Pearl carried Steven into the living room, ignoring his questions about the three Diamonds still stationed outside the beach house. She trusted that Garnet would convince them to leave soon enough. Until then, she would do her best to avoid mentioning them around Steven. A task that proved difficult given how insistent he was being.
"Why aren't you telling me anything?" Steven squirmed in her hold, twisting and turning in an attempt to get free. "Why did those gems know my name?"
She didn't respond, and walked over to the couch, gently placing Steven on it. He shifted in his seat, and for a moment Pearl thought he would make a break for it. She tensed, and readied herself to restrain him, but that proved unnecessary. Steven settled onto the couch, a small frown on his face, as he stole glances at the door.
Pearl suddenly found herself at a loss of what to do.
Dr. Maheswaran had suggested they give Steven some space, but that was because Steven had been nervous and distant around them. He withdrew into himself and clung to Greg like his life depended on it. This older version of Steven didn't seem bothered by her presence in the slightest. Still, a part of her considered placing some distance between them. The last thing she wanted to do was make him uncomfortable.
As if sensing her hesitance, Steven patted a spot on the couch next to him, wordlessly inviting her to sit. She debated with herself, ultimately deciding to take a seat on the other end of the couch, a safe distance away from Steven.
"Are you mad at me?" Steven fiddled with the hem of his shirt, and did his best to avoid locking gazes with her.
"No, no, of course not!" Pearl rushed to reassure him.
He remained unconvinced. "Is this like the Sea Spire statue? Did I mess up again?"
Stars, how long had it been since Steven's first 'serious' mission at the Sea Spire? Several years at least, but Steven was talking about it like it had just happened yesterday. A deep sense of guilt was slowly starting to creep up on her. Back then she had such high expectations of Steven, constantly pressuring him to do better by comparing him to Rose. It wasn't fair to him, he was only a child. Only, she didn't quite understand that at the time.
"You didn't do anything wrong, Steven." She hesitated before adding, "What happened at the Sea Spire, it wasn't your fault. We shouldn't have tested you like that."
Steven grimaced, an embarrassed flush creeping across his cheeks. "I get it, you wanted to see if I was Crystal Gem material, and... I wasn't."
Pearl winced, and looked away. Had Steven really believed he wasn't good enough to be a Crystal Gem? How much of that was her fault?
"You were, are, a member of the Crystal Gems. Nothing will ever change that, and I... I'm sorry if I ever made you feel like you weren't."
Steven stared, his soft eyes tearing up. He rushed to close the distance between them, wrapping his arms around her in a hug. Pearl stiffened in surprise, but quickly returned the embrace. A sudden feeling of lightness washed over her. A part of her had feared Steven would never want anything to do with her. Never had she been happier to be proven wrong.
"I forgive you," he mumbled against her jacket, and just like that, he was beaming up at her, his earlier sadness completely forgotten. Steven pulled away from her, wiping away the remainder of his tears. His eyes widened, and he let out a small gasp, taking off into the kitchen. "Is that a new toaster?" he exclaimed, eyeing the red contraption as if it were a unicorn.
Pearl blinked, taken aback at how rapidly Steven bounced back.
"It even has four slots!" he chuckled in amazement. "That's bananas."
She smiled at his enthusiasm. "Well, If you like that, then you're going to love our new microwave."
Steven was already experimenting with the settings, as she walked into the kitchen.
"So many buttons! I don't even know what half of these do." Steven continued to explore the kitchen, gasping and fawning over every inconsequential change. His excitement was contagious, and Pearl couldn't help but get swept up in it. She proudly showed off an assortment of appliances, some of which she had almost forgotten they owned, and gave him a small tour of the renovated kitchen. "I can't believe you guys did all this-" he gestured to all of the beach house. "-while I was asleep."
"Oh, well, it wasn't-" Pearl began, but Steven cut her off with a beaming smile. "I mean, it just looks so great!"
"I'm... glad that you like it," Pearl eventually replied.
The two stood in the kitchen for a moment, basking in a comfortable silence, and Steven started to laugh. A smile crept across Pearl's face, as she asked, "What's so funny?"
"I just..." Steven sighed and shook his head. "You're always so busy with gem stuff and... It's just nice having you here, I guess.
Pearl pushed aside another pang of guilt, and forced a smile. "Well, as long as I'm here, we should do something fun, right?" She drummed her fingers against the counter. What could they do on the spur of the moment?
"I've got an idea!" Steven cheered, brimming with energy. "How about we make dinner! Like... like eggs!"
Pearl arched an eyebrow. "Eggs?"
Steven flashed her a goofy grin. "'Cause I can make an egg-cellent omelette!"
Pearl laughed."That sounds lovely, Steven."
Steven busied himself by pulling the ingredients out of the refrigerator, and started whisking the eggs with a smile. She stood back for a moment, watching him as he added a pinch of this or that to the egg mixture, and chopped up some vegetables. It was weird, Pearl noticed, seeing Steven so happy.
They chatted as they cooked. Pearl found that she had forgotten how energetic Steven could be. He had such a bubbly, positive attitude, and it was infectious. It was hard not to smile along with him, or to laugh at one of his jokes.
A part of her knew that Steven would eventually sense that something was wrong, but another part of her didn't want to ruin this moment. Steven deserved to be happy, after all he had been through. She would tell him everything in due time, no need to rush it.