Trigger warning: minor panic attack description at the end of the chapter
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"So," the man - who I learnt was called Jacob - started, "you're telling me I should just go over there and talk to her?!" he squeaked, as if what I had suggested was so absurd I had practically told him to propose. I nodded, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, because really, it was. "Can't you do some - I don't know - magic thing to make her fall in love with me?" So that's why he made a deal with a demon.
"Is that why you made a deal with Bill?" I asked. He nodded shyly and I sighed. "Bill could probably do that, but wouldn't it be unfair to her? And you! She wouldn't really be in love with you then." Jacob sighed, knowing I was right, before inhaling deeply and walking toward her. I grinned, feeling like a proud mother watching her son leave for his first day of school.
The pride I felt toward him was short-lived, however, when he came scurrying back towards me. I sighed. "What?" He fiddled with his fingers nervously. "What do I say to her?" Groaning, I pushed him back toward the girl. "For the hundredth time, ask her on a date. Do it!" I gave him a final shove and he set off back in her direction.
When he reached her, he hung around awkwardly behind her, before pulling himself together and tapping her on the shoulder. She turned around, a slightly confused, yet happy, smile on her face, and I watched as he introduced himself and they began talking. Slowly, Jacob's tense shoulders visibly relaxed and I could tell he calmed down.
While they were hitting it off, I went to go find Bill. We were in a big clothing store, which sold items that seemed to cost a lot more than they were worth. Eventually, after roaming around the entire first floor, I found Bill in the perfume section, looking extremely confused as he sprayed the different scents into the air.
I came up behind him. "I'm assuming you don't understand the point in them?" Bill jumped when I spoke, almost dropping the perfume bottle he was holding. I laughed, earning a glare from him. "No, I don't understand. Why would you ever need this?" I shook my head with a sigh, still grinning. There was something amusing about watching Bill try to work out human things, and I immediately wanted to take him to more shops just to confuse him.
"You wear it so- wait, you are spraying testers, aren't you?" I asked, the realisation hitting me that Bill didn't actually know what he was doing. I looked on the table in front of him to see open perfume boxes scattered. It was as if a wild animal had ripped them apart. "I'm spraying what now?" He asked, staring at me blankly.
I sighed heavily, looking up at Bill, "Those perfume boxes you just opened were for sale, Bill," I said calmly. He looked down at the bottle he was holding before looking back at me, and began slowly lowering it onto the table, as if he was scared any sudden movements would set me off. I nodded approvingly.
Then, Bill opened his mouth to say something, when Jacob came racing towards us at top speed with the biggest smile I had ever seen. When he reached us, he screeched to a halt and grabbed my arms, his enormous grin not leaving his face. "We're going on a date, we're going on a date, we're going on a date, we're-"
"We fucking get it," Bill snapped, suddenly extremely irritated. It was strange seeing Bill like this, he was usually always smirking. Jacobs smile faded a little, and I shot Bill a look, shutting him up. When did I start having control of things? "That's great!" I beamed, trying to cheer him up. His smile grew wider and I knew I succeeded.
"When's the date?" His face fell as I asked, and he began looking extremely worried, resuming fiddling with his fingers. "It's uh- it's tonight," he mumbled. I grabbed his shoulders and shook him, trying to snap him out of his nervous state. "You'll be fine. Just be yourself!" I assured him, finally letting him go and allowing him to recompose himself. Jacob nodded frantically, still shaken up and probably worried I'd grab him again.
"Have you decided what you're going to wear?" I asked, immediately regretting it as his frown grew. He shook his head and Bill let out a lengthy groan, flinging his head back, and I couldn't help but find it amusing how much he resembled a grumpy toddler who didn't get his way. I turned back to Jacob, "That's okay, we can just pick out something from here," I suggested. Jacob's face lit up immediately, and I found myself smiling along with him.
"Or I could just snap my fingers and he'd be wearing an outfit which would be so much-" I raised my finger to Bill's mouth, shushing him. His eyes peered down at my finger, which I had only just realised was only millimetres away from his lips, and I snapped it back, feeling my face flush slightly from embarrassment. "Don't be boring," I argued, and he sighed exasperatedly.
We all wandered off in different directions of the store in search of something suitable for him to wear. Their date was at a coffee shop, as Jacob had told me before we split up, so I was searching for something not too over the top, but also impressive.
As I looked through racks of clothes, I couldn't help but think about how strange the whole experience had been. I made a deal with Bill, making me his prisoner until he decided he no longer needed me and wanted the journals, which Dipper would have to give him in return for me (somehow I doubted he would give them up for me), and now here I was in a clothes shop not far from Gravity Falls. I thought if Bill caught me escaping, he would either kill me or punish me severely, but neither of those had happened. Maybe he's waiting...
Thinking of Dipper made my heart ache. Was he okay? Did he miss me? I wondered if he was searching for me and worrying about my whereabouts, but as much as I wanted to believe in my brother, I wasn't sure he was. It always felt as if I came second after those stupid journals, and I hated it. But Dipper had sacrificed a lot for me over the years too, and I couldn't forget that. Maybe I am important to him.
I was snapped out of my thoughts when Jacob approached excitedly, waving a shirt around in his hand. "What do you think of this with a pair of jeans?" I glanced at the top he was holding out in front of me, a large grin plastered on his face. The shirt had a black galaxy pattern on it, and although I saw nothing wrong with it (I actually liked it), there was nothing outstanding about it either. But Jacob looked so proud I couldn't disappoint him, so I nodded enthusiastically, smiling back at him.
"Can we go now?" A familiar voice behind me startled me and I jumped back in surprise, my head snapping around to see Bill leaning against a counter. I glared at him, and he smirked back. I was shocked he was even asking me, why did my opinion matter at all? If he wanted, we could've left ages ago, but instead he let me take control of the deal, even letting me making all the decisions. I didn't understand where this all came from. He hated me, didn't he?
Bill raised an eyebrow at me, amused, and I realised I must have been staring. I innerly cursed myself and looked down, hating that my face was going red from embarrassment. "Yeah, we can go," I stated, as if my opinion made a difference, forgetting that it did seem to. Bill looked pleased with himself, "Well we'll be off now, enjoy your date, wear protection-" Jacob spluttered and hid his red face in his hands, "and remember our deal."
Jacob froze, his eyes darting back up to Bill with desperation. "About that, can we - I don't know - change my side of the deal?" I winced, knowing Bill's reaction would not be good. What did he agree to? Bill cackled, the familiar sound surrounding the building. Surprisingly though, people nearby didn't react to the noise, and continued going about their day. I assumed they couldn't hear or see him. Does that mean no one can see me?
"Trying to go back on our deal already?" Bill's voice was menacing, and I felt chills go down my spine. It was strange how quickly I'd forgotten what he was like. I'd spent a few days with him, and it was as if he was a different person from the demon I hated back in Gravity Falls. He almost seemed human. But in that moment, Bill sounded anything but human.
"Come on, Jake, as long as you wear protection, there won't be any problems, right?" He cackled again, and my blood ran cold; I knew what he wanted. My eyes widened with horror, and my head snapped around to face Jacob. "You didn't-" I began, but when I saw the shame on his face, I knew he had.
"You- You idiot!" I yelled, making Jacob flinch. Bill turned to me, an unnerving expression of amusement plastered on his face. Jacob winced, eyes glassy with tears threatening to spill, "I didn't think-"
"No, you didn't think, did you?" I spat. He crossed his arms against his chest defensively, curling into himself as if I had physically wounded him. But I was too angry to care. Bill, on the other hand, was watching the scene from the side as if it was a TV drama. I turned to glare at him, "How could you make that kind of deal?"
Bill chuckled, an eyebrow raised. "You're not shocked, are you? Come on, Mabel, someone's first born child is not the worst thing I've asked for." My jaw dropped at his insensitivity before I caught myself. Why was I shocked? I knew what Bill was like, I had witnessed many of his bad-doings first hand, so why did I expect any different?
I knew why. It was because since I had made a deal with Bill, I'd fallen under the false impression that he wasn't as bad as he seemed. That maybe he was just misunderstood, or that he could change, or that his chaotic self was all an act to begin with. I'd been making excuses for him since the start. I cursed myself for those thoughts, because I was clearly wrong. Bill didn't have a kind bone in his body, and certainly didn't have any sympathy for others. All he cared about was himself. "You're right, I shouldn't be shocked because that's just what you're like!"
Bill's head flung back as he laughed inhumanely, "Oh, Mabel, you sound like a disappointed parent or something. What did you expect?" He mimicked a pout, and if looks could kill, Bill's immortal ass would be dead. "You don't think I've 'changed', do you?" I glared at him again, not wanting him to know he was right, but my face gave me away immediately and he chuckled.
I scowled at him. How could I have been so wrong to even think he might have emotions? I hated myself for it, when here he was demanding a man's first baby. My heart ached and my stomach churned with sadness and anger and I was all too aware of my glassy eyes, tears threatening to spill. All my pent up emotions since I had left home with Bill were surfacing after feeling numb for so long. It was like the reality of my situation had only just hit me in that moment, because all of a sudden I was overwhelmed with pain and misery when only minutes ago I thought I was fine.
I wasn't fine.
Tear drops began leaking from the corners of my eyes and rolling down my pale cheeks, and my breaths became short and fast as I began to hyperventilate. My whole body was shaking as I tried in vain to choke back the tears and slow down my pounding heartbeat. My blurry vision was fixed on my clammy fists while I gasped for air, sharp nails digging into my palms in a failed attempt to anchor myself. A concerned voice called my name, but they sounded distant so I ignored them as I desperately tried to slow down my breathing.
Eventually, my heart rate began to slow down and my vision became more focused. I slowly uncurled my clenched fists to reveal red marks where my nails dug into my palms, and I quickly wiped the remaining tears off my face as if I hadn't been seen having a breakdown a few minutes beforehand. I looked up to see an extremely concerned looking Jacob, pity evident on his face as he watched me pull myself together. I then turned to Bill, who was staring at me with a look that I couldn't decipher, though his eyes almost seemed sad. When he caught me looking, his face reverted back to its usual, emotionless smirk, though there was something off about it.
"Well," he cleared his throat, "If you're going to be that dramatic about it, I suppose I'll change the deal." My eyes widened slightly. Earlier he seemed to not care at all how I felt about it, and now he was changing it? I figured maybe he pitied me, but Bill didn't seem the type to particularly care. Despite not understanding why, I knew he had done it for me, which meant maybe I was right. Maybe he did have emotions after all.
"Jacob," the man in question turned to him, "you owe me a favour." Jacob nodded frantically, muttering a few thank you's while Bill rolled his eyes. I just gawked at him, still shocked that he had changed his mind so quickly after seeing me in my state. Bill caught me staring, and looked concerned for a moment, which was an extremely unfamiliar expression to see on his face. "You alright?"
In that moment, I couldn't seem to form words, so I gave him an easy smile and nodded, and he smiled back.
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here have 2000+ words to make up for my shitty writing and inconsistent updating
also fun fact: i deleted this whole chapter by accident when i had almost finished it and lowkey cried before realising i could get it back (thankfully) phew
anyway from here on there should be a lot more mabill (yay) since i've finally figured out where this story is going (took me long enough)
let me know your opinions on this chapter and thank you for reading!!