All This Time – A Transformer Fanfic
Chapter 1
"Elena! Wait up!" Katherine yelled as she ran down the hallway after her roommate. Her friend's heels seemed to click faster, like she was trying to get away. When she finally caught up to Elena, the blonde turned around, sighing like she was overburdened by a secret. Kat could tell she was keeping a secret because of the way she was acting. Her eyes kept flickering to the door she had her hand on and she was breathing faster than normal. The only reason she was able to tell when people were acting stranger than normal was because her other roommate, Solaraah, was a professional therapist.
"What, Kat? I'm kinda busy here," Elena said impatiently.
"I just wanted to make sure you were okay… You've been acting strange all morning, and you've got a call from Mearing."
"Ughh… Tell her I'm busy or something like that. I am not in a mood to deal with her right now."
"Alright, but why are you going into Optimus' office?" Kat cocked her head to the side slightly, glancing at the blonde's hand. She knew Elena was following her gaze, and looked up quickly.
"I'm not allowed to say anything yet Kat… Sorry," Elena said with finality, bidding the brunette goodbye. Kat said bye and turned around, more confused than she was before. She watched her friend go into the office and close the door. She heard a click, knowing the door had been locked. Whatever was going on in that office was extremely important. She wanted to know what, so she headed to where Mirage was, which just happened to be in Solaraah's office. "Perfect," she thought.
~3~
Elena closed the office door and locked it, still a bit annoyed she had been summoned while she was in the middle of a training session with Sideswipe. She fixed her long blonde locks, sighed and turned around to face Optimus Prime. He was standing at the window with his back to her, deep in thought—or so it seemed. She cleared her throat and he started. Had she actually shocked him? He turned around, meeting her gaze. "Hello Elena." He motioned for her to sit while he sat himself.
She sat down, crossing her legs. "What did you need Optimus?"
"Well, I wanted to thank you for taking the Autobots secret so well."
"No need—I'm already good friends with most of you, so it's not like anything really changed…" She trailed off, not wanting to reveal she was kind of scared of Optimus. She had seen firsthand what he could do in his bipedal and truck form. Besides, who wouldn't be terrified of sitting in a room with someone who could turn into a robot who was over 30 feet tall?
He noticed her heartbeat pick up and he cocked his head to the side, confused at her mismatched words and actions. "Is something wrong?" he asked slowly. Oh no… Optimus would be heartbroken if he found out his friend didn't see him as a she had before…
~3~
"Mirage, just tell me why you've been acting so violent lately, so we can all leave." Solaarah rolled her eyes and rubbed her temples in frustration. Mirage just sat there, unmoving, with a sullen expression. "MIRAGE, WHY THE FU-"She stopped in mid-sentence, being interrupted by Kat, who flung the door open.
"Can I talk to you guys? It's really important. Please, Solly?" The brunette's chocolate eyes widened and she frowned like a child.
Solaraah sighed, gesturing to the couch in the room. "Sure, Kat. Close the door and sit down." She glanced over at Mirage and noticed he had perked up a bit when Kat came in the room. "Well, well, someone's got a little crush…" she thought to herself with a smirk.
"Elena is keeping a really big secret and I need your help to figure out what's going on," Kat blurted out. She recounted what she had seen earlier, frowning a little less as she watched Solaraah's face.
"So she was acting all nervous and going into Optimus' office,hm?" The older woman chuckled to herself, a devilish grin growing on her face. "Why are you wo—"
Kat broke her off and said "CHILL THE DIRTY MIND SOLLY!" She looked down at her hands. "I would have heard something..." Solaraah snickered, causing Kat to blush and sputter a bit. "T-That's not what I meant! I-I wouldn't have listened in!" Her face was scarlet by now, and Solaraah doubled over with laughter at the expression on her friend's face. Even Mirage had to snort out a little chuckle at Kat.
"Well, you said it, not me," Solaraah said with a smile at Kat, tucking a pen behind her ear. At Kat's huff, she ruffled the younger woman's hair.
Kat swatted her away. "Solly, I'm serious. I don't like it that she's hiding something from me."
"Look, honey, everyone has their secrets," Solaraah said. "I'm sure she'll let us know. It may even be for work."
"I know, I know, but…she tells me everything, and for her to keep something from me…well…" Kat sighed, feeling a little defeated. "I just don't like it, you know?"
"Don't sweat it," Solaraah replied.
~ 3 ~
Elena looked up into Optimus' bright blue eyes and felt she would drop all of her secrets right then, even if they had nothing to do with the situation. This was really getting bad…Getting sucked into his eyes was dangerous. She was almost relieved when Bumblebee knocked on the door. She sighed.
Optimus cast one last distraught gaze in her direction, before getting up and unlocking the door for Bee. "Optimus, Solaraah says it's your session time."
"Oh joy… Elena, you can go. We'll discuss this later, after work." Optimus grumbled something about "Smart-ass Solaraah", before he left. Elena smiled as Bee started laughing hard. She stood up, after she was certain both bots were far away, and left the office only to head back to the shooting range, hoping a few rounds with Ironhide would clear her head.
~ 3 ~
Elena hopped out of the big GMC truck and slapped the hood. "Thanks 'Hide. Always feels good to be able to talk to someone who doesn't judge."
The truck revved its engine as if to say "Any time" and drove off, leaving Elena standing there. God, she didn't want to go inside… Finally she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, and marched herself up the stairs to the front door of the loft. Right before she got her keys in the lock the door flew open and Kat pulled her in slamming the door behind them.
"Okay, spill. Now."
"Wh—"
Elena didn't have a chance to get the words out before being bombarded by question upon question. "Hold up!" She said, slapping a hand over Kat's currently open mouth. "Now, what is this all about?"
"Kat," Solaraah said from the living room. "Remember what we talked about?"
"Well, yeah, but Solly…this is killing meeeee," Kat whined behind Elena's hand. She pulled said hand off her mouth, tossing a glance toward Solaraah.
The sound of a can popping open filled the room and Elena rolled her eyes, shaking Kat off and making her way toward Solaraah. "Whatcha got there?"
"Beer," Solaraah said back simply, taking a huge gulp. "After a long day's work with dicks and douches."
Elena giggled. "I think I'm gonna take that suggestion and up it up one. Pina Colada time!"
She ran for the kitchen, grabbing the ingredients along the way and made 3 drinks, 1 for each of the girls. By the time she finished, there were only 2 drinks left and she was already a bit tipsy. She walked in and plopped down, handing the other drinks off, hoping it would shut them up. Her hopes were promptly crushed by a pleading Kat, who was standing in front of her, begging like a puppy for a treat. Elena sighed. "Fine, I'll tell you what I can, if that makes you feel any better."
"It would," Kat said, perking up immediately as she downed half of her drink.
Solaraah nodded her agreement, holding a drink in each hand and looking from one to the other. "Damn it, Ellie, I don't know which one I want more."
"Pina Colada," the other two said in unison. "Beer's gross."
"So's your face," muttered Solaraah under her breath as she chugged the rest of her beer. She shivered, making a face. "Okay, so what were you gonna tell us?"
"Oh…right. Um," Elena looked at the droplets that were left in her glass, swirling them around. "Well, Optimus and I… you know what, I don't even know."
Kat's mouth dropped open. "You're lying!"
"Ellie," Solaraah said, looking at the younger woman out of the corner of her eye. "Don't make me go all shrink-y on you…"
"Well, I really don't know," Elena said quietly. "I mean… it's really complicated, you know? Between Optimus and me."
When it was clear that Elena wasn't going to say anymore, Solaraah turned toward her, pushing her glasses up on her nose with her middle finger. "So I'm guessing that you and he finally did the dirty and ya'll are avoiding the subject?"
Elena looked at her friend in horror, her face flaming in a blush. "Oh, God, no! What kind of girl do you think I am?"
"Well, considering you do get all funny and nervous around him, and you're always locking yourself in his office together…It's only natural that I would assume stuff like that," Solaraah replied with a wave of her hand. "I mean, really…"
Elena shook her head. "No, it's nothing like that," she said. She lowered her voice. "Though I'm sure it would be easier that way…"
"What do you mean?" Kat asked, having heard her friend.
"I'm not even sure he thinks of me that way is all… He acts like I'm just a very valued advisor and good friend," Elena sighed, setting the empty glass down. "Look, if you guys are gonna meddle, just go ahead and do it. But don't involve me in the planning." She got up and walked to the bathroom, secretly hoping her 2 friends would meddle—but in a good way. "I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. See you all in the morning." She closed the bathroom door leaving Solaarah and Kat to their scheming. They hoped to get the two together, and Solaarah had a trick up her sleeve that would also get Kat and Mirage together.
A few moments later, a shrill ringing pierced the air and Solaarah picked up her Droid to see who was calling her after hours. Looking at the number, she fumed. "Why the fuck is that annoying, sarcastic son of a bitch calling at midnight!" She closed her eyes, sighing, and answered the phone, hoping whatever he had to say was short. "What? This had better be important."
"You think I'd call you just to chat?" He responded just as coolly as she'd answered.
"Well, knowing you, you'd call me just to piss me off," she snapped back. "So, if you wouldn't mind making this quick, I'd really like to enjoy my night off."
Ratchet sighed on the other end. "I need you to come in earlier than normal tomorrow. I need your help with Optimus, he's been acting extremely odd lately and as much as I hate to admit it, I need your theraputical help."
Solaraah raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You do, do you?" She chuckled slightly, rolling her eyes. "Fine. I had stuff I need to catch up on anyways." She waved her hand, knowing he couldn't see her movements (but, honestly, she really couldn't talk without some kind of hand movement). "But, I'll only agree to come in if you bring in Mirage. We never finished our session." Solaraah hung up after Ratchet's grunted agreement, turning to Kat. "Look, come to the office with me tomorrow, okay? I need your help with paperwork shit, and you're good at that, right?"
"Y-yeah…" the brunette cocked her head to the side. "But I don't know why you'd need me for therapy paperwork…"
"It has nothing to do with the type—you're a secretary, and it's your job to be organized, right? I just need some help organizing the crap in my office. Besides, if Ratchet saw it, it'd give him something else to bitch about, and that's the last thing I need right now," Solaraah said with an exaggerated sigh as she took a sip of her alcohol. "I mean…Really."
"Um, Solaraah…" Kat began to say.
"Mmm?"
"Why don't you and Ratchet get along?" Elena asked for her friend.
"Same reason I don't get along with anyone else," the older woman replied. She smiled. "I just hate everyone exactly the same way." She paused for a moment. "Except for you guys, I suppose."
"Funny thing for a therapist to say," Kat said thoughtfully.
"Yeah, I get that a lot," Solaraah said. "But hey, believe it or not, sometimes I do enjoy what I do. Even if it is listening to people cry about their problems."
Kat laughed and yawned so Solaraah shooed her off with a, "Go to bed, we have a plan to execute in the morning." Kat closed her bedroom door and fell asleep without bothering to get under the covers. Solaarah got on the internet checking her email but in the middle of typing up a report, her eyelids drooped and her head hit the keyboard and she was out like a light.
~ 3 ~
Elena woke up at 8 am to find her friends already gone, but that was normal considering she was a heavy sleeper and didn't care for alarms. She turned the music up loud and danced all around the house, getting ready, and didn't stop until her phone rang. "Why is Optimus calling me?" she wondered. Shrugging, she answered the phone with a "Yeah?"
"You were supposed to be here and hour ago."
"A-an hour?" Elena squeaked, eyes widening. "You mean I'm late?"
She heard Optimus' soft chuckle on the other end of the line. "Yes. Solaarah isn't pleased with you at all, you know."
"No, I imagine she isn't happy with me…" she trailed off. "Well, if she needed me she should have called!"
"She says she was here at 6 this morning, so there's no way she could have been there to wake you. She also says that since you're an adult, you should be able to get up on time," he said. "But to avoid any kind of conflict, just come on up here and we'll get started."
"We?"
"Yes," he replied "It's almost like she's trying group therapy today. She even got Ratchet to join."
Elena detected the amusement in the Autobot's last statement and giggled to herself. "That certainly is a surprise." She sighed then, adding "Well, I'll be there shortly."
"Okay," he said. "Goodbye."
"Mm," She said, hanging up before beginning her freak-out. "Oh, my God. She so did not tell me I was supposed to be there at 7…"
~ 3 ~
"Well, look who finally decided to join us," Solaraah said as Elena walked through the door.
"Sorry, Sorry," Elena said with a deep blush, her gaze on the floor.
"About time you showed up," Ratchet muttered sullenly. "We've been stuck with her bitching for the last hour and a half. I've got things to do. So can we make this quick?"
Elena sat down on the couch next to Optimus her face scarlet. He said nothing, glancing at her in amusement before looking up at Solaraah. "Now that she's here, shall we begin?"
"I'd be more than happy to," the older woman said, flipping her light violet hair over her shoulder. She adjusted her glasses looking Optimus in the eye. Her persona changed into that of a professional who knew exactly what to do.
"So," Elena thought "This is what her patients see. Damn, she's scary." She noticed Kat sitting next to Ratchet, and Mirage seated across from her in a chair.
Solaraah leaned forward in her chair a tad, putting the tip of her pen on a notebook. "Now, Optimus, I know you're a busy man, and have a lot on your shoulders, correct?" At his nod, she continued. "That being said, there are a few of us in this room who have confided in me that your behavior has been a little… strange, lately. May I ask what is causing you to stress more than usual, or would you rather not say in front of everyone?"
Optimus stole a glance at the blushing Elena, the corners of his mouth tipped down in sort of a thoughtful frown. "There's not anything wrong, Solaraah."
"Sure, that's what everybody says," Solaraah mumbled under her breath. "Now, tell us what's going on Optimus."
"Nothing," He said, infuriating Solaraah—she hated when someone answered a question like that. Solaraah put her head in her hands, sighing, and said sarcastically "Alright then… Elena, would you like to enlighten us?"
"Well, um…" Elena looked at her hands, feeling a bit anxious with everyone looking at her.
"God damn, you're boring," Ratchet interrupted, knocking his chair over as he got up. His hands were shaking in his fury and his golden gaze met Solaraah's icy blue one. "If you really wanted to be a successful therapist, do like you're supposed to and talk to people one on one. You're not getting anywhere with what you're doing now." He flung the door open, his lab coat flowing out behind him. "I've got patients to see to."
Solaraah glared at him, her knuckles turning white as she gripped her pen harder. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself before she literally ripped his head from his shoulders. "Okay, Ratchet, would you care to say something? After all, this is a therapy group and we would love to hear everyone's feelings."
He didn't miss the venom in her words and cracked a wry grin at her. "Thanks, but no thanks. I'd rather get back to my job, if you don't mind."
"You don't have to be an ass, you know," Solaraah said.
Elena glanced at Optimus. The tension in the air was thick enough to cut, and she could swear she actually saw sparks in the air. It was kind of scary to see her friends this way, but she didn't want to throw herself into a battlefield by saying something.
"Ratchet, Solaraah…That's quite enough. Ratchet, you may leave. There's no need for fighting right now." Optimus finally spoke, his deep voice soft but held all the authority he needed. No one defied Optimus, whether they wanted to or not. It was too dangerous to question him, and both adults knew not to say anything at all.
Elena turned back to Solaraah and started to say something, but the door slammed and footsteps stomped down the hallway, causing her to break out into laughter, receiving a glare from Solaraah. "Sorry…" she said, kind of scared that Solaraah might hurt her.
Optimus noticed this and scooted a bit closer to Elena offering what bit of comfort he could without being caught by Solaraah. Solaraah calmed down and told Kat, "You and Mirage may leave now.", then turned to Optimus and Elena and waited for Kat and Mirage to get far enough away from her office. "Cut the crap Optimus, you like Elena and you're too scared to tell her."
Optimus looked at Solaraah with a shocked expression on his face, and he stuttered out "W-what are you talking about Solaraah?"
Solaraah smiled and said ,"See you never stutter, that's how I know you do like Elena."
Elena blushed violently and ducked her head in embarrassment but she kept watching Optimus' reactions out of the corner of her eye.
"I- I don't understand these emotions," Optimus said, shaking his head. His voice was softer, to where only Elena could hear him. Human emotions confused him.
Solaraah yelled in victory and pushed Elena up against Optimus and clapped her hands, squealing the whole time. Elena broke the tension by saying "Have you been drinking in the morning again, Solly?" Optimus laughed and looked at Elena causing her to drop her eyes to the floor once again.
Optimus paused and said, "May we go now? We have, um… work to do." Solaraah grinned devilishly and winked at Elena, pushing them out the office door. Elena listened to the door close and started to walk off in the opposite direction but Optimus grabbed her arm, forcing her to turn and look up into his eyes. "Those bright blue eyes… those thick blue, black straight locks… Holy shit! Why am I thinking about this?"
It was hard not to get sucked into those eyes… She shook her head. Now wasn't the time or place for such thoughts, and she cleared her throat. "Um, Optimus…"
"Hmm?"
"You… you do like me don't you?" Elena asked shyly, looking at him nervously.
"Of course. You're a valuable friend and excellent partner," he answered sincerely.
"No, I mean…" She trailed off. Did she really want to know the answer? She looked back down not wanting to reveal her feelings if he didn't feel the same way. Elena felt Optimus start to walk towards his office, pulling her with him. "Uh oh… where was this going?" When they got to Optimus office he pulled her in and closed and locked the door behind them. He sat down in his chair and she sat too, assuming he wanted her seated for this.
Elena nervously asked "Sooo… How do you really feel about me, Optimus?"
He looked up at her and she could tell he was choosing his words carefully, as if he was worried one wrong word would end everything.
Elena was sitting in the chair in Optimus' room waiting for him to speak, and eventually he did. But it wasn't a comprehendible sentence. She stared at him in confusion. "Why are you mumbling Optimus?" she asked, tilting her head to the side a bit. He looked up at her and locked gazes with her, as if willing her to understand. But she couldn't, she was more confused than ever. "Just say what you're going to say Optimus…" she whispered loud enough for him to hear.
He looked at her, an unreadable look in his eyes. It worried her a little bit and she put a hand on his cheek, smiling as she felt the stubble on his chin from skipping a night's shave. "Hey, it's okay. You can tell me."
He shook his head and leaned closer to her, close enough to where she felt his soft breath on her lips. "Optimus…"
He closed the gap, his lips touching hers with a gentleness that she didn't expect. It was like he was afraid… He pulled back sooner than she would have like, and looked her in the eye. "I… just wanted to kiss you..."
Elena smiled and he pulled her closer onto his lap and she returned his previous kiss, shocking him. He pulled back and said "So you know how I feel now…"
She nodded and he went to kiss her again but someone knocked on the door. Optimus growled when Elena got up to answer the door, making her giggle as she unlocked the door and saw it was Solaraah. She looked happy with herself, extremely odd…
"What do you want Solaraah?" Elena asked impatiently.
"You sound impatient… and Optimus looks pissed off… something was happening in there wasn't it?" Solaraah started getting excited.
Elena sighed and pushed her friend back out and said "Bye, Solaraah." with finality. She closed the door and locked it. Not wanting to turn around afraid everything that had happened would be just a dream…
"You know, Elena, I did have something kind of important to tell you—"
"It can wait till I get home," Elena interrupted, a little annoyed with her roommate.
"Oh you little horndogs you…" Elena could almost see the catlike grin on Solaraah's face through the door. "But I'll let you two get to doing whatever it is that you're up to. Will I see you at home, Ellie?"
"Don't be stupid, of course you will," Elena snapped back. She heard Solaraah's footsteps fading and dared taking a peek back at Optimus.
He was sitting there waiting for her to come back to him. She could tell he was getting really impatient. She smiled and walked slowly over to his desk and started picking up random things "Sooo Optimus, what do you want right now?"
He growled at her as if to say don't play with me… Well she was going to mess with him all she wanted, she wasn't the give it all up at once on command type. She was going to drag this out till he caves…
She walked slowly over to the window behind him and stood there pretending to stare at the stars. She heard him growl once more; she knew he would snap soon.
She turned, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "Why do you keep growling?"
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if inhaling her scent, "Now that you're mine… I'm very… overprotective and I don't like being interrupted in the middle of something… like earlier, speaking of earlier…" He pulled her back into his lap and kissed her again, this time less gentle than before.
She giggled, running her fingers through his ebony hair. "I like when you call me yours…"
One of his hands tangled in her hair, the other one around her waist, pulling her closer. Chills ran up and down her spine. Never would she have thought that she would be doing… this… with Optimus Prime.
He kissed her on the lips then moved to her neck, she closed her eyes not wanting this to end, but unfortunately they were still in his office. They would have to take this home, and not to hers, because her friends where there… Where would Optimus take her? She thought to herself, leaning into him, letting him take control of the situation. He seemed to purr when she did this, as if thanking her and accepting her choice. And he did take control.