Dark Days (BillxDipper)

II

AN: Hey guys, above is an image of how I pictured grown up Mabel ^-^ of course, the art is not mine, full credit to the artist~~~

     We finally make it back to the shack and Mabel is pouting about her outfit being ruined by the rain. I go to take a shower to get the mud out of my hair. I set the water as hot as I can bear it. The steaming water runs down my back in wonderfully burning streams. I let my head hang and I watch the water turn brown with mud and wash away down the drain. I run through my mind the image of the man. He just watched me, followed me even, yet never moved.  His image haunts me and I feel a twinge of fear as his image seems to grow closer in my minds eye. I open my eyes quickly as the all-to-real memory enhances somehow. That wasn't right at all. That should have been impossible. My memory seemed to act on its own, giving me more details that weren't there before and I feel my stomach clench. It's like a living memory...

     Shaking my head I turn off the water, finally clean. The bathroom is full of steam and it feels nice as I dry off and get dressed. I wipe steam from the mirror, my hand dragging warm water droplets in its wake. I study myself. I am more pale than usual, my hair has gotten a bit long, and my eyes are dull. They used to be really bight, the green was an interesting shade and would gather attention I didn't really want, but now they've dulled and look lifeless. Maybe it's just the haunting memory that has me feeling this way. I felt just fine before. Maybe I should ask Mabel if she's noticed anything strange about my behavior that I may have missed? ...No, then she'd keep me under constant surveillance and she'd worry about me more. Whatever, I'll just keep myself in check and try to shake this. 

~~~

     The storm still rages outside, but somehow it doesn't have the dark feeling anymore, now it's just a storm and this time it feels natural and I don't fear it. Mabel has made breakfast and she's in the kitchen humming and wiggling around to whatever tune she's singing. She's changed her clothes and dried off. She wears a pair of jeans with sparkly pockets and gems down the outside seam that goes all the way down her pant legs, and a bight pink sweater with some random picture on it. She turns when she hears me and grins. She finally just got her braces off last year as a birthday present. "Hey bro-bro! Want some eggs?" She asks, though she already has a plate made for me. It wasn't a question or an offer. She was just being polite and I can't help but let out a chuckle. I'm starting to feel a little bit normal again. 

     As we sit at the table, Mabel digs right in. "I'm starving!"  She exclaims between bites, her mouth full so it sounded more like 'Mm sterfin' I smile and start eating. I decide not to ask if she saw the man while we were running back, based on her mood and over-all 'normal-ness' I'm pretty sue she'd have no idea what I was talking about. So I shove the question away and try to enjoy the meal. Grunkle Stan shuffles into the kitchen and grumbles something as he heads for the fridge. 

     "Who got into the cake!!" He shouts. I freeze and Mabel stops. Her mouth open, fork halfway to her mouth. "...Mabel..." He says and turns around, facing the accused. I fight a smile as Mabel turns her head slowly to look at Stan. She lets out a nervous laugh and sits still for a second. The two stare directly at each other for a tense moment before Mabel bursts into action and drops her fork, running away from the table. Stan chases her yelling obscenities and Mabel shouting some random excuse in her defense. 

     Eventually the two settle down and both sit at the table where I haven't moved. I just smile to myself, fully amused at the scene. Stan scolds Mabel who tries to give him puppy eyes to get out of trouble. It's slowly working. "Mabel, that's for the party! Don't get into it again, no more cake or else you won't get any on your birthday! I'll give it all to Dipper" He proclaims, trying his best to use his 'authority voice'. I can't hide a laugh at Mabel's expression. "Grunkle Stan you wouldn't!" She cries, her eyes wide. 

     The two bicker for a while before giving up. Our 21st birthday is tomorrow and we're having a party with everyone. I'm starting to feel a little too old to do these extravagant parties, but Mabel loves them and everyone gathers to hang out for a few hours so I don't really mind. Mabel and I used to come here to gravity falls every summer and we would always celebrate. I'm excited to see everyone. 

     We finish breakfast and while I wash the dishes and clean up the kitchen, Mabel and Stan start decorating for the party. Mabel turns on some music and I hear her singing as loud as she can and I know she's dancing. Stan even joins in at some parts that he knows and I can't help but laugh. Once the dishes are done I start pulling out ingredients and start to cook. I roll seasonings into hamburger meat and roll them into balls before flattening them. I make about 30 of the patties before putting them into a ziploc bag to grill tomorrow. I know how Mabel loves her sweets so I start making brownies and some chocolate chip cookies. I know the cake won't be enough for the whole party anyway so the extra sweets should cover it. 

     I find that I'm humming and swaying to the loud music as I'm mixing. Mabel lets the air out off a balloon and her and Stan have a riot over the fart sounds. 'Such children' I think to myself, even though i laugh a bit as well. There's a few balloons that pop and I hear Stan shouting about  too much glitter, only to get a snarky retort from Mabel. I just shake my head with a smile. I put the brownies and cookies in the oven and the prepared food in the fridge. I grab the brownie bowl and carry it into the living room. "Mabel, wanna lick the bowl?" I ask. She whips he head around so quickly, he eyes practically glittering. She has stickers on her cheeks and glitter covers her clothes and is in her hair. She has marker on her nose and forehead. Stan looks no better. The two obviously had some sort of craft fight... with each others faces.

     Mabel skips over to me and snatches the bowl, going to town on it. The room is a disaster, streamers and confetti litter the floor, banners and markers are everywhere, loose papers are strewn around with various writing fonts. I leave the mess to them, knowing that they will eventually get it all sorted out. I go back into the kitchen to clean up. After about an hour Mabel calls me into the living room. She's struggling with a banner, trying to tape it up herself. "Hey bro-bro, take the other side would you?" She says. I do as she asks and reach the ceiling easily and tape it in place. Mabel struggles a bit, her arms are not as long as mine and I'm taller than her. She gives up and grabs a stool, then is able to tape it easily. 

      "Remember when you were taller than me?" I ask her, and she just busts out laughing. "You were so upset about it! you nearly destroyed the whole town just trying to find a way to get taller!" She laughs so hard her eyes water. I laugh too at the memory. "Now you'e just a giant!" She shouts. "Being taller than you doesn't make me a giant!" I pout. "I'm only five inches taller" I retort. 

    "Five inches too tall" She shoots back and we argue for a little about our heights. The room finally starts coming together though and we get a table set up for the food tomorrow. Soon it's time for dinner and we just order Chinese food. Once we are done eating I head upstairs, I'm pretty tired, it's been a long and weird day. I take off my shirt and flop down on my bed, not bothering to take off my jeans. I cuddle up to my pillow and listen to the rain hitting my window, the wind has calmed down and now it's just a gentle patter of rain. The sound is relaxing and I find that I drift off easily into what started as a peaceful sleep.