Peridot was the first to wake up. Looking toward her desk, the digital clock read 6:54. It was so early. She was forced to sleep in her hoodie, just in case Lapis woke up before her. She would see the bandages on her arm, start asking questions, and things would get out of hand quickly.

Peridot wouldn't be so annoyed with waking up so early if she didn't have a reason for it. She was sure that Amethyst was going to be waiting on her. Amethyst probably told Pearl about it already, too.

Slowly, the blonde dragged herself out of her bed and to the bathroom to brush her teeth. Her hair looked disheveled in the mirror, but she didn't care. Somehow, it always shifted into a triangular pattern during the day, like gravity didn't even affect it. What, was she some character from Dragon Ball? That thought brought a grin to her face. If anything, she'd probably be Vegeta.

Peridot exited the bathroom, and despite knowing it was probably a bad idea, she looked over to the sleeping Lapis. Even the way she slept was beautiful.

The blue haired girl was on her back, her mouth barely open and her arms resting above her head. Her soft snoring was so peaceful, her chest rising up and down in a slow pattern. Peridot could watch her crush sleep all day.. but she really couldn't. These emotions.. they were the source of her problems. She had to fall out of love with Lapis, she knew she had to. At least, she felt that she needed to. Tearing her eyes away from the sleeping girl, Peridot exited the room and began her walk down the hall.

The blonde knocked on Amethyst and Pearl's door. There was some rushed rustling behind it before Pearl's voice sounded.

"Come in!"

Peridot let herself into the room and raised an eyebrow when she saw that Pearl was wearing one of Amethyst's black tank tops and some pajama bottoms. Amethyst herself was just in a sports bra and short shorts. They were both in the same bed, and Amethyst stood from it, greeting the blonde girl.

"Hey Peri. Didn't expect to see you here so early."

"You did say first thing in the morning."

"Well yeah, but I thought 'first thing' for you was like, ten o'clock or something." Peridot pinched the bridge of her nose, obviously annoyed.

"Look, if you two are busy, I can come back later."

"No, you can stay.. right P?" Amethyst looked back at her girlfriend on the bed, who nodded.

"Of course. Amethyst told me everything. Are you sure you can't tell Lapis? She might be able to help more than we can."

"I'm sure." Peridot allowed herself in the room, sitting on what she assumed was Pearl's bed with how neat and tidy it was. That means that the bed the couple was just in was Amethyst's. "I can't let her know. She'll be devastated."

Pearl nodded in understanding, sitting up in the bed. There was a small lump under the blanket beside Pearl, but Peridot would rather not learn what it was.. probably some sex toy. She was still surprised that the taller girl was the dominant one in their relationship.

"So.. how do we get started?" Peridot asked, eager to just get this little session over with. Amethyst and Pearl looked at each other. It was as if a silent conversation took place between them, because after a few seconds, Amethyst went to their mini fridge. Rummaging through it, she pulled out a bottle of citrus green tea, tossing it to Peridot. The blonde caught it, but gave the couple a disbelieving look.

"You're serious?"

"First thing we're gonna do is get you to eat and drink better." Peridot couldn't believe this. It wasn't a physical problem she had, it was an emotional problem!

"I don't think this is gonna help me."

"Well, it helped me cut back on smoking." Peridot was surprised that these words came from the taller girl's mouth. Pearl smoked? "Yeah, I know what you're thinking." Pearl stood from Amethyst's bed, coming sit beside Peridot. She reached in the drawer of her nightstand beside her bed, pulling out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. After taking a stick from the pack, she handed the pack to Peridot, which had three left upon inspection, excluding the cigarette that Pearl was lighting for herself.

"I don't know what you're trying to get across.." Peridot said to Pearl, who was taking a drag on the cigarette. Her cigarette was held between her fingers, her entire hand covering her mouth as she inhaled the nicotine. Peridot actually found this to be quite attractive of the taller girl.. she certainly had the look for it.

Pearl finally exhaled, blowing the smoke out of the open window between her bed and Amethyst's. "That pack had twenty cigarettes in it. I've had it for a week and a day, this being the second day of the second week."

"No.."

"Yeah." Pearl looked proud of herself, smiling widely. Peridot couldn't blame her. "I worked myself down to two cigarettes a day. It's thanks to Amethyst, really."

Peridot looked at the shorter girl, who nodded.

"I was the one that actually got Pearl into the green tea stuff. I'm studying to be a major in Health, after all." The blonde's eyes only grew wider. She would never have expected the girl who takes care of herself the least to want to go into health.

"Yeah, Ame is just full of surprises." Pearl took another puff of her cigarette before she continued speaking, flicking the excess ashes out of the window. "I was surprised myself. I told her I was a smoker when we got together. I kept it secret from everyone else, even my parents. I thought that the girl who became my partner needed to know what she was getting into." Amethyst scoffed.

"You did not just say that. You're dating me, and I was getting into something?" The taller girl smirked.

"Touche."

"But yeah, I told Amethyst my little habit, and she said she wanted to help me." Pearl got this distant look in her eyes as she remembered the actions that her girlfriend took. "She tried so hard to get me to quit. She tried getting me to chew gum, ice, use nicotine patches, everything. But after one of her health classes last semester, she suggested green tea.. and it worked. Well, kinda. It helped me cut back at least." Pearl took one last drag of her cigarette before she flicked it out the window. Luckily, there was a sewage drain right outside the room.

"It still sounds unbelievable." Peridot was still skeptical about this story of Pearl's. Being.. well, Pearl, Peridot just assumed that she always tried to be healthy and nutritious. Why would green tea make a difference?

"Yeah, figured you'd say that." Amethyst spoke up.

Pearl lowering her head. The sudden shift in mood was evident to Peridot. "You can tell her, Amethyst."

"Tell me what?" Peridot asked. She was ignored, however. Amethyst put her hand on Pearl's.

"Are you sure, Sweet P? We don't have to say anything."

"Say what?"

Pearl nodded, a small smile on her face. "I'm sure. She needs to know if it'll help her."

"Oh my god.." Peridot let out a groan, rubbing her hand across her face. It feels like she's been in this situation before.

"Anyway, Peri.." Amethyst started, finally turning her attention to the blonde. Peridot gave her full attention, despite her annoyance. "Pearl was addicted to more than just smoking.."

"Like what?"

Pearl chuckled, hugging herself at her arms. "How many drugs can you think of?" Peridot could think of a lot, actually. What was Pearl getting at? "Meth, heroin, depressants, stimulants, cannabis.. and that's just to name a few." So many surprises were coming to the blonde today. Her own problems seemed to pale in comparison. Amethyst continued for her girlfriend.

"Pearl's home life was a living Hell. Her parents treated her like a slave, and the only way she kept from going insane was with these drugs."

"It was so easy, at first." Pearl said. "I started with the weed. It was the lesser of two evils, so I figured why not? It felt so good.. before I knew it, I was scarfing pills and sticking my arm with needles. I thought it was only a matter of time before I was taken advantage of in some alley way." She paused, taking a quick look at Peridot to see if she was still listening. She was. Pearl continued.

"Luckily, Rose.. Mrs. Quartz found me first, doped up in a gutter. I spilled out everything that happened to me to her, and she took me in. I've been living with her ever since, until I enrolled in Diamond University, of course. My parents never came looking for me. They probably don't even care that I'm gone."

"That sounds horrible." Peridot spoke for the first time since this story started, but Pearl just brushed away her words.

"What's horrible is that I didn't leave sooner. They were never parents to me. My real mother is Rose." Pearl smiled, remembering how the woman helped her. "She was so nice.. her, along with Amethyst, helped me kick all of my addictions. The only one I'm still working on is cigarettes."

"And the green tea helps you with that how?" Pearl's story was surely sad, but this didn't get to the point. What the fuck was so special about green tea? Amethyst answered.

"It's not so much the drink as it is the mindset.."

"So the drink is worthless."

"No, it's just.. just drink it." Peridot decided to humor the couple. They watched as she opened the bottle, bringing the drink to her lips.

She didn't understand why the drink was so special.. It was just a drink. But as the liquid passed through her throat, Peridot couldn't help but feel.. better somehow. After a few gulps of the tea, she handed the bottle back to Amethyst.

"Well?" The shorter girl asked, a smile on her face.

"It certainly tastes good."

"But how do you feel?" Pearl asked, anxious to hear Peridot's answer.

"I dunno." She could still taste the drink. It was a sweet aftertaste, leaving her craving more.

"I feel like I'd get addicted to it."

"That's the point." Amethyst said, placing the drink back in the fridge after putting the cap back on. "It's very high in vitamin C, potassium, and sodium. One bottle of this gives you almost half of the nutrients you need in a day."

"That's very convenient, but I still don't see how it's supposed to help me with my 'problem'." Peridot said this with air quotes, not quite seeing at how cutting herself was a problem in the first place. if she wasn't endangering her life, what was to worry?

"It makes you feel better about yourself, for one thing." Pearl started. "It makes you feel like you could do anything. It's weird. There are a lot of drinks like this, but the taste of the green tea mixed with citrus is just.. too good. It has honey in it too."

"I could tell." Peridot had to agree with that. She still couldn't think that it would help her stop cutting, but she would give it a try.

"Trust me. I'm a Health major." Amethyst's words made Peridot grin.

"Is that the line you used to get Pearl in bed?" Pearl glared at Amethyst, who looked away with an innocent looking face.

"What did you tell her at that party of yours?"

"Oh nothing." Peridot answered for Amethyst. "Well, just that you're the top in the relationship."

"Oh my god." Pearl face-palmed while Amethyst pulled Peridot to her feet, rushing her out the door.

"Well, we had a good session, Peri. Drink some more green tea, and come back here same time next week. Good luck. Bye!" Like that, Peridot was kicked out of the room, the door slamming behind her. The blonde chuckled as Pearl yelled at her girlfriend.

Sighing, she started the walk back to her room. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all. The tea did taste pretty good. And after hearing what Pearl went through.. self harm seemed pretty pale in comparison. But that wasn't true. Any problem, emotional or otherwise, needed full attention.

Peridot walked into her room to find that Lapis had already woken up and had dressed herself in her casual wear of her tee shirt and black pants. She was sitting on the bed, a can of beer in her hands. It was one of two last cans that Amethyst left.

"I thought you'd be done with that stuff after last night."

Lapis giggled, nodding her head. "Yeah, but you know me. I can't let anything go to waste. It's just one can, anyway, not like I'm gonna get drunk from it. I saved the other one for you." As she said this, the blue haired girl grabbed the other can, holding it out for Peridot. The blonde took it hesitantly. Well, if she was going to start a green tea diet, one more drink wouldn't hurt.

"Thanks." She sat across from Lapis, cracking the drink open.

"Where'd you go off to so early, anyway?" Lapis asked. Peridot saw no problem with telling the truth.. this time.

"I was visiting Pearl and Amethyst. You were still asleep when I woke up, so I went to see how Pearl was."

"Does she still have a hangover?" Peridot shook her head.

"Nah, she's over it. I almost caught them fucking though."

"No way.. how do you know?"

"Pearl was wearing Amethyst's top. They're lucky I knocked first." Lapis laughed, imagining how the couple reacted when Peridot knocked on their door.

"I didn't think Pearl would be in the mood for morning sex after that massive hangover."

"Well they say online that orgasms cure headaches." Lapis would ask why Peridot knew this, but she could already guess. There was no safety for innocent eyes on the internet.

"I'll have to remember that next time I get a headache." Peridot nearly choked on her drink, her blush deep as she coughed. Lapis just laughed. "Come on, we're both girls here. You had to have gotten yourself off a few times yourself, right?" Peridot continued coughing, now just trying to stall for time. Maybe Lapis would get bored of waiting for an answer. But she sat patiently, waiting for her friend to help herself. Of course Lapis would be the patient type.

"N-no.." Peridot finally said, her blush brighter than ever. "I've uh.. never touched myself." Lapis didn't believe her friend at first.

"No way. Everyone masturbates, Peri."

"Not me." Slowly, realization dawned on the blue haired girl. Her friend really never did it? "Don't look at me like that, seriously." Peridot felt like she was being judged. Lapis put her now empty can on the floor, standing from the bed afterward.

"No wonder you're so uptight all the time." She got on her hands and knees, reaching under her bed. The blonde had to keep herself from staring at her crush's ass.

Lapis stood back up, holding a small box with a lid. Peridot thought that they had unpacked everything. The blue haired girl sat beside Peridot, removing the box. Inside, on top of some tissue paper usually used in gifts, was a pink bullet vibrator, with a neatly tied wire attached to a remote.

"Oh my god, Lapis, I'm not using that!" Peridot's face blew up in a blush once she realized Lapis' intentions. She forced the box in Peridot's lap.

"Of course you are! Trust me, Peri, you need this."

"B-but.." Lapis stood from the bed, walking backwards out of the room.

"I'm gonna go hang with Pearl and Amethyst. Don't forget to put down a towel, be sure to clean it after you're done, and lock the door after I leave. Have fun. Bye!" Peridot was left alone, Lapis having closed the door as she left.

The blonde stared down at the sex toy in her lap. She couldn't believe that Lapis actually told her to use this.

"God dammit, Lapis.."

Author's Note: In case you guys couldn't tell, I REALLY like green tea. xD It actually helped me be more active and feel better about myself, like how I described in the story. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this little bit. I can't wait to see how it plays out myself. So long for now.