Steven Universe: Coffee, Cats, and Space Buns
After Connie left the restaurant and arrived at her dorm, she immediately called her mom. If there was anyone who would know what to do about this, her mom would be the person. She often talked about the silly things that her and her father would argue about. If they had gotten past it well enough to joke about it, them maybe she'd have some sort of special insight for Connie?
After a couple rings, her mother picked up. "Hey there, Sweetie, how is school going?"
Connie felt a sense of comfort wash over her. Her mother's presence, even over the phone, almost always had a calming effect on her. "Schools going well. I actually want to talk about Steven." Connie explained the whole situation as well as she could, not leaving a single thing out of the story.
"That sounds tough, Sweetheart, I'm sorry you and Steven are having a fight. What do you want to happen between you two? Steven is a nice boy and you two are young. Steven is going to make mistakes."
"Well, I guess, but this is a big mistake, Mom. He kissed Liv and doesn't trust me to not date Devon!"
Her mother soothed her, her voice slow and calm. "I understand that, honey, but weren't you the one who said you didn't want to be exclusive? It doesn't make sense to be angry at Steven for going on a date with Liv when you two aren't dating yourselves."
"But Mom, I just- I'm just worried about dating him. What if it changes our relationship too much and what if it doesn't work out and we aren't friends anymore? Plus, he said he'd wait for me!"
Her mother was quiet for a moment and all that Connie could hear was dead air over the phone. Finally, her mother spoke. "If you truly want my advice, Connie, then you should think about what you really, truly, honestly want. From what you're telling me, you want Steven all to yourself, but you aren't willing to put in the effort of actually having him to yourself."
"I'm not worried about putting in the ef-"
"Listen to me, Connie. You love Steven, right? You don't want to lose him? I know it's scary to get into a relationship. I know it's scary having the possibility of losing him in the future. But if you love him and want to be with him, then you need to take a step into the waters. You don't need to dive in, but at least get your feet wet."
It was Connie's turn to be quiet this time. Finally, her mother spoke again. "You understand me, Sweetie? You both made mistakes yesterday. Maybe it's time for you two to come together and put in the effort to fix it?"
Connie knew her mother was right. She sighed and played with the hem of her shirt, a nervous quirk she'd had since forever. "Yeah, I understand Mom. I'll do my best."
Steven drove out of town as quickly as he could without getting a ticket before pulling over in the back of a random gas station parking lot. He got out of his car and called out, "Lion! Liiiioooooon! Lion?"
Lion had already been there, hiding in the bushes. He popped out at Steven giving a roar. "There you are, Lion! Do you mind helping me get back home to Garnet?"
He simply stared back at Steven before giving him a single lick. "Uh, thanks Buddy." He hopped onto Lion's back and they off to Steven's old abode. He found himself chuckling as he held on for dear life to Lion. They went so fast he felt his cheeks being pulled and his hair tangling up wildly. Finally, they had arrived in front of the strangely built building. As he ran up the stairs, he noticed Garnet at the top waving at him with a slight smile. "I've been expecting you, Steven."
"Hey Garnet… It's nice to see you again. I need to talk to you about something."
She gave a silent nod and beckoned him to follow her through the front door. She sat down at one of the stools within the kitchen and motioned him to do the same. Once they were sat down, she spoke. "So, Steven, you and Connie are having a fight?"
He didn't question how he knew. Steven was used to it at this point. "Yeah… I made a huge mistake and now Connie doesn't think I trust her enough…" He went on to tell the same story as Garnet stayed stoic the entire retelling.
"I see… You must be frustrated Steven. What do you want from this relationship?"
"Well… I want to *marry* her, be with her, maybe even have… You know… Kids together. I-In the future, I mean!" His face pinkened as his eyes darted away quickly.
"I think you should talk to Connie again. Tell her you are absolutely *sure* what you want. If she also wants this to work out, then she will have to make the leap of faith to trust you. It's your job to keep proving to her that she can trust you."
"You're right… I'll try to make it up to her. It hurts that she feels she can't trust me, but I guess it makes sense... I'll talk to her tomorrow. Thanks, Garnet."
"Anytime, Steven. Good luck with Connie. Go do your best." She gave him a thumbs up as Steven hopped out of his seat. He gave her a hug before heading out the door.
"I'll be back soon, Garnet! Hopefully with Connie next time." He gave a wave before running down the stairs and calling for Lion. After he carefully got on, they were off. He rode upon his pink Lion and began thinking of all sorts of ideas to make it up to Connie. A picnic at a park? A candlelight dinner? A trip to the amusement park? He had so much to decide.
The next morning, Connie stared at her phone intensely. Should she make the first move? Should she wait for Steven? It was so hard to decide! She laid in bed for half an hour trying to work up the courage to push the button.
Suddenly, Connie sat up startled from her phone ringing. It was Steven. Panic rose up in her chest as she froze. Oh god, what if he's calling to tell me he doesn't want to talk to me anymore? Working up the courage yet again, she answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Hey Connie! I, uh, wanted to invite you out tonight for lunch so we could talk things over… Is that okay?"
For a couple seconds, she couldn't bring herself to speak. Realizing how it might come across, she scrambled to respond. "Y-Yes! Yeah. Just tell me where and when!"
"Sure! Can you meet me at 12pm at that one hiking trail you told me about? It goes up past your University Letter, I think."
"Yeah, I can meet you there. See you soon, Steven."
Connie walked up the road to where the base of the hiking trail stood to find a nervous-looking Steven standing there. As soon as she came closer, he looked up. They stood there for a second with an air of awkwardness. Neither quite knew what to say. Eventually Steven spoke first.
"Follow me, Connie, I want to show you something."
He began hiking up the trail. Everything was quiet except for the sound of rocks crunching under their shoes, sounds of animals skittering in the tall grass and brush, and the quiet sound of cicadas. It didn't last long, maybe only ten minutes, before they had reached a small clearing behind a few rocks and brambles.
Connie gasped. She had been on this trail countless times by herself and with others and never did she know that this place had existed. It was a small round clearing big enough to fit a small group of people and the sound of a burbling stream could be heard nearby. Inside of the clearing, Steven had set up a quilt and a picnic basket. Also on the quilt was a notebook and a pen next to it. His Ukulele leaned against the picnic basket.
"We're here. Here, make yourself comfortable. I packed us lunch." Steven allowed her to choose a spot on the quilt before sitting across from her. He carefully lay his Ukulele to the side and pulled out some fruits, cheese, peanut butter banana sandwiches, and iced lemonade. Connie immediately gave thanks and hesitantly took a sandwich. Though her stomach was full to the brim with nerves, she couldn't help but be starving at the sight of all the food.
"I uh, wanted to do something special for you. You mean a lot to me, Connie. I couldn't imagine not having you in my life. You complete me. I know that sounds dramatic, but that's how I feel."
Steven looked at her with a set resolve in his eyes. He meant every single word that dripped from his lips. Connie felt the heat rise in her chest as her heart pounded harder. She couldn't bring herself to say anything, her voice rendered useless.
"Y-You don't have to say anything! That's fine… Um… I know you weren't sure about what I wanted or how resolved I am. So I brought proof." He grabbed the small leather notebook and held it up. His initials were embroidered on the front. "This right here is my journal. I have written in this for years. Well… Off and on. You can look at it if you want."
"O-Okay…" Connie carefully took the notebook and opened it up. She read and read as Steven picked up his Ukulele and played around with the strings. He played quietly as she read the musings of younger Steven. Even then, he gushed about Connie. How smart she was, how funny she was, how good of a friend she was. Most importantly, he had written even then how he wanted to be with her in the future.
Near the end of the journal, he wrote what had happened between him, Liv, and Connie. He wrote about the shame he felt of what he did. He wrote about how he felt crushed by how he had made Connie feel. He wrote about his talk with Garnet and what he had learned. He even wrote about how much he loved Connie and hoped to have a future with her.
At the end of his writing, he wrote about how he took Connie to the clearing. "…I took her to the hiking trail she absolutely loved to talk about. I set up a lunch for her. I know it would never make up for the mistakes I made, but I hope it will show that I still care. I care more than anything. I want to start a new part of my life with Connie. A part of my life where I never waver or worry about how we feel. I let Connie know all of this, and she said-"
It ended, the abrupt end begging for an answer. Tears welled up in Connie's eyes as she looked up at Steven. Her voice cracked, "Steven, I-… I want to be with you too. I love you so much. I can't imagine being with anyone else!"
Steven stopped playing his ukulele as his eyes widened. Tears began streaming down his cheeks and he took her hands in his. "Remember when I asked to marry you, and you said 'not yet', and when I asked to date you, you gave the same answer? Connie-" He faltered, overcome with emotion, "I know I've messed up a lot in the past couple of days but- Connie, I want to be yours more than anything. Please, please, be mine."
Connie began to cry softly, her hands trembling within his. "Steven, I want that more than anything. I was a fool to hold off for so long. You've always been there for me, even when you had far bigger things to worry about, like saving the universe. Steven, I love you."
Steven suddenly lurched forward and wrapped his arms around Connie. She dug her face into his shirt as she began crying harder and harder. Steven couldn't contain the sobs that racked his body.
He had been so afraid, and for what? They were together, they would stay together. No matter the fight, no matter the issue. Relationships may be fragile, but their relationship was different. It was strong. Their bond was spider silk, and as fragile as it started, their strands had been woven together so thick that nothing could break it.
They would be together, and nothing would stop them. As he stroked Connie's hair, he felt calm wash over him. The fight seemed so small, so silly now in retrospect. Regardless, Steven felt glad that they had gotten over that bump. Now that Connie was in his arms, he would never let go.