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Dipper was a college student, a very broke college student, so the typical college stuff. Ramen noodles were eaten for breakfast, lunch dinner, snacks, and tap water was his main drink. On a rare occasion, which his sister Mabel visited him, he was able to stock up on food since she had a better paying job than him.
Dipper didn’t exactly have a job. He was too busy with schoolwork to worry about that.
He had been going to college to become a scientist, but once he decided to switch to pursue a career in writing and art, especially if it was related to the paranormal or any weird stuff, his parents reduced his college funds. It didn’t really bother Dipper; he was happy for as long as he was doing what he loved.
It was a Wednesday morning and Dipper had overslept.
Again.
The alarm on his phone was blaring its annoying ringtone, stirring the brunet from his sleep. Of course, he had barely managed to fall asleep not even two hours ago, having spent most of the night pouring over his notes on how to write his timed essay in English. The teacher, Mrs. Guarnere, was well known for judging essays harshly. Getting a high score on one meant that whoever scored that high was called and treated like a god for the next week. Dipper had gotten the best grade a few times, much to some other classmates jealousy.
With an annoyed grunt, Dipper untangled himself from his sheets and reached over to grab his phone, squinting his eyes from the brightness of it in his dark room. He usually kept his room in total darkness with a fan running in the background so it wasn’t completely silent. Dipper swiped to turn off the alarm, plonked his phone back down, and rolled over on his back, staring up at the blackness of his ceiling. He didn’t want to get up this early; it was 7 (he was supposed to wake up at 6) in the morning. Way too early to be up. Either way, he didn’t have a choice and got out of bed, swinging his legs around and off the bed, then standing up and shuffling his way to the kitchen. He only had thirty minutes to get ready and to get to class, so stopping by to buy some coffee was out of the question. He’d have to settle with the generic brand coffee that’s cheaper than the rest, which didn’t exactly taste the best. But, coffee was coffee and it had just the right amount of caffeine in it to get him going in the morning.
Dipper added a single spoonful of sugar to his coffee, then added some milk to cool it down a bit and chugged the entire cup in one go. He placed the cup in the sink and dashed off to his bedroom to throw on some clothes that didn't smell that bad. He brushed his teeth, didn't really bother to brush his hair, tugged on his shoes, grabbed his bag, and then bolted out of his apartment.
Luckily, he lived a few minutes away from campus and practically ran the entire way there. He was nearly out of breath by the time he reached the college, dodging people left and right as they all scurried to reach their own classes. Dipper, his breath coming out ragged, plopped down in a chair in the back of the large classroom. He earned a few odd stares from his fellow classmates but Dipper ignored them, knowing that he wasn't the only one that had been late to a class before.
"Alright, I hope everyone studied up and prepared for the essay," Mrs. Guarnere said, walking from out behind her desk to the front of the class. "You all will have one hour to write this persuasive essay. The prompt will be up on the board." She raised her little remote to turn on the projector, which then, in turn, projected the prompt onto the whiteboard for the students to see.
Dipper had to squint to see what the prompt was: The Board of Education has decided to extend the school day for one hour because the State of Illinois has increased the number of subjects students must know about. Do you agree or disagree with making the school day longer? Write an essay to the principal, and explain your answer.
He cringed; just thinking about something like that would be horrible, even though he wasn't in high school anymore. Dipper read through the prompt one more time, uncapped his pen, and started writing. He had a general idea of what to write but starting the stupid essay was always the hardest part. He tapped the pen on the desk a few times, receiving a few annoyed looks from those around him and he immediately stopped. Dipper pursed his lips, eventually going ‘What the heck,’ and started scribbling down some bullshit that he hoped sounded good. When in doubt, bullshit and hopes it comes out sounding alright was one of his motto's.
The time seemed to slip right through his fingers like sand as he became absorbed in the essay. Dipper was just beginning to write the last sentence when Mrs. Guarnere's voice cut into his concentration, telling them all that they had five minutes remaining. Dipper ignored the cramping in his hand and hurriedly finished writing the sentence, placing his pen beside his five-page essay with a quiet sight of relief. He had written it within the hour, though he didn't write as much as he had wanted to. Ah well, he got the stinking thing done and felt a lot better, the feeling of stress having been lifted off his shoulders.
Dipper stood from his seat once the English professor called time for the essay, going to turn it in and skedaddle back to his apartment for a well-needed nap. He didn't want to get into a conversation with Mrs. Guarnere since it was still too early in the morning to have any sort of in depth talk about anything. Luckily, he made it out of there in time before hearing her call for a different student. The poor soul must have gotten the heading wrong on her essay.
It was currently 8:31 AM and Dipper's stomach growled at him. He knew of a nearby cafe that was open this early that had absolutely amazing breakfast sandwiches, plus, he had some extra cash from a writing commission he completed the other day. Dipper began to head that way, sliding his earbuds in his ears and tuning into his favorite radio station. He didn't know the real name of the guy that ran it, and he called himself the Poet. Dipper thought it was cute, in a nerdy way, since the Poet would sometimes read some of his poems late at night when he didn't think anyone was listening. But, Dipper was usually always listening to the station, loving the choice of music and the poems at night. The Poet had a quiet voice, always speaking in a soft and relaxed tone that soothed Dipper's worries away, often sending him into another world where everything was running as smoothly as he had planned. Where he could do exactly what he wanted without his parents telling him it wouldn't be a good paying job, that he couldn't do much in life with a job like that. Dipper shoved his hands into his pockets, shaking his head to clear his thoughts.
He soon arrived at the cafe, the small place not that busy thankfully. The morning rush must have already come and gone, most of those who stopped by in the morning to pick up some coffee already settling down at work. Dipper stood in line to order, going with a simple vanilla latte and a ham and cheese sandwich. He waited for a few minutes, scrolling through his phone to pass the time. He heard his name being called and went to pick up his latte and food, then found a quiet spot by the window. Dipper put his earbuds back into his ears, having taken them out so he didn't appear rude while he was ordering. The sandwich was alright; there was too much cheese on it. He made a quick mental note to order something with a little less cheese next time.
Dipper directed his attention back to his phone, munching on the sandwich as he checked the comments on an ongoing web comic he'd been working on for years. It started out with him basing it off his summer adventures at Gravity Falls, and the story line just sort of went from there. The main character went by the name Xavier Woods and his sister was the ever cheery Rose Woods. The twins were like two peas in a pod, solving the mysteries of Gravity Falls whenever they visited their Grunkle's during the summer. They combated the mysterious Bill Cipher, working to prevent him from taking over the world. His most recent chapter had ended on a cliffhanger, to which his fans were going berserk over. Dipper stifled a smirk at their aggravated comments, shouting at him to release the next chapter. Since most of the chapters were lengthy and he had classes every day, Dipper could only upload one chapter per month. He had updated it the other day, so his poor readers would have to wait a few more weeks before they got to read the next chapter.
Dipper finished up his breakfast and stood to throw his trash away, and once he had done that he went outside. It felt nice outside for once, fall has come and cooled down everything. The leaves were still in the process of changing colors, some green peppering the leaves. A cool wind blew through the city, sending both good and bad smells his way. Dipper wrinkled his nose from the bad smells; it was one of the few things he didn't like about the city.
The rest of his day went fairly well with a few other classes here. He had gotten his all of his basic classes completed last year so all he had to take was any other classes needed to get his masters.
By the time Dipper finally got back to his apartment, night had fallen and he was exhausted. He kicked his shoes off and collapsed on his bed, not even bothering to turn on the lights in his bedroom. He retrieved his phone from his pocket, plugged in his earbuds, and tuned into his favorite radio station. The quiet beats of a song began to play and Dipper's eyes fluttered shut.
I took a little journey into the unknown,
And I come back changed. I can feel it in my bones.
I fucked with forces that our eyes can't see.
Now the darkness got a hold on me.
Oh, the darkness got a hold on me.
How long, baby, have I been away?
Oh, it feels like ages though you say it's only days.
There ain't language for the things I've seen.
And the truth is stranger than my own worst dreams.
The truth is stranger than all my dreams.
Oh, the darkness got a hold on me.
Dipper found himself drifting off into another world, one that was not what he wanted to visit. But he couldn't prevent it from happening.
I have seen what the darkness does.
Say goodbye to who I was.
I ain't never been away so long.
Don't look back them days are gone.
Follow me into the endless night.
I can bring your fears to life.
Show me yours and I'll show you mine.
Meet me in the woods tonight.
The truth is stranger than my own worst dreams.
Now the darkness got a hold on me.
All Dipper could see was those haunting yellow eyes, eyes that he couldn't break away from, get away from. He couldn't leave. He couldn't escape. Wherever he went, those eyes followed him, that laugh echoing through the still and suffocating air. He couldn't run or move. His body was frozen.
I have seen what the darkness does.
Say goodbye to who I was.
I ain't never been away so long.
Don't look back them days are gone.
Follow me into the endless night.
I can bring your fears to life.
Show me yours and I'll show you mine.
Meet me in the woods tonight.
Dipper's eyes shot open and he bolted upright, ripping the earbuds from his ears and flinging his phone across the room. His breathing started to come out in ragged gasps, his body beginning to shake uncontrollably. Too many memories were coming rushing back, memories that he had worked for ages to bury within his mind. Dipper let out a whimper as tucked his knees close to his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs. He rocked back and forth, no sound coming from him. His chest felt too tight; it was like he could barely breathe at all. Dipper barely moved for a good while, save for the slight rocking of his body, staring straight ahead at the wall with a blank expression on his face.
He eventually calmed down enough to where he could move off his bed to pick up his phone. Thankfully, there weren't any cracks in the screen and it worked fine, the radio station still playing music. This time, it was a song Dipper knew but he was still a little hesitant to listen to music just right now. Instead, he went with raiding his small kitchen for something to eat. There wasn't much, but there was enough to make a classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It was gone in a few bites. Dipper hadn't realized how hungry he was and made him another, this time eating it a bit slower and trying to savor the taste. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches reminded him of the good times during the summer when he wasn't stressed out to find a job to have a stable income or worry about collect work and the likes. He leaned against the counter, taking a deep breath to calm himself. It was odd that he had that anxiety attack from a song, but then again, anything that slightly reminded him of... that one person was enough to cause one. Either way, it was something he'd been working on for months: to stop having so many anxiety attacks over it. Mabel had helped out a little, but there wasn't much she could do since it was all in his head.
Shaking his head, Dipper sighed and put the earbuds back in his ears, just in time to hear the person who ran the radio station speak.
"I hope everyone is having a great night. Things have been moving a little slow for me, even though I'm in college," the Poet began, his quiet and soft voice almost soothing away any remaining traces of Dipper's anxiety. His voice had that effect on him. "I've received quite a few questions about myself so I'll answer some now."
Dipper could hear some papers being shuffled in the background.
"First question: why did you choose the name 'the Poet?' Well, I guess it's kinda because I write a lot of poetry and my friends started calling me that, so it sort of caught on. And no, I won't read you guys any of my poetry. It's only for my eyes and half of it is hopeless romantic stuff." The Poet paused, probably having an internal debate with himself.
"Second question, are you single - oh my gosh you guys. You are all so curious. Yes, I'm single and yes, I have a slight crush on someone. Before you all freak out, no I doubt we'll ever actually... talk. Anyways, ignoring anything else about this."
The Poet ended up answering a few more questions, ones that didn't pertain too much to his personal life. Dipper didn't even try to prevent himself from smiling every time the Poet stuttered or mixed his words up. It was cute in a way. Dipper enjoyed listening to him talk, which was relaxing and helping him calm down from his anxiety attack. Eventually, it was time for the Poet to call it quits for the night as it was getting a little late.
"Now, I know this is a well-asked question but I'm telling you all right now that I.. don't think I'll ever reveal myself in person. I don't know who's all listening since it is late and I'm half asleep. Do I sound half asleep? Anyways, it's more of a insecurity I have. I don't like people looking at me and with how popular this radio station has gotten, I'd probably cave under all of the attention. So yeah, sorry guys. See you all tomorrow night."
Dipper blinked, shocked at what he said. He could sort of understand what it was like, not wanting to be recognized in public. But then again, his sister and a few close friends knew that of the web comic, though they had all gone through the hell of that one summer. It wasn't something he liked thinking about.
Music started playing again and Dipper took that as a cue to get some sleep. He laid down in his bed on his back, putting his hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling. Time passed, slower than the world's slowest turtle. Insomnia was a bitch and Dipper hated it. He closed his eyes, tuning into whatever song was playing and willing himself to sleep.
****
Sleep came, but he only slept for a few hours. It was rough. He was constantly tired but he could not sleep. Dipper had been considering taking sleeping pills or something, but Mabel had expressed her fear of him getting addicted to them and he had shied away from the thought of them ever since.
He just wanted to sleep.
Dipper got lost in his thoughts a lot that day, and when that happened, his clumsiness rose sharply. He didn't know how many times he tripped over his own feet or bumped into desks, chairs, or anything really. It was embarrassing. He tried to focus, he really did, but focusing on everyone and everything around him was so hard. Dipper was exhausted and his bed was calling to him. It was like a never ending song, or like a siren who lured sailors to their deaths. Or in Dipper's case, lured him to the wonderful land of slumber.
Math class had been horrible. He dozed off most of the class and was one of the last few to exit the classroom. He preferred to sit in the back, which was slightly elevated due to the size of the classroom. Of course, there were stairs involved and the dork forgot about them.
Dipper's feet got tangled up and he crashed to the floor, landing on his right side. He let out a groan of pain and rolled over on his back.
Only to look into the most beautiful brown eyes he had ever seen.
“Oh my gosh, are you okay?”
“I'm fine and wow your eyes are gorgeous.”
Wait.
Dipper didn't mean to say that.
Abort mission.
“Oh, um, did you hit your head?”
Dipper stared blankly up at the person with those beautiful eyes.
“I think you did. Come on, up you go.” The brown eyed angel helped him up, throwing Dipper's arm over his shoulder. “I don't know if you can walk, but we're going to see the campus nurse. It seemed like you hit your head pretty hard.”
Was the room supposed to be spinning? Dipper stopped, blinking his eyes. “Everything is spinning,” he muttered.
“Okay, definitely the nurse. Close your eyes if you need to. I won't let you fall.”
Dipper, putting some trust in this absolute angel, let his eyes flutter shut and let the other student direct him to the campus nurse. He must have hit his head pretty hard because it was hard to focus on anything. His thoughts leaped from one thing to the next. He could barely even form a complete thought.
Except when it came to that brown eyed angel. Dipper just wanted to stare into those eyes for eternity.
“Here we are. Wait, oh gosh, she's not here. Um, oh shoot. I have an ice pack in my mini fridge at my dorm.. maybe you can stay there until she gets back?”
“Whatever you want to do,” mumbled Dipper, resting his head against the brown eyed angels head.
“Um, yeah. My dorm until you can walk or feel better. It's not far.”
Time seemed to blur all together as the brown eyed angel led Dipper back to his dorm room. He didn't give it much thought that he had just met this other guy. He could be some sort of psycho and Dipper didn't know it yet. Who knew?
But Dipper's head hurt too much for him to give it much thought.
He tried to keep himself standing as the other guy fumbled around in his pockets, attempting to find his keys. Dipper heard the door unlock and then felt himself being moved forward, led into the unknown by this stranger. He was laid down on the bed, feeling like he was almost sinking into the soft mattress.
The ice pack being placed on his forehead came as a shock to Dipper. He slowly opened his eyes, wincing some at the even subdued lights in the room. There was a lamp on the desk on the other side of the room that was turned so it wouldn't shine in his eyes. His eyes flickered over to the brown eyed angel.
"Is it too cold? Do I need to put a cloth underneath it or is it okay like this?" he asked.
Dipper shrugged, closing his eyes and letting himself drift off into a light slumber. He didn't know how long he snoozed, but when he woke he heard the brown eyed angel speaking in soft tones.
Wait, Dipper knew that voice. All of those nights listening to that radio station.
His brown eyed angel was the Poet.
The Poet turned around in his chair when Dipper stirred. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine, but.. oh my gosh."
"Hm?" the Poet tilted his head to the side.
"You're him. You're the Poet, the guy who runs that radio station that I listen to all of the time."
The Poet's face went beet red and he sputtered out, "Oh gosh I was hoping no one would recognize my voice. I didn't think anyone would. I try to talk differently when I'm talking on air but if you're one of the regulars then I guess it doesn't work? Oh, it obviously didn't work. Am I rambling? I think I'm rambling."
Dipper laughed nervously and managed to swing his legs around to hang off the bed, his feet barely touching the ground. "Dipper. My name's Dipper Pines and I've been dying to meet you."
"I'm Wirt Palmer. It's nice to meet you, Dipper." Wirt flailed his hands about as he spoke; the poor guy clearly feeling awkward and flustered.
"I dunno if you've read the webcomic series Gravity Falls, but I'm the one who created it. If that helps not make it so awkward?"
Wirt squealed, "You're the author? I've been reading it since day one!"
"Have you? Well, I guess this plays out then!" Dipper had a grin on his face. "I've always been too nervous to meet up with any fans but - ack." He had forgotten that he had a slight concussion and winced.
Wirt was by his side in an instant. "Oh gosh, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have gotten you talking so much. You may want to stay here for a while until the nurse is back?"
"Yeah.. that'd be nice."
"Tell me if you need anything, okay Dipper?"
"Sure thing."
Dipper flopped back down on the bed and made himself comfortable. He didn't want to quite say that he had a crush on Wirt, but maybe if they kept in contact he'd eventually tell him.
But, only time would tell.