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It was a sunny afternoon. Stanford sat on the rug and leaned against the living room chair of the Mystery Shack, reading his own notes from a few years ago. He was much more relaxed now that his mind wasn't victim to torment. Sighing, he tilted his head back and shut his eyes. He only opened them at the sound of nearby footsteps. A small figure with its head tucked inside of a sweater came trudging into the room and plopped down into the armchair. It let out a small whimper of discontentment and then became silent. "Mabel?" Ford gently called.
The girl's covered head moved slightly towards her uncle, acknowledging his presence. She then rested on the arm of the chair that Ford was leaning against. Their faces now barely apart, Stanford could clearly hear Mabel's distressed snivelling. "Mabel, what is it?" he asked. There was no reply. He raised his six-fingered hand to the girl's face and tugged on the neck of her sweater to unveil her head. She pulled away. Ford frowned. "I can't help you if you don't speak. What's wrong? Something with Dipper?" he asked. She shook her head. "Your friends? Bullies?" he continued to guess with no success until Mabel slowly came out from her sweater.
Her eyes were shiny with tears and her cheeks and nose were flushed. "Grunkle Ford, have you ever liked anyone? Like, like-like?" she asked, her voice small. The question surprised Ford, and he suddenly broke their eye contact and turned away. "Er, I'm probably not the best person to ask about this. Why don't you talk to Stan?" he suggested, but she shook her head. "The last time Grunkle Stan gave dating advice, he was almost eaten alive by a ferocious spider-lady." she said. Ford swallowed and cleared his throat. "Well, I, of course, have been interested in a few people. That's only normal for a young person. But I never took action on it, I was too focused on education. In fact, I've only been in one relationship my whole life, and, well, it... was unsuccessful." he looked at the girl, who's eyes were now filled with curiosity. He regretted telling her that.
"Really?" she asked, "What happened?" Ford thought about lying to her, but he couldn't possibly. Not while she was looking straight into his eyes like this. "I was young." he sighed, defeated into spilling. "And dumb." he added. Mabel faintly smiled at this. "I had begun researching Gravity Falls, but I had hit a dead end in my studies. There was something missing, and I didn't know what. Until I found these cave drawings-" he paused. How could he avoid mentioning him? "Great Uncle Ford?" Mabel asked, after a while. Ford brought his attention back. "Oh, sorry. I was just thinking. Let me begin again. I was researching Gravity Falls when I hit a road block and nothing I tried worked. Until I met someone. It was like a dream, meeting them. They gave me the knowledge needed to continue my studies, and told me that I was a genius, that I was special, and..." He trailed off. He still resented the betrayal. "And we were partners. They helped me with my research, and I gave them- well, I gave them me. They were-" "They?" Mabel interrupted, giving a questioning look.
Ford scratched his head. "Well, their gender was.. not what'd you expect." Mabel's eyes widened. "You like boys, too?" she asked. Ford chuckled. "Well, I don't really take interest in that type of relationship at all now. But back then, I didn't care what gender they-he-was, I only cared about him. He was... my world." He frowned and looked at the floor. "I gave everything to him... my time, my energy, my mind, my body... everything." He felt his voice grow weak. "Everything." he repeated, barely a whisper this time. After a short pause, he spoke at a reasonable volume again, maybe a bit too loud. "And what did he do?" he asked himself. Mabel stared at him, waiting for the answer.
"He betrayed me. Used me. He never cared about me at all. All he cared about was getting what he wanted. Everything he said to me, he just made it up to get me to build something for him. Something he needed for what he wanted. He lied to me." He was nearly shouting now, losing track of his loudness. He placed his hand on his forehead and breathed in and out, trying to continue without breaking down or accidentally revealing who he was talking about. He turned back to Mabel, who was still looking at him. She seemed alright now, but her face was sympathetic towards the man. He winced. "I'm sorry, Grunkle Ford, I shouldn't have made you talk about it." Ford held a hand up. "It's alright, Mabel. Now, tell me about the troubles you've been having with relationships."
Mabel's face went back to the saddened expression. "Well, there's this guy. And I really like him, but... when I talked to him, he said that he wouldn't date me if I was the last person on Earth, and he told me that I was.." she stopped, but Ford understood that the boy had deeply insulted her. He placed a hand on hers. "Mabel, if someone doesn't appreciate you for who you are, even when you give them a chance, then they are wrong. Because I know that you are incredible, and anyone who doesn't see that needs to get their facts right." He smiled at her, and she returned it. "Thanks, Grunkle Ford." She gave him a hug, and he laughed softly. "Of course." he responded. The girl jumped off the armchair. "I'm gonna go back to hang out with Candy and Grenda. See you later!" She beamed, the sadness that had been in her now gone. She skipped towards the door, but stopped before exiting.
She turned to the man with a grin. "And, Grunkle Ford, you could have just told me that you and Bill dated." with that, she opened the door and walked out. Ford was left alone, stunned.