Losing Game - DRAFT VERSION

Chapter 4 - Slumber Hurts

Summary: Spinel drifts to sleep but has a nightmare and Steven comforts her.
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"Woohoo!" Spinel was jumping rock to rock.

The whole sky was bright, filled with a blend of yellow, pink, and violet. The place was filled with floating objects that look like a fun obstacles to play with. The objects mostly look like the pink stones from the garden, some are pillars, some are platforms.

Spinel jumps happily in each one and sometimes stops on one of the stones to admire the view or some bushes. The bushes on some of the stone platforms are sometimes plain green or have flowers and sometimes have butterflies resting on them.

Spinel eventually stopped jumping on the stoned obstacles and hoped into the flowers, making some startled butterflies fly everywhere while she feels the soft surface of their petals.

Little amounts of butterflies are sometimes flying around the sky with the floating stones but there are mostly hovering on the flat ground, filled with grass and swarming with different kinds of flowers. The ground is also filled with thin or wide streams or rivers of water, all over the field.

Spinel runs among the field, enjoying the butterflies fly around her as she follows a thin stream of water until she eventually arrived at the source of it.

The streams lead to a fountain. Its bowl almost looks like a wide pond and with lily pads floating on the surface. The tip of the fountain sprays the water in the air and rains back down to the bowl of the fountain.

You might say it's like the Garden, yes, yes it is. But it was still different somehow. It has the parts of the old Garden, but also... Different.

Spinel went up to the fountain and sat on the lip of it, letting her feet touch the water. Looking at the water while swinging her legs, having fun splashing the water. When the splash deceased and can now see herself in water, clearly, her reflection change into her old self, her goofy and bright self.

She just smiled at her reflection, honestly loving that look of herself. She happily did another splash with her feet, her reflection change again but into her worn self, her messy and dark self-

Surprised and terrified, she swiftly lifts her feet up like they were burnt. The jump of her feet made her fall backward, but instead of falling on the soft grass, she was falling into a dark hole. Where did that come from!?

When she hit the ground, there was no floor, the whole room was dark and endless, and can only feel the ground below her. Her only light was the hole above her.

No biggie, she can just spring herself up there. She was about to make her lower half into spring when she felt something tight. She looked down and saw vines on her and feet.

Her mind froze by the sight below her, but her heart dropped when the vines are slowly wrapping their way up her body. She started to panic, struggling with the weeds grip. She wants to scream, shout, cry aloud, ANYTHING! JUST MAKE IT STOP!

NO MORE DARKNESS

NO MORE PLANTS

NO MORE SILENCE

No more games...

°•~–•–~•°

Steven felt someone stirring and can't help but check. He cracked an eye open, seeing he was laying in an L pose. His head was resting on something, but not a pillow. Steven sits up and sees that he was just laying on Bubble's lap earlier.

Bubble's was laying on the blanket but she seems to be in distress. She is crying! She kept twisting and turning slightly and sometimes literally and softly mumbles sadly. Her whole actions made him pout.

Steven gently but firmly grabbed her shoulders and starts shaking her slightly, knowing she's having a nightmare right now. He also tries to hold back his own, tears, this poor gem is making him feel down like how she is right now.

"Bubbles, wake up! Snap out of it! Get up! It's me, Steven! I'm here!" He called and kept calling and calling and calling. Bubbles eventually opened her eyes slightly, filled with bitter and sweet tears.

Spinel eventually sees a blue light, that's for sure. Her whole vision was blurred and can feel something warm on her face. She slowly gets up eventually, wiping her messed up face filled with hot tears.

The teddy was now on her left side while her hands are curled up aggressively with the blanket. When her vision was finally cleared, the first thing she saw was Steven slightly in front of her but beside her.

Even with her vision cleared she can still feel the blackness in her eyes. Even if she knows she's in Steven's room, it felt like she's still in the darkness. Now thinking of Steven, she did the same actions and covered herself in her knees, sniffing.

Steven waited patiently, giving her space until it's the right time even though he wants to comfort her so badly. Eventually, he slowly scoots closer in front of her and carefully wraps her in his arms. He felt her shift more comfortably in the embrace while he whispers comforting words he could muster from the side of her head while he rubs soothing circles on her back.

"It's okay, it'll be okay. I'm here. You are safe." And so on.

The loving words made Spinel try to stop or cry silently, wanting to savor the satisfying comforts, physically and verbally. She doesn't want to be a burden to this stranger, but she couldn't help but accept any kind of affection even from a stranger like this one.

She has so many questions she wanted to ask, almost in every single second, a question was made in her head and cannot be spoken. It's not fair. Come to think of it, almost everything is not fair today.

"You had a nightmare, didn't you?"

Before her thoughts were listed about the worst scenarios she witnessed or felt, the creature asks her if she had... A "nightmare"? It kinda sounds right? It felt fitting somehow that it shivered her spine for a second. Steven must've felt it cause he squeezed her more, slightly.

"Don't worry, dreams are just a fake vision you get when you sleep except that you had a bad dream which you can also call a Nightmare."

Steven explained to her, the events sound so familiar though. It took her a few beats until she remembered how she lost the game. She had a vision as well, so was she sleeping at that time?

She guesses she will keep having nightmares though, She doesn't think she might want to sleep often anymore. Then again, she was having a fun dream earlier until it went bad. Still, she hates it and doesn't want it to happen again...

Spinel let out a quiet raspy voice. Was she trying to speak? She wanted to talk. She doesn't know what to talk but for now, she wanted to apologize to Steven.

Steven was surprised and gently grips on her shoulders, pulling back, seeing her glistening eyes. "Hey It's okay, you don't have to talk. I don't want you getting hurt if it does hurt, please don't do that. Please?"

This stranger is so caring, let alone that she is technically a stranger to him too. This is so confusing, everything here is confusing. She eventually nodded, looking down, ashamed and embarrassed until Steven slowly went back hugging her again. Spinel also slowly made her way to lean on the footboard of the bed, comfortably.

They were in this position for what felt like an eternity, but Steven eventually fell asleep in the embrace. Spinel also fell asleep again, loving the warmth of the stranger's body.

She, fortunately, never got any nightmares until that. Wonder why...?