It was a particularly jarring bump in the road that dragged Max out of his painful slumber.

He was actually lifted into the air and then fell back down onto a mattress. He yelped and swore and tears sprung back into his eyes as pain shot through him. Pearl, Steven and a small curvy purple woman with a cloud of silvery hair were sat in the back of a van with him. He could see the back of a balding head behind the wheel and the tall black woman in the passengers seat.

"Sorry about that, kiddo," the driver said.

"Son of a bitch..." Max muttered. The purple woman sniggered and Pearl made a face like she was sucking a lemon. 

"C'mon, Pearl, you can't deny it's a little funny," the purple woman said. "He's just so teeny."

"You can relate, can't you, Amethyst?" Said the black woman from the front.

Max flipped this 'Amethyst' the bird.

"That's enough," Pearl snapped. "Greg, how far are we?"

"Around ten minutes," the man said. He had a kind voice. Easy to listen to, easy to trust.
Max narrowed his eyes. He knew better.

"Pearl, what does this mean?" Steven asked, putting up his middle finger.

"Nothing, Steven," Pearl said sharply. "Don't do it."

"Okay," Steven replied happily, turning to look out of the window and then starting to hum.

Max's eyes widened. This kid had to be at least three years older than him, and he didn't know about what giving someone the finger meant? He had to be kidding. Max's scowl deepened but he kept his broken jaw shut.

They arrived at the hospital and before Max could argue, the tall black woman scooped him up in her arms and carried him to the A and E doors. He decided that she was his favourite out of the three strange women with Steven and Greg.

"Hey," Steven said suddenly, turning to look at Max. "I've just realised something. We don't even know your name."

Max squeezed his eyes shut against the pain in his mouth as he croaked,

"Max."

-

"Now, you'll just need to fill out these forms for me, please, Mr... um..."

"Universe," Greg said, taking the papers.

Him, Steven and the Gems were standing in the waiting room of the hospital.
Max, meanwhile, was on one of those wheeling beds, being pushed down a crisp white hallway. They had given him an oxygen mask to breath into, which eased the pain considerably. He had never been to hospital before, and he didn't know what to expect.

He was afraid. But most of all, he wanted David.