A week later the campers were still in a state of neutrality. There had been no word from Drevis or Verizzano, and the next attack did not appear to be immanent. They also had not agreed on a time to put their plan into action, which worried several of the campers, particularly D.J. and Chef, who were eager to end the war as soon as possible. However, the lack of action suited Duncan and Gwen just fine, as they were still trying to work through exactly where they were supposed to go after their chat at the hospital. Gwen was still confined to the hospital, so she and Duncan were unable to privately discuss the matter further. It was clear to both of them that they had feelings for one another, but the situation was not a simple one. There were several obstacles in their way, namely Duncan's relationship with Aneka. There were also Trent and Courtney to consider, as well as the rest of the group, who would have varying reactions to the news. It was this obstacle that worried Gwen the most, as she was certain the others would look at her and Duncan in a negative light. Duncan was not as convinced about this, but he was still hesitant to tell them too, mainly because he feared Aneka's reaction. Despite their reservations, both of them realized they would have to say something soon, the others would figure it out eventually.
Duncan decided to start with Aneka. He pulled her aside following another group meeting, intent on telling her the truth. Once they were out of earshot of the others Duncan spoke. "Aneka, I need to tell you something. I don't know how do say this, but-" Aneka held up a hand to silence him.
"I know." she said, looking into his eyes. "I know you've been seeing Gwen and I know you want to be with her." Duncan stared at Aneka, taken aback by her words. He had not expected her to know already.
"And you're okay with this?" he asked, after a moment of silence.
"Of course." said Aneka. "I've known your desire for some time now. I'm not hurt by this, trust me. You've always wanted to be with Gwen, you were just too afraid to admit it to yourself. You came to me, because I am, in many ways, similar to Gwen and you needed someone to understand your pain, because Courtney couldn't. I know you didn't end things with her because of hate, you did it because she was not the woman you truly loved, and neither am I. So, I release you, go and be with Gwen. Do what makes you happy."
Duncan stared at her for another long moment. "How do you know all this?" he finally asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"I can read minds remember." said Aneka, smiling at Duncan's surprise. "I read yours, twice in fact, and discovered you true desires. It was invasive and I apologize, but I had to figure out why you would so abruptly end things with your wife."
Duncan knew he should be pissed about Aneka reading his mind and not telling him, but he was too awed by how easily she had gained information he would never have otherwise told her. He simply stared at her, trying to understand everything he had just been told.
"Duncan?" Aneka asked. "Duncan, are you alright?" He looked at her, snapping out of his reverie.
"Yeah, I'm good." he said, shaking his head.
"You should go to Gwen, let her know you're free." said Aneka, smiling. "I'll come with you if you want."
"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." said Duncan. "What about D.J. though?"
"It's fine, Gwen is alone." said Aneka. Duncan looked at her, and she smiled. "Abigail took him out for a while." she said. Duncan sighed and started walking, for a moment he had been convinced Aneka could see the future too.
They arrived at the hospital a few minutes later and entered Gwen's room. Duncan walked over to Gwen and kissed her full on the mouth. Gwen's eyes widened when she saw Aneka. "Duncan, what the hell?" she asked. "Aneka is here."
"It's okay Gwen." Aneka said with a chuckle. "I know the truth and I'm fine with it."
Gwen looked at Aneka and then slugged Duncan in the shoulder. "Ow, what was that for?" he asked staring at her.
"Next time let me know the person you brought with you is in on the secret before you go kissing me in front of them, you idiot." Gwen shouted.
"Okay, sorry." said Duncan, rubbing his arm. Aneka chuckled, grinning at Gwen. It was obvious to her she had made the right decision in letting Duncan be with Gwen.
Later that day Gwen and Duncan broke the news to the others. They were gathered at the hospital, waiting for the news Aneka had told them Gwen and Duncan had, a nervous anticipation in hanging in the air.
"So, what's this news Aneka told us all about?" Tyler asked. "Gwen's not pregnant is she?"
"No, I'm not." Gwen assured him. "We just wanted to make it official." She hesitated, giving Trent a chance to speak.
"Make what official?" he asked, certain he did not want to know the answer.
"Duncan and I are a couple." Gwen said, after hesitating a moment longer. Trent's eyes widened, Courtney looked away, and Chef cursed. The others just stood in dumbfounded disbelief.
"What the hell do you mean you and Duncan are a couple?" Chef shouted. "I thought Duncan was with Aneka?"
"I was." said Duncan. "We broke it off this morning."
"Well, uh, congratulations I guess." said Geoff. "You and Gwen, wow, that's just, wow."
"Why the hell are you congratulating him?" Trent snapped, glaring at Geoff. "There is nothing to congratulate him for."
"Shit, somebody ate their ass hole flakes this morning." said Duncan.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Trent shouted. "For once just keep you goddamn mouth shut. I never thought I'd see this. My wife and my best friend."
"You're one to talk, Mr. Big-shot." Duncan snapped. "You left Gwen, remember?"
"Only because you left Courtney first." Trent shot back. "If you hadn't betrayed your wife first, we wouldn't be in this position right now."
"Yes we would." said Duncan. "You want to know the real reason I left Courtney? I left her because of Gwen, because I love Gwen, a damn sight more than you do. I went to Aneka, because I didn't have the balls to admit the truth to you all then, but I do now. Gwen and I have something we could never get with you and Courtney. We have an understanding, a shared destiny. We're alike, Gwen and I and that is what connects us. We don't sneak around, hiding how we truly feel, and we'll be together for a lot longer than you ever were."
"But you do sneak around, hiding how you truly feel." Trent countered. "This is the first time any of us are hearing about this. Why is that, I wonder? Is it because you were afraid of telling us or is it because you two think your family doesn't have a right to know what you do?"
"Oh, shut the hell up, you self righteous bastard." Duncan snapped. "This is why we didn't tell you, we knew you'd react this way. But there's nothing you can do about it, Gwen and I are together and if you don't like it you can blow it out your ass."
"Fine." Trent spat. "Be a couple, see if I care. But know that I will never support either of you ever again. Not even in the heat of battle, I'll just leave you to die." With that, Trent stormed out of the room, followed by Courtney and most of the others, none of whom had made a comment on this development. Soon only Abigail, D.J., and Aneka were left with the new couple.
"Just so you know, we fully support this joining." said D.J. "The others will get over it. Things change, and they just have to accept that."
"Thanks D.J." said Duncan. "So here we are, the joining of Duncan and Gwen. Not quite what we expected, was it?"
Gwen shook her head, but inside she knew it had gone exactly as they had expected it to.
A/N: Okay, that's that. Now, I just want to make a couple things clear, for future reference. First off, I'm getting really tiered of people bitching about how big an asshole Duncan is and the decisions he's made. If you've watched the show, you should already know he's an asshole. And, just so everyone is on the same page about this, what happened between Duncan, Courtney, Gwen, Trent, and Aneka, happened. It's in the past, there's nothing that can be done about it now, so accept it! And remember, like I said last chapter, I have a habit of changing my mind, so things may work out for the better, you just have to be patient.