Disclaimer: Ben 10, Ben 10: Alien Force, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien and its affiliating characters are the property of Man of Action. If I had any ownership of them, the show would have some yaoi and would have been a part of Adult Swim.

Summary: After a nasty breakup, Ben gets swept off his feet by a handsome pursuer. Is this his Prince Charming, or is he way over his head?

Chapter 1: Awry Relationships

The sight of two green-eyed heroes arguing on their cell phones was a strange, yet interesting sight for the visitors of Burger Shack. Granted, the eavesdroppers were only hearing one end of the heated conversations, but it was obvious – the Tennyson cousins were having relationship problems. And listening in on the Tennysons was fascinating; it was just difficult on choosing which argument to focus on more...

"Look, Julie...I'm sorry I had to cancel our date last night, but there was an emergency..." Ben tried to say calmly to his girlfriend on his phone.

"Kevin, I don't care what lame excuse you have for not meeting me and Ben this morning! You should have been there to help!" Gwen chastised her boyfriend on her phone.

"What do you mean I'm being egoistic?" Ben's voice rose.

"You're so unreliable it's disgusting!" Gwen yelled.

"Well excuse me for risking my life on a daily basis to keep the universe safe!" Ben yelled.

"I am so sick of your sneaking off for some get-rich-quick schemes! Why do you find it so hard to be responsible and think of someone else besides yourself?" Gwen screamed.

"You know what?" Ben fumed. "I'm hanging up before we both say something we can't take back!" Ben quickly pocketed his cell inside his jacket and let out a laboured sigh.

"Kevin, you jerk!" Gwen yelled. "You're seriously pissing me off! We're done!" Gwen ended her called and let out a frustrated grunt.

Ben and Gwen had their backs to each other during their arguments, shoulders shaking from the tormented magnitude of the heated clash against their so-called 'sweethearts'. After releasing a frustrated sigh, Ben turned to Gwen, hoping she could help him get through his fight with Julie; facing his cousin, Ben saw the hurt and frustration in Gwen's eyes. "Gwen?" Ben whispered.

"Kevin and I just broke up..." came the quiet response. Ben moved to hug Gwen but she pushed back. "Don't bother, Ben." Gwen said. "This was a long time coming." The redhead squared her shoulders and said, determinedly. "I should have dumped his deadbeat ass for all the shit he has put me through!" Gwen's eyes gave a menacing flash of mana for a moment, thinking about the betrayal when Kevin went to her enemies during his second mutation and the hurtful things he's said and done during his third mutation.

Ben rested a hand on Gwen's shoulder, hoping to calm her. "Maybe you should talk with Kevin; you know, face-to-face..."

"What's there to talk about?" Gwen gave Ben a deadpanned stare, shaking off the sympathetic hand. "To think, the different guys who showed an interest in me, and I foolishly turned them down because I was stupidly with Kevin? Like I said, Ben; Kevin and I are over." Gwen turned around, walking out of the Burger Shack parking lot.

"Gwen, where are you going?" Ben was concerned; even though there was finality in Gwen's voice about her breakup with Kevin, he knew that she would be emotionally unstable.

"What does it look like?" Gwen said. "It's time for me to find a new man!"

For the next few days, things were strenuous for the heroic team.

Even though Ben knew he should try to fix his relationship with Julie, he had to fix the dynamics of his team first. Kevin and Gwen refused to talk with each other, which made the atmosphere between the threesome more unnerving, considering the cross-fire during a battle; this situation made Ben very uncomfortable. After each mission, Gwen would take off to meet a new guy for a date, leaving Ben and Kevin together. The tension was always thick; once, Ben tried to get Kevin to talk but Kevin just withdrew within himself. 'Right,' Ben thought, 'I completely forgot that Kevin hates to talk about his feelings...unless it's food-related...' Either way, Ben felt that he should keep an eye on his rogue friend, if anything to keep him out of trouble or act as a buffer when he might do something stupid...or suicidal.

Currently, the boys found themselves at Mr. Smoothy; Kevin drinking a soda, while Ben drank a mango- blueberry-radish smoothie. Not far from their table, Gwen was flirting with a new boy; he seemed a little older than her, maybe 18-years-old, tall and muscular, dressed in dark blue pants, a white polo shirt and black blazer, with black hair and hazel eyes. Unfortunately for Gwen, the guy seemed uninterested.

"You know," Kevin said, startling Ben that he was actually revealing some emotion since the breakup. "I was kinda pissed about the breakup with Gwen, but seeing her bombing with this guy is makin' my day."

"That's a horrible thing to say!" Ben tried to chastise Kevin, but slightly slipped a smile. For Kevin to finally talk about his feelings was progress. "She's still my cousin!"

"Yeah, yeah...I know." Kevin dismissed. "But doesn't a part of you kinda get some pleasure when your ex, who puts you down in the worst way, gets some type of just deserts?"

Ben thought about what Kevin said. Part of him wanted to continue to defend Gwen, but she did treat Kevin like she owned him while they were dating. As Ben contemplated on what to say, he was brought out of his thoughts by Kevin laughing at Gwen. "Aw man! Didn't you see that?" Kevin scoffed. "Gwen completely humiliated herself in front of that guy – again!"

"What do you mean 'again'?" Ben inquired.

"I saw her trying to flirt with him yesterday and at some point a bird shit on her head!" Kevin laughed. "Now, judging by that dude's facial expression, I'm guessin' Gwen 'let one rip'!"

Ben didn't know if he should laugh or comfort Gwen after the humiliation. As Ben was preoccupied with his inner musings, oblivious to his surroundings, the boy Gwen tried to flirt with walked passed his table and Kevin laughed even harder. Gwen joined the guys, resting her head on the table, and then let out a frustrated scream.

"What the hell is wrong with that man?" Gwen shrieked.

"Well farting while flirting could be the killer..." Kevin smirked. Ben kicked him under the table and gave him a 'Don't be a total jackass' glare.

Gwen glared at Kevin. "He said that I wasn't his type. He said that he preferred a 'sporty brunette'. Like, what the hell? Do I have to dye my hair and wear track suits so he would pay attention to me?"

"Gwen, you shouldn't change who you are just for some guy you barely know." Ben lectured. What extremes do girls put themselves through for a guy?

"Nah!" Kevin interrupted. "First of all, you'd likely screw up and turn your hair into some sick barf colour," Kevin started to chuckle. "And you would need some serious plastic surgery to become his type!"

"Kevin!" Gwen yelled, scandalised that Kevin would suggest such a thing

"That was out of line..." Ben reprimanded.

"I can tell you flat out that Gwen ain't his type." Kevin looked Ben in the eyes. "You are. You didn't see that guy eyeing you when he walked pass our table?"

Ben was speechless and blushed as Gwen gave him and Kevin menacing glares. "I'm gonna call Julie and try to fix things with her." Ben got up from his seat and sternly looked at his cousin and best friend. "I expect you two to talk things out and not kill each other when I get back." As Ben walked away, Gwen and Kevin were left with an uncomfortable silence.

"So, what the hell are we suppose to talk about?" Kevin asked.

Gwen's eyes briefly flashed pink before addressing Kevin. "How about how badly you treated me?"

"How badly I treated you?" Kevin was angered by Gwen's thoughtlessness. "What about all the times you made me feel inadequate? The times you made me feel stupid and self-conscious? The times you called me selfish for not being around you and Ben?"

"Kevin, you are selfish!" Gwen roared. "Only someone who's selfish would pick money over being there for his friends while they're in danger!"

"Gwen, you want to know why I wasn't there when you and Ben go on Plumbers assignments before giving me the full details of a mission?" Kevin asked darkly. Gwen paused, seeing the hurt expression on Kevin's face. "I was helping my cousin get out of an abusive relationship and care for her kid so that sick fuck she dumped won't go after them!"

"I...I...Kevin, I'm so sorry." Gwen felt guilty. "I didn't know..." How could she be so insensitive to Kevin's family life? Gwen knew she was out of line for calling Kevin selfish; only someone with a heart would try to help someone who was being abused. No amount of apologising could fix her friendship with Kevin.

Kevin didn't answer back. Gwen hurt him deeply for what she said when she broke his heart. And he really didn't see himself going back in a relationship with her; after helping his cousin, Kevin realised that Gwen was emotionally abusive and he deserved better. As Kevin was about to respond to Gwen's apology, he saw Julie enter Mr. Smoothy with some blond guy. "Who the hell is that with Julie?"

As Gwen turned around to see her best friend with some tall blond guy, what happened next shocked both her and Kevin. Julie kissed the boy, for everyone to see.

"Oh my God..."Gwen gasped.

"What are we gonna tell Ben?" Kevin uttered.

I think I'll stop here... Things will intensify in later chapters.

What do you think so far? Good? Bad? Review and let me know!