~~~~~~~~~Your POV~~~~~~~~~

I woke up in my room, feeling a headache that made my brain thump. Strange, I don't remember falling asleep. I don't even remember getting home.

But here I was, back in my room, with no recollection of ever getting here. By the looks of it, it was late at night, and I prayed that it was still the same day and that we hadn't wasted time. I needed to ask someone, anyone. But struggling to get up, I heard a groan beside me, making my head shoot over in a panic.

It was Dipper. His head was resting on the edge of my bed, his arms around him to keep it comfortable as he sat on the floor, deep in his slumber. His hat had fallen off as a result, letting out his wavy brown locks, which swayed so softly from the wind coming in through the opened window.

Flashes from earlier, or maybe yesterday, came back in bits and pieces. The gray forest, the bleeding wound, the yellow eyes.

A rush of cold ran down my spine as I looked at Dipper's face, were those his? Gravity Falls was no stranger to ghouls and monsters, was he one of them? No, he was a monster hunter, he couldn't be. At least, that's what the people say.

I rushed over, touching his face so carefully as to not wake him up, like I was touching a baby. And with the same carefulness, I opened his eye. Brown, as always, like a milk chocolate piece.

Then another part of him caught my eye, a darker color that spread across his forehead under his bangs. Curious, I moved his hair out of the way. It was the Big Dipper birthmark, the one he showed me a few nights ago.

The mark made his lashes stand out as well; had they always been that long? Had his eyes always been almond-shaped, turning a shining caramel under the sun? His hair always messy, but never uncared for? His nose just a little pinker than the rest of his face?

And his lips, which were on the thinner side, looked bigger with the light add on of pink. Breathing slowly, moving...

"(y/n)...?"

I flinched back, clearing my throat as I pretended to have never been that close. "H-hey."

He sat up, arms above his head as he let out a long yawn, rubbing his eyes in a tired manner. "It's good to see you're awake... How do you feel?"

"I have a headache, but other than that, I'm pretty okay. You?"

He gave me a smile that was both for laughter and pain. "Well, I can't really feel anything else, so..."

"R-right..."

He glanced at me for a little while, then raised his hand a little, "You mind if I...?"

"Oh, uh, sure. Go for it," I said before he placed the back of his hand against my forehead. Or at least, he tried to, because I didn't feel a thing this time around.

Once he realized it was a failed attempt, he pulled his hand away with a sigh, looking down at it. "I really wish I knew when I was physical and not. This is starting to get ridiculous."

I adjusted my posture so my legs didn't hurt, feeling a smile creeping onto my face. "Starting to?"

"At least in this aspect," he said with a chuckle. But his shoulders then drooped and his face fell with it, and I could tell a different thought crossed his mind. "(y/n)?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you really think we'll be able to find my body in time...? It's just... we don't really seem to be getting any closer..."

"Dipper..." I stopped myself from saying anything else, thinking about my answer. Then I remembered the Dipper from my head, the one I saw before blacking out, with the yellow eyes and the gushing wound, and my eyes narrowed in thought. "Actually... I think we might be."

"What?"

"The last thing I remember in the forest was reaching the edge of the cliff, and everything was shades of gray, everything. Then you started to walk towards me, but the you that almost died, the one with the bleeding wound. And his eyes, they were... this weird yellow..."

"Wait." He sat up, his eyes wide, "Yellow eyes?"

"Does that tell us something?"

"Maybe... Remember when I told you about that triangle demon that haunted us a few years back? There's a way to know who's possessed by him through the eyes; they turn yellow and the pupils become long."

"Like cat eyes?"

"More like soft ovals."

"And you think this demon is possessing your body, and that's why we can't find it?"

"It's a possibility, right? Anything can happen in this town. I mean, I'm a half-ghost."

I couldn't help but laugh at that, seeing him crack a smile. "It does sound pretty silly when you say it like that."

"A little."

That's when a thought came to mind as I watched him lean over the bed, and I shifted back so my back would touch the wood of my bed. "You can uh... you can sit here, if you want."

I noticed his cheeks grow a little more rosy, inspecting the bed as if it was sacred ground, "You sure?"

"Your back looks really uncomfortable."

"A little." He sat on the other side of the bed, crisscrossed as he faced me, clearly embarrassed. "Thanks."

"You act as if this is the first time you're on a girl's bed."

He turned darker, rubbing the back of his neck; a habit I've noticed he does when embarrassed or nervous. "It kinda is, not including my sister's. Or her girlfriend's. Or... best friends."

I snickered, "You have a lot of lady friends."

"They're mostly just Mabel's friends since she's way more social than I am, and she always invites me to hang out with them." He then glanced down, "I don't really have many friends of my own."

I stared at him for a while, then shifted in place as I glanced away, "Well... you have one new friend now."

He looked at me, eyes slightly wider than usual. I quickly realized how that sounded, feeling my face heat up before looking away. "Three. Three new friends."

I heard him snicker, "Thanks. Though I'm not sure friend is the right title considering how much you've all helped me this far, and I haven't been able to do one thing to make it up to you..."

"Then how's this for making it up? We get you your body back, and you..." I quickly tried to think of something for him to do. "Uh... you.... g-get me a drink."

He let out a laugh, "A drink? That's it?"

"That's it."

"Alright." He offered his hand to me, "Deal."

I hesitated, knowing he wasn't able to touch me earlier, but still reached for his hand. This time, I was able to grab it, shaking it as a snicker left my lips. He let out a laugh, too, and as a result, my gaze shifted up to his forehead, where only a darkened dot was visible under his bangs.

"Hey, Dipper?"

"Hm?"

"You mind if I see your birthmark again?"

"What?" He rapidly touched his hair, as if just realizing he didn't have his hat on. "Uh... w-well..." He bit his lip, staring at me for a while. I was about to add that he didn't have to if it made him uncomfortable, but he lifted his hair out of the way as his cheeks grew a shade darker. "Sure."

I had to adjust my posture in order to get a proper look, and I didn't realize until too late that the position I placed us in seemed... not as innocent as I originally planned it in my head. I was kneeling in front of him, using my knees to keep me up as I focused on his forehead, and he sat with his legs flat under me, desperately trying to stay still.

It'd be best to just not acknowledge it. That would make it more awkward.

"You mentioned you were born with this, right?" I asked, feeling the need to distract us with a conversation.

He nodded, "Pretty weird, right?"

"I think it's cool," I replied, which made his eyes glance up. "Did your parents name you that because of this, or...?"

"Oh, Dipper's just a nickname."

"What?!" I looked down to see him laughing. "Are you being serious?"

"Yeah, people started calling me that when I was like, two, maybe three. So I just kinda rolled with it. Got teased about it a lot at school, though."

"I know what that's like," I replied, tracing a finger over the birthmark. I couldn't help it, I was entranced. "So if I may know, what's your real name?"

He thought about the question for a little while, glancing away for it. "It's, uh... Mason."

"Mason, huh? Mason and Mabel... That makes sense, actually. Parents tend to give twins names that match somehow."

"As corny as it is."

I giggled; I didn't mean to, but I couldn't stop it. And I didn't mind it either. "A little, yeah."

But the next thing he said startled me in a way I didn't expect. "You're beautiful..."

My head shot down to look at him, eyes wide and face burning up. His was too, I could tell by the way his cheeks were now beet red. "E-excuse me?!"

"I- I mean- th-that was-" In his panic, he moved his leg a little too far to the side, pushing against my own and knocking me off balance, making me fall forward with a yell.

And just like a romcom, it was then that Andy floated into the room. "Okay, Dip, my turn to-! Whoa."

"What?" Ally poked her head through the door, "What happened?"

But it was too late, we were already in a compromising position. Dipper lied flat on the bed, one hand on the small of my back out of reflex, while I tried to keep myself up with my arms beside his head. I'm ashamed I was a part of such a cliche.

"¡Oye, déjenle espacio a Dios!" Andy floated over with a glare, though clearly he was just messing with us. "I'm not taking care of no ghost baby!"

"WHAT?" Dipper cranked his head so far back you'd think his neck would've snapped, and his face was so red it could've blended into the darkness. Not that mine was any different as I grabbed the nearest object, a plush toy on my bed, and threw it full force at Andy. It would've hit the target perfectly, had he been corporeal.

Allison was clearly trying not to laugh, her cheeks pink as she held it in, while Andrés started to shove Dipper out of bed once I climbed off. "¡Anda, pa' fuera! ¡Cerdo!"

"I do speak a little Spanish, you know!" Dipper yelled back with a glare.

Andy smiled at that, "Oh, good! Then you'll understand this. ¡LÁRGATE!" And he shoved Dipper out with Allison meeting him outside, slamming the door on his face.

"Andy!" I scolded. "What the hell!"

"Don't What the hell me, missy! I'm too young to have any grandchildren!"

"Oh my God!" I buried my face in my hands, unable to take the embarrassment. "Nothing happened, it was an accident!"

"Oh I know." He let out a snicker, "But did you see his face? Priceless!"

"I hate you."

"I bet," he said as he floated over to me. "Your face is so red, I didn't think that was possible from you. You must really like him~"

Like him?

... do I...?

I shook my head. "No, I couldn't- can't."

"Why not? It's not like he's actually dead." He sat beside me, "Get his body back, and you two can make out to your heart's content." I glared over, to which he shrugged. "Or take things slow or whatever."

"Still." I wrapped my arms around my legs, "Once he gets his body back, things will go back to normal. He'll go back to being the great Dipper Pines, and I'll go back to being the freaky ghost whisperer."

But as the words left my lips, I realized how much I hated that outcome. I did like Dipper, whether as a friend or more, I still wanted us to have something when he went back to the world of the living. Would he still want that?

Or would he pretend this never happened?

And what if we never did find the body? What if we reached the deadline without anything to help him? What would happen then?

Would he become like the others? Wondering ghosts, just like Andy? Like Ally?

... wondering ghosts...

"Andy?"

"Hm?"

"Have you ever tried to move on?"

He raised an eyebrow, "Like, from a relationship? I dunno, the last relationship I had was when I was alive. He was my buddy and we decided to give it a shot, but then I died, so didn't really last long, and-"

"No, n-" I waved my hand to stop him. "Not that. I meant more like... moving to the beyond, or whatever. You know, to not be a ghost anymore."

For a moment, he was silent, which on its own freaked me out. Andy loved to talk, especially talking shit and making jokes in serious situations, it's how he managed his way through the afterlife; maybe even his living life.

Then he looked away, his expression unreadable, frozen. "I have thought about it, but you know better than anyone there's no concrete answer to that. Those who are lucky to move on usually do so out of nowhere."

That part was true. Wondering ghosts barely ever managed to leave, and those who did didn't have time to explain the how.

Then another thought came to mind. "You've never mentioned having a boyfriend before."

He shrugged, pretending to lean back against the bed as he hovered, "There's not much to tell about it. I had known him since fourth grade, we practically grew up together. Then a little before Spring Break, I asked him out for the heck of it."

"Just for the heck of it?"

He grew red at that, one of the few times I had ever seen him flustered, glancing away. "Okayy, I had been thinking about it for a while. He said yes, and we went out on one, maybe two dates. He was with me that day, you know, in the car crash." Then his gaze became distant, staring at the ceiling. "Had I known I'd die so soon, I would've... we could've..."

"Could've had more time...?" I finished for him, to which he didn't respond. "Would you say that's your biggest regret...?"

He snickered, "One of the many..." He then let out a sigh, passing a hand through his hair, "I just hope he's doing okay now..."

"Mm..."

That's when he turned to me, and his eyebrows went from melancholy to suspicious, "Why are you asking?"

"I've just been thinking... We've been helping Ally discover her murder, reconnect with people from her old life, maybe something related to that can help her move on..." I turned back to him, "Same as you... Maybe I can somehow get in contact with your family, and your old boyfriend..."

"Why are you suddenly so interested in us moving on?" He pretended to nudge my shoulder, "You're not getting tired of us, are you, (l/n)?"

I let out a chuckle, "No, never. Just know that if there's ever a chance for you and Allison to move on to the next life... don't hesitate for my sake, okay...?"

He stared at me for a while, then nodded, "We'll think about it."

"Andy-"

"You're a big part of our lives, (y/n)," he said with a smile. "We're not leaving you so easily."

"God, you're annoying."

"That's my specialty." He sat back up, stretching his arms above his head, "Now, let me catch you up on things."

Thanks for reading!!! 'Till next time!!!

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