Chapter 8 - The Memory
Mabel, seeing her brother weeping from the distance she's been watching from, runs over to try and comfort him.
"What's the matter, bro-bro? She doesn't like you?"
"No..." It's hard to understand his words under his uncharacteristic crying. "She does, but... she can't. I... I don't know. I have to go!"
He is off as Mabel tries to stop him. "Dipper, come back! Dipper!"
He barges in to Old Man McGucket's shack.
"McGucket," Dipper addresses the old man, with a singular goal in mind, "I need to erase a memory. Do you still have the device in your possession?"
"Dipper," the old coot replies, "I... I don't understand."
"I need to use it, man!" Though his anger isn't directed at the old man, one could understand why he seemed frightened by the boy.
"Dipper, you know how dangerous that thing is... Look a' what it done to me!" He stands still, as though putting himself on display as what not to do.
"I DON'T CARE!"
All emotion wiped from his face, Dipper calms down and asks once more, this time politely.
"Fiddleford, please. Just one memory."
"Um... I'm not so sure about this... But... okay, I guess." McGucket seems uneasy, but goes along with the boy's wishes.
"Just erase everything since this morning. It's only been a few hours," Dipper has calmed down, but still appears traumatized.
"Well I guess that don't seem too risky... Worth a shot, I suppose!"
Dipper's crying dies down slowly as McGucket aims the device at the boy's face, and pulls the trigger. While in the process of losing the memory, Dipper eerily whispers "thank... you..."
Dipper awakens and leaves the shack without much thought. He meets Mabel outside.
"So..." she excitedly inquires, "How'd things go with you and Pacifica?"
"What?! What're you talking about?" Dipper seems confused, but passes off Mabel's question as one sibling teasing another.
"You know, your date?"
"Mabel, what the heck are you talking about?!" He laughs for a moment. "Sure, she's cool, and it'd be cool if we could get something going, but I don't think I could ever... I dunno. She's way out of my league. It could never work out."
"But..." Mabel seems utterly disappointed and terribly confused. Dipper ignores her for a moment and digs through his pocket, finding the few dollars and loose change that he didn't spend earlier.
"Looks like I have enough for some ice cream. You want some, sis?"
Mabel forgets all about the whole Pacifica thing momentarily, "Do I?!"
"Last one there's Gideon!" he shouts as he runs off in the direction of the ice cream shop. Mabel chases after him.
McGucket peers out from his makeshift front door, made from a torn shower curtain, and sighs as though all hope is lost.
Meanwhile, back in Norhtwest Mansion, Pacifica weeps, her father reading the same newspaper as earlier, somehow feeling accomplished at her return.
"Clean yourself up, Pacifica. We're having guests over," he says condescendingly as he rings the bell.
She sighs. "Yes, father."
"Good girl".