This can't be happening, this can't be happening, Pearl told herself repeatedly as she rushed over to Lapis.
One moment, they were just fighting a corrupted gem, and the next, all hell had broken loose as another gem monster appeared and attacked. It had tried to go for Pearl, but Lapis had gotten in the way. Lapis had managed to give the rest of the gems an opening to defeat the monster, but not without badly injuring herself in the process. The beast had managed to strike her directly on the back, and Pearl hoped beyond hope that it had missed her gem.
She hadn't even waited to make sure the beast was bubbled before she made her way over to Lapis, kneeling down next to her. At first, she didn't even notice the other gems gathering around them. The only thing she could comprehend was Lapis, who was crumpled on the ground, unable to move.
"Please be okay," she begged as she gently lifted Lapis off the cold, hard ground. Her blood ran cold as she heard a pained groan escape her love's lips.
"P-Pearl," Lapis whimpered as she looked up with those reflective eyes that Pearl had only seen once before.
"L-Lapis, p-please, I need to see your gem," she choked back tears as she gently sat her upright. It was worse than she had feared. Steven sat down next to the two, catching Pearl's attention.
"Steven," she pleaded, "do you think you can heal her?"
Steven looked down at his feet, looking as though he might start crying at any moment.
"I-I'm not sure, but I can try," he said, licking his hand. He placed it on Lapis' gem, and they waited.
Pearl's heartbeat grew louder in her ears as she waited for it to work. Her heart sank when she realized it wasn't going to.
"Do you think we could get her to Rose's fountain?" she asked the other gems frantically. Garnet frowned, shaking her head. Steven clung to Pearl's arm as tears fell freely from his eyes, and Pearl could tell that this was every bit as heartbreaking for him as it was for her. She placed her arm around him to pull him into a close hug as he hid his face in her shirt.
"T-the crack is s-spreading quickly," Lapis whispered. Pearl knew it was true, she could see it getting worse with her very own eyes, but she didn't want to believe it.
"Lapis, you'll get through this," she promised her, "we'll get you to the fountain, and everything will be okay."
Lapis only shook her head.
"I-I don't h-have much time…" she said.
"Please, don't do this," she pleaded as though Lapis really had any control over the situation. Her heart ached at the mere thought of losing her. "Please don't leave me."
"I l-love you," she muttered weakly as she found herself cradled against Pearl's chest.
Pearl's heart ached at the way she spoke, as though it was the last time she would ever be able to say it. She had said it as though it were a goodbye.
"I love you too, Lapis. Please don't leave me," she begged. "I don't want to be alone again," she choked.
She knew the tears were flowing freely from her eyes now, but there was no stopping them. She noticed Lapis trying to sit up on her own, so she leaned in to make it easier for her. Pearl could feel that the gem on her back was so nearly shattered that they would be lucky to have even one more minute left with each other.
"Just… kiss… me…" Lapis ordered.
Pearl willingly obliged, knowing that this was their last moment together. The kiss what soft and gentle at first, as though she were trying to be careful with Lapis before allowing it to grow more intense, more desperate. Pearl could feel the gem beneath her fingers start to give way as Lapis used the last of her energy to return the kiss. Finally, a piece of the gem fell off, followed by another until the gem was just a small pile of rubble in Pearl's hand. Pearl pulled away to take one final look at Lapis before she too, disintegrated in Pearl's arms.