ExpensiveLotus - [Embellish]
For @sfw12-days-of-papcest day 6 prompt, Embellish/Anticipate/Generous
Additional pairings: Mapleblossom, unrequited Puppymoney
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âwhy do you do that?â
Lotus pulled away from the mirror to regard Cash. âDo what?â
He gestured to his face, circling his sockets. âthat.â
Lotus smiled gently. âYou donât like my makeup?â
Cashâs shoulders hunched and he looked away, clearly uncomfortable. âi didnât say that.â
Leaning closer to the mirror, Lotus applied more purple pigment to the rim of his sockets. A crown of purple lilacs ringed his skull, and his rich robes were a deep purple, embroidered with golden thread, and heâd painted his skull to match. âSo you do like it.â
âdidnât say that either,â Cash responded gruffly, fingers toying with a gold coin.
âIs that what youâre wearing?â
The coin stilled. âwhatâs wrong with what iâm wearing?â
âNothing, darling. Nothing. I just thought....â
âwhat?!â
Lotus stood and set down his palette. He looked Cash up and down, thinking. Finally, he turned to his jewelry box and started sorting through it. âAhâhere.â He took Cashâs hands and attached some glittering gold cufflinks to his shirtsleeves. A heavy watchband wrapped his wrist. Lotus surveyed him, tapping his chin contemplatively. Then he returned to the jewelry box and produced a thin gold chainâjust a chain, no pendant or ornament attached. Leaning into Cash, he reached around his neck to fasten it.
âThere,â he said, resting his hands on Cashâs shoulders and giving a warm squeeze. âYou look very handsome.â
Jerking away, Cash eyed the watch. âisnât this a little....â He eyed Lotus, and fell silent.
âA little what?â
â...isnât this a little masculine for your tastes?â
Lotus blinked and chuckled, his eyelights dancing in amusement. âIâm a sweet-piece, darling. I am whatever my client wants me to be. I have several suits in addition to my robes. If youâd prefer, I can wear one of thoseââ
âno! no. i just....â Cash stopped, his brow-bone furrowing. âif it was up to you, what would you wear?â
Lotus shrugged. âDoes it matter? This is all for show anyway. If I had my preferences, Iâd be at home in my pajamas watching Netflix. A dress. A robe. A suit. Theyâre all the same. Itâs all costumery and cosmetics, darling. Now...are we ready to go?â
That coin bounced between his fingers, the only hint of his restlessness. âyeah, sure. letâs get this over with.â
Lotus took his arm with a proprietary air, and Cash stiffened immediately. âDarling, you need to relax. Itâs a wedding. At least pretend to be happy.â
Cash grunted dismissively, but he forced his shoulders to ease. Downstairs, they caught a taxi in front of the hotel and took the short drive over to the reception hall. Cash kept staring out the window, one hand toying restlessly with that coin. Lotus knocked their shoulders together, earning a glare. âItâs only for a few hours. Then we can skip out and pretend youâre happily fucking me against a wall somewhere.â
Cashâs cheekbone colored, but he coughed and looked away. âno one is going to believe weâre fucking.â
âNot with that attitude theyâre notâand not if you keep flinching when I touch you.â
âi did not flinchââ
Lotus sighed, then took Cash by the chin and kissed him solidly on the mouth. His good socket went wide, and his jaw unhinged, allowing Lotus to slip his tongue inside. He pressed a hand to the front of Cashâs suit, gripping the silk and feeling the thrumming of his soul under his hand. Magic sparked between them, and Cash slowly relaxed into the kiss, allowing Lotus to guide him. His hands began to rove over Lotusâ form, running up and down his spine and ribcage, squeezing his hips.
The taxi slowed to a stop, and Lotus pulled away. âThere. Now you look a little more convincingly debauched. Now, darlingâwhy donât you pay the man and we can be on our way?â
Lotus smiled while Cash scowled at him. âthat was unnecessary.â
âI beg to differ. Are you coming?â Grumbling to himself, Cash followed him out of the cab, brushing himself off. He sighed when Lotus took his arm again but didnât try to shake him off.
The reception hall was already noisy as monsters from all six universes gathered inside, talking animatedly amongst themselves. Music filled the room, performed live by a group of gathered ghosts from the many universes. Most of the Alphys-es and Undynes were already dancing. Swap Asgore and Tale Toriel were talking in the corner.
Spotting them, Blue came bounding over, his smile forcibly bright. Lotus had to hide a smile behind his handâBlue looked so flustered, anyone might have assumed it was his wedding. âHave you seen the photographer?â he asked, frantic, âI havenât seen him anywhere andââ His sockets widened. âAre you only just getting here?â he asked Cash, âYouâre the best man! You should have been here to greet everyone as they arrived! Youâreââ
Lotus touched his shoulder, smiling brilliantly. âThatâs my fault, Iâm afraid. Cash came to pick me up, and I took a while to get ready.â
Blue didnât look happy with that, but he sighed. âFine. Can you please make sure the place cards are in the right spot? I think Redâs been switching them around.â
It was pretty obvious what Cash thought of that request, but Lotus just squeezed his hand and agreed. Looking relievedâbut still faintly annoyedâBlue ran to the next group of guests. âiâm not checking the place cards.â
âOf course not! We wouldnât want to take Redâs fun away, now would we? Ah! Hereâchampagne?â
Cash looked unimpressed, but Lotus foisted a glass on him and murmured into his acoustic meatus. âWe can either dance or we can mingle, you grump. We will not sit in the corner and sulk. Make your choice, or Iâll make it for you.â
That earned him a steely glare, to which Lotus responded with a gentle smile and an upraised brow-bone. He huffed andâto Lotusâ shockâset the champagne down and guided him onto the dance floor. âYou really donât want to chat, do you?â
âno,â he said pointedly. âi donât.â
Lotus shook his head fondly. âPoint taken.â
It wasnât really a slow song, but Cash was more comfortable guiding him through a slow waltz rather than anything more energetic. After the end of the song, Undyne took the mike and bellowed into itâperhaps not realizing she really didnât need the amplification. âHere they come! The newlyweds themselves! A round of applause for Papyrus and Slim!â She raised a bottle of champagne. âHereâs to you guys! And, Slim? If you break his heart, Iâll break every fuckingââ
Edge wrestled her away from the microphone, looking annoyed. Papyrus was blushing profusely, and it looked like Slim couldnât decide between being offended or amused. Lotus shook his head, chuckling. âWell, the maid of honor hasnât set the bar very high. You shouldnât have any trouble with your speechââ
Lotus turned to look at him, and whatever snarky comments heâd wanted to make evaporated when he saw the direction of Cashâs gaze. His eyelight was fixed on Slim, and while his expression was as guarded as ever, he couldnât hide the tightness in his jaw or the tense set of his shoulders. Lotus knew what pain looked like, and Cash was obviously in pain. âOh, Cash....â
The grip on his hips tightened immediately. âdonât. donât say a damn word.â
Still, he couldnât tear his gaze from Slim. Or his new husband. âIâm sorry.â
Another warning squeeze. ânot. one. word.â
Lotus obediently fell silent, and encouraged Cash to start dancing once more. He was stiff, lacking his prior grace. But they danced, until eventually, even Lotus couldnât see past his apathetic mask. âShall we take a break?â he asked, âPerhaps get a drink?â
Cash eyed their assigned seatsâright next to the newlyweds, of course. He was Slimâs best man, after all. âyeah. letâs toast the happy couple.â He said it without inflection, and Lotusâ soul jumped, wondering what Cash might have planned.
They crossed the dance floor, and Cash flopped into his seat beside Slim. The two of them bumped fists, saying nothing. Lotus eyed them warily, but passed them to hug Papyrus. âOh, my dearâyou look quite handsome!â He held Papyrus at armâs length to look him up and down. âThat suit fits you like a glove. And I adore the lining! A lovely pop of color!â
âTHANK YOU FANCY-ME! WEâRE SO GLAD YOU COULD COME!â
Lotus smiled indulgently. âI never miss a party, darling.â He sighed wistfully. âTell me about the wedding though!â
Papyrus looked a little sheepish, fiddling with the corner of the tablecloth. âITâum. IT WAS WONDERFUL, OF COURSE! FITTING FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND HIS EQUALLY GREAT SPOUSE! BUTââ He winced. âWe, um. Weâre sorry it was so sudden. We wanted all of you to be there, of course, but....â
Lotus patted his hand. âNever fear, darling. We all understand. Planning a wedding is such work. And thereâs something so delightfully romantic about eloping!â
Papyrus winced again, looking away. âNot everyone was as understanding....â
Lotus waved a dismissive hand. âDonât worry about them. Itâs your wedding, not theirs. They donât get to have a say.â
His shoulders relaxed marginally. âTHANK YOU, FANCY-ME. THATâS...thatâs what I needed to hear.â
Lotus leaned forward and kissed him on each cheek, cupping his face in his hands. âAny time, darling. Any time.â Only then did he realize heâd lost track of Cashâand Slim. His soul dropped, but he maintained a happy face. âMy date seems to have disappeared on me. Iâd better go find him before he gets into trouble.â
Papyrus, meanwhile, was eyeing Undyne with growing trepidation as she approached. âGOOD LUCK.â
Lotus surveyed the dance floor but saw no sign of either of them. Dreading the scene he might stumble upon, he started searching the restrooms and coat rooms before heading outside. It was here that he found the twoâin a small garden, seated shoulder-to-shoulder in front of the fountain. They spoke softly, and the sound of running water drowned out their words. Only when he got close enough did Lotus manage to hear Cash saying, ââalready married. you canât tell me youâre getting cold feet now.â
Speaking around the sucker in his mouth, Slim said, âno! but...heâs....â
He started to scratch at his wrist, but Cash snatched his hand away and gripped it hard. âhe loves you?â
âwell...yeah...i guess.â
Cash gave a short, sharp nod. âyou love him?â
â...more than anything.â
Cash exhaled slowly and released his hand. âthen quit acting like an idiot and let yourself be happy. if he didnât want you, if he was afraid of all your fell-verse baggage, he wouldnât have married you, got it?â
Slim nodded slowly, sighing in relief. âyeah. yeah, youâre right.â
âof course i am. now get your ass back in there and dance with your husband.â
Slim chuckled and knocked his shoulder into Cash. âheh. you sure youâre not just eager to get back inside to dance with lotus? you two were getting pretty cozy with each other when we got here. something you want toâ?â
Lotus coughed delicately, startling them both. âSlim, dear. It looks like Papyrus might need some help fending off his maid of honor. Would you mind?â
He shook his head sheepishly, looking grateful for the chance to escape. He shot Cash a meaningful look, though, before disappearing back inside. Lotus took his vacated seat. âHe has no idea, does he?â
âno. and he never will.â
âNo need to look at me like thatâI certainly wonât tell him.â
Cash studied him carefully, then grunted and nodded once. âgood.â They sat in silence, and Lotus took his hand, starting to project / PEACE / WARMTH / LOVE / ââstop.â
Lotus leaned against him. âI donât think I will.â He squeezed his hand, running his thumb over the backs of his metacarpals. âYou still have a speech to give, darling, and I know this canât be easy for you. Why resist the little comfort I can offer?â
Cash growled, but he didnât pull away and he didnât shake him off. His good socket shuttered closed, and he leaned into Lotus, opening himself to the projections.
He didnât say anything else, didnât thank him for it, but...it was a start.









