(Zane's placement is on his back, and Gene's on his forehead.)
"Gene?"
Zane approached the Gem who was his roommate, stopping a few feet away from him. He was standing at the edge of the cliff, staring up at the nighttime sky. Zane was getting worried, he knew what had happened the last time Gene had done something like that.
"What do you want, Zane?" Gene asked with a sigh, not looking at him.
"I know you need your space and stuff, but I just wanted to ask if you were planning on leaving again..." Zane answered, a bit intimidated by the traumatized, abused Gem.
"I'm always thinking about leaving." He replied, still not looking at him. "I think that I should. It's not like anyone would miss me, anyway."
"Aphmau would miss you." He pointed out, his eye widening a bit at the Gem's words. "Last time you left she missed you a lot. She kept thinking that it had been her fault, that she had put too much pressure on you..."
"....... So she's the only who missed me?" He asked, a hint of disappointment and pity in his tone. "The only one who missed me, and she guilt tripped herself to make others feel bad for her. Her feelings are the only feelings that matter in this group, aren't they? Pathetic." (I'm actually gonna talk about this at the end)
"W-What?" He squeaked, walking closer to him.
"At least you'll have the barn to yourself, Zane. You and Pumpkin." He offered, his gem glowing as he was about to levitate.
Zane held in a gasp as he ran up to the other Gem, quickly hugging him. He didn't want Gene to leave again, not when they had just started to get rid of the tension between them. They were so alike, they both weren't with Homeworld, but they hadn't necessarily joined the Crystal Gems. While Gene just stayed in Aphmau's barn, Zane had done some training with the rebellious group and sometimes went to their base, but mostly to just lock himself in the bathroom.
"I missed you too, and so did Pumpkin..." Zane admitted, watching as the glow from the gem faded. "It was lonely without you here..."
"Really?" Gene asked, his voice quieter. "Do you mean that, or are you just saying that for the sake of feelings?"
"I actually mean it, Gene." He nodded, nudging the other male's back. "You've already endured and suffered so much... you don't deserve or need any more pain..."
".........." He remained silent, probably unable to think of anything to say.
"Gene.... I want to protect our homes and friends no matter what..." He sighed, looking up at the other Gem.
There was a short moment of silence between them. Gene remained unresponsive to anything Zane had said, still staring at the sky and not moving. Zane wouldn't give up, he couldn't give up on him. He had suffered abuse far worse than anything Zane could've imagined, and now he needed to heal. He needed to rest, to allow himself to recover. Zane needed to get him to stay. Running away from all the problems wouldn't make it any better, only worse.
"Together." Zane added, his voice barely above a whisper as he broke the silence.
"...... Together?" Gene repeated, his voice cracking a bit.
"Together." He verified, nodding.
Gene wrapped his arms around himself, his fingertips brushing against Zane's arms. A white light started to form on them, and Zane caught a glimpse of Gene's gem glowing before he was whisked away. Their beings fused together, forming a new body for the two of them.
Once the light faded, the new fusion slowly raised their hands to their face. They looked at the two sets of arms they had, turning the hands so they could see the backs and palms. Inside the mind of the new fusion, a bottled storm of emotions and feelings had broke loose.
