The Holidays! Part 1 out of 3
- Dipper's POV -
Someone shook my shoulder gently, trying to pull me from my dream. I let out a grumble before finding myself opening my eyes. Ugh... is that my sister waking me up? Can't I sleep in some more? "Dipper." I heard the voice, recognizing it as belonging to one of my grunkles. I blinked my eyes as I sat up slowly. I let out a yawn before looking over at my grunkle. "... yes?" I said quietly.
"It's time." Grunkle Ford said smiling before turning away and following his brother out of our room. Time ...?
"PRESENTS?!" I flinched from my sister's shout. I stared at her, irritated. "OH MY GOD. DIPPER!" My sister jumped out of her bed and bounced over to mine. Calm down! Jeez.
"I'm awake." I said tiredness showed in my voice. I'm still asleep, am I?
"COME ON!" She said, dragging me out of bed.
"ALRIGHT! JEEZ." I grumbled. She let me go as I followed her. We walked out of the room, downstairs, and rushed over to the living room. I rubbed my eyes before glancing over to our grunkles standing by a Christmas tree. I widened my eyes when there were presents underneath it. There are... presents this time? Well ... I guess everyone did change in the end. I heard my sister gasp as she rushed over. I slowly followed behind.
"Be careful now, pumpkin." Grunkle Stan said, sitting on the chair that was stationed in front of a table.
"I will!" Mabel said, sitting next to it as she began to dig out her present.
I looked over to Grunkle Ford who signals me to join in with her. I gave a small smile before walking over. I sat down and checked the notes on the presents. Though all of them didn't seem that big at all. A medium-sized present where that one is getting opened by Mabel. Mines were... both small but one happens to be medium size in wide dimension. I wonder what they got for me. I decided to open the small one. I felt the surface, trying to figure out what it was before I even opened it. I rip the present wrap off gently, soon revealing a box. I tilted my head before opening it. I eyed the book in the box, confusion beginning to rise within me.
"Oh. Since you liked the journals I had and ... you were going on adventures on your own. I decided to buy and redesign a journal to fit your purpose." I heard Grunkle Ford say. Oh my god. I slowly grabbed it and looked at it. I smiled as I looked over at him.
"Thank you." I said.
"Your welcome." Grunkle Ford said, smiling afterward.
"A Sewing Machine?!" Mabel said. I looked over at her, staring at the small machine she got.
"Yep. I've heard you liked clothes and like making your own, so ... I brought that for you." Grunkle Stan said.
"Thank you. THANK YOU. GRUNKLE STAN!" Mabel chirped, getting up to hug him.
"Ah, your welcome, pumpkin." He said, hugging her back.
"You got one left, Dipper." I heard Grunkle Ford say. I nodded and turned over to the last present. I grabbed it and rip the wrapping paper off gently. It appeared to be another box, instead, this one was black. The other one was white. I opened it and stared at the item inside of it. I tilted my head before grabbing it. Why is it thin? I place it on my lap, feeling the item before sensing some cracks on it. Why does it have cracks? I opened it before widening my eyes in realization. "Wait- you got me a laptop?"
"For your future classes, you are going to college after high school right?" Grunkle Ford asked.
"Yes, I am." I close it before turning to my family. "Thank you!" I smiled.
"Your welcome, Dipper." Grunkle Ford said.
"This is where we say merry Christmas don't we?" Grunkle Stan asked.
"... Well ... yes." Grunkle Ford, looking at him.
"Well, don't count me in this one. I already shared my merry Christmas." Grunkle Stan said, getting up.
"Aww, you don't want to spend any more time with your family?" Mabel asked.
"What is there left to do?" Grunkle Stan asked.
"Oh! This calls for a job that I can do! Wait here!" She said before getting up and rushing out of the room. I sighed and put my Christmas presents together, stacking the journal on top of my laptop. I'm ... very thankful that I lived to this moment. Soon Mabel came back in with a board game. Our grunkles were okay with it as we played it. I didn't expect our family moments to last up until evening or ... almost evening. We played a whole lot of games, even telling stories in the end. I enjoyed listening to the stories ... since it was nice learning more about my grunkles and my sister. I swear, her stories are silly. At least they were entertaining us.
I stood in the mirror, staring at my reflection. I sighed and repositioned my jacket, making sure it covered my skin before walking over to my desk. I heard the door open as I saw Mabel in the corner of my eyes. "Are you ready?" She asked.
"Almost." I said, putting in my earrings.
"Aww, are you trying to look sexy?" She said. I blushed a bit before shaking it off a second later.
"I am not, infact, how can I look sexy in this jacket?" I said, turning over to her.
"I don't know, it's all up to Kahlil. Speaking of which..." She walked over to the small present on the end table. "Don't forget this."
"I won't, I was just about to head over and grab it." I said, walking over there.
"I'm just reminding you." She said, walking away from the end table. I grabbed the small box and stared at it before placing it in my jacket in one of the inside pockets. "Anyway, we should be good to go!" She said.
"I got everything..." I trailed off, checking to see if I got my phone in one of my pockets. I did so we're good. "Yep."
"Okay, let's go!" She said, opening the door. I followed her as we walked downstairs and into the hallway.
"Be good out there." I heard Grunkle Ford say.
"We will." My sister and I both said. She snickered before I shook my head slowly. We made our farewell towards Grunkle Stan before leaving the shack. Soon we were on the snowy path, on our way to the sign at the start of this path. "Where are you going?" I asked.
"To the hospital to visit Pacifica. I'm bringing her a gift." Mabel answered.
"That's good." I said, nodding.
"Yep! I hope it will cheer her up. She hasn't been ... herself at all and it's worrying me." She said, frowning.
"It's alright. As long as we are by her side at all times, she may come around to tell us." I said.
"Or be positive, at least for her recovery." She said.
"Precisely." I said, nodding.
"Okay. I just gotta wait for time to pass so that she can better." She said, smiling softly.
"Do you want me to walk you there?" I asked.
"That would be delightful of you, Dipstick." She said.
"What about walking-"
"I got that covered. You can cover up your "things" with Kahlil.~" She smirked, putting on her smug look.
I blushed a bit before looking away. "Fine." I grumbled.
"Don't be so grumpy! You guys get the time of your lives for finally." She said.
"Don't say that please." I said, looking back at her.
"Why not?" She asked, looking confused.
"... It's ...- just don't say it..." I said. It's bringing up some memories from the last section and I don't want to be a red mess right now.
"Is it something bad?" She asked, looking worried.
"It's nothing bad. Just ... it's bringing up something from last time." I said.
"Oh. That time when he gave you a hickey?" She asked.
"YEAH." I squeaked, turning red instantly. WELL, thank you, DEAR SISTER.
She giggled, laughing at my reaction. "Oh my god, Dipper. It's normal to feel this way!"
"I know it is. I... I just can't come in terms with it yet." I said.
"You can't?" She asked, looking curious.
"Yeah... I don't know why, but ... yeah." I said.
"... Hmm... are you having trouble?" She asked.
"... With what about it?" I asked, looking at her confused.
"I mean, like, well, ... do you feel like your having problems with it?" She asked.
"... Not really ..." I said quietly.
"... Well I don't know what to tell you about that." She said, looking away. We stopped by the sign as we looked up at the sky.
"It's fine if you tried helping. I'll just let nature runs its course." I said.
"If you let it run its course, you'll never find the answers there." She said, starting to walk forward.
"... yeah..." I said quietly following her. I don't know what to do with the problem I have with them... Should I tell someone? We walked under the evening sky on the sidewalk, all the way over to the hospital. "Well, we're here."
"Yep!" She chirped. She soon turned towards me, giving me a smug expression. "Go get him.~"
I grunted and sighed. "Maybe."
"Aww, well let me know his reaction about the gift then." She said. We soon waved at each other before going our separate ways.
I walked on the sidewalk in silence, watching the cracks go by. Okay. How am I going to present this gift to him? I mean, I could just say that I have something for him and we can meet up. Yeah. That seems like the better option. I halted at the edge of the sidewalk, staring into the icy jungle. I breathe in and out, looking around at my surroundings. I froze when I saw a man in the far distance. He was standing in front of the hospital, in the spot where I left at. I widened my eyes in horror at what I saw. The man smiled with a sinister and creepy vibe. Fear struck within me in an instant, making my limbs tremble. If I don't move, something ominous will happen to me. I did the opposite. I turned quickly and ran into the jungle. I pushed back the bush and rushed deeper into the snowy grounds of the jungle.
I'm hoping he didn't follow me in, he would have lost me by now anyway. Besides, can he even find me in this jungle? I hope not! I sighed as I stop my footing once I was far away. I looked around, checking my surroundings before continuing the path forward. I think he's gone. Great. I'm going to have nightmares tonight. I pulled out my phone and opened it up. Should I text him I'm in the jungle? Yeah. Stop getting shy about texting him, Dipper. I told myself. [[ I know you told us not to text you before so I apologize. But, I have something to show you. ]] And sent. Wait. Not show- ugh.
I sighed and stared at the conversation between me and Kahlil. I smiled softly before it dropped a second later. I halted my steps as I heard a crack of a stick breaking in two behind me. I widened my eyes in horror, soon the anxiety started to creep up behind me. Along with all of the warning signs of thoughts coming into my head. I placed my phone in my pocket and tried to bolt forward. Unfortunately, my hoodie got caught on something, causing me to fall on my back. I had my eyes closed at first before opening them up at the horror. NOPE.
I swiftly rolled onto my hands and got up quickly. "No, you don't!" I dodged the man's punches and took off in a run. "Dang it, almost had ya!" The man shouted as I squeaked quietly, shaking my head out of the thought. Stop thinking about it! It will not happen! I skipped over any roots and avoided anything that would get me caught on something. I don't know if the man is still following me. I don't want to know if he's still following me! God, why did it had to be me?! Why?! And why is it on Christmas?! I'm not stopping, even if I am far away from him.
I end up tripping and falling face first. No, no no, get up, get up! I quickly got onto my hands and knees, panting heavily. "Dipper?" I flinched and looked up at the familiar person. I sighed in relief. I grabbed Kahlil's hand when he had it out for me. He pulled me up to my feet as I collapsed into his shirt. I felt his arms around me as I catch my breath. "... What happened?" I heard him say. The fear soon came back, haunting and reminding me if the man found us here.
"C-Can we head up somewhere safer?" I asked quickly, leaning back.
"Sure." He nodded before leading me over to a climbable tree. We soon climbed on it, traveling on branches until we were about a good mile away from the spot. I leaned against the tree bark, sliding down on the surface as I stare at the greeny-snowy massive branch. My mind was still freaking out like an alarm button went off and everyone is rushing around. My limbs were still trembling as I ended up focusing on that. I lay my legs out, trying to relax, however, the sound of my heartbeat wouldn't calm down. It was still beating fast as if I was still in trouble. I wasn't ... I just ... I...
I felt his aura next to me as I turned over to his worried expression. "... Why did I see you running on the ground level as if ... you were getting chased?" He asked softly. I darted my eyes off of him as I stared down at the bark on the branch. I can say it. I can. I... I just don't know why I can't say it. Did fear struck me so much? Well... I don't think anyone would want what I just experienced. I opened my mouth, however, no words came out. I really tried speaking out what I wanted to, but I couldn't. Maybe I was still drowning in this fear.
I was soon pulled into a hug, feeling the warmth around me. I didn't mind moving one bit, because it was helping the fear die down slowly. I closed my eyes and rested my head on his shirt. ".. You're safe. I'm sure this person ... who was chasing you, can't climb up here." I heard his soft voice say as his arms tightened around me.
"... I know I am ... It's just-"
"Shhhh, relax and focus on your breathing." He said softly, cutting me off. I did just that, turning all of my focus on trying to calm myself down. And eventually, I got to that point. Though anxiety was around the corner at any given minute to come attack me anytime. I wish it can just disappear, let me feel at ease for once. I sat in the silence some more, listening to the environment around us. A tranquil sound entered through my ears, as well as the snowy noises. Or ... just the feeling. Is it snowing right now?
"Mhm." He said quietly. I opened my eyes slowly before lifting up my head. I looked over as I saw snowflakes floating down in some spots of the air. "I guess it decided to snow on us."
"Yeah. At least it's still pretty." I said quietly.
"Though it will bring more cold temperature to us." He said.
"... It's Winter, Kahlil. What'd you expect?" I asked, looking at him.
"... I thought that I'd keep you warm." He said, blinking at me.
"... Oh." I blushed slightly, looking away. "I-I mean... I guess that is useful..."
"So... keeping you warm is useful?" He asked.
"... Yes?" I said, shrugging.
"Can I make you warmer?~" He said. My blush grew a bit bigger when he said that. Oh god. Nice going on making me battle between my emotions again. "You did say you won't be bothered by it~"
"... Are we really relying on the things I said in the past?" I asked, looking back over at the flirtatious blond.
"Well, I would love to, that is, if you agree." He said, grinning.
"Of course, you would." I said, giving him a look.
"So, do you agree?" He asked, ignoring my statement.
"... I don't know." I said, looking unsure.
"Well, do you want to?" He asked.
"I don't know." I answered.
"Your battling with your emotions again, aren't you?" He asked.
"Yep." I said, looking away.
"I see ... well, that is okay, someday, you'll come around." Kahlil said.
"THAT'S THE HARD PART!" I said, looking back at him quickly with an irritated expression. "I can't figure out these feelings within me at all and it's bothering me whenever these topics come up. Why do they have to be complex?! Why can't it just be understandable? Why does it have to be so hard to get to?" I added on, leaning into his shirt once again, burying my face.
"... Wow, I didn't expect that." I heard him say.
"... That came out of nowhere, sorry." I said quietly.
"No, no. It's fine. It's completely understandable with everything you feel right now." He said quietly.
"... Is it normal?" I asked quietly.
"It is. I'm sure some people who are confused with their feelings are experiencing the same way as you are." He said.
"... I guess." I said quietly.
"As I said before, you'll come around." He said. I don't know if I should be happy about that or ... relief or fearful. I don't know if I should be. I don't know what to feel right now. "You know what else is adorable?"
"... Do I want to know?" I asked quietly. I guess we're moving off of it. I think it's best if we do.
"Snowflakes!" He chirped. I slowly leaned away from him, staring at him.
"... No they're not." I said. "They're just snow."
"You don't get it, do you?" He said, narrowing his eyes.
"... No." I said, looking confused.
"Well, that's unfortunate. The reason they're adorable is that they're small." He said.
"Because they're just snow." I said.
"... They can also be a certain someone.~" He said, grinning slowly.
"... Wait- I'm not small!" I said, irritation twisting on my face.
"I know you're not, but you do seem to be one." He snickered.
"I'm not small. We're the same height!" I said.
"You sure? I think I've been growing a few inches." He said.
"You just want to be the tall one." I said, narrowing my eyes.
"Maybe~" He snickered. "That's a possibility."
"That's a yes from you. You clearly want to be one." I said. "And I'm glad it's not happening anytime soon."
"It's not like you'll be the tall one." He said.
"I don't want to be one. Why can't we just settle on being the same height?" I said, getting fed up with this blond's statements and beliefs.
"... But that'll ruin the fun." He whined.
"... There's nothing in the world that can change that." I said.
"There are those shrinking and enlarging crystals-"
"THOSE are out of the picture, Princey." I hissed.
"Okay." He snickered. "Jeez, you limit all of the fun."
"I just don't want to cheat at life." I said.
"... I guess I can understand that." He said. "But sometimes, cheating is fun."
"Your acceptance is allowed since you can't put a stop to that." I said.
"... Oh, so I'm allowed to cheat with my reading mind powers?" He asked, raising a brow.
"... I guess." I said. "What's the point in that if you can't do what you want?"
"Don't worry, I won't do too much of it." He said. "However ... I might be a bit too rushy when it comes to... certain things."
"Like what?" I asked, a little curiosity rose within me. Though I didn't hear any words to answer my question. Maybe actions do speak more than words because this next decision already answered that. He leaned in quickly and kissed me, letting me know that he is a bit rushy. Though, my mind phased through those thoughts, allowing me to focus on what was happening right now. It took me a second to accept it, a bit messy, but it'll be fine. I felt his arms tightened around me, pulling me closer to him. Soon he deepened the kiss, sending multiple shivers down my spine. One from his motion and another from the cold winds. Which reminded me of something...
I placed my hands on his shoulders, slowly parting away from his lips. "... Something ... wrong?" He asked slowly, leaning away slightly.
"... Uh... is there ... someplace ... better than this ...?" I asked slowly,
"... You... don't want to do this here?" He asked, raising a brow.
"... Yeah ..." I said slowly.
"Well, if that's the case ... I have the perfect spot in mind." He said before moving a bit away from me and getting up. He helped me up before leading the way.
The trip to the place was quiet, peaceful as it was. Although ... my mind was filled with awkward thoughts and ... weird feelings. I didn't know what to do at all. I mean, were we going to ... continue or ... I don't know ... maybe it was my escape to ... get out of there ...? I don't know, my mind is all wacky. I... I should have-
"We're here." I flinched and looked up at the wall of bushes. Kahlil pushed them apart, revealing light from a light source. I tilted my head before walking through the path. I halted once I got to the other side, widening my eyes. Oh. I forgot about this place. The Resting Grounds. Though ... it seemed ... not white at all.
"It's too warm to snow here." He said.
"... Now I think about it, the cold aura disappeared as we grew closer to this place." I said. "I feel like this place is a huge spa."
"Spa? Now it isn't that hot here" He said, snickering behind me.
"I know. At least it's not cold here." I said, walking forward on the massive branch.
"You know, we could have made it a little ... spicy out there." He said as he was close beside me. I kept my mouth shut, keeping my eyes down at the bark. I slowly pulled my arms out of the sleeves of my jacket, bumping one of my hands into something in one of the inside pockets. I dig my hand into it and halted my steps, freezing in place.
"Oh crap, I forgot about this." I accidentally said out loud.
"Forgot about what?" He asked.
"Oh! Uh ... oh right! I wanted to ... give you something. As I mentioned before in the text." I said, turning towards him.
"... I think it was more of showing me something but alright, what it is?" He said, putting his arms behind his back.
"... Um... It's a gift." I said, pulling out the small box from my pocket and out in my hands.
"A gift ...? Is it something that Mabel mentioned?" He asked, tilting his head.
"... Yeah. Since it's Christmas, I wanted to give you something on this day." I said, putting on a small smile.
"... I forgot about that for a second... But a gift? I wonder what Mabel told you to get for me then." He said.
"See for yourself." I said, handing him the present. He eyed me before taking it slowly. He stared at it for a bit, confusion spreading across his face. He sat down on the massive branch, getting ready to open it up. I sat down and crossed my legs, placing my hands in my lap. I watched him open the present up, tearing the wrapping paper off. He stared at the orange box, confused. He opened the lid as I watch his eyes go wide. The surprise was shown on his face at first, however, soon happiness followed. He places the box down and grabbed that item. It seems he liked it. "Well, I'm surprised. You're not into jewelry."
"Yeah, I'm not. But it seems you are." I said.
"I am!" He chirped, "I was going to buy me some new earrings, but you know what. These just might do!"
"I'm glad they worked out." I said, smiling softly.
"They can't work out first If I try them on." He said, pulling them out of the box. I blinked, dropping my smile before staring at him. What does ... he means by that? "But before I do that, could you turn around first?" He asked, staring at me.
"... why...?" I asked, looking confused.
"Just do it." He said, narrowing his eyes.
"Fine." I grumbled before turning my body away from him. What is he planning? I heard footsteps begin to appear before they faded away a second later. Seriously, what is he doing? Why do I need to turn around for him to put them on? Did I enter some sort of fashion territory?
"Okay. You can look now." I heard him say. I begin to feel wary about his statement. I don't trust him for some reason, but I'm not going to let that bother me. I stood up before turning around. I looked at him, wearing his new earrings. They were shaped like pumpkins, orange-colored ones as they had small yellow triangles on each of them. They also seem to hang a bit from his ears. "Don't I look fabulous?" He smirked.
I widened my eyes. Not what I expect to hear out of his mouth. Yep. I entered into some fashion territory. "... Yes?"
"Yes?" He said, eyeing me down. "I don't look that good?"
"... Sorry, I just wasn't expecting that word." I said, trying to calm down my nervousness.
"Ah. Sorry, I guess that side decided to come out for a bit." He snickered. "But. These earrings are so beautiful! How did you even pick them out?"
"... I just chose what ... you would like the best." I said. I also got help from Mabel for it.
"Well, you chose rightly." He said, smiling happily. I smiled back at him as I felt a little warmth inside. "You know, this Christmas is going so great for me." He begins to say, walking forward on the massive branch.
"I'm glad it is." I said, following behind him.
"Yeah ... I ... I never expected for my family to make up in the end." He said. I soon grew curious, wondering what he was talking about.
"What happened?" I asked.
"My mom pulled both me and my father in for a talk this afternoon. I had talked before in the past, explaining that our relationship was broken and that. None of those past talks worked to fix the relation between me and my father. Though this time around, it ... worked? It didn't quite fix the bond between me and him. Though ... he's ... slowly accepting who I am. Who I like." He said, smiling widely. "And I'm glad he finally came around."
"That's good!" I said.
"Yeah ... I'm not quite sure how I'm going to tell them about you." He said.
"Well. You have so much time in the world to think about it. So, no rush." I said, smiling.
He turned his head towards me and nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I do." We soon halted at this den, taking the time to take in the view of the environment. I looked up to the jungle's misty clouds, watching it move slightly. The tranquility of the breeze blew right past us as it felt cool. How does ... it works? Maybe there's a protection shield that is surrounding this place from the ground level to the top of the tree's leaves. And inside of it, it's warm for every creature in this jungle. It seemed to be the possible theory of this place.
Man, this jungle is so mysterious and strange at the same time.
End of Chapter 60