"I must have slept wrong." Jasper informs Peridot as she rubs the palm of her hand against her neck. Ever since she had woken up the numbness and ache had been keeping her from sitting up comfortably to get her work done. However, it was not just the pain, but also the restless sleep and strange dream which felt so realistic to her. It created a longing feeling inside of her, as if she had known this woman from somewhere and they were made for one another.

"I can give you something for that if you want."

"I don't think I trust the girl who blew up her kitchen twice in a month to give me pain killers."

"Hey! I may have blown up the occasional stove or two in my life, but it doesn't mean I'm incapable of grabbing a bottle of aspirin and handing it to you."

"I'm fine. I'll be fine." She groans, turning on her bed to look over to Peridot. "Why are you here again?"

"You asked me to come over and fix your television."

"Right. I remember." Jasper is bored, absolutely bored out of her mind and she does not like it. There was a rain storm outside and it has left her unable to go running—not to mention that pain keeping her from sitting up straight—on top of that her television was not working so she had to get Peridot to fix it, and the rain knocked out her internet connection, so she couldn't do homework even if she tried. "Are you done?"

"Nope."

"Hm…"

"You don't do well with inactivity, do you?"

"I don't like being bored."

"Don't you have books to read? Notes to study?"

"My neck hurts too much, and I'm stuck on this stupid phone game you got me to play."

"Can you at least be quiet?" She huffs, shocking her finger as she tries to configure the wires. "I'll be back in a second, I'm going to grab my gloves." Jasper watches Peridot get up from the floor, leave the bedroom and she can hear her front door open and shut.

Peridot heads next door to her apartment and is suddenly startled by a woman who grabs her arm which nearly sends her into a panic. When she turns to see the woman, she notices who it is immediately, glancing over her clothes which were soaked by the storm. "What on earth do you think you're doing here, Pearl?"

"I walked." She replies faintly, her blue eyes staring at Peridot.

"You know you can't come here during the day; Jasper lives next door and I've already convinced her I don't know who you are."

"…I know." She stays motionless, her voice void of any emotions and her clothes dripping wet from the rain. "I came here to see you."

Peridot rolls her eyes, walking to her front door and opening it. "Sure you did. You might as well come inside if you came all this way."

She follows Peridot into her apartment, standing in the doorway and looking around the place before coming inside. She has been to this specific apartment many times in her life but the biggest concern for her was the person living next door. It was because ever since Pearl has met Jasper, something has bothered her about the woman. She could not place what it was, but it impacted her more than it most likely should. She spent most of her time going through her life and trying—but failing—to forget the past and now that Jasper has come into her life, it was all she could think about. However, to understand what she meant was to understand parts of Pearl's life that she refused to share with anyone.

Pearl shuts the door behind her once she feels comfortable enough to walk further into the living room, she watches Peridot walk into her bathroom and quickly come out with towels. "I'm fine."

"You might be fine, but you are not getting my floors wet." She hands Pearl the towels and she hesitantly accepts them. "Now, what exactly did you want with me?"

"Well…I just." She starts to speak and stops herself. Explaining her feelings or telling people what she needed bothered her in a way she could not quite understand.

"Are you hungry?"

She nods hesitantly.

"You have to stop this once a month thing."

"Science shows—"

"As much as I love science, I don't care what it shows right now. I'm texting Amethyst." She takes her phone from her pocket, sending a text to invite the woman over to her place to hopefully talk some sense into Pearl.

"Amethyst wouldn't yell at me. She's just concerned like everyone always is, but I'm fine. So, if you are not free now I could come back later."

"I'm just finishing something at Jasper's place. Give me ten minutes and while I'm gone, please change into dry clothes. Take anything you want for my room to wear."

Peridot leaves the living room to head into her bedroom, grabbing her gloves and a bottle of pain medication before heading back over to Jasper's. The situation with Jasper was not something Peridot could properly explain because Pearl was never honest. Jasper had absolutely nothing to do with Pearl's decision to move out on her own or her drastic change in personality over the past ten years but Jasper trying to come into her life was causing Pearl a lot of stress. Peridot can only assume it has something to do with Steven's mother but even that was complicated. It was why she had to lie to Jasper about even knowing Pearl because of who they really were.

When Peridot arrives back she hands Jasper the bottle and has her take a few pills before continuing to fix the television. With the proper gloves she doesn't electrocute her hands and is able to fix it, but the cable box is still out from the storm. That was not something Peridot herself could fix.

"Did you want me to make you lunch?" Jasper asks her, interrupting Peridot's internal swearing at the television.

"…Why does that sounds so suspicious? You usually kick me out after a few minutes."

She shrugs, "feeling generous I guess. What do you like?" She asks as she climbs out of her bed, stretching her arms up as she walks out of her bedroom. The pain in her neck had begun to subside thanks to the medication but the stiffness was still there.

"I can't stay for long…I have some company." Peridot admits as she follows Jasper into the living room with her tool box.

"You have friends?" Peridot rolls her eyes at the comment. "How about I make food and let you know when it is done?"

"I might take a nap…How about dinner instead? Text me when you're done, and I'll come back over because my friends should be gone by then."

"Okay…Thank you by the way."

"You're welcome. I'll see you tonight."

Peridot wants nothing more to go back to her apartment to make sure Pearl has not left because she has a habit of coming and going without warning anyone. But, when she enters her apartment Pearl is wearing dry clothes—thankfully—and sitting on her couch while staring at the blank television screen. She puts her toolbox down on the living room table and sits down next to her. "Do you want the remote or?"

"No, no. I'm fine. Amethyst is in your room by the way."

"What? Why is she in my room?"

"She said she had a present for you and put it in your room for you to open when you had a moment. I'm assuming it is something inappropriate, but it is like her to do something such as that."

Peridot turns towards the hallway when she hears her bedroom door open and Amethyst come from it. Unlike Pearl who was soaked from the rain, Amethyst's clothes had only been partially damp, and it must have been from her running over to Peridot's apartment rather quickly. She reminded Peridot a lot of Jasper due to the long, thick hair and the similar light coloring. Amethyst had once put purple in her hair which faded into this pale lavender color which refused to leave. They also were both incredibly stubborn, into sports, and deep down were nice and kind-hearted although they might not show it on the outside. Outside of their height being a huge difference, another was that Amethyst learned how to let things go and didn't let the unexplainable bother her anymore.

Amethyst comes overs to the couch, sitting down on the coffee table in front of Pearl and Peridot. "So, what am I yelling at Pearl about?"

"She has been doing this thing for the past few months where she decided—" Peridot gets cut off quickly by Pearl.

"It has been backed by science!" Pearl interrupts.

"So she decided that it would be a good idea if she only ate once a month because—" She gets cut off again and groans.

"Woah, now. Do we need to have this conversation again?" Amethyst asks.

"I am fine. I have always been fine." Something inside of Pearl constantly makes her defensive against anything that may seem wrong to others. Once they start to scold her or pretend they know better than she does. She has been the one living this way for close to her entire life; not Amethyst or Peridot or anyone else who wanted to interfere in her personal life. She had gotten into countless arguments over the years because of this very thing and it was how she lost contact with people she once cared about.

"You are not fine. You look worse than the last time I saw you."

"Yes, that is what every person wants to hear."

"Pearl, please. You know you can't keep doing this to yourself. Ever since Rose died, you have been a mess and haven't been taking care of yourself the way you should be. I offered before to help you."

"And I appreciated the offer, I still appreciate the offer but I'm very decisive about what I want."

"Well, what you want isn't currently available. You have Peridot for now, but you need more than just her and a lot more than just once a month."

"Is that why you keep showing up around Jasper?" Peridot asks unexpected, keeping to her own thoughts while Amethyst and Pearl had been speaking. "Do you react to people a different way?"

"Whose Jasper?" Amethyst snorts, "oh wait! Isn't she that hot girl who Peridot totally gets off to when we're not around?" Amethyst stands up and moves to sit in between the women on the couch. She pats Peridot on the thigh.

"She's my next-door neighbor." Peridot rolls her eyes in response to Amethyst touching her and then moves over to make more room on the couch. "Jasper met Pearl like a week ago and has been asking me and everyone around town if they know who Pearl is because Jasper has a crush on her. Jasper does that though, meets strange women who are aloof and falls for them."

"I am not aloof." Pearl declares.

"Sure you aren't," Amethyst laughs. "And Pearl, are we reciprocating these emotions?"

"…No."

"You don't seem so sure to me."

Pearl does not want to talk about it and it is evident from the look on her face. She has always detested speaking about her personal life, her feelings for other people whether they romantic or other. But, for some reason whenever she is around both Amethyst and Peridot she feels as if she must explain herself. Luckily, there was nothing to explain at this point in time. Her attraction to Jasper was something she was still trying to figure out for herself.

"She's ignoring me, Peri." Amethyst frowns.

"Jasper's only been living next to me for a few months, so it isn't surprising that Pearl has never met her before now."

"And if you think about it, she kind of reminds you of Rose? Maybe that's what this is."

"What are you talking about?" Pearl interrupts.

"I mean, they look alike if you think about it." Amethyst shrugs.

"Well, I do not think about it. Can Peridot and I just be left alone? I would like to head back home before the rain stops and the sun is out."

"What's up with you and the sun? You know those myths about sunlight are fake, right? Is this a side effect of not eating?"

"Will you just leave?" Pearl huffs, standing up and heading back into Peridot's bedroom.

"What a shame; I made her mad."

"She's been agitated lately. Something is seriously bothering her, and she won't tell anyone what it is."

"You think Garnet knows? They haven't really been on speaking terms in the past few weeks but maybe she knows something?" She scratches her head as she stands up to leave. "I'll go talk to her and come back tonight. And before I forget, do not open the box in your room until I come back. That is for you and I, and I want to see your face when you open it." She winks, "I'll see you later."

Peridot waits until Amethyst leaves the apartment before she stands up and heads back into her bedroom. Pearl is lying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling with her eyes closed. "She left."

"I heard the door." Pearl sighs, covering her face with her hands. She knows she has made it hard on everyone for these past few years, but she was so tired of the way she was now. Not just how she portrayed herself around others, but the simple fact of who and what she was often exhausted her. She did not want to share her burdens with others because they also were affected by the same event she was. She knew Peridot was one of the few people who she could speak with because she was not around at this time. Peridot came into her life after Rose's death and became a sort of confidant. She was the one who held all her secrets and helped her the most.

"I want you to tell me something before we start…" Peridot speaks as she shuts her door and then comes to sit down on her bed.

"Whatever it is I'm sure it is going to invade my personal life."

"What's with Jasper? I do not understand your problem with her." Peridot has been curious for the past week about Pearl's sudden interest with the woman. Was there a connection between them? Did it happen to do with some sort of aura Jasper produced? There was so much Peridot could never understand because she was merely human.

"Well, it is personal."

"Which we've been over."

"And I do not like to share my personal life with just anyone."

"You don't share it with anyone."

"It's not important."

"Does it have to do with Rose like we were saying?"

Pearl drops her hands and opens her eyes, slowly turning to Peridot. "I don't know. I would be frightened to bring someone like that woman into my life with hopes she would understand what I am."

"You say it as if your entire life is such a tragedy and being a vampire is such a burden."

"Not my entire life." She chuckles.

"I just want you to be happy. It sucks seeing everyone around me so miserable all of the damn time." Peridot huffs as she lays down. "At least ask Jasper for her phone number?"

"I don't have a phone."

"I will buy you a cell phone just for this."

"And what if she is human? I do not want to live my life pining for another human."

"We'll figure it out before you get to the pining level, okay?"

Pearl nods.

"Good."

Pearl sits up on the bed and Peridot stares at her, "pick a wrist."

Peridot lifts her hands in front of her face, contemplating which before handing Pearl her left cautiously. As many time as they have done this in the past—with the scarring still on Peridot's wrists as proof—she always felt a bit of apprehension in this method.

"Now breathe…It will only hurt for a second." She speaks, and within moments Peridot can feel teeth piercing her skin.