Learn To Love Again {COMPLETED}

Epilogue

Spinel's P.O.V
Oh my stars, I can't do this! I really can't do this! I'm literally pacing back and forth in my wedding gown with Pearl and Amethyst standing nearby trying to console me. I'm having a bit of a nervous breakdown right now, my mind racing and my body shaking. I never knew something like this could be as nerve-wracking as it's turned out to be. It was a lot of preparation to get this whole wedding set up, decor, dress-shopping, everything. Yet, right as I'm about to go outside, I have a sudden urge of doubt.

"Spinel, calm down! It'll be fine" Amethyst says.

"Calm down? Telling me to calm down doesn't help me, Amethyst" I argue "I just have so many worries about messing things up when I go down there. What if I trip on my dress and look like an idiot? What if I forget my vows? What if the ring doesn't fit? I just can't deal with it!!".

"Hey, hey, hey, it's gonna be alright, Spinel" Pearl says in a soothing tone, guiding me over to the couch.

"I really want this to work out, Pearl" I say, sniffling "I just want this one day out of my whole life to go right".

"Trust me, Spinel, you'll do great. You've practiced walking in your dress, haven't you? You've recited your lines over and over to the point where you've memorized them, right? And you've made sure the ring is sized right as to where it'll fit on your finger, correct? So, really, what are you even worried about?" Pearl asks.

I look down at my medium red dress, stirring on her words. It makes me pause because........she's right. Maybe I am overblowing the situation. Besides, Steven loves me. He won't love me any less if a minor mistake happens. And I'm also sure that if anyone tries to make fun of me, he'll personally teach them how it feels to have a shield in the face. It's so romantic of him.

"You know what? You're right, Pearl!" I say with newfound confidence, standing up proudly "I got this handled, no question".

"See?" Pearl smiles "Now, how's about we begin?".
I nod and she links her arm with mine, walking us both towards the door. Amethyst then opens it for us and we both begin a slow descent down the stairs. As Pearl and I approach the rows of chairs, along with the podium itself, I casually review everyone's outfits. Pearl and Amethyst are dressed in black tuxedos while Garnet has on what I can only presume to be a hybrid of a dress and a tuxedo. Ruby and Sapphire must've dressed differently before fusing I guess. Lapis has on a medium blue dress with darker blue trim and Peridot has on a lime-green dress that goes down to her ankles. Bismuth has on some white battle armor for some reason but I wasn't about to be too picky. And finally, as I pass by the rows of humans that Steven invited, I see my soon-to-be-husband himself, adorned nicely in a black suit with some pink outlines along the sleeves and tie. Pearl then lets go of my arm as we get close and I walk up the few remaining steps until I'm directly across from Steven. We stare lovingly into each other's eyes as Garnet steps forward with a few words.

"Gems, humans, friends, and family, we have come together on this momentous occasion to celebrate the union of my son, Steven, and his bride Spinel. Marriage is a special kind of bond, one that deepens the love that two lovers already share but brings a whole new meaning to each and every time they say 'I love you'. On this day, these two have chosen to take that next step, to bind themselves together for literal eternity, lest a shattering do they part" The fusion monologues before turning to Steven "Steven, have you prepared your vows".
"Indeed I have" He says, not breaking our eye contact "Spinel, I saw something special about you from the first moment I laid eyes on you. Some might call that cliche but I honestly consider it the utmost truth. Never before have I felt such desire to protect, care, and love someone else than you. You mean more than the world to me. You mean more than the entire galaxy to me. You mean the universe to me, in every and all seriousness. I very much wish to continue this journey we've come so far with but together as a new kind of couple. One that has this ring on your finger and my heart as yours to keep".

Everyone 'awhs' and admires how cute Steven sounded in his speech but now it's time for me to pour my heart out on a diamond platter. Garnet then turns to me next, asking me if I've prepared my vows as well. I agree and begin.

"Steven, you've done so much for me that if I could stand here and explain it all to you, we'd be here for the end of time and I wouldn't care less. I'd take forever and ever to show you just how much you mean to me. All the things you've shown me, all the things you've taught me, I would've never known. Most of all though, you gave me what few others would've if our places were reversed that day on the Injector. You gave me a second chance. Not just at life but a second chance to love again. I was heartbroken, torn apart and buried in pain for too many years of waiting for someone that would never come back for me. But with you, I realized that I didn't need her anymore. That I found a new person to whom I'd give my unfading love, one that actually cared for me the way I did him. I will follow you wherever you may go and from this day forth, I'll do it as your dearly beloved" I say.

There's a collected pause in the audience, probably because they don't want to jump the gun on clapping already. Garnet then asks if we have the rings to 'signify our union' and Peridot brings them out, waddling up to the podium in her outstretched palms. Steven and I both thank the small green bean and each take our rings, Steven places his on my finger first before I follow up with his on his finger.

"Without any further adieu, I pronounce you husband and wife" Garnet says, glancing at Steven "You make kiss the bride".

Steven wastes no time with it either, gently grabbing me by my waist and bringing me in for a tender kiss. The audience of humans and gems then bust out clapping, some of them cheering for us. This moment could not feel more perfect as Steven leans back and gazes dreamily into my eyes. We then step back and link arm in arm as the both of us walk down the aisle, the gathered crowd still clapping for us as we move past them. Even from here, I can see the tears in Pearl, Amethyst, Lapis, and Bismuth's eyes, happy and supportive tears for a newly wedded couple. Once we get to the end of the aisle though, I pause and spare a glance at Steven, who nods in approval. Grinning, I toss my flowers back over my head before turning and seeing the mass of ladies diving for it. It ends up in a bit of a dogpile situation but in the end, the flowers land in Pearl's hand, her blushing as Bismuth gives her a nudge.

The horn of a ship then sounds loudly in the air, everyone turning to see a cruise ship docked not that far away with it's ramp down. Steven's father stands at the top of the ramp, waiting for us with a smile. The Gems then wish us a happy honeymoon as Steven and I begin to walk in the direction of the ship. Well wishes and good lucks are called after us, many people wishing us a good time as we walk onto the ramp and climb up into the ship. Steven's dad then brings in the ramp and gets the ship started, Steven and I resting against the ship's railing. The ship then gets moving, going right past the wedding set up. Steven and I wave a temporary goodbye to everyone as we get farther and farther away from everyone.

Soon, we're out of voice range and just relax as we enjoy each other's company. We timed it so that we'd be cruising away right as the Sun would go down and so far, our planning worked just right. With his arm around my stomach, I smile and nestle my face into his chest, reveling in this perfect moment. With enough food to last us for weeks and a lot of open ocean ahead, there's no telling what fun we will have.

And so, our honeymoon began.

~Two Years Later~
Steven's P.O.V
I stare out to the ocean horizon, it's water seething between my toes. My therapy sessions had finally ended, but I still write in my journal as I do now to maintain my thoughts. Life has been great, Spinel and I are happily married. The honeymoon was probably the most romantic of our entire relationship as most are. Spinel had wondered what other wonderful places there were on Earth, so we took off to Paris, the most romantic place on Earth.

But now our family has expanded in the crystal gems. We have a daughter, her name is... "Daddy!" I hear our daughter scream for me.

I chuckle and set my journal down, turning around. "Yes Kelly?"

Up the stairs in quick tiny footsteps here came our daughter, Kelly. She had more of Spinel in her, but kept my curly hair and good looks. "Can we go outside to play in the sand? Pleeeeease!" she begs with puppy eyes.

I sigh softly in defeat, "you win sweetie, let's go."

"Yay!" In a quick dash down the stairs she was gone.

I chuckle softly, standing up from my chair. So much of Spinel in her, but it's adorable nonetheless. We were worried at first when Spinel became pregnant. Losing Nelly would've broken me, but miraculously because of me being a hybrid she didn't have to give up her form. Even the gems are shocked to this day. She grew quickly probably because of her gem.

I walk downstairs and go outside to see Kelly already on a head start to build a sand castle. Smiling, I walk down the steps of the porch onto the warm sand. "Already ahead of your dad huh?" I chuckle, sitting down next to her.

"Mhm," Kelly giggles, grabbing a cup and scooping some sand and placing it on top of the structure. I then feel a presence beside me, sitting down on my right but I know the feeling of her all too well by this point so I'm not alarmed in the slightest.

"Don't forget about mommy, sweetie" Spinel smiles "She won't ever let you out of her sight".

"I won't mommy" Kelly smiles back, some of her teeth not fully in yet. She then goes back to playing in the sand, leaving Spinel and I to lean on each other for support.

"She really is our little miracle isn't she?" My wife remarks, adoring how cute and innocent Kelly is.

"More than you know" I say, slinging an arm around her neck "And I can clearly tell where she gets it from".

"Oh you~" Spinel giggles coming in for a kiss.

"Ewww, mommy and daddy kissing" Kelly remarks. The both of us laugh, loving our daughter's reaction.

After messing around with her sand castle for a bit longer, Kelly wanted to go swimming. Luckily, Spinel and I had already planned for this, mainly because it's something Kelly loved doing so frequently, so after Nelly gets Kelly into her bathing suit, along with us changing into ours, the three of us go splashing into the ocean, laughing and playing around even more. Who knew that my life would end up like this from such unusual occurrences? But in the end, I wouldn't trade this for anything. Not to be a Diamond or to rule the entire universe, no. This right here is all I need. And it all started very simple.

When I taught Spinel how to learn to love again.




Well, there you have it folks, the end of me and Wolf's collab. This has been a very long time in the making and I really do like how it turned out in the end. I also want to thank you guys, along with my bro himself, for all the nice wishes when I wasn't feeling well. It warmed my heart quite a lot and I told myself that I had to get better so I could finish this with him and so y'all could see the end we both had planned. Thanks so much and it was a blast getting to work with my guy here. I'll let him say the last words but don't think that this will be the only time you see us working together. There may or may not be another collab coming sometime but who knows? Anyway, this KingMythLord signing out. Peace!

Well said from my bro, this story has been a long project overdue to be finished. But after all the waiting, this story finally comes to a happy end. But he is right, this most certainly is not the end of our collaboration with each other. Thank you all so much for all of the support through the months this story was created. It warms my heart also to show care to my partner. Anyway, this is the end ladies and gentlemen. As always we'll see you in the next one, laters.  :)