I do not own Steven Universe, hence the fan-fiction. -sorrowXdarkness

Chapter 6: Conjoined Hands

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Once everything was settled, they took their seat in their respective spots. The television began playing the selected motion picture classic, as Jamie's eyes were on Lapis; particularly her face. Her mood was better than it was before. Two hours ago, she held a surprisingly stern and angry look while they were having dinner. It took him by surprise as he realized the sudden shift in her mood as they converse around the table. Still, it took no genius to figure out the reason behind the shift; simply account for what was new, or rather, different from any other day. The answer came to him intuitively as he turned his attention to the source affecting Lapis' mood. She sat there, unaware of Lapis' mood as she left her mouth ajar; all while bantering, or what Jamie considered her attempt in performing a light conversation. The food resembled a pile of mulch, as she chewed and talked. Peridot was enjoying the dinner prepared by Jamie with much enthusiasm, unlike Lapis who kept her fork on the plate while hovering it around. The talk was mostly about what happened today, and it was directed toward Lapis.

As Peridot spoke, some of the 'mulch' spewed and landed on Lapis' face. Just before Lapis could say something, Jamie intervened. He spoke out, telling Peridot that it was extremely rude to eat and talk at the same time. As expected, confusion appeared and spread on her face until what Jamie said made sense to her. She corrected her behavior and quickly apologized as she commented that Steven mentioned numerous times of her faulty habit. It took Lapis by surprise by how cooperative Peridot was being. It took hold of her attention as her awareness plummeted. She failed to realize the napkin being brought to her face as Jamie spoke.

"You got something on your face." The napkin was slightly moist as it moved across the side of her cheek. The small splatter of food disappeared as Lapis' face turned into a dark hue of blue. She thanked Jamie for the kind gesture. He smiled, the potential crisis was averted. Lapis then began to eat the meal as the fork finally left the plate. The food arrived to her mouth before her lips sealed the entrance as she chewed. Her lips were a darker hue of blue compared to her skin; they could well be sapphire as her skin was like sky blue. Jamie turned away, realizing that he was fixated on her lips. Not good. He returned to listen to Peridot, in the hope of distracting himself of those sensual lips.

Returning to the present time, Jamie mentally scolded himself for ever thinking of it. Those lips were quite inviting though he shouldn't be sucked into such things again. Even if it was Lapis, his heart still bore the mark of the unforgettable time he had when he was at Kansas; when he met Daisy. Like Lapis, she had a beauty that attracted many. It was not surprising that he found himself staring at her direction. Despite her rough personality, she was very pleasant to look at. When she pretended to be kind, Jamie allowed himself to be fooled so he could indulge in his fantasy. It was his greatest sin as he misled his heart throughout the entire time that he was with Daisy. The only form of repentance he did, was his departure. Any more delusions, and he may lose track of himself. Daisy was simply entertaining herself as she played the role of the ideal woman to him.

Still, Peridot had a good memory as she recounted everything that occurred in a systematic format. It was then that Peridot mentioned something that attracted Lapis' attention, along with Jamie's. She just finished with her story, and spoke for a bit of what she learned. The word 'cherish', and how Steven felt about Peridot. As Jamie pointed out, Steven did cherish her. He wouldn't have done all that, simply out of pure obligations.

"What about you? Do you cherish me?" She asked as she had her attention on Jamie. "I mean, you protected me from that 'dog', gave me 'ice-cream', and 'carried me home'... so I'm curious. Do you cherish me?" Peridot asked, with the same curiosity found in children. They have questions to be answered and they would usually seek adults to provide them that satisfaction of knowing. Jamie pondered of what sort of answer would be both adequate and appropriate.

"Are you mad at me?"

Jamie shook his head as he stared at the person whom reached out with her voice to get his attention. Lapis had a concerned look in her eyes as she looked into his. There was an inch or two between them as she had her legs pulled close to her body; her knees were high enough to support her head. Jamie then watched the television before he spoke.

"I'm not mad, just surprised. I don't think I ever saw you like this before. You had this alarming presence when you stood up. I could feel the anxiety traveling through my spine." He didn't turn around. Lapis dropped her head to her knees though did nothing to cover her face with her arms. They were still embracing her legs as she kept them there.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin dinner for you. You worked hard. You usually do."

"Lapis...why did you get like that?"

"Honestly... I'm not too sure. Even now, I'm embarrassed for my behavior though also confused. She did nothing wrong, yet I tried to punish her. I'm a bad person...a bad roommate. I'm sorry Jamie."

"I admit, what you did was rude and uncalled for, but that does not make you a bad person. After all, I still want you as a roommate."

Lapis looked up again, and was met with a foolish smile from Jamie. She returned the smile, as she thanked him. "I should apologize again."

"Tomorrow, and I'll be there with you. So don't fret." Both of them had the same idea as their hands met in the middle. Upon contact, they formed an interlocked connection as Lapis leaned toward him.

"I LOVED YOU! I ALWAYS LOVED YOU. EVEN NOW, I CONTINUE TO LOVE YOU. SO DON'T GO AROUND SAYING WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE LOVED WHEN YOU ALREADY ARE!"

"I'm sorry..."

"Don't be... You have nothing to be sorry about."

"I wished I could've known sooner. Look at you, bruised and cracked."

"Even a cracked mirror can give a good impression of what you are."

They kissed, and kissed. Their lips made all efforts to connect with the other person's though it wasn't enough. They continued to move side to side, changing the angle and shifting them to satisfy this sudden drought. Her arms pulled his head closer as he pushed her back. They moved and moved, until they made it to the couch. Their lips departed as they traveled to different locations of their partner's body. Her hands yanked down on his shirt, breaking a button or two in the process, though neither one care much about it. He untangled her hair as they spread on the cushion of the sofa. There was still plenty of light to see the other person's eyes. They looked at each other for a moment, gazing at their eyes before resuming. It became pitch black though their noise could still be heard. It was magically possible to imagine the touch of his hands as she reacted positively to them.

The movie finally ended as Jamie and Lapis stared with their eyes wide apart. Something clicked inside them both as the heart that each one possessed made a surprise beat. Unlike the regular beats made by the heart, this was an irregular beat; louder than the rest and easily detected.

Thud-Thud

There it was again. The credit rolled halfway through until Jamie turned off the television. It didn't occur to him that he selected such a movie until that scene appeared. His mind was too caught up from what happened before and he was curious in how Lapis reacted from the scene. It was a masterpiece to say the least, though perhaps a bit too much to someone like her. Still, he had seen this movie numerous of times, though never like that. In the past, he praised the actors for their performance, the director, camera operator and so forth, but today was different. He did not view that movie as a passionate actor, writer, director, or anything relating to the art. Lapis finally moved as she gave her honest review. The movie moved her in a way that none of the movies they saw did. This movie core focus was on Love, and how they tried to define it. It invigorated her as she made many comments on the actress that played the heroine as well as the actor that played the hero,

"I see...that's good. I was worried that this movie may have been too much to handle..."

"No... I'm glad you picked this movie." Their hands were still locked together. No one made the first move to get up. When he turned off the television, the only source of light was from the moon that glowed in the dark. It cast its brightness through the window and bestowed a mysterious veil upon each of them. It reminded them of the movie they just watched and how it ended; bringing them both up from the ground as they quickly wished the other goodnight and distanced themselves from the other. They failed to detach their conjoined hands as they were pulled back to each other. They noticed their hands still stuck together and gave a sheepish laugh.

"We should probably let go now..." Lapis said as she looked at their hands.

"Oh, right. Sorry."

"No, not at all."

They finally let go as their once combined hands were left unattended. "Goodnight...again."

"Yeah, goodnight." Jamie said as Lapis left his room.

He looked down at his hand. He could see the palm of his hand now and how empty it felt. It was a feeling he knew all too well. Lapis arrived to her room as she dropped down to her mattress. She had her face on her pillow as she gave a muffled scream. Her mind was too stuck to the movie. When the movie was done, she was expecting Jamie to do the same as the actor did and that she would do the same as the actress. Why? They were roommates and even good friends. So why did she had that thought in her mind?

After letting out a few muffled and mixed screams, she lifted her head from the pillow. She dropped down again though on her back this time as she stared at the ceiling. She brought up her hand to the air, and looked at it. It felt warm, still does, though now it felt lacking. She wanted to hold his hand again.

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Omake-

Daisy checked her phone for any updates. Nothing. One month and still not a single role. She had been going to interviews after interviews, and not once did she get a call-back. Was she not worthy? No. It was them. They failed to realize her greatness and that was their loss. She threw her phone, it landed on the sofa as she stormed to her kitchen. There was a pile of dirty dishes in the sink as she opened the microwave door. She took out a cup of noodles and set it to the side while covering it up. She was tired of eating cheap microwaveable food. She began to remember when she was eating actual food prepared with much time and patience as any decent chef could prepare. He was the perfect handyman she ever had, among the bunch of men that served her. Every one of them thought that they were in a relationship with her, even him. They were wrong. To her, they were nothing more, but people to serve her. They were below her, as she was particularly designed by the Heaven above to be much more. Still, that guy was something. She never tried to remember any one of their names, but he was different. He was a sweet guy. The noodles were done as she removed the paper top.

"They better call me or I might actually miss you... Jamie."

-End of Omake

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Author's Note:

I read the reviews and I am happy by the reactions. I hoped this chapter didn't feel rushed because I did rush this chapter because I wanted to post it as soon as possible. I hoped you liked it. Please let me know and hopefully, the next chapter would be posted next week. -sorrowXdarkness