#greguniverse

The van screeched to a stop in front of a... house? It looked like a standard American home with a smaller front yard and a concrete paveway to a garage. It was also getting dark, so that was all Rose could make out at the time. With little lights operating around the home, it seemed dusty, unkempt, and not really well taken care of in terms of housekeeping.

“This is the place.” Greg checked the name card with an address scribbled at the back. The card information was barely readable, but it said "Dr. Dewey, the only doctor in Beach City, for now!"

From shotgun, Rose saw a skinny human man coming out from under the garage door with a folded-up wheelchair. The man got to Rose's side of the door and unfolded the chair.

He unlocked the door as Rose stifled a scream, not at the newcomer, but at the pain of labor. The pain was getting worse.

Greg was already outside of the passenger seat, getting ready to catch her if she fell off.

After some certain assurances that Rose was nowhere near falling off, the man wanted Rose to get onto the little wheely contraption, so she wouldn’t have to walk to the operating room. It wasn’t easy, but the two humans managed to get her in the wheelchair. It was designed for normal human-sized patients, so it was a bit snug for a pregnant Rose.

As Rose was pushed towards the now open garage, she turned to the skinny man with prespiration on her forehead. "W-who are you?"

The young man pushing her wheelchair introduced himself. “I’m the future Mayor of Beach City! But for now, I am your Dr. Dewey.”

They pushed the pregnant woman into the garage. The space in the garage was filled with dim lighting as a single light bulb pulsed in the middle of the room. Under the flickering lightbulb was a hospital bed along with pieces of equipment for childbirth. The surroundings of the bed were pitch black until the doctor turned on the big lights, which showed the normal garage setting along with various tools and woodwork scattered around the edges.

“Easy does it.” Dewey said as they both lifted Rose onto the bed.

Rose was heaving, sweating, and panting as the contractions got more and more severe. She was offered ice chips, but she didn’t think she should have any.

Dr. Dewey turned away and grabbed a book on obstetricians and delivering babies. He checked something on the opened page and asked Greg. "How far along are we? Time wise."

“Uh, 5 minutes apart? Darn it, I don’t have a watch!”

The doctor flipped through the pages until he found something. “Okay don’t worry, I just need to see how dilated the cervix is to see if we’re ready.”

He set Rose’s ankles on a metal holder each and went under to check the dilation. “8 centimeters. We’re halfway there, just need it to reach 10 centimeters and we’re good to go!”

He left the room to get some more equipment and sterilizers. The gem in labor was left on the bed with the soon-to-be father.

Another contraction, but this time Rose heard a faint humming from somewhere, somewhere close by. She looked up to her gem on top of her belly. The sound, she thought, that’s where it's coming from. As the contraction got to its peak, a barely noticeable glow can be seen in the gem. It faded right after the pain went away.

“Rose, are you doing okay?” Greg asked, noticing her jerky movements and pained expressions from being in labor. “You sure you don’t want some ice chips? They say any water or liquid can be very dangerous to women in labor, at least that’s what Vidalia said.”

She shook her head, “I don’t think getting hydrated over icicles would take the spiking and torturous pain away.”

Greg looked stumped; he didn’t know what else to do than just…wait. He was gonna buy some snacks for her, but Vidalia also said food was strictly forbidden. Something about the anesthesia numbing the muscle that blocks substances from going into the lungs. From what Pearl explained on the gem anatomy, gems do not have any of the human organs, like, at all. But better be safe than sorry. There’s a bag of painkillers from the drugstore, but he doubted any of it was going to help a non-human being. Maybe talking could take her mind off the pain. “I know I may have asked this before, like, maybe a few dozen times, but do you... regret anything?”

“Oh Greg,” She gritted her teeth and sighed, “I regret a lot of the things I’ve done, but I’ll never regret knowing you and giving birth to this child. You’ve opened my eyes to so many blindspots and I am forever grateful to have you as a part of my life.”

Here comes the big question, Greg thought. “I know we never talked about this but, what do you think’s gonna happen to you after the baby comes?”

“I…” She winced at the next contraction and groaned. She was struggling, that’s for sure, but she’s strong. “I honestly don’t know, Greg. Maybe I’ll be inside my gem and actually get to be a part of the baby’s life. Or maybe I’ll just cease to exist, no conscience or anything at all.”

Both possibilities filled Greg with a huge sense of dread. He was silent for a while until Rose uttered more. Her voice was straining, “But I know, that whatever happens, the baby will be in good hands. I see no better protector and guide than the father of the child himself.”

After what Rose said, Greg felt incredibly touched that he wanted to go in for one last kiss until a door slammed open.

“Sorry to interrupt,” Dr. Dewey came back with a more professional obstetrician look. He wore a mask, rubber gloves, and an overcoat over his shirt. “I couldn’t help but overhear that…” He turned to Rose on the bed, his eyes full of concern. “-you might not survive this birth?”

Greg looked down and scratched the back of his head. “It’s…complicated.”

“Nonono, its alright. No need to explain. I’m just not sure how things might turn out with a single parent. Especially if it’s the dad.”

He grabbed a nearby chair, turned it around, and sat on it backwards. “I’m a single parent myself.”

Greg and Rose glanced at each other for a brief moment, unsure what to do with that information, before turning back to Dewey. They both responded, “Okayy?”

Dewey took out his wallet and showed a string of small sized photos of a baby. “My son, Buck, just turned 4 years old and things aren’t really going great between us.”

Greg took the string of pictures for him and Rose to see. Rose was sweating bullets from the pain, but she was able to identify a newborn baby on first few pictures. A happy baby infact, swaddled by a woman and giggling by the looks of it. The next few pictures degraded to pictures of the boy growing up, but the smile slowly shrinks off and a grim frown was seen at the four-year old at the bottom of the pictures.

Rose knew it might be a touchy subject, but she asked anyway. “What happened to the mother who gave birth to him?”

Dewey, still on the backward chair, turned uncomfortably to the side and away from the two. “She… it’s complicated too. The most important thing is that Buck, our son, requires a bit more love and patience than what I could offer.”   

He looked so down, so depressed, so lost as a father. “I’m one of the lucky single dads that’s capable of taking care of a kid. I’m a doctor, sort of, and a soon-to-be mayor of this town. But you Greg? You’re barely an adult. How do you think you’re gonna take care of a kid without his mother around?”

More dread and panic seeped out of Greg as he seemed to have lost his grasp of his confidence. He sighed in an exhuasted tone, “Oh boy…”

Dewey, realized what he just said, cursed himself and tried to take back what he said. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to undermine your competence. I’m sure you’re gonna be a great single parent. I heard you work at It’s A Wash, that car wash gig right? Sure hope the minimum wage from that job can put food on the table and a roof over your heads. Although, the town has been quiet lately, not a lot of tourists coming over to Delmarva for their summers and all that. And I doubt you’ll be making much with barely half of the town citizens owning vehicles in need of washing-”

As the doctor further delved into the current and possibly future states of the town’s economy, Greg was having a not-so-jolly time imaging how he might end up as a street hobo searching for food from the garbage cans while the kid ends up sick and malnourished because he doesn’t have the money for any food or the local doctor. And if worse comes to worse, he’ll have to give the baby up for adoption just so the kid can have a chance at a good life and he’ll end up as the worst father to ever-

Rose's screams of pain woke both Greg and Dewey from their respective trances. As she huffed and struggled to breath, she reached for Greg’s hand and pulled him close. “Greg? Greg listen to me!” She smushed his face in her palms and realized he had tears all over his cheeks. “The gems will be right there with you. They’ll help in any way they can. You’re not doing this alone, remember? You have the gems, and I’m sure they’ll be more than happy to help.”

“Y-you think?” Greg’s voice cracked as warmth spread on his face.

“Of course.” Rose responded. Unfortunately, their tender moment was cut short by another contraction, this time worse than ever. It was so severe that she had to let go and grip the bed side handles for support.

On certain and rare occasions, Rose had witnessed the beautiful births of humans since the Paleolithic period (cavemen ages). The births since then had been getting more hygienic and less messy as science and technology went by. Every single attempt at birth that she witnessed was a riot, and truly a miraculous scene to witness. The mothers screamed for bloody murder as the tiny weeping humans emerged from their under caverns. She had always admired them for being able to do that, to be able to produce another living being unlike a gem would. She never thought there would be a turn where she was the one on a birthing bed.

Dewey took another look at the dilated cervix, “Okayy that’s definitely ten centimeters, looks like we’re ready.”

He sat back at the end of the birthing table and hesitated.

“Wait wait, I think I’m supposed to do something else.” He quickly flipped through the book and read out loud, “When the cervix is appropriately dilated, the doctor must be ready at the foot of the bed and follow the proper procedures. A rhythm must be followed for the procedure to go as smoothly as possible. Alright, a pattern! I remember those!”

He turned back to the mother in pain and got ready at the foot of the bed, “Ok Rose, get ready to push!”

Rose was heaving, panting, and giving everything she’s got. This, she thought, was one of the most challenging things she’s ever done, that includes fighting off her own at the rebellion or poofing all those corrupted gems.

She forced herself to open her eyes and turn at Greg, the human that gave her the best gift a human could ever offer, a human experience. She held onto his hand, gently and not putting all her pain and strength into it. Greg took her hand, sensing the energy draining from her hard labor. “I love you, Greg. Thank you for everything and take good care of the gems for me.”

The sound of the humming gem echoed all over the garage as it grew a bright pink hue. From the gem, the pink glow expanded to the entire figure. As the figure grew brighter and brighter, Rose’s form levitated a few inches off the bed but not higher than Dewey’s head.

The glow went supernova as the lights in the room dimmed in comparison. The pink flash seeped through the windows and the cracks of the walls as if the room was not able to contain any more of the light and a nuclear blast was set in motion.

Everything went so bright the humans could barely keep their eyes open. Greg struggled but he managed to peer through his narrow vision just in time to see a baby suspended mid-air.

The baby was barely the size of a melon. Hints of dark, curly hair sprouted from the head. He noticed Rose's gem was now on the baby stomach where the belly button should be.

For a brief moment, the glowing newborn was floating above the bed. The glow came to a dim as the baby descends onto Greg's streched out arms. He winced at the touch of his skin, redden and slightly burned from the ultra light blast. He took a quick glance at Dewey, who’s skin was also reddened from the exposure. He didn’t look like he was in pain any more than he was in shock.

Greg took a good look at his child with sorrowful tears from his goodbye. He knew this moment was coming, losing the love of his life, but he had to be strong for the both of them. He shed them away, cooed the newborn child, and whispered, "Hey there little guy,” he tried to clear the water out of his eyes, “*sniff* welcome to Earth.”

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(A/N: Imma keep this short. Thank you everyone for your patience and reading this fanfiction. It's been a while since I began writing Rose's journey since meeting Greg. I really hope my take on Rose's journey/end was on par with most of you guys' idea of what went down before Steven was born. Also apologies for the lack of Coral content, there was just so much I could write in this fanfiction with her as the main protagonist. Most of the chapters beforehand should be enough to encapsulate her entire character to you guys, the readers. So I hope you can forgive me for doing a far tangent into my takes of Rose's decision of the desire to change and all that.

Again, hope you enjoyed what you read and thanks for reading!)

Outcuts (Writings that didn't fit the narrative but felt it would be a waste for them to be deleted.) Part 1

Recently, Rose had been borrowing a video camera and taping herself for the unborn baby. She knew she could never talk to them directly, so she thought a great way for the baby to know their mother was through taped videos. She talked to them about the life on Earth and how bringing the kid to life was the best thing that’s ever happened to her.

Part 2

…Overgrown brambles. Look at them, they’re a mess without her guidance. Directionless, pathetic, clinging, things. It’s going to be ok Garnet!

Rose’s most precious sanctuary (extracted from the episode, “An Indirect Kiss”)

(Pearl the left brain – the rational thought, cautious, planning, logic/ Coral the right brain – Emotional thought, creative arts, imagination, adventurous/fun) each side of the brain controls the opposite side of the body, so idk how much this would make sense.)

Part 3

Oh this is exciting! I have a kid myself ya know. Named him Buck, so you know, there'd be more bucks coming my way. chuckled nervously. (A/N: wanted to have direct and easy conversations going but seems a bit inappropriate for the situation.)

Anyways, good thing you're both gonna be here when the kid comes. Its been a real head scratcher raising the kid on my own.

Ya dont say? Greg comments while he caught Rose's eyes.

The horror of single parenting

Where's the little guy anyway? He's not home is he?

Oh nonono, we couldnt have him here while a kid is being born! It would traumatize him well into his 50s! He's uh, playing with the other kids in the neighborhood, probably.

Is uh, everything ok between you two?

Well, its been hard since his mom left. Hes been asking questions abt her that I cant really answer.