"Psst!" Connie waved at the band frantically and they all turned.

"What's up? Where's Steven?" Hazel asked quietly.

She shook her head grimly. "He's not in a good mood. He'll be down in a minute."

There were two different sides that had split the band in confusion.

One side saw Stevens cheerfulness and grew confused and tried to play along. This was a bad mood?

Steven bounded down the stairs and picked Connie up like a blushing bride. "Mrs. Knight."

She smiled up at him a bit warily. "My Liege."

"Morning, Steven!"

He looked up and smiled brightly. "Good morning, everybody! I'm starving, you guys eat yet?"

They all nodded save for Anna who shrugged. "Meh, not yet. Whatcha making?"

Steven set Connie down on the countertop and held her hips in place. With his back to the group his eyes showed sorrow that ripped her apart with him murmuring lowly, "Stay with me," and her nodding warmly and replying, "Forever."

He turned back to Anna with his cheerfulness completely intact. "Anything you'd like, my love."

The other part of the group could smell the bullshit like they'd stepped in it.

Jacob and Adam exchanged narrowed eyes and Adam cleared his throat as they stood. "You know, we just remembered that we're running low on grass and gas. Gonna fill up the bands van and visit our friend in the boondocks for some weed."

They all nodded in agreement and Steven grinned as he gripped a spatula with way too much force. "Give Old Nana Brown a kiss on the cheek for me. You two behave."

Jacob noticed his clenched fists but kept his eyes locked onto Steven's and bright even through the sarcastic, "We know, Dad."

Steven chuckled and started pulling out ingredients.

As soon as Adam started the van they both exhaled.

"Fuck. That's not good," Jacob lamented. "That's one of the best masks I've ever seen." He rested his hand on the console and Adam grabbed it and squeezed.

The two had an unlikely but strong relationship within the polycule, both understanding the depths of absolute despair with no hope of escape. They'd both been morbidly depressed, though few knew about how deeply it reached in Jacob.

"Yeah, that's gonna have to come off at some point. It always comes off." Adam's grip on the wheel tightened and he sighed. "I don't think I've ever met someone as selfless as Steven, and yet so absolutely cruel to himself."

"You could almost believe he thought he was God himself if you didn't pay any attention to him at all."

They both snorted and tossed each other eye rolls. Stevens fake God Complex was so rooted in silliness it was impossible to actually think he was serious. Every single one of the band members knew the vast majority about each other, from kinks to secret talents to bright red flags. Their alliance and consequential relationships seeping into each other made the world a better place, they were certain things would be different apart. Maybe more earthquakes would destroy more places, maybe more politicians would pass stupid rules that made people's lives harder, maybe minimum wage would lower even more, they didn't know. But what they did know was each other, and Adam and Jacob knew without a shadow of a doubt that Steven needed a hug and to vent.

Old Nana Brown was sweeping her porch when their van pulled up, and both
subconsciously grinned and pulled their hands apart to wave. She turned toward the sound and smiled, waving back out of pure coincidence.

They parked and greeted her carefully, but jovial nonetheless. "Come and let Old Nana get a look 'atcha." Her hands lifted to run over their faces and she patted their chests. "Adam and Jacob, two of my most special boys. Come on in, now. I'll send some gumbo too."

They grinned at each other and placed a hand over their hearts, giggling softly when they realized they were in sync like they often were. Steven had always joked that if any fusions were to occur in the group, it'd be them and they could wholeheartedly agree.

"Nana knows y'all didn't just come for some flower, your faces felt a bit sad. Talk to me." She secured her arms around theirs as they walked her to the kitchen, enticed by the smells of spices and broth. Weed could wait for Nana's famous gumbo.

Adam glanced at Jacob before speaking. "It's Steven."

She hummed, a bright smile lighting up her face. Everyone loved Steven, and there was no reason they shouldn't. "Steven Universe? That boy'd better be being good to himself. Drop me here, I got it." She reached below the stove and to the right to pull out a massive gargantuan of a tupperware container. Old Nana Brown made ridiculously large batches of food because she was clever enough to mask the smell of weed with the smell of food.

"Today's just an off day. You should've seen how he was acting. Totally normal to someone who didn't know any better, but just..." Jacob trailed off as he made a face. He'd felt what Steven was feeling almost exactly. He masked with humor and laughs and cheerfulness. His therapist told him he was the best masker she'd ever worked with, but she saw through his shit every time. She was a blessing like that.

"Off?" Nana gestured for them to help themselves. "Completely allergen free, less you allergic to vegetables." She chuckled and took Jacob's arm as Adam stepped onto the stool to start pouring the pot into their container. Jacob took a moment to admire the way Adam preferred to take care of everything himself, the way he was intent on taking care of his lovers almost selfishly. "You know music is where his heart lays at. Sing it, rap it, tap dance it. Whatever he's gotta do. But ya can't force it either. Old Nana Brown used to hide everything too, and look how that worked out. Gods blessed me though, I can't complain. God'll bless him too."

Her story was rather sad actually. She'd had a family of twelve children and a wonderful husband she kept a picture of that she couldn't see anymore. They lived a life down in the swamplands of New Orleans for years, and one day she'd sent her family ahead to Thanksgiving in the Mountain State while she finished a double at her office job. She was always working around that time, and had barely gotten to see her children in favor of making enough money to make Christmas extraordinary for a lively family living in hard times made even harder for them simply because they were black. The plane had lost function in its motors and had fallen to its fiery and instant demise, marking one of the most violent and devastating plane malfunctions in the last few decades. The stress and depression had given her glaucoma and she refused to talk to anyone about it. It ate away at her for years until she couldn't see.

But the woman was kind and wise, and could make a mean pot of gumbo.

"Tap dancing? That'd be something," Adam chuckled. "I'd pay good money to see Steven in a tux and tap shoes singing about being sad."

They shared laughter that lightened the load and Jacob checked his phone. 'Hᴇʏ, ʜᴏᴡs ɪᴛ ɢᴏɪɴɢ?'

Jasmin typed for a long moment before she answered. 'He's still at it. We're playing Mario Kart and he's glowing like a nightlight claiming he's just really happy.'

Connie and Hazel messaged back at the same time almost the same thing, reading along the lines of, 'Which is complete bullshit.'

'His birthday is coming up. And the Diamonds are coming.'

Jacob sucked in a breath and Nana turned to him. "Speak up, boy."

"His aunts are coming over for his birthday, a day he already kinda hates."

Old Nana Brown wrinkled her nose in pure disgust. She didn't know exactly the full story, but Steven had opened up to her and she'd taken the role as all of their Nana. She knew things about them that some of their partners didn't even know. And she hated the Diamonds as much as the rest did. "Those women better leave my grandkids alone. He deserves to have a good birthday without thinking about his mama."

She lead them to the Green Room after Adam hauled the food to the car with surprising strength for one of the smallest members of their group and they breathed in the smell of fresh weed.

It reached the ceilings and what looked like thousands of jars of weed stacked just as high. Old Nana Brown could look at a flower and it would just bloom simply because she was around. Her green thumb had tickled Steven to no end, and during their visits he'd grow her things just to get a gentle smack on his arm and a humorous scolding.

"Alright Nana, you're gonna take this envelope and you're going to like it," Jacob told her sternly. "All the money is yours."

They all pitched in for drinks and weed, but for Nana they paid three times the amount they needed to because they all adored her. Secretly they wanted her to move out of this cramped and dangerous house, but she was happy here. She was not happy, however, with the bulging manila envelope she was holding and humming discontentedly at. "This is around 3 pounds too heavy. Take it back, you know your weed is free every third time."

Adam pulled her into a hug and grabbed the envelope, shooting Jacob a coy smirk. "Nana, you're too kind."

He set the envelope on the table behind her and they excused themselves out the door before they could chuckle. Nana would find it, and Nana would be livid, but by the time they came back she could usually only muster a gentle "verbal ass whoopin'" (as she called it).

The drive was a little tense with nerves for their friend, and the impending meeting of the Diamonds, but they loved each others company.

As they pulled in, Adam gestured Jacob in for a lingering kiss. "I love you."

Jacob grinned and tried not to act like an idiot. "I love you too."

The house was nearly glowing with Stevens color, and he was visibly tense. They were still playing Mario Kart though, and he giggled at the rest boo'ing him for his incredible skill at the game as he won for what was probably the tenth time in a row.

"Nana says you need to tap dance." Adam ruffled his hair and he purred briefly before leaning to see the TV again.

"You almost got me. How's she doing? Did she take the money?"

Anna giggled. "She's gonna beat our ass next time so I say we all go so it's spread out a bit more evenly."

Jasmin pulled Jacob in for a kiss and a hug before patting her lap. "You guys smell like Nanas house too."

Connie lifted her nose and pressed it into Adam's sweatshirt. "Ugh, you guys smell like gumbo. Tell me you brought some."

He dropped a kiss to the top of her head. "Of course. No more games, all hands on deck."

Steven insisted on using his Diamond strength to lift it himself ("I'm helping. Let me help.") and carefully set it on the counter. They watched as he backed away slowly and blew out a low breath. He stared at it before turning to them and sighing at the wall he'd made without thinking. He'd been thinking about when he couldn't control his strength and broken everything nearby. He was protecting them from him. The wall was tiled and rose from the floor to the ceiling, blocking them all of from him entirely. His eyes landed on Connie's last, who pressed her hand against it sadly. At her silent command, her single touch, it evaporated into shining pink sparkles. He sniffled and smiled, as poorly timed and weak as it was. "I'm not doing a very good job of pretending I'm okay, am I?"

There was something about the smell of Nanas food that brought out your deepest emotions and broke down your walls every time. They nodded and surrounded him in a masterful group hug; tight but not too tight as they had learned their combined strength could take him out. He sniffled and went a little limp, so they let him onto his knees and hugged him a bit harder with his head buried into Connie's chest.

"You say the word and The Diamonds don't come, Steven." Connie rubbed at his curls and smiled gratefully at their partners.

"That's not why I'm upset."

They recoiled in surprise. He'd expressed severe malcontent about being near The Diamonds, they'd assumed this was the result of smothering it.

Hazel rubbed at his cheek and he grimly leaned into it, a sign of a bit more of his emotional walls coming down. "What's going on, Steven?"

He took a deep breath. "You ever look in the mirror, and think about all of the reasons why you should've ended up a villain instead of a good guy? And maybe that you deserve that?"

As if Steven had breathed the air into their lungs they all released it together and nodded, all agreeing wholeheartedly. Apparently trauma attracted trauma, and they were all pretty traumatized to some extreme.

Alex, showing a bit of rare affection kissed his cheek. "Sometimes I think I succeeded. But we're gonna be okay. We're all gonna be okay." He spoke with a final kind of sureness that spread to them all and they crashed on the couch to cuddle.

"There's a million reasons I should've ended up a villain. It's not fair. Sometimes I think I shouldn't have this stupid need to be nice to people. I hate it. Sometimes I wish I could just be a genuinely terrible person and not care about anything anymore. I had every right to lose my shit and... I hate being nice."

They listened to him vent and comforted him until he passed out from the effort it took to be so gentle. His power could've destroyed the world if he let it, but instead he used that unmatched strength to be kind.