I love Greg and I adore Rose-I certainly don't own them. I'm hoping we get to see their relationship in the show but until that day, I will shamelessly write on!
An unpleasantly thick fog had rolled in from the ocean, settling down crassly upon Beach City's inhabitants. The sky was bushy with bulky, black clouds and the smell of rain was prominent in the air. Every now and then the quilt of clouds would part and glints of moon would struggle to bring light to the dank gloom. The ocean glimmered a dim jade and the smell of musty seafood permeated the air. The usual band of tourist who came to the beach to surf or mingle with the locals late into the night, were nowhere to be seen.
Business had been slow today. Every radio and TV had been blasting the weather station since the shops had opened. A storm was coming, something drudged up by a dying tropical storm. There wasn't a news station on air that had an exact approximation of the severity of the storm.
Before Greg had needed to leave for work this morning, he had popped by the temple to ask Garnet about the weather. If the storm was going to be as bad as the radio said, than he would need to move the van somewhere safe. Garnet had told him that Beach City would be foggy and would be hit by random rainstorms, but nothing as horrible as the media was portraying. She had mysteriously told him to be careful though and to keep out of the rain.
Greg sat uncomfortably in the van, a bag of chips on his stomach and his limbs splayed out every which way. He had just gotten off of his part time job at the run down car shop-car wash. Even though most of the shops around time had closed a little early, the car shop-wash combo hadn't. A rundown car belonging to a single mother and her two kids had broken down around closing time. Greg couldn't just leave her there, so he had stayed until the old car was purring and they were on their way. Though he was still making music and selling some of his CDs around town, he had needed a steadier source of income if he wanted to eat. The car wash-mechanic shop had been the only place hiring in town that blasted music all day long-it was the best deal he could've asked for.
The work was pretty exhausting. He had always worked laborious jobs since fourteen, but this one demanded a lot of him. The car wash didn't have any equipment, everything was done by hand. The connecting mechanic shop, was just as devoid of helpful equipment as well. There were only two other employees and neither were as fit as Greg so he ended up doing most of the heavy lifting around there. He had to roll large barrels of soap, get on top of cars, crawl under cars, bring in deliveries of tires, nuts, bolts, engine replacement components, and carry the two twenty pound hoses up a ladder to the nozzle components set twenty-three feet above the ground. The weight he had started picking up from eating nothing but junk food during his tour, had melted off fast and left him broad with muscle. Sore, aching muscles and purple blotchy bruises and a new appetite that was killing his wallet.
It wasn't all bad though. The owners had seen him working last week, and had given him a raise. That little bit of money was worth it though. Worth the thick blisters on his palms, the scrapes and bruises he had gotten over the last few months. Because every night, when the gems didn't have a mission, he would get to see Rose. Rose would always greet him with a long kiss and hold him close to her. She didn't seem to mind the smell of car oil or the sharp scent of concentrated car wash liquid. Her powerful, earthy scent would wash over him and every kink in his body would unravel and relax.
Things had been going well between them. Since their talk after their failed attempt at fusion, Rose had been learning. Human romance was truly an alien concept to her and though she understood love; she needed help learning that love was more than just kisses and hugs. Greg was trying to teach her how to really 'talk' to him. They talked often, asking about one another's day. Greg would ask about the missions and hope Rose could answer them before Pearl butted in and Rose would ask dozens of questions, trying to understand Greg's feelings and thoughts.
"So, you weren't upset when the man yelled at you?" Rose had asked one night. It had been one of the nights that Greg hadn't been so exhausted that he hadn't fallen asleep in Rose's lap.
"Nah, that guy had three kids in the back, a pregnant wife who looked sick and his car suddenly breaks down. I'd rather he yelled at me than them." Greg had explained with a shrug, leaning into her. Her hair was so thick and soft, that it was almost like lying on a rose scented pillow.
Talking to her about people was easy. Rose loved humans and could talk about them all day if you let her. Talking about them though was…different. Rose had had many relationships with humans before. But none of them like the one she had with Greg. She looked to Greg to guide her into this foreign territory. And it wasn't like he minded, he was eager to prove to her that he was worth something and capable. He always felt as though he had to prove himself to her. There were times when he felt as though he was making himself into an even bigger fool. Rose was so much more than him. She had probably seen everything in his world worth seeing. Greg hadn't even gotten out of community college. And there wasn't a moment he wasn't being reminded of that either.
Pearl was always with Rose. Pearl had always been with Rose. She knew more about Rose than Greg could ever hope to learn in his entire human lifetime. Every gift, or song or date he had offered, Pearl always had something to say. He wasn't loaded, he couldn't afford to give her the things other humans in the past had. Not that Rose ever seemed to mind this fact. Anything he presented her, made her light up beautifully. It made Greg's heart soar to see her happy and then Pearl would lean in close and open her big fat mouth.
'She knew a king once upon a time. Gave her a garden of roses-not just any roses either. They grew three times as big as the dominant species that exists now.' Pearl would whisper in his ears, her unnatural breath cold on his skin. Or 'Rose once knew a man who would summon an entire orchestra to play for her."
Their hatred for one another had begun to get more and more personal-and unwillingly quieter. Rose had begun to catch on to Greg and Pearl's relationship. The snide comments, the arguments and the glares had become more subtle, but they hadn't stopped. The closer Greg to Rose, the harder Pearl pushed against him.
Pearl's comments did nothing to help his already faltering confidence. He loved Rose, more than he had loved anyone before. It frightened him sometimes how much he was beginning to adore her. There weren't words to describe how much he loved how she glided across the sand, the way she giggled, the way she held him when she kissed him, and the way she loved the world. He felt like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff, one wrong move and he would be hurtled mercilessly to a life where he lived without Rose. He knew he could probably survive it, if she ever chose to abandon him like the unknowing puppy Pearl explained he was. He would never be able to forget her though, her being forever burned into his heart. It hurt to think that he wouldn't even be a bump in her mind though, just a long forgotten phase.
These thoughts had been plaguing him for some time, never really at the forefront of his mind until he settled down after a long day of work. Whenever he thought about it, his heart would start stuttering uncomfortably in chest and his hair got all sweaty. He also got hungry, which is why two chip bags were behind his head and the current one on his stomach was half way full.
He idly grabbed a fist full and shoved them into his mouth. He had always been a bit of a nervous eater, but being with Rose had increased his snacking nearly double. With his job burning all his calories and his worse eating habit, if he wasn't careful he was gonna start looking like his old man.
Greg sat up with a huff, wiping the scratchy crumbs off his face. He hated this. Usually when he started thinking like this, he could just go find Rose or Amethyst or Vidalia-their company much better than that of a pizza. But the gems were on a mission and Vidalia had been busy for the past few weeks with… stuff she didn't want to talk about. Probably Marty stuff.
He tossed the now empty chip bag into the van with a huff and slid out into the lot of the storage garage. The owner didn't mind him parking his van there since he had rented out a space. He didn't really have a real place to live other than the van at this point. Sometimes Vidalia let him stay in the cot in her parents' garage, which was softer than the worn down futon he had. Sleeping on top of Pearl would be better than sleeping on his futon. In a few more weeks he would be able to get another mattress, something that didn't feel like sleeping on a rock.
Even though he was tired and achy, he stood up and slammed the back doors of the van with all his strength. He would walk around, wake his brain up. Hopefully Rose would be back from her mission tomorrow and she wouldn't mind him resting in her lap after work. He loved the way her fingers combed his hair while he slept.
All the worries that burdened him throughout the day, melted away when Rose held him close.
A/N: This may get really...long. I wrote way too much and it was much to fun so...yeah. I feel as though I should apologize for some reason. Anyways, I hope you guys like it-I feel as though there's plenty of Pearl/Rose stories, but not too many stories with Greg.
Follows, Favorites, and Reviews are always very appreciated. Especially reviews, writing Rose and Greg is not easy for me, I feel like they're some of the harder characters to write (I don't know why though). I'm a bit nervous actually, so any feedback is welcomed with open arms.