I'm writing this and a book at the same time. Wowzers. I got a pack of 309 random vinyl stickers and a 100 pack of SU vinyl stickers. And I'm /finally/ getting my own laptop.

Gore warning.

Dipper

The boat ride home is quiet and awkward for me, but Steven seems to be enjoying himself. The wind is whipping around his face and making his hair fluff out.

"Steven?" Mabel speaks up and we all look over (she's the first to break the silence) "How did you just… Heal yourself?" I wonder if he'll answer…

"My gem." Steven lifts his shirt to show it again.

"Ok, but how does it work?" Mabel asks.

"I dunno…" He shrugs, "It just kinda, uh, Pearl can explain this a lot better than I can." Steven grumbles and rakes his hair down with his fingers.

"Who's Pearl?" This time I ask the question. I have a million questions (Some that he probably won't answer), but whenever we spend time with Steven I get more questions than answers.

"She raised me! She's like a mom to me." Steven's face looks a little red.

"Wait!" Wendy looks up, "I think I saw something on the news about gems!"

"I mean you probably did. A lot of gems are making homes in Beach City. But people are freaking out cause they think it's an 'alien evasion'." Steven rolls his eyes, "But gems have been here for most of human history."

"Gems have been here the whole time!?" My voice cracks and I want to jump off the side of the boat and scream into the lake.

"Well, yeah. I'm kinda surprised you don't learn about it in school."

Steven

If they ask more questions I'll answer them, it's nice to know people who are interested in learning about gems. I'm kinda surprised they didn't recognize me though. A lot of people do. It didn't take long for word of me saving the universe to reach news stations. I don't like to talk to them though. I don't want to be treated like a hero, I want to be treated like a person. I guess you can't save the universe and live a normal life. Oh well.

The others are talking about the shack now, or maybe they're talking about lunch. I'm not really paying attention. I just really like the wind on my face. $h!t! It's Tuesday! I missed my appointment again. I let out a heavy sign that rattles my chest. I think my lungs have water in them, I know my stomach is full of water. Ack I feel sick.

I lean over to grab my phone out of my bag by the side of the boat. I open my therapist's contact to text them. They're pretty great. They had been working with other gems before I came in, so they already knew a lot about gem culture. I didn't have to explain everything.

"Hi. Can I reschedule for later today?" Seen.

"Typing…" I hope they have an open slot for today. I'd like to go over the events of the past couple weeks.

"Sure thing Steven! Glad to hear from you again!"

"Great! What time?"

"9pm?" That's after hours. A wave of guilt passes over me.

"Are you sure? I can wait until next week." I hope she doesn't make me wait until next week.

"Tonight works. 9pm." I let out another sigh. I'll call Connie at 7 and then call Taylor (my therapist) later.

"Ok dudes!" Soos shouts, "We're at the dock, Wendy can you tie us up?"

"You got it!" I like Soos and Wendy. Soos is really nice, and Wendy kind of reminds me of Lars. I think they would get along. I wonder if I could get Lars to visit, or I could bring them to space through Lion. I should call Lars on my new phone.

I stand up and wince, my legs hurt, so does my back. Honestly I probably broke multiple bones.

"Are you ok? I thought you healed yourself." Mabel notices my limp.

"Yeah, but sometimes bones take longer to heal." I explain.

"Will it be better by to-marrow?" A huge smile spreads across her face, "Get it? To-marrow. Bone marrow." I start laughing and Dipper smacks his palm against his forehead. We get down to the dock and start walking back to the car. Me and Mabel are still snickering.

"I don't think we're all gonna fit in the truck." Dipper concludes when we get to the truck.

"I'll sit in the bed." I peek into the empty truck bed.

"Me too!" Mabel shouts. She's really loud.

"I'll sit back there too." Dipper crawls up into the truck bed and I follow. I offer my hand to Mabel. She takes it and I easily lift her up over the edge.

"Wow! How are you so strong?" I tap my gem again. It's actually because I'm a diamond, not just my gem. I'm stronger than most gems.

Stan

The kids are out at the beach I think. They mentioned monster hunting. They act like Ford a lot, especially Dipper. Tuesday's are the slowest days at the shop, so I don't need the extra help today. They left pretty early today, but I'm not sure when they'll be back.

They brought the Universe kid with them. He's kinda weird, and his eyes give me the creeps. But he's a good worker and he's nice to the kids. I still think about the stunt he pulled with Bill though.

Ford opens up the door to his "lab" and steps out.

"Quiet today." He notes.

"Yeah. What have you been doing? If you emerged from the basement, you must have discovered something important." Ford has been studying data we collected over the past year. We had traveled to northern waters by Canada and Greenland.

"I actually came to talk to you." I know what he's going to say. We haven't had a chance to talk about it yet. "Bill's back. And I don't know how."

"I thought we were done with him." I roll my eyes.

"Me too…" The sound of crunching gravel under tires grabs my attention. Wendy's truck pulls into the parking lot, Dipper, Mabel, and Steven are riding in the truck bed.

"Are they…" Ford squints, "Is he…" I see it too. Universe is covered in blood. It's on his clothes and dried onto his skin. The others look fine. They all get out of the car and walk towards the shack. They bust through the door and they're all laughing. Laughing?

"What happened to you?" Ford looks at Steven, confusion spread across his face.

"Turns out there is a lake monster!" Mabel shouts and they start laughing again.

"I'm gonna shower to get this off." Steven sticks out his tongue.

"Is that lake monster blood?" Ford asks. God, he's going to ask for a sample, isn't he?

"No, it's mine. I'm fine though." Steven gives Ford a small smile before retreating down the hall. Ford and I watch him go before turning our attention back to the kids.

"Well?" I glance around and their faces.

Steven

After my shower I change into some clean clothes and look at myself in the mirror to make sure I didn't miss anything. Nope, no blood. Except for my mouth, it still tastes like blood. I wipe the steam off the mirror to examine my mouth. If I did bite my tongue, shouldn't my spit have healed me by now?

I lift up my lips and notice that my gums are bleeding. My canine teeth are shoving down farther through my gums and are sharp at the end. Fangs? Like a vampire? Cool.

Hey guys! This chapter was super fun for me to write! I love hearing comments from you guys! Y'all are so suportive and amazing!