A/N: Due to popular request, I present to you a sequel! Taken place before 'Not What He Seems'. Enjoy!
Dipper twirled his fork in boredom and tilted his head upward when he saw the waitress approach him for the 99th time.
"Would you like another glass of Pitt Cola?" Lazy Susan asked casually, seeing that the ice had already melted in his glass. He blinked at her for a moment.
"Oh, yeah, sure. Thanks." He said, handing over his glass. He watched her leave him with a nod before he turned his attention back to the empty seat in front of him.
Maybe…this was a bad idea. What if she doesn't show up? Dipper checked his watch and gave a long exasperated sigh as he drummed his fingers on the table. Who is he kidding? She probably saw him as a joke. No, this whole set up was a joke. Does he really expect that she would-?
Dipper was jolted out of his thoughts when suddenly the person he had been waiting for slid in the booth in front of him.
"Heh, well it's about time, Pacifica." He said with a smile but then arched his eyebrow when he noticed that she wore her trench coat. "What's with the outfit?"
"Still grounded, remember?" she retorted as she took off her sunglasses, "I had to sneak out of my own house." She then eyed him top to bottom with one heavy brow slanted in strong disapproval, "I see you're wearing the usual."
"Hey, c'mon, I dressed up for the occasion." Dipper said as he pointed to his black bow tie. Pacifica rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"You are unbelievable," she remarked as she undid the purple bandanna that wrapped around her head and let her blonde hair fall loosely on her shoulders.
"Not as unbelievable as your dad filing that restraining order," Dipper shrugged.
"True," Pacifica agreed, "But it's whatever." She gave a small smile and said, "Let's just enjoy the last time I can stay within a 100 yards from you."
He chuckled and then said, "Good thing they won't expect to find you in a place like this."
Pacifica looked around once more at the tiny, little diner. It was a late hour, most of the tables were empty, with the last guy had left a check on the table and made his way out the door. A waitress swept the wooden flooring while a neon colored jukebox softly played the Top 40 Hits. The aroma of greasy burgers, fries and a tinge of the sweet scent of blended milkshakes filled the air.
She looked back at him with a sly grin, "You couldn't be more right. I don't know why I agreed to meet you in this hovel."
Although, Pacifica had not mentioned to him that sitting in the booth seat made her a bit uncomfortable.
"Well, if it isn't our lady of the hour!" Lazy Susan exclaimed as she came up to them and placed down a new glass of Pitt cola. "Hmmm…you look familiar," she noted and lifted up the eyelid of her lazy eye. "You're-!"
"Nobody," Pacifica interrupted and pulled out a dollar bill. "And after tonight, we weren't here. Got that?"
"Oh! Bribery!" Lazy Susan said happily and slid the dollar bill into her pocket. "Now what can I get you to drink?" She asked as she handed them the menus.
"Diet Pitt Cola." Pacifica then added quickly, "please."
Once Lazy Susan walked off, Pacifica picked up the menu by the corners cautiously and analyzed it. First thing that caught her eye were the prices. They were cheap. Way too cheap. An instant red flag flashed in her mind, distinctly remembering her father's advice about commoner's food. Not only that, but she could not recognize anything on the menu.
Pacifica glanced up at Dipper and said slowly, "Okay, I admit. I never had a 'burger' before."
He looked up from his menu, wide-eyed, "You're kidding, right?"
"Hey, I don't eat peasant food regularly," She said defensively. Dipper crossed his arms and gave a sly grin.
"Huh, guess being rich isn't what it all cuts out to be."
"Just shut up and order for us," Pacifica rolled her eyes.
Right then, Lazy Susan came up to them and placed Pacifica's soft drink on the table. "Are y'all ready?" She asked as she took out her notepad.
"Yep," Dipper said. "We'll both have today's burger special."
"Good choice!" Lazy Susan exclaimed as she jotted down the order quickly and slipped her pencil behind her ear. "Coming right up!"
After their menus were picked up, Lazy Susan returned to the kitchen and left the both of them alone at the table once more. A moment of silence fell between them. Pacifica picked up her glass of soda and took a sip before she asked casually, "So, unraveled any anomalies lately?"
Dipper perked his head up, genuinely surprised by her question. Seeing his expression, she instantly regretted the moment those words flew out of her mouth, as if she just broke an unspoken rule. And quite embarrassed. Who was she kidding? He probably thought her question was some kind of joke. No way would he let in all the secrets to a girl like her, especially after all the terrible things she said in the past. Does she really expect that he would-?
Before she could finish her thought, Dipper looked down at his drink for a second before he said slowly, "Actually, not really. Not after that whole ghost thing happened."
His eyebrows furrowed in deep thought and his lips suddenly tightened. Pacifica watched his expression carefully, only left to wonder what sort of realization came to him.
"Oh, okay," she simply replied, not sure whether he was speaking the truth or that he didn't trust her enough. Just as she was about to take another sip, Pacifica jolted when Dipper sighed out loud and leaned against the palm of his hand.
"Just when I thought I was one step closer to solving this mystery," He muttered and Pacifica knew that he was not speaking to her directly. "Summer is almost over and all I reached are dead ends."
Pacifica watched him twirl his fork silently and she looked back down at her drink. It wasn't that she had nothing to say, rather that she didn't know if she should say anything. She didn't know exactly what 'this' mystery was nor does she feel reluctant to be a part of it. Of course, she knew that strange things happened in this town. Yet, no one really talked about it. Just like everyone else, she turned a blind eye to it all. She couldn't exactly explain why this was, but it what as if some piece of her memory was shrouded in fog, not meant to be recollected or found. Besides, she had her own mysteries to uncover at home.
In hopes to lighten up the situation, she returned her gaze back to Dipper and decided to humor him.
"Is that the mister 'I got a category 10 ghost to dispose of' saying he's giving up?" Pacifica smirked and Dipper snapped his attention back to her.
"I'm not giving up," he said quickly. "It's just…it feels nice to get a break once in a while. You know, just hanging out. Like this."
He then snorted, "And on nights like these when Mabel is throwing a sleepover, it sure beats having a wolf chew my leg."
Pacifica chuckled and said, "Well, I could care less about the stuff that happens in this town. " She added smugly, "but if you find that you're alone with your dorky self, you could always…come and visit."
Dipper couldn't help but feel a tug on the corner of his lips at the thought of spending more time with her. He instantly recalled the memory of the night that started it all, when one moment they were on the hunt for a dangerous ghost and the next they were slow dancing under the stars. The particular scent of sweet, flowery fragrance mingled with the warm feeling of his arm wrapped around her waist resurfaced in his mind. More distinctly, he remembered her eyes, once like chips of emerald ice that would dart cold-heartedly at him, only to reveal a softer side of her gaze.
Now here he was, a couple weeks later, with the same gaze peering at him expectedly. Dipper wondered just what exactly allured these unexpected feelings, so much so that it caused a fleeting kiss from him on that particular night, an action that still bewildered him. Oddly enough, when it came to their midnight calls to running into each other in town, it all felt so natural. Perhaps, they both shared more common ground than he thought.
Just then, Lazy Susan returned to them as she carried a fresh tray of food.
"Alright, two cheeseburgers and a side fries!" She announced as she placed the plates in front of them. "Enjoy!"
Once she walked off, Dipper picked up his burger.
"Prepare yourself, Pacifica," he said with a grin, "for you are about to taste the good ol' cheeseburger of Greasy's diner."
"Hm, I don't know whether I should be delighted or disgusted," Pacifica smirked as she picked the burger with her fork to inspect its contents.
A few moments later and after great hesitation, Pacifica had reluctantly cut into the burger and shoved a small piece into her mouth. Her eyes wandered upward in a thoughtful expression as she slowly savored the foreign flavor.
"Wow!" She exclaimed between chews, "How could I have missed this? This is amazing!"
She heard Dipper chuckle and noticed that he had not taken a single bite out of his burger yet. She stopped chewing and said with her mouth full, "What?"
"Nothing," Dipper chuckled again as he watched her use a fork to stick another piece of the burger into her mouth. He found it weird, and quite amusing, seeing her like this. Moments like these were she wasn't bounded by her parents to fit into the image of a perfect, wind up doll. No, here she was, just a girl enjoying a simple cheese burger. Ironically, he realized that Pacifica Northwest was no exception to the strange anomalies of the town, for she was a mystery herself, and he enjoyed every single chance he can get to uncover this side of her.
Neither of them noticed the night ticking by, their combination of partaking food and laughter deluded their sense of time. Dipper shared stories of the crazy adventures and monsters he and his sister had encountered over the course of the summer with hand gesture after hand gesture. Pacifica told about her travels with her parents around the globe, illustrating her experiences with vacation photos on her cellphone.
"…And this is when I tagged along Dad's business trip to South Africa." Pacifica said as she showed a picture of her posing in a floppy hat against the arid, barren, desert.
"No way," Dipper marveled as he leaned forward to get a better look. "You've been everywhere, Pacifica," He said and added, "Forget what I said earlier about being rich. You're lucky."
Pacifica pulled the cellphone down to her lap and stared down at the photo with furrowed eyebrows.
"Yeah…" she trailed off and before she could say anything more, her cellphone vibrated. "Oh, hold on."
"What is it?" Dipper asked.
"A text from my butler. My parents will be at home in a few." She looked back at him and gave a small smile, "Guess our night ends here."
"Yeah, guess so." Dipper replied slowly, glancing at his wrist watch.
After a brief dispute over who will pay the bill, in which Pacifica won as she insisted and knew for a fact that Dipper only had a couch worth of change, the two headed outside the diner.
The warm air and buzzing nightlife of the woods nearby greeted them. They stepped out onto the sidewalk, illuminated by the lamppost that casted a low, white light down on them. Not letting a single, wasted moment pass by, Pacifica immediately said, "Thanks for inviting me, Dipper."
She briefly glanced away from him, feeling her cheeks burn and added, "I had fun."
Dipper rubbed his arm awkwardly and said with a grin, "Heh, me too."
Pacifica took a step closer to him, now their faces just inches apart. She took a deep breath and whispered, "I guess it's my turn now."
Dipper just stared at her in confusion and in a blink of an eye, he felt her soft, gentle lips press against the skin of his cheek. Dipper simply stood, frozen in place and after a few seconds, she slowly pulled away.
"You're right about me being lucky…" She murmured close to his ear. "…But not about being rich." Pacifica quickly took a step back from him, kept her eyes on his bewildered face and clutched her purse tighter.
"Well? Say something," Pacifica smirked.
"I-uh…" Dipper stammered but before he could say anything more, the sound of a car engine came into earshot and headlights emerged over the gravel hill. A limousine had graveled to a halt by the sidewalk and the chauffer stepped out.
"Miss Northwest," the man greeted Pacifica as he held the door open and gestured toward the backseat. Pacifica averted her eyes from Dipper to greet the chauffer and turning away, she climbed into the backseat.
Before the door could be shut, Dipper suddenly shouted, "W-wait!"
Pacifica halted and raised an eyebrow.
"I'll…see you soon." He then stated firmly, "And nothing will get in the way of that."
Pacifica smiled in return.
"You bet on it, dork."
With that, Dipper watched the limousine drive off until it was obscured in the distance and he leaned back against the lamppost with his hands in his pockets. Boy, he could only imagine Mabel and the girls waiting for him to come home, eager for the juicy details. He replayed the night's events in his head and titled his cap forward to hide his growing smile. Dipper knew at that moment that he had grown to trust Pacifica and was determined to keep his promise.
A/N: Hi everyone! Let me just say how thankful I am for the wonderful reviews I've gotten for my first ever published story! It may be small, but you all definitely encouraged me to get my writing out there. Really, I can't thank you enough! *butler shakes hands* ...okay, that's enough.
I don't know why, but I can't get enough of Pacifica and the Northwest family. If I were to live in Gravity Falls, I'd probably adore them just as much as Candy and Grenda, to be honest.
Anyway, my short story ends here, as anything beyond 'Not What He Seems' is pure head-canon at this point and I rather wait to see what the show does in developing these two lovelies. However, I'm definitely in the works for more stories, so feel free to follow me or whatever. Reviews are greatly appreciated!
Until next time!
~HarperLace