Chapter 7
Author's note: Sam meets Steven and the Gems; p2 (Need I say more?;)) Thank you for all the reviews, favourites and followers. You guys are the best!
Disclaimer: Steven Universe belongs to Rebecca Sugar and her Crewniverse. None of it is mine, except for my OC Sam.
Enjoy!
The bright lights of the hospital room Sam currently occupied blinded her eyes and Sam groaned softly in a mixture of pain and irritation. Her throat felt sore and her voice sounded rough, like sandpaper against a piece of wood.
"Quick, call the doctor. The patient is awake."
She squinted at the source of the feminine voice with a distasteful frown on her lips and a killer headache throbbing in her head. Everything hurt. She found that she couldn't move her arms and every breath she took hurt her chest. It was awhile when her sight finally adjusted to the room's brightness and her headache abruptly intensified.
Sam muttered a curse under her breath and shook her head slightly in effort to tone it down. It didn't work. She cursed again. Footsteps echoed as a person or two neared her bed.
"Miss Universe, can you hear me?"
Sam scrunched her forehead and gritted her teeth. She wanted to answer the question, but found that she couldn't, really. It felt like there was a lump in her throat. "Water." Sam finally croaked, and in a flash a small, paper cup was held to her lips and plain water was poured slowly into her mouth.
"Better?" the voice asked again, gently, and Sam gave it a little nod and cleared her throat.
"Yes," she answered, her voice weak, and cleared her throat again. "W-what? Where?"
She turned her gaze to the doctor, an Indian woman with long hair and a stern, yet soft expression. "You're in the hospital, Miss Universe. You have been unconscious for three days. Do you remember what happened?"
Sam gulped. Three days?! Her eyes widened in surprise, which eventually morphed into panic when she remembered the incident at the fry shop. Where was Steven now? Is he okay?
"S-Steven?"
A gentle smile formed onto the doctor's lips and she put her board to the side. "He's safe, Miss Universe. And so is the youngest Fryman boy. You gave them quite the scare, you know, especially the one you saved back in the shop."
Sam sighed in relief and the doctor laughed. "Don't you want to hear about your injuries? Thankfully, nothing too severe. To put it simply, some stitches on your hand and we had to pull out the stake from your elbow, which of course, also needed stitching and re-adjusting. You have a number of scars and scrapes on multiple parts of your body, a large bruise on the side of your head from a large impact by the fallen ceiling and your stomach."
"H-how long?"
"Oh, I'd say about two weeks with a proper exercise schedule and plenty of vitamins and rest you'll be as good as new."
Sam nodded. Two weeks isn't that bad. She can do two weeks. Sure, she'll need to re-arrange her schedule and everything but it's not like she's un-adaptable. Greg can do the heavy work. Besides, her legs should be fine. The most injury she's had is on her arms. She's not completely useless. You know, speaking of Greg…
"Uh," Sam squeaked again. "Greg? Has- has he been-"
"My name is Priyanka Maheswaran. You can call me Priyanka. Your, well, your brother is a… close friend of my family. He's being alerted of your current condition even as we speak. I expect him to come visit you soon."
A feeling of warmth blossomed in the pit of her stomach and Sam graced the decidedly nice woman with a large smile. "T-thank you…"
"You're absolutely welcome. Now, I'll send in another nurse with some porridge and more water- you should be hungry after three days of sleep-"
Sam's stomach growled, as if on cue, and she blushed while the doctor burst into laughter. "I'll take that as a yes." Priyanka pat on Sam's hand and smiled kindly towards her patient. "Now, rest. Your nurse will come in with the food later."
…
Greg gingerly pushed the heavy, white door and poked his head into the room. He wore a concerned frown on his face, which disappeared into a thin line when he saw that Sam was sitting facing the window, in a wheelchair.
"Sam?"
Sam turned her head to face her brother. "Greg," she greeted him. "Hey."
Greg walked over to her and crossed his arms. "You're not supposed to get up from your bed, Sam." Sam rolled her eyes and blew a stray strand of brown hair away from her face. "Whatever, dude. My legs are fine."
Greg pushed her wheelchair away from the window anyway and helped her back onto the bed. Sam groaned. "Ugh, I hate sitting in this thing. Makes me feel… weak." Those words brought Greg to think about their father. He despised any signs of weakness as well. He was also about to point the fact out to Sam, but wisely decided against it.
"So," He began. "How do you feel?"
"Dude," Sam replied. "I feel like I've been hit by a bus carrying a ton of obese people each carrying a ton of bricks."
Greg sighed. "I was really worried when I heard about what happened at the shop." It caught Sam's attention and she sat straighter. "Pee Dee told me these things happen usually around here. What the hell does that mean?"
"Well… uh, that's complicated. But yeah, it does make life more exciting to think about it. Look, I'm not exactly the right person to tell you about this stuff."
"What? Is it supposed to be some sort of secret or something?" Sam snorted with a humorous smile. Greg bit on his lip and turned his gaze away, and Sam threw her head up and groaned again.
"You know what? Whatever, I don't care anymore. All I had were some injuries caused by some- some alien or monster or whatever and cut my hand, a stake pierced through my shoulder and have a ceiling fall on me. I was only unconscious for three days."
Greg threw his hands up in frustration. "I could have really done without the sarcasm, Sam." Sam stuck out her tongue and turned her head away.
"Did- did you just stick your tongue out at me?"
"…"
"SAM!"
"…"
Greg placed his hands on his hips. "Goddamnit; you will look at me while I'm talking to you, Samantha!"
Sam's head whipped back to meet Greg's face with her own expression of disbelief. "Oh my God." She whispered in horror. Greg seemed to realize his mistake and immediately he started apologizing.
"Oh my God, Sam, I am so sorry-"
"Oh my God."
"Please, Sam, I-I-"
"Greg." Sam interrupted him. "No. Just-just stop."
The atmosphere between them grew tense as Sam gave Greg a deathly glare, with all the hate she could muster from every inch of her being reflected in her eyes, and Greg had to look away. He had just destroyed his sister's trust. Sam held it for a moment longer, and then she turned away again, and drew in a deep breath.
"It's okay," she finally said. "I don't expect you to stay the same after all these years. I guess… I guess I was just expecting the impossible. I deserved it, Greg."
"No, Sam-"
"Greg, it's okay. Let's just move past this." She sighed. "Why don't you start from the beginning? What was that creature that attacked the fry shop?"
Greg scratched the back of his neck and cleared his throat. "I'm really sorry, Sam. I really, really want to tell about it but I was advised not to." Sam narrowed her eyes in irritation. "Who exactly advised you?"
"Uh, th-they're on their way. I swear; you'll get the whole thing soon."
"…Okay."
Something beeped in Greg's pocket and he pulled out his phone. His face lit up slightly and after typing some sort of response to the message, he turned to look at Sam again. The guilt was still apparent in his expression; it was not very well hidden. But his manner of talking was somewhat lighter.
"Well, Steven just texted me that they have arrived and are currently making their way to this room."
Sam raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Steven?"
Suddenly the door creaked and the both of them turned their attentions towards it. A little boy with a head of dark, curly hair peeked in with a hesitant look on his face. But as seeing her and Greg in the room, a huge smile replaced the expression and he pushed the door open bigger.
"SAM! YOU'RE OKAY!"
He ran to her and jumped onto the bed, making it shake and Sam's eyes widened in surprise. "Whoa, there buddy! Take it easy!"
There were stars in the little boy's eyes, and despite how much she wanted to reprimand him to go softer on her, Sam found that she couldn't and smiled at him instead. Steven pulled her into a bone-crushing hug and Sam was surprised at how strong the boy was. Sam was starting to have trouble breathing when suddenly somebody picked Steven up from her lap and set him down back onto the floor.
Sam coughed and drew in several deep breaths to reregulate her breathing. "I'm sorry, Sam," Steven apologized sheepishly as he drew circles on the floor with the tip of his sandal.
"It's just that, I had been so worried when you didn't wake up after I used my bubble to throw the ceiling off and we had to take you to the hospital because you were hurt pretty bad. I even used my healing spit on you. It made the wound smaller but it didn't close off entirely."
Sam waved his apology off with a confused smile. Bubble? Throw off the ceiling? Healing spit? What in the world was going on?
"Uh, it's okay I guess? Thank you, Steven."
"Steven's saliva has the ability to heal, and he had used it the other day to close off your bigger wounds before we had head to the hospital." A deep, accented voice explained thus interrupting their conversation and Sam turned her attention to her other guests in the room. The first thing that caught her attention was a pair of legs.
Legs that ran for days in a pair of tight, maroon-coloured some sort of fabric probably, that led to huge, captivating thighs and an impossibly slim waist, and a generous bust and upper body that made Sam blush, to finally, the head; full, luscious lips, a nose and eyes hidden behind a pair of reflective shades and a square-ish dark-coloured afro.
"I'm Garnet," Garnet introduced herself, and gestured to the others with her thumb. "This is Amethyst."
Amethyst stood way, way shorter than Garnet, probably just a little above Steven's height, with a head of wild, luxurious, light-lavender tresses that went to her feet. Her most distinctive feature was her skin, which was purple. She wore a black, sleeveless tank top with a slim waist that highlighted her short, yet curvaceous body structure and a pair of matching mauve leggings with black stars on the knee area and white ankle boots. Amethyst was… stocky; adorable yet not completely innocent-looking with plump lips, one of her eyes was covered underneath a lock of hair that obscured half of her face whilst the other was half-lidded and gleamed with mischief. A purple gem was embedded just above her chest area.
" 'Sup?" Amethyst greeted and playfully fired a finger gun in her direction. Her voice was raspy and her tone energetic. Sam nodded in understanding and graced Amethyst with a smile. Amethyst looked to be her type of person and she wondered if this was the one Greg told her about the other day.
"And onto my right is Pearl."
Pearl was… well, she stood up to Garnet's shoulders, which was a feat in and of as itself. Pearl has a slender, slim build with smooth, ivory skin and wide, curious sky-blue eyes and a pointed nose. Her hair was short and was pointed at the back of her head, with a peach-ish colour that suited her whole look. Her attention getter was the large gemstone on her forehead, but it was… nice; a very pleasing feature to look at. She wore a light blue tunic-slash-leotard with a small, golden star at the centre and a sash around her upper waist that knotted at the back of her body with matching thigh-high amber-coloured leggings, pink socks and blue ballet flats. Pearl looked like a dancer- she emitted an aura of confidence, elegance and grace, and slight hostility, which was quite understandable looking at the fact that they have just met each other.
"And I'm guessing that you've already met Steven- he's the youngest in our team." Garnet continued and Sam nodded again. "We are the Crystal Gems."
"Wait," Sam interrupted her. "Crystal Gems? As in 'We are the Crystal Gems; and we'll always save the day' Crystal Gems?"
Her comment made Amethyst laugh and Steven smile wider. "You remembered my song!" He cried out happily and Sam couldn't help but gush at his adorableness.
"Well, yeah kid. Your voice is really something- I thought I told you that?"
"Hey!" Amethyst suddenly spoke up. "You're the Sam Steven told us he'd met the beach the other day, aren't you? The one that told him to say hi to us?"
"Well yeah." Sam answered her. "That's me alright. It's nice that I can put faces to names now that I've met all of you." And that now I know that you're actually real.
"Oh, well what you did was very nice and polite." Pearl piped up. She had a voice that was soothing and soft. "It's hard to meet people nowadays that actually minded their manners when meeting with someone. We'd like to thank you, actually, for saving Steven back at the building during our fight with that monster. You were very brave and selfless, and you protected him even when you were hurt."
"Yes," Garnet continued. "Usually we don't do this but for that, we figured some sort of explanation about what happened."
"Yeah," Sam replied and glanced over to Greg, who had sat himself onto the single chair by the bed. "That was what I'd been asking Greg earlier before you guys came along- I asked him to tell me about what happened and he answered that he wasn't the best person to tell me about it."
"Actually, Sam," Pearl said with a raise of her finger. "We were the ones who had told him not to tell you. Garnet decided that it was best to explain to you in person about who we actually are and what happened. Greg might… not understand fully to provide an accurate answer for any questions you may want to ask of the incident."
Sam raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Okay then. Start from the beginning."
Garnet and Amethyst turned to look at Pearl and the pale gem began her explanation. "You see Sam, that thing that we had fought back at the shop was a gem monster; to put it simply. A creature that was once like me and Garnet and Amethyst, but was corrupted with a disease that made it lose all that it once was and changed its form- their memories and sense of purpose and essentially their whole self. It had no control over itself and attacked over the course of survival. The monster was one of many that we were locating and collecting so that they may not cause chaos or harm to human beings and the Earth. Do you understand?"
"… Actually, you kinda lost me somewhere at gem monster. You mean that thing was actually once human?"
"Um, no," Pearl answered her and gestured to herself. "But we are not humans. We're gems- a species originating from another planet far from Earth and are more than millennia years old. We're aliens, as your people say, and we protect the Earth from dangerous threats and creatures that might harm its peace and safety for all living creature to flourish."
Sam shot Pearl a look that said 'really?' and sighed. "I get it now." She turned to look at Greg and scowled. "You think you're so funny, don't you Greg?"
Greg raised his eyebrow in confusion. "What?"
"Okay, maybe you're trying to make me feel better but it isn't working. You guys can drop the 'we're aliens' act now. I appreciate the gesture but I am totally not feeling any better about this. I asked for the truth, not some… cover-up story about mutations and outer space. Was it Greg's idea? Because he's always had a weird space fetish since forever and that makes more sense."
"I beg your pardon?" Greg interrupted them. "I do not have a space fetish."
"Greg, you write songs about stars and comets and the design on your van is making it quite obvious that I am right."
Greg spluttered. "Uh, well that's more to a hobby, Sam. An interest- that's what it is."
Garnet took a step nearer to Sam and re-adjusted her shades. "It isn't a lie; Sam. Look at Amethyst- her skin is purple. Pearl has a gem stuck to her forehead. Think about it. No human being is like that."
Sam rolled her eyes stubbornly. "Well, she could've used skin make-up and you could probably get an accessory like Pearl's gem somewhere in a costume shop."
"Well, what about back at the Fry shop?" Pearl countered with a frown, slightly offended over the remark Sam made about her gem but kept patient. "Didn't you see how Garnet was able to punch through the wall with her gauntlets or how Steven had appeared at the back of a pink lion?"
"…I was seriously hurt! I could've just been seeing things!"
Amethyst crossed her arms. "Really dude, seeing things? Look, look. Why not I show you something cool?" The gem on her chest glowed and she shape-shifted her head into a shark head and she waved her hands. "Jazz-hands!"
Sam froze and her eyes widened. Steven and Greg exchanged worried glances. "Uh, Sam?" Steven called.
"Holy crap! S-she- what? But how?"
"Yeah, I turned my head into an alligator." Amethyst said smugly and turned her head back. Sam continued to stare at Amethyst and her mouth opened and closed repeatedly like a fish. "B-b-b-b-but-"
"You see, Sam?" Garnet asked her and lowered her shades, revealing her three, multi-coloured eyes, in to which Sam had almost yelped in surprise, but didn't. "We told the truth." She put her shades back on and crossed her arms.
"B-but it's impossible." Sam whispered to herself and Pearl shook her head. "No, Sam. There are a lot of things you don't know about the Earth- its secrets and wonders. I admit it was hard for me for to accept it originally as well. You, my dear," Pearl pointed at her and Sam blushed. "Have a lot to learn."
An odd silence dawned in the room as Sam tried comprehending what happened. Steven felt bad that they made Sam feel scared and took it to himself to lighten the mood. He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Um, well. Now that that's out of the way, maybe later I could help you find that person you were looking for, eh Sam?"
Sam's left eye twitched, she was still so shocked about her discovery that she forgot that her and Greg's relationship was supposed to be a secret.
"Found him," she mumbled. "It was Greg."
Steven looked from Sam to his dad, back to Sam. "You were looking for my dad?" he asked her in confusion. Sam immediately snapped out of her reverie and her eyes widened again.
"What?!"
She looked at her brother who'd also worn a surprised expression. "Dad? You have a son and you didn't tell me?"
"Uh…"
Sam face-palmed herself and yelped in pain. Steven turned towards Greg and raised a concerned eyebrow. "How do you know Sam, dad?"
"Um, well. She's my younger sister. Your aunt, Steven."
The whole room went quiet as everyone turned to look at Sam, who was currently cradling her injured hand. Stars appeared in Steven's eyes as they widened in wonder and awe and he cupped his cheeks in delight.
"I have an aunt!"
"You're Greg's sister?" Amethyst questioned with a shocked expression, before it rapidly turned into a huge smile. Garnet nodded and touched a finger to the side of her shades. All seemed well, that it, until a scream broke out amidst the excitement and all turned to look at Pearl, whose eyes had taken on an edge of disbelief.
"Another Universe?!"
Review, my dear readers. Is it too much? Should I re-write it into a simpler version of this one and simplify the dialogue? I really need your opinion on this one.