#joywritten

mike glances down at the girl, watching as she seemingly pulls an actual grappling hook out of nowhere. not only is he wondering how she acquired such a tool in the first place, but where had she even been hiding it? her sweater? it seems like she stores a lot of random things in there. quirking an eyebrow, mike tilts his head a bit as he takes the grappling hook from her. he did say they’d need a way to climb a wall, but he can’t exactly say this is the way he imagined. 

furrowing his eyebrows, mike isn’t quite sure how to react to such a comment. it’s not as if no one’s called him a piece of shit before, but how the hell can toph prove it ‘mathematically’? what does math have to do with his supposed shitty behavior? staring down at the girl, as he usually does because she’s so ridiculously short, mike exhales a huff of annoyance. probably not the best approach considering toph can—and might even will—kick his ass into next tuesday.

mike looks down at the small girl, no more than four foot something. she’s intense, and pretty skilled in combat, but how much harm can she really do—or, rather, how much harm would she really do? sometimes he can be a bit annoying, mike is well aware of this, but it’s not as if anything he’s done or said would warrant an ass kicking. the consequences would surely outweigh any satisfaction of beating him up, or at least that’s what he tries to remind himself anytime she’s around. because, yes, toph intimidates him to a severe degree, and yet—

mike exhales a laugh, mostly out of desire to appease wendy in any given way, even if it’s at her dumb joke about him suggesting she just doesn’t go to the party. “ all right, fine. ” it’s not that he necessarily doesn’t want to cover her shift that day, but rather that he doesn’t like the idea of her going somewhere she could meet other guys. especially if he’s stuck here at the store, bored out of his mind. well, almost bored out of his mind considering mabel will be around, and there’s never a dull moment with her. “ you… you have fun, wendy. ” mike tries to sound genuine, he really does, but it kind of hurts that instead of inviting him to the party, her first instinct is to have him take her place at the mystery shack. she could have easily asked anyone else to cover, but she chose him. it briefly crosses his mind that maybe it was to keep him away from the party altogether.

as soon as the words leave the blonde’s mouth, mike’s face twists instinctively into sheer confusion. star’s niece did... what now? how is that even possible? then again, mike has seen stranger things than what the girl is describing right now, so he supposes he shouldn’t be too surprised. although, he’s certain he’s experienced some pretty crazy shit since he started hanging around star butterfly. it’s almost like going on a really weird acid trip. nothing like the chaos back in hawkins.

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“ excuse me. ”           scooting closer to the stranger, shawn hopes that he does not just scare them off. he smiles, trying not to be too obvious as he steals glances at the newspaper in their hands. he only caught a few words of the title before, but it was enough to interest him -- though not enough to interest him to the point of going to the store and springing for his own copy.          “ i think you can help settle something for me. ”          he pulls out the phone from his pocket and flips it open, pretending to read something off of it.          “ my buddy and i are having an argument. he says water isn’t wet, but i say if water isn’t wet then fire isn’t hot so why can’t i touch the stove top? ”

( he reads quickly: CHERISHED LANDMARK BURNED DOWN. last night, a historic landmark in downtown santa barbara was burned to the ground ... arson is not suspected ... likely caused by a small bush fire that spread to the building ... there is a picture next to the short paragraphs )

mike smiles a bit, smug at the idea that anyone finds his face ‘beautiful’... other than his own mother, anyway. unfortunately it’s only mabel, and not some girl he’s actually interested in... like wendy. besides, as flattered as he feels, he knows it’s probably not true. mabel is just a little girl who thinks way too highly of him because she’s under the impression that he’s this cool, older guy who enjoys hanging out with her. every time she gives him a comment like this, he attempts to brush it off without being a total dick. after all, mabel is probably his best friend in gravity falls. the last thing he ever wants to do is upset her.

mike glances down at the flowy garment hanging from mabel’s waist. he’s no fashion expert by any means, but he knows a cute skirt when he sees one. especially mabel’s, which are always vibrant and colorful and suit her personality perfectly. with a shrug, he reaches down to lightly nudge the girl’s shoulder with a reassuring grin.