[Open Ext. Beach House, Night-time]

(Concluding the events in "Lars' Head", Greg, Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl watch in immerse worry from inside the beach house. as Steven sends Connie off.)

STEVEN: We’ll be fine! I'll be right back. I'm just gonna walk Connie out. Don’t worry! I'm not going back into space or anything. chuckles They're never gonna let me out of their sight again. Connie?

(Lion glares intently at Steven, when Connie walks off ahead. Steven and Lion run up to catch up with her.)

STEVEN: Connie! I know you got to get home and get some sleep, but once you're all rested up, I can't wait to tell you about everything! Being on Homeworld was crazy! After I turned myself in, they put me on trial! And Lars was there. We got chased by killer robots. Heh, what a wild ride that was! And uh... I'm really happy to see you again.

(Steven grows concerned with Connie's silence.)

STEVEN: Umm... A-Are you happy to see me, too?

CONNIE: Of course I'm happy to see you, Steven.

STEVEN: Uhh, but?

(Lion walks up to Connie’s side, still glaring at Steven.)

CONNIE: But how could you just give yourself up like that?

STEVEN: Well, first, I said I was my dad, and then I said I was my mom.

CONNIE: scoffs No. I mean, you just gave up.
STEVEN: I had to. They were gonna take all those people. They were gonna take you!

CONNIE: But what about our training? Stevonnie. Jam buds. I believed in us. We could have done it together.

STEVEN: This is different. This whole thing was my fault, but I knew that I could fix it all if I turned myself in. And look! No one got hurt. Well, except for Lars, but I saved him, too.

CONNIE: But... I’m hurt.

STEVEN: No, you're not. You’re safe. You're here. I'm here. We're safe. Everything’s fine.

CONNIE: ...It's not, though.

(Connie rides on Lion as they approach towards the sea.)

STEVEN: You know, it was a tough decision for me to make, but it had to be done.

CONNIE: You don't get it.

STEVEN: ...Get what?

(Connie lowers her head in disappointment.)

CONNIE: Let's go, Lion.

(Lion glares disapprovingly at Steven, runs over the water, and warps away through his magical portal with Connie, as Steven watches on in perplexity.)
STEVEN: sarcastically "Wow, Steven, that was so brave of you. I'm so glad you're back."

[Trans. Int. The Big Donut, The Next Day]

(The next day, Steven goes to break the news with Sadie.)

SADIE: What?! grabbing Steven by his shirt And Lars is still in space?!

STEVEN: Yeah, he is, but don't worry. He's with some very nice Gems who are on the run from their Homeworld overlords.

SADIE: Oh, Laaaars...

STEVEN: Sadie, he's fine. We can go see him anytime through Lion.

SADIE: tearing up Glad he's not- At least he's some kind of... alive? You... told his parents, right...?

STEVEN: You're kind of my practice run for that.

(Steven and Sadie exit the Big Donut.)

SADIE: sighs Let's do this quick. I can't be away from work too long. I'm basically their only employee now.

(As they begin walking on the boardwalk, Steven and Sadie encounter a protest crowd in front of Fish Stew Pizza.)

STEVEN: Whoa, what's going on?
MALE CITIZEN: We're sick of it!

(Steven and Sadie push their way through the crowd and witness the lead advocate, who turns out to be Nanefua Pizza, standing on a soapbox and speaking through a megaphone.)

NANEFUA: Am I right about it?! Aliens nearly abducted the whole town. And what did Mayor "Billiam" Dewey do about it?

(A Beach City citizen scratches his head and shrugs.)

NANEFUA: That is right! Jack, and squat!

(The crowd resumes shouting, while Steven watch on anxiously.)

SADIE: Steven, I'm going to Lars' parents' house.

STEVEN: Okay, I'll catch up with you.

NANEFUA: And that is why you should vote for me, your favorite Nanefua, for mayor of Beach City!

(The crowd cheers in favor.)

NANEFUA: When I say "Do we want Dewey?", you say "No." Do we want Dewey?

ALL, EXCEPT STEVEN: No!

NANEFUA: Do we want Dewey?

ALL, EXCEPT STEVEN: No!

NANEFUA: Okay, good job.

STEVEN: Hmm... types a message for Connie on his phone "Can't hang today. Mayor D's getting blamed for Gem stuff, and it's totally my fault."

[Trans. Int. Mayor's Office]

(Steven pays a visit to Mayor Dewey in his office, as he looks on at the protesters outside his window.)

MAYOR DEWEY: I don't know, Universe. This doesn't look good.

STEVEN: How's this?

(Steven holds up his own protest sign that reads "Dewey's Great ♡".)

MAYOR DEWEY: Oh. That looks great! But I may need more. My gosh. I've never had an opponent before. Even when I ran for mayor of high school, I ran unopposed. Probably because... I made up the position.

STEVEN: If only I could've warned you about this abduction stuff sooner, then everything would be fine now. I really dropped the ball.

MAYOR DEWEY: You're right, Universe. This is all your fault. Huh.

STEVEN: How about we call an impromptu town meeting on the boardwalk? I'll tell everyone what happened and how you weren't involved at all, and everyone'll feel better and vote for you in the next election.

MAYOR DEWEY: All right, Universe. The ball's back in your court. Just, uh... don't drop it again, huh?

[Trans. Beach City Boardwalk]

(Mayor Dewey drives Steven in his van onto the boardwalk, and Steven begins speaking to the crowd through a megaphone.)

STEVEN: So, in conclusion, Mayor Dewey had nothing whatsoever to do with the abductions. Everything was my fault because I unknowingly provided some space Gems with a list of names and put everyone in danger. Mayor Dewey would never do anything to purposefully endanger the town. He basically just keeps a low profile and doesn't get involved in much of anything.

FEMALE CITIZEN: Yeah, maybe he should be involved!

MALE CITIZEN: He's the mayor!

(The crowd cries out in disapproval.)

STEVEN: Thanks for listening, and please vote for him in the next Beach City mayoral election.

MAYOR DEWEY: Oh, ho, ho, yeah! grabs the megaphone from Steven* Hello, everyone. Thanks for coming. Wow! This whole abduction business was a real close call, huh? *wipes off his sweat, splashing them onto Steven Woo. But look around you. Everyone is safe and accounted for.

SADIE: That's not true! What about my friend Lars?

MAYOR DEWEY: Who?

SADIE: What? Lars! Lars Barriga?! Mr. and Mrs. Barriga's son! Did you even know he was still missing? Did you know he was still somewhere in SPACE?! WHAT KIND OF MAYOR DOESN'T KNOW WHEN HIS OWN PEOPLE ARE LOST IN SPACE?!?!

(Dante, Martha and Sadie begins to tear up in anger.)

MAYOR DEWEY: The donut boy? turns to Steven Is that why the donut shop was closed this morning?

STEVEN: Yeah, but-

MAYOR DEWEY: Do not, worry! I will do everything in my power to hire a new donut boy.

(The crowd boos at Mayor Dewey's proposal.)

STEVEN: No! facepalm

SADIE: You've got to be kidding me!

(Martha throws a tomato right into Mayor Dewey's face.)

[Time-Skip; Dusk]

(Steven shows Mayor Dewey a looped video of Mayor Dewey getting tomato'd in the face on his phone.)

MAYOR DEWEY: How did this get on the Internet so fast? I didn't invite any press to this event.

STEVEN: Someone posted it on TubeTube. Only 12 people have seen it.

MAYOR DEWEY: 12 people?! That's half the town! I'm finished, Universe. I don't know of many political figures that have made a comeback after getting a tomato to the face.

(Mayor Dewey takes Steven's phone and watches the video in somber.)

MAYOR DEWEY: Oh, again, and again, and again, and again.

STEVEN: You need to stop looping that! Look, we're gonna get through this together, okay? Tomorrow is the big debate. You still have one more chance to win back the town's love.

MAYOR DEWEY: But Steven, some of the things people have been saying about me are really painful and mean.

STEVEN: We've just got to change the conversation. We can start, with this. hands Mayor Dewey a book

MAYOR DEWEY: "How to talk to people"?

STEVEN: I'm going to get you ready for that debate, even if it takes all night.

[Trans. Beach City Stage; The Next Day]

(A stage is set up on the beach with a banner reading "Speech-A-Palooza". A crowd is gathered in front of it, murmuring to themselves. Steven and Mayor Dewey are seen at the side of the stage, with visible eye bags beneath their eyes.)

STEVEN: All right. yawns Today's the day. You got your note cards, you look great, and if anyone brings up the alien invasion thing, I wrote a bunch of Ocean Town jokes for you to use.

MAYOR DEWEY: Aww, shucks, Universe. You're like the son I never had.

STEVEN: You... have a son.

MAYOR DEWEY: I know that. You're... just very different from him, is all.

(The crowd begins chanting "Speech!", Mayor Dewey whines in anxiety and Steven offers a hug to Mayor Dewey.)

STEVEN: I'm rooting for you, Dew Drops.

MAYOR DEWEY: weakly Thanks.

(The crowd keeps chanting as Mayor Dewey and Nanefua take their stands on-stage. The curtains then rise and the crowd quickly shushes themselves.)

MAYOR DEWEY: clears his throat People of Beach City. You might think that being a mayor is a fine and glamorous sort of thing. I can understand why my opponent would want the position. But I've been mayor of this city for a decade, and I know some things that Ms. Nanefua does not. You see, when you're the mayor, you get blamed for everything. When the boardwalk has termites, it's the mayor's fault. When aliens steal people, it's the mayor's fault. When the mayor crashes the mayor mobile into the only cell tower in town, it's the mayor's fault. Most people can't handle that kind of pressure, but I can! So, I say to you, Beach City citizens, just enjoy our wonderful ocean breeze and don't worry about a thing. Just let Dewey "do it" for you!

(The crowd murmurs among themselves, but approves of the statement and lightly applauds.)

STEVEN: pump his fist Nice!

NANEFUA: You know, Mayor Dewey, you are right.

MAYOR DEWEY: I am? A-About what?

NANEFUA: I have blamed you for too many things, and that is not helping.

(The crowd begins murmuring among themselves.)

STEVEN: What?

NANEFUA: Blaming our problems completely on the mayor is not getting us anywhere. When one of us suffers, the town suffers. When you suffer, Mayor Billiam, the town suffers. So, no longer will I point my fingers at you. I will extend all my fingers on both my hands to everyone here today and ask that we share responsibility for the welfare and safety of Beach City, together! Thank you.

(The crowd cheers heavily and begins chanting for "Nanefua".)

STEVEN: You got this, Mayor Dewey.

(Mayor Dewey stammers, accidentally slips his notes everywhere, and attempts to read one of the notes provided.)

MAYOR DEWEY: Uhh... Did you ever notice how people from Ocean... Town- Oh, who am I kidding? Beach City deserves a real mayor. Someone wise and collected like Ms. Nanefua.

(The crowd murmurs among themselves again.)

STEVEN: Wait. No, no-no!

MAYOR DEWEY: I withdraw from the race. shakes Nanefua's hand You can find the key to the city under the... city welcome mat.

(The crowd cheers as Bill Dewey, resigning his position as Mayor, walks offstage sighing. A shocked Steven then chases after Bill Dewey.)

STEVEN: Mayor Dewey, what're you doing?! Y-You can't just throw the election like that. W-We could still win!

BILL DEWEY: Well, I know it's not very traditional to do that in the middle of a debate, but, why drag it out?

STEVEN: We could have won! I- I really believed in you! I really believed in us!

BILL DEWEY: Well, you were wrong. What do you want me to say?

STEVEN: How about, "I'm sorry. We were in this together, and I let you down"?

BILL DEWEY: Come on, Universe. You know she's gonna be a better mayor than me. It was the right thing to do.

STEVEN: I guess, but... I still feel... betrayed. ...That's probably how Connie feels.

BILL DEWEY: Yeah, I don't know what you're talking about, but I've got to find a new job.

(Bill Dewey walks off, humming a tune to himself. Steven then gets out his phone as he attempts to call Connie.)

[Trans Int. Beach City, Dusk]

(Back at home, Steven glances at a photo of Connie in his room, as he still desperately waits for Connie's answer on his phone, to no avail.)

[END]