Birthday Weirdness In The Rose City: A Shooting Star Falls Story
Part Ten
Dipper and Wendy exited the penthouse suite of the Hearthmen Hotel and made their way to the elevator. Dipper was clad in a pair of slim straight blue jeans, a black t-shirt and a red flannel long sleeved shirt. The black beanie he had purchased at the beginning of the weekend adorned his head; covering up his unruly chestnut hair. Wendy, meanwhile, was dressed in a pair of black skinny jeans with the knees ripped up, a pair of suspenders which hung behind her, a tight grey tank top, and a black and white plaid long sleeved shirt tied around her waist. A black and white Portland Pathfinders snapback flat billed hat turned backwards completed her look. "You're sure I look alright?" Wendy asked as bit of self-consciousness came over the redhead. "Y-You look amazing…" Dipper replied as he took in the sight of his girlfriend. Even though they had been together since the second week of June, he still sometimes was awestruck by how lucky he was to be with Wendy. At the same time, there would be certain things that would remind him of his late girlfriend, Pacifica Northwest. As much as he tried to focus on his current girlfriend, his mind would drift to the almost two year relationship that the blonde heiress and the brown haired adventurer had. He was almost certain that had Pacifica not lost her life on that horrific day months ago, that they would most likely be jet setting somewhere abroad to go to a fashion show or movie festival. Surely, she would never be caught dead at a concert like Wendy and him were about to go to.
"Dipper, you okay?" Wendy asked as she waved a hand in front of her slightly taller boyfriend's face. "Huh? O-Oh… Yeah… J-Just must've zoned out for a sec…" the teen quickly replied. Wendy narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Mason… I know when you're lying to me… Part of being a good cop was being able to tell when someone was bullshitting you… So what's going on dude?" she asked with a bit of concern her voice. "I-I was just thinking about Pacifica was all… Please don't be mad…" the flannel clad man sheepishly said, fearful of his lover's response. "Mad? Dude… I could never get mad at you for thinking about her… I mean, she was your girlfriend for, like, two years… Besides, you two were kinda cute together… Cute in that 'I need to go find a trashcan to barf into' kind of cute, but cute nonetheless. To be honest… I'd be lying if I didn't find my mind drifting to Robbie from time to time… I mean, look at these jeans for crying out loud…" she reassured the uneasy teenager. "What do you mean by that?" asked the now curious eighteen year old. "I stole these jeans from Robbie when we were seventeen and we trying to make it work for the second time. Kinda funny that I fit in them still… The point is… We can't just ignore our past… It happened… And the important thing is not to forget it, because it helped lead us to where we are today" Wendy concluded as their elevator reached the lobby of the hotel.
Luckily, the woman running the front desk was busy with a guest, so Dipper and Wendy were able to make their way out of the lobby without being hailed by her once again. Looking to the curb, the pair spotted a now familiar white Fjord sedan. Becca gave a wave from the driver's seat as she unlocked the doors to the vehicle. "Gwen! Mason! Nice to see you guys again! So, you're going to the Paraless concert, huh?" the twentysomething quipped from the driver's seat. "Yeah… It's Gwen's favorite band, so it's safe to say she's pretty hyped for it…" Dipper replied. "The Crystal Ballroom is a pretty cool place to catch a show. It's super old school and the sound in there is amazing…" Becca mentioned. "Oh, so you've seen a show or two there I take it?" Wendy inquired. "I may have in my pre-motherhood days…" the sandy haired woman said with a chuckle. The drive was short, only about ten minutes from the hotel. "Well… Here we are…" Becca announced as the three story brick building greeted them from the passenger side of the vehicle. "Thanks again Becca!" Wendy said as she exited the vehicle. "Sure thing hun! Catch you two after the show!" the driver said as Dipper got out of the white sedan. The pair waved as the Fjord drove off into the night.
"I can't wait! This is gonna be so hella awesome!" Wendy exclaimed as she grasped the hand of her lover. "I know… I-I've got something to admit…" Dipper said as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "And just what might that be?" the redhead asked. "Would I be lame if I told you that I've never been to a concert before? At least one that Mabel wasn't a part of…" the brown haired eighteen year old asked hesitantly; recalling the Sock Opera his twin sister had put on over five years earlier. He was glad that he was trying new things and getting out of his comfort zone since he began dating Wendy. While he still enjoyed quiet nights at home reading, he no longer felt like he was missing out on life as much. "Dude… It's, like, nothing to be ashamed of… It just wasn't your scene… I'm sure Mabes and Paz tried to drag you to all sorts of pop concerts back in the day though…" the redhead said with a chuckle. "You don't know the half of it…" Dipper said as he slapped his forehead and rolled his eyes. "Oh shit! They're checking ID's at the door…" the eighteen year old said with concern as the line they had queued up in approached the front door of the venue, which lay underneath a grand marque that displayed 'Crystal' with a crimson glow from neon lights. "Gotcha covered Alex!" Wendy said with a huge grin as she removed two plastic licenses from the front pocket of her skinny jeans. "Gee… Thanks Dana…" Dipper deadpanned as he once again held the fake identification in his sweaty hands.
A large man with a bald head and tattoos held a flashlight in his hand and shone it onto the patrons as they attempted to enter the concert venue; comparing their photos with their faces. "Dude… calm down…" Wendy said to Dipper as she held his trembling shoulder. The young man did not enjoy lying, as he knew he was absolutely terrible at it. The man took Wendy's ID and made a few quick glances at both it and her before waving her through. Standing in the doorway, she awaited her boyfriend. The chestnut haired teen handed his card to the bouncer, his hand trembling. Taking a few glances at the license and his face the man began to wave him through before being stopped by a second man. "Hold up a minute!" he shouted as he took the plastic ID out of his hand. Glancing at it with a set of scrutinizing eyes, the man peered up at Dipper. Wendy gulped with fear as she was certain that her boyfriend had just been caught trying to pass off a fake identification. "You look so familiar… Do I know you from somewhere?" the man asked. "N-Not that I know of sir…" the teen replied as the sweat now poured off of him. "I-I could have sworn that you were that pro wrestler from the show last night… Rami Nyaz…" the man pondered as he handed back the license to the trembling teen. "Oh… Yeah… I get that a lot…" Dipper lied as he tried to get out of the conversation and join his girlfriend. "Well… Sorry to bother you… Have a good night…" the man said before walking away. Looking inside the doorway, he spotted Wendy laughing hysterically, nearly doubled over. "I'm glad one of us thought that was funny…" Dipper said with a bit of huff in his voice. "I-I-I'm sorry dude… I-It's just that I thought you were in trouble… A-And then… He mistakes you for someone you don't even resemble… Hahaha!" the freckled woman continued to cackle as she grabbed on to the slightly taller man to keep from falling over. "I fail to see the humor in it…" the brown haired teen continued to say in an annoyed tone of voice. "Dude… That's just because it happened to you… I-It'd be like if I got mistaken for some famous actress or something…" she explained as the couple began to ascend the staircase that led to the ballroom.
Reaching the second floor, both Dipper and Wendy had noticed that Becca wasn't lying. Grand paintings lined the walls and crystal chandeliers hung majestically from the ceiling above. Large two story windows lined the wall facing the street, providing a nice backdrop as the lights of the city skyline shone through. A large stage was set up at the far end of the room, which was already teeming with concertgoers. "Let's grab a drink…" Wendy suggested as she clutched her boyfriend's hand and led him towards the mahogany bar situated in the back of the room. Taking a seat on the round barstool, a woman in a low cut black tank top greeted the couple. "What'll ya have guys?" she asked with a bit of a Canadian accent. "I'll take a couple shots of Tiara Royale Apple…" Wendy enthusiastically replied. "And for you, man?" the woman with jet black hair asked. "Get him something strong and good… It's his first concert and I want him to have a good time!" the redhead replied before Dipper could get a word in. "How about this?" the woman said as she placed a large gold coin on the bar. "It's called a Coin Toss… Pretty much, heads is gin and tails is tequila. What do you say? Feeling brave dude?" she explained to the eighteen year old. "Uh… Sure…" Dipper said as he looked Wendy in the eyes. She gave him that warm, reassuring smile that he loved so much. "Heads or tails?" the bartender asked. "Heads" the brown haired teen confidently replied as the woman picked up the coin from the table.
Placing the coin on her thumb, the dark haired bartender flipped the coin, as Wendy, Dipper and a few patrons at the bar watched on. Catching it in her petite hand, the woman flopped it over onto the top of her other hand. "Tails!" she shouted as she reached for the bottle of tequila that resided on a shelf above the back of the bar. Pouring him a double shot of the liquor, she added Yellow Chartreuse, ginger, lime, and grapefruit juice into a hollowed out grapefruit. "Enjoy!" the dark haired woman shouted before attending to another customer. Wendy picked up a shot glass and placed it to her lips before throwing it back. She repeated this two more times before turning her attention to Dipper, who held the grapefruit in his hand. "C'mon dude… Shotgun it!" she shouted to her lover. "Shotgun? What's that?" he asked in a confused tone. "Dip… You poor, poor sheltered child… It means to chug it down as fast as you can…" Wendy said as she held the fruit up to her boyfriend's lips. He proceeded to down the fruity concoction in two gulps as the burning sensation of the tequila hit his throat. The brown haired teen gaged a few times, unsure if the drink would stay down.
"Dude… You okay?" Wendy asked with genuine concern as Dipper struggled to catch his breath. "I'm sorry… I forgot that you don't go as hard as I do… Sorry babe…" the redhead said in an apologetic tone as she rubbed the flannel clad back of her boyfriend. "Tell ya what… Let's go get a good spot for the show…" the alabaster skinned woman said as she got up from the stool to meet the floor with unsteady legs; the whiskey clearly beginning to take hold on her equilibrium. "You okay there Wen?" Dipper asked with concern as she grabbed onto the mahogany bar. "Y-Yeah… Just lost my balance…" she said as she tried to play off the concern her boyfriend held. The buzzing couple made their way to the back of the small crowd that awaited the concert, as the show was set to begin in short order.
Author's note: So, this chapter took longer to write than I anticipated. Sorry about the delay, but it's just been a crazy couple of days. This story should only be a few more chapters, but they'll be pretty good ones. Then it's onto another pair of short stories that I'm actually in the process of writing alongside this one. They're tentatively titled Mason & Wendy Vs. The Future and Double Take. As always, feel free to leave a review for this or any other stories I've wrote. I enjoy reading them.
My playlist for this chapter:
"Poison Pen" – Creeper
"Hellfire" – Barns Courtney
"Highway" – Bleeker
"Monster" – Starset
"Blow Your Mind" – Ohana Bam
"Tongue Tied" – Grouplove
"It's A Trip" - Joywave