"Yo, awesome job today bud!" Dan Kuso praised, clasping his balled-up Drago in his hand. Shun Kazami smiled a little, shaking his head.

"Come on, you won. I was totally out of focus."

Dan bit the inside of his cheek, tilting his head. "Yeah, I noticed that… Somethin' wrong?"

"No, I'm fine. Just a bit off today. Seeya later?" Shun replied hurriedly.

"Uh, yup… See you," Dan called back quietly. Shun quickly turned around and shot off toward his house. Once he reached the dojo-like mansion, he immediately retreated to his bedroom and fell back on his bed with a sigh. He hated lying- especially to people he cared about. But he didn't want Dan to know the great Shun Kazami was hung up over a girl.

He sighed again. For him and his friends, things changed an awful lot. Sometimes for the better, others for the worse. Overall, it had been for the better now; Bakugan and humans were living peacefully together on Earth. But in Shun's world, that didn't matter. His girlfriend of 2 years- Stella Akuma- wouldn't be around for a while. You see, Stella is, like Fabia, an alien and a princess. She had to return to her home planet for a while to help out with her kingdom. She promised she'd be back soon… But it had been 2 months since she had contacted anyone on Earth.

Things really had changed a lot. 4 years ago, Shun wouldn't have even noticed she wasn't around. But now, as a lovestruck 17 year old, the usually down-to-earth boy couldn't get his mind off the blue-haired girl.

He reflected back on the highlights of their romance. When Dan first proposed that she become a brawler, Shun was the only one who was against it. He didn't trust this mysterious new girl. Once he finally allowed her to join, his suspicions only rose. There were too many things off about her. Too many secrets. Skyress had suggested that Shun give her ONE chance, and he found they could relate in tons of ways. Yet he still didn't trust her.

Shun had been the second person Stella showed her alien self to- Dan being the first. All of the brawlers- even her best friends Julie and Runo- feared and mistrusted Stella once they found out her secret. But Shun, who had only had 1 full-length conversation with her, was her shoulder to cry on. He was there for her. After all, she had betrayed her own planet JUST to stay with her new friends. It had been Shun that brought the others to believe Stella was still the same girl they knew and loved. After everything had returned to normal, there was a party for a bunch of the neighborhood kids. There was a fireworks show, and while Stella was staring at the beautiful sight, Shun took the opportunity to hold her hand. Flustered at first, Stella gently wrapped her fingers around his as well.

But, they still didn't admit they had feelings for each other.

Like Julie and Runo, Stella had been forced to stay behind when the boys went to New Vestroia. Naturally, though, that didn't stop her from tagging along. Shun recalled he couldn't understand the flutter in his chest when he saw her in her short, blue leather Resistance dress, or the small pang of anger when Dan told her it looked fantastic on her.

Hydron had sent one of his Bakugan after Shun, and succeeded in having him knocked off a cliff. Without thinking, Stella had dived after him, linking her hands in his. It was then Stella told him that if he were to die, she'd have to die with him, because she was ultimately in love with him. As they plummeted to their certain deaths, they held each other tightly in their arms. However, they managed to survive the fall and swim out of the river they fell in. The moment they were positive they were safe, they kissed for the first time.

With everything that had been going on, they couldn't really do couple stuff. But once things calmed down again, they could. Stella congratulated Shun for all his victories in Bakugan Interspace by giving him a kiss (then pretty much making out with him) after every win he achieved. She had also… matured, her wardrobe. Her regular outfit consisted of just a sports bra with a fishnet shirt strung over it, designer jeans that were capree length, and a stylish belt that she kept her Bakugan on and hung a shiny silver chain from. Shun insisted the outfit disgusted him, but soon couldn't hide how attracted to it he was.

Their relationship, of course, had lots more ups and downs. With the Gundalian war going on, their love lives all but fell apart. During one of the few times they were intact, Stella accused Shun of cheating on her with Fabia. Though they had been on and off, by the time the war was over, they were a loving couple once again.

Shun groaned, burying his face in his pillow. The least Stella could do was send him one message. His mind flew through lots of situations. What if a negative fate had befallen her? Or what if she had ended up falling in love with Marduk: the boy her parents originally arranged for her to marry? Or what if-

Shun suddenly sat up. He whipped his head toward the source of a knocking sound. His eyes widened when he saw two gray eyes peering through his window. Hesitantly, he stepped over to the sill. A gloved hand wiped itself over the glass, making a clear space in the wet mist.

"Stella!" he gasped. He was sure he was hallucinating, but quickly opened the window nonetheless. He immediately pulled the blue haired girl into his room.

"Gosh, it is COLD out there!" she sighed dramatically, unwinding her scarf. She looked up at the face of her lover, smiling. "Anyway, surprise~! Miss me?" Without delay, Shun locked his lips on hers.

"You little bitch! How could you NOT contact me for two fricking months?"

Stella gave a guilty smile, gently wrapping her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry… My parents downright wouldn't allow it. Trust me, I tried… If you noticed a few odd constellations, those were me trying to get a message to you," she murmured.

Shun blinked, smiling, and hugged her back tightly. "I thought I saw my name in the sky… The others said I was crazy."

"You ARE crazy. For falling in love with an alien," stated Stella.

Shun placed his hands on her cheeks, forcing her to stare into his hazel eyes. "I'm not crazy FOR loving you. I'm crazy IN love with you."

Stella chuckled, putting one of her hands on top of Shun's. "That was so lame."

"I'll work on it. Among other things." He smirked, abruptly switching his hands to around her waist and pulling her toward him. He kissed her so forcefully, she nearly fell backwards.

"Geez, babe! I hope you weren't practicing on someone else."

"Don't worry. I've just been planning this out for a while." One arm around Stella's shoulders, Shun sat them both on his bed. Stella tangled her hands in his dark hair as his tongue dominated her mouth. He slowly pushed her down on the mattress.

"Shun, you watch what you're doing to my Mistress…" growled Leonidas, popping out of Stella's pocket. Annoyed with being interrupted, Stella narrowed her eyes at her partner.

"It's fine, Leo. Go, play with Jaakor."

"Mistress, I'm being serious. Isn't this how humans mate…?"

Stella's face twisted in discuss. "We are not 'MATING'! This is how humans show AFFECTION for each other. No reproduction is gonna occur here! Go away now so we can be affectionate in PEACE." Leonidas sighed, reluctantly spinning out the door. Before Stella had even turned back around, Shun's mouth was already back on hers.

"Oh, hey, wait…" Stella interrupted, gently pushing Shun off her then sitting up. "You know how my clothes get ripped when I go from alien to human? Yeah, my jacket has a hole in it, I gotta replace it real quick." As she unzipped the yellow and hot pink jacket, Shun didn't hesitate to slide it off her shoulders.

"You don't need to replace it. Not just yet."

Stella blushed as Shun removed his own jacket, then slid his belt out of its loops. This seemed so unlike her serious ninja… She knew he had to have missed her a whole lot, but this much…? She shook her head a bit, then proceeded to undress herself.

"How long- have- we- been do-ing- this?" Stella questioned between rare moments her tongue wasn't being played with. Shun gave a small shrug.

"At, least an hour."

"Hm, wow. Well uh, I need to tell my folks I'm back… Sorry to leave you," Stella murmured, sitting up. She couldn't resist glancing back at Shun's perfectly toned naked body. He smiled, kissing her neck one more time. "It's okay. I'M sorry for holding you back."

Stella flinched. "It's fine, but hey, that was a hickey. Ouch."

"Sorry." Eyes widening a bit, Shun's hand flew to his mouth. That hickey had bunches of friends. On Stella's arms… Her waist… Her cheek… Her chest… Even a few spotted her legs. He felt a pang of guilt echo throughout his chest. Though she didn't show pain, he knew he hurt her, and for his own amusement. He realized it was so out of character… So why did he do it?

Stella, on the other hand, didn't feel an inch of regret. Maybe a centimeter, but not an inch. Every nerve in her body felt like electricity was pulsing through them. Though nearly every portion of her body ached, she was the type who loved a rush. Besides: no pain, no gain. Noticing Shun's worried expression, she grinned at him and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"That was fun. We should do it again sometime."

Trying hard not to blush, Shun nodded and gave a sheepish smile. "Okay. Whenever you want."

The next winter months were good on the couple. The world remained at peace, so they had lots more time to spend with each other. They helped each other decorate their homes for the Christmas holidays, and placed mistletoe all over the place. Stella felt horrible that she hadn't found time to get anyone presents, but it was okay because the same happened with Shun.

They also spent New Year's together. Stella was super eager to stay up until past midnight, but ended up falling asleep at 11:58. The moment the clock struck 12, Shun pressed his lips against hers and wished her a Happy New Year.

"Hey, so are we going to go brawling this afternoon?" Shun asked one chilly March morning.

Stretching, Stella nodded. "Yeah. I was thinking about teaming up with Runo though…"

Shun widened his eyes, then narrowed them. "Why not me?"

Stella grinned, kissing him. "Don't act so offended, Shunny. I just haven't hung out with her in a while. Besides, you can be on a team with your other lover!"

"I thought you finally accepted that I'm NOT cheating on you with Fabia!"

Stella giggled. "I'm not talking about Fabia, silly. I'm talking about DAN."

Shun let out an exasperated sigh. "Oh god."

"You ready?" Runo questioned a couple hours later. Stella nodded confidentially in response, gripping Leonidas tightly in her hand.

"Be sure not to go easy on your boyfriend," Runo reminded her.

"I can say the same to you."

Runo's cheeks turned bright red. "S-Stella…!"

Stella chuckled. "Come on. You and Dan are ADORABLE together."

"Must we talk about this NOW?"

"You're right. Let's brawl!"

The crowd cheered wildly as the 4 made their way out onto the battlefield. Stella received a lot of "Boos" from Shun's fan girls, but one intense death glare shut them right up.

"Ladies first!" Dan called from the other side. Runo stuck her tongue out at him.

"You wanna go first, Stell?"

Stella opened her mouth to say yes, but suddenly felt sick to her stomach. How odd. She hadn't gotten nervous before battle for years. What was so off about this battle? Maybe because she felt guilty that she was opposing Shun?

"U-uh, you go."

Runo raised an eyebrow, but didn't argue. "BAKUGAN, BRAWL! Blade Tigerra! Jump!" she called out. Stella smiled a bit. She was really glad the tiger-like Bakugan had returned to her friend. Leo was really close to Tigerra.

"Oh, it's my turn." Stella lifted Leo, fixed between her index and middle finger, into the air, and called out "Bakugan! BR-BRAWL!" She felt taken quite aback at how choked up she suddenly got. It felt like she was going to be sick. Still, she pulled her arm back and shouted "Omega Leonidas! Jump!"

"Stella, what are you doing…?" Runo hissed. Stella blinked, shocked. She had missed her mark by an entire gate card. She thought she had overpowered the sudden fatigue she felt when she threw Leo, but apparently not. She gently touched her mouth with two fingers.

"H…hey… Timeout…!" she called feebly.

"Huh? Giving up that quickly?" asked Dan. Stella shook her head, groaning a bit.

"No, no… S-sorry, I can probably contin-" Her eyes shot open so quickly, they nearly rolled out from under her eyelids. "G-gah! Holy SHIT I feel sick!" She fell to her knees, clutching her stomach. It felt like her insides, as well as the ground and everything around her, were spinning around.

"I-I'll get you to a doctor…!" gasped Runo. Murmurs arose among the crowd as Dan, Shun, and Runo got Stella to her feet and led her out of the arena.

"U-uh, sorry guys, there's only one seat in here…" Stella said softly as she sat on the doctor's table.

"It's okay. Me and Runo will go sit in the waiting room," Dan replied. Stella smiled feebly at her friend's kindness.

"Maybe you ate something bad?" Shun suggested. Stella shook her head.

"Nah. It's probably 'cause I stayed up late last night watching super flashy, fast-moving horror films," Stella told him. Before they could say anything else, the doctor knocked on the door and came in.

After asking a few questions, the doctor instructed Stella to come with her to another room. Shun drummed his fingers on his arms, tense as anything. Especially since the doctor had asked when the last time Stella's period had been, and she didn't know the answer.

When the two women returned about 15 minutes later, Stella was pale as a sheet. Tears silently streamed down her face, her hand glued to her stomach.

"You're Shun Kazami?" the doctor confirmed.

"Y-yes ma'am," Shun responded, getting to his feet.

The doctor glanced at Stella, who took a few steps forward and weakly hugged her boyfriend.

"Sh-Shun… I know you're a master at Bakugan, but… I hope you know a thing or two about fatherhood."