Chapter 1: Coffee and Doughnuts
Chapter Text
It was a beautiful day in Beach City. Clear skies, shining sun, crashing waves of crystal blue water, and not a gray cloud in sight. It was everything that the Beach City chamber of commerce had promised. It was a great day to go out and have fun, and coincidentally that was exactly what a young boy by the name of Steven Universe had planned on doing that day (just as he had done every other day).
The light of the early morning sun gently stirred him from his slumber and, eyes still heavy with sleep, he slowly began to rise. Sitting up in his bed Steven had a clear view of the beach through his window. He smiled at the sight. It was one of his favorite parts about waking up in the morning, second only to breakfast. Speaking of which...
growl
Steven looked down at his gut and chuckled. "I guess it's time for breakfast. But what should I have? Doughnuts?"
growl
"Yeah, doughnuts."
Quick as a flash, Steven was out of bed and dressed. His stomach demanded doughnuts and he knew exactly where to get them. He was nearly out the door when a voice called out to him,
"Good morning Steven, where are you off to in such a hurry?"
He stopped and turned to see Pearl busy reorganizing all of the books on the shelf.
"Oh, hey Pearl. I was just about to go get some doughnuts."
Thud
They heard the refrigerator door slam shut.
"Did someone say doughnuts?" Amethyst asked, racing to the door.
"Hey, Amethyst. I was just about to go to the Big Donut. You want me to get you anything?"
"You know it!"
"Alright then, be back in a bit!" Steven called as he ran out, the door swinging shut behind him.
"Oh yeah!" Amethyst cheered, flopping down onto the couch to take a nap. "I can almost taste those doughnuts already. This is gonna be great."
"Really now Amethyst," Pearl said disapprovingly. "I just don't understand how you can eat those things."
"What? They're good." Amethyst replied sleepily, already starting to doze. "You don't know what you're missing."
Pearl could only sigh to herself as Amethyst began to snore before returning her attention to the bookshelf.
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Things were a little slow at the Big Donut. Of course, it usually was slow early in the morning. This, naturally, was totally fine with Lars who wasn't a morning person to start with and didn't really care for dealing with customers in general. He never understood how Sadie could stand doing it every day and still be so positive all the time. Even now she was in the backroom doing a final check to make sure that everything was ready for the day with a smile on her face.
Lars sighed to himself while he stood alone at the counter. Everything was quiet as he stared disinterestedly at the door, waiting for the first customers of the day. His eyes darted over to the clock. Barely even two minutes had passed since the last time he checked. He had the sudden feeling that this day was going to drag on very slowly.
"Here we go." Lars groaned to himself as he heard the door open. He turned his attention back to the front of the store just in time to see one of Beach City's more interesting residents enter through the door.
There in the doorway, stood a man in his mid-forties wearing a pair of old blue jeans and a white T-shirt under a green windbreaker. This man was Quentin Moon.
"Good morning, Quentin!" Sadie called out as she returned from the back room.
Now, Quentin Moon was a bit of a reclusive individual. To a number of people in town, he was known simply as the Beach City Hermit. Though he had been a part of the Beach City community for many years, he did not actually reside within the town itself, choosing instead to live somewhere out in the Beach City woods. He was very private, almost secretive, and tended to keep his distance from other people. He really only made trips into town when he needed to for food and supplies or to do the occasional odd job.
A large number of Beach City's residents knew him by name and reputation, although a good portion of his reputation was built upon rumors and speculation. Some suspected that he was homeless and lived in caves and in trees, while others claimed he was secretly an eccentric billionaire that built a mansion hidden out in the woods. Only a select few knew for sure.
Most people were hesitant to approach him. He always looked as if he had slept in his clothes, and his long, unkempt hair and beard contributed immensely to his disheveled appearance. This combined with the ever-present frown on his face and his solitary and quiet nature often made him come across as more than just a little intimidating to people who didn't know him well.
Sadie's cheeriness quickly faded as she took in Quentin's appearance. For as long as she had known him he had always looked a little rough around the edges, but on this particular morning, he did not look at all well. As he made his way towards the counter she noticed that his clothes looked as if they should have been washed days ago. But more important than that was his face; his skin lacked its usual color and looked pale and sickly. And although his sunglasses partially concealed them from view, she could still just barely see the exhaustion in his eyes.
"Morning, Sadie," he returned the greeting, "Lars."
"Quentin, are you alright?" Sadie asked.
"I feel fine."
"Dude, are you sure about that?" asked Lars, actually looking concerned. "You don't look too good."
"I'm fine, really."
"Well if you're sure. What can I get for you?" Sadie asked, totally unconvinced.
"Coffee please."
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Quentin sat at the table. The cup of coffee stood, steaming in front of him as he slumped forward in his seat. He rested his head in one hand while the other massaged his tired eyes under his sunglasses, groaning quietly to himself as he did so. After a moment, he pulled a small bottle of aspirin out of his jacket pocket. Removing two pills from the bottle, he put them both in his mouth and washed them down with a large drink of the hot, black liquid.
Sighing in a mixture of pain and relief, he placed the coffee back onto the table and rested his head in his hands. He stared deeply into the coffee drifting into and out of consciousness as he struggled to stay awake.
As Quentin began to doze, Sadie watched him anxiously from the counter.
"So are you just gonna stare at him all day, or what?"
"I'm worried, Lars. Just look at him; I've never seen him this bad before."
"Yeah, well I wouldn't worry too much. I'm sure he'll be fine by tomorrow."
"You think so? How can you be so sure?"
"Coffee and aspirin."
"What about it?"
"My uncle told me once that when he was in college he'd take coffee and aspirin after late nights drinking with his friends. He's obviously hungover. He must've had a pretty wild night last night," Lars chuckled.
"Lars, please."
"What? He said he's fine. And besides, unless you have some freaky mind-reading powers you've never told me about, I doubt just standing here staring at him is going to do much good. Why don't you just go talk to him, if you're so worried about him?"
"You don't think I've tried that?" Sadie said fighting the urge to scream in frustration. "You know what he's like."
Lars looked back to Quentin, who was practically sleeping at the table and sighed to himself. She was right, he did know what he was like; practically everyone in town knew. Quentin was the ultimate loner. He had always kept everyone at an arm's length. Out of everyone in town, Sadie was probably one of the few people who Quentin ever let into his life at all.
Lars opened his mouth to say something but was cut short when a harsh metallic rattling sound began to fill the air.
"Oh no," Lars groaned, "that stupid air conditioner again!" he whined.
"It's still broken?" Sadie asked finally prying her eyes from Quentin.
"I'm gonna call someone to come fix it," Lars said as he walked towards the back room. "If I have to stand around listening to that all day again, I'm gonna lose it!"
Alone at the counter again, Sadie's thoughts once again returned to Quentin. She anxiously resumed watching him as he slowly sipped on his steaming cup of coffee. She considered what Lars had said, maybe she should try talking to him. She nervously tapped her fingers against the countertop as she thought of what she would even say when the sound of the front door opened signaling that another customer had arrived. A welcome distraction.
"Oh. Hi, Steven." Sadie greeted the boy as he walked through the door.
"Hi, Sadie."
"What can I get you? The usual order?"
"That would be great! Thanks, Sadie. Oh, and a couple extra chocolate glazed for Amethyst." Steven leaned against the counter and looked around the room as he waited. He froze in surprise when he noticed Quentin seated alone at a table by the window.
"Oh, I didn't know that Quentin was going to be in town today," Steven remarked. "I've been meaning to invite him to hang out with the Gems for a while."
"Right now might not be such a good time for that Steven," Sadie said while she loaded a paper bag full of various doughnuts. "I think he's having a pretty rough morning. When he came in he looked like he might collapse at any moment. And he's been just sitting there in total silence for like the past fifteen minutes. I don't think he's up for hanging out with anyone today."
"Hmmmm" Steven hummed in thought as he looked upon the tired man staring vacantly into his coffee. Sadie was right, he looked pretty miserable.
"Here you go." Sadie placed the bag on the counter.
"You know what, Sadie? I think I'll get just a few more doughnuts."
--------------
Quentin continued to stare into the dark void of the coffee cup. His mind was a total blank. He was starting to feel a little better, but not by much. He had no idea how long he had been sitting there when suddenly he noticed a small plate of doughnuts sitting in front of him. Directly across the table from him stood Steven, with a big, friendly smile.
Quentin picked up a doughnut and took a small bite. Jelly-filled. A small trace of a smile began to form on his tired face.
"Hey there, kid."
-------------
Steven and Quentin sat eating their doughnuts in relative silence, speaking only to exchange brief pleasantries. When the two were finished Steven took his remaining doughnuts, reserved for Amethyst, and went on his way with a smile and a wave. Quentin quietly reciprocated the gesture before returning his attention to the dregs of coffee remaining at the bottom of the cup, finishing it off with one last swig. He sighed quietly as he leaned back in his seat. He took a small, red leather-bound notebook, which he was rarely seen without, from his pocket and began to thumb through the pages. Sadie smiled sadly at the sight; Quentin was smiling. Granted, it was a very small one, so small that most people probably wouldn't even notice, but she could see it.
Getting Quentin to smile was not an easy feat to accomplish. Steven, as annoying as he could be at times, had a true gift.
Sadie sighed as Lars' words echoed in her mind as she worked the controls on the coffee machine.
'I doubt just standing here staring at him is going to do much good. Why don't you just go talk to him, if you're so worried about him?'
She poured the coffee into one of the standard insulated paper cups, adding the usual one packet of sugar, and grabbed a couple of extra jelly doughnuts before making her way over to the man seated by the window.
--------------
Quentin continued to stare into the dark void of the coffee cup. His mind was a total blank. He was starting to feel a little better, but not by much. He had no idea how long he had been sitting there when suddenly he noticed a small plate of doughnuts sitting in front of him. Directly across the table from him stood Steven, with a big, friendly smile.
Quentin picked up a doughnut and took a small bite. Jelly-filled. A small trace of a smile began to form on his tired face.
"Hey there, kid."
-------------
Steven and Quentin sat eating their doughnuts in relative silence, speaking only to exchange brief pleasantries. When the two were finished Steven took his remaining doughnuts, reserved for Amethyst, and went on his way with a smile and a wave. Quentin quietly reciprocated the gesture before returning his attention to the dregs of coffee remaining at the bottom of the cup, finishing it off with one last swig. He sighed quietly as he leaned back in his seat. He took a small, red leather-bound notebook, which he was rarely seen without, from his pocket and began to thumb through the pages. Sadie smiled sadly at the sight; Quentin was smiling. Granted, it was a very small one, so small that most people probably wouldn't even notice, but she could see it.
Getting Quentin to smile was not an easy feat to accomplish. Steven, as annoying as he could be at times, had a true gift.
Sadie sighed as Lars' words echoed in her mind as she worked the controls on the coffee machine.
'I doubt just standing here staring at him is going to do much good. Why don't you just go talk to him, if you're so worried about him?'
She poured the coffee into one of the standard insulated paper cups, adding the usual one packet of sugar, and grabbed a couple of extra jelly doughnuts before making her way over to the man seated by the window.
Chapter 2: Coffee and Doughnuts Pt. 2
Chapter Text
"So... are you feeling any better?" Sadie warily asked while she watched Quentin drink his second cup of coffee.
"Sadie, I can only say 'I'm fine' so many times before the words start to lose their meaning," Quentin said placing the cup back down on the table and picking up another jelly doughnut.
"But, yes, the coffee and doughnuts did their job. Thank you."
"Quentin, please, you're obviously not 'fine.' You looked like you were about to drop dead when you walked in."
Quentin froze, doughnut near his mouth, as he looked to Sadie seated across from him and saw the pained look of concern on her face.
"Listen," he sighed. "I just had a little trouble sleeping last night, alright? Nothing to worry about."
"Trouble sleeping?" From her voice, Quentin could tell that she was unconvinced.
"Yeah," he said before taking a bite of the doughnut. He chewed it slowly, savoring the tart flavor of the raspberry jelly.
Sadie wanted to press the issue further and she fully intended to do so. But just then she was interrupted by a certain ill-tempered teen.
"Gah!" the sound of Lars' shouting could be heard from the backroom, followed immediately by him storming into the room and leaning up against the counter in frustration.
"What is it, Lars?" Sadie asked turning in her seat to face him.
"It's the air conditioner repair people; they're impossible! They were supposed to fix the stupid thing last week! Now, they put me on hold for half an hour just so that they could tell me that no one was available to fix it! Apparently, no one's gonna be able to even come look at it until sometime next week! I couldn't even schedule an appointment because the guy who does that was on his break!"
"Well, now that's no way to run a business," Quentin said as he finished another doughnut.
"You're telling me," Lars grumbled. Suddenly realization flashed across Lars' face. "Wait a second. Quentin, you're here!"
"You certainly have a firm grasp of the obvious," Quentin said dryly, prompting a small chuckle from Sadie.
"Yeah, yeah," Lars grumbled, "could you take a look at the air conditioner?"
"Well, I suppose so. I've got my toolbox out in the jeep."
"That would be totally awesome of you. I really didn't want to have to call them again."
"Are you sure about this?" Sadie interjected. "I mean are you sure you're up for this right now?"
"Sadie please, for the last time I'm alright. I just need something other than doughnuts in my stomach. And besides, it will probably be a simple fix. So, I'll tell you what we'll do. You two buy me lunch today and we'll call it even. I'm thinking pizza."
-------------
Sitting on the ground behind the building, Quentin looked over the air conditioning unit. He wasn't entirely sure what was wrong with it. From what he could see it should have been working perfectly.
"Nothing looks broken and nothing seems to be missing. Well, at least that's something." He thought aloud to himself before helping himself to a piece of the pineapple and bacon pizza that Lars and Sadie had bought for him. "It should be working now. Maybe there's a problem with one of the vents."
"Hey what do you think you're doing?! Get back here!" he heard Lars yell.
Curious, he poked his head through the doorway to see what the commotion was. "What's going on?" he asked Sadie.
"Some kid just ran off with all the ice cream sandwiches."
"I guess I'd better go see if we have any left in the back." Lars groaned. "Those better not come out of my paycheck!"
"Right. Well, back to work then," Quentin remarked as he returned to the task at hand.
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Things were hardly ever dull in the Universe household. There was usually something going on; good or bad, and sometimes just straight-up bizarre. Unfortunately for Pearl, today was the second of the three. The Gems had heard that Steven's favorite ice cream treat, Cookie Cats, was going to be discontinued. Knowing how much he loved them, they had planned on stocking up on them so that he could continue to have them for a little while longer. Amethyst had volunteered to go get them herself, but unfortunately, her method of obtaining them wasn't exactly legal. Instead of buying a large supply of the frozen treats, as Pearl had suggested, Amethyst had gone out and simply took as many as she could carry (which was all of them) from multiple stores all over town and ran off with them without paying and now it was once again Pearl's responsibility to go and clean up after Amethyst's shenanigans.
Having spent the majority of the morning revisiting every place that Amethyst had robbed, Pearl had finally reached the final location; the Big Donut. Upon entering she noticed only one person at the counter. Sadie, she believed her name was.
"Um, hello." Pearl began nervously. "I believe this is yours," she said placing some money on the counter.
"Uh, what for?"
"For the ice creams that Amethyst took earlier today."
"Oh!" Sadie exclaimed in realization. "That was Amethyst?"
"Yes, it was. Sorry about that." Pearl apologized looking more than just a little embarrassed. "I hope this won't be a problem."
"Oh, no. No problem at all." Sadie replied as she counted out the money. "We haven't reported it yet and, seeing as everything has been paid for, I really don't see any reason to."
Click, Click, Click...
Whoooosh
"Aha! There we go!" a voice came from the back room.
Pearl felt an uneasy feeling wash over her. She knew that voice.
Suddenly a man emerged from the back room carrying a pizza box in one hand, and a toolbox in the other. He set them both down and leaned up against the counter lazily. It was Quentin. It seemed that Pearl's bad day had just gotten worse.
"Quentin! You fixed the air conditioner!" Sadie cheered.
"Yes, no more of that obnoxious clicking as I'm sure you've noticed. There actually wasn't anything wrong with the unit itself..."
Pearl stood in silence watching the two talk. She was always a little awkward around humans; she just didn't understand them, and as a result, she always felt more comfortable with as much distance between her and them as possible (with very, very, few exceptions). But this man was something else.
The two of them never saw eye to eye. He was perhaps one of the few humans she had met, in her very long life on Earth, that she actually had a strong dislike for. Now, of course, she wouldn't say that she outright despised him (she was far too polite for that) but it came very close. He was an uncivilized, ill-mannered slob who seemed to lack even the most basic of social etiquette skills. His hair was always a mess, his clothes were always dirty, and he could hardly ever maintain eye contact when he was talking with someone.
All of that combined with his cold, antisocial nature and his near-constant gruff and sullen attitude made him, in Pearl's opinion, the absolute worst possible role model for an impressionable, young adolescent like Steven. But unfortunately for her, just about everyone else disagreed and Steven saw him as a part of his family and nothing that she ever said or did seemed to make a difference. It also didn't help matters that Steven's father, Greg, regarded him as one of his oldest and closest friends.
As the conversation between Sadie and Quentin wrapped up, and he turned to leave, for a brief moment his eyes met hers. She felt a wave of what she could only describe as an electric surge wash over her. It was a peculiar and uncomfortable feeling, but one that she was very familiar with.
"Um, hello," Pearl offered a greeting, not wanting to be rude.
"Hi." he returned the greeting coldly, quickly averting his gaze and putting on his sunglasses. He slid up his sleeve and examined his watch. "It's getting late. I have to go now, I have things I need to do." He picked up his things and started towards the exit.
"Oh, right," Sadie said awkwardly, "see you later, I guess. Take care of yourself, okay?" Sadie called after him. "Get some sleep."
"Right, right. See you around." He said absentmindedly stepping through the door.
Not long after he had left the building, the sound of an engine could be heard starting up outside before fading to silence as he drove away. With Quentin now gone, and the uneasiness leaving Pearl, for the time being, she returned her attention to Sadie and noticed the downcast look on her face.
"Is everything alright?"
"Oh, it's nothing," Sadie sighed sadly as she wiped down the counter with a damp cloth. She wiped the counter back and forth for a moment before turning to face Pearl, nervously kneading the cloth in her hands, "Actually, do you think you could do something for me?"
"What is it?"
"It's Quentin..." she sighed. "Do you think that maybe you could talk to him for me?"
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On the way back to the temple, Pearl thought about what Sadie had said about Quentin. It had all taken her by surprise at first; According to Sadie, Quentin and her mother had been friends since before she was born. Pearl wasn't even aware that they were on a first-name basis with each other. She always saw Quentin as the kind of person that didn't really have the time, nor any actual desire for friends (or social interactions of any kind for that matter). Sure, Greg and Quentin were friends, but being friends with Greg is hardly a challenge. Greg was one of the most laid-back and easy-going people in the world, unlike Barbara.
Barbara Miller was one of, if not, the most cheerful and outgoing person she had ever seen; a stark contrast to Quentin's somber and introverted nature. It didn't make any sense; they were practically polar opposites, and yet Sadie claimed that the two of them had a very close relationship. Or at least they used to.
Sadie went on to say that they had been seeing less and less of Quentin lately. They didn't think too much of it at first, bearing in mind his reclusive lifestyle, but eventually, they began to notice that something wasn't quite right. However, whenever one of them brought it up, he always said that he was fine and that they shouldn't worry so much about him.
"I know he's lying", Sadie said. "I know there's something wrong with him and it's getting worse, but no matter what I say or do he just shrugs it off and changes the subject. Do you think that maybe you could help?"
Now talking to Quentin wasn't an activity that was very high on Pearl's to-do list. The two of them weren't really on speaking terms, to begin with; a fact that she was quick to point out. If there was someone who could get him to open up, it definitely was not her. But Sadie already had a backup plan; Pearl may not be on good terms with Quentin, but Steven was.
Now, Pearl really didn't like that idea. She took great care to ensure that Steven had good role models in his life, and Quentin was definitely not one of them. She may not have had much choice back when Steven was a great deal younger and needed twenty-four-seven supervision (she could still hardly believe that the others thought he was a suitable choice for a babysitter), but now that Steven was old enough to be left on his own, she saw no reason for Quentin to be involved in Steven's life any further.
Pearl was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she didn't even notice that she had already made it to her room, the door now closed behind her. She sighed anxiously. She was conflicted.
She wanted absolutely nothing to do with Quentin, yet she couldn't find the strength to deny Sadie's request for help. She had no choice but to desperately look for an escape, a loophole, any way that she could find to get out of this, and she believed she found one; she told Sadie that the next time she and Steven crossed paths with Quentin, they would try to talk to him. Now all she could do was hope that moment never came.
"Shouldn't be a problem," she reasoned, "we hardly ever see him as is."
She did her best to Quentin out of her mind. But something that Sadie said stuck in her thoughts.
"I know there's something wrong with him and it's getting worse..."
Suddenly Pearl remembered his eyes. She always felt unnerved whenever he looked her way. His gaze was intense; it always felt like he wasn't looking at her, but rather through her, to her very soul. But this time, there was something else in those eyes beneath the usual cold fury; a weariness, and perhaps just a trace of something else. Guilt perhaps? She, however, was quick to dismiss this thought. Surely, she imagined it. She had never known Quentin to be the remorseful type from what she could see. He wasn’t the kind of person to hold on to regrets, was he?
Chapter 3: Eye in the Sky
Chapter Text
The weather report had promised a beautiful day in Beach City. Clear skies and shining sun. With not be a gray cloud in sight it was a day sure to be enjoyed by all. Well, almost all.
While the vast majority of Beach City residents were happy to begin yet another glorious day in their happy little beachfront paradise, there was one person in particular who would have much preferred that the sun had never risen that day. In the darkness, Quentin Moon slept deeply on a couch wrapped in an old, worn blanket. With a large, empty glass bottle clutched in his hand, he slumbered seemingly dead to the world. Only when the light of the early morning sun began to shine on his face, through the open curtains behind the couch, did he begin to stir. He cracked his eyes open briefly before slamming them shut tightly and hissing in discomfort.
He rolled to the side to shield his eyes, falling off of the couch and onto the hard wooden floor, the empty bottle clattering to the ground next to him. "Ohhh," he groaned in pain as he struggled to force himself back onto his feet using the couch to keep himself steady.
Slowly picking himself up from the floor, using the edge of the coffee table for balance, he felt a wave of nausea overtake him as every muscle in his body screamed out in agony. Finally, on his feet, he blindly climbed over the couch and closed the curtains before collapsing back onto the cushions. For a long while, he sat there in a daze, wondering where he was and how he had ended up like this.
Sitting there in his faded blue robe and underwear he forced himself to open his eyes. He saw that he was in a library of some sort. Directly across from him and the couch a large bookcase filled with books took up the entirety of the wall and wrapped around past the edges of the adjacent walls.
Directly in front of the bookcase a single armchair, with upholstery that matched the couch, sat empty. In front of the chair a simple, gray laptop sat on a small desk, and directly to the side of the chair stood a small side table with a lamp and a small stack of books.
To his left, an old, dust-covered upright piano stood up against the wall with a stone fireplace taking up a large portion of the wall to the right. An old, worn-out-looking teddy bear rested on the mantel next to a small clock. Directly above them, a large portrait frame hung empty on the wall.
That was one question answered; he was home in his living room. As for the other question, the answer came once he spotted the empty glass bottle on the floor by his feet.
"Oh. Right," he said as it all started to come back to him.
Slowly, feeling like he was either going to throw up or pass out, he laid back down. He contemplated just closing his eyes and going back to sleep. He could probably sleep the whole day away and no one would miss him.
"Oh, my head."
However, given his current situation, it was unlikely that he would actually be able to sleep at all. He needed to do something about that headache. He needed to get up.
"Alright, you can do this," he sighed to himself, struggling to get back to his feet again before slowly making his way to the bathroom.
"Dear God," his reflection in the mirror was quite the sight, "I look like Hell."
And he did. He looked horrible; like he was either dead or at least, very close to it. Pale skin, bloodshot eyes, complete with dark rings to go with them, and it appeared that he was also drenched in sweat.
His eyes briefly flitted down to his open robes, before he quickly pulled the robes closed tight. He wasn't in the right headspace to deal with that right now.
"Oh come on, man. You have a job today. You need to pull yourself together."
He did what he could to clean himself up, barely making much of a difference, and made his way to the kitchen. He had really only two options; A, sit around in misery as he waited for the pain to stop, or B, take something to help alleviate the symptoms. He chose, sensibly, to go with option B.
"No, no, no, no. You cannot be serious!" He said as he searched the cabinets. "Is there seriously no coffee? Well, that's just great."
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Before long he was dressed, in clothes that in all honesty probably should have been washed days ago, and was heading for the door. He paused for a moment as he checked his pockets, and made a detour back to the living room. Scanning the room briefly, he spotted what he was looking for straight away and grabbed a little, red notebook from the side table by the chair, and resumed his journey to the front door.
Blinded by the bright morning light, he put on his sunglasses to ease his discomfort as he quickly surveyed his surroundings. The woods surrounding his home were as quiet as they ever were.
After he was certain that the door was locked, and the cabin secure he climbed into his old jeep and turned the key. The sound of the engine sparking to life felt like a hammer to his head, but he needed to keep going.
"It won't be long now. You've got this." And with that, he started down the winding dirt road through the trees towards Beach City.
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Later that day
Bumping into Pearl at the Big Donut was an unexpected, as well as unwelcome, surprise. It was, however, more surprising that she didn't have some kind of snooty or condescending comment to send his way.
Encounters with her, while always civil, were hardly ever friendly. It was fairly obvious to him that he wasn't her favorite person in the world. She made it clear that she disproved of his lifestyle and overall attitude, just as he wasn't too fond of her overbearing tendencies and her overall pretentiousness. It always felt as if she were casting silent judgment as she stared down her nose at him as if she were so superior to him in every way possible and he was nothing. No, less than nothing. He hated that; he got more than enough of that in life without her help. Fortunately today there were no arguments. But even if there were, it wouldn't have made much of a difference; Quentin was about to stop by one of his favorite places in town.
Whenever Quentin came to town, he always made a point of stopping by the pier. The sound of the seagulls in the sky and the waves crashing against the ships in the water accompanied by the smell of the salty sea air always helped to put his mind at ease. So it only made sense that one of his "regular customers" for his odd jobs in town would be one of Beach City's local fishermen.
Quentin breathed deeply, taking in the briny scent, as he worked helping Yellowtail pack up his catch of the day.
"Quite the productive day you've had, huh?"
"Muh, Mumumuh." The fisherman mumbled in agreement.
To some people, it might appear that Yellowtail could not speak. But this is false. While Yellowtail was not the most coherent of speakers, he did have a very keen grasp of the English language and enjoyed having long, in-depth discussions of many topics (usually concerning either fishing or his frustration at his eldest son not wanting to be a fisherman like him). What sounded like a series of indecipherable mumbles was really nothing more than a thick accent. An accent that, after years of talking and listening, Quentin could understand with crystal clarity.
"Oh, yes. Quite the catch," Quentin said as he put the lid on the cooler. "There we are. All finished."
"Mumumuh," Yellowtail patted Quentin on the back to signify a job well done. He stepped to the side and picked up a small canvas bag from the floor.
"Oh, what's this?"
Yellowtail simply smiled as he offered for Quentin to take the bag.
"What? Oh, no I couldn't."
"Mumuh," Yellowtail extended his hand out further.
"Well, alright. If you insist." Quentin smiled lightly as he took the bag from his extended hand. "Is this herring?" Quentin asked softly as he peered inside the bag. "Oh, I haven't had herring in ages. Thanks, Yellowtail."
Quentin tied the bag closed and prepared to climb onto the dock before Yellowtail stopped him.
"Muh, Mumumuh?"
"Pardon? Your radio? Well, I suppose I could take a look at it. But I'm not making you any promises. I haven't done any wiring work in a while now.
-------------
Quentin drove through Beach City towards his storage unit, with the bag of fish tucked safely away in the back of the Jeep next to Yellowtail's old marine VHF radio. Quentin wasn't entirely sure if he would be able to fix it, but Yellowtail had insisted that he at least take a look at it anyway. Fortunately, it wasn't an emergency. Yellowtail had a backup radio that he could use but wanted it fixed anyway for sentimental reasons. Having no definite deadline for it to be done, Quentin had agreed to take it home with him and see what could be done with it.
The only real problem was that he was not familiar with this particular model of radio. He would need to do a little research to see what repairing it would entail. He was also fairly certain that he didn't have the equipment required for this job at the cabin, so he would need to pick up a few things while he was in town. After a brief stop at the library, where he managed to find and print out a copy of the radio's instruction manual and schematic, he was now on his way to U-Stor.
Just as he was pulling up to the door of his unit, he noticed something odd. Everything around him seemed to have changed color. He killed the engine and took a look around. He didn't notice when it happened, but now it appeared that the entire area was being bathed in an unearthly red glow.
"Okay, now that's odd," he looked up to the sky and saw something off in the distance. "there wasn't supposed to be an eclipse today was there?" He opened the glove compartment and pulled out a pair of binoculars, stepping out of the jeep to get a better view.
"Yeah, now that's definitely not normal."
It definitely was not an eclipse. Up in the sky was what appeared to be a gigantic, eyeball hurtling towards Beach City. In a daze Quentin stared, bewildered at the sight.
"It can't be real. Can it? Am I dreaming?"
He set the binoculars down on the hood of the jeep and stood at attention. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply before slapping one of his hands across his face with as much force as he could manage.
"Ow!" He winced in pain, "okay, so not a dream," he said as he looked back to the sky. Eyes locked on the eye in the sky he pulled a silver flask out from his jacket pocket. Holding the flask in his hand, he swirled the contents a bit and estimated that it was still mostly full.
"Damn, I'm definitely not imagining this," he said before taking a quick sip from the flask and stuffing it back into his pocket. He sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.
"A giant eye in the sky. That can't be good, now can it? No, that's definitely not good," he felt his heart begin to pound as his breathing became shallow.
"Okay now, stay calm. Just stay calm."
Suddenly he noticed something else in the air. Quickly picking up the binoculars, he took another look and saw what looked like a person flying towards it at an alarming speed before bouncing off of it and falling back down to the earth below. He couldn't be certain at this distance, even with the binoculars, but it looked like Amethyst.
"The Gems," Quentin muttered in mild annoyance, "of course it would be them." If living in Beach City had taught him anything, it was that the Gems were never far away when something strange or weird happened, and even though, after nearly two decades, he had learned to always expect the weird, he still didn't care for it. "It's as if they don't have anything better to do than to give me anxiety," he grumbled. "I don't have time for this."
"No, no, no! Not now!" he heard someone shout from the other side of the garage. Curious, Quentin walked around the building to see what the commotion was. He was surprised to see Greg Universe behind the wheel of his old van, in a panic as he turned the key in the ignition with the van only giving a sharp clicking sound in response. His son, Steven was sitting in the passenger seat next to him looking equally as anxious.
"Well now. Hello, there you two," Quentin said as he approached the van.
"What? Oh, hey Quentin." Greg answered as he continued to try and fail to start the van.
"Hi, Quentin!" Steven waved through the window. Quentin smiled briefly and returned the wave before turning his attention back to Greg.
"What's the matter? Engine trouble?"
"Yeah, I just can't get this thing to start," Greg said, desperately turning the key in hopes that there was enough power to start the engine just once.
"Hmmm," Quentin hummed in thought as he listened carefully to the clicking noise coming from the van, "sounds like your battery. Hold on a second, I've got a set of jumper cables in the jeep," he said disappearing around the corner.
A moment later he pulled up alongside the van in his jeep and in just another moment had the jumper cables hooked up to both vehicles. Quentin started his jeep and after he was sure everything was running smoothly he shouted over to Greg, "Okay, try it now!"
Greg took a deep breath and uttered a silent prayer as he turned the key. Once the van roared to life he breathed a sigh of relief, while Steven cheered.
"Thanks, Quentin," Greg sighed in relief, "We owe you one."
"Hey now, no worries. We'll talk about it the next time I bring my jeep in for a wash, alright?" Quentin said as he disconnected the jumper cables and put them back in the trunk.
"Ha ha ha," Greg laughed, "You got it buddy!" and with that, he put the van into drive and began to move forward. It was then that Quentin first noticed the electrical cord tied to the back of the van leading back into the open storage unit. Nearly the entirety of the unit's contents ballooned out before falling to the ground in a heap surrounding a large pink object.
Quentin stood, transfixed, as he watched Steven and Greg load the thing onto a small red wagon, which immediately gave out under the weight. The pair waved goodbye as they drove off with the wagon trailing behind them, sparks flying out from the broken wheels. Quentin absentmindedly returned the wave as he watched them disappear down the road.
"Now what the heck was that thing, I wonder?" Quentin pondered to himself aloud. "Maybe an old prop from Greg's rock 'n' roll days? No, no of course not. I would have seen that thing years ago if that were the case."
His musing was cut short as his attention returned to the giant eye in the sky. He sighed tiredly to himself before returning to his storage unit. He didn't have time to worry about Greg and Steven's antics. He had work to do.
--------------
Pearl and Garnet stood on the Beach as the Red Eye got ever closer to the planet's surface. A wave washed Amethyst back onto the shore after her most recent attempt to stop the Eye.
"Throw me again, I think I'm cracking it," she said as she got back to her feet. Just then she heard music playing. It was one of Greg's songs that he wrote for Rose. Just then Greg's van came into view, with Roses laser light cannon being pulled behind it. "Is that...?"
"Hey, guys!" Steven called out through the open van window.
"He really had it!" Pearl Gasped in shock.
"We're saved! Amethyst cheered.
Suddenly the earth started to tremble as the Eye's gravitational pull began to affect the city, ripping roof tiles off of the beach house and knocking over the sign of Mr. Fryman's restaurant.
"We have to use it now," Garnet ordered.
"I don't know how it works, it was Rose's!" Pearl panicked.
"Dad, how do we use it?" Steven asked his father, getting only a shrug in response.
"Steven," Pearl said grabbing at his shoulders, "this is serious! The gem. You have Rose's gem!"
"That's it!" Amethyst shouted as she picked up Steven and started rubbing him against the cannon. "Ahhh, come on!"
"Stop that," Garnet commanded.
"It's no use," Pearl said hopelessly.
"Fine, forget it. Throw me again!"
"That's not going to work," Pearl argued.
The gravitational pull of the Eye increased in strength as it began to pull the van and the cannon towards the water. Greg untied the cannon from the van and tried to stop the van from moving, but was unable to make a difference, as he was dragged behind it.
"Please work- unlock- activate- go- please!" Steven pleaded still clinging to the side of the cannon as he hit his hands against its hard surface desperate to make it work. "Everyone's counting on you, you can't just be useless! I know you can help."
"It's okay, Steven. We'll figure out something else, something even better." Greg said still being dragged behind the van.
"R-r-r-right, if every pork chop were perfect, we wouldn't have hot dogs."
Suddenly the cannon began to glow with a pink light. The top of the barrel opened, pushing Steven off, who fell down onto the sand.
"It's working!" Pearl shouted.
The hinges of the cannon unlocked and the barrel fell to the ground. Steven rushed forward to try and lift it back up to aim it at the Eye but was barely able to budge it on his own. Fortunately, he was not alone.
"Steven!" Pearl called out as the three Gems and Steven started to lift the cannon barrel.
"This is it!" Amethyst shouted as the barrel was leveled with the Eye.
"Brace yourselves!" Garnet ordered.
Suddenly a bright beam of light in the shape of a rose erupted out of the cannon and raced through the air towards the Eye. Everyone stared in anticipation in an instant that felt like an eternity as they awaited the impending collision when the light and the Eye finally met.
Glowing cracks spread throughout the surface of the Eye as the light of the cannon began to consume it. There was a bright flash as the light swelled out, fracturing the Eye into shards. Large chunks rained down to the earth below. Most fell into the ocean, but some managed to land on the beach and the boardwalk; resulting in one destroyed car and a few people running for cover.
"Steven, you just saved most of Beach City!" Amethyst congratulated.
"Sorry about that!" Steven called out to Mr. Fryman.
"What?!" Mr. Fryman called back, who had absolutely no clue what was going on.
"How did you make it work?" Pearl asked the boy.
"I just said that thing that Dad always says."
"That thing about pork rinds?"
"Hot dogs." Garnet corrected placing a hand on Pearl's shoulder.
"Rose," Greg said wiping a tear from his eye.
-------------
Later, after the Gems helped to prevent Greg's van from being washed away into the sea, Greg was busy making sure that nothing got ruined by the seawater while Steven and the Gems prepared to transport the laser light cannon back to the temple.
"I still can't believe it," Pearl thought out loud. "Greg actually had it all this time."
"Yeah," Amethyst agreed, "I really thought he would've lost or broken it by now."
"But he didn't," Garnet stated. "He came through for us, just as I'm sure Rose knew he would."
"Yeah, we totally saved the Day!" Steven cheered in excitement. "Oh, and Quentin too!"
The Gems stopped what they were doing and turned to look at him. Pearl felt as if a tank of ice water had just been dumped on her.
"What did you just say?" Pearl asked apprehensively.
"Wait a minute," Amethyst said with a smile, "Quentin Moon? Man, I haven't seen that guy in like forever."
"I just saw him this morning at the Big Donut."
"Wait, what?!" Amethyst shouted. "Man, if I knew he was going to be there, I would have gone with you."
"Wait, Steven? How exactly did Quentin "save" Beach City?" Pearl asked, her voice practically dripping with skepticism.
"We just found Mom's cannon, but then the van wouldn't start. Quentin saw we were in trouble and came over to help. If it wasn't for him, we never would've gotten here in time."
"Yep, that's Quentin for ya," Greg chuckled, "always ready to lend a hand. Or jumper cables..."
"Well, it certainly doesn't sound like he did anything too heroic," Pearl muttered.
"Hey Steven," Amethyst began, ignoring Pearl, "Why don't we ever see him anymore?"
"Well, he doesn't really get out much. I was actually thinking of inviting him over to the temple sometime. I've been meaning to have you guys hang out together for a while."
"Steven, I really don't think that's such a good idea," Pearl said nervously.
"What? Why not?"
"Because it's too dangerous..." Pearl rushed to find an excuse. "Yes, dangerous, we're always getting attacked...or other things happen...and he could get hurt."
"Leave it to Pearl to worry about every little thing," Amethyst complained. "He's been to the temple plenty of times before, and nothing bad happened. And even if it did, we'd be able to handle it. Besides, I'd like to see him again. It's been too long since we hung out."
"Hmph. What do you think Garnet?" Surely Garnet would make the right decision, Pearl thought.
"Please, Garnet," Steven begged.
"Alright."
"Really?!" Steven cheered. "Woo-hoo! This is gonna be awesome!"
Steven, practically bursting with excitement, ran over to his dad to tell him the news. "Gee, I don't know about that, Steven," Greg rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably. "I've known Quentin a long time, and socializing really isn't his kind of thing. I mean sure, he's been to parties before, but Rose and I practically needed to twist his arm just to get him to show up in the first place."
Greg looked down to see Steven's hopeful eyes looking back at him. "Then again, I know he did have a good time at those parties, even if he would never admit it, and it has been a while since we all got together. But he might not come if he thinks it's a party. Leave it to me, I'll think of something."
As Greg began to think up a plan, Pearl continued to search for a way out. "Garnet, are you sure about this, I really don't think..."
Garnet raised a hand and stopped Pearl mid-sentence. "It will be alright. I'm confident we'll be able to handle anything that comes our way. Now let's get the cannon back to the temple."
While Amethyst was laughing about Garnet shutting down Pearl's argument, Pearl groaned to herself quietly as they began the difficult task of carrying the heavy cannon. She couldn't believe it. She had hoped and prayed that her chance meeting with Quentin would have been a one-time occurrence. But now very soon not only would she see him again, but he would be inside her own home. It looks like she would be keeping her promise to Sadie after all.
"Why him?" she whispered to herself, "why him?"
Chapter 4: By the Funland Midway
Chapter Text
Steven had woken up before dawn, and by the time the sun had started to rise was already rushing about making preparations for the day. Before long his dad and Quentin would be there. Everyone would be under the same roof. He couldn't remember the last time that they had all been together in the same place. He was so excited that he had barely slept at all.
The entire house was buzzing with activity. There was so much that needed to be done; the house needed to be cleaned, lunch and snacks needed to be prepared, and then there was the issue of getting Quentin to come over in the first place. Greg had already planned to make the call to invite him. But as he had told them, Quentin would be far more likely to show up if he thought it was a work-related visit. So it was essential that something was "broken" for him to fix when he got there.
It needed to be important enough to justify him coming as soon as possible, while at the same time being easy enough to fix so that there would be time to hang out afterward. After some debate, it was decided that the front porch would be the best choice.
"So we gotta break the porch?" Amethyst asked producing her weapon from her gem. "I can do that," she chuckled.
"Amethyst, wait!" Steven called rushing to block her path to the door. "We don't want to break the porch too badly. Remember, Quentin, needs to be able to fix it."
"Perhaps Pearl would be more suited to this task," Garnet said as she arranged the supplies in the kitchen.
"Me?" Pearl asked.
"A more planned and precise approach is required. I'm sure you're more than capable of handling that."
"Well yes, I suppose that is my forte," Pearl proudly admitted as she walked towards the door, taking note of Amethyst's rolling eyes as she passed by. "You three can take care of the rest of the preparations. I can handle this."
-------------
Ordinarily work requiring careful planning and precision were some of Pearl's favorite activities but this time, as she pried up and loosened several carefully selected boards on the porch and the steps with her spear, she just couldn't seem to derive any actual enjoyment from it. Soon Quentin would be there, and she absolutely dreaded that fact. As popular as he was with the others, she and him just never clicked with one another. There was always a heavy sense of unease between them. She could remember the day they first met way back when Rose was still with them.
Beach City was holding a fair of some kind at the local amusement park, Funland, and Greg had invited them all to check it out with him. Pearl was naturally opposed to the idea, she just didn't see the point of it. She was certain that it wouldn't be a worthwhile use of their time, but at Rose's request had ultimately agreed to come along.
She hadn't expected to enjoy herself, and at first, she didn't. It was so loud and the smell of the greasy carnival food made her feel queasy. Everyone else, however, seemed to be enjoying themselves perfectly fine. Garnet was smiling serenely as she observed all the people around them having fun and Amethyst was ravenously gobbling down every scrap of food she could get her hands on. But rose seemed to be the most content of them all. Pearl sighed despondently to herself as she watched her walking side by side with Greg, smiling and happy. She hated this. Why did Rose like him so much? What was so great about him anyway? He was just a human. How could an ordinary human ever possibly be so much better than her, a Gem?
Feeling severely out of place, she quietly broke away from the group and wandered off to see the rest of the fair by herself. Walking through the park, alone in the crowd, she lost track of time. Eventually, the sun had set and darkness fell over the boardwalk. All around her lights had started to switch on, shining brightly in the evening air.
She was almost considering heading back to the temple when suddenly she saw it. On the other side of the midway, past all the games and food vendors, in the middle of the park, she saw the Ferris wheel which was fitted with a dazzling display of electric lights. They glowed, flared, and flashed in a vast array of colors in rhythm with music as if they were dancing gracefully through the air, seemingly having a life all their own. In that moment, transfixed by the enchanting spectacle, there was only one word that she could think of to describe it; beautiful.
"Oh, there you are Pearl," she heard Rose call out to her. She turned to see her and the others walking towards her. "We were looking all over for you. I was starting to think that you had gone back to the temple."
"Oh, Rose. Sorry if I worried you. I was just admiring the lights."
Pearl turned her attention to the people around them and saw the looks of joy on their faces. Everyone around her was so happy. She felt something stirring deep within her and she soon found herself with a smile of her own. She never understood how humans could get so much delight from something so trivial, but now even she had to admit that this was something special.
But it seemed that not everyone there was having a good time. Off to the side, she noticed a young man in a black leather jacket leaning up against a wall partially hidden in shadow. A thin trace of stubble was just barely visible on his chin. Pearl estimated that he could not be much older than Greg.
His eyes darted all around, observing everyone who passed by, a very grim expression prominently displayed on his face as he ate from a small bag of popcorn. He looked so out of place to her; a vortex of misery in the midst of a sea of joy. She couldn't help but notice how the flashing, colored lights from the Ferris wheel gave him an almost otherworldly look. Suddenly the mysterious man's eyes met hers and she felt as if she had been struck by lightning.
"Hey, I know that guy," Greg said before rushing over to the man.
"Hey, Quentin. How've ya been?"
"Can't complain," he answered as he continued to eat his popcorn, only partially paying attention to them as they approached. Although Pearl had noticed the sour expression on his face had softened slightly when he caught sight of Greg, she could definitely detect a trace of bitterness in his voice. She wasn't entirely sure what to make of him. She looked to the others for guidance but Garnet was mostly unreadable, as usual, and Amethyst and Rose just seemed excited at the idea of having another human friend.
"But enough about me. What are you even doing here? I thought you'd be on the other side of the country by now. What about your tour?"
"The tour's off."
"Really?" Quentin was now paying full attention to Greg, the popcorn forgotten for the moment.
"Yeah. Honestly, I had been having doubts about the whole thing for a while, like I had been telling you, and as I was getting ready to leave I remembered what you said. And you know what? You were right. You were right about Marty, and you were right about me. You were right about a lot of things," he said gently taking Rose's hand in his.
Quentin looked back and forth between Greg and Rose's smiling faces.
"Ah, well then, good for you," he said casually placing another piece of popcorn into his mouth, a ghost of a smile on his lips.
"Rose, this is my pal, Quentin."
"It's very nice to meet you, Quentin," Rose said extending her free hand.
Quentin stared at her hand for a moment before stiffly reaching his own hand out to meet hers. "Likewise."
"And these are my friends Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl," Rose continued the introductions.
Pearl had a little trouble believing that the two of them were friends, and if the look of surprise on Quentin's face was anything to go on, she wasn't the only one. They seemed to be total polar opposites from one another. While Greg was cheerful and outgoing, Quentin was far more reserved and possibly even a bit contemptuous. There was something strange about him, something that made her feel a little nervous. She felt shivers go up and down her back whenever he looked her way. It was his eyes; there was an intensity to them; a very cold intensity.
"Pearl? Are you almost done? I think Quentin will be here soon," Steven called her through the front door, breaking her from her reminiscence.
"What?" she looked down to the porch and saw that she had done an adequate amount of "damage" to the porch. "Oh, right. Yes, I think we're ready," she said turning to go back inside.
Suddenly Garnet, who had been silently slicing vegetables and arranging them in a neat and tidy display, froze and dropped the knife onto the countertop.
"Garnet, are you okay?" Steven asked.
"Pearl," Garnet said.
"Hmm? Wha?"
"We need to go to the ruins."
"Which ruins?"
"You know which."
Suddenly Pearl's mind became crystal clear as she started to panic.
"Oh my. Now? Oh, dear. Are you sure?"
"Ugh, do we have to?" Amethyst moaned, "I hate that place."
"I sensed something," Garnet explained, "it's small, but there is something there."
"Wait, you guys are leaving? What about Quentin?"
"Oh, that's right!" Pearl said, fighting the urge to smile. "Maybe we should cancel...or at least reschedule," she added after catching sight of Steven's sad eyes.
"That shouldn't be necessary," Garnet said making her way over to the warp pad, "we shouldn't be gone that long."
"Where are you guys going? Do you need me to come with?"
"No, Steven," Garnet replied gently, "it might not be safe. You will need to stay here for now. Besides, someone will need to keep Quentin company until we get back. Can we count on you to do that?"
"You sure can!" Steven cheered, giving a proud salute.
"Garnet," Pearl whispered, "are you sure that's a good idea?"
"I don't believe anything bad will come of it," Garnet whispered back, "remember, Quentin used to watch over him for us when he was younger."
"I know, I know. It's just that..."
"Everything will be fine," Garnet said, placing her hand on her shoulder, "and besides, we don't have time to come up with an alternative right now."
Pearl sighed in resignation as she stepped onto the warp pad with Garnet and Amethyst. The warp pad glowed brightly, the white light consuming the three Gems as a jingling chime filled the air. Once the light faded, and the chiming tone went silent, the three Gems were gone and Steven was alone in the house.
It was only a matter of time now. Quentin would be arriving at any moment. Steven went by the door and rested his elbows on the window sill, looking out eagerly waiting to catch sight of Quentin coming up the steps. Today was going to be a good day; he was sure of it.
Chapter 5: Breakfast and Pain
Chapter Text
Quentin slept soundly in his armchair, his laptop resting on the desk still open, yet in power-saver mode, from his long hours of work the previous night. He had been up most of the night on his computer. There was a lot that needed to be seen to. A part of him felt bad that he hadn’t started on Yellowtail’s radio yet. But as Yellowtail had told him that it wasn’t a priority, he wasn’t too worried about focusing on something more pressing at the time.
The first rays of the early morning light poured in through the window, gently stirring him from his slumber. As his eyes slowly cracked open, his vision bleary from sleep, he stretched languidly. His joints and neck produced a series of satisfying cracks and pops. His eyes, once cleared and focused, were trained on the laptop.
Leaning forward in his chair, he pulled the wheeled desk closer to him as he nudged the computer to life. With a swift motion his fingers danced across the keyboard as he typed in a web address. He looked at the screen as he read the international news headlines; same usual stuff that he saw every day, nothing out of the ordinary. He checked the local news; again, nothing out of the ordinary. It had seemed that, with the exclusion of Ronaldo’s blog, no one had made even one mention of yesterday’s event.
“A giant eyeball hurtles towards Earth, then a giant beam of light shoots out from the ground and blows it up, and no one is talking about it,” he chuckled softly to himself. “Well, no one except Ronaldo, of course."
With a sigh of relief, he lifts himself out of the chair and makes his way to the kitchen to make breakfast. It was a load off his mind; he was almost certain that this time, the Gems’ antics would have garnered international attention. ‘That could have been bad,’ he thought as he started his coffee maker and inserted a couple of slices of bread into the toaster. He was quite comfortable with his quiet life, and didn’t want a whole bunch of people swarming in to check things out. ‘More people, quickly leads to more problems and less privacy,’ he reasoned as he retrieved three eggs from the refrigerator and cracked them into the hot frying pan. He really didn’t want to relocate; he liked it here, this was his home, after all.
Before long breakfast was ready; the coffee was made, the toast was lightly browned and crisp, and the eggs were cooked just the way he liked them; fried over-medium. With a smile he gently placed the eggs on top of one of the pieces of toast, drizzled some sauce over them, spooned some mango chutney on top and topped the entire thing with the other piece of toast. It was a dish from his childhood, one that he liked to treat himself to after long nights of work.
On some mornings there was just nothing better than sitting down to enjoying a triple fried egg chili chutney sandwich. It was the simple things that Quentin loved the most. A nice quiet morning enjoying his favorite breakfast with a cup of freshly brewed coffee was one of the better ways to start the day. As he sat at the kitchen table with his jacket draped over the back of his chair, he savored conflicting flavors of the sweet mango chutney and the spicy chili sauce blending together on his tongue. He ate in silence, pausing only to take a sip from his coffee.
Once every bite was gone, he drank down the rest of his coffee and let out a sigh of contentment. It was time for him to get back to work; he had a radio to fix. But just as he started to stand, he heard his phone ring. With a sigh, he stood up and made his way over to the wall-mounted phone before removing it from the hook and putting it up to his ear.
“Hello?”
"Hello, Quentin? Hi! It's Greg."
"Greg? Hey. What's going on?"
"Are you busy today?"
"Why? Need an extra hand at the car wash?"
"Actually, I was wondering if you could stop by the house. There are a few loose floorboards on the front steps that need to be fixed. I was hoping you could take a look at it?"
"Well, I suppose I could do that. What time were you thinking?"
"As soon as you can would be great. I'll be stuck at the car wash for a while, but Steven will be at the house with Pearl, Amethyst, and Garnet. They can get you anything you need."
Quentin placed his hand over the receiver as he groaned quietly. A chance encounter with one of his least favorite people, Pearl, in passing was one thing. But, doing a job at her residence for what could be at least an hour, if not more? Not how he would choose to spend his day at all. He could practically feel her judgmental gaze on him already. But surely it wouldn’t be that bad, right? Just go and get the job done then leave. Plus, it had been a while since he had seen Garnet and Amethyst, and it was always good to see Steven.
"Alright. It's still the same address, right? On the beach where you and Rose met? Giant stone statue overlooking the water?" Quentin joked
"Yep, that's right,” Greg chuckled. “Thanks again."
"No problem, I'll see you later. Goodbye."
Quentin hung up the phone and sighed. He checked the time on the microwave display. It was still early; he had plenty of time. He thought he should probably take a shower and get some fresh clothes before he went out for the day. But first, he was going to have another cup of coffee.
Later
It was almost eleven thirty by the time Quentin had finally gotten out of the house. As he walked towards his Jeep parked out front, he felt a peculiar feeling wash over him. It was a strange, yet familiar, feeling that filled him with dread.
“No, not now, Damn it!”
Very faintly, he could hear a noise; a soft, barely audible, ringing in his ears. Suddenly the ringing increased in volume, as if a giant deafening bell were being rung inside his head. His vision blurred as he was hit with a dizzying bout of nausea that knocked him off his feet. As he stumbled and fell forwards to the ground, the ringing got louder and louder in his head. He doubled over, clutching at his side, as a burning hot pain coursed through his body. Visions flashed before his senses; a blinding light off in the distance, the sound of a distant rumbling, the taste of blood, the smell of smoke, and the feeling of being unable to move. Then, as quickly as it started, it stopped.
He lay there, trembling and gasping for air as the deafening sound of the ringing in his ears was replaced with the soothing sound of distant birdsong and wind in the trees. He shakily rose to his feet, steadying himself against his jeep, as he breathed deeply. Once the world had stopped spinning, and he could stand on his own two feet without support, he took out his flask and took a sip to steady his nerves. Part of him wondered if he should just go back and call it a day and call Greg to reschedule, but he decided against it as he got into the jeep and started the engine.
He knew that if he went back into the house after that, his flask would be soon be empty and he would be passed out on his couch before the end of the day. What he needed right now were some friendly faces, even if one of them did belong to Pearl. Besides he already agreed to come over today, and he hated backing out of agreements. As he drove towards town his mind drifted to what had just happened and he noted that it had been less than a year since the last time he had an episode like that; he wondered if that meant it was going to happen more frequently.
“No, stop it,” he scolded himself, “stop thinking about it. Think about something else.”
He forced himself to shift his attention to where he was going and who he was about to see. He could have very easily said no to Greg. But of course, whenever Greg, and his son, were involved he always did have trouble saying "no." Their constant optimism and cheerful disposition, while at times exhausting, was infectious. The others, however, were another story altogether.
He had always gotten a strange feeling about them right from the moment he first met them. While Steven and Greg were very welcoming to him, his relationship with the other three was a bit more complicated. Amethyst seemed to like him alright, being the laid-back person that she was, but her mischievous antics tended to be tiresome at times. Garnet on the other hand was far more difficult to get a read on. He never cared for the way she would constantly stare at him and never say a word. As if she was waiting for him to do something, or knew something that he didn't. It always made him extremely uncomfortable.
And as for Pearl, it was no secret that she didn't like him. And while he did not dislike her per se, he didn’t care for the unprovoked hostility. There was always a strong tension in the air whenever they were in near one another. He remembered their first meeting at Funland years prior. The way she would constantly try to seemingly avoid making eye contact with him, as if she was afraid of him or something.
"This is going to be a very long day."
Chapter 6: An Afternoon with the Gems
Chapter Text
Quentin drove on in silence. He tried his best to focus on the task at hand; driving to Steven’s house. As he drove past It’s a Wash, he saw Greg tending to a line of customers and waved as he passed by, getting smile and wave back in response. He debated on whether he should stop for doughnuts on the way, but decided against it. Now, after having just recovered his episode, sugary pastries were the very last thing that his stomach needed. Reaching the Big Donut, he drove right past and rounded the corner.
He soon was greeted with a sight that had struck him speechless the first time he saw it years ago. It was still just as impressive today; a statue of a giant woman seemingly carved out of the very cliffside. The first time he had seen that statue a strange feeling of uneasiness washed over him, as if he had arrived somewhere no mortal man was meant to set foot. The fact that a house had been constructed in the hands of said statue, only served to make the whole thing seem all the more surreal.
Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, he got out of the jeep and walked towards the house toolbox in hand. On his way up the stairs, he couldn't take his eyes off the statue. He just couldn't shake the feeling that it was watching him. He just felt so small.
Creak
He looked down and realized that he had reached the top of the steps. He could see that quite a few boards had started to lift in a few spots. It wouldn’t be a fast job, but it would be simple enough to fix. He set down his toolbox, walked up to the door, and knocked.
"Hi, Quentin!" Steven said opening the door to let him in.
"Hey, kid."
Quentin took a step through the door and casually glanced around at the house interior. It was a very nice place with an open concept style. From the door, he could see the kitchen, living room, and a loft bedroom all contained in the one room. Directly ahead a large doorway led to a large stone room where, from where he stood, he could see the door marked with a star which led to the Gem temple and the warp pad which stood directly in front of it. It was basically exactly as he remembered it, but one thing he noticed was missing; the Gems.
"Hey, uh, didn't your dad say that there would be someone else here?"
"Oh, you mean the Gems? They had to step out for a bit. They'll be back any minute now."
"Right," Quentin said, his eyebrow slightly raised. "Okay, so I'm going to go get started on the porch," he said backing out through the door.
"Alright. I'll be right here if you need anything." Once Steven saw Quentin begin working on the porch, he turned to look at the warp pad.
"Come on guys," he said quietly to himself. "Where are you?"
-------------
"Ugh. Why do we keep coming back here?" Amethyst groaned. "There's nothing here. There's never anything here."
The Gems stood in the middle of a large, abandoned city. All around them was a wasteland. City streets and sidewalks were cracked and, in some places, large chunks of pavement and concrete had been displaced. Abandoned, rusted-out cars littered the streets, some overturned and others collided with one another. The buildings were all empty, windows cracked and shattered. There was absolutely no sign of life anywhere to be seen. Not one person, animal, or even plant seemed to exist anywhere. Just beyond the city, a forest was clearly visible, a large stretch of dead, barren ground where once stood a lively field separated it from the city.
"You know why," Pearl answered somberly. She stepped forward and gazed into the deep crater where the city's town square once stood. "Something happened here that decimated this place. The entire city destroyed. Rose tasked us with finding out what it was so that we can make sure that it never happens again."
"But it happened so long ago. If we couldn't find anything then, why would we be able to find it now?"
"We have to keep looking," Garnet said intensely. "I could sense it when it happened. The power was immense; like nothing ever before witnessed on this planet. Whatever it was eliminated all traces of organic life in the entire area in an instant. I haven't felt anything even close to it since, but with something that powerful we can't be too careful. We have to keep looking."
Amethyst sighed to herself; they were right of course. Something like that was far too dangerous to just ignore. They didn't even know what it was.
"Whatever, can we just not stay here too much longer? This place gives me the creeps."
"We don't like it here anymore than you do, Amethyst." Garnet countered. "But we need to be thorough. We'll stay for as long as we need to."
Pearl looked past the crater to the remnants of the broken clock tower that had fallen over and crashed to the ground. "All those humans were wiped out. We were supposed to protect them from things like this, and we failed them. We owe this to them." Her eyes locked on the ruined clock's face; the hands of the clock forever stuck at just a few minutes past midnight. The city forever trapped, frozen in that moment of time.
"Wait." Peal had a sudden thought. "What time is it?"
"What?" Amethyst asked, feeling a little confused.
"The time," Pearl repeated. "We have to go."
"Alright, what gives?" Amethyst asked feeling a little annoyed. "First you want to stay to look for something that we know isn't here, and now you want to leave?"
"Greg said that Quentin would be coming sometime this afternoon. He's surely already arrived."
"Is that it?" Amethyst laughed. "Listen, I'm all for heading back, but I don't know why you're so worried. So, we're a little late. What's the worst that could happen? It's not like he'll leave before we get there. All those boards you pulled loose should keep him busy for a while."
"That's not the problem!"
"What is it then!? Why are you so worried about Quentin?"
"I don’t trust him, Amethyst! I see him as a bad influence on Steven, and I don't feel comfortable with the idea of leaving Steven alone with him."
"Pearl, take it easy,” Amethyst said frustratedly. “You seriously need to back off, P. We know him; he’s fine. Greg likes him, and so do I," Amethyst said, staring Pearl down.
"Yes, well no offense to you or Greg, but your seals of approval don't exactly fill me with confidence," Pearl said, crossing her arms, before turning to garnet who had been silent the whole time. "Garnet? Are we ready to go?"
Garnet sighed quietly and adjusted her glasses before replying. "Yes, I believe we are done here for now. Let's go back."
Pearl felt relief as they all made their way out of the city, back towards the warp pad. Quentin could at this very moment be in her home, alone with Steven, and felt dread at that thought. However, the thought of actually seeing and talking to him somehow made her feel even worse. As they stepped onto the pad Amethyst, still annoyed with Pearl’s attitude, turned to Pearl, and saw the worry clearly on her face.
"Seriously Pearl," She said casually, "You need to relax. Quentin’s a good guy. Right, Garnet?"
Pearl and Amethyst both looked to the taller Gem who, after a brief moment, simply said, "I see no reason to think otherwise. He’s never let us down before."
"See, Pearl?" Amethyst continued. "Everything will be fine, nothing to worry about."
"You two are probably right." Pearl sighed.
'I hope you’re right.' she thought to herself as the three of them were consumed by the glowing light of the warp pad and vanished from sight.
-------------
"There we go! All done." Steven heard Quentin announce. He peeked out the window and saw that the entire porch had been repaired.
Steven gasped in shock and then ducked out of sight before Quentin could see him. This wasn't good. Quentin was done and the Gems weren't back yet. The whole plan was falling apart. Why did they have to leave for a mission today of all days?
Suddenly he heard the all too familiar sound of the warp pad activating just as the room was filled with a glowing white light.
"Guys! "You're back!"
"Steven!" Pearl called out as she sprinted from the warp pad towards the boy. "Are you alright?"
"Well, of course, I am. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Pearl's been worrying all day about you and Quentin being left alone together," Amethyst said flopping down onto the couch.
"What!? That's silly."
Just then the door opened. All eyes were on Quentin as he entered the room. There was a moment of silence as each side observed the other. Pearl was briefly taken aback as she took in his appearance. He wore the same outfit from their previous encounter but this time everything seemed to be in better condition and clean, and while he was a far cry from the menacing stranger she had remembered from years back, she still felt herself tense up when she saw him look at her.
Quentin closed his eyes and breathed deeply before speaking.
"Well," Quentin began, "hey there, you three. Been a while, guys.”
"Yup, it sure has," Steven declared, taking Quentin by the hand, and pulling him deeper into the room.
“Sup, man,” Amethyst said with a smile, jumping up from her place on the couch to give him a hug, “It’s been too long, dude. We seriously need to hang out sometime soon.”
“Yeah,” Quentin said tensing up from the surprise hug before slowly returning the gesture, “sure thing, Amethyst,” he said when they broke the hug, before shifting his attention to Garnet.
“Garnet.”
"Howdy." Garnet said with a small smile, raising her hand in a finger gun pose, "It’s nice to see you again.”
Then Quentin turned to Pearl, who feeling very uncomfortable, simply said nervously, “Hello, Quentin.”
"Hi, Pearl," Quentin said disinterestedly. "Well, the porch is all finished."
"Wait, what?" Amethyst exclaimed in shock.
"You're done already?" Pearl asked incredulously. "How long were you working on it?"
"Oh, not too long. About half an hour, I guess. Wasn't too difficult. Though it's funny; If I didn't know better, I'd say those boards were all pulled up deliberately.
The Gems and Steven all stared at him in shock. How could he have been able to tell?
"Well, if there isn't anything else, I'll be on my may now."
Pearl felt a wave of relief. It was all going to be over sooner than she expected.
"Quentin, wait!" Steven spoke up. "Wouldn't you like to stay for lunch?"
'No, Steven! Don't make him stay!' Pearl thought.
"Oh, I don't know about that. I don't think I should; I wouldn't want to impose," he said as he started to turn to face the exit.
'Yes, he's almost gone. Just a little further.'
"Please, Quentin?"
Quentin was about to start making his way to the door when something caught his eye. Just above the door, there was a painting hanging on the wall. A woman with pink hair and a serene smile. It was no mystery as to who the woman was; it was obvious who she was. He'd know that face anywhere. It was Steven's mother, Rose. The resemblance was easily noticeable; he had her eyes. She and Greg were among the first people he’d met when he had first moved to Beach City. Although he was determined to be a hermit, they were equally determined to make him get out and meet people.
"You should come with us," Greg said.
"Oh? And where are we going?”
"A couple of our friends in town are having a game night."
"A Game night? Thanks, but I think I'll pass."
"Are you sure? It will be a lot of fun," Rose said with a gentle smile.
"And there will be a lot of good food too," Greg added.
"Well, I suppose I could come for a little while."
Quentin felt a slight tightening of his chest. He looked over his shoulder and saw Steven looking up at him. He smiled tiredly as he turned to face Steven.
"Well, I guess I could stay for a little while."
-------------
Quentin, having hung up his jacket by the door, sat at the kitchen counter with Steven, the Gems, and Greg who had just arrived. There was a large variety of snacks, sandwiches, and drinks laid out in front of him, of which he had absolutely no problem helping himself. He was never really one to refuse free food after all. He observed the others as they all ate, well everyone except Pearl and Garnet, of course. Amethyst, on the other hand, had no problem with joining in on the feast. Hell, she even ate the plate.
Once again, he observed the three Gems’ dispositions; Pearl seemed tense, and it was fairly clear to him that she didn't want him there, but then again what else was new? Amethyst was the total opposite of Pearl and actually seemed happy to have him there. Now Garnet, on the other hand, he couldn't really get a read on her; as per usual, she was completely stoic and stone-faced. She hardly spoke at all and seemed to express no emotion at whatsoever. But, just as always, Quentin couldn't help but feel her eyes on him under her glasses as she once again stared at him. It made him feel very uneasy, so he did his best to ignore her.
Throughout the meal Steven, with an occasional addition from one of the others, talked about everything that they had been up to lately.
"And then just yesterday we saved Beach City from a giant Red Eye that was falling from the sky."
Quentin stopped eating and looked to Steven. "Yeah, I saw that. Was fairly certain that you guys had something to do with it. So that beam of light was you then?"
“Yup!” Steven said with a big smile. "We shot it with a laser light cannon that belonged to my mom," Steven explained.
“Let me guess; it was that thing that you and your dad were pulling behind the van.”
“Yeah, that’s the one,” Greg said as he reached for another doughnut.
"So, Quentin," Pearl began neutrally as she found a break in the conversation, "what have you been up to lately? More of your usual menial labor, I suppose.”
‘There she goes,’ Quentin thought. “Menial?” he chuckled. “Really? It may not be ‘saving the world’ but I would hardly call it menial. And it does keep me busy.”
“Oh, I’m sure it does. I mean, you must be quite busy, otherwise why would we hardly ever see you?" she asked sarcastically with an eyebrow raised. “Hiding out in your little cabin, with a bottle of alcoholic liquid I’d bet,” she muttered under her breath.
"That’s enough, Pearl," Quentin spoke firmly. “You know, speaking of why we hardly see one another, I could probably ask you the same question,” he shot Pearl a disdainful look as the rest watched in silence, feeling the tension in the air suddenly increase.
"Excuse me?"
"Oh, come on, Pearl. Yes, I admit, I’m hermit and I value my privacy. I don’t enjoy social gatherings as much as others do, and I don’t always make time for others. But what about you, Pearl?”
He took a sip of his soda before continuing.
"Statistically speaking, it doesn't make much sense, now does it? I mean honestly, I’ve been living in this town for over thirteen years and, sure, I may not have befriended every single Beach City resident like a social butterfly, but you? You’ve been in Beach City for how long? And tell me, in that time, how many friends have you made? Been too busy with your own menial tasks, eh? No free time for socializing, whatsoever? Tell me, of all the people living here, how many of their names have you even bothered to learn? The only explanation that I can think of is that you're even more of a recluse than me. Either that or you're hiding something. Or, perhaps, hiding from something…"
"N-Now wait just a second!" Pearl started to stammer out a response.
"Oh, save it, Pearl" Quentin cut short her reply. "I don't actually care.”
Pearl stared at him in shock.
"I mean, what you do with your life is none of my business, now is it?" he said coldly before finishing off his soda.
"Alright," Quentin said, getting up off his seat. "Not that this hasn't been tons of fun, but I should really get going."
"Aw, already?" Steven asked, disappointed.
"Sorry, kid," Quentin said, patting him on the shoulder. "I’ve got lots of work to do back home." He grabbed a couple of sandwiches for the road before making his way back to the exit. "Been nice seeing you all again. If you have any other jobs to be done, give me a call."
"Oh, and Steven?" he said while putting on his jacket. "You take care, alright?"
He gave a small wave and smile before walking out the door, casting one last glance at Rose’s portrait as he left. As soon as he was out of earshot, Steven turned to the Gems.
"So…"
Suddenly all eyes were on Pearl, who was still looking shocked as he stared at the door where Quentin had just left through. “Nice, Pearl. Real nice,” Greg chided her, with his arms crossed over his chest.
“Yeah, Real smooth, Pearl,” Amethyst said sarcastically.
“What? What did I do?” Pearl asked indignantly, trying her best not to show her embarrassment.
Amethyst glared at her before turning and walking away towards the door to the temple. The door opened to her room and, as she stepped through, she turned back to Pearl and shouted, “I told you; you seriously need to lay off him!” The door shut, leaving Greg, Steven, Pearl, and Garnet standing in the kitchen.
Pearl rolled her eyes and crossed her arms defensively. “Oh, what does she know anyway,” she muttered to herself.
"Pearl?” Steven asked sadly, “Why don’t you like Quentin?”
“What? Oh, Steven, no,” Pearl said placing a hand on his shoulder, “it’s not that I don’t like him. It’s just that I… I just don't think he's a good role model for you, Steven, that's all."
"Okay…" Steven turned to Garnet. "And what do you think, Garnet?"
"I see no reason to dislike him. But there is something I am unsure about."
Pearl perked up. If she could get Garnet on her side, maybe she'd be able to keep him away. "Oh? And what's that?"
"I am not certain. He is a complicated person. There are times when I don’t fully know what to make of him. He keeps pushing people away, and yet I have seen him go out of his way to help people. He has established himself as a fixture in the community, yet at the same time he isolates himself and hides away. I sense there is much he does not say…"
"You mean you think he was hiding something?" Pearl asked smugly. "I thought so."
"That’s not what I said, Peral,” Garnet corrected Pearl, a slight annoyed edge in her tone.
“Hey, Steven,” Greg whispers, “things seem to be getting a little tense. Why don’t you and I go take a walk while they sort things out?” With a silent nod, Steven sadly agrees and follows his father outside, leaving Garnet and Pearl alone.
“I can sense that Quentin is a good person,” Garnet continued. “All the years he was there for us, looking after Steven when we couldn’t, without ever asking anything in return. I trust him. Greg and Amethyst trust him. Why don’t you?”
“Because, how can I?! We hardly know anything about him, Garnet! He is keeping something from us! How can I trust someone with Steven if I know that he’s keeping things from me! But the things that I do know about him? He’s anti-social, abuses alcohol, and is rude and uncivilized. Amethyst is bad enough, but him? Can you honestly say that he’s the kind of person you want around an impressionable young boy like Steven?”
Garnet crossed her arms as she calmly answered Pearl’s question, “I never said he was perfect, Pearl. He has his flaws; everyone does. He may be anti-social but, as he pointed out, so are you to an extent. And yes, he may be a drinker and have an abrasive temperament, but the way he carries himself when he’s with us; never letting Steven see that side of him, always treating him with support and kindness, more than proves to me that he is a good man and a positive influence on Steven."
Garnet put her hands on her hips as she continued, "And as for him keeping things from us, so what if he is? We all have our secrets, Pearl. And if he has something personal that he wants to keep to himself, then he has every right to do so. It should be his decision to share it with us or not, not yours. And if you ask me, you owe him an apology.”
With that, Garnet walked over to the temple door and entered her room, leaving Pearl standing alone in the kitchen. Pearl crossed her arms and frowned as she looked around at the mess left from lunch. Letting out a soft sigh, she began cleaning up. As she cleaned, she reflected on what Garnet had said. She knew that she had a point; Quentin was always there for Steven when he needed him, and he always made an effort to be his best self whenever he was with him. “Perhaps, I have been unnecessarily hard on him,” she thought out loud.
She sighed in defeat. She knew that Garnet was right. Despite Quentin’s many flaws, he clearly cared for Steven a great deal. Steven liked him; and although she didn't, she could try to make an effort. Perhaps, Steven could invite him over to the house again. As much as the idea of spending more time with him was unpleasant to her, if it made Steven happy, she knew that she could deal with it for Steven’s sake.
Chapter 7: Introspection
Chapter Text
Quentin was a man of routine. When something out of the ordinary happened, he was quick to notice. For over thirteen years he had lived Beach City and, in that time, he saw a lot that fit that description. Such as Amethyst's habit of cutting the dumpster behind the Big Donut in half with her whip, for example. In fact, the vast bulk of the strange things he witnessed was associated with Steven and the Gems.
Some people were weirded out by them and their activities, but Quentin did his best not to let them get to him. He just focused on his routine and his jobs and kept himself busy. On this particular day, Quentin’s job was helping Greg to do a little maintenance work at the car wash. Partway through the job however, Steven came by and Quentin noticed that he was looking a little upset.
"Hey there Shtu-ball," Greg said when he saw Steven walking up to them. "Why do you look so down? What's up?"
"Oh, it's nothing," Steven said looking at the ground."
"Doesn't look like nothing to me." Quentin walked up to the pair of them carrying a cooler. "So, I'll tell you what. I'm thinking it's time we took a break anyway, Greg. So, what do you say we all have a seat, crack open a couple of these sodas, and talk it out?"
"Sounds like a plan to me," Greg said with a smile. "How about it, Steven?"
Steven looked up to the two adults and smiled.
-------------
The three of them sat, relaxing, in lawn chairs in front of the car wash as they all drank their sodas.
"So, Steven," Greg began, "What's on your mind."
"I've been trying to summon my shield for the past two days," Steven said glumly.
"Ahh, Gem stuff," Greg said with a sigh of relief. "Don't worry so much about that, Steven. You'll get the hang of it eventually."
"But it was so easy the first time! I didn't even realize that I was doing it when it happened; I was barely even trying!" Steven moaned. "But now no matter how hard I try...nothing."
"Hmmm." Quentin hummed. "Steven, what were you doing that first time?"
"What?"
"When you 'summoned your shield,' what were you doing at the time? Describe it to me."
"Oh! Well, I was at home with the Gems. We were all in the kitchen and I sang the Cookie Cat theme song, then I took a bite of a Cookie Cat, and then the next thing I knew the shield was just there in front of me."
Quentin said nothing as he sipped on his soda and waited for Steven to continue.
"At first I thought it was the ice cream, but it wasn't. I even tried repeating it exactly as it was the first time it happened. I made sure the Gems were all there in the same places, I sang the song again, then I took a bite of the ice cream again. But nothing happened. I ate as many Cookie Cats as I could, every last one, and all that happened was me getting sick."
"That's actually pretty clever," Quentin observed.
"It is?"
"Well, yeah; I mean repeating the process part, not eating all the ice cream. It's the scientific method; if you're looking for a specific result that you got before, you replicate the conditions and try again. That's how experiments are tested in a lab. You did exactly that but didn't get the same result, which means you must have missed a variable or two."
"A variable?" Steven asked confused.
"Yeah. There must have been something that happened the first time, that didn't happen the second time; something that you either forgot or didn't notice."
"Huh, like what?"
"Hmmm, I'm not sure. But I think I have an idea; close your eyes."
Greg smiled as he watched the two talk.
"Okay, now I want you to picture in your mind that first time the shield appeared. Picture it clearly; everything you saw, everything you heard, everything you felt. Bring it to the front of your mind. Let it wash over you, until you feel as if you are actually there in the moment."
"Okay."
"Right, now take me through it step by step."
"I'm in the kitchen with the Gems. I just found a lot of Cookie Cats in the freezer. The Gems found out that they were going to stop making them, and so they went out and got a bunch of them for me because they knew they were my favorite. I sang the Cookie Cat theme song, then I took a bite."
"Stop." Quentin thought he saw a faint glimmer of light through Steven's shirt. "Right then, in that precise moment; what did you feel?"
"I felt happy."
"Take that feeling and hold on to it. Let it sit in your chest. Describe it to me in more detail."
"I felt warm and safe; like everything was going to be alright."
Suddenly the glimmer in Steven's shirt got brighter.
"Steven, look!" Greg gasped. Steven looked down at his torso. His gem was glowing brightly.
"My gem! It's working!" The glow, however, did not last as it soon went dark once again. "Wait, no! Oh, come on, I almost had it."
"It's alright, Steven" Greg said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You'll get it."
"He's right, Steven." Quentin got out of his chair and kneeled next to him. "I'm not going to pretend to understand the Gems or how their magic works because I don't, but it seems to me that your 'power' is connected to your emotions."
Quentin placed a hand on Steven's other shoulder as he spoke.
"Focus on that emotion. Understand what it is and what it stands for. Think of what it means to you and, before you know it, I'm confident you'll have it mastered."
Quentin was completely unprepared for what would follow. Steven rose up out of his chair and wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug.
"Thank you, Quentin!"
Quentin froze, his arms stretched out in front of him unsure of what to do. He looked over Steven's head to Greg, who seemed to be busy trying not to cry.
Uh... don't mention it, kid" Quentin stiffly returned the hug, gently patting Steven on the back. "So, I suppose you'll want to head home now. I'm sure the others will want to hear about this."
"Oh, right!" Steven gasped. He quickly rushed to give his dad a hug and then began running down the road. "I have to go show them right away! Oh, they're going to be so excited!"
Steven ran off laughing and cheering until Greg and Quentin could no longer hear nor see him.
"That was pretty good," Greg said finishing his soda.
"Yeah, I suppose it was."
"So, we should probably get back to work now, huh?" Greg said finishing the last of his soda and setting the empty can aside.
"Probably," Quentin said, returning to his chair. "But I think we could afford to wait a few more minutes."
Quentin took two more sodas out of the cooler and handed one of them to Greg, who happily accepted.
The two drank their sodas, watching as the sun began to sink lower in the sky. Greg noticed the beginnings of a faint smile starting to form on Quentin's face, something that he hardly ever saw in all the years that he had known him. Not wanting to spoil the moment, he said nothing and simply enjoyed the peacefulness of the silence.
-------------
“Guys! Guys!” Steven called out as he burst through the front door.
“Steven!?” Pearl panicked as he rushed over to him, Garnet and Amethyst quickly joining them, equally concerned. “What is it? Has something happened?”
“My shield. I almost summoned it! Watch!” he shouted excitedly before going quiet and closing his eyes, looking very calm and serious. In a matter of moments, his gem started to glow brightly. The glow lasted for a few moments before once again going dark. “I could almost feel it that time. I think I’ve almost got the hang of it!”
"Steven," Pearl said in astonishment, "how did you manage this so quickly? Just yesterday you were barely making any progress at all, and now you've nearly got your shield coming out at will. I always knew you'd figure it out, but I never imagined you'd reach it so soon."
"Quentin helped me do it."
The three gems were practically shocked into silence. Pearl wasn't entirely sure she heard him correctly.
"What?"
“I went to go see dad at the car wash and Quentin was there, helping him out. I talked to them about everything that had been going on, and Quentin told me to visualize the first the time my shield appeared. He told me to focus on everything that I remembered. It was how I felt at the time, that made the shield come out.”
"Man, if only he were here the first time," Amethyst said putting an arm around Steven. "You probably would have been able to do it perfectly by now."
"Yes, he has been of great help to Steven," Garnet agreed. "Wouldn’t you agree, Pearl."
"Yes, I suppose he was," Pearl said flatly. "Now if you'll excuse me, there is something I must attend to in my room." Pearl excused herself and quickly departed and went to her room. She needed to be alone for a moment to collect herself. She didn't know what to think.
She should be happy. Steven was on his way to gaining more control over his gem powers, and she was proud of him for that. But the fact that Quentin was the one responsible for his latest breakthrough left her feeling slighted. All the time and work that they had put in to help Steven, and then that, uncivilized, boor of a human just waltzes in out of nowhere and practically solves everything for Steven overnight.
“How could he have succeeded where we… where I failed? Could it be that he’s a better teacher than me?”
Pearl’s hands clenched at her sides. The very idea that a mere human, let alone a backwoods, alcoholic, odd job man like Quentin could do a better job than her at preparing Steven for his future as a Crystal Gem was ridiculous.
“It’s laughable. It surely was a fluke,” she reasoned to herself as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Quentin doesn’t know the first thing about Gems or Gem powers. But still, he did manage to help Steven. So, I suppose, I should be thankful,” she sighed. “Maybe we should invite him for lunch again, to show our appreciation.”
She, of course, didn’t really want to invite him, but after their last encounter the others had been on her to make peace with him for Steven’s sake.
“I’ll do it for Steven.”
Chapter 8: Cheeseburger Backpack
Chapter Text
When Steven was younger, Quentin came to the temple fairly frequently to aid the Gems in watching over him when everyone else was too busy. Despite Pearl’s many protests, he had proven to be a very reliable babysitter. But, over the years as Steven grew older, Quentin’s visits to the temple became less and less necessary, and as a result became much less frequent, much to Pearl’s relief. So, it was surprising for him to be invited back so soon after his last visit. It was even more of a surprise for the invitation to come from Pearl herself.
While Steven sat outside enjoying the sunshine, and Garnet and Amethyst were busy preparing for their next mission, Quentin and Pearl stood in the kitchen and talked. Quentin sipped on his coffee that Pearl had made for him. Despite the misgivings they had with one another, he had to admit that she made some pretty good coffee. He quietly observed her as she looked back at him uncomfortably.
“Alright then, Pearl,” he said as he set his empty mug on the counter, “talk; why am I here?”
Pearl sighed tiredly, “It’s about Steven.”
“What? What about Steven?” Quentin asked, his face flashing with concern.
“Oh, no! No, there’s nothing wrong with Steven,” Pearl rushed to explain. “What I meant was… look, Quentin, it’s no secret that you and I don’t exactly see eye to eye.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” Quentin chuckled dryly.
“Yes… I suppose it is. But Steven likes you. He looks up to you. And as much as I disapprove of you as a role model for him, I must admit that you have always been there when he needed you. And I suppose I should be grateful for that,” she said crossing her arms and casting her gaze down to the floor. “And…” she continued anxiously, “the others were rather upset with me about how I acted during our last encounter. And they were right; what I said was out of line, and I… I’m sorry.”
“Wow, you apologizing to me? Never thought I’d ever see the day,” he smirked. “Listen, Pearl, you won’t get any arguments from me on the topic of role models. I know, I’m no role model. I am far from perfect. In fact, I’d say I am probably as far away from being an ideal role model as I can be; especially compared to all of you. But know this; if he ever needs me for any reason, all any of you have to do is say so and I will be there. Whatever issues we may have with one another are irrelevant. No matter what, Steven comes first.”
“That’s probably the first thing that we’ve ever agreed on,” Pearl chuckled softly. “Umm, would you like another cup of coffee?”
“That would be nice, Pearl. Thank you.”
Garnet, with a look of approval on her face, walked over to the two of them. “We are nearly ready. Is everything all good here?”
“Yes, Garnet,” Pearl said as she refilled Quentin’s coffee cup, “everything is just fine.”
“Yeah, we’re all copacetic here,” Quentin agreed as he brought the steaming mug up to his mouth.
“Good,” Garnet said as she placed a hand on Quentin’s shoulder. “Now, while you’re here, would you mind doing us a favor?”
Quentin took a sip of his coffee before glancing up at Garnet, “Well, I suppose that depends on the favor,” he said with a small smile, “What do you need?”
Garnet smiled back as she took her hand off his shoulder, “We will need to head out on a mission in a few moments. And while I know that Steven does not actually require a babysitter anymore, would you mind staying with him and keeping him company while we are gone?”
“Garnet, I would be delighted. Besides, I didn’t exactly have too much else planned for today anyway.”
Pearl while not overly thrilled with the suggestion, said nothing of it as she excused herself to join Amethyst on the warp pad.
“Thank you, Quentin. We shouldn’t be gone for too long,” Garnet said before walking away to join the others.
Quentin, sipped on his coffee and watched as the three of them stood on the warp pad. Amethyst and Garnet waved to him while Pearl just stared at him uncomfortably before suddenly shifting her gaze to the floor, until the light of the warp pad consumed them and obscured them from view as they warped away. Now left alone in the house, Quentin, took another sip of his coffee before heading out to the front porch to see what Steven was up to.
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The Gems had been gone for about two hours. After a couple of rounds of Go Fish to help pass the time, Steven excused himself to go wait for the mail. Quentin stood on the porch and watched as Steven sat on a rock singing a song.
“Hey Mr. Postman, bring me a post, bring me the post that I love the most.” Steven stopped singing as he saw Jamie the mailman approach. “Huh? My song came true!” Steven gasped in excitement. “Do you have a package for me today?!”
“Hold on,” Jamie said as he opened his mailbag. “Let me see what I’ve got here.” Jamie took out a peculiarly shaped package. “Did you order a loaf of bread with a stamp on it?”
“No.”
Jamie pulls out an envelope, “Did you order a jury summon for R.J. Finkle?”
“That’s not me, I’m Steven.”
“Oh, right, right, right, Steven!” he said as he pulled out a large parcel. “Here it is, Steven Universe.”
“Ha!” Steven cheered ecstatically. “This thing is going to help me save the world.”
“Really? It says it’s from the Wacky Sacks Supply Company.”
“Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl think I shouldn’t go on magic adventures because I haven’t figured out how to use my Gem powers yet.”
Jamie looked at him with a confused smile, “… That seems reasonable.”
“But there are other ways I can help.”
“With a Wacky Sack?”
“Exactly!” Steven cheered.
“Do you know how you can save my world?” Jamie asked as he took out a signature pad. “Sign here please.”
“Aah!” Steven let out an excited scream as he signed his name, drawing stars over it.
“Barb yells at me if I don’t get signatures.”
Quentin having been silently watching the exchange between Steven and Jamie with a smile, frowned slightly at the mention of Barbara. It had been some time, since he had seen Sadie’s mother.
“That’s awful,” Steven said concerned. Suddenly Steven’s house started glowing from the inside. “Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are Back!” Steven called out excitedly as he grabbed the box and ran up the stairs to the house.
“Wait, Steven! What is a Wacky Sack?!”
But Steven didn’t hear him as he ran right past Quentin and into the house.
“Hey there, Jamie!” Quentin called down to him.
“Wha… Oh! Quentin! Hey! I didn’t expect to see you here. I’ve got a package for you too!”
“A package for me? Oh, right! The part I ordered for Yellowtail’s radio. Wonderful!”
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“Huh?” As Steven entered the house he was greeted by a strange sight; Garnet covered in feathers.
“Hello Steven.”
“Amethyst!” Pearl yelled at Amethyst who was carrying a giant egg, “We do not need that! It’s not going to fit in the fridge!”
“Wow, that is one big egg…” Quentin said as he walked into the room behind Steven.
“What? I got this,” Amethyst said as she slowly slid a tray out of the fridge, spilling a carton of milk and dropping a bag of bagels before putting the egg inside. “Look, it fits! Ha!” She slammed the fridge door. “Oh man, we can make a big omelet, or a quiche, or big sunny side ups! Ooh! Quentin can make his fried egg sandwiches!”
Unamused, Pearl turns to Steven, “We fought a giant bird. We’re only here for a second, we’ve got to go back out.”
“What? Why?”
Pearl held up a statue of a feminine figure with long, venice-blue hair holding a diamond, “We have to place this Moon Goddess Statue on the top of the Lunar Sea Spire before midnight. Without it, the whole place will fall apart! Oh, Steven, you should have seen the spire in its heyday,” she projected a hologram of the Sea Spire from her Gem. “It was an oasis for Gems on Earth. Its abandoned now, but we can still save it with this statue!”
Stevens eyes light up, “Wha? That’s perfect!”
“What? Why?”
“Because I can help carry it for you, in this!” Steven opens the package, and while making some dramatic sound effects, pulled out a burger-shaped bag.”
“Is that a cheeseburger backpack?” Quentin deadpanned with a small smirk
“Exactly! It’s a novelty backpack, shaped like a cheeseburger! Aww, I blew it,” he said as he put the bag on one shoulder, “I was just going to wear it one day, and you guys would be like, ‘Dang, Steven, that’s so cool.’ But this is obviously important Gem business.”
“Yes,” Pearl agreed, “so you should let us handle it.”
“What? I’m a Gem!” Steven lifted up his shirt and pointed at his gemstone.
“But you still have a lot to learn.”
“So,” Amethyst butted in, “let him come! It’ll be educational.”
“You know, Pearl,” Quentin spoke up, “in my experience the best learning experiences are usually hands-on. Perhaps it could be beneficial for him to see how you do things out in the field.”
Pearl pondered Quentin’s words for a moment. Despite their differences, she had to admit that he had a point. “Hmm, alright. You can carry it in your hamburger,” she said as she handed Steven the statue.
“Hmm! Check this out!” Steven called out as he opened the bag. “Everything’s a pocket! Even the cheese is a pocket! I could fit a lot more stuff in here. Give me a minute! I’ll pack extra supplies.”
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“Steeeveeen! Let's gooo!” Pearl called out.
“Coming!” Steven called back as he walked down the steps and made his way to the warp pad.
“Whoa!” Pearl exclaimed. “Did you bring your whole room?”
“Back that ‘thang’ up,” Amethyst said jokingly.
“Let’s Warp.” Garnet said, getting everyone back on task.
Suddenly the blue light beams up from the warp pad, but Steven’s stomach blocks part of it.
“Suck it in, Steven!” Amethyst warned, prompting Steven to inhale and pull his stomach in.
“Good luck, Steven!” Quentin called out as they warped away.
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Steven’s first official mission had gone fairly well at first. The things he had packed in the cheeseburger backpack had proven to be surprisingly useful. He used a pair of sweaters as a rope swing to cross over a giant whirlpool. He later used a couple of bagel sandwiches to distract a swarm of crystal shrimp. But Steven’s third and fourth plans, did not work out quite as successfully. To try and cross rushing stream of water, he had produced an inflatable raft from the bag, something that Pearl had praised as being very practical, but the current of the water proved to be too strong and the raft was washed away, prompting Garnet to make a makeshift bridge from a broken pillar instead.
It wasn’t until they reached the top of the spire that things went wrong truly wrong. Upon arriving at the Moon Goddess pedestal, Steven reached into the backpack and discovered, in horror, that he didn’t have the statue. He realized that in his haste to pack extra items in the bag, he accidentally left the statue back at home.
With time running out, Steven pulled one more item out of the backpack; his Mr. Queasy doll. In a last-ditch effort to save the Spire, he walked up to the pedestal and set the doll down in place of the statue. A ray of light beamed from the pedestal towards the moon, the doll levitating off the pedestal by the beam where it began to shake violently before exploding. Soon after, the ground beneath their feet began to shake as cracks started to form on the roof.
“No, no, no, no, no!” Steven shouted, distraught at the sight of the destruction. The Spire began to crumble and fall apart. The entire structure collapsed into the water below until all that was left was Steven and the Gems floating out in the middle of the ocean where the Spire once stood.
“This is all my fault! I broke it,” Steven lamented.
“No, Steven,” Pearl consoled him, “the Spire was falling apart when we got here. You handled everything well under pressure. You did great!”
“Yeah, Amethyst agreed, “two out of four of your ideas worked. That’s fifty percent.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Steven conceded, “They can’t all be winners.”
Suddenly the inflatable raft that Steven had lost earlier floats up to the surface to the amazement of the Gems.
“Wooo!” Steven cheered as he and the Gems climbed onto the raft.
“It’s a three-hour paddle home,” Garnet said staring off in the distance towards home.
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It was three in the morning by the time Steven and the Gems had arrived back at the temple. Steven had already fallen asleep long before the shore had come into view. The sound of the water splashing against the raft, and the feeling of the sea breeze had easily soothed him to a peaceful slumber. Once they had finally reached the beach, Garnet had silently scooped-up Steven in her arms and carried him up the steps to the house, and up to his bed.
“Aww man, looks like Quentin went home,” Amethyst pouted as she entered the house and saw that Quentin wasn’t there, “I was hoping we’d have a chance to hang out after we got back.”
“Well, it’s to be expected that he would have left by now,” Reasoned Pearl, “it is rather late after all. And besides, I have more important things to do than ‘hanging out’ Amethyst.”
“Really? Like what?”
“Like cleaning the mess you made in the kitchen,” Pearl said, with her hands on her hips as she frowned at Amethyst.
“Oh, come on, P. It wasn’t that bad. It can wait until morning,” she said just as Garnet came back down the stairs from Steven’s room.
Pearl rolled her eyes, “It is morning, Amethyst,” she glared at Amethyst. It seemed that once again she was the one who would have to take the initiative. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a mess to clean. Steven will be awake in just a few hours, and I’d prefer that he wakes up to a clean house.” Pearl walked over to the kitchen to start cleaning, but froze when she saw that the kitchen had already been cleaned. The floor was spotless and everything had been put away.
“What?”
“Whoa…” Amethyst, looked at the spotless kitchen, “You finished cleaning already?”
“I didn’t do this,” Pearl said in confusion
“There’s a note,” Garnet said pointing to a piece of paper on the counter.
Pearl picked up the paper and read the note.
Sorry, I couldn’t be there when you guys got back. Had some work to do at home. Saw that Steven forgot the statue while I was cleaning up. Hope things didn’t go too badly. You all can fill me in on the details the next time we meet up. P.S. If things didn’t go great, I hope Steven isn’t taking it too hard. If he needs someone to talk to, you know where to find me.
“So, Quentin cleaned the kitchen?” Pearl thought out loud as she put the note back down on the counter. “He didn’t have to do that…”
Amethyst chuckled, “Seriously? That’s all you got from that? He’s also looking out for Steven. You see, Pearl? I told you he was a good guy.” Amethyst smiled smugly as she walked off to her room, leaving Pearl and Garnet alone in the kitchen.
“You know, she’s right” Garnet said, starting off towards the door to her own room.
“Maybe…”
“You are still uncertain…” Garnet stopped and looked back at her.
“How can I be certain? Sure, he may care about Steven, but that isn’t good enough for me. There’s something about him, something that I can’t explain, something that just doesn’t sit right with me. Steven is all that we have left of Rose, Garnet. How can I entrust Steven’s well-being to someone that I hardly know anything about? How can I be certain that, if the worst were to happen, I could count on him to defend Steven’s life? How can I trust him, when every instinct I have is screaming at me that he’s hiding something from us?”
Pearl crosses her arms in frustration. “I mean really, you know what he’s like. He does everything he can to shut himself away from the rest of the world. It’s clear that he’d rather be left alone and destroy himself with alcohol, and yet for some reason Steven seems to be the most important person in his life. The one person he makes an actual effort for. Why?”
“You could try asking him.”
“You know how uncomfortable I am with talking to him. Can’t you just use your future vision, and tell me?”
“You know it doesn’t work like that. The less I know about a person or thing, the more limited my vision is. I need to at least have a general idea of what to look for otherwise there are far too many possibilities to sift through. What little I do know about him, however, allows me to see that he is a good and kind person who would never intentionally bring harm to Steven, and that is good enough for me. If you need more, then I believe talking to him is your only option.” And with that, Garnet stepped through the door to her room.
Alone, Pearl sighed as she gazed up to Steven’s room where he slept soundly, blissfully lost in the world of dreams. Silently, Pearl crept up the stairs and sat down on the floor as she watched him sleep.
‘Rose,’ she thought, ‘I wish you were here. You were always so much better at these sorts of things than me.’
Chapter 9: Punching Bags and Floriculture
Chapter Text
Darkness consumed Quentin’s senses. He didn’t know where he was, nor could he remember where he had been going. The first thing that he noticed was the smell; the unmistakable aroma of burning rubber. When he finally opened his eyes, his vision was blurry and unfocused. It wasn’t until he tried to move that he realized that something was truly wrong.
Everything hurt; there was a searing pain in the left side of his chest, a sharp pain, perhaps a fracture, in his left forearm, and a deep throbbing in his head. Gradually, as his eyes adapted to the light, his vision began to clear up enough for him to see that he was buckled into the driver’s side of an overturned car. He could see the pavement where the sky should be through the cracked windshield. To his left he could see the driver’s side window had been shattered, bits of the tempered glass littered the ceiling below his head.
He glanced to the rear view mirror, which despite everything was still intact, seeing his own clean-shaven reflection starring back at him, battered and bruised. He had a black eye and a few cuts and scrapes, with a few spots of dried blood here and there. He closed his eyes as the memories started to come back to him. It was then that he noticed the sound or, rather, the lack of it.
Everything was quiet, almost eerily silent. The only noises Quentin could hear were the sound of his own shallow breathing, and a dull rumbling noise off in the distance. He felt a sickening wave of dread as he fumbled his good hand to undo the buckle of his seat belt.
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Quentin awoke abruptly, sitting bolt upright on the couch, his breathing rapid and shallow, as he frantically looked around the room. Once satisfied that he was safe and sound in his home, he swung his legs off the couch and moved into a seated position. He curled his toes against the fibers of the rug beneath his feet, attempting to ground himself, as he breathed deeply. He noticed the half-empty bottle of whiskey sitting on the coffee table, quickly grabbed it, and took a swig.
Whir-click
Chime-chime-chime-chime
He glanced up at the clock on the mantel.
"Four o’clock in the morning," He sighed to himself. He knew that there would be no point in trying to go back to sleep now, not after all that.
“Time to get up, I guess,” Quentin said to himself as he threw his blanket over the back of the couch as he got up. He glanced up at the empty frame on the wall above the fireplace, staring at it for a moment, before making his way to the kitchen to make his morning coffee.
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The vivid imagery of the dream still stuck with Quentin, just like it did every time he had that dream. He could still see his beaten and bloodied face in the mirror, clear as day. He could swear he could still smell the scent of burning rubber and smoke, and still hear that deep, distant rumbling, like an oncoming storm that echoed non-stop in his head. But that wasn’t the worst of it; he could still feel everything. He remembered the pain, fear, and the deep sense of dread that he felt.
Thwack
He poured all his might into his gloved hands as he vented his frustrations into his punching bag in his home gym, visualizing the ghosts of his past.
Thwack
Thwack
Thwack
He took a shuddering breath as he stepped back from the bag and removed his gloves, tossing them down on the table by the wall. He flopped down into the chair and grabbed his water bottle from the table. He drank deeply, nearly draining the entire bottle down his throat, before pouring the rest over his head, feeling the relief of the ice-cold water against his hot skin.
Taking a deep breath, he grabbed his towel from the table, got out of the chair, and toweled off his wet hair and face as he walked over to the window. He could see that the sun was already starting to rise. He must’ve been at the punching bag for at least an hour.
Quentin turned to face the mirror on the wall, and stared at himself intently. His reflection stood there dressed in his sweatpants, t-shirt, and long hair and beard, but all he could see was the image of his clean-shaven and beaten face from the dream. He absentmindedly poked at the left side of his torso through his shirt, remembering the burning pain he had felt.
You can’t blame yourself
Quentin tensed up, his hands clenching into fists as his arms fell to his sides. Turning his back on his reflection, he stalked out of the room turning out the lights as he passed through the door.
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Thoroughly exhausted from his lack of sleep, and his extensive morning workout session, Quentin made himself another cup of coffee before starting the rest of his day. Still in his sweatpants and t-shirt, he threw on his green windbreaker and stepped out through the back door, coffee in hand. Taking a sip, he sighed in satisfaction as he walked towards his greenhouse, and smiled softly to himself. Other than the seaside, this was the one place where he went to feel at peace.
Entering the greenhouse, Quentin set his mug on the table as he looked around the verdant interior with a feeling of comfort. The greenhouse was full of a variety of flowers of many diverse colors, that he himself had planted; petunias, dahlias, marigolds, and hibiscus, to name a few. A small CD player sat on the main table, which he switched on. With the air filled by the soothing sound of his favorite classical piano music, he walked along the flowers and checked the status of each plant as he passed.
Quentin meticulously checked each and every flower. He made sure that the marigolds were getting enough sunlight, he removed the dead flowers from the petunias and the dahlias to help promote further blooms, and he made sure that all the flowers had good drainage in their pots. He noted that the Hibiscus was in need of watering, and poured an ample amount into the pots from the watering can. To finish, he picked up a spray bottle full of water and gave the rest of the plants a light misting.
With the gardening done for the time being, Quentin took a seat to enjoy the rest of his coffee. For the first time that day, he felt tranquil. Being in his greenhouse like this, after venting his frustrations with his punching bag, never failed to soothe him. Being by himself where he was surrounded by the things that he’d planted and made grow. It was his garden, and there was no one there except him and all the things he made live.
Quentin sighed in contentment as he placed his empty mug down. On the table, sitting back a few inches from the drained mug, stood a trio of framed photographs. The first one brought a smile to his face; a picture of him, Steven, Greg, and the Gems building a sand castle in front of the temple with Amethyst photo-bombing with a silly face. He chuckled to himself when he remembered how seriously Pearl took making the sandcastles symmetrical.
The next picture was of a much younger Quentin with Sadie, when she was a little girl, sitting on his shoulders with a big smile on her face as he walked down the boardwalk on their way to get ice cream. He had often gone out for ice Cream with her and her mother when she was younger. His smile turned slightly sad when he turned to the third picture; Rose and Greg singing together.
vvzzzz-vvzzzz
Quentin’s trip down memory lane was suddenly cut short by the vibrating of his cellphone. Taking it out of his pocket, he could see on the screen that Greg was calling him, and after stopping the music, flipped it open.
“Hey, Greg.”
“Hi, Quentin. Hey, Steven, the Gems, and I are going out for pizza. You feel like coming along?”
Quentin realized that it was nearly lunch time, and he hadn’t had anything other than two cups of coffee and one bottle of water. Food would probably be a pretty good idea right about now.
“Yeah, as a matter of fact, I could go for a slice or two.”
“Great! Steven was hoping to tell you about something that happened earlier today. Something about killer waffles or something… I’m not entirely sure. I didn’t get all the details. I figured he could fill us in over lunch.”
“Sounds like fun,” Quentin chuckled. “I’ll see you there.”
“Right! See you soon!”
After ending the call, Quentin put his phone back in his pocket and laughed softly to himself, “Killer waffles, eh? Well, that’s a new one…”
Mister_Rat on Chapter 8 Sat 28 Jun 2025 03:06PM UTC
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