As the dozens of possible futures flashed through Ben's mind, he didn't notice Gwen stepping closer to him. Her face - and her lips - were mere inches away from him...

When Ben finally noticed how close she was, his brain stopped working. He had dreamed about it for so long that he acted out of pure instinct. Ben held Gwen by the waist and kissed her, at first, gently, then harder, deeper, with a fervent urgent need he never know he had before.

When the two of them broke the kiss to breathe, Ben came to his senses and realized that he shouldn't have done that, "I-I'm s-so sorry, Gwen, I r-really am..." Ben staggered away.

Gwen grabbed his hand, "It's okay. I think we both have felt this ... thing ... between us and have been trying to deny it for a very long time. It's time we stop pretending that this doesn't exist," she whispered.

"Gwen, we can't ..." Ben replied sheepishly.

"You want this, but you're afraid of what people would think. I thought you were braver than that." Gwen lowered her head.

Ben realized that this wasn't difficult just for him, it was difficult for her too. They had been 'playing things safe' for years, and she was very brave to be upfront like that.

"It's not that," Ben said without thinking. He should've lied and said that she was right, that he simply didn't have the courage to go for a taboo relationship. He knew he shouldn't tell her the truth.

"What is it then?" Gwen folded her arms.

"I ... I ..." Ben hesitated. "You're right. I just don't want people to think we're weirdos."

"BS!" Gwen stepped forward. "I know you well enough to know when you're lying, Benjamin Kirby Tennyson!"

"If I tell you, Gwen, this is going to destroy you, just like it's been eating me up inside for years!"

Gwen was taken aback by Ben's desperate reaction. She caressed his face, "It's touching that you want to protect me, but whatever is tormenting you, you don't have to go through it alone. Is that why you are having trouble sleeping?"

Ben nodded.

"Tell me everything, Ben," Gwen said in a gentle voice.

"No, I'm sorry, but it's better this way." Ben sighed. "Let's just pretend this never happened and get back to normal-"

"Okay, so I'm going to use a spell to read your mind," Gwen put her hands on his head, and before he could stop her, she was already reciting the spell.

Then Gwen saw everything. All the visions of possible futures where the two were happy together, but Kevin had become a major threat, and other futures where Gwen stayed with Kevin and Ben lived a miserable life - and more than that: she saw how much Ben loved her, and how painful it was for him to repress that.

She almost fell, being mentally overwhelmed by all that, but Ben held her before she fell. "You shouldn't have done that, Dweeb!" He scolded her.

"And you should have told me, Doofus!" She scolded him too. "How accurate are Eye-Guy's visions?"

"They show a lot of possible futures, but they are very accurate," Ben replied, "I saw Julie long before I actually met her, and I saw you and Kevin together when you wouldn't even think about it."

"When I started dating Kevin, I thought he had left his dark past behind him, regardless of me. Your visions have shown me that this isn't true," Gwen said in a whisper," I can't have a relationship with Kevin with these dark clouds looming overhead."

"I imagine it's also hard to have a relationship with a guy who tried to kill you several times when you were a kid, but you did it, didn't you? Maybe you can make it work." Ben scratched his head.

"Are you actually arguing in favor of me staying with Kevin, or are you using irony to say that I shouldn't be with him?" Gwen raised her eyebrows, "Anyway, I can't do that. The pressure to know that I have to stay with Kevin so he doesn't turn bad again ... "

"It's almost the same pressure to know that I have to give up a chance with the girl I like to keep him from turning bad again and making a - or several - carnage," Ben let out a sigh, "I wanted to protect you. I would bear it alone, so you didn't have to. You could have a normal life with Kevin without knowing it, and you would be happy."

"But now I know. And I'm not going back to him."

"Gwen, you have-"

"Is that what you really want, Ben?" Gwen interrupted him.

"I honestly don't know any more," Ben sat on the bed. He wanted to be with her, but he also wanted to do the right thing.

Gwen sat beside him and put her hand on his shoulder. "I know you're trying to save lives, but you have to worry about your own life too. If you don't, you'll become just like that Ben 10,000 we met when we were kids. "

"I remember him. He was always patrolling. He didn't even go back to human form, he just jumped from one alien to another, from one problem to another... " Ben said, remembering the first future he saw - a future he had seen in person.

"Exactly. Don't you think he actually saved a lot more people that way? I mean, if you're here talking to me, you're not on the other side of the world saving someone in danger," Gwen said.

"You're right!" Ben looked at Gwen as if he had made a groundbreaking discovery. "I always thought that Ben 10,000 was an idiot, but now I see that he was right. Having a personal life isn't working for me. I love being with you and Dawn, but I know I can't do that. And Julie... Oh my God, I've been a horrible boyfriend to Julie. If I am a full-time hero and completely drop my personal life, it will be so much easier for me, and I will save everyone!"

"Ben, you got it all wrong!" Gwen facepalmed. "What I meant is the opposite. You don't have to sacrifice your own humanity to be a hero. Ben 10,000 did that, and you are doing the same now because of Kevin. This isn't the way, Ben."

"But how are we going to save the people that Kevin is going to kill? Minority Report style, we kill Kevin before he hurts someone?" Ben folded his arms. Of course he wasn't actually suggesting that, he was just pouring out his frustration with not being able to find a good solution to the problem at hand.

"You can't see all the possible infinite futures, Ben. We can help Kevin. I'll talk to him and tell him the truth. I'm going to convince him that he needs to beat his inner demons for himself, not for me."

"Gwen!" Ben cupped her face in his hands. "I understand Kevin. He had a life full of tragedy. You're the only good thing he got. If he can't have you, he won't want to beat his inner demons. It will be easier to let them take over."

Gwen cupped his face too "We're going to do our best, but whatever happens to him and whatever he does, it's not our fault. And your feelings are no less important than Kevin's just because you won't hurt people if you don't get what you want. You know the saying, 'he who is merciful to the cruel will become cruel to the merciful'. It's not fair for you to be cruel to yourself to make things work for Kevin."

After a few moments of silence, Gwen spoke again.

"Would it be right for me to stay with you just out of pity because I know that, according to the futures you saw, if we are not together you will be depressed?" she asked.

"No, you have to make that choice for yourself, not for me," Ben said.

"That's what I am doing. I will not stay with you to prevent a bad future for you, just like I won't do this for Kevin. Before I knew all this, I wanted to give us a chance, and I still do."

For a long time, Ben's conscience was plagued by questions. What makes someone a hero? How much does he have to sacrifice of himself? How much responsibility does he have over other people?

He was tired of these questions. He didn't know if Gwen was right or wrong, but he wanted to sleep at night without nightmares. And he wanted to sleep by her side.

"I need to know what you really want, Ben," Gwen asked.

He answered her with a long, but this time chaste, kiss on the lips.

"It's getting late. Let's put Dawn to sleep now, and leave our problems for tomorrow," Gwen smiled at him after the kiss.

The two got up from the bed and went to Dawn's bedroom. The little girl had a sheet of paper in her hand.

"What did you draw, sweetie?" Ben asked. He approached to see the drawing and had a big surprise.

The drawing was Dawn and her biological mother, Margie, in Ledgerdomain. Ben and Gwen didn't know what surprised them the most, the drawing being extremely well done for a toddler, or the content itself.

"Have you ever been to this place with your mother, dear?" Gwen asked. Dawn nodded affirmatively. Gwen found it a bit odd, since around her Margie had never shown much interest in magic beyond the basics, and definitely to visit Ledgerdomain it required much more than just the basics. Maybe she just didn't want to tell Gwen that she was learning magic from someone else?

"Honey, how did you draw this picture?" Ben asked.

She grabbed another sheet of paper, closed her eyes, and the sheet began to glow red. After a few seconds, there was a very well done picture of herself playing in a kid's playground.

"She can turn pictures in her thoughts into drawings!" Gwen whispered to Ben.

"We leaving?" Dawn asked, staring at the half-finished bags that Gwen had begun to pack before.

"No, we won't, sweetie," Gwen picked up the girl and kissed her on the cheek.

"YAAAY! I like here!" Dawn raised her little arms up in excitement, "Can play now?"

"No, it's too late already, baby. We can play tomorrow. Now let's put you to sleep," Gwen replied.

"Alriiiiiiight," Dawn said, visibly annoyed, "but something first!"

"Ok," Gwen put her back on the floor.

Dawn picked up another sheet of paper and made one more drawing with magic. This time it was the three of them at the zoo. Dawn was in the middle, holding hands with Ben and Gwen, "Mommy, Daddy, for you."

Ben grinned like a fool, deeply touched and surprised at being called daddy. "Did you hear that, Gwen?"

"Yes," Gwen chuckled. "This is the second time. She talked to me before too, but you were in the other room. You can start getting used to the idea. "

"This is incredible!" Ben seemed more impressed at being called a father than with the magical powers of the girl.

"Put her to bed, 'daddy', while I unpack these bags." Gwen patted her cousin's shoulder.

"Come on, honey." Ben picked up Dawn and put her on the bed.

"Story! Story! Story!" She began clapping with excitement.

"Ok, ok." Ben randomly picked up a children's book on the shelf. "The Tale of The Flopsy Bunnies."

Ben was calmly reading the story until a certain point. "When Benjamin Bunny grew up, he married his cousin-" Ben widened his eyes, "That's a big coincidence."

Later, after he had finished reading the story, Ben wished Dawn goodnight with a kiss on the forehead and went to the other room. Gwen was waiting for him.

"I feel like a bunny tonight, Gwen," Ben said, laying down on top of Gwen and covering her with dozens of kisses. He kissed her face, neck and lips. Oh, God, Ben wanted to do that for so long.

A little while later, Gwen gently pushed him away so that he would get off her, "Ben, I thought for a bit, and we can't do this-"

"What? Did you change your mind about giving us a chance?" Ben asked with a clenching heart.

"Oh, no, not at all." She held Ben's hand. "I meant we can't do this now. I'm still with Kevin and you're with Julie. We have to talk to them first."

"You're right," Ben sighed. He again felt very bad, now thinking of his own girlfriend Julie. He knew he didn't love her, so why had he been with her for so long? He saw his possible futures, and he knew that if he tried to live a normal life as a single man he would spend his nights drinking until he drops. With Julie, he would still be depressed, but at least he wouldn't be completely alone and would deal better - or not as bad - with the situation. Still, it wasn't fair to her. "I'm going to talk to Julie, and we're going to talk to Kevin together."

"No, I'll talk to him alone, Ben," Gwen said.

"I will not leave you alone with him. It's too dangerous! He might freak out and try to kill you," Ben protested.

"I'm going to meet him in a public place. You can stay close by, but out of sight. If he sees you, then he'll freak out for sure."

"Alright," Ben took a deep breath, and stood up to get out of bed, but Gwen grabbed his hand.

"Stay," she asked, "We were sleeping together before... It's n-no b-big deal."

"Isn't it?" Although the bedroom was dark and nobody would see it, Ben blushed hard at the memory of the nights Gwen slept beside him to ward off nightmares, which became a habit. Was it purely innocent or not? When it comes to his relationship with Gwen, Ben never knew exactly where to draw the line between cousin love and romantic love, but he knew that this thing between him and Gwen had always been there.

He laid on the bed and Gwen laid her head on his chest. He fell asleep holding hands with her.

Ben dreamed that he and Gwen lived happily ever after, with Dawn and five other children, their children. Kevin remained a hero and their friend, just like Julie. They were all rabbits in that dream.

The next day Gwen invited Kevin to lunch at a restaurant.

She had a discreet button on her dress, which would serve to call Ben if things spiraled out of control. Ben was waiting inside his car, parked in the back of the restaurant, and ready to intervene if necessary.

When Kevin arrived, Gwen was already waiting for him at the table. Kevin wanted to greet her with a peck on the lips, but Gwen turned her face for the kiss to be on the cheek. Kevin thought it was odd, but he didn't comment about it.

"So, when are you going to move into my house?" he asked with a smile.

"About that, Kevin..." Gwen started.

"You are not moving?" The grin vanished from Kevin's face.

"I'm so sorry. I reconsidered my decision. Dawn is already attached to Ben. He's a paternal figure to her, and ... let's be honest, Kevin, you told me you didn't want this. You'd be just forcing a change in yourself because of me, which brings me to the second point. Your past, have you really changed, or are you being good because of me?" she asked with a worried look.

"Gwen, you make me want to be a better person. My love for you was my redemption," Kevin replied.

Gwen sighed. "Kevin, you can't think like that. You have a good life, your workshop, a place to live, free from problems with the authorities. With or without me, you have everything to walk the path of good. And you're very handsome. You wouldn't have any trouble finding another girlfriend. "

Kevin laughed. "Usually you're super jealous. Now you're encouraging me to find a second girlfriend? I won't complain. Your cousin Sunny can- Wait… You're breaking up with me!" Kevin's eyes widened. Then his face contorted with rage. "Ben, that son of a bitch ..."

Gwen took a deep breath. Was it so obvious that she was with Ben? She thought about breaking up with Kevin and waiting at least a few weeks before letting him know she was with Ben, but since he had guessed, she didn't want to lie and deny the facts.

"Kevin, you don't know how worried he is about you," Gwen defended Ben.

"Not worried enough. If he were, he wouldn't have stolen my girlfriend." Kevin snorted with hate. "He was my best friend and you were my girlfriend. He had his girl, Julie. Everything was right, in harmony. But then he decides to break that harmony. I made some mistakes recently, yes, and Ben took advantage of that, approached you and manipulated the situation in his favor. He seduced my girl, his own cousin. He's a sick disgusting backstabbing son of a bitch!" Kevin banged his fist on the table in anger.

Kevin looked around, realizing that everyone in the restaurant turned their eyes to him. Even the security guards.

"Ben didn't steal anything from anyone. I made my own decision, Kevin," Gwen stated firmly. "And please, don't throw your life away. Don't dishonor your father's memory, don't let hate take over you. Be good, I know you can," Gwen said sincerely. "And I want you to know, Ben and I are here to help you. Maybe you don't want to see our faces ever again, and I respect your decision if that's the case, but we will always consider you a friend. When you calm down, please think about it."

Kevin took a deep breath and said, "You're right, Gwen. If I let my anger speak louder now, that's all that Tennyson snake needs to make you stop trusting me forever. I love you, Gwen. Your cousin is a jerk, and I'll be here - clean and as a hero - when you see that…" Kevin got up and left.

A few minutes later, Gwen returned to Ben's car.

"It was better than you expected, Ben. He's mad at you, and he's still hoping he and I can be together again, but he's not going to hurt anyone," Gwen said after getting into the car.

"I wish I could believe in that too," Ben sighed and started the engines.

Kevin collapsed on the couch. He was not only shocked by his best friend's betrayal, he also couldn't understand how Ben Tennyson managed to steal his girl. Kevin was much more handsome, taller, and stronger. He had the bad boy style that girls dig, and especially, he wasn't Gwen's freaking cousin. The only reason Gwen would trade Kevin for Ben was if she'd been bewitched…

And then Kevin had an epiphany. He immediately sent a message to his old pal Argit. A few minutes later, Argit called Kevin.

"Kevin, do you really want me to find this guy for you? Are you crazy?" Argit asked.

"You owe me, Argit. I saved your life several times, not to mention that I know all about your little schemes and if I make a call to the Plumbers..."

"Alright! I'll find him for you."

"Now you're talking, pal." Kevin smirked.

A few days later.

Kevin entered the abandoned warehouse, the meeting place set up by Argit. In the shadows, there was a man dressed in a red and black cloak. He was holding a wooden staff with a bird skull on top, and he had a black and white tattoo that resembled a skull covering his entire face.

"I have no time to waste, boy," the man's menacing voice echoed in the empty warehouse.

"Hex, I need a love potion, something strong, that will make a person stay in love with me forever," Kevin said.

"And why would I give this to you?" Hex crossed his arms.

"Because in return, I can give your daughter Dawn back to you."

TO BE CONTINUED

Author's notes

* For those of you who are curious, I did NOT make up "The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies" (the children's tale with a Benjamin Bunny who married his cousin). The original Peter Rabbit tales were made many years ago in England (cousin relationships weren't a big deal there). A reader from the brazilian site where I publish my stories in portuguese is a fan and she mentioned it to me, so I decided to include a reference to it here for fun.