[🔶] Gravity Falls: Rewritten!

Chapter 20: The Bunker and Tiny Men

The sun had just risen, casting an early morning glow over the Mystery Shack. The establishment remained closed for renovations after the chaos of the zombie-filled party the previous night. Having successfully convinced the construction worker not to question the source of the recent chaos- a.k.a he bribed the worker- Stan made his way into the gift shop, with Waddles trailing faithfully behind him. "Dipper!" his voice echoed through the empty room. "I need someone to look out for those workers while I take my elderly nap! I need it 'cause I'm old!"

But there was no response.

"Mabel?" Stan continued, "Soos? Wendy?"

After a moment of silence, the older man shrugged nonchalantly. "Welp, there goes the need for clothing." He proceeded to remove articles of his clothing such as his coat and unbuckle his belt, letting his pants sag to the ground. Waddles oinked in response.

"Why are you taking off your clothes in the middle of the gift shop?"

Y/n and Stan engaged in a brief staring contest, the awkward silence stretching out until he waved his hand in a dismissive manner. "It's better this way, trust me. Now, where did those kids run off to and why aren't you with them?" He placed his hands on his hips, demanding an explanation.

She shrugged, mirroring Stan's earlier action. "I don't know, I was busy," she answered nonchalantly, her attention seemingly focused on the notes on her clipboard.

He paused for a moment before. "I'll take it," he said, walking towards the vending machine. He pressed the code and it opened with an exhale. "C'mon, pig, let's hit the lab. You too, I guess."

Y/n rolled her eyes, but she moved nonetheless, going inside as Stan closed the door. "Hopefully those kids haven't joined a gang or something."

***

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Mabel, Soos, and Dipper gathered around a tree in the middle of the forest. The chestnut-haired boy tapped his pen against the lamp, catching the attention of the other two. "Thanks for being here," he began. While he wished Y/n had joined them, he understood that she might still be rattled from the zombie incident. He decided to focus on the matter at hand and save the idea of a solo adventure for another time.

"Hey, when there's a mystery, you can count on your sister...-Ey," Mabel said in an attempt to rhyme.

Soos chuckled, amused. "That's an amazing rhyme." He began to think of his own slogan, "When you want some, good... When you need a Soos, you... Oh oh, gosh, I don't know."

Dipper continued, "We're here to solve the number one mystery in Gravity Falls; who wrote this journal?! Thirty years ago the author vanished without a trace. But according to this new clue," he turned on his black light pen and flashed it on the page. "We may have found his secret hiding place. We find that author, we learn the answers to everything. We just need to figure out a way to get down there."

"Chop it down, dudes!"

A voice called from behind them as Soos neared closer to the tree. The twins looked behind them and saw the redheaded teen pulling up with her bike. "Wendy!" Mabel exclaimed.

"You came!" Dipper greeted with an awkward smile. He really wanted to impress someone so cool like her. Maybe it was the fact that she was three years older than him and that he wanted to fit in with the teens, but it wasn't like he had a crush on her or something. He could differentiate between admiring someone and having a crush.