Blue is a Sleepy Colour

11- Marble Madness

"I've got to hand it to you, this series is a lot better than I had first bargained for."

Steven sat up on the couch, placing the still open book onto the coffee table. Connie giggled and adjusted her glasses. The pair lay lazily on Connie's couch (her parents forbade them from going into her room) as she explained to him the premise of her favourite book series.

"Spoiler alert, the ending is terrible." Connie rolled her eyes as annoyance crept into her voice. "I'm not gonna tell you what happens, but prepare for major disappointment."

Steven hummed in acknowledgement. He was halfway through the last book, and frankly he was enjoying it more than he had expected. Pearl had always tried to get him into reading more, but it never really interested him as much as playing video games, for example. Well, at least until he met Connie.

They were interrupted as Connie's mother walked through the door from the kitchen.

"Connie." She said flatly.

Connie glanced up and raised a brow in confusion at her mother's tone. She enquired about this, and Priyanka only sighed.

"I need to speak to you in the kitchen."

Her daughter nodded and turned to Steven, who only smiled and gestured that he'd be alright. She hopped up from her position on the couch and followed Priyanka into the kitchen.

Priyanka shut the door behind her.

"Is everything alright, ma'am?"

"No. My parents have requested to... meet you. Tonight, over dinner."

Connie's eyes widened. Her grandparents? They had always been a sore subject for her mother- it was impossible to bring them up without Priyanka becoming incredibly irritated. Despite her being extremely close to her grandparents on her father's side, her mother's side had always been a mystery- they had never even met!

Her mind drifted to her father. She had vague information on why her mother wasn't close to her parents, but she knew it had something to do with her father. Anishka and Dakshesh Laghari hadn't approved of Priyanka's choice for a husband, and hadn't wanted anything more do to with her after the wedding. It explained why Priyanka hadn't bothered to introduce Connie to her grandparents.

"What... what about Dad? Is he coming?"

"Yes, my parents have decided to... give him a second chance." Her mother's voice was unbelievably strained, clearly holding back a lot of repressed anger. "They wish to meet their granddaughter."

"Okay, I'll.. I'll go get ready..." Connie breathed.

When she walked back into the living room, she noticed Steven looking worried as he looked down at his phone.

"Is everything alright?" She asked. Steven looked up.

"Oh! Yeah, yeah, everything's fine, the gems just need help getting rid of more of those marble things. They keep coming back bigger and stronger, and it's getting difficult to get rid of them." He said, standing from the couch and tucking his book under his arm.

"What about you? Your mom looked pretty serious." He smiled with a tilt of his head. Connie signed and shoved her hands in the pockets of the hoodie she had stolen from Steven (he didn't mind, he had plenty).

"My grandparents want to meet me tonight, and I'm super nervous."

His expression changed to one of concern.

"Well that's understandable. You don't want to make a bad impression." He walked over to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "But I know you won't because you're sweet and kind and they're gonna love you. Okay?"