Greetings everyone! Here with an interesting story. A bit unorthodox but an interesting concept I wanted to try out and see how this goes. Enjoy!
"Mabel, how are you holding up?"
A groan can be heard. "Aside from being tired and drenched in sweat, I'll live."
Dipper can only nod his head in response. "I know, I'm upset too of what happened."
"Hey bro, I'm starting to get hungry and don't feel like waiting to return to the shack." Mabel's stomach let out a growl. "How about we get something to eat?"
Dipper's stomach growled as well. "I'm down with that."
Nodding their heads the Pines Twins start looking for a place to eat and relax. The first place that came to mind was Greasy's Dinner, where Pacifica works today. Thankfully they weren't far from the restaurant. Despite the chilly weather, the twins were covered in sweat due to dealing with today's hijinks.
As the Greasy's Dinner was now in sight, the scent of burgers and fries reached Mabel's nostrils, causing the young teen's mouth to water. But not long afterward the smell of homemade bread, sweets, and caramel filled the air, causing her and Dipper to observe their surroundings to look for the source. Soon enough, they stumbled upon a small gray building with an owl carved over the doorway, plain white curtains covering the windows, a red roof, and an owl carving on the door. Hanging on the door is a small black sign that reads:
"Welcome!
We are Open!"
"Hey," Mabel spoke up. "Have we seen this place before?"
Dipper nods his head. "I don't believe so last time I checked."
Mabel let out an excited squeal. "So this place is new? Why don't we check it out?"
"Mabel, this place wasn't here yesterday. Something tells me that this place isn't what it seemed." Dipper points out.
But the smells of baked bread and sweets caused Mabel to enter the shop, much to Dipper's dismay.
"Dang it Mabel." With little choice, Dipper followed his older sibling and entered the building.
When he entered, he was greeted with the scent of honeydew, lavender, and peach, in addition to the smell of baked goods becoming much stronger. The interior had a powerful nature theme, with wooden, cotton, leather, and stone chairs and desks. The colors were earth and organic, like greens, blues, and neutrals. Even the floor was replaced with a natural jute, sisal, or wool rug. The walls were decorated with drawings of mountains, trees, and forests. Behind the counter were four stories shelves that were mostly filled with numerous powders, and ingredients safely sealed in containers and decorated with eco-friendly accessories, such as shells, pebbles, seagrass, and bamboo. Finally, each of the tables, including the bar was filled with wonderful greenery, such as plants, flowers, or herbs, that helped purify the air, preventing the current scent from filling the whole place, adding color that created a relaxing atmosphere.
Dipper was left speechless by the peaceful atmosphere, yet he remained guarded, while Mabel was busy looking at the menu and being lost in the sheer amount of items available.
"Look Dipper! This place sells everything!" Mabel took a seat in the bar.
"Well, Almost Everything."
Just then a figure came out from the back door and the twins stood face-to-face with what looks to be the owner. The figure removed its hood revealing a to-be quite handsome man who looked around his thirties, possessing grey eyes full of energy, medium-length chocolate brown hair, and light skin. His arms in particular were well muscled and tanned, and his hands "like catcher's mitts" which were calloused, which the twins could feel from the decades of work starting back at them just by looking at it. His outfit was causal yet comfortable: a pair of navy blue jeans, a black T-shirt, and brown tennis shoes. He wore a green and blue apron.
"I see you two are the new customers. Welcome to Sweets and Lattes!" The young man got out his pen and notepad. "What do you have in the mood for?"
Mabel continued looking at the menu while Dipper stared at the owner with suspicion as if scanning him from head to toe to see if the man was human.
Mabel elbowed her brother on the arm. "Sorry about that."
"No worries." The young man waved it off. "I see that you two are having trouble deciding."
"Very much so," Mabel replied.
"Hmm. Perhaps you're in the mood for something sweet?"
The owner's suggestion caused Mabel to smile. "What do you suggest?"
"Cinnamon rolls, Shokupan bread, cake pops, cookies, and vanilla butter cake." The owner replied.
"What Shokupan Bread?" Mabel was curious about that particular bakery.
"It is bread that originated in Japan—quite soft & fluffy, yet sweet and buttery. It's a popular item. So much so that it gets sold out quickly."
Oooh! I want to try that one!" Mabel jumped up at the opportunity.
"Good choice. And what do you want?"
"No thanks, I'm not hungry." Dipper lied, still not trusting the owner.
At this point, Mabel had enough of her brother's attitude. "We'll both have soda."
"Soda I do have." The owner nods his head. "Though I only have lemon and lime flavor at the moment."
"That works fine!"
The owner started their order and Dipper took his seat though he still didn't take his eyes off him.
The owner sat two cold sodas on the counter and the twins stark drinking and observing the place: several people were enjoying their time so at least nothing was abyss. For now.
"So how's your day been going?" The owner asked, not taking his eyes off the oven.
"Meh, it is been okay. Dipper has been rambling about the journal he's been looking into recently."
Dipper glared at his sister. "Mabel! Don't tell him that!"
"Hey hey, there will be no fighting here. Unless you want to get kicked out."
The intense look that the owner gave them caused the two to stop. The owner presented the Shokupan bread, warm and ready to eat. Unlike most bread, this one had a tall loaf, with a lightly browned crust on the outside, creating a beautiful contrast with its stark white interior.
Mabel took a whiff at the large loaf and instantly took a piece and ate it. The pillowy soft texture, yet slightly sweet flavored mixed with milk and buttery richness, resulted in her instantly falling in love.
"THIS. IS. THE. BEST. BREAD. I. EVER. TATSED." That was all that Mabel said before she took another bite.
"Not the first time I saw a reaction like that but I'm glad you like it."
"I haven't quite gotten your name," Mabel commented.
The owner raised his eyebrow looked down at his shirt and noticed that something was missing. "Oh damnit! Though I had my nametag on!" The owner only let out a sigh. "Call me Levi."
Mabel nods. "Alright Levi, how much do we owe you?"
"Don't, It's on the house." Levi casually waved his hand.
Mabel took another bite of her bread, leaving Dipper on his own.
"So," Dipper spoke up. "How long you've been running the place?"
"For a while at least."
"Really? Cause we didn't see this spot until now."
"Well, this place has been crowded every day so you might haven't been able to see it. Also, the location is a bit on the outskirts of town anyway."
Dipper was reluctant to accept the owner's answer but just nodded his head. Taking a sip of his soda, he leaned on the bar-esque countertop, and quickly, thoughts of his horrible time being a wooden statute reappeared in his mind. His face became paler with each passing minute and his mind began to trail off, completely ignoring his surroundings. It wasn't until Mabel slapped him that Dipper finally snapped out of his frozen daze.
"Dipper! Are you okay?" Mabel worriedly looked at her brother.
"Yeah… I'm fine." Despite sounding reassuring, his tone and body language say otherwise.
"You seemed troubled. Perhaps I can help you."
Dipper was hesitant to talk about what was bothering him. He kept his issues to himself unless it was with his family or someone he trusted and knew well. And he was content on that until he heard the doorbell going off. And just as quickly, thoughts of Pacifica came to mind, specifically her parents and their "parenting", if anyone can call it that. He vividly remembers how the bell allowed full control over her and despite Pacifica dismissing it, Dipper continued to see the effects still lingered. As much as he didn't want to admit seeing Paz in distress made him feel awful not being able to do anything to help.
Finally fed up of feeling powerless about the situation Dipper finally spoke up. "I… have this friend named Pacifica who has a strained relationship with her parents. I keep bringing it up but she always dismisses them. And I'm finding myself getting increasingly frustrated by my limitations."
Dipper finished his story and expects his problem to be downplayed. Much to his surprise, the owner did none of the sort and nodded as he collected his thoughts on what to say.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity the owner leaned towards Dipper. "Seems to me that your friend is dealing with many internal feelings and you want to help her. I can relate. I have met many people dealing with trauma and I know how that feels to be powerless to help despite having no idea how."
"What should I do?" Dipper looked at Levi with genuine concern.
"Just keep being involved. And continue showing her that she's important to you and continue from there." Levi explained.
"I feel that won't be enough." Dipper's tone of doubtfulness was strong.
"I know it doesn't sound much but starting something small will benefit in the long run. Ask what her hobbies are. Or what food she likes to eat. Genres she enjoys? Anything. It will show her that you care about her and want to be supportive."
Despite doubtfulness still being present within him, Levi's advice caused a huge wave of relief that caused Dipper to feel more relaxed.
"Alright, I'll keep that in mind," Dipper said.
"Glad to hear that."
Mabel got out her cell phone to check the time. "Ohh crap! We got to go."
With a nod, Dipper hopped off his seat and followed his sister to the store.
Dipper and Mabel turned to Levi and thanked them for the food and hospitality.
"You're welcome. You two be careful walking home."
"We always do!" A confident Mabel answered.
After exchanging gestures, the twins left the cafe and started making their way to the shack.
"Man, that cafe was very nice!" Mabel began. "And that bread, oh my goodness. You should have tried yourself Dipper. I know I will be returning to that place alone."
Dipper only rolled his eyes before he spoke. "We know this town in the back of our minds and yet we have never seen that cafe before. Don't you think that's weird Mabel?"
"Maybe, but the place didn't seem off-putting to me. And the owner didn't try anything malicious to us." Mabel shrugged.
Dipper only responded with a short nod, as he was occupied with the advice that Levi gave him. He turns to his sister. "Mabel you have Pacifica's phone number?"
"No, I don't," Mabel answered.
Dipper scratched his chin. "Do we have anything big planned this week?"
Mabel shook her head. "Joining Wendy on a weekend hike with one of her brothers.
"Hmm, hope that Wendy doesn't mind inviting another person with us."
"I'm sure she wouldn't mind."
And with that, the Pine Twins continued to their destination until they disappeared out of sight of the Cafe.
And that's a wrap! I hope you enjoy the Chapter. Every once in and while I will put this up at the end of each chapter, but it will be short and brief, and depending on the chapter itself, I may or may not continue this tidbit. There will be numerous references so look forward to that!"
That's it, everyone! Have a good day and see you next chapter!