Chapter Text
“Oh- good morning Steven!” Pearl jerked back, avoiding collision with a tired Steven, who nearly jumped out of his skin at her surprised voice. He stumbled backwards a step; Pearl caught his arm before he fell back on the stairs.
“Pearl! You’re up early...sorry, did I disturb you?” Steven gathered his balance and yawned, rubbing his eyes; Pearl noticed he seemed less enthusiastic than usual, but chose not to comment on it. She watched him continue to waddle over to the kitchen before remembering to reply, “No, no; you know gems don’t exactly have a sleep cycle, so I may as well get some chores done when we aren’t busy. Speaking of which, what do you have planned for today? You’re the one up early; at least, for a human.”
Steven glanced at the microwave clock, slight disappointment crossing his face as it turned 5:04 under his bleary gaze. That disappointment became clearer for just a second, before turning into his usual cheery expression as he turned back to Pearl. “Well, I just wanted to try a new recipe for that coffee machine Dad gave me! Figured it’d take me a few tries. I think I might go see if Little Homeworld needs any help with any new arrivals or buildings; and I know Connie and I plan to hang out later, so I might not be home ‘til sunset.”
Pearl sighed in relief and softly grinned, her small twinge of worry dissipating at his smile. She walked up behind Steven and put her hand on his shoulder, “You two have fun! I might go to the store with Amethyst later afternoon, just to make sure she doesn’t steal anything... If you remember anything you need, I’m just a text away!” She patted his shoulder once more before leaving the house.
Steven grinned back, watching her head disappear under the deck as she left, before turning back to the coffee machine in front of him. His face fell and he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. It looks like he lucked out, Pearl didn’t notice him jump at her touch; or so he hopes at least. His thoughts turned back to last night’s dream; the dream that kept him up for hours, until he couldn’t stand just lying quietly in the dark any longer. His skin crawled as his thoughts pulled him farther and farther down. Shaking himself out of it, he turned his focus back to the task at hand.
“Mocha,” he whispered to himself, to the empty house; “Mocha. I can do mocha.” He hoped Little Homeworld was as awake as Pearl; it looked like he’d be stopping by sooner than he thought. More for my sake than theirs, he mused. As he set the first batch of coffee to brew, he scratched his head and looked back at the microwave clock. 5:06.