The Morning After Last One Out of Beach City

"Steven, Steven! Steven!" The young boy heard a voice shouting his name, louder and more urgently as he was shaken awake. He couldn't help but flinch a little bit as he opened his eyes only to be met with a pair of familiar, blue ones accompanied by a big, pointy nose. "Pearl!" He said as he scooted away slightly. "Are you okay? Are Garnet and Amethyst—what's going on?" Pearl's tone immediately changed when she realized that she had startled the boy.

"Yes, yes, everything's okay, I was just wondering if I could…" and then trailed off as Steven's confusion increased. It's not like any of the gems ever needed his permission for anything; it was always the other way around.

"Pearl?" He asked, still concerned.

"I was wondering if I can use your, um, your phone!" Pearl's voice turned to an urgent whisper as she blushed furiously.

"Sure, Pearl, um, why?" He muttered, still quite groggy.

Pearl didn't think that it was possible for her to blush even more, but somehow she managed to. "I want to call the girl! I've been thinking about it all night, I know just what I'll say now, I'm finally ready and I can't wait any longer!"

"The—girl?" Steven's memory of the previous night slowly returned, "Oh, the girl from the show! Um, Pearl? It's 6 am on a Saturday, she's probably still asleep."

"Oh," Pearl muttered, looking defeated.

"You should totally call her later today though!"

Pearl managed a small smile before she let out a deep, dramatic sigh and flopped down on her back next to the boy. "But what am I supposed to do until then?!"

Steven was doing his best to be supportive the blue-eyed gem as he knew how much she needed this, but it was difficult when he was still partially asleep. "Um, I don't know, isn't that like no time at all for someone as old as you?"

"I guess that's true," Pearl sighed, as she heard the temple door open and saw a familiar fusion gem step into the living room below her. "Oh! I have to tell Garnet! She's going to be so surprised!"

"Yeah, Pearl, you do that. Quietly, please," Steven said as he drifted back to sleep.

That Afternoon

Steven returned to the temple after having been out walking on the boardwalk and let the door slam loudly behind him. "Pearl!" he shouted, "Pearl?" But the ivory-skinned gem was nowhere to be seen, nor was anyone else. "Oh, um, okay then." It only took a few minutes for Pearl to appear in the temple door, and the boy rushed over to her with stars in his eyes. "I bet the girl's awake now! You should call her!" Pearl's blue eyes grew huge and scared.

"Oh, no, no, Steven, I can't do it, I never talk to humans, what would I even say to someone like her?! I'm not ready." The tall gem tried to turn away from the hybrid and walk back to her room, if for no other reason than to exit this conversation, but Steven blocked her way.

"Come on," Steven whined, "You fought a thousand year gem war! A little phone conversation should be no big deal."

Logically speaking, he was right, of course. Pearl knew this. But she couldn't explain the way that just the thought of this girl sent shivers up her spine and left her weak in the knees. Steven couldn't possibly understand, could he? Pearl was entering completely unknown territory, and suddenly Homeworld's soldiers seemed downright cuddly in comparison. Steven noticed as Pearl's focus shifted from him to all of the thoughts, feelings, and anticipation swirling around her head, but got her attention back by placing his hand in hers, looking straight into her eyes, and saying, "Listen, Pearl, I know you're nervous about this and it's all new, but you can do it. Clearly she likes you, and you don't want to miss out on this opportunity. And besides, you're so great, who wouldn't want to get to know you?"

The hybrid boy finished with a big smile, pulled his phone out of his pocket, and offered it to Pearl once again. She couldn't help but grin along with him, but still muttered, "Not now," before disappearing back into her room, leaving Steven looking disheartened behind her.

It was a few more hours before Pearl emerged again, this time with a determined look on her face. As she walked past Steven, she muttered, "I'm ready." The boy responded to this by silently handing the gem his phone and staring at her starry-eyed. Pearl noticed this and was immediately self-conscious. This was hard enough without an audience. And the last thing she wanted was Garnet or Amethyst to join in the fun. So Pearl set off for the lighthouse, in hopes that a little bit of walking and nature could calm her nerves, as she carefully took the bit of paper from her gem and dialed the number. Her anticipation grew with every ring, until Pearl heard a low voice on the other end, "Hello?"

"Hello! Ah, yes, this is Pearl from the rock show. Do you remember me? I sure hope so, I was the girl with pointy, peach hair—you asked how I colored it, remember? Oh, and I have a big pearl on my forehead!" Pearl couldn't help but ramble a bit as she hoped desperately that the girl liked her and wanted to hear what she had to say. It was so odd; she'd never cared about what a human thought before, and rarely said much to them at all (Greg and Connie being exceptions, of course).

"Hey, oh yeah I remember you, you're illusion of light girl. You saved my planet, right?" The girl responded jokingly.

Pearl, not quite getting the humor, responded, "Yes, that is correct!" And then her mind went blank. All the things she had thought of to say, suddenly gone. What did this girl even want from her anyway? She desperately searched her brain for something smart or witty to say, but nothing was coming, and she couldn't take the awkward silence. Thankfully, the girl cut in.

"Umm hey? You still there?"

"Yes, yes, I'm still here! I'm sorry, I couldn't think of what to say, to be honest I've never done this before," Pearl got more flustered with every word and was thankful that no one was around to see her blushing.

"Don't worry about it, you're doing fine. So…you want to hang out?"

"Yes, very much so."

"Okay, tonight work for you?"

"Tonight?! Oh, um, yes."

"You sure?"

"Yes. Definitely." Pearl could feel herself beginning to freak out at the thought of actually seeing this girl again, but she absolutely knew she wanted to.

"Okay. Meet you on the boardwalk at 7?"

"Yes."

"Heh, okay. Bye Pearl, see you soon." The mysterious girl hung up, and Pearl flopped dramatically onto the grass.