Kevin's house
"What is this crap that I'm watching on TV, Kevin?" Argit asked over the phone. "This report from Will Harangue is tearing you apart too! I thought the whole point of that was to screw with Tennyson, not with you!"
On television, one could hear Harengue's harsh words, "And if the evidence against Tennyson were not enough, there is a saying: Tell me who you walk with, and I'll tell you who you are. These photos show Ben Tennyson alongside Kevin Levin. Levin is a criminal who should be rotting in jail! There is plenty of evidence that he used his powers to commit various crimes, terrorize people and contraband weapons! After all this, you know what happened? Levin became Ben's best friend! Ben Tennyson protects criminals, not innocents!"
Kevin just laughed, "I anonymously gave Harangue proof against me too. It was the only way to make sure Ben, Gwen and the Plumbers won't suspect that it was me who leaked their secret identity."
"Yeah, but didn't you stop to think that this is going to ruin your life too?" Argit asked in a worried voice tone.
"I have a plan," Kevin said confidently.
Pictures of Ben and Gwen holding hands with Dawn were shown on the screen, as well as pictures of Ben and Gwen hugging each other and kissing on the cheek in public. It also showed them entering the building where they lived together. Unbeknown to Ben and Gwen, after Kevin had leaked Ben's secret to Harangue, the journalist's personal paparazzi team began discreetly stalking them to get enough evidence for the report.
"The redhead in these pictures is not Ben Tennyson's girlfriend, or at least not officially. It's his cousin, Gwendolyn," Harangue said, "I won't accuse anyone, but in addition to an alien threat, it looks like Ben Tennyson is also a threat to America's customs and values. All evidence indicates that Tennyson is currently in an incestuous relationship with his own cousin! According to our investigations, they moved in together and adopted a little girl. What is the "Alien Hero" going to teach to this poor toddler? That a sick behavior like incest is a normal thing?!"
Kevin smiled at Harengue's statements and continued talking to Argit on the phone, "I'm going to come up with a fake identity and leave the country with Gwen after I put her under the influence of the love potion. We will tell everyone that with our identities exposed in such a brutal way like that, we'd be better off starting over somewhere else. As a bonus, I will never again have to see her relatives - especially that bitch mother of hers. I wouldn't wish Natalie Tennyson as a mother-in-law on my worst enemy - I mean, I'd really like to see Ben get screwed a thousand times over, but Natalie's daughter will be mine, so I actually can't wish her as a mother-in-law to him," Kevin laughed.
"Well… I gotta admit, pal, it's actually a good plan!" Argit finally agreed.
Ben's apartment.
Ben had already called the Plumbers to take his and Gwen's parents from their houses to a safe place. In some cartoons, a hero could have his identity exposed and continue to live like a celebrity without any security concerns while the bad guys would simply accept to stay away from their families, but it wasn't like that in real life. Ben could already imagine a villain like Dr. Animo or Zombozo attacking his parents' home in Bellwood.
Also, Ben and Gwen would unfortunately have to leave the apartment too. After packing everything, Ben and Gwen said goodbye to the owner of the building, Mrs. Agnes.
"Ah, kids, good luck to you in the future." The old lady hugged them both, "I saw you on TV and-"
"Please, don't believe everything you see on TV, Mrs. Agnes," Ben was a bit embarrassed, "That guy Will Harangue told a lot of lies about me. I am not a bad guy. "
"Don't worry! I know you two are good people. Please, come here and visit every once in a while," Mrs. Agnes said with a smile.
When they left the building, there was a small crowd in the street clearly waiting for them." Gwen, stay here with Dawn, please. I'll take care of this."
Ben handed Dawn to Gwen and went to address the crowd. "I'll give you all ten seconds to get away from here!" he shouted angrily.
But to Ben's surprise, suddenly the crowd burst into applauses and chants of support, "Hero! Hero! Hero! Ben is our hero! Ax! Ax! Ax! He defeated Vilgax!"
Ben was a bit confused as he realized that he was actually being cheered. Some people picked him up and passed him around. He was crowd surfing like a rock star while the chants continued! A few moments later, when he was put down on the ground again, several people went to take pictures with him.
Gwen, who was a little farther away, realized that the crowd was actually supporting Ben and approached them. She noticed that some female fans were taking pictures with Ben and kissing him on the cheek. A little jealous and angry, Gwen stopped that, "Alright, enough with the pictures. We have to go now, Ben."
When they saw Gwen, the male fans jaws' dropped at the sight of the beauty of the redhead, and some whispers were heard, "She is so hot!", "I want a picture with her!", "If I ask for her phone number, will she give it to me?" but as they noticed Ben's angry glare, the whispers stopped.
After receiving another round of applause and saying goodbye to the fans, Ben, Gwen and Dawn got into the car and drove away.
Plumbers Base.
"I can't believe this!" Natalie furiously shouted at Ben. "My life is ruined because you couldn't keep your identity a secret!"
"Hey, Mom, it's not his fault!" Gwen defended her cousin.
"Don't start, young lady, I'm just as mad as you as I am at your cousin!" Natalie folded her arms. "I just found out that your ex-boyfriend, Kevin, was a delinquent of the worst kind and you never told me that! I always thought he was a stupid caveman with no future and far beneath you, but I've never imagined that he was a criminal! Is this really true or is it fake?"
"It's complicated ... He actually did some bad things in the past ..." Gwen blushed. She had never really told her mother certain things about Kevin. It was impossible to imagine an honest talk about that, "Hey Mom, this is Kevin. When we were kids, he tried to burn me alive, and then he threw me to die in Null-Void, but he's better now, and we're dating." That definitely wouldn't have worked well.
"To make matters worse, they are also inventing that my daughter is dating her own cousin! Gwen, I told you that moving in with Ben would cause a bad impression! Cousins don't live together and don't raise a child together. I know there is nothing going on between you two, but people will talk anyway," Natalie said disappointed.
Ben and Gwen looked at each other a bit embarrassed. They silently agreed that it would not be the best time to confess that they were actually dating.
"And now, I'm going to have to stay here in a small crap room at a Plumbers base for God only knows how long, because it's not safe to stay at my house anymore! And it's all your fault, Ben!" Natalie yelled.
Frank held back his wife and defended his nephew. "Don't be unfair to Ben! He's not to blame for anything that's happening here."
"Don't worry, Aunt Natalie, I have a plan to get us out of this situation. Everything is going to be all right," Ben said confidently.
The next day, Ben Tennyson called for a press conference. The reporters were full of questions for the young hero, but first he made a speech, "It's true, I can turn into aliens. And I have always used that power for the good of humanity. Lately, all kinds of fake news against me have been scattered through the press - especially by Mr. Will Harangue - but it's not what I've come to discuss here. In my spare time, I have created inventions that I believe are of public interest."
For many nights, Ben, as Grey Matter, had dedicated himself to creating inventions: a simple permanent tattoo remover, a chewing gum that actually helps to clean teeth, an ear-wearing portable universal translator... Ben presented several of his inventions to the press.
Before, he had to keep the inventions to himself, so he would not draw too much attention and preserve his identity, but now that he was already exposed, he could give - or sell - to the world everything Grey Matter had created.
"I'll leave my contact information, and I'll be happy to talk to any company willing to work with me to make any of these projects available to the public."
Shortly after that, Ben had already signed contracts with several companies and made a lot of money. He took the Tennyson family to an imposing tower. The lower floors functioned as a Plumbers base of operations.
"What are we doing here?" Aunt Natalie asked with irritation. "I already had more than enough of staying at a Plumbers base, no need to take me somewhere else for even more of that."
"Don't worry, Aunt Natalie, you'll like this one," Ben said with a smile as he led everyone to an elevator.
The elevator stopped on one of the upper floors in a luxurious living room. There was a huge flat screen television, a very comfortable velvet couch, among other luxury items. Besides the living room, on that floor there was also a bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, a work office, among other things. And everything in there looked like it was made for a millionaire's house.
"Wow," Natalie's eyes glowed.
"This Tower was a deactivated Plumbers base before, but with the money I got from my inventions, I agreed to help reactivate the base and add an environment where we all can live safely and comfortably, away from some press buzzards like Will Harangue and from criminal threats as well," Ben said with a smile.
Natalie hugged Ben tight, "You're my favorite nephew, my dear! Your uncle and I are very grateful for that!"
Ben rolled his eyes. Not long ago, Aunt Natalie didn't even want to look him in the eye, but now that he was giving her a luxurious place to live, he became her 'favorite nephew'.
"Well," Ben continued, "This floor will be for Aunt Natalie and Uncle Frank, the one above will be for my parents, there is another for Grandpa Max and Xylene when they come back from their vacation/honeymoon in space, and, finally, another one for me, Gwen and Dawn."
Natalie was a little surprised. "Why doesn't Gwen live here with me, and Dawn stays a little bit with us and a little bit with you? Leave the other floor for when you get married and your wife moves in there with you," she suggested.
Ben and Gwen looked at each other.
"Shall we tell?" Ben asked without words, only using his eyes.
"I guess there's no better time than now," Gwen silently replied with a glance.
"Aunt Natalie, Uncle Frank, Dad, Mom..." Ben held Gwen by the waist and pulled her close. "Gwen and I are together. That part of Harangue's story wasn't a lie."
Ben's mother, Sandra, hugged Gwen tight and said with sincerity, "I'm very happy for both of you. I know there's no better person for my son than you, my dear. "
Carl and Frank were a bit uncomfortable, but they accepted the situation. "I'm not going to lie," Carl said, "Seeing my son with my niece is not exactly what I would want, but I kind of figured out it was going to happen someday with you two being so close as you are. Although I'm not a fan of the idea, I want you two to be happy above all else."
But Natalie reacted very badly. She was shocked. "THIS IS ABSURD! I don't know how you seduced my daughter, Ben, but incest is disgusting! I know you don't mind it because you can count yourself lucky, Ben, since anyone who isn't blind can immediately see that Gwen is a thousand times more beautiful than that Julie girl you used to date, but my daughter doesn't deserve this! Her criminal ex-boyfriend was bad enough. No more bad choices in her life! I will not allow it!"
Gwen was furious and confronted her mother. "It's my choice, mother! I'm over 18 and you have no right to tell me what to do! This tower belongs to Ben, and I'm staying with him. If you don't accept our relationship, fine, you are welcome to leave. Don't let the door hit you in the butt on your way out."
Natalie shrunk in embarrassment and forced a smile. "Forgive me, kids. I wasn't thinking right. I love you both very much, and I respect your decision. I promise to be a more tolerant person from now on."
Already in their new accommodations, Dawn was playing with little magical bubbles that she herself had created while Ben and Gwen watched her and talked.
"Do you have a guess of who exposed us?" Gwen leaned her head on Ben's shoulder.
"I don't know. I'd say Kevin, but his reputation was ruined by that report as well. And Kevin wasn't the only person who is pissed off at me and who also knows my secret identity, unfortunately..." Ben sighed.
Before.
"I'm sorry, Julie," Ben said.
Julie Yamamoto took a deep breath and looked at Ben with a neutral expression on her face that showed no feelings whatsoever. "I always knew you and your cousin were close, closer than most cousins normally are, but I trusted you and I would never have imagined that you were going to leave me for her… And I thought Gwen was my friend. I would never expect this betrayal from her either."
"Who said anything about Gwen?" Ben felt his heart clenching.
"Does it need to be said? It's obvious." Julie folded her arms." Will you try to deny it?"
Ben sighed heavily and whispered, "I love her."
"We dated for a long time, and you never said these words to me. You never loved me, did you? It was always her. And you always knew that," Julie said, trying to hide a tear falling from her eye.
"I ... I ... I'm sorry!" Ben didn't know what else to say.
Julie slapped him very hard across the face. "I never want to see you or Gwen ever again."
"I was an asshole," Ben said feeling guilty. "Staying with Julie was an effort to try to forget you, Gwen. She deserved better than that. "
"I have my fair share of guilt too, Ben," Gwen said as she caressed his face. "You didn't even want to date her at first. I literally pushed you to ask her out and every time something happened between you two, Kevin and I pushed you to make up with her. We didn't even try to ask if you were actually happy in that relationship." Gwen remained silent for a few moments. "But do you really think it was Julie?"
"No, I don't. But I've never been very good at hiding my identity. There's a long list of people who knew it, so I don't want to falsely accuse anyone. I kind of always knew that it was only a matter of time before this would happen. In fact, it was supposed to happen a couple of years ago."
"Seriously? How so? "Gwen asked a little confused.
"A fan of my aliens, a boy named Jimmy Jones, found out my secret identity. He was going to reveal it to the press, but I foresaw that in one of Eye-Guy's visions. I looked for Jimmy and convinced him not to say anything."
"Ok. Let's just focus on what we're going to do from now on," Gwen said, "Our parents are going to need Plumbers' escort to leave the Tower. On the other hand, I can take care of myself, and-"
"I was actually hoping to convince you to finish college with an online degree," Ben said.
"No way!" Gwen said, "Don't worry about me, Ben. If someone tries to go after me, they'll definitely regret it," she kissed him on the cheek.
Dawn was still playing. She was now lying on a mat on the floor and creating drawings of animals with magic in the air. It was like observing clouds in the sky taking different shapes, with the difference that Dawn was the one controlling the shape of the 'clouds' there.
"At this point, I'm sure Hex already knows Dawn is with us," Ben said, "I have to find him before he tries anything."
"We will," Gwen said, "You're not alone in this, Ben."
"I know, but this is my fault," Ben lamented.
"It's not. It's Harangue's fault, and we're definitely going to sue him. And don't listen to my mother. I'm the first to admit that she can be ... difficult ... sometimes. "
"I know. Thank goodness you inherited her good looks and intelligence, but not her personality," Ben laughed. But then he sighed in sadness, "Still, our lives turned upside down."
"Not everything about this is bad. I mean, you got rich now, didn't you?" Gwen giggled.
"Now you're speaking just like your mother," Ben giggled too.
"Doofus." Gwen's face turned into a frown. "You know I'd be happy to live anywhere, no matter how humble, as long as we are together. That's what really matters to me."
Ben smiled and passionately kissed her. "I know."
Late at night, in an old mansion…
Kevin - wearing a mask - arrived dragging a man bound by ropes. Hex was waiting for him.
"You did a good job exposing my enemies. Now I know exactly where they are, and where my daughter is," Hex said in his usual cold tone.
Kevin always knew where Ben, Gwen, and Dawn were, of course, but Ben's public exposure was an integral part of the plan to make sure that Kevin's involvement would not be discovered. Before, only Kevin and a dozen other people knew where Ben, Gwen and Dawn lived, but now the Tower was no secret. Everyone knew where the young celebrity hero lived with his family.
"Is this the man we are going to use for our plan?" Hex asked, pointing to the man Kevin was dragging.
"Yes, my sources have confirmed that this is one of the Plumbers who is working at Ben's Tower." By sources, Kevin was referring to Argit. "If your potion works, the plan will work."
Hex made a small cut in his hand and let a drop of blood fall into a glass filled with a magic potion. Kevin opened the mouth of the unconscious man and forced him to swallow the liquid.
When the man woke up, his eyes shone as he looked at Hex.
"Do you love me?" Hex asked him.
"Yes, I do!" The man replied, much to Kevin's astonishment.
"You know that in the Tower where you work, there is a device that blocks magic from the outside, so that people like me can't enter. But I need to get in there and get my daughter. Can you turn this device off for me? "
"Of course! I would do anything for you!" The man said.
Hex handed a bottle of potion to Kevin. "It's yours to use as you wish. It is very rare and almost impossible to brew, but what you have in hand is enough to make anyone completely fall in love with you. Just add a drop of your blood and make the person drink it. I'm going to get my daughter back, and you get your Lucky Girl."
Kevin smirked and thanked him.
Author's Notes
Thanks for the favorites, follows, reviews and to Aurora Nightstar for beta reading this.