Chapter 15 hurt and comfort

Gwen was standing beside her locker when Billy the school bully came by

"Hey Gwen. Wanna go for a date?" he teased

Unlike most of her peers Gwen didn't think much of Billy and didn't give him as much as credit as her peers did. All she did was respond calmly but coldly

"No thank you Billy" she said as she closed her locker and walked away

"That's right I forgot. You're dating your cousin aren't you?"

Gwen froze in her tracks as she heard these words and she knew Billy was smirking at her reaction

"What are you talking about? I'm not dating my cousin" she lied, having not gotten used to dating him yet

"Yes you are. I saw you yesterday at the tea shop. How does it feel to date your family? Pretty gross I bet" he teased as he leaned on one of the lockers. Gwen simply turned around and walked away

"Jerk…" she muttered. It wasn't long before she walked into a crowd and they all fell silent when she passed by

"Hey look! It's incest girl" teased a girl with long blonde hair as she pointed at her as everyone laughed

"Hey Gwen! Did you and your cousin 'do it yet'?" teased another boy.

With a face as red as a rose Gwen turned around and walked away choking her anger. In the distance she could her them laughing and calling her 'incest girl'.

In history class things took a turn for the worst for her. When one of her classmates raised her hand to speak she said

"I didn't want to actually answer the question I just wanted to call Gwen 'incest girl'… because she's dating her cousin!" she yelled the last part and everyone laughed. Gwen's face was so red it matched the color of her hair. She lowered her head sadly as the teacher tried to calm everyone down. When she did she sent to offender to the principal's office and came to Gwen's aide

"Now I know that dating a cousin is a little socially unacceptable but many historical figures did the same thing. Like Charles Dickens and Albert Einstein. His second wife was his cousin. While genetically unadvised, while together cousin couples can still find happiness together. Despite what society thinks, it's kinda worth it" she smiled at the sad redhead who smiled weakly in return

"Thanks Mrs. Hovers" said the girl softly

"You're welcome dear. Don't let them get to you. I'm sure you and Ben will be fine" she said as Gwen smiled at her sadly again.

When the bell rang at the end of the day Gwen was one of the first ones to leave the building as she walked home. Only then did she let her tears flow freely…

"Why don't they understand? Ben's my best friend and I love him. It's all his fault! If he hadn't agreed to be my boyfriend we wouldn't be in this problem!..." thought the girl as anger and irrational thinking began to take over. She was so focused in her thoughts she didn't see the boy walking towards her

"Hey Gwen. How was your day at the schoo…" the boy stopped talking in mid-sentence when he saw she was crying

"Gwen, are you okay? What's wrong? Why are you crying?" asked the boy with concern as he placed his hands on her shoulders

"This is all your fault!" she cried

"What?" asked the boy confusedly

"If you haven't started dating me then the whole town wouldn't know about it and I wouldn't be picked on at school for it. Do you know how painful it is to be called 'incest girl'?"

Being shocked by Gwen's reaction Ben was caught off guard

"Gwen I'm sorry you don't feel comfortable about this yet. If you want we can slow things down a bit…"

"No! I don't want to slow things down! I don't want to date you anymore!" yelled the girl and stormed off

Being shocked and hurt Ben simply stood there as he let what happened sink in

"She broke up with me…" he thought in disbelief as he lowered his head in sadness as he was overwhelmed by sadness and depression. He continued to walk home sadly but with a very different mood that he was in moments ago… he opened the door to his house and walked straight into his room without saying a word to his parents. He sat on his bed and sighed deeply as he reached for a photo on his nightstand. In it were he and Gwen snuggling under a Christmas tree while wearing Santa Clause hats. Ben gazed at it sadly as it became blurred by his tears

"What did I do wrong? How could I have lost her like that?..." he thought in despair trying to hold back the tears

Several blocks away Gwen was lying on her bed crying softly. It wasn't long before she came to her senses and she was overwhelmed with guilt

"How could I have been so stupid and selfish? It's not Ben's fault. He was just being a good friend and boyfriend to me like he always was. I was the one who first showed my affection a few months ago when we were at the Dead Sea. We're in this together and I love as him as much as he loves me. I'll just have to get used to dating him… I just hope he still wants my companionship…" she sighed sadly as she reached for her phone. It's been several hours since the fight and she hoped he'd be willing to talk. She dialed his number and waited for him to pick up. In Ben's room he heard his phone ring and looked at the screen, when he saw Gwen's name on it he simply sighed and put it back down. Realizing he wasn't gonna answer, Gwen decided to walk down to his house and try to make peace with him. A few minutes later she knocked on his front door and was greeted by his mother

"Hey Aunt Sandra. Is Ben home?"

"He is but I think he wants to be alone right now. Is it important?"

"Very. Can I please go up and talk to him?"

Sandra hesitated for a moment but eventually decided it was for the best

"Okay. He's in his room" she said and stepped aside and let her in. Gwen walked up the stairs and knocked gently on Ben's door. When she heard no answer she knocked again just to be sure. When she wasn't answered again she slowly and gently opened the door. She found Ben lying asleep on his bed with a few empty smoothie mugs at the foot of his bed. She knew he usually drank his smoothies at the parlor and only one or two at a time. When he would drink more excessively and bring them home she knew it was assign of depression. A quick count revealed six smoothie cups on the floor next to his bed. She bit her lip and felt her heart ache with guilt and pity. She sat down gently on his bed and stroked his cheek gently. After a little while Ben's eyes flickered and he opened them to see his dear cousin looking down at him smiling sweetly

"Gwen?..." he asked incoherently

"Yeah Benny it's me" she said gently as he sat up

"What are you doing here?" he asked and hiccupped from drinking all those smoothies

"I came to say how sorry I am for hurting you the way I did earlier. I don't know what came over me. I was so upset about being picked on for dating you I wasn't thinking straight. I don't think it's your fault Ben. If anything it's both our faults because we're in this together. I love you with all my heart Ben and I promise you I won't hurt you like this ever again…" Gwen said sadly as Ben's lips formed into a small smile

"I also want you to know that I'm not feeling uncomfortable anymore when it comes to dating you and being seen doing it in public… would you give me another chance?" she asked as Ben's smile widened with joy. He simply hugged her tightly as she buried her head in his shoulder

"Of curse Gwen… of course… I love you very much and I won't let anything separate us…" he said as Gwen sighed with joy as he rocked her in his arms. They separated from the hug and peered into each other's eyes. Their faces inched closer and closer to each other until they met into a blissful contact. Kissing each other now after that fight felt like falling in love with each other all over again and like they were kissing for the first time again. They wanted to savor every bit and moment of it. Ben put his arms around Gwen's neck as she did the same with his as the kiss deepened. When they had to breathe their lips separated but they remained only centimeters away from each other and they leaned their heads on each other

"I love you…"whispered Ben

"I love you…" replied his cousin and they both smiled at each other. They kissed once more and held each other in their as the night went on…

To be continued…

Well I hope you like it. Reviews are most welcome…

Peace out…