she placed it down and Spamton stepped inside. 

“See? Much better than my garbage can!” Mew grinned largely. “DON’T TOUCH ANYTHING.” 

Spamton jumped at the sudden tone shift. “I won’t!” he was probably being truthful. 

“Great! I’ll get you in the morning and show you around!” Mew closed the shed doors, but left it unlocked. 

That was the day that Spamton sold his soul to Mew. 

Chapter 8: YOU'VE GOT MAIL!

Summary:

HEY [slime] DO YOU WANT TO BE A [big shot]???

 

THEN [click] ON THE [cat] BELOW AND LISTEN TO [everything she says]

Notes:

This chapter kicked my fucking ass. not because it was hard to write, but because these two have polluted my brain.
It started as a joke. This was supposed to be a joke. Now I think I need to see them get married and be the worlds most horrible couple.

Also Spamtons genderfluid and uses He/she/it in case you get confused.

 

If anyone demonizes Mew for taking in Spamton I WILL take their kidneys

 

my beta reader was absent for most of this one so if you see a mistake, no you didn't

Tenna was never really the type for shopping, or malls, or clothes. He was never big on fashion or trends. Ever since he met Mettaton, he's been dragged into more and more instances of learning what was new and in. Tenna would happily listen to Mettaton ramble about a new jacket or store opening, but he was never actually interested in checking it out. Whatever made Mettaton happy made him happy.

 

 

"While we're here darling, we should really check out the mall!" Mettatons hand was intertwined with Tennas as they took a short walk around Hometown. "Its small, but it has all the good stuff."

 

 

"Wouldn't we get recognized?" Tenna loved to be the star of the show, but being seen in public was always such a chore. Especially when it was Mettaton being recognized. Tennas seen some crazy things happen while out together.

 

 

"Don't be ridiculous dear! Most of the people here paid no mind to me then, why would they care now?" Mettatons voice was chipper, but what he said really ticked Tenna off. Every other word from Mettaton about this town was about how poorly they treated him. Thats how he interpreted it anyway, his point of view was incredibly biased.

 

 

The two reached the Blook house, officially ending their walk around town. "If we go now it shouldn't be too busy," Mettaton walked over to his car with a smile. Tenna laughed nervously and stopped him by grabbing hold of his shoulder.

 

 

"Uh- How about I drive, okay?" Tenna had only been in a car with Mettaton once and he never wanted to go through that again.

 

 

Suddenly, Mew came from behind the house with a very large bag around her shoulder. "Aw, ditching us?"

 

 

"Oh relax, I'm showing him the mall, we'll be back in an hour!" Mettaton went over to the passenger side. "Whats with the bag?"

 

 

"Nunya!" Mew smiled and put her hands on her hips. "Don't get any food, I'm cooking tonight!"

 

 

"Oh yay us," Mettatons tone was sarcastic and he rolled his eyes, but he giggled right after remarking that. "Don't worry darling, we won't be tempted."

 

 

Mew watched as they pulled out of the driveway, and then drove down the street. The second the car was out of view, she opened her bag and Spamton poked its head out.

 

 

"Sorry about that, but if Mettaton or Blooky find out I'm harboring another stranger they're going to kill me," Mew began walking down the sidewalk with Spamton still inside of her bag.

 

 

"NO [worry]" Spamton didn't feel like trying to string together long sentences. It would be no use, anyway. The chances of Mew understanding her are already low so she may as well try to be concise and to the point. He didn't really have any motive for letting Mew drag him around a town he didn't care about. He'd rather be shoved in a bag than a dumpster, and it did offer extra protection from…him

 

 

Was it too much to ask to speak with an old friend?? Mettaton doesn't even know the full story, so why does he care?

 

 

"Theres really not much here, unless you want to go look at some cool bugs," Mew was acting strangely hospitable. She found Spamton in her dumpster, watched him pick a lock, yet didn't question her one bit. Mew mentioned that this was a common occurrence, but to Spamton it was off putting and jarring. She didn't even know his name yet.

 

 

"Bugs are very [slime]!"

 

 

"Well then, lets go!" Mew stopped. "Slime is good right?"

 

 

Spamton nodded.

 

 

"Okay okay okay! Lets go!"

 

 

Mew entered a graveyard and put her bag down on the ground next to one of the trees. Spamton skittered out and to her side as she crouched down and looked at the floor.

 

 

"I like to pounce on the beetles- OH OH OH!" Mew jumped forward and dove into the dirt. Then, she very proudly presented a very strange beetle like creature to Spamton.

 

 

Spamton was enthralled with Mew at this point. She found herself incredibly curious about this strange…doll….thing. That was another factor in staying and going along with it, Spamton wanted to see where this would take him. Its not like Mettaton and Tenna were leaving anytime soon, it was a nice way to kill the time.

 

 

She even called into question how a robot having a cousin worked…made by the same people? Did he even care that much? Not really.

 

 

"There's a lotta weird looking bugs here, and that's about the only thing this place has going for it," Mew began digging into the dirt to look for more bugs to show Spamton. "Why'd you come here anyway?"

 

 

Lying was something Spamton could do!

 

 

"[PEACE] and quiet. The cities too [@#$%] loud," It wasn't a bad lie, and Spamton did feel that way just a little bit. That's why he stayed in the dump instead of under a bridge or an alleyway closer to everything else.

 

 

"Woah, how'd you bleep yourself like that?? Do it again! Do it again! Do it again!"

 

 

"[@#$%]" Spamton obliged for…reasons unknown.

 

 

"Can you not cuss at all? I mean, the bleeping is cool and all, but if it were me I'd rather be able to actually say the words," Mew abandoned her quest for bugs and sat next to Spamton, very disrespectfully leaning on a gravestone.

 

 

"ITS [hyperlink blocked]" Spamton forgot to speak slowly, he really needs to work on that if-

 

 

Why does he care?!?!

 

 

Mew's nothing special! Spamtons seen thousands of psychotic anime fans over the years! Why does he care so much about getting through to her?

 

 

Mew was about to make a sarcastic remark when she noticed Spamtons glasses suddenly became…static?

 

 

"Hey I didn't mean anything by it- I think your weird voice thing is cool! I have a weird talking quirk too if that helps," Mew put a hand on Spamtons shoulder, the static in his glasses disappeared and she was met with his usual pink and yellow.

 

 

"No- Its. not. that," Spamton stood up and dusted the dirt off his pants. "I. was." he paused and took a very deep breath. "[LOST]"

 

 

"Oh, I space out all the time too!" Mews voice was back to being big and confident. "Mettaton thinks im a ditz for it."

 

 

Mews smile dropped and she looked down at the ground, like she were suddenly wounded by something. She didn't let it linger, smiling at Spamton and closing her eyes as she laid back onto a grave and reclined her legs in the grass.

 

 

"ANYway," Mew put her hands behind her head, and Spamton stood awkwardly next to her. He'd sit back down, but it had rained overnight and the ground was muddy. "I'd say we should go eat something but-"

 

 

Spamtons eyes lit up at just the mention of food, he really couldn't remember the last time he ate. "REALLY?? I could go for [$5.00 FOOTLONG]"

 

 

"Ah- well I was going to cook tonight since Mettatons over…but getting a snack wouldn't hurt!" Mew grabbed her bag, then picked up Spamton and shoved him in. He didn't protest once.

 

 

"Theres this pretty good ice cream place, but theres a guy who hangs around there thats kind of an asshole," Spamton had his head poking out of her bag like some little crusty dog. He had to admit it was at least a little nice to be carried around like this…not that he'd ever ask for it, it was all Mews idea to sneak him around in her bag. However…he wouldn't say no…

 

 

Shit, was this what it was like to have withdrawal symptoms? Being so..off? Letting himself be dragged around by the cousin of someone who considers him an enemy? He didn't bring his stash with him, why would he?? Spamton didn't even know Mettaton and Tenna were leaving the city, let alone for several days. She hated being so lucid, being so…tired. Why was she so tired? Maybe they could get coffee.

 

 

"How about [THANKS FOR THE COFFEE]?" Spamton used to be a bad caffeine addict. He'd stay up for days at a time drinking entire pots while working, especially so when he was working with Tenna. However, ever since she became…down on her luck…she hadn't been able to have much in years. It sucked.

 

 

"Oh yeah! There is a coffee shop, but its really small. The pastries are really good though!" Mew took a left and began heading towards a small line of stores. "Mettaton got banned after he had a caffeine rush. He can only drink decaf or else he loses his mind!"

 

 

Spamton wasn't surprised in the slightest. Mettaton always seemed to be full of energy, for lack of better words. He couldn't imagine trying to face him after a cup of coffee.

 

 

Mew walked into the doors of a very small building, she really wasn't joking when she said it was small. It felt like a closet from how cramped it was.

 

 

"Kay, what do you want?" Mew asked as she looked down at Spamton in her bag. Spamton squinted at the menu. He couldn't see it at all.

 

 

"Can't. See."

 

 

"Uhh..well theres- oh wait! Here-" Mew took Spamton out of her bag and held it up to the menu so it could see better. "Just point to what you want I guess."

 

 

Spamton skimmed the menu, then pointed at the most sugary looking latte available. Then he pointed to a chocolate filled croissant.

 

 

"That all?" Mew slightly lowered him as her arms got tired.

 

 

"[CONFIRM]"

 

 

"Good good good!" She put Spamton down next to her and began talking to the barista, who rightfully looked a little confused. "You're letting me have a sip of yours by the way. I'd get one for myself but the sugar would get me banned too."

 

 

"[anything] FOR YOU MY [slime]" Spamton smiled genuinely for the first time in ages. She really enjoyed spending time with Mew, even though she knew it wouldn't last forever. It was nice to just…exist without pain, if only for a moment.

 

 

Mews name was called to grab their order and she skipped up to the counter to get their coffees and food. "Come on, come on, come on!" Mew was giddy with excitement as she strided out of the store. Spamton, no longer in her bag, had to try really hard to keep up.

 

 

Mew led them into the forest- not too deep, but deep enough to be surrounded by trees. She sat down on a dry bit of grass and beckoned for Spamton to sit next to her.

 

 

"I love a good coffee in the woods, its so much better! The cafe is too small for us to enjoy it…" She handed Spamton his ridiculously sugary and decorated coffee, Spamton began to sip it happily.

 

 

"AND we're less likely to run into anybody. Its so annoying when people try to talk to me because I'm a friend of their sister or something," Mew bit into her chocolate chip cookie.

 

 

"YOU SAID IT [slime]" Spamton absolutely devoured her croissant, it didn't stand a chance against her. She really needs to eat more, doesn't she? Even a sandwich every once in a while would do.

 

 

"I hate when [HYPERLINK BLOCKED] comes into my [humble abode] just to [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]" Spamton stopped caring for controlling her tics as she ate, she was much more focused on actually being full for once.

 

 

Mew was confused for a moment, but ultimately didn't say anything about it. "Someday I'm leaving this place. I've only really stayed for my cousins but you know…Mettaton he…" Mew looked at Spamton, who had paused her drinking to listen. "Nevermind, my point is it sucks here and everyone acts like I'm their friend when I'm not."

 

 

"At least its [SILENCE]" Spamton tried to cheer her up..it stopped questioning its weird thoughts and decided that they were just a part of the withdrawal stuff. It would be fine once it was home and digging up its stash.

 

 

"Right! Thats another good thing. Its calm. I really don't know what people see in the city anyway, constant noise and smog…I'd rather live somewhere quiet but not dull," Mew laid back in the grass with her drink tucked into her elbow so it wouldn't spill. "Bugs and quiet, the only things a town needs apparently."

 

 

"I have lots of [INSECTS] at my [humble abode]" Spamton didn't mention how they were mostly flies and roaches…or centipedes and maggots if he opened the wrong can.

 

 

"I'd love to have insects inside of our house, but Blooky isn't a fan. My personal favorite are spiders!" Mew sighed happily. "Someday I'll have a whole collection of the weirdest looking bugs. Starting with you!"

 

 

"[???] I'm not [INSECT]"

 

 

"It was a joke!"

 

 

A very…weird one?

 

 

Mew sat up and looked at her phone, then sighed like a sad dog. "Oh shoot, we have to go if I want dinner done in time. Dammit dammit dammit! I was having fun…"

 

 

"THE [fun never ends]" Spamton was already almost done with his coffee. "When you're with [#1 RATED SALESMAN 1997]"

 

 

"I can't bring you inside! Blooky would kill me, and Mettaton gets weird with strangers," Mew shoved her phone into her pocket with a grumble and stood up. "I could sneak a plate to you if you want."

 

 

"REALLY? YOU;D DO THAT FOR [your old pal]?" Spamton normally would just be taking advantage in a situation like this. Take Mews kindness and twist it for his own desires, maybe even use her to get to Tenna again…

 

 

He thought about it, he really did, he spent the night trying to plan what to do with her. As the day went on he began to forget whatever he wanted to do originally. Part of it was because he forgot most of his thoughts he didn't write down, but the way she dragged him around without question just 'for fun' made him reconsider. He didn't need to manipulate her to get his way because she was already willing to slip him food and sneak him around.

 

 

Mew was down for whatever. She seemed like the type to do something stupid only to see the outcome, or because she was bored. Spamton didn't need to do any convincing because she was the one who came up with things to do first. She pretty much garbage picked Spamton and decided it was cool enough to keep around.

 

 

"Sure, I'd just have to be careful about it. Now get in the bag!"

 

 

This was such a good example of what Spamton was thinking. He scurried inside of the bag happily to be carried around once more.

 

 

…

 

 

Spamton was happy to sit in the shed while Mettaton was home. He'd much rather be bored out of his mind than have his teeth kicked in for no reason. Mew told him she should be out by 9, not that Spamton could even see the time. So he waited and didn't touch anything (he was somewhat scared of her and noticed she had a hammer in her bag at the ready. Oh, and the blood soaked garbage bags)

 

 

The shed had nothing in it. There wasn't a lawnmower or any gardening tools. It looked more like a weird workshop, which only made Spamton more nervous. Was he…inside of a girls murder shack?

 

 

Eh, still not the craziest weekend he's had the past decade.

 

 

He decided to not prod. What he didn't know couldn't hurt him, and he was leaving by Monday once Mettaton and Tenna got out of here so snooping wouldn't have any benefit.

 

 

Mew swung the door to the shed open, which made Spamton jump back. "[@#$?!?!]"

 

 

"Sorry! I thought you saw me coming," Mew placed a plate of slightly cold food on the sheds built in shelf. "I worked really hard on this, so if you don't like it I'll punch you."

 

 

Spamton should feel scared, but instead he laughed. Even if she did sock him in the face, he doubted she'd actually mean him any harm. He climbed up onto the shelf and put the plate of food on his lap- it was an actual meal, and it looked damn good. Spamton again, couldn't remember the last time he had actually eaten something. Coffee and pastries barely count as sustenance.

 

 

Mew stared at him expectantly, she was waiting for him to eat it. Spamton stabbed his fork into the mystery meat (please be steak please be steak please be steak) and ate it.

 

 

.

.

.

 

 

It was the best thing he had ever tasted.

 

 

"[SHIT]" Spamton really missed eating food, and Mews cooking after years of garbage was…

 

 

"What- since when could you cuss??" Mew smiled, then glared. "Is…that a good thing?"

 

 

"[SHIT] is a tier [1.00$] swear. [@#$%] is a tier [2.00$] swear," Spamton proceeded to eat the rest of the food in the least polite way possible, pretty much inhaling it. He was really starving. Verge of death kind of starving.

 

 

"And is there someone keeping track of any of this?" Mew sat down on the shed floor in a way that definitely hurt her legs, but looked cute.

 

 

"Yeah, [#1 RATED SALESMAN 1997]" Truthfully, Spamton didn't know how it classified itself. It just did, and he always had a vague idea of what things meant.

 

 

"No offense, but that sounds like it sucks," Mew shifted uncomfortably, but didn't make any effort to sit in a different way. Aesthetics were more important than comfort! "Speaking of your voice thing, can you try to tell me your name?"

 

 

"It. Really. Does." Spamton closed his eyes and kept them shut for a bit- he needed to just concentrate, and maybe he'd at least get the first half of his name out. Normally it wasn't this hard to say! He'd always struggle or pause, but this was unbearable. "Spamt-" Spamton cut himself off as he realized he wasn't going to finish it. Then, he tried again. "Spamton G. Spamton."

 

 

What he didn't expect was for Mew to break out into uncontrollable and very contagious laughter. "Seriously?? Your first and last name are the same?"

 

 

"My original name [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]!" Spamton laughed with her a little. "Its. Not. Like." Spamton stopped, and tried again. "Like-" Spamton stopped again. "Like- like- god- [@#$]!"

 

 

Mew stopped laughing and her face became very serious. "Hey- slow down, you'll get there," she moved her position to get closer to Spamton before she stopped herself.

 

 

"Mad Mew Mew [HYPERLINK BLOCKED] too!" It wasn't exactly what he wanted to say, but he could tell from Mews sudden change in expression that she got the memo.

 

 

"Hey!" She slugged Spamton in the arm, and pretty damn hard too. "Asshole!"

 

 

That look on Mews face was something he had seen before…she was…happy. Happy to hang out with Spamton, happy to drag him around and indulge in shenanigans. There was a weird understanding between them despite their short amount of time spent together. From the moment she had seen Spamton she didn't question it whatsoever. It picked a lock in front of her and she remarked how they were going to get along.

 

 

Did Spamton even want to leave? Go back to the city where he had nobody? Where he was nobody?

 

 

These thoughts were dangerous. The last time he had become close with somebody…

 

 

Spamton smiled back at her and felt hope. He shouldn't. He should be going back to the city and to his dumpster where he belongs. He should be trying to get to Tenna. He should…

 

 

He should be right here.

 

 

Like Icarus, he spreads his wings and flies again.

 

 

"You ain't too bad [SLIME]" Spamton made her choice, now she just needed Mew to agree.

 

 

"Is that an invitation to get worse? Because I absolutely can!" Mew climbed up onto the shelf so she could sit next to Spamton. It believed her.

 

 

"[LETS MAKE A DEAL]" Typically Spamton paid no mind to his vocal tics, they weren't something he could control so he never bothered. When he was speaking to Mew, he began to wish he could erase them entirely.

 

 

The years of being as erratic as he is was no doubt a side effect of drugs. Maybe once he got them back, he'd leave Mew in the dust and return to the city. He felt a painful sensation through his chest as he thought that. He never cared whenever he'd think this way before, he never paid it a second thought whenever he'd swindle and lie. He's done this countless times to dozens of people.

 

 

She'd probably kill him if he tried.

 

 

"If you're about to ask for money I'm killing you. Thats not a joke."

 

 

Point proven.

 

 

"I'm not! I [PROMISES]" Spamton closed her eyes and thought hard. He needed to form a coherent sentence, a full coherent sentence. "I want to-" deep breath, she could do this, as annoying and tedious as it was. "[FRIEND REQUEST RECEIVED]"

 

 

Motherf-

 

 

"Really? Really? Really???" Mews tail began slamming rapidly against the shelf, she put one of her hands on it to get it to stop. She wasn't lonely per say, but god did this town drive her insane. She had friends but none of them really got her, or wanted to do the crazy things she wanted to do. Nobody was down for mixing nerds and perfume together and then drinking it, or catching bugs in a graveyard, or hanging out in trash, or picking locks (she LOVED the last two especially)

 

 

Spamton did whatever the hell she wanted for no reason other than curiosity. She needed someone like that around, especially since Mettaton moved and took his impulsivity with him.

 

 

"Consider that request accepted!"

 

 

Spamton felt an emotion that wasn't emptiness or spite, he was absolutely over the moon, it was like a swarm of bees was released in his chest.

 

 

"Mew." Spamton put a hand on her wrist and squeezed it. Maybe if he focused fully on her, he'd be able to string together something coherent, something he actually wanted to say. "I. DOn't. want-" It squeezed harder, but backed off once it realized it was probably hurting her. Mew didn't seem to be weirded out or disgusted with him yet. "To. Go. Back."

 

 

Mew took her hand off her tail, which was now swishing back and forth gently. "Go back where?"

 

 

"[HUMBLE ABODE]" Spamton physically cringed at his tic. Mew understood what he meant and smiled, fangs bearing and everything.

 

 

"Seriously? You know I could never let you inside, right? Mettaton would strangle me if I let someone he didn't know sleep in his bed, and Blookys had it to here with me," Mew exaggerated by raising her hand high above her head. "You'd have to live in the shed."

 

 

"THATS A [risk i;m willing to take]"

 

 

Mew put her arm around Spamton and squeezed him. "Yes! Yes! Yes! And you can show me how to pick locks with your little device!"

 

 

Things were going to be okay. He'd apologize to Tenna later, and figure out how to get around Mettaton. This is something he needed, wasn't it? Stability.

 

 

"Under one condition," Mews voice still held whimsy in it, but Spamton couldn't hear it as he felt his stomach drop. There was always a catch, he of all people should know theres always a damn-

 

 

"You have to do all my chores for me. Every single one!" Mews face held no smirk or hint of kidding. Spamton began to regret his decision and considered backing down.

 

 

Mew started cackling and she shoved Spamton away. "I'm just fucking with you!" Mews contagious laughter began to infect Spamton as he laughed with her.

 

 

"My true condition is to not come inside unless I let you in, and to hide if Blooky comes out here. They don't bite, I just don't want to be in trouble," Mew hopped off the shelf.

 

 

"Stay put, I'll be back in a few minutes," Mew didn't let Spamton reply before she was out the door and ran inside.

 

 

Maybe being friends with her would make it easier to apologize to Tenna. Mew was (somehow) the cousin of Mettaton so Tenna would be around all the time, right?

 

 

This wasn't something Spamton would be doing a year ago. If you knocked on his dumpster and told him he'd be sitting around waiting for Mew to come back like a loyal dog while nervously plotting how to say sorry, he'd bite you and steal your wallet.

 

 

Sometimes a near death experience is good for a person.

 

 

Mew came back into the shed holding several items. Pillows, heart shaped cushions, blankets, and a phone that looked like it hadn't been touched since 2014. She placed the items down on the shelf that Spamton was still sitting on, then handed him the phone.

 

 

"This used to be Mettatons, I knew he still kept it in his desk somewhere!" Mew beamed, her fangs showing. Spamton looked at the phone, it was only at 10% and he assumed she plugged it in just to turn it on before handing it over. It was wiped as far as he could tell, but the phone case was the same as it was when Mettaton had it; clear but had glittery liquid inside that moved as you tilted the phone.

 

 

"My contacts already on it! Much easier to text me if you need something instead of sneaking in through my window," Mew tail began swishing and she set up the pillows and cushions she brought out.

 

 

Spamton felt bittersweet as he watched her fluff up the blanket. Part of him screamed that he should go now, that this will end badly, that it'll be just like how it was last time. The other part hoped Mew let him freeload forever.

 

 

Even if this only lasted a week before something bad happened, Spamton was going to stay. It can't hurt him if he's already accepted that it isn't going to work out. He'll be prepared this time.

 

 

"Sorry I didn't bring out more stuff," Mew had set it up so that each side of the shelf had pillows and blankets. "I told Blooky I wanted to sleep out here so they shouldn't bother us!"

 

 

"You're staying??" Spamton couldn't stop himself from smiling like a dork. He tried to control himself, but the joy radiated off of his body.

 

 

"Of course I am! Those lovebirds drive me insane. Tenna sleep talks by playing commercials at full blast, and Mettaton snores. Guess whos room is right next to theirs," Mew sighed and laid back into her side, her hands placed behind her head for cushion.

 

 

"[TRASH HEAP] ain't that bad. I knew him before [It Burns! Ow! Stop! Help Me! It Burns!]" Spamton had a smile on his face as that tic came through. It quickly fell as he saw how distraught Mew was.

 

 

"What-"

 

 

"THAT OLD [cathode] AIN'T AN ISSUE. He's more of a [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]" Spamton thought Tenna was what she had a problem with. Tenna really wasn't that bad of a guy…horribly impulsive, but he never meant any harm. "Mettatons [YOUR SECRETS SAFE WITH ME]"

 

 

"Spamton- that was one of your quirks, right??" Mew sat up and scooted over to him. "That thing about it burning-"

 

 

"[CONFIRM CONFIRM CONFIRM]" Spamton felt his heart (or whatever was in there) speed up. "I;M [100% OFF] okay!"

 

 

Please don't ask anymore questions please don't ask anymore questions please don't-

 

 

Mew did something worse. She put a hand on his face and stared into his eyes like she was looking for something. Spamton felt claustrophobic and very uncomfortable. He began to remember things- of Tenna. How Spamton would say something about…about…what were their names again? Why couldn't he remember their names?? He used to know their names! He could only remember Tennas comfort after he said something about…WHAT WERE THEIR FUCKING NAMES????

 

 

"Hey uh…lets go to sleep, you seem…" Mew trailed off and forced herself to smile to hopefully get Spamtons glasses to quit being static. "Here, take the fluffier blanket."

 

 

Mew shoved a big blanket into Spamton, suffocating him for a moment.

 

 

"THANKS FOR THE [Genorisity] [KITTY CAT]" The blanket was impossibly warm and comfortable and soft…this was such a good idea.

 

 

"Pfft-" Mew returned to her side of the shelf. "This ain't nothing, Spammy!"

 

 

Spamtons eyes opened wide at the nickname. He got another memory of Tenna. That stupid nickname always pissed him off, but it also made him feel…

 

 

Nostalgic? Happy? At peace?

 

 

Guilt.

 

 

"ANYway, Sleep sleep sleep!!" Mew fluffed up her pillows, then curled up on top of them like an actual cat would. Again, theres no way that could be comfortable.

 

 

He needed to get used to- whatever this is. However long that would take. Spamton closed his eyes, and for once in his life, didn't have a single nightmare.

Chapter 9: What if I'm nothing but a cardiac-arresting-sweetheart?

Summary:

Laying on the ground and feeling like garbage.

Notes:

So im listening to the undertale soundtrack and asgores theme started playing as I was typing the summary and I lost all train of thought. It perfectly fits something revealed later in the chapter. Vehicular manslaughter win!

I started taking my meds halfway through writing this so if you notice a surge in quality, thats why

This was a bit hellish to write because I didn't really have a plan outside of the laying on the floor and feeling like garbage thing, but then I was hit with inspiration and went a bit insane at the end.

Be ready for chapter 11.

Tenna was missing.

 

 

Todays airing of TV Time had just ended, and nobody could find Tenna anywhere. He dismissed himself to his dressing room, and never came back out, and when Mike went in to check on him he was nowhere to be found.

 

 

Mettaton (in a state of panic, but he wouldn't say that out loud) scoffed and told Mike to 'move aside' so he could look for Tenna instead! Who cares if Mike knew Tenna longer, Mettaton knows him better! He could find him within 10 minutes.

 

 

It had now been an hour, and all of Tennas usual hiding places had been searched (and tore up as Mettaton got scared)

 

 

Mettaton was willing to check behind rocks if he had to, leave no box pushed over and no curtain ripped aside.

 

 

"You're sure he didn't just leave?? CHECK HIS DRESSING ROOM AGAIN!" Mettaton had began snapping at Tennas employees, something he had rarely done. He'd be a dick sometimes, but this was different. If it weren't for the fear in his eyes, they would have given up a long time ago.

 

 

Mettaton had never looked so disheveled as he went out to the parking lot to check for Tennas car. His hair was a mess from almost ripping it out several times, his eye makeup was running down his cheeks as he tried so hard not to cry. What if something bad happened to Tenna? What if it was because of Spamton? What if he was gone for good? What if what if what if what if what if?

 

 

What if it was Mettatons fault for not going with him? What if he could have protected him from whatever made him go missing? What if they're going to find him the hard way?

 

 

Mettaton stormed to Tennas dressing room and shoved the door open, then began tearing the place up. Maybe there was a clue, or a fingerprint, or fucking ANYTHING!

 

 

Tenna wouldn't just leave on his own, and especially not without telling Mettaton. He was trying so hard to keep it together, that all he could do is slump against the wall and think. Any more pressure on himself and surely he'd cave in. He was being dramatic again, Tenna was fine, he just needed to calm down…and apologize to Elnina for shaking her….and to Mike for screaming at him…oh and he was pretty sure he tripped on a Pippins. He'd just apologize to everybody.

 

 

Mettaton heard a ruffle from underneath Tennas vanity. He couldn't…no, Tenna was 15 feet tall (excluding his antennas) and the gap under the vanity really wasn't that large, being very narrow and unable to hide someone unless they were super tiny.

 

 

The only person small enough was Spamton, but Mettaton truthfully hadn't seen him in weeks. Mettaton stood up from his sulking corner and peaked underneath the vanity, maybe a rat had got in? Maybe that's what Tenna was occupied with?

 

 

The answer was none of the above, as the thing underneath the vanity was a very small and shaking Tenna.

 

 

"Darling??" Mettaton sounded horribly confused and exasperated as he sat down in front of the vanity. "What- is this??"

 

 

Tenna didn't want to answer. He was hiding for a reason…he couldn't let anybody, not even Mettaton, see him when he's this bad. Sometimes a nervous breakdown needed to be private and this was one of those times!

 

 

Mettaton scooped him up and looked at him in absolute bewilderment. "Tenna, darling, please, whats going on?"

 

 

Tenna couldn't find it in himself to use his words. He tried to will himself to talk, but all he could do is look away from Mettaton as his antennas drooped sadly in front of his face. He heard Mettaton make a soft 'oh' sound, then he was placed down on the couch.

 

 

"Don't worry Tenna, I'll cheer you right up!" Mettatons voice was chipper, and usually Tenna would be glad to hear that but right now all he wanted to do was wallow. He didn't want to feel better, not now. He wasn't sure if he could feel better.

 

 

It was nice to be cared about. Tenna loved how much Mettaton cared despite not believing he deserved any of it, but sometimes you don't need comfort. You don't need someone trying to cheer you up.

 

 

Mettaton opened Tennas closet and began to dig around inside for one of his comfort items. Tenna always had something of sentimental value on or around him. It was so endearing. Mettaton had noticed his attachment to a specific egg…thing. He had no idea what it was or where he got it, nor why it would be so important. It was in here somewhere…

 

 

Oh! There!

 

 

Mettaton carefully held the egg thing and walked over to Tenna, then placed it on the couch next to him.

 

 

"Here you go dear, your uh…" Mettaton trailed off as he realized he had no idea what this thing was called.

 

 

"…her name is pipis," Tenna felt so pathetic. He could barely be heard, so his voice came out as a little squeak. He leaned into Pipis like a pillow and sighed heavily. He didn't grow any larger, or feel any better. Seeing her made him feel even worse considering what caused this episode was…

 

 

It isn't something he should care about anymore. Its been ages since they've seen each other, he needed to get over it…

 

 

That way of thinking made him shrink even more.

 

 

Mettaton frowned slightly at the sight of Tenna. He was only getting worse, and he refused to talk. Mettaton sat down in front of the couch and rested his head on the cushion in front of Tenna.

 

 

"Tenna, you have to work with me here. I want to help you!" Mettatons voice shook. "I'm really worried, so please let me in."

 

 

"I don't-" Tenna was so close to losing it in front of Mettaton, he fought back the urge to cry until his speakers gave out. "Mettaton- do you…remember a few months ago when we talked about being glooby?"

 

 

Mettaton smiled warmly as it clicked in his mind. "Of course I do, Tenna."

 

 

Not another word was said before Mettaton scooped Tenna up into the palm of his hand. "Don't worry sweetheart, I know just what you need!"

 

 

Tenna sighed sadly. He didn't need this, he didn't need cheering up. He tried to speak more but all that came out was a little whimper followed by the most pathetic sob. Mettaton brought Tenna up to his face and kissed the side of his head. That made him feel a little better…

 

 

Mettaton walked carefully down the hallway and tried to hide Tenna from his employees, not that any would willingly come up to Mettaton after his mental breakdown a few minutes before. He even saw a pippins notice him from the corner of his eye, then run off in the opposite direction.

 

 

Mettaton opened the door to his dressing room and placed Tenna down on his vanity. "Sit tight, it'll be ready in a moment."

 

 

Tenna looked up at Mettaton with a sudden surge of curiosity. Mettaton dug around in his closet, shoving clothes aside, throwing things out, god how much stuff did he shove in there??

 

 

"There it is!" Mettaton exclaimed. He had pulled out a boombox from lord knows where, and a small CD case. Mettaton walked over to the vanity and placed it next to Tenna. "This is an old family tradition," Mettaton popped a CD titled "spookwave 2" into the boombox and pressed play. The music that played was a slow, calming one.

 

 

Mettaton scooped Tenna up and placed him on the floor, then laid down next to him. "Its called 'laying on the ground and feeling like garbage'. Napstablook and I used to do this every day."

 

 

Mettaton didn't say anything else after that, leaving them in a comfortable silence as the soft music played. This was…exactly what Tenna needed. He wanted to be alone while he sulked, but something about Mettaton being there made it better. It was nice to share misery with someone, even if they weren't exactly "miserable" like him.

 

 

Tenna felt the room around him begin to shrink as they laid together. Staring at the ceiling, he moved his hand over to Mettatons and intertwined their fingers. Mettaton smiled and turned his head to look at Tenna, who was about the same size as he was at this point.

 

 

"Tenna…" Mettaton scooted closer to him. "Please never pull something like that again."

 

 

"I'm sorry…" Tenna shrunk a bit. Of course Mettaton would be mad, he had every right. Tenna was just being-

 

 

"Oh no no dear, I'm not mad! I was worried. Everybody was!" Mettaton shifted to his side and rested his head on his arm. "At least invite me to sulk next time."

 

 

-ridiculous. Its Mettaton, he had nothing to worry about. Believing this with his whole heart and soul was hard, but he knew better by now. They've been together for months, and Mettaton was always there for him without fail. Mettaton would never be mad at him over something so trivial.

 

 

Which made Tenna realize something else. All of this sulking he does, all of his insecurities and doubts, drag Mettaton down. Tenna is a dead weight chained to the ankle of a superstar who deserves more.

 

 

Tenna sat up and looked down at Mettaton. The way his hair fell slightly off his face, revealing the eye he insisted on hiding so much. He had been wearing a matching suit with Tenna, with a little "MTT" charm pinned to his left breast. Even after crying and tearing up the entire studio looking for Tenna, he was breathtaking.

 

 

He deserved to have someone by his side who was worthy of him. He deserved to be severed from the bond that dragged him into the depths until he was crushed under the pressure.

 

 

"You really don't have to-"

 

 

Tenna was about to tell Mettaton to leave when the world around them suddenly changed into what looked like the inside of a galaxy. Tenna looked left and right several times as Mettaton giggled at him and pulled him back down by his shirt collar.

 

 

"For the last time, I want to. I'm here because I want to be here," Mettatons smile was like a beacon of hope to Tenna. Something to look forward to after a stressful filming, or after a bad day. Something to think about as he lit a cigarette. "It'll take a lot more than a bad day to get rid of me, darling!"

 

 

Tenna was on his back once again and staring off at where the ceiling used to be. Was this..effecting the rest of the studio? He hoped not. He liked the idea of this being a special moment between him and Mettaton that nobody else got to taste.

 

 

"…You're wonderful. I don't- Mettaton I don't-" Tenna shook as he held back more sobs. He was already pathetic enough, could he not go five minutes without making it worse?

 

 

Mettaton wrapped his arms tight around Tenna and pulled him in close. "You deserve the world."

 

 

Mettaton took the advantage of Tenna being smaller to easily kiss him on the side of his head (something he could never do at their normal heights unless Tenna was sitting)

 

 

"And you deserve your show," Mettaton shifted Tennas head so he could kiss him on his screen. He noticed the CRT slipping from his grasp as he began to grin. "And you deserve your crew," a kiss to the nose, a kiss to the side of his face. "And you deserve to be with me, whether you think so or not sweetheart."

 

 

Mettaton was everything to him.

 

 

Tenna tried not to squeal from glee as he finally reached his full size. Mettaton always knew what was best for him, and he was good at making sure Tenna knew it.

 

 

A bad day is just a bad day.

 

 

He'd overcome it.

 

 

He just needed some help.

 

 

"How are we feeling now, darling?" Mettaton didn't want to get up yet, but he knew Tenna. His work stops when he's dead. He'd want to be back up and writing next weeks script ASAP!

 

 

Tenna sat up and looked down at himself. What was upsetting him seemed so silly in hindsight! Who needed that little mailman when he had someone much better?

 

 

…It wasn't that simple.

 

 

He needed to stop thinking about it entirely! Just focus in on-

 

 

That wasn't simple either.

 

 

Mettaton tilted his head and put a hand on Tennas. "How about we get out of here?"

 

 

"Where would we go?" Tenna always felt so calm around Mettaton. The worst of his breakdowns would slowly melt away whenever Mettaton entered his sight, he trusted the man with every fiber of his being. If Mettaton thought that leaving for the day was best for him, then who was he to disagree?

 

 

"Where do you want to go?" Of course Mettaton would leave it up to him. He was always so considerate…

 

 

Tenna didn't deserve him.

 

 

It burned to think about how he's just wasting Mettatons precious time.

 

 

A bad day is just a bad day. A bad day is just a bad day. A bad day is just a bad day.

 

 

"Can we..go home?" Relaxing on the couch with Mettaton…maybe they could read a book together, it sounded so nice. It wouldn't be wasting his time if they did something that could occupy them both. Is that how it worked?

 

 

"Only if you drive!" Mettaton burst into a fit of giggles. "Of course dear, let me clean this up."

 

 

Something Tenna had found out the hard way was that Mettaton didn't have a license. It was revoked for…reckless driving. Fork found in kitchen. It was something they discussed on their way to the mall while visiting Mettatons cousins, something Tenna wish he knew before he let Mettaton drive them all the way out to Hometown.

 

 

Mettaton popped the disc out of the boombox and then hastily shoved it back into the closet, which answered Tennas question of how he had so much stuff in there. Tenna finally fully stood up and Mettaton took his hand, leading him out to the parking lot like he were a lost child.

 

 

Tenna was trying to focus solely on Mettaton. Think of all the good he has right now instead of the bad he's been through in the past. He knows none of it would happen again, Mettaton was due to stay and Tenna knew he would, but the doubt ate at him until he was nothing.

 

 

He slid into the drivers seat of his car. Driving was good! It was a nice way to clear his mind, and all of his focus went to what was happening on the road.

 

 

Until he began to remember events that took place in cars.

 

 

Late nights driving through the city just because they could, the smell of cigars and cologne, banter and laughter, promises that weren't kept.

 

 

Matching red suits.

 

 

Tenna looked at Mettaton. Black hair, expensive perfume, all the times he'd tease Tenna, all the times he'd make a promise.

 

 

His red suit and yellow tie.

 

 

They were halfway home when Tenna finally realized what had set him off, what had caused hours of painful memories and tears. It wasn't for no reason, it wasn't because he was just being dramatic or sentimental. Its because he was reliving…

 

 

Mettaton meant well, he always did. His friends and family were the most important thing in the world to him. He was always trying to make it better, always trying to find a solution or something nice to say. This time, it had backfired. Horribly so.

 

 

Mettaton he wasn't- like Spamton. Was he? No, Mettaton wouldn't leave, he wasn't selfish.

 

 

Parallels don't mean anything! They're just a simple coincidence.

 

 

Tenna hadn't realized he didn't pull into his own home until he heard Mettatons confused voice next to him.

 

 

"I thought you wanted to go home," Mettaton had a whimsical expression, as if he just realized something very amusing.

 

 

Tenna had driven to Mettatons penthouse.

 

 

"Oh- well- yours was closer!" Tenna was a horrible liar, but Mettaton didn't say anything about it. He smiled and opened his door.

 

 

"Well its a good thing I brought my keys," Mettaton giggled and waited for Tenna to exit the car. Once he did, Mettaton wrapped his arm around Tennas and strided forward to his apartment.

 

 

…

 

 

Tenna felt so much better once they were inside. Mettatons apartment was very open and wide, but it was cozy. He always had candles lit, and items about that made it feel like an actual home. Tenna hated returning to his after going to Mettatons. It felt so…lonely.

 

 

Mettatons favorite place to sit was a shelf built into a window, he had decorated it with lights and cushions and was always there whenever Tenna would make a surprise visit. Most of his personal items were on the shelf, like his headphones and a few books. It was the first place he went to whenever he'd come home.

 

 

Not this time. Mettaton ran to his closet to get the suit off. "Darling, the suit idea was cute, but I really can't keep it up!" He neatly hung up the jacket. "I adore the suit, but its so stuffy. Its all I could think about! I wonder if they got my size wrong…"

 

 

Tenna felt overjoyed hearing this. Then he felt guilty for being so happy. He should want to match with Mettaton, he should want to look like an item you couldn't separate.

 

 

It was just too painful.

 

 

"Uh- that's okay!" Tenna suddenly thought of a compromise. "We can get you a new and improved suit!" He sat down on Mettatons bed as he changed inside of the closet. "One that fits you better, one that screams Mettaton! We could always use more razzle-dazzle on TV Time!"

 

 

Mettaton exited the closet wearing nothing but his shoulder blades and some slippers. "Theres my Tenna!" he pulled the CRT down without warning to kiss him.

 

 

"Wowza!" Tenna exclaimed once they broke apart. Mettaton fell into a hysterical fit of laughter and climbed up onto the bed next to him. "What?? Whats so funny??"

 

 

"You!" Mettaton kissed him again, wrapping his arms around Tennas head and dragging him backwards onto the bed so he was on top of Mettaton. "You're such a dork."

 

 

Tennas head had cleared completely as he was dragged down and held so closely. Then he was confused. Did…was that an insult?

 

 

"Don't look so crestfallen!" Mettaton stroked the edge of Tenna screen. "I love you for it."

 

 

"Oh." Tenna went silent, then a big grin came across his face. "You mean it?"

 

 

"Do I have to say it a hundred times?" Mettaton kissed him, this time much longer. He held Tenna like he were precious cargo, or a fragile vase passed down generations. The thing is, Mettaton absolutely would. He'd tell Tenna he loved him until his voice broke. He'd sit here for the rest of his life saying he loved Tenna without a single complaint.

 

 

Mettatons apartment felt more like a home to Tenna than his own house. He wanted to stay here in Mettatons bed until his components fried. He even began to keep some of his own clothes in Mettatons closet for unplanned visits, just like this one.

 

 

Truthfully, home was wherever Mettaton was.

 

 

Tenna managed to escape the kiss and he awkwardly nuzzled into Mettaton. It would be so nice to come home together every day, and wake up together. Some of Tennas best memories with Mettaton happened in this very apartment. Whether it be comforting one another, or boiling milk in the tea pot and breaking it (long story), it always came back to laying in this bed.

 

 

Why Mettaton chose him would forever be a mystery. Tenna still thought he was undeserving of someone as wonderful as Mettaton, and yet it pained him to try to imagine a world where he wasn't by Tennas side. His life changed when Mettaton showed up. He was happy, he was energetic in a way that wasn't fabricated. Mettaton had proven time and time again that he would never leave. Tenna has learned to be more open, that everything would be okay. Truly, Mettaton was the light of his life. You could not have one without the other.

 

 

They've been alone, they've been lost, they've been misunderstood, they've been scared. They know what its like to feel hopeless, to feel depressed, to feel…abandoned.

 

 

Now, they know what its like to feel complete, to feel found, to feel understood, to feel happy.

 

To feel…

 

 

 

"I love you too."

Chapter 10: Please DO touch that dial, I'm dying here!

Summary:

Tenna gets a new screen and witnesses a murder

Notes:

Im sorry this took like a week. I spent 3 days learning raise up your bat on guitar. No joke. 3 days straight. I'd blink and it would be 8 pm and i'd be writhing in back pain. I have the lyrics stuck in my head. (also I got the ao3 writers curse in the form of an ongoing identity crisis but thats neither here nor there)

Then the spamton brainrot got me out of nowhere. Suddenly I needed to headcanon and write him or else i'd die. he'll be back next chapter

You all better be prepared for chapter 11 because I dont kiss the bricks I throw

Mettatons apartment was a hot mess. Boxes everywhere, closet cleared and clothes thrown aside, his laptop got lost along the way as he moved stuff to make more room for more boxes.

 

 

His kitchen was the only place unaffected by the mayhem, and that's because Tenna barely kept anything for his kitchen. He never ate, so he never bothered. That's where Mettaton sat as he waited for Tenna to come back with the last of the boxes.

 

 

Mettaton never expected he'd be sharing his space with anybody, until Tenna. His apartment, while large, was only suited for one. He only had enough things to satisfy himself, and nobody else.

 

 

So in a way he's grateful that Tenna has so much stuff. At the same time, where the hell are they going to be putting it?

 

 

The clothes were easy enough to arrange, Mettatons closet was a walk in with more space than he knew what to do with, he'd just have to rearrange it. Which is what he should be doing right now instead of sitting and procrastinating.

 

 

He did not want to do all of that alone, though.

 

 

He'd let Tenna take lead in sorting through his ridiculous amount of items. Mettaton would of course help, but he'd prefer to stand at the sidelines and be like a cheerleader.

 

 

The elevator dinged, and Tenna stepped out with the biggest smile on his face Mettaton had never seen him so happy to be doing anything until now. It almost made him forget the dread of unpacking and sorting.

 

 

"Finally!" Mettaton left the kitchen as he heard the elevator arrive, and was standing at the bottom of the steps that lead to the main part of his apartment. "I cleared out the closet and opened a few of the boxes."

 

 

Mettaton took a box from Tenna and felt an electric current surge through their hands. "Goodness dear, keep that up and you'll be short circuiting!" Mettaton jabbed as he looked at the label on the box- books. Tenna had hundreds of books, Mettaton had to buy a bookshelf to put by the couch. It was almost ironic.

 

 

"Sorry! I'm just so excited! Aren't you?" Tennas screen was unusually bright, Mettaton had to shield his eyes because of how overwhelming it became concerningly fast.

 

 

"Of course I am!" Tennas screen only got brighter as Mettaton said this. "Darling, I think you need to sit down for a moment."

 

 

"I'm fine!" Tenna began pacing around Mettatons apartment like it were the best place in the world to be. "I can help you unpack, or put things away, or sort through-"

 

 

A loud pop was heard, and the light illuminating from Tennas screen was out.

 

Mettaton ran to Tennas side, who was still standing and seemingly conscious. "Tenna?!" Mettaton extended his arms to hold Tennas head in place and look at his screen. Tenna stumbled forward a bit and clasped his hands down on Mettatons shoulders.

 

"What the heck just happened?!? Did the power go out?" Tenna tried to look around, but was prevented by Mettatons firm grasp. "Mettaton??"

 

The CRT wiggled in the smaller robots grasp to try to get away out of confusion. "Tenna please hold still, your screen it-"

 

"IT WHAT?? Did it crack?? SHATTER?!?" Tenna let go of Mettaton to try and feel his screen, did something hit him? Was that the strange feeling?

 

Mettaton sighed as he gave up trying to keep Tenna still and let go of him. "No, it went out. Like a light."

 

Tenna kept feeling his screen to make sure Mettaton was 100% without a shadow of a doubt right.

 

To Tennas dismay, he was.

 

"WHAT DO WE DO?? Am I broken forever??" Tenna began pacing again, this time he seemed much more off balance.

 

"You're not-" Mettaton grabbed onto Tennas arms and yanked him back. "Sit down and let me take a look at it, panicking doesn't help us dear!"

 

"Sit WHERE?!"

 

…That was a very good question. Most of Mettatons apartment was a mess, and Mettaton would have trouble reaching Tennas screen if he sat on the couch.

 

"Stand still, okay? Don't move an inch. I'll be back," Mettaton slowly let go of Tenna.

 

"WAIT! Where are you going??" Tenna stumbled forward to chase after Mettaton, but stopped once he almost fell screen-first onto the floor. Then he'd really be screwed.

 

"Tenna," Mettatons voice was very firm. "I said to stay still."

 

Tenna took a deep breath and straightened himself out. He trusted Mettaton, he could wait a bit. He could be perfectly still! Like a statue!

 

Even though he couldn't see.

 

Something like this has never happened before! Tennas been excited many many times, and not once has his screen burned bright enough to burn itself out! Is this even a repair that can be fixed?? For the love of GOD where is METTATON???

 

Tenna heard footsteps approaching and felt his shoulders relax. He hadn't even noticed they were tense.

 

"Tenna?" Mettatons sweet voice was soothing to Tenna, pulling him (mostly) out of his panic. Mettaton could fix anything wrong with Tenna so far, whats a little screen mishap?

 

"I'm- I'm here!" Tenna felt Mettatons arms wrap around his torso to lead him into the main room. "Uh- Well obviously I'm here! I meant- metaphorically?" he laughed nervously.

 

"Mentally?" Tenna couldn't see it, but he could hear the smile in Mettatons teasing voice. It was nice to imagine…

 

Oh god, what if he could never see Mettatons smile again??? How will he host TV Time if he's completely blind??

 

"Okay, follow my lead very carefully. I cleared out some space for you to lay," Mettaton used the entirety of both his arm extensions to wrap around Tennas whole body.

 

"You're not giving me much of a choice here, jeez!" Tenna tried to make himself feel better with humor, but that horrible sizzling deep in his wires just wouldn't stop.

 

Mettaton rolled his eyes (Tenna imagined it and would be smiling like a dork if his screen weren't off) and guided Tenna onto the cold tile floor, the CRT jumping a bit as he was forced to make full contact with it. He still wasn't used to being able to feel, even after all of these months.

 

He felt Mettaton climb on top of him and sit on his chest. Tenna began to overheat at the mental image of Mettaton hovering over him- he shoved those thoughts away before they caused deeper issues. Save that for later, Tenna!

 

Mettaton rotated his head, pushing and pulling on certain parts. It was uncomfortable, but Tenna stayed still. He trusted Mettaton.

 

The blooks had a CRT in their living room (That he avoided looking at while he was visiting. It felt wrong) which means that Mettaton has experience! He was in good hands! He had no reason to panic!

 

The sizzling in his wires still didn't go away.

 

"I'll have to turn you off for this, dear," Mettatons voice sounded so..worried? Was that a bad sign??

 

"What are you going to do??" Tenna felt Mettaton get off of his chest, and he took that as an invitation to sit up. Not that it helped with anything, he still couldn't see. He was blind. Probably forever.

 

Tenna felt Mettaton gently stroke the casing on his screen. "Don't worry your pretty little head! I know how to fix you," Mettaton kissed Tenna on the casing where he just had his thumbs. The sizzling in Tennas wires died down finally. "You need a new screen."

 

The sizzling came right back.

 

"Do they even make my kind of screen anymore?? What if you can't find what I need??" Tenna began shouting as he panicked, his antennas drooping over his screen.

 

Mettaton firmly grabbed onto Tennas hands and squeezed them tight. "I will find what you need, and it will be okay," he kissed Tenna on the top of his screen. "I promise."

 

"But what if-"

 

"No more what ifs, darling!" Mettaton cut Tenna off like he could read the CRTs mind. Tenna could feel Mettaton let go and move his hand to Tennas screen. If he really tried, it was like he could see Mettaton in front of him. The tender look on his face, his pink eyes shining with that hopeful glint he always had when comforting Tenna, his soft smile.

 

God, he was perfect.

 

"How long will you be gone?" Tennas voice sounded so small and defeated, but Mettaton could recognize that sliver of hope it held. How despite its shaking, it had a little light ringing within.

 

"I won't even take an hour, I promise," Tenna heard Mettaton shift- he was standing up. "Do you want to stay here, or should I clear off my bed?"

 

"Can you…turn me off right now?" Tenna would be fine alone normally, but the idea of sitting in total nothingness… "I just- I- its so…dark."

 

Tenna felt arms around his neck and a kiss to his screen. "Absolutely, darling!" Mettatons hand moved to the bottom of Tennas head- his 'chin' if you will, and hovered over a very specific dial. "Hang tight, okay?"

 

Tenna nodded, another kiss was placed on his screen, and then he was out.

 

 

…

 

 

Mettaton rummaged around in a storage closet he rarely touched, let alone thought about. It was somewhere he kept things from his past neatly tucked away, old diaries, gifts from his cousins, guitars he never played anymore. Everything he brought from the Blook house to keep with him that he found himself growing out of as he became more confident in who he was.

 

Among these items, was a little pink CRT television decorated with stickers (and a wad of gum smashed onto the back from Mew)

 

Mettaton tucked it away neatly once he got his flat screen, always planning on bringing it back home to place back into his room. However, he felt weird with it around when his boyfriend was a literal CRT.

 

So it stayed put.

 

Mettaton hauled it out of the closet and returned to the main room where Tennas unconscious body was propped up against the wall.

 

Repairing Tenna was nothing Mettaton hadn't done before. It was something he would volunteer to do again and again, always checking on his repaired wires and trying to smooth out dents and divots, discreetly replacing old screws with new ones. It was one of those things that came naturally to Mettaton at this point in their relationship.

 

But he had never opened the inside of Tennas head.

 

He hauled the bulky CRT onto his lap and turned him over. He knew what to do, the Blooks always had older tech in their house, and Mettaton would always be appointed as the repair guy (aka, he drew the short straw).

 

He knew what not to touch, where to discharge, what to unscrew.

 

Something about it being Tenna, though…

 

He didn't want to mess anything up.

 

Removing the full back, Mettaton got a good look into Tennas…brain? He held his breath as he moved Tenna onto his stomach and awkwardly positioned his head to be sitting up. There was a giant metal casing protecting the screen, and in the middle of it directly on the top was a rubber casing with a red wire coming out of it.

 

He needed to discharge the electricity from Tenna so that neither of them got shocked.

 

Mettaton had plenty of items in his repair kit that would be useful, most notably, screwdrivers and wires.

 

Mettatons shoulders tensed as he wrapped a wire around a flathead, then connected the other side of the wire to a metal piece just under the casing protecting Tennas screen. This was always the part that scared him, messing up discharging. It wouldn't kill Mettaton, nor would it kill Tenna, but the shock would surely be enough to put their bodies out of commission until Mettaton either left his body, or somebody found them.

 

Carefully, Mettaton slid the screwdriver under the rubber casing and touched it to the prongs hidden underneath. No shock, no response from Tenna. He felt his shoulders relax as he exhaled a sigh of relief.

 

Mettaton removed the wire, and grabbed a bigger tool to unscrew the bolts of the metal casing.

 

Tenna wasn't built like your average CRT. He had certain additions, improvements to make him work better. To make him have a true personality. All of it was hidden within his head.

 

Extra motherboards, wires that weren't present in your average CRT. Mettaton found himself very entranced. Perhaps, he should ask Alphys about some of this stuff. She'd know about it.

 

He wanted to touch the wires, see what they'd do. See if they'd shock him, or elicit a response from Tenna. Maybe they could explore some of these possibilities on a day that they're both in bed together…

 

Mettaton unscrewed the last bolt from Tenna, and removed the metal casing at last. He had to be very delicate, so as not to damage the "neck" it was attached to, made almost entirely of glass and hot wires.

 

Tenna was, for lack of better words, gutted on Mettatons floor.

 

Mettaton did the same to his pink CRT, and prayed it fit Tennas measurements. He wasn't about to just leave him splayed out like this to go grab a spare part.

 

He got a really good idea at just how different Tennas insides were from a regular CRT once they were put side-by-side. Tenna, despite his age, was state of the art. Whomever made him put a lot of passion and hard work into his design and mechanics.

 

Too bad they didn't stick around to see just how wonderful he'd become.

 

It was something Mettaton had wondered about a lot, but he never brought it up with Tenna in case it was a touchy subject. Tenna claimed to not remember who made him, that he was just plopped into life without help or warning.

 

It made Mettaton really pissed.

 

Who could abandon someone as amazing and goofy as Tenna? His own creator gone without a trace. Not even a logo placed anywhere on Tennas body for a clue as to who was his…parent?

 

It just didn't feel right.

 

Mettaton huffed as he took the screen off of the other CRT. He'd have to dwell on that later.

 

Luckily, it was a perfect match, and Mettaton got to work on putting Tenna back together.

 

 

…

 

 

Light hit Tenna like a truck. In a dazed state, he sat up and frantically looked around, causing Mettaton to be knocked backwards and onto the tile floor.

 

"Oh! I'm so sorry! Are you-" Tenna stopped himself as he noticed the fuzz ever present in his world was…eradicated.

 

Mettaton sat up and smiled- Tenna finally saw his smile. "I'm fine dear! You didn't shove me too hard!"

 

Tenna didn't say anything as he stared at Mettaton. He was…

 

He could see.

 

He could see ever detail and screw on Mettatons face, he could see across the room to the window, and even outside of that window into the city!

 

He could see down the hall, he could see the details of Mettatons blankets.

 

"Darling?" Mettatons voice broke his trance, the smaller robot scooting closer to Tenna to assess him. Did he mess up? Could Tenna still not see?

 

"Why are you in HD?!?!"

 

Mettaton blinked and stared up at Tenna.

 

"What??"

 

"HIGH DEFINITION!" Tenna didn't mean to shout, but he hadn't been able to see this good since- since-

 

"Tenna!" Mettaton exclaimed. "Have you- been blind?? God, I let you drive!"

 

"I know!" Tenna grabbed onto Mettatons shoulders as he smiled like a kid on Christmas. "And I was still the better driver!"

 

"Hey!" Mettaton giggled and shoved Tenna away playfully. (Tenna was hurt for a moment at this, but that went away once he realized Mettaton was only messing with him)

 

Tenna pulled Mettaton in close and held him there for a long time, just looking at him. His hair, it had a pink sheen in it, like it wasn't fully black. His 'skin' was more of an off-grey than a true white. There were screws on his face that were just slightly imperfect. The way his eyes were hooded, the way his nose was curved. Tenna could finally fully see Mettaton. Every single detail etched on his beautiful face was burned into Tennas memory.

 

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," Mettaton kissed Tennas screen, then wiggled out of his grasp and stood up. "Come on, we need to unpack."

 

Mettaton walked away, gently curling his finger around Tennas antennas as he passed, the CRTs screen turned bright pink.

 

Tenna stood up, and looked to the left. On the floor, was his old screen. Nothing too bad!

 

Then he saw the CRT and felt a shiver through his wires.

 

Mettaton hadn't fully put it back, so Tenna was staring at its guts on the floor. Was that…what he looked like on the inside?? Oh god, it was horrible!

 

Tenna left the room to run after Mettaton. He didn't want to be in there with that crime scene any longer!

 

(And he needed someone to clean it up for him.)

Chapter 11: Everything Stays

Summary:

But it still changes.

Notes:

Dude I started trade school and my instructor quit 3 days in. 3 days in. guys am I fried or am I fried.

Anyway I spent like a week watching adventure time in its entirety and then got massive writers block so..ooops. Sorry for all the spamton centric stuff, but he's important to all of this big time.

Im in machining and the workshop is in the same hall as all the automotive classes, which means by this time next year I'll be able to write 100% accurate robots and spamtons car special interest. Okay not really but shh.

ALSO THANKS FOR ALL THE COMMENTS I LOVE YOU GUYS. I NEVER KNOW HOW TO REPLY JUST KNOW THAT THEY GIVE ME LIFE.

Underneath the bed was everything he had ever owned. Comics, music discs, model cars, painting supplies. He kept it neatly hidden from the world, from those who may try to take it from him.

 

He found himself become a bit of a hoarder. He kept everything he found, and tucked it under his bed. It was his personal getaway.

 

He held a white car in his hands, half painted red. He stuck his tongue out as he focused on making it perfect, flawless.

 

It was a hobby he was ashamed of. He shouldn't be focusing so hard on something so stupid and small. He should be out there, just like the rest of them.

 

The final stroke was applied to the car, and like magic he was riding in it, wind blowing in his face as the city passed him by. He felt free. He was happy. He reached out his hand to place it on the man next to him-

 

The car was gone, and so was he. Replaced by a dark room, and a ringing phone. He panicked, and began to tear up the room looking for it. He had to answer, he couldn't ignore it! He'd be dead!

 

But there was no phone.

 

Only a smashed CRT.

 

 

 

Spamton shot out of his sleep and clutched his chest. He inhaled a few deep breaths as he took in his surroundings. He was laying on a pile of pillows and wrapped up in a knitted blanket. There were fairy lights hanging from the ceiling, and a closed laptop at the other end of the shelf. The window was open, letting in a soft breeze that the curtains swayed in.

 

"Jeez! If I knew you'd jump up like that I wouldn't have shook you so hard!" Mew smiled as she hopped up onto the shelf next to Spamton.

 

Spamton was…safe.

 

"It ain't your [NO FAULT INSURANCE]," Spamton picked up his glasses off of a pillow and put them on. "I was having [BAD] dreams."

 

"Again?" Mews concern was genuine, and only made Spamtons stomach churn even more. "Well well well! Maybe this'll cheer you up!"

 

Mew pulled out her phone, and Spamton scooted next to her to look over her shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world to him. She opened her text messages and then shoved the phone into Spamtons face "Look! Look! Look!"

 

Spamton blinked and held the phone steady as Mew shook, it was from….Mettaton.

 

Spamton suddenly didn't like where this would be going.

 

"Did you read it? Did you read it? Did you read it?!" Mew was practically vibrating with excitement.

 

"[HOLD] still!" Spamton took the phone from Mews grasp and scooted away from her, he had to use one of his hands to shove her back as she reached for her phone.

 

Mettaton had asked Mew if she wanted to join him at a party…tonight. Tenna would be there.

 

Spamton clutched the phone tight and felt his face burn red. He really didn't want to be anywhere Mettaton would be, and especially not if he would just be guarding Tenna the whole time.

 

He wanted to stay here, as far away from them as possible.

 

With Mew.

 

Mew, who was so happy she was shaking and squealing. Mew, who had woken him up just to tell him this.

 

Spamton felt a zap through her chest. It was such a familiar sensation…but she could never put a word to it.

 

"I'll [GO GO GO]" Spamton flicked out his fingers in the shape of guns. "But only if [HOCHI MAMA] are there!"

 

"Ugh! Ew!" Mew shoved Spamton away and broke out into a fit of giggles. "You suck!"

 

Maybe, if he stayed by her side the entire night, he would be okay.

 

 

…

 

 

Usually, the limo was packed with just Mettaton and Tenna in there because of the TVs absurd height.

 

Adding in Mew was like trying to shove a gas particle into a solid.

 

"Darling, please sit still. You're stressing me out," Mettaton had a handheld mirror in his palm as he checked his makeup. He couldn't go walking out of the limo looking like a hot mess! That was for after the party.

 

"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!" Mew dug her nails into the seat of the car. Tenna was next to her and feeling increasingly unsafe. "You've just never invited me to anything before! This is HUGE!"

 

"Thats because you're rarely on your best behavior," Mettaton shut the mirror and glared playfully at Mew.

 

"Its like you want me to fight you!" Mew crossed her arms and huffed, but she couldn't manage to make the smile on her face fade.

 

The limo came to a stop, and Mew scrambled to be the first one out (pushing Mettaton along the way)

 

This event was on the more formal side of things, so unfortunately no cute jackets or leather for Mettaton. Instead, he had a very long and sparkly black dress that clung tightly to his figure, and a pink feather scarf wrapped around his neck. His eyeshadow matched the dress, and his lipstick was the exact same color as the scarf.

 

Tenna had been matching with Mettaton, wearing a very flashy and glittery dark suit, and a pink tie to match Mettatons scarf. He interlocked elbows with Mettaton as they made their way inside, waving to cameras.

 

Mew stuck out among them. She was wearing a bright pink poofy dress that made her look like a cupcake, and her hair was down and straightened with charms clipped to it. A giant bag was over her shoulder and she clung onto the strap of it protectively.

 

Mettaton and Tenna finally caught up with Mew, who only stopped because the entrance was packed.

 

"Alright, whats the game plan?" Mew turned to Mettaton and crossed her arms.

 

"Game plan?"

 

"You know! Where we go, what we do, are we sticking together the whole time?" Mew huffed. "Jeez! Every party needs a game plan so its not overwhelming!"

 

Mettaton rolled his eyes. "Just meet back here at…uh…12!"

 

"Promise you won't be too drunk to remember that?" Mew teased, alluding to the night she had to come pick their sorry asses up from a party.

 

"You are so difficult!"

 

Tenna had never felt more awkward in his life as they bickered. He's learned this is how they showed their love, but something about it made him feel so…

 

Tenna was brought out of his thoughts by Mettaton gently pulling his arm. Mew had seemingly scurried off without Tenna noticing.

 

"Come on darling, lets go have some fun," Mettaton winked at him as he led Tenna through the crowd. "No drinking."

 

"Alright alright, jeez! I won't drink!" Tenna smiled like an idiot. Mettaton tilted his head and looked up at Tenna with an expression that screamed 'yeah, right'. "I already said I wouldn't!"

 

Mettaton giggled lowly. "I needed to be sure."

 

 

 

Mew, ever the hypocrite, found herself sitting at a bar and ordering two drinks.

 

"You can come out now," Mew lightly tapped her bag, Spamton shuffled inside before popping his head out and looking around.

 

"No [HOT SHIT]?" Spamton sunk back into the bag slightly, if Mettaton saw him he'd be dead. Even if he wouldn't kill Spamton in front of everybody, it knew he'd hunt him down later.

 

Mew sighed and grabbed Spamton by the shirt collar, then put him on the stool next to her. The puppet kicked and squirmed in her grasp, but accepted its fate. Mew made him match with her, getting him a pink suit that had details in it that matched the charms in her hair. He would have fought back but…uh….he just didn't feel like it!

 

Mew slid him a glass of whatever drink she had ordered, and Spamton was hit with an uncomfortable deja vu.

 

"You've gotta lighten up!" Mew gulped down her drink like it was water.

 

Spamton rolled his eyes. He didn't know why he let himself get lectured by such a brash girl.

 

"[SILENCE] you [KITTY CAT]" Spamton nudged Mew, then took a sip of his drink.

 

He immediately recoiled and began coughing.

 

"pFFT-" Mew began to hysterically laugh as Spamton tried to get the taste of whiskey off his tongue. "You're weak, man!"

 

"You [@#$%@]!" Spamton shivered violently. "You did that [ON] purpose!"

 

Mew put her head down on the bar as she giggled nonstop, snorting and gasping for breath.

 

"Its not my fault you're too easy! You didn't even ask what it was!" Mew wiped her face with the palm of her hand, then fell back into a fit of giggles.

 

"Its not [LAUGH TRACK]!" Spamton shoved the drink away, the glass almost toppling over and spilling down the bar.

 

Mew was always trying to get under Spamtons skin. She'd hold things over his head, tease him, trick him.

 

Oddly enough, Spamton found it endearing.

 

He wanted her to be mean to it.

 

…Spamton felt that zap in his chest. He almost wanted to chase after it.

 

He grabbed the cup with a death grip and forced the whiskey down his throat.

 

"Woah! I was just messing with you, don't hurt yourself-" Mew reached her hand out to Spamton, but it batted her away.

 

"Don't underestimate [#1 RATED SALESMAN 1997]" Spamton quipped, trying his very best to hide the grimace that spread across his face.

 

"You're so full of shit!" Mew leaned over the bar to get the bartenders attention so she could order them another round.

 

Spamton began to relax into his seat, leaning on the bar in front of him and resting his chin in his arms. He looked so stupid, matching pink and all girly with Mew. He had little ruffles and see through poofy fabric at the edges of his jacket. He looked like a damn doll.

 

Mew said she wouldn't let him leave the house "looking like a corpse"

 

Spamton didn't even lift a finger.

 

 

It brought back…memories. He wasn't sure if they were good or not.

 

Memories of being a kid and standing for hours as Orange accidentally pricked him with a needle for the umpteenth time. Sitting in a dress outside and getting rained on…Blue making him soup when he got sick from it.

 

Something about being off drugs for so long made it easier to remember them as they were. Spamton wasn't sure how much she liked it.

 

 

He felt Mew tap his shoulder, bringing him out of his thoughts. "I got you a weaker drink so you don't throw up on me!" her smile was full of fangs and chipped teeth. "I'd kill you if you did."

 

Spamton smiled weakly and took whatever she just slid him. It was green.

 

 

Flashes in Spamtons mind, a feeling of horror, running, tripping, sinking, drowning. Nobody around to see it. Nobody around to save him.

 

…U n t i l…

 

 

Mew was no longer smiling as she noticed Spamtons glasses fog into static. "Hey- uhm- I'll get you something else," she gently took the glass from his hands, Spamton still spaced out as it slipped from his fingers.

 

He heard a high and familiar whine that made his head hurt, and Spamtons eyes widened.

 

He ripped Mews bag open and dove inside just in time.

 

"And you get mad at me!" Mettatons smooth and gentle voice filled the space as he sat next to Mew.

 

"I'm allowed to be hard on you! Don't forget who's-"

 

"Yes yes Mew, everybody knows you're the oldest," Mettaton cut her off, then sighed deeply. "Are the drinks any good?"

 

"I just downed a whole glass of whiskey! You should have seen- I mean uh- me me ME!"

 

Spamton didn't listen in on much of the conversation after that. He wanted to get out of here. Especially once Tenna began talking.

 

This was a bad idea, and all for some girl he barely knew!

 

 

…The CRT had a natural grain to his voice, Spamton used to love just closing his eyes during rants and listening to how it popped and sparked. This would cause him to be yelled at, but it was so worth it.

 

Spamton used to lay on his chest every night and watch her favorite shows on Tenna as she fell asleep. She wondered if Mettaton did the same.

 

Spamton was such a sucker for a good animated show. She'd spend entire nights watching marathons and reruns of things she grew up on as Tenna commented on how juvenile some of her tastes were.

 

 

Spamton was brought back to the present with a protective hand placed over the bag as Mettaton moved too close for comfort.

 

He and Mew would have late nights, too.

 

They'd both be huddled under a blanket and watching some anime clearly targeted at preteen girls, or playing a video game as Mew shook her and told her she needed to 'lock in'

 

Spamton would close his eyes during her rants…

 

 

Spamton was suddenly jerked aside in the bag as Mew yanked it away from Mettaton, who just shoved her as they bantered.

 

"Yeah yeah yeah! Whatever! Your brains ruined from drugs and other gross things celebrities do!" Mew adjusted herself so that her bag was on the other side of her body and away from Mettaton.

 

The familiar whine got closer.

 

Spamton was now against Tenna.

 

"Mew!" Mettaton shoved her again, Mew barked out a laugh and pushed him back.

 

"Wait!" Tennas voice boomed, always so much louder than he intended it to be. "You can actually…do that stuff??"

 

"Tenna, darling, I've shared acid with you. Did you forget that?"

 

"Well I-" Tenna stammered. Oh god, did the kid really not know by now? Classic Tenna, making people learn the hard way. "I thought you did it just because! That stuff doesn't have any effect on me!"

 

"Ha! Keep destroying his stash, maybe then he'll quit!" Mew quipped as she leaned forward.

 

"Tenna!" Mettatons voice was only mildly upset, it lacked that viscous bite. "That stuffs expensive!"

 

Spamton would know a thing or two, but unfortunately he couldn't join the banter.

 

…That upset him a little bit. He wished he could be free from the bag and sitting next to Mew, or perhaps on the bar, and joining in with his own quips.

 

 

Another memory phased through his mind of standing on a table and blabbing away as Blue yelled at him to get down, Yellow laughing away as Pink buried their face in their hands out of embarrassment.

 

There was also that other time where he told Orange he liked a guy sitting across from them, and she ran over to tell him in a failed attempt to 'set them up'.

 

These memories have been long forgotten for years, whenever Spamton tried to think back that far he'd be met with a wall of fuzz and color.

 

All he knew was they left.

 

 

"-'re fucking with me!" Spamton tuned back in to Mew.

 

"I swear I'm not!" Tenna sounded like he was being put on trial (knowing Mew, he absolutely was). "Its completely fake! Most of my 'outer features' are there for uh…uh"

 

"Aesthetics?" Mettaton chimed in.

 

"Yeah! That! I'm nowhere near as advanced as Mettaton is," There was a crackle in Tennas voice, like the fuzz you'd hear on a VHS.

 

"You've got to meet Alphys then, she'd be able to make your nose an actual nose," Mew paused to sip her drink. "Theres also the drugs thing too, but you're not as lame as Mettaton!"

 

Spamton lifted the flap of Mews bag just enough to see out. Tenna filled his vision.

 

The CRT was leaning over the bar and towering Mew (not that she seemed to mind) and smiling as he spoke to the two cousins.

 

He seemed so comfortable. Happy.

 

He finally found that home he always wanted. It made Spamtons throat hurt. If he just- ignored the phone, if he were more competent, if he didn't run, if he didn't trip-

 

Spamton wiggled out of Mews bag and ran as fast as he could away from the trio. Drugs, alcohol, something, he needed something.

 

…He had been laying off of all of that for a few months now. Partly because of Mew, yes, but also because he remembered.

 

He remembered Tenna, he remembered his siblings, he remembered being a kid and being so hopeful. He remembered his first friend, he remembered his first favorite band.

 

He wanted to remember, even if it hurt, even if it made him want to die. He wanted to know who Spamton G Addison was, he wanted to know who the little girl who couldn't get anybody to buy her items was.

 

He just wanted to free himself from the shell he became.

 

Seeing Tenna in person, smiling with his new friends, TV Time finally being relevant. He was wearing clothes he'd always tell Spamton he wished he could own.

 

It was too much.

 

Spamton wanted to forget.

 

Spamton burst into a bathroom and looked around. Celebrity events always had someone in here doing something they weren't supposed to, Spamton would know!

 

But…nobody came in with anything. Spamton was the only person in there. He shook like a leaf and clutched his hair. He didn't- he couldn't-

 

Spamton put a hand over his mouth as tears trickled down his eyes. Tears he couldn't stop. Tears that burned. Tears that fogged up his glasses as he exhaled a scared and shaking breath.

 

 

There was that time, right after finishing an episode, that Spamton sat in Tennas dressing room with a cigar in his mouth. He didn't bother to look away as Tenna changed out of his stage clothes, into his 'I'm about to write for 12 hours' clothes. Spamton would roll his eyes and drag his feet, but he wouldn't leave. He'd stay sitting on Tennas vanity until both of them passed out.

 

 

A sob left Spamtons lips as he ducked into a stall, and sat up on the toilet so nobody could see his legs.

 

 

Spamton sighing as he finally gave into a dumb idea Tenna wanted to do for an episode.

 

"Because you love me?"

 

"Ugh- yes because I [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]"

 

 

This was a bad idea. This was the worst idea he's ever had. He wanted to forget, he wanted to go back to barely remembering what Tenna looked like.

 

Mew- she- she had good intentions but-

 

Spamton bit his hand hard to try and distract himself. He couldn't be crying in a bathroom stall like a teenage girl who just got dumped at prom- he needed to get back to Mew.

 

She always…made it better. She'd tell him something really stupid, or slug him in the arm, or scold him for running off. And he'd be better.

 

The tears wouldn't stop. He couldn't make them stop.

 

Spamton tucked into himself and sighed. Fine, so be it, he'll just rot here until he was ready to leave. Maybe he wasn't ready to face Tenna.

 

He remembered something Swatch had said-

 

 

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

 

 

Spamton nearly lept out of his skin as someone pounded at the entrance to the bathroom itself.

 

"Spam? You in there?"

 

Mew.

 

It was Mew.

 

She came looking for him.

 

In a panic, Spamton looked around for an exit. She couldn't see him like this! She couldn't even know the truth!

 

Spamton ran to a vent and began to pry it open to get the hell out of there.

 

 

…

 

 

Mettaton sighed as he leaned over a balcony, high above where he had entered with Tenna and Mew.

 

The aforementioned CRT was standing next to him with his back to the railing, the wind blew his tie to the side.

 

"Sorry about this, you can go back inside if you'd like," Mettaton smiled weakly at Tenna.

 

"And leave you here? No way!" Tenna held a decent amount of concern in his voice.

 

Mettaton…he loved being the life of the party, but he also got overwhelmed sometimes. It was part of why he invited Mew, she'd kick the crap out of anyone who got too handsy.

 

She left without explanation, and left Mettaton and Tenna to their own devices.

 

Which included unwanted touches by drunken stars.

 

Not wanting to cause a scene (or a fight) Tenna grabbed Mettatons arm and took him to the balcony, where nobody else was.

 

Mettaton felt Tenna shift closer to him and place a hand on his shoulder. "We should go home, Mew can stay the night if she'd like! I have that console in the living room, we could-"

 

"Its okay darling, really, its okay!" Mettaton straightened himself out. "I just needed to take 5."

 

Mettaton squeezed Tennas hand and gave him a reassuring smile. "I'll go get us some drinks, you stay here."

 

"What happened to no drinking?? You made me promise!" Tenna leaned down to hover over Mettaton as he teased.

 

"One drink! Thats your cutoff!" Mettaton giggled and shoved Tenna away with his finger. "I'll be back, don't wander off!"

 

Tenna leaned back on the balcony and tsk'd "Such little faith in me! I'm wounded!"

 

Mettaton rolled his eyes and reentered the party. Maybe he'd run into Mew on the way and figure out the mystery of why she suddenly had to run downstairs.

 

Knowing Mew, she probably saw a bird outside and ran to go chase it. Mettaton giggled to himself at the thought.

 

Mettaton acquired one vodka soda, and one shot of that green stuff Tenna liked. Mettaton tried it once and began coughing from how much it burned, Tenna laughing at him and patting his back, remarking about how you just have to 'get used to it'.

 

Mettaton smiled softly and put a bit more pep in his step. Maybe Tenna would let him have the last drop if he gave him the puppy eyes.

 

Tenna was in view, Mettaton noticed smoke emitting from between his fingers. Mettaton loved the smell of cigarettes.

 

Then, a vent door fell on top of his head.

 

Mettaton dropped their drinks with a loud smash as he was squished under the weight of something.

 

He flew his arms back to grab hold of whatever was on his head-

 

Oh. Someone.

 

Spamton kicked and squirmed in Mettatons grasp as the robot tried to rationalize with what the hell just happened. Mettaton took in a deep breath and walked away from where Tenna could see them, then slammed Spamton against a wall.

 

"Why won't you just leave us alone??" Mettaton hissed as he got uncomfortably close to Spamtons face, bending his nose to the side. Spamton could hear the hiss of Mettatons inner workings as they heated up and kicked into overdrive.

 

"LAY OFF THE [goods and services] [HOT SHIT]!" Spamton tried to shove Mettaton away, but was only pinned harder as a result.

 

"Lay off?" Mettaton laughed with a dangerous edge to it. "You should take your own advice, darling, really!"

 

Mettaton began to squeeze Spamton with a passionate rage in his eyes. The puppets glasses became static as he felt more than a few things within him crack. Any words it tried to squeak out would only come out as pathetic gurgles and glitching.

 

"I promised him that I'd never let you hurt him again!"

 

Spamton closed his eyes.

 

"And do you know what people are supposed to do when they make a promise?"

 

Maybe…maybe if he tried…then he could still…

 

 

. . . . .

 

 

Spamton couldn't stand that damn suit. It made him look cool and professional and whatnot, but fuck was it stuffy. He had no idea how Tenna managed to stay glued to his identical pair.

 

The moment the cameras were off and Spamton got a second to breathe, he was in the green room and discarding his jacket and button up shirt. Everyone was used to seeing Spamton in nothing but his binder and slacks!

 

Everyone but Tenna.

 

The CRT barreled into the room with a flower blooming from the tip of his nose. "Oh that show was just WONDERFUL folks! The ratings were OFF THE CHARTS!!"

 

Tenna, ever oblivious about personal space, went to go lift up Spamton to swing him around like a ragdoll. The bigshot jumped and braced to be crushed-

 

Tenna slowed down and stopped right before he would crash into Spamton, and crossed his arms.

 

"Spamton," Tennas voice was stern, like a disappointed father.

 

"[Cathode]"

 

"Put a shirt on!"

 

Spamton rolled his eyes and plopped down on one of the couches. "What, can't handle the [GOODS AND SERVICES]?"

 

Tennas screen turned bright pink as Spamton teased.

 

"This isn't your house! Have some decency!"

 

Spamton just rolled his eyes and flicked out his lighter and cigars. Tenna grumbled and frowned even more.

 

Tenna frantically looked around the room, and his eyes landed on Elnina setting up one of the video games to play with Lanino.

 

"Elnina! Help me here! Tell Spamton he's being indecent!"

 

"Elnina, tell [BOOB TUBE] he's being a prude!"

 

"I AM NOT!"

 

"You are!"

 

"You-" Tenna clenched his fists, then grabbed the discarded shirt and tried to shove it on Spamton, the smaller man yelping in surprise and dropping his lighter.

 

"Hey! Hands off the [MERCHANDISE]!" Spamton kicked at Tenna and tried to slip off the couch. The weather duo silently scooted away from them, very much used to this kind of antics.

 

Tenna picked Spamton up by the scruff like a cat and tried to shove his arm through one of the sleeves. "You do this every day!"

 

"Keep it up and I'll take the binder off too!"

 

Tennas screen turned bright red and began to sizzle as he dropped Spamton onto the couch below.

 

"I- I- I-"

 

Spamton began to laugh hysterically at Tenna as the CRT completely shut down from being flustered. "Perv!"

 

"I'M NOT A PERV!"

 

Spamton picked his lighter back up and finally lit his cigar. "Uh-huh, right right."

 

Tenna grumbled more and then sank down to sit in front of the couch next to Spamton, like a child after throwing a tantrum. Spamton put his hand on Tennas head and began stroking the casing just above his screen.

 

 

. . . . .

 

 

Spamton opened his eyes and felt a gentle breeze in his hair. For a moment, he thought he was in a car.

 

His vision finally focused, and he saw Mew crying while hovering above him.

 

"You- You- You!" Mew dug her nails into Spamtons shoulders. "You lied to me!" she tried to wipe her tears, but more kept coming. "And- and- and- you-"

 

Mew yanked Spamton into an embrace, the poor girl shook like a leaf. Spamton caught a glimpse of Mettaton standing behind her, he looked like he had been through hell and back.

 

"…You scared me," Mew let go of Spamton. "When I- Mettaton- I thought he-" Mew took a deep breath. "He told me everything. EVERYTHING!…everything…."

 

Spamton felt a sharp stab through his chest.

 

Was it guilt?

 

Remorse?

 

Why was it mixing with that zap? It was so…horribly wonderful.

 

Spamton reached out and put a hand on Mews face as she continued to fall apart. She moved her hand to shove his away…but she just couldn't do it. She didn't want to.

 

"Mew…"

 

Spamton clutched his head as more memories wormed their way into his mind. One of- Swatch- and burning-

 

"I wanted to [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]"

 

Spamton clutched his hair and pulled it, he didn't have time for his stupid- things!

 

"[HYPERLINK BLOCKED] to- to- [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]"

 

Spamton closed his eyes and pulled his hair harder.

 

"[HYPERLINK BLOCKED] [HYPERLINK BLOCKED] [HYPERLINK BLOCKED]"

 

Maybe if he just yanked hard enough, he could-

 

Mew grabbed onto Spamtons wrists (a bit harder than intended) and took them away from his head, holding them at his sides with force.

 

"You- couldn't, could you?" Mew sighed and scooted away from Spamton.

 

The puppet shook his head and brought his knees to his chin, spacing out. His eyes wandered….and wandered…then finally landed on Mettaton.

 

His dress strap was ripped and clawed, his hair was pulled and messy, his makeup was smudged and he had eyeliner running down his face.

 

Next to him was Tenna, displaying a 'no signal' screen and bars of color.

 

Mew shifted to sit next to Spamton, who only just now realized he was against the railing of a balcony. She was a mess too, but it was clear which of the cousins was winning the fight. "I uh…may have overreacted."

 

"What happened to [TRASH HEAP]?"

 

"He saw you," Mettaton finally spoke. "And he…freaked out a bit…and now we have to pay a fortune in damages."

 

Spamton smiled as he remembered something…better.

 

"Good ol' [CATHODE] always [8 HOURS REST] at parties," Spamton looked at the CRT with pity in his eyes. "He'd have [ONE] too many [It Burns! Ow! Stop! Help Me! It Burns!] and [PASS AWAY]"

 

Mettaton chuckled weakly and walked to the space next to Spamton, leaning over the balcony. Spamton stood up and climbed the railing so he could see over it.

 

"That sounds about right," Mettaton smiled, staring off into the distance below. "We have regulations when it comes to drinks now."

 

Spamton felt around his pocket for the familiar shape of a cigar pack, and a lighter. He hadn't smoked in a bit, but this was one of those times that he just needed to. He lit one cigar, and offered it to Mettaton.

 

"Oh! No, I can't inhale," Mettaton finally looked fully at Spamton. "…Thanks, though."

 

Spamton shrugged and puffed at the cigar, another wave of deja vu hitting him. He and Tenna, to nobody surprise, would have frequent smoke breaks.

 

In a way, Mettaton reminds Spamton of Tenna when he was younger.

 

"I just don't understand," Mettaton began "Why do you keep coming back? Why did you leave in the first place? Why are you with Mew? None of this makes sense, dear."

 

"I've. Been. Trying. To….Tell. You," Spamton took long pauses between each word, really really focusing on what he wanted to say so that it would come out right. "I want to- to- [PAY COMPENSATION] to- T- Ten- T- T- [TRA-]"

 

Mettaton watched Spamton struggle as guilt ate away at his gut for being so…

 

The robot put a hand on Spamton and tried to smile brightly. "Its okay, dear, I understand."

 

"Mew she…you mean a lot to her, huh?" Mettaton retracted his hand and put it back on the railing. "She was willing to kill me over you. That takes a lot," Mettaton hunched over the rail and sighed hard, his bangs flowing in the wind as the smoke from the cigar trailed over and overwhelmed his senses. "I need to get Tenna home..just- please be kind to her, okay? You'd better not hurt her."

 

Progress. This was good. He'd make it all right before Tenna had to go.

 

"I wouldn't [HOPES AND DREAMS] of it [MTT]!" Spamton put out the cigar on the railing and flicked it to the concrete below.

 

Mettaton smiled "You got my name right," the smile faded as he looked back at Tenna, still conked out from the shock and emotions. "I'll…see you sometime."

 

"[SEE] you [SOMEDAY]"

 

Spamton climbed down and was back to being face-to-face with Mew. Her face was crossed with guilt, she looked about ready to throw up. Or pull Spamton into a hug again and cry some more.

 

"Hey, look, I'm sorry for bringing you-"

 

"Don't be [RIDICULOUSNESS]! I'm [GLAD] you [DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME] me," Spamton went to go crawl into her purse, when Mew stopped him with her arm.

 

"I was actually thinking that you and I could go for a ride around town. Mostly to get our minds off this….fiasco,"

 

Its like she knew him better than he did.

 

"That would be…nice," a simple, genuine smile spread across Spamtons face. They'd be okay.

 

 

…

 

 

Mew had all the windows down and was going just a little over the speed limit as she stuck her arm out the window and sighed happily. Spamton missed driving, but he didn't mind being passenger just this once.

 

Spamton never wanted it to end, she wished the car could stay moving forever so she could see the lights passing her by and feel the wind in her hair. She missed this, she missed driving from nowhere to nowhere for no reason. It was therapeutic.

 

It was even better with Mew, who would rant, or put on music and sing loudly. He stared at the way the wind would mess up her hair, or how she'd tap on the steering wheel, the way her eyes lit up as she recognized a song, the way she kept nudging Spamton and making sharp turns. He really really lo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It reminded him of how happy he was back then, how great it was to be able to use his passion to finally get what he always wanted. He smiled and sank into his seat, clutching the belt. He could get used to this.

 

At the end of the day, everything stayed exactly where he left it. It changed, of course it would, but it was all still the same. Who was next to him was different, but the feeling stayed.

 

His old home, his old life, his family. They all stayed. He changed.

 

A particularly strong gust of wind blew through his window and hit him in the face.

 

If everything stays, then he needed to retrace his steps. Maybe then, it wouldn't be for nothing. Maybe, he could save him before it was too late.

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 1 of Secret Third Thing