Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Pearl sat on the hospital chair as she hears the heart monitor beep every second. She looks to her girlfriend who is laying peacefully on the hospital bed. The sunshine that’s usually on her eyes is now unseen as her lips became dry and her face has gone pale. 

She gently holds Gem’s hands as she caresses them gently. The coldness of her hands makes Pearl shiver. She misses Gem’s constant warmth. She continuously seeks for it everyday.

She feels her girlfriend’s hand shift slightly as Gem starts to wake up. Pearl squeezes her hand and anxiously sits upright, waiting for Gem to become fully conscious. Gem seems to start rapidly blinking, adjusting to the blinding hospital light. She finally fully opens her eyes, and looks at Pearl.

“Hello moonbeam.” Gem says with a hoarse voice.

“Hi, sunshine. How was your sleep?” Pearl asks as she looks at her fondly.

Gem coughs. “Mmm, it was okay. How long were you sitting there?” 

Pearl didn’t want Gem to worry, but she still can’t lie to her either way. So, she tells the truth. “Pretty much all day. Needed to keep watch, y’know?” Pearl lightly nudges.

Gem furrows her eyebrows. Pearl gulped as she knew what her girlfriend was going to say. “Have you eaten, Pearl?” 

Pearl scratches her neck sheepishly. “No, but it can wait.”

Gem sighs. “Pearl, you need to ea-”

“ No. I have all time in the world to eat anytime I want, but I only have so little time for you. Gem, I don’t wanna lose you, not yet.” Pearl says in one breath. Her tears were starting to form, and she desperately tried to keep it in. It all gushes out in a choked sob.

Gem holds her chin, hinting to come closer. Her tears start to form too. “Pearl, I don’t think I’ll be here for longer. I’m sorry. I know it sounds bad, but I feel it.” Gem sobs, catching a breath before speaking again. “I don’t know how long I’ll be here Pearl, but I don’t want you to suffer like I’m doing now.

Pearl sobs. “Gem, no, you’re not making me suffer at all! Just— please, stay strong for me, yeah?”

“I’m sorry Pearl. I can’t do this for much longer.” Gem whispers. It broke Pearl’s heart when she said that. Gem was brave , and strong , but now she just felt so.. defeated.  

“Not even for me?”

“Pearlie, I am willing to do everything for you. But, I can’t do anything when I’m stuck like this. You deserve better.” Gem mutters as she presses her lips at Pearl’s forehead.

“I don’t care what I deserve, I want you, Gem! I— I need you, love, please. ” Pearl sobs erratically.

Gem was silent for a moment. She knew how many times Pearl would beg for her to live, it would still be impossible. Not even for the love of her life.

Gem lets out a breath. “Pearl, promise me when I die you won’t do anything stupid, or bad—”

Pearl laughs bittersweetly, as she already knows it's impossible. “I don’t really think that would be possible Gem, with me being me.”

Gem laughs as well, and Pearl takes every noise of it and memorizes it to her heart. She refuses to forget that sweet laugh ever. “Not that type of stupid Pearl. You’re too silly for that to be possible, I know that. Just please , don’t let my death affect your life. You have so much left in your life, and I’m afraid that I’ll only be a fragment of it.”

Pearl wants to beg more, to not let her die. But, she knew it would not do anything. When Gem is set for something, she never lets it go. Pearl supposes it goes for this situation too. Pearl sobs even more as she realizes Gem, her Gem, was actually going to die. And  there was nothing she could do about it.

Pearl kisses her temple and whispers, “You will always be my everything, no matter what, Gem. Remember that, will you?” 

Gem tries to giggle, but it only comes out as a cough as she presses her lips to Pearl, savoring it for most likely the last time. “Always, my love.”

“I promise to go on with my life, as long as you follow me through it all in any way.” Pearl says sternly as she holds both of Gem’s hands.

“ I promise.” 

Pearl smiles at her lover, taking all of it in. "I love you, my sunshine.”

“I love you, my moon.”

They shared their last moments with each other by muttering every assurance for each other as much as they could. Pearl lays beside Gem on the hospital bed as Gem tries to soothe her by rubbing her girlfriend’s back.

As their words slowly come to a halt, Gem closes her eyes for the last time as her time finally ends. After an hour, the heart monitor starts to beep endlessly, signaling she’s gone. Pearl hugs her tight, kissing her forehead deeply. She calls for help as the nurses flood in the room.

_________________________

After the burial, everyone has gone except for Pearl. She just stays there, sitting by her grave. Staring blankly as the gusts of wind hit her hair, she looks at the tomb filled with heaps of flowers from her loved ones. Her makeup is smudged by the sheer amount of tears she let out the whole day.

Pearl sniffles, wiping her sweat from the sheer amount of heat. “Gem, you’ll always be here, in my heart. You are and always will be my everything. I love you, my sweet Gem.”

She stands up, dusting off the dirt from her dress, as she leaves out the vase of sunflowers just like it always was by their kitchen counter. It faced the sun just like it always did by their window at their shared apartment.

The sun seemed to shine brighter than it ever was today.

Chapter Text

Pearl quickly strolls towards the bookshop, coffee in hand. She reaches for the keys in her bag as she hastily opens the lock. She turns the sign at the door to ‘Open’ and puts down her coffee by the counter. 

She opens her phone to see messages from Grian, her brother, as she takes a quick sip of coffee before reading it.

___

pesky bird

7:38 AM

Grian: pearl is it alright if you take care of the shop just for today?

Pearl: Yeah sure, did something happen?

Grian: going on a date with scar 

Pearl: Today’s probably going to be less busy, so I’ll do fine :3

Grian: thanks pearl i owe you one

Pearl: Yep yep I know!! Tell Scar I said hi

Grian: will do o7

___

She turns off her phone with a slight smile on her face. She was going to be alone all day. She was going to take this as an advantage by playing her favorite songs on the speaker, as she and Grian frequently fight for which songs to play.

She hums to the song currently playing, which was ‘Something Stupid’ by Frank and Nancy Sinatra. Pearl has always loved this song. She distinctly remembers dancing to it with Gem in the kitchen. It tugs her heart as she once again reminisces of all the memories she’s made with her lover.

///

Pearl is currently making soup in their newfound apartment with her girlfriend, Gem. It was pretty small, but they both made sure this apartment felt like home. And it always did, as Gem was there with her. 

Gem made Pearl feel right at home.

Speaking of Gem, she squeaks when Gem wraps her arms around Pearl’s waist. She chuckles when Gem puts her head on top of Pearl’s shoulder, mumbling a ‘goodmorning’ to the cook.

“Goodmorning, sunbeam. I’m making soup!” Pearl says as she kisses Gem’s cheek fondly. Gem leans into it as she starts being more awake and aware of her surroundings. Although, she could care less of the surroundings when she’s hugging the love of her life right now. 

“Yum. You goin’ to the bookshop today?” Gem asks as she sways her hips on instinct by the song currently playing on the radio.

“Nope, Grian said he’s got it handled. Which meaaans I’m free today! Any plans for toda— Are you dancing right now?”

Gem laughs sweetly as she dances to the music even more dramatically. “What, I love this song! Come on Pearl, I know you wanna dance toooo..”  

Pearl rolls her eyes playfully before holding onto Gem as they both dance to the music. They both loudly sing the words of the song as they both sway around the kitchen. 

The music ends with both of them giggling immensely. “Y’know, we haven’t had a picnic for a while, maybe we could do that?” Gem asks as she looks into Pearl’s eyes rather adorably, her eyes looking like a puppy’s.

Pearl gives into her trap as she kisses Gem on the forehead fondly. “Sure, but soup first. After that, we can get ready for supplies.”

Gem smiles sheepishly at her, as her cheeks are tinted pink. “Do you know how much I love you?”

Pearl chuckles as she answers, “Ofcourse I do! It’s always nice hearing you say it though. And hey, I love you too.”

______

Pearl starts to feel her eyes burning as tears start to well up. She can’t help but miss Gem so, so much. She misses every speck about her lover. It has been 24 years now, and even after Gem’s death, she still has not aged a year. Sure, she had grown eyebags and some wrinkles due to stress, but nonetheless she still looked the same. 

Her family has been blessed, or say cursed, to be immortals until it was time for them to go. Her parents have gone after they served their purpose on this world, leaving her and Grian behind to fend for themselves. To be honest, she barely remembers what her parents looked like, and their voices are slowly being forgotten on the back of her mind. 

Grian was slightly older than her, by only a year or so. They both share the ownership of the bookshop that used to be their parents’. They were both used to being stuck with each other now, while all of their loved ones are passing away. Frankly, there was no other sibling she would choose to have other than Grian. They truly have a special bond that no one could break.

She has been in this world for 52 years, with Grian being 53. Their family was famous in this town because of their ‘immortality’ . She could hardly call it immortality and more like them just living for as much as they are needed for in this world. After that, they will only be nothing. 

During the time Pearl spent in this world, and particularly this town, she has noticed reincarnation happening right in front of her eyes. Scar, Grian’s boyfriend, has actually passed away before. Grian was devastated. After Scar was brought by fate to Grian, they have been together since. Although Scar has forgotten all of his memories in his past life, the mutual love between him and Pearl’s brother is timeless. No matter how many times Grian will see Scar pass away, destiny always seemed to bring them back together. She believes it’s because they are soulmates.

And they most definitely are.

Maybe Gem and Pearl are soulmates aswell. Although, destiny has not brought them up together yet again. She hopes to see her lover soon. Because of Grian and Scar, Pearl has gained hope. Maybe she too could reunite with Gem. 

Gem was the only one who she thought was truly meant for her. She was smart, funny, cheerful, and was just so bright. Gem was and still is her sun. She never failed to make Pearl smile. 

During the 7 years of their relationship, there was only one Pearl regretted not to do. 

She regrets to not have proposed to Gem sooner. 

///

Pearl fidgets her hands as she goes inside the jewelry store, and her mind gets overwhelmed by the sheer amount of shiny jewels. She goes in front of the counter to see a familiar face.

“Fwhip?’

Fwhip’s eyes perk up at the sound of Pearl’s voice, raising his eyebrows in surprise. “Pearl? What are you doing here?”

“I uhh— I really need your help.”

Fwhip grows a smile on his face. “Ofcourse Pearl! Anything I could do for you?” 

Pearl sighs in relief, trying to figure out what words she’s going to say. “Is there any way you could help find an engagement ring?” 

Fwhip gasps as he realizes what Pearl just said. Pearl just stood there nervously scratching her neck. “Are you proposing to Gem?!” He squeaks. Pearl makes a ‘shh’ sound trying to calm him down. He realizes how loud his voice was and mouthed ‘sorry’. “Yes, I am, and I’m hoping you could keep it a secret for me?”

“Ofcourse, Pearl. Aww, this so exciting! Are there any designs you’re looking for?”

“Are there rings you’re selling with emerald? It’s Gem’s birthstone!” She asks giddily.

“Hmm, actually I do! Hold on, let me grab it for a sec.” Fwhip happily nods as he looks over to the glass containers, grabbing an emerald ring.

“Here ya go. Think it works for you?” Fwhip asks. Pearl stood there in awe. 

It was perfect.

She never thought she would be able to find a ring deemed perfect enough for Gem, but she was proved wrong. Right in front of her was a silver ring with a shiny emerald gem on the center, and it was absolutely lovely. She felt like she was on the verge of tears. 

“Fwhip. This— this is perfect! Thank you so much mate!” She squeals as she holds the ring with her fingers. “I’m glad I could help.” Fwhip nods. 

After a few minutes of chatting with Fwhip, she was finally done buying the wedding ring. It was inside a black box, and it was absolutely perfect. She decided to have a mini celebration by grabbing coffee at the local cafe. She could buy one for Gem too, she would definitely appreciate that.

She was headed to cross the street when she heard her phone ring. She quickly opens her purse and sees that Grian is calling. Knowing her brother, he doesn’t usually call unless it’s an emergency. The fact worries her so she immediately answers the call frantically.

“Hello? Grian?!”

She could hear some shuffling on the other side of the phone, and— an ambulance?! Grian seems to be panting heavily, as the sirens emit a sound. “Pearl it— it’s Gem.”

“Grian, what is happening?!” She yells, impatient. Was Gem in danger?

“Gem fainted. It hurt her pretty— really bad. We’re heading to the emergency right now, you should come quick.”

“WHAT???” Pearl screamed. A few people stopped to stare at her, but she couldn’t care less. “Send me your location, I’m heading there right now!”

“Alright. Pearl, please be safe.”

Pearl sighs, as she tries to calm herself. She starts running, as her vision starts getting hazy. She composes herself as she takes a deep breath. “I will. Take care of Gem, Grian.”

“Will do.”

________

Pearl starts to feel her heartbeat going fast

as she recalls the day where everything started falling downhill. It feels like a week has just passed since it happened. After that, the world started to get blurry.

She quickly shrugs it off as the door opens revealing her first customer. There were two men, most likely hitting the age of 40’s looking around the bookshop.. seemingly confused. 

“Good morning! Anything I could help with ‘ya today?” Pearl smiled cheerfully.

The shorter guy looked at her as he sighed in relief. “Oh hello, good morning to you aswell! Do you have uh—” He quickly stares at his phone, “—A book called ‘Anne of Green Gables’? We just moved here you see, and we were planning to surprise our sister with a book and she’s recently told us about it.”

Ah, so that’s why she’s never seen them before. Pearl nods as she heads over to the shelves before grabbing the book that they were looking for. She smiles at the cover as she remembers it was one of Gem’s favorite books. “Here it is. Your sister has very good taste. Are you guys adjusting nicely to the town?”

They both nod cheerfully. “This town is amazing! Tons of good people.” The taller guy says. “I’m Skizz by the way, and he’s Impulse. Pleasure to meet you, pal!” Skizz adds as he shakes her hand. “Name’s Pearl, welcome to the town. Why don’t you guys head with me to the counter to get this sorted?” Skizz and Impulse nodded as they walked over towards the counter.

After checking out the book at the counter, she waves her hand as Skizz and Impulse head outside the door, saying their goodbyes. She smiles to the new people she’s met. They seem very lovely. 

The rest of the day was a blur. Only a few people stopped by to look at the books, some were there to take pictures , and a few already knew what book they were getting so they got out fast. Pearl starts to tidy the place up so that she could go ahead and close it.

After she closed the bookshop, she decides to make a quick stop by the bridge near the forest. It was where Gem and Pearl frequently hung out. She thought it would be good for old time’s sake. She’s also been thinking of Gem much more recently, so it seemed fit to take a visit.

She strolls around the path, hearing the water from the river below as she slowly heads over the bridge. It used to be more lively back then, but it was probably because of Gem. She always had a charm that would light the entire room. Right now, the bridge looked.. gloomy. There were a few people around, mostly taking a walk. 

She walks closer towards the bridge when she stopped her tracks. There was a familiar redhead that was standing at the edge of the bridge, looking over the river. Her heart skipped a beat as she looked like her—

“Gem?”

Chapter Text

There she was, in all her glory. The girl that she has been waiting for 24 years is back. She’s finally back. Her beautiful mop of red curls that just fly so majestically in the wind, and her shining green eyes that is full of sweetness and love. Her pretty lips and her—

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Gem asks, slowly taking a step back. “And how do you know my name? ”

Shit. Pearl was so shocked seeing her for so long (and what are the chances even!) that she forgot she doesn’t know her. That it’s not her Gem. Well, not entirely.

Pearl tried her best to make a good first impression, by trying to not look stupid. Keyword: NOT. “Right! Uh— I’m Pearl, nice to meet you.” She tries to initiate shaking hands with her, but all Gem did was look at her while crossing her arms. It would kind of do her a favor since her hands are extremely sweaty right now.

“You didn’t answer my question.” Gem walks towards Pearl with her eyebrows furrowed. “How. Did you. Know. My name?” Gem asks, pointing her finger close to Pearl’s face. Her face turns red. This is certainly not the time to be gushing about Gem right now!

Despite Pearl still furiously blushing hard, she still manages to form a lie. “Well, word travels fast in this town you know, it’s pretty hard not to know when gossip is very prominent here.” She casually says. It wasn’t a lie technically, this town does frequently gossip.

Gem raises her eyebrows, and she starts to turn red aswell. “Oh! Ofcourse. It’s nice to meet you too Pearl. Sorry for freaking out.” Gem scratches her neck in embarrassment.

Pearl laughs it off, relieved that Gem took it as an answer. “It’s okay. How’s your experience in this town right now?”

“Really good. The fields here are absolutely gorgeous! This river is one of a kind.”

Pearl looks at Gem as her eyes sparkle in admiration. Every time she talks is a blessing to Pearl’s ears. She could listen to Gem talk for hours. Her voice is a symphony of beautiful tones. Her eyes. Just. Everything about her makes Pearl so—

“Am I talking too much? Sorry if I do, it’s a habit.” Gem mutters sheepishly, fidgeting with her hands.

Pearl’s eyes widen as she shakes her head hastily. “Nononono you’re fine! It’s actually really nice to hear you talk.” Pearl cringes to herself, as she might’ve said something weird that would creep Gem out. “It’s uhm— soothing in a way..?” Pearl decides she should just zip her mouth.

Gem laughs heartily, and Pearl feels a sense of deja vu hearing that sweet laugh.

_

Pearl is sitting on the couch trying to search for ‘ good puns to tell your girlfriend’ while Gem is sitting on the other side of the couch, reading her book. Gem notices the fast clicking on her keyboard aswell as the focused look on Pearl’s face which makes Gem raise an eyebrow in curiosity.

“You okay?” Gem asks as Pearl looks at her like she’s been caught.

“Mhm! Hey Gem, are you a magnet?”

Gem deadpans at her as she realizes what’s happening. But she can’t refuse the huge grin on Pearl’s face as she waits to tell her pun. She sighs fondly as she gives in. “Why is that, Pearlie?”

Pearl giggles at her laptop before speaking, “Because you sure are attracting me over there! Hmmm? Hm?” Pearl says as she looks for Gem’ reaction.

Gem playfully rolls her eyes as she thinks of one aswell. “Well then you must be a vegetable moonbeam.”

Pearl raises her eyebrow and before she could speak, Gem races her to it. “Because you’re a cute-cumber!” Gem laughs heartily as Pearl pouts while her cheeks are pink.

“Hey, I was supposed to give you the puns! You’re the pun receiver, not the pun initiator!”  Pearl huffs as she crosses her arms. Although, there was a smile creeping in.

“Well, I like to multitask.” Gem answers smugly. They both stare at each other in silence, before laughing hard. Pearl can never forget that sweet laugh, as Gem’s hand clutch her chest as she laughs—

_

“Pearl? You okay?” Gem asks as Pearl zones out. 

Pearl’s eyes widen as she looks at her, coming back to reality. Goodness, she still can’t believe Gem’s here right now. She looks at the face of her past lover as she forces herself to keep her tears from gushing out. “Yeah, I’m fine.” She mumbles. Gem smiles softly at her, and Pearl does the same.

“Hey, where do you live by the way? I would love to visit you sometime, if that’s okay.” Gem asks as the sky slowly turns dark.

“Oh, I live at 51 Hermit Street. I could give you my number if you’d like?”

Gem’s face lightens, and so the whole world is starting to become brighter again. “I would love that. Are we technically.. friends now?” She asks as they both exchange each other’s numbers.

Pearl giggles, “Ofcourse, you silly nugget! Feel free to text me anytime, yeah?”

“Mhm. I gotta go now, it’s starting to get late. See ya, Pearl!” Gem waves as she heads off with Pearl’s number. She waves back as she heads towards her apartment, still in shock of what’s happened.

__

pesky bird

Pearl: Grian what the fuck

Grian: i’m sorry?

Pearl: Gem’s back

Grian: oh shit

Pearl: I KNOW

Grian: you wanna head to my apartment to talk about it?

Pearl: Yes please, heading there right now!!!

Grian: okay be safe

Pearl: ofcourse idiot 

Chapter Text

Pearl practically runs as she heads towards Grian’s apartment, still freaking out about the incident. Before she could knock, the door opened revealing her brother, who looked somewhat worried. She couldn’t blame him as she currently looked like a mess with her frazzled hair and sweat from running so fast.

She looked at him exasperated. “How’d you know I was already here?”

“I saw you from my window. Come in, and tell me everything. ” 

She comes in and jumps on his couch, covering her face on it. She lets out a scream that turned to a choked sob, whilst Grian just stood there chewing on his lip anxiously.

After Pearl finally settled and sat properly on the couch, she let out a sigh. “I saw her at the bridge today.”

Grian raises his eyebrow thinking ‘ which bridge’ before realizing it was their bridge. The bridge that he knew was important to both Pearl and Gem. “You went to the bridge? Why?” He asked as he sat down beside her, peering for her answer.

“I kept.. thinking about her lately. I mean, I always think about her everyday. But not much like this. I thought I wanted to visit the bridge today, for old time’s sake y’know?” 

Grian’s heart tugged as he remembered his first time seeing Scar again after losing him. He saw him as he was going to the flower shop to buy flowers for his grave as he planned on visiting him. He remembered he felt dizzy and almost fainted when he saw him looking over the cacti displayed. He can’t imagine how Pearl would’ve felt seeing Gem.

Pearl fidgets her hands as she asks, “Grian, what if despite me and Gem meeting again, I’m still not her soulmate?”

Grian looked at her dumbfounded. “What do you mean?”

She sighs, burying her face with her hands, “What if it was just a coincidence that me and Gem just met? That there’s no meaning to it at all.”

“Pearl, you know you’re stupid for thinking that, right?” 

“And what if I’m not?”

Grian rolls his eyes, but he puts his arm around Pearl. “There’s really no such thing as coincidence, Pearl. You should know that by now, idiot. The universe put you back together, and you need to accept that.”

Pearl rubs her eyes, not letting her tears fall any longer. “Right, right. I just— I still can’t believe she’s back. Like, proper back here.”

“Yeah, I get that. I experienced that with Scar aswell. It’s normal though, especially if you literally just met her a couple minutes ago.” Grian stands up as he heads towards the kitchen. “Why don’t I make us some tea and we can talk every bit? Talking about it really helps.”

“I’d like that.” 

____

Gem opens the door in her apartment as she sees her two brothers sitting on the couch around many displayed boxes. They’re both heavily focused on the football game playing on their television right now. They both notice Gem and give her a slight wave.

“Hey Gemstone! How was your walk?” Skizz asks cheerfully, still focusing on the football game. 

Gem smiles at them. “It went great! I actually made a friend!” She replies as she sits down the couch with her brothers. 

“Glad to hear that Gem, you’ll have to invite them here sometime.” Impulse says as he extends his arms to pat Gem in the back. 

Gem chuckles, “Well, I should start getting to know her first before inviting her, I think.”

Skizz nods, leaning back on the couch. “Yep, stranger danger and all that. Wait, you did get her name, right?” 

She rolls her eyes affectionately, “Yes Skizz, I’m not stupid. Plus, I asked for her address and I got her number.”

“I’m surprised your new friend didn’t freak out after asking for her personal information in mere seconds after you just met.” Impulse snickered, and Gem looks at him in offense. 

She pushes him with her hand, which made Impulse laugh even more. “Hey, are you insinuating that I’m a creep?! I’ll have you know, I am very good at this making friends thing. And, she gave me her number!”

“Never doubted you, Gem.” Skizz adds.

“ Thank you, Skizz.” She replies, glaring at Impulse. “I think I’m gonna lay down in my bedroom now.” Gem yawns as she stands up to walk towards her bedroom.

Impulse jumps up on the couch which made Gem retort back in their view. “Oh! I allmost forgot, we got you something earlier Gem.” He says as he pulls out a book from one of the boxes.

Gem raises her eyebrow as Impulse hands her the book. “We remembered you talking about wanting to read this book, so we went out and got it for ya!” Impulse says.

She looks at the title her face beams. “Aww, I can’t believe you guys remembered! Thanks, Impy.” She replies as she hugs Impulse in appreciation. 

“Hey! I bought that with him too.” Skizz yells. Gem rolls her eyes before giving him a hug too. “Thank you aswell, Skizz. I really do wanna go lay down, now. I feel tired.”

“Rest for now, Gem. We’ll come to your room once dinner’s done later.” Impulse says as Gem shouts a ‘thanks!’ before heading to her room.

She plops down on her bed as she opens her phone, quickly opening her messages. She decides to send something to her new friend, Pearl. To be honest, she can’t truly believe she got a friend so fast. Her quick conversation with Pearl made her feel something she can’t.. quite describe. It’s an oddly calming yet intriguing feeling, and Gem can’t help but feel curious as to why. There’s just something about her new friend.

_______

Pearl :)

Gem: Hi Pearl!

Gem: it was nice talking with you earlier

Gem: I’m glad I get to have a friend around here :)

______

Pearl slowly walks home with heavy footsteps. The cold breeze sends a chill down her spine, which made her walk with haste. She’s glad she lives close to Grian, so she won’t need to walk much. Alas, she opens her apartment door, and she freezes in place. 

Gem is back.

Gem is back. 

Pearl yelps as she feels something tugging her pajamas. Her train of thought was quickly lost as she looks down and sees—

“Tilly!” She sighs in relief as she bends down to pet her dog. Tilly barks in response as she licks her owner’s face. Pearl giggles as she cuddles her pet.

“Today was a long day, Tilly. What were you up to, lovely?” Pearl says waiting for her dog to somehow answer. She was only met with more kisses in response. Pearl chuckles as she slowly stands up and heads toward the couch. 

She opens her phone and notices a message from a new number. She presses it before she realizes it was Gem. She freaks out and accidentally throws her phone onto the carpet. Tilly whines as she looks at her owner with concern. 

“Gem just texted me.” She mumbles. Pearl quickly grabs her phone to check what Gem messaged her. Her heart tugs as she read and processed every word as if it was vital information. Right, she forgot they were just friends. She forgot that this Gem isn’t technically her Gem. Her lovely girlfriend . 

It was quickly put to her mind that Gem doesn’t remember everything. She doesn’t remember their conversations, their dates, their kisses, everything. Pearl mourns again. She mourns for her love. She can’t help but mourn Gem even though after decades she’s back. Why does it hurt even harder when she’s back?

Still, Pearl takes a deep breath as she thinks of what to reply. She considers the fact that this is supposedly the first time she’s met Gem. That they’re just friends.

____

Gem !!

Pearl: Hello Gem! It was nice talking to you earlier aswell ^^

Pearl: Also, welcome to the town. If you ever need any company, I’m free whenever you’d like!

Pearl: Probably except when i’m working haha 

Pearl: Buttt you can always come visit me!

Pearl: If you want to ofcourse no pressure

______

Wow, Pearl. That was definitely smooth. Totally not obvious that you’re desperate. Am I desperate? Nooo.. Maybe. She scrambles to try and delete her messages but stop to find out that Gem already replied back. She closes her eyes as she slowly opens them to read Gem’s message.

_____

Gem !!

Gem: I would love that actually!

Gem: It would be nice having someone to talk to and show me around town

Gem: Where do you work, by the way?

______

Bless my poor, weak , gay heart. Pearl laughs at herself because of all the absurdity that’s currently happening. She’s having a conversation with Gem and she’s already giddy like a puppy. But hey, not talking to her for almost two decades is definitely a valid excuse! 

She sits uptight on her couch as she slowly picks the right words to answer Gem. Her leg bounces again and again as she carefully types every letter on the screen, afraid something would go wrong. She scrambles out a few messages before staring intently at the screen as she waits for the other’s reply.

____

Gem !! 

Pearl: I work at the bookshop! It’s the only bookshop here so it would be really easy to spot

Pearl: It’s at the shopping district, near Cleo’s Cafe.

Gem: Oooh I love me a bookshop! I’ll definitely come visit

Gem: Actually, I’m pretty sure my brothers went there earlier to buy a book

Gem: Did you talk to an Impulse and a Skizz perhaps?

____

Pearl recalls the two nice men visiting the bookshop earlier. She can’t believe they were Gem’s brothers! And— oh.

The book they bought was for Gem. The same book that used to be Gem’s favorite. It was a gift they bought for her . Pearl’s tears trickle down her face as she realizes that this Gem is still the same Gem. That despite being reborn, she still likes the same book. Pearl laughs in a bittersweet way. Talking to Gem again made her realize how much she’s missed her. How she’s missed everything about her.

____

Gem !!

Pearl: I did! They were very lovely

Pearl: You like Anne of Green Gables too?

Gem: I’ve been eyeing the book for a while

Gem: I can’t believe I haven’t read it yet it’s a huge classic smh

Gem: But tbh I didn’t have the time before with packing and all that

Gem: now that I have free time om my hands I can finally start reading!!

Pearl: If you ever wanna let out your thoughts on the book or ANY book

Pearl: Feel free to let it out to me :) I love hearing people ramble about books

Gem: Andd I love rambling about books! 

Gem: look at us we already make such a great pair :’) 

Pearl: Never doubted it even once

Gem: mhm mhm as you should

Gem: Is it okay if I come visit you at the bookshop tomorrow?

Pearl: Absolutely! There’s not much customers anyway and even if there was I would still love to have you around

Gem: :) See you tomorrow?

Pearl: See ya! Text me when you’re about to go

Gem: Will do o7

____

Chapter Text

Gem stares intently at her mound of clothes at her floor, slowly contemplating her life decisions. She is going to arrange them soon and put it in her cabinet. Someday. Not today though!

She rummages through them one by one and finds nothing good to wear. Gem grumbles as she lets herself fall onto the pile of clothes. Why does it have to be today that she can’t find anything to wear? 

Gem’s going to be hanging out with Pearl today, and she wants to make a good impression towards her new friend. She doesn’t want to lose her first friend on the first day of their official hang out. She has to look exceptional, at least.

Impulse knocks on the door before opening it, which catched Gem’s  attention. Impulse looks down at her confused and worried. “Gem? You okay over there?” Impulse asks as Gem buries her face on her pile of clothes in shame.

“I don't know what to wear. ” Gem sobs, her voice being muffled by the clothes getting wrinkled. “I’m supposed to hang out with Pearl today, and I can’t seem to find anything. ” 

“ Pearl? Is that your new friend you were talking about?” Impulse asks as he sits down on her bed. Gem nods as she puts her head back up to look at Impulse. “I assume you already knew her. She said you’ve been in her bookshop the last day?” 

Impulse chuckled, picking up some of Gem’s clothes to fold. “Yeah, she’s a sweet lady. Gem, I think she wouldn’t mind any outfit you’d wear at all.”

“Even if I wear a potato sack?”

“I— Maybe? Yeah! Point is, you shouldn’t stress about clothing at all. Plus, you would totally rock any outfit!” 

Gem sighs as a smile breaks into her face. She stands up to initiate a hug to Impulse, “Thanks, Impy.” Gem mutters. Impulse only makes a satisfied noise as she pats Gem in the back. 

Impulse breaks the hug and slowly heads outside. “You ought to wear something then go eat breakfast, ‘kay? We made waffles.”

“Be right there!”

Impulse closes the door and Gem lays flat on her bed. She supposes she should just wear her overalls, but her flowy dress is making a call out for her. She decides to wear the yellow dress and pairs it with her leather satchel. Gem braids her hair before heading outside to eat with her brothers.

_____

Pearl walks in the bookshop, coffee and tea in hand. The door chimes as she swiftly places the drinks on the counter. Grian’s eyes shine in delight as he takes the tea out the bag. 

As he takes a sip, he looks at Pearl and furrows his brows. “What’s.. the special occasion?” 

“Huh?

Grian points at Pearl and her outfit. “You look all nice and dressed up. Where you goin’?” 

Pearl looks down at her clothes, then smiles sheepishly. “Oh! I forgot to tell you. Gem’s coming to visit here.”

Grian nods, finally putting the two in place. “Ahh, so that’s why you look half decent today.”

Pearl swats his hand and crosses her arms. “Excuse you! I think I look pretty decent myself everyday!” 

“Yeah, sure, whatever.” Grian mutters. Pearl sticks her tongue out at him before taking a sip of her coffee. She slowly gets awakened by her drink and gets even more energized as she hears a ping coming out of her phone.

____

Gem !! 

Gem: Goodmorning!

Gem: Heading out now :)

Pearl: Lovely to hear that, see ya!

____

Pearl puts her phone off and starts frantically cleaning. “Gem’s coming! Gem’s coming!” She yells, taking out a broom.

“Alright cleaning lady, calm down. Take a deep breath, yeah? Give me the broom, I’ll help you with that.” Grian exasperatedly says, trying to get a hold on Pearl.

Pearl inhales as she gives Grian the broom. She combs her hair to the back anxiously as she paces around the bookshop, trying to find any imperfectness. Fortunately, the shop was in good shape. Unfortunately, that meant there was nothing else for Pearl to anxiously organize. 

She walks herself to the counter, fidgeting with her hands. Her face abruptly looks towards the door as it opens. There she is, in all her beauty. Her Gem.

And she looks as ethereal as she’s ever been. 

Gem walks in with a stride as her dress flows perfectly with every step, colors matching her luscious hair. She can’t help but look at her with pure admiration. Grian closes her mouth she didn’t know was open, chuckling at her sister.

Gem waves towards them, a sweet smile forming her face. “Hey Pearl! And, hello?—”

“Grian. I’m Pearl’s brother, nice to meet you.” He says as he shakes Gem’s hand politely, but his face tells that he’s slightly shocked. Who wouldn’t be? They haven’t seen her in two decades! 

“Nice to meet you, Grian. This place looks stunning. I love the way you’ve decorated this place.” Gem says, looking around the bookshop.

“Yeah, it’s really stunning.” Pearl mutters, but she still can’t help but keep staring at Gem. It seems that her eyes are glued at the woman in front of her. Reasonable, as she is my girlfriend, she thinks. Well, not anymore, though. Not technically.

How is it possible to miss someone you are staring at right now? 

“What brings you over the town, Gem?” Grian asks, finishing his coffee.

“Well, we just decided to start a new— Wait, how do you know my name? I don’t recall telling you.” Gem asks, confusion lacing on her tone.

Grian’s eyes widen as he scratches his neck. “Pearl! Uhh— She told me, yeah. She was soo excited to have a new friend, that’s why.” Grian retorted, laughing anxiously. Pearl joined in his laughter as she nodded profusely, which honestly made things even worse. Just two siblings laughing anxiously. Not suspicious whatsoever. Totally not hiding something.

Gem eyes them both down suspiciously, eyes squinting. “Right. Sorry, I’m not really used to people knowing my name without me telling them. Still getting used to a small town, y’know? I didn’t realize gossip really does spread like wildfire like you said, Pearl. Whoops. ”

“It takes a while getting used to, I’m sure.” Pearl says sympathetically. She doesn’t really know the feeling, though. She’s never moved elsewhere. Pearl seems to be stuck here for the long run.

Gen chuckles with a bit of sadness seeping in her voice, “Definitely. How many years have you lived in this town?”

“Our whole life basically. We’ve decided to never move, since we do need to keep our parents’ bookshop.” Pearl says, looking around. Something in her is also scared of leaving this place, but she doesn’t want to say that. 

“Well, either way, it’s nicer to be stuck in a place that’s atleast decent.” Gem ends on a lighter note, which made everyone laugh and nod in agreement.

____

Gem joins Pearl laying on the grass as they both look over the moon. Pearl looks at her with pure admiration in her eyes, before pointing at the sky. “Hey look, it’s the moon!” Pearl says cheerfully. The moon was covered in the clouds the entire night, but it seems to show up when Gem’s looking. Favoritism, really.

Gem looks at the sky before looking back at Pearl. “I don’t really need that moon, I have mine right here.” Gem says as she boops Pearl’s nose which sends her flushed. They both giggle together as they clasp their hands and lean into one another, as if they weren’t already close enough to begin with.

“I would love to travel away from this place someday. Don’t you just get tired seeing the same thing every single day?” Gem says. 

“I don’t know. I think I’m perfectly fine here. It would be nice, though. Travelling.” Pearl mutters, instinctively caressing Gem’s hand she’s holding. Gem smiles at the gesture.

“We should. I’ve always wanted to go to the Crystal Cliffs.” 

“Someday, sunshi—.” Pearl says, but is cut off with a yawn. Gem laughs at her, which makes Pearl grumble and hide under Gem’s shoulder. Gem can feel her giggling, though. She kisses her head fondly, which makes Pearl’s cheeks flush.

“Yeah, someday. For now though, sleep.” Gem mutters, as she pulls the blanket to cover them both. They proceed to sleep peacefully underneath the big tree as the moon watches over them.

_____

Having a casual conversation with Gem feels.. weird. For Gem it feels like talking with a new friend, for Pearl it feels so much more. Any word can hardly describe the emotions Pearl is currently going through. To see the love of her life come back to her, to have conversations with her, to even look at her is uncanny to say the least.

It hurts to look at Gem when she can still distinctly remember her grave. When the last look she got on the old Gem was her laying on her casket, lifeless. To remember that and see her right now fully and alive is weird. It reminds Pearl that she’ll have to  experience that gut-wrenching memory again. 

Again and again, she will see the lover of her life die. How will she be able to cope with all of this?

Pearl looks at Gem, who’s rambling about her favorite books, and suddenly the world feels better. The sun seems to shine brighter, and all of Pearl’s worries fly away. Why should she worry about everything when the person she’s always needed was right here in front of her, alive and well? 

“Are you okay, Pearl? You seem… kinda out of it.” Gem says, looking at Pearl worrily.

Pearl nods slowly, still stuck on her train of thought. “Yeah, just— thinking.”

Gem snickers, “Must be tiring. What’s got your head in a twist?”

“It’s nothing. Anyway, what were you talking about again?”

Gem furrows her eyebrows and holds Pearl’s shoulder. “You know you can tell me anything, right? I mean— we technically just met, right? But you are my friend. If you need anyone to talk to, I’m right here.”

Friend. 

Right. They’re just friends. Pearl shakes her head, about to say something, when Gem’s phone rings. She answers it quickly, taking off her hand on Pearl’s shoulder. She misses the warmth already.

“Hello? Impulse? He what?! Yeah, I’ll be right there. Gosh. ” Gem yelled, seemingly taken aback by what's been said to her on the phone. She audibly sighs before looking at Pearl with a hint of devastation. “Sorry, Pearl, but it seems I gotta go. Skizz did something stupid again, he’s in the emergency room.”

“ What?! Is he okay?!” Pearl yells, exasperated. 

“He’ll be fine, this has happened many times before. Unfortunately.” Gem grumbles, and Pearl can’t help but let out a slight chuckle with how Gem seems to be calm yet fed up with everything. Although, her face looks very cute when her eyebrows are furrowed. Now’s not the time for that, Pearl!

“Right. I see that you have to go now?”

“Yeah— sorry. I’ll text you, Pearl. I would love to hang out with you again. This was fun!” Gem says before hugging Pearl. She freezes before hugging her back, and Gem’s warmth takes over. She still smells like honey and flowers, Pearl notices. She gets a bit disappointed when Gem breaks the hug. 

“See ya, Pearl! Oh! Tell Grian bye too!” Gem waves as she quickly rushes out the door, smiling. Pearl waves and yells ‘bye!’ to her before leaning on the counter and sighing heavily, still flushed from the hug. Grian walks out of the bathroom, unaware of what's happened. 

This is going to be a long ride.

Chapter Text

Gem plops down on her bed after a long day from hanging out with her new friend Pearl and having Skizz getting injured. Again. Thankfully it wasn’t anything serious, just a small concussion. Her brother was quickly sent away by the hospital after a few check ups.

After the whole Skizz debacle, all she could think was Pearl. How she just met her so suddenly and now how quickly the became friends. Her conversations with Pearl was like something she’s been missing throughout her entire life.

Gem was about to take a quick nap when she heard a message ping. She quickly opened her phone and smiled when she saw it was from Pearl. Kicking her feet back and forth, she reads the message.

Pearl :)

Pearl: hey you

Pearl: How’s your brother doing?

Gem: As fine as he could be :’)

Gem: It was a small concussion, he’ll be fine!! Nothing out of the ordinary for Skizz lol

Pearl: A concussion? What’s the cause of that??

Gem: Apparently someone threw a book and it accidentally hit him in the head preeetty hard.

Pearl: geez such bad luck

Gem: TELL me about it

Gem: anyways, I should sleep. Long day.

Pearl: I bet it was. Goodnight, don’t let the bed bugs bite! 

Gem: Goodnight pearlieeeee pearl

Pearl: goodnight, sunshine :)

______

Gem feels butterflies on her stomach swirling seeing Pearl call her sunshine. Oddly, she also feels a sense of deja vu, but she can’t remember why. Maybe Skizz called her that before.

Being with Pearl makes her incredibly giddy. Something about her makes Gem continuously want to be with Pearl. Maybe it’s the euphoric joy of seeing her new friend. Moving in a new town with a new environment is.. overwhelming. But being with Pearl, it made her feel like home immediately. She can’t explain it, and she doesn’t need to. All she knows is, Pearl is someone to trust. Someone she can be familiar with.

Pearl made her feel right at home.

___

The blinding sunlight hits her head, waking Pearl up. She attempts to close the curtains but to no avail, it still burns her eyes. Accepting defeat, she stands up as she heads towards the bathroom, still half asleep.

It was a Sunday, which meant it was her day off. The bookshop was closed, and she had no errands for today. She was glad to finally have some free time. Maybe she can bake cookies oday.

Scanning her kitchen cabinets, she sees that she already has everything she needs to make cookies. She starts taking them out one by one, neatly placing them on the counter. Pearl smiles, remembering the times when she used to bake with Gem. Wait. 

Pearl looks over to her phone, Gem’s contact tempting her to open it and message her. Would Gem mind? Sighing, she opens her phone to look at her old messages with Gem last night. 

Focusing her eyes more onto the messages, she realizes that she called Gem sunshine. Maybe it was a reflex of how she frequently called Gem that back then. Gem didn’t seem to mind, though. Still, she has to continuously remind herself that this is a different Gem. It is still technically her, but it’s.. different. She doesn’t remember anything, not even a single memory. 

________

Gem !!

Pearl: Goodmorning Gem!

Pearl: I’m making cookies today, and I was wondering if you’d like to join me?

Pearl: its totally okay if not! 

_______

Pearl quickly sends the last message before turning it off and tossing it on the kitchen counter. Shoot, did she crack her phone? Pearl immediately checks her phone again as she looks for any cracks. None. She sighs in relief, about to put her phone back down again when she hears a notification. She jumps and opens it again, looking for Gem’s response. Gosh, she really needs to stop being pathetic.

______

Gem !!

Gem: goodmorninggggg

Gem: still eating breakfast, but I would love to!!

Gem: let me get ready and I’ll be right there <3

Pearl: can’t wait! <3

_______

Pearl is confirming herself to be the most pathetic person on Earth. Seriously, can’t she make any interaction with Gem without fumbling?! She takes a deep breath, muttering to herself. “Don’t be a mess.” She says, threatening herself. 

She’s gonna be chill. A very calm, totally not on the verge of her heart exploding because of a pretty girl type of person. Right. Pearl can do this, right? 

To ease her mind off of everything, she decides to play some music. She plays ‘Pocketful of Sunshine’ as she sways to the beat, singing along. This song has been stuck to her mind for a couple days, which is understandable. 

Pearl was about to finish singing the chorus, when she heard the doorbell ring. Scrambling to look presentable, she lowers the volume of the music as she sprints towards the door.

Taking a deep breath, she opens the door, revealing Gem. She was wearing overalls over a green shirt, smiling cheerfully. Needless to say, she looked adorable. “Pearl, hi!” Gem greets, revealing something she’s been holding behind her back. “I uhh— brought flowers! I saw them on the way here and thought they looked lovely.”

Pearl looks at the bouquet, which was filled with sunflowers. She then looks at Gem, who was holding them carefully, afraid to ruin them. 

________

They were walking around the town square which was filled with decorations and stores. There was currently a festival going on, and her and Gem decided to go check it out.

She was sitting on a bench waiting for Gem as she excused herself earlier to go for a quick toilet break. Pearl wanted to go with her, but she was betrayed by her legs as they began to cramp after hours of walking.  

Suddenly, Gem jogs towards her, holding a bunch of sunflowers. “I’m back! And I have flowers!”

Pearl chuckles, “I see that. I thought you went to the toilet?”

“Oh I did, then I saw these on the way back and I recalled they were your favorite. So.. I got them.” Gem says, gesturing the flowers for Pearl to take them.

 “For me?” 

“Obviously. Come on now, take them!” Gem smiles as Pearl takes the sunflowers, her cheeks tinted pink. 

She looks at Gem, who was looking at her so lovingly. The sun was hitting her in the face, making her shine infront of Pearl. She looks ethereal. How was she real?

Pearl places the sunflowers on the bench carefully, trying to not hurt its delicate petals. She stands up, before giving Gem a tight hug. Gem was surprised at first, then immediately she hugged her back, just as tight. 

“Thank you, Gem.” Pearl mutters, breaking the hug. She held Gem’s hands instead, which were very warm. Gem was always warm, just like the sun. It contrasted well with Pearl who was usually cold. She wanted to kiss Gem so desperately. But she’s afraid that maybe Gem doesn’t feel the same way. So, she hides her feelings, which are begging to open. 

She was so sure that Gem glanced at her lips for a quick moment, but she could be false. Gem squeezes Pearl’s hands, “Anytime, Pearl. Now come, I saw an ice cream shop just around the corner.” Gem says, dragging Pearl towards the shop. She quickly grabs the sunflowers, chuckling as they walk, excited for ice cream.

_______

Pearl slowly takes the flowers, the faint memory still lingering around her mind. She smiles, remembering the times before Gem and Pearl became together. She furrowed her eyebrows when she realized that her and Gem aren’t actually together now. That all of her memories with Gem were only for Pearl to remember. 

Gem was still looking at her, chewing her lip nervously. Pearl shouldn't dwell on the past. That’s just how the way things go. Shrugging it off, she looks at Gem. “Thank you Gem, these are lovely.” Pearl says, letting Gem inside.

Gem giggles, “I’m glad you think so. I was really debating whether to buy it or not.”

“You didn’t have to, but I appreciate it. Sunflowers are actually my favorite.” Pearl adds, grabbing a vase as she puts water on it to place the flowers. 

“Really? It fits you, I think.” Gem replies, which caught Pearl’s curiosity.

“Oh? How so?”

Gem taps on the kitchen counter, deep in thought. “To be honest, I don’t know. It’s just— when I saw those sunflowers earlier, it immediately reminded me of you. None of the other flowers piqued my interest either. It was like fate made me buy it.”

Fate. Fate made her buy it. Ofcourse it did.

Pearl just chuckles, because what was she supposed to say? Oh, not only fate suddenly made Gem buy those sunflowers, fate brought them together once again too? That she actually met Gem way back before during Gem’s past life? 

“You’re a great singer, Pearl.” Gem says suddenly, making Pearl look at her again.

“I’m sorry?”

“I heard you sing while I was outside before I rang the doorbell. Pocketful of Sunshine, huh?” Gem smirks, and Pearl feels a wave of embarrassment.

Pearl covers her face with her hands to avoid embarrassing herself even more. “Was I that loud?”

Gem chuckles, “Kinda. You don’t have to be embarrassed about it, you were great!”

The compliment made Pearl blush even more, further covering her face like it was about to melt, groaning. Gem just sends out a hearty laugh, which Pearl opens her eyes to look at Gem. Getting consumed by her laugh, she begins to laugh as well. Slowly, her kitchen was quickly filled with laughter from both of them. Like it was before.

“So.. about the cookies?”

_______

Gem sifts the flour on one of the bowls as they chatter about.. Well just about everything. It was like they were just old friends catching up to each other, their conversations running smoothly.

“When I was in highschool, my friend Katherine had a terrible crush on Shelby who’s also my friend. Katherine wanted to serenade Shelby as a way of confessing her feelings for her, so I helped her.”

Pearl chuckles, “Well how’d that go?”

“Well, Katherine wanted to go up to Shelby so I helped by making her stand on my shoulders. It hurt a lot, but hey! Atleast they kissed.” Gem says, smiling at the memory. Gosh, her back ached for ages after that.

“Sounds like that hurt! Are they still together?” Pearl replies, cracking eggs in separate bowls.

“Oh trust me, it did. And they still are! They moved in the city for work though, so I still couldn’t see them before I moved here.” Gem says, just as she finishes sifting the flour. “Done with that, what’s next?”

“We can add the rest of the dry ingredients! We can mix the dry with the wet ingredients after, then it's time to bake!” Pearl says enthusiastically, clapping her hands. Very adorable, if you ask Gem.

“I’m so excited! How about you, Pearl? How did your highschool go?”

Pearl looks at her for a quick second, her look hard to interpret. “It was.. okay. Honestly, I forgot about most of it. It was a long time ago.”

“Tell me about it. To be honest, I wish I went to highschool with you. Would’ve been fun.” Gem shrugs, imagining what it would be like with Pearl during her teenage years. They would probably have so many sleepovers.

Pearl freezes on her tracks, making Gem worry. Did she say something wrong? Did Pearl have a bad experience during highschool? That would explain her not talking about it much more. Before she could continue overthinking, Pearl sighs, a smile seeping through her lips. “It was. Would’ve— It would have been fun. For sure.”

After they made the cookie dough, they put it in a tin and placed it in the oven to bake. Their aprons were full of flour and baking ingredients, and the whole kitchen was covered in it too. They decided to clean up, wiping the kitchen counters and sweeping the floor.

“Maybe we can invite Grian and Scar later to eat the cookies with us. We baked a lot.” Pearl says, sweeping the floor.

Gem smiles at the idea of seeing Pearl’s brother again. Pearl also said about Scar being Grian’s boyfriend, who was someone she hadn't met before. Even though she loved the company she had with only Pearl, she wouldn’t mind more people. “Sounds fun! Can’t wait to meet Scar. He sounds awesome with the stories you told me.”

“He is! I’m glad Grian has him.” Pearl replies, grabbing the mop to wipe the floors. 

After cleaning, they decided to watch a movie at Pearl’s living room whilst waiting for the cupcakes. It was a cheesy romcom, which is one of her favorite genres. Pearl called Grian and invited him and his partner to her apartment, which they accepted. Now, they were both waiting for the cupcakes and the visitors.

When they both heard the oven ding, they looked at each other before immediately sprinting towards the oven. Pearl opens the oven, revealing the delicious aroma of the cookies. “They look amazing.” Gem mutters, astounded by the cookies they made.

“I know! We make a great team.” Pearl says, grabbing the cookie tin using mittens to avoid burning herself.

They both took a bite of the chocolate chip cookies together, nodding in approval. “I think these are the best cookies I’ve ever tried.” Gem says, which Pearl agreed. It was absolutely delicious.

The doorbell rang as Grian and Scar went in, excited for the cookies. They both greeted the pair enthusiastically.

“Hey Grian, Hi Scar! This is Gem by the way.”  Pearl says, grabbing Gem by her shoulder. 

“Why hello there! Nice to meet you, Gem. The cookies smell amazing.” Scar says, giving Gem a quick hug.

“Nice to meet you too, Scar! Oh and trust me, the cookies taste as good as the smell.” Gem says, guiding Scar towards the kitchen, already having a profound friendship with Scar. Pearl and Grian both looked at each other before following them.

A couple minutes later, they were all sprawled on the couch, eating the cookies while watching another movie. This time, they were watching a horror movie, which was barely scary at all.

“Where’s the horror in this even? The creatures just look silly.” Grian complains.

“This is more of a comedy than a horror movie if you ask me.” Gem snickers, biting on a cookie.

It was getting late, the sun starting to set. She was having a lovely time chatting with the group, but she promised her brothers she would go home early for dinner. Gem begins to stand up, excusing herself. “I think I have to go now. I promised my brothers to join them for dinner.”

“Ofcourse, Gem! Thanks for baking with me. And also the flowers.”

“Anytime, Pearl!” Gem says, giving Pearl a hug. Pearl freezes, before hugging her back. She smelled like lavender, Gem noticed. They break the hug as Gem smiles at the other pair in the room. “It was nice hanging out with you two aswell! I hope we can do this more often.”

“We definitely should! Welcome to the town, Gem.” Scar replies, flashing her a grin. Grian did the same, waving goodbye to her. 

“You want me to walk you outside, Gem?” Pearl asks, which Gem softly refuses. 

“No need, it’s getting late already. I’ll head out now, see you all! Thanks again, Pearl!” Gem says, waving them goodbye. They all smile, saying their goodbyes at her. 

“Text me when you go home, yeah?” Pearl says, looking at her lovingly. Gem’s cheeks turn slightly pink, seeing Pearl look at her like that. 

“Will do. Bye, Pearl!” Gem says before closing the door. She slowly walks towards her house, thinking about everything that happened today. Along the way, she recalls Pearl’s eyes and the way she smiles at her. After that, all she could think about was Pearl. 

Pearl was doing things to her, feelings Gem doesn’t want to admit. Maybe it was the coldness of the air making Gem think this way. 

Or maybe, she was falling for Pearl. 

One thing’s for sure, she’s screwed.

Chapter Text

Gem repeatedly stabs the steak by her fork, stuck in her own mind. Everything was all just.. Pearl. Even if they just met, they instantly clicked. Pearl was like the missing piece Gem needed in her life. She’s just—

“Gem, you okay?” Impulse asks, worry lacing in his tone. She goes back into reality as she realizes that she’s still having dinner with her brothers who are both looking at her with worried faces. Has she really been stuck to her mind lately?

“Fine, just.. thinking.” Gem mutters, still stabbing her steak absentmindedly.

“Gemmy, you know we’re always here for you, right?” Skizz says, flashing a comforting smile.

“I know. Thanks.” Gem replies, giving a slight smile. Impulse and Skizz nod, still waiting for another answer. Gem sighs before she sits up straight, fidgeting with her hands.

“It’s about Pearl. She— has been driving me crazy.” Gem groans, cringing internally. She really just sounds pathetic right now.

Impulse furrows his brows, already thinking of the worst. “Did she do something to piss you off? If so, I can talk to her—”

“No no, she didn’t do anything wrong. Quite the opposite, actually.” Gem chuckles, smiling at the thought of Pearl continuously making her laugh.

“Oh? Oh. Ohh! Gemstone’s got a crush!” Skizz squealed like a fangirl. Impulse realizes what she meant and bursts into laughter. Gem furiously turns red. She’s having a full on crisis, and her brothers are laughing at her!

Impulse wipes off the tear on his eye after laughing so much. “Sorry, Gem, it’s just— We really thought something bad happened that we might have to move.” Impulse says, apologetically chuckling.

“We were assuming the worst!” Skizz screamed dramatically, still laughing.

Gem groans, already regretting confessing about her new crush to her brothers. “I am actually going to kill you both.”

“Aww, but Pearl wouldn’t want that at all!” Impulse teases, giggling with Skizz.

“No, Pearl would gladly join me on a murder spree on my brothers. Especially if they were being a total sucker.” Gem huffs, crossing her arms.

“Right. But Gemstone, we really did mean that we’re always here for you. We support you no matter what.” Skizz says, which made Gem sit up to look at them.

Impulse nods, “Skizz is right. We might tease you a lot, but we’re your older brothers! We are always here to cheer and tease you.”

“And if they do anything wrong, we’ll beat them up!” Skizz yells, sending them all into giggles. Maybe Gem can murder them another day.

“Thanks, guys. It’s just— I never really felt like this with anyone before. Sure, I had silly crushes, but Pearl.. she’s different.” Gem mutters, unable to explain whatever she felt with Pearl. It’s one of those feelings you can’t seem to explain rather than just screaming in gibberish. She wasn’t used to feeling like this before.

Impulse and Skizz looked at each other for a brief moment, nodding in agreement from whatever they were telepathically thinking about. “Gem, that’s probably just because you’re falling in love.” Impulse says, which made Gem gulp.

Gem sighs, is that really what she’s feeling? “Is that normal though? I mean, I technically did just meet her. How can I fall in love on such short notice?”

“If she really is your someone or your so-called soulmate, then yeah! Love always continues to grow, Gem, and the longer you get to know Pearl, the more you will feel it.” Skizz replies enthusiastically.

Anxiety fills the entire mind of Gem, already thinking of the worst possible situations. Maybe overthinking really does run in her family. “And what if she isn’t the one?”

“Then she won’t. You’re just discovering your feelings at Pearl, don’t rush yourself. Time will tell. I know this will sound cliché, but trust me. There will be a time where everything will just.. click.” Impulse stated, making Gem chuckle in response. Everything about it seemed cliché. But, she knew Impulse was right.

Time will tell.

Pearl lays on her bed after such a long day. Scar and Grian said their goodbyes just an hour ago, leaving Pearl all by herself again. She enjoys the peaceful silence, after everything. But, Pearl can’t help but miss Gem after just being with her barely two hours ago. To be frank, it’s quite nicer to miss someone knowing you can talk to them again whenever rather than missing them for years.

She was about to fall asleep, when she heard a notification ring on her phone. Pearl immediately checks it, hoping it would be Gem. Unfortunately, it wasn’t. What piqued her interest though was that it was a message from a new group chat.

the three idiots

Scar added Pearl and Grian to the group.

Scar: Why hello there!

Pearl: Hey Scar, what’s this?

Pearl: also aren’t you like with Grian right now?

Grian: oh he is

Grian: i couldn’t stop him though

Scar: You never even tried to stop me birdie!

Pearl: Why are you both talking to each other in chat you are TOGETHER

Pearl: in REAL life???

Grian: for the sillies

Scar: ^^

Scar: Anyway Pearl, I have come to ask you something

Scar: ..well it’s more of a confirmation than a question but HERE WE GO

Scar: You like Gem don’t you? 

Pearl gasps out loud, shocked by what Scar just asked. Did Grian say something to Scar about her and Gem?

..Or was she really just that obvious?

Pearl: grian.

Grian: never said a word

Scar: Sooo do you?

Pearl: This is PEAK homophobia

Pearl: trapping me onto confessing my feelings

Scar: Pearl I fear no one is straight in this group chat

Scar: ..and technically you just confirmed my assumption. Thank you!

Pearl: What are you guys planning???

Grian: once again, i had no contribution of this whatsoever

Grian: at least not yet

Pearl: I’m sorry WHAT

Scar: It’s okay Pearl we’ll help you with your love endeavors with Gem!

Pearl: SCAR???????

Scar: Best not to know much yet ;)

Pearl: I’ll have you know that I’m scared out of my mind.

Scar: Good.

Grian: good.

Pearl: OH MY GOODNESS

Chapter Text

Pearl absentmindedly scrolls through her phone, bored out of her mind in the bookshop. It was a Monday, and there are barely any customers. Grian didn’t go today, so she didn’t have anyone to talk to. 

Suddenly, the door bursts open, surprising Pearl. She instantly whipped her head to see.. Scar? “Oh Scar! Grian’s not here, sorry.” 

Scar waves her off, “What? I’m not here for Grian, I’m here for you!” He replies, pointing a finger to a very confused Pearl. She wasn’t having it in 8:00 A.M. in the morning. She just continued to stare at him like a confused puppy, hoping for him to continue.

“Just a simple favor. May I have Gem’s number?” Scar asks, batting his eyelashes as if it was going to convince her more. 

Pearl huffs, crossing her arms. She was growing suspicious especially after the strange conversation they had last night. “For what, exactly?”

“I wanna be friends with her! Y’know, get her know the town better.” Scar says, leaning on the counter.

“Right, as if I’m not here to do that? I have lived here ever since I was born, Scar. I think I should know plenty about this town.” Pearl replies, squinting her eyes at him.

Scar looks at her, then laughs. “Pearl Moon, are you acting jealous?” 

Pearl loses her track, stumbling on her feet. “What?! No! I’m not—”

“Uh huh.. sounds like you are! You can’t fool me. For the record, I am not interested romantically in Gem.” Scar clarifies, as if it wasn’t the plain obvious.

“I would hope so, since you’re dating my brother.” Pearl replies sarcastically. She’s used to having silly arguments with Scar, because they were friends when Scar was in his past life. Back when the four of them were a group, inseperable in high school.

____

Pearl sits by the table in the cafeteria with Scar, waiting for her brother and Gem to join them. They were having bacon sandwiches, which looked half decent compared to their past lunches. It was starting to snow outside, with all of the students wearing coats to have warmth in the cold weather. 

Scar bites into his sandwich, taking a few bites before asking a dire question. “Pearl, who are you taking to the dance?” He says casually, although Pearl felt a malicious intent from her friend. 

“I’m not really planning to take anybody.” Pearl replies, biting into her sandwich.

Scar sighs dramatically, “Bummer. I thought you were gonna ask Gem.” 

Pearl almost choked on her sandwich but she quickly digested it. She looks over at Scar to see him actually looking genuine. “I’m not— I.. can’t.”

Scar tilts his head, his eyebrow raising up. “Why, Pearl? I’m sure Gem would accept.”

She sighs, because— what’s the worst that could happen? Chances are, if Gem will reject her, she’ll just brush it off. They’ll still be friends at the end. If there’s a chance she gets rejected, there’s also a chance that Gem will accept her offer to the—

“Guess who got a date!” Gem squealed, jumping up and down. They all twist their heads towards Gem and Grian, who just played their food trays on the table. 

Oh.

Gem already has a date.

“I’m guessing you?” Scar chuckles, but she can sense a bit of disappointment. Pearl just felt her whole world shatter. Why didn’t she ask earlier? Why is she so stupid? Why did she even think for a second that—

“Mhm! It’s the guy from Science class.” Gem smiles, which makes the entire room brighter. Pearl can’t help but feel jealous that she wasn’t the reason for Gem's happiness. That she was too late.

“Which one?” Grian asks, settling down on the seat. 

“The one with white hair. You guys talked to each other at least like— once, I think.” Gem replies, biting into her food.

“Didn’t know you had feelings for him, Gem.” Scar says, still hopeful for Pearl. She can’t seem to have any hope anymore. The whole dance was out of the window for her.

“I guess not that much. He looks cool though.” Gem replies, shrugging her shoulders.

“I’m glad you have somebody to take to the dance, Gem.” Pearl smiles with gritted teeth. Gem looks at her, and she swears that her entire world stopped for a second there. Gem stares at her with a look Pearl can’t quite comprehend, but it was quickly replaced with a smile.

“Thanks, Pearlie.”

______

“Pearl? Hellooo?” Scar yells, waving his hand over at her face. She flinches as she goes back to the real world. 

Scar frowns at her, his eyes furrowing in concern. “Are you okay, Pearl? I’ve noticed you always do this. I noticed it from Grian, too. Is there something wrong?’

Pearl freaks out, beads of sweat starting to form in her skin. Which was ironic, considering it was winter. “I’m— fine. Just a habit, I guess.” She replies, and Scar decides to take that as an answer, nodding slowly.

“Right. So.. about that number..?”

_________

Gem clutches her satchel as she walks around the town, feeling the cold breeze wash through her. Winter was coming to its peak, with snow starting to fall. This made Gem very excited to go ice skating again. She is pretty sure she saw an ice rink somewhere in the town.

Glancing at the flower shop, she notices a familiar face looking over cacti. After further inspection, she confirmed it is Grian. She decides to greet him, walking towards the man.

“Hey Grian! Didn’t expect you to be here.” Gem says, looking over at Grian. He whips his head towards Gem, and he quickly forms a smile.

“Gem! Good to see you around town. Pearl’s only handling the shop right now, since there are barely any customers. Guess I was intrigued by the cacti on the way.” Grian chuckles, still admiring each cacti. From what Gem is looking at, it seems that Grian has a very fond memory involving cactus. Or maybe he just really loves cacti. Could be both!

Gem nods, looking at the entire flower shop. “Bummer there aren’t any sunflowers. They’re my favorite.” 

Grian looks over her, furrowing his brows. After a second, he quickly smiles and sighs to himself. “You never really changed, huh.” He mutters to himself, not expecting Gem to hear.

“Did you say something?” Gem asks, curious to what he meant. 

Grian just shakes his head, still gently smiling. “Nope. Say, do you have any plans this weekend?” He asks, most likely trying to change the subject. Gem doesn’t mind, as she supposes it wasn’t anything to dwell on.

“I’m free the entire week. I really don’t have anything else to do, considering I’ve not applied for a job yet.” Gem replies, already thinking of what possible jobs she could have in this town. It is a fairly quaint town, but with the low population lots of businesses will most likely be hiring.

“You should hang out with me, Pearl, and Scar!” Grian says enthusiastically, which convinces Gem even more. Not that she needed convincing, she was already down the second he offered.

Gem brightens at the idea, already coming up with ideas for the hang out. “I would love that! You know, we ought to make a groupchat so we could all formally plan our hang outs.” She adds, which makes Grian nod earnestly.

“I’ll definitely be doing that. I can grab your number from Pearl, and we can start planning!” Grian cheers, which leaves them both grinning widely at the flower shop.

“Can’t wait!”

_______

silly people

Grian added Gem, Pearl, and Scar to the group chat.

Scar: Aww G, you beat me to it :(

Grian: couldn’t handle my excitement, sorry xx

Pearl: What shenanigans are you guys up to again??

Gem: Great ones, Pearl!

Pearl: Highly doubt it if the Grian and Scar are here :p

Grian: okay rude

Gem: Can we start planning the hang out™ now

Pearl: We’re hanging out?

Scar: Yes! All of us in this gc shall forego in an exciting adventure

Gem: love the spirit Scar!!

Scar: :]

Grian: we could go ice skating

Pearl: Noooo I’m bad at it

Gem: I love ice skating!!

Pearl: but i guess it’s fine

Grian: AHSGHDGSHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Gem: so… ice skating it is? :3

Scar: Ice skating!!!!

Pearl: You all are nuggets

Gem: Awww you love us Pearlie :)

Pearl: uh hujaajd

Grian: scar get me out of here

Scar: Not yet birdie we’re not going yet

Grian: fine. ice skating on saturday?

Gem: ICE SKATINGG

Scar: Ice skatingggg!!!!!!

________

pesky bird

Pearl: Am I the only one who keeps getting deja vu

Grian: nope. not alone

Pearl: We are screwed aren’t we?

Grian: just like old times

Chapter Text

Pearl rummages through her old storage boxes, trying to find a specific footwear. Most of the boxes were full of dust, being stuck untouched for so long. They were full of cobwebs, which Pearl did not bother to get rid of. Until she finally found the one box she was looking for. It was placed more in the back, collecting more dirt than the other boxes. She wiped it away with a cloth, taking off years of dust right off the bat. There was a small marking indicating ‘ice skates’, with doodled sparkles around it. 

Pearl slowly opens the box, revealing white ice skates which were rather unusable by how old it is. Taking it out, she noticed the shoe starting to peel. Even if it had a good run, she’s still buying another pair. Pearl had barely used the ice skates, but it was still too old and run down to use. Which wasn’t surprising, considering the only times she ice skated was when she was with Gem. 

And that was two decades ago.

______

“Come on Pearl, we should go ice skating!” Gem urges, dragging Pearl towards the ice rink full of people.

“Uhhh, Gem— slight problem.” Pearl mutters, trying to catch up with Gem who is excitedly rushing to the ice rink. “I don’t know how to ice skate.” 

Gem stops in her tracks, completely surprising Pearl as she almost falls into the ground by the amount of force. “Really? I thought you would be good at it, honestly.” 

Pearl scratches her neck, slightly blushing when she realizes they’re still holding hands. “Nope.” She says, dragging the p. “I have never skated before in my entire life. Plus, it looks scary!” Pearl adds, as Gem looks at her incredulously.

Gem was having none of it. “Nope, no excuses! And, this could be a fun time! I can teach you how to ice skate, maybe do a turn if we can, it will be great!” She smiles brightly, and Pearl can’t say no to that. Not with her completely overshining the sun with that bright smile. Who needs the sun when you have Gem? 

Pearl looks at her, before dramatically sighing. Gem already knew she gave in, immediately cheering. “Okay. As long as I don’t get injured, I’m all set.” 

“You won’t get injured Pearl, not on my watch!” Gem replies, standing firm and strong, ready to hit whatever might cause Pearl to even slightly get a bruise. It’s quite endearing, honestly. Pearl shakes off the thought, diverting her mind towards the whole ice skating thing.

“Errr, do you have extra ice skates to spare?” Pearl asks, and Gem just rolls her eyes. “Ugh. Come on Pearl, let’s go get you some skates.” Gem replies, dragging Pearl again towards the opposite direction they went before. Pearl giggles as she follows her, while Gem rambles about the safety tips when ice skating.

_____

silly people

Grian: are we going to the ice rink with my car?

Gem: graah yes please

Gem: Don’t wanna walk :(

Grian: me and scar go get pearl then we get u gem?

Pearl: Hurry up G im waiting,,,,

Grian: scar is still getting ready

Grian: be there in like 10 minutes

Grian: gem send your address 

Gem: uhhh 48 Life Street

Grian: great thanks

Scar: Just a minute everyone I’m still looking for my other sock!!!!

______

Grian’s car aggressively honks outside Pearl’s apartment. She quickly grabs her things as she heads out, locking the door. Grian’s loud, annoying honks make Pearl grumble as she walks towards the vehicle.

“Stop honking you nugget!” Pearl yells, while Grian just grins devilishly.

“You were taking long.” Grian replied, shrugging his shoulders. “Now get in loser, we’re going ice skating.” 

“You literally just got here.” Pearl grumbles, sliding in the car. Scar is in the passenger seat, enjoying the show of the two siblings fighting.

“Hi Pearl! Ready to skate in the ice?” Scar asks enthusiastically, with Grian staring at him with full admiration. She was happy Grian is with Scar again, but it would be nice if she didn’t have to third wheel most of the time. Atleast she can third wheel with Gem. Just like they used to be.

“I’m kinda forced against my will here Scar, but sure.” Pearl chuckles, staring at the car window. She doesn’t mind ice skating, but her skillset is definitely not doing well. 

“Nonsense, you have every right to decline! Though, it would make me very sad. And Gem, too.” Scar replied, wiggling his eyebrows at his last sentence. Pearl groans, while Grian giggles in his seat, trying his best to drive.

“If Gem wasn’t here, she wouldn’t ever agree to ice skate.”

“Grian I will push you out of your own car.” Pearl grumbles, staring intently at his brother at the rearview mirror, while he only sticks his tongue out. “I would agree Gri! After.. a few persuasions.” Pearl mutters, further proving Grian’s point than defending herself.

______

Gem packs her skates as she waves goodbye to her brothers who are perched on the couch, watching football. They were yelling at the television, quickly stopping to say bye to Gem as they resumed yelling again. She rolled her eyes playfully as she dashed out the door.

A vehicle stopped by in front of her apartment, making Gem stop in her tracks. The car window opens, revealing Grian, with Scar beside him. Her eyes crinkle as she flashes a grin towards them. “Hey guys! Thanks for getting me.” 

Grian smiles, “Anytime, Gem! You can go sit in the back with Pearl.” He says, making Gem nod. She opens the car door, with Pearl flashing a toothy grin at Gem. Her sweet smile engulfed her, making her day brighter. “Pearl! Ready to go ice skating?”

“As ready as I could ever be.” Pearl chuckles, scratching her neck. Gem is convinced Pearl can skate. Perhaps she just likes to be humble.

“Nonsense. I bet you’re skilled at it.” 

“Errr— I wouldn’t say skilled..” Pearl mumbles, making Grian laugh. “Oh she absolutely sucks at it.” Grian replied, making Pearl go red in embarrassment.

Gem gently holds Pearl’s shoulder, patting it. “It’s fine, Pearl! I’m not entirely good at it, either. We can learn together.”

Pearl looks at her with furrowed eyes, then she smiles at her gently. “Right. We can crush this Gem, me and you.” Pearl replies, perseverance leaving in her eyes. She looked incredibly pretty right now. Gem also noticed that they are pretty close to each other now, too. Both of those thoughts made Gem blush, but she hid it with a smile.

“Mhm. We can even beat Grian and Scar I bet!”

“This isn’t a competition, is it?” Scar asks, confusion lacing in his tone. 

Meanwhile, Grian gasps dramatically. “Oh, bring it on! May the best one win!” He yells, pure chaos in his voice. This will surely end well. Right..?

____

Pearl isn’t sure how this ended up to be the most chaotic ice skating session she’s ever had, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. Although, she would appreciate it if she wouldn’t be so dizzy because of them competing on doing the most twirls in the ice.

“I got like.. ten twirls in that one! Beat that!” Grian shouted, pointing his finger at them. 

Gem snickered, “Only ten? I did at least twenty!” 

“Nuh uh you had that much!” Grian replied, crossing his arms. Pearl and Scar looked at each other, so close to bursting into laughter.

“Yuh uh I did! Mind you, I counted!” 

Grian rolled his eyes, but there was a playful tone around it. “Fine. Race you to the edge of the rink!” He yells, already getting a head start, giggling menacingly. “Wha— No fair!” Gem yelled back, hastily skating towards the edge of the rink. 

“I don’t even know how they got more than five spins!” Scar laughs, looking over the other pair with pride glistening into his eyes.

Pearl laughs too, but a bittersweet feeling runs down her throat. She wished she could bluntly reply to Scar with ‘Well, they’ve practiced many times before, haven’t they?’. 

But she can’t. Because for Scar, this is their first hangout as a group together. 

But for Pearl, it’s a whole pool of lost memories that brought out all the good, and the bad ones she wished to forget.

_______

It was winter break, and the group collectively decided to go ice skating. It was rather more that Pearl was practically forced into going with them, but she couldn’t resist the cute pout on Gem’s face. And so, here she was. Trying her best to stay composed  without losing balance whilst the others glide through the ice.

“Geez Pearl, ice skating really isn't your sport, huh?” Scar asks, chuckling at Pearl who is currently gripping the fence tightly.

Pearl sighs, “Clearly not. Why aren’t you following them?”

“I'm getting kinda tired. Plus, I like to admire him from afar.” Scar replied, slightly giggling at the end.

Pearl grimaces, making Scar burst into laughter. “Cute, but that’s my brother so.. gross?”

“Well, Gem is also practically my sister too!”

“What does she have to do with this?” 

“You know exactly why, Pearl.” Scar says, pointing a finger to Pearl. She raises her hands in defeat, before almost losing balance as she quickly holds onto the fence again. 

They were about to talk about their new projects when suddenly they heard a yell coming from the other side of the rink. They quickly turned their heads to see Gem who seemingly fell. Seeing the look of pain in Gem’s face stuck to Pearl. Her and Scar looked at each other in worry as they quickly skate towards the other two, with Pearl struggling. 

“Gem! What happened?” Pearl yelled, immediately kneeling down to check at Gem. She was wincing, her knee looking heavily bruised. 

“I skated too fast, I— slipped and fell. Really hard.” Gem mumbled, tears starting to form. Grian held Gem’s hand, comforting her while Scar stood there panicked. 

Pearl held Gem’s shoulder, making Gem’s cheeks turn pink. Although Pearl didn’t seem to notice when all she could focus on was Gem’s bright green eyes onto her. It was getting harder for her to think. “Can you walk?” Pearl asks, rubbing circles into Gem’s back in hopes to comfort her.

“I.. think? I can try.” Gem replied, attempting to stand up. She was about to stand when her knees gave up on her. Luckily, Pearl came and catched her. 

“With the amount of struggle on balance you had earlier, you seem to have all the skill in the world, Pearl.” Scar chuckles, making Pearl look at him fully red. Gem is in pain, it is absolutely not a time for this!

But, all Gem did was look at her delicately. She then looked at Scar playfully, replying “It’s just Pearl and her Pearl powers. Surely you’d know that, Scar.”

Scar nodded, smirking at the pair. The worry on Grian’s face was quickly turned into teasing grins. “Ah, of course. I think it’s best we go to the clinic now, though.”

Pearl quickly nodded, trying her best to steadily hold Gem. “Yup! My ‘Pearl Powers’ are slowly coming to an end, so we should hurry up!” She yelled, making everyone snicker. They started to head to the clinic, making Pearl relieved. Holding Gem for this much time might make the butterflies in her stomach burst.

____

The memory that seeped through Pearl’s brain wasn’t one of the worst than the others, but it still stuck to her mind more than it should’ve. Maybe it’s because of the particular look of Gem in pain, pure emotion forming into her face. It grounded Pearl that she was alive. Even though Gem was hurt, she was still alive. 

It was definitely better to see Gem and her eyes filled with sadness rather than seeing her face, lifeless. In a coffin, a memory she never thought she would experience at such an early point in her life. But it did, nonetheless.

Yet, she’s here now. Again. Alive.

And Pearl would rather remember all the bad memories if it meant seeing Gem alive.

It’s weird to think that everything has kind of gone the same as it once did before. Seeing Scar again, with Gem, brought more memories than she thought she would’ve. 

“We make a pretty neat group, don't ‘ya think?” Scar says suddenly, smiling at the other pair.

Pearl exhales, seemingly getting hit by reality. She looks at Scar, then at Gem and Grian, and sighs. “Yeah. We— We really do, don’t we?” Pearl replies, forming a small smile.

___

Gem and Grian skate towards the edge of the rink, their speed consistently getting faster and faster. Grian furrows his eyes, looking back at Gem. “We ought to slow down, shall we?” 

Gem laughs, “And lose this race to you? You can’t trick me, Gri.” 

“Gem, I’m serious.” Grian replies, starting to slow down. Gem was still suspicious of him, but she still slowed down. 

They fully stopped, Gem looking at him in worry. She was going to ask, but Grian got to there first. “It’s just— I don’t want you to get hurt, y’know?” Grian says, fidgeting with his hands.

She was taken aback by his sudden burst of vulnerability, but his words deeply touched her. Still, she tried to turn the mood lighter. “Aww, are you worried about me?” Gem asks playfully, nudging Grian. 

He laughed, but his eyebrows still had the same worried look. It felt like he was hiding something from her. Perhaps his worries was because of a past memory. “Ofcourse, idiot. Can’t have it losing you, Gem.” Grian replied playfully, but it was clear that he meant it. Gem smiled, grateful to have a great friend like him.

“Yeah? You too, Grian. I’m glad to have met you three, truly. You guys made this town feel more like home quickly than I though I would’ve.” Gem admits, scratching her neck. 

Grian looked at her, and smiled gently. “I’m glad. We’re always gonna be here Gem, like family.” He replied, before looking towards the other pair, who was also lookimg back at them. “I think we should go back with Scar and Pearl now.”

Gem looked at him, before slightly smirking. “..Race you to it?” 

Grian’s gentle smile quickly turned into a competitive grin. Despite their wholehearted conversation, they can’t help but go on either way. Ofcourse, with some added precautions. She saw how much it meant to Grian, so it’s best if she does, too. “Oh you’re so on.” Grian replied, which quickly led to them skating hastily towards the other pair, laughing as the wind sped through them.

Chapter Text

They all wave back to Gem as she says their goodbyes to them, taking a minute before walking inside her home. By the second she walks in, she could already smell the aromatics as she hears sizzling coming from the kitchen. As she headed towards the smell, her brothers were there to greet her quickly. 

“Gemstone! How was your day?” Skizz asks enthusiastically, as he sat by their small dining table, presumably conversing with Impulse before.

She smiles, sitting beside Skizz. “It was really fun, they’re great to hang out with.” Gem hums, tapping her fingers at the table.

Impulse coughs, trying to add a certain topic. “So… What about you and Pearl?” He asks, giggling as he stirs the pan back and forth in a rhythm. Gem groans as Skizz joins the giggling fit.

“Well, I was surprisingly.. calm? Like, I didn’t make a mess of myself that much.” Gem replies, recalling her interactions with Pearl earlier. The thoughts of her pretty smile made Gem fluster, but she managed to shake it off.

“That’s our Gem! Gotta hit her with your.. rizz.” Skizz cheers, ending with a mischievous look. It looked more hilarious rather than something serious.

“Oh Skizz please never say that again.” Gem replies hastily, covering her face in embarrassment. 

Impulse laughs, turning off the stove as he begins plating their dinner. Skizz shrugged unabashedly, looking pleased as to whatever he said. Gem’s forehead might be as red as her hair by the amount of times she’s facepalmed.

The plates were gently placed onto the table, filling their noses with aroma. They all sat together as they ate their dinner, chatter filling up their entire home. Gem sighed happily, as she indulged in most of their conversations.

“It’s quite funny how Pearl and Grian are such worry warts sometimes.” Gem says, taking a bite of her food. She’s observed how frequently Pearl and Grian worry about something. Especially with her. She could also add one of her observations with the siblings where they would just.. space out. They try to change the topic every time she’s asked, but they're not exactly slick with it. Still, she appreciates them greatly. “I’m glad they do actually care, though.”

“I’m glad you already have great friends in this town, Gem. We know how hard it is to move into a new environment.” Impulse replied, smiling at her with pride. Skizz agrees, nodding in response.

Gem chuckles, “Yeah, it was pretty hard at first. I honestly hit the jackpot with finding them. Speaking of friends, you guys really should really socialize more.” 

“Hey! We have been talking with other people. You’re just too busy ogling Pearl.” Skizz huffs, raising his fork in defense.

Gem turns red, gasping at his reply. “I don’t ogle at Pearl all the time!” 

“Ah, young love always strikes you down.” Skizz sighs dramatically, giggling to himself. “Don’t disagree with me though. You’re always chatting with Pearl on your phone!” 

“Wha— Not always!”

“Your screen time says otherwise.” Impulse adds, taking Skizz’s side.

Gem grumbles, knowing she can’t fight the truth. But, she can fight her brothers. “..I hate you guys.”

“Love you too Gem.” Skizz and Impulse replies, synchronizing perfectly. Gem looks at the dumbfounded, but she only rolls her eyes in response. It was clear she didn’t mean any harm, as seen with her slight playful smile tugging between the edges of her lips.

_____

Dropping off Scar in his apartment, Pearl and her brother decided to talk to each other in her place. It only took one look from him, a look only Pearl could know what it meant, as they both nod to each other curtly. Pearl could take a guess as to why he wanted to talk about something, but she had to wait until they could sit down properly.

Pearl opens the door to her apartment, revealing a cheerful Tilly. Her dog barked, jumping onto her in pure excitement. Pearl quickly reciprocated, hugging her dog. Grian was also a victim of Tilly, being flooded with kisses as soon as she was done with Pearl.

Placing their bags on the side, they quickly sat on the sofa, taking in the peaceful silence still looming in before they wanted to talk. Pearl sighed, making herself relax after such an eventful day. Suddenly, she heard her brother sob.

Grian was crying.

Pearl, starting to panic, moved closer to his brother, who was now fully tearing up. “..Grian?” She whispered, not knowing what to say.

“I really missed Gem.” Grian sobbed, wiping his tears that never seemed to end.

Pearl laughed bitterly, knowing the feeling all too well. She knew, so much of it. Although, she wishes she never did. “Yeah?” She replied, rubbing Grian’s back as she tried to calm him, but it was also Pearl’s desperate attempt to soothe herself.

“I didn’t realize how much I did until earlier. It really opened up wounds I didn’t even know existed.” Grian says in between sobs, covering his face with his hands.

“I.. understand.” Pearl smiles lightly. “I never realized how much I missed us four hanging out until earlier.” She adds, starting to tear up aswell.

“Right?! Just— Everything they do keeps making me reminded of how.. it’s them. Fuck, I can’t believe they’re actually back. I’m— no, I was fine with Scar coming back after a few months, but with Gem.. It feels like I’m reliving my life all over again.”

“Well, isn’t that what we always do? Our experiences.. it always repeats over and over. The only difference it is from us to them, is that we remember. We’re constantly living, and because of that, having the same experiences are bound to happen. Especially if it's with them.”

Grian chuckles, but it comes out as a muffled sob. “I feel miserable.”

Pearl laughs, “Don’t we all?”

He sighs, leaning over the couch. Grian smiles to himself, but Pearl can tell he’s tired. Of everything, of not being able to avoid his loved ones from dying, of having to continuously lose each of his loved ones. Pearl understands, because she lives that way too. 

“I hope we’ll get used to everything as the years go by. I don’t think I’ll want to experience this ever again. To feel this miserable.” Grian mutters, like he was hiding a secret from the world.

“I hope so too.” Pearl whispers, knowing it would be impossible. She knows, deep down, they’ll keep on feeling like this. Pearl knows that Grian is aware of it too. But, just like her brother, she also wishes. She can only hope it gets better. Yet, doubt washes all of her hopes away. Just like it always has.

Grian nods, like he is trying to convince himself that it will. Pearl doesn’t interject, knowing all he was trying to do was to keep being sane. Pearl’s surprised they both haven’t become crazy after everything, honestly. But, she can feel it, the cracks starting to open bit by bit. 

“It’s more scary to know how they’re still both so similar with their.. old selves. It was like nothing happened. That they never died.” Grian says, fidgeting with his shirt. “But they did. And they’ll continue to do so until the Watchers have had enough of us.”

She shivers at the mention of the Watchers. They barely mention it, only hearing the name frequently when they were still children. Now, they don’t bother to acknowledge the powerful beings, as they’re too afraid to be grounded by reality. It’s not fun to think about having to seemingly live forever until they’re allowed to perish like the others.

Pearl looks at Grian, then looks at the tiled floor. “I always found it eerily scary how similar they are with their past, too. Somehow, everything they do always connects to what they did in the past. You remember Gem’s favorite book?”

He looks at her incredulously, “What about it?” Grian asks, curious but hesitant.

“Impulse and Skizz— her new brothers, they went to the bookstore to buy it for Gem. I didn’t know it was actually for Gem, but because of them I was reminded of her again. Said she wanted to read it for so long.”

Grian’s eyes widened in realization, “That’s why you went to the bridge!” 

Pearl chuckles, still grateful that it happened. “Yeah, little did I know Gem would be back. And then.. well you know the rest.”

Grian nods, knowing what happened next. “I never stopped visiting the plant shop, you know? After Scar died, I used to go there everyday, whenever I could. I stared at all the different plants, but it could never stop me from looking for cacti.”

“..And after every day, for years, you visited the shop, he came back.” Pearl exhaled, applauding him for his consistency.

Grian smiled giddily, “He did. Even after he’s back, I still do it. It’s become a habit now. What changed though, is that he goes with me now. It’s funny how one of the ways I mourned him is now one of the ways we usually hang out together.”

“Life’s unexpected like that. Even if things might always go the same, it never fails to surprise you once in a while.” Pearl replies, smiling in return. She realizes how different her and Grian coped, and how they met their lovers again. But she didn’t mind one bit. Because at the end of the day, they still got them back, despite everything.

“Did you ever wonder what happened to Fwhip? I never got a hold of him after.. you know.” Grian asked, making Pearl wonder too.

“After Gem died, he couldn’t take it. He left the town after her burial. Don’t know where he is now, or if he’s still alive.” Pearl mutters, the rings she hid in her drawer feeling harder than before. Fwhip was the one who chose it for her, and it wouldn’t be perfect in any other way. He always knew what was best for his twin.

“Yeah, I never thought he would move away from here, honestly. Gem was always the twin who wanted to venture out more than him.” Grian replies, scratching his neck.

“Well, he didn’t really have much of a choice.” Pearl grumbles, slightly envying the fact he could leave without leaving everything behind. 

“Do you?” Grian asks, which makes Pearl snap back up. “Do you want to leave this town someday?” He asks, his voice small.

Does she want to? She never thought it too hard before, knowing that she can’t just leave Grian and everything behind. She knows she can’t turn over a new leaf, knowing what she left behind. “I can’t.” She says firmly, clutching her pants almost instinctively.

“You don’t have to be stuck here forever, y’know. I can’t force you to keep wallowing yourself down in a pit just ‘cus you can’t leave.”

“Do you want to leave?” 

Grian grows silent. Looking up at the window, he smiles. “Someday, maybe. I’m not planning to currently, but I would love to someday. See if life is actually worth living.”

“I hope it is.” Pearl whispers, making Grian laugh, like he was also trying to assure himself too.

“It will be. I mean, with Gem and Scar, it always will be worth it, right?”

There was no denying that.