The text notification chirped from Dipper's cell phone in the middle of the night. He blinked, confused, then glanced over at his sister, before grabbing his phone off the nightstand to see who was texting at two in the morning. Luckily, Mabel was still snoring gently, her head buried under the covers.

Dipper squinted at the phone with one eye closed. It was Wendy. Why would she text him in the middle of the night? Her message didn't clarify anything. All it said was:

Hey. You up?

Dipper silenced the phone and turned on vibrate so as to not wake Mabel. Then he smiled to himself as he texted back.

I am now. What's up?

Oh, sorry man. It's not important.

Well, you texted me at 2am, so it must be somewhat important?

Really, it's nothing. Sorry to bother you dude.

Nope, you don't get off that easy, Corduroy. Why'd you text?

Ugh… it's just… It's stupid. I shouldn't have bothered you.

I'll be the judge of that. Spill it.

It was a full minute before the phone showed that Wendy was typing an answer, and Dipper had to take a deep breath and push aside a mini panic attack at the thought that he might have pissed her off. Finally her message popped up.

You're gonna laugh but… I had a bad dream. I even woke up crying. Now I can't fall back asleep.

Dipper frowned and bit his lower lip. He wasn't sure how to respond. Also, why had she texted him of all people? Yeah, they were best friends, and had spent practically every waking moment of the past three summers together—but they were like… buds. Bros. They never really confided in each other about emotional stuff.

Uh, hello?

Dipper jumped as the phone buzzed in his hands. He hastily replied.

Sorry about your dream. Wanna talk about it?

It's kind of complicated to type it all out on my phone.

Want me to call you?

Actually… is there any chance you could come over?

Dipper's heart picked up its pace. They'd had all night B-movie marathons before, but Wendy had never invited him over in the middle of the night. Despite being 'bros' with Wendy, he was still secretly enamored with her. He hadn't ever had a girlfriend, because he judged every girl against Wendy, and there was simply no comparison.

No problem. On my way.

Dipper hopped up from his bed, and threw on a pair of jeans over his boxers. He was already wearing a t-shirt, as was his habit during the summer, when he shared a bedroom with his sister. He grabbed a flashlight, and was about to pocket his phone when it buzzed once more.

Thanks, Dipper. You're amazing.

Dipper felt a blush spread over his cheeks. He wasn't sure how to respond to that, so he tucked his phone in his pocket and quietly trotted down the stairs and out the door.

/

The Corduroy house was a black silhouette against the night, save for the soft glow emanating from Wendy's first floor bedroom. Dipper tiptoed through their yard, and tapped gently on the glass. Wendy was sitting up in her bed, dressed in an oversize t-shirt and basketball shorts, hugging her knees to her chest, but as soon as she heard Dipper at her window she shot up off the bed and threw the window open. She didn't even wait for Dipper to climb inside before throwing her arms around him and squeezing. In fact, she pulled him inside while hugged him. Once he was fully inside and had his footing, Wendy let him go and shut the window.

"Well hey to you too," Dipper wheezed, rubbing his ribs. "That dream really freaked you out, huh?"

"Yeah." Wendy climbed back onto her bed. She scooted back against the headboard and patted beside her.

Dipper eased himself down next to her, and leaned back into the pillows. He stared at her expectantly. "So what happened in the dream that's got you so shaken up?"

Wendy took a shaky breath. She was paler than usual, although her cheeks were tinged pink. She met Dipper's gaze, then quickly looked away. "You died."

"Oh." Dipper rubbed the back of his neck. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but him dying was definitely not it. "So, uh, that sucks."

"I just… you were gone, and I was never going to get to see you again," Wendy explained, her voice quavering. "It felt like my world was ending. Like—whenever you go back to Piedmont at the end of the summer, I miss you like crazy, but we Skype and text and email, so I still get my Dipper fix, even though you're not around. But in the dream, it was different. My world shattered." A tear trailed slowly down her cheek.

"Geez, Wendy, don't cry." Dipper wiped away the tear with a thumb. He placed his hand on top of hers and squeezed gently. "I'm here, okay? I'm not dead. Everything's fine." It felt lame as he said it, but he didn't know what else to say. Wendy was the strong, stoic one out of the two of them. He could count on one hand the number of times that he'd seen her cry.

"Please don't leave me, Dipper," Wendy said softly, her voice husky. She gazed at Dipper, her red-rimmed green eyes sincere. "Because I—the dream made me..." She trailed off and bit her lower lip, staring up at Dipper from under thick, wet lashes.

Dipper's brow furrowed. "The dream made you what?" It suddenly occurred to him that their faces were extremely close together. While he was nearly always completely comfortable around Wendy, the way she was acting right now made Dipper feel lightheaded and a bit sweaty.

Wendy looked down for a moment, then met Dipper's eyes once more. Her lips parted slightly, and she took a deep breath. "It made me realize… I love you."

Dipper blinked. Surely he must have heard her wrong. Or—sibling love—that's what she must mean. He forced a grin. "Well, I love you too, man. You know that!"

Wendy sighed, her lips twitching upward at the corners. "I meant, I'm in love with you, dork." Before Dipper could gather his wits and respond, she put her hand on the back of his head, twining her fingers through his sleep-tousled curls, and pulled his face to hers. She pressed her lips softly against his.

Dipper froze, and trembled. He'd dreamed of this happening, but never actually expected it to. Wendy pulled away, her cheeks burning crimson.

"I'm sorry! Did I—I thought you—" she stammered. She paused when she noticed the smile spreading across Dipper's face.

"Don't worry, you thought right," he said low. He leaned in, wrapped his arms around Wendy, and pulled her back toward him. He pressed his lips against hers, and murmured softly against her mouth, "I'm in love with you, too, Wendy. I always have been."