Chapter 10
"You are not doing it," Ratchet said to the silver Autobot, his voice in between harsh caution and worried exasperation.
Jazz grinned wickedly. "Oh yeah I am!"
"Jazz, that was a test yesterday. You didn't even stay in your alt mode very…"
"Stop being a broken down heap, Ratchet!" Ironhide interrupted. "If that was me, I'd want to get out there too. Being stuck in robot mode gets your hinges all stiff and rickety. You know that."
"You didn't spend hundreds and hundreds of megacycles in repair sessions that almost burned your digits off, Hide!" Ratchet snapped back defensively.
The three of them were walking down the entrance way that lead to the back of the base. And when they opened the steel doors, heading out to the runway that ran the entire length of the base and then some, Ratchet knew his cautious arguing with Jazz was done for when he spotted the small group of human soldiers who had gathered from their patrol duty to clap and cheer excitedly.
Off to the side, Bluestreak stood, his face saturated with a goofy, giddy grin. Next to him were Kate and Captain Lansing who were both clapping along with everyone else.
Coming over to Jazz, Bumblebee made a shrugging motion with his head toward the direction of the runway, his blue optics bright and clear.
"You ready, Jazz?"
"Man, Bee, you know it!"
Transforming into his alt mode, Bumblebee drove over to the beginning of the runway a little ways up, positioning him self.
Hearing the yellow Camaro rev his engine, waiting patiently for his competitor, Jazz turned back to Ratchet, winking his optic at him.
"Time to boogie," Jazz said.
And before Ratchet's vocal processor could make another sound, Jazz transformed seamlessly, beautifully, into the Pontiac Solstice he had been reconfigured as, everything going into its place as if nothing had ever happened. Smooth and natural. A seasoned mech who had no qualms about his ability. Putting a hand on Ratchet's shoulder, Ironhide nodded in approval.
"You really outdid yourself this time, old friend," Ironhide said.
"Yeah, well, I just wish the others could be here to see it too," Ratchet muttered back.
Feeling the ground starting to shake and vibrate beneath them, Ironhide and Ratchet looked up at the sky. The fighter jet coming in from above did a few fancy summersaults in the sky and then transformed, his weight hitting the ground with ease as he walked over to Bluestreak.
"Let me guess. Is this Autobot fun day where you try and take yourselves offline permanently?" Thundercracker huffed.
"This is the first time for Jazz being able to be in his alt mode," Bluestreak told the Seeker proudly.
"Piffle," Thundercracker replied, his normal disdainfulness thick in his tone. "I can still out maneuver any of you."
Bluestreak chuckled. "In the air."
Tapping Ratchet in the side, Ironhide shot a quick patronizing glance in Thundercracker's direction. "Our annoying neighbor is back," Ironhide grumbled.
Ratchet laughed as he turned, surprised, seeing Optimus coming over to them, having temporarily put off his other duties to watch his second in command hit the road again.
Sometimes it really felt like forever since Ratchet had known the Autobot leader. It never ceased to amaze him nor everyone else the complete confidence Optimus always seemed to possess, no matter the situation. Even Prowl couldn't compare to his natural leadership abilities, that, although originally born from the Matrix itself, was cultivated and disciplined by Optimus himself. He embodied what truly great leaders were made of.
Every single Autobot, no matter their personality quirks, no matter the amount of bickering they did amongst themselves, all felt the same. But after Jazz was taken offline, Ratchet had, on more than one occasion, caught their leader outside, gazing up at the stars alone, in quiet reflection, contemplating all that he was and all that was being given for their cause.
"How is everything going, Ratchet?" Optimus asked.
Ratchet looked over to Jazz and then over to where Thundercracker was standing next to Bluestreak and the humans. Shrugging, he replied with a grin, "Given you have a Decepticon who's identity circuits are fried, a gunner who practically slips in his own puddle of energon drool from being around the human, and a second in command who was literally slagged to pieces and is now getting ready to race his aft off…I would say everything is…okay."
Optimus chuckled some to the remark, seeing the validity and irony to all of Ratchet's off handed statement. "That is certainly good to know."
Standing with Bluestreak and Captain Lansing, Kate watched as one of the soldiers came up suddenly and gave a stiff salute to his superior officer.
"Permission to officiate the race," the soldier said.
The Captain nodded, smiling, returning the salute.
"Permission granted Sgt."
And with that, the soldier headed over in between the two waiting sports cars that were gunning their engines with a rowdy enthusiasm.
"I hope you know I'm not gonna cut you any slack from you being injured," Bumblebee chuckled over to Jazz.
Inching forward a tad, throwing everything into a burnout that made his back end start to fishtail, Jazz laughed. "Ain't no shame in that game to admit you're afraid to step to this!" Jazz replied.
Seeing the human soldier's hat drop to the ground, Bumblebee laughed back some, glad to see Jazz back to his entire full self, as the two Autobots took off, each wanting to be the victor at the end of the runway.
Kate had really forgotten what it was like. She couldn't remember the last time she had gotten all decked out for a real date where everything had to be perfect from how her hair was styled to what color thong she was going to wear.
But as she sat in the swanky restaurant Mike had brought her to, listening closely to him talk about the current state of affairs of the US government, she couldn't help but to feel a little on the self conscious side. Thrilled at not having to wear that restrictive arm sling anymore, Kate had chosen a low cut red dress that showed off her breasts with a sexy understated elegance. And the black suede stilettos she swore up and down would never ever see her feet again, all made her look forward to going home later, putting on her pjs, and curling up on the couch.
"Politicians, they think warfare will solve everything. They have no idea how to use diplomacy. They think it's a sign of weakness…some of them at least," Mike said to her, taking a sip of the wine he had in front of him.
"Spoken like a true Republican," Kate commented, smiling.
"I don't get in with party lines," Mike said. "The two party system is failing. And it will continue to do so unless there's some sort of cohesiveness within them."
"Any man who is under 30, and is not a liberal, has not heart; and any man who is over 30, and is not a conservative, has no brains," Kate said then.
Mike raised his eyebrows up, impressed. "Churchill. One of his greatest quotes. I thought you said you hated politics."
"I do. But when I was married to David, it was like being with a senator in training the way he would go on and on. So I learned a few things from him!" Kate said laughing.
"That's something I can say I have no use for, being a politician. They're puppets. I like being on my own, doing things, traveling," Mike said.
"Traveling? Where have you been?"
"All over. I'm career military, what can I say?"
"Ever been to Asia?"
"A long time ago, in the Xi'an Shaani province, where the Terracotta Warrior statues are, got to be pretty fluent in the language, given you had no other choice!"
"You remember any of it?"
"A little."
"Like what?"
Mike thought for a minute.
"Ni zhen piao liang. It means, 'you are beautiful' in Cantonese."
Kate blushed furiously, as a huge smile came to her, a happy smile that felt so good.
"Now, tell me about you! I'm boring. How is it that you met you the Autobots? We've tried as much as possible to keep everything under wraps, but I think it's slowly getting out…don't know how that's going to go over when it does though. Some humans, well, just aren't ready to deal with things like that," Mike said.
"Yeah, I know," Kate replied. "I almost freaked out when I first saw Bluestreak. I didn't know what to think. I couldn't move. I was taking Maggie swimming in the lake across town and he just came out of nowhere. It was something else, let me tell you!"
"Bluestreak? He's the one who talks a mile a minute, right?"
"Yep, that's him!"
"He's very personable, although the one they call Ironhide, I don't think cares for me too much!"
"Yeah, they are all really neat. There are some humans out there that could learn a few things about personality from them!" Kate exclaimed.
"You do know Bluestreak has a crush on you, don't you?" Mike asked then, grinning.
Taking a sip of her water, Kate felt it go down the wrong way, as she started coughing from the remark.
"A crush? I doubt that. He's just an upbeat sort of being. Perky. That's not a crush," Kate replied.
"I think you would be surprised, Kate. They are extraordinary beings, extremely intelligent but at the same time very sensitive and intuitive to each other, their surroundings, and to us humans. I've never seen anything quite like it," Mike replied.
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean one of them has a crush on me," Kate said pointedly.
"Okay, maybe 'crush' was the wrong word…let's just say he is extremely fond of you…just like I am," Mike said to her softly.
Kate gave him another radiant smile which faded some when she heard his cell phone suddenly ring. Sighing some, Mike answered it apprehensively.
"Yes, Captain Lansing."
"Uh huh. Okay. Are you sure this can't wait until morning?"
"Yes, alright. Understood. Thank you."
Turning his eye back to Kate, Mike gave her a weary look that said this was not a part of his plans for the evening.
"I'm really sorry, Kate."
"Gotta go back to the base?"
"Yes. I've got some reports to send over to the President's office. Can't get out of that one!"
"Well, how about you just take me back to the base and I'll stop and see Bluestreak, since you know, how he has a crush on me, and I'll just have him take me home. I haven't seen him in about a week anyway. I'm sure he'll enjoy the company," Kate said nonchalantly.
Mike nodded then. "Deal."
Hearing a slight clicking on the floor, Jazz looked up from the diagrams he had been looking over, his optics starting to criss cross from it.
"Oooh, baby girl!" he exclaimed to Kate as he saw her approaching. "You look mighty fine. Date with the Captain?"
Kate laughed. "Yeah, it got cut a little short. I came by to see if Blue's here. Thought I'd give him some company."
"I don't know bout' that…he sees you lookin' like that and he's liable to have a neural circuit split in half!"
Jazz motioned down the corridor. "I think he's still in his quarters. Just head on down there."
"Thanks, Jazz!" Kate said and then headed off in the direction Jazz pointed to.
"Slag!" Bluestreak muttered to him self.
He was sitting at his desk, having pushed his personal laptop aside, trying desperately to assemble a sensor that would allow detection of a spark extractor from a regular weapon. But from his clumsiness, the homemade screwdriver he had made, in the event he ever needed to do minor repairs to himself if Ratchet wasn't around, slipped out of his fingers and fell on the floor.
That's it! I'm having Ironhide do it! I…
"Blue?"
Almost stumbling to get to his feet, Bluestreak's auditory sensors perked up. Her voice. Here. He hadn't seen her for almost a week and it just ate at him. He knew she was busy with her job and now, with the new interest the Captain had taken in her, Bluestreak didn't want to impose. But as he opened the door to let her in, all he could feel was that same crazy rush go through his systems.
"Are you busy? I thought I'd stop by to see you," Kate said.
Bluestreak's optics looked her over, his olfactory sensors picking up something sweet and aromatic, a type of human pheromone maybe?
Primus please help me. I DO NOT have a crush on the human. I DO NOT have a crush on the human, Bluestreak told himself, trying to keep as calm as he possibly could from seeing how pleasing she was to his optics and that scent…it was enough to make him run screaming down the corridor from the burning frustration of not knowing what the slag was happening to him.
"Hi," Bluestreak said to her weakly.
Kate smiled. "Hi yourself!"
"Did you and the Captain go out? Because you look…um…you look…different…from what you normally look like…not that you look bad…I'm not saying that. I just think you look different."
Kate laughed at his silliness. "We were at dinner and he got a call to come back here. You wouldn't mind giving me a ride home later, would you?"
"No…nope, wouldn't mind that at all."
"Good! Then I'm staying here for a bit!"
Normally doing any kind of concentrating for Bluestreak was difficult. He was wired to excessively to be anything else. He never denied that fact nor did it ever really bother him but as he sat at his desk trying to finish his project, seeing Kate lying on his recharge bed next to him, it was virtually impossible.
Lying on her back, her legs stretched out, she looked tinier than what she already was, not seeming to mind the lack of cushioning beneath her. For once, Bluestreak was quiet, listening to her go on about how she was stressed out at work and wanted to physically do damage to her female boss (which Bluestreak couldn't imagine Kate doing), how Maggie ate a sock over the week and then tried to pass it through her digestive system, and the new action movie she wanted to get around to seeing.
All of it went in one auditory sensor and out the other. All his logic circuits kept pondering was how she smelled as now his entire quarters smelled like her as well.
Bee is never going to let me live it down! Bluestreak groaned to him self as he tried one more time to tighten the sensor, getting the same results as before as the screw driver hit the floor with a sharp clink.
Hopping off of his recharge bed, Kate piped up, "I'll get it!"
Picking up the tool, which was about the size of half a baseball bat, Kate went to hand it to Bluestreak who had stood up, but as he went to take it from her, Kate put it behind her back, laughing.
"Ha! You can't get it!" she laughed.
Bluestreak giggled playfully at her. "You know I could just squash you flat and then I'd get it back, so there!"
"That sounds like too much of a mess to clean up," Kate said.
He went to reach for it again, being very careful not to step really close to her but she held it above her head instead, sticking her tongue out at him.
Laughing uncontrollably, Kate knelt down on the floor, trying to duck from his hand grabbing it any further.
"Alright, if you're gonna make me come down to your level, I'll do it!" Bluestreak said.
"You're too big! How much is this tool worth to you anyways, Blue?"
"I'll show you," Bluestreak said and before he knew it, before he really had any time to reconsider, he had taken his hands and as gently as he could, pulled Kate's legs out from underneath her, making her lie on her back, staring up at him as he bent down over her, taking care not to crush her beneath him.
Dizzy and swirling, that's how it felt. Like being on air but standing still. Feeling every single circuit, compressor, and O-ring start to overheat, Bluestreak's optics stared deeply into Kate's eyes as she dropped the screwdriver next to her. They were wide and never ending, a settling peace set on an untouchable plane he wanted so bad to get to. Human, Cybertronian, none if it made a slaggin' difference to him then. Bumblebee was right, oh was he ever. Bluestreak did have a crush on Kate and as he stared into her eyes, trying to process what they held, he felt sure the feeling was mutual, even though he didn't know what the feeling was actually called.
Carefully, slowly, having played it out in his logic circuits time and time again, Bluestreak took his finger tips and softly touched her cheek, the warmth of her body registering wondrously through him, rippling through his system like a highly potent elixir Bluestreak wanted to stay high on. He had never touched a human before, not like this, as he found their bodies way too fragile for him to deal with.
Beneath him, Kate laid still, not budging, her breaths coming in deep. Half stunned, half in awe, she watched as Bluestreak continued down her cheek softly, shyly, his fingertips reaching her neck and then slowly traveling down, in between her breasts, ever so lightly, a gentle caress that was unsure and unaware of what it meant.
"Blue…"
"Hmm?"
Primus, she was soft! Like petals flowing in the wind. He could've left his digits on her for an entire solar cycle if it meant the same feeling of euphoria rushing through his entire CPU.
"Blue…I…I…"
Wiggling underneath him, Kate tried to get to her feet.
"Blue, I think I should get going…home," Kate said to him her tone uncharacteristically firm.
Blinking his optics at her, Bluestreak looked at her face and saw something written on it he couldn't decipher. But as she stood up quietly, adjusting the garment she was wearing, her eyes averted from his optics, Bluestreak started to get the sinking feeling he had done something horribly wrong.
"Kate…I…I…I'm s-sorry," Bluestreak stammered weakly.
Silence.
"Kate?"
More silence, as if she was thinking. Whatever it was, Bluestreak wasn't sure if he wanted to hear it.
Why? Why did I have to get near her? Why did I have to touch her? I didn't have to touch her! I should've left her alone, let her keep that slaggin' tool! Bluestreak thought frantically.
"Kate, please…I…just…j-just…I wasn't going to hurt you."
"Blue," Kate started and then stopped, taking a huge breath in.
Why won't she look at me? Bluestreak thought, feeling everything inside him go from euphoria to a dead fear, the same fear he had tried so hard to run from in the past.
"I…I think it would be a…a good idea if maybe we kind of took a break from…each other, you know…not hang out…for a little bit," Kate finally said, looking at the floor.
"I'm so sorry," Bluestreak said pitifully. "I didn't mean to do something to make you uncomfortable. I thought…I thought maybe…I don't know what I thought…I just thought maybe you…you…" he stopped then, realizing the more he tried to get everything out, the more it was eluding him.
"I'm going to go. I'll ask Jazz to take me home," Kate said to him quietly.
He was breaking apart inside, Bluestreak was sure of it. He wished so bad he had a time warp gadget, to undo the horrifying disaster he had inadvertedly caused. And now all he could do was watch, just like all the times before of trying to escape his past, feeling totally helpless, unable to stop the disaster from unfolding into a barren wasteland of hurt and regret.
Bluestreak stood silently, as Kate headed to his door and walked out, without so much as another glance in his direction, her heels becoming muffled sounds as she drifted further and further away.