This is a makeup present for not updating in a while, sorry i just started school and i don't get out till 5pm and i don't get home till around 6pm (school starts at like 10:30am). Currently working on back story of the characters (well my friend is) and chapter 5. :)
Chapter 4
Ratchet was in an exceptionally bad mood. He'd had enough of her. Just..enough. He felt like he was beginning to overheat, and he threw down the wrench he was working with in frustration. He'd chosen to keep in his true form now, after the episode he'd had with Solaraah earlier in the day. It helped calm him, and he could repair his fellow Autobots easier this way. He made as much of a sigh as the metal body allowed, growling as he got up to retrieve the wrench.
She was so stupid. There was nothing else to add—the woman was an idiot. She wasn't a superhero, she wasn't anyone special. She was a normal human woman, with no superhuman strength to keep off 4 men and who knows who else off her. She couldn't protect herself and Kat at the same time and expect to come out unscathed. Most of all…He hated being worried about her. She was right, why should he care?
But he did, and that was it. He gave a damn about the cocky little bitch, and that irritated the piss out of him. He didn't need someone else to worry about and fix when she got broken. Autobots were easy to fix. Humans were not. Human women were a whole other story altogether.
Ratchet threw the wrench again, barely missing Elena as she walked in the room. She ducked. "Ehh! Ratchet, calm down!" She yelled, kicking his metal foot.
"Sorry," he said gruffly. "Pissed off."
"What happened?" Elena asked, looking up at him.
"Tch," he scoffed as he looked at her, his optics narrowing involuntarily. "Your stupid friend is trying to get herself hurt."
"Oh no, did she run her mouth again?" Elena shook her head. "She really needs to watch that."
"Damn right she does."
"Well, you do too, you pile of scrap metal," She scoffed at him in irritation. "If you don't start being nicer to people, no one will like you…Not even me." The corners of her mouth lifted ever so slightly.
"Yeah, right," Ratchet said with a smirk. "You would never not like me." He laughed as he picked her up and set her on his shoulder. "You like everybody."
"Well…I try."
She hugged his giant face and kissed his metal cheek in response to his gruff, "Hmph…Wish I could be like that."
"Well, maybe I could teach you…" She trailed off.
He shrugged. "Eh. Wouldn't feel right not being like I am."
She laughed and clapped her hands. "Well, I think it would be nice for you to be kind for a change…"
Optimus walked into the room, in his robot form, and said, "Who would be nice?"
"Oh hi!" Elena called from Ratchet's shoulder. "I was just telling him to be nice for a change."
"To be honest, I don't think that others around here would welcome that change. They've become so accustomed to him being grumpy, they wouldn't know what to do," Optimus smiled.
"True," Elena mused. "And you definitely wouldn't be the man Solly fell in love with. Y'know, when she does. We all know it's coming."
Ratchet growled out, "For Primus' sake!", and Elena started to slip off his shoulder.
Optimus reached out, easily catching her and placing her on his shoulder. "Be careful, Ratchet."
"Elena, as you have heard us say, there is nothing between us. Nothing. Understand?"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she said with a wave of her hand. "I know." She giggled. "I'm just still not convinced."
Optimus cradled Elena in his hand and started to walk out. "Come on, Elena, let's leave the crotchety old man alone…"
"Hey, you're older than me!" Ratchet called out.
"Yes, but I know to have fun," Optimus said with a smile.
Ratchet snorted. "I do too, Prime. Just not when I'm constantly fixing you or dealing with Solaraah."
Elena widened her eyes. "Optimus, have you been injured recently?"
"No, what I meant was you, as in the Autobots in general. Someone's always getting dinged or dented," Ratchet said, shaking his head. Elena picked up something metal off a table and chunked it at Ratchet's metal ass, hoping it hurt. "What was that for?"
"That's what you get for worrying me!"
Ratchet picked up the metal ball and tossed it to Optimus, laughing when he nearly toppled over. "Now who's getting old?"
Optimus grinned. "Certainly not me…"
"Doesn't look that way to me."
Optimus turned to Elena. "Am I old?"
"Hell no," She exclaimed. Winking, she added, "He's wonderful in the sack!"
Ratchet shook his head. "I guess I'll take your word for it."
"Sure as hell better believe it." Elena smirked and stepped off Optimus' giant hand and onto one of Ratchet's metal work benches. She grabbed a wrench, one he hadn't thrown yet, and chunked it at the unsuspecting medic.
"Would you stop that?" He said, a little more than annoyed at her. "I've got enough to worry about other than you chunking wrenches at me."
"Oh, Really? Cuz that is exactly how everybody around here feels!" she screamed at up at him. "Everybody here has too much to deal with. You being an asshole doesn't make matters better!" she huffed and crossed her arms.
"Elena, calm down," Optimus said softly.
"No! I will not calm down! Him and Solaraah both need to get over themselves! URGHHHHHHHH!" she clenched her fists and shook them at Ratchet "GET OVER YOUR FUCKING SELF!" she stomped her foot and glared up at him, pure fury in her eyes.
"No, you get over yourself. You're the one meddling, thinking you're helping. You didn't listen, thinking that you were right, and no one else had any say in the matter. Y'know, like Solaraah and myself. We didn't ask to be brought together. We just asked to leave each other alone. So, no, I won't until you do," The medic said coolly, turning his optics onto Optimus. "And don't reprimand me for this, because you know as well as I do that I'm telling the truth."
Elena was ready to kill Ratchet and Optimus could tell "Listen both of you, stop fighting, take a break from each other… Maybe that will calm you both down."
"STAY OUT OF THIS!" both Elena and Ratchet yelled at Optimus.
Optimus sighed and turned to leave, his shoulders slumping.
"Oh Optimus… I didn't mean to yell! Come back! Please!" Elena yelled, running after him.
Optimus didn't stop walking. Maybe ignoring both of them would get them to shut up about all of this. "You get your situation straightened out, and then come talk to me. Until then, I'm not speaking to either of you." He threw the words over his shoulder, heavy footsteps never ceasing. Elena looked after him with tear-filled eyes.
"Optimus…"
She turned back to Ratchet, tears falling down her face, "Ratchet… I'm sorry, I can't do anything right!" she turned around and ran away.
He sighed, his chest feeling heavy. He knew he shouldn't have fought with Elena, for risk of hurting Optimus, but she didn't understand. She didn't know just what she had done to the two of them, Solaraah and himself. If she'd never set them up, he wouldn't feel like this. He wouldn't be so confused about what he felt—felt? Was he getting soft?—for the little woman, and definitely wouldn't be thinking about her so damn much.
True, it was mainly physical—but he was actually starting to care for her. He knew he should go after Optimus, and send Ironhide after Elena.
Ratchet got up and drove after Optimus, calling Ironhide at the same time.
"Wait, what happened?" Ironhide yelled.
"No time! I'm trying to catch Optimus."
"But-!" Ironhide protested.
"Just go get Elena. If you don't find her, she may do something drastic."
Ironhide gave Ratchet a strange look before nodding. "Okay."
Ratchet took off, when he spotted Optimus he transformed and ran after him "Optimus wait! Hold a second, let me talk!"
"Have you straightened things out with Elena?" The older man asked, not bothering to turn and face Ratchet.
"I…yeah. She ran off," Ratchet said quickly. "Ironhide's going after her."
Optimus turned to him, "You shouldn't have yelled at her like that, and she shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I hate seeing any of you hurt. Especially Elena."
"I know. We both should have handled it differently," Ratchet said. "I do feel bad about that. I think she sees it the way Solaraah and I do now."
"You do realize it was only for your happiness," Optimus said, looking back over his shoulder.
"I know… I shouldn't have acted like I did." Ratchet hung his head in shame.
Optimus turned around and said "Where's Elena? I'm going to… talk to her."
"I don't know. If you find Ironhide, she won't be too far behind," Ratchet said.
Optimus nodded. "I'm going to find them. I suggest you cool down a little bit. Stress isn't good on you—you, as a medic, should know that."
Ratchet nodded. "Yessir."
Optimus turned around and transformed, driving off into the night. He was a few miles away from the base when he heard crying, he would know that crying anywhere. And Ironhide was parked a few feet away from the trees.
"Ironhide? Where is she?"
"She's in the woods, a few feet away from the river. She won't let me near her," Ironhide answered gruffly. He made a scoffing sound. "Whatever the hell Ratchet did to her really seemed to mess her up."
"They just had a heated argument," Optimus said to his friend. "I've already spoken to Ratchet—there's no need to go confront him."
Ironhide chuckled. "You know me too well, my friend."
"Indeed, you may leave now."
"See you later." Ironhide started his engine and drove off quickly.
Optimus changed into his human form and walked into the woods "Elena, honey… where are you?"
"Optimus?" Her voice was raw. "Ratchet hates me, doesn't he?"
"Not at all," He said gently, going to her. He pulled her close, resting his chin atop her head. "He actually feels bad. But please, to prevent future arguments, don't say anything about he and Solaraah. It's a sensitive subject for him, and it's always going to end that way."
"Okay," she said. "I won't. I don't like the idea of him being mad at me."
"I don't either." He hugged her tight and kissed her forehead.
She sniffled and wrapped her arms around him.
"Come on, let's go home."
"Wait, can we get my stuff from my old place?" She asked.
"Already took care of it."
Elena nodded and snuggled up to Optimus. "Thank you."
~ 3 ~
Solaraah sighed as she looked at the paperwork that had piled on her desk. She had only been off one day and her desk was nearly covered. It was a little bit overwhelming, even though she was used to paperwork piling up miles high and all over the already cramped office.
Files from former patients had been haphazardly thrown, papers sliding out of them. Lucky for her, they were paperclipped together—she would have had a problem otherwise. She heard a knock at the door. Throwing a quick "Come on in," at the door, she went to sorting and piling the thick folders on the floor. Kat walked in, shutting the door behind her. She leaned against it, locking it. "Hey, I'm gonna help you."
"It's okay, Kat, I got it," Solaraah said, waving a hand in the air at the brunette. She was chewing on a pen, looking deep in thought. "You don't have to help me go through this crap."
"No, I want to," Kat said. "I actually…I actually wanted to talk to you."
"What about, sweetheart? You don't look so well," Solaraah said with a slight frown, taking the pen out of her mouth and sticking it behind the rubber band in her hair.
"Um…I'm kinda afraid to," Kat said. "I mean…I want to know a few things, about how you really feel about some things…when you don't have your wall up. You say things you don't mean, Solly, and for once, I wanna talk to the real you. The human you."
"What do you mean?" The older woman asked, cocking her head to the side. "I am human…and you do talk to the real me. I'm real around both you and Elena."
Kat shook her head. "I know I don't have any right to ask your secrets, but I promise you, I swear on my life, that I will not tell a soul outside this room." She sighed, looking at her hands as she walked to sit on the other side of Solaraah's desk. She looked into her friend's ice blue eyes nervously, wringing her hands. "You don't act human, Solly. You're always so tough, always so strong for both Elena and I. You don't ever let anything rattle you, you never cry at all, you never write anything down so you don't have to bottle it up. You just let it bottle up and you explode, and you fight. I personally don't think that's the real you, Solly. I don't."
"I…I'm as real as I can be, Kat," Solaraah said softly, her tone catching Kat off guard. "I have to be strong. I let too much bother me. I can't just sit there and let myself dwell on it, and especially around you and Elena." She looked down. "It's hard to trust people. I have trust issues—you of all people should know that. That's why I put my shell up around everyone. That's why I fight. Because, honestly…I don't want to care."
"But you do," Kat said. "You can't be strong all the time. You need to start being a little more trusting of people. And, please don't hate me for saying this, but I'm being honest with you. I don't think you hate Ratchet as much as you say you do."
Solaraah chuckled wryly. "I don't know what I feel about him anymore." After a long moment of silence, she looked at Kat. "You want to know what I feel, right?"
Kat braced herself for the inevitable argument. When nothing was said a moment later, Kat relaxed, confused as to why Solaraah wasn't yelling like she normally did. Well…maybe this is the real her that I'm seeing now… "Yes…"
Solaraah leaned back in her chair, tipping her head back on the headrest to look at the ceiling. "To be honest, I don't hate him. I'm starting to…I dunno, care, I guess? I just don't want to get hurt, you know? I've been hurt and cheated by one too many bastards out there and I don't want him to be the next one that does the same thing to me." She closed her eyes. "I don't know why I had sex with him. I really don't." At that, she grinned slightly. "I'm about to spill my guts, so stop me if you don't want to hear this."
Kat laughed. "I'm happy you're actually talking to me, Solly, this means the world to me."
"Yeah, don't get used to it," Solaraah teased. "I feel like a patient." She chuckled before continuing. "Anyways…I don't know what it was that night. Probably that damn suit. I have a weakness for good looking men in suits. Every guy I've ever been with was dressed up…" She shook her head. "I sound like a whore."
"I don't think so."
"Thanks," She said softly. "Kat, you know how you get into something and your head tells you to stop but you just…you can, but you don't want to? That's the way I felt that night. He just felt too good—too right, if that's not cliché—for me to tell him to stop. When he did, I acted like I didn't want him at all, but I'll be damned if I wasn't willing when he took me. And the next morning, I didn't want to fight. Can you believe it? No fights." She laughed. "Kat, I was happy when I was with him that night and the next day. I felt good, and I wanted to keep pretending everything was okay, and I didn't have to worry. I actually wished we could stay like that forever. I didn't want to believe that after just one night my whole outlook on him could change, but it did, damn it. I've always secretly hated the fighting, but I just… I don't want to see him for fear he'll be pissed and will fight me. We'll hate each other."
"I think you love him."
"No, not love, not yet," Solaraah said, shaking her head. "I care, and that's as far as I'm going to go with that.
Kat sighed, standing up, she said "I really do believe you love him Solly… You just haven't realized it yet." The brunette kept on organizing things in silence.
"Well…" Solaraah said, breaking the silence after what seemed like hours of rustling papers around. "I think I'll see if we can go to dinner again. He said there was something he needed to tell me."
"Oh?" Kat said, looking at the therapist.
"Yeah, I flipped out when he told me. But…I guess I can listen to him."
"I'd go for it. I'd really like seeing you both together," Kat said. "And I know Elena would too."
"I know." Solaraah looked down a moment. "I…actually feel like shit for some of the things I said to her. I'm sure this will make her happy though. You know, when I tell her."
"It will. She'll be thrilled," Kat said with the shadow of a smile on her face. So she does have feelings after all…It's nice to see the Solaraah who's not hiding behind a wall. She's pleasant to talk to. "Hey, I think Ratchet is in his office now, if you'd like to speak with him."
Solaraah shook her head. "I don't like mixing business with personal, as hard as that may be to believe."
"I know, but this is important…To all of us. So go ahead," Kat said. "I can take care of this messiness, and if you want, I can try to reschedule a couple appointments. I know you usually take care of that, but I think that you deserve a little more of a break, you know?"
"Thank you Kat…" Solaraah said as she walked out the door, heading for Ratchet's office.
She walked through the Medical Bay and walked straight to his office door, she knocked receiving a "Who is it?" in a guilty tone. He had been doing something in there…
"It's me," She said, opening the door to see him hunched over a broken clock. He'd taken the whole thing apart, and it appeared he was embarrassed by getting caught doing something other than doctor work.
"Oh. What do you want?" He asked, glaring at her from behind black framed glasses.
"I, ah…" She looked down a little nervously before continuing. "I wanted to ask you to dinner."
He gave her a surprised look before snorting. "You didn't want to go out with me when I asked you. What made you change your mind?"
"I was thinking. Maybe I should…loosen up a little around you," she said. She'd never felt this unsure of herself in front of him, and she didn't like it.
He raised an eyebrow at her, "Alright then, how about tonight at 7?"
"That's fine with me."
"Just don't wear a dress like you did last time." He smirked at her setting the screwdriver down and walking over to her.
"What are you doing?" Solaraah asked nervously.
He touched her face gently, more gently than she thought he was capable of. She held her breath, wondering what he had up his sleeves. "I…Damn it," he whispered before kissing her.
It took her a second to respond, torn between her usual reaction of pushing him away or just throwing all caution to the wind and letting herself go. She decided to follow his lead, and soon she was bent back over his desk, the oil he was using for the clock all over the back of her white lab coat.
Now, in this moment, she was his, and he didn't give a damn if she liked it or not. He tangled his fingers in her thick hair, crushing her body with his on the desk. He kissed her fiercely, the kiss getting rougher the longer their lips stayed connected.
She gripped the back of his coat pulling him tighter against her, as if that was possible she thought, if they were any closer they would be one person. And she knew just how to make that happen…
He pulled back abruptly, straightening his glasses and brushing his clothes off. "I'll come get you at 7 tonight." He refused to look at her and she began to get irritated.
"What was that all about?"
"I'm not having sex with you in my office. Too many wandering eyes," he said. She began to sputter and he held up a hand. "But if you behave at dinner tonight, I may give you what you want."
As she glared at him, she noticed the amusement in his eyes. Wait…so he was teasing her? She smirked inwardly. Well…two could play at that game. She nodded. "Okay." She got up off his desk, straightening her clothes and hair, and walked toward the door. "But…I don't ever behave." Her hand lingered on the doorknob as she awaited his response.
He didn't disappoint her. "I may have to punish you."
"Mm," she said on her way out, swinging her hips just enough for him to notice. She knew he did by the way he slammed the door behind her.
Elena was heading straight for Ratchet's office when she saw Solly walk out, swinging her hips. She gasped and ran towards her friend "OH MY GOD!" she yelled, her heels clicking faster as she neared the office and her friend. She practically tackled Solaraah in a hug, giggling. "Were you doing what I think you were doing?"
"What?" Solaraah asked as she tried to loosen Elena's grip. "Okay, Elena, I can't breathe, you're gonna have to ease up on the grip there."
"You were being all sexy for Ratchet, weren't you? I saw the way you were swinging your hips," the blonde said with a catlike grin. "Oh, I can't tell you how happy that makes me."
"Aha, we're actually going on a date tonight…" Solaraah said quickly, hoping her friend wouldn't catch it.
Elena did happen to catch it, and whooped loudly in Solaraah's ear. "I'm so happy! You like him now?"
"Not really, but I'm trying to make things easier."
Elena saw Optimus hiding around the corner and ran and grabbed his jacket and pulled him over, she kept saying "Told ya so!" over and over again.
Solaraah shook her head at her friend, laughing slightly. She was a silly girl…
~ 3 ~
After hours and hours of deliberating on what to wear, Solaraah was finally ready. She had her long hair down to cascade around her waist, a small clip holding her bangs back. She had put on makeup to give her face a little color, and wore a short burgundy dress with heels to match. She knew it would probably drive Ratchet to the point of insanity. Even if it wasn't as tight as the last one, it was low-cut and very short.
She grinned at her reflection. Well, if he messed with her too much, all she had to do was bend over. He'd stop then…all men did. She grabbed her small silver clutch purse, with some makeup for touch-ups, a credit card, and her cell phone, then walked out the front door, locking up behind her.
Ratchet was waiting for her at the bottom of the apartment stairs. When he saw her, he visibly paled and turned away, making her giggle. "I'm assuming you like it?" she asked saucily, a corner of her painted lips curving upward in a smirk.
He made a face, gritting his teeth. "Put some damn clothes on, woman."
She laughed at him, saying, "Right back atcha', Mr. Suit."
He shook his head. "I have on way more than you do." His golden eyes followed the curve of her body, and he shrugged the suit jacket off his shoulders. He handed it to her with a gruff, "Put it on."
She pouted cutely. "But, Ratchet, It's way too hot…" At his growl, she said, "I'm not wearing it. Didn't I say I wasn't going to behave?"
He sighed raggedly, rolling up his sleeves and throwing the jacket over one shoulder. "Fine. Whatever." He walked out the door of the apartment complex, leading her to a big GMC truck (Who just happened to be Ironhide, but she didn't know it yet). He helped her into the truck before shutting her door and hopping up into the driver's seat. He cranked the truck, driving in silence until they got to the restaurant. Once there, he opened the door for her and they went in.
They were once again seated at a private table, and she eyed him suspiciously. "Ratchet…"
"What?" He asked innocently. "I simply thought you'd like the private table, so we could do whatever we wanted."
"What we want, huh?" Solaraah repeated, raising an eyebrow at him. "I can assure you, I am not engaging in any scandalous activities with you in public."
He burst into laughter, shocking Solaraah, who nearly spilled her wine.
"I didn't think I was that funny," she said, making a face at him.
"Is that why you thought I wanted to sit here?"
"Well, if not that, then why?" she said, narrowing her eyes.
He shrugged, saying, "I was laughing because I wanted to jump you right here."
"As adventurous as I may be, I do not want to have sex in a public place, much less a crowded restaurant. And if not sex itself, no handjobs or blowjobs either. All that is for the privacy of one's own home, or somewhere other than here, anyways."
He smirked. "I was just joking. The 'do what we want' comment was directed toward any conversations we may have."
"Mmhmm…" she said skeptically. She smiled faintly, sipping her wine. "Y'know, I think I like this getting along thing."
"If you must know, I think I do too," he replied with a smile and nod. Rarely did she ever see that kind of smile, and to tell the truth, it kind of excited her. She began smiling a little wider than before.
"Yeah. Not like we're not gonna fight—cause we are, there's no avoiding it—but… I don't know. It's better now. I mean, you've still got that stick up your ass," she said.
"And you are a stubborn bitch," he said.
She gave him a dirty look. "But, this is…this is a little easier than hating you." She lowered her voice. "It's hard to hate you considering how good you are in bed."
His eyes widened. "Save that talk for after dinner." He gave her a hungry grin after that, causing her to laugh.
"Never said I wanted it now, old man," she said with a laugh. "Just said you were good at it. A simple thank you would have sufficed."
His grin stopped and his jaw dropped. No one had dissed him like that before!
The look on his face made her laugh again. "What's wrong, my dear?"
"Y-You just…Arghh, nevermind," he turned to the window, pouting slightly.
She giggled again. "You act like I said I never wanted it again. I just said not now." She paused for a moment, then grinned. "Maybe you can persuade me after dinner?"
His head snapped back to hers. "Oh, don't worry about that."
She chuckled. "I didn't worry a bit." She gasped softly when he reached under the table and put his hand on her leg, sliding it slowly up her thigh, smiling slightly the whole time. She swatted at him as the waitress came back with their drinks. "What did I say?" She hissed.
He answered when the waitress left. "Didn't say I couldn't touch your leg."
She glared at him. "Well in that case," she trailed off, slipping her right heel off and placing her foot on his leg. She kicked one of his knees to the side to put her foot on the chair between his legs. She saw something flash in his eyes and he glared at her.
"Not…fucking…funny," he growled.
She noticed his eyes had darkened from gold to an almost bronze color and smiled. "Oh, honey, this is hilarious." At that, she gently brushed her foot against his pants and watched him jerk back.
"You're going to regret this…" He ground out through gritted teeth.
"No, I really don't think I will," she said, tapping his leg with her foot. "You started this war, Ratchet. I'm just doing my part to end it."
"You're not ending anything, you're just making it worse for yourself later on," he said to her. "Just wait."
She laughed. "I think I can take anything you dish out."
"Oh really?" He took her foot and pulled her closer, allowing her free run. "Then what do you want now? Just know this—I'll do worse later."
She chuckled. "No, I think I'll draw this out. It's quite amusing to watch you, who's always so damn composed, squirm." She shoved her foot up against the space between his legs, causing his eyes to close and him to moan out loud. She laughed out loud at that, grinning widely when he glared at her. He looked ready to devour her, she noticed with immense satisfaction. Oh, hell yes, She thought. I like very much where this is going…
He pushed her foot away when the waitress came with the food. She smiled at the two of them. "When you two are done with dinner, we have a special dessert planned for you." With that, she walked away.
Ratchet and Solaraah exchanged glances. Special dessert? That's strange…
When they received the dessert, they understood. It was a tiramisu in the shape of a heart, with hot fudge drizzled all over it. Solaraah merely blinked at the little cake before giggling. "Are we that obvious?"
"What do you mean?" Ratchet asked.
"I mean, do we really look like a real couple?" she said.
"Judging from the place your foot's been playing for the entire meal, I suppose we do," he said calmly, taking a bite of the tiramisu. They finished the dessert with a little small talk, and Ratchet paid. Both seemed eager to go wherever Ratchet had planned.
The hotel Ratchet had picked was nice, and not too crowded. They had the only room on the floor, and Ratchet preferred to keep it that way. After all, she was going to be his tonight, wasn't she…? He was thinking about that, when Solaraah grabbed his tie and practically yanked him to the bed. "…Wait."
Solaraah stopped tugging at the tone of his voice and frowned slightly. "What's wrong?"
"I have to tell you something. And please, listen this time."
"Alright," she said, leaning forward to put her arms around his shoulders. He shook his head at her, backing up a step. He wouldn't be able to concentrate with her touching him.
"I've…I'm not human."
She gave him a funny look. "What do you mean? Of course you're human."
"No, I'm serious, Solaraah. This isn't a joke. I'm not human. I may look it, sound like it, even smell like it, but I am not human at all." He ducked his head, his glasses falling into the hand he was using to rub his temples.
"Please," she said, her voice a little dark. "Explain a little further." She frowned slightly.
"I'm not like you. I am a 20-something foot robot from a planet called Cybertron. I'm what's called an Autobot, and I've been here for...I've been on Earth for a long time."
She glared at him. "And you expect me to believe this."
"I wouldn't tell you this if I didn't expect you to believe it."
"Do you understand how ludicrous you sound?" She exploded.
"It's the truth, Solaraah! Look into my eyes—you know I'm not lying to you." He grabbed her shoulders, glaring into her eyes.
"It can't be true. A robot, Ratchet? Really?" She shook her head with a scoff. "This shit always happens."
Ratchet smiled wryly. "How many guys have you dated that turn into a robot?"
She glared at him even harder. "None. Which makes me think you assume that I'm an idiot."
He paled. "I was joking. I don't think you're an idiot at all. You're extremely smart."
"If I'm that smart, why do you think I'm going to believe you're a fucking robot?" She stood, pushing him away and shaking her head in disgust. "If you're going to lie to me, tell me one that I'm going to believe."
He pulled her to the window, pointing down at the truck he'd driven. "See down there? That's Ironhide. If you don't believe me now, wait till you go to work. I'm sure you're going to hear a comment about your ass."
She flung him off. "Whatever, Ratchet. If this is true, and you are an alien robot, why didn't you tell me all this shit when we first started this…whatever the hell we have?"
"We aren't supposed to," He ground out. "I would have. Optimus would have. But we couldn't."
Solaraah's eyes burned with blue fire. "Are you telling me Optimus is too? So everyone I know is lying to me…" She backed away from him slowly, shaking her head. She walked toward the door. "Do me a favor, asshole. Tell all your buddies never to talk to me again. I don't appreciate being lied to. Don't think you're exempt either, Ratchet. I've had one night stands before, and you're just another one to add to my list of regrets."
Ratchet reached for her as she walked out. "Solaraah, please!" He tried to follow her, but she reached the elevator, and the doors closed before he could stop them. "I…I think I love you…"