Disclaimer: Not mine!
Oh my gosh! I'm on Wendip Week people! XD
After lots of thoughts I thought of having some fun in gravity falls universe before publishing GF Forever... So here we go... Hope everyone likes!
CODES
Dipper Pines has yet to find a mystery that will beat him.
Ever since that first summer, and even before that, he was told to be a curious kid, someone who would dive headfirst into a question, seeking to understand everything life had to offer. So, it was only natural he became quite fond of the supernatural, for what could be stranger than that? What else could defy everything he knew and bring his mind to work on full gear.
So he cracked it all, codes from Viginiere to Ceasar. He found the mysteries of the crystals amidst the forest and the so called secrets to manliness, not to say the time he found out about the Society of the Blind Eye.
Yes, he could solve and reveal everything.
Until now that is.
Right now Dipper Pines couldn't for his life figure out the meaning of some things, and that had been so for a long time now, from a simple hat exchange to a mischievous kiss under the stars, the simplicity and complexity of it all overwhelmed him to no end.
And yet here he was again, questioning everything and letting his fears get the best of him. First came the sweat, then the itchy feeling running across his arms, his back and pretty much his whole body as he stared at the ladder, disappearing above him in a pit of darkness…
Never that ladder seemed so ominous, instead of the usual rush of excitement.
Gulping loudly he placed a foot on the first step and took a deep breath. It had been so long now, these stairs seemed very tiny since the first time he climbed them.
The text message had been pretty straight forward, a simple "meet me at the roof" dry and without the usual flavor she could add with a simple wink face or something. That is what got him worried, that and the fact that she had been avoiding him for the last two weeks.
Even Mabel had gotten worried at some point, but after a visit to the old cabin in the middle of the woods she merely shrugged and told him to stop being a worry wart. When Dipper asked what she found out, again she ignored him, closed the door to their room and locked it despite his protests. He had to spend that night on the sofa. That had been three days ago and Mabel still would giggle and laugh and be noisy, but when he got close she would run away as if the house was on fire.
Yeap, all his anxiety was pretty much justified. First his girlfriend and suddenly his sister didn't want to speak to him… Just wonderful.
"It's probably some women stuff kid" Grunckle Stan told him one time when he asked. "Trust me, woman have issues you and I have nothing to do with, my advice is to let them alone to figure stuff out, or else you might end up with a burning RV and a shovel in the shape of your face"
"You're speaking from your own experience, aren't you?"
"Don't you have to cut some wood?"
And that had been the end of it and he spent the rest of the afternoon cutting logs. At least that made him forget about his problems for a while, but not much. His noodle arms were soon aching and he was even sooner very tired. Somehow he never really got the hang of cutting stuff with an axe, not like her.
It wasn't like he hadn't tried to talk to her. At first he had asked questions like they always did to one another, playfully and all, but then she started to stubbornly brush the subject away. He knew something was wrong. He tried again two days later and she blushed, looked away and, sounding nothing like the amazing girl he knew, mumbled something about leaving it be.
At one point he finally exploded, getting angry and sad that she was hiding something, and finally she asked him to trust her on this. That had been their best talk on it, one where she had gazed at him, and zipped her mouth. He understood then, and he trusted her with his heart but still, the moment they split, his heart started hammering and his mind would yell at him to find out what was going on.
But after that day she simply disappeared and suddenly his best friend was Soos and not her. Not that the big man wasn't good company, it was just a matter that the movie nights with her were so much better.
"I dunno dude, maybe she is in those days you know" He had frowned then.
"What days Soos?"
"Oh, you know those days when Melody prefers chocolate to crackers in bed" The big man said, chewing a bag of chips.
"I don't think so Soos"
"Are you sure dude?"
"It's not even been one month."
"Hhmm" Soos frowned at that, neither were watching the movie now. "Well, mister Pines always said women are mysterious creatures after all"
"What is that honey?" Suddenly Melody came into the room, with her typical gentle smile playing at her lips.
"Oh, nothing I was just telling Dipper about women" He frowned again. "At the least I think I do, he is worried about his problems with his…"
"Soos" Dipper interrupted flustered, his cheeks burning red.
"Oopps, sorry dude" Soos chuckled. "But you know, Melody could help, because, she is a girl you know, so…"
"Dipper?"
At that moment he had looked up at her and sighed heavily. At the end of the explanation Melody simply stared blankly at him, licked her lips, took some chips from Soos, chewed them for a obnoxious amount of time and then… Left the room, like it was on fire.
"What was that?" A beffudled Dipper asked.
"I dunno dude, but I think she might have almost told y… wow" Soos chuckled to himself. "That was close dude"
"What was close Soos?"
"Huh? Oh…" The big man was sweating at that point and Dipper was opening his mouth to question him further when Soos got up and left the room, walking backwards.
What followed was the sudden barrage of sounds related to the scene of a big man falling down a set of stairs.
"I'm fine!"
Unfortunately days later his nights with Soos got even more weird until the point he started to find excuses not be around, resulting in Grunkle Ford taking most of Dipper's time.
At least that was something. Since he was without his sister, his friend and his girlfriend/best friend, and Stan was too lazy to care, work would get him going. His great uncle was good with distractions and he always had some experiment going to fill the time. Once he and Dipper used the Salomon's Dagger to see if they could split the infinity sided dice, only to find it was weirdly impossible. At some other point they tried to see if they could use unicorn hair as a method to grow more hair for people getting bald, and by people they meant Grunkle Stan…
The result was a series of potions to grow ear hair, nose hair, leg hair, but they weren't even closer to understand how to make hair grow atop the head. That was when Dipper got the text.
And now here he was.
It was the middle of the night, the sun had just set, and he was climbing the stairs to one of his favorite places in the world, wondering if his girlfriend would tell him about some serious disease, confess to having a visit from some remain of Bill Cypher or, worst of all, break up with him.
That last one really got him in a panic state, and Dipper had to take a deep breath and remind himself that they loved each other and, just like Mabel said, he needed to stop being a worry wart.
He climbed the path unsteadily until he reached the ceiling. It was dark there and the only light he saw came from the open hatch, the light of the stars and something warm in hot colors. Something hit the floor at his back and Dipper turned around, heart racing as he tried to gaze into the darkness. He waited for some time, but when nothing moved he finally took a deep breath and stepped outside.
The sight that greeted him was a comfort in itself, kin to paradise.
The old lawn chairs were there, with the umbrella and the cooler. Plus, beside them there was an old lamp with a tiny flame dancing in the center, and beside the lamp, sitting at the edge of the platform, was his girlfriend.
Her hair was waving in the night wind, like a flame itself burning through the shadows. She was wearing her typical flannel shirt and jeans, and his old cap atop of her head, dangling her feet in the air like a happy child.
"Hey dude" Wendy Corduroy said to him from above her shoulder, the smile she gave him, easing out a thousand worries from his heart.
"H-hey…" He said, the left over nervousness not letting him speak.
She chuckled and patted the place beside her, where Dipper sat down and, after what felt like ages, watched her. Her freckled face seemed quite content to him, mature with a pointed chin and lazy smile. After seven years she still seemed cool like always, still he could feel she was nervous, having learned to read the secret signs a long time ago.
"Wendy?"
"Dude, do you remember the first time you came here?" She said before he could articulate a question. Her gaze fluttered towards the sky and he followed it to the stars above.
"I don't think I can forget"
"You told me that that was when you…"
"Yeap" He blushed and scratched the back of his head, moving the hat, her old hat, a little to the side. Those days still made him feel ridiculous over his childish crush, but then she chuckled and that alone made it worth it.
"Dude, you were such a dork"
"You're such a trouble maker" He shot right back at her and now she looked at him, their gazes meeting at the same height, but it was so for four years now.
"Oh dude, what am I thinking!" She said, hitting the side of her head. "You're still a big dork"
She laughed, and he couldn't help but join her this time as they fell on a simple silence, until she started over.
"I never told you about the first time I came here, did I?" Her question was simple and fast, like something rehearsed many times, menat to be in a certain way.
"Nope, I would remember, big brain and all that" He said lightly and she nodded, biting at her cheek.
"Well, it was at some time the summer before mister Pines hired me" She explained, the wind blew again and he could smell her now, the soft scent of woods and sweat which was only hers. Her voice never stopped. "I came here because I wanted to goof off you know? Nothing much. My friends had chores, and I was feeling bored. Mister Pines was and old codger, still is, but back then I thought it would be pretty cool to mess around his house. I had seen this place from atop some trees and it seemed so rad, I just had to make this a thing"
"Of course you had"
"Yeah, well, in the end it wasn't so cool. There was no big shotgun aimed at the bothersome teenager at the roof or something, no weird basement raised dogs chasing me, none of the hit and run I expected. Once I went to the top, I got close to turn on the worst music possible to wake Stan up, but just then, dude I felt so stupid." She shook her head, laughing from embarrassment.
"I know how that feels" He said and she grinned at him.
"I bet you do!"
"Hey!"
"But anyway… I ended up staying here a long time, just me, the sound and nothing else, and I remember myself relaxing here into the night, thinking that if I had a chair and maybe some chips to go with the pit colas I brought, and the pit colas could be cold too and…"
Her voice drifted away like she didn't know how to continue and Dipper saw her gulping. Wendy Corduroy was really nervous and that thought alone was frightening.
"Wendy?" He gently brought a hand above hers. "Wendy what is going on?" He asked with a tinge of despair and the woman beside him took a deep breath.
"Dipper I'm so sorry" Her voice wavered at that "Dipper I…"
"You're okay?" He blurted out before he could stop himself. Wendy blinked but he kept going. "Or maybe not? Are you sick? Wendy is something wrong? Like Did I do something I didn't realize? Something awful? I'm so sorry if…"
"Dipper!" She interrupted his rambling, and suddenly she was laughing quietly to herself, leaving a befuddled young man staring back at her. "Dude, and I thought I was having issues"
"Well that is… Wait what?"
She grinned gently at him now, she was still shyly avoiding his eyes though. "Dude, can you let me finish before you freak out?"
"Huh sure… I-I guess I can do that."
She pecked his cheek. "Good, now where was I? Right, chips and pit cola"
"And a chair, you wanted a chair too"
"And I got one" She smugly looked back at the lawn chair. "Anyway when I was up here dude, you know what happened?" He shook his head, but she didn't seem to notice, her eyes were back targeting the starlit sky, and her gaze was longing. "I felt lonely."
The confession hit Dipper like a fake gobblewonker in a supernatural fair, and could see her eyes were glimmering now. Inside he felt his own heart give a twist, for he felt that he knew where she was coming from, so he sat closer, and squeezed her hand feeling her doing the same.
"It's stupid right? I was a teenager, I was having an adventure, breaking rules and stuff and yet I hadn't felt lonely like that since my mom passed away"
Her voice was thick with emotion now and Dipper caught himself getting closer, enveloping her in one arm. This was pure instinct now, and Wendy relaxed against his touch.
"I-I was thinking of how nice it would be to share this with someone you know? It was not fun without my friends around, but they were busy or having fun in other places. I realized then that I wanted someone who wanted to share as much as I did… And that was stupid because I never liked that, until well…"
She smiled and he blushed as their gazes met.
"Sorry about this last month dude, I've been…"
"Is no problem" He told her right away. "I mean I was really worried and all, very worried actually, like, fearing an apocalypse at any minute and watching your house to see if your were safe and…"
"You watched my house? Dude I thought all the texts were the line for you!" She pushed lightly and he grinned embarrassed.
"Sorry is just, you now, the way our lives go and all"
She chuckled again at that. "I get it man…"
And then she kissed him, a light touch of her lips pressing against his. Her hand was warm, and held his cheek close as his heart gave a back flip of pure joy, but sooner than he wished the kiss ended and Wendy got up on her feet, offering him a hand.
The sight brought him back to his younger years all over again, watching the coolest person ever looking at him, this time with the stars and the bright white moon behind her, but the hair still holding the same fiery color, and the green eyes were just as trusting and urging as before.
When he got up, standing in front of her she offered a lopsided grin, and he saw she was blushing madly now, almost matching her hair.
"W-wendy?"
"So dude… About this week, I was just trying to keep a secret about something, and frankly I was a nervous wreck and all, but I guess I'm not that cool with this kind of stuff"
"You?" He blinked. "You're kidding"
"Not at all dork" She said biting her lip before bringing a hand to her pocket. "The thing is I was wondering if… If you…" The box was small, and inside there were two plain and simple rings. "Would you like to be my dork husband? You know, share a life and all that?"
For a second he felt his heart stopping in surprise, commanding the rest of the body to verify what was happening, and if it was worth to keep beating again. First he asked his brain, but his greatest asset was current not working properly, as more and more parts of his body sent emergency alarms about a sudden surge of sweat, anxiety and unresponsive limbs… Thankfully his eyes were still working, meeting the box and then Wendy's hopeful gaze mixed with blushing cheeks feeding the heat on his own face. Indeed, his eyes told the rest, things were too good to be true, so everyone better go back to work before losing it over a promotion…
"Dipper…" Wendy was saying trying to wake him from his daze.
"I-I…I…" He was trying, his mind reeling to find out what was the word meant to seal the deal, but amidst the confusion the big brain was still sending alarms in hope to find the right sound his mouth was supposed to produce. Wendy was still patiently waiting, knowing him like she did. For other people though, he was taking too long.
"SAY YES YOU BIG DUMMY!" At that scream Dipper turned startled, and his heart almost threatened to stop again. It certainly wasn't getting paid for that kind of stuff…
The vision he found took some more time to make an impression and slowly Dipper came to grips to the fact that he did find his sister at the hatch to the roof, struggling mightily as Stan tried to clamp her mouth shut. Melody and Soos was staring embarrassingly from the sides, and Ford was moving to see from behind the big guy.
"G-guys…"
"Well, there goes the romance" Stan said releasing Mabel as she realized what she did. "Not that I'm surprised"
"I knew it would be Mabel" Ford observed fixing his glasses. "It seems you own me ten bucks Stan"
"Dammit Soos" Stan cursed leaving a confused repair man to apologize for not ruining the moment first. None of that made Mabel feel any better though.
"Sorry guys I was…" She blushed in embarrassment. "Hurgh, I'm so so so so sorry Wendy, I just couldn't hold it anymore, please forgive me! Please let me still be your party planner!"
Dipper stared confused at his regretful sister, until he heard the giggle coming from his girlfriend, he stared at her until she was snorting resignedly.
"Well" She said "I guess that would be expected"
"You really should seek advice out of our cycle Wendy" Melody told her simpateticaly.
"Wait, a second!" Dipper yelled before there could be any answer, pieces and clues falling into place as his magical brain came back to life with an accusation ready. "You guys knew the whole time!"
Everyone nodded at that.
"Sorry dude" Wendy said, looking to the ground embarrassed. "Those doofuses kept bugging me to talk to you and all that, and I kind of had to explain everything, which was better than dealing with an angry Mabel." Wendy explained, not meeting his eyes. She was still holding the box at him, the confession spilling regret.
In that moment Dipper didn't give a damn about the mystery.
This whole time he felt trapped into some ominous situation he was afraid to see the result, she was just trying to have courage, much like him back when he first asked her out. That alone sent a wave of warmth running through him, and he couldn't imagine what she must have gone through to keep the surprise. He certainly knew Mabel was a titan of uncovering secrets.
Suddenly he felt like laughing, and he did, losing control of his emotions to a sudden wave of joy. He laughed until his belly hurt, and he could hear Wendy joining at his side, laughing just as hard, until they had to almost hold each other. It was too funny, exhilarating, exciting… The best code he never broke. Dipper didn't know he could be this happy, up until he took the box from an out of breath Wendy.
"Hey dude, what…" She stopped and he took the two rings, placing one on his finger and asking for her hand, which she silently offered. She stared at her hand, and back at him. "So is that a yes doofus?"
"Yes" He placed her ring on her finger "Definitely…" A shiver run through his body or maybe it was her... "Absolutely" Maybe it was both of them.
See ya tomorrow!
