Chapter Text
The sun hung high, spilling gold over the beach. Waves curled and crashed against the shore, the air alive with the squawk of gulls and the sharp scent of salt. Crabs skittered sideways along wet sand, vanishing into tiny holes before the next wave could reach them.
Farther up the coastline, people and gems worked shoulder to shoulder to mend the town. Massive fusions hoisted mangled cars and slabs of concrete. Cranes and excavators rumbled in from the mainland, their engines a low counterpoint to the cries of gulls. Above it all, a cluster of Lazulis glided on rippling wings of water, drawing the floodwaters back into the sea in long, shimmering streams.
Rose sat far apart from the bustle, tucked into herself on the sand. Her knees were drawn up, arms looped around them, the ill-fitting clothes stretching tight over her frame. She stared at the tide with a quiet, almost unblinking focus, watching each wave rise, curl, and dissolve.
Steven eased down beside her, leaving a careful span of sand between them.
“Rose…,” Steven said, voice soft.
She looked over, knees tucked to her chest. “Yes?”
“I mean- you picked Rose?”
“Yeah.” Her answer was quiet, small, like a pebble dropped into the surf.
Pearl descended from the temple house, steps light but deliberate, hands folded where she could hide the tremor in her fingers. “Bismuth’s okay,” she announced on arrival. “She reformed and took the warp pad back to Little Homeworld. She’s repurposing the party robonoids with Peridot to help with the rebuilding.”
Rose glanced at Pearl and offered a flat smile. “That’s great,” she said, the words empty enough to crease the air.
Steven and Pearl traded an awkward look; the kind that tried to say a dozen things and landed on none. Pearl pushed on, voice smoothing into practicality. “Greg broached the idea of giving you his room. I told him it wasn’t necessary - you already have a room-”
“I don’t want to stay there,” Rose cut in, quick and firm.
Pearl's brows shot up and her voice went tight and high. "In the Crystal Temple?!" she blurted, fingers twisting in the hem of her dress. "But Rose- where would you even move to?!"
Rose hugged her knees tighter, eyes on the rolling tide. “I mean Rose’s room, Pearl. I don’t like some of the things that happened there.”
Pearl’s mouth made a small, sympathetic “oh,” and an awkward silence pooled between them like low tide. Rose yawned then, the motion startlingly human and unbearably ordinary, and the moment frayed into nothing more than the sound of gulls and the slow, steady pull of the waves.
Pearl hovered a step away, voice small and careful. “Rose… are you tired?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Rose shot back, blunt and sharp. Her knees stayed hugged to her chest, but her jaw had gone hard.
Pearl flinched as if struck, confusion and hurt folding across her face. “I’m going to check on the others,” she murmured, and left, footsteps quick down the sand.
Steven watched her go, hands balling at his sides. “Why do you have to be so rude to her?”
Rose’s eyes went distant, memory softening the edges of her voice. “She’s been that and a lot more, hasn’t she? What did she say- ‘What do you know, you never even met her?’”
Steven’s throat worked. “You saw that?”
“I remember it,” Rose said, voice thin. “I remember how much it hurt.”
“She was just grieving,” Steven said, heat rising in his chest. “She lost you, and I think she was losing the connection she thought she had with you.”
Rose’s mouth twitched, not quite a smile. “You’re excusing her, just like the time she tricked Garnet.
“Listen-” She continued, cutting Steven off at an open mouth- “we can talk about this later. I’m kind of hungry.”
“You’re hungry?” Steven echoed, bewildered.
“Extremely,” Rose said, looking down at her stomach.
Steven listened for the tiny proof of it- he didn't hear any rumble from her. A faint, embarrassed grumble answered instead from his own belly.
“Um… Okay. I’m kinda hungry too,” he admitted.
Garnet appeared as if summoned, tall and steady at the edge of the sand. “Let’s go out to eat,” she said, calm and decisive.
Steven flinched away, startled at Garnet’s ambush. Rose barely moved, folding her knees tighter and offering a small, composed nod.
“Hi Garnet,” she said, voice even.
They rounded up Amethyst and Pearl while Greg and Connie waved them off from the porch. They invited them to come, but they stayed to start the move back into his van, Greg’s hands shoved in his pockets as they surrounded the Dondai, Connie passing Steven along with a hug and kiss. Rose blushed at the sight, then looked away, sneaking glances.
Steven asked his dad why he couldn't share a bed like he used to with her.
“I think it’s best we start with some space, Schtu-ball,” Greg answered, rubbing the back of his neck.
They had to clear a crumpled pile of garbage from the passenger footwell before they could go. Rose wriggled into the seat, knees nearly grazing the dashboard. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl stuffed themselves in the back.
Steven climbed into the driver's seat, next to Rose. He realized, as the engine rattled to life, that she was shorter than Pink had been- shorter even than Rose’s old self. She rode close but not touching, knees tucked, watching the road.
Rose shook her large head of hair against the ceiling and laughed. “You suck at keeping your car tidy.”
“Hey!” Steven protested, poking through a stack of takeout boxes. “I fixed that with a big cleanup every time I went through a car wash.”
Rose arched an eyebrow. “Which was how often?”
Pearl shot a glare at Rose, voice pinched with a forced smile on her lips. “Stop teasing him for his clutter. I always picked up after him, and he went on his trip without me.”
Rose’s tone was sharp, “Gee, I wonder why.” The awkward pause that followed lasted a millisecond before she filled it with her cheerful tone. “So where to first- big donut shop? Fish Stew Pizza? Beachcitywalk Fries?”
Amethyst snorted from the back, the sound brittle. “Those all got destroyed, dude. They’re gonna be outta commission for a while.”
Steven cracked his knuckles and turned the key. The Dondai coughed, then settled into a steady rumble as they rolled off the sand and onto the road.
“Gonna have to go outta town,” he said, steering past the last of the smashed storefronts. The water shimmered at their left, gulls circling like punctuation.
Rose leaned her head back against the passenger seat, eyes half closed. “I remember stopping at a couple places on the way here and back on my road trip.”
“Uuuuuh…” Steven drawled, confused by that statement.
“ Steven’s road trip,” Garnet, wedged between Amethyst and Pearl, Corrected Rose.
“Right…” Rose stared out the window, trying to distract herself. “... I really wanted a donut.”
“Are you vegetarian?” Steven asked, eyebrows up as he spun the wheel.
“I feel like I’ve never even eaten meat in my life. So no.” Rose shrugged.
“Oookay.” Steven blinked.
“Don’t get all judgey on me. I’m just hungry.” Rose’s grin was stubborn and ridiculous, and it softened the road ahead.
Steven sighed. “Guess if it makes feeding you easier.”
Pearl’s eyes lit up. “I know a place!”
Garnet’s tone cut through like a closing door. “Don’t. It won’t work.”
Rose leaned forward from the passenger seat, her voice dripping with mock sweetness. “You mean how she was gonna make sure she’s the only one who knows the way, put herself in the driver’s seat, and keep her right up here with me?”
Garnet’s jaw shifted as she looked out the side window. “I mean you won’t like the place.”
“I can tell when you’re lying, Garnet,” Rose said, a spark of challenge in her grin. But there was a hint of contempt in her eyes. “Steven couldn’t, but I can.”
Pearl sank back into her seat, hands fidgeting in her lap. “I can use Boogle Maps, y’know…”
Rose slouched in the passenger seat, trying an offbeat tone again. “What’s the address?”
“It’s a diner in Empire City…” Pearl trailed off.
Rose banged the back of her head against her headrest, letting out a long, drawn-out whine. “That’s hours away! I want food now.”
Steven’s grip on the steering wheel tightened and his eyes went wide. “What did you say?”
“What?” Rose snapped back.
His eyes flicked sideways toward Rose, then back to the road, blinking hard as if holding back frustration. He swallowed, jaw clenched.
“Grab my headset from the glove compartment,” he said through gritted teeth. He fished through his pocket, “Take my phone. Put on Tuneify and just…” He exhaled sharply, voice strained. “I’ll find you some food.”
“Okay.” Rose reached into the glove box, pulling out the headset and took his phone. She slid the headset on- a tight fit that squished a deep line down her hair- and started fiddling with the phone as Steven kept his eyes locked ahead, tension stiff in his shoulders.
“...You handled that really well, Steven.” Pearl’s voice floated from the back seat, nervous but impressed.
Amethyst, slouched beside Garnet, nodded. “Yeah, she was getting a bit much.”
Rose shot a glare over her shoulder. “Yeah, I can still hear you.”
Amethyst groaned loudly, rubbing her temples.
Steven glared at the road. “I’ll buy noise-cancelling ones.”
Pearl gave a nervous smile. Awkward silence filled the car for a moment
Then, Pearl caught sight of a train passing some farmland in the distance. “... Remember when we watched that first human film? The one in the theater- the train scene?”
“...Yeah, I remember.” Rose’s voice softened.
Pearl played with her thumbs, a small smile tugging at her lips. “The audience freaked out, thinking the train was gonna come right at them.”
Rose giggled, brushing a headphone off one ear. “I remember freaking out with them. I knew what film was- I’ve seen many better screens, with color and sound, and I’ve used holograms. But their reactions… it felt like it filled me.”
Garnet smiled softly. “How about the time we saw those brothers fly for the first time in human history?”
Rose’s eyes gleamed. “They were shaking the moment I touched the ground and let them go.”
Steven blinked. “For a second, I thought you meant the Wright Brothers…”
Rose laughed. “It was! They never stopped chasing that feeling… Amethyst!”
Amethyst perked up. “Yo, RQ?”
Rose grinned through the rearview mirror. “Remember when you cracked your gem and started speaking backwards?”
Amethyst laughed. “Heck yeah! That was aweso- Wait, didn’t that happen with Steven?”
Rose’s smile faltered. “Yeah, but I remember it too. It was scary! I thought you were dying!”
Amethyst shifted awkwardly. “Yeah… heheh…”
Rose’s eyes sparkled. “Or the time I spat out those watermelon seeds with Dad? And they all came to life the next day after I sold them to people!”
Pearl let out nervous laughter. “Oh yes! Who could forget that?”
Rose’s laughter bubbled over. “Or the time- ” She doubled over, barely able to finish as Steven stared. “- you took me up in a ship, Pearl, trying to get to space, in a chair you thought was gross!”
The group exchanged awkward looks as Rose exploded with laughter.
Pearl blinked, a worried look in her eyes. “You really remember all of that?”
Rose gasped for breath between laughs,“Oh- oh yes… Everything!”
She wiped tears from her eyes. “I remember everything!” She hit her seat, laughing hard.
Steven eased the Supremo to a stop at a gas station while Rose’s laughter still echoed softly beside him. As he unbuckled, she reached over, tapping his arm. “Oh wait! Snacks! Let’s go get some for the road.”
The light touch sent a flicker of warmth through him. “Sure thing. I’ve got a credit card-”
Rose grinned. “And cash! I know you’ve got some. I don’t like credit cards- and I’m better at counting change than you. Gimme!”
“…Alright.” Steven hesitated, then pulled out some bills and change from his wallet. Somewhere around 200 bucks. She took it all.
“Yay!” she cheered, already heading for the door.
Steven handed Pearl his credit card to handle the pumps while he stepped inside the gas station with Rose.
Inside, Rose darted down aisles stocked with rows of colorful chips, pretzels, candy bars, gum packs, and an entire wall of jerky flavors- teriyaki, spicy, original, even exotic venison. She grabbed a handful of beef sticks, a bag of sour gummies, cheesy puffs, chocolate bars, chips, and a giant bottle of soda.
At the front counter, an elderly man with a weathered smile scanned her armful of snacks.
“That’s a lot… I can’t even eat all those jerky flavors,” Steven remarked, watching Rose already unwrap a chocolate bar and swallow it whole.
“I’ll eat it then,” she said with a grin. Steven groaned.
By the time they returned to the car, Rose had devoured half the haul. A growing pink bubble of crumpled wrappers and empty chip bags trailed behind her, and she kept tossing more trash into it with a satisfied hum.
“Hey what about m-” Amethyst barely got a word out before a crinkling bag of Froritos sailed through the air and smacked her square in the face.
“Don’t mind if I doooo!” she grinned, ripping open the bag with a savage enthusiasm, tearing into the chips like a ravenous dog.
The Supremo quickly filled with a chaotic shower of snack wrappers and empty bags fluttering everywhere. Pearl’s wide eyes darted around in panic as she clutched handfuls of her hair.
“Why is this happening?!” she cried, her voice tight with exasperation.
Steven sighed, peeling open a chocolate bar with tired fingers. “Okay, so I know a breakfast place about twenty minutes out-”
“Steven!” Rose turned to Steven, clutching a mound of emptied bags and wrappers, a look of despair on her face as if she lost a loved one.
She played charades- lifted imaginary cards from an invisible wallet, fingers flicking gracefully as if plucking a shiny credit card- then swept her hand backward toward the gas station with a pointed thumb. Steven stared dumbfounded at her hungry face.
“… Fine.”
Steven motioned for Pearl to hand over his credit card. It slipped into Rose’s hands, and without hesitation, she swiped it before darting into the store.
Pearl frowned, watching her go. “She can’t really need to eat, can she? I checked her out- she’s a full-fledged gem, not organic.”
Steven rubbed his chin, thoughtful. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s more psychological. Like she remembers me needing to eat. And you checked her out? when did you…”
Garnet’s calm voice cut in, steady but serious. “We’re in uncharted waters, even more so than last time. An alien being, one even the Diamonds haven’t seen before, came and brought her back by copying Steven’s gem- without any explanation.”
Amethyst folded her arms, uneasy. “She’s acting in ways I’ve never seen Rose act. It’s honestly kind of scary.”
Pearl’s eyes softened, her voice firm. “She’s struggling. We have to be there for her now.”
Rose burst out of the store, her glowing pink shield cradled in her arms and stuffed with snacks, some tumbling over the edges. The clerk sprinted after her, yelling, “You have to pay for that!”
She dove through the passenger window, snacks spilling everywhere as she landed inside.
Garnet’s jaw gaped, “What the nuts.”
“Drive! Drive!” Rose urged.
Pearl went eyes wide as she shouted, “Do it, Steven!”
Steven slammed the gearshift, flooring the gas. The Supremo roared to life, kicking up a cloud of dust as the clerk chased them. Suddenly, a pink wall of hard light shimmered into existence, blocking the clerk’s path. He crashed into it and collapsed to the ground.
Rose squealed with joy, “Eeeeeee hahahahaha!”
Steven blinked, “W-why did you do that?! I gave you my credit card!”
Sliding back into her seat, Rose stared down at her shield full of snacks. “I know, but I remembered I said I hate credit cards, and I had to commit to that! Plus, there was no more cash, so…”
Steven’s eyes widened even more than they already could. “There are cameras all over those stations!”
Rose grinned, gulping down a bag full of sour gummies. “Yeah, so I also hate security cameras. The minute I saw some when we rode in, I summoned bubbles around them and squished them!”
Back at the gas station, a broken camera wobbled and tumbled to the ground.
Steven’s face twisted from scared to amused. Then he burst out laughing- “Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!”-before his laughter cracked and turned to quiet sobs.
Rose stared, her expression softening. Then, breaking into tearful laughter herself, she joined him.
Steven eased the Supremo onto the gravel shoulder, then locked Rose in a tight hug. One by one, Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst crawled out from the back seat, gathering close.
Rose’s voice trembled as tears flowed. “Why is this happening…”
Garnet’s steady tone cut through the tension. “Because it’s you. It’s actually you, Rose.”
Pearl added softly, “You always did what you wanted.”
Amethyst sniffled, her voice breaking. “I can’t believe I forgot how random you could be!”
Rose faltered, struggling for words.
Steven squeezed her tighter. “You can’t do that again. Someone’s going to pay for what you did- probably me. But this time, I will be here when you make your mistakes.”
Steven pulled away, making a sharp U-turn back to the gas station, Rose giving him a confused stare. The clerk, nursing a bruised nose from crashing into the light wall, stood by the entrance. Steven healed the injury with a gentle glow, then offered to cover all the damages, especially the security cameras. Explaining it was a newly born gem unfamiliar with human customs, he convinced the clerk to call his bosses and settle things.
Through the car’s rear window, the Crystal Gems watched quietly. Rose peeked out from behind Garnet, half hidden, staring intently as Steven walked back out of the store.
Steven let out a weary sigh as he climbed back in. “I’m so glad Dad’s rich. I’m definitely going to need his help paying off my credit card.”
Rose shook her head. “You didn’t have to do that…”
Steven’s voice tightened. “Yes, I did. I thought you had my memories?”
Rose nodded. “I do.”
“So you should know the worst person this could affect is Connie. Imagine our school hearing her boyfriend- the one she vouched for- getting in trouble with the law over gas station snacks.”
Rose’s face fell. “Oh…”
Pearl’s brow furrowed. “Wait. What?”
An awkward silence stretched between them.
Pearl finally blurted, “…You’re going to college with Connie, Steven?”
Steven shrugged. “Actually, it’s a university.”
“But you never went to school…” Pearl said, surprised.
Steven shook his head. “I won’t get a certificate. I’m just going to classes, learning stuff.”
Amethyst snorted. “That’s crazy, Steven. And almost totally ruined just now…”
Rose waved a hand. “Well, I clearly didn’t think it through like that- ”
Steven snapped slightly, “Yeah, I kinda realize that’s a theme with you, especially before you came back. You don’t think things through.”
Rose curled into the corner of the passenger seat, slipping the headphones Steven had given her back over her ears. She unwrapped a chocolate bar, biting into it slowly.
Amethyst’s voice broke the silence. “Wait, are we seriously not gonna find a restaurant?”
Garnet’s eyes didn’t leave the road. “We’re too scared to see what she might do if we do.”
Rose cut in, “I can still- ”
Garnet held up a hand. “We know.”
Rose’s eyes flashed with a mix of sadness and anger as she settled back, the music washing over her.
They rode back in silence, the weight of the day hanging heavy between them. As they pulled into Beach City, the destruction sprawled before them- the shattered streets and battered buildings- made Rose look away. She knew the longest repairs were still tied to the fight with Bismuth.
Night had started to settle by the time they reached home. Greg had already set up his van for sleeping. Steven broke the news, voice tight.
“Six figures in damages?!? What the heck, Rose?!”
“I said I was sorry,” she replied quietly.
Steven cut in, “You didn’t come out to say it to the clerk whose nose you broke.”
Greg’s eyes widened. “You what?!”
Rose shrugged. “You didn’t ask me to.”
“You hit him?!”
“I made a wall in front of him when he started chasing after us.”
Steven’s jaw clenched. “I shouldn’t have to ask you.”
“Well, maybe you should- ”
“Stop it, Rose!” Greg snapped. The sharpness in his voice silenced her instantly. She looked down, ashamed. “Steven doesn’t deserve this. I can cover the damages, but you can’t do this again.”
Rose’s body shrank inward, shutting down, feeling unbearably small- the familiar ache returning.
Greg’s voice softened but firmed. “Rose. Tell me you understand.”
She muttered, barely audible, “...I do...”
“What?” Greg pressed.
“I said I do, Blue!” Her words snapped out sharp and unexpected.
Everyone froze. Tears spilled from Pearl’s eyes, then from Steven’s. The room thickened with shock.
Realizing what she’d just said, Rose spun away, desperate to escape, but collided with Connie.
“Mrs. Universe…” Connie whispered gently.
Rose’s face crumpled, sadness deepening as her face blushed. Without warning, she leapt upward, soaring away, tears raining down and landing on Connie’s forehead.
Greg’s tone was angry, mixed with tears. “First she calls me Dad, now this. Like usual, this is a problem way beyond me.”
Steven wrapped Greg in a comforting hug. Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst joined, forming a circle of support.
Pearl croaked, “It’s beyond all of us this time.”
Connie slipped into the embrace, whispering to Steven, “...Did I miss something?”