Hope - Steven Universe x Depressed!Reader

Chapter Three - The Beach

(Y/n) couldn't believe she's been here for a week already. A week in a strange town, one that she didn't even want to be in.

Her parents had managed to get her to go outside to the beach, in order to maybe help her feel more relaxed here. Now here she was, sitting on the beach in the middle of the night, trying to feel better after crying for so long.

She still felt tired from all the crying, and her breaths were still shaky. She just looked around the area to distract herself and focus on what was around her.

The first thing she saw was a giant temple in the shape of a woman. It seemed old and like it had been there for a very long time. The woman had multiple sets of arms, and in one set, sitting on the palm, there was a small house.

She wondered if anyone lived there. The lights were on, so she was assuming somebody did, but she still wasn't quite sure. After all, who would live right next to a temple like that?

She couldn't lie, it did look very carefully built and it looked quite pretty. She just didn't quite understand how a such a small town with a beach had such a large and seemingly historical object in it.

She slowly shifted her gaze from the temple to the sky. It looked stunning, the way the stars twinkled. There was always something about the night sky that interested her. Maybe it was the fact that the universe was so endless, and how you're nothing but a tiny speck of nothingness compared to the rest of what was out there.

She closed her eyes and took a breath. It was nice out here, and the sand still felt a tad bit warm. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and glanced at the time.

It was almost 8:30.

She didn't want to leave quite yet, it was nice here. She placed her phone on the sand and closed her eyes once again, it felt like she could fall asleep here.

Suddenly, a voice was heard, and it immediately caused her to open her eyes and jerk her body away from the direction of where the person spoke.

"Oh, hello."

She quickly looked over and saw a boy who was about the height of a five year old. He had a red shirt with a yellow star in the center, blue jeans, and sandals. His hair was curly and poofy, and he looked like he was around nine years old or so.

"Oh, hi," she said in response, still startled by the boy's sudden approach. "Um, what's your name?"

"I'm Steven, Steven Universe."

She slowly nodded in understanding, realizing he didn't sound like he was nine years old at all.

"Are you new here? I haven't seen you around here before."

"Um, yeah." Her voice was quiet, as she felt uncomfortable with the situation going on. "My family just moved here like a week ago, I don't really go out that much."

"Oh! That's nice! Welcome to Beach City!" His voice was cheerful and upbeat, he seemed like a genuinely happy kid. "Do you mind if I sit down next to you? I'd like to get to know you better, you know, so we can be friends?"

"Oh, sure, go ahead." (Y/n) seemed a bit awkward and confused. "But, um, shouldn't you like, be in bed already?"

"Hm?" Steven looked over at her. "Oh, no, it's fine, haha, the gems don't care."

"Oh! Sorry, I guess younger kids don't have bedtimes that much anymore."

"Huh?" Steven chuckled. "I'm fourteen, I can understand why you thought I was younger though."

(Y/n)'s eyes went wide. "Oh my stars, I'm so sorry!" her heart started racing and she immediately felt like a horrible person for assuming his age. "I just thought you were younger because you looked like it, I -"

Steven chuckled, "it's okay, haha, really."

(Y/n) calmed down a bit, but she still felt like a horrible human being for making tiny mistake. It's always what had happened to her, she made a tiny screw-up and she felt like it was the end of the world. She hated that feeling, she hated that she had to deal with it.

Steven smiled as he sat down next to her. "So, what brings you to Beach City?"

"Financial issues," (Y/n) said quietly. "I don't know the details but I'm assuming one of my parents got a new job."

Steven looked at her with a genuine smile. She didn't know this kid much, but she envied how happy and joyful he seemed. She wished she still felt that way, she'd do anything to feel happy again, she was even willing to -

No.

She shook her head and looked away. She told herself she wouldn't think of that anymore, not since what had happened last time. 

"Hey, are you okay?" Steven's expression immediately changed from happiness to worry in a matter of seconds.

"Yeah, I'm alright, just thinking about things."

(Y/n) let out a small sigh and looked over towards Steven. "I think I should be getting home, it was nice to meet you, Steven."

She had felt bad for ending this conversation so abruptly, but she didn't want to talk anymore, she just wanted to go home and rest.

"It was nice to meet you too," Steven chuckled. "By the way, what is your name? Sorry for not asking before, haha."

(Y/n) stood up and looked at him, giving a slight smile. "(Y/n)."

(A/n) sorry if the conversation seems awkward or out of character, haha, I need to work on character interactions a bit more

hope you guys are liking this so far, please tell me what you think, advice is very much appreciated ^^