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“C'mon… C'mon! Open, already!”
Dipper shoved frantically at the ceiling, trying desperately to find the trap door that he knew was there, somewhere, if only he could find it– The old, rusted ladder he stood on wobbled as he pounded uselessly against the stone ceiling.
Somewhere on the ground below him, Norman spoke up. “Dipper - Dipper, stop. Y-You’re going to fall–"
“Stop? You want me to stop? We have to get out of here, Norman!”
Each remark was accompanied by another punch to the ceiling, but it was pointless. The door that had seemed to suddenly appear beneath the two moments earlier was gone now, robbing them of their only means of escape. It was too dark to search for another way out, and there wasn’t even a crack of light left to show where the door had once been.
“I - I know that, but–”
"That - that thing out there could be going after Mabel right now, and we’re stuck in a hole! We have to get out! I have to help her–!"
"D-Dipper–”
"Don't you want to get out!?"
"O-Of c-course I do!” Norman shouted back. It was quiet for a minute as he inhaled deeply. When he spoke again, his voice was strained. “Believe me. I do.”
That made Dipper pause. He carefully clambered back down the ladder, now mindful of the weak supports keeping it attached to the wall. When his sneakers reconnected with the ground he began a slow shuffle forward, arms outstretched to keep from bumping into anything that could possibly be down there with them.
"…Norman?”
A quiet sniffle.
"…I’m-- o-over here.”
Dipper just barely managed to bite his tongue before he made a sarcastic remark about just how helpfulhis friend was being. Now wasn’t the time to be fighting amongst themselves. Something was wrong, and Dipper fully intended to find out what it was.
After a bit of awkwardly scooting along, his foot finally brushed up against something solid. He pulled back quickly, just in case, but relaxed when the object sniffled again. Somewhat cautiously, Dipper knelt down and reached out, searching for Norman the best he could without actually seeing him. Gently, his fingers found Norman’s ankle, then his knee, then the top of his head where it rested against his drawn up legs.
This close, Dipper could feel Norman trembling – his body shook so hard it was a wonder they couldn’t hear his bones rattling. He did, however, hear Norman’s rapid, shallow gasps, almost as if he couldn’t draw enough air into his lungs.
A fresh spark of panic lit up Dipper’s mind. Had Norman been injured in the fall? Had he been trying to tell Dipper, only to be yelled at? Internally, Dipper groaned and thought about bashing his face against a wall. God, he was such a jerk.
“H-Hey, hey, Norman, you’re okay, right?” Dipper asked, fingers carefully prodding the other’s skull in search of damage. “Are you hurt? I – I’m so sorry, man, I should’ve been paying more attention.. I’m just really worried about Mabel– and, I mean, I’m worried about you too, of course– did you hit your head? Any dizziness? Nausea? Headaches– anything feel broken?”
Norman shook his head, but didn’t look up. “N-No… No, I’m good, I think.” He kept his face pressed into his knees, eyes closed tightly to the more familiar, comfortable darkness behind his eyelids.
"You think?"
"W-Well, I-- it's nothing, r-really-- it's stupid--"
Dipper cut off Norman's rambled excuses with a somewhat incredulous noise as he moved to rest his hand against Norman's shoulder. "Dude, you're shaking! Something's obviously wrong, just tell me what it is."
"I-- I--" Dipper felt the other boy's muscles tense and shift beneath his hand as he curled further into himself. A rush of air left the younger, leaving him shaking even harder in its wake. Quietly, he admitted, "I'm a-afraid of the dark."
Oh.
Well, that was-- certainly unexpected.
Dipper was actually having a hard time believing it, in fact, even though he knew that, rationally, Norman had no reason to lie about having such a fear. Saying he was afraid of the dark while stuck in a dark hole certainly wasn't going to get them out any faster, at any rate. So, logistically, it would seem as though Norman truly was afraid of the dark.
But-- he saw ghosts, yet was afraid of the dark?
Belatedly, Dipper realized he should probably say something, and awkwardly cleared his throat. "Oh, uh, you-- you are?”
Norman laughed quietly, but there was no humor in it. "Yeah, I am. S-Stupid, huh?” He lifted his head and scrubbed at his eyes, chest heaving.
"N-No!" Dipper hastily denied, mind half focused on the conversation at hand, half worrying about whether or not his friend was crying. "It's just-- y'know, with the whole ghost thing-- it was unexpected, is all..."
Norman laughed again -- that awful, bitter laugh that Dipper hated, and never wanted to hear again -- but didn't say anything else, choosing instead to wrap his arms around his knees, fingers clenched tightly in the denim of his jeans.
Mapping out a space on the floor with his hands, Dipper carefully sat down next to the younger boy. He hesitated for a minute, but eventually, he slowly put an arm around Norman, unsure if his touch would be welcome in this situation. Norman let out another muffled sob, but didn't push him away, which Dipper chose to take as a positive sign.
"Hey, Norman, it's okay," Really, what was Dipper doing? He was no good at this sort of thing -- Mabel was the more sentimental twin. "I'm here, okay? You're not alone."
He must've said something right, though, because Norman suddenly choked on his next intake of breath and twisted around, burying his face into Dipper shoulder. His fingers abandoned their vice-like grip on his jeans to clasp onto his vest, holding on as if it was the only thing keeping him grounded at the moment. Dipper could feel a bit of wetness on his shoulder, and bit his lip at the realization that Norman really was crying. His longer legs were strewn at an awkward angle -- his knees were actually digging into Dipper's thigh in a way that sort of hurt, to be honest, but he couldn't quite bring himself to care.
He rubbed his hand in circles against Norman's back, hoping that the motion was soothing.
"It's okay, Norman, it's okay."
------ ------ ------
Later, Norman fell asleep against his shoulder, undoubtedly exhausted from his near panic attack. How much time had passed since they'd been trapped, Dipper didn't know, and he could only hope that Mabel was okay.
Just as he felt the beginnings of sleep creep into his own mind, traces of light shone down from the ceiling. Instantly, Dipper was on high alert.
"Who's there?”
A pause, then the ceiling above them shifted.
"Bro-Bro! And Norman! There you guys are!”
Dipper heaved a sigh of relief as Mabel beamed down at them through the trapdoor.
"Mabel! You're alright!” Norman shifted slightly against him, and Dipper hurriedly lowered his voice. "How'd you know we were here?”
His sister shrugged, carefree, holding up a sparkly blue button. "I didn't. That silly creature tore of one of my buttons, and it rolled underneath the crate."
Huh. A crate. Well, that explained why he hadn't been able to lift the door again.
"What happened to that guy, anyways?" He asked, trying to catch a glimpse of the room beyond Mabel's shoulders.
Mabel dropped down into the hole with a gleeful whoop, landing with a roll before bouncing to her feet. "Don't you worry, Dippin' Dots, I took care of him!” She beamed proudly, but the grin slipped off her face once she got a good look at their other friend. "What happened to Norman?? Is he okay?”
Dipper shrugged his free shoulder, running a hand gently through Norman's hair to keep him relaxed. "I'll explain later," he dismissed. "But for now, how do you plan on getting out of here?"
"I'm glad you asked, brother, for I have the perfect solution… Grappling hook!!!”
------ ------ ------
Two days later, Mabel excitedly handed Norman a box wrapped in glittery paper.
He tilted his head to the side slightly, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What's this?”
"It's a present, silly! Now open it!”
Dipper joined them in the living room just as Norman opened the box, catching sight of his bewildered expression at its contents.
"Well? Do you like it?” Mabel asked eagerly, rocking back and forth on her heels, hands clasped behind her back.
"...A sweater?”
“Yes!! Put it on!”
Once the new garment took the place of his typical red hoodie, the medium got a good look at the sweater's design. He blinked down at the lightbulb sitting in the middle of the black wool, before giving Mabel a perplexed look. Dipper watched from across the room.
Mabel didn't say anything, apparently waiting for something to happen, but Norman had no clue what she was looking for. "Uhm, thanks, Mabel, but why did you--?"
"Blah! You didn't even see what it does!!” Mabel reached over and pressed on the lightbulb, causing it to suddenly emit a bright light.
How she had done that, Norman had no idea. None.
"W-Wha--? Wow, that's, uh-- isn't this a fire hazard?”
“It's a fun hazard!”
Norman and Dipper burst out laughing, hardly even blinking an eye at Mabel's odd statement, or her mutter of, "Soos would understand”. Norman said his thanks again, before heading upstairs to put his newly acquired sweater in his bag. Once he was gone, Mabel slid across the floor to stand beside her brother.
"Y'know what, bro?”
"What?”
“You two looked really cute all cuddled up together.”
“W-Wh--? Mabel!”
“Aww, look! You're blushing!”
“Mabel!!”