(A/N):This story actually relates to our "I'm Worthless" story (which we recommend to anyone who hasn't read it yet). What we mean is, this takes place in cannon; however, our "I'm Worthless" story also took place. You don't have to read our "I'm Worthless" story for this one to make any sense. This can be read as an individual.
Stan let out a grunt as he lugged a bag over his shoulder "Holy Moses," he exclaimed "What'd you pack in this thing, Sixer?" he asked, feeling the weight of the bag press down on his back as he made his way to the open trunk of his car "Did you pack the whole freakin' town?"
Ford rolled his eyes "Oh, please," he said, picking up a bag that was leaning against the shack steps "You're just not as strong as you used to be," he replied, following Stan to his car. Stan raised an eyebrow, tossing the bag he was holding into the trunk "Excuse you," he began, turning to face Ford "I beat up zombies, beat up a pterodactyl with a pig in tow, punched eagles in the face while using my legs to hang onto some weird wiring tower, jumped off a mountain, landed on the ground as if it was nothing, and punched a demon in the face," he said, counting down what he had done on his fingers "So don't tell me I'm not as strong as I used to be," he added, crossing his arms with a triumphant look crossing his face. Ford shook his head and rolled his eyes, having heard this story more than once "Yes, I get it. All hail the powerful Stanley Pines," he said, jokingly bowing his head. Stan smirked "That's right, I'm powerful," he said, flexing his arms, a grin spreading across his face. Ford chuckled, lightly punching Stan in the arm, a playful look in his eyes. Ford placed the bag he was holding in the trunk of Stan's car. It was the last bag they had, and Stan was getting ready to slam the trunk shut.
"Mr. Pines!" came a voice.
Stan and Ford looked in the direction the voice had come from to find Pacifica approaching them, with her father in tow.
Stan smiled "Hey, Pacifica," he greeted. He gave Preston a nod of acknowledgment. After all, no one (other than Pacifica) knew that they talked to each other, even if it was mostly about business, and Stan knew Preston liked to keep it that way.
Ford waved shyly, a small smile on his face. He had yet to meet Pacifica. Sure, he met her during Weirdmageddon, but he didn't fully know her.
"So, what brings you two here?" Stan asked, tucking his hands into his pockets.
Pacifica rubbed the back of her neck "Um… Well…" she began "I never really got to know either of you all that well, and I feel kind of bad, since I've just been a jerk most of the summer," she explained "So, I figure I should stop by and give both of you a proper apology, with a proper introduction." Pacifica held out her hand "I'm Pacifica Northwest, and I'd like to apologies, profusely, for my actions towards you and your family," she said.
Stan smiled, shaking her hand "I'm Stanley Pines, and I'm sorry for lying about who I really was. Also, apology excepted," he said.
Ford shook Pacifica's hand "I'm Stanford Pines, and I'm sorry we never formally met. Under other circumstances I'm sure we could get to know each other better, but for now we'll just have to leave it at this," he said.
Stan shifted his gaze to Preston, who's eyes seemed to be looking anywhere but at the twins. Stan smiled, holding out his hand "I don't believe we've met officially," he said "Names Stanley Pines."
Pacifica knew that Stan and her father knew each other, but Ford didn't know that; which meant Stan had to do his best to keep it that way.
Preston's gaze shifted to Stan, staring down at his extended hand. Preston hesitantly shook it. He had promised Pacifica that he would try and get along with them. Although, it wasn't too hard to get along with Stan, it's more so the fact that Preston didn't want to give Pacifica the idea that he liked Stan; with Stan being a common wealth and all.
Ford held out his hand to Preston "Nice to meet you. I'm Stanford Pines," he said, a smile on his face. Preston shook his hand, giving him a nod of acknowledgment. He wasn't startled by his six fingers in the slightest, somewhat surprising Ford, given that usually everyone would back away in disgust.
Pacifica dug through her pocket and fished out a small wad of cash that her family had scrapped together after getting bankrupt. She handed it to Stan "Here," she said, a small smile on her face. Stan blinked a few times, for the first time in his life, not actually wanting to grab money. It's funny, because this was actually being given to him. Stan frowned "Pacifica, we can't take that," he said. This earned a look of surprise from Ford, Pacifica, and even Preston (who had been trying to avoid any eye contact with Stan).
Ford raised an eyebrow "Stan… Are you… Feeling okay?" he asked. Stan shot Ford a glare "Yeah, peach-y," he replied, his voice dripping with annoyance. Stan shifted his gaze back to Pacifica "Look, Pacifica, you need that way more than Ford or me," he said, giving her a light smile "Your family is bankrupt, and the last thing I want is for us to take money that you need," he said. Ford blinked a few times, still surprised at what was leaving his brothers mouth "Stan are you sure you're okay?"
Stan sighed in annoyance "For the love of Moses, I am fine," he snapped, shooting a hard glare at Ford. Ford frowned "Sorry," he mumbled, rubbing his arm and shifting his gaze to his feet.
Stan looked back at Pacifica and gave her one last smile "Keep the money, kid," he said. Pacifica extended her arm further, a wave of nervousness washing over her "But, it's the least I could do after what I did to you and your family," she said. Stan shook his head "Keep it. We don't need it," he said.
"Blast it, Pines! Just take the money." This was spoken by Preston, who had, up until know, been absolutely silent.
Stan crossed his arms, a smirk fighting its way onto his face "No. I'm not taking the money," he said.
Preston fought back the urge to take the money and shove it into Stan's hand. He wasn't used to Stan not excepting money, and it honestly made him feel uncomfortable. More so, since Stan's secret twin had shown up. Why he wouldn't except the money was another question that was just bugging Preston. Sure, Stan said it was because Pacifica needed it more, but there was something else. Preston could tell there was more to it. Was Stan purposefully trying to frustrate him? One last "commoner's treatment" before he left?
Ford rubbed the back of his neck "Um… Pacifica," he began, gaining Pacifica's attention "Mabel and Dipper left some things for you," he said. Pacifica's eyes went wide, surprise washing over her face. Ford turned to dig through the trunk of Stan's car "Stan and I had planned to have someone drop these off, but since you're here, we might as well give these to you now," he said, pulling out a sweater, that looked oddly familiar to Pacifica, and a book that was covered in glitter and stickers. Ford handed the items to Pacifica "Mabel said that her sweater looked nice on you, so she thought it'd be nice if you kept it, and Dipper said that you might like this book he found," he explained.
Pacifica took the book and tucked it under her arm. She took the sweater and looked down at it. It was the llama sweater she had worn during that whole Weirdmageddon fiasco. She smiled lightly, pulling it over her head and putting it on, doing her best to not drop the book. She looked down at the book once the sweater was snuggly on. The book was titled "Dipper and Mabel's Guide to Mystery and Non-Stop Fun!" The title was a mix of glitter, pen, and stickers. Pacifica could tell that this was originally Dippers book, but Mabel decided to add some color to it. The twins had even taped a picture of themselves on the cover with "THE AUTHORS" written under it. Pacifica smiled down at it, running a thumb over the glittery cover "I'll have to thank them," she said.
Stan turned to his trunk and slammed it shut "Well, we should get going if we wanna make it in time to get our boat," he said. Ford nodded, and shifted his gaze to Preston and Pacifica "Well, it was lovely meeting you two, and hopefully we'll met again," he said "On another sunny, summers day," Stan added. Pacifica nodded "Hopefully," she said, giving the two a wide smile, her eyes shining with excitement and happiness. Preston nodded, shifting his gaze to his feet.
Ford waved and smiled at Pacifica and Preston as he walked over to the passenger side of the car. He opened the door and got into the car, slamming the door shut once he was in.
Stan turned to face Pacifica and Preston, a wide smile on his face "Any last words before we head out?" he asked.
Preston shifted his gaze around his surroundings "No. None that I can think of," he said, doing his best to take on a board expression.
Pacifica sighed, handing the money to Stan once more "Take it," she said. A smirk twitched onto her face "Or else I'll burn it," she threatened. That caused Stan's eyes to go wide for a few brief seconds. He sighed in defeat "Persistent, like Mabel," he said, taking the money from her and shoving it into his pocket.
Pacifica smiled wide "Well… I guess this is goodbye for now," she said. Pacifica looked up at her dad "I'll be in the car," she said. With that, Pacifica turned on her heels and walked over to an old, rusted car that looked nothing like their limo they used to own.
Preston cleared his throat. An awkward silence began to circle the two men that where left facing each other.
Stan bit down on his bottom lip, shifting his weight form one foot to the other "Sure you don't have any last words?" he asked, attempting to look Preston in the eyes. Stan knew full well Preston wanted to say something. Stan just had to find out what it was.
Preston sighed, shifting his gaze to look into Stan's soft brown eyes "I… Uh…" he mumbled, tugging at his sleeves nervously "I wanted to say that…"
Stan raised an eyebrow "That…?" he pressed.
Preston sighed, standing up straight "Thank you."
Stan blinked a few times, somewhat surprised by what Preston had said "Sorry…" he began "Um… Did you just thank me?" he asked. Preston nodded "Yes. I mean it. Thank you… For everything. You had helped me make amends with my daughter and helped me get through some troubling memories," he said, swallowing a lump in his throat.
Stan wanted to laugh. He wanted to laugh, because, throughout his whole life, no one had ever said anything like that. It was like one big joke; only Preston wasn't joking. He was dead serious, and it made Stan want to shed a few tears, because he had always been told opposite; that he was a failure, an embarrassment, a loser, and sometimes, on rare occasions, he'd get called a mistake.
Stan breathed out a chuckle "First time anyone ever said that to me and actually meant it," he said. Preston rubbed his arm and shifted his gaze to the side "Well… You deserved to be thanked. You helped me, after all," he said, feeling a wave of nervousness wash over him. Stan grinned, placing a hand on Preston's shoulder "Well, you're welcome," he said "And hopefully this won't be the last time we talk."
Preston felt a small smile tug at the corner of his lips "You, uh… You were the only true friend I had… If I'm being completely honest," he said. Stan removed his hand from Preston's shoulder and placed it in his pocket (not that it matters, but it was the one that had the money in it) "When Ford and I come back we should grab a drink. Since that's what friends do," he said. Stan sighed "Welp, better get goin'" he said, shifting his gaze to the car. Stan took a few steps passed Preston, then placed a hand over one of Preston's breast pockets "Goodbye," he said, a small smile on his face. Preston returned it, his eyes, for the first time in a long time, showing signs of happiness.
Stan walked over to the driver's side of the car, opened the door, and got in. He shut the door and buckled up "I think that went well," he said. Ford raised an eyebrow, having seen bits and pieces of what took place when he got in the car "Hang on…" he began "You took the money, that you refused to take in the first place, anyway?" he asked. Stan smirked "Who said I took it?" he asked, grabbing hold of the key that was in the ignition and twisting it, starting the car. Ford blinked a few times "You…? Wait, I thought I saw you take it," he said. Stan grinned "But I didn't."
This caused them to get into a small argument over what "taking" implied.
Meanwhile, Preston had taken a seat in the driver's side of the old, rusted car he was renting. He buckled up, shooting Pacifica a small smile as he looked in the rear-view mirror. Pacifica returned it "Are you glad I made you get out of the car?" she asked. Preston nodded "Very," he said. Preston went to fish the keys out of his breast pocket when he felt something else. Preston paused, a confused look crossing his face. He could have sworn the only thing he put in there was his keys... He pulled out the contents of the pocket to find his keys, as expected, but also the wad of cash that Stan originally had in his pocket.
Pacifica noticed her father's confused expression "What's wrong?" she asked.
Preston breathed out a chuckle "Nothing…" he mumbled "Nothing…" he said, placing the money back in his pocket and putting the key in the ignition. A smile tugged at his lips "Stanley Pines, normally called a criminal, gave money to me… I guess deep down he really is a softy," he thought, starting the car.