14
Pacifica

   "Now, do you know what you have to do?" Mabel asked as we entered the driveway. "It'll be insanely simple."

   "I still don't understand what your plan is, Mabes." I groaned. "And I don't see how it will work."

   "Just follow my lead." Mabel explained. "And if it comes to extreme measures, continue to follow my lead."

   "Extreme measures?" I echoed as she stepped out of the car. What could that mean?

   Mabel walked up the path, a gazillion bags hanging on her arms. I went in tow, only dragging my bag that I brought from the Mystery Shack. "Where are we going? I mean, obviously the manor, but where specifically?"

   "My room, dummy." Mabel rolled her eyes as she looked back at me for only a moment. "That way we can get you ready, but we gotta sneak you in because I don't want Dipper to see you yet." She winked at me and swung open the door.

   I took a deep breath in, and followed her inside.

   "Dipper," Mabel shouted and I winced. What the hell was she doing? "I'm here."

   "Lovely." He replied from wherever he was.

   "I'm going up to my room, and I don't want to be disturbed." She said as she ushered me up the stairs. "Text me our dinner plans. Au revoir!"

   Before I could hear Dipper's response, Mabel pushed me up the stairs and shoved me into her room. "Alright, seeing since it's 5 o'clock, we'll be eating in a little less than 30 minutes. Whether it be here or out somewhere, I do not know." She explained, locking her door. "Are you ready?"

   I gave her a firm nod. "I am. And I trust that you won't go overboard with this whole makeup thing?"

   "I won't go overboard." She swore. "Now, while I work, you may ask a few questions. Whether it be about me, what I'm doing to help you, or," she paused, "or Dipper."

   First, Mabel threw a bunch of clothes at me, and a few shorts to put on and then she instructed me to go into her walk-in closet. "Just try the combinations I sort of put together and then present them to me, mmkay?" She asked, her voice slightly muffled by the wooden door between us.

   "Gotcha." I started trying on the outfits she laid out for me. "So, how many questions do I get to ask?"

   "Hmm," she pondered it for a moment. "3."

   "Great." I nodded to myself as I checked out the green shirt in the mirror as well as the blue jeans I'd put on. The outfit was cute in itself, but it didn't do much to get the Brown-Haired-Wonderboy's attention.

   "What are you gonna wear?" She pestered from the other side.

   "Black shirt." I said, pulling it on. "It looks nice with the blue jean shorts."

   "It does." She informed me. "I would wear stuff like that all the time."

   "Yeah, it's nice." I finished changing into it and showed Mabel.

   She gave me a smile and a thumbs up. "Perfect. It makes your boobs pop, that'll get his attention."

   I rolled my eyes, but she was probably right. "Hey Mabes?"

   "Mm?" She hummed.

   "I've got my first question."

* * *

   It was only another thirty minutes for Mabel to get me ready. In that time, she'd answered two of my questions. I had one more to ask and she would have to answer honestly. In those quick, but painfully slow, thirty minutes, Mabel told me that we were staying in for dinner. I could only imagine why.

   "Dipper mentioned something about your other friends not being dressed for the occasion." Mabel had said. "That's why we're having a quiet dinner at home."

   "Quiet? Huh." I chuckled.

   "Oh trust me," she grinned. "It'll be fine."

   So when dinner time arrived, Mabel and I were the last to arrive. I knew what Mabel was doing, making us fashionably late. It would force her brother to notice. "Believe me," she said, "Dipper notices these things. He's obsessive with them, really."

   I tried not to scoff. Everyone knew that, it wasn't that bizarre. When Mabel led me into the dining hall, I saw immediately where everyone was sitting and the two open seats.

   Rachel was sitting across from Janessa, who was sitting next to Dipper. Mabel swiftly took her seat at the head of the table acting like the queen she was. Which left me to sit across from Dipper. I shot a glare at Mabel who gave me an innocent smile.

   As I sat down, I felt eyes on me. Without even needing to look up, I knew whose eyes were burning holes into my head. Dipper's. I took a deep breath, and got ready to play my hand.

   "Wow, Paz." Janessa commented. "You look great!"

   I wish I could say that she was being sarcastic or just over-the-top nice to me in order to appear sweet to everyone in the room, but she was sincere. And that hurt.

   "Yeah, you do." Rachel agreed.

   I waited for Dipper to say something and eventually he did. But not directly to me. "No doubt your work, Mabel." He addressed her although he was talking about me in front of me. I felt my hands clench into perfect fists.

   "Mhm." She said, sounding distant, like she wasn't really listening at all.

   "I didn't know you were friends with Dipper's sister." Janessa said when the conversation died down for only a few seconds.

   "Oh, yeah." I nodded. "We were friends the last time I came here."

   Mabel raised a brow, but it was so quick that only two people caught it. Me, and Dipper. That meant he knew something was up, and I knew that he knew something was up. Boy that would make things complicated. Not by much, but enough to be an issue.

   "Oh." Janessa mused. "That's cool."

   "Yeah, we met three years ago." I clarified, and that was my mistake.

   "Three years ago?" Rachel echoed. "Didn't you meet that guy three years ago?"

   My blood ran cold. "What?"

   "Yeah, didn't you meet him three years ago?" Janessa joined in. "Is he still here?"

   I looked down at my plate. "I--"

   Dipper coughed, clearing his throat.

   "What, Dipper?" Mabel asked innocently. "Cat got your tongue?"

   Dipper rolled his eyes at her. "No, of course not." And once, he glanced in my direction and I panicked. But his eyes weren't harsh, but they were more soft. Calculating me, sizing me up. Like he was trying to figure out what game I was playing.

   "Perhaps the man you met three years ago is still here." Dipper said, absent-mindedly taking a small sip from his wine glass. The dark red color of it clashing with his beautiful eyes. "You should look for him."

   "Oh?" I found myself saying. "And you're the expert on relationship advice?"

   I heard Mabel mumble an 'oh shit' under her breath. I knew this wasn't part of her plan, but I couldn't get myself to stop. Maybe Dipper wouldn't say anything and we'd just drop it. But dropping subtle arguments weren't what Dipper was known for.

   He chuckled harshly, "I believe so."

   "And what if he isn't here?" I questioned.

   "Then I'm afraid I dunno what to tell you." He gave a halfhearted shrug and took another sip from his glass and when he set the glass down he took one final jab. "Perhaps he got tired of waiting around for you to show up."

   "Maybe if he texted me." I shot back. "Maybe if he told me about all the shit going on in his life so I could be there for him!"

   Mabel's eyes went wide but she quickly diverted her gaze from everyone at the table.

   Dipper's gaze never seemed to change from unemotional to angry. How the hell could he be so calm during this? With that argument, it meant he knew who I was. And that he was about as hurt as I was.

   Janessa coughed and everyone's eyes went on her. "So, who wants to watch a movie?"