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The restaurant was a nice one, Connie admitted. It sat on a cliff overlooking the sea, with a dazzling view of the sun on the horizon. The interior was fairly kitschy— fishnets and other ocean paraphernalia adorned the oak walls as a very outdated music mix repeated over the jukebox. A waiter in a teal apron (with a smiling cartoon shark on it, to boot) led her to her table.
Normally, she would have been surprised that any 20-year-old would be able to afford a night out like this, but, of course, there was nothing normal about Steven.
“Connie!” she heard him cry out as she approached their booth. “They have The Bits here, but instead of fries, they’re fish sticks!”
Connie chuckled, sitting down. “It’s good to see you, Steven.”
“And they’re even on the menu!” he exclaimed, stars in his eyes. Connie smiled and looked on at the young man who she was proud to call her boyfriend. He could always find excitement and pure joy in everything. He was 20 now, very tall and broad-shouldered, with a little bit of a stubble growing across his otherwise boyish face. She was only 18 3/4, and was just about to finish high school (an experience that made her jealous that Steven was homeschooled). That night, Steven was dressed in his best pink button-up, which was probably her favorite look for him if she was being honest.
“How are your online classes going?” Connie asked. A few months prior, Steven began taking college classes online (despite Peridot’s insistence that humanity’s schooling methods were “not up to adequate intellectual standards”) so he could get an education whilst also being a full-time Crystal Gem.
“Aw man, it’s awesome!” Steven said, his smile practically infectious. “I’m in this one class where we have to read a lot! And the books are long I guess, but they’re all super cool. I’ve read half of them at least twice! That War and Peace one I read three times, I think.”
Connie almost snorted. Of course Steven would willingly read War and Peace three times. The waiter came by and took their orders, returning shortly thereafter with drinks; water for her and chocolate milk for Steven.
“There was, uh, actually something I wanted to talk with you about,” Connie began hesitantly as Steven sucked his milk through his straw.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, looking up at her with visible concern.
“Nothing! Nothing’s wrong,” Connie corrected as she took a deep breath, “It’s just, um…”
Steven’s heart raced with anticipation as he waited for her to tell him. His mind flipped through dozens of unrealistic possibilities.
She’s a secret agent. She’s moving to space. She’s dying of magic poisoning. She doesn’t like Fry Bits. She does like Fry Bits. She has a stomach ache from Fry Bits. Fry Bits just got outlawed.
“I got into Harvale!” she squealed, her excitement proudly revealing itself.
“You did?!” Steven shouted, a great big smile stretching across his face, “That’s amazing!”
He reached across and pulled Connie into a large hug, kissing her on the cheek as well.
“I’m so proud of you,” he said as he pulled out of the hug, “I just knew you could do it! Remember how worried you were?”
“Yeah…”
“And how much work you put into that essay?”
“Yeah…”
“And how we had to stop Pearl from personally going to the admissions office herself and making them accept you via threat of bodily harm?”
“Yeah,” Connie chuckled at that one, reflecting back in amusement. That was certainly a weird day.
“You’ll be fine with me living that far away, though?” Connie then asked, reminded of how far the college was from Delmarva.
“Well I can visit you anytime I want with Lion,” Steven shrugged, “Unless the school’ll have a problem with that...”
“Oh no, I don’t think they could ever turn you away,” Connie chuckled, “Mr. Cute n’ Magical.”
“Heh, that’s good,” Steven smiled, remembering how lucky he was to have Connie in his life.
“You can even stay over if you want…” she whispered into his ear.
Steven’s cheeks reddened a deep crimson, only returning to their normal pinkish glow when their server arrived with their food a few minutes later.
“Food! Yes! Good! Thank you!” Steven shouted, quickly accepting the change of subject.
“You are probably the most innocent 20-year-old I know, Steven,” Connie joked.
Steven raised his glass of water in a toast.
“To innocence!” he proudly proclaimed.
“To innocence, indeed,” Connie chuckled with a smirk. These were going to be an interesting several years, she mused.
---
Having a boyfriend with super-strength had its perks, Connie knew full well. Admittedly, most of them were negated by her having a high strength factor herself due to years of sword training, but, well, she couldn’t exactly carry five boxes, two suitcases, a lamp and a desktop computer all at once.
“Connieconnieconnieconnieconnie-!” Steven shouted as he struggled to balance the incredibly tall load of items, rushing to get them to her room before the stack fell over in his hands. Connie jumped up off her still-unfurnished bed and quickly steadied the boxes as Steven set them down, breathing a sigh of relief.
“I’d have brought in more but the door wasn’t big enough,” Steven said as he set down Connie’s things in her dorm room, “Also I think your RA doesn’t like me. He kept staring at me while I was bringing in your stuff.”
“Nah, he was probably checking you out, ya big stud,” Connie joked, patting Steven on the back.
Steven’s face went red once again, this time thankfully interrupted by Connie’s parents coming to say goodbye.
“Hello Doctor and Mister Maheswaran!” he blurted out, giving them an unexpected hug. “Nothing inappropriate happening in this room, nosireebob! Just hugs all around!”
“Erm, thank you, Steven,” Priyanka nervously chuckled.
“But we’d kinda like to hug Connie right now, if it’s all the same to you,” Doug added.
Connie couldn’t help but snicker.
---
“Connie!” Steven exclaimed as he ran up to his girlfriend and hugged her outside the residence hall. “It’s so good to see you! How are your classes? Is everyone nice? Do you like it here? How are you?”
“Steven, it’s been a week,” Connie laughed.
“I know,” Steven reiterated, “But I missed you so much!”
“We talked every night!”
“Yeah, but nothing can beat the real thing,” Steven smiled, giving her a quick peck on the lips, followed by several more kisses all over her face.
“C’mon, stop it,” Connie giggled as Steven pulled her into another hug.
“Oh no, the Spaceship Kisses is invading! And they take no prisoners!”
Connie’s giggles intensified as Steven kissed her on the lips more, pulling her even closer for what felt like an eternity. They only stopped when Steven’s Gem began to light up, signalling that if they weren’t careful, Stevonnie would form. This would normally be awesome, but, well, Connie wanted people to get to know her and Steven before they were introduced to Stevonnie. As Steven released Connie from the embrace, she could see literal stars in his eyes.
“Wow,” Connie remarked, “You really missed me, huh?”
“Ah, uh, yeah,” Steven stammered, complete with a dopey grin on his face.
“Let’s head inside,” Connie suggested, taking her boyfriend’s hand, “I gotta introduce you to my roommate.”
As the pair approached the residence hall, Connie paused.
“Say, where’s lion?” she asked, realizing that Steven’s primary mode of transportation was nowhere to be found.
“Oh, he’s hanging out on the Quad, pretending to be a statue and then scaring people.”
“Classic Lion.”
---
College parties were fairly hectic, Connie understood well enough. Luckily, she was able to find one that was at the lesser end of the “batshit crazy spectrum,” and chose this as the one she and Steven would attend. Steven had gained a bit of a reputation on campus over the past couple months, most notably as “That Kid Who Hangs Around Connie” and “That Kid With The Lion,” but also “That Kid Who May Or May Not Own The Earth” (Apparently Steven had a Quikipedia page now?), which made many students eager to meet the young man.
Steven and Connie pulled up to the house around 10, which both of them were unsure was early to the party or fashionably late. They hopped off Lion, who shrugged and ran off the moment their backs were turned, and walked up to the house. It belonged to one of Connie’s friends in Model UN, and were throwing a party to celebrate the end of midterms. Rave music blared from inside, as colored lights flashed against the windows, but not too intensely.
“Yo! Connie!” a tall senior said as he opened the door, “Glad you could make it!”
“Hey, Chris,” Connie greeted the man, “it’s good to see you, too.”
“And is that the ever-elusive Steven Universe I spy?”
Connie turned to see Steven hiding behind a tree, awkwardly giving a wave.
“Hiiiii,” Steven called out.
“...Yes, yes it is,” Connie laughed as Steven ran up to the porch.
“Well welcome to the party,” Chris nodded, shaking the Universe boy’s hand. “We got drinks in the kitchen, a dance floor in the back, and some chillin’ space up front here.”
The house had a couple dozen students in it, Connie figured, with the living room containing several that were just sitting in a haze (which had a very distinct smell, she noticed), while the rest were out back dancing. A few of Connie’s other friends stood around in the kitchen, attempting to play Beer Pong with cheap, semi-watered down champagne that nobody really liked, if they were being honest.
“Hey, look who’s here!” Connie’s roommate, Jennifer, said with a smile.
“Hey, how’s the party so far?” Connie asked as they hugged.
“It’s pretty cool. Dom over here ate half a leftover cake.”
“I did not!” her boyfriend denied. “It was more like two-thirds.”
“That’s worse!”
“Guys, guys,” Connie said, diverting the subject, “I’d like you to meet...Steven.”
Her friends’ eyes (excluding her roommate’s) widened as they realized that the six-foot-five man before them was the Steven they had heard so much about.
“You’re Steven?!” one of them asked.
“Y-yeah…” Steven shrugged, nervous.
“You’re so big!”
Connie punched the boy in the arm, for what she perceived as an insult. But to her surprise, Steven laughed at that.
“Yeah, I guess I am pretty tall,” he chuckled. “The weather up here’s pretty nice, though.”
“Ha, I like this guy, Connie,” her friend nodded. “He’s funny.”
He handed Steven a red cup and gestured to the punch bowl.
“Pour yourself a drink, my man.”
Steven froze, as did Connie. Right, she thought. There was one bit of college life she had neglected to tell him about.
---
Steven’s 21st birthday had been the August before Connie started school, which of course meant he was now old enough to drink. Connie’s friends had several ideas of how to use this to their advantage, but she had all vetoed them, mostly on account of Steven being a really, really bad liar. (“Steven couldn’t lie if you gave him cue cards,” Connie had told them.)
“Oh no,” Steven said, shaking his head, “I, uh, have to drive Connie back.”
“I thought you had a lion?” Jenn asked.
“Well, yeah, but, uh...he doesn’t drive himself?”
“I’m pretty sure he can, Steven,” Connie interjected.
“Hey,” Steven said defensively. “Not helping!”
“C’mon, you’re 21!” Connie egged on, “But if you don’t want to that’s perfectly fine…”
“Alright,” Steven sighed, “I’ll have one drink.”
---
“I hereby decree, as His Majesty God Emperor Steven the First, all meals shall now be Fry Bit and Cookie Cat based!” Steven slurrily declared atop a couch in the living room.
A round of cheers echoed through the room, as a still-sober Connie laughed in the corner with her friends.
“He really is a lightweight, isn’t he?” her roommate asked.
“Yeeeeaaah,” Connie laughed, “I probably shouldn’t be surprised.”
“And!” Steven continued, struggling to hold his balance on the couch cushions, “The dashing and beautiful Connie Mahes- Mahesh- Maheswaran shall be my Queen!”
Another round of cheers went around the room, applauding Connie as Steven pointed her out.
“Get up on the couch!” a kid called out.
“Yeah, be with your man!” another one laughed.
Connie blushed and stepped up onto the couch with Steven, placing an arm around her almost immediately.
“And now!” Steven hiccuped, “I shall, uh, congregate our love with the kiss of… of… of true love!”
Steven grabbed Connie’s face and brought his lips to hers, reminding her of how good a kisser the man was. Suddenly, however, Steven’s gem began to glow, but Connie couldn’t have cared less in that moment of pure joy.
Light filled the room, a bright pink light that faded to reveal Stevonnie, wearing both of their components’ clothes and sitting on the couch with a surprised smile on their face.
“Hi,” Stevonnie tipsily said, waving at the stunned crowd.
And said crowd went wild.
---
Stevonnie stumbled out to the curb around midnight, tired and still a bit buzzed. They unfused as Lion pulled up to meet them.
“Whoa,” Connie muttered, her eyes widening.
“What is it?”
Connie turned and gave Steven a big smile.
“I think some of your drink ended up in my system,” Connie laughed.
Steven also laughed as well, the couple quickly collapsing onto the sidewalk in hysterics. Lion simply rolled his eyes at the display, picking up the two humans with his mouth and tossing them on his back, warping off shortly thereafter.
Crazy kids, he thought.
---
Steven and Connie stumbled into Connie’s dorm room, collapsing onto the bed with a round of happy giggles and a warm embrace.
“Hi,” Steven said, holding her close.
“Hi,” Connie replied, “Fancy meeting you here.”
“I could say the same to you.”
“You could, but I live here.”
“Well then, nice place you got here.”
“Thanks. It’s even nicer with you here.”
“How nice?”
“This nice,” Connie said as she planted a kiss atop Steven’s nose, making him snicker with delight.
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”