Hey there, readers. This, as it says in the description, is my first Steven Universe story! It's rough, to say the least, but here it is. It's short and to be honest the only reason I started it was as an excuse to write about hopefully-you-know-who, Pink Steven.

It's supposed to take place sometime after Little Graduation, but it could really happen anytime after Steven's encounter with Bluebird Azurite. So yes, there are spoilers for SU Future, and includes a little bit of blood. But other than that, I hope you enjoy!

Light streamed in from the tall glass slide door that lead to the balcony, landing on the creamy-white of Steven's comforter and urging him to open his eyes. He did, exposing his russet brown irises to the sun, before he quickly squeezed them shut again. He yawned, got up, headed downstairs with today's clothes in his hand so he could get ready in the bathroom, when he noticed Garnet waiting for him at the kitchen table.

"Good morning, Steven," she greeted.

He smiled, suppressing another yawn. "Mornin', Garnet."

Steven didn't think much of it, and left for the bathroom to shower and dress— but the Gem was still in the kitchen waiting when he got out. This time, with Steven the cat purring in her lap.

"Shouldn't you be headed to Little Homeschool by now?" he asked, stretching. He grimaced when his black starred T-shirt shot up as he raised his arms, revealing the pink gemstone embedded where his navel would be. Darn it, I'll be broke by the time I buy all these new clothes!

"I was just about to leave," she replied. "Where are you going?" She scratched affectionately behind one of Cat Steven's ears. Steven could tell she already knew where he was headed, but it was kind of her to ask.

He pulled his shirt back down over his exposed belly. "The car wash. I haven't seen Dad in a while, and he wanted me to visit."

Garnet nodded. "I wanted to tell you to be careful on the boardwalk."

He raised an eyebrow. "Is something gonna happen?"

Her mouth was in a tight line. "Maybe." At Steven's worried expression, she smiled reassuringly. "But, don't worry too much."

Steven let out a sigh of relief. While Garnet's future vision usually came out on top, today she didn't seem concerned, and there were few circumstances where everything turned out fine, even if her foresight said otherwise. And, even if something bad happened, she would know, and be right there to help him.

He grinned, and waved her goodbye, snatching his jacket on the way out.

On his way back from It's a Wash, his mind kept returning to what Garnet had told him, "be careful on the boardwalk". Steven debated walking right through Beach City instead of taking his usual shortcut, but he decided against it. Everything would probably be fine. No one was even around, anyway.

Steven stopped in front of Fish Stew Pizza and made sure to take a good look at the sky, which was turning shades of pink and orange and yellow. The moon was steadily snaking its way over the ocean, casting its reflection on the glassy waters. He sighed. Sometimes the earth really was gorgeous.

But suddenly, his body went rigid at the sound of a tiny voice in front of him. A voice he recognized. On the boardwalk.

"Hello, Steven," the voice said. Her sharp, almost British accent he always found amusing pierced the air. He turned slowly— down— to see a Gem, only two feet in stature, skin a cerulean hue, with a small, teardrop-shaped gemstone gleaming under her left eye. She sneered.

He clenched his fists, and barked, "Aquamarine, what are you doing here? And where's Eyeball?"

Aquamarine smiled softly, eyes on her hands. Then she frowned. "Oh, the Ruby. Such a shame. She got tired of my ingenious plans to stop you and left. Rubies aren't the smartest Gems, you know."

Steven furrowed his brow. Left, huh? At least that would give him a fair chance of really talking with Aquamarine without anyone trying to stab him, maybe while bubbling her ridiculous teardrop gem along the way. If she didn't come around, he supposed that would be his last resort.

He summoned his shield unconsciously, and shifted into a fighting stance. She only giggled.

"Oh, you don't need to fight me," she replied. "I'm smarter than that."

Steven raised an eyebrow questioningly, before he registered the padding of small feet on the boardwalk behind him. Shoot, I shouldn't have believed her! He barely had the time to turn around before something sharp pierced his side. He made a noise, an acute gasp or hiccup, and looked down.

He recognized one of Eyeball's orange blades... in him. It was in his side. Somehow Eyeball had managed to stab him in the one area his rose-colored shield didn't cover. His eyes widened even further when he spotted a splotch of red growing, bleeding through his clothes and staining his bubblegum-pink jacket.

Eyeball was saying something as she released her grip on the dagger, but for some reason, Steven couldn't make out her words. Something about Pink Diamond. His ears were ringing, and dark spots were distorting his vision. His shield slowly sputtered out of life, and his legs were wobbly.

Suddenly, he was on the ground, Aquamarine's wide blue eyes staring incredulously down at him through the spots. She was saying something too.

"...n't he poof?"

"I don't know... didn't mean to..."

"...is your fault!"

Steven pushed himself to stay awake, but his side was really starting to smart, and now felt like a really good time to take a nap.

Amethyst groaned. "Pearl, turn off your phone, or do something to make it stop!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Pearl replied, rushing over to the kitchen table where her phone was ringing. The caller ID read Kiki, from Fish Stew Pizza. She frowned. Was something wrong? Did the city need to evacuate again?

"Hello, Kiki, Pearl speaking," she greeted. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your calling?"

At the sound of the Pizza girl's frantic voice, Pearl knew instantly that something was definitely wrong. "Pearl, listen, Steven is unconscious and bleeding on the boardwalk," she said. "He's still alive, and we called an ambulance, but his gem thingy isn't on his stomach anymore..."

Mumbling some sort of reply, she hung up and shakily set her cellular phone back down on the table. Pearl didn't want to listen anymore.

The Gems sprinted as fast as they could to the boardwalk, where a crowd of people and Gems alike, including the Pizza family, the Fryman family, Blue Lace Agate, Barb, Bill Dewey, Bixbite and a few others, surrounded someone lying on the ground. The sound of sirens rang from the distance, but that wasn't what Pearl was focused on. She pushed through the crowd, and saw exactly what she hoped not to see.

Steven was lying in a puddle of his own blood, and if that alone wasn't enough to make a Gem shatter on instant, his gemstone wasn't on his navel anymore. His stomach was clean and bare. It lay a few feet away, it's pink, reflective surface showing no life beneath it.

Like herself, Bixbite and Blue Lace were watching his gem, not his body (though of course that was important too), because they, like herself, knew what it meant.

Steven's body was injured, but he was still alive. Why would his gem detach? Steven had been hurt before. It made no sense.

Pearl gingerly picked up the gem— the gem she had only held in her hands once before— and kept it safe and unbroken in her palm while Steven was taken in an ambulance to the hospital.

Any thoughts? Please tell me! :)