Steven shivered, leaning forward slightly and looking around with a frown.

He didn't recognize where he was, not at first; the hybrid pinched his eyebrows together, silently pushing himself to his feet. His movements felt… off, but he ignored the discomfort in order to focus on his surroundings first, sweeping his gaze around wordlessly. It took him a moment to recognize the beach - and he only did because of the temple gem, the giant statue looming over him. But something else was wrong; something was missing. It took a good minute or so of looking around for him to realize that the beach house was gone, leaving behind only the wide mouth of the cave that was the temple, the statue's hands cupped in front of it. Steven rubbed his eyes, genuinely baffled now, and ventured forward to check it out.

Something was wrong here, but he couldn't quite place it. Every second that passed brought more and more confusion, and nostalgia; he recognized the place, obviously, but he hadn't seen the temple like this since he was a kid. He'd sit in the back of Greg's van and watch the gems as they built the beach house… the hybrid shook his head furiously, pushing the thoughts back and slowing slightly as he finally reached the cave, and grimacing slightly as he stared inside.

"Guys?" He called, wincing at the way his voice echoed around the hollow temple, heart sinking slightly at the realization that it was empty. He gripped one of the fingers of the temple gem's hand, turning away completely to scan the beach instead. He wasn't exactly on good terms with the gems, but right then, as confused as he was, he'd rather have them there to help him figure this out, because he was completely at a loss here… "Oh, no, no, no," he chided himself, rubbing his face furiously, "you don't need them, you don't need their help, Steven. Come on." He took a few steps away from the temple, taking another quick look around. The temple was different - would the rest of the town be? Maybe he could go find Lapis and Peridot. They'd probably know what was going on- and accepting their help would be much easier than…

"Come live with us in the temple…"

Steven paused, turning his head slightly to the side. The voices were so faint, so distant, that the hybrid could have easily passed it off as his imagination - but curiosity and confusion hit harder than the disdain he felt for the gems in any case. He knew their voices, he knew what they sounded like when they sang - it was them, without a doubt. The words they were saying, though, left him more than bewildered; it was familiar, something he'd heard before, but maybe not from them, exactly. The hybrid steeled himself, curling his lips back slightly as he turned.

Sure enough, Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl stood on the warp pad, far enough away that Steven managed to force himself to relax just a little. But, before he could bask in the relief, the gems were stepping down and walking towards him - and something else struck him just as fast, the fact that they looked much more different than Steven had expected them to. He furrowed his eyebrows and stared at them for a moment, too confused to care about their approach, but he did finally return his attention back to them when they started singing once again. "There's a room waiting for you…" Amethyst stepped forward, extending a hand.

"Come on…"

Pearl was next, stepping forward with Amethyst and holding her hand out. "Come on…"

Garnet stepped forward, between them, and offered her hand along with the other two; Steven stared down at the gem, somewhat blankly. Sapphire. "Come on…"

"Just let us adore you," the gems crooned, hands curling into fists briefly before they started walking forward again. This time, their approach was faster; it startled Steven enough for him to stumble back a few steps, eyebrows furrowing slightly as he glanced between them. This was definitely all wrong; he wasn't sure why, but he felt… unsettled. Uneasy. Scared. The hybrid blinked a few times, struggling to focus, and took a few good steps back as the gems continued toward him. "Come live with us in the temple! There's a room waiting for you…~!"

"Come on!"
"Come on!"
"Come on!"

"Just let us adore you!" They were approaching faster now; Steven almost tripped over his own feet in his haste to get away from them, lifting his hands. "Yes, we know that you're not her…" Sour looks flickered across their faces for a second; Pearl looked away from him, scowling.

Steven froze. The realization hit him hard enough to leave him breathless, mouth going dry as he recognized exactly why this felt familiar, and why he felt much more afraid than he had expected to be. He recoiled, but didn't move back this time, as the gems walked toward him. "But you were her." Amethyst raised her hands toward him, beaming, while Pearl reluctantly flicked her gaze back toward him and offered a smile. "We know what it meant to love her…"

"Don't…" Steven warned, but his voice was drowned out by theirs just as easily, as if he hadn't even spoken to begin with. It was like he was there, but he wasn't - he was right in front of them, they were there, he was there, but they weren't really seeing him. And, honestly? He should be used to that by now. The fact that, when they looked at him, they saw someone else.

So why wasn't he? "And you remind us so much of her~!"

Steven gritted his teeth, positively furious now. "You sorry sons of bitches…" He seethed, cheeks flushing, burning warm and pink. This time, the heat seared through him like fire, burning him straight to the core. He felt like it was ripping him apart from the inside out, flames ready to consume him the moment he allowed it. But, no, not yet - he couldn't self-destruct yet. But he was going to make the gems regret the day they ever asked him to move into the temple with them; he was going to make them regret every bad thing they'd ever done, and said, and every time they'd ever compared him to his mother. The hybrid raised a hand, scowling.

"This…" He clenched his fist, gem pulsing, "is for everything you put me through-!"

"Today…"

Steven flinched slightly despite himself, startled. Not because of the interruption, but because of the voice. He recognized it quicker than he had recognized the gems' - and, of course he did. It was his own voice. He recoiled, watching the gems for a moment longer before finally dropping his hand and turning to look behind him. He wasn't surprised to see… well, himself. But it didn't stop him from tensing up instinctively; because the Steven staring back at him was smaller, chubbier, and much… much more innocent than he was now. The heat consuming him faded almost at once, the pinkness receding and vanishing completely as he stared in shock. That was him. Smaller, and sweeter, and everything Steven used to be. Before… before…

"Oh, no…" He turned, looking toward Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl for a moment, before spinning around to face his younger counterpart. The younger Steven was making his way forward with a smile, innocent and trusting as he'd always been - honestly, everything inside of him ached, and stung with the reminder that this wasn't who he was anymore, the innocent, loving child - but he didn't have time to dwell on that, not for long. "Hey- hey, don't go to them, they don't-"

"Right here." Steven's protests fell short, leaving a bitter taste on his tongue as his younger self moved past him, ignoring his outstretched hands, and his warnings, and his pleas, and continuing toward the gems with the same soft, happy smile on his face. "Right now…"

"Wait- stop-!" Steven raised his voice slightly, stumbling forward now and reaching out for the younger version of himself, struggling to catch his attention and make him stop. He reached for his shoulder, but his hand passed right through - which, truthfully, was a rather scarring experience - but he didn't give himself the chance to think about it too much yet. He was panicking; every part of him was trembling, every muscle in his body pulled taut with terror. Terror that felt so, achingly irrational and yet, somehow, completely justified at the same time. "What're you doing? They're gonna- they're going to-"

"They'll love again," the younger Steven interrupted softly, as the gems stepped forward to meet him, stretching their hands out for him. "They've already found someone…"

"Just let us adore you!"

"Today…" No.
"Come live with us in the temple!" No…
"Right here!" No…!
"There's a room waiting for you…!" No!
"Right now!" NO!
"They'll love again…!" STOP IT!

"Stop it…" Steven clenched his teeth, stumbling forward and reaching out for his younger self once again. They just kept singing, all of them; it was disorienting, it was- it was terrifying, it was surreal. His mind was spinning, heart racing, desperately trying to come up with some kind of explanation as to why, why this was happening, how this was happening, and what the hell was going on. But he couldn't think; their voices, the song, the desperation, it drowned everything out, every clear thought, every sense of clarity he had left was slowly, but surely, melting away. "Stop it!" He finally raised his voice, screaming loud enough to shake the temple; the gems didn't react, but he was somewhat relieved to see his younger self flinch and freeze - because, thank god, someone was acknowledging him. "They're just- using you! You're not Mom!"

The younger Steven tilted his head to look up at the gems, and Steven held his breath, waiting. Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl had stopped, crouching down, arms outstretched for the child; but the hybrid couldn't fight back the overwhelming relief that slammed right into him when his younger self finally turned to face him, the smile gone, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Steven stepped forward, offering his own hand now. "You don't have to go with them," he breathed, swallowing hard, struggling to push down the lump in his throat. "You don't have to be like…"

His younger self's expression softened, a smile replacing the concerned frown that had previously been etched across his face, as he turned his head to glance over his shoulder, toward where the gems were standing. "Yes… I know that I'm not her…" The younger Steven paused and looked down for a moment, and Steven felt every bit of relief immediately fizzle out. "But I was her…"

"That doesn't-" Steven's throat closed up, briefly unable to speak, "that's not-"

"They know what it meant to love her." His younger self glanced up at him and smiled again, warm as ever. There was no pain, no bitterness in his eyes; every bit of the exhaustion and hatred that Steven felt so often now these days just didn't exist. Somehow, he was happy. Somehow, by some miracle, he had been happy. He wondered when that had changed. He wondered when it had stopped being genuine, and started being an act. But then, he wondered, if maybe it had always been an act - and if maybe he'd been a better actor than he'd realized. "And I'll remind them so much of her." The younger Steven lifted a hand, smiling softly at him, then turned and crossed the distance between him and the gems before Steven could speak.

"Today…"
"Right here…"
"Right now…"

"No…" Steven finally managed to stumble forward a few steps, staring at them in confusion now, rather than desperation. As Garnet crouched down and wrapped her arms around his younger self, lifting him up with a smile; he threw his arms around her neck and giggled as the other two joined in, burying his face into Garnet's shoulder with a soft, content sigh. "But…" The hybrid faltered with one hand raised, stretched toward them, and slowly lowered it again.

"We'll love again…" The gems turned away from him completely, and Steven recoiled, silent now, as he watched them walk away, toward the warp pad. There was nothing left to say.

His younger self lifted his head after a moment, looking up at Garnet, before turning his head to stare past her. His gaze met Steven's; the smile on his face only faltered briefly, but the warmth in his eyes didn't fade. If anything, it seemed to get stronger, as he crossed his arms over Garnet's shoulders and lifted a hand to wave at Steven. "They've finally found someone…"

Steven opened his mouth, but he still couldn't find anything to say. They were gone before his brain could conjure up any words to spit back out, anything that might make this younger version of himself turn away from the gems. But, he quickly realized, that might be the least of his worries; because, one moment, they were there - and then he blinked, and they were gone. The warp pad hadn't activated. They hadn't even been close enough to it for it to activate. The hybrid stumbled back a few steps, and just stared at where they had been, stunned into silence. Even the feeling of something crawling up his spine, sending shivers up and down the back of his neck, wasn't enough to snap him out of his shocked daze, just staring ahead numbly. Something had just happened- something weird, and unexplainable, and of all the weird things he had seen in his life, this, quite possibly, was the weirdest thing yet. He didn't understand. He didn't understand where the gems had gone, why there had been a younger version of him, or why his heart was still pounding hard enough that Steven could feel it up to his throat, or why the terror twisting in his gut was only churning faster, gradually accompanied by nausea.

He held his breath, only half conscious of what he was doing, and deciding after a moment that he simply didn't care about it regardless. For a moment, he felt about ready to pass out; he was lightheaded, dizzy, and more than willing to let himself crumble to the ground and let go entirely. His heart thudded, chest aching at the thought, and he blinked a few times as he tried to focus. Wondering why the fear was getting stronger, and more intense, like he was in danger…

After a moment, the hybrid lifted a hand to rub at his eyes - only to jerk it back slightly before he'd had the chance to completely shut them, stretching them open as wide as he could just to make sure that what he was seeing was real. He held his other hand up, keeping them level with his face for a moment, and took a few steps away as if - miraculously - he might be able to escape what he was seeing. But, of course, he couldn't put distance between himself and his own hands, and he couldn't put distance between himself and the gloves that he was wearing. The hot pink gloves that stretched all the way up to his elbows. Ones he recognized instantly.

Steven looked himself over quickly, no longer holding his breath- but breathing so heavily, now, he still felt on the verge of passing out. Thankfully, he was still him - still shorter than Pink Diamond, still fleshy and half-human. Unfortunately, though, it didn't end with the gloves; seeing the dress - her dress - on him was like a blast from the past, a rush of nostalgia that hit him so hard he physically stumbled and staggered back again, still holding his hands up as if he were afraid to touch himself at this point. "Oh, no… no, no, no," he mumbled, turning his hands over.

"Oh, Piiiink!"

Despite himself, Steven reacted; he flinched and turned, staggering back instinctively and lifting his gaze high to stare at who had called out to him - and, honestly, who else would it have been but White fucking Diamond? She looked taller than the hybrid remembered; he swallowed, hard, as he backed away from her a little more. He half expected the familiar rush of anger, the blind hatred and fury that had engulfed him when he had faced her on Homeworld. Now, he only felt complete, utter terror; the terror he had felt when he was just a kid, pinned and struggling against her grip and trying to plead with her to listen to him, to let him go and talk things out. It was enough to leave him breathless for a second; it wasn't a sentiment he wasn't used to, obviously. That kind of fear never really went away. But he'd managed to bury a lot of that, regardless - managed to find other things to focus on and think about while he was with her.

It didn't feel possible now; staring at her, he could only think back to when she had wrapped her hand around him and held him effortlessly, pinching her fingers around his gem and ignoring when he finally started screaming, the white-hot pain becoming more and more unbearable by the second, until, finally, when it was over, it was just numb, and dark, and completely nothing. His head throbbed as his heart did, leaving him dizzy once again.

White grinned down at him, her arms stretched out beside her the way they had been when he'd first met her; that alone was enough to make him recoil, grimacing slightly as he stepped back. "What's the matter, Starlight?" She crouched down, moving one of her hands to the ground in front of him; the hybrid flinched slightly despite himself, shoulders tensing, pupils shrinking. He couldn't move… why couldn't he move? He couldn't run, he couldn't back away any further, he couldn't do anything - it was just like it had been then, only, somehow worse - because she hadn't gotten to him yet, he still had a chance to get away, why wasn't he fucking moving-

She reached for him, and everything-

Everything stopped.

Steven was gasping for air as he sat up, clasping one hand over his chest and one over his mouth. His back throbbed and stung - and for a moment, he was almost confused, until he remembered his injuries. The realization set in instantly; god, of course, he should have known right off the bat that it had just been a nightmare… he rubbed his hand over his face, still shaking slightly, still in shock, and still struggling to compose himself. Honestly, he shouldn't have gotten so scared; he shouldn't have froze up like that. He'd had nightmares before. Especially nightmares about White! Nothing could possibly be worse than the reality - or even, for that matter, the nightmares he had afterwards. The hybrid rubbed his arms over his face, hunching over slightly and ignoring the pain searing through his back, and his right leg.

"Steven?" He flinched at first, then raised his head quickly, recognizing the voice instantly. Well, it was hard not to, considering him and his brother sounded pretty similar - of course, there was a difference in tone, and his twin's pitch, even, was a little lower regardless, somewhat deeper than Steven's, but it was still basically the same. He breathed in shakily, settling one hand over his mouth for a moment before dropping his arms entirely and looking up at his brother. His gem half leaned forward a little, as far as the chains would allow, and reached a bubbled hand out toward him slightly. Steven only exhaled, shoulders drooping. "It's alright, you're safe."

"Yeah…" Steven shook his head, then nodded, taking in another breath. Okay, right, he was safe. White Diamond wasn't there, the gems weren't there… his younger self wasn't there. It was just him and his brother - and, honestly, he'd never been more relieved to see him. He glanced up at his twin, catching his gaze once again; this time, calming down, he was able to see the concern flickering through his eyes, eyebrows pinched so close together that they were nearly touching, and a deep frown was written across his face. He didn't drop his arm, and, after a moment, the hybrid reluctantly lifted his own hand and held it out, letting it hover over the bubble for a moment before slowly lowering it. "I'm safe… I'm okay," he mumbled, more so to reassure himself than his twin, but he watched his gem half relax slightly regardless. "... kinda."

"Kinda," his twin echoed, a small smile tugging at his lips briefly, before it melted into a concerned look once again. But he turned his gaze to Steven's hand, instead, as the hybrid lightly rubbed his thumb over one of the jagged edges of the bubble. Once again, the teenager found himself wondering if the bubbles… hurt him. Physically. Honestly, it looked like it might… "It doesn't hurt," his brother murmured, and Steven glanced up for a second, then looked down at the bubbles again. "Don't worry. I'm alright. Besides-" He lifted his other hand slightly, tugging at the chains a bit as he did so, and offered Steven a slight grin. "I think they're wearing down."

"Really?" Steven flicked his gaze to the other bubble, and then to the chains. Sure enough, they looked a little more strained than before; the cracks in the tiles below them had grown and spread, and the chains themselves looked close to snapping. It was an… oddly comforting sight, if Steven was being completely honest. It meant, maybe, his brother was close to being free - which was another weight off of Steven's shoulders, a load off of his mind. The hybrid swallowed, rubbing his arm over his face, the nightmare - thankfully - forgotten for the time being. "That's good… guess you really don't need my help, huh?"

His brother chuckled. "I do appreciate the offer, though."

"Mm." Steven reluctantly pulled his hand away from the bubble after a moment, and his twin finally lowered his own hand back to the floor, seeming content now that Steven had relaxed for the most part. The hybrid sank back, using his good leg to shift the other one over a little so that he could stretch it out as much as possible. He winced slightly as he did so, but relaxed quickly enough. They were silent for a while; his twin eventually heaved himself to his feet and lifted his arms over his head, pulling on the chains, and Steven resigned himself to merely watching.

It was a while before either of them spoke; with his brother just working on the chains, and Steven just watching, there wasn't too much to talk about yet - at least, until Steven remembered, exactly, what he had wanted to talk to his twin about. He had a feeling the pink gem already knew regardless, but he was likely waiting for Steven to bring it up. Which, honestly, the hybrid respected, and was rather grateful for, but he wasn't exactly sure how to. He puffed his cheeks out, looking down for a moment, and furrowed his eyebrows when the chains suddenly stopped rattling. "I assume you want my thoughts on the mental hospital situation," his brother began, turning his head slightly to look down at him, and Steven sighed.

"Well, you're the rational one," he muttered, leaning back and propping himself up on his hands. It seemed to be the most comfortable position at this point, while he was here. Honestly, he was just happy to be out of that goddamn wheelchair… "How am I supposed to… feel about this?"

"You know exactly what I'm going to say to that."

Steven thought for a moment, then snorted. "'Nobody can tell you how to feel, blah blah blah, emotions aren't a choice, blah blah blah'..." He trailed off as his brother huffed out a laugh, this time watching as his pupils shifted into the familiar diamond shapes, and - even surprising himself - he couldn't keep back a smile of his own as he shook his head at his pink twin. "What? I think I nailed it," he mumbled, and his brother only chuckled. "I mean… ugh, I know… but…" He rolled his shoulders back, letting his head fall back after a moment, and frowned. "I'm so… I don't- I don't want to have to- stay somewhere for- who knows how long and be 'supervised'."

His brother was silent for a moment, looking thoughtful, then turned and continued tugging on the chains, offering a quiet hum before he spoke. "Well… I wouldn't expect you to be comfortable with the situation, Steven. It's… different. It's change- and it's a scary one. You've never been in a situation like this before." The hybrid only sighed, closing his eyes for a moment, and his gem twin, once again, fell silent for a few seconds before continuing quietly, "but… if you really want my thoughts on the matter, I believe it might be good for you. Not because I think you need to be supervised, but because it is an entirely new experience." Lifting his arms over his head, the pink gem paused and glanced over at him. "The way it was before wasn't working, Steven. I'm sorry, but it wasn't. Maybe you don't need to be watched twenty-four seven, of course, I understand it's only going to tear your nerves up - but a little bit of supervision won't hurt. Somebody to be there when, or if, you do think about hurting yourself. Besides," he added, tugging on the chains again. "They said your therapist will see you there. So it won't just be you being watched by a bunch of strangers - you'll get to know… Maria, yes?"

"That's her name… I think," Steven sighed, blowing his curls out of his face and looking up at the butterflies swirling around above them. They seemed a little further away, somehow, but Steven only tilted his head slightly at them before he turned his attention back to his brother. "I mean, yeah, but I-" He stopped for a second, struggling to figure out what he was feeling into words. Agitation, he knew, yes. Anger. Confusion. Fear? Seemed about right, as well.

"It's so stupid…" The hybrid squeezed his eyes shut. "I have to go to a… a place where there's a bunch of other crazy people, who are like me but also not like me, and I've never- I've never had to go to a mental hospital before. I've never had a- a 'mental illness', I've always been- I've always tried to be fine and now it's like- like- like everything's just suddenly gonna be out there in the open. Not only does my own family know how fucked up I am, but the entire world's gonna know it. Humans, and- and doctors, and my goddamn therapist- they're all gonna know how fucked up I am and how fucked up this is and how much I want to-" He stopped again, forcing himself to breathe in shakily, and his twin stopped and turned back to him to listen. "And there's nothing- nothing I can do about it. I can't just suddenly say 'oh hey, y'know what? I'm fine', and I can't go back to the gems and I can't stay with my dad and-" He gritted his teeth and blinked his eyes open, looking up at his gem half. "I- I mean, am I really that bad?"

"You're not bad at all, Steven." His twin lowered himself onto his knees, shifting the chains a little so that he could keep his hands in front of him. "You're hurting. And I understand. Dad understands. Dr. Maheswaran understands. Even Jasper, I think." He managed a faint smile in Steven's direction, and the hybrid managed to huff out a tired laugh in response. "There's nothing easy about admitting that you're not really okay. Especially when you've been trying to pretend that you are for as long as you have. It's a hard thing to admit, and an even harder thing to really understand and accept. You're not going to be okay with this right away, and you don't have to be. The point of this isn't to lock you up somewhere because you're a danger or a threat - it's placing you somewhere where people with proper training and knowledge can understand and help treat you better. It's about getting the care and the attention that you need right now."

Steven didn't say anything for a moment, eventually giving up and just letting himself lay flat on his back. He hissed through his teeth - the cuts were oddly sensitive right then - but he simply reminded himself to be glad that it wasn't his leg, and moved on. "See? Good at advice," he muttered, grimacing slightly. "And… yeah, I know all this, rationally, but I still can't help but think they're just moving me to the crazy house because I'm… crazy," he grunted, closing his eyes. "Maybe I am crazy… I just… I don't know what I want anymore. It's like, I want to be okay, but with everything it's taking to… to get there, it's like… I don't know if it's worth it, or not…"

"It is," his brother replied. "You are."

"Yeah, right." Steven huffed out a sigh, crossing one arm over his face and laying the other one flat out beside him. The chains rattled again, but he didn't move, even when he heard his brother straining at the chains once more. "... I don't know. Maybe," he mumbled after a moment, somewhat hesitantly. "Doesn't feel like I'm worth much these days. Or… anything." He let his arm slide down a little, covering his face with his hand now instead. "I'm just tired."

"I know you are." His twin fell silent for a moment. "But it can get better, my brother. Maybe it won't go away completely. Maybe it won't ever really be okay- but that is okay. If… eventually, you get to a place where you are genuinely happy, or at least content, it will be better."

"Yeah." Steven breathed in slowly, and let his breath out in another sigh, this one a little quieter than the last. He hated to admit it, but it sounded nice. Getting to a place where he was actually somewhat content. Where he didn't feel so conflicted all the time, so angry, and hurt, and confused, and bitter. It didn't feel possible right then, but maybe his brother was right - maybe, one day, it would be possible. He just wasn't sure if he was patient enough to last that long. "Maybe it'll be worth it," he muttered. "If I can last that long, anyways."

"You lasted this long," his brother reminded him. "And now Dad knows. Now people know - people who can help you through this. And, you do have me," he added, and Steven peeked through his fingers to look up at him, raising an eyebrow as he watched his gem half tug on the chains. He stopped for a second to smile down at him, then continued what he was doing. "I'll be here for you regardless, but giving up… is one thing, I'm sorry to say, I'll never let you do. Believe it or not, Steven, I care about you far too much." After a moment, he added, "You've always believed in everybody else. That everyone can change, and get better, and be happy. And if you can't believe that for yourself, then I, for one, am happy to do so."

"That was pretty sappy," Steven muttered, rolling his eyes, but even he couldn't ignore the slight pressure building behind his eyes, the pricking of needle-like tears steadily brewing. He blinked them back, offering a halfhearted shrug and covering his face again. "S'at what I sounded like?"

"Haha." His gem half chuckled. "I'm being genuine, Steven."

"I know you are," Steven echoed his words from earlier, rubbing his arm over his face before eventually letting it drop to his side, and stretching it out across the tiled floor with a small frown. "I'm still skeptical. But I guess I don't have much of a choice here, do I?" He sighed, screwing his face up slightly and glaring up at the butterflies for a moment, before letting his gaze flick back over to his pink twin and raising an eyebrow. "I mean, I can't exactly leave…"

"Suppose not," his brother commented, tugging at the chains again and throwing him a wry smile in response, and Steven rolled his eyes again. "Accepting help might be your best bet."

"Where's the fun in that?" Steven retorted, earning another slight chuckle out of his pink twin, as he lifted his arms over his head again. Steven fell silent for a moment, crossing his arms under his head, and frowned. Well, he had gotten the desired advice - and, of course, reassured himself in the fact that his gem twin was still definitely the logical one, and could actually somewhat convince him in giving the place a chance (though, if Steven was being honest, it would be rather half-assed on his part - he didn't actually believe the mental hospital would help him, and he was still rather skeptical on the therapy thing, too) - he just wasn't sure how to feel. Hell, he wasn't sure how to feel about any of this anymore. Aside from, obviously, dread.

He sighed and turned back to watching his brother, furrowing his eyebrows slightly as the pink gem continued straining with the chains. He wanted to help, but… he was pretty useless.

"On the contrary," his brother hummed, leaning back on his feet and pulling. "You being here is actually quite the motivator, if I'm honest." Almost as if to emphasize his point, Steven heard a small snap as one of the links in the chains gave way, and his brother inhaled sharply as he jerked his arm back; the chain had broken, snapping off where it had been stuck through the floor; Steven watched, wide-eyed and slowly pushing himself to sit up, as it steadily began to dissolve from the bottom, disappearing in small particles of light all the way up, until the bubble on his gem half's left hand vanished with a sharp, audible pop. His brother just stared.

"Well, shit…" Steven furrowed his eyebrows, unable to help a small smile despite himself. Well, it was certainly something to celebrate, mental hospital or not. "Look at that." His gem half managed a grin, still looking somewhat stunned for a moment, and Steven huffed out a laugh. "Hey, you're getting there… we need to think of something to call you…"

"There's plenty of time," his brother murmured, turning his hand over a few times to inspect it carefully, and clenching and unclenching his fist as he did so. He spread his fingers out, the surprise steadily fizzling away to relief, his circular pupils once again shifting into diamonds. This time, they stayed that way - and, now knowing what it meant when that happened, Steven, surprisingly, couldn't really bring himself to feel upset. His gem half threw him a smile, warm and genuine, and the hybrid found the corners of his lips tugging upwards before he even realized it. Funny, he'd started out hating this pink clone of his with a passion, and how he seemed to be one of few people that Steven could actually tolerate at this point. Regardless, he did find himself somewhat glad that the chains were finally giving way. His pink brother was… well, he was actually a pretty nice guy. And Steven had to admit, he was growing somewhat attached. Which was equal measures surprising and relieving - the fact that he could still be attached.

"Your pain may outweigh everything else right now, Steven," his gem half reminded him, "but that doesn't mean you're incapable of feeling some good things, too. Which-" His brother threw him another grin, and Steven rolled his eyes - albeit good naturedly this time - as he continued, "just means there's still hope left, right?"

Steven studied him for a moment, then huffed out a sigh, eventually relenting. "Maybe." Maybe there was. Maybe there wasn't. Maybe sometimes he would be too tired, or too frustrated to care - but, right then, maybe he could… try to accept that his brother was right. Just…

… maybe.