Dangerously yours // Billford

II - Research

Stanford flicked the light on in his lab. Bill stood next to him, holding a cane in his left hand, which he slightly leaned on. The flickering light illuminated the horrific amount of clutter.
From old tech to spare wires and scrap metal, it was clear Ford had very little direction at the moment.
"What's all this.. stuff?" Bill mumbled as he looked around at the debris looking mess. He moved his cane to poke at the rubble.
"I-I'm not exactly sure.." He mumbled. Bill's brow furrowed, "I can see you've come to a standstill in your research." He simply said.

Ford hung his head, "I came to Gravity Falls originally to study anomolies and weirdness, and I've been able to begin filling in my journal, but other than finding strange creatures, I have very little direction in terms of my research." Stanford sighed as he crouched down to take a look at his mess of a lab.
Bill began, "Sixer." Ford's head shot up as he looked over at Bill. He got up from where he was crouched and faced him. "I may have an idea for you to focus on." He smiled as he turned his head to face Ford. "And I have full confidence in your abilities. You are the only person I believe to be intelligent enough to turn my idea into reality."
Stanford chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. His face slowly grew warmer at the flattery, Ford wasn't one to take praise often, but it was different with Bill, every kind word, every remark about his talent, hard work or intelligence made him melt like butter on a scorching pan. "W-Well, um, thank you, Bill." He cleared his throat awkwardly before letting out a short sigh. "So what idea do you have for me to pursue?"

Bill slowly walked closer towards Ford, his cane clicking the ground with every step, stopping only when they were inches apart.
His gloved hand came up to Ford's chin before gently turning his head towards the other side of the room.
"What do you see, Sixer?" Bill whispered in his ear. Ford's breath was caught in his throat at being in such close proximity to Bill.
"Th-The other side of the room?" He stammered. Bill sighed quietly, "I see the perfect space for a portal." Stanford was taken aback, "a p-portal?!" He stammered. "Yes!" Bill exclaimed as he turned Stan's head to face him now. "Just think of the discoveries you could make, the ways it could be harnessed to help humanity." He explained with a wide smile.

Stanford paused for a moment, Bill was right. This had never been done before. The possibilities were endless. He could use it to help humanity.
As if Bill read his mind, he gently tugged his face closer, "Come on Sixer, we both know what you're capable of, why limit yourself?"
Stanford couldn't tell if it was the flattery or the fact that their faces were mere inches apart, but he froze, unable to respond with anything other than a shaky nod.

His eyes studied Bill's face, his wide, excited eye, the way his golden iris seemed as if it glowed when he stared carefully enough, the way his lips curved into a grin. he couldn't help but stare at his lips for a moment, pondering over the texture (he wasn't interested at all, of course, just curious).
After a couple of moments, he snapped out of his thoughts and came back to reality, feeling Bill's leather glove gently holding his chin. "H-Haha, you can let go now, Bill." He stuttered, refusing any possibility of him being flustered. He just wasn't used to being so close to someone physically after living in the woods for so long. Yes, that was it.

Bill chuckled and let go of Ford's chin before holding onto his cane once more.
"My only concern is.. how on earth am I going to create a portal, a-and where would it even go to?" Stanford questioned.
"Don't worry about a thing, Sixer. I will help guide you through it at all stages. All I need you to do is create the blueprints, gather materials, and build the portal. Once that's done, you will become a legend in the scientific community, I'm sure of it." Bill rambled his praises as he looked over at the end of the room, as if he was already picturing the portal in the room.

"I bet your old man will be impressed too." He mumbled with a slight smirk. Ford's eyes widened slightly, the mention of his dad caught him off guard, he hadn't thought about him in.. well, years.
He was about to open his mouth to question Bill on how he knew about his father and his hopelessly unimpressed ways before he remembered what exactly Bill was. He was all-knowing. a concept that still continued to puzzle and amaze Ford.

He quietly nodded, "Yes.. I'm sure of it." Ford mumbled, as if it pained him to remember his parents back in Glass Shard Beach, New Jersey. Stanford always wanted to make his father proud more than anyone else.
He was impossible to impress and dissatisfied with where he was raised. Ford grew up always wanting to be their ticket out of their, maybe then his father would be happy for once.

"Woah, Sixer!" Bill's familiar voice pulled him from his thoughts, "I'm excited about this idea too, but let's not just stand and daydream all day!"
"Oh yes, sorry, Bill." He chuckled before letting out a sigh.