Chapter Text
Gem found herself feeling better two days later. After which she got back into her routine, though it still lacked the person she wished it included.
The cafe was quiet this morning, undisturbed by the chatter of people and excitement.
Gem was always an early morning customer, arriving at the shop around 8:00 am every morning.
Today was different though, the little bell jingled as Gem entered a surprisingly not-empty cafe. In a corner table sat Pearl and Impulse, hunched over some newspaper clipping.
She waved to the two of them, greeting Jimmy who was manning the counter this morning. “Good morning !” She sang as she stepped towards the counter. “It's a bit busier than usual today, eh?” She said cheerfully.
Once Gem had a coffee in one hand and a croissant in the other she approached Impulse and Pearl, pulling a third chair back and politely asking: “mind if I join you two?”
To which Pearl stuttered briefly while Impulse put on a wide grin, “of course.” The man said while Pearl was still fumbling on her tongue.
Impulse launched into some long explanation of what they were doing, something complicated about getting mail into the city easier.
If Gem was being honest, she would have said she wasn't listening at all. But instead she nodded along with Inpulse’s tangent.
Strangely enough Pearl didn't join in on the conversation, instead keeping herself occupied with fidgeting with her uniform and sipping at her tea.
She seemed awkward.
Gem herself wasn't quite sure why she had chosen to sit with the pair, especially not after the whole ordeal with Pearl and the flowers and the soup.
But she nodded along cheerfully, keen on keeping her uncertainty to herself.
Eventually though, Impulse stood and declared that he had “things he had to get to,” and would “catch them later.”
Which left Pearl and Gem sitting at the little cafe table. Jimmy had retreated from the counter a long while ago, disappearing into the backrooms at the lack of customers.
There was an awkward pause after Impulse left, as if neither knew exactly what to say. But Gem cleared her throat and said, “oh, thank you for the flowers and soup the other day. They helped me a lot.”
Pearl smiled and responded along the lines of “no worries,” or “anytime.” But it seemed more like an automatic response rather than something genuine.
Another awkward pause filled the room.
Then Pearl, hesitant and quiet, asked: “Gem, are you mad at me?”
It took Gem a solid second to respond, mouth falling open in silent shock at the question. “Of course not.” She said after a moment, “I’m not mad at you.” She continued firmly.
“Okayyy, then why are you ignoring me?” Pearl asked in return, hands moving to fidget with her bag.
Gem opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. No words to excuse her strange behavior, no explanations for her actions. Because in truth, Gem didn't want to explain how having a massive crush on your friend might make you do things.
But as she was about to stutter out something, Grian rushed through the door from the backrooms.
“Gem ! Gem ! Gem !” He chirped excitedly, bouncing up and down and completely ignoring how he barged into the conversation.
“We need to go now.” He continued, grabbing her arm and dragging her towards the door.
“Wha- hey !” She tried, but it seemed nothing would stop her friend from dragging her out the door.
Pearl followed behind them with a very expression, confused and amused by the sudden interruption.
“Shhh” Grian hissed, forcing the three of them to suck behind Gem’s truck.
Across the street sat Scott and Jimmy, leaning close together and talking in hushed voices. What must have got Grian so excited was the fact that their hands were entwined, wrapped around each other as Jimmy leaned his head on Scott’s shoulder.
Gem stifled a gasp while Pearl let out a sharp exhale. “Oh.” Was the simple statement that the taller women let out.
Grian didn't seem to notice Pearl’s discomfort though, too busy sniping the lovebirds to care. But Gem noticed.
Gem noticed the way Pearl’s shoulders were tenser now. She noticed how her friend’s brow gained a slight furrow and she began chewing the inside of her cheek.
Carefully, Gem took Pearl’s hand and pulled her back into the cafe, ignoring Grian just as much as he was ignoring them.
“You okay?” Gem asked quietly as they returned to their seats.
“Yeah, of course …” Pearl said, in a way that was not reassuring to Gem in the slightest.
A second passed, and just when Gem thought she might have to bug Pearl to tell her what was really on her mind, Pearl spoke instead.
“Just wasn't expecting Scott to have a partner yet.” She confessed with a sigh.
Gem tilted her head quizzically, “what do you mean?” She prompted curiously.
“Well, it was a little while before you came, but Scott and I dated for a bit.” Pearl said with a calmness that bothered Gem a little more than she would have liked.
“It wasn't really a big deal, everyone was with someone then and there were couples challenges every other block.” She continued, “Scott ended up ending it over something or another, I don't know we weren't the best match.”
Gem listened with a warmth that Pearl really wished she could curl up in. “And now, so soon after that whole thing he's already got someone else. I guess this is just how he is, but still.” She explained with a long sigh.
Gem moved her hand until it rested gently on Pearl's shoulder, “that's rough. If you ever need anything I’m always happy to.” She said kindly.
It made a couple butterflies flutter through Pearl’s stomach. She nodded, not quite ready to use her voice yet.
“Oh, do you mind if we continue doing the ride thing? It would save me a ton of time.” Pearl asked politely, Gem nodded in agreement, saying that they would go back to their old schedule tomorrow.
And then she was gone. Out the jingling door as if she didn't have a care in the world.
…
Gem found herself settling back into their old routine with ease. She would drop by Pearl’s house every morning and they would drive into town together, joking and laughing along the way.
It was a Saturday today though, which meant Pearl didn't need a ride and the Farmer's Market was open and Gem needed groceries.
So she piled herself and some reusable bags into her truck and chugged into town
By late morning Gem had all the things she needed for the week, the goods were slung over one shoulder as she browsed. Looking through some tomatoes as if they were the most important tomatoes in the world.
Gem lifted her phone, checking the time and her messages. Only to find an alarm saying tonight was a full moon.
It took Gem a moment to remember exactly why she set this reminder, but the moment it clicked in her brain the tomatoes were forgotten.
Gem dashed off in the direction of her truck, throwing her groceries into the passenger seat and taking off towards home.
It would be an understatement to say that Gem was nervous. Nervous to see her friend transform into some crazy, wild wolf. Nervous that her friend might get hurt. Nervous that she might get hurt.
But Gem got ready anyways, changing into a comfortable pair of pajamas and grabbing some chip bags.
Was Gem entirely sure she wanted to do this? Not even remotely. But did the possibility of bailing on the promise cross her mind? Not even once.
Gem walked down to Pearl’s house, padding in her sneakers and pajamas and looking like a teenager going to school.
Her fist paused briefly at Pearl’s door, sitting an inch away as she thought about her actions.
Then with a deep breath, Gem knocked twice.
Tap. Tap.
The door creaked open almost immediately. Pearl peeking out from behind it timidly.
She looked alright for now. In her pajamas and looking nervous.
“You came.” She stated quietly, voice shaking slightly as if there was more she could have said.
But she didn't continue. Instead Pearl stepped out of the way and opened the door.
Gem hadn't been inside Pearl’s house since a month ago, when she had first found out about Pearl’s wolf thing.
The place didn't look all that different. Grey couches in the same spot.
The only difference, Gem noted, was a little kennel in the corner of the living room, tucked beside the TV.
Pearl watched as Gem’s gaze fell on it. “If something goes wrong, you can put me in there if it gets bad. It shouldn't. But I’d rather have it there than- than have things go bad again.” She explained, pausing briefly like she changed what she was planning on saying midway through.
Gem nodded, noting her friend’s hesitation but not calling her out on it.
The two found themselves on the couch after a couple minutes. The sun was beginning to set and Pearl had gone to the bathroom and taken a sedative.
Gem scrolled aimlessly through movies on Peal’s TV. The bags of chips laid out on the coffee table in front of her.
Gem’s boredom was immediately ripped out as a soft whine came from Pearl’s side of the couch.
Her friend’s body had begun to change, where she had once been sitting upright she had moved to lay down. And her body seemed to be changing, morphing into the shape of the wolf Gem had witnessed a month prior.
Fear shot through Gem’s stomach as the creature stood and stumbled towards her, despite her lethargic movements Pearl was a wild animal right now, and that meant she was dangerous.
But the wolf did nothing to harm Gem, only crept over and rested her chin on her lap.
Gem let out a short laugh, disbelieving that she had feared Pearl just moments before.
Her friend fell asleep quickly, the sedative taking effect within moments of Pearl crawling up to her.
Gem tentatively gave her a gentle scratch behind the ears, and the wolf let out a content whine. She chuckled once again, smiling amusedly at the dog-like form her friend had taken.
Gem didn't know when she fell asleep. One moment there was soft brown fur tangled between her fingers and the next she was waking up to the soft golden sunrise.
As the sun made its slow and steady ascent the fur beneath her hands lengthened. It seemed to grow as the sun rose, when Gem looked down Pearl’s body seemed to be changing too, growing back and pulling back into the shape of a person.
The soft brown fur seemed to be pulled back into her skin, slowly receding in an almost unnatural way.
But it wasn't quite uncomfortable to Gem, maybe a little disturbing, but not anything that brought her much squeamishness or discomfort.
Then the sun rose its final inch from behind the faraway hill and Pearl fully transformed into Pearl again.
The woman seemed to take her first full breath, as if she had been holding it for some time. The groaned and muttered something about forgetting to close the blinds last night and curled deeper into Gem's legs.
Gem’s face burned as she watched her friend do this, breathing in sharply as Pearl laid in her lap.
At this Pearl furrowed her brows, shifting slightly to look up to see where the sound came from.
When Pearl finally opened her eyes Gem smiled, because it seemed that Pearl could always make her smile.
Pearl stared at Gem for a second, blinking in complete confusion and utter shock. Before jerking upright off of Gem’s lap, face turned away in embarrassment.
Gem’s smile turned into a laugh, quiet and breathy, and not quite as clear as usual due to the early hour. “Good morning,” she said as her breath returned.
“...hi” Pearl choked out after many seconds of looking away.
At this Gem laughed again, obviously enjoying the situation far more than her counterpart.
“I-” Pearl began, clearly starting an apology.
But Gem cut her off, “it's okay.” She said with a kind smile. And before she could stop herself, “I didn't mind.”
That seemed to break Pearl's brain even further, for she didn't comment and simply just walked over to the kitchen to do what Gem assumed was to make breakfast.
Gem stayed on the couch for a few minutes, staring blankly at TV as the sizzling of eggs filled the small house.
Then she stood, pushing the red knot blanket off her lap and walking to join Pearl in the kitchen. She hovered over her friend's shoulder and made quiet conversation, just moving her mouth and not really thinking about what she said or if Pearl was responding. She rambled for a little while, letting her mind and body work on something while she couldn't.
Eventually Pearl placed two plates of eggs on the counter. Scooting them across the island to the stools on the other side.
Gem crawled up onto one of the mismatched stools and took one of the equally mismatched forks that Pearl had offered.
They sit together, Gem continuing her rambling and Pearl continuing her listening.
At some point the breakfast is finished and Gem goes over to clean up the wrappers and things laying about. She tidies up the living room a little as she does so, folding up the blanket and settling it on the couch arm.
She walks over to the door, chip bags in hand and Pearl opens it for her, still quiet and contemplative.
“Thank you,” she says quietly. So soft that Gem could barely hear it. “Thank you for staying, and being here” though there seemed to be another part of the thanks that Pearl didn't say.
“Of course,” Gem replied with a grin. “Happy to. Do you need a ride on Monday?” She asked as she walked on to the porch.
“That would be great.”
“Alright, I’ll pick you up then.” Gem said as she turned and walked down the steps.
Pearl waved and smiled, though there, again, was something that felt like there was something more to say.
“Bye,” was all she said though.
“Bye.” Was all Gem said in return, before turning her back and walking up the hill.