Tales Of The Flame & The Ax: A Shooting Star Falls Story

Part Fifty-Six: Standing On The Edge Of Summer

Dipper and Wendy had settled in to watch the race and even managed to spot the girls during one of Lyle Karson's pit stops. They were impressed by the thrilling conclusion, although disappointed that their driver didn't win the event. "You know, I've never been much of a racing fan, but I might just be one after that..." Wendy commented. "But our guy didn't win..." Dipper replied. "Yeah, but that was cool as hell! Especially that dude who tried to ride the wall and all those sparks that were shooting out the back of his car. That was pretty boss..." the thirty-six-year-old woman explained. "I guess it was. We'll have to tune in next week for sure. We've got a few hours before the girls arrive at the airport, how about we take a nap?" Dipper suggested as he stretched. "That's a good idea. Any idea on when they're supposed to arrive?" she asked. "According to this text from Lyle, around eleven thirty..." he answered. "I'm down for a three-hour nap..." the redhead said before pulling a blanket off the back of the sofa. Dipper set his alarm and the couple snuggled under the cover; soon falling fast asleep.

After reaching cruising altitude, Lyle and Caitlynn retired to the bedroom to catch a few hours of rest. The teenagers, however, were still wide awake and decided to play some video games on the large monitor in the media room. As the flight progressed, the Pines sister's moods began to flip-flop. Pacifica, who had been upset that she hadn't been able to see Trey for the better part of a week, was becoming happier the closer to home they got. Mabel, on the other hand, had become much more sullen as they returned to their normal lives. She thought it unfair that she would finally find a great guy, only to be on the opposite side of the continent from him. She tried her best to feign that she was having a good time, but with each passing second, she wanted to break down and cry that much more. Her sandy-haired crush would glance over from time to time and astutely noticed that something was off with her. Sure, she was laughing and smiling, but he could sense that something was amiss by the faraway look in her emerald eyes. After another round in the fighting video game, Logan suggested that he and Mabel sit the next one out. Pacifica and Aubrey agreed, as they had sensed the vibe being off a bit as well and felt it might have something to do with the fact that the two teenagers would soon be apart.

Mabel and Logan made their way towards the forward passenger compartment of the luxurious private jet and took a seat on a sofa. "Mabel..." was all he could manage to say before she collapsed into him and began to sob. "I... I'm sorry Logan..." she began to say before pausing to sniffle. He simply rubbed pink t-shirt clad back of his upset crush in an attempt to soothe her a bit. "It's just that... That... You're so amazing and I know that we just met a week ago, but I really, really like you. I know... I'm pathetic, aren't I?" she managed to blurt out before losing control of her emotions once more. He pulled himself away from her so that he could look into her puffy, tear-filled eyes. "Mabel. No, you're not. Not at all. I really like you too. I've only known you for a week, but it's been the best week I've had in a long time. And it was because you were there to be a part of it all. Honestly, I wish we could continue to hang out more and get to know each other better, but we gotta face facts. I want you to move on. I'm sure there are some wonderful guys out there that would be lucky to have you give them the time of day. It's gonna hurt, but we've gotta move on from one another rather than pretend that we can make something work. We both might miss out on meeting some wonderful people if we're hung up on each other" Logan said. It felt as though her heart had been ripped in half by his comments. Maybe it was the hopeless romantic in her, but she expected him to try and fight for her a little more than that. "So, that's it. You're over me just like that?" she asked while wiping away her tears. She felt something building deep inside of her with each passing moment. "Yeah. I guess so. It's really for the best..." he added. Little did she know that he almost had to force himself to say these words. He knew it would tear her feelings apart, but he'd rather that she be angry with him than put her whole life on pause for something that could never work out.

The feeling inside of the redheaded fifteen-year-old had almost managed to make its way to the surface, but she had to make one more desperate move to try and convince him to fight for a future with her. She leaned in and passionately kissed Logan. Instead of reciprocating, he instead gently rebuffed her advance. "Mabel... As nice as that was, I just can't." he said. The look on her face changed almost as soon as the words had left his mouth. She slapped him across the face and stood up from the sofa. "I thought you were different. That you would like me so much that we'd try to make this work. I guess I was wrong..." she said in a cold tone as she stormed out of the room. Logan fought hard to keep his emotions in check but knew that he had done the right thing. It would have been incredibly selfish for him to try and have a long-distance relationship with the girl he had fallen head over heels with. Instead, while she would be angry with him perhaps for the rest of her life, she would be able to move on. He only hoped that he could manage to do the same in time.

Aubrey and Pacifica had been watching a trashy teenage romance show when Mabel stormed through the media room and into the bathroom. "What the heck happened?" Aubrey asked as Pacifica got up to check on her sibling. The younger girl thought it best to do the same and made her way to the front of the aircraft. She immediately noticed the swollen cheek of her brother. "Logan, what's up? Did you upset Mabel?" she asked. "No. I set her free..." he simply responded as he rubbed his sore face. "Set her free?" the pre-teen girl asked in a confused tone. "Yeah. If she thought we could have something together, she'd miss out on so much. I like her a lot and realize that wouldn't be fair to her, so I made her get over me by acting like a jerk. I didn't want to, but it had to be done. You understand, right sis?" he asked in a hopeful tone. She thought about it for a moment. "I think what you did was incredibly sweet. It's a shame, but you're right. Maybe if things were different, you two would have been great together, but it just wasn't realistic." she answered. "Thanks, sis..." he replied in a grateful manner. "Anytime, bro. I know it hurts, but who knows? Maybe you two are meant to be and somewhere down the line you'll meet again..." Aubrey reassured him.

"Mabel, open up. What's going on?" Pacifica said through the bathroom door as she tried her best not to be too loud. The last thing she wanted to do was to wake up Lyle and Caitlynn after they had been such gracious hosts. The sounds of her twins' sobs through the door tore through her and she wanted nothing more than to figure out what had made her so upset. If she had to take a guess, it probably had to do with the fact that she would soon be separated from her crush. "Look, I appreciate you coming to check on me, but I just wanna be alone right now..." Mabel finally managed to say. "Okay... I get that, but when you're ready to talk about it, I'm here for you." her sister said. After a few more moments, she made her way back to the media room, where Aubrey had also returned. "What did you find out?" the younger girl asked her guest. "I got nothing, but whatever happened made her really upset. How about you?" she responded. "Logan broke up with her... Even though they were never going out. He pretty much told her that while he would like to be in a relationship with her, that it would never work and wouldn't be fair to either of them to attempt. At least that is what I got out of it. He's trying his best to hide it, but he's pretty upset about it as well." Aubrey explained. "Ah, yeah. That'll do it. I mean, it makes total sense, but it doesn't make it easier on her..." Pacifica replied. "Or him..." Aubrey added as the slightly older teen girl nodded in agreement.

Mabel had been holed up in the bathroom for around an hour when she heard another knock on the door. "Just leave me alone. Please." the ginger teen responded in a weak voice. "Miss Pines, honey, it's Julianne. I was just coming to let you know that we're going to begin our descent soon and that you should return to your seat" the attendant explained. "Oh. S... Sorry. I'll be out in just a moment..." the teenager replied before sniffling. After blowing her nose, splashing some cool water on her face and wiping it off, she opened the door to see Julianne standing just outside it. "Mabel is everything alright?" she asked in a concerned tone. "Uh... Yeah. Yeah! Everything's fine! Just... Just freshening up before we land." she replied. Julianne could tell that she had been crying and invited her to take a seat so she could try and help the upset young woman. "Mabel, honey, I don't know you very well. That being said, something has clearly upset you. What's the matter?" she inquired. "It's... It's, uh... Nothing. It'll be fine..." she lied. "You're not being honest." the brown-haired woman remarked. Mabel decided that it might be good to vent a little and that after this flight, she'd likely never see Julianne again, so she could be straightforward with her. "You're right. It's... It's Logan. He... He said we should move on from one another..." she began before getting emotional once more. "And you clearly don't feel the same way..." the flight attendant pointed out. "Exactly. I mean, he didn't even try to make this work. He... He just gave up." she explained. "I hate to be that person, but he's right." Julianne said. "What?! You too?" the teen girl asked in an exasperated tone. "How can I put this? Sometimes the truth isn't what we want to hear, but what we need to hear. I'm sure that you two would be happy together, but it's just not possible with your current situation. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you can start to move on." Julianne explained. The teen girl thought about it for a moment. "You're right. Both of you are. It's just that after the summer that I had up to this point, it was nice to have something good in my life. And now just to have that taken away from me? It just feels like some sort of cruel joke." she said in a defeated tone. Julianne was at a loss for words as the young woman got up and headed to her seat.

After a refreshing nap, Dipper and Wendy headed out to pick up the girls from the airport. They were about ten minutes from the house when Wendy decided to ask her husband an important question that had been on her mind for a few days. "Hey Mason... I need to ask you something and I want the truth from you when you answer it..." she began as she briefly glanced over from the driver's seat. "Sure. What's on your mind, Wen?" he replied with an equal mix of concern and confusion. "I've been thinking about this for a while, but after everything that happened this week, I have to ask... Do I drink too much?" she asked her lover. Part of her feared the answer, but another wanted to be reassured that it was simply an overreaction on her part. "Honestly? Yeah. Sometimes I think you do." he bluntly responded as he hoped he hadn't just upset her too much with his candor. "That's what I was afraid of..." she remarked in a flat tone that seemed devoid of emotion. "Is this because of what happened earlier this week by any chance?" he inquired. "Yeah, it is. I think I've been using booze as an escape for too long. I mean, I've been doing it since I was fifteen. I drink almost every single day. That can't be good for you, right?" she followed up. "I'm not a doctor, but I'd say it probably isn't the best thing you can do to your body" her husband chimed in. "After the incident with Tambry, I took an online test to see if I was an alcoholic. It turns out I'm a functional alcoholic according to it. I'm... I'm just so embarrassed of who I've become... And a little scared." Wendy said as she wiped a tear from her cheek. "Wen, do you want me to drive?" Dipper asked as he looked over at the love of his life; her face illuminated by the gauges on the dashboard. The uneasy expression she displayed told him all he needed, and she pulled over to the shoulder of the road.

After switching seats, they were once again on their way to the airport. "You know, I'm proud of you..." Dipper said as he broke the awkward silence that had filled the sport utility vehicle. "What could you possibly be proud of me for? I'm just a colossal fuck up, man... You should take the girls and leave me before I do something stupid..." the ginger woman said in a defeated tone. "I'd never do that. I'm proud of you for realizing that you might have a problem. It's easy to just ignore something like that or make excuses for it, but you knew that something was off and took a step to see if your intuition was right. Not everyone can do that. None of us are perfect. We all have flaws and weaknesses. Some of us just aren't brave enough to admit them. Take me for instance..." the thirty-six-year-old man replied. "We're not even in the same league dude... You sought out help early on and have your shit together..." Wendy said. "Not even remotely. I'm just really good at faking it. I mean, sure, the meds help me a ton, but I still have my moments. It's just that I got really good at hiding them. My parents never had a clue. Hell, even Mabel didn't know how bad I was, and she spent almost every single waking moment with me. I'm not okay. I've haven't been for a while, and I never will be again. Neither are you. It's alright. The important thing is to be able to know when we are not and seek out help. That's why I am so proud of you. I admire you." Dipper retorted as they passed a sign indicating the airport was ten miles away. "Thank you." Wendy simply replied; a smile forming on her face as they drove through the central Oregon wilderness on a late summer night.

Author's Note: Sorry for how long this chapter took to publish, but as usual life has been hectic. Of all the summers I've had, this has certainly been one of the more trying ones. From an unhealthy work/life balance that caused me to seek out other employment opportunities, to coming down with that wonderful new strain of Covid, my partner being hospitalized and too many other things to list, it's been hard to find time to write. Don't worry, all that is in the rear-view mirror and almost all is well again for myself. Writing this story is quite cathartic to me. So, you're probably wondering where the whole Wendy being a functional alcoholic comes from and as they say, real life is often the best material to draw from. I've leaned on it far more than I should have in the past and luckily come out on the other side a better person for having realized that myself. So, onto the story. Was Logan wrong for what he said, or was he just trying to look out for the best interests of the girl he fell fast and hard for? Likewise, was Mabel a bit unrealistic with her expectations for the future of her and Logan's crushes on one another? Will Wendy's realization change how she deals with her unresolved issues, or will she slip back into her old ways? What will Dipper do to support his wife in her trying time? How will the girls' first day of school go? Just what have their friends been up to while they've been away? Answers to all of these questions and more in the next installment of Tales of the Flame & the Axe. - iKLOT

My Playlist:

Little Image – "Out Of My Mind"

Veio - "Just Like Home"

Olivia Rodrigo - "Bad idea right?"

Taylor Summer - "Cruel Summer"

Portugal. The Man / Unknown Mortal Orchestra - "Summer Of Luv"

Matt Maeson – "Get Happy"

Fall Out Boy - "Hold Me Like A Grudge"

Ayron Jones - "Blood In The Water"

Thursday – "Standing On The Edge Of Summer"

The Used - "Numb" (Made me think of how Wendy feels deep down inside)

Starset - "ECHO" (Made me think of how Wendy always thought she was so tough and invincible, but as time goes on, she's beginning to realize that may not be the case)

David Kushner - "Daylight" (Made me think of Wendy and her complicated relationship with alcohol.)

Jimmy Eat World - "Work" (If this were an episodic show, this is the song that I'd use to close out this episode as Dipper and Wendy drive through the night to pick up the girls.)