Growing Up Blind (A Gravity Falls Fanfiction) [COMPLETED]

-5- Denial

The next day, Dipper found himself sitting straight up in the mattress Mabel had moved for him to sleep in the night before. He didn't even remember sitting up, in his daze. Mabel then came up and poked his nose. "Boop!" She giggled, already dressed, and walked over to one side of her room to brush her hair. Dipper laughed slightly and smiled, now awake, and stood with a stretch. Since he didn't bring a change of clothes he'd slept in his outdoor ones, which meant he didn't have to change. Once they headed downstairs they were greeted by Mabel's uncle Stanford making breakfast, informing Mabel that her other uncle was still asleep. He usually woke of his own accord.

"Who's this?" Stanford seemed surprised at the sight of a boy Mabel's age also in their home so early in the morning.

"Oh, that's Dipper Jones! He stayed the night last night 'cause his parents had work. He's my friend I talked about, remember?" Mabel explained, with a smile she pulled Dipper over, who had been standing awkwardly in the doorway into the kitchen.

"Oh, that's right. The one you spent all day touring town with yesterday." Stanford smiled, tiredly at the boy. "Nice to meet you."

"N-nice to meet you as well... Mr. Pines." Dipper answered awkwardly and politely, following Mabel over to the table as Stanford realized he'd been distracted for too long, not fast enough to save the pancakes that might as well be coal at that point. There was some clattering, then a sigh as he walked over to dump the "pancakes" into the trash before washing the burned bits out of the pan.

"Mabel, do you think you could...?" Stanford didn't even have to finish his sentence before Mabel jumped up happily.

"Of course." She chirped, already knowing what her uncle was about to ask, and stood up to mix up a new batch of pancake batter. By the time she was finished making the pancakes, Dipper and Stanford were in a heated conversation about alien life on other planets. "Hey you nerdy nerds, it's time for breakfast!" She grinned cheekily and set two plates of pancakes down on the table, serving some up for herself and turning off the stove as well as washing the pan she used before sitting down to eat. Dipper was chuckling awkwardly at Mabel's little joke, taking a bite of pancake.

"Wow. This is amazing! My..mom, haha, she makes really bad pancakes." He awkwardly announced, thinking back to the time Will had attempted to make pancakes despite demons not needing to eat, them turning out just about as well as Stanford's had. Mabel seemed happier by the fact that Dipper had liked them at all.

"Thanks! I make them, like, every day, so I guess I have a lot of experience." She giggled, already halfway through her two pancakes. Dipper just chuckled with her, zoning out slightly as he continued to eat. Why did Bill and the others always think humans were so bad? They were nice, funny, caring... He stopped himself, humming slightly in between bites. Maybe it was because they were all paranoid, or something really bad had happened in the past. He just didn't know... Maybe he really wasn't a demon. No, that couldn't be right. He had the powers.. Even if they were weak. Dipper then found himself glancing up at Mabel, quickly looking away again with a bit of a laugh after she looked up as well. Humans were just...so strange to him still. They had the same features, and yet, it was so different as well. They didn't have fire, or levitation, or anything. They couldn't use powers to cause mischief or mutiny. They were just....human. And they enjoyed being that way. He just didn't get it. Humans confused the hell out of him, and yet it was just so weirdly interesting. Before he knew it he'd finished the pancakes, so he asked where to put the plate and placed it in the sink, washing it off.

"I'm gonna go outside, if anyone needs me..." He smiled awkwardly and went out the front door, sitting in the porch of the shack and letting out a heavy sigh. A few minutes later Mabel followed, sitting beside him, silently for once. Dipper decided to speak up, finally. "Um, Mabel..." He practically whispered, nervous.

"Yeah, Dipping Sauce?" Mabel grinned cheerfully, proud of her new nickname for the boy.

"Dipping wha... A-anyway... Well.. Please don't get mad at me, but... I-I lied to you." Dipper looked away with a bit of a whimper. Mabel's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"What do you mean?"

Dipper stayed silent for maybe a minute before taking a deep breath. "My real last name... It isn't Jones. It's... Um...it's Cipher. I-I just didn't want to tell you... Because a lot of people..."

"...Make fun of it?" Mabel finished for him, a sympathetic look on her face. "It's okay Dipping Sauce, I wouldn't trade you just for having a strange last name! In fact, that one's pretty cool sounding! Cipher. It's like a superhero's name or something." Dipper's eyes lit up slightly and he smiled, laughing.

"...Thanks, Mabel." His smile softened considerably, orange eyes glittering slightly as if he was about to cry. Mabel gave him a pat on the shoulder lightheartedly and ended up staring at his eyes for a few seconds, the strange colour of them a bit mesmerizing to her. "...Is there something on my face?" Dipper awkwardly spoke, blinking. Mabel snapped out of it and laughed aloud again.

"No. Your eyes are just such a weird colour... N-not that it's a bad thing."

"Oh...heh. I-it's a birth defect." Dipper lied, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

"Ohhh. Whoa, maybe you really are a superhero! Do you have a theme song?!" Mabel jumped up, her laugh coming up again.

"We could make one up! You can be my sidekick!" Dipper chuckled, standing with her and shoving her playfully.

From a distance away, a certain yellow demon and his family watched the scene from the woods. Rose herself stayed by the back of the group, on the edge of tears. "I couldn't just...keep this from them. Dipper... F-forgive me."