When Connie hits puberty she has books. As her baby fat disappears and new curves appear she knows all the science behind it. When her hair darkens and grows in places she didn't even know people had hair she has a could write a dissertation on the proper methods of shaving. When she finds blood on her pajamas one morning she know exactly what is happening. And when strange feelings begin blossoming in her gut she has books hastily rented from an out of town library that she knows her mother would flip if she found out about. Connie has reasons, theory and diagrams. Science is safe, predictable, it tells her that she has nothing to worry about. She likes it that way.
When Steven hits puberty he has feelings. Instinct. A father that is too embarrassed to tell him everything and three surrogate mothers that have less of an idea about whats happening than he does. So he goes with the flow, starts with what he knows and goes from there. He has blood on his face and a better understanding of how razors work. He has growth spurts that might be his gem and might not("My mom was tall, right?"). He has blushing and stuttering and fire in his gut that he runs with. He has Connie. And thats more than enough.
(Steven and Connie's first kiss is a mess of blushing and bumped foreheads and Connie learns that theory isn't everything and Steven finds that feelings don't come with instructions, but both walk away smiling, thankful that the other can fill in the gaps between paper and the heart.)
