A/N: I really want to get back to Peri, so this'll be the last chapter of Lapis' POV for a bit. Hopefully that's okay with you guys.

Thanks for all the support! Let the show begin already! -Sara

This was actual Hell, she was ninety-nine percent sure of that.

She didn't hate kids, let's make that clear, but she never realized they could be such monsters either. They screamed and laughed way too loudly, and they were always touching things, and she definitely couldn't focus on what she was doing when a little boy was consistently tugging at her shirt hem and asking what she was doing a million times in less than half an hour.

Clarity. She was at the museum, working. Working. In a last ditch attempt to find any and all excuses to stay far from her house, she had located a job. As a janitor, basically. And oh boy was it sooo much fun.

Lapis sighed as she wiped at one of the many, many glass casings, trying to remove the smudged fingerprints from an earlier field trip of overly excited second graders. It was certainly quieter now that there were only the normal crowds, history observers and tourists. Still boring as could be, though.

As she wiped, she couldn't help overhearing snippets of conversation. It wasn't that she was trying, though it did help ease the tension in her shoulders when she could get a laugh out of someone else's problems. She heard everything, from people questioning when and why something was exhibited to a couple bickering over what they would be having for dinner, to even an older lady chastising what Lapis figured was her son for getting a cat when he knew she was allergic to them.

No one she knew came in; most people her age wouldn't come to a museum, anyways, and on top of that she really didn't know that many people here even now. It had almost been a month, but she certainly wasn't popular. And the overused, overrated cliques of high school bored her; she'd rather be alone than get classified as something so shabby and moronic.

"Your idea of fun is... amusing," a voice cut through her thoughts.

She froze. No way Peridot could be here right now. Of all the places in this entire stupid town, she had to be here.

They hadn't spoken in over a week, not because they were avoiding one another but because there was no cause for it. And without cause, their interactions were just awkward and unsure. Peridot wasn't exactly the most social, and Lapis couldn't testify that she tried all that much harder. It was just more comfortable, and more fun she surmised, to witness the younger girl's life from afar. Without actually intervening too much.

Lapis forced herself to keep wiping, not even looking back. As much as she wanted to, she hated the very idea. "Whatever. What's up, Peri?"

She'd taken to referring to her as such. It seemed to annoy the blonde a tad bit, but that just cemented its usage. Anything to get under her skin, to watch those emerald eyes narrow as if she was trying desperately to appear aggressive. It didn't work, at least not in Lapis' opinion. It just made her look like a bored puppy.

"Nothing," came the nasally response after a long, drawn out pause. There was something in her voice that Lapis caught, something that made her ears prick up just a bit more. "I have to swing by BCF when Amethyst gets off work, so I thought I'd pop over here for a bit."

Lapis smirked as she finally turned toward the blonde, more than a little amused when she saw how awkward the girl looked leaning against the wall, trying to look casual. "Oh? Missed me that much, huh?"

Pale cheeks turned pink in the span of a mere second and that infamous scowl was coating Peridot's features. She glared at Lapis as the blue-haired girl wiped her hands on her jeans.

"Whatever, dork..." she murmured, and it was undeniably cute how she looked up and away, trying to come across as unaffected and once again failing miserably.

Lapis' smile faltered when that thought hit her, when it really sank in that she'd thought of Peridot as 'cute'. She mentally berated herself as she coughed and turned sideways, pretending to inspect the next case but only seeing a blurry visage.

"What's BCF?" she asked, not really caring but needing to steer the conversation in another direction, preferably something that came across more as actual small talk and less flirting.

That helped clear the air a little. Peridot brought a hand up to rub across her neck as she eyed Lapis with a look that asked, 'are you serious' before replying. "Beach Citywalk Fries. Come on, their fries are legend. Peedee would hate you for not knowing about them."

'Oh' her mind spoke up, and she blinked. She certainly knew the place, it had been her choice for dinner the first week she was in town. And, though she knew Peedee, she found his brother more interesting. Ronaldo was the type of guy so completely out of it, you couldn't help but like that you hated him. She was pretty sure he was a stoner. Maybe shrooms? Half of what he came up with on that blog, which she would admit she went on once or twice, was just too insane to have been made up without a little help.

"Oh, right, right," she muttered, more to herself than anything, as she absently wiped at the casing. "What time is it?" She really didn't want to be here any longer; after the first hour she'd deduced that she hated it, but now she was loathing the place's very existence.

Peridot took a moment to get out her phone, grumbling something along the lines of, "You have your own phone, look it up yourself." But, with a swipe and a pause, she announced, "five fifty-three."

Lapis could've actually hugged her, that was music to her ears. She settled for a thumbs up instead and tossing her clothe down on the casing. She ran her hands through her hair, pushing her bangs back out of her face as she turned towards Peridot again.

"So, you're hanging out with Amethyst today?" She didn't have anything against the girl, but she just came across as too hyped and too energetic to someone like Lapis.

The blonde nodded and fidgeted against the wall. "Mhm. She got this new RPG she's been boasting about for weeks now. I'm going over to her place to try it out."

Lapis wrinkled her nose. She wasn't a gamer, not in the slightest, and had absolutely no interest in things like that. "Sounds fun," she stated anyways, crossing her arms.

"You wanna come? I'm sure Amethyst wouldn't mind."

"No thanks." It was curt and more than a little rude sounding, but Lapis didn't take it back. Not even when Peridot looked startled and the slightest shiver of guilt crawled its way to the surface of her being. "I'm not big on that junk."

The blonde's mouth actually dropped. "What?" she questioned, brows furrowing and eyes narrowing simultaneously. "Please tell me you just mean RPGs."

Lapis shook her head.

It was hilarious to see the way the girl reacted, the way her shoulders tensed and her face screwed up like she was seeing Lapis for the first time all over again and just couldn't believe she was real. It was... adorable.

There her mind went again, and once more Lapis found herself shaking her head and looking away, trying to keep from frowning so no questions arose.

"Come on, there's no way you don't like video games. COD? FF? What about the Sims? Or even GTA?" She was holding up fingers with each one she named off, eyeing her hand and Lapis in intervals.

Lapis only shrugged, deciding now was the time to check and see if she could end this. She pulled her phone from her back pocket, turning it on as Peridot just stood there, seemingly rethinking everything in life in the matter of a few moments. Five fifty-eight. Good enough.

"Well, I gotta go," Lapis breathed, thanking whoever was upstairs. "And you have to go to the.. BCF?.. now. So, I'll see ya around, Peri." She knew she was being sketchy, knew she was coming across as shallow and rude again. But, she just couldn't help it. She needed to get away from the blonde before her mind could think of another thing to torment her with.

Peridot blinked, caught off guard. "Oh, ah, yeah, okay. See ya later, Lazuli."

Lapis breathed a sigh of relief as she was let alone, felt eyed on her back as she walked away. She felt guilty, sure, but she knew it was either that or the inescapable, dreaded self loathing that would surely follow later.

Frankly, this was easier.

Not now, but in the end.

And she really, really didn't want to hurt Peridot.