Pebbles tilted her head at Graphite Geode, and felt one of her long amber curls bounce on her shoulder. "Graphi, maybe I should cut my hair…you know, a bob, kinda."

The girls were lying on Pebbles' bed, looking at bridal magazines…but their ideas were kind of exhausted. When bored, cut hair, right?

Graphite's glossed lower lip dropped in adorable imitation of her favorite blonde film gamine, Drew Barrymarble. "Shit Peb, Bamm-Bamm and half the guys in Bedrock would want to shoot you. Your red hair's your trademark, you're like Christina Hendrocks without the back pain."

Bitch. My boobs aren't that small. But Pebbles smiled. "I don't know if Bammy cares that much about my hair—he actually is pals with my stylist, they were watching a Rockbra Streisand film festival or something together, and when Pierre mentioned me cutting off my hair, he said Bamm-Bamm just shrugged."

And of course, although she wouldn't say this out loud, Bamm-Bamm was such a gentleman. Eight years going steady, and just a peck on the cheek after dinner. He respected her, he wanted the wedding night to be "special". What the hell?

"Maybe Bammy's wondering why you're spending so much time with my brother." Graphi said this not unkindly. "I know Gravel has been tutoring you in physics and all, but you really hang out a lot, didn't you guys go to the Bedrock Ballet, how boring."

Graphi checked the texts on her Istone before turning to look at Pebbles. "I know it's just you being nice to Grav, he's such a weenie, but Bamm-Bamm might be a little territorial." Graphi paused. "Not that my dweeb brother is any kind of threat…even Gritty isn't as hunky as Bamm-Bamm, though now Gritty's safely married to that Topaz slut."

Graphi looked carefully at Pebbles, as she put an unlit cigarette in her mouth. "You really are nice to my brother Gravel."

Pebbles blushed. She wondered how much Graphi knew about the time that Pebbles and the quiet, bookish Gravel were spending together—and that they'd hooked up, and it hadn't been bad at all.

Although Bamm-Bamm was sexually uh, reserved, Pebbles had had a few partners. She'd spent a summer as Mr. Slate's secretary at Dad's job, and she'd had a month long fling with Shingle, Mr. Slate's rascally nephew, who unfortunately was rife with Chlamydia.

Then also she'd gone to bed with Phossil Fuell, the point guard on the Jadestone Junior College basketball team…Phos, like most black guys had been fun, but way too possessive. But Pebbles had a bit of knowledge about life between the sheets…and Grav wasn't bad in bed!

But it was true—Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm had grown up with the Geode triplets, hide-and seek on the playground, learning to drive together later on—and while Graphite and Gritty were normal, attractive athletic types, Gravel was more of an intellectual.

Did Graphi know that Pebbles and Gravel had spent a couple of nights together? Peb loved BB, but she was so lonely, and BB was so different now, trying to stay "pure" for the wedding night, and all that other crap.

Of course when Pebbles had complained to Daddy that Bamm-Bamm was keeping his hands to himself, Fred had been thrilled. He'd been a little grumpy with all the trips to the Mesopotamian Mall for bridal shit, and the idea that his beefy son-in-law to be was a gentleman at least gave brief cheer.

"He's not some kind of perv, with Paleoboy centerfolds all over the place, I gotta give him that." Fred had said reflectively. "I looked into BB's room the other day when I was picking up Barn for a Lodge meeting

"…Bamm-Bamm's a clean-cut boy." Fred reported gleefully " Sports equipment and lotsa muscle magazines…he has a big poster of Brad Pilt onna wall, the guy who married Angelina Junglei, and that's a nice, masculine role model I guess. Pebbles, you couldn't have found a more clean-minded, decent guy."

Mom had been amazed at Bammy's uh, reserve. "Your father couldn't keep his hands to himself to save his life" Wilma had said, but not regretfully. "Mother wanted to buy me a chastity belt."

What was wrong with Peb's big, bulky, handsome fiancée?

Last year, when Gritty Geode had married Tawny Topaz, Graphi had danced a few times (in her ugly bridesmaid's dress) with Gravel, and had been amazed how such a quiet little guy could arouse such passions in her.

But Gravel wasn't going to be a big success in life…sure he was bright, he'd skipped second, fifth and ninth grade and gone to the Mineral Institute of Technology on full scholarship—and M.I.T. didn't give them out freely!

But Gravel had turned down job offers from a number of high tech companies, because he wanted to teach science to inner-cavey kids at Bedrock's shabby P.S. 14, one of the toughest schools in the ghetto.

You had to admire that…but even Graphi, Gravel's twin (or triplet) sister didn't understand him.

As if reading Pebbles' thoughts, Graphi leaned back on a post of Peb's Princess bed and said "Gravel himself told me that he thinks you should be spending more time with Bamm-Bamm…and Bammy's got a future, you know that."

Pebbles toyed with a tube of lip gloss. Yeah…Grav knew he'd never make a lot of money teaching, and half of everything he made went to old Mrs. Geode, his widowed mother.

Even though Gritty was a big shot at Tyrannosaurus Wrecks, the biggest scrap yard in Bedrock, he gave Mrs. G. nothing, and Graphi of course was always begging her mom for spending money, so she could read more about whether or not Whittle Houstone's O.D. was a suicide or not. But…Grav was so damned unusual!

"You say Gravel told you that I should be with Bammy MORE?" Pebbles asked Graphi incredulously.

"Yeah…the Geeky Geode is really taken with you, the family jokes about it, but Gravvy knows that Bamm-Bamm's the man." Graphite smiled. "He's such a dork,my bro, but a sweeter guy I've never known."

Pebbles smiled. She remembered that when Graphi was little and bullies picked on her, the burly Gritty usually backed off but her scrawny sibling Gravel would try and fight them off, and usually get his nose bloodied and his loincloth ripped for his trouble. A good guy.

"But seriously, Peb, Grav's not like us. He's all into books and shit, and he listens to classical music and actually ushers at plays and opera and the Bedrock Ballet so he can get in for free. Frankly, Gravel might turn out to be you know, a little queer, not a macho guy like Bamm-Bamm…a real guy. "

Pebbles smirked inwardly. She knew that Graphi and Tawny Topaz and Onyx Van Quarry and many of her other so-called "friends" would steal Bamm-Bamm in a moment, and many had tried—but Bamm-Bamm had always remained faithful, didn't even seem to struggle with it.

Pebbles knew she had to break off her meetings with Gravel Geode, and focus on the wonderful guy in her life. It must be a horrific struggle for him, just sitting home, reading muscle magazines, or working as a Citizen Forester at Lyndon Johnstone National Park.

Bamm-Bamm seemed to be constantly cleaning the men's lavatory at the park, he was always walking out of there when Peb dropped by.

"It's a mess, but I do what I can!" Bamm-Bamm had told her proudly. Yup. As Graphite said, that was a man Peb should marry!