It was fine brisk summer evening in Gravity Falls – the last group of tourists had already gone home from the Mystery Shack about and hour ago and Dipper was passing his newfound free time in the living room watching the television while Stan was upstairs counting the days take in his office.
Dipper was watching the show only absentmindedly as he was poring over some notes that he'd made earlier in the week about suspected hauntings that were popping up around the town. He'd been trying to find a pattern to the sightings but nothing was really coming together and it was starting to annoy him. It had been a few years since the last time he'd seen a ghost, and at the time he'd been more concerned about looking cool in front of Wendy than with actively studying the paranormal goings on in the haunted convenience store that they had been trapped in.
There's got to be something linking these cases… all of these locations had some sort of accidental death occur at them, but people die all the time and most places don't have ghosts. To top it off NONE of these areas were known for having any kind of ghost sighting at them at all until just a few days ago.
So what could it be? Is this a Ghostbusters style thing where the world is ending? Or maybe its just something that happens once in a while, like a cycle? I'd have to check the old town archives at the library and see if this has happened before.
The lights in the dim living room began to flicker suddenly, rapidly pulsing from dark to light. Dipper glanced around the room in confusion, the subject of his earlier musings making jumpy.
"Hey, quit messing with the lights." Dipper called out, his voice laced with enough forced casualness in it to choke a horse.
"Booooooooooo~"
A high voice wailed out a warbling cry as the lights continued to flicker.
"Knock it off already, its not scary." Dipper said, turning back to his notes and glaring at the pages as if they had offended him somehow.
"ooooooooooooooooooooooo~"
"Alright who-" Dipper began before a white blur flashed up behind the sofa he was sitting in and sent him tumbling over it with a surprised scream.
"-oooooooooooooooooooooooooooze."
"What?" Dipper asked in confusion, his heart beating way too fast for comfort as he turned and took in the sight of the figure looming over the back of the couch and glaring down at him in the dim light.
It was clearly a bed sheet with holes cut out for the eyes, which twinkled out mischievously at Dipper.
"Booze." Mabel said.
"Again- what?" Dipper asked, still confused.
"You know – booze. Hooch. Fire-water. Giggle juice." Mabel said, listing off a variety of old-timey names for alcohol.
"What about it?" Dipper said.
"Well, I was wondering if you might want to join me in a little project." Mabel began as she pulled the fake ghost-hood off over her head and scuffed her feet shyly against the carpet.
"An alcohol related project?" Dipper asked.
"Yes. A making alcohol project." Mabel said.
"You want us to make alcohol… to drink?" Dipper said.
"Well, yeah – what else do you use it for?" Mabel scoffed.
"Mabel, there is no way we are doing this." Dipper said flatly.
"What? Why not?" Mabel asked.
"Well for one thing its illegal." Dipper said.
"Oh, suddenly you care so much about the law Mr. I-pod full of stolen Babba albums," Mabel said accusingly.
"Its not full of them… I mean, its mostly just the greatest hits collection… I listen to other stuff… and anyway thats just like, kinda illegal – this is illegal illegal." Dipper said, his voice growing slightly unsure at the end.
"Well, okay maybe it is illegal," Mabel conceded with a shrug, "but everyone knows that its not really a crime unless you get caught, and who is going to catch us around here? Sheriff Blubbs and Deputy Durland? Those guys couldn't get a clue if they had a map to it and a magnifying glass the size of a school bus." Mabel said, her voice taking that wheedling tone that Dipper knew all to well… usually before he ended up being persuaded to do something very much out of his comfort zone.
"I think you've maybe been spending just a bit too much time listening to Stan this summer." Dipper teased.
"Well the guy is full of good life advice – did you know you could make a knife out of a chicken bone?" Mabel asked cheerfully.
"I don't even want to begin to think about the circumstances where knowing something like that could come in handy." Dipper shuddered.
"Whatever- the point is that the law isn't a big deal in this case since the only guys who are around to enforce it have the combined IQ of a pine cone – so whats the problem?" Mabel said with easy confidence.
"Ugh… well, I guess its not just the illegal thing… I don't know, it just doesn't seem like a good idea? What if we screw it up and we get really sick or something?" Dipper asked rhetorically.
"Please, you're like, king of the chemistry class back at home – there is no way you couldn't make us something tasty. I mean, guys in jail can do it." Mabel said in her most flattering tone.
"Is that where you got the idea? You seriously have to stop talking with Stan about his days in that Columbian prison." Dipper grouched.
"Well if you don't want to help I'll just have to do it on my own then." Mabel said haughtily, crossing her arms firmly across her chest with a small pout on her face. "I was just thinking it might be a fun project for us to do together, you know – like a science experiment or something."
"Oh come on, you don't get to play the science-experiment card here – you just want to see what its like to get drunk." Dipper accused.
"That's the point of the experiment dummy! I mean, its not like we'd be the only teenagers to try it in the history of ever – plus its not like we won't be able to just go the store and buy the stuff ourselves in a few years anyway, so whats the big deal?" Mabel snipped.
Despite his better judgment nagging away at the back of Dipper's mind he could sort of see her point on the last bit… and at 17 years old its not like he hadn't known a few of his classmates who'd been indulging in the stuff now and then for a few years and they were still alive and not in jail or anything. Dipper never had though… admittedly that may have been just because he didn't get invited to many parties, but even on those occasions when he'd had the chance he'd always held back. Maybe it wouldn't be the end of the world if he loosened up a little on this one… at least just this once anyway.
"Well… maybe." Dipper said slowly. It would probably be safer if we tried it alone together instead of getting wasted with a bunch of strangers at a party… especially if it would keep a bunch of drunken creeps from pawing at Mabel.
"Maybe yes?" Mabel asked with a bright smile, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet with her hands tucked behind her back. She knew Dipper had a hard time resisting when she cranked up the cuteness and she was pulling out all the stops this time.
"Ugh… fine." Dipper sighed, all of his earlier resolve caving in in the face of her adorable smile.
Stupid cute smile of hers… Why can't I ever say no when she's like that?
"Yes!" Mabel exclaimed, giving an exaggerated fist pump and doing a few improvised victory dance steps.
"But if we're doing this then we do it my way- we find a recipe, we follow ALL of the instructions with no short-cuts & we use it as responsibly as possible." Dipper said, counting the points off on his fingers and trying to sound as authoritative as possible.
"Whatever you say my bootlegger bro-bro – lets just get this show on the road!" Mabel said excitedly.
Of course getting the show on the road wasn't really terribly exciting when all was said and done. The twins had made a quick trip out to the grocery store and grabbed a few bottles of apple juice and dumped in the rest of the necessary ingredients which they had found in the back of Stans pantry and that was pretty much it. Mabel had cradled the bottle excitedly at first but it had soon lost its charm and they tossed the future-booze in the closet up in the attic of the Shack to let the fermentation finish its work. Dipper had insisted that they hide it carefully behind a pile of old clothes and luggage, though neither of them really thought that they would get in big trouble if grunkle Stan found their little cider experiment – knowing Stan he might even give them a few pointers.
Still, it was better to be safe than sorry, and Dipper admitted to himself that half the fun was the fact that it was a secret.
The next few weeks passed normally (as normal as things ever got in Gravity Falls in any case), though Mabel's patience was showing signs of serious strain toward the end. Dipper sometimes walked in and caught sight of his sister ducking her head into the closet and whispering words of encouragement to their alcoholic-experiment (and sometimes threats when she was feeling frustrated at how long it was taking).
You can't fault her enthusiasm, Dipper thought to himself one night as he listened to Mabel singing a lullaby to the fizzing jug and crooning to it so that it would "grow up strong and delicious".
"Are you sure its finally ready? You aren't just pulling my leg, right?" Mabel asked skeptically as the twins made their way up the attics creaking stairs a few weeks later.
"Positive. I know it took a while but its finally done." Dipper replied. Not a moment too soon… if I had to go one more day of her asking "Is it booze yet?" I think I would have gone crazy.
It was midnight and the shack was quiet as could be, with Stan having left an hour or two ago for a meeting of his mysterious Lodge that he talked about so often. Privately Dipper sometimes wondered if the strange organization even existed- it might just be the excuse the old man used to take a night off and head to a bar without letting his grand-niece and nephew know.
Well, whatever the case may be at least we've got a chance to try the stuff out.
Mabel had insisted on making a big production out of the night, finding some old party hats stored in one of the closets of the shack and busting out the most fancy and expensive cups that the shack had to offer (a pair of incredibly tacky mugs shaped like Grunkle Stans face from the gift shop).
Dipper pulled aside the layers of old clothes and boxes that had served to hide the jug and solemnly lugged it over to the table as Mabel hummed out a cheerful fanfare that sounded half-way between a wedding march and a graduation song.
"We are gathered together here to witness the joining of these cool people and this jug of expired apple juice – if there are any here who object let them speak now or forever hold their peace." Mabel said solemnly, raising the mugs over her head like a high priestess at some bizarre ceremony.
"I want the record to show that I already voiced my objections before we even started this whole project." Dipper piped up.
"Your complaints are noted and ignored," Mabel said, breaking character to stick her tongue out playfully at Dipper.
As soon as the jug was uncorked a strong smell filled the attic, halfway between the scent of paint-thinner and candy-apples. Dipper's nose wrinkled at the first whiff.
"Mabel, I'm pretty sure we shouldn't-" he began.
"Too late, this is happening!" Mabel said quickly, pouring out generous dose into the ceramic replica of her great-uncles face and slamming her head back to down it all in one gulp.
She looked back up at Dipper with a twisted scowl on her face and began coughing and spluttering once the final swallow had gone down.
"Mabel are you alright!" Dipper exclaimed, rushing to her side and running his hand comfortingly over her back.
"Blah… it tastes like pure liquid sadness." Mabel said with a disgusted pout.
"Well, it looks like I was right and this was all a big waste of time then," Dipper said with just a faint trace of smugness in his voice, but with a sense of disappointment as well.
He moved to grab the jug but Mabel's hand shot out and latched onto his wrist.
"What do you think you're doing there Dip?" she asked.
"Throwing this crap out – you just said it tasted nasty." Dipper explained.
"Oh no you don't – you haven't had your taste yet." Mabel said, pushing an empty Stan-mug across the table and over to her brother.
"Why would I want to taste something you just said is awful?" Dipper asked.
"Oh, I'm sorry – I thought I was talking to my awesomely cool monster-hunting adventurer brother, not his weenie alter-ego Captain Buzzkill." Mabel teased.
"Do you seriously think I'm going to fall for something like that?" Dipper said, unimpressed.
"Were those words? I just heard a bunch of clucking… Dipper, did you see a chicken wander into here?" Mabel continued, poking at Dipper.
"Not listening, going to throw it out now." Dipper said in a sing-song voice, hefting the jug off the table and moving toward the attic bathroom.
"Okay, peer pressure isn't working," Mabel complained, "all those after school specials clearly lied to me."
Dipper paused at the bathroom door and looked down at the jug in his hand. It had taken them weeks to make this stuff. It would be a shame to just toss it all away without having even a tiny sip. Just to see what it was like.
"Alright, one sip." Dipper said, half to himself but also half to Mabel.
"Yeah! Doctor Funtimes has joined the party!" Mabel exclaimed, passing him a Stan-mug.
Dipper poured himself a very small helping and took a cautious sip, and right away he felt a strange burning sting in his throat and a taste halfway between old bread and an apple jolly rancher soaked in gasoline coating his tongue.
"Blargh," Dipper groaned as he wiped his tongue on the sleeve of his jacket to try and get rid of the taste. "Why had I thought that was a good idea?"
Mabel reached out and snagged the jug from his unresisting fingers, pouring herself another generous helping into her mug, and then slid it over to Dipper and took his mug and filled it with an equal amount.
"Okay bro, its game time." Mabel said cheerfully.
"What game could be worth drinking more of this slop?" Dipper asked incredulously.
"I'm not going to argue that this junk is tasty- each sip is pretty much like drinking fresh squeezed puppy tears – but what's the point in us making this nasty cider if we don't get at least a little bit buzzed?" Mabel argued.
"I don't know how much of this stuff we'd have to drink for that though – or if its even safe to keep drinking it, it's pretty gross." Dipper said hesitantly, glancing down at the slightly cloudy amber liquid sloshing around in the mug between his hands.
"You were the one who said that the alcohol would have killed any really bad germs in it, so we should be safe… but its going to be ugly if we just try drinking it straight. That's why I think we should make a game of it." Mabel said.
"Alright, what's the game?" Dipper asked.
"Good old-fashioned Truth-or-Dare, BUT if you wuss out you have to take a nice long gulp of this horrible hooch as a penalty." Mabel declared.
"Seems easy enough." Dipper said.
"Since the game was my idea I go first – Truth or Dare, Dippingsauce?" Mabel said challengingly.
"Truth," Dipper replied easily, confident that there really wasn't anything that Mabel could ask that he couldn't answer.
"Truth, huh? Okay then – are you still a virgin?" Mabel asked with a devilish grin.
"What the hell kind of question is that to ask your brother?" Dipper sputtered.
"The kind of question he has to answer or else he's got to take a drink," Mabel replied with a devious cackle.
Dipper felt his face grow hot, and he silently reached out to his mug and took a long pull of the homemade cider, shuddering in disgust as he set the significantly lighter cup back down on the table.
"Okay Mabel, Truth or Dare." Dipper shot back, determined not to lose their childish contest. He wasn't sure if he felt drunk or not but there was a strange feeling of warmth starting to bloom over his skin.
"Dare," Mabel said easily.
"I dare you to drink your whole cup of cider." Dipper said with a smirk.
"Boo! That is a cheating dare!" Mabel said angrily.
"I didn't see anything in the rules against it." Dipper replied easily.
"Okay, I'll do it because I'm not a big weenie – but that dare is now officially against the rules. Agreed?" Mabel said, reaching for her cup.
"Agreed." Dipper said.
Mabel took a deep breath, closed her eyes and then brought the cup to her lips and tilted her head back, draining the entire thing slowly, banging her fist against the tabletop as she finished the last few sips. She slammed the cup back down on the table and glared at Dipper with a confident look on her face.
"Is that the best you can do bro? Bring it on!" Mabel said, her words slurring slightly.
"Actually its your turn." Dipper said.
"Oh, right. Um… dare or truth!" Mabel said.
"Truth," Dipper said once more.
"No fair! Truth is such a baby option." Mabel groused.
"It's a legitimate option – the game isn't called 'Dare or Dare'," Dipper said.
"Baby option," Mabel said quietly, "Okay – here it goes: what is your biggest fear?"
"Um… I don't know… zombies?" Dipper said.
"Hey, that is a totally fake answer! I've seen you sing a bunch of zombies to death with me before. What's your real fear?" Mabel demanded, prodding him in the chest.
"Fine, fine – I'll take the drink," Dipper said as he reached for the mug and took a deep sip, shuddering slightly at the taste.
"No, now I'm really curious about the fear thing – what is it? Is it Bear-o? Bill? Clowns? I gotta know!" Mabel said blearily, shaking Dipper by the shoulders.
"It's you getting hurt." Dipper said quietly.
Mabel stopped shaking her brother and looked at his face questioningly.
"For reals?" Mabel asked.
"Yeah… you've been with me through so much dangerous stuff, but each time it looks like you are going to get hurt I can't stand it… it drives me crazy to think that you might get seriously injured one of these days. That's why I've tried to avoid taking you on my last few little paranormal-investigating trips, but you always end up coming anyway." Dipper said.
"I feel the same way about you… that's why I always got to go with you – so that I can make sure you're alright." Mabel admitted.
The twins stayed quiet, glancing at each other, feeling a little shy about that unusually sincere confession in the midst of their silly drinking game.
"Well, guess its my turn then." Dipper said, trying to break the silence that had fallen over the attic.
"Yep, go right ahead bro – bring it on!" Mabel said, raising her mug defiantly at Dipper.
"Truth or Dare," Dipper said, taking an absentminded sip of his own drink as he said it. The stuff wasn't nearly as nasty once you'd already gotten used to the taste.
"Dare," Mabel replied.
"I dare you to tell me your most embarrassing secret." Dipper said.
"That is a Truth in disguise! Why are you constantly cheating?" Mabel asked with a pout.
"Either do the dare or take the drink sis, I'm good with either." Dipper said easily.
Mabel sighed and reached down for her mug and took another deep drink from it. She set her mug down and glanced over at Dipper, watching the way the moonlight filtering in through the attic window reflected off his face, especially off the teeth exposed in his confident grin. She felt a little pulse of warmth in her chest, a not-unfamiliar feeling that she got sometimes when she thought of him but one that she almost never dwelled on or gave voice to. One that she'd always felt ashamed of, but which her present state was somehow bringing closer to the surface.
He wants to know my most embarrassing secret? Maybe I'll show him then, she thought to herself with the kind of courage that is the exclusive property of the truly brave or the newly drunk.
"Truth or Dare, but if you say Truth you've got to drink your whole glass AND do the truth." Mabel said.
"That doesn't make any sense." Dipper said.
"That's the way it is – take it or leave it." Mabel said haughtily.
"I guess Dare then." Dipper said with a roll of his eyes, dreading whatever horrible thing Mabel had planned out for him.
"I dare you to close your eyes and not open them till I say so." Mabel said.
Dipper glanced at her in confusion. What sort of weird prank was she going to pull now?
"Easiest Dare ever," Dipper scoffed, closing his eyes and leaning back comfortably in his chair. It felt strange to have his eyes shut, it made the odd light-headed feeling that was coming over him seem more obvious and disorienting.
Guess this stuff really is working.
Dipper heard Mabel's chair scrape along the floor of the attic and felt the table rattle under his hands. Slightly unsteady footsteps paced around the width of the table. He could tell by the feel of the air that Mabel was standing close to him now and Dipper glanced his head up in her direction, but kept his eyes dutifully shut. Soft hands reached out and grabbed his cheeks and before he knew what was happening he felt soft wet lips pressing against his own and a hot cider-tasting tongue thrust into his mouth. Dipper's eyes shot open in surprise and Mabel pulled herself back and glanced down at him, her breathing hard and her cheeks flushed scarlet.
"You opened your eyes – take the drink." Mabel said.
"Mabel, what was that?" Dipper asked, feeling shocked. It wasn't unpleasantly shocked, and the fact that he recognized it as not unpleasant felt pretty unpleasant to him.
"Take the drink," Mabel said firmly as she slid the mug over to Dipper, her eyes never leaving his.
Dipper reached out for the mug and took a large gulp, enjoying the sting of the alcohol now as it poured down his throat.
"Your turn." Mabel said.
Dipper drummed his fingers along the table-top, unsure as to whether to continue the game or not. What was going on here? Was that kiss really just so that she could make him break his dare? Why did she do it? Was it the alcohol?
"Truth or Dare," he said after a moments consideration.
"Truth," Mabel said, making it sound like a challenge.
Dipper hesitated again. So many questions to ask, and he wasn't sure if he even wanted to know the answers to half of them.
"Why did you kiss me?" he said, settling on the most obvious one.
"Because I wanted to," Mabel said flippantly, reaching out to pour more cider into both Dippers mug and her own. The jug was already a quarter empty from their game.
"You wanted to?" Dipper asked.
"You only get one question in Truth or Dare, Dip. It's my turn." Mabel said firmly.
This was going too far, Dipper thought. He felt hazy in more ways than one and he could still feel the tingle on his lips from where Mabel's mouth had pressed against his, hot and sweet and feeling far more right than it should have.
I should probably stop this, he thought again.
"Dare," Dipper said, feeling the word rise to his throat from some place buried far deeper than his regular waking mind.
Mabel looked at him carefully for a while and then took a sip of her drink, no longer shuddering or gagging at the taste of it. He mirrored her action and took a sip of his own, placing it down half-empty in front of him and enjoying the pleasant warmth that flowed into his chest as he swallowed the last of it.
"I dare you to kiss me." Mabel said.
C'mon man… do you really want to go down this road? She's Mabel! Mabel, you know – your sister. She's family… she's your friend… she's…
A stray beam of moonlight reflected through the window at that moment and glistened in Mabel's eye like a spray of diamonds, the gentle yellow light shining off her flushed cheeks and outlining her face in soft shadows.
She's really pretty… and its not like you haven't thought about this before, no matter how much you tell yourself that you haven't, or that you didn't mean to or that it was just your subconscious being weird. It's not like you haven't dreamed of almost this exact thing… hell maybe this is all a dream right now?
And even if she isn't she's still really pretty.
Dipper's hand reached out, only slightly unsteadily, to cup Mabel's chin as he brought his face to hers and covered her mouth with his own. Her lips melted against his and he felt his pulse quicken to a jackhammer beat when he heard her moan gently into his mouth and run her fingers through his hair. The simple kiss stretched on and on into more kisses, his own strong arms reaching out to pull Mabel in close to his chest, loving the feel of her body molding to his. After forever and no time at all he broke the kiss and looked down into her face, their breathing hard and their eyes shining with twin lights.
"Your turn bro-bro." Mabel whispered.
"Truth or Dare," Dipper said hazily, his mind fogged with alcohol fumes, confusion and the very strong rush of the blood coursing through his veins.
"Truth," Mabel said, reaching her hand out to stroke it gently against Dipper's cheek, smiling to herself at the feel of the first little traces of stubble there tickling her fingers.
"I thought you said Truth was the baby option," Dipper joked gently.
"Some truths are harder than others," Mabel said.
"Why did you want me to kiss you?" Dipper asked, the joking tone gone from his voice.
"I thought you were supposed to be some kind of detective," Mabel teased quietly, but with a nervous edge to her voice, "haven't you figured it out by now?"
Dipper hesitated, feeling the moment teetering on the edge. It could go either way at this moment and right now he wasn't sure which would be better. He wanted this to last, but he was terrified of the uncertainty that awaited down the road.
He made his choice.
"I want to hear it out loud," he said quietly.
Mabel glared up at him, her eyes shining and her lip trembling slightly. This was going way beyond just the game now… reaching deep down into all those things that she'd hidden… hidden for so long and he just wanted her to dig them all up and lay them here like some kind of emotional autopsy?
Well he's already seen them now… there's nothing hidden about those kisses you just gave him, she thought to herself.
"I love you," Mabel said quietly, her eyes dropping away from his.
"Oh… since when?" Dipper asked, not sure if the feeling as if someone had literally pulled a rug out from under his feet was from the drinks or what he'd just heard.
"Only one question at a time in Truth or Dare." Mabel said quietly, her eyes still not rising up to meet his.
"Can we forget about the game for a second? This seems kind of important." Dipper said, reaching out a hand hesitantly to place it on Mabel's shoulder and give it a gentle squeeze.
Well he's not running away… so that's a good sign, Mabel thought as she looked up and caught sight of Dipper's expression. He looked… confused.
"What does it matter how long? If it was for years or if it just started five minutes ago it would still mean the same thing." Mabel said, half defensively and half defiantly.
"I don't know… I guess it doesn't really matter… I was just wondering if it was as long as…" Dipper began, and then stopped.
He'd made it a habit for so long to keep certain feelings buried that even thinking about them was difficult, much less speaking about them. Especially to her, even with a few pints of nasty home-made booze swirling around inside him.
"As long as what?" Mabel asked, feeling the breath catch in her throat. Does he mean…
"It's your turn." Dipper said abruptly, sliding Mabel's cup back to her across the table from where it had been jostled during their earlier kiss.
For a second she looked like she was going to hit him in frustration, but she shook the feeling from herself and thought for a few moments before saying, "Truth or Dare."
Dipper took a deep breath and took a long drink as he considered the question.
"Truth," he said with only the slightest hint of a slur to his voice.
"Do you feel the same way about me?" Mabel asked, leaning in toward him half-hoping and half-fearing the answer.
Dipper grabbed the mug and took a long drink, draining it down to the last drop before slamming it back down onto the table. Mabel felt frustrated disappointment bloom in her chest, thinking that Dipper had taken the drink to avoid the question, but she felt his larger hand reach out to cover her own and give it a squeeze and he looked at her with a slightly unsteady gaze.
"I think I do." he said.
"Yeah?" she asked, squeezing his hand back in return and feeling her heart start to pound.
"Yuppers," Dipper slurred out as the large drink he'd just taken started to tangle up his tongue, "I think I have for a while, but I didn't want you to hate me or think I was some kind of super creep and stuff so I just tried to forget about it."
"I don't think you're a creep," Mabel said unsteadily. "Do you think I'm a creep?"
"Oh hell no! You're the best – that's why I like you and stuff," Dipper said, his voice growing more unsteady as he began to sway slightly in his chair.
"Are you feeling alright there Dipper?" Mabel asked.
"Yeah, I'm awesome – I mean, I just found out I'm not a creep and stuff and I'm drunk and I got to kiss the prettiest girl I know, so my night's going really well!" Dipper exclaimed cheerfully. "How are you?"
"I'm doing pretty good too big guy," Mabel giggled, "but I think you've had too much of the sauce."
"I have only just begun to drink." Dipper said flatly, reaching an arm out to cradle the jug protectively.
"No, no more for Dippingsauce tonight – lets get you to bed so you can sleep it off." Mabel said sternly, her own voice slurring as she gently disentangled Dipper's arm from the cider and helped him up from the chair.
"Would you want to join me?" Dipper asked, giving her a hugely obvious wink.
"Perv." Mabel said with a laugh, feeling the blood rush to her face, as she gave him a gentle slap on the cheek. "Maybe next time," she added with a wink of her own.
With four unsteady legs between them the Pines managed the trip down the stairs to the bedroom that Dipper was staying in this summer and Mabel helped him to bed, leaning down over him to plant a long wet kiss on his cheek.
"G'night, Mabel," Dipper murmured as he lay back into the bed and gave a cidery scented sigh.
"Goodnight Dip," Mabel said, reaching a hand down to slide a stray curl of hair out of his face. She was seriously tempted to just crawl into the bed with him and feel his warmth snuggled next to her throughout the night, but she gave a sigh and went out the door and toward the attic stairs instead.
Someone had to take care of the small mess they had left in the attic… and besides he might not feel so good about the idea of her snuggling him in the morning when he woke up. He might not feel good about any of it… or maybe he just wouldn't remember.
The gloomy thought settled down like a cloud over Mabel's mind, but she shook it out. If nothing else at least she'd gotten that kiss that she'd wanted for so long, even if his mouth did taste all boozy. That was already more than she'd ever hoped for, and the memory of it helped lift the gloom off her shoulders.
Dipper woke the next morning with a nightmarish headache, and the feeling that some absolute bastard had maliciously replaced the sunlight streaming in through his window with beams of shiny acid to scorch his eyeballs. He dressed himself clumsily and spent a long while rinsing the vile gunk out of his mouth with mouthwash before heading over to the breakfast table.
As usual Stan was spending his morning sleeping in and Mabel was hunched over a bowl of cereal and glaring at it as if it had told her a particularly offensive insult. At the sight of Mabel the entirety of the nights events suddenly hit his mind all at once and he froze in his tracks.
Mabel glanced up at him, an expression on her face that Dipper had never seen before… something halfway between fear, guilt and with just a faint glimmer of hope.
"Hey," she said quietly.
"Morning," Dipper said, feeling awkward framed against the kitchen door and shuffling in to take his usual seat opposite her.
"Sleep well?" Mabel asked, glancing up at him briefly before turning her eyes back down to her cereal.
"The sleeping was easy, it's the waking up that was a killer," Dipper joked.
Mabel gave a little snort of laughter and looked up to give him a shy smile and Dipper felt a small happy pulse in his chest at the sight of her cheerful expression melting away her earlier uncertainty.
She'd smiled so nicely at him last night too he remembered.
"How about you?" Dipper asked.
"Yeah, I slept pretty well too… that stuff we made might not have been too tasty but it sure knocks you out nicely." Mabel said.
"Heh, yeah." Dipper said.
He stayed quiet for a pulse, but something inside him sparked up at that moment – some small flare that didn't want to forget last night, or just sweep everything under the rug.
"You know, I don't think it tasted that bad once you get used to it," he ventured quietly.
Mabel glanced back up at Dipper and gave him a searching look.
"Yeah, I guess it did go down pretty easy after the first few drinks." Mabel agreed.
"Would you maybe want to have a little more tonight?" Dipper asked, "We've still got most of the jug left and it would be a shame to let it all go to waste."
Mabel felt a warm pulse flaring up in her own chest. The world hadn't ended… she'd kissed him and everything was still okay. Maybe even better than just okay…
"Yeah, I'd like that," she said with a wide smile splitting her face, "Would you want to play Truth or Dare or Drink again?" she added shyly.
"I think I would." Dipper said with a conspiratorial smile of his own.
A small cool hand slipped into Dipper's under the table and gave his fingers an affectionate squeeze, and suddenly his first hangover didn't seem nearly as bad as it had earlier.