Cluttered Cups

Summary: An extended version of the cup scene in Last One Out of Beach City. What if things went differently after Pearl knocked over the cups?

"Do it! Do it! Do it!" Pearl really doesn't know if she could even go talk to this lovely lady with pink hair. What if she messes up? That girl will laugh at her.

No, no, no, she tells herself. You can do this, Pearl. Like Amethyst said, this will be a practice round. So with a deep breath, Pearl walked up to the coffee table to stand next to the girl, who was busy stirring her coffee. But now seeing this woman up close, Pearl couldn't help but notice her appearance. This woman is just…Goodness, she looks amazing! Her pink hair, tall muscular body, and white shirt reminds her so much of Rose Quartz! Just the thought of it made Pearl go stiff.

Come now, Pearl, she tells herself. You can do this. Start by taking a cup to make yourself a drink, and then say hi before complimenting her on her hair.

So whistling casually, Pearl reached out and picked up the top cup of the stack. Unfortunately, she also grabbed a few cups under it too quickly, causing the stack to start toppling over. Seeing this, Pearl panicked and tried to grab them, but they simply slipped through her grasp and cluttered all over the floor.

Realizing what she just did, Pearl turned to the pink-haired woman. She's holding her coffee to the side and looking at her with surprise in her green eyes. Seeing her expression, Pearl totally lost it.

"Oh, my stars!" she cried, holding up her hands in defense. "I'm so sorry! I was…That is…" Behind them, Steven got a little nervous while Amethyst facepalmed with a groan.

And the woman? She only smiled at Pearl.

"Hey, it's cool," she said, her voice as smooth as a drop of honey sliding down a rose petal. "At least it wasn't the coffee pot, right?"

"Uh, y-yes, of course," Pearl replied with a nervous laugh. The woman then set her cup down on the counter.

"Here," she said before kneeling down. "Let me help you pick these up."

"Oh, uh…thank you," Pearl replied, kneeling down to help her. As they cleaned up the clutter, Pearl decided to start up the conversation she went over for.

"I, uh…couldn't help but notice your pink hair. I'm not complaining or anything; I'm just curious about why you colored it pink."

"Oh, my hair?" the woman answered, running her fingers through her hair with a smile. "Yeah, I colored it pink because it's my favorite color; it reminds me of the roses in my grandmother's rose garden. I loved playing there when I was a little girl." Pearl smiled with a light blue blush on her cheeks. She couldn't help but imagine the woman as a little girl running through a rose garden with a huge smile on her face.

"Sounds magical…"

"Thanks," the woman chuckled as they set the cups back onto the counter in a nice, neat stack. "My name's Sheena, by the way."

"Uh, Pearl," the Gem replied, taking her held-out hand to shake it, the cute blush still on her cheeks. "My name is Pearl." Sheena's smile grew a hair as she gave Pearl's hand a gentle squeeze, making the Gem's heart flutter.

"Cool name," she replied. "So what are you up to? You look like you're heading somewhere tonight."

"Oh, my friends and I are heading for this rock show," Pearl answered. "Amethyst said it's with Mike Krol." Sheena's smile brightened with delight.

"Hey, I'm heading there too," she stated. "If you three like, we can travel together."

"I love to," Pearl replied without thinking. Hopefully she doesn't sound too desperate.

"Great," Sheena replied with a wink at her. "I'll wait for you in the parking lot, beautiful." She then took her coffee and went out the door, Pearl blushing more deeply as she watched after her.

She called me beautiful…

"Ooooh, someone's got it baaaad~" Amethyst teased with a huge grin at her.

"Oh, hush up!"