Steven Universe Fic (Season 2)

pt 1 Chapter Two: Crying Friends

Steven rubbed Spinel's back as she murmured little sobs to herself, shaking from her empathy.

"Th-their such good f-friends!" She cried with a smile, wiping the tears roughly from her eyes.

"I know!" He replied, holding back his own tears, the new episode had both if them reeling from the emotional impact, and he cherished the fact that Spinel had taken to the cartoon as much as he had.

"I wasn't expecting spaghetti to have such a relatable backstory!" Spinel chuckled through her tears, leaning back against the couch.

"Crying Breakfast Friends always has surprising character development." Steven replied with a small sniffle. He smiled, moving his hand from behind her so he could hold hers.

Seeing her still made his heart skip a beat every now and then, as though she were merely a ghost.
But she wasn't, she sat right next to him and the way she smiled, even with tears in her eyes made his heart sing with joy.

That night, the one he found her, was ethereal in his memories, like a long lost memory of a dream.
He dropped to his knees in shock, in tears, so afraid that she would shatter if he touched her, but she didn't.
He had healed her, successfully.
He made a promise never to leave her or let her get hurt, he did a fantastic job of making it seem like it was out of only love.

It wasn't.
If anything, it was the most selfish promise he had ever made. In truth, he made the promise because he never wanted to feel that way again. That empty ever again.

That emptiness was all consuming, it pervaded every inch of his mind and disallowed him from thinking about anything else. Just losing her.

Steven stood up, glancing out the window at the darkened night sky before bidding the gem goodnight. 
Spinel nodded and pulled the blanket from the shelf, opting to stay on the couch again instead of utilizing Pink's room. Her nightmares had slowly faded into memory but she still wasn't prepared to return to the room, and preferred the dark of the living room and the soft hum that the kitchen light offered instead of whatever nightmare inducing hallucinations the pink room would inevitably provide for her.
She had had enough of the devilish contraption digging into her psyche and spilling out for anyone and everyone to see.
And she didn't want subject Steven to such horrors ever again.

Steven meandered up to his room and tossed away his covers to crawl into the comfortable warmth of the bed, enjoying the way his mind nearly immediately turned off upon impact with his head and the pillow.

It was dark, he could barely see until the flash of pink invaded the entirety of his vision and he heard the deafening noise, the cursed noise of shattered glass.
And he stared helplessly as the large heart shaped gem on Spinel's chest broke into slivers and shards that exploded in the air and floated as if weightless.

"NO!" he shrieked, though it was as if his voice couldn't create the words, only a soft whisper was uttered from his lips.
He swatted the air in attempt to catch the shards, only batting them further away, the same gut wrenching guilt and emptiness building inside of him as he tried to grab the little peices.

"I can't lose you again, I can't-" he grabbed on of the shards, pulling it close to him as he wept. The dark pink gem turned a soft pastel shade in his fingers until it closely resembled his own gemstone. He gripped it tightly until a jolting shock erupted from the shard, moving through his body until he could barely breathe.
He gasped, his lungs heaving desperately to gain some kind if air.

Steven bolted upright from his bed, gasping with tears still in his eyes as he frantically looked around the room for Spinel's gemshards.
It took a moment.
Then the wonderful dreamlike memory slowly returned to his mind and he ached quietly, eventually resolving to seek her comfort.

Spinel opened her eyes, feeling the same presence she had grown so used to now. Steven stood over her, blanket in hand, the few tears in his eyes still shining in the moonlight.
She sat up, and opened herself for his embrace and he nodded quietly, taking her gentle opportunity and crawling onto the couch and into her arms.

He had grown the practice of seeking her out in the night. When the nightmares were bad enough, at least.
She softly pet him, bringing her hand from the top of his head down to the nape and back in slow rythmic movements while he quietly pressed himself close to her.

"You want Strawberry?" She murmured softly, gently pulling him away, he nodded silently, watching intently as she pressed her fingers to her gem.
His hand landed softly on top of hers, clutching it tightly in hesitance and even fear.
She paused, glancing back at his tired, fearful eyes.

"It's okay." She reassured, letting him hold her hand as her gem glowed a soft pink hue in the dark room.
She slowly pulled the stuffed rabbit from her gem, smiling through the wince she instinctively made. The microfractures didn't make the gesture easier.
Steven didn't need to know about that though.
Right now, all he needed to know was that she was there, and real, and she would be there for him, even if it was simply to retrieve her own precious comfort item.
She held up the strawberry scented bunny and lightly shook it until he took it from her hands.

"Makes you feel better, huh?"

Steven nodded, holding the toy to his face, taking in the residue warmth of her gem. Spinel smiled lovingly, leaning back so Steven could curl up in her arms comfortably enough to try and fall asleep. Then she would return him to his room once he had completely tuckered himself out.

She enjoyed these moments, when he required her comfort, when he wanted only her comfort.
Even if it still left a sour taste in her mouth that her poor sacrifice had broken him so much.