Chapter 7:

Pulling on my Heartstrings

A Father's Wisdom

Faint splattering sounds landed on the roof of the van, as Greg stared outside the window into the grey morning sky. He began to scratch his beard, as he looked over at his son, and observed how he was holding an acoustic guitar. Greg yawned, then he finally said, "It looks like we've been up all night buddy. Are you feeling tired yet?" But Steven was silent, as he was staring down at the guitar and began to pluck each string individually. Greg saw that there was no rhythm or melody to the sound, instead he observed how his son was in deep thought.

"I know you're a little upset right now, but I think you should try to get some sleep," he exclaimed. "You start work again on Monday." Then Steven looked up at his father, and had tears in his eyes as he said, "I'm not going back to work on Monday! Can I please work at the carwash again!?" Greg sighed, as he looked back at his son, then replied, "Sure Steven. That's fine with me. But if you ask me you're blowing this out of proportion. It was just a date." Steven held his head down and continued to pluck on the guitar strings, then Greg continued to talk.

"I know Pearl would never do anything to hurt you," he exclaimed. "Like Garnet said, you have to believe in Pearl and trust that everything will be alright." Finally Steven looked up at his father and said, "I want to go home. I want to lay down on my own bed." At which point, he opened the door to his father's van, then stepped outside. "Hold on," Greg exclaimed, as he too got up out of the van. "Let me take you home." When Steven grabbed his bike, he turned to his father and said, "I'm fine dad. I'd rather ride my bike home."

Greg helped Steven into his rain coat, then proceeded to hug him as he said, "Alright Steven, I understand. Just don't be so sad. You're too young to be feeling this way." Steven's tears were masked by the feeling of the rain running down his face, as Greg pulled away from him and said, "I love you son." Then Steven began to smile a little as he replied, "I love you too dad." Greg grabbed Steven's backpack from the van, then placed it over his sons shoulders. "As painful as it was for me to lose your mother, not a day goes by that I regret her decision." Greg exclaimed, as the two embraced each other one final time. "Have some compassion for Pearl. I know everything will be alright."

The Temple

Amethyst opened her eyes and moved around on the couch, as she gradually started to wake up. She saw that Pearl and Garnet were sitting at the counter, so she pulled herself up, and began walking towards them. "I guess Steven didn't come home," she exclaimed, as she looked up towards his bedroom. "He slept over with Greg," Garnet replied, as she was sipping on a cup of coffee. Amethyst sat down next to Pearl, then yawned as she asked, "So how was your date? I mean aside from flipping out, did you have a good time?"

Pearl was silent, as she had both of her hands on the back of her neck, and was looking up towards the ceiling. Amethyst looked over at Garnet, who was standing in the kitchen, and she too was staring at Pearl. "It went fine," Pearl exclaimed, as she looked forward at Garnet. "I apologize for my behavior last night." "That's okay," Amethyst replied. "You don't have to apologize. But what the heck happened to you!?" Pearl continued to stare at Garnet, then Garnet said, "If you want to talk, we're here to listen. You know you can tell us anything."

"Well," Pearl whispered, as she became a little uneasy in her voice. "Jamie and I kissed." Amethyst's eyes grew wide, then she replied, "You guys kissed!? What kind of kiss was it!? Was it a Steven kiss!?" Pearl began to tap her fingers on the counter, then she said, "No, I'm afraid not. It wasn't that type of a kiss. It was more personal." Amethyst stared at her, then continued, "Were you thinking of Greg!? Was that why you freaked out last night!?" Pearl immediately looked back at her and said, "No! Of course not! Why would you even say that!?" Amethyst just shrugged her shoulders, then she replied, "I don't know. I just thought it would be funny to ask." Pearl rolled her eyes, then placed her hand over her mouth, as she continued to stare at the counter.

"What exactly was going through your mind when you kissed Jamie? And why did you decide to do it?" Garnet asked, as she set her coffee cup down. Pearl removed her hand from her mouth, then replied, "I don't know why I did. I'm still trying to figure that one out. A lot was going through my mind. My head was spinning and I felt several different things at once. I felt the sensation of his lips pressing against mine, followed by a warm feeling." Garnet and Amethyst looked at each other, as Pearl continued to talk. "I resisted at first, but Jamie was so gentle in his touch, I guess didn't seem to mind." Suddenly, Amethyst placed her hand on Pearls shoulder and said, "Pearl, you can stop now." But Pearl replied, "Hold on, I want to finish. I'd like to thank the two of you for listening to me, because this is something that I really needed talk about."

"So anyway," she continued. "We kissed, and it was awkward, but prior to that our time together was actually quite pleasant." Amethyst and Garnet observed how Pearls demeanor had changed, as she began to smile a little and she continued to speak. "He took me to go see a play, Shakespeare to be exact, which I thought was romantic! During the play he held my hand, and of course, I felt a little uncomfortable. But now that I think about it, it wasn't so bad!" Amethyst once again placed her hand on Pearl's shoulder, then spoke louder, "I think you need to stop!" But Pearl pushed her hand away and replied, "Would you please hold on!? I'm not finished! I need to talk about this!" Finally, Amethyst grabbed Pearl by her shoulders and shouted, "I SAID YOU NEED TO STOP!"

Pearl felt herself becoming angry, as she glared back at Amethyst and said, "Why should I!? Why do I need to stop!? You asked me, now I'm trying to explain it to you!" Amethyst grabbed Pearl by her face, then turned her attention towards the front door, and shouted, "THAT'S WHY!" When Pearl looked at the front door, she saw Steven standing in the doorway with fresh tears streaming down his face. He immediately ran back outside the house, and was now crying as he did so. "STEVEN, WAIT!" Pearl shouted, as she immediately stood up and ran after him. "I'M SORRY!" As Pearl exited the house, Amethyst shouted at her, "Nice going smart guy!"

"Amethyst, stop!" Garnet shouted, as she too was now angry. "We need to be there for Steven! Now get up and let's go!" But Amethyst was defiant, as she kept her arms folded and continued to sit down on the stool, then replied, "This is all her fault! I told her to shut up, but she wouldn't listen! Let her chase after Steven! She's fast! She can catch him!" Garnet briskly walked towards the door, then turned back at Amethyst and replied, "I'm afraid she won't be able to this time." Amethyst had a shocked look on her face, as she asked, "What do you mean!?" But Garnet replied, "There's no time to explain. Right now we need to follow them. Now let's go!"

The Chase

"WAIT STEVEN! WE NEED TO TALK!" Pearl shouted, as she was chasing after him. Steven was sitting on his bike and began to peddle faster, as he turned to look at her and replied, "Just go away! Leave me alone! I don't want to be around you right now!" Pearl began to run faster, as she shouted at him once more, "YOU KNOW YOU CAN'T OUTRUN ME! EVEN ON YOUR BIKE! SO YOU MIGHT AS WELL STOP!" But he ignored her, as he peddled with all his strength, and didn't turn back to look this time. Suddenly, Pearl began to breathe heavily, as she struggled to keep up with him. She felt her eyes pulsating, and watched as he got further and further away from her.

"Please stop!" Pearl shouted, as she slowed down and immediately grabbed her gemstone. When she finally ceased running, she began to kneel, then she lifted her head up to look at him one final time. "Please don't go Steven!" She cried, but was overcome with fatigue. Amethyst and Garnet finally caught up to her, and when they did, they saw that she was laying on her back, looking up towards the sky. "Whoa!" Amethyst exclaimed. "What happened to you!?"

"She's pregnant," Garnet whispered, as she was looking down at Pearl. Amethyst was in shock, as she looked over at Garnet and said, "Are you serious!? This has to be a joke!" Garnet was silent, as she picked Pearl up off the ground, and observed that her gemstone was "pulsating" again. "Are you okay?" she asked. Pearl was breathing heavily and now had tears in her eyes, as she was being cradled in Garnets arms. She looked over at Amethyst and said.

"Amethyst! Please Go after him! Bring him back!"