The house was empty. Amethyst and Steven had gone out into the town, leaving Pearl and Garnet alone together.

They laid out in the sand, curled up together with their legs in the water, both dressed in slightly lighter clothing than usual. The blazing heat of the midday sun shone directly upon them, making droplets of moisture form on their skin. The day was too beautiful not to enjoy, so the heat didn't really bother them.

"You should take your glasses off.." Pearl suggested. "So I can see your eyes."

"You really think so?" Garnet asked, chuckling softly.

She nodded.

"Alright then... But don't freak out too much." She bit her bottom lip slightly as she removed her glasses.

"Why would I freak out?" Pearl asked, looking up at Garnet. "Oh. That. I already knew about your third eye."

Garnet chuckled awkwardly. "You did?"

"Yeah, I did. It doesn't matter anyway. I don't see you any differently."

Garnet smiled shyly, sliding her glasses back on and putting her arms around Pearl, holdong her close. The touch of her soft skin sent pins and needles of excitement through her, making her heart beat faster. She welcomed the sensation, staring into her ocean blue eyes.

Pearl blushed faintly, her cheekbones colored with pale blue as she looked up at her leader, her thin lips stretching into a small smile. Being with Garnet in this way felt odd to her, wrong, even. But she wanted nothing more than to spend all day in her arms, unfazed by the heat. The only heat that mattered was the slowly growing passion inside.

-Later that Night-

The sun slipped beyond the horizon, slowly painting the sky vibrant pinks and oranges before fading to a soft indigo. Stars glittered overhead, dimly lighting the beach. All the gems were outside on the sand, lying on their backs to stare up at the wonders of the heavens above.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Pearl mused, lying next to Garnet. Fireflies flew around them, blinking gently, seeming unbothered by Steven and Connie chasing them around, laughing and trying to catch them in jars.

"Not as beautiful as you.." Garnet murmured, gently taking Pearl's hand in hers. She smiled softly as her face turned bright blue, chuckling a little.

Pearl murmured in disbelief. "You-You really think I'm-"

"Flawless."

Garnet whispered.

Pearl stared at her speechlessly. No one had ever said anything like that before, and she had no idea how to react. The next few moments were spent in silence, as they stared into each other's eyes, hands entertwined.

"Look, Connie." Steven whispered, nudging Connie gently.

"What?" She asked, keeping her voice low, not knowing why he was whispering.

"Over there." He tilted his head towards Garnet and Pearl.

"Aw.." She chuckled softly. "They're cute together..."

Steven nodded, grinning ear to ear. "They look so happy."

"Yeah.." She looked down at her watch. "I gotta go, Steven. Curfew's in half an hour."

"Okay. Do you want to take the jar with you?" He offered.

"Nah. Just let them free." She picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder. "Goodnight, Steven." She looked at him and hesitated for a moment, then headed off down the beach.

"Wait! Do you need a ride?" He called after her. "I can go ask my dad to drive you home!"

"No, I'll be fine." She continued along, not turning to look at him. "See you tomorrow!" She played with the strings of her backpack, feeling a little more sad to leave than she usually did.

Steven yawned softly, giving one final glance at the sky. As Connie had asked, he unscrewed the lid on the jar of fireflies, letting them fly freely into the air, and reclosing the jar.

"I'm going to go to bed.. Night, Amethyst."

Amethyst stood up and stretched. "I'm going to head in too. It's kinda boring out here."

"Okay. Goodnight, Garnet, goodnight Pearl!" He waved and walked into the house, closing the door behind him.

Garnet and Pearl were left alone again, still sitting together and staring up at the stars. Their arms were wrapped around each other, Pearl's head rested on Garnet's shoulder. She yawned softly, readjusting her posture to be closer to Garnet.

"Tired?" Garnet asked, smiling softly down at her.

She nodded a little, looking up at her.

Garnet unwrapped her arm from Pearl and stood up, taking her hand as she did the same. "We should probably head in. It's probably way past Steven's- oh." She turned her head to look behind her. "They already went in." She redirected her attention to Pearl, who now stood directly in front of her. Garnet ran her thumbs delicately over Pearl's hands, staring into her deep blue eyes. Feeling her slender arms wrap around her neck, she lowered her arms to her waist. She moved closer to her, eliminating the space between their forms. Slowly, they drew nearer to each other, until their lips were only a breath away. Pearl tilted her head downwards just as Garnet began to come closer, uncomfortably staring down at the sand beneath her feet. While she felt a budding romance for her leader, she wasn't quite ready for that.

"Have I overstepped my limit?" Garnet asked, not wanting to risk losing her. The past few days had been perfect, and she didn't want to ruin anything.

"A-A little.." Pearl admitted, biting her bottom lip in hesitation.

She nodded. "Don't let me pressure you, Pearl. If things are moving too fast, then we can change that."

"Today was nice, I-I'm just not quite ready for.."

"It's fine, Pearl. I'll wait. As long as you need me to." She hugged her gently. "Don't worry about it."

Pearl laid her head on Garnet's chest, yawning softly and staring up at the stars.

Garnet scooped her up bridal style, making Pearl gasp in surprise.

"Garnet!" She exclaimed, tightly clinging to her.

"Don't worry, Pearl. I won't drop you." She chuckled, carrying her up towards the temple. She walked into her bedroom and laid her down, gently kissing the top of her head before turning to leave. "Goodnight." She whispered, quietly closing the door and walking into her own room.

-The Next Morning-

"What's going on with you two?" Amethyst demanded. "You guys have been acting really weird. Don't try to deny it either." She crossed her arms.

Both of them were lost for words, until Pearl spoke up.

"We're... Sort of.. together..." She stammered, her face slowly turning blue.

"How is that even possible? Garnet's a fusion, she can't-"

"Ruby and Sapphire have become one single entity." Steven interrupted. "And that single entity found love in another.. A polyamory.."

Garnet nodded. "Exactly... Who told you about that?"

"I, um, I asked Connie about it, after you guys fell asleep together during the movie." He awkwardly stepped away, running out the front door to go find Connie.

"You guys aren't gonna, like, have make out sessions in front of us... Right?" Amethyst questioned.

"No." Garnet answered. "We have bedrooms for that."

Pearl's blush darkened and she buried her blue face in her hands.

Amethyst raised a brow. "How did you guys even end up together? And why now? We've all been here, for like, thousands of years."

"Garnet only recently confessed her feelings for me, and I agreed to give her a chance. Things like this take time, Amethyst."

"Whatever." She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Just, don't have sex on the couch. I do NOT need to see that!"

"No promises." Garnet answered, smirking ever so slightly.

Pearl gently smacked her arm. "Garnet!" She cried in exasperation.

Garnet chuckled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Only when you're ready."