The day had started off normal enough, only to veer off in strange and unusual directions when it was drawing to a close.
There was nothing less exciting than a day full of 'normal' rescues – Now used to the big saves, things like Mr. Pettypaws stuck in a tree or Mr. Harrison's heli-pack malfunctioning for the umpteenth time hardly sparked any thrill for the rescue team, both for bots and humans alike.
Because there were no close calls and the day had been so incredibly mundane, the team had returned home relaxed and in good spirits. There had been a lively discussion over dinner about plans for the evening. The boys had all agreed that the new horror movie at playing at the drive-in was the way to go – it was getting rave reviews and supposed to be really scary.
Dani had other plans; Kade's girlfriend had set her up on a blind date with one of her friends. While she didn't really know Haley that well and wasn't sure what to expect of her male friends, a date was a date and Dani figured it might be nice to go out with some one outside her family for once – Her social life had not been extremely high on her priority list since taking her position on the rescue team.
She couldn't have been more wrong; the guy turned out to be a total mimbo who spent the whole evening talking about his favorite topic – himself.
And she decided to call it a night around the time dessert came – Around the time he started insinuating she might enjoy coming over for coffee that was probably not coffee but rather a double entendre.
It was undoubtedly the right time to put the kibosh on the self-centered jerk's plans, cut her losses and hang out with Blades, who certainly would never have set foot in the drive-in, knowing a horror flick was playing.
Arriving home, Dani made a beeline for the bunker, hoping to discuss the evening's events with her partner. Blades enjoyed gossip and would definitely be more interested in hearing about her less-than-satisfactory evening than any of her brothers.
Blades was, predictably, where she expected him to be, plopped in front of the TV, his legs tucked neatly up under him. Some reality cooking competition was playing on the screen, but he wasn't really paying much attention to it.
…He also wasn't alone.
Chase was sitting next to him, their bodies in closer proximity to one another than what the police-bot usually deemed acceptable and comfortable. Even more unusual than that, Blades had his head rested on Chase's shoulder, while Chase had an arm tucked securely around his waist, hand settled on his hip. And though she couldn't see it from behind, Blades had caught Chase's free hand in his own and was absently playing with his fingers, a contented smile spread across his face.
They both seemed so relaxed; it was incredibly surreal. Blades was so high strung and Chase seemed like he had something shoved so far up his exhaust port…And yet, there they were, everything about their position screaming "comfortable" and "intimate."
"What on Earth…?" She hadn't meant to say anything, but the half-question slipped out any way, causing Blades to jump a little at the sound of her voice and both bots to turn nearly simultaneously in her direction.
"Dani!" Blades, clearly startled awkward embarrassed, yelped, burying his face in his hands.
If robots were capable of blushing, she was sure his face would have been bright red.
Chase simply regarded her coolly, in his usual unflappable manner. He hadn't moved beyond turning in her direction and it may have just been her imagination, but it seemed that his arm tightened ever-so-slightly around Blades. "Dani." He nodded minutely, "We were not expecting you home until later." He sounded as if that simple statement should have explained everything about why they were cuddled together.
"Date ended early…" She was still staring and though it was incredibly rude, she couldn't help it, "What's going on here?"
Chase didn't even blink. "We are viewing a most incorrectly labeled 'reality' show." He gestured deliberately at the television glowing behind them, where a close up of something engulfed in flames on a stovetop appeared on the screen.
Oh. As if that, again, explained everything.
"Oh. Well. I'll just…" Dani wasn't sure what to say. There was no way she was going to ask the both of them flat out what they were doing while watching the unreality show; this had gotten awkward enough as it was. "…leave you two alone then. Night!"
And with that, she beat a hasty retreat to the elevator.
"So…You and Chase, huh? How long has that been going on?"
Blades knew better than to bother asking Dani to drop the subject. She wouldn't, so there was no point in even suggesting it. Once an idea got into her head, it had to be explored. This was too big for her to just let it slide and Blades was well aware of that.
Though he'd knew she never would, he'd been hoping she would forget all about what she had seen. Or maybe think it was a dream or something. That scenario had been incredibly unlikely, but it was a lot better than imagining the conversation they were about to have.
"Um." They had taken off for patrol not long before and she'd at least had the courtesy to wait for Blades to make sure he was steady and comfortable in the air before asking the burning question.
…That didn't really make it any easier for him, though.
There was a long silence before he finally answered. "A long time."
"A long time?"
"Like…since before we came here." He clarified, though he knew that answer would likely lead to more questions, "But it's not that serious! It's not like we're bonded or anything!"
"You two have been together since before you came to Earth?" She didn't really know what he meant by 'bonded,' but Dani was aware of the fact that they had been in stasis for a long time prior to their landing. They must have hooked up way back on Cybertron – A long time ago indeed. "And you don't think that's serious." That later wasn't a question, but rather a flat, incredulous statement.
Blades flew silently, his face on the monitor screen frowning.
"I can't believe this…" Dani muttered, her own frown mirroring Blades', "You and Chase. And you didn't even bother to tell me!"
"He's not like everybody thinks…" Blades could easily guess why his human partner was having such a hard time wrapping her mind around the concept – it was one of the reasons they had elected not to make their relationship public knowledge. Every one had a certain idea of what Chase was like and it was always hard for them to see him any other way. "He's not just some unfeeling machine, you know."
"I know that!" Though she didn't quite snap at him, Dani's tone was less-than-kind and Blades frowned more at her. "I just kinda thought, you know, he and Heatwave…"
There was another long silence before Blades started to laugh- "Chase and Heatwave? That's a good one, Dani!" –before realizing she wasn't smiling and the laughter ebbed away. "Oh. You're serious?"
"I guess…" She didn't bother to add the 'no offense' she was thinking. Heatwave had always seemed far more interested in Chase than Blades did; just look at the way he reacted to the police-bot being ingested by the squilsh! And Blades –who she now knew must've been worried sick- had acted as if it was just an every ordinary day and his boyfriend hadn't been eaten by a giant blob. It just didn't make sense; Blades had a difficult time maintaining any amount of composure when he was upset or things were affecting him personally.
And besides…She'd assumed he had some kind of schoolboy crush on Bumblebee.
"Even if Chase was interested, it never woulda happened." And maybe her ears were playing tricks on her, but Blades sounded kind of proud of that fact. "They don't really, you know, get each other, and that's kind of important."
"Well, I don't exactly get any of this." Dani was having a very difficult time puzzling it out. Really, it had come so far out of left field for her there was no way for her to reconcile what she knew with what she had always assumed.
"It's really…" Blades began, then paused, trying to figure out how to best explain, "You and your date last night, you weren't compatible, right? That's why you came home early."
"Right…"
"It's kinda the same for us. You want to find some one you work nicely with, especially if you do plan on bonding in the future. A good partner is some one who balances you and evens you out, complimenting both your strengths and your weaknesses." Spotting a clearing on the ridge up ahead, Blades swooped down for a landing. Though the idea made him feel a little jumpy, he figured the rest of this talk might go better face-to-face. "I have a lot of weaknesses, Dani…And Chase…Well, he's really strong."
She waited for him to land and come to a complete stop before alighting from his cockpit. Once she was free and clear, he transformed, sitting himself a safe distance from the edge of the cliff. Dani sat herself nearby, looking up at him.
"He's good at keeping me grounded." He continued, smiling at the touch of irony in the statement, "I get so scared of stuff, you know that. But Chase is really good at diffusing that, because he's so logical. He doesn't let me get carried away or too scared or whatever, especially if the things I'm scared of are imaginary." His smile grew at that; he knew he was fanciful and that his imagination often got the best of him. He didn't mind it; it was just the way he was sparked.
And Chase didn't seem to mind, either.
Dani thought about that, about Blades and his overactive imagination. He was scared of a huge amount of things that turned out to be harmless. He was also a bit of a worrier. Chase, on the other hand, always thought things through. He was steady and rational and didn't ruffle easily. Looking at it that way, things suddenly made a bit more sense.
It still didn't explain what Chase saw in Blades, though.
She loved her partner; having him was like having another little brother around – A giant, metal little brother, but still. He was charming and adventurous –when his fear wasn't getting in the way- and polite and Dani did enjoy working with him a lot. But he was also a bit of a whiner…And he got scared so easily. He was also so self-conscious and hard on himself. His head was in the proverbial clouds most of the time and she was honestly surprised he didn't drive stolid Chase crazy with all of his fears and uncertainties and silly drama. Not to mention the constant need of reassurance…
She was reluctant to admit it, but Blades was kind of a high-maintenance guy.
Chase was nothing if not patient, but still…He had to draw the line somewhere, right?
She didn't want to ask. She wouldn't ask because it would sound so horrible…But she had to know. What was in it for Chase?
"In some ways…" Blades continued, propping his elbow on his knee, chin in his hand as he looked out over the forest and city below them. It felt so good to talk about this; after getting over his initial worry at Dani finding them out, he was both relieved and excited to share it with some one. "we're really not so different. Everybody looks at Chase a certain way because of how he is in public. And they kinda do the same thing with me, too. I'm the silly worried one, right? But that's not all there is to me…And Chase isn't just practical and logical, either. I understand…I get it. He gets scared, sometimes, especially when things don't make sense. And he really does like learning about Earth things, he's just a lot more restrained than Boulder, so it doesn't show as much." He smiled again, this time a content, happy smile, "We have fun together."
Fun. Chase.
Those words were not synonymous with one another.
But still…Blades looked so happy; suddenly so at ease talking about something so private and personal. Dani found herself smiling too; she couldn't help being happy for him.
One thing still nagged at her, though. "…If you guys are so good together, why not tell me about it?" Her tone now was teasingly accusing, but there was a little bit of truth behind it. She'd thought they were beyond the 'keeping huge secrets from each other' stage.
Blades looked surprised for a moment, then sheepish, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. "We didn't tell any one, Dani."
"Why not?"
"It's just…" He tipped his head to the side, a thoughtful expression crossing his face, "It's easier than having to explain all the time. Even back home, no one would have understood. And if Heatwave and Boulder knew…" He shook his head a little, "You know we'd never hear the end of it." He already dreaded the day they did decide to tell their friends; there would undoubtedly be a lot of snappy comments from Heatwave and an overwhelming –though well-meaning- amount of joy from Boulder. Neither of them were ready to deal with the extreme reactions of their teammates, especially since neither of them considered their relationship overly serious.
Besides, having a big secret was kind of…exhilarating. For both of them.
"Don't worry." Dani winked, pressing a finger to her lips, "Your secret is safe with me." And she really didn't mind keeping it a secret, nor would she find it all that difficult. It wasn't like she talked about her own love-life (or lack thereof) with her brothers often. Why would she talk about Blades'?
The secret knowledge she now shared would certainly make life more interesting though, that was for sure.
They sat in companionable silence for a moment, just enjoying the view. The peaceful stillness was shattered, however, by a faint crashing sound and the distant sight of a tree falling.
'C'mon." She rose then, dusting off her pants, "We better get back to work."
Arriving home later, they were greeted by the rest of the team. It had been another quiet, easy day -the downed tree had fallen due to nothing more than natural causes and no other disasters had occurred- and every one was as jovial as the previous evening.
They were all mingling, talking and making plans for another evening of family time. Cody was trying to corral everybody into having some kind of good ol' fashioned family fun, but –for the moment- Dani was ignoring his excited chatter in favor of watching Blades and Chase together.
They had greeted each other as they always had; Blades with a wave and cheerful hello, Chase nodding at him in response. They must have perfected some form of non-verbal communication years ago, she thought, because there was nothing to give them away – Just one split second where Blades touched Chase's arm and a hint of a smile flickered across the other bot's face. Their gazes met, held, and then they went about their business, no one the wiser.
Grinning, Dani slung her arm around Cody's shoulders. "C'mon…Let's get every one together and go out for burgers. I'm still starving after last night's tiny, fancy meal. And I bet the bots would love some time to do their own thing, anyway."
Behind her, Blades grinned. As much as the idea of visiting the beach at night for a bonfire intrigued –and scared- him, he wouldn't mind a quiet evening at home.
Maybe having Dani in on the secret wouldn't be such a bad thing.