"Are you sure you got that, little guy?"

Steven continued to lift the heavy grocery bag in his two hands, "Y-Yep! No need to worry about me!"

"I can carry for that for you, if you want," Spinel kindly offered.

Steven looked at her, "But then how will I get as strong as you or the Gems?"

Spinel smiled, not caring if Pearl heard, "Alright then."

The three of them were out for groceries, thanks to Amethyst trying to create a recipe... only for her to use too many of the food in the fridge for it. Garnet was taking care of the now-sickly Amethyst while they were gone. Spinel shook her head at the thought, why did her best friend have to be so reckless?

One thing she was a little concerned about; the cars were going a little... too fast. She didn't really know why this was happening. Beach City was very small compared to Homeworld, surely it was less busy. Guess autumn was that kind of season.

They stopped at the traffic light that glowed orange, and then red, signaling them to stop as the cars zoomed down the crosswalk.

Steven was still struggling to the hold the bag up, Spinel resisting the urge to help him. If there was something her little 10-year-old wanted to accomplish, she won't stop him ... Unless it was hurting him.

"Ugh, I hate this specific light," Pearl griped, "It takes so long."

"Sure does..." Spinel awkwardly replied. For some reason, she couldn't help but get an uncomfortable feeling. Like she was dreading some invisible monster's attack. But what?

HONK!

Pearl yelped as a truck blasted its horn, almost causing her to fall back and drop her bags, but Spinel was fast enough to catch her mid-fall. Much to Steven's attention, he noticed one of the items, an orange, rolled out into the street.

Placing down his bags, Steven looked at Spinel and Pearl, then to the street, wondering what to do.

"Are you okay?" asked Spinel.

Pearl got up, gasping a bit, "I-I am..."

Spinel looked downwards, expecting the child to remain where he was… only to find him in the street!

"STEVEN!" Both Spinel and Pearl screamed, causing Steven to freeze as he was about to pick the fruit up. But much to his horror, Steven looked up to see a car heading towards him... then a pink blur zoomed in, pushing him away-

CRASH!

POOF!

Steven landed onto the sidewalk with a thump, the blood roaring in his ears. People gasped in shock and the car came to a screeching halt.

"Spinel!" He heard Pearl shout.

With adrenaline pumping in his veins, Steven stumbled to sit up, wondering why Pearl had shouted his guardian's name in alarm. His heart seemed to get stuck in his throat as he only saw Spinel's gem lying on the concrete, some specks of pink dust fluttering like ash until it faded.

All he could do was whimper through breaths. Where was Spinel? Why was her heart-shaped gem just lying there? He struggled to walk over to the gem, ignoring the squashed orange. His knees gave out as he placed his hand on the gem.

"... Spinel...?" He whispered.

A pair of thin arms wrapped themselves around his body, and he clung tight onto the gem, holding it to his chest.

"I-I have to get Garnet," He heard Pearl say, more people gathering and talking but the noises began to drown out as Steven hugged his guardian's gem to his chest, guilt enveloping him.

"She got hit?!" Garnet exasperated.

Pearl nodded panickally, "I saw it! I-I don't know why Steven would go out in the street like that, but… Oh stars… "

Garnet sighed, "Let's be thankful she doesn't have a crack."

Steven was hugging a pillow close, staring at the heart-shaped gem on the table. Fear shook his head, wondering what was going to happen to Spinel. Was she dead? The other gems say that she isn't, just recovering. But it's only been an hour since she got… how did they say it? Poofed?

But if she's still alive, how would she say after she… reforms? Will she be different? Will she remember what happened? What will she say to him after he had done something so risky?

Steven sniffled, tears staining the soft pillow. He wanted to feel Spinel's arms around him again. The feeling of her coiled arms around his body gave him a comforting feeling, like he knew he was loved and protected.

How could he have done this?

Just then, the heart-shaped gem glowed and floated upwards.

"Well, she's coming back now," stated Garnet."

The white silhouette of Spinel formed, though much to his confusion, her first formation had her pigtails into hearts, then changing to the spiky pigtails he knew for his whole life. The light faded, revealing Spinel, still looking the same; three black tear-streaks, upside-down heart, pink gloves, dark magenta dress tiny black stars dotting the bottom of it, white ribbon tied around her waist, and magenta knee-high pointy boots.

Spinel gently landed on the floor, slowly opening her eyes, staring back at Steven. The relief in his eyes were placed with fear and thick tears.

"Hey buddy, you okay?" She spoke calmly.

Somehow, her response was enough to make Steven start sobbing loudly, jumping off the couch and giving her a tight hug, tighter than the other hugs before.

"I-I'M SORRY!" He sobbed, continuing to repeat it as he nuzzled into her gem.

She gently patted his head, "It's alright, Stevie. I'm not mad."

"BUT I-... I ALMOST KILLED YOU!" He almost screamed into her chest. She turned to face a worried Pearl and Garnet.

"H-How are you feeling?" Pearl asked nervously.

Spinel ran her hand down Steven's back, smiling kindly, "... I feel okay. As long as Steven's not hurt, I'm okay."