Work Text:
Stinging nettle
Kris and Susie have just finished washing up and getting ready for bed, after a long night of loitering around hometown. They both wriggle into bed, savouring the closeness.
She wraps her arms around them, curling up as she rests her head on their shoulder, her snout in their hair. Her nose fills with the scent of their shampoo, she feels safe, her heart fluttering.
She starts to fall asleep, her eyes fluttering shut. For a moment she dreams something abstract, for what feels like seconds. Until she feels a tug on her tank top. It was Kris, they had rolled over to face her. “… can you… move my knife somewhere else… please…”
It was already about an hour later, was she really that tired?
She lets out a soft, deep breath before rising and stretching, yawning the biggest yawn. “Where is it now?” Her face looks serious for a moment before relaxing as Kris pulls a drawer open. Inside was a couple things, mostly just things they want to hide from Toriel. Susie eyes grow when she sees one of the other things they have in there, but doesn’t say anything about it.
She grabs the knife from the drawer and rubs Kris’ shoulder. “Stay here.” She leaves the room. Kris is left thinking about the other things in that drawer, worried that they grossed her out. Most of what they kept in there was pretty normal, rubbing alcohol, antiseptic cream, bandaids, but there were other things they kept thinking about that they kept in there. Things they felt like a creep for letting Susie see.
They start thinking about it too hard, feeling awful and perverted. They scratch at some of their scabs as they roll in bed, They’re calling themself awful names just as Susie returns.
“hey… I put it away for you.” She clambers back into bed, opening her arms for them to lean into her. They put all their weight into her chest, their arms snaking around her waist and their legs tangling around her hips. “Noelle was right, you really are clingy like a dog…” she kisses them on the forehead. She reaches underneath their shirt to rub their back, trying her best to comfort them.
“so… what’s, uh, got you feeling like this?” She mumbles. She’s worried she isn’t helping, but she also wants to know. “… I don’t know. I just am… even though I’m free of that… thing, I still… I keep thinking about hurting myself.”
Susie just lets herself wrap back around Kris. She tries her best to let Kris feel safe, however she can. Kris blushes, and mumbles a bit. “… this is gonna sound so dumb… but… would you prefer me… without the scars…? Without my… problems?”
She smiles with those stupid soft eyes and just says; “I love you, not any other made up version of you.” Kris is tearing up, the soft patter of tears against the pillowcase and Kris’ quiet shudders feel like they’re filling the room. “… c-can you like… kiss them better? god that’s stupid nevermi-“
Susie lifts up their arm silently before they can finish second guessing themself, kissing their scars up and down. Kris is startled, normally Susie would be cursing up and down at this sort of thing, swearing to never be that sappy. But… right now she knows this is what Kris wants. What Kris needs.
“I know this is… a lot more than I usually do… you can kiss mine too, if you really want…” they are fully sobbing into her chest now, and she just holds the back of their head. “I-… I love you so much…” Kris whines, as Susie switches to the other arm.
Her warm breath soothes the otherwise ache of the healing scars, she takes care to be extra gentle with the ones that aren’t as healed or faded yet, her soft lips like a lavender breeze.
They were worried it would be too much for her, that waking her up for this was selfish. Watching her work now, though… it’s almost like she’s been wanting to do this. It isn’t like she’s giving them quick pecks and going back to sleep, the kisses are soft and passionate, full of her love.
Is she really enjoying this? Enjoying taking care of them? They always thought being such a burden on her was a bad thing, Something shameful.
Travelling back down their arm, she makes it to the back of their hand, making eye contact as she kisses it a few times, slowly.
“Do you want me to kiss the one on your chest, too…? I understand if you don’t want me to see…” Susie’s face is a little red at the thought but she wouldn’t dare change the mood right now. She wants to make Kris comfortable and safe, and that’s it. Kris’ face is a little red, too—mostly from crying,
but they also just can’t believe someone loves them this much.
“… please do.” Susie silently lets Kris’ arm rest, snaking her hands beneath their T-shirt (which used to be her T-shirt) and sliding it up above their waist, then their chest. Susie’s cold scales on Kris’ bare skin makes them shudder, and they can’t keep eye contact for the life of them. This is her first time seeing them shirtless, but, she doesn’t care about the mounds on their ribcage, she doesn’t care about the pudge of their stomach, all she cares about now is helping. Licking their wounds; figuratively, and sort of literally.
She has tunnel vision on the large diamond-shaped scar around their sternum, slowly kissing it just like she did for their arms. Kris starts crying again, someone loving them this much just doesn’t feel possible.
Susie doesn’t even really think about their breasts, all her attention is just on making them feel better. That fact is what’s making Kris cry, the fact that their happiness is taking priority. It makes them feel pathetic to admit, but the fact that Susie isn’t ogling at them right now makes them love her just that much more.
Susie is admiring Kris, however. Not their body, but the trust they have for her. How they trust her to see them like this, how they trust her to touch their scars, for them show them to her makes her feel so special to them.
“Can.. we just snuggle normally now.. I think if I cry anymore my eyes are gonna melt..” Susie nods, shuffling their shirt back down and offering herself back up for a cuddle. Kris latches on like they’ve been dehydrated in the desert and Susie is a freshwater river.
“You smell like a big warm apple pie… I love you…” Susie mumbles. Fighting the sandman with her life, she musters a few more words. “how are you feeling?” Kris mumbles back; “better..”
And watching Susie sleep, they decide they do.