Chapter 10
For the rest of the day, the kids worked in the Mystery Shack gift shop, but in surprisingly content moods. Dipper rang up the customers with a smile. Mabel helped Tyler pick which shirt to buy. Jake and Haley, ironically, gave tours on the magical and mysterious. And Spud swept the floor with no sound at all, just to practice being a mime. The quiet was ended when Trixie smacked him and told him to stop pretending he was in a box.
Finally the day ended. All the kids went to their rooms to hang out except two. Dipper stayed at the register until the gift shop was completely empty of customers, and Jake stayed to ask him a question.
"Hey, Dipper," Jake said, "why'd you get so mad when Gideon sliced your vest? I mean, you have a dozen more of the same exact same ones. What's special about this one?"
"What's special about this one?" Dipper asked for clarification. When Jake nodded, he said, "Absolutely nothing."
Jake raised an eyebrow. "Ok?" He walked out of the gift shop, leaving Dipper alone.
The Pines boy pulled something out of his vest that he'd had since the beginning of this whole adventure. He twirled it his fingers as he finished, "It's what was inside that was special."
He tucked it into the cash register drawer just as Wendy entered. "Hey, Dipper. I'm here for my shift."
"Oh, hey Wendy." He started to leave but she stopped him. "Um... do you want to stay here and hang? I probably won't even have any-"
Just then, the door opened, and the two kids' least favorite goth entered.
"-customers." Wendy faced the teen. "What do you want, Robbie?"
"To be honest?" He quickly glared at Dipper, then back at Wendy, and said, "You."
"And I don't want you. Now don't make me ban you from the Shack."
He held up his hands innocently. "Ok! Ok! I just want to buy a Pitt Cola!"
She sighed. "Fine." She rang him up as he went to get one from the fridge. She opened the drawer and saw what Dipper had left in the register.
She looked up. "You know what, Robbie? I will give you another chance."
He turned. "Really?! Yes!"
Wendy stood up and vaguely noticed the hurt look on Dipper's face. "Yeah. Let's blow this place."
She walked over and stood right next to him. The new couple walked to the door and out of the gift shop.
"So where should we go?" Robbie asked.
"Right here." She punched him the face, causing him to spin around 180 degrees. She took this opportunity to kick him in the butt, and he fell on his face in the dirt.
She dusted her hands off and reentered the gift shop. Dipper stood right in front of her, grinning from ear to ear. "Thanks, Wendy."
"No problem, Dipper." She sat back down at the register, and Dipper went into the back room. Now alone, Wendy opened the drawer and removed the "anonymous" rose, sniffing it, then putting it in her hair.
"No problem at all."