[AN]: Here's a bit of drama to get me back into the swing of things.

Enjoy!

"I proposed to Linda last night."

Looking back several years later on that afternoon, Stanford wished he had responded differently.

"Why?"

Fiddleford's whole body seemed to slacken. His brilliant smile withered as easily as it had appeared. His shoulders drooped, and the paper he studied in his hand tilted as his grip weakened. He stared, confused, at Stanford with wide blue eyes. "Well, I…" he started. "Because I love her, that's why."

Stanford bit his lower lip, refusing to look up at Fiddleford. He hadn't meant to say that, he really hadn't. He wanted McGucket to think he was supportive of the whole idea. Afterall, Fiddleford had always been there to back him in his own endeavors, both personal and professional. What kind of friend would he be if he ever let on that he thought marriage wasn't the best idea at present?

Apparently, a pretty lousy one.

He pretended to write something incredibly important in his second journal, leaning over his desk with the visage of a man with intent. Fiddleford wasn't buying it. "Don't you think it's a good idea?" After a pause, he said in hurt revelation, "You don't…"

There was a long silence from both of them. Stanford's fountain pen came to a stop over time, bleeding ink onto the journal page in a large blackish-blue splotch. He'd spoken too rashly last time, a mistake he was not keen on making twice, so he formulated his next words carefully, prolonging the pause in their...discussion. "I never said that it wasn't a good idea," he began.

Fiddleford's voice came from a different location behind Stanford. He was further away now, probably sitting on the couch on the other side of the room, but his words were just as clear as if he were shouting. "You didn't have to. Anyone who asks why their friend is getting married obviously has some level of reserve."

He sounded too defeated for Stanford not to turn and face him, and sure enough, Fiddleford was on the sofa, welcoming the warmth of the spring afternoon sun as it poured through the colored glass. The man had a habit of biting his nails under pressure, and his doubt was currently gnawing them to the quick. "You think it won't last, right? Because I'm just a mechanic-turned-engineer-turned-mechanic with nothing to offer, and you're probably right."

Stanford stood, shaking his head. "That's not true."

Fiddleford tore his hands from his teeth and clasped them between his knees instead, looking Stanford straight in the eye. "Of course it is. I don't have twelve PhDs. I'm only smart enough to build a transdimensional gateway, but let's be real, what good is that to a girl with a part time job and thousands to pay in student loans?"

"Fiddleford!" Stanford said roughly, holding his hands in front of him. "I'm not saying any of this. I'm just saying that maybe…look, I will support you in your decision, and I wish you both every happiness! But...well, I suppose the timing is just a little shocking."

His partner frowned, mouth hanging open. "I told you two weeks ago what I was planning! I...I asked you for your opinion on the ring!"

He had, too. He'd found a cluster of diamonds no larger than peas behind a waterfall in the forest. Stanford was sure the gnomes would show up at their door any day now, demanding their gems back. Fiddleford had scrimped and saved for a stoneless silver band and put the diamond in himself, approaching Stanford with the finished product and its purpose two weeks ago. He never actually thought he would go through with it…

He stuttered, "Of course, I remember. I just…" He hadn't been terribly focused when McGucket said he would give it to Linda at dinner. "I assumed that you would…" That he would explain his plans to stay in Gravity Falls to be with her. "There's a lot of work to be done here, Fiddleford and-"

And that was the limit. Fiddleford shot from his seat, fury in his eyes. "Is that what this is about? You're worried about the project? You're afraid I'll abandon it? Get distracted?"

"I know that women are always distractions whether they want to be or not, and I know how much Linda means to you so I-"

"No," Fiddleford raised his voice over Stanford's. "You clearly don't! If you did, you wouldn't be asking me to reconsider!" He pushed past Stanford, or rather, through him, making for the hallway.

Stanford followed, but he couldn't control his tongue. The words flowed faster than he could dam them. "There are priorities, Fiddleford! We're so close; do you really think it's worth it?"

Having hung his lab coat on the rack and thrown on his brown tweed jacket, Fiddleford took a visible breath and adjusted his glasses. At his sides, his fingers flexed and trembled, and he stood, facing away from his friend, with incredible posture. For a moment, Stanford almost believed that his words had snapped McGucket out of his rage, and opened his eyes to the task at hand. But the fist flying towards him quickly convinced him otherwise.

The blow threw him back, by sheer force and shock, into the opposite wall. He had to catch himself on an end table, sending an obscure textbook tumbling to the floor. Blinking through involuntary tears and clutching the bridge of his nose, he looked up at a towering Fiddleford, rubbing the knuckles on his right hand and seething. Clenching his jaw defined the muscles in his neck. He felt as though he'd awakened a force darker than anything he'd found in Gravity Falls.

"There are priorities, Stanford," Fiddleford began, calmly, but with an unmistakable edge. "I think we both know what ours are. But just because you're married to your research, that doesn't mean I have to be." Turning, he grabbed the door handle, but paused to add, "I would abandon this project before I abandon Linda. If you're not okay with that, find yourself another engineer."

The door slammed shut.

[AN]: Please leave a review to tell me what you think, favorite, and add to your alerts because these two are not going away any time soon!

No, Fiddleford is not gone. He just needed a walk to cool down, and who can blame him?

Poor Ford, though...

Thanks for reading!

~~Iridian~~