"Loser."
The word really shouldn't get to him anymore. Dipper slouched a little lower into his chair and took a sip of his pit cola.
He had been trying to get to know some of the boys his age in town. He and Mabel had friends back home of course, but no one who completely clicked with them. He had assumed that since Mabel had managed to find such great friends here, that maybe, just maybe, there could be someone like that for him.
He was wrong.
Dipper heaved a sigh again and crushed his can. He eyed the trash can across the room. After a moment, he took aim and tossed it. He missed, of course.
"Wow, that was a bum throw. You throw like my grandma."
Stan's voice startled him a little. Dipper looked at the man standing to his left. Grunkle Stan was wearing his old stained white undershirt and shorts. He had a newspaper tucked under his arm and a cup of coffee in his hand. Dipper stared at him for a moment before looking away. He didn't feel like dealing with his uncle's jokes right now. He was tired of being the butt of everything.
"Hey. You okay kid?" Stan asked.
Dipper glanced up at him for a moment and noted that the stupid grin he had been wearing had disappeared. Was that concern? No couldn't be. Dipper looked away again.
"Yeah… I'm great," He said in a flat voice.
There was a screech as Grunkle Stan, pulled out the chair beside him.
"No you're not," Stan said, in a matter-of-fact tone. "What's eating you?"
Dipper looked at him in surprise. He had the newspaper in front of his face… upside-down. He actually wanted to know, Dipper realized. After a moment of shock at the realization, Dipper told him what happened.
"…I guess I'm just sick of being the spare, you know?" Dipper finished.
Stan folded up the newspaper. He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes.
"Kid, I know the feeling," He said with a sigh.
"What?" Dipper was starting to really feel out of depth.
Stan slid his glasses back on and looked at Dipper with a sincere expression on his face.
"When I was your age I was the spare too. It was really hard for me to make friends outside of family."
He paused and gave a harsh little laugh. "Honestly I'm pretty sure I was the spare to my Dad too."
Dipper stared at him mutely.
"I was going somewhere with this," Stan said. "Oh, yeah. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that sometimes you just have to wait. I may have been a loser and spare my whole life, but let me tell you something. You kids have really made me a lot happier than I have been in who knows how long. You mean the world to me. Soos too, but don't tell him that I said that. The man's sappy enouph as is."
Stan elbowed Dipper in the side when he said that, earning a little laugh out of him.
"So don't let those jerks get you down. There are people who care about you and we can always be losers together, who cares what those butt-heads think."
"Wow. Thanks, Grunkle Stan," Dipper said with a small smile. He really hadn't been expecting that and from Stan of all people.
Grunkle Stan cleared his throat, rubbing his arm awkwardly.
"Yeah," He said.
Suddenly he grinned and leaned close to Dipper.
"If those jerks ever mess with you again, you can always throw their bikes off a cliff," He said in a stage whisper.
"Grunkle Stan!" Dipper said in a scandalized tone as he shoved him away, but he couldn't help laughing anyway.
Stan grinned back at him before going back to his newspaper.