Real

Ben smiled lazily, sitting up against the headboard of his bed, relaxing in the morning light filtering in through his curtains. The room was darkened still, but he could easily see everything in it regardless, from his cluttered desk to the overstuffed bookshelves (hey, comics counted as books right?). The room smelled faintly of sleep, even the air seemed to be lazy with the way he could feel it lay on him with, sluggishly circling the room. It was nice, feeling comfortable in his own space for a change.

This bedroom had been the setting for so many of his meltdowns that even on good days, he felt ill at ease sleeping there. Not enough to set him off, no, but it did remind him of all the times he woke up from a nightmare, tangled in the sheets and drowning in the seemingly endless mattress, gasping for breath, heart pounding-

Gwen twitched in his lap, pulling him from his spiral, seeming aware of him even in her sleep, and he latched onto the distraction. His smile returned and he raised a hand to stroke her hair, enjoying the softness of it. His bed still felt too large compared to the RV's bunks, but with Gwen there it was just about right. Even if she was a total blanket hog.

There was a cot next to his bed prepared for her, but it hadn't seen any use. His parents did use it when they didn't trust him to sleep alone. It should've hurt that they didn't trust him to look after himself anymore, as they'd always had, but he couldn't muster the indignation required. Between all the secrets he kept these days and all the slip-ups he'd had, he wouldn't trust him either.

Ben wasn't sure how he felt about that, so he tried not to think about it.

Their newfound concern did have the sucky add on that his dad had removed the lock from his bedroom door, which theoretically meant they could barge right in. Not that he and Gwen were doing anything they couldn't write off as 'normal' right now, but he didn't want to plant any ideas in their head. It hadn't escaped him that his uncle looked at him a little too knowingly, or that aunt Nat was starting to look too. Paranoia had made him just that bit more perceptive, it seemed.

Gwen stirred, but didn't wake, and he allowed himself a moment to just take her in, a luxury he seldom had when she was awake (well, without her making a cheeky comment anyway). There wasn't much to see, with only her head poking out from under the blankets, but it still piqued his interest like little else could. Gwen was usually so severe, in every way. Her smile was sharp, her eyes slanted and mischievous, coolly intelligent and her appearance always crisp, even when she went for casual. Nothing about Gwen Tennyson was disorderly, nothing was soft.

But when she slept, the tension in her body melted away like snow in the sun. Her eyes lost that harsh, observant stare that she never quite seemed to be able to drop. Her hair, too, was released from its fixed style, laying about her head as a small mane of red that reminded him of sunsets in the desert. All in all, it granted Gwen a gentleness that he couldn't get enough of. It made him wonder how he could ever have hated the sight of her in the past. Then again, it hadn't been until he saw her in a dress at Joel's wedding that he could, grudgingly, admit to himself that she was pretty; insofar as seeing Gwendolyn hadn't driven that point home.

Running his hands through her hair, he felt the instant that she became awake, her body tensing ever so slightly, but not nearly to her 'normal' degree. She still refused to move, though, and her eyes remained relaxed and shut. Laying on her side, he got a good view of her lips curling into a small, lazy smile, so out of place on her features, her eyes darting behind her lids. He guessed that 'beautiful' was the only way to describe it, which sounded sappy even in his head. He'd normally keep those thoughts to himself for precisely that reason but...

Trailing a hand over her cheek, he was delighted to see her lean into the touch, like a cat being petted. "Hey there, beautiful."

Gwen froze completely for a long moment, a flush creeping up her neck, before she pulled the covers over her head, not quite fast enough to hide how her smile turned into a grin. He felt heat creep up his own face. It was ridiculous, really. It was just a little flirting, it shouldn't mean that much after all they'd already done, especially after the emotional rollercoaster they went through two days ago. Nothing quite like a simultaneous panic attack to put feelings in perspective. He really hoped he could just give her some flowers next time. Or a fruit basket. Everybody loved those, right?

He snapped from his thoughts when Gwen resurfaced, the crown of her head burrowing into his belly as she laid on her back, looking up at him with eyes that were still sleepy. He'd never gotten the appeal of what people meant by 'bedroom eyes'; it hadn't sounded that interesting to him. Just people looking tired, right? What's so special about that?

On Gwen, they were special. They absolutely were. Ben smirked down at her languid form. She was totally checking him out, so he waggled his eyebrows suggestively, ignoring the pink he could feel on his cheeks. "Like what you see?"

He expected a scoff, an eye roll, an embarrassed aversion of her eyes or perhaps a witty comeback. Instead, she just kept looking at him, seeming unashamed to be caught staring, and he felt his flush deepen. She grabbed the hand that had again moved to stroke her hair (when had he moved it? He couldn't remember) and nuzzled into it, seeming to purr. His breath hitched and when she opened her eyes again to look at him, he saw a twinkle of mischief sneak into her gaze.

"I do, cutie."

...okay, Ben had to admit, he could understand Gwen's reasoning for ducking under the covers to hide a little better now, because that had gone straight from his ears to everywhere, filling his entire body with heat as his heart stuttered in a way that had nothing to do with fear.

He grinned despite all that, because no way was he letting Gwen win that easily. "So, what's a pretty girl like you doing in place like this?"

She stretched, knocking the covers aside and no, his mouth did not run dry at the sight, thank you, nor was he completely captivated by the sight of her shirt riding up just a bit to expose her abdomen. Not. At. All. She was his cousin, and that'd be weird.

She gave him a look that told him she'd known exactly where his eyes had been. Darn it. Two to one for Gwen. He was losing this round.

"Oh, you know. Make enough terrible life choices and this is where you end up." She returned, smirking, knowing the score as well.

Terrible life choices, indeed. All of this screamed 'bad idea', and the one ghosting around his head was ten times worse. But Ben had never let that stop him from digging his hole deeper, and going by the warm look the dweeb was giving him, she wasn't stopping either.

"Want to make a few more?" He asked her, teasing grin on his face, even as he felt his hear skip a beat.

"Go on." Gwen purred, rearing up slightly, but he placed a hand on her chest, over her heart, holding her where she was. She gave him a questioning look even as she laid herself back down, probably assuming that his remark had been an invitation to get kissing started and he so, so wanted that to be the case because holding her and kissing her was the best thing ever-

But he wanted it to be more than just that.

"Do you wanna go hang out?" He asked, feeling heat creep up his face again. "Just the two of us."

Her questioning look did not abate, if anything she became more confused. After a long second, her face cleared, eyes widening and mouth opening in a silent 'o'.

"You mean... like a date?" She asked, hesitantly, her face flushing too. She looked way too kissable right now, but he had to focus.

He swallowed, heart pounding, throat suddenly dry. Million dollar question, right there. They hung out together plenty, it wouldn't have been strange to hang out some more. But a date changed the game.

Because right now, they could still deny this thing between them, even to themselves. It was just kissing. It was just affection. It was just a small crush. It'd disappear when they got better. 'They' existed only in this place somewhere between 'impossible' and 'fact of life'. It was real when they kissed, when they touched, when they managed to find meaningless words to say meaningful things. It was nebulous, and that gave them space to pretend this wasn't happening right in front of their noses. But if they actually went out on a date-

They wouldn't be able to pretend anymore. They'd be doing something the way couples were supposed to, with no gray area to say otherwise. Yes, you could pin next to all they did on an ongoing need for affection and reassurance… but going out on a date couldn't be pinned on that. They'd be going out of their way for it. He was pretty sure it would be a slippery slope from there, and not one they could crawl back up if they started down it.

Going out on a date with Gwen would make it all real.

Ben could easily read the anticipation and hope in her features, an odd mixture of fear and elation in the turn of her lips. Strange to think that when summer had started, he'd only ever been able to read the most base of emotions on her; primary colors where he could now see a world of shades in between. He took in the softness of her features again, contrasted by the sharp intelligence in her eyes, now very awake.

He grinned and he was sure he did not imagine hearing her breath hitch. It strengthened his resolve.

Yeah, going out on a date with Gwen would make it real, huge, hopelessly complicated and scary- but even if he could barely understand it all himself, if this weekend had shown him anything, it was that this was already so much bigger than they tried to pretend it wasn't. For all he knew, it was already real, and they were again finding out after the fact. It wouldn't be the first time. That had prompted him to think about all this some more ever since their mutual meltdown, with several headaches to show for it. Next time, Gwen could do the complicated thinking. But all that thinking had made him realize something: there was a chance.

A chance that it would fade when they got better. That they wouldn't need it anymore. That they would let it fade, taking full advantage of the vagueness of it all to just let it slip into the night.

And no way was he letting that happen. No running from your fears, Tennyson.

"Yup. Wanna go out on a date with this doofus, dweeb?"

Honestly, Gwen was a little impressed. Not just because Ben had found the guts to ask her out (and boy did that sent a wave of heat through her whenever she thought of it), but because he actually seemed to have put thought into it.

Even as he'd asked her, she'd assumed he meant 'sometime soon when her mom actually let them hang out again', not 'I'm going to needle my mom into calling us in sick at our schools.' Normally, she'd be super pissed that Ben was making her miss school (and faking illness, for that matter) but it was hard to argue when he was looking at her with such intensity.

And the little runt knew it. Cheating, insufferable, little cutie that he was. But she'd always found his determination cool, long before he'd started using it to sweep her off her feet. So really, it wasn't really her being a softy, she was just respecting a good character trait of his.

That was her story and she was sticking to it.

But even as she found herself with an unexpected free Monday, she hadn't counted on anything super special. Spending time together was special enough in its own right, they didn't need much to add to that. Perhaps a movie and hitting up the Burger Shack, some romantic cliche.

She really should have more faith in her doofus by now.

Because as soon as they rounded the corner of her street after walking out the door, Ben had grinned at her and pulled them both out of sight. "Race ya." He told her, before in a flash of green, XLR8 sped off into the distance, leaving Gwen to transform into her energy form as quickly as she could to pursue. She was so focused on him that she didn't even notice when the buildings around her slowly gave way to greenery and finally to hills and forests.

She never lost sight of him though, even if he remained ahead of her. It was how she noticed the second he started slowing down and turned back into himself. She stopped in front of him, levitating, quirking an ethereal brow at him when she took in the woods around them; barren in winter's cold. They were quite a ways off from Bellwood. He grinned again when she turned back, only slightly out of breath.

"You're getting better at that, dweeb."

She smirked, brushing her hair out of her face. "I'm awesome, didn't you know?" She glanced around. "Where even are we?" She rubbed her arms. "Judging by the cold, not Bellwood."

"What, can't you tell? I thought you were supposed to be the smart one." He stepped up, raising both hands to brush the sides of her face. She scoffed.

"I am the smart one. I just can't pinpoint where I am on the globe based on the freaking foliage." For all her snark, she couldn't stop herself from shivering at the touch of his fingers on her cheek. She could see him shake with contained mirth and he reached around her head to gently tug at her hair and for a second she forgot she was surrounded by barren trees. Or on what planet she was for that matter.

She got her revenge when she raised her own hand to rake her nails across his jaw. "Also, if you wanted to make out, I can think of plenty of places closer to home where we could do that. Without getting dirt everywhere." And yeah, she got why he did the hair thing as often as he could, because the way he shuddered and actually growled at her touch was absolutely mind blowing.

Instead of letting that take them forward, he stepped back. She had to applaud his restraint. "Later." He promised, backing out of her grasp and pushing through the undergrowth. Quirking a brow, she did the same and when she blinked past the sudden onslaught of blinding sunlight she saw… the Bellwood national park parking lot. Huh.

Feeling fingers twine through hers, she instinctively squeezed back, even as she fixed her doofus with a curious look. Did he want to hike or something? A little nature stroll? Because she wasn't going to say no-

He pointed ahead, a faint blush peppering his face. Following his finger, she grinned.

She'd sort of expected them to only spent a short while in the Bellwood Recreational Rental Shop, but as they opened the door, the sole customers in the shop, the elderly men behind the cash register had smiled warmly and told them he'd been expecting them; their grandfather had called ahead. Of course normally he'd never rent anything to two ten year olds without adult supervision, but Maxwell was an old friend so he'd make an exception for them.

Gwen had quirked an amused brow at Ben, who shrugged. "Grandpa mentioned him when we drove past here last week. Gotta do something while you take forever in the shower." He'd said.

They had a ton of things they could do, and Gwen really wanted to do them all, so she'd let the doofus pick instead. That was how she found herself clutching her stomach as Ben strode from the fitting room in tight canary yellow shorts and a neon pink shirt, complete with helmet fit for mountain biking, strutting like he was going down the cat-walk.

"You know, I think you were right! These really are my colors!"

"Please," Gwen gasped, "put them out of their misery."

Bernard, the proprietor, shot them both an amused look over his reading glasses, dark face crinkling in merriment. "I think it looks fashionable. Though you should straighten your posture more. Makes you appear more sure of yourself." He remarked from the other side of the large shop, his voice carrying easily.

Ben did just that and gave the bearded man a thumbs up. "See, Gwen? Someone here has taste."

"And it isn't either of you." She snorted, catching her breath.

"Taste is subjective." Bernard tried, only for Gwen to snort again and point a finger at Ben. The boy shamelessly waggled his eyebrows in the face of it.

"That outfit is objectively terrible." Even if she did appreciate how the tight clothing reminded her pleasantly of how active their summer had been. He'd been scrawny when it had started, with the occasional bit of soft.

Not anymore. Definitely not anymore. Ben rolled his eyes, waving his hand dismissively.

"Everyone's a critic. Fine, I'll go with green and black. How about you pick something already?"

Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. "You just want to make fun of me as well." She accused. Ben snickered in response, stepping in close. Certainly not close enough to be suspicious, but close enough to speak to her under his breath.

"No," he purred, lowly. "I just think you'll look way better wearing this than I do."

Gwen felt heat spread through her chest and up her face, lips working uselessly to form words because red alert, the flirting was not a one time thing. That wasn't the only thing that made her clamp up the way she did though; no, that was because this was starting to sound very... couply with all the flirting. Which made her think that this date was not a joke. And if it wasn't a joke, a fluke, a spur of the moment idea-

Oh boy. She mentally smacked herself because get a grip girl! Yes he might've been sorta serious about this date but that was no guarantee that it said anything about them. She couldn't get ahead of herself here in case this wasn't as big as she hoped (feared?) it was.

Ben smirked at her and that, if nothing else, snapped her back to reality. Taking a quick glance at Bernard, she saw the man was engrossed in his book (Nietzsche? Under any other circumstances, she'd love to pick this man's brain, she was sure) and emboldened by it, quickly leaned in to peck him on the lips.

When she pulled back, the confident smirk had been replaced by a red-faced grin, shy as any he ever gave her. She winked, and loved the quick intake of breath it inspired. It was reassuring, the find that she wasn't the only one getting thrown for a loop.

"Sure thing. Gotta drive my boyfriend crazy every once in a while, don't I?" She teased, and for the first time, she used the term of endearment in a way that had nothing to do with their running gag, just to see how he'd respond. He didn't disappoint, because he vibrated happily and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"You drive me crazy just by breathing, babe." He admitted, and

...she was so doomed.

A branch nearly slapped Gwen in the face as she kept going, feeling twigs scraping against her legs. Her heart was pounding in her ears, her muscles were burning and her breath was short, surrounded by the barren remains of the greenery, stripped due to winter's chill settling in. It should have been the perfect storm for a complete meltdown.

Instead she grinned as sweat trickled down her neck, paddling extra hard. Under her wheels she heard fallen branches snap as she made her way through the forest, the distant lake sparkling in the sun- their finish line. Every snap of a branch felt like a petty personal victory. Every beat of her heart that she knew, she knew was for joy and exhilaration rather than for fear, was proof to her that she still could push herself without breaking.

She had hesitated when they'd stood outside the shop, looking at the treeline. Her feet had refused to move, all of her screaming not to go in there. She still hated that; at least with a panic attack, she had an excuse. But simply refusing to move because she was too big of a wimp? It took her mind back to so long ago, when she'd stood in front of a greener treeline, trying to take a step and failing.

And like that time, she'd felt fingers brush hers and a soft encouragement pulling her along. That time she'd grabbed a stick. Now she had a bike and a helmet. She'd make do. And if she didn't?

And the doofus was right there, breezing through the landscape like he'd been born to it and of course he'd pick the only physical activity he actually stood a chance of beating her at.

Not that he was going to. He so wasn't. "You're going to kill us both at this speed, doofus!" She called out in an effort to get him to slow down. Navigating over a rock formation that she had to go around, because she wasn't going to risk her neck like some idiot lame brain, he actually turned his head to grin at her.

"Dying counts as forfeiting!" He poked is tongue out at her and she fumed, putting extra strength in her paddling as she moved over a fallen tree, satisfied to hear it crunch.

"I am so dumping you when I beat you!" She called out, panting. He laughed. Darn, not as distracting as she'd hoped.

They had a few more groves of trees to clear when she finally pulled level with him. He didn't seem to care, just smirking at her. "You seem tired, old lady. Maybe you should slow down a little."

She snorted. "I'll show you how it's done, brat!" Because that half an hour that she beat him by in age mattered, thank you. Ben had been timed for a month later though. Grandpa used to joke that when Gwen was born, Ben just couldn't wait any longer to be with her and popped out as well. As the years had progressed, she'd grown to think that he'd come out earlier just so he could spite her for longer.

Lately, she liked grandpa's explanation better.

She glanced at the dweeb and, noticing him looking back, she quirked her brow at him. "Say," she panted, "these things," she started, referring to her white shorts. "Aren't becoming see through right?" That worked as a distraction, alright.

His foot missed the paddle as he stammered and that was the second she needed to pull ahead of him, leaving him in the dust as the broke the treeline, wheels crunching on the small rocks that surrounded the lake. It was foggier than it had been last time, but still beautiful. Though she wasn't going to take a swim in it this time, no matter how awesome that underwater kiss had been in hindsight.

Hearing the rocks crunch behind her, she pumped her fist and spun around with a grin, pointing at Ben. "Ha! My win! Consider your dumb butt dumped, doofus!"

Ben should have been pissed at being beaten. And being dumped. She guessed a part of him still was. And sure enough, he looked miffed, but going by the grin he gave her, he was happy enough to let her have this one. "Sure sure. Can we still kiss though? Asking for a friend." He waggled his eyebrows.

She snorted, laying her bike down on the ground, walking over to a nearby rock and removing her helmet. The cold air on her head felt divine, and she sucked in a few hearty breaths of it as she sat down. Hearing the rocks crunch, she felt Ben sit down beside her, his heat a comforting presence against the chill. A hand settled on her back, rubbing a soothing circle, and it was only then that she noticed that she was shaking a little.

She smiled at Ben. "Don't worry, doofus. It's adrenaline from beating you. Nothing else." He looked at her searchingly for a few more seconds before he a quirked a smile back, his hand trailing up her back to gentle tug at her hair. Just a small one, it didn't even move her head, it just said 'hello, I'm here' and she had to stifle a giggle. He could be such a dork. She sidled over to sit closer, thighs and shoulders brushing. They sat in comfortable silence for a long moment and Gwen just sucked it up, enjoying the feeling of exhilaration that still ran through her.

And how that feeling was truly just that, and not anything else. She felt like she couldn't panic if she tried right now. It made her feel much the same as when she'd woken up after a full night of sleep for the first time in ages a while back.

"Thanks, Ben." She turned her gaze from the lake to find his fixed on the Omnitrix. He looked up and gave her a smile, even if they both know where his eyes had been. She grabbed the offending hand and twined her fingers with his. "Thanks for showing me I can still do this."

He didn't look at her, gaze instead focused on their hands. A faint smile stole across his face, and she was pretty sure she'd never get enough of that. Ben's grins were sunny as his frowns were dark, but his small smiles were tender, loving even. If she had to pick a favorite, she knew what she'd go for.

"You already knew you could." He told her, giving her hand a squeeze. She used his distraction to lean in and bump her forehead against his and rest it there. He angled his head so he could nuzzle her face and that was awesome.

"Sometimes I need a reminder." She confessed, nuzzling right back. She couldn't quite recall of this had ever been part of their comfort routine or if it had popped up more recently because it just felt nice... but she really didn't care anymore.

"I aim to please." He responded, sounding insufferably smug to the point that she considered pushing him over. But then she'd have to let go of his hand. And stop nuzzling him. Tricky.

Instead, they sat in silence for a while, feeling the fog roll in and the sky turn overcast, dropping the temperature further. She fired a pulse of mana through her veins, warming them both. She felt his thumb stroke the back of her hand in response, a silent 'thank you.'

"So..." she started. "does this mean we're, you know," she swallowed. "I have no idea how to ask this without sounding like a cheesy rom-com." She wanted to ask if this meant this was all real, because if they were…

He laughed, some of the tension draining out of him. "You're telling me. I feel like my live has been a cartoon ever since this thing dropped on me." He flicked the Omnitrix before he opened his eyes, those large green orbs giving her an endearingly coy look. "Ask it." He challenged.

"You ask it." She returned.

"You started it, you're finishing it. Or are you scared?" It was the oldest trick in the book, but as he pulled back and started making chicken noises she couldn't reign in her temper. Ben always managed to bring out her childish side.

She blew out a frustrated breath, untangled their hands and whacked him upside the head. Not hard though; she liked his head. "Fine! Are we a couple now or what?!"

He rubbed the back of his head frowning. "Yes! At least if you want to be. Though my head might be safer if you didn't..."

"Of course I want it, you idiot. And it was just a love tap." She scoffed.

"Glad to hear it."

"I'm glad you're glad."

"You should be."

A moment of absolute stillness fell over them as they glared at each other before they burst out laughing.

"We still got it!" Ben cheered, snickering. Gwen gave him a playful shove before she froze, head snapping to meet is amused gaze.

"I just asked you to be my boyfriend without joking." She realized, a slightly delirious giggle escaping her.

He pulled her over, seemingly uncaring that the kiss he placed on her neck probably tasted like sweat. "Yup, you did." And was that giddiness the heard in his voice? Sweet.

"And you accepted!" Oh, she was going to be in so much trouble when her parents found out. Kissing him was bad enough, but dating him? Perhaps they'd better spring the alien story on them first, at least that way he could defend himself when her mom tried to take his head off. Without raising anymore questions at least.

He shrugged, rearing up to nuzzle her face. "What can I say? I'm a man of great taste."

"Oh hush you." She shoved him again, standing up and walking over to their bikes, before thinking better of it. She turned around, coy smirk on her face. "Wanna have some more fun before we head back?"

He stood as well, giving her questioning look. It reminded her of a slightly befuddled golden retriever. She snickered before letting power rush through her, feeling her body come alive with magic and when weightlessness settled over her, she knew she'd nailed it again. Gwen wasn't sure what was better, the feeling of indomitable power, or the way he looked at her whenever she took on this form. It made her feel like a force of nature.

"Wanna spar?" She suggested, floating over to hover in front of Ben, smirking down at him and loving that her flight made him even shorter. He pulled her ego down to earth when he leaned forward to place a kiss on her collarbone though. Even though she knew she wasn't technically undressed in this form-

Well. That kiss certainly felt like it touched her skin, as did the hand he placed on her waist as he smirked right back at her, the veins in his left arm starting to glow green in anticipation of a transformation. She'd have lingered on the novelty of that, if his eyes weren't doing the same thing, green irises shining with power.

It was amazingly distracting. "Bring it on, firefly."

After they'd left, a surveilance drone transmitted its data before disintegrating, leaving only ash.