That summer seemed to last forever. The summer she had turned thirteen had marked the biggest turnaround of personality the United States of America had seen in at least a century. Well, maybe she was being too egocentric, but she was proud of how far she'd come.
As soon as she'd seen her, she felt threatened and, if she was honest, more than a little envious. Here was a girl with no reputation to draw people to her beck and call, no recognizable title to her name other than the boy crazy little girl with braces and homemade sweaters. But she was happy. She was always annoyingly optimistic about everything, even being insulted. She had the most dynamic personality that Pacifica Elise Northwest had ever met, save her twin brother.
And she had a family. She had real friends. Mabel Pines had come from nowhere, to possibly the smallest town between California and Canada where everyone knew each other, and she fit right in. Worst of all, she had morals, and that was probably what Pacifica envied most of all. Brought up to the mantras of "You're a Northwest. Don't lose", and taught to do anything to win, to succeed, to get what she wanted, she didn't know what morals were. Her entire life, her family, was all a lie, and she knew it.
She didn't like thinking back to how horrible she'd been. She blamed herself for it, and despised her parents for making her into the stereotype of bitchy it-girl who would do anything for popularity.
"But just because you're your parents daughter doesn't mean you have to be like them."
The golf game had set her on a path she didn't even realize she was capable of taking. The mansion didn't feel the same to her anymore. The way Mr. Pines treated his great niece and nephew was entirely foreign to her, she had thought it only happened in TV shows. Her abuse-stained Pavlov-esque conditioning started tearing at the seams. She had meant it when she said Dipper wouldn't understand.
She had still despised the twins, and everything they stood for. A happy family, the notion money wasn't everything, she despised everything they were because she couldn't accept it. The world was black and white. There was no middle ground, ever. No exceptions.
But then the night of the party had arrived, and she had finally learned what it meant to rebel. The bell, and all of the tear-and-blood-soaked associations that came with it, had finally stopped working.
Dipper shouldn't have understood. He was happy, really happy, not perfect but not the mess her bloodline was. He should have left when he could. Gone back to his bullshit ghost show. But he didn't.
She couldn't let him die after that. Any of them. She was a terrible person, a spoiled brat to the very core, but she was not her parents.
She'd opened the walls of the dollhouse, and Mabel and Dipper had seen through the plastic.
At first, she was reluctant to do anything with them. They managed to get her out of the mansion once in awhile, but only in the dead of night, where no one could see. But slowly she stopped shying away from them.
On the night of the Northwest girl's thirteenth birthday, she finally stopped avoiding them. After the party her parents had thrown, that was zero percent celebration and one hundred percent social networking, she snuck out of the mansion and straight to the Mystery Shack.
Mabel and Dipper had explained the details of why Pacifica was the way she was to Stanley Pines, and he had sympathized in only the way someone who had been through it could.
The birthday party was rustic. She had funfetti cake in a broken down tourist trap with makeshift streamers. It was nothing like she was used to, and she loved every second of it. She felt herself idealizing the twins, though her heart fluttered more around Dipper. For two weeks, tops.
Then one night, when she snuck into the pool with the twins and saw how the moonlight hit Mabel's eyes, the loveable nerd that she had projected her self-hatred onto, she realized another part of her identity was a lie.
By the end of that summer, through the apocalypse and the near-death experiences, the Pacifica Northwest she'd been at the beginning of the summer was gone. She was a mentally ill abuse victim, a lesbian, and in love with Mabel Pines.
A bump in the limousine sent the blonde's thoughts (and mascara wand) off track, and she groaned, reaching for a Q-tip. It had been two years since that summer, and her parents' desperate attempts to salvage their reputation and fortune in Gravity Falls had failed. Preston Northwest was an abusive, self-centered scumbag, but the one thing he was good at was business. California had Silicon Valley, expensive real estate, and giant cities full of opportunities.
She hadn't realized they were going to Piedmont until they passed the sign, and she sat up rail straight. Mabel. Pacifica opened her purse and grabbed her phone in one smooth motion, unlocking it and texting her girlfriend.
P: u kno how i said we were moving to cali. we're in piedmont we're gonna live here.
Pacifica repressed a laugh as her phone lit up with a call from Mabel. Her parents were in another part of the limousine, so she could answer.
"PAZ ARE YOU REALLY MOVING HERE?!"
Pacifica laughed. "Yeah Mabes, we just passed the sign. I asked the limo driver and he said so too."
"OHMYGODIVEBEENDREAMINGOFTHISFORFOREVERWECANGOTOPROMTOGETHERANDGRADUATETOGETHERAND-"
Pacifica snorted when she heard Dipper's yelling down the hall for Mabel to be quieter. "Is he watching the Ghost Harassers DVD again?"
"Yeah, one sec. DIPPER, PAZ IS MOVING TO PIEDMONT."
"MABEL PL- Wait, really?"
"YEAH!"
Dipper might have been the awkward third wheel, but he was still probably Pacifica's best friend. They didn't have much in common at first (besides the fact they both liked girly pop music), but then Mabel had gotten Pacifica hooked on Ducktective and it became her hobby to call Dipper and freak out with him about the latest episode every week. Usually that meant from the minute the show ended to about four in the morning was filled with sleep-drunken jokes and theories.
The three of them made plans to meet up outside some store, and Pacifica hung up the phone, smiling the way only someone happy could.
Pacifica leaned against the "For Sale" sign on the lot littered with the skeletons of buildings. Her parents were building a school, apparently, so they could climb the ranks to "do-gooders" in the new community.
Oh, and Pacifica was in charge of it.
"This will be your project, Pacifica. Don't make us regret trusting you with this."
She sighed, rubbing the bandages on her heels. Her parents had forced her along to some socialite get-together, and she'd worn the most expensive shoes she had.
The ones that dug into her heels.
She had two big scabs over the bandages where the shoes had left their mark. She sighed, crossing her arms and watching the sun slowly set.
She jumped when she heard footsteps behind her.
"Hey, is anyone here?" She turned around, her accusatory glare melting into an expression of attraction.
"Hey, I'm Autumn! I heard this school was opening soon so I just stopped by to check it out."
"Oh, uh, hey."
"Nice to meet you! I go to school at Hearst High. It's right over there."
She looked just like Mabel. Pacifica couldn't help what she blurted next.
"W-wow, you're beautiful."
Autumn blushed and looked down.
"Oh, um, thanks. You're quite pretty yourself."
"I know I am. You act like you don't get told you're pretty a lot, which is...shocking."
"Um, I don't, not really. The people at Hearst can be…"
"Assholes?"
"Something along those lines. I actually come here pretty often...to get away from them. I've been wanting to transfer to this school ever since I heard it was opening."
"Why can't you?"
"Well, uh, Hearst High is the most prestigious school in the area, and my dad won't let me transfer."
"It's not gonna be the most prestigious school in the area for long. My parents already are spreading the word. Once the school opens, well...Hearst is going to have some competition." The blonde shot a wink at the other girl, smirking when she blushed.
Pacifica's phone buzzed, and she glanced down at it.
"Max refers to Max Warren, right? He wants me to meet him in the parking lot."
"You know who he is?"
"His dad's the principal where you go to school, so he runs the school. Which means we're in the same boat."
"Ugh, you don't want to be like Max. He's a jerk."
"I used to be exactly like Max, if he is how you say he is. Don't worry, I can handle this. You wanna come with?"
"So, Loser High's got its first Loser."
"And look, Little Miss Quirkface is already over here. I always knew Autumn was a dork, but I never thought she was a traitor…"
Pacifica stepped in front of Autumn, clearing her throat.
"Max Warren, right? You're surprisingly well dressed. Is that a brand new Gucci watch?"
"It is, but how the he-"
"You see, Max, we're kinda in the same boat. Your dad's principal, my dad owns this place. Only difference is...I don't think a high school principal makes enough for that watch or your beautiful Ferrari over there."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying I'm not an idiot. Your dad is doing SOMETHING to make that money, and I'm almost positive it would be damning if anyone found out, huh?"
Max sized Pacifica up and down, from the flawless makeup to the french manicure and the flip flops that cost more than a full time employee could make in a week.
"Well played. What did you say your name was?"
"Pacifica Northwest. Google me, hon. But, uh, for now take your girlfriend there and get the fuck off of my land before I call the cops, kay?"
"You know, if you weren't such a bitch we might actually get along."
"If you weren't such a stereotype we might too. Toodles, sweetheart." Pacifica stared down Max and a speechless Kara until they drove off the property.
"Wh-ho-"
"I bet you've never seen someone bitch out THE Max Warren before."
"...That was...INCREDIBLE! But uh, yeah, now you can see why I don't like being at Hearst High."
"Mmhm, believe me hon I do. But guess what? This is gonna be the best damn public school in town, and everyone is welcome. We'll get your dad to see that soon."
"Thank you so much, Pacif-"
"Everyone calls me Paz."
"Paz. Can I get your number? I should probably go home, but I'll let you know if I have any ideas who I can recruit for your school."
Pacifica nodded, flashing a dazzling smile at Autumn and typing her number into her phone. "Call me, alright, hon?"
Autumn smiled, gave a nod, and started walking off. "See you later."
Recruit people, huh? I know the perfect twins to start with.