The simple matching rose-gold bands on their fingers still made him smile every time he caught a glimpse of either of them, and Connie delighted in lovingly teasing him about it every time she caught him teary eyed and staring at his hand.
He couldn't help it though, the rings always made him think of their wedding, and the memory of the occasion was fused with vivid emotion.
Connie had been positively radiant that day... She was always beautiful of course, but the magic of the ceremony had brought out something special. Their hands entwined, she had stood across from him, draped in the shimmering pink fabric, the Rose Sword still strapped across her back.
She looked more balanced, more herself, with it than she had earlier.
His white garb had been stained with splatted monster goo and he'd had a minor freak out that everyone else still referred to as his groomzilla moment… but then he'd been so moved by way their friends and families had come together to put the beach back to rights, like dodging magical blasts was a customary wedding activity and community clean up post-battle was a bonding ritual rooted in ancient tradition. All the while Priyanka and Pearl had performed some sort of mom-magic on the fabric of his wedding attire to where it had been pristine and sparkling as new when he and Connie had finally said their vows… though it was a bit tear-stained after.
The monster attack -because of course there'd been one- had pushed back the ceremony by a good four hours and as they had exchanged rings and said their vows under the sunset, the sky was streaked in vibrant pinks and golds. Their six parents filled the front row of rented white chairs, and when he turned from their varied, smiling faces to look up at the sky over the temple, he didn't need words for Connie to know where his thoughts had wandered. She'd squeezed his hands, knowingly, reassuringly, and he'd seen the tears beading at the corners of her own eyes, so full of love and still exhilarated from the thrill of fighting off the wave of corrupted gems arm-in-arm... It had been a struggle to not fuse right then and there, Stevonnie shimmering just under the surface of their skin.
But he hadn't wanted to loose sight of that look, and there are some things you just can't do fused.
Amethyst later told him their "restraint" had won her a decades-old bag of discontinued candy from Garnet, which probably also explained the "unforeseen" monster attack- Stevonnie's love of a good fight was second only to Garnet's own.
Ah, but nothing could stop Them from making an appearance at the reception that followed. If anyone had been startled by the fusion, Stevonnie's exuberant delight in their looped figure-eight wedding band easily set the tone for the night. The music? Out of this world. The dancing? Divine. And the food!? To live for. (Don't get him started on the cake...)
The whole town had partied with them that night, and a good number more. They'd danced with Greg and held him close as their silly-happy-proud tears had run together, "I'm so proud of you, we all are. Every day I'm thankful for you, your love is such a joy to behold, never forget it."
They'd hugged him tight, knowing all that he'd meant beyond the words themselves.
And long after they'd come unfused, they all still remembered.
After all, they were reminded every time they saw one of the matching rose-gold rings.
A/N:
Just a little piece of something that might become the prequel to my other story.