Chapter Text
It had been nearly a year since Dipper and Mabel Pines had visited their Grunkles Stan and Ford out in the woods of Gravity Falls, Oregon. Sure, their Grunkles came to visit every couple months during whatever adventures the two were setting out on—usually fishing and fighting monsters—but Dipper and Mabel had gotten so caught up with school in their junior year that they couldn’t even spend spring break in the place they loved so much with the people they terribly missed.
Ever since the twins had spent a summer in Gravity Falls just a couple years prior, it had become their favorite place in the world. Their parents were wonderful, sure, and their hometown held some friends and fun activities, but there was just something about Gravity Falls that always called them back.
So, naturally, when they were given the opportunity after a long year of studying, college prepping, and surviving high school, Dipper and Mabel packed up their shared sedan, grabbed some snacks for the road, bid their parents adieu, and set off for a summer in Gravity Falls.
It was Dipper’s turn to drive. Since Mabel was better at handling high-stress traffic than the perpetually nervous Dipper, the twins had an unspoken understanding that Dipper took the long stretches of highway driving during road trips while Mabel handled city segments. Dipper was lost in thought about nothing in particular, the radio playing softly, when Mabel pulled him out of his head.
“So, have you talked to anyone since we visited last?” Mabel asked as she lounged in the passenger seat. She had been working on knitting a new sweater but decided to set it down for a while. All that knitting had gotten her thinking, too.
“I mean, we talk to Stan and Ford all the time,” Dipper replied. He shrugged. “Wendy texts me here and there, but she texts you, too, since we usually talk in the group chat. Have you?”
“Not really,” Mabel replied sheepishly. “You know I’m terrible at keeping in touch. I don’t think I’ve talked to Grenda and Candy since, like, Christmas. I hope they won’t be mad at me.” Mabel gazed out the window, longing for her friends.
“Grenda and Candy are your best friends, Mabel, they won’t be mad,” Dipper comforted his sister. “Life gets busy sometimes, but now you’ll get to spend time with them in person.”
Mabel flashed a smile at her brother, always glad he was there to pick her back up.
“Yeah, I’m excited to see them.” Mabel’s phone buzzed from its spot in the car cup holders and she grabbed it, checking the notification.
“Hey Dip?” Mabel started. “Did you tell anyone about spending the summer in Gravity Falls?” Dipper flashed her a confused glance before returning his eyes to the highway.
“What do you mean?” He questioned. “I told Stan and Ford, obviously, and we mentioned it to Wendy, but I think that’s it. Why?” Dipper spared a glance to look over at a confused Mabel scrolling through something on her phone.
“Well, I just got a message from Pacifica.” At the mention of her name, a thousand unique thoughts and memories popped into Dipper’s head, accompanied by a similarly vast array of emotions. Dipper never had a chance to sort out his feelings for Pacifica, which started developing that summer of their 12th year. In the last three years, Dipper had rarely seen the surprisingly charming girl for more than five minutes at a time, and so he had finally talked himself out of ever thinking the two could be anything but that-one-summer kind of friends. He’d be lying if he said that made him stop thinking about her altogether, though.
Dipper was embarrassed by the pitter-patter his chest made when Mabel said her name, but his twin didn’t seem to notice so he tried to play it off.
“Oh yeah?” He asked casually, as if responding to a remark about the weather. “What about?” He snuck a look at Mabel to see if she was suspicious, but she was still focused on her phone, confused as ever.
“She said she saw my post about vacationing in Gravity Falls and wanted to know when I’d be here.” Dipper’s gut wrenched just a bit at Mabel’s words. So, Pacifica just wanted to hang out with Mabel, of course.
“Oh, nice,” Dipper responded, doing his best to hide the disappointment that surprised even himself.
“That’s not all, dude,” Mabel continued. “She asked if you’re coming, too.”