We Found Happiness- a Lapidot story

-Chapter Four- "Nurse Lazuli"

-The bluenette watched Peridot pass by her house, but suddenly she saw her lose her balance and hit the concrete pavement. Seconds later, three big gashes were scraped into her elbows and knee, and at the sight of the blood Lapis ran to help.-
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She almost fell down the staircase as she ran, skipping three steps at a time. She skidded around the counter and through the kitchen, where her mom was doing the dishes. Mrs. Lazuli looked up in bewilderment as the blue blur went by. "Lapis Lazuli, what on earth are you doing?! Slow down!!"
Ignoring her mother, Lapis burst through the door of her home and ran towards the injured Nerd laying near her mailbox.
She was facing away from Lapis, towards the street. She loudly groaned in pain.
Lapis's mind was racing. She kneeled down and tapped Peridot's shoulder. "Peridot are you alright?!"
When she spoke, Peridot jumped a bit and turned over to face the taller girl. "What? Lazuli, what are you doing here?"
"I live here..." Lapis motioned to her light blue house.
Peridot rolled her eyes. "Of course, it's blue. The only blue house on the block. How could I be so ignorant?"
(A/N- Just so you guys know, ignorant does NOT mean "to be rude", it means "to lack knowledge of something". Look it up.)
Lapis lifted Peridot's arm to see the bloody gash on her elbow. "Aw geez. Let's get you inside so I can bandage you up." She advanced to help Peridot stand, but she sat up stubbornly and frowned. "You don't have to do that, Lapis... I-I'm ok." The smaller girl stuttered. She tried to get up on her own, but fell on her face. Lapis flinched as she watched, and patted Peridot's head.
"Her hair is really soft..." Lapis thought. She shook her head to refocus.
"No, you're not ok. I want to help you. C'mon, let me help." Pleaded Lapis.
Peridot stiffened as Lapis tried to help her up again, but was overpowered and finally gave in. Lapis picked her up bridal-style and carried her towards her home. Peridot blushed deeply at this and looked up at the bluenette, who had a worried look on her face. Blood dripped down the smaller girls legs from her knee wounds, and it dripped off her elbow. The dark liquid leaked onto Lapis's arm, but she seemed to ignore it.
"Why does she care so much?" Peridot thought. "Why does she care for someone like me, someone she barely knows?"
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Lapis carried Peridot into her house and through the kitchen. Her mother scowled at them as they walked by, and scoffed. "I don't understand that child sometimes..."
They went up the stairs and into Lapis's room, where Lapis sat Peridot down on her bed. She rushed to turn the light on, since it was starting to get darker outside. The sky was now a faint shade of dark red that was slowly fading to purple as the sun dipped below the horizon.
Lapis flipped the light switch, and the light strained Peridot's eyes. Once her eyes got used to the light, it revealed a room filled with the color blue.
The taller girl turned to Peridot and spoke quickly. "Stay here. I'm gonna go get some bandages and rubbing alcohol for you."
With that being said, Lapis left, leaving the blonde alone in her room. She looked around and giggled. "Lapis sure likes blue... ironically."
Peridot admired the different and calming shades of blue surrounding her. There were light shades, dark shades, some royal blue, sky blue, tints of indigo and a little teal and aqua here and there. It was like a museum of blues, because there seemed to be a million different shades.
Peridot sniffed the air only to find that it smelled strongly of Lapis's intoxicating aroma. She felt light headed as she breathed in the scent, and fell back onto the blue bed to lay there. She pressed her nose to the sheets and took a deep breath. The bed smelled strongly of the bluenette. Peridot sighed happily and closed her eyes.
"This is heaven. I must be dreaming... I'm probably unconscious from that fall."
Peridot then felt the gashes on her knees and squeaked in pain. "Nope. Definitely not a dream."
She turned on her side and watched the door, waiting for Lapis to return.
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Lapis came back into the room after a while and sat down in her office chair, dabbing rubbing alcohol onto a large cotton swab. "I'm going to need you to sit up for this." She said sternly.
The shorter girl sat up and raised an eyebrow. Lapis scooted her chair closer to Peridot. "This may hurt a little... so... bear with me, ok?" Peridot nodded. Emerald eyes looked into royal blue ones, and at that moment when their eyes met, they felt a pang of electricity tickle up their spines. It felt good but at the same time it made their stomachs flip. Lapis shivered and felt goosebumps all over her body.
She was mentally screaming. "What just happened?!"
She darted her gaze downward as a bright red blush spread across her cheeks.
Peridot watched as Lapis grabbed her arm and lifted it up so she could clean her elbow. She could feel Lapis shaking ever so slightly, and she started to dab the cotton swab onto her wound. The winced in pain. "Ow! Geez, you weren't kidding when you said this was gonna hurt!" She tore her arm away from the bluenette, who couldn't help but laugh at Peridot's reaction. She laughed even more at the way Peridot grumpily crinkled up her nose—until she snorted, then slapped her hand over her mouth. She blushed hard, engulfed in embarrassment.
"I did NOT just fucking snort," She mentally scolded herself.
Peridot stared at Lapis, who seemed to be turning even more red.
Silence filled the room for the next two minutes as Lapis continued.
It was unsettling and a little awkward, so Peridot decided to break the silence. "You snort when you laugh?"
Lapis hid her face in her hands and shifted her legs uncomfortably. Peridot waited for an answer, and moments later Lapis finally spoke. "Yeah... but I hate it. I hate my laugh so much, I really wish I could change it. It sounds so weird and childish and-"
"What?! That was the cutest thing ever! It's not childish at all! Peridot interrupted. "Nothing about you is weird, Lapis. Never say that."
Lapis looked at Peridot, a shocked expression painted across her face. "You... You think my laugh is cute?"
The blonde blushed a little, regretting what she had just said, and lifted her arm to rub the back of her neck nervously. "Well, yeah... it's not anything to be ashamed of. I like your laugh!" Peridot flinched. "Damnit, why did I say that? I gotta keep my mouth under control. Stupid stupid STUPID!!"
She tried to hide her nervousness by smiling, but her smile was wide and crooked, which only made the situation seem even MORE awkward. Peridot mentally face-palmed as a bead of sweat formed on her forehead. "Nice going, dumbass."
Lapis smiled warmly and stared into Peridot's eyes once more. The air in the room seemed to get thicker, because the blonde could barely breathe at the sight of those oceanic eyes that seemed to look right into her soul. She seemed to be trying to read Peridot's mind. The blonde shifted uncomfortably on the bed. Then, Lapis spoke.
"Thank you, Peridot. No one has ever said that to me before..." Peridot gazed at the blue haired girl, and opened her lips to speak but couldn't get the words to come out. So, her mouth remained agape like a fish. Lapis snickered and continued to dab Peridot's skin with the cotton swab. Her breath hitched at the excruciating pain, but tried to muster through it. "You're so weird, Peri."
"I thought I told you not to call me that!"
"Alright, PERI!!"
Peridot scowled angrily at the bluenette.
She merely giggled in response. "Awww, what an angry little slice of pie." She cooed. The bluenette lifted her hand to Peridot's cheek and squished it. Peridot growled and turned her head away, her face red with embarrassment. Lapis dabbed at her wound while she flinched and gritted her teeth in agony. Lapis took notice of Peridot's actions, and stopped. "Am I hurting you?"
"Well, yeah! But it has to be done, so just get it over with." Peridot hissed as squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for the next wave of pain.
Lapis chuckles and continues to disinfect the gashes until they are clean, then begins to lotion them and wrap bandages around them.
Peridot glared at Lapis as she did so. The taller girl sighed after she finished wrapping Peridots left knee. She seemed a little annoyed. "Hey, I just saved your life, you know."
Peridot crossed her arms and closed her eyes, ignoring the blue-haired girl.
"That's quite an exaggeration, Lazuli." She retorted with a scoff.
"Don't be mad at me for giving you a cute nickname and for trying to be your friend!" Lapis said a in louder tone.
She put her hands on her hips and stood up, looking down at Peridot.
"And how come you get to call me 'Lazuli'?" There was a playful ambience in her tone. Peridot looked up at Lapis and her face softened.
She sighed.
"I appreciate your kindness and all, and I'm sorry. I just... I've never had a nickname. I've never had a friend..." Peridot studied Lapis's face for a moment and then looked down, picking at her nails. She felt tears begin to gather in her eyes, but tried hard not to let them fall. She had to be strong. She couldn't show these emotions. Not to anyone.
Try as she might, she failed to keep the tears at bay. One tear escaped her eye and dropped into her lap. Lapis gasped and lifted Peridot's chin up with her hand to look at her. "Please, don't cry. I'm sorry, I brought up a sensitive topic. I didn't mean to." She held Peridot's face in her hand and wiped her tears from her eyes with her slender thumb. She then rubbed a short circle on her freckled cheek to soothe her. "We could be friends... If you want to be, I mean. I won't force you or anything, b-but I-"
Peridot grabbed Lapis's wrist and brought it away from her face. Lapis looked down at the blonde, confused. She didn't pull her arm away while Peridot held onto her wrist. "I would like that very much, Lapis." She sniffled and loosened her grip. Lapis's arm dropped to her side when Peridot released it.
She still stared down at the blonde, and dead panned. "Did she just- wait... Does that mean we are friends now?" Lapis smiled wide and bounced a little. "So, we're friends now?!"
If she had a tail, it would definitely be wagging. Lapis didn't exactly know why she was so happy at this moment, but she never wanted this flood of happiness to end. It was just something about Peridot that made her overfilled with joy. What was happening to her?
"Yeah, we're friends now. God, I swear you're like a puppy or something Lapis!" Peridot laughed, watching the bluenette jump up and down. A huge smile was plastered on her face.
Lapis stopped abruptly after several moments and took a deep breath. She regained her composure, a happy smile still evident on her face. "Sorry, sometimes I get too excited."
Peridot shoved her glasses up the bridge of her nose and stood up. "Thanks again, Lazuli. For, you know, fixing me up. I should really be heading home now, before my dad gets there, so..." Lapis's face fell. "Oh, alright... You're welcome." Lapis didn't want Peridot to leave. It was the first time in a while that she had been so happy, and she didn't want it to end. Lapis walked over to her bedroom door stubbornly and opened it. She walked down the stairs with her head hanging, and Peridot followed her.
When they reached Lapis's front door, the awkwardness revisited them. Peridot rubbed the back of her neck as Lapis picked at her arm. Their gazes met, and the same electricity from before shocked through their bodies.
"I'll uh... I'll see you at school?" Peridot managed to say.
"Yeah. Hey, I'll be looking for you at lunch! I want you to sit with me."
Peridot nodded and opened the door.
"Oh, wait Peri!"
Peridot stood in the doorway as Lapis fumbled with a piece of paper that was in her pocket.
"I was going to give this to you at school tomorrow, but now seems like a better time!" She held the strip out to the blonde, and she took it from her. She looked at it to see a phone number scribbled in blue ink.
"Blue ink. Of course. What other color would I expect?"
"Text me." Lapis said abruptly.
"Ok, Lapis. I will. Thanks again for helping me out."
"No problem. See you at school!"
Peridot shut the door behind her, and walked off the stone porch towards the sidewalk where her Longboard was flipped-over. She picked it up and examined it, finding a couple of scuff marks. She groaned in annoyance.
"Dumb defective longboard."
Peridot looked back at the light blue house, and smiled.
"But... It wasn't all that bad. If it wasn't for my 'near death experience', I wouldn't have hung out with Lapis and got her number!" Peridot laughed and kissed her longboard, a smile stretching from ear to ear. It was the same smile that was stuck on her face after school that day.
She began to roll down the sidewalk back the way she came. The light of the rising moon shined down on her and illuminated the street ahead of her.
Once again, as she rode home, she couldn't seem to get the grin off her face. She thought more and more about her time with Lapis and her smile only grew impossibly larger.
She loved this overwhelming feeling of happiness, and she never wanted it to end.
When Peridot got home, she set her alarm and plugged in her phone. She added Lapis to her contacts before flopping down onto her bed. She fell asleep almost immediately, still smiling.