Always (2/3)

48: leave the bottle, sister dearest

48
Pacifica

With everything that had just happened, everyone was on the edge for the rest of the day. But the worst part, was that Dipper had secluded himself in his room and wasn't allowing anyone in.

   It was late in the evening before I couldn't take it anymore. I entered the Manor's speakeasy (because of course they would have one) and saw Mabel sitting behind the bar.

   "You, too?" I laughed as she pulled a cork out of a bottle with her teeth.

   "Ah, afraid so." She murmured. "Casualty of my parents visiting."

"Your mother." I corrected. "I haven't seen your father yet."

"He's like Dipper, in that aspect." She murmured taking a long swig from the bottle. "Fashionably late."

"Hmmhmmhmm." I chuckled. "Are you going to share that with me?"

She looked at me, quite skeptically. "Really? Are you sure you wanna drink?"

"Please, you mother thinks I'm only here for Dipper's money." I sat myself on the nearest stool to Mabel and pulled the bottle out of her hands. "I need to forget that."

She watched me, amazement in her eyes as I downed a long sip of the most bitter-tasting liquid I'd ever had! As I gagged, she laughed and pulled the bottle away from me "What the hell is that?" I demanded.

"Straight tequila." Mabel shook her head, amused. "I guess the worst part about not having magic is the fact that I won't be able to miraculously cure this hangover."

"The ball isn't until late tomorrow evening," I reminded her. "I think you'll be fine by then."

"You've never been hungover, have you?" She raised a brow just as easily as she raised the neck of the bottle to her lips.

"No." I admitted. "Doesn't mean I can't change that."

She laughed aloud again. "No, I suppose not." She poured me another glass of tequila but then frowned and hesitated before sliding it over to me. "We should probably start with something small for you."

"No objections there." I grinned. "So, any red wines back there?"

"Of course."

After she poured a reasonably sized glass for me, she settled on the stool in front of me, bar between us. "Cheers," she held her bottle up to my glass, "to a happy family reunion."

I snorted in between clinking glasses with her. And we drifted into a comfortable silence as we took the first couple sips.

"You wanna know something, Paz?" Mabel chuckled ruefully. "You're probably the only girlfriend that Dipper's had that I actually like."

I raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're real. I know I've told you this before." Mabel shook her brown hair away from her face. "And not to mention that I've never seen him so happy with someone else. I think you're end-game for him."

"Now that you mention it," I murmured, twirling my glass around and finishing it up. "When he finally snapped to his mother, he mentioned that I was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with."

"Oh my god, really?" Mabel grinned wider than I'd ever known was possible. "That's adorable. I wish for the best for you two."

"Thanks, Mabes." I smiled. "Who would've thought we'd ever be friends?"