Chapter Seven: Strawberry Milkshake

It was Monday, June 19th, and the weather was having trouble making up its mind. One minute icy, the next sweltering. Steven was looking forward to the shelter of the cafe, where the temperature would be consistent, if nothing else.

"Good morning," he said as he came through the door and headed to the counter. He stared at the menu for a long time, indecisive. It was strange. He sure felt thirsty, but none of the drinks seemed particularly appealing at the moment.

"This place's selection sucks, doesn't it?" Amethyst said in his ear.

Steven jumped at the sudden noise. He hadn't noticed her there. "Ah, c'mon, no it doesn't…"

"Then why ya ain't ordering?" asked Amethyst.

"Uh…"

"Oh. I get it. You're nervous about your date." Steven opened his mouth to protest, but then Amethyst's expression shifted. From teasing to… anxious? "I know what that feels like."

"Amethyst," Steven said, "Do you have a date?!"

"Pipe down, would ya?" Amethyst hissed. She looked nervously around the cafe, then pulled him close. In a low voice, she said, "Can you keep a secret?"

Steven's eyes were very wide. "Yes."

Amethyst stared at him for a long moment, then gave the smallest of nods. "Okay. I was gonna ask Garnet out today."

"WOW!" At Amethyst's glare, he hushed himself. "I mean, wow. But… wait, what do you mean, 'was'?"

"Her grandparents are here."

"Her… grandparents?"

Amethyst raised an eyebrow. "Ruby and Sapphire?"

"Oh. Yeah. Of course." Steven blinked. "Wait, what's wrong with that? Sapphire and Ruby are both really nice."

Now Amethyst rolled her eyes, as if she just could not believe how slow he was being today. "Becaaause, you can't just ask your roommate out in front of her grandparents. That'd be weird!"

Her shoulders slumped, but Steven was not so easily defeated. "I know! Why don't I go and talk with Ruby and Sapphire? That way you can go get Garnet on her own!"

"What, really? You'd do that?"

"Yeah, of course! I can be like, your Ultimate Wingman!" Steven paused, briefly checking the time on his phone. 7:42AM. "At least until Connie gets here."

They high-fived. The plan was on.

…Once Steven actually ordered his drink.

"I think I'll go off the menu today, Sadie, my lady," said Steven. "How's about a strawberry milkshake please?"

"Your usual, huh?" said Sadie, as Steven pulled out a quarter. Something about that struck Steven as odd, but before he could figure out why, Amethyst was already pulling him away.

Garnet and her family were tucked at a table near the back of the cafe. When they saw Steven and Amethyst approach, all three of them lit up. Well, Ruby did, her smile filling the entire cafe with warmth. Garnet and Sapphire simply sat up a little straighter, which was just as telling.

"Hey guys!" Steven said, beaming. "Ruby, Sapphire! It's been ages!"

"It has," Sapphire agreed. She drifted down from her chair to envelope him in a hug, Ruby following suit. Steven leaned into the embrace— and caught sight of Amethyst motioning Garnet to follow her. By the time the hug was done, both of them had already vanished, presumably to find somewhere more private. Neither Ruby nor Sapphire seemed to have noticed. They were far too intent on doting on Steven.

Ruby and Sapphire doted a lot. Not just on Garnet, but practically on all of her friends, too. Steven didn't have real grandparents, but Ruby and Sapphire might as well have been his. He could always depend on them to look after him.

It was funny, though— neither of them really seemed like grandmothers. Steven knew they were like, ancient , but they didn't look very old, and they sure didn't act like it. Always full of energy, chatting and laughing and joking and beating up bad guys.

"So how are your classes going?" Sapphire asked.

"Oh, they're really fun!" said Steven.

"What's your major again?" asked Ruby. "Sorry, I know I always ask…"

"So forgetful," Sapphire teased.

"Well, why shouldn't I be when I've got you to remember stuff for me?" Ruby gently punched Sapphire in the arm.

"It's okay!" Steven said quickly, before the two could start getting too sappy. "I'm taking up my PhD in Punology. And it's awesome!"

"That sounds lovely. What kind of things do you learn about?" asked Sapphire as she patted him on the hand.

Steven shivered. "Woah! Your hand's freezing!"

"Cold hands, warm heart," said Ruby. Sapphire beamed.

(But seriously. Her hands were… really cold. But that wasn't weird right? Of course Sapphire was cold…)

"So, yeah, your classes?" said Ruby.

"Oh. Right." Steven scratched his head. He had a vague image of books, and a chalkboard, and rows of desks, and pie charts detailing the perfect pun. "Well, we're learning how to…"

"Connie's here," Sapphire said, a moment before the cafe's door chimed.

Steven turned, and there she was. Beautiful as always in her pale green dress, eyes wide and excited and nervous. Steven swallowed, noticing how dry his mouth felt. The feeling was mutual.

"We'll leave you to it," said Sapphire, patting him on the hand then waving him off.

"Thanks for keeping us company while Garnet and Amethyst have their little chat," said Ruby.

"Wait," said Steven. "You knew..?"

Ruby winked, and Sapphire giggled before waving him off again. Steven shook his head as he went to greet Connie.

"Hey, Steven." Connie grinned as she sat down.

"Hey." He smiled, taking a seat. "Did you have any trouble getting here?"

"N-not really," Connie replied, nervously chewing her lip.

Steven stared down at his drink. Neither said anything for what felt like ages. Connie didn't seem to mind, content to sit in silence, but Steven's mind was grasping for straws. They made awkward small talk until Sadie arrived to take their orders.

"Er… here, look at the menu," he said, grabbing one and holding it out to Connie. He tried to ignore the slight shaking of his hands as he did so. "They've got some really nice stuff. The cinnamon rolls are especially yummy, but…"

"What'll you have, then?" Sadie asked her.

"I'll have whatever he's having," said Connie.

"Alright! How about I get your usual? Two strawberry scones and a grande hot chocolate with whipped cream coming right up!" Sadie smiled at them and disappeared behind the counter.

"So," Steven began to ask. "How are y—"

Do do do do dooo, do do do do dooo, do do do dooo…

Steven blushed at the sound of his phone ringing. "Uh, sorry," he said. "Forgot to put it on silent. Is it okay if I…?"

Connie smiled and nodded. Steven dug into his pocket and pulled out his phone, only to freeze when he saw the name on the screen:

Connie Maheswaran

Steven looked up. Connie was sitting right across from him.

"Uh…" Steven said. But the phone was still ringing, still vibrating in his hand. He dragged his finger across the screen and held it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Steven!" Connie's voice said. "There you are! You haven't responded to, like, any of my messages. We're still on for training today, right?"

"Er..."

"Because I'm almost at the Temple. And if you're busy with mission stuff, maybe I could, y'know, help you guys out?"

"What… do you mean? Aren't you already—" Steven looked up. Sitting across from him was an empty seat. "—here?"

"Uh, no. But I'm coming up the beach right now." Connie's voice grew concerned. "Um, are you alright Steven? You sound kinda weird."

"I'm fine, Connie. Why don't you just meet me at the coffee shop?"

"You mean like The Big Donut?"

"No, the coffee shop. It's called… It's called The Daily Grind?"

"Never heard of it. Where is it?"

"It's…" Steven began, but he couldn't remember what he was going to say.

Through the phone there came the sound of footsteps and something like a door closing. Connie said, "Hey, I'm at your house, Steven, and the door to the Temple is open? Oh, hey, I can see you inside! Did you guys like, build a fake coffee shop in there or something?"

Steven looked up and out the window. Connie was out on the street, phone pressed to her ear, staring in. Steven waved at her. After a moment, Connie waved back. Then she headed inside, the bell chiming above the door.

She was beautiful.

She was dressed for sword training— in sneakers, shorts, a t-shirt, and with her hair tied back in a long braid. Nonetheless, she looked amazing. Steven couldn't help but stare as Connie stood in the doorway, bracing herself against the chill of the air conditioning. The confusion on her face melted away, replaced with nervousness and excitement.

"Hey, Steven!" Connie said as she dropped her duffle bag on the floor and took a seat across from him.

"Hey," he said. He realized that he was still holding his phone to his ear, and then hurried to end the call and then switching it to airplane mode.

"Oh, good idea," Connie said, moving to shut down her own black brick phone. She stashed it away in her duffle bag while Steven slipped his phone back into his pocket. "Wouldn't want to be interrupted on our first date, right?"

She blushed as she said the words, and so did Steven.

Their first date. His heart hammered in his chest. He'd never been this nervous around her before, but this was different. This was their first real date, after all. Things were going to be different now. He didn't want to ruin their friendship.

"Did you have any trouble getting here?" he asked.

"Yeah, actually," Connie replied. She gave a little laugh. "This'll sound stupid, but I kinda got lost."

"Well, you're here now," Steven said.

She smiled at him. "Yeah. I am."

Steven started to smile back, then blinked. "Hey, wait, where're your glasses?"

"Huh? I haven't needed glasses in ages, remember?"

"Oh right." Steven shook his head at his forgetfulness. He'd been the one to heal her eyes, after all.

"I hate Mondays," Lars said as he dropped off their orders.

"Oh, wow. This place has fast service," Connie remarked. "What've we got here? Strawberry scones?"

"And hot chocolate," said Steven, as he grabbed his drink. "Is that okay?"

Connie waved a hand. "Eh, it's probably not what I would've ordered myself, but it still smells great." She took a sip, and her eyes went wide. "Wow, and it tastes fantastic!"

"I know, right? And it's perfect, like, every single time!"

Neither of them spoke for a few moments, but there was no pressure to. Both of them were content just to savour the taste of their food, and each other's company.

After a few bites of his scone, Steven asked, "So how are classes going?"

"Ugh. Don't get me started," Connie said. "I mean, I'm doing well enough in all of them, but statistics is just painful. And I know Mom wants me to try and get into medical school, but some of this math is like banging my head against a wall."

"Well, if you need any help, Pearl's just over there," Steven said, jerking his head in Pearl's direction.

Connie laughed. "You know, that's actually a good idea. She's already my combat coach, so why not?"

Steven nodded. He didn't think Pearl would mind tutoring Connie. Sure, she was really busy with that essay, but looking over now, she didn't seem to be making much progress. She was just staring at her computer while idly pushing pie around her plate with a fork.

He took the moment to gaze around the familiar cafe. To smile at Peridot and Lapis, having a friendly argument in their usual spot by the windows. At the pretty barista working behind the counter, happily making drinks for everyone to enjoy. At Ruby and Sapphire, curled up in a single big arm chair, laughing softly to themselves. At Garnet and Amethyst, who'd snagged a more private spot near the back of the cafe, and judging by the way Amethyst was practically tucked underneath one of Garnet's arms, were probably officially on a date. At his roommate Greg, who caught his eye to shoot him a thumbs up.

And lastly, at Connie, smiling at him over her mug of hot chocolate. Steven reached out and laid a hand on top of hers. It was warm and soft beneath the callouses. She placed her other hand on top of his, and squeezed.

"I'm really glad you're here," Steven said.

"Me too."