Pearl continuously fidgeted with the folded map in her palms; her eyes squinting hard to get a clearer view of the crisscrossed lines and markers along it. After skimming a slim finger across the map's surface one last time, Pearl pulled her face back from it and groaned.

"Ugh, this is impossible! I can't make out anything in this amalgam of things. How will I know if we're heading in the right direction?"

Garnet, who was concentrated on the road in front of her while driving, looked over to her partner and noticed something was misplaced, much to Pearl's unknowing.

"Well maybe if you put your glasses on, the ones that are sitting on your head, then maybe you can make out what's on the map hun."

She let a freehand reach over and grabbed the thin light blue frames that sat upon Pearl's head and handed them to her.

"Oh silly me," she said. After grabbing them from Garnet's hand, she put them on, clearing her vision and allowing her to make out the highlighted route on the map.

"It says we're to make a right up ahead at Sugar St. where there's a small fork in the road." Pearl pointed with a slim finger in the direction of the street before continuing, "Afterwards we should see the edge of the lake before we reach the neighborhood with the rented lake houses." She looked to her partner Garnet, who nodded in approval while still watching the road. In the back, there was a sound of shifting bodies, those of which belonged to Steven and Amethyst, Pearl and Garnet's children. Both had drifted to sleep earlier in the four and a half hours of the trip to the lake. And apparently Amethyst stirred from her slumber at the sound of their destination being near.

"Are we almost there Ma? My legs are aching, and I'm ready to get out of the car," she directed towards Garnet. The woman gave a simple nod, not turning her eye from the winding road. Ahead was the fork in the road, just as Pearl had stated, and to the immediate right of the fork was the street. Making a sharp turn, much to Pearl's annoyance, they ended up on Sugar St. leading to their destination; the edge of the lake barely seen in the distance.

"Oh there it is!" Pearl chided with a pleasing smile on her face. Amethyst chimed in with a sarcastic 'hurray' from the back.

Pearl turned in her seat to check on their youngest, little Steven, who was still dozed off, huddled against the car door and the seat behind the driver's. She reached a hand out to pat the top of his messy curls, being careful not to stir him from his slumber.

A few more minutes passed before arriving at their destination, a sea foam green, one story lake house that they were going to stay in for three weeks, just the four of them. Garnet pulled in in the driveway and placed the car in park before cutting the engine and allowing everyone to get out. Amethyst was quick to make her escape from her four and a half hour prison; practically leaping out from the backseat and running around in the front yard, with Pearl following with a stern shout of 'no monkeying around and retrieving the bags from the car.' Steven, who awoken once they pulled into the driveway, made his way out of the car with his Cheeseburger Backpack secured on his back, and MC Bear Bear in tow. He used the heel of his hands to wipe the sleep from his eyes before looking upon the front of the house, and the small view of the lake that appeared from behind it.

"Wow, it's so cool," he muttered in a sleepy tone. Garnet' who had retrieved some suitcases from the car, came to his side.

"It sure is, isn't it? My parents and I used to come here all the time when I was little, and now it's time I share it with you guys."

"Wow really? Then this place has been here for a long time." Garnet gave a lighthearted giggle, reaching a hand out and rustling the messy curls on her son's head.

They then retreated inside the spacious abode. Once they cross the threshold, Steven sprinted into the center of the large living room, admiring the vaulted ceiling and the seaside knick knacks that laid about the space for decoration.

"This place is so much bigger inside," chided Steven. Amethyst, who emerged from the hallway where the bedrooms were, had a big smile on her face. "Man, even the rooms are huge. I call the one in the back!" Both Garnet and Pearl, who now stood next to Garnet in the front entrance, giggled at their children's amusement.

XX XX XX

Later in the day, after everyone had got settled in, they all congregated in the backyard by the lake for a BBQ dinner. Both Amethyst and Steven were in the lake, playing with a couple of kids from neighboring houses, Garnet was busy tending to the grill, while Pearl watched the kids play from afar. The time was around 5 o' clock, making the sun in the sky sit a little lower than earlier, emitting a wondrous glow upon its surroundings. Pearl was situated at the picnic table with a thick novel in her hands. Her head was covered by a wide brimmed sunhat with a light blue ribbon around it, and a simple light blue colored dress draped over her form. She flipped one page within her book, before closing it and standing from the table, making her way over to Garnet who was at the grill. Pearl came from behind and