Disclaimer: I don't own Steven Universe!

Title: Four Inches of Metal

Summary: "Things we said when we thought we were gonna die."

Setting: During Jailbreak, when Amethyst and Pearl are in prison.

...

"I'm sorry I was such a brat."

Pearl presses closer to the wall of the ship. It's cold. She misses the warmth of Amethyst's form already and they're barely off Earth. That's the thing about freedom and capture- it's the little things you notice the most. "If you're sorry for being a brat, then I'm sorry for being a know-it-all."

"That's okay."

"No, it's not. It was targeted." She rubs her eyelids. This is no time to cry. "I was so scared you'd tell Steven about the Kindergarten before he was ready, and I used that fear to justify making you unsteady. I- I was a terrible person to you, Amethyst."

"I wasn't exactly an angel, P," she pointed out quietly. "I've never been super good at being super good."

"Nobody ever is," she promised, with a tiny shake of the head.

"Pearl?"

"Yeah?"

Her voice is shaking. "What's gonna happen to me?"

They're going to shatter you, is the first thought that comes into her mind. They'll never know you for your smile or your jokes or your laugh. They don't care that you've got a patch of freckles on your hip or that you love playing checkers even though you're terrible at it. All they care about is your size. A sudden, terrible thought struck her. They might use her as an escape from the grind. A toy. A bit of fun. Throw a defect at a full grown Quartz, watch the shards glint in the harsh light- some Gems were into that sort of thing. It would be such a Quartz thing, as well- to die fighting. Maybe Amethyst would prefer it. That didn't make it any better.

"I…" she wavered mid-sentence. It didn't seem right to tell her. "I don't know."

Amethyst didn't respond.

"I love you, Amethyst." I'm so sorry.

Pearl heard her weight settle against the wall. There was only a few inches of metal between them. "Love ya' too, Pearl."

Author's Note: I got this drabble prompt, and I really liked the result, so I figure I'd share it!

-Mandaree1