Seriously, who would have thought that fusing with Pearl would result in her asking me every five minutes if we could form Rainbow Quartz again? A suggestion that, of course, I shot down without a single shred of hesitation. I absolutely despise fusing unless it is a one-hundred-percent necessary emergency. Do I feel incredibly powerful when I do it? Well, yeah, obviously, but that raw strength isn't just mine, and it isn't completely hers either. Plus, I'm genuinely terrified she'll end up codependently relying on me, and that is a boundary I am not willing to cross. I was mulling over all of that while walking home after a brutal, grueling day of training.
"Let's see here," I muttered to myself, scanning the shelf to pick out a shampoo. "Pantene, perfect," I said, fully noting that the brand was glaringly and obviously not Pantene. I slowly stepped into the shower, letting the warm water cascade over my thoroughly exhausted body. I closed my eyes and leaned into the moment, relaxing my muscles with a physical sensation that felt borderline therapeutic. Mwah, perfect, another day of pure, unadulterated training down. Every single day, I feel like I'm aggressively pushing the absolute limits of human capability. Well, realistically speaking, I'm pretty sure I already blew past those limits a while ago, but I like to pretend I'm still functioning within the parameters of high-performance human machinery—like sports cars or lightning-fast motorcycles. You know? Random thoughts like that actually bring a smile to my face.
They're incredibly bizarre thoughts, I know, but they help keep my mind occupied so I don't completely slide into madness. Sometimes I genuinely wonder if I could hold my own in a competitive race against someone. I like to imagine that if destiny ever decides to grant me my signature pink transformation one day, I could easily become the fastest thing alive. The absolute speed demon. The Flash, a total speedster... anyway, just mindless nonsense that pops into my head while I'm drying myself off after getting out of the shower. Lately, my training sessions have been running significantly longer than usual, and you want to know why? If you've been actively following my previous mental tangents, you already know that one of my favorite post-workout pastimes is trying to breach my mother's room. And I have to admit, that place is absolutely incredible.
Sometimes I even find myself talking to her. Obviously not in a physical, tangible way, but rather addressing the lingering remnants embedded deep within her gemstone... or something along those lines. I don't fully comprehend the metaphysics of how that works, and honestly, I'd much prefer to keep it that way. If by some cosmic anomaly she is still actively conscious inside my gem, I don't even want to imagine what she must think listening to the absolute chaos of my internal monologue. You know? If my gemstone can dynamically perceive my raw emotions, who's to say it isn't actively eavesdropping on my literal thoughts too?
Anyway, getting back on track—I was currently pulling on a black t-shirt sporting a bright yellow star. The reasoning? Well, I'm a massive fan of the Steven Universe Future aesthetic, and I make a conscious effort to mirror that style in my wardrobe. I don't possess his severe psychological trauma—or at least, I highly hope I don't. Though, who knows, maybe I'll end up developing a severe case of schizophrenia down the line. Nah, that sounds like a problem for Future Steven to deal with.
With those thoughts in mind, I confidently strolled toward my mother's room, my abdomen completely shredded—six-pack, ten-pack, I honestly lost count, but I felt fantastic. I stepped inside. The room was exactly how I remembered it: a soft, endless expanse of pink with gentle clouds floating around, radiating a profound sense of home. A localized mass began to materialize right next to me, but after spending so many consecutive days in here, a guy gets entirely desensitized to it. Do you want to guess who it was? Exactly: Rose. I purposefully left her in this specific manifestation for two distinct reasons: one, because she was significantly easier on the eyes, and two, just in case Amethyst or Garnet ever managed to accidentally bypass the door. As for Pearl... well, to be completely blunt, I didn't really care what Pearl thought. I'm pretty sure she used to be Pink's personal Gem, you know? But it's always better to be safe than incredibly sorry.
Now, you might be scratching your head wondering how Rose is even materializing like this. It's actually quite simple: thanks to my high-tier imaginative capabilities and a ridiculous amount of internal dialogue, I managed to pull off something genuinely brilliant—effectively programming a localized artificial intelligence directly into the room's infrastructure. What does that mean in layman's terms? If my memories—which are clearly one-hundred-percent factually accurate—serve me correctly, I coded the room so that whenever I, and only I, cross the threshold, my mother manifests right by my side. She can hold a conversation with me, offer tactical advice, or just quietly exist in the space. A completely vacant room isn't exactly cozy, you know? And honestly, the weird internal voices rattling around in my brain—the ones I usually vent to—should understand that better than anyone.
"Hey, Mom," I said, casually raising a hand in greeting. She immediately cupped my cheeks and began showering me with affection. I had explicitly tuned the room to project my exact memories of her baseline personality—her unique warmth and care. I don't know if I'm actively doing psychological damage to myself by holding full conversations with someone who is technically deceased, but at this point in the game, it doesn't even phase me. I reclined right next to my mother, casually watching TV while we played Mario Bros. Here's a wild detail worth highlighting: in this specific reality, Mario Bros. doesn't actually exist, along with a vast majority of my favorite video games from my past life. But inside the boundaries of this room, I can manifest them into literal reality. Isn't that right, Mom? 1v1 me or admit you're scared.
She just stared back at me looking slightly bewildered, a massive anime-style sweat drop rolling down her cheek. "All right," she responded softly. And that's how the afternoon went, packed with laughter and intense gaming competition, though I honestly couldn't comprehend how she managed to consistently beat me in titles where I used to be completely invincible.
I threw my jacket back on and shot her a confident smile. "See you later, Mom. And remember the baseline configuration."
"Don't you worry, my son," she replied with a radiant, luminous smile as her physical form began to rapidly expand, dynamically morphing into a brilliant, towering Pink Diamond. "This room is your ultimate safe haven. Our personal sanctuary." Her echoing voice gently dissolved into the surrounding pink mist, and I stared at the empty space for a few lingering seconds before finally stepping outside.
Out in the living room, the girls were deep in conversation. Pearl, sporting a highly anxious expression, glanced over at Garnet. "I really think you need to sit down and talk with Steven," she suggested with extreme caution.
"No," Garnet shot back instantly. "Well... at least not right now." She let out a heavy sigh, looking down at her own hands—staring at the two distinct Rubies that actively composed her form—before lowering her gaze completely. "I am not... we are not prepared."
Amethyst, who currently had a massive slice of pizza stuffed in her mouth, watched the two of them shuffle around. "Oh, come on, girl," she mumbled between massive bites. "It's Steven we're talking about here; the kid is incredibly forgiving. I mean, think about it—how else would he have completely given us a pass after we almost turned him into paste using Sugalite?" She was genuinely trying to lift her spirits, but the comment only caused Garnet to tense up significantly more.
"To him," Garnet murmured, her voice dropping into a deep, heavy register. "He actively dislikes fusion... and I think that realization hit me much harder than I anticipated." She smoothly slipped her visor off, averting her eyes.
Pearl observed her, a weary, understanding smile playing on her lips as she responded in a quiet tone. "You know... when I fused with him, I managed to perceive a distinct fragment of his core emotions. And one of the most prominent feelings... was a fierce desire to possess his own independent strength. He doesn't harbor a hatred for fusion because of the concept of unity itself; he despises the inherent dependency it generates. Or at least, that's the general impression I managed to glean in that moment." She rested a thoughtful hand against her chin, her face deeply analytical as the golden hues of the setting sun flooded the room, wrapping the three silent Gems in a warm glow.
"That is exactly why," Pearl continued, her vocal cords tightening with a hint of nervous energy, "I am so intent on having him fuse with me again. I want him to truly feel comfortable with the concept. I don't want him viewing it as something inherently unpleasant or a cheap shortcut to bypass hard training, but rather as a highly viable tool—a tactical asset to help him fully comprehend the true scope of his own latent power."
Garnet tensed the absolute second the word left Pearl's mouth. "A tool... If he views it through that specific lens..."
"You must remember, Garnet, not everyone operates from your exact philosophical perspective," Pearl continued, her voice dropping into a soft, comforting cadence. "The perspective of a fusion born entirely out of pure, unadulterated love. What the two of you share is something profoundly unique—an anomaly that the rest of us can't exactly replicate on a whim. You are the living, breathing proof that that specific kind of cosmic union is actually possible."
Garnet locked all three of her eyes onto Pearl, looking thoroughly exhausted but deeply reflective. "You are entirely correct," she conceded flatly. "But no... not today. I need to properly prepare myself mentally for that conversation."
Amethyst and Pearl shot her a look of pure validation. They fully understood exactly how much emotional weight a conversation of that magnitude carried for someone like Garnet.
Suddenly, the hallway door swung open with a sharp click. All three of them whipped their heads around simultaneously, and Garnet rapidly snapped her visor back into place. Steven stepped out into the living room, sporting a smile that was significantly brighter than usual, looking so entirely unbothered that he practically radiated a golden aura.
"Hey, girls," he greeted them, casually tossing up a hand. He glanced out the window toward the shoreline and added with immense enthusiasm, "Wow, it's getting pretty late, don't you think?" He breezed right past them into his room, rapidly changed into high-performance athletic gear, and announced with total nonchalance, "I'm heading out for a night run, don't wait up. And hey, if I'm not back by tomorrow morning, I probably got aggressively abducted by the Zetas cartel, so please actually come look for me if that happens."
All three Gems froze instantly, an imaginary, massive anime sweat drop collectively sliding down their faces at Steven's deeply unhinged dark humor. He simply grabbed his sports water bottle and casually jogged out the front door without a single care in the world.
A heavy silence reclaimed the living room for a few seconds. "Wow," Amethyst muttered, shattering the quiet. "Talk about dedication. He's gotten way more... intense lately, don't you think?"
"Without a doubt," Pearl responded, a deeply nostalgic smile gracing her features. "He reminds me so much of his mother."
Garnet adjusted her visor, a universal tell that she was actively scanning a multitude of possible future timelines. A literal drop of cold sweat rolled down her temple as a terrifying thought crossed her mind: Who on earth are the Zetas, and why, in several of these branches, do they actually kidnap Steven while he talks about it with such terrifying cheerfulness? She violently shook her head, aggressively dismissing the absurd cosmic timeline, and turned back to the girls with a serene smile.
"You know, I am incredibly grateful for these conversations with you two. I honestly do not know what we would do without them. There isn't a single future-vision pathway that guides me better than this. Thank you."
She pulled them into a genuine, heartfelt embrace, and the three of us shared a brief, peaceful moment of absolute tranquility.
Thanks to Steven—even though he was completely oblivious to the fact—the Crystal Gems were actively tighter and more unified than they had ever been in the original canon. His sheer maturity had completely shifted the framework of how they perceived him. He was no longer just Rose Quartz's kid; he was someone who naturally exuded raw leadership. A highly capable, entirely worthy successor to her legacy.
Meanwhile, Steven was tearing down the coastline with his headphones securely on. He genuinely appreciated this specific gift from his father. Greg wasn't exactly pulling in massive margins, but ever since Steven tactically suggested opening a high-end auto repair shop right next to the car wash, business had completely boomed. Though, to be completely fair, neither of them could comprehend how the Mayor managed to accidentally drive his vehicle straight into the ocean every two weeks, but hey—a steady stream of revenue is a steady stream of revenue.
Shaking his head with a smirk, Steven aggressively accelerated his pace. His current rhythm mirrored that of a world-class Olympic athlete, though to his modified anatomy, it felt like a casual, light jog. The second he reached the base of the mountain, he looked up at the vast, star-studded sky, took a deep breath, and smiled.
Suddenly, a brilliant shooting star streaked across the firmament, appearing for a split second to be charting a direct course toward a highly specific coordinate on the horizon. Steven watched it with absolute fascination, but rapidly shook his head to clear his focus, a competitive grin breaking across his face.
Time to absolutely shatter my personal record, he thought.
He systematically tensed his entire muscular framework and, with a monstrous, explosive burst of kinetic kinetic energy, rocketed forward. For a few consecutive seconds, his top speed actively eclipsed Pearl's maximum velocity. Was he sweating? Profusely. Was it taking immense effort? Absolutely. But this... this was a monument to his personal progression. He could feel that every single stride he took was dragging him closer to his absolute peak potential.
And, just to explicitly remind the weird internal voices that accompanied him on this ride, he thought with immense amusement: Let's not forget that Pearl was a top-tier, high-end Diamond-class Gem custom-built for perfection. So if I managed to effortlessly match her top speed, that can only mean one thing... I am making progress, and I'm making it big.
Human genetics paired with Diamond-tier code? Absolute infinite potential. Sporting a highly competitive grin, I ran back toward the house as fast as humanly possible. By the time I crossed the threshold, I was completely drenched in sweat, panting heavily, and significantly more physically drained than usual. The entire house was pitch black. I securely locked the front door behind me, because you seriously never know when the cartel might show up to bag you.
I walked straight back into the bathroom for round two in the shower. Warm water always did wonders to reset my nervous system. Afterward, I downed a glass of water laced with my own saliva—my highly unconventional, completely bizarre personal remedy to "heal my internal systems," just in case I had sustained some weird internal micro-tears during the sprint. And just like that, I finally collapsed onto my mattress, completely relaxed. My muscles went entirely limp and, with a massive sigh of relief, I drifted off to sleep.
I cracked one eye open. I was dreaming. It had been an incredibly long time since I had experienced a standard dream sequence. You might be wondering how I can tell the difference so easily. Well, go pitch that question to someone who spent literal years trapped in the void of darkness and happens to be half-Gem, and you'll realize you learn to spot the operational differences pretty damn quick.
I scanned my surroundings. I was standing in a dense forest that felt oddly familiar, though something about the ambient environment felt completely off—as if it didn't structurally belong to this specific reality. "Weird," I murmured. I was simultaneously walking and hovering across the terrain, a highly erratic sensation that I still hadn't fully mastered with my gemstone mechanics.
I kept moving forward without any real destination, as if the path before me was completely infinite. The entire landscape was washed in a deep, monochromatic blue; even the literal air seemed tinted with the color. How pretty, I thought. Maybe I'll paint my room like this—pink and blue, a pretty solid combination... No, wait, that would look incredibly weird.
I was so profoundly distracted, resting a finger against my chin in deep thought, that I didn't even register where my boots were taking me until I stumbled directly into a completely different zone. I snapped my gaze upward, thoroughly bewildered, as a colossal, hyper-elegant pink superstructure loomed directly in front of my face.
"Huh?" I muttered. I looked around the immediate perimeter, searching for any signs of life or a potential owner. I took a few tentative steps closer. This thing is... a hand-pal? A palan-quin? No, wait, what was the exact terminology again? I aggressively scratched the back of my head, trying to extract the word from my memory bank, until a soft, melodic voice dripping with profound sorrow violently snapped me right out of my thoughts.
"Pink's palanquin."
I whipped around instantly. Seated directly inside the structure was a massive, incredibly elegant silhouette, her deep bluish aura shimmering softly in the surrounding gloom. Right by her side, a tall, slender creature stood perfectly erect, completely alert.
"Everything is blue, like the deep blue sea," I whispered completely involuntarily, the words slipping out as a bare murmur.
"Who said that?" the tall creature demanded instantly, her head snapping around as she scanned the empty perimeter in total confusion.
"What are you referring to?" the massive figure responded, her deep, echoing voice carrying an immense weight.
"Did you not hear that?"
"Not at all, my Diamond."
My what?! I thought, a violent, icy shiver rocketing straight down my spine.
"I heard it again," the blue entity murmured, her emotional state visibly destabilizing.
"My Diamond, I swear to you on my life, I hear absolutely nothing," the taller Gem responded, her posture turning incredibly frantic as she looked around the clearing.
"I think... I think I must be imagining things," the blue Diamond whispered, resting a massive hand over her face.
Holy shit, I thought under my breath, my heart rate aggressively hammering against my ribs.
The blue figure began to weep openly out of pure frustration, murmuring to herself that she felt like she was actively hearing voices inside her own head.
My mind was a complete storm of unanswered questions. Shit, shit, shit... Everything was going so perfectly smoothly, and now I randomly run face-first into a literal Diamond. But... what the hell is she even doing on Earth right now?
And right then, a specific piece of advice my mother had given me inside her room flashed across my mind. Those exact words echoed with pristine clarity, deep and melodic, as if the dream state itself had perfectly archived them for this exact scenario.
Flashback.
"Mom," I said, locking eyes with her, "what were the other Diamonds actually like?"
She went entirely silent for a few consecutive moments. "You know," she responded, her tone carrying a heavy layer of nostalgia paired with a slight, localized headache, "I don't retain the clearest memories of that era, but I can tell you that, in their own unique way, they were my family, even if they were entirely different Gems." She made a slight face of discomfort. "They aren't exactly what you would call 'good people,' but if you ever manage to catch them in a scenario where a civilized conversation is possible, the most reasonable one by far would be Blue. Though, to be completely fair, she usually just aggressively scolded me to satisfy her own superiority complex, but I know she did it out of a twisted sense of care, in her own incredibly chaotic way."
"So, if by some absolute freak accident of destiny I end up running into all three Diamonds—and knowing my spectacular luck, I am one-hundred-percent certain I will—the most rational one to deal with is Blue?"
"Without a doubt," she responded with a highly mischievous grin. "But exercise extreme caution, Steven. She is entirely alien."
"That's the exact downside of almost sharing our literal thoughts," I said dryly. "More like totally sharing them," she added with a playful smirk. Oh my god, I thought, what does she think she knows?
Present Day.
Back in the dreamscape, I observed Blue Diamond looking around the clearing, her body language distinctly on edge. Well, high-risk, high-reward—the guy who risks nothing gains absolutely nothing. I confidently strolled right up to her side. She dynamically perceived a shift in the ambient environment, but the second she looked directly in my direction, her eyes slid right past me.
"Hey there," I said in a completely calm, smooth tone. "I'm your conscience."
She completely ignored me for several consecutive seconds.
"You know, it's a pretty bad habit to ignore your own baseline psyche," I commented with a thoroughly mocking undertone.
"Who are you? I do not possess a conscience," she responded with absolute, biting coldness.
"Who am I?" I murmured, arching a single eyebrow that she couldn't physically see. I shifted my gaze over to Pink's vacant seat and, after a heavy few seconds of absolute silence, I said: "Someone who thoroughly understands the exact layout of your grief."
She completely broke down into a fresh wave of heavy sobbing. I couldn't tell if she suddenly felt a profound sense of psychological safety or if she simply didn't perceive me as a threat because my voice was originating from inside her own mind.
"Have you... have you also lost someone precious to you?"
"Several people," I responded, a vivid image of someone from my previous life flashing across my mind. "I have lost significantly more than I have ever actually lived."
"Why am I entirely unable to see you?" she asked, her massive eyes scanning the empty air around her.
"Honestly, I don't even know how I'm physically operating in this space with you right now," I admitted completely candidly. "This is a brand-new metric for me, I have zero blueprint for how I arrived here."
A string of seconds ticked by that felt like literal eons.
Blue Diamond let out a long, heavy sigh. "Even though I cannot perceive your physical form, I can explicitly hear the unadulterated sincerity in your voice."
"Oh, really?" I said, genuine curiosity piqued. "And what makes you so mathematically certain about that?"
"My innate power," she responded, her hand drifting up to gently touch her gemstone. "It is fundamentally tethered to the emotional spectrum. I can instantly detect when someone is projecting a falsehood, when someone is experiencing joy, or when they are drowning in sorrow. I control that matrix. It is my designated function; it is my power."
"Wow," I muttered, casually slipping my hands into my pockets as I sat down directly on the steps of Pink's palanquin.
"And what exactly are you doing here?"
"The same thing that blue lady over there told you, Blue Diamond?"
She gave a slow, firm nod. Blue Pearl just watched her in total, absolute bewilderment, witnessing her Diamond hold a full conversation with an invisible entity, but she didn't dare interrupt the sequence. She actually looks happy, Pearl thought, a small smile playing on her lips.
"Well, it looks like this specific location used to belong to someone you knew, and based on the baseline structural degradation, I'd wager it's been completely abandoned for years," I observed, looking around the overgrown clearing. "Though, I have to admit, the structural integrity is holding up pretty damn well."
"It belonged to her," Blue Diamond murmured through a fresh layer of tears.
Blue Pearl began to cry as well, though she actively kept her emotions tightly checked so as not to cause a scene.
"Man, you are incredibly emotional," I said with an amused, playful smirk.
She furrowed her brow, visibly irritated by my casual commentary.
"Why do you not simply depart?" she asked dryly after a few seconds of silence.
"Trust me, if I could seamlessly warp back to my actual house right now, I would do it in a heartbeat," I responded, inspecting the fading boundaries of the dreamscape. "But it looks like, for the time being, I am completely trapped in whatever the hell this scenario is. Though, if you'll take a piece of advice: that person you miss so much wouldn't exactly be thrilled to see this place completely unkempt, you know?"
"You... you truly think so?" she murmured after a long pause.
"I'd put money on it," I replied, flashing her a warm smile. "If by some random fluke I end up dying and they bury me, the absolute first thing I'd want is for people to keep my grave clean, just so I'm not forgotten all that easily."
She fell into a deep, reflective silence for a few moments.
"You know, you never explicitly stated your name," she finally noted.
"The name's Universe," I responded, choosing to keep my real identity completely off her radar.
"Universe?" she repeated, arching an eyebrow.
"Of course. I don't exactly go by my gemstone classification," I replied with a sharp, witty edge.
"Touché," she said, a faint, genuine smile breaking through her melancholic expression. "It was truly pleasant speaking with you, Universe, but I must take my departure. Do you believe our paths will cross again?"
"Without a doubt. If I manage to gain full operational control over whatever the hell this power is, I'll drop in to visit you regularly. So, if you could have a fresh cup of coffee waiting for me, that would be absolutely perfect."
"Coffee?" she asked, looking completely bewildered by the alien term.
I looked down to see my hands slowly beginning to pixelate and dissolve into static.
"Looks like my time's officially up."
"Are you departing already?" she murmured, a distinct note of sadness creeping back into her voice.
"Yeah. But you know what? I always sleep with a smile. I'll catch you on the flip side, Blue Diamond."
With a confident smirk, I completely vanished from the space.
Blue Diamond remained entirely motionless for a few seconds, intensely focusing on the lingering residual energy of a presence that was no longer there.
"Well... Universe," she murmured, resting a finger thoughtfully against her chin. "Pearl."
"Yes, my Diamond," the slender Gem responded instantly, bowing her head.
"Initiate a comprehensive scan across every single planetary system within Homeworld's radar. Search for a species designated as 'Universe'."
"Right away, my Diamond."
"I would highly enjoy meeting him in a physical capacity," Blue Diamond said, smoothly walking toward her transport ship.
Pearl, still thoroughly confused by the entire sequence of events, simply followed directly behind her while actively inputting commands into her data pad.
"My Diamond," Pearl said, bowing her head with immense respect.
"Speak," she responded, smoothly pulling back her hood to reveal an absolutely divine visage. His deep blue skin possessed a delicate, luminous luster, her long white hair cascaded downward like a waterfall of pure light, and her eyes—sharing the exact shade of her skin—reflected a profound serenity that could only originate from a celestial entity. She was the literal definition of elegance.
"My Diamond, our long-range sensors have picked up a rogue Gem signature in deep space, completely detached from any established colonies."
Blue Diamond went entirely silent for a moment, her brow slightly furrowing. "What is her operational purpose in that specific quadrant? There are zero active colonies out there."
"I cannot determine that, my Diamond," Pearl replied. "She is completely unresponsive to all broadcast frequencies, and her registry profile shows zero recent activity."
"Could she perhaps be lost?" the Diamond murmured with genuine confusion, staring at the vast cosmic void projected on her main monitor.
"I am unsure, my Diamond," Pearl repeated, a hint of unease clipping her words.
"Well... what is her specific gem classification?" the Diamond inquired.
"She is... she is a Lapis Lazuli," Blue Pearl responded.
"A Lapis Lazuli? Fascinating... and a first-generation cut at that," the Diamond added, a genuine wave of surprise washing over her. "From my very own court," she finally noted, her sharp expression softening significantly. "It appears the universe is in an exceptionally giving mood today."
She rested a hand against her chin and added with absolute serenity: "Deploy an Amethyst unit to retrieve her... or perhaps a Peridot, she might prove useful to our infrastructure."
"As you command, my Diamond," Pearl responded, executing a perfect, graceful reverence before departing to execute the directive.
Back in Beach City, Steven violently snapped his eyes open, thick drops of sweat rolling down his face.
"Why do I get the distinct, awful feeling that she is actively going to hunt me down?" he muttered to himself. That gravity... for the longest time, he had managed to maintain absolute psychological composure, but her baseline presence was just way too powerful to process.
He sat up, realizing his clothes were completely soaked through with sweat.
"Son of a bitch, I have to change the entire bedsheet layout now."
He glanced over to the side of his bed and his face instantly wiped into a completely blank, expressionless stare.
"You know what, I'm not even going to comment on this," he muttered, violently ripping the sheets off the mattress and launching them directly at Pearl, who had been standing there the entire time.
He marched straight into the bathroom and shouted from behind the door: "If you're going to actively spy on my sleep cycles, it's going to cost you! Wash my damn sheets!"
"Well..." Pearl muttered with total resignation, picking up the laundry to go wash it.
End of Chapter 21.
Author's Note: Oh wow, things are officially scaling up to a cosmic level! Thank you all so much for reading! <3 Smash that star button to keep the chapters dropping. If we hit 18 stars, Chapter 22 will be out before you know it!