My Lovely Family
Chapter 4 - Arrangements
Lucy and Kevin were in shock. Ben was living in Boston to stay close to Gwen. It proved Lucy's suspicions and hindered Kevin's mission. How would he compete for Gwen with the cousin she was so close to? It was another reason for them to be enemies again. It was always like this: they started as friends, but something Kevin did not like happened and they had a fight.
"How so he's living with Gwen?" Lucy asked nervously.
"He's not living with Gwen," Sandra replied. "He's living near her. Nothing fairest. Do you think he would feel good living in Bellwood while his girlfriend is in Boston?"
"GIRLFRIEND?" Lucy and Kevin asked even more surprised.
"Yeah, girlfriend," Sandra said proudly. "She finally got a good boy! One who will not cheat on her" she said looking at Kevin.
(Opening theme)
The two thanked Sandra for answering them and left. Lucy was very angry. She yelled various offenses about Gwen. She was so lost in her frustration that she did not realize she was walking down the sidewalk and bumped into a young man coming in the opposite direction.
"Sorry, miss," he reached out to help Lucy get up.
"It's all right," she answered. "Thank you!" Looking at the boy, Lucy could note he was very handsome. Moreover, when their hands touched, they both recognized a Lenopan body.
Kevin noticed the look between them.
"See ya, Lucy! I'm going."
"Thank you, Kevin! You can go," Lucy said before leaving to talk to the boy.
It seemed that, over time, Lucy would forget Ben and find someone right for her. However, Kevin did not have the same perception about him and Gwen. He went to a bar, sat on the counter, and ordered a whiskey. He turned to the side and, to his surprise, a familiar girl was sitting on the other side.
It was Julie Yamamoto, Ben's ex-girlfriend. They had been together for a long time, but they broke up in such a rough way: Ben was screaming on his cell phone and Julie thought it was aimed at her, but in fact, he was playing video games while they talked. She started dating a boy named Hervé, who was a photographer.
Kevin could not help but be surprised by Julie's presence at the bar. He came over to her.
"You here, Julie? I didn't know you went to bars."
"I don't go. But it's the best place to be in the situation I am."
"Hey, I see it's serious." Kevin was startled by his behavior. He was indeed willing to listen to Julie.
"Yeah, I broke up with Hervé," lamented Julie.
"Oh, man! This girl can't keep ONE boyfriend!" thought Kevin. "What did he do to you?" he asked.
"He was caring more about his work than about me."
Despite being a good girl, Julie was somewhat possessive. She knew Ben was a superhero, but sometimes she practically demanded that he leaves people in danger to see her tennis matches. With Hervé, it was something like that: she thought that, as a photographer, he should be her private paparazzo. Nevertheless, Hervé had a lot of work to do, and as much as he knew how to split his time between the job and Julie, it was never good enough for her.
"Look, if you want my opinion, he's losing a lot," said Kevin, taking his drink from the counter. "You're a great girl!"
"Do you indeed think?" Julie asked, smiling and taking her drink. "Thank you!"
"You're welcome, but it's the truth. If I had a chick like you, I wouldn't leave her for anything." Kevin and Julie toasted and drank. It sounds crazy, but he was praising the girl sincerely.
"But come on, aren't you dating Gwen?" Julie asked.
"No. She broke up with me to date Tennyson" Kevin lied.
"WITH BEN?" Julie was shocked. "But isn't he dating Kai?"
"Indeed, Kai showed to be a great gold-digger and Ben kicked her out. Now she's dating that very famous soccer player. The one that falls all the time.
"Oh, I know who he is! But isn't he much older than her?"
"Just five years."
"Ah, understood. But… yikes… Ben and Gwen are dating. Who would guess...? They're cousins and fell in love."
"That's right, the Tennysons got together."
Kevin and Julie talked for a long time in the bar. They did not even drink much. She remembered that she had to train and Kevin offered to take her in her car. Julie accepted.
Grandpa Max went to pay a visit to Ben at his apartment. He did not know that Gwen was there either. The boy answered the door and the grandfather was hugged by the two cousins.
"Oh, how good it's to see you together! It reminds me of that summer we spent when you were 10" said Max, overcome by his fond memories.
"That summer was unforgettable" Ben reminded.
"Yeah! Well, I came here to talk about an important issue, Ben: I wanted to know why you're missing your afternoon job."
Ben had not realized that since he had gone to greet Gwen at his apartment, he had spent the whole afternoons dating and forgot to go back to the Plumber base. Max at first relieved, but could not help noticing this change in his grandson. Ben felt it was time for them to tell his grandfather everything; after all, he was always with them.
"I'm sorry, Grandpa. I lost track of the time these days, but I was busy with other business."
"What other business, Ben?"
He took Gwen's hand and said,
"Gwen and I are dating."
Max was surprised, but at the same time happy. He began to laugh discreetly.
"Who would guess? Haha, you two dating! Precisely you who used to fight when you were kids. Ohhh I knew this story was going to you two ending up together."
"How did you know, Grandpa?" asked Gwen.
"Because my parents were like that, too" Max answered. "They were cousins and were always fighting. But they loved each other very much and were always together. Ohhh, when I saw you arguing, I remembered them. And that day you taught Ben how to dance confirmed my suspicions."
"They are very much like us," Ben observed. "Well, can you believe we went to Anodyne just to get information and know if we would have healthy children?"
"Wow! It seems to have been a good trip. But why didn't you talk to me first? I had the genetic mapping of the royal family of Anodyne stored in the Rust Bucket.
"Damn!" thought the cousins.
"What don't you have in the Rust Bucket, huh, Grandpa?" said Ben.
"That's it! I have many documents about your grandmother, especially from when she contacted the Plumbers to get a Terran identity.
Max explained to his grandchildren that several Earth governments have agreements with the Plumbers to grant documents and Terran identities to alien refugees without criminal records and Plumbers who settle on Earth since they could create and maintain human bodies. Verdona was an example of the first case. She received the identity of "Verdona Helen Ethelridge" (same surname as Max's mother; in other words, in American documents, she is listed as his cousin).
The cousins scoured a large book of Grandpa Max that contained every alien who had been given identity on Earth. On page 43 was a familiar figure and name: Devin Levin. Ben was confused.
"Devin Levin? But I thought he was a false memory implanted by the Rooters."
"No, the Rooters made us believe they had invented this to confuse our minds and cause conflict. Do you remember Kevin killed Ragnarok and he had confirmed that he killed his father? So... it was this case that made me wonder if it was indeed a false memory. And these documents are protected in such a way that not even the greatest hacker in the universe can access it. The Rooters make tremendous confusion, but in the end, the truth always appears."
"So Kevin's father was indeed an alien that came to Earth," Ben noticed.
"Exactly! And his story is one of the most beautiful that ever happened to the Plumbers."
Max explained that Devin came to Earth to help capture a fugitive alien. In the middle of the mission, he passed close to a Calon Gypsy community. They had a big party with lots of music and dance. Devin stayed hidden to watch everything and was delighted with a beautiful black-haired gypsy (future Kevin's mother). He was determined to continue on Earth after the mission to approach her, but there was a barrier: the marriage of gypsy women to non-gypsy men was (and still is) forbidden.
Taking advantage of receiving a Terran identity, Devin asked the secretary responsible for "naturalization" to register him as a gypsy. Luckily for him, there was a yet deceased gypsy couple among the Plumbers, the Levins. They had no children. Then, the alien was registered as "Devin Levin" and went to meet the couple's family. They knew all about the Plumbers and agreed to house Devin, teaching him all about the Calon culture.
Luckily for him, the fiancé of the girl he had fallen in love with had died of pneumonia. The Levins, very respected in the community, presented Devin as the son of that couple who was always traveling because of their job. Her family made their engagement. For a long time, even though it was not usual, Devin went out with his fiancé. They began knowing each other better, fell in love, and eventually got married.
Kevin took Julie to the square where she used to train. Nevertheless, when they arrived, she realized that the effect of alcohol would not give her the same reflexes. They kept talking in the car. Kevin did not know if it was because of the drink, but he was more sensitive. He listened to Julie's story with Hervé and comforted her.
"I know how you feel. My mother put me on the street as a child, and all because of a man" he lamented.
"Your mother acted very badly. She should be careful of you. That's what mothers do" Julie said.
"And all this because of that stupid gadjo!" exclaimed Kevin, referring to his former stepfather, Harvey Hackett.
"Gadjo?"
"That's how we call someone who isn't gypsy. My mother moved to Bellwood when she married my father and strayed away from the community in which she lived. We were practically the only gypsies in Bellwood. And when my father died she took advantage of being away from the others to marry a gadjo, which is strictly forbidden. And now I know why..."
Julie was interested in learning more about Kevin's story. He told her everything Max had explained to Ben and Gwen.
"How cute! This is the most beautiful love story I've ever heard!"
"I always wanted to have a life like my father's. As much as I was away from my family, I never forgot who I am and to which people I belong. I was thinking of doing all this with Gwen, but she swapped me for Ben..."
"There are other women in the world, Kevin," Julie said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Maybe you're destined to find the right woman."
Kevin brightened.
"If I were a woman, I could read your hand."
"And if I were a gypsy, I would date you!"
The boy was startled. Julie was a good opportunity to restart his life. He remembered his father and thought that maybe he would be honoring him more by staying with Julie than disputing Gwen with Ben.
"You don't have to be gypsy to date a gypsy. We do can date gadji women, is the opposite not allowed" Kevin explained.
The two looked at each other for a while and kissed.
Gwen and Ben were talking to Max when they heard screams from terrified people. They looked out the window and saw Vilgax drones attacking civilians. It was a trap to attract Ben. He activated the Omnitrix and turned into Echo Echo. Gwen ran on her mana platforms and Max grabbed his guns.
To everyone's surprise, there were only small drones, easy to destroy, but they were in a large amount. Echo Echo's made sonic waves, Gwen shot mana beams and Max shot laser beams. Suddenly, a huge alien appeared in front of them: it was Vilgax.
An epic battle was waged. Plumbers from all bases in the region were called to help the heroes. One of them shot a transporter portal that led them all to the Null Void. In that dimension, the fight developed and Vilgax was defeated. Completely weak, the villain was encapsulated and sent to an extra maximum security prison. Ben and Gwen had won it using their Atomix and Anodite powers.
Once everyone returned to Earth (with the clear exception of Vilgax), a signal was sent to the entire galaxy, warning that the powerful conqueror was trapped and that the planet should not be a target of retaliation, as all Plumbers bases from neighbor planets sent well-trained officers to protect it.
A few years have passed since that. Ben and Gwen were now 26. She already had her masters and other degrees. She worked as the owner of a major technology company and a television station, as well as being an intermediary between the Plumbers and NASA. Now that Earth was inhabited by humans and aliens, the space agency provided Terran communication with other planets.
Ben's expectations materialized: Gwen indeed became a rich and powerful woman. She now had a fortune estimated in billions, as well as being one of the greatest influencers in the galaxy. Besides being recognized for her great intelligence, Gwen was also famous for her stunning beauty. She had won five times Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants (in addition to having won intergalactic editions in the same years; even the aliens having different likes, they admitted that Gwen was the most beautiful woman in the universe).
Ben's fame has increased drastically over the years. As he admitted that he had no powers or abilities without the Omnitrix, he underwent intense military training in the United States and Israel. When he was not fighting, he worked on making a little jewel with the rarest gems in the universe. The villains became stronger with each confrontation, but Ben defeated them more and more easily. The watch now housed the DNA of 10,000 alien species, making the Ben 10 nickname obsolete. He began to be called Ben 10,000.
In physical terms, the contrast was clear between the cousins. Gwen had a beautiful body, big breasts, and a thin waist. Her face was delicate and her gaze charming. Ben, on the other hand, was well-muscled, with a strong chest and broad shoulders. However, he now had a beard, and it split opinions. Many considered him ugly (Will Harangue described the cousins as "the most contrasting couple in the world"), but to Gwen, he was perfect.
Convinced by Grandpa Max, Gwen organized an event for her company in New York. They were launching a project to build a teleportation channel linking Earth to the home planets of the original 10 aliens of the Omnitrix. She did not understand why Max insisted so much that it must be on that date, but the reason she would find out soon.
At the end of the announcement, Ben took the microphone and asked for a minute of attention. All the cameras, whose images were broadcasted to all planets, focused on him.
"There's something I need to say for a long time, but I've never found the right moment," he said.
Ben walked over to Gwen and took her hands.
"Gwendolyn Tennyson, you're more than a cousin or a girlfriend. You've been my life mate since we were 10. Even before discovering your powers, you already helped me in fighting the villains, with your intelligence and cleverness. You're intelligent, loving, fun, and very beautiful. I thank God so much for putting you in my life. That's why I want to know..."
Ben knelt before Gwen, holding her right hand.
"Will you marry me?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"I will! Yes, I do, Ben! Yes! Yes! Yes!"
They quickly hugged and kissed passionately. The entire crowd at the event applauded and cheered. Everyone who watched the live, Terrans and aliens, did the same. Ben took out a small black box from his pocket and put the small little jewel he had worked on for so long on Gwen's ring finger. It was a beautiful engagement ring, silver and studded with stones. In the center was a large emerald-green tadenite, the same color of Gwen's eyes.
No royal marriage anywhere in the world had as much repercussion as that of Benjamin Kirby Tennyson and his cousin Gwendolyn Tennyson. That would be the event not of the century, not of the millennium, but the eternity. The story that started with a fight between them both, which led Ben to walk around and find the Omnitrix, was now gaining another beautiful chapter.
Author's Notes
1) The story of Kevin's parents was based on a work I did in the first year of college about the gypsies in audiovisual. I cited Kevin as an example of this depiction.
2) I'm sorry for the short fight scene. I'm not very good at doing battle scenes, but I didn't want to make the story with simmilar to a teenage soap opera. After all, we're talking about Ben 10.