sorry for not posting in so long. i just came off of being really sick. which, you know, is why this story is not really that good. i tried to keep them in character, but whatever.

nonetheless, enjoy!

Gwen attempted to keep her attention focused in her book, to maintain the many clouds of intelligent thoughts swirling inside her head. But the distraction he was causing rapidly weaved itself between the several sentences struggling to enter her mind. Eventually she was forced to look up, no longer able to stand the feeling of his eyes resting on her. "I thought you were working on your car. Why are you staring at me?"

The Osmosian responded immediately. "Run away with me."

She blinked. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Run away with me."

On his repeat, the Anodite furrowed her eyebrows. "What?"

"I said run away with me, Gwen," her boyfriend replied, his line of sight unwavering from her face whilst he talked.

She peered over him inquisitively for a moment. But after her emerald orbs had no apparent success with what she was looking for, she frowned. "...You're not kidding."

"If I was, I think I would've laughed."

Gwen placed her book aside. "...What did you do?" she questioned, raising herself slowly out of her chair, "Is there someone you have to go on the run from? If there is, so help me I will-"

Kevin almost had the audacity to laugh. Almost. "No."

With a cocked eyebrow, she splayed each of her hands across the hips hidden underneath her black skirt.

His mouth tugged slightly upwards at her disbelief in his claim. "No."

The redhead's tense posture slackened a bit as she exhaled. "No? Then tell me, why the sudden desire to skip out?"

The smile abruptly diminished from his face. He scratched the back of his head.

"Kevin?"

"I've been doing some thinking."

"Well that's a first." She grinned tinily at the glare he granted her in response. But after taking a pause, she spoke more seriously on her following question. "What have you been thinking about?"

"Just...about getting away."

"Getting away from what?"

"Everything, Gwen."

"What?" The Anodite intertwined her arms slowly across her chest. "You mean like ditching our lives?"

His dark eyes leveled with her green ones. More emotion than Kevin Levin typically presented to the world brimmed beneath their surface. A soft concoction of desire, wonder, and the undertone of lust, masked by it all, gleamed at her.

Gwen was the only one allowed such a glimpse inside him, and while usually she was grateful for it, she didn't feel as though currently. Instead, as a response bubbled in her brain, disappointment, originating from her more logical thoughts, took control of her voice.

"Kevin," she asked, "what about our duty to Ben?"

"Just for a little while. Tennyson can handle himself."

"Our responsibility as Plumbers? To protect Earth?"

"We've done a lot of protecting, Gwen."

She bit her lip. "What about my parents? And your mom?"

"They don't need to protect the Earth."

"That's not funny."

He swallowed.

"...Kevin. We can't just leave."

"Why not?"

"I-I just think-"

He looked downwards, shoulders slumping almost so minimally it was almost unnoticeable. "You think it's a stupid idea," The Osmosian concluded.

Gwen pursed her lips at his reaction. "No, of course not. Kevin-"

He narrowed his eyes. "Forget it, Gwen."

Something instantly began tugging at her heart. It wasn't a good feeling.

An aching to accept his invitation in leaving Bellwood blossomed within her chest. But their job with her cousin was far too important to just abandon. Both the Osmosian and the Anodite realized that. However deep down it may have been, Gwen knew Kevin could feel that string, binding the three of them together, too.

Maybe they could leave.

One day.

But now, she still felt horrible saying no.

"Kevin, I'm sorry-"

"Don't be."

"I am sorry," the redhead told him, pushing one of her feet closer, "But that doesn't mean I don't want to take you up on your offer."

Kevin rotated his head towards her, enough so that he could see her out of the corner of his eye. "What?"

Striding to him, Gwen wrapped an arm around his body from behind. "You know I love you," she began, trying to make up for declining him in the first place, "And one day, we will go somewhere. Together. But until then...we have to stay with Ben, and the Plumbers."

Sighing, Kevin grumbled, "I guess you're right."

She leaned forward, arching her head over his to rest upside down in front of him. "I really do wanna be with you one day, Kevin."

He grinned, inching his face to hers. "Yeah. I love you, too, Gwen."

Closing the gap between them, she pressed their lips together. The redhead could feel him smile against her mouth as she brought each of her hands up to his face. She had to stretch on the tips of her toes to maintain the position above him, but her comfort and other woes rapidly began ceasing to matter as the seconds passed.

Although the sound of her ringing phone interrupted their liplock much before either one of them would've preferred. With a reluctant sigh, Gwen retrieved it from her pocket, placing the device near her ear.

Irritation barely obscured itself behind her following words. "Hello? Hi, Ben. ...Uh huh. ...Okay. Kevin and I will meet you there." She scrunched her nose. "Duty calls."

Kevin groaned as she pulled her face away. "At least I get to pound somebody."