They had rushed back to the mansion as quickly as possible, hopeful that Tad would already be there. The small group was relieved to find him sipping some tea as he was talking with the butler. His calm appearance seemed to get tense when he saw how Bill was, quickly setting the cup down and ordering Bill's men around so he would bring him on the kitchen table. Honestly, he wouldn't have thought the mobster would get injured, or at least not this badly, he was expecting to take care of his new favourite pet. After all, it wasn't like Bill to get hurt that way.
Will stopped Dipper from joining them, surprising him a little and making him a little confused. He wanted to make sure Bill would be fine. "Don't worry about him, Bill is strong and Tad is a good doctor, we can trust him, let get you fixed a little, otherwise Bill is going to get mad because no one took care of you". Dipper looked back towards the door Bill's men were guarding as if someone was going to burst into the mansion directly.
He finally nodded, letting William guide him to a bathroom and getting what he needed on the way. He even asked Mister Kasper to get him some clean clothes. He helped the young author taking off his shirt, as his upper body was still hurting from the beating he did had. Hopefully, nothing was broken, but he would need to let Tad look later for that. He also helps him wash himself up a little with a wet towel, taking care of the scratches and cuts he had.
"They didn't mess you up too much" said the man with a relieved smile, turning so he could let Dipper wash himself entirely with a towel. "I guess they preferred playing on how long it would take to break me, I guess I was lucky not to get beaten up too much" he said, trying to get his mind off of Bill's situation. He couldn't worry about himself. He was fine. He was starving, but still, he was fine. Bill, on the other hand, had clearly lost a lot of blood and he couldn't tell if the bullet had hit any vital point.
He realised he was trembling when he couldn't do the button on the shirt, realising he was actually really scared for Bill and starting to feel guilty about it. It was his fault if Bill had gotten shot. If he hadn't got himself kidnapped he wouldn't have to go get him. Will seemed to sens his anxiety rising as he turns toward the struggling young man, gently touching his hands so he would stop fighting with the stupid button.
"What's wrong, Dipper?" he asked gently, his hand carefully hushing the young author hands away so he could help him. "It's my fault Bill got hurt, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gotten in trouble and now he's severely injured, because of me he-".
"Mason" Gently but firmly cut William as he left the two top button undone, knowing Dipper would prefer it like that, "I know you think it's your fault, but it is not, I was the one supposed to take care of you and I failed at my job.
Also, Bill likes you too much for even thinking about putting the blame on you, sure getting shot wasn't part of the plan, but I'm sure if it meant bringing you back safe and sound he would do it again. My cousin is a stupidly stubborn man and I doubt this will kill him, especially with Tad's help, so please don't blame yourself".
Dipper was a little surprised by his response, not knowing what to say to that. It wasn't chasing away all the guilt that had slides in his mind, but it was still reassuring. He finally managed to untense a little, letting a small laugh escaping his mouth "If you are so sure, then I guess I can trust your words". He receives ruffles of his messy hair, chuckling along with William, missing the warm smile the mobster was giving him as someone was soon interrupting them.
It was one of Bill's man coming to tell them Bill would be fine, he was now sleeping in his room. "Tad would like to check on you" he pointed at the young author. This made Dipper a little nervous, Tad was looking pretty stern in his opinion, but he guesses this didn't mean much. Also, he wouldn't spit on being checked by a doctor this quickly and even maybe for free, guessing Bill would insist on paying for him. After all, medical cares weren't cheap.
He then followed the mobster's man, still not fully at ease when alone with one of them, as William seemed to have taken off somewhere else for now. Maybe to go check on Bill? He wasn't left to be uneasy for too long as the walk to the kitchen was pretty quick. He then simply had to enter, following Tad instruction of sitting on the chair, letting the man do whatever he needed to do to make sure he was okay.
This led to an uncomfortable silence, Dipper not really knowing what to do other than trying to decipher the man expressions to see if what he was finding was okay. Not getting any kind of affirmation was making him anxious, even if he felt like he would be fine.
When Tad finally spoke it made him jump a little, listening to his conclusion. "You don't have anything broken from what I can tell, you should definitely rest, eat and drink water, but nothing you won't be able to get over easily". This made Dipper sigh in relieve, a little smile forming on his face. "If anything seems off do contact me and I will come to take a look" he added as he was starting to clean the place and put back his tool in his bag.
"Hum... is Bill going to be okay?" asked Dipper shyly, unable to get that out of his mind now that he was sure he would be fine. The doctor didn't stop on his cleaning task, answering with a little chuckle "This idiot is going to be okay, nothing vital was touched by the bullet. It's not the first time he gets shot, he will survive, he just needs to rest so the wound can heal correctly".
This new information made Dipper anxiety fly away slowly, relieved to hear it from the doctor mouth. "You should make sure he doesn't work, from what I can see he will listen to you more than me or anyone else". This left the young author kind of confused, why would Bill listen to him more than anyone else? It's not as if he had some kind of power over him. He wasn't a health specialist either.
He was taken out of his confusion by Tad leaving him his number, telling him yet again to call his office if anything was coming up for either him of Bill. "I will do... also thank you for checking on me" he said, realising he hadn't thanked him for that. "It's my job" he received as an answer, Tad offering a small smile before getting out of the kitchen.
Dipper was then left alone to think about all this, trying not to get anxious yet again over all the crazy thing that happened to him. As much as he hated the situation, he was still thankful for Bill help. Who could tell if this situation wouldn't have happened even if he wasn't under Bill watch? If it was the case, he would have been done for, because for sure no one in his family would have the money to pay his debt back and he would feel guilty until he dies if they had to do something dangerous for him. Yeah, it was good to have Bill watching over him and making sure he wouldn't actually get killed.
Now that his worries were going away, he thought of Mabel, some panic rising in him again. Did she notice his absence? She would totally freak out if she were to know and would demand that he get away from Bill. Did they manage to lie to her? After all, he knew she was checking on him every couple of days to make sure he was fine while working here. Not coming back at the apartment was nearly normal now, as he was often sleeping over. In this new worry, he got up, trying to find where William was and asking how they managed to deal with this.
He nearly bumps into the said man when he was rushing out of the kitchen, the other man seemingly coming back to check on him. "Did Mabel call when I was taken away?" he asked, worry filling his voice. William seemed taken aback by the sudden question, staying silent for a couple of seconds before finally coming up with an answer "She did call, but Bill lied and said we were out and that you would call back later, saying you could pass it off as him forgetting to tell you about it and also forgetting to tell her you'll be staying at Bill's house".
Dipper was relieved when he heard that, saying he would take care of that immediately then, preferring not to make his sister wait much longer. He left William with the mission of calling his twin sister, thanking William when he was told he would go and get him some clean clothes.
He tried calling home first, anxiously waiting for Mabel to pick up, hoping she would be home. The phone was on his second ringing when someone picked up, the anxious voice of Mabel coming from the other end asking if it was him. Well, he guesses not many people were calling at his apartment.
"Hey Mabel" he said, trying to sound as normal as possible, not as someone who was starved for the past days and beaten up. "Dipper! Where were you! I called and you weren't there, why didn't you call me back!?" asked Mabel, never letting him squeeze in an answer, making him wait for her to stop. "Sorry, apparently Bill got busy after your call and forgot to tell me, I was calling to check in when I didn't get any call from you, I'm fine, I was just out getting some paper with William when you called" he lied, feeling yet again guilty for covering such a big event from her. But it was clearly better that way, he doesn't want for her to worry about him and something in him didn't want her to force him away from this mansion.
"I swear next time I see this criminal I will make him understand to never forget something like this" affirmed an angry Mabel, even if something in her voice sounded more relieved than before. He could tell for sure, hearing that he was fine was making her less anxious. She then went on a rant on how Bill wasn't caring enough of this and making yet again pretty clear that she wasn't fully trusting him. Even if Dipper wasn't agreeing with her, an amused smile drew itself on his face, happy to see she was back to her normal self and not suspicious of what might have happened.
They had to let go at some point, Mabel needing to go and help their great-uncles, as Dipper was lying about going back to work on his book. He put the phone down, letting out a heavy sigh, feeling as guilty as he always was when lying like this to Mabel. Also, he wouldn't be against a good old sibling hug to have some comforting from what happened, because he would need to explain what was wrong.
A voice startled him out of his thoughts, turning around to see Kasper. "My apologies, I wasn't meaning to scare you Mister Pines" apologised the man when he notices what happen, "Mister Hyde asked me to delivered some clothing to you" he finally stated, clean clothes laying neatly in his hands. Dipper smiled at that, thanking him for his delivery, surprise when he was lead back to an empty bedroom.
He must have looked pretty puzzled as to why he couldn't just go back to one of the big bathrooms of the mansion instead of this room. After all, Kasper had seemed pretty precise about going to this one, which was close to Bill own bedroom. "Master Cipher would prefer you staying at the mansion for some time and therefore reducing the time you need to be out of his field of protection". This surprised the young man a little, especially since Bill never mentioned that. Though, to be fair, he hadn't really had the time to speak with the man since they were back.
Also, it was nice of him to say he would prefer him staying, instead of not giving him a choice, something he would have thought was more common for Bill. For sure, he wouldn't spit on this opportunity of staying safer.
He thanked yet again the butler for his help, waiting for him to leave so he could go and take a much-needed shower before he could put on some clean clothes. He wasn't exactly surprised to notice they were Bill's clothes, supposing Will might have gone to get some of his. Good thing Mabel would be gone from the apartment then, he could only imagine how confused she would be if someone was taking his clothes and telling her suddenly that he would live with Bill for some time.
But now, the thought of leaving Mabel all alone at his apartment was making him anxious. Was she going to be okay? After all, they often bothered him when he was there. They were probably smart enough to guess Bill was hiding him somewhere, but what was telling him they would think Mabel was just a new tenant? They were looking so much alike that there was no way they wouldn't notice. Also, he wasn't trusting them not to drag his family in all this after all the damage that was caused because of him.
All this made him suddenly extremely anxious, could he ask Bill for protection? Would he mind putting some of his men to the task? He wanted to ask, but Bill was probably sleeping by now and he didn't want to wake him up. After all, he does need to rest after all this. Dipper was now walking around in the room, thinking of what he could do, even if it was pretty much nothing, only Bill was able to really help with this. Yet again.
As Dipper was swimming in his anxiousness, Bill in the other room was drowning in boredom and his hope that Dipper was doing fine. At some point, he gave up on following Tad advice, telling himself he could sleep later. Checking on Dipper was more important. So he got up, not without pain, before exiting his room. He didn't bother putting on a shirt, feeling like it was going to be an annoying task to do.
As the door was still open he leaned on the frame of it, looking at Dipper turning in circles in the middle of the room "I see you're doing fine" he commented amused, before noticing the anxious state of the young author "Is something wrong?" he then asks, worrying something might be wrong. Dipper was going to answer, when his stomach decided to make itself noticed, in need to be feed. This made the young man blush of embarrassment, as Bill seemed pretty amused by it. "Lets get some food, we can talk about what's on your mind while eating".
Dipper agreed on that, only noticing now in what state Bill seems to be, his attention on the bandages around his middle. He might not have been subtle while looking at them since the mobster gently ruffled his hair, reassuring him that he would be fine, that something as small as that wouldn't kill him. They both knew it was false, that Bill had been lucky the bullet didn't touch anything vital, but both of them were fine with this lie.
"Though I'd like to make sure you are doing fine, I know everyone as told me so, but I wanted to make sure anyway" admitted Bill when they finally reached the kitchen. "I do, nothing a couple days of rest and a good meal won't help, though I don't think I could do a great meal" he admitted, guessing they would need to ask William or Kasper for that later. "I'm sure you can do good for a snack, or at least to calm your starving state, must be hard right now" pointed out the criminal.
Dipper agreed on that, trying to push away his worry, for now, has he was looking for what he could be doing, opting for something close to breakfast. He wasn't really a great cook and he didn't want to waste any of the great ingredients they had. Maybe he could ask William for some cooking tips, he didn't want to be a bother while staying and was finding it just fair to help. His suggestion seems to please Bill too, as he receives for answer an "I'll eat anything you make".
As Dipper was now working the kitchen, they kept silence for some time, listening to the sound made by the author as he cut and cook their midday breakfast. It was finally broken when Bill asked yet again what was bothering him earlier. This made Dipper hesitate a little, unsure if the mobster would find his demand annoying, before finally giving in, not seeing any bad outcome at asking.
"I was worried they might try to retaliate on my family since I'm now more out of reach" he admitted, "If they are watching my place they clearly are going to figured out Mabel is my twin and following her can lead them easily to the rest of my family". Bill listened to him rambling about their safety, never really touching what he could guess was on Dipper's mind. He gently called out for Dipper, making the young man stop in his rambling and turn towards him.
Bill offered a reassuring and knowing smile, trying to show to Dipper that he could ask what he had in mind. "Would... would you mind putting some of your man on watch duty, or just to make sure they are fine, I... I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if something happens to them because of me". Bill was startled by how emotional his voice sounded at the end as if Dipper was imagining what could possibly happen, his creative mind not really helping.
Bill then got up, walking toward him to take him in his arms, trying to calm him and his imaginative mind down. "Of course I'd be fine with this Pine Tree" he responds gently, satisfied by feeling Dipper gently untense in his arm "I'll do anything to make you feel safer and better" he promises in a whisper. Dipper stayed in the embrace for a little while, feeling better because of it, the words of the man reassuring him. He got out after a little while, remembering about their food and not wanting it to completely burn because of his little time of panic.
When the food was ready, they were both able to change their mind by talking about something else. At some point, Bill did ask him if he minded living here for some time, even if it was a little late to ask, he still wanted to make sure the young man would be fine with the idea. Dipper admitted he didn't mind since it would also be easier for him to stay as he works here, less travelling to do like this.
The rest of the day went just as calmly as this midday breakfast was. Bill went to his office to work on the protection of his little Pine Tree's family. He just needed to find the ones who could fit the best, by being both good at protection, but also good at staying hidden. After all, he wasn't trying to make Dipper's life harder by making his great-uncles suspicious of something or straight up worried the mafia had something bad towards them. That and Mabel would be furious at both of them for hiding what happened, guessing the author didn't actually tell her about it.
Dipper thought he could take a day off writing, even if he seems to do so really often lately, making himself comfortable in his new room and place the clothes William had brought back for him. He decided to relax by reading, as everyone else seemed busy for now, only joining everyone to eat. He felt like a kid when all three men were making sure he would eat enough and drink enough water. Of course, he couldn't eat too much either, making himself sick wouldn't help, but it was indeed really good to finally eat after a couple of days of not doing so.
It only when night time came and he went to sleep he realised he was still uneasy after all that happen. He knew he was safe here and that he could sleep, his body was clearly ready to do so, but his mind was still a little alert as if expecting something to turn out bad.
Bill wasn't exactly better, as he got out of his room to make sure he wasn't dreaming and that Dipper was indeed safe now. He wasn't expecting to find the young man still awake, apparently startling him. The author switches the bedside lamp on, letting the mobster in as he went to lay next to him after Dipper invited him to do so.
"Couldn't sleep?" asked the blond man, only gaining a little chuckle from Dipper at first. "Neither can you" respond the young man, able to see how tired the man laying in front of him was. They stayed in comfortable silence for some time, not really needing to speak to know why the other couldn't sleep. "I think I'll be stealing half of your bed for tonight" admitted Bill with a smile, yet again gaining a chuckle from the sleep-deprived author. "I'll give it to you for free even, no need to steal it" joked Dipper, too tired to feel awkward about sleeping yet again with the other man.
After all, it wasn't the first time he would do so. Plus, he was feeling safer knowing Bill was close to him. Sure, in his state the mobster couldn't really do much, but it was still making him feel safer. His hand gently went to Bill's face, happy to notice he was wearing his eye-patch less often around him. "I am sorry, you got shot because of me" finally said Dipper, needing to apologised even if everyone else was telling him it would be fine. He was suddenly unsure he had crossed a line when he felt Bill hand gently grabbing his, only to be proven wrong when he gently guides it to his mouth, leaving a little kiss on the palm of it. "Don't worry, I don't hold you accountable for it, I would take plenty more if it's to keep you safe". This made Dipper blush deeply, yet not taking his hand away, which did please Bill, happy to see that his affection didn't seem to be hated.
Dipper kept his hand in his, sneaking a little closer as he was getting more comfortable to sleep, feeling like he wouldn't be able to stay asleep for much more longer. "Good night" he whispered, falling asleep not so long after that.
Bill was delighted by how comfortable the young man seemed around him, only hoping for it to become more later on. "Good night" he did whisper back, even risking to leave a light kiss on the young man forehead.