Woo chapter 3!
Starlit StoryTeller- Haha, me too! Oh...sweet little naïve Liz. Thanks for reviewing!
SapphireSpark- Thank you so much!
Autobot-Bre-Lightblast- Thank you!
jgoss- Haha, not yet but soon! Hmm...well, you'll just have to stick around to find out!
Da DJ Jazzy- Lol, yeah, Liz definitely won't know what's about to hit her! Thank you so much for the review!
Chapter 3: Fevers
It took some time, but I had finally convinced Mirage to bring me back to my house. Only halfway up the long rode to our house did I see the flashing of sirens, and the noise. About three firefighters were pulled up in our yard, spraying down the kitchen while two police cars lined the street. I noticed Zach's car on the side and cursed profusely under my breath.
I didn't realize how bad the damage was, since half the time I was running around and screaming. I also could only imagine the thoughts going through Zach's mind. The house was on fire and I was nowhere to be seen.
"What is going on?" Mirage's accented voice wondered through the dashboard.
"The aftermath." I muttered grimly.
Cautiously, Mirage had pulled up to the curb, and Zach's face visibly brightened when he saw the cherry red vehicle. Whatever conversation he was having with one of the officers was forgotten as he practically sprinted over to the driver's side. The seatbelt slid off of me, and I immediately climbed out to embrace my brother.
"Liz!" He shouted, half in surprise and in relief before engulfing me in a hug. His arms wrapped tightly around my waist, and just the scent of him had my pounding heart calmer. "I was so worried when I couldn't find you! What the hell happened?"
"Uh..." I chuckled nervously, "It's kind of a long story."
"Liz." He said in a warning tone.
I sighed, bitting the inside of my cheek as I tried to come up with a story. Would Zach believe me if I told him two giant, alien robots had an epic battle in our backyard? Probably not. I wouldn't even believe myself and I was there. I timidly glanced up at him again, and he had his hands crossed, waiting for my answer. I glanced at Mirage, who was silently sitting five feet away.
Should I tell him? Would he believe me?
Would anyone believe me?
"Okay, so here's what happened," I eventually blurted out, running a hand through my hair, "I was driving here back from the grocery store, and when I got here, the house was on fire. I freaked out and drove away to go find you. I looked around the city for like, thirty minutes until I gave up. I decided to come back around and-hey! What do ya know? You're here!"
I wanted to facepalm myself immediately after the rambled words left my mouth. Uggh, how could I be so stupid? I glanced at my brother, trying to interpret his reaction, but his expression was unreadable. It was hard to tell if he believed my story or not.
"It was really stupid of you to leave the house burning without calling 911." He finally said.
I sighed, loudly and dramatically, "I was freaking out! It was a moment of weakness!"
"Just be glad that your neighbors alerted us to the smell of smoke, or else your home probably wouldn't be standing." A firefighter said, walking up to us. He was dressed in that fluorescent yellow suit, and took off his hat to wipe sweat off of his forehead.
I felt my heart sink a little at his words, because it had just hit me how much of an idiot I was. If the house burned to the ground, we would've lost the only connection we still had to our childhood memories...and our parents. And it would've been all my fault.
I sighed, feeling a headache building up between my eyes. It throbbed painfully, and only grew stronger until it felt like heavier weight was pressing down on my skull. My vision swung, The tall, dark figure of the glowing lantern dividing into two messy blurs, before refocusing back into one.
I blinked for a moment, nearly tripping as I felt myself lose balance, but caught myself at the last second. "Woah."
Zach was having a conversation with the fireman, and both didn't seem to notice me almost fall on my face. I took a deep breath, but the intense heaviness only grew more rapidly. The soft orange of the gloomy lantern divided again, and it felt like someone had kicked my legs out from under me. This time, I couldn't catch myself, and fell to the ground. My butt hit the street with a hard thud, and an "oof" slipped past my lips as the street and I collided.
This time, Zach noticed.
"Liz, are you okay?!" He asked, coming over to my aid, and in seconds hauling me back up to my feet.
"Yeah," I mumbled, nodding my head, "I think it was a rush of blood."
"Something's not right," Zach said sternly, pressing the back of his hand against my forehead, "Liz, you're burning up!"
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the red Ferrari had moved. It was less than two feet now, and was slightly raised on it's axils, the front of the car tipped forward as if he was trying to peak through the crowd of firemen around me. And for some reason, that made me smile.
"Get her in the car!" One of the police officers shouted.
"We need to get her to the hospital!" Another one said.
The rest of the time was blurred between bright lights, loud sirens, and the sound of gravel crunching against the pavement as the cop car zoomed down the street. Everyone was so distracted by my rising fever, that they didn't notice the little red Ferrari start it's engine, and follow behind quietly.
~ Mirage's POV ~
The femme just had to go back to her housing units.
As if the fight with that Decepticon hasn't caused enough unwanted attention already! It was already bad enough that I had landed nine-hundred-and-seventy-two miles -according to the human's digital maps- away from the beacon, but the femme I had designated to be my guide through this strange world had fallen ill. it was as if Primus was finding my misfortune entertaining.
I sighed, a breeze of warm exhaust coming out from the grill as I discreetly followed the humans in the distracting vehicles. I had to follow behind at a large distance, which was a disadvantage, but I did not want them to appear suspicious. Half the way there, I wanted to give up and just find another human to guide me. I was sure she would keep my secret since she did not tell a member of her immediate family. But I was the one who proposed the deal, and for me to go against my promise, even if it was to a fretful, vociferous fleshy...is dishonorable.
The Towers may have fallen, but I was a noblemech at spark.
That was the main argument my processors were going with as the humans finally pulled into what they called a 'Hospital'. They had rode through an emergency drop off, which was off limits. Cursing lowly, I drove over into the nearest parking lot, and skillfully parked. I grimaced at the feeling of being compacted against so many non-sentient vehicles.
Humans and their small parking spaces.
Mentally, I shook my head disdainfully, and activated my holoform. For once, I was grateful that one of Wheeljack's inventions worked. I wasn't too picky about the holoform's appearance, but since I tended to favor the Italian culture the most, I decided to go with an Italian one. Once my holoform was formed, I exited my alte mode and strode into the hospital, brushing past the many humans gathered there and to the front where three human females sat. The one in the middle had been the first to notice my arrival, and gave a kind smile.
"Hello sir, how may I help you?"
"I would like to see... a girl." I said slowly. The English language was still a complicated one to get used to.
The femme raised what the humans called an 'eyebrow' in confusion, "I'm sorry, you're going to have to be more specific."
I huffed at her, "It is a girl! She has brown hair, yes?"
The femme's expression didn't change, "Do you have a name sir?"
I frowned, and wracked my processor for the femme's name, only to realize, I had never asked for her name. Slag it all.
"Sir?" The femme asked nervously.
I sighed, "Allow me." I walked around the large desk, startling the other two as I gently nudged to woman over. I smoothly hacked into the systems to see where the girl had been admitted, looking through the files before I had finally gotten the one I wanted. "Aha!"
Elizabeth Annemarie Hall. Age 19. Room 315.
I went off on my way.
~ Liz's POV ~
My eyes fluttered open, and I groaned softly. The sterile smell of the room had hit me first, before my eyes opened curiously to see where I was.
Big mistake.
I hissed as the brightness burned my eyes, and I heard a gasp from somewhere near me. It took twenty blinks before my pupils finally dilated and adjusted to the room. The gasp came from my brother, who was sitting in a chair pulled up to my bed.
His face lit up with happiness at the sight of me, "Oh good, you're awake!"
He leaned over to wrap his arms around me, in a bone-crushing hug. I moaned a little, but didn't complain because his warm, familiar smell comforted me. When he finally pulled away, he smiled down at me, "I'm so glad you're okay."
"What...happened to me?" I asked, looking around the room, "Why am I in a hospital?"
"You had a fever, Liz." He explained, "And it almost went over 103. The doctors managed to bring you back down though."
"Oh." I muttered, rubbing my sore skull, "How long am I in for?"
"Just for the rest of the night. They want to make sure you're okay and nothing else happens before they let you go." Zach explained, taking my left hand which was closest to him.
I frowned, "I'm sorry for giving you such a scare." Honestly, I'm the worst sister ever. First, let the house burn down and then almost die from a fever.
Bravo, Liz.
"Doesn't matter, I'm just glad that you're okay." Zach said, shaking his head. After all, we're all each other's have left.
I gave his hand a tight, comforting squeeze. We both smiled at each other, before I felt my stomach growl. I guess I was still hungry.
"What was that? A mountain lion?" Zach teased.
"Shut up." I groaned, smacking him in the shoulder. I sat up taller in my bed, "Could you get me something from the vending machines?"
Zach looked hesitant, "I don't know Liz, is it a good thing to eat after a life-threatening fever?"
My stomach growled again. "There's your answer."
He rolled his eyes in amusement, before promising he'd be back as he got up from his chair. I settled back down in my bed as the door shut behind him, closing my eyes. I tried to relax, listening to the tedious beat of the heart rate monitor that I was hooked up to, but nothing was working.
The door had opened, and I spoke without even opening my eyes, "Back already? I mean I know you love me and all, but I was giving you a chance to calm down and take a-"
"Signorina?"
I froze in the middle of my sentence. I knew that voice, and the accent was very familiar. But it couldn't be, because there was no way a giant-ass alien like him could fit through this hospital room without taking half of the hospital down in his wake.
I cracked open one eye, then both of them grew wide, as I stared at the tall, handsome man who was standing in the middle of my room. He was evenly tanned, with dark blue eyes, a rich, chocolate, brown curly hair, and thick eyebrows. He was wearing a dark red button down shirt, with only two of the buttons un-buttoned at the top, and dark jeans. He had on matching dark loafers, and soft stubble that dotted around his chin and just above his lips.
If it could, I think my jaw would have dropped to the ground. "Mirage?!"
He had crossed his strong arms over his chest, and with the faintest of smirks replied, "A deal is a deal, yes?"
Welp, that's all for now folks! Haha, I just really enjoy writing Mirage with his snooty little attitude! I find it adorable :) Anyway, thank you so much for reading and make sure to leave a review because that always keeps my muse in shape!
