Hey, here I go with another story. Ah, well, what can I say? If you find any errors, please, please, please tell me, okay? I hope you enjoy, and I love feedback!

Mason 'Dipper' Pines slid onto the café stool, folded his arms on the counter, and rested his head on them. The woman behind the counter smiled briefly.

"Coffee, Pines?" She asked brusquely, used to his antics by now.

"Yes please. Thank you, Margaret." Was his grumbled reply. "I stayed up all night solving complex mathematical equations, and contemplating the meaning of the universe!" He proclaimed tiredly.

"Oh, really? Well, what is the meaning of the universe?" She asked, taking the obvious bait.

"Coffee."

She laughed, unable to hold the straight face. She stepped into the kitchen, and made a cup of black coffee, with three sugars. Stepping back out, she set it with a faint clink in front of the tired 23 year old.

He had moved into the area a few months ago, apparently liking the scenery. Mary Sue, the youngest waitress, had asked what the scenery had to do with anything.

"Oh, lots. I'm a photographer; if my scenery isn't right, then the photos will be horrible." He had said. "Maybe you'd like to take a picture of me, hmmm?" She said, winking. Pines, as they all called him, merely smiled and drowned himself in his coffee. "Playing hard to get, huh? I'll have you soon!" She promised. He had given her a playful smile, one that spoke of a person who knew more than they let on.

8 months later, and Mary Sue was just as single as Pines. Nobody except Margaret knew his first name, and the girls had all made a game of guessing it.

For his part, Mason hadn't really intended on getting so attached to the little café on the side of the road.

Quite coincidental, really.

He had just moved in, and had decided to take a little walk. Halfway down the road, he had spotted the worn sign; "Sunny Side-Up Café." Something about it, maybe the lettering that reminded him so much of the Mystery Shack, or the quirky name, had drawn him in. Now, he spent quite a bit of time there.

Not all of it, of course. He was a photographer, after all. He took pictures of the surrounding wildlife, the tall trees, and the babbling brooks. He enjoyed life in Sky Pass, even if it was dull compared to Gravity Falls.

His sister had decided to move there, when she turned 18. She had assumed Mason wanted to, as well, but when she told him to "Start packing, Bro-bro! We're headed to Gravity Falls!" he had given her a confused look. She 'reminded' him that they were moving back, and it was at this point that he explained, not for the first time, that he had planned on going to college in Piedmont.
She had been very upset, but moved to Gravity Falls anyway.

Mason thought it was probably out of spite, for him or his parents he wasn't sure. A couple years later, he had moved to Sky Pass to pursue a career in photography.

He was snapped out of his reverie by Margaret asking a question.
"So, Pines, got any family?"

He smiled, thinking of his sister and parents.
"Yes, my parents, and my sister."

She nodded sagely. "Older or younger sister?"

A common question. "Older, I guess. Somehow."

She raised an eyebrow, and he elaborated. "She's my twin, and was born before me, but with her maturity level, people always assume she's younger."

"Ah. That makes sense. What's her name?"

He pondered giving it out, and decided it was time for the waitresses to have a hint, for he could see them in the kitchen, all listening. So far, Margaret had been the only one to extract any useful information from the loner.

"Mabel."

Furious whispering sprung up in the back, and finally, Mary Sue stepped out.

"I," She drew it out, "Know your name, Pines!" She cried triumphantly.

"Oh? And what, pray tell, is my name fair Mary Sue?" He teased.

"Maxwell!" She declared proudly.

"Nope."

A string of profanity followed his announcement. He smiled.

"And my secret identity remains a secret!"

More swearing.

Although Mason had lived in Sky Pass for 8 months now, he had yet to visit the neighboring town, Gravity Falls, even to see his sister. They still texted, and called, and even one skype call, but they hadn't seen each other face to face since she moved. He doubted she even knew he lived so close by; he hadn't told her.

Maybe their parents had. Probably not, he relented. They never tell us anything.

He took the final swig off of his coffee, before standing and steeping outside, turning to wave goodbye over his shoulder.

That's why he hadn't seen the red head that was carrying a stack of papers, until he slammed into her.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so, so sorry! Here, let me help you…" he trailed off, realizing that her papers where being scattered by the wind, and stooped to catch them. He collected them into one untidy pile, babbling uncomfortably and apologizing, before shoving them towards the young woman.

His eyes widened as he took in her appearance, and made the connection to his childhood.
"Wendy?" He asked, surprised to see her here. She stared at him, taking her papers and trying to place his face.

He had just opened his mouth to explain who he was when her jaw dropped open and she let out a shriek that startled him.

"DIPPER!"

Wendy's day had been quiet, and ordinary.

Uncommonly so, considering things where never quiet and ordinary when Mabel was around. She had opened the Shack, and welcomed an elderly pair, before being told by Soos that they needed some copies made of a flyer. She had headed to the shop in town, only to discover that it was closed. Frustrated, the 26 year old woman hopped into her car and drove to the next town over, Sky Pass.

Upon arriving, she noticed a parking lot outside a little café called the Sunny Side-Up Café, and decided to take advantage of it. After making several dozen extra copies (just to spite Soos, who had paid for the copies, for sending her on such a tedious trip), she had headed back to her car. Distracted by the wind blowing her long red hair into her face, she didn't notice the young brunette until he walked into her. Fumbling and losing her hold on the papers, they scattered in the wind.

The young man had started apologizing, but there was something familiar about him that she couldn't quite place. It was on the tip of her tongue. He straightened up, and handed her papers back. His expression suddenly morphed from embarrassed to shock.
"Wendy?" And it clicked. Although it was much deeper than before, it was still the same voice of the nephew of her ex-boss, her best friend Mabel's brother, Dipper Pines.

"DIPPER!" She shrieked, waving her papers wildly.

He doubled over in laughter, and Wendy was left to wonder why. After laughing his fill, he righted himself and wiped away a tear.
"I'm sorry! I just haven't been called that in a few years! Not since Mabel called me that." He grinned. "I go by Mason now." He stuck his hand out. "Mason Pines, but you already knew that." His hand was warm, and his smile was warmer. Wendy couldn't believe that this was the same anxiety ridden child she had kind of looked after 10 years ago. "How about this," Dipper-no, Mason- started. "Let's go back to my house, and we can catch up a bit?" Wendy did the only logical thing.

She agreed.