Dipcifica: New summer, New start...

Chapter 26

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Dipper's POV

Pacifica looked kind of subdued as we went off to bed. I hoped there was nothing going on, but it was hard to tell with her. One second she's absolutely fine, the next she's mad or upset. I pondered this odd change of emotions as I lay in bed, also waiting our inevitable doom by my dad. You see, he isn't as gentle as my mom is, and in the worst case scenario might even ship us back to Gravity Falls.

Half an hour later, I heard the front door scrape open and smashed my head into the pillow, pretending to be asleep. A groan of annoyance could be heard through the thin wall separating me and Mabel's room...Pacifica had most likely activated another sparkle trap.

I laid still in the dark, listening, waiting, for some kind of angry yell from My dad. The covers clung to my sweat-drenched body.

No response ever came.

I could hear the two parents arguing, though neither sounded angry. I shuffled my feet. Suddenly, I heard someone lightly tap on the wall.

"Dipper?" Came the soft whisper I knew as Pacifica's.

I peeled the sheets off of me and pressed my hand to the wall. "Yeah, it's me," I whispered back.

"These walls are really thin. I can hear your sheets rustling all the way from over here,"

"Oh," I stood silent for a second. "Can you hear what the parents are talking about?"

There was dead quiet for at least thirty seconds before the voice behind the wall spoke again.

"A little bit," Pacifica murmured. "Something about 'responsibility,' and a lot of talk about you,"

"Listen more," I leaned closer to the wall, eager to hear.

"Um...they're talking about me," she whispered. "About my...parents."

Suddenly, I heard something like an intake of breath from Pacifica. It was quiet.

"Um...Pacifica?" I questioned, worry clutching my chest slightly. If I leaned a bit closer I could hear the sound of soft whimpers and occasional sobs. I wondered what she had heard. "Pacifica, you okay?" There was still no answer.

Feeling along the wall I made my way to the door and turned the knob, very carefully so my parents wouldn't hear. Opened the door to Mabel's room and found Pacifica softly crying to herself, sitting on the bed with her head in her hands. I rushed up to her and hugged her, to my own surprise. She looked like she needed it. I felt her arms warm around me as well, and we hugged tightly for a few seconds before letting go.

"What happened?" I asked, gently, trying not to sound too persistent.

She wouldn't tell me. She just leaned into my shoulder and fell quiet, no longer crying. I didn't know what to do, so I just put my hand around her and waited. When the inconsistent sniffs quieted, I knew she was asleep. I felt weird here, but instead of disturbing Pacifica I closed my own eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, I woke up to the smell of breakfast cooking in the skillet downstairs. I sat up. Something was...off. The fact that Pacifica was snoring right next to me...and not to mention the obscenely pink room I was currently in. Suddenly, last night came flooding back to me and I sighed, flopping back onto the bed, Pacifica oblivious to all of this.

I carefully got up and put my day clothes on, which consisted of my navy blue vest, the cotton orange t-shirt, and gray polyester shorts. Lastly, I pulled my cap over the springy hair and walked out the the bedroom, feeling refreshed.

My mom was cooking bacon and eggs, along with waffles, fresh fruit, and Nutella.

"Mom, what's with the feast?" I asked her, knowing our usual breakfast consisted of cereal and apple slices.

"Oh, just to give your friend a good impression," she breezed.

Well, if she was crying last night for some reason I'm sure you've hand the BEST impression, my mind snarked. I stopped those thoughts and instead turned to my waffles, smeared them with Nutella and started munching greedily.

Enjoy it while it lasts, I thought.

Soon, Pacifica came down the stairs as well, having chosen what would have been closest to her usual purple attire; one of Mabel's hand-knitted sweaters, this one a deep purple with kittens on it.

"Hehe! The look suits you!" My mom commented. Pacifica smiled but was unusually quiet.

I was worried. Something that my parents had said last night had upset her; and I was going to find out what.