Faith in Steven

The residents of Beach City had had very little time to gather their wits in the past few days. The initial attack on the city had been a traumatic event, and had shaken everyone's collective resolve. The mental and emotional strain experienced by many of them had been further exacerbated by their mortifying return to their home and the tragic discovery on the beach. This unfortunate chain of events had rattled the town's residents mentally, physically, and emotionally. In their panicked and emotional states, no one had thought to calmly analyze the situation. As a result, the residents of Beach City had collectively overlooked a crucial piece of information. Had they been more attentive during the events of the previous day, they would have made an astonishing discovery. However, as this was not the case, one small fact had gone woefully unnoticed.

Contrary to popular belief, Steven Universe was, in fact, alive.

In his current condition, he was entirely unaware of the congregation on the beach. Despite the commotion of the past day and a half, Steven was completely oblivious to his surroundings and everything that had occurred. He honestly had no idea where he was, or how he had gotten there. He felt way too tired to move at all. However, he could faintly hear voices. He had briefly debated the idea that he was dead, and that this was the afterlife, but had just as quickly dismissed the thought. If this was the afterlife, why did he still feel like he had been hit by Sugilite? And where was his mom? Would she even be here?

Slowly, the events of two days ago came back to him. Thoughts of the condition of Beach City and its residents flashed through his mind. He suddenly began to worry about Connie, and his dad, and the rest of his friends. He had to find them and make sure they were alright! Using every ounce of strength he had left, Steven willed himself to wake up. He slowly began to open his eyes, despite his body protesting the movement, and let out a groan.

Connie had just taken a big bite of her sandwich when she heard a soft groan, and she turned her attention towards Steven. Her eyes widened and she froze. "Steven?" she asked with her mouth full. Connie watched as he blinked and shifted slightly in the sand. She nearly choked on her bite. "Oh my gosh, STEVEN!" she exclaimed and quickly moved to his side. He blinked again, looked up at her weakly, and managed a small smile.

"Connie," he said quietly.

She pulled Steven into a tight hug, eliciting a gasp from him when she put pressure on his broken arm. "Sorry," she said sheepishly. She put her hand behind his head and laid him back on the sand again.

The next thing Steven knew, everyone he knew entered his field of vision. He was suddenly bombarded with questions. What happened to him? Was the thing in the sky gone for good? Was there anything they could do to help? Steven couldn't help but smile at all his friends and their well-wishes. He then looked up and saw his father staring at him with tears in his eyes.

"Dad…I'm sorry," Steven started.

"It's okay," Greg cut him off, "you're okay. That's all that matters." He leaned down and gently picked up Steven. Being extremely careful not to touch his right arm, Greg held Steven close to his chest. Steven returned the hug to the best of his ability. After a minute, Greg carefully put Steven down on his feet. When he let go, Steven tried to maintain his balance, but wasn't able to. He would have fallen into the sand if Greg hadn't caught him. Realizing that Steven wasn't able to stand on his own, Greg carefully picked him up again.

"Do you want to lie down?" Greg asked. Steven looked up at his dad and gave a small nod.

At Steven's affirmation, Greg began walking towards his tent. Connie walked alongside him, once again holding Steven's hand as Greg carried him. Many of the other residents followed the trio. When they arrived, their entourage stopped while Greg and Connie took Steven inside the tent. Being as gentle as possible, Greg put Steven down on his mattress and covered him with the blanket. Steven coughed, and then weakly looked over at his dad and best friend.

"Thanks, guys," he said, before shifting slightly and closing his eyes.

Connie and Greg exchanged a look of concern. The pair stayed with Steven for a few minutes before leaving him to rest. When they left the tent, everyone who had followed them had dispersed and gone back to their original tasks. Still, something on the beach was different. Everyone suddenly seemed more upbeat and optimistic. People were talking and laughing as they went about organizing their makeshift settlement. The mood among the residents had visibly shifted since Steven's miraculous revival. For the first time since the attack, it felt like home. Greg looked at his tent, and then looked down at Connie. She was looking at the entrance to the tent, smiling.

"Connie?" Greg asked. She looked up at him inquisitively.

"I need to go back to the van again. Steven left an extra one of his shirts there, and I want to get something for his arm. I need you to stay with him and make sure nothing happens. If something seems off, go get help. Okay?"

Connie stopped for a second to process the information, and then nodded. "Okay."

Greg gave her a cursory nod in response, then turned and headed towards the edge of the beach. As he began his walk back to the van, he was stopped by multiple residents who wanted to express how relieved they were that Steven was okay. He thanked them quickly, primarily concerned with getting to his van and back to his son as soon as possible. Greg quickened his pace.

He made it to the van much more quickly than he had last time. Greg went around and opened up the back of the van. It only took him a second to find the extra shirt, but he couldn't seem to remember where he put his roll of duct tape. After a few minutes of searching, he remembered that he had given it to Steven. He figured Steven had put it in his room, so he probably couldn't get to it right now. Greg sighed and closed the door to the van. He put the shirt over his shoulder and started back to the beach.

Back at the beach, Connie was inside the tent, keeping an eye on Steven. Watching him as he rested, she couldn't help but worry. He wasn't sleeping well, and had broken out coughing multiple times. At one point Connie had almost considered going to get someone, but Steven's coughing had subsided right when she had resolved to go get help. She really hated seeing him like this. She was relieved that he was alive, but that didn't diminish the fact the he was badly hurt. Connie wondered who would do this to Steven. She guessed that it was one of those gems from space he was telling her about.

Connie heard someone enter the tent, and looked up to see Greg with one of Steven's shirts. Greg returned her gaze with a small smile and a thumbs-up, as if to signal that he had completed his objective. Not wanting to wake Steven, the pair went outside and sat down by the entrance to the tent. When Sadie passed by, Greg asked if there was anything he could do to help. She replied that he should stay and help Steven get better. Some residents had begun to work on fixing the stores near the beach, clearing debris and making whatever repairs they could. It was heartening that people were already beginning to fix up the town. Suddenly, the duo heard noise from inside the tent.

They went inside to find Steven awake, trying to sit up. Greg carefully helped him change into the shirt he had brought, and then used the pillow to prop him up. The nap seemed to have helped. He was noticeably more aware of his surroundings, and was moving around more than he had been earlier. However, it was obvious that he was still suffering from his injuries, some of which looked worse than they did earlier.

"Hey guys, how are you?" Steven asked weakly.

"We're doing okay," Connie replied. "How are you? Feeling any better?"

Steven let out a small cough. "I honestly don't feel so good. And everything hurts still. Still, I'm just glad everyone's alright. I was worried that they didn't (cough) make it out of town in time."

"We were prepared this time," Greg replied. "We were worried about you. When we found you, you weren't moving and wouldn't wake up."

Steven gave a guilty look, "I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to worry you guys." He paused for a second, coughed again, and then looked at the pair. "Hey, do you know what happened to Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl?"

Connie replied, "I saw a few gems on the ground further down the beach. I think they belonged to Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl. I'll go get them." She left the tent to go retrieve the gems.

Steven looked at his dad. "Do you think everything will be okay?" he asked, a note of apprehension in his voice. Greg moved closer to Steven and ruffled his hair.

"Yeah, it'll be okay," Greg replied, his optimistic tone belying his concern. "We'll just fix up Beach City, and the gems will come back, and everything will be back to normal before you know it." He forced a smile. "How about you get some rest, okay, buddy."

"Okay (cough) dad," Steven replied. He shifted his position and closed his eyes.

Greg got up and left the tent to allow Steven to get some more rest. Once he got outside, he sat down and put his head in his hands. At that moment, Connie returned carrying four dusty gemstones. Seeing Greg outside the tent, she walked over and sat down next to him. She could tell that he had something on his mind.

"What's wrong?" Connie asked.

"I just don't know what to do," he replied, "We need to get someone to help Steven, but I don't think that he's in any shape to go anywhere. And I don't know anyone who would come all the way here. I know we need to help him, I just don't know how."

Seeing that it was getting late, Connie decided that she needed to head home. She went inside the tent to briefly say goodbye to Steven (though he was fast asleep). She put the gems on the floor beside the mattress before exiting the tent. Connie briefly stopped outside to say goodnight to Greg before starting her journey back to where she had been dropped off that morning.

Connie looked down at her boots as she walked. She knew Greg was right about needing to get help for Steven soon. Though she wasn't well versed in medicine, she could tell that some of his injuries were getting worse, and that he was starting to get sick. From what she had learned from her mom, Connie knew that even a small cut or a minor cough could be dangerous if not treated quickly.

Wait. Her mom!

"I know who can help Steven!" Connie mentally chided herself for her forgetfulness as she headed further away from the beach. She hoped Steven would be alright until the morning.