I finally did it! This chapter is HUGE but I just couldn't split it: it's kind of a whole "arc". Also I added titles to the chapters and I worked on correcting a few mistakes in the first three.
Enjoy!
The very first day Greg spent with the Crystal Gems was a bit frustrating for him: he was eager to be alone with his son to talk further about their common dream, but didn't get to. When Steven came back from the supermarket he spent the rest of the afternoon with Connie and evening was already falling when she left. The man didn't mind much though: he would have all the time to be with his son in the future, to solve this mystery or even just to have good times with him. And maybe in the meantime he could aim to get closer to the Gems: he promised himself he'd try in the next few days.
For now it was dinner time: it was time to discover what kind of diet he had to follow. Greg took a seat at the kitchen's bar apprehensively. The gems were standing behind the counter facing him and Steven was sitting beside him, watching silently.
Pearl exposed as exhaustively as possible every detail about his future stay: what kind of behavior he had to adopt, what time he had to wake up, what his treatment consisted in and when he had to take it, what he was allowed to do or not, and many others things. Greg couldn't help but note she was speaking in a rather condescending tone, like she was addressing a child to which she'd dictate the rules of the house, but he merely listened, without saying a word.
When the question of his diet came on the table, he winced slightly when earing the list Pearl was expounding:
"From now on you won't eat anything other than the meals cooked by one of us: no more snacking, no more deliveries, no more fry bits, no more carbonated beverages. The meals we'll prepare for you won't contain any saturated fat, sugar, salt and, of course, no alcohol."
"The last part is fine." he affirmed "I've never really liked alcohol."
"In a few days," Garnet added "when we'll be totally sure your state of health allows it, I'll have you exercise a bit."
"WHAT ?"
Greg straightened up on his chair, his eyes widened in surprise.
"I thought it was just about me eating healthy stuff!" he complained "I hate exercising... I hated every sport I've ever tried!"
"This is not negotiable" the fusion replied sharply "If you live in our home, you follow our rules."
Steven frowned a bit: he didn't like this comment very much. Still, he put a comforting hand on his father's shoulder.
"It'll make you feel better, dad." he assured "And you'll go at your own pace: you'll show him mercy Garnet, right?
"Of course Steven." she answered with a smile.
"As for me, I'll punish Greg if he ever disobeys us." Amethyst intervened "So I'd watch my step if I were you, dude!"
She jammed her fist into her palm to illustrate her point.
"For now," Pearl concluded "here's your first meal."
She pushed a covered plate towards him. Greg removed the lid and discovered steamed vegetables and a piece of chicken to which the fat and skin had been carefully removed. The man took a small, hesitant bite, then his eyebrows rose in surprise: it was way better than he thought. The vegetables were nicely seasoned, the meat was tender and the whole dish was actually quite tasty.
"Wow, I'd never expect healthy food to be so good!"
"Thanks for the compliment." Garnet replied.
"Garnet is better at cooking than me." Pearl admitted with a sigh "To be fair, it's easier when you can actually taste what you're cooking."
"You're to blame for this!" Amethyst remarked "I offered many times to be your taster and you've always refused."
"You drink used motor oil, Amethyst. You're not a reliable taster."
"I drink clean motor oil!" the small Gem rectified "I would never have waste oil, I have standards!"
"Hey, Garnet!" Steven called, waving his arm."What will I eat?"
"Don't worry Steven, I didn't forget you."
The fusion walked to the oven, opened it - Greg flinched when he realized she wasn't wearing kitchen gloves - and pulled out a large bowl she put in front of the boy.
"Homemade mac and cheese!" he exclaimed with delight.
He grabbed a spoon and hungrily dug into the food.
"Sooo good!" he said with his mouth full, his eyes gleaming with ecstasy "Even better than those packets from the store!"
Greg watched his son eat with a displeased look on his face. The delicious smell of the macaroni bowl and the sight of the creamy, glimmering cheese sauce was making his own plate a lot less appetizing, and the next few bites of vegetables felt blander than before. When glancing at his father, Steven noticed his frustration and mentally reprimanded himself: it was cruel of him to display his enjoyment while eating what somebody else was deprived of. He pledged himself to be less expressive for the next meals.
After he took the last bite, Greg raised his eyes. He was so absorbed in his thoughts he hadn't even noticed the kitchen was emptier: Garnet took her leave to go into the temple and Amethyst was now upstairs watching television, surrounded by chips and candy packets she filched from the cupboards. The only ones remaining in the kitchen were Steven finishing his bowl and Pearl doing the dishes. The silence was a bit too oppressive to Greg's liking and, as he was bringing his empty plate to the Gem, he made an attempt to improve the atmosphere.
"If I eat like this everyday I'll have your silhouette in no time, Pearl." he said jokingly.
Steven couldn't help but chuckle at these words, his cheeks full of pasta and cheese. Pearl just rolled her eyes.
"Don't be silly Greg." she replied "First, that's physiologically impossible. And second, despite what you might think, what happened to you has nothing to do with the fact that you are... um..."
"Fat?"
"Overweight." she quickly corrected.
Greg looked at her with a piercing gaze, obviously upset. Pearl blushed slightly.
"What I mean," she continued "is that a heart attack is not directly linked to a person's weight. It can happen to anyone regardless of their shape."
"Did you learn this from Doctor Maheswaran's notes?"
"Yes. This diet's goal is not to make you lose pounds, though... it can actually be a side effect."
"Is that so? To what extent?"
"Well I'm not exactly sure, but in my opinion - if you involve yourself, of course - you might look like this in a few months."
Pearl took a few steps forward and briefly closed her eyes. Greg saw the gemstone on her forehead glow and project a light blue beam on the counter, right next to Steven. An indistinct shape took form inside the ray and a few seconds later the boy and his father were staring at a miniature Greg, transparent and blue, standing on the bar. The hologram was indeed thinner, while still retaining a strong stature.
That looks familiar, Greg thought.
His eyes met his son's, and he realized they both thought the same thing.
The first days passed slowly for Greg, in a succession of bittersweet notes. After the destabilizing transition between a dissolute, anarchical life in a van and that new organized existence with set meal times and waking times, the man found himself appreciating not having to care about anything: that reminded him of his youth when he had nothing to worry about, watching the time go by and playing his guitar, letting other people (at that time, mostly Rose and Vidalia) take care of important matters. He had temporarily closed his Car Wash so he could take the time to adjust to this new life, and future events proved him that was a wise decision.
Obviously, spending more time with Steven was the most interesting aspect of this stay: each episode of a show they watched together, each game of checkers they played, each walk on the beach or Guitar/Ukulele duet warmed Greg's heart a little more. He was starting to realize he could totally get used to his son's permanent presence, even though he knew that these moments, sooner or later, would come to an end.
Greg also noticed Steven was trying has hard as he could not to snack in front of him or not to express too much delight while eating the food the Gems were cooking for him. The boy was making every effort to support his father, encouraging him permanently, congratulating him for each little progress, cheering him up when needed and even preparing his pill box everyday, making sure he was taking his treatment at the right hours. Both of them managed to be alone at some times to talk about their dream, but they haven't had new ones since the hospital, and it turned out they didn't have much to talk about for now.
Unfortunately, not everyone was as sensitive as Steven, starting with Amethyst: Greg's presence was not preventing her from performing the same acts of food debauchery as usual. Luckily most of these excesses were gross enough not to entice him: even though it was frequent for him to leave the table hungry, Greg was not especially tempted by a pulled pork/marshmallows/toothpaste sandwich or peanut butter spread on cardboard. But sometimes Amethyst could also eat more "normal" food, like pancakes, burgers or burritos, and watching her was then a real torture. Even worse, it seemed like Amethyst herself was taking cruel pleasure in eating in front of him, and even Steven or Pearl's remonstrances couldn't stop her from taunting Greg, letting out fake groans of satisfaction while stuffing her face with junk food.
The other Gems' behavior wasn't much more satisfying: Garnet and Pearl were simply ignoring Greg most of the time. He sometimes tried to strike up a friendly conversation with them but any non technical question was dismissed and each of his attempts at a joke to lighten the mood was met by an awkward silence.
As the days went by, the constant void in his stomach became less and less bearable. The meals were way too meager for a man of his constitution, who was used to gargantuan dinners for many years. Leaving the table only half full was one of the worst sensations he ever experienced and after one week of draconian diet, he was seriously thinking about eating something in secret.
He made the final decision the ninth day, as his stomach was gurgling despite the soup he had eaten just an hour ago. After waiting for night-time, when Steven was asleep and the Gems had retreated in their respective rooms in the temple, Greg got up from his guest bed made from the couch's cushions and tip-toed towards the kitchen. Luckily the moonlight was going through the front window, allowing him to get to the cupboards easily.
Once arrived there, he hesitated for a moment, feeling a little bit of guilt at the idea of betraying the trust that the Gems - and especially Steven - were giving him. But his hunger was too intense for him to turn back: he couldn't sleep well for several days because of it, and this time he was determined to have a good night.
"It'll be just once." he thought "A single snack won't do much harm."
He suddenly started in surprise, spotting a dark figure passing quickly by the house's door from the corner of his eye. He turned his head and watched carefully, but there was nothing to be seen.
"Looks like hunger is giving this old man hallucinations" he said to himself, his forehead covered in sweat.
He used a little step stool to reach the high cupboards and his heart leaped in his chest when he opened one of them: it was crammed with bags of chips, candy boxes and soda cans. His starving eyes stopped on a large cookie jar and he felt saliva filling his mouth as he grabbed it and pulled as silently as possible. The glass was brushing against the other packets, producing a slight rustling noise - though not loud enough to wake up his son who was peacefully sleeping upstairs. After a few seconds, the jar was almost entirely pulled out...
ROOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR !
A thundering roar resonated in the whole house, shaking the walls and even taking down some of the framed pictures. Greg jumped so high that he tumbled from the step stool onto the kitchen's tiles, bringing with him not only the jar that shattered on the floor, scattering glass and cookie crumbs everywhere, but all of the cupboard's content that fell loudly around him as well. The man straightened up, his back sore, his hand adorned with a nasty cut, his heart pounding. He glanced everywhere in an attempt to know where this horrible cry came from - but it wasn't long before he found out.
Lion was standing right in front of him, his muzzle only a few inches away from Greg's face. The man had always been a little scared of the beast - though he was pretty docile most of the time - but this time he had every reason to be afraid: Lion was displaying a ferocious expression that he had never seen before. His fangs were glowing from the moonlight and his eyes were staring at him intently, almost in a judging manner.
"LION !" Steven yelled from his bed "ARE YOU NUTS?! WHY ARE YOU ROARING LIKE THAT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT?!"
Steven's shouting caught both the feline and Greg's attention as they turned their heads towards the room upstairs. The boy jumped out of his bed, flew down the stairs... and froze upon seeing what was happening.
"...Dad? What are you doing?!"
Greg felt his face burn with shame. He stood up laboriously, having a really hard time looking his son in the eye.
"H-hey buddy" he stammered with a forced smile "Did you see that? Looks like your old man's a sleepwalker!"
Greg paid a high price for his deviation: the Gems shut all the cupboards away and reprimanded him severely, affirming they would watch him permanently from now on. Surprisingly Steven came to his father's defense, assuring Lion taught him a lesson and he would never do it again. The Gems were not convinced and definitely not in a forgiving mood.
But what happened next was even worse: when Steven tried to use his healing spit to get rid of the cut on his father's hand, he realized he couldn't do it: his power was not working anymore. The news was met with great worry and, for Greg, with a deep feeling of guilt: he was sure the shock caused by his heart attack or his recent betrayal was the cause. Either way it was his fault, and it wasn't the first time... He bitterly pondered on these thoughts as Pearl, who took pity on him, was bandaging his wounded hand.
Unfortunately, time seemed to be Greg's worst enemy: a few days later, his guilt and regret were diminished - but his hunger wasn't. He reluctantly decided to find another way to eat something, this time without anyone finding out.
"What Steven doesn't know can't hurt him", he thought.
It seemed like since the beginning of his diet he caught the strange habit of talking to himself, especially to find excuses, but he quickly brushed off this thought.
One morning, as the sun was barely risen and Steven was still asleep, Greg got up, put on warm clothes and walked towards the front door. This time he wasn't alone: Garnet and Pearl were sitting at the counter, talking in a low voice. The man noticed Garnet was holding something red in her hands ; he didn't get the time to see what is was before she rapidly hid it.
Curiously, none of them reacted when Greg passed through the door, quietly announcing he was going for a walk in town. As he was going downstairs he looked around for any signs of Lion, and found him sleeping on a rock. He then gleefully crossed the beach and reached the boardwalk, not believing his own luck as a delicious smell of fresh donuts came to his nostrils. The prospect of biting into one of these smooth, sugary pastries was making him drool and shake in impatience. Claiming he was going for a walk to get something at the Big Donut was so simple of an idea he was wondering why he hadn't thought of it earlier.
The doorbell rang when Greg pushed the door. The establishment was just opening but its employees were already busy... or more accurately, Sadie was already busy: Lars was sitting at the counter, playing a game on his phone, not even bothering raising his head to look at the first customer of the day.
Sadie jumped upon seeing Greg, her face growing strangely pale. She put the last Lion Lickers in the freezer in a hurry, then ran behind the counter, jostling Lars on her way.
"Hey Mister Universe!" she greeted in a kind but seemingly embarrassed tone "Err... it's been a long time!"
"Hello Sadie, a long time indeed." he answered, a bit disconcerted "How's your mother?"
"Pretty good... She sometimes wonders when you'll agree to play poker against her again."
"Haha, never! Given her level I shall not stay a millionaire for long if I keep this up!"
Sadie giggled nervously, her fingers drumming on the counter. Her behavior intrigued the man a little, but he wasn't the kind of person to interfere in people's personal matters.
"I'd like two strawberry jam filled donuts, please."
The young girl let out a deep sigh and lowered her eyes. Greg noticed her attitude reminded him of Connie when she tried to hide a truth she was uneasy about.
"Look Mister Universe..." she started with a hesitating voice "I'm really sorry. I swear it's not against you - actually it's for your own good..."
"What are you talking about? Why are you sorry?"
Sadie raised her chin, looking at him in the eyes.
"A Gem came to us a few days ago." she admitted.
Greg's heart fell into his chest.
"A Gem?" he repeated, incredulous.
"The one who looks like a stork!" Lars added without tearing his eyes away from his phone.
"Don't be rude, Lars!" Sadie scolded angrily.
Her face softened a bit.
"She told us about what happened to you... why you had to go to the hospital and everything. She asked us... not to serve you."
She bit her lower lip after saying these words. Greg couldn't believe his ears.
"You'd refuse a customer?" he asked.
"That's not the point, Mister Universe. A heart attack is serious, you know. You shouldn't take it lightly."
"I appreciate your concern Sadie, but I'm totally capable of knowing what's good for me or not. You can't just refuse service to me like that!"
"Please sir, be reasonable..."
"Ah c'mon!" Lars muttered "Give him the donuts already, he's not going to leave us alone anyway!"
He grabbed two donuts in the counter and shove them into a paper bag.
"It'll be three bucks and forty two cents." he announced.
"Lars, no!" Sadie protested, snatching the bag away from him.
"What's wrong with you? Just because that stork lady said..."
"I don't want to play a part in this! I don't want to see this! Not again!"
"Oh please don't fight, kids!" Greg exclaimed in a soft voice "I can still go to Fish Stew Pizza for something to eat..."
But neither Lars nor Sadie were paying attention to him anymore.
"Just calm down! It won't be your fault!" Lars grumbled, rolling his eyes.
"You don't understand! You can't understand!" the girl cried out.
"There's nothing to understand! Let him eat whatever he wants, it'll be his problem if he die-"
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH LARS!"
While yelling these last words Sadie smashed her fist on the counter so violently that one of the display cases shattered in pieces. A disturbing silence fell into the room. Lars was staring at the broken glass, speechless.
"Uh... I bet you need some alone time." Greg said carefully "I'm... not that hungry anyway."
He backed away towards the exit, his mind still confused by what he just witnessed, then left as quickly as possible.
The first "non-customer" gone, Sadie grabbed a broom and a dustpan then, without saying a word nor looking at her co-worker, gathered up the broken glass. Her eyes were clouded with tears. Lars just watched her with a remorseful look on his face.
"Huh, Sadie?"
"What?" she replied sharply.
"I-I'm sorry, you know. I... I totally forgot that your dad..."
"I told you to shut up, Lars."
After she was done cleaning up she threw the glass into a trashcan, then wiped her eyes.
"I gotta take care of the next batch of donuts." she announced with an aloof voice.
"Hey, you know what?" the young man answered, rushing towards the backroom door "I'll do it! You just stay here and... relax for a while."
Lars opened the door and disappeared in the other room. Sadie sighed, sat behind the counter, and buried her face in her hands.
It seemed like the Gems had warned every food business in Beach City: everywhere Greg went, people refused to serve him. Neither the hotdog booths at Funland, nor the Pizza or Fryman family agreed to sell him anything. He was finally understanding why the Gems weren't even trying to hold him back when he left the house.
Slightly aggrieved, he was about to go home when his eyes stopped on one of the boardwalk's garbage cans. It immediately reminded him of his youth: many years ago, when he didn't have enough money to buy food, he was often scavenging for fry bits in the trash. He actually passed down to Steven his fondness for fryer's bottoms, those golden, crunchy treats too many people left behind: Greg always told his son they were one of the many hidden treasures of the planet Earth, unfathomable to ordinary people.
Greg headed towards the trashcan and smiled when he spotted several paper plates half full of seemingly edible fries.
"What a shame, people shouldn't waste food like that." He thought "But I'm not complaining at all!"
By coming closer though, a strange smell came to him. He leaned towards the trashcan and sniffed, frowning a bit.
"Is that... bleach?"
There was no possible doubt: the trash was entirely covered in bleach. The fries were still soaked in it and, of course, not edible at all. Greg couldn't believe it: they even thought of that...
"It's disgusting!" he muttered out loud.
"Nah, I don't agree. I think it gives a funny taste!"
Greg moved back a little to this response. A squirrel was now perched on the trashcan's edge. A squirrel with lilac fur.
"Come on Amethyst, don't tell me you eat fries with bleach!" he exclaimed.
"Gotta admit they go better with ketchup, but it's still good."
The squirrel took a fry in its little claws and shoved it in its mouth.
"Just a word of advice Greg: drop it." Amethyst said.
"What?"
"You won't beat us. We're a million steps ahead of you, man! We decided you won't eat between your meals and you can't do anything about that."
The air of superiority she had while saying these words was getting on his nerves a bit, but he chose not to answer.
"Plus imagine how Steven would react if he knew you were trying to get grub behind his back. You think he'd be happy?"
She actually hit a nerve: Greg thought about the night his son and Lion caught him, and lowered his head.
"He'd be disappointed" he admitted.
"Yup. So you better stop messing around."
This time the man scowled at her.
"It would be easier if you stopped taunting me every time you eat a burger. Unlike you I'm not eating just for fun, this diet makes me hungry all the time and to see you do that doesn't help at all."
"Ah please, I'm just joking!" Amethyst replied, shrugging.
"It's not funny."
"You're so sensitive! You can't ask us to stop enjoying things just because you can't have them! Just... I dunno... look elsewhere when I'm eating and you'll be fine."
Greg wasn't finding himself to be sensitive, he actually was thinking he had every right to be upset. Nevertheless, he stood silent one more time.
"So, in theory I have to watch over you until you go back home" Amethyst explained "but since we took every precaution so you don't do anything stupid again I think I can actually leave you. So, see ya."
After jumping from the garbage can and turning back into her original self, she started to walk away along the boardwalk.
"Amethyst, wait!" Greg called.
The Gem turned around, staring at him with curiosity. The man scratched his head.
"How about we go to Funland Arcade?" he asked "I have enough change for both of us. I'm sure I can whoop your butt at Skee-Ball!"
Amethyst blinked in surprise at the request, but shook her head.
"Nah sorry dude, not this time. I wanna get back home to see if Steven's awake. We planned on training to form Smoky Quartz."
At the sight of the man's confused expression she continued talking, her voice and eyes filled with enthusiasm:
"Oh that's right, we didn't tell you yet. Steven and I fused not so long ago! We even showed it to the others, and oh man did they go crazy! The problem is... Smoky can get a bit carried away sometimes, that's why we're going to do it on the beach. Last time we destroyed the TV and half the house before Sardonyx came in to calm things down! It was awesome!"
Greg now understood why the Gems had asked him to buy a new television a few weeks ago. He was used to buy furniture on a regular basis (it was one of the drawbacks of having his son raised by magical beings) but not being told about the reason was leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.
"Well I'll come with you." he finally replied "I'm curious to meet this fusion too."
"Great! This way we'll run into Garnet: I believe she said she wanted to speak with you today."
"Did she? About what?"
"Not sure, but I thinks she wants you to start exercising a bit!"
The man felt drops of sweat on his forehead.
"I want you to start exercising a bit." Garnet announced.
Greg and her were on the beach right in front of the house. Further, Amethyst and Steven were practicing their fusion choregraphy, but they were spending more time collapsing on each other laughing than really dancing.
"You... you'll go easy on me, right?" Greg asked, wincing a bit.
"I know your heart has been weakened by your accident and you can't make too much effort yet. That's why I found a convenient solution."
At the bottom of the stairs was Steven's hotdog shaped duffel bag: Garnet walked to it, leaned forward to open it and pulled out a large, dark red woolen sweater.
"All you'll need to do" she explained "is wear this all day long. You'll only remove it when you go to sleep."
"What? That's it?" Greg asked, dumbfounded.
"That's it."
The man couldn't help but laugh nervously. He was expecting everything from the fusion - she was indeed known to be fond of "the hard way" in combat as well as in everyday life - but certainly not that. If all he had to do was wearing clothing (although the sweater seemed thick and days were getting warmer) it would be nothing compared to the 10 miles run or the 100 sit-ups he imagined.
"Alright." he said in a decided tone "Bring it on!"
Garnet held the sweater as she helped him put it on, but when she released it Greg felt his knees and back bending as an invisible force was pushing him downwards.
"Whaaaaaa-what's happening to me?!" he exclaimed in panic.
"I put metal inside of it." Garnet explained "That sweater weighs approximately 20 pounds."
"What?! Are you kidding?! I can't wear this thing everyday!"
"You can and I'll make sure you will. This is the best way to get you back in shape without using your heart too much. Don't worry, you won't even feel it after a while."
"Allow me... to doubt it!" he answered, gritting his teeth from the effort.
Greg remembered about the red object Garnet was holding in her hands when he left the house in the morning. He would have preferred never knowing what it was.
"Metal weights aside, that sweater looks pretty nice" he remarked, trying to see the glass half-full "I didn't have red ones... where did you buy it?"
"Well, I..."
Garnet got closer to him and talked in a low voice:
"...I made it myself."
Both of them never knew how Steven, despite being quite far away from them, managed to hear these words... but he did. He yelled a huge "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" then dashed through the beach like a rocket-ship and stopped right in front of the fusion.
"Garnet, you... YOU CAN KNIT?!" he asked, his eyes glimmering like stars.
"Indeed." Garnet confirmed, smiling "I knew I shouldn't have said it: I mistakenly underestimated your sharp ear."
"I'm ALWAYS listening when it's about learning cool stuff about you! How long have you been knitting?"
"A few months. Amethyst brought me knitting magazines from her friend Vidalia, and I used them to learn."
For some reason, Greg felt a pang of emotion when hearing Vidalia's name.
"Garnet wanted to surprise you, Steven." Amethyst explained, walking up to the trio "She wanted to supply you with warm clothes for the next winter."
"Really?" the boy asked "Oh please Garnet, do it anyway! I'll act surprised!"
"Anything for you." Garnet answered, her smile widening.
"Awesome! Come on Amethyst, we gotta get back to work! I want to fuse before lunchtime!"
Steven and Amethyst got a little further and trained their fusion dance again. Having nothing else to do, Garnet and Greg sat on the beach side by side and watched them. After a few minutes, the man displayed a troubled look that Garnet couldn't help but notice.
"You have a problem." she stated.
It wasn't even a question. Greg took a deep breath before talking:
"I would've liked you guys to tell me about Smoky Quartz. My son fusing with another Gem is an important event, I know it. It's important for you, for him... and for me, too."
"We wanted to wait for a little while before telling you... especially given the circumstances in which Smoky Quartz was born. We thought a human would have a hard time understanding the impact of such an event."
"Well you are wrong. You know how much I care about fusion, Garnet. You know it more than anyone else."
Garnet nodded. She remembered how insistent Greg was when he asked for help to fuse with Rose many years ago, how interested he was by this uncommon bond, to the point of wanting to experience it with the one he loved. And he actually did it - if not physically, spiritually at least: Garnet, who was there that particular night, felt it.
"You are right." she finally said "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I understand how hard it is for you guys to tell humans about your world... Even Rose had a hard time doing it sometimes."
Greg's attention was then caught by two bright lights, one coming from Amethyst's chest, the other from Steven's belly. Garnet smiled approvingly.
The two figures melted together like they were made of wax, and Greg watched in awe as a giant, massive creature with dark skin and three arms appeared where his son and the Gem were standing moments ago.
"I did it!" Smoky Quartz shouted, raising their arms victoriously.
The fusion waved at their two spectators, then walked up to them with a grin.
"Steven was eager for us to meet, Greg. And I'm happy too! So, what's your first impression?"
Greg stood up with difficulty because of the heavy sweater and got his arm almost torn out by Smoky Quartz's vigorous handshake.
"Uh... nice to meet you." he replied, massaging is sore shoulder "It's weird, but I guess I'll get used to it."
"Glad to see you again," Garnet said, looking as thrilled as her fellow fusion "but you can't stay much longer: it's almost lunch time and I guess Steven and Amethyst would like to eat separately."
"Actually, they don't want to!" Smoky Quartz answered with enthusiasm in their voice "Amethyst wants to know how many pizzas I can eat! And Steven wants to know into who's stomachs they'll end up when I'll unfuse."
"I should have expected this from them. They love to make experiments, especially with food."
"Well let's order then. I'm starving!"
Smoky Quartz ran to the house, stepped cautiously on the stairs to not break them, then squeezed themselves through the door.
Still abashed by what he just saw, Greg stood silent for a few seconds, then pulled himself together. Realizing he didn't really want to see the fusion of his son and Amethyst devour pizza after pizza, he got an idea.
"Err, Garnet, I'd like to ask you..."
Garnet turned her head to him and motioned him to continue.
"Would... Would you like to grab lunch with me in town?"
The fusion didn't answer, and her opaque glasses were making her expression impossible to read.
"Oh, I know you don't eat that often..." Greg said nervously "but I think you'd like the Crab Shack! They also serve diet food... y'know, for me."
The glasses moved slightly, indicating Garnet was probably raising an eyebrow.
"I'm sorry Greg, but I'd rather stay here. Smoky Quartz is not very stable yet and I must be here to help Pearl if there's any trouble."
"Oh. Yeah, okay, I understand."
Disappointed, the man headed towards the house, the dreadful thought of attending to a pizza feast plaguing his mind.
Being forced to wear permanently a 20 pounds sweater made Greg's everyday life even harder than it already was: the additional energy expenditure was not compensated by larger meals and the horrible muscle aches were keeping him awake at night. The man was starting to wonder if the Gems really knew what they were doing and if this so-called "diet" wouldn't have bad consequences on his health.
After a few days while he tried to cooperate, hunger once again proved to be an implacable foe. But this time, Greg was out of ideas. He knew he couldn't order anything on the Internet: the mailman Jamie had probably been warned by the Gems not to put anything edible in the mailbox. He once thought he had found a solution by discovering the website of a small drone delivery company, but this attempt failed as well: as the drone carrying his order of cinnamon buns was flying above the ocean, Pearl spotted it and struck it down with a remarkably accurate spear throw. The device fell into the rough waves and Greg had to refund it to the company.
"There was food in my van before." he thought "But I'm sure the Gems threw everything away."
The man suddenly got an inspiration and his whole face brightened up. His van! Obviously no one in Beach City would help him, a little town where everyone knew each other, in which the news spread at the speed of sound would make any of his attempts a guaranteed failure. But nothing was stopping him from taking his van and travel to another city!
Overexcited, Greg ran out of the house, galvanized by an energy he never thought he could have, and reached his beloved vehicle. He opened the driver's door, pounced on the seat and turned the key.
The van didn't start.
"Oh, no, no, please! You can't fail me now!"
Greg jumped out of the van and lifted the hood in an almost raging gesture. Black smoke rose from the engine. Coughing heavily, he tried to figure out what was wrong, but the problem appeared to be beyond his own skills.
"I'm the luckiest man ever! Now who will I ask for help with this?"
Suddenly realizing something he straightened up abruptly, bashing his head into the hood's edge. While massaging his aching skull he thought for a moment: his van had a problem he couldn't repair by himself...what if it wasn't an accident? What if someone intentionally broke it?
At this thought, for the first time since he moved in at the Gems' place, Greg felt real anger. His fists clenched so hard his nails were digging into his hands' flesh. Someone had dared to sabotage the vehicle he cared about more than anything else so expertly that even him couldn't do anything.
He only knew one person able to achieve such a feat...
"PEAAAAAAAAAARL!"
Greg slammed the door open, stomped inside... then slipped on the wooden floor and fell loudly on the ground.
He darted his eyes everywhere in confusion. Steven and Amethyst were playing video games upstairs: they turned their heads to see what was happening and the man could see the hilarity on Amethyst's face as well as the concern on Steven's. Then his eyes turned to the kitchen and stopped on Pearl who was sitting at the counter, not even bothering to tear her own eyes away from the letter she was writing.
"Hello, Greg." she said in a neutral voice "Be cautious, I just cleaned the floor. It's slippery."
With Steven's help, who had rushed downstairs to help him, Greg got back on his feet.
"Why did you sabotage my van Pearl?" he asked angrily.
"Don't ask questions you already know the answer to." the Gem replied without stopping her writing.
"No one touches my van without asking me first! I'm not touching your Gem stuff as far as I'm concerned!"
Greg was not the only one who was upset ; Steven's look on his face was both annoyed and disappointed.
"Pearl, you really did this?" he asked with a plaintive voice "Dad was supposed to give me driving lessons!"
"Sorry Steven, but as long as your father doesn't show a minimum of self-control this van will stay in the same state as it is now."
Greg had to take several deep breaths and rely on the last bit of patience he had left not to reply something mean to her. He just kept his mouth shut, like he did too many times since he was living here. Despite that, Steven noticed his father's fists were still clenched and his face contorted with indignation. The boy grabbed his arm softly and looked up to him in a silent encouragement; when meeting his son's eyes, the man felt a rush of affection and warmth and his anger faded away slowly.
Pearl signed her letter and slipped it in an envelope. As he was coming closer Greg could read on its back: "Dr Priyanka Maheswaran".
"Why are you writing Doctor Maheswaran?" he asked.
"I'm just asking her for additional advice." Pearl explained "And also to send medical equipment."
"Huh? What kind of equipment?"
"Oh, just a few things to check up on you regularly. Blood pressure monitor, stethoscope, glucose meter...syringes..."
"SYRINGES?!"
All of the sudden the man grew dangerously pale.
"W-why would you need s-syringes?!" he stuttered.
"What kind of question is that, Greg? They're for taking your blood, of course!"
Amethyst got the hardest of times not to burst into laughter when she saw Greg's face going through all the colors of the rainbow, and even Steven barely kept a straight face.
"I... I think I n-need to sit..." the poor man said in a shaky voice, heading towards the couch.
"Don't be childish please!" Pearl retorted "Doctor Maheswaran asked for blood samples so she can check your cholesterol levels. It'll be easier if we do it at home instead of going to the hospital every time."
She got up and quickly left the house. It took Greg a full minute to regain his composure and, once he felt a little calmer, he walked out as well to join her. Going downstairs he spotted the Gem a little further, near the mailbox, and approached her meekly.
"Hey Pearl, I wanted to ask you..."
"If it's about your van, just know I won't reconsider. But don't worry, I'll repair it once I'll be sure you won't try anything ever again."
"No, it's not about my van...well yeah sure, I'd like to talk about it, but later. I wanted to tell you... tonight there's a play organized on the beach - I think Jamie wrote it. It's about Buddy Budwick's life, you know, William Dewey's first mate."
Pearl raised an eyebrow.
"So?" she asked.
"So, um... I don't think Garnet or Amethyst will be interested. And Steven told me he'll go to the movies with Connie tonight, so... I figured we could go see it together."
The Gem slowly closed the mailbox and lifted the flag, her expression both surprised and confused.
"Thank you for proposing, Greg" she said "but... to be fair, none of us told you yet... we have to go on a mission tonight. The three of us."
"Oh..."
"Sorry."
Without adding anything she passed him and returned to the house. The man watched her walk away with a frown.
Greg closed the first book of Unfamiliar Familiar and sighed. His mind was so preoccupied he couldn't focus on his reading. The deep silence, only troubled by the rain falling on the roof, was making him uncomfortable.
The Gems were on their mission and his son was at the movies: he was totally alone. He usually didn't mind but tonight, loneliness felt heavy - just like this sweater he was still wearing. Realizing nobody was there to reproach him for not wearing it, he took it off and threw it on the ground where it landed with a loud noise.
Too many things were not right. He was thinking hunger would be the worst thing he could ever feel and he was utterly wrong. They were actually many other matters.
Steven who lost his power again because of him. The Gems who were treating him like a child and avoided him when he wanted to spend time with them. His van that he couldn't drive anymore. And most importantly, himself: he was unable to be assertive, all he ever did was lower his head and say yes to everything. But why? Why was it so difficult to protest? Why was he accepting all of that? And most of all, what could he do to make things better?
Greg looked at the Rose Quartz's portrait above the front door. Seeing his lover's magnificent, kind face soothed him a little.
"I'm sure you wouldn't want me to stay that way, Rose." he whispered "What can I do?"
His eyes were lost in the portrait's beautiful, pink curls, when he remembered a conversation he had had several days ago.
"But, now that I think about it... I bought one with a pink cover. Does it bother you?"
"If it bothers me? From whom do you think Steven got his fascination for this color?"
"Um... from his mother?"
"Touché. But I love pink too!"
Greg raised from the couch, rummaged through the wardrobe and picked up the pink diary Connie gave him. He managed to find a pen in one of his son's drawers and went back to sit and think.
Dear diary, he wrote.
It was so strange. He never kept a diary before, even during his adolescence: beside for song lyrics he was not much of a writer. Still, he put the effort into it, step by step, word after word, slow but steady.
Connie had mentioned the concept of "writing down your thoughts" and that's exactly what he did. First he just threw on paper anything going through his head but, after a few lines, the writing was more precise, general ideas appeared and the whole thing progressively became more understandable, in the same way Greg's mind was - progressively too - becoming clearer, lighter.
Dredd2012: Thanks a lot for your support!
KimDWil71: Thanks! Not entirely sure yet, but I think they will! I really want to include them as secondary characters later, gotta make sure I'll do it well though.
Master of the Boot: Words can't express how much I'm happy to read that. Being respectful of the characters personalities is something I work really hard on, and it's the most important aspect to me. Each character will be developed and explored a lot more through the story, I'm just getting started!