Ratchet strolled into the medbay, the inability to recharge working on his already frayed nerves. The loss of Optimus set everyone on edge, even the humans.
He sighed. The medic never truly realized just how important Optimus was to everyone. Their selfless leader had become so much more to them throughout the years; he became family.
Another sigh. With a shake of his head, Ratchet decided to leave his thoughts to themselves and work on polishing his instruments for another couple of hours. It seemed to be the only thing he could do at this point that turned his attentions elsewhere.
As he went to grab his polishing cloth, he noticed that something had wrapped itself in it.
Observing more closely, the Autobot noticed auburn hair pouring out of one end. Silently, he unrolled the rag to find Optimus's charge, Melanie, curled up in a fetal position.
"Melanie? What are you doing?"
She looked up, silent. After a few seconds she glanced back down at the ground. In a tired, slightly shaky voice she asked: "He's coming back, right?"
Ratchet paused, shocked. This was the complete opposite of the normal, feisty Melanie.
Quickly, he regained his composure.
"I don't know..." He answered truthfully; what else could he say? They could all hope for the best but hope can only get you so far. Melanie nodded glumly and turned away from the medic.
Despite her efforts, the tears she fought against so desperately trickled down the sides of her flushed cheeks.
She felt pathetic, worthless, a burden. Somehow she believed herself to blame. Part of her wanted to curl back into a ball and stay there because the only one she could trust was gone and she didn't know if he was coming back.
Unbeknownst to her, her quiet sobs caught the attention of the silent bot still holding her. After a moment's hesitation, a crackle of electricity left a middle-aged man sitting next to the anguished girl. Slowly, the man draped his arms around her shoulders in an attempt to comfort her. A moment later, she raised her hands to rest on his forearms and she buried her face into the doctor's sleeve. She let herself weep, finally giving up the mask completely, even if for a few moments of weakness. Her shoulder leaned on his chest and the tension that had built up slowly bled away.
After what felt like hours, her tears dried up and her breathing regained normality. She pulled away from him and stared at Ratchet warily. A silent agreement passed between them to never speak of this moment again, for both of their sakes. She gave a small smile, which was returned by the other party.
"Thank you."
That was all that needed to be said.
As Ratchet settled into his berth, he allowed a half smile in reminiscence as recharge swept over his stressless frame.
A/N: SorryifRatchetwastooOOC... I'mstillworkingonthatskill ^^;. Hopeyouenjoyedit!
Oh! AndbeforeIforget.
Disclaimer: Idon'tanythingexceptMelanie. Unfortunately.
JxL