"What do you mean, you lost her?"
"I was trying to poof her, but there were escape pods in the room and I…accidentally threw her into one."
"So where did it go?"
"Somewhere on Earth…I think."
"Oh. Oh. Oh! Oh, oh, oh! Oh! Oh! Oh-ho-ho-ho!"
"Okay—"
"OH!"
"I get it."
"This is just perfect. Absolutely delightful! I'm going to sleep like a baby tonight, yes I am!"
"I'm not in the mood for this, Ruby."
"Neither am I! I'm just filled with so many conflicting emotions that I'm venting it out with anger directed at you even though you don't deserve it and I'm sorry!"
"I appreciate your honesty."
"THANK YOU."
Opal turned away from Ruby and looked to Sapphire. She was sitting on one of the kitchen counters, one arm across her chest, the other hand holding the phone to her ear. With a murmured 'goodbye', she hung up the receiver and picked it back up in one move.
"How's it going, Saph?" asked Opal.
Sapphire was already punching in the next numbers. "It's going."
The line picked up, and Sapphire spoke very much like a telemarketer, in that 'Hello, Mr. So-and-so, this is Sapphire and I'm calling about…' kind of way. It must have been Yellowtail on the other line. Whatever Sapphire was saying, it just sounded like "Mema mema mema, mema mema…"
Opal let her be and turned back to Ruby. "We need to take care of Jasper as soon as possible. She may not be able to call Homeworld, but I don't want to think about what she'd do if she encountered a human…"
Ruby nodded. "Yeah. 'Course. Think we should take care of damage control first, though? Look at this place!" She waved around the Room, at the shards of the windows still on the floor, the fallen picture frames, and the microwave that had blown like a corn kernel at some point. "It's probably ten times worse in town, too."
"I guess?" sighed Opal. "Wouldn't hurt to take care of things around here, I guess, if we do it fast enough."
"So we clean up here, clean up the town, fix the damages, make sure everyone is okay, take care of Jasper, and then get back to preparing for Homeworld's next strike. That's not stressful at all! Plus Lazuli and Peridot have that mess going on—"
"Ruby!"
"What?"
"He can hear us."
Opal tilted her head upwards, and Ruby followed with her eyes.
Up in the loft, with the first warm rays of daylight peeking through the glassless windows, Ruby could see a mop of brown curls beneath a lump of blankets. He was always one to toss and turn in his sleep, but he hadn't budged an inch since they got back, so Ruby knew he was listening. Or, at least, awake. Somewhere up there, his phone dinged with new messages, but they were ignored, as they had been for the past few hours.
Ruby winced guiltily. Her fingers on the counter curled. "Sorry."
Opal had not turned away. The pair of arms folded across her chest tightened. "You think we should go talk to him now?"
"I don't know what to say. 'Sorry'?"
The receiver hung up once again, but instead of picking it back up, Sapphire walked away from it. She stepped past Ruby and Opal and told them over her shoulder, "Now just call the Pizzas."
Opal and Ruby didn't protest. Opal reached for the phone while Sapphire glided up the stairs.
No cleaning had been done. Action figures were still scattered on the floorboards. Without pressing the button, Sapphire knew the television would not come on. The little shelf of books Steven had recently built in was now half-empty. The bird-shaped book divider had hit the floor hard enough for the beak to chip off. A few of the glow-in-the dark stars on the ceiling had even peeled off. Crisp, cold wind was drifting through the glassless windows. The lump beneath the blankets didn't seem to care, though.
Sapphire lifted herself onto the mattress and sat on the duvet. She couldn't see his face beneath it. "Hey."
Steven didn't say anything.
Sapphire looked past him to the window. The sky was a sort of lavender-blue color, rimming a sort of hazy orange. It was a peaceful sight, though she wondered if it was helping him at all.
"Can I lie down?"
He didn't say 'yes', but he didn't say 'no', either. Sapphire lied down beside him, hands still folded in her lap as she stared up at the ceiling. Looking at the faded green of the stars, she thought back to the cell she had been thrown in within the ship—tiny, cold, with only the distant sounds of Ruby fighting and losing to the electric shield. Sapphire had been left alone with her visions, one or two of relative victory, but most of never seeing Ruby again, watching Pearl and Amethyst's Gems taken far, far away from each other, and/or the fates of Steven that had left her a helpless puddle of tears.
"Thanks for letting me out of the cell," she said.
Steven didn't say anything.
"And for getting us all home."
A gust of wind swept into the loft, and though Sapphire was unaffected, she saw the way Steven involuntarily shivered beneath his duvet, and she reached beneath the bed. She withdrew the wool blanket there and threw it over him.
"I'm sorry about what happened to Lapis Lazuli." She paused. "I don't know why she did what she did, but…it was brave. We owe her our thanks, and…I'm sorry we never got the chance to apologize."
The residents of Beach City were returning. She could see them enter the city limits.
"But we'll find her, I promise. We'll get it all sorted out."
When he still did not answer, Sapphire put a hand on his arm. "Can you talk to me?"
At last, he rolled over, but instead of looking at Sapphire, his eyes fluttered open. As Sapphire watched, his mouth stretched open in a yawn, arms and legs stretching out in all directions. She heard something in his back pop. Then his limbs dropped right back down, and Steven smacked his lips.
He finally looked over at her, and his droopy eyes widened. "Oh! Hey, Saph, when did you get here?"
Sapphire blinked at him, not that he would be able to tell. She sat up on the bed and placed her hands in her lap. "You were asleep?"
"Yee-up." Steven tossed the blankets back and hopped to his feet. He looked out of the window for a moment—one would not have noticed the green haze over the sky unless they were looking for it now—and turned to Sapphire with a sleepy but perky smile. "I was tuckered out. 'Twas a tuckering night. But!"
And then he did a cartwheel, flopping to the little rug on the floor without so much as a wobble. And Sapphire stared at him, because he just yawned like a dead man rising just a second ago. But now there was nothing but the all-smile Steven she'd always known.
"Now I feel dandy," Steven finished. Then, with some concern, he asked, "What about you? You tired?"
"I—No, I'm fine." Sapphire pushed herself off of the bed. She straightened her skirts out—not because they were wrinkled, but because she didn't know what else to do with her hands—and said, "Everyone's headed back into town now."
"Great!"
"Yes, but we have a mess to clean up. And Jasper is still—"
"Coolio," Steven cut her off with no malice. He turned for his drawers. He hadn't bothered changing into his pajamas, so his clothes are crumpled, damp, and sweaty. "I want to catch Dad when he comes in. He's probably still upset from the whole 'peace-out-I'm-probably-never-going-to-see-you-again' thing."
"Right, but…Steven, if there's anything you want to talk about—"
"Yo!"
Ruby's voice calls from below. She and Opal are standing at the door. They're trying to look casual, but Sapphire can see them sneaking glances over at Steven.
"We got some peoples to take care of," Opal said. "Let's hoof it."
"Hold on!" Steven pulled his drawers open and snatched out a T-shirt, jeans, and socks, then picked his sneakers from the floor. He dashed past Sapphire to the stairs. "I've gotta—"
THUMP THUD SMACK BANG THWACK
The Crystal Gems stared, shocked and concerned, as Steven lied at the bottom of the stairs in a heap. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop in the room.
Then he stood up, gathered his scattered clothes, and finished, "Gotta hygiene-iate myself."
He tried to skip to the bathroom, but he instead hissed halfway there and limped the rest of the way.
Decidedly, they couldn't really do anything about the ship debris.
For then, and maybe forever, the remnants of the hand-shaped ship were scattered in the seawater before the Temple. Most of it, including the palm, had sunk beneath the waves. Three fingertips peeked up from the surface. You could probably mistake it for a coral reef from afar—or at least, Steven though so. It was hard to believe that there were hallways in them.
By the time all four Crystal Gems appeared in Beach City proper, many residents had already returned. Peedee was hugging the front of Beach Citywalk Fries like an old friend. Kofi was tutting over the broken windows of the pizzeria. Onion was debating on stealing a TV from the electronics store since the glass was already shattered, but ultimately decided that that meant no challenge, and went on looting. Others were wandering around, or, in Lars' and Sadie's case, looking for who to help.
Ruby, Opal, and Sapphire awkwardly trailed behind Steven. They were expecting more damage than there was. At least a missing roof or two. Instead, it was just missing glass and no electricity. Two really mundane things that humans could take care of easily.
"I thought it would be worse," Steven mused aloud. "And no one got hurt! Everything turned out great!"
"Sure," said Ruby. "Not really, but sure."
"We should visit everyone and say hello! No, you know what? Let's celebrate. Party at the Temple! Let's make a bonfire!"
"Um—" Opal cleared her throat. "Maybe we should—"
"Universe!"
Mayor Dewey was standing at the back of the Deweymobile. He hadn't changed since the night before, so he was stained with sweat all over, yet he was still straightening his tie. Buck was unloading their luggage, but he only got one duffel bag out before his father shooed him away.
Mayor Dewey waved Steven over, and he came running. The Crystal Gems lingered behind.
"Glad to see you're still in one piece," said Mayor Dewey, "unlike some of us. So tell me, has the intergalactic threat been neutralized?"
"Yes, sir, Mister Mayor, sir. We protected Beach City. Just like I said we would! And we promise that —"
"Yeah, yeah, politicians don't keep promises, Universe. Listen, you like public speaking, yes? How would you like to give some words of wisdom as one of Beach City's certified saviors?"
"I have no certification, but I'd be happy to!"
Mayor Dewey pulled him up to the back of the Deweymobile and started rummaging. Steven sent a thumbs up in the Crystal Gems' direction, and was met with very unconvincing waves of encouragement.
Mayor Dewey shoved a wireless microphone in Steven's hand, took a step back, and waved him on.
Steven cleared his throat. "Attention, Beach City-zens!"
At once, people were turning. Conversations cut off, and luggage was set down. Peedee cut off Ronaldo's "Hey, Weirdos, we didn't get probed after all!" with a hush.
"Could everyone listen up for a minute, please?"
Just as they did the day before, citizens came jogging and meandering over. The Cool Kids came in a pack. Yellowtail picked up Onion without stopping. As Lars and Sadie approached, Lars cupped his hands around his mouth and called, "Yo, Steven! You alright?"
This was followed by chorus of "Yeah, you okay?" and "Everything good?" from the growing crowd. Steven was then reminded of his present black-eye. He still hoped it wasn't as bad as it felt.
"I'm good," Steven affirmed. "What about you guys?"
There was unanimous, but disgruntled, confirmation.
"Great! Hey, has anyone seen my dad any—"
"Universe," Mayor Dewey hissed from the side, "Stick to the cards!"
"What cards?"
Mayor Dewey pointed to his hands, and Steven only then realized that he was holding a few flashcards covered in shaky handwriting.
He jumped. "Whoa, when did those get there?"
"Universe!"
"Right, right. Ahem." Steven held the cards higher and read, "'My fellow citizens of Beach City: Seeing us all here, united once more and safe from harm, fills me with tranquilizer—'"
"'Tranquility'," Mayor Dewey groans.
"It says 'tranquilizer.'"
"I meant 'tranquility'!"
"—'tranquility and pride of the highest level; pride from the knowledge that we have prevailed, that we have survived. Even in the face of unpredicted danger, we remained united as one. I hope the pride that I feel is shared with all of you. Turn card. Some of you may be anxious to know what comes next; anxious to know if the storm has passed. As your trusted friend—hold on, that's crossed out—as your trusted protector, I can assure you that all we need to worry about at this time is returning to our lives as they once were. Turn card. I can assure you, as a trusted friend of the government, that businesses will suffer no financial or systematical damages from the events of the past twenty-four hours. Turn card. If anyone has any concerns for their or the town's wellbeing, I encourage you all to mail them to send them to the Town Hall, and they will be addressed within the year. Turn card. I humbly…uh…'" Steven clears his throat. "Okay, I can't make the rest of this out. It's all messed up with tears."
Steven held the salt-stained card up to Mayor Dewey, who muttered, "Those aren't tears."
"Oh." Steven quickly dropped the cards, regained his composure, and finished his address with, "I'm happy everyone is safe! Great to be back!"
The citizens, however, were…unamused. Steven's grin fell as he looked around at all of them. No one was smiling. Most had their arms crossed over their chests. Some were scowling, others were glaring at Mayor Dewey. Ronaldo was filming with his phone, but in the silence, he murmured an apology to the Weirdos for breaking his promise about never getting involved with politics.
"Um…Any questions?"
Mayor Dewey jumped forward, but it was too late. Mr. Fryman's voice cut through the air. "I want to know what you have to say!"
A chorus of agreement followed, bitter and annoyed.
In the crowd, someone shifted on his feet. Greg.
He and Steven locked eyes, and Greg's face showed both relief and sweat-inducing concern. He looked like he very much wanted to run up to the van and hug Steven, but Steven shook his head at him. Now was not the time. So instead, keeping his eyes on his son, Greg sidestepped out of the crowd and hobbled to the Crystal Gems. He tried to say something to Ruby, but all she could do was shrug and point to Steven.
Mayor Dewey snatched the microphone from Steven, snapping him back to attention. The mayor was trying to keep an everything-is-totally-fine smile, but it was clear in his eyes that nothing was totally fine. Already, sweat was started to sheen on his skin.
"We all know Universe," he told his people. "We know he is as trustworthy as they come. What he says, he means!"
"He said what you told him to say," counters Kofi, followed by more agreement. "Let him speak without the cues!"
Sadie spoke up next, directly to Steven. "He's not your boss, Steven. Say whatever you want."
Steven swallowed. He really did want to say what he wanted to say, but he also didn't want to point fingers at Mayor Dewey. The man had poor communication, sure, but Steven didn't want to create a mob against him.
He doubted Mayor Dewey would give the mic back to him, so he raised his voice and said, "Everything is alright. The people who came to hurt us are gone now. We're safe."
"For now." Lars muttered this under his breath, yet he still had fingers pointed at him in support.
"What about the future?" Barb asked. "I can't live in a town that I know isn't safe for my family!"
To Mayor Dewey, Nanefua exclaimed, "You said that we were anxious to know if the storm has passed. You can't address that and then ignore it!"
Jamie declared, "Mutiny!"
This one, however, was met with murmured reluctance and disagreement. Several statements of "Calm down." came from the citizens. Jamie digressed.
Mayor Dewey clicked his tongue. "Very well. Universe, please. Say what you will."
His smile said "I'm being courteous", his eyes said "Help me."
Steven said, "I wasn't lying when I said that the situation has been taken care of, and that everyone is safe, but…I can't say they won't come back in the future. I mean, it wasn't as many as we thought it'd be, and the others probably don't know that we beat them yet, but…yeah. They could come back. And there might be more of them."
Anxiety filled the air. All at once, the crowd was speaking, to Steven, to Mayor Dewey, to each other. Worried gazes and furious glares marred every face. Hands were starting to clench. Voices were starting to rise. Children named after vegetables were starting to scheme their anarchy.
"People, people!" Mayor Dewey cried out until the crowd quieted. "Let's not panic! Please."
"What do we do?" "What do they want?" "When will they be back?"
The crowd was roiling once more. Greg was starting to get antsy. He knew no one would hurt his son, he trusted these people, but he saw a mob coming. Steven, too, was growing nervous in all the yelling. The Crystal Gems looked like they very much wanted to go back to the Temple.
At last, there was a sharp whistle, and all eyes were on Buck Dewey. He took his pinkies out of his lips and stuffed them into his hoodie pockets.
"Let's go one at a time," he said coolly. "Keep it together."
Kofi went first. "What do they want? Why did they come here?"
Steven felt clamminess on his skin. His fingers twitched. "Well…um…We don't know what they want with the Earth…as a whole…but…they came to Beach City specifically because of…us. They don't like us."
He gestured between himself and the Crystal Gems. Silence filled the air as the townspeople stared at them. Sapphire waved.
"So," said Ronaldo, still filming, "if you guys leave, they'll leave us alone?"
"Um…" Taken aback, Steven stuttered. "I—I mean—that kind of makes sense—I guess?"
"Alright, alriiight…" Smiling much more easily now, Mayor Dewey stepped in front of Steven. He clapped his hands together. "So we see what needs to be done. All in favor of running Universe and the Crystal Missuses out of town, say 'aye.'"
There was no immediate agreement or disagreement. A murmur ran through the citizens. There was consideration, but also hesitance, and the only thing Mayor Dewey got as a definite answer was a very slow and unsure "Aye…?" from Mr. Fryman.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Vidalia's voice rose over the others. "We are a community! We do not run each other out of town when the going gets tough. And who's to say they won't come back just because Steven and his family go? What'll they do when they don't find them here? Wipe us out and keep going? There won't be anyone here to protect us!"
This time, there was immediate agreement. A few claps and cheers were given in response. Yellowtail patted his wife's back in admiration, earning him a grin in return.
"But…" Peedee's voice rose and everyone turned to him. "What will they do if there's too many of them?"
Jenny said, "Why don't we ask them?"
The Crystal Gems—who totally were not by any means trying to inch their way back to the Temple, no, of course not—stiffened under the stares of the townspeople. Even Steven was watching them expectantly. They couldn't just brush them off this time.
Opal cleared her throat and walked to the van. Ruby and Sapphire followed, leaving Greg to watch. While Ruby and Sapphire joined Steven in the back of the Deweymobile, Opal stood to the side, all of them fidgeting awkwardly.
Mayor Dewey shoved a microphone to Ruby, who took it with a hesitant hand. "Oh, yeah, thanks…"
She looked at Steven, uncertain. Steven had to admit, he forgot that the Crystal Gems and the citizens of Beach City were near-entirely disconnected from one another. The former saved the latter's lives over and over, had thrown Jenny a birthday party, and addressed them when the ocean disappeared, but still…There was no link. Kind of weird, Steven thought. The Crystal Gems promised to protect Earth and humans at all costs, yet never seemed to associate with them.
Steven leaned over to Ruby and whispered, "Just talk to them like you would talk to Gems. It's no big deal."
Ruby nodded, and raised the microphone to her lips.
"So, uh…" She cleared her throat. "Here's the thing…A long time ago, we came here—from another place—because that place was bad and the Earth was good. Right?" The crowd urged her to keep going. "Right. But, uh…The people—um, Gems, they're Gems like us—from that bad place didn't like that we turned against them, so we started a war with each other. It was a long, long, long time ago. And we won! We won, and we promised that we would protect Earth and all humans on it. But now…We don't know why but they're coming back for us. Aaaand they're a lot more advanced now, and they still really don't like us. It really doesn't have anything to do with you guys, they don't care about humans, it's just us. And the Earth. They don't like the Earth."
Sour Cream asked, "So…They won't hurt us?"
Sapphire reached for the mic, and Ruby passed it over. "The Gems from our Homeworld don't care about humans. They just care about the Earth. If they come back, they won't be looking for you, but you won't be in their thoughts when they try to destroy the planet."
"They're coming back," said Martha Barriga. "That's a fact? Yes? No?"
Sapphire passed the microphone to Opal.
"Most likely…yes," Opal said. At the crowd's murmuring, she quickly said, "The good news is, though, that it won't be for a while. I don't know how much time we have, but it won't be…like…you know…instant. Immediate. Soon."
"Right," said Steven. "So—"
"Quick. Fast."
"Yeah. So there's no need to panic!"
"But we have to be ready," insisted Dante Barriga. "Even if it's not tomorrow, we need to be prepared!"
A chorus of agreement started in the crowd, but was quickly shut down when Steven raised his voice to cry, "Wait, wait, wait, wait! Hold on! These guys are dangerous. Just because they don't care about humans, doesn't mean they won't hurt them! You can't fight them."
"And why not?" countered Nanefua. The little woman threw her arms into the air. "I don't know about you all, but I will fight for my home as I see fit! If that means socking some alien rock ladies in the face, then so be it!"
There were cheers and cries. Fists pumped into the air. The people were uniting, Mayor Dewey was sweating, the Crystal Gems were relaxing, and Greg was still by himself and wondering if he was the only one who remembered that his son had just gotten back from a possibly-fatal encounter with invaders from outer space.
"Um—" Opal fumbled for the microphone. "Look, uh…We promised thousands of years ago that we would protect you guys! It's why we're here, so…" She stuck a thumb up and smiled wide. "The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree!"
This was met with many confused stares, and Steven gestured her to lean forward. He whispered behind his hand to her, and after a moment, she replied, "That's what it means?"
Buck Dewey spoke up once more. "We appreciate you protecting us. But we need to protect ourselves, too."
"Listen." Kofi pinched his nose. "You three and the mayor need to work this out and tell us as soon as possible. The rest of us have a mess to clean up."
"Anything to keep my anarch—ah, town happy," Mayor Dewey declared. He gestured to the Crystal Gems with a sweep of his arm. "Our protectors and I will converse on what changes need to take place to keep us safe. We will get back to you as soon as possible!"
With that, the crowd disbanded and meandered back to their homes and businesses. Greg, at long last, ran forward to the back of the Deweymobile and pulled Steven into a tight hug. Steven squeezed him back, even when he couldn't breathe, and smiled wide when Greg pulled back.
"Told you I'd come back," he said with a chuckle.
Greg ruffled his hair. "I had faith in you, kiddo."
Mayor Dewey's smile dropped. "You fainted five times last night."
"I had faith," Greg insisted through gritted teeth. He frowned and tilted Steven's cheek to look at his injured eye better. He didn't hiss or groan or overall freak out, but he did wince sympathetically. "You okay, trooper?"
"I'm okay, and really happy to be back," Steven said.
"Me, too. But what happened?! I need details."
"Can I tell you later? I still got some adrenaline pumping."
Greg paused, unsure. He truly wanted, and he thought he deserved, to know what had happened to his son—because he didn't nearly go into cardiac arrest for nothing. However, seeing Steven's bright eyes and wide smile, he concluded that, well, if Steven was okay with it, then there was nothing to worry about. He'd already shared enough to the town; he could give him some space.
"Alright, kiddo," he finally said. "Let's talk tonight."
Steven nodded. He pushed himself out of the Deweymobile and landed on his feet. "We've got work to do! I'm sure It's a Wash is a mess right now."
He turned to wave goodbye to the Gems, only to see them frowning back at him. The three exchanged glances, all while Mayor Dewey anxiously looked at his watch.
"What?" asked Steven.
"Um…" Ruby paused. "Don't you want to stay here for this?"
"Why?" Steven asked. He gave them an easy grin. "Like I said, just talk to Mayor Dewey like he's a Gem! No big deal."
The four of them—Mayor Dewey looking both perplexed and relieved—stared for a moment longer. Eventually, Sapphire said, slowly, "It's just…You usually insist on being involved with stuff like this."
"Yeah, but…" Steven shrugged. "We got a lot of things to do. You guys tell me what's going on once it's said and done, okay?"
With that, Steven skipped away, leaving three confused Gems behind him. Greg awkwardly tailed behind him, waving goodbye, if only because he couldn't think of much else to do. Ruby was the only one who waved back.
Mayor Dewey cleared his throat. "So. How about I answer whatever questions you have, since you're so…uninformed about the workings of the town?"
Ruby narrowed her eyes at him. "Watch it, Bill. I knew your grandfather, Bill."
By the time Connie returned to Beach City—after much begging and everything-is-fine-now to her parents—it seemed that everyone and their grandmother was in the streets. Which was actually true, because every Beach City citizen, Nanefua included, were out and about.
Buckets of glass shards and broken lightbulbs lined the streets. Already, glaziers had arrived from out of town—many citizens had them on speed-dial by this point—and were lifting panes of glass onto storefronts. Those that hadn't been repaired already were covered in cut-up garbage bags and duct tape that fluttered and crinkled in the cold wind. Some were putting things back in their place, unpacking luggage, or just letting the awnings back down. Power was returning to the buildings one-by-one. As she walked past the arcade, games, slushie dispensers, and claw machines returned to power, making Mr. Smiley laugh in victory. The Big Donut had gotten power back, too—while Sadie kept the coffee- and hot chocolate-makers running, Lars carried cups out in cardboard trays, delivering the hot drinks to any chilled citizen who passed by. Everyone looked very calm, too. Not exactly zen, maybe a little tired, but no one was panicking, and a few good-natured laughs were passed.
But she couldn't find Steven Universe anywhere.
Once she found out that Beach City was "officially" safe to return to, she was expecting Steven to call at any moment. But he never did, and by lunchtime, she was thoroughly worried. She called Greg instead, but Mayor Dewey picked up for him, explaining that "Universe Jr. left to take care of damage control."
Meaning, Steven had gone to meet the invaders face-to-face. And afterwards, he wasn't picking up his phone.
Connie looked around at all the citizens. Would they know if Steven had been kidnapped or not? But…if he had, she didn't want to get the news from someone who didn't know what was going on, and it was making her more worried, and her stomach was starting to curl in on itself…
Something shoved into her. The first thought that came to mind was 'I was standing in someone's way', so as she spun around, Connie stuttered, "O-oh, sorry! I wasn't looking where I was…"
Seeing who it really was, she smiled instead. "Lion!"
Lion didn't even flinch when the girl threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in his mane. Once she pulled back, he blew a hot breath in her face.
"Missed you too, buddy." Her smile dropped. Her fingers curled in his mane. "I need to get to the Temple! Can you take me?"
Lion lifted and dropped his paw, which she took as "Get on." Connie hoisted herself up onto his back, pulled her scarf over her nose, and urged him on. Lion charged forward, paws thumping against the icy wood of the boardwalk.
They made it maybe a block before someone called, "Hey!"
Lion reared into a stop, almost sending Connie flying over his head. Luckily, she kept her hold, and turned to see Sadie walking out of the Big Donut, a paper box in hand. The blonde shut the door behind her (pausing a moment to re-stick some duct tape) and jogged over to her.
"Connie, right? Steven's friend." Connie nodded, and Sadie continued, "No one's at his house right now. The Gems are talking with Mayor Dewey somewhere."
Connie assumed the worst at once. Were they discussing a rescue mission for Steven? Was he being held for ransom? Was he all alone and waiting for the Gems to rescue him, all while she was getting upset just because he didn't call her right away—?
"Hello?"
Connie blinked at Sadie. "What?"
"You just, uh, zoned out. For like, five minutes."
"Sorry. Uh—Where's Steven now? Is he…safe?"
"I'm pretty sure he went to his dad's carwash?" Sadie held up the box in her hand. "I was wondering if you wanted to take this over to them? It's kind of the only stuff that didn't spoil overnight, and I figured he'd like something for breakfast? Uh, the omelet-donuts were taken off of the menu because they violated too many health code violations, but I'm not ready to break that news to him, so just say we were out if he asks."
"Understood."
Relieved, Connie took the box from Sadie and set it in her lap. Lion turned around, and just before he took off running for It's a Wash, Connie heard Sadie mumble under her breath, "Don't know what they were thinking, putting raw egg chunks in donuts…"
The neon sign above It's a Wash was struggling to light up, buzzing on and off and on again. A bucket filled with glass shards was set outside the door (which was still missing glass, so the 'CLOSED' sign was propped beside it), and the gate was just barely off the ground. Greg's van was already parked outside.
When Connie and Lion trotted in from the road, Steven and Greg were on different sides of the gate, Greg inside and Steven outside. Connie could only see Greg's legs, the rest of him covered by the gate.
"Okay…" There was a 'beep' inside of the wash, and Greg spoke up, "Try this!"
Steven lifted up the gate an inch. He really could have lifted the whole thing if he wanted to, but he and Greg were trying to get it to move up on its own again. It had blown a fuse (or something) during the invasion, and Steven was hoping that giving it a nudge would revive it back into use, like how pushing a car with a faulty engine could get it going again.
However, the gate moved not an inch further, and Greg sighed. "Okay, give me a second…"
Connie hopped off of Lion's back and came running. "Steven!"
At her voice, Steven spun around, and a cheek-splitting grin took up his face. He pretty much caught Connie as she all but threw herself onto him and squeezed him tight, tight, tight.
"Steven," Connie said again as she pulled back.
"Connie," Steven replied with warmth.
When the feline came trotting over lazily, Steven exclaimed, "Lion!"
With a frown, Connie said, "Steven!"
"Connie?" asked Steven, concerned.
Greg dipped down to look at them from the crack beneath the gate. "Am I supposed to say 'Greg'?"
Connie lifted her hand to Steven's face. Very lightly, almost so much that he couldn't feel it, she touched Steven's black eye. His eyelid was swollen and puffy, albeit not completely shut, and the skin around it was purple and red. It could have been much worse—his sclera was still white, so she doubted any permanent damage was done—but it looked painful.
"What happened?" asked Connie.
"Ah, you know," Steven shrugged. "Violence."
"Does it hurt?"
Much too happily, Steven replied, "Of course it does!"
"Okay…Well, I'm really happy to see you. And I'm really happy you're safe."
"I am too! For you, I mean. And myself. And everyone. Sorry for making you worry."
"Oh, no, don't be! I just came over because I was trying to call you and you weren't picking up the phone, so I thought I'd call Greg, but Greg didn't pick up, so I worried a bit more and I wanted to come see you, but you weren't home, so I got more worried and—Okay, this sounds like I'm mad, but I'm not. I brought you breakfast!"
She shoved the box out before she rambled any more. Steven pried open the box and pulled out its contents: a cup of coffee and a cup of hot chocolate (both sealed tight), some packets of sugar and creamer, napkins, and two things wrapped in napkins. He slid the coffee to Greg—"Thanks!" "Want some sugar?" "No, I need it strong."—and peeled the napkins off of one bundle.
The pastry had swirls of cinnamon and embedded raisins, and Steven groaned in appreciation. "Yeees! Breakfast donut! Maybe I should go get some omelet-donuts later…"
While he slid the other one to Greg—"Oh, great! I love chocolate don…Raisins."—Connie said, "I'm pretty sure that's a bagel."
Steven frowned and flipped it over. "What? No, it's a donut."
"Okay…Listen, I was really worried and I know it's really serious so do you think you could—"
"It's 'the Big Donut', not 'the Big Bagel.' That would be, like, if Beach Citywalk Fries started selling mozzarella sticks!"
"Noted. Anyway, I think I should know what happened just in case something happens in the future, so—"
"What is the difference between bagels and donuts? Is it just that one is sweet and the other isn't?"
"Steven, I don't know. Look, I want to know what happened so I can help—"
"Or is it that one is boiled and the other is fried?"
"Steven—"
"Let me look it up…"
"Steven—"
"Oh, hey, look, how to say 'bagel' in sixty different languages!"
"Steven—"
"You know, it really grinds my gears when every language says the same thing except for one. 'Bagel', 'bagel', 'bagel', 'bagel', 'ROSQUILLA—'"
"Steven!" cried Connie.
"Connie!" cried Greg.
"Greg?" asked Connie.
"Steven!" cried Steven.
"Could you lend me a hand?" asked Greg. "Need some help in here."
Connie looked to Steven, who was busying himself with sipping at his hot chocolate. With a sigh, she bent down and crawled through the gate to Greg. The lights inside were on, but Greg still had a flashlight in one hand and was fiddling with the fuse-box—Connie assumed it was a fuse-box, she had no idea how carwashes worked—in the other.
"Hold this down for me, will you?"
Connie did as she was asked, but her mind was elsewhere. She could see Steven's knees bending and straightening as he bopped to an inexistent beat. Not that she'd know otherwise, but she didn't think bopping was how people usually reacted to very stressful experiences.
Greg started moving a little faster, muttering, "Oh! Let me try this—"
Steven bent down and poked his head through the crack between the gate and the ground. "What?"
"Oh, I didn't say anything, I was just—"
The gate slammed down on Steven's back. It didn't hurt too much, and he was more surprised than he was hurt, but Steven still cried out, and Greg cried out, and Connie cried out, and Lion got up and walked away from It's a Wash to find somewhere quieter to nap. Steven tried to worm his way out, but before he could, Greg, in a panic, pressed his foot to his son's face and pushed.
Steven was shoved out of the carwash, and the gate slammed down, separating the three of them. Steven rubbed at his stinging eye and pushed himself up to his feet.
"Steven!" Greg's muffled voice cried out from the other side. "Are you okay, buddy? I'm sorry!"
"I'm good! You have really soft boots." He reached down for the gate. "Here, let's try again."
"Actually, why don't you go help out in the town? I've got it here, and I know you're worried about everyone else."
"Well…Alright. See you later, Dad!"
Greg replied, "See you later!" at the same time that Connie cried out, "Steven, wait for me!"
But by the time she'd run through the carwash and out of the front door, Steven was gone.
Steven figured that cleaning up the city wouldn't take that long, but he was surprised at the surplus improvement that he found when he returned. Not only was the street back to its mostly-empty self, but about half of the storefronts had been repaired. Most had their electricity returned to them by this point.
What piqued Steven's curiosity was the absence of anyone at Beach Citywalk Fries. He would have thought that Peedee would have things up and running at that point. But while that restaurant was down, Fish Stew Pizza was up and running. Smoke was already coming from the pipes in the ceiling.
Steven let himself in. The pizzeria had no customers, but more than half the town was inside. All the Frymans, Kofi, Nanefua, and Kiki were in the kitchen, the Cool Kids, Lars, and Sadie sitting among the tables. As soon as he opened the door, Steven was hit with the smell of cheese, pepperoni, and grease all at once. He was also hit with a wave of heat, which was much-welcomed through his layers of chilled clothing.
"Steven!" Nanefua threw her arms up in cheer at the sight of him. "There he is! Our hero!"
Though there was no applause, there was a round of appreciative greetings and whoops from Ronaldo and Jenny sent his way. Steven blushed under his scarf, and as he unzipped his coat, he mumbled, "Oh, come on. I'm still just Steven."
"Oh, Okay," said Nanefua. Then, with much power, she screamed, "Stop looking at him!"
Everyone went back to how they were.
Steven went to the counter separating the dining room from the kitchen. On the other side, everyone was busying themselves with something. Usually, six people in such a small kitchen would be chaos, but everyone was keeping to themselves, making easy progress.
"Steven," said Nanefua, "Come here!"
Steven sidestepped a bit to where Nanafua was waiting. She had a great bowl in her hands and was stirring its contents with rigor. Steven thought that it looked like salsa—chunky, but not too chunky, smooth but not really liquid—but it was darker and more brown than red.
Before he could ask, Nanefua snatched a fry from a nearby boat and held it to Steven. "Try this."
She held the pot up to him, and Steven gathered a bit of it onto the fry before popping it into his mouth. It was spicy, but not too spicy. He could taste pepper, tomato, garlic, and something that he could only describe as 'seafood.' Like shrimp, or something.
He hummed in satisfaction, and while Nanefua handed him another fry, he asked, "What is it?"
"Shito," said Nanefua. "Old family recipe! I have to make a lot because people are going to be eating this up like animals."
She took a taste for herself, muttered "More ginger!", and went back to her makeshift station. Looking around at everyone's work, and the rare sight of the Frymans and the Pizzas together, Steven asked, "What's going on?"
Kiki was spooning marinara onto perfectly-circular, rolled-out dough, and she replied, "Beach City brunch!"
Steven gasped with wonder. "Tell me more of this magic!"
Kofi, who was working on spreading bits of ground beef onto dough already topped with marinara and cheese, answered without looking up at him. "Things were tense this morning. We thought some good food would get everyone back in good spirits."
"And if that's true," said Mr. Fryman, tossing fryers full of fries with both hands, "then everyone is going to be downright giddy by noon."
Peedee did not share the others' perky attitudes. In fact, as he shredded potatoes into a bowl, with his hair tied back in a net, he looked very (and unnecessarily) stressed. "Downright unsatisfied is what they're going to be if we don't keep on schedule." He turned around and cried, "Ronaldo! Hash those browns!"
Ronaldo turned away from the pan full of frying potato shreds to glare at his younger brother. He raised his spatula like a weapon. "I will spat 'choo, little man."
Peedee did not seem particularly threatened, although he did return to shredding. Once the last bit of potato was gone, he reached for another, but found nothing. Running the bowl to Ronaldo, he screamed, "I NEED MORE POTATOES!"
"Alright, alright." Jenny came up with a great bowl full of freshly-peeled potatoes. It barely touched the counter before it was snatched away by Peedee.
Steven followed her back to the table of teenagers. There was a pile of potatoes on the table, and they each had a bowl in their laps and peelers in their hands. Lars was sitting awkwardly, legs bent like he wanted to prop them onto the table but was restricting himself. Once they peeled a potato, they put it into the great bowl that Jenny returned.
"Hello, fellow young ones," Steven greeted them. "Peeling the po-tates, I see?"
"Indeed, you see," said Buck. He put a potato (a somehow-perfectly-smooth one) into the bowl and went for another.
Lars let out a huff and shifted in his seat. While others were tearing away at the potatoes, he was turning his over and over in his hands, eyebrows furrowed.
"What's wrong?" asked Steven.
"Nothing," Lars snapped. Softer, quieter, he explained, "I just can't…get it right…"
He did another quick flick of the peeler, and sighed when it left a flat chunk out of the potato. He sighed again and kept peeling, hoping to smooth it out.
"Lars," said Jenny, "it's cool. They're all going to turn into stomach acid, don't bother making 'em pretty."
"Yeah, okay…" Lars set the potato into the bowl and reached for another. After a few first peels, he nicked his knuckle and hissed. "Ow!"
Beside him, Sadie tutted, "Be careful!"
Lars whined at her, and Sadie whined back, and they fell back to comfortable peeling silence. Steven considered sitting down to help them, but they seemed to have it all covered.
He heard the door open behind him, and almost turned around, but instead saw who it was on the reflection of an encased poster.
Connie shut the door behind her, pulling her scarf back down to her neck. Her eyes roamed through the restaurant, searching, until they finally landed on Steven. He didn't catch her eyes, though, and as she approached, he snapped his gaze back to Lars and Sadie.
"So," he said, a bit too loudly, "What are you guys doing here?"
"We were going to do donuts," sighed Sadie, "but almost everything is spoiled. We're out of business until the next shipment comes in."
"What about you?" asked Sour Cream. He was focusing less on peeling potatoes and more on getting the stray dirt off of his hands. "You bringing anything?"
"Uh…CONNIE!"
Connie jumped back when Steven very suddenly turned to her. He was smiling, but Connie was not, blinking at him through her fake-lens glasses.
"If you were going to a potluck and you couldn't cook, what would you do?"
Connie paused. The teenagers weren't staring, but she knew that they were listening, and she cleared her throat before saying, "Um…silverware? Plates? I don't—"
"Brilliant! Perfect! This, we shall do!"
He grabbed hold of Connie's hand and ran to the door, and while Connie cried, in vain, "Wait, wait, wait!"
Ten minutes of unnecessary running later, Steven threw the door of Fish Stew Pizza open once more. He had grabbed every last Styrofoam plate from his home, while Connie had every plastic fork (i.e. a single box) in her hands.
Despite his heavy breaths and the wind-chilled sweat on his brow, Steven still jogged to the counter and set the plates down.
"Here!" he cried. "Now we shall not eat plate-less like barbarians!"
Connie set down the forks beside the plates, glancing sideways at her friend. He was fidgeting on his feet like he had too much energy trapped in him, and no way to let it out. Maybe it was adrenaline from the aftershocks of the invasion? Connie didn't know—she wasn't a psychologist. Also, she was twelve.
"So," she said, "We've done our part on the brunch. Steven, I'm really hoping we could talk about—"
"What else can we do?" asked Steven. Connie couldn't tell who he was asking. "How can we help?"
Kofi hummed in thought. He took two piping-hot pizzas out of the oven and slid in two more, shutting the door before responding, "If you're in such spirit, could you spruce up the tabletops?"
In a heartbeat, Steven was bolting for the supply closet. He almost ripped the door off its hinges in his haste. Connie was left to stand at the counter, feeling like someone trapped on the other side of a one-way mirror and watching a broomstick smack down on the floor.
"Okay, Steven," she sighed, "I would really like to go somewhere more private so we can—"
"Catch!"
"Whoa!"
Connie just barely managed to prevent the spray bottle from smacking into her face. It was followed by a roll of paper towels, which she didn't catch, and Steven slammed the door to the supply closet loud enough to make everyone in the restaurant jump. He went to the nearest table, spritzed the lemon-scented cleaner, and stripped off a paper towel. Connie almost felt her arm cramping as she watched his arm work at bullet speed.
"Come on, Connie," Steven said over his shoulder. "We need these things so clean, people will see their pores!"
Connie didn't bother hiding the scowl on her face. She caught the eye of Ronaldo, watching her curiously, and he whirled back to the hashbrowns. She went stomping to the nearest table.
Through much too much elbow-grease, the tabletops were so clean, Connie actually did think she could see a pore or two on their surfaces. Two whole rolls of paper towels were used, as was a whole spray bottle. The garbage can was full of damp paper balls.
At long last, Steven emerged from the supply closet, dusting his hands off. "There you are! Now everything is arranged in alphabetical order. From right to left, though, so it's not boring."
Steven came back to the counter. "So what…ahem…what can we do…" He coughed. "What can…we do no—HOW—!"
He broke down hacking. Connie was hacking, too, and those in the kitchen were struggling not to cough into the food, and the teens, finished with their potato-peeling, were pulling their collars above their noses. Something was bringing tears to Steven's eyes. His nose was burning.
"What's ha-HAH-ppening?" Steven choked out.
Ronaldo had two streams of tears running down his cheeks. "It's so lemony fresh…"
"Okay," Mr. Fryman said, then gave a great cough, "I don't care how cold it is out there—someone open a window!"
Sour Cream and Buck got up to do just that. Connie wanted to speak up, but she feared the chemical vapors reaching into her mouth and onto her taste buds, so she just pulled her scarf up and stood in silent agony.
Besides, Steven was already smiling and talking again, despite the ocean-level-wateriness in his eyes. "What else can I do?"
"More onion," huffed Nanefua.
Jenny's voice was muffled beneath her sweater. "The shito is perfect, Gunga. Don't worry about it."
"I'm not worried," Nanefua said with a hack. She covered her nose with her fingers and honked, "I am knowledgeable, and if I say I need more vegetables from the Allium genus, then I better get them!"
"We're on it, Nane—hack—Nane—HOACK—Nane—Let's go, Connie."
Usually, riding on Lion's back, arms wrapped around Steven, on a quick trot to the nearest grocery store would be nothing to Connie. It would be a very normal, commonplace thing, nothing to write home about, just something enjoyable in a boring way. The finger-numbing cold doesn't really bother her, either.
But this ride on Lion's back, with her arms wrapped around Steven, on a quick trot to the nearest grocery store is most certainly not nothing. Because this isn't just any other winter day in Beach City. This wasn't just another grain of sand on a beach, day-to-day-life-wise. Beach City was invaded by intergalactic enemies, Steven had gone MIA, the Gems were missing, the future was uncertain, and Connie had no idea what was going on at all.
And Steven wasn't helping—whoever came up with "One Hundred Bottles of Milk on the Wall" probably didn't intend for singers to actually get down to seventy-four. Steven did, though, and it took all of Connie's willpower to not use his back as a wall and bash her head against it.
The grocery store was up and running, and the doors automatically slid open when they stepped in. In the warmth, Connie took off her gloves and stuffed them into her pockets.
"To the vegetables, Connie!" Steven was already making a beeline for them. "Let's hope Onion hasn't stolen all of his namesakes again."
Connie followed him quickly, and had just opened her mouth to speak when Steven stopped dead in his tracks. He was looking at the price tags and labels with something that Connie could only call fear.
"What?" asked Connie, a bit snappier than intended.
"What kind do we get?" asked Steven.
"Uh…"
"What kind did Nanefua want? Green, brown, white, red? Shallots? No, if she wanted shallots, she would have asked for shallots…"
"Steven…"
"You know what? Let's get one of everything. No biggie. Where's the bag dispenser?"
"There."
"Great! Now, should we bag them separately? Do onions taint each other? Because I remember one time I had a whole bunch of candy, and I put them all in one bag for a while, and the chocolate tasted really fruity from all the suckers. But candies aren't vegetables, even though I wish they were. What do you think?"
Connie said nothing.
Steven, halfway to ripping off a plastic baggie, asked again, "Connie?"
She crossed her arms.
Steven felt the iciness coming off of her. He saw the way her fingers were stiff on her elbows. He looked down at his boots, unsure of what else to do with himself, and tentatively asked, "Is food produce a sore subject?"
"Ugh!" Connie's hands flew up to her hair, dragging through her scalp. Her glasses were knocked askew. "Steven!"
"What?"
"This isn't funny!"
"I know it isn't! I don't want to ruin Nanefua's food, and I was joking to lighten the stress a bit—"
"Stop!" Steven reeled back at her yell. Connie took a deep breath and slowly unwound her fingers from her hair. She held them, palm-down, in front of her. "Just…stop. Just…answer me honestly. Is there something you don't want to tell me?"
Steven blinked. "What?"
"Every time I ask you to talk about what happened, you interrupt me. Like you're hiding something. What could you have done to make me mad?"
"I'm not—" Steven dropped the baggie. "I'm not trying to hide anything from you. There's no secret!"
"Then why won't you talk to me?"
"There's nothing to talk about!"
"What? How is that even—"
"Just—" Steven sighed. "Look, everyone is really tense right now, right? And I know you are, too. But really, nothing happened! They came, we fought, we won. End of story."
"Is it, though?"
Steven sighed, and the tension in his shoulders dropped. For a second, Connie thought that he looked very tired but somehow invigorated at the same time. When he met her gaze again, there was a bright, but small, fire in his eyes.
"When we were all together at the hotel, everyone was really scared, and I didn't get it. Because I knew that the Crystal Gems would take care of everything. But then I got scared, too, because I started thinking, 'What if they can't?' But guess what? They did! Everything turned out okay, just like I said it would!" His smile faltered for a second. "I mean, it's not perfect, and we have some things we need to take care of, but we're all good! Everyone's safe. Beach City is saved. I'm here, you're here, we're all here, and that's something to be really, really happy about, isn't it?"
Connie did not answer immediately. Personally, if she were in Steven's shoes, she wouldn't be really, really happy. She'd be very stressed, borderline freaking out. It's not like everything was over—one battle on the beach wasn't going to stop Homeworld. Even she knew that, even if she didn't know anything else about it.
Yet, Steven was happy. He had a black eye, but that was it, and he was happy. And he was here, and he was safe. She supposed she couldn't really ask him to not be happy. Maybe she was looking at it all wrong—maybe Steven had every right to be chipper, because even though it was a small victory, it was a victory all the same. He could have lost his family, but he didn't, and…yeah. That was great. He had the right to smile.
So she smiled, too, small but sincere, and finally said, "Yeah. Okay. Let's be happy."
Steven playfully hit her shoulder, but she pulled him in for a side-hug instead. He chuckled.
Once he pulled back, he reached once more for the baggies. "Alright, let's bag these things. I'm throwing in some shallots for good measure."
Connie stripped off some baggies for herself, and for the first time that day, she felt like everything was going to be okay.
Come ten-thirty, the Fish-Stew-Pizza-Plus-Beach-Citywalk-Fries brunch was in full swing. It was kind of funny, Steven thought, that an entire city could fit in one restaurant—save the Crystal Gems and Mayor Dewey, still in their impromptu meeting. It was a stark contrast to the tense rally that had gathered that morning.
People were gobbling Nanefua's shito like ambrosia—except for Nanefua herself, staring into her reflection in her coffee, murmuring "It could have been better" under her breath. Peedee was finally taking a break and joined his father and brother at their table. He even complimented Ronaldo's hashbrowns, which got him to smile, but then Peedee noted that he'd put them into the red boats for the fries instead of the blue boats, and Ronaldo took away his hashbrown privileges. Mr. Smiley was in such a good mood that he announced that for the next 24 hours, all ticket prizes at the arcade were half-off. At this, Onion suspiciously drummed his fingers on the table.
Steven, Connie, and Greg were seated at their own table, sharing a mountain of fries, but they talked to whoever was passing. Barb came by to thwomp Steven's back for a job well done. He couldn't breathe for a whole three minutes afterward, but he appreciated it.
It was about twenty minutes in that the door swung open and Mayor Dewey and the Crystal Gems walked in. Mayor Dewey had his hands behind his back and his head held high with pride, but the Crystal Gems looked exhausted. Kofi offered a cup of coffee to Sapphire, who unceremoniously tossed it into her face, gave the cup back, and kept walking.
The room was already quiet, but Mayor Dewey still called, "Attention, please! I have some important news. This morning, the Crystal Gems—"
He gestured to them—Opal was slumped over on a table, Sapphire was seated with her chin propped on her hand, and Ruby was motionless on the floor.
"—and I discussed reforms that would need to happen to ensure the protection and future of Beach City. I would like to first announce, with pride, the union between the Crystal Gems and the government from this moment forward."
There was polite applause, except from Steven and Connie, who both whooped and drummed on the tabletop. The Crystal Gems all gave lazy thumbs-ups.
"I would also like to announce the up-and-coming system in case of intergalactic emergency. Although funding will…" Mayor Dewey sighed, and a bit of the light in his eyes died. "…have to be pulled for the fifty-foot memorial in Dewey Park—which would have depicted every Dewey who has served in the office, including myself, sitting on a mountain top with a fire-breathing dragon wrapped around our feet—I think we can all agree, though saddened, that it is for the best."
No one else seemed saddened, though. In fact, there was more cheer this time, actual fists in the air and smiles on faces. The Crystal Gems finally pulled themselves to their feet—or squatted halfway, as in Opal's case.
"For now, though, I think we should celebrate our victory and our protectors in this meal provided by Fish Stew Pizza and Beach Citywalk Fries. Continue with the festivities, everyone!"
The second he was finished, Opal was approached by the Barrigas, all smiles and polite questions. Nanefua went to Sapphire to give her a "citizen's thanks", three jars of shito covered in purple, blue, and red tops. Steven noted with some pride that neither of them were as stiff and awkward as they usually would have been. Not perfect, of course, they still fidgeted their hands and glanced around unsurely, but they weren't twitching to get away from the conversation. It gave him a look into a future that was already looking pretty superb.
Ruby made a beeline for their table. She and Greg fist-bumped one another, and she took a handful of fries from the mountain—"After that meeting, I want to feel again," was all she said as an explanation.
"So everything's good?" asked Steven, hopefully. "Everything worked out?"
"Yep," said Ruby. "Actually, since you missed it, I can tell you what we talked about. You should probably go ahead and know, anyway."
Just as she said this, though, Sour Cream called out, "Yo, Steven!"
"Truth or Dare," said Sadie. "You in?"
"Um…" Steven paused. "No thanks, I—"
"Go ahead," said Ruby.
"Really?"
"Yeah. You've been through a lot the past twenty-four hours. Go have some fun. Relax."
"Oh…Okay!" Steven bounced out of his chair, then took Connie's hand in his. "Let's go!"
"Okay," Connie barely got out before Steven pulled her to the teenagers' table.
Once they were gone, Greg said, "You can tell me, if you want."
Ruby shook her head. "Not unless you can promise me you won't go into cardiac arrest." She chomped down on a fry and added, "Which you can't."
Steven and Connie strode up to the teenagers' table just as Kiki was saying, "Okay, Buck…Truth or Dare?"
Buck pushed up his sunglasses. "Dare."
"I dare you…" Kiki was already breaking down in snickers, and struggled to say, "…to spend the rest of the game with fries in your nose!"
Buck smiled, but reached for the fries. He stuck one in each nostril while replying, "Challenge accepted. Lars: Truth or Dare?"
Lars glanced down at the fries—tasty and appetizing, but not something he wanted in his nasal cavity at the moment—and replied, "Truth."
Buck frowned. Pinching his chin with his fingers (the fries bumped against the back of his hand as he did so), he mused, "I was kind of hoping you'd say dare, because I always worry that I'll force someone too far out of their comfort zone. So I'll keep it simple: What's an interest of yours that no one else knows?"
They all leaned forward expectantly. Steven wondered, for a second, what personal stuff he knew about Lars. He liked to wear plugs in his ears, and he always wore sneakers, and…Yeah, that was it.
Lars shrunk in the spotlight. His hands, resting on the table top, stiffened. He seemed unsure and afraid over such an easy question, and even Sadie was side-eyeing him.
"Uhhhh…Musical theatre!" Lars smiled unconvincingly. "That's my secret interest. Musical theatre. It's all…musical and…theatrical." He snapped his fingers. "Bingo-bongo, heh..."
"Cool," said Jenny. She took an audible gulp from her soda.
"Yeah, I didn't know that," agreed Sadie. There was something hesitant, but not prying, in her voice.
"I actually thought it'd be pretty cool to have a chiptune-musical," said Sour Cream. "I actually tried one myself, and I had the whole opening number, introducing the characters and everything. Then I realized that all the words were just 'beep-boop-bwap-woop', and I gave up."
Connie hummed. "A for effort?"
"Your turn, Lars," said Jenny.
"Okay, uh…Steven!" Lars reached for his drink and asked, "Truth or Dare?"
"Dare!" Steven slapped his hands (lightly) on the table. "And make it saucy."
"Okay, I dare you…to…" Lars paused. "Hm…I dare you to…" A mischievous smile crept onto his face. "…to go stand in the ocean knee-deep for three minutes."
"Lars, no," said Sadie. "It's freezing!"
"Fine. One."
This was meet with a typical "Ooooooh~!" from the others. Sadie still seemed unhappy, but Steven was already jumping to his feet. He zipped his jacket up to his chin and pulled his pants legs straight.
"Someone time me," he said. "And don't cut me off at fifty-five! I want the whole sixty seconds! I am a man."
He took off for the door, and they all followed, clambering out of the booth and their chairs. Connie hung at the back, out of her element, even as the teenagers gathered at the door of the pizzeria. They shut it behind so as not to let the heat out.
"Go, Steven!" Kiki clapped her hands. "Sixty seconds, let's go!"
Dead-serious, Buck said, "I wouldn't last sixty seconds. My feet are sensitive."
Connie herself let out a whoop—which she instantly regretted, but no one else seemed to notice. They were focused on Steven, already halfway to the waves and still going.
His hood flew back in the wind, and he pulled it up over his curls again. Really, his only concern was getting something wet once he got back inside. Also, would Lars be disappointed once he got knee-deep? Because Steven's knee-deep wasn't the same as Lars's knee-deep, and…
And…
With the shoreline just over ten feet away, Steven stopped dead in his tracks.
The water lapped up at the shore, receded, lapped, receded, lapped, receded...
almost really did start crying then, as his friend meshed with his enemy into a formless mass that swelled and swelled. Peridot's fingers and legs and arms did not melt, though, instead clattering on the finger and splashing into the water like
"Steven?"
hardly even a second, they had become spears of frost and ice, their razor-sharp ends pointing straight at the Crystal Gems. Steven instantly felt his blood run cold in his veins. The others would be poofed at once—he would be stabbed dozens of times over like
"Yo, Steven, are you good?"
all surged forward, and Steven almost cried out, only to see the spears instead melt and refreeze in two short instants. They became one shape—a bondage, a Chinese finger-trap, wrapped all around the fusion's torso and
"You don't have to if you don't want to!"
she was gone.
Connie's voice rose above the others. "Steven!"
He took off running.
The teenagers and Connie watched in confusion and concern as Steven's figure bolted in the Temple's direction. As the Cool Kids started to murmur, and Lars wondered if he had unknowingly brought up Steven's aquaphobia, Connie shoved through them in quick pursuit.
"Steven," she called out.
He didn't stop for a second. The wood of the boardwalk turned to the sand of the beach, and even as she huffed in the cold air and pumped her arms, Connie knew she wouldn't be able to catch up to him. His stamina had skyrocketed at some point; she wouldn't come close to him if she tried.
As she jogged along the Cliffside, her eyes swept over the long-stretching open and found something unfamiliar. There was something jutting out of the waves, like way-too-smooth coral reefs. Even at their distance, the sun glinted off their bright green surfaces. She had no idea what they were, but she knew they had come sometime in the night.
She came to the Temple's front—the sand was covered in potholes, she noticed, but besides that and the missing windows, there was no damage. She made a beeline for the hill that lead to the stairs of Steven's Room.
Just as her shoes touched the grass, however, she instead spotted a familiar pink T-shirt just a little way ahead. In the shadow of one of the Temple's hands, long-since fallen and curled slightly inwards, Steven was huddled in on himself. He had buried his face in his knees and was hugging them close. It was like he was trying to keep the rest of the world out.
Connie slowed as she approached, not wanting to startle him. He was trembling, but whether it was the cold or something else, Connie couldn't tell.
She rested her hand on one of the stone fingertips. Steven didn't say anything to her.
"Steven?" She knelt down on the sand, but hesitated to reach for him. "What's wrong?"
He still didn't say anything.
"I can't help if you don't tell me," she insisted gently. She tried to smile, even though he wasn't looking at her. "You can talk to me, it's okay—"
"It's not okay!"
Connie reeled. Steven was glaring at her, but the fire was lost in the hot streaks of tears running down his face. They kept rolling down his pink cheeks, down his black eye, bringing snot to his upper lip, and she didn't know what to do. She had seen him get teary-eyed when he disappointed Opal, but that just confused her, and those tears hadn't spilled.
She had never seen him cry before.
When Connie did not reply, too shocked to, Steven went on, his voice cracking unevenly. "Nothing is okay! Everything is really messed up and I can't keep smiling about it!"
Connie finally did find her voice. She sat back on her feet and spoke softly. "What's wrong?"
"Everything!" Steven tried to wipe the tears away, but it was futile. "We didn't win because we were the good guys, Connie! We won because we got lucky! They took us out in five minutes—Opal got split apart because of me, because I was distracting her, because I was trying to help and I just made things worse!"
"What do you mean, 'split apart'? I saw her just a minute—"
"She's a fusion. Opal's been a fusion this whole time—she's made of Pearl and Amethyst, two really great people who love and care about each other and me, and I got them split up and hurt and scared because I was being Typical Reckless Steven again! Ruby and Sapphire, too. I didn't even get us out by doing something brave, I just so happened to get out of my cell. I actually thought we were going to win, because Opal was taking care of Jasper—this really big, really scary Gem who thought I was Mom and wanted to kill me—and we took care of Peridot, and we got control of the ship, and we were winning! We were actually winning! We crashed the ship, but we were okay, and we won, right? But guess what? At the last second, Peridot comes back, Lapis fuses with her to save us, and now they're both trapped in the ocean together!"
He threw his hands up in the air. "It's not over, either! Jasper's on Earth, somewhere, doing who-knows-what to who-knows-who. We were this close to saving Lapis. We could have all gone home and be happy and safe, and she wouldn't be hurting anymore, but now she's all alone with someone who wanted to kill all of us. To top this wonderful, miraculous sundae, Homeworld is probably going to send more people to hurt us, to hurt you, and if we barely got out this time, what are we going to do next time?!"
He stopped at this. The tears were drying in sticky tracks, and his fingers dug into his coat.
Connie wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight.
Steven was still for a moment. Connie could feel his arms stiffen beneath hers. Then, slowly but surely, they wrapped around her in turn, just not as tight. Connie rubbed a hand up and down his back, the way her mother did when she was upset, and waited until he started pulling back to let go.
The heat and the tears in his eyes had both dried up. He now looked very, very tired, and was barely holding himself up.
"Thanks for telling me," said Connie. Steven nodded. "You should have said something sooner. It's not healthy to pent it all up like that."
"I know."
Connie sat down beside him. Staring up at the Temple, framed by clouds lazily passing by, felt very serene. In the silence and the solitude, she couldn't find it in herself to feel afraid, or concerned, or confused. It was just how it was, she guessed.
"You're upset," she said. "You should be. It's really unfair and really scary."
Steven nodded.
"When I get upset like this, I let myself be for a little while. I don't worry about the future or things that I don't know about. I just get it out of my system."
Judging by how he finally released his legs, Steven was planning to do just that.
"Just because things seem really bad, doesn't mean they'll always be." She tipped her head back so it rested against the stone. "It may be for a while. It's okay to be scared. But things might get better, too. And you're not alone in it. You have me and the Crystal Gems and your dad…"
Connie sighed. She was never the best at giving advice, especially not the emotional kind, and she sounded awkward to her own ears. Steven didn't seem to mind, though.
"I think we'll be okay," she said. "I think everything will get better, even if it takes a while. So…"
She reached down and put her hand atop Steven's. He didn't grab hers in turn, but he did not pull away.
"Be honest about it. Don't forget about me, huh?"
Steven nodded one last time. He, too, leaned his head back against the stone. He sniffed.
"Want to go back?" asked Connie.
"Can we stay here for a bit?"
"Sure."
So they sat there, not quite holding hands, not quite relaxing, not quite okay—but not quite terrible, either.