The falls

chapter five

The bell above the door of the town diner jingled as Jessica and Neomi entered. The place had a cozy, worn-in feel—old checkered floors, red vinyl booths, and the smell of coffee and pancakes filling the air. They slid into a booth by the window, the events of the woods still fresh in their minds.

Jessica sat back, still trying to process everything that had happened. Her eyes drifted over to Neomi, who was flipping through a menu with a nonchalance that felt almost surreal given what they had just gone through.

After a moment, Jessica broke the silence. "Okay, I have to ask. Why did you take me into the woods when you knew what the gnomes had done to your aunt?"

Neomi looked up from the menu, her expression shifting slightly. She closed it and rested her elbows on the table, thinking for a moment. "I...I wanted to see the gnomes up close for myself," she admitted quietly, her usual bubbly demeanor subdued. "I guess I thought maybe things would be different, or maybe they wouldn't bother us."

Jessica frowned. "But why? If they'd tried to force your aunt into marriage, wouldn't you want to avoid them?"

Neomi let out a small sigh, running a hand through her hair. "You'd think, right? But...it's more complicated than that." She paused, staring out the window as she collected her thoughts. "I don't want to be afraid of being like my Aunt Mabel."

Jessica tilted her head, confused. "What do you mean?"

Neomi's fingers played with the edge of the menu as she spoke. "You know how my dad and Aunt Mabel helped save Gravity Falls from Weirdmageddon, right? That huge reality-bending event with monsters and all sorts of weirdness? They were just kids, and they managed to pull it off. My aunt—she was brave, optimistic, and...silly, in a way that made everyone else feel stronger. She didn't back down, even when things got scary. I look up to her, you know?"

Jessica nodded. She had heard bits and pieces about Weirdmageddon since arriving in Gravity Falls. It was part of the town's strange history, though the details were still fuzzy to her. "But what does that have to do with the gnomes?"

Neomi leaned forward, her expression earnest. "Because I don't want to live in fear of this place. Gravity Falls is my home, and it's full of all these strange things—gnomes, monsters, who knows what else. Aunt Mabel wasn't afraid of any of it. She faced it with a smile and made the best out of every situation. That's the kind of person I want to be too."

Jessica looked at Neomi, starting to understand. "So, you thought that by going into the woods, you could prove to yourself that you weren't afraid? That you could handle whatever came at you, like your aunt did?"

Neomi nodded, her gaze falling to the table. "Yeah. I guess so. I thought if I faced the gnomes and saw for myself what they were like, maybe I could understand them, or at least not be so scared of them. I wanted to be brave, like Aunt Mabel. And I guess...I thought if I could be brave around them, I could be brave with all the other weird things in Gravity Falls."

Jessica bit her lip, realizing how much pressure Neomi had put on herself. For her, Gravity Falls was a mystery to unravel, but for Neomi, it was home—a place she felt responsible for understanding, like it was in her blood.

"You don't have to be exactly like your aunt, you know," Jessica said gently. "You're your own person."

Neomi smiled a little, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I know. But it's hard. She was so...everything. Funny, brave, loyal. I just want to be someone people can count on, like she was."

Jessica thought about her own family. She knew what it was like to feel pressure, to want to live up to the expectations set by the people you looked up to. But she also knew that trying to be someone you weren't wouldn't make things easier.

"You already are someone people can count on," Jessica said. "You helped me escape those gnomes today, didn't you? And you've been showing me around Gravity Falls, keeping me from getting lost in all the weirdness. You don't have to try to be someone else. You're doing just fine as yourself."

Neomi's smile grew a little warmer. "Thanks, Jess. That means a lot."

The waitress came by to take their order, and Neomi quickly snapped back to her usual upbeat self, ordering pancakes with whipped cream and a ridiculous amount of syrup. Jessica ordered a milkshake, needing something to settle her nerves after everything that had happened.

As they waited for their food, the conversation shifted to lighter topics, but the weight of what Neomi had shared still lingered in Jessica's mind. She hadn't expected someone like Neomi—so confident and energetic—to have doubts about herself. It made Jessica feel closer to her, in a way, like they both had things they were trying to prove, not just to others but to themselves.

And though Jessica didn't know exactly what the future held, she was starting to feel more certain that Gravity Falls—strange as it was—was exactly where she needed to be.