Chapter Text
Late August of 1998
The bags were slipping. Kate mentally cursed herself for not grabbing a shopping cart. She had not expected to buy too many groceries, yet from her arms clung several bags, as she juggled another couple in her arms, having to peer through to see where she was going. Pushing the door open with her shoulder, she waddled her way towards the parking lot. She tried orienting herself, trying to distinguish the rows of cars from in-between the bags. As she walked towards the right direction, she almost missed a small step, panicked, muttering to herself. Deep in her inner monologue she crashed into a local. The bags in her hands flying to the ground.
“Watch it” the stranger called out gruffly.
“Sorry” she said apologetically and embarrassed, looking at the mess on the ground.
The bags had ripped, a large portion of the food scattered on the floor. She wanted to cry. With a groan, she loosened the bags digging into her forearms and hoped she could at least cram everything in there. She crouched, started to retrieve what she could.
Stan was walking towards the entrance when he spotted a wallet on the floor.
Money, he thought.
Trying to act as casually as he could he approached, picking it up. Instinctually, going to look at the cash inside. He startled when he heard a stranger holler something in the distance. He watched a man walk away and a woman scrambling to pick up groceries from the floor.
Jerk.
As he played with the wallet in his hand, he went to look to see who it was from. Katherine Claire Arthur.
He adjusted his glasses as his eyes snapped to the woman kneeling on the parking. It was hers. A pang of guilt ran through him, he had yet to take the cash, it had been his intention. He sighed, closing the wallet and approaching the woman.
“Hey, lady!” Kate heard a gruff voice call out. She looked up and into the distance.
“Ya’ dropped your wallet” Stan announced as he approached “Among other things it seems” his tone amused.
Kate flushed slightly “Oh- Thank you. I must’ve dropped it on my way here” she muttered embarrassed. She extended her hand for the stranger to give her here wallet back.
“D’you need help with that?” Stan found himself asking before he could really help himself.
“I- it’s ok. If I could ask you to watch this. I have some bags in the trunk of my car, I can go run and get them” her voice still uncertain but her expression pleading.
Stan looked amused, he crossed his arms “Sure thing, doll” he said gruffly. Kate nodded appreciatively, grasping some of the intact bags and heading quickly to her car.
Stan watched her go, he had been in Gravity Falls for about 18 years by now, not once had he seen her. She must be new, he thought. Or at least this was an urgent pit stop. He watched her get to her battered car, as she opened the trunk, a bunch of furniture sprung out and onto the pavement. He could see her grumble, taking out suitcases and rummaging further into the trunk. With a distressed gesture she tried cramming the suitcases and everything that flew out back in, closing the trunk and now heading to the passenger side. Much the same as the trunk, objects flew out and onto the pavement. Her car was crammed. She was clearly in the midst of moving.
Stan sighed, the strange woman was clearly struggling, he looked at what was left on the ground, which was plenty and began picking some things up. Not much later he heard Kate jog towards him.
“Oh, that’s so kind, you shouldn’t have” she panted lightly, offering an open duffle bag for him to put everything in.
“T’s no issue, doll. Rough day huh?” He still sounded amused.
She sighed “Yeah” her tone clearly stressed. “I’m just moving in, it’s all still very chaotic at the moment” she dismissed, not going into much detail.
“I figured” Stan said as he crouched to grab a last remaining can. “Your car practically exploded with things” he added.
She chuckled a bit embarrassed. “Yeah, still got a few things to get into the house” she explained closing the duffle bag and struggling slightly to pick it up.
“I’ll take it” he found himself offering.
“No, it’s ok, you’ve done more than-”
“I insist, doll” he interrupted her and began walking to her car.
She jogged slightly to catch up to him. “You can leave it in the front, on the passenger seat” she opened the door for him as he placed the bag with a big ‘thunk’.
“Thank you…?”
“Stan” he said gruffly with a mischievous grin, his hand extended.
“Thank you, Stan” she said appreciatively, his hand engulfing hers. “Kate” she offered her name back.
“I know, police’s been looking for ya’” he kept shaking her hand and saw her face pale.
He barked out a laugh, dropping her hand to clutch his stomach “Gotcha!”
She chuckled nervously, clearly taken aback.
He finished chuckling “Relax, saw it in your wallet, doll” he took her wallet from his pocket and gave it to her, a grin on his face.
“Right” she chuckled awkwardly.
“Well, thanks again Stan” she gave him a small cautious smile.
“I’ll see ya’ around, doll. I’m right at the outskirts of town. The proud owner of The Mystery Shack. You’re speaking with Mr. Mystery himself” he said charmingly, wiggling an eyebrow.
She nodded a bit amused at his theatrics. Not too sure to disclose where she had moved into just yet. “I’m on the opposite end” she said vaguely.
Stan put two and two together “The old Greensburg house?”
“Uh- yeah” she confirmed a bit thrown off.
“That house’s a mess, doll. It’s been untouched the eighteen years I’ve lived here” he looked a bit bewildered “It’s only bones by now” he added.
“You- know the place?”
“Ha! Yeah, I’ve broken in- I mean” he corrected himself a hand going to rub the back of his head. He huffed “I’ve been to that old thing a couple times” he confessed.
She nodded. “Well, I live there now. Used to be a relative’s house” she explained.
“Ya’ got your work cut out for you” he mused.
“I’m a bit of a handy man myself, if ya’ need help” he tried charming her. “It’ll come with a price of course” he grinned.
“Oh um- that’s very kind of you” she said a bit awkwardly. “I’ll have you in mind, if I see something’s out of my hands” she said politely, not really actually considering it.
“Ya’ got a land line?” his question seemingly out of nowhere.
“I do, it’s not working at the moment, but it’s on the top of my list”.
Without much warning Stan peered into Kate’s car, grabbing a spare pen he had spotted. He took her hand and began to clumsily write his number down.
“There ya’ have it, doll” he grinned.
The gesture made her a bit flustered. She huffed an amused laugh “Thanks”
“Don’t worry about giving me yours, I know where ya’ live!” the statement earned a wary look from Kate. “Not- not in a creepy way of course” he corrected himself a bit awkwardly.
“Right-um…I’ll leave you to your own errands” she began excusing herself “It was nice meeting you and thank you again” she said politely.
“Pleasure’s all mine, sweetheart” he boasted closing the passenger door.
She gave him an amused chuckle as she walked around to the driver’s side. She got in the car and started the engine. Stan slapped the hood of the car for good measure before stepping back and allowing her to drive off.
---
Just when things had mellowed down, he thought as he watched her car get farther and farther away. Hands in his pockets he distractedly made his way into the supermarket, Kate in his mind. She was thirty, he had clocked that when he checked for an ID in the wallet. A significant age gap as he was now forty-three. But that did not take away from the fact that he found her attractive. Black, layered, shoulder-length hair, fair skin, freckles, hazel eyes and pink lips. Short and somewhat stout.
A pretty little thing, he thought with a chuckle. Don’t get too ahead of yourself Stan, he chastised himself.
Though he had seen better days, his boxing days had kept his overall broad body in shape. Though he had gone softer in certain places, he hid it well when he wanted to. He had long gone left the mullet behind, his hair short and sprinkled with some greys here and there, as did his stubble. He could pull women off quite easily, he thought. His looks definitely helped. A good combination for this knack for charm. It had been a while since he allowed any women in his life, at least in a meaningful way.
But he wasn’t one to let a pretty face slip past him. He grinned; he’d find a way to worm into Kate.
---
Kate drove off somewhat stunned and confused over the turn of events. She checked her hand as she drove back towards her battered house. The numbers clumsy and crooked, she huffed a small chuckle.
What a guy.
She knew better than to trust the strange man she just met. She had seen her fair share of charmers, whose main goal was to into your pants as soon as they can. Stan, seemed like one of them.
Her assumptions about him were cautious, he was still a stranger to her. His eagerness to help and loud, welcoming persona a bit comforting in comparison to what starting a new life felt like.
She had just arrived yesterday, though it had been a welcome change from what her previous life was like, she was still ridden with anxiety. Stan was right, what was now her house, was a mess. Electricity, water, everything was semi broken and diminished from the passing of time and desolation. Her mom had taught her enough to be semi decent to fix things, but a helping hand was needed. She was yet to step foot at her new job. She groaned. She had kept her life-long occupation, teaching. There was a certain lure to a quaint small-town school, where the pressure seemed to ease up a bit. She took a right into the gravel path to her house. She wanted a quiet life; she hoped Gravity Falls was one to give her that. Little did she know, it would not.