Love, Baseball and Ballet

Chapter 10: The Recital

"I love easy practices," Jasper sighed; arms crossed behind her head as they exited the locker room. "All we did was go to the weight room and practice pitching; and it's a Thursday," She grinned. "One more day closer to Friday,"

Ruby nodded; tugging on her duffle bag. "I know, it's almost sad that the season is over tomorrow," She bit her lip.

"But that means; summer!" Amethyst cheered; wrapping an arm around the red girl. "Man I can't wait; only one more week until school is out," She grinned. "We are all hanging out every day, losers."

"I have to work," Ruby pointed out. "I got a job at Foot Locker and I start the first day of summer,"

Jasper nodded when the purple girl groaned. "Yeah and I'm working at the Trampoline Park; I need to get some extra cash so I can get a car," She looked to the red girl. "But until then can you drive me to work?"

"Yeah of course," Ruby agreed. "Your job is right next to the mall anyway; Amethyst you should get one too, I heard Cotton On is hiring,"

Amethyst let her go as they approached Ruby's car. "I could use some money and we can all still hang-out after work," She threw her hands up. "There is hope!"

"One more week kid; but I'm throwing an end of the year party for sure," Jasper said. "Anyway I'll see you losers later; have fun at the recital," She chuckled, walking in the direction of her house.

They waved at her before getting into the car. Ruby pulled out of the park and began driving to the studio; since today was a light practice she didn't think she needed to change or wash up. She was wearing a sleeveless blue shirt, black shorts and white sneakers. Amethyst had on a plain white shirt with black pants and Nike flip flops.

"Are you sure we shouldn't dress up?" Amethyst asked; self consciously fixing her hair in the mirror. "I mean—isn't this a fancy thing?"

Ruby felt her phone buzz in her pocket as she stopped at a red light. "Nah; Sapphire said it was a casual thing and only the dancers are dressing up," She looked at her screen; she had a text from said girl.

S: So nervous :/

She typed a quick response as the light turned green; placing her phone back between her legs as she sped off.

R: You'll be fine; I'm on my way now if you want to talk before the show

A few seconds later she felt her phone vibrate again. Ruby pulled it from her legs and handed it to Amethyst in the passenger seat.

"What did Sapphire say?" She asked; keeping her eyes on the road.

Her friend looked at the screen. "She said that would be great; her dressing room is the last room on the right when we get there," Amethyst smirked. "You dirty dog, you,"

"It's not like that; she's just nervous and I'm going there to calm her down," Ruby said with her face flushed. "Just write back and say okay,"

Amethyst did as she was told; placing the phone in the cup holder. "Maybe I can 'talk to' Pearl as well if you know what I'm saying,"

Ruby sighed. "You're hopeless,"

The baseball player parked her car across the street from the dance studio. There were a lot of other cars parked on the road so they assumed that there would be a huge crowd.

Ruby walked through the front door. "I'm going to look for Sapphire," She got on her tippy toes to see above the crowd.

"Alright I'll ju—" Amethyst stopped dead in her tracks; mouth a gape.

Ruby raised an eyebrow and turned to see her friend blatantly staring at Pearl from across the hall. The skinny girl was in a skin tight white leotard with her hair pulled into an even tighter bun. Her face was covered in makeup; allowing her best facial features to pop out.

"I'm going to talk to Pearl for a second," The purple girl licked her lips as Pearl walked into her private dressing room. "Don't wait up," She didn't wait for a response as she followed the girl.

"Amethyst that—isn't a good idea," Ruby huffed; it was too late.

She was going to tell her friend that Pearl takes ballet very serious; just as much as they take baseball serious. So by Amethyst distracting the girl tonight, of all nights, would be disrespectful and just plain rude.

"I tried," Ruby pulled her phone out and followed Sapphire's directions; stopping when she made it to a secluded door. "Sapphire?" She knocked lightly. "It's me, Ruby,"

She heard a soft commotion from behind the door before it cracked open ever so slightly. Sapphire blindly grabbed her by the hand and pulled her inside; shutting and locking the door behind them.

"Sure, I'd love to come in," Ruby remarked sarcastically as she offered the girl a shy smile. "Whoa—you look…" She trailed off.

Sapphire was wearing a tight dark purple leotard with white leg warmers. Her hair was pulled into a sophisticated high pony tail; a white bow cast behind her bangs that swept to the right. For once she allowed her blue eyes to be revealed; even if it was only the right one.

"…Amazing," Ruby settled; looking at the soft touch of makeup on Sapphire's face. "How are you feeling?" She forced her eyes upward when they began to drift lower.

Sapphire shook her hands at her side; getting rid of her nerves. "I'm so nervous; the song is fine but I haven't had much time to practice my new steps," She bit her lip; being careful not to smudge her lip-gloss. "What if I mess up, what if—"

"Hey," Ruby grabbed both of her hands; looking into her soft blue ireses. "Remember what you said to me before my game; you said I'll be great and that you'll be there every step of the way, so," She smiled genuinely. "I think it's about time I returned the favor,"

Ruby spoke softer. "You're going to be amazing and I'll be cheering you on from the stands," She leaned in to kiss the other girl.

Sapphire quickly turned her cheek; feeling soft lips brush her face. "S-sorry; I'd kiss you but I can ruin my makeup," She sighed out.

There was a paused and a slight moment of hesitation. "…can I kiss you here?" Ruby placed a chaste kiss on Sapphire's neck. "Or here," She moved her kisses lower to Sapphire's collarbone.

The ballerina placed her hands on broad shoulders. "…I guess that's fine," Her response came out weakly.

Ruby pulled away from her neck with a smirk. "Get on the counter," Her voice was suddenly demanding as she released the girl completely.

Sapphire made some room by pushing her makeup container and other body products to the side. Ruby helped her up onto the counter; resting between the spread legs that called to her.

She pulled Sapphire closer by her hips; getting ready to kiss her collar again when Sapphire held her hand up to stop her. "You can't leave any visible marks or the judges will see,"

Sapphire knew that now was not the time to be messing around but she was still frustrated from the last time they fooled around. Her sexual tension mixed with her nervousness made her on edge and right now Ruby was the only one who could help her; no matter how reckless and teenage stereotypical it was.

Ruby took her previous comment to heart and lazily placed her hands on each smooth shoulder. Her eyes looked up into Sapphire's soft blue for permission. The ballerina gave a soft nod as she caught her lip between her teeth.

Without breaking eye contact; Ruby moved her fingertips to the side and began to slowly pull the leotard down at the sides until the loose fabric pooled at Sapphire's forearm.

Ruby took a deep breath and slowly trailed her eyes lower. "…Sapphire," She whimpered; taking in the perfect, blemish free, skin before her.

Sapphire was wearing a lacy purple bra that left nothing to the imagination. It held her generous breasts in a tight hold as they rose from her heavy breathing.

The older girl took in Ruby's expression; her eyes were slightly wider, mouth a gap, as she stared in awe.

Sapphire felt her confidence blossom when she faintly heard Ruby whisper 'beautiful'. "…y-you can touch them if you want," Although she spoke calm her face was smeared with stains of blue.

Ruby gulped at the sudden request; slowly peeling the bra away from what mattered most at the moment. Her eyes quickly went back up, making sure Sapphire was okay, when her breasts were fully removed; the lacy cloth falling down her slim arms.

"Sapphire," A familiar voice called through the door.

They both groaned aloud; glaring at the door where Rose's voice was coming from. Don't get them wrong, they loved the girl, but her timing was awful.

Ruby, eyes closed, placed her head above the swell of Sapphire's chest. "Ignore her," She begged; her fingers caressing the smooth skin of the older girl's flat stomach.

Sapphire took a deep breath; enjoying the feeling of those rough hands that taunted her dreams. "…I can't," She cleared her throat. "Yes Rose?"

"I need your help out here," Her friend responded breathlessly.

She opened her mouth to speak but a gasp came out instead, followed by a low moan. Ruby, in an act of boredom, had cupped her supple chest in her hands. Sapphire couldn't seem to form a sentence as she was groped and massaged by the athlete's larger hands; consuming her breasts entirely as if her hands were the perfect fit.

Ruby found herself moaning alongside the older girl as she gently fiddled with the soft skin in her hands. She remembered her friends telling her about the first time they ever played with someone's breasts before; saying that it was the best feeling in the world and that you could get girls to make a lot of sounds if you played them the right way.

At the time she could care less but now that she was in a similar position; she had to agree with them.

Sapphire filled her hands perfectly and made the cutest sounds; fueling her to go on. Ruby wanted to hear her whine and whimper as she begged her, only to find that she could only chant her name repeatedly.

"Ruby," Sapphire gasped when she felt her hard nipple's brush the palm of her hands.

The shorter girl watched in awe as Sapphire arched her back; making her breasts press tighter into her awaiting hands.

"Sapphire come on we need your help," Rose broke through their lust bubble and brought them back to the real world. "Amethyst and Pearl are arguing in front of everyone and you're the only one who can probably talk some sense into her; Pearl already told me to stay out of it when I tried," They could hear the evident pain in her words.

Ruby frowned. "I told Amethyst not to do it but does she listen, no." She hesitantly pulled away from the distracting globes and forced her eyes up. "W-we should stop them," She glanced at Sapphire's exposed chest once more before turning around fully. "A-and you should get dressed again…"

"Oh, r-right the show case," Sapphire said from behind her; pulling her clothes back into place. "I'm good now," She jumped down from the counter; steadying her suddenly shaky legs.

"…" Ruby turned around to face her; still not able to get the mental image out her mind. "Cool, you should, go," She pointed lamely to the door.

Sapphire jumped. "Right, I guess I'll see you," She said awkwardly before walking to the door.

"Yeah," Ruby whispered as the older girl opened the door; she spoke up louder before she could leave. "…after the recital I can take you to my place. I mean—I ate your pie and it was okay, I mean it wasn't bad or anything but it was good." She stuttered; feeling her cheeks set ablaze. "What I meant to say was—I have some pie left over, that you made, and I'd like for you to come over to my house and eat some with me…if you want, do you like apple pie?"

Sapphire giggled at the nervous girl. "Yes, Ruby, I like apple pie; I was the one who made it,"

"Of course, sorry," Ruby hit her head with her fist. "How can—"

"Meet me here after my dance so I can taste some of the pie, okay?" Sapphire said, putting her out of her misery. "Then we can talk." She added.

Ruby was thankful that someone brought it up. "Alright, good luck out there; I'll be watching,"

"Thanks,"

Ruby waited ten minutes before she left the dressing room; making sure her blush had completely vanished and that Rose hadn't seen her exit the room (she'd never hear the end of it). She walked to the front where Rose had spoke of the fighting to see that Sapphire was pulling a fuming Pearl away while Amethyst followed them like a dog on edge.

"Idiot," Ruby grumbled as she ran to stop her friend. "What are you doing?"

Amethyst turned her fierce glared to her but Ruby held her ground. "I'm trying to set a few things straight with Pearl,"

"Just leave; nobody wants you here!" She heard Pearl scream; trying to rip away from Sapphire's tight hold.

Ruby sighed. "Let's just calm down, buddy, you're making a scene on a very important night for them," She looked her in the eye. "You wanted to come here to cheer her on and I'm sure you're just angry right now so how about we go outside and talk about it," She said calmly.

"…" Amethyst swept on more glance to the big nosed girl; she scoffed. "…fine" She allowed Ruby to lead her outside in the parking lot.

Rose watched Ruby drag Amethyst outside with stars in her eyes, she grinned. "She's like Batman, lurking in the shadows and helping right in the nick of time," Part of her wondered why Ruby was here but she pushed it aside and hissed at the crowd. "Okay freeloaders; that's all for now so please exit the halls,"

The crowd groaned, upset that the fight was cut short.

"What happened," Ruby huffed, sitting down on the sidewalk as her friend paced back and forth. "Pacing is my thing; you only do it when you act angry but really feel like crying,"

Amethyst sniffed, proving Ruby right. "…I-I just wanted to be there for her and show her how much I care, y'know?" She finally stopped and sat across from Ruby on the black street. "But when I knocked on her door I saw how stressed she was and I offered to give her a quickie and help her out but she just got angry and started yelling at me,"

"I don't think you wanted a quickie," Ruby whispered softly; causing her friend to frown. "I saw the way you were looking at her earlier; that's the way Lars looks at Sadie in Spanish class, the way Rose looks at Greg when he sings and probably the way I look at Sapphire when—"

Amethyst clenched her fists. "I'm not in love!" She said defensively.

"Maybe not, but you still care about her," Ruby said; looking up at the stars in the darkness. "I think; you wanted to tell her that she was beautiful, tell her that you'd be supporting her from the stands and that you don't understand why but she's the only thing you think about—"

Amethyst grabbed her by the shirt collar and sneered. "You're wrong! I don't love her, I can't lover her, love doesn't exist!"

Ruby calmly placed a hand on the one that held her. "…stop comparing Pearl to your father," She saw the dam begin to crack as tears filled purple eyes. "She's not him; she won't leave you like he left your mother all those years ago…she refused to bring Rose into the argument right?"

"…so?" Amethyst asked weakly; her grip faltering.

"So," Ruby teased. "She's ready to finally move on and try something new with you—but it will only work if you're willing to try," She smiled when her friend put her down; only to pull her into a tight hug.

Amethyst cried in her arms. "Yo-you kno-know…if you tell anyone about this I-I'll bop you o-one," She stuttered through her tears.

"I know," Ruby smiled softly. "I know,"

After Amethyst finally calmed down she agreed to speak with Pearl after the showcase; hoping that she would want to see her too. They were currently sitting in the stands watching some girl named, Emerald, finish her lengthy dance. The green girl finally ended with a twirl and fell to the ground gracefully; the crowd clapped their hands and cheered.

"Eh," Ruby mumbled; clapping her hands alongside the crowd. "I've seen better," She whispered; thinking of her precious blue gem.

"Thank you Emerald for that lovely dance," Rainbow Quarts said into the microphone. "Next up we have Pearl; dancing to Swan Lake,"

Amethyst sat up straighter when the song began; watching Pearl fluently prance about on the wooden floor. Her eyes were wide as she watched amazed as Pearl spun and twirled about ever so gracefully.

"She's amazing," Amethyst whispered; watching Pearl balance on her toe and press more weight against it.

Ruby spoke softly, not taking her eyes off Pearl either. "You see Amethyst; to Pearl and Sapphire, this is baseball," She saw Pearl do a slow motion cartwheel. "They practice just as much as we do, stress over big competitions and they are in love with what they do; to them ballet is their sport. So by you interrupting Pearl, minutes before her showcase, she saw it as an act of disrespect,"

"Like I don't appreciate something she cares deeply for," Amethyst said; coming to a conclusion.

Ruby nodded. "Exactly; it's like her trying to talk to you while you're on the field or batting,"

"I'm such an idiot," Her friend confessed just as Pearl landed her finishing move. "…I have to apologize to her," She watched Pearl give a bow before running off the stage. "I'm going to follow her,"

Ruby nodded. "Alright, I'll look for you once Sapphire is finished,"

Her friend moved down the bleachers and ran out the doors and into the hall. Ruby looked back to the stage to see that she had already missed Sapphire's entrance and that she was already into her dance.

She cursed under her breath and kept her eyes glued to the older girl. The spot light was on her, making her makeup shine and glisten. Ruby could tell that she had been working hard these last few days; her leaps were graceful and her twirls were well practiced.

Her dance complemented the song well; the upbeat music connecting to her almost reckless moves. Ruby could see the judges smiling to themselves although they were supposed to remain biased.

"Man," She smiled. "I have to make her my girlfriend," Ruby averred.

After she finished talking to the judges and other scouts who were interested in her Sapphire had walked back to her dressing room. Ruby wasn't there yet so she decided to change into comfortable clothes; a white hoodie, blue jeans and her white Roshe's.

With her makeup completely wiped off, Sapphire hung her blue duffle bag on her right shoulder and left the room; only to be pulled into a tight hug.

"You were amazing!" Ruby said; placing her back on the ground as her arms rested on her waist.

Sapphire squealed when she was assaulted with kisses on her nose, face, neck and finally her lips. "Ruby!" She giggled; trying to pry the girl away from her.

"You two are so cute!"

Ruby dropped her head into Sapphire's neck with a groan. The red girl hugged Sapphire tighter and lazily looked at Rose; head still in between the older girl's neck.

"Hey Q," She mumbled.

Sapphire, face ablaze, spoke but a little bit nicer. "Hello Rose; what are you doing here?" She placed her chin atop soft curls.

"I always watch your recitals, I asked Greg to come along but this isn't his thing so I didn't force him," Rose shrugged. "And since this was the last one, I just had to see you and Pearl dance; so congratulations on getting second place," She pointed to the medal around Sapphire's neck.

Ruby held it in her hands before dropping it. "Next year she'll get first,"

"You got that right," Sapphire smirked; loving how easy Ruby's competitive nature mingled with hers.

"Rainy will love to hear that," Rose grinned. "But anyway; have you guys seen Pearl? I was supposed to drive her ho—"

Suddenly they could all hear loud giggles coming from the left. They all looked up to see Amethyst and Pearl walking around the corner; laughing hard at something. Ruby took note of the fact that Amethyst was carrying Pearl's duffle bag and third place medal in each hand as Pearl pulled on a familiar looking blue varsity jacket.

Ruby bit the inside of her cheek to stop from grinning.

"Oh," Pearl gasped when she saw them gawking. "…hey," She said effortlessly; a smile still on her face.

Amethyst handed her the medal back before looking up. "Ruby I was looking for you; I do not plan on walking home young lady,"

Ruby finally pulled away from Sapphire; holding her hand instead. "Yeah yeah,"

"Wait, what are you doing here?" Rose asked confused.

Amethyst remained cool and shrugged. "Ruby was too scared to come here alone so I tagged along," She grinned as Ruby glared at her. "I got bored halfway through it and went to pee when I ran into Pearl; she said she couldn't find you, Rose, so I offered her a ride home with me and Ruby,"

"And Sapph," Ruby added.

Her friend nodded. "And Sapphire I guess; so ya'll ready to roll out or what?"

"Oh," Rose said a little disappointed.

Ruby felt Sapphire nudge her stomach. "Oh yeah," Ruby said; drawing Rose's attention. "Do you guys all want to go bowling tomorrow night after our game or something? Jasper has been bugging me about bonding," She rolled her eyes.

"I'm game," Amethyst smirked.

Pearl nodded. "Same,"

"Okay," Rose showed them the smile that they all loved. "Tomorrow night around seven we'll go bowling; I'll text Lars, Sadie and Lapis—"

Sapphire groaned. "…can we not invite Lapis?" She said for obvious reasons.

"But then we won't have even teams," Rose added; not against not inviting the swimmer.

Ruby snapped her fingers. "Bring Peridot,"

Rose seemed like she wanted to say something but just nodded. "Peridot—yeah okay; I guess I'll see you guys then,"

They all waved and said goodnight before going their separate ways.

Ruby parked her car when she finally reached her house. After dropping Pearl and Amethyst off at their separate homes; Sapphire still wanted to take her up on that deal and eat some apple pie with her.

"Hey," She stopped Sapphire from leaving the car. "…do you remember when we were at my house and Rose interrupted us?"

Sapphire sucked her teeth at the memory. "How can I forget,"

"Yeah well; just before you left I said I'd go to your recital and you, uhm," Ruby tapped her fingers on the steering. "Called me your girlfriend…" She hesitantly looked at Sapphire.

She smiled; a soft blush on her face. "Well yeah; we kind of are dating, right?" Sapphire began to worry.

"We are," Ruby reassured. "I-I just wanted to make sure because I didn't know if it was a slip up or—"

Sapphire took her hand. "Ruby will you be my girlfriend? Just to make it official,"

"I would love to," The younger girl sighed out in a daze; kissing her girlfriend on the lips slowly before parting. "Man; I can't believe you're actually my girlfriend," She laughed softly.

Sapphire grinned. "Well I am; so how about we go inside and eat some pie because I am starving,"

"Sure," Ruby nodded.

They got out of the car and walked up to her door. Ruby pulled out her house key and opened it; letting Sapphire in before her.

"Hey Ruby," A rough yet feminine voice called from the couch.

Sapphire raised an eyebrow in confusion and looked to her girlfriend. Ruby had her hand on the knob; eyes wide and mouth a gape as she spoke.

"Mother,"

Sorry for such a long wait but the site was off line for a while and I have been trying to wrap this up for a while. I'll try updating sooner to make up for last week; please review and tell me what you think.