#anicwrites

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It’s no surprise that the band sometimes used their fire escape for some alone time. Whether it was for a solo jam session, some introspection, or climbing up to the roof to do some star-gazing, pretty much every member had found themselves outside and above the pavement for one reason or another.

Lips was doing the latter, having snuck his way past a snoozing Animal in the living room to open the window to the fire escape and climbing out and up from the quiet living space inside into the soft, breezy night air. His trumpet was left behind in favor of a pencil and a small writing journal. After all, the musician didn’t want everyone else awake because he couldn’t get any sleep.

So the trumpet player sat on the roof crossed-legged, staring up at the sparkling sky. Occasionally, the journal was opened and a few words were jotted using the available light, but mostly Lips sat back in silence, simply an observer to what show Mother Nature had decided to put on.

At one point, Lips closed his eyes and took a moment to breathe in the crisp night air. Everything seemed peaceful and quiet.

Soon, two long arms wrapped around the musician, catching him off-guard. A low laugh came from behind him.

“Hey, baby,” a certain keyboardist whispered.

Lips smiled, leaning back into the hug. “Evenin’, Dr. Teeth. What brings you ‘round here?”

“The train to Dream Land has seemed to have miss a stop.” Dr. Teeth rested his head on top of the trumpet player’s. “So I came out here to see what the cosmos had to offer in the ways of sleep.”

“You too, huh?” Lips chuckled, placing his journal and pencil to the side.

The tight embrace that Dr. Teeth had him in lessened as the two became relaxed in their arrangement. They became quiet, listening to the sounds of each other’s breathing as they continued looking upward. It really felt like it was just the two of them, simply existing.

Lips sighed in content, snuggling back into his bandleader as a star shot across the sky. “John?”

“Hmm?”

The trumpet player grabbed Dr. Teeth’s hand and squeezed it. “Thank you. For all of this.”

“Thank you too, Lee.”

A bit confused, Lips moved ever so slightly to look at Dr. Teeth. “For what?”

The post-Amethyst gem crack scare (fence building and all) was relatively quiet until Steven left with Connie for a picnic and Garnet had stepped out for a solo mission. Then a much heated argument started back up.

“What do you think you were even doing!?” Pearl practically barked at the purple gem.

Amethyst groaned. “How was I supposed to know that I was actually gonna fall!? I was just playin’ around with Steven!”

“By falling off a cliff!”

“I didn’t mean to, Pearl! It just happened! CHILL OUT!”

Something inside the taller Gem almost snapped. “You could have been gone! Forever! I DON’T WANT TO LOSE SOMEONE I CARE ABOUT AGAIN!”

Tears were streaming from her eyes as Pearl collapsed to the floor.

Amethyst was a bit shocked at this revelation. She was almost too nervous to approach Pearl after that, but she did anyway.

“Hey,” the purple Gem whispered. “I’m all right.”

Without warning, Pearl wrapped Amethyst in an embrace and quietly sobbed into her teammate’s shoulder. Her teammate started to pat her in return.

“Don’t e-ever do that again,” she whimpered, trying to calm down. “I don’t want to lose you too...”

Amethyst almost bit her lip. “... I’m not gonna go anywhere,” she whispered back after a while, hugging Pearl back.

The silence reassured their understanding, allowing for both Gems to calm down and just enjoy the comforting embrace.

Which is why the door slam nearly put them on edge.

“Guys! I have healing sp--” Steven paused, looking at his two now startled guardians who had jumped to their feet. “... what’re you doing?”