July 20, 2016
Fifteen Miles West Of Memphis, TN; 9:20 am
Gwen rustled against the scratchy straw beneath her. She blinked away the sleep as she took in her surroundings. A loud hum filled her ears, and it took only a few seconds for her to recognize the Rustbucket's engine.
"Ben," she violently shook him, "it's Grandpa. Get up!" Ben shot up, panic momentarily taking over him. Gwen threw him his clothes and started putting her own on. "Shit. Shit. SHIT! This can't be happening."
Ben watched her while the mental fog cleared and the previous night's events flooded his thoughts. He spotted the purple bruises on her neck and shoulders and grinned. He slipped on his pants and hugged her from behind.
"Relax," he whispered. "Everything is going to be okay."
"Don't," she warned. She pulled away and watched the pain and confusion form on his face. Now that she was looking at him, she could see dried bits of blood on his shoulder that she was sure wasn't from the gun wound. "What we did was…." She couldn't bring herself to finish that sentence because she knew how stupid and irresponsible it had been, but she still loved every second of it.
"It wasn't a mistake. I don't regret it, and neither should you."
"Ben, you have a girlfriend. I helped you cheat on her!"
"I don't love her! Not the way I love you." He finally admitted it, and instead of being elated, she looked disgusted. "I'll break up with her. I can call her and end things right now."
"We can't be together."
"Our parents don't have to know. You can go off to college, and I can visit you in between plumber missions. We can make this work, so just please give us a chance!"
Gwen's face sank. "I'm going to Oxford, Ben."
The confusion set in deeper. "So you're going to some fancy school in Boston. So what?"
"First of all, you're thinking of Oxford, Massachusetts." The annoyance in her voice raised as she clipped her bra. "Secondly, Oxford University is in England."
The confusion quickly turned to fear. "Like, New England?"
She sighed. "Ben, we both know you're not that stupid."
"Gwen!" Max shouted from outside. "Ben!"
Gwen slipped on her shirt and started walking outside, not bothering to put on her shoes. The morning sun was blinding, but she hadn't minded since it meant that she didn't have to see the expression on her grandfather's face. She lowered her head and stormed into the RV, locking herself in the bathroom.
Ben came out not long after her. Max approached him, disappointment present on his face. Ben braced himself, expecting the man to yell or lecture him. Hell, he wouldn't be surprised if he punched him. He knew he'd deserve it.
Instead, Max pulled the Omnitrix from his pocket and handed it to the young hero. "They won't be coming after us again."
Ben was surprised but took the watch and placed it on his wrist. He watched the lights turn on as it scanned his DNA recognizing him as the sole user. "I heard the leader, a guy named Dex, mention a client."
"I'll have Kevin look into it." Max glanced at his grandson, noticing the bruises around his neck. "Do you need to see a doctor?"
"No," Ben said, blushing slightly. "I was shot, but Gwen patched me up."
"Let me at least look you over." Max took a step toward Ben, who stepped back in response. Max's eyes narrowed slightly, and Ben felt a twinge of guilt rise, but he quickly suppressed it. Max sighed. "Get cleaned up. We need to hit the road in case reinforcements are on their way."
Ben nodded and all but ran into the Rustbucket. The sound of the shower filled the RV, and he wanted so desperately to join her. The passionate events from the previous night played on his thoughts. How could Gwen think what they did was a mistake?
The water stopped, and Ben walked up to the door. He raised his hand, contemplating whether he should knock or not. Gwen had looked so angry. A shower wouldn't have been enough to calm her down. He lowered his hand, but the door opened before he could walk away.
The floral scent of her body wash filled Ben's nostrils, sending his brain into a burst of euphoria. But the good feeling quickly faded when he spotted Gwen's glare. He opened his mouth to speak, but Gwen pushed past him to lay down on the bottom bunk, her back facing him. If he looked carefully, he could see the hickey poking out from her collar.
"She must be exhausted," Max said as she sat in the driver's seat. Ben snapped out of his daze and grabbed a set of clean clothes. In the corner of his eye, he watched Gwen for any sign of movement, but she remained motionless save for the rise and fall of her shoulder as she breathed. Ben gave her one final look and then stepped into the shower.
December 19, 2015
New York, NY; 7:34 pm
Gwen pushed through the double doors of the arena, the sharp, cold air striking her face. She tightened her coat, the only source of warmth she had over her gi, and desperately rubbed her hands together. She was less than half an hour away from competing in the final match of the Winter karate tournament. Her opponent was a boy her age from her dojo named Chase. Mr. Saito expressed how proud he was of the two and said that they should enjoy the friendly competition. Gwen, however, did not.
She'd given it her all as she progressed through to the semi-finals. Her opponent was a girl a year younger than her from Michigan who had such an intense fire within her that it was almost blinding. It made Gwen feel guilty when she effortlessly defeated her. When the match was over, the girl had given Gwen a deep bow of respect, but Gwen suspected it was to hide her red face and tearful eyes.
The sound of the doors opening caught Gwen's attention, and she eyed her mother, shivering in her oversized coat. "Jesus, Gwen," Natalie said, "your joints are gonna be frozen stiff by the time you get to the mat."
"I just needed to get some fresh air," Gwen said.
"Prematch jitters?"
"Something like that." Gwen couldn't remember the last time she'd had the "jitters," but she wasn't going to tell her mother what was really bothering her. "Where's Dad and Kenny?"
"Snack bar." If Natalie had rolled her eyes any harder, she'd have seen the inside of her skull. "I swear, with how much that boy eats now, I fear for my wallet when he hits puberty."
This got a smile out of the teen. Gwen imagined what her brother would be like when he got older, but it shifted to thoughts of a certain green-eyed boy, and the smile was gone. She'd catch her thoughts drifting towards him, something she'd do around this time of year, but it had been especially bad this year. When she talked with Martha at their last session, her therapist speculated that it had to do with the two soon becoming adults. It was a little over a week until their birthday, and her parents had decided to take time off so they could celebrate in New York after the tournament was over. It solidified that she would spend another Christmas and birthday without him.
"How does that make you feel?" Martha's words echoed through Gwen's thoughts. At the time, she said she was okay with it and changed the subject to the upcoming tournament, but now, she wasn't sure how she felt.
Natalie's phone chimed. "Your dad says they're about to start." Gwen nodded and allowed her mother to lead her back to the arena. The overworked heaters blasted her as they stepped inside, and she quickly removed her coat and stretched her stiff muscles. The bright lights stuck her as she stepped out before the crowd, and she was once again in awe at the scale of it all. The tournament was still relatively small, given that it was for adolescents, but if only for a moment, she basked in the attention.
She approached the mat, where Chase stood waiting. "You just love to make the drama entrance," he joked. Gwen gave a fake smile, and the two bowed before one another. The match soon began.
From the outside, the two were evenly matched. It was a give-and-take that could easily end in a draw, but on the inside, it was completely one-sided. The interesting thing about competing with someone you know is that you can predict their moves. On the flip side, they should also be able to predict your moves. That isn't the case when you're going up against Gwen Tennyson. It's as if you came to a chess match prepared to play checkers. The only way you could win was if she let you.
The match ended, and the crowd cheered as they announced Chase as the victor. The rest of their dojo came out and raised him over their shoulders, dubbing him the "Queen Slayer." Mr. Saito patted the boy on the back, and the two left for their awards.
"Why'd you let him win?" Gwen turned to see a woman a little older than herself. There wasn't anything notable about her aside from her distinctly English accent. "I'd been watching your matches, and someone of your talent should have wiped the floor with my cousin."
"I'm sorry?" Gwen asked, fainting confusion.
"Don't be. I don't really care why you did it. What I really want to know is if this is as far as you want to go." She pulled out her phone and quickly brought up her Instagram page. "My name is Vivian Brant, a student at Oxford University and captain of the karate team, and I want you on my team."
"I-I'm sorry!?" Now, Gwen was genuinely confused. "I didn't know Oxford had a karate team, let alone that a recruiter would come all the way out here."
"We don't. I was only here visiting family, and you piqued my interest."
"What about Chase then? He deserves this much more than I do."
"I love Chase. He's talented and passionate about karate, but he's a bloody idiot." Gwen couldn't deny that. "If it's about the money, I'll talk with the school and get it figured out." Chase's mom called out, saying that they were leaving soon. "I'm not expecting an answer right now. You have my Insta, so send me a DM if you decide to go through it, and we'll get this started." Just as quickly as she appeared, she was gone, leaving Gwen even more confused.
"Who was that?" Frank asked.
"Chase's cousin," Gwen mumbled.
To say things were off after the tournament would be an understatement. Mr. Saito took everyone out to dinner to celebrate, and Gwen's parents continuously showered their daughter with words of comfort and praise. Gwen, however, was too focused on the English girl a couple of tables away. She'd scrolled through Vivian's page, admiring the photos and videos of not only her karate accomplishments but also of her life as a college student in a foreign country.
When she returned to her hotel, Gwen told her parents about Vivian's offer. They were skeptical at first, just as she had been, but after some research, they were soon ecstatic for their daughter's opportunity. Natalie reminisced over her college days traveling through Europe before she'd met Frank, who talked in an awful English accent that made Ken laugh. Gwen should have been just as happy as they were, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"But it's so far away," she whispered.
"Honey," Frank said, sitting on the bed beside her. "Your mother and I always knew you would do great things, but you won't do them in Bellwood. Colleges are going to be fighting over you in no time."
"Your father's right," Natalie chimed in. "I'll admit, I wasn't thrilled when you chose karate over ballet, but you earned this, Gwendolyn. Don't let a chance like this pass you by the wayside."
After everyone was asleep, Gwen went down to the hotel lobby and watched the snow fall through the window. She'd twirled her phone in her hand, occasionally opening Instagram to look between Vivian's and Hope's, debating whether she should ask her mentor for some sagely advice, but ultimately, she decided against it. She considered messaging Martha, but she knew the woman wouldn't look at her message until morning at the earliest. She brought up her contacts and scrolled down to the T's. Her finger hovered over his name, but she could never bring herself to commit to it. Instead, she went to the name two down from his.
After three rings, her grandfather's voice spoke out of the speaker. "It's a little late for a check-in. Everything alright, Pumpkin?" There was silence for a long time. Long enough to where it should have been concerning, Max had that otherworldly sense that only a grandfather had when his granddaughter needed him, so he patiently waited for her to find the words to speak.
"I might be going away," she whispered. "I was given an amazing opportunity, and Mom and Dad keep telling me I should take it, but it's just so far away."
"How far away?"
"Not as far as Xenon," Gwen sniffled as she wiped away a stray tear, "but it may as well be."
There was another long silence as Max mulled over her words. "Change is hard, Gwen. Loss is painful and scary, and you can get so absorbed by the memories that you lose sight of the good you'll gain. Sometimes, you have to give up on the past if you want to see the future."
"But what if I don't want to see that future? What if I can change the past and make a better one?"
"We can't change the past, Gwen." She'd seen firsthand that that wasn't true. She didn't know how, but she knew it was possible eventually. Still, the pain and regret in his voice shook her to her core.
"I think I know what I have to do."
"I'm sure you've known this whole time."
"Yeah, I think you're right."
They ended the call, and Gwen was once again scrolling through Vivian's page. This time, however, when she opened her DMs and typed out her response, her finger found its way to the send button.