I'm so flattered by the number of readers who have placed this story as part of their Favourite Stories List and/or Story Alerts! I'm on cloud 9 right now :D.
Here it is...Chapter 3 – and Ben's 'Mr. Right' is finally revealed!
Chapter 3: Swept Away
Ben huffed at his cousin and best friend as the green Camaro stopped in front of the Burger Shack. How he got here, still has the brunette kinda pissed at the redhead and the raven.
**Flashback – 10 minutes ago in Ben's room**
"Ben, you ain't gay." Kevin said at the smaller teen.
"You're just hurt after the breakup." Gwen said calmly. "This is just a self-defence mechanism to temporarily relieve the heartbreak."
"Whatever," Ben eyed the two in front of him. "I've had enough with girls using me. I'd rather take my chances with a guy who'd be upfront with his intentions."
Gwen released a frustrated sigh. "That does it." Her hands generated balls of mana; she redirected one hand towards Ben and encased him in a bubble, levitating him off his bed. She started to walk towards the door, Ben floating behind her and Kevin walking behind them. "This gay thing you're talking about is just because of the lack of nutrition since you've been avoiding eating for the last few days. Thankfully, you continued to shower on a daily basis...most girls that I know after experiencing a breakup, refuse to continue with personal hygiene." As Gwen levitated Ben pass the living room, Carl and Sandra sat in the living room, watching the teens with perplexed expressions. "Hi, Aunt Sandra." Gwen greeted her aunt, who obviously just returned home while she and Kevin were in Ben's room. "We'll be going out to get something to eat."
Sandra smiled at her niece and her son's ruffian friend, thankful that they were able to get her son out of his room. "Just be back before curfew."
"Mom!" Ben yelled. "I'm being dragged against my will!"
"Don't really care." Carl said, figuring out the visiting teens' plans to get his son to move on with his life. "If it gets you out of the house and make you realise that this breakup is not the end of the world and gets you eating again, I'm all for Gwen's plans." Carl smiled at Gwen and Kevin. "Like your Aunt Sandra said, Gwen, just be back before curfew!"
"See you later!" Gwen called back to her aunt and uncle as they left the house, Kevin opening the door of his car to let Gwen force Ben into the back seat. The mana bubble transformed into shackles, the brunet struggling against his binds as the redhead and the raven took their seats in the front of the car.
"So, where to?" The osmosian asked as he started the car's engine.
The young anodyte looked at the xenomorph behind her. 'He looks so thin...' she thought, worried about her cousin's health. 'If he continued to stop eating for any longer, he might develop an eating disorder.' Gwen turned to Kevin and told him two words. "Burger Shack."
**End Flashback**
As the car pulled into the Burger Shack parking lot, Kevin and Gwen got out of the car, Kevin reaching into the back to grab Ben and hoisted the smaller teen over his shoulder. Ben continued to struggle against the mana shackles and the older teen's strength.
"Kevin! Gwen! Let me go now!"
The redhead and the raven ignored the frustrated brunet; they entered the greasy restaurant and settled Ben into a booth, Gwen sitting beside him and Kevin sitting across from the Tennyson cousins, effectively acting like human shields to prohibit the younger's escape.
"Oh, look!" Gwen acted casual, looking at the surroundings. "It's karaoke night!"
The brunet glared at the redhead after seeing the stage and some girl singing off-key. "I am so gonna get you back for this..."
"Did you know that tonight was karaoke night?" Kevin glared at Gwen. "'Cause I'm tellin' you now, I can't sing for shit, so don't even bother tryin'."
"Well, well, well...if it ain't the fudge-packer and his freak friends." Came a cold voice. Cash approached the heroes' table, a cruel sneer forming his features.
"Get lost, Cash." Ben narrowed his green eyes at the brown-eyed bully.
"Nah...I don't think so," Cash leaned over the table, glaring at Ben. "So I hear that Japanese chick dumped your queer hide!" He began to laugh; Kevin was about to hit Cash, but the overshadowing figures behind Cash made Kevin sit still. 'This fucker will get his.' The osmosian thought. "So, what was the problem, fruit?" Cash continued. "She got fed up of you not even going for first base, or she knew that you were a cornholing ho?"
Before the hero trio could say anything, the looming figures of three football players from Ben's school began to punch and kick Cash severely; when the beatings desisted, the athletes dragged Cash to the exit of Burger Shack and threw him out of the popular teen hangout. They returned to Ben's table, one asking, "Are you alright, Ben?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Ben smiled sweetly at the athletes.
"If that shit head bothers you again, let us know and we'll deal with him." Another spoke up. They walked back to their table.
"Thank you!" Ben called out at their retreating forms.
Gwen gawked at her cousin. "It's just been broadcast that you're gay and already you have football players hitting on you..."
"Dude, seriously, you ain't into dudes." Kevin argued. He figured Ben was still hurt over his breakup with Julie and was acting out. Speaking of Julie...
"Ben, can we talk?" Julie walked over to their table, looking pathetic. "I'm sorry for what I did... if I could take it back, I would..."
Gwen quickly got up from her seat, ready to become violent with her cousin's ex. "What did I tell you what I would do if you ever got near Ben again?" Green eyes narrowed and began to glow pink.
"This is between me and Ben, Gwen..." Julie glared back. "Stay out of this!"
As the girls argued, Ben slipped pass them, walking towards the stage set up in the restaurant and began to fiddle with the karaoke machine. Kevin got curious as to what he brunet might have up his sleeve; he began to tap on Gwen arm. "What?" The redhead glared at the raven-haired male. As Kevin motioned a finger towards the stage, she saw Ben grab hold of the microphone and began to sing:
Did I hear you say that
You want another chance
You need another try
You're ready to reclaim your prize
So you want my love back
Why'd you let it slip away
Why'd you ever let me go
Your change of heart has come too late
Well the door is locked you can't get in
The game has changed you've been
Kevin recognised the song; his mother used to play it quite often when she was in a foul mood, especially when she tried dating after his father died. Too Gone, Too Long by En Vogue. He turned his attention to Gwen, "I didn't know that Ben could sing like that..."
"Neither did I..." Gwen whispered, shocked at hearing Ben's falsetto voice resonate within Burger Shack, the words of the song moving everyone.
Too gone, too long baby
To ever get back again
In my heart
Too gone, too long baby
You're too many tears too late
To ever get back to get back
In my arms
Been gone too gone too long
Didn't you hear me say that
You'd be a fool to leave
You'd regret the road you chose
You'd come running right back to me
You had such a good love sugar
You never found in no one else
But what I knew all the time
You had to find out for yourself
But now you'll never know
That love again
You're on your own you've been
Too gone, too long baby
To ever get back again
In my heart
Too gone, too long baby
You're too many tears too late
To ever get back to get back
In my arms
Been gone too gone too long
The pain that Ben obviously felt since the breakup was strongly felt by those hearing his heartbreak. Some patrons began to stare daggers at Julie for causing the brunet's pain.
Did you really think I'd take you back
Let you back in my life
Oh baby just like that
Someone new is loving me
Loving you is what used to be
Baby you're too late to win my heart again
As Ben reached the high note, everyone began to applaud. Who knew that Ben had such vocal range?
Too gone, too long baby
To ever get back again
In my heart
Too gone, too long baby
You're too many tears too late
To ever get back to get back
In my arms
Been gone too gone too long
When Ben finished singing, everyone gave him a standing ovation; everyone except one. Julie felt humiliated and promptly left. As Ben walked back to his seat, Kevin and Gwen just stared at him. "Bro," Kevin started. "Since when could you sing like that?"
"I don't know, always did." Ben shrugged his shoulders. "I just never sang in public because I figured I would get teased for it."
As Gwen was about to say something encouraging, two dark-haired teens approached them, one raven-haired and the other a brunet. "Jeez, Ben." The brunet spoke. "Sorry to hear about that nasty breakup you had."
"Yeah," the raven-haired added. He leaned over the table, smirking suggestively at Ben. "So, if you're free tomorrow night, how about we catch a movie?"
The brunet glared at the raven. "Wait a minute...we're supposed to be dating!"
"Yeah, about that..." The raven grabbed the brunet's arm and began to walk away from the heroes' table. "There's somethin' I've been meaning to talk to you about..."
"Oh my God..." Gwen gasped. "That guy's planning on dumping his boyfriend just to ask you out."
"More like try to get in your pants..." Kevin muttered. Seriously, Ben just sang about his nasty breakup, and that guy expected Ben to go out with him before officially breaking up with his boyfriend? How crass is that?
Ben started blushing over the attention he was getting from the other guys at Burger Shack. He moved his left hand to cover his face, embarrassed by watching somebody getting dumped for him. Suddenly, the distress signal from the ultimatrix got the trio's attention. "Something's wrong." Ben turned his head to his companions; they got up from their seats and moved towards the exit. As Ben opened the door, he tripped and started to fall down the steps but something – or someone – braced his fall. Looking up, Ben saw the most piercing hazel eyes he's ever seen. "I'm sorry," Ben whispered. "I wasn't watching where I was going."
"That's alright," the deep smooth voice replied. "It's not every day that I get to help a beauty like you."
Ben blushed at the compliment. Looking at the person who helped him, he saw that his 'rescuer' was muscular, tall, and had black hair – realising that this was the same guy that Kevin pointed out to him a few days ago at Mr. Smoothy and Gwen was flirting with but with disastrous results. "I'm Ben." He said, offering his hand to shake.
"Jason." The handsome boy introduced himself, holding onto Ben's hand. Ben blushed even deeper, ignoring the beep of the ultimatrix.
Kevin grabbed Ben by his arm and started to drag him towards the Camaro. "C'mon, Tennyson...we're needed elsewhere."
"Oh, right!" Ben turned his head back, waving to Jason. "Sorry, Jason...but I have to go."
"We'll meet some other time." Jason waved back at Ben, watching the green car speed away.
As the car sped down the busy streets, Gwen turned to her cousin. "What the hell was that?" Ben couldn't answer; he was still dazed over meeting Jason.
"Like I told you the other day, Gwen," Kevin replied. "That guy you were shamelessly throwing yourself at has a thing for Ben! So before you go through a tirade 'bout Ben stole him," the raven glared at the redhead, "that guy obviously is only into dudes so you wouldn't stand a chance anyway!"
Ben was getting a headache hearing the arguing. He interjected the yelling by shouting, "Kevin, stop the car!"
"What?" Kevin slammed the breaks.
"We're here." Ben huffed at his teammates.
The trio got out of the car, realising that they were lead to an abandoned warehouse. Kevin decided to absorb the metal properties of his car, just in case there was nothing to absorb inside the building. Everything about the place mimicked a horror movie.
"Well, look who we have here?" an eerie voice echoed within the warehouse. It was low, creepy, and very familiar...
"Zombozo?" Ben called out. The sinister clown moved away from the shadows where he was hiding. "What do you want?"
"What else?" Zombozo cackled. "Revenge!"
Zombozo pulled out a water seltzer bottle. "Really? Water seltzer?" Kevin rolled his eyes. "Can't you do somethin' more interesting, you pathetic clown?" Liquid started gushing out from the bottle, almost hitting the young heroes; as the liquid hit the floor by their feet, the ground began to disintegrate. "Acid..."
"You just had to provoke the evil clown..." Gwen said in an annoyed tone.
"There's more where that came from kiddies!" Zombozo cackled. "How about somethin' sweet?" He pulled out of the pockets of his pants a few pies.
Kevin gave him a quizzical look. "Those were in your pants for how long?"
Ben glanced at his friend briefly then shifted his eyes to the evil clown. "Not really the point right now, Kevin."
"Sociopath in clown makeup trying to kill us." Gwen hissed at the boys.
"Have some panclastite pies on me!" The villain laughed as he started throwing the pastries.
"Pan what?" Kevin looked at his teammates, confused.
Ben quickly turned to Gwen. "Gwen, shield, now!"
The young anodyte quickly placed an energy shield around herself and her teammates, blocking the pies that were thrown at them. They exploded upon impact against the shield; the severity of the explosion made the redhead lose her concentration, forcing her shield to shatter. "What kind of sicko puts explosive chemicals in a harmless pie?" Ben gave his cousin a deadpanned expression. "Right, psychopathic clown."
"One thing's for sure...he won't have any pies once we get him!" Ben declared, setting the ultimatrix to Big Chill. "It's hero time!" As Ben hit the alien device, all he heard was, "This function is not available." Ben was pissed. "Aw, man! Not now!"
Zombozo laughed maniacally. "At last! Revenge is mine!" He pulled something out of his pocket; from where Ben was standing they looked like marbles. As the psychopathic clown began throwing them in the direction of the young heroes, Ben pushed Gwen in Kevin's direction.
"Gwen! Kevin! Look out!" As a marble hit the ground, it exploded on impact, throwing Ben across the room.
"BEN!" Gwen screamed, worried about the small brunet. It looked like he stopped moving.
"Gwen," the raven-haired teen started to shake the redhead to get her attention, "you need to teleport us out of here now!"
"I can't..." Gwen said, "Teleporting is too taxing..."
"Right now the options are an exhausted you," Kevin turned his head in Ben's direction. "Or a dead cousin! Just teleport, NOW!"
As Gwen sighed, ready to cast a teleportation spell, the warehouse began to fill with fog. "Say goodbye to the little hero, kiddies!" Zombozo laughed, as he threw more explosive marbles in Ben's direction, hearing them detonate. As the fog cleared, Zombozo saw Ben alive, his weakened form supported by a strong black-haired teen in dark pants, a white shirt and black blazer. "What the fuck?" The sinister clown yelled. "Who's this kid?"
Ben, slightly dazed, looked up to the person who saved him. "Jason? What are you doing here?"
"Rescuing you." Jason calmly replied, looking down at the injured brunet. "Good thing I decided to follow you...otherwise you'd be a goner now." He turned his attention to the cruel and creepy clown. "Hey, clown!" Jason clenched his fist, generating a reddish-orange mass of energy that sparked electricity. "You like explosions? Well enjoy this!" A powerful blast hit Zombozo, forcing the villain to be blasted out of the building.
"You have powers..." Ben whispered, dazed while looking at his rescuer. "And you saved my life."
"When you have power, it should be used to help people." Jason simply answered, as Gwen and Kevin approached him and Ben.
"How can I ever thank you?" Ben asked.
Jason gave him a flirtatious smirk. "You could go out with me..."
I think I'll end things here. Yay! Ben has finally met his man! Next chapter will include Ben and Jason's first date. Sorry if the fight scene sucked; I'm still trying to work on writing that better. But I guess in the end, as long as Ben has his big strong hero (boyfriend) it's all good!
Today is December 22nd...Happy Holidays!
