A Time for Giving- A Gwevin Christmas Short
The currently snow-covered acres of New York's Central Park were quiet; the only sounds to be heard were the faint hustle of traffic and the light, snow-crunching footsteps of a lone and petit hooded female figure.
It was the night of Christmas Eve, and the young female had ventured outside to pay an old friend…well, rather enemy a visit. Thankfully, the hotel her family was staying at was only a block away from Central Park, and she also had the spare room-key (which she may have stolen from her older brother while he was sleeping, but who doesn't like a rebel?) so she could sneak back in. The young figure, not long tuned twelve, was clad in a long and flowing hooded navy-blue trench coat and black army-style boots (borrowed from her brother, who not only was the same size shoe as her, had rather feminine shaped feet) that made heavy noises as she stepped. The young female lit her path through a purple/pink tinted glow emanating from her left palm. In her right palm lay a tiny metal trinket, which she had shrouded in a similar glow, so that she could use her (admittedly still developing) magical powers to find the location of the person she was seeking.
The young female made a startled pause when her nose picked up a rising and off putting aroma: smoke. She also noticed the faint glow of a fire in the distance. Panic brewing inside her, (being an animal lover, she feared for the lives of the woodland creatures living in the park) she ran towards the flame, only to discover it was not the begging's of a forest fire, but it was coming from a metal trashcan full of wood in different shapes and sizes; a bonfire. Breathing a sigh of relief, she observed the container, noticing various carvings on the trashcan; one of note being a spiky-haired stick figure with a comically oversized watch on its left arm being devoured from the waist downward by a large squid-headed stick figure.
"Who knew a stick-drawing could be so morbid?" the female questioned to herself. She then felt a sudden twinge like feeling in her right hand; an indication that the person she was tracking was very close. With a feeling of both eagerness and fright (what with not knowing where the person was), she turned around slowly, letting the light of her left hand bathe every corner of the den like area she was in.
"Whoever you are, your ten seconds to turn back and leave are up!" boomed a maturing yet sinister sounding call. Before getting a chance to answer, the female heard what sounded like someone jumping from a tree branch. Looking upwards, she found a lanky, metallic figure dropping towards her. The female reacted sharply and launched magenta colored orbs at her sudden attacker. The orbs struck the attacker hard in the chest while they were in mid-drop, knocking them to the ground with a heavy thud. The female walked over to the now disabled attacker, who lay in a sprawled out heap on the ground, their body covered in the snow. The attacker was no older than the female, thirteen at a guess. The attacker was male with long and dark unruly hair, dressed in an almost over-sized long leather coat with a tattered looking grey jumper and jeans with boots not to similar to the pair being worn by the female. The young male's metal-coated skin reverted back to pale human flesh, his eyelids blinking open. The female was standing, at a slight distance, at the male's waist.
"Is that how you treat EVERYONE who wanders over here?" the female said dryly.
"It's how I treat unwanted intruders, you dumb bit…." the male barked back until the female pulled down her hood, revealing her face and shoulder-length red hair. The male's eyes widened.
"…Gwen?" the male retorted. Gwen gave a sheepish smile and wiggled her left fingers at him. His eyes then switched back suddenly to an eagle like stare.
"Alright, where's your dickwad cousin so I can pound him?" the male demanded.
"He….he's….not here Kevin…" Gwen stammered as Kevin rose back up onto his feat, and edged his way closer to her shivering frame, his fists clenched and a deathly glare on his face.
"Don't lie to me! Where is he?" Kevin growled with his dark-circled eyes raging and his hands ready to swing at her. He didn't care if she was a girl; he liked to think the rules of society didn't apply to him. Realizing the danger of this situation, Gwen armed herself with her energy orbs.
"Look, before you do something stupid, just here me out!" Gwen said sternly.
Kevin stood glaring at the new abilities of his enemy and smirked.
"Ooo, pretty pink lights" Kevin said sarcastically, his face mirroring that of the Cheshire Cat.
"These 'pretty pink lights' nearly broke your ribs a few moments ago. Want me to try it again?" Gwen snapped back. Kevin shrugged his shoulders and put his hands in his coat pockets.
"Look at you! You've grown a pair since we last met!"Kevin grinned, eyeing her up and down and raising his eyebrows. Gwen's mouth nearly dropped to the floor, the glow from her hands shutting off almost is if it were from the shock.
"You disgusting, grimy, perverted asshole!" Gwen yelled at him, her cheeks blushing brightly as she covered up her chest.
'Hey chill out, I meant you've learned to stick up for yourself! Y'know? Grew a pair of balls" Kevin laughed loudly. Gwen blushed even more and put a hand over her mouth; she'd never uttered a sentence like that before in her life, let alone screamed it out. Kevin walked over to her and patted her on the shoulder.
"And I thought I was the one that skipped school!" Kevin chuckled some more, wiping a small tear of laughter from his eye.
"It really wasn't that funny" Gwen grumbled.
"Alright, come on then. Get a log and sit around the fire" Kevin smiled. Gwen raised an eyebrow slightly in suspicion of Kevin, but he nodded, almost like he knew what she was thinking. The tween and teenager walked over to Kevin's den. Along with the bonfire she found earlier, there were also some logs that had been fashioned into crude but useable seats, a one-person tent which inside lived a very filthy mattress and a tattered black rucksack lying next to it. The den was littered with drink cans and bottles, along with food packaging; some of which still had food in it. Gwen found a log to sit on and pulled up to the bonfire, while Kevin walked over to his mattress and opened up a box of pizza and took a slice out of it. Kevin got a log also and joined Gwen at the bonfire, chewing away at his slice of pizza. Gwen glared at him with a puzzled look.
"Yeah, I steel all my food. What about it?" Kevin said with his mouth full.
"Oh no, that wasn't what I was going to say. I was wondering though, how did you…well…y'know…become nor…" Gwen began saying before Kevin cut her off.
"Looking normal again?" Kevin chipped in, a belch being released as he finished his food. Gwen winced at Kevin's table manners. Gwen was referring to how Kevin's appearance had gone from being hideously mutated to human since she last saw him.
"I got help from someone" Kevin said.
"Who was it, and how did they…?" Gwen began to say.
"Just drop it, you don't need to know" Kevin said with his voice and face having a hint of remorse to it. Gwen opened her mouth to question Kevin, but his facial expression clearly stated for her to back off as the answer, whatever it was, clearly bothered him.
"So what the hell brings a preppy little brat like you to a dump like this, huh?" Kevin asked crudely.
"I saw you at the mall earlier…well, that's a lie really. You pretty much ran and barged into me and my brother" Gwen answered.
"And…?" Kevin sneered.
"And I noticed that you were being chased by two mall cops after you knocked into me. The cops questioned me and my brother about where you'd gone…" Gwen said before Kevin butted in.
"And did you tell them where I went?" Kevin asked with some hostility.
"Oh no, no I didn't. My brother didn't see where you went, but I…"Gwen said.
"And you what?" Kevin asked.
"I lied to them and said I didn't know. But I only told them that because I cared too much to see you get into trouble." Gwen said with a sympathetic look on her face. Kevin burst out laughing, nearly falling off the log he was sitting on.
"Bullshit!" Kevin laughed.
"No, I did!" Gwen said with as much seriousness she could put into the words.
"But why would you do that? It's not like I deserve it" Kevin said once he stopped laughing.
"Well, it is a time for kindness and good will to man" Gwen beamed while fiddling with her hair and circling her foot in the snow.
"Oh get lost, where'd you get that from? Sesame Street?" Kevin snapped.
"Take it how you want, but I thought you deserved someone being nice to you for once. After all, you're the one that went around saying your parents kicked you out." Gwen said in almost sulky tone.
"What would you care about my parents anyway? You're the one with the perfect happy family, all going out to New York for the holidays!" Kevin barked at Gwen.
"No family is perfect Kevin. Heck, my mum and dad have been arguing so much lately, that one of the reasons I snuck outside to see you was to get away from them" Gwen said depressingly, her legs folding against her chest. Kevin got up and walked over to her. He got down on one knee to be at Gwen's level, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, take this from a guy whose parents shunned him from their lives: Having a family that sometimes argues is better than not having one at all" he said to her softly. Gwen turned her face towards Kevin.
"You think so?" Gwen said, a smile appearing on her face.
"I'd bet something valuable on it" Kevin grinned.
"If you had something valuable, you mean!" chuckled Gwen.
"Don't push me!" Kevin groaned, though a small part of him found Gwen's statement to be rather good considering it was her.
"What? Like this!" Gwen laughed as she playfully shoved Kevin off his knee and onto the snow. Gwen stood up and continued to laugh at Kevin. Not wanting to be bested by a girl, Kevin swept his leg under Gwen's and she fell flat on her back. The youngsters laughed their backsides off. Kevin then stood up and offered a hand to Gwen, which she took and used to get back on her feet. Neither of them knew why, but for some reason they didn't want to let go. They may have even stood like that for days had not have been for the ringing of Gwen's watch bringing them back to reality. Gwen looked down at her watch.
"Um, yeah, I'd better be heading back to my hotel. My parents might kill me if they see that I snuck out on my own" Gwen said, her tone of voice showing slight embarrassment at holding hands with Kevin.
"Uh yeah, that's…that's cool. Ah…see you around Gwen" Kevin said shyly. Gwen waved goodbye to him and put her hood up. Kevin gave a salute to her. Gwen began to walk off, and as she did, she discovered that Kevin was following after her.
"What is it?" Gwen turned round and asked him.
"Do you really want to go around New York in the middle of the night on your own?" Kevin asked. Gwen pondered about this; was Kevin being protective about her?
"Nope" Gwen said, realizing that he of all people should know how mean the streets can be.
"Well then, lead the way" Kevin smiled as he signaled towards no particular direction. The tween and teen set off together across the snowy acres.
"So Gwen, how the heck did you even find my place out here?" Kevin asked her on the journey.
"Oh, that's easy" Gwen smiled as she fumbled in her coat pocket, and producing a bike lock attached to a necklace. Kevin's eyes lit up in surprise when he saw it.
"I used my powers to track your whereabouts with it!" Gwen said happily.
"Of course you did! How'd you get my necklace anyway?" Kevin responded.
"It must have broken off your neck when you transformed on the Golden Gate Bridge two years ago. I found it by my feet after the fight you had with Fourarms. I picked it up, repaired the necklace and I kept in my make-up until today." Gwen explained.
"Wow, keeping my locket safe two years. That isn't weird, seeing as I tried to kill you twice!" Kevin said sarcastically.
"Oh shut up! Anyways, you can have it back now. Consider a Christmas present from me" Gwen smiled.
"Gee, thanks" Kevin said dryly as he put the necklace on himself. The twosome finally reached Gwen's hotel. They paused for a moment outside the entrance.
"Well, thanks for coming to visit me and all that stuff Gwen" Kevin said.
"And thank you so much Kevin for the advice you gave me tonight. I t really helped" Gwen smiled.
"No problem" Kevin said winking at her. The two of them stood there awkwardly for a moment.
"So, I guess this will be the last we'll see of each other, right?" Kevin asked looking rather glum.
"It's very unlikely we'll meet again I'm afraid" Gwen sighed.
"Hey, that's life for you I suppose" Kevin shrugged depressingly. Gwen walked right up close to Kevin, his eyes starting to widen.
"So, before you go and we never see one-another again, there is something I'd like to give you" Gwen said. She then got onto the tips of her toes and wrapped her arms round Kevin's shoulders. Gwen's eyes closed and that's where her lips met his for the first time. Initially startled by her sporadic gift of affection, Kevin didn't say a word and soon found himself becoming lost in the embrace, closing his eyes and clasping his strong hands onto Gwen's back. The two lovebirds didn't even notice the snow that was starting to fall around them; that is how perfect the moment was for the two of them. After what felt like hours, the youngsters then separated their lips, though they still held onto one another.
"I really hope life gets better for you somehow" Gwen said lovingly.
"I think it's already starting to" Kevin responded. They gave one another a last hug.
"Merry Christmas Gwen" Kevin said tenderly.
"Merry Christmas Kevin" Gwen said back. Kevin gave her a quick peck on the lips and with that, Gwen walked over to the hotel entrance's door and opened it, but not before waving goodbye one last time to Kevin. He gave her a salute and turned to walk away. Gwen then made her way back up on the stairs to her family's suite, thinking about various thoughts relating to Kevin. As Kevin walked back through the snow to Central Park, he smiled all the way there as he now he had knowledge that someone did openly care for him after all.
