Samantha Witwicky struggled with the items she attempted to pack into the large cardboard box in the garage. No matter how she manipulated the volleyballs and other various toys she thought the soldiers would like, it just would not all fit in the box. Huffing in defeat she turned a glare on her friend and guardian Bumblebee, who was not doing a very good job of hiding his own amusement given the purposely-projected laughter coming from his radio.

"Laugh it up Sparky." She snipped, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're the one that has to carry this with you."

That had the bot falling silent, his blue optics wide in realization. Then he flopped down in full pout mode, arms and legs crossed and one metal lip stuck out further than the other.

Sam chuckled in retaliation. She could hardly believe that only a little over seven months had passed since she met Bumblebee and the other Autobots, members of an alien race that came to their planet searching for an ancient power source of their world. Only one school year passed since the battle in Mission City that had changed her life forever. And not a day went by that she wasn't grateful for it.

Shortly after that fiasco it was decided that the Autobots would have asylum on Earth with the US military and their allies. Currently Optimus Prime and the remaining Autobots, including those that had arrived after their initial contact, resided on a military base at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. They served with the now Major William Lennox, Epps, Fig and the rest of their squad and several new recruits. What they did Sam didn't know, nor did she ask. Still she kept in contact with them, often sending care packages with Bumblebee when he had to report in, or just mailing them to one of the local bases to send over to the boys. Fig had especially liked the alligator-shaped cookies she sent especially for him. Epps had grumbled about that until Sam managed to get them mobile Basket Ball hoops for their recreation. (They had not been able to put in a permanent court and as they were a 'Top Secret' operation the upper brass didn't think they needed such things.) She also sent other odds and ends to the soldiers she knew and occasionally big care packages for everyone to enjoy. In return she often found herself receiving several letters with various little knickknacks and photos of the guys and the bots.

Of all the correspondences she got she treasured the ones from Will the most. Sam had developed a severe crush on the then Captain upon their meeting and the days following the Mission City incident. As she got to know him more through their letters and the occasional Web Cam chat she found herself falling steadily in love.

She tried to tell herself over and over again that it was stupid and she should move on but her heart refused to listen, not even when she saw him and Mikaela kissing that time three months ago, which had left her in a funk for weeks. Finally she just accepted the fact that she would always care for him as more than a friend, but she could not act on those feelings. She couldn't do that to Mikaela or to Will. If they wanted to be together then she would be happy for them, no matter how much it tore her up.

It was during that time that her friendship with Bumblebee really grew deeper. He didn't question when she backed off from talking to the two of them as often as she had in the past, nor did he ask why she gave them false reasons for her actions. The bot's support and loyalty helped her greatly since then. Sadly, he would be gone for at least two months for a scheduled maintenance and training mission. Direct orders from Optimus and Ratchet.

Why they couldn't have done this during the school year while she was stuck in class most days she didn't know, but she also wouldn't question it. While he was her friend and an adopted member of her family, he was also Optimus' soldier and he had to follow orders.

"It's so hard…to say goodbye… to yesterday…"

Shaking out of her thoughts she turned to her friend. "Don't be so dramatic Bee. It's only for two months. Then you'll be back and we'll have a few weeks to play before school starts." She reassured the bot, who started to pull out the water works curtsey of his washer fluid. "Really? Seriously? You can't cry about this!"

The crocodile tears stopped immediately as he looked at her hopefully. "Run Forrest. Run!"

"No, we cannot run from this. Ratchet would have a fit." She admonished. "And he'd likely send Ironhide after both of us! You know how over-the-top he gets about punishments! That bot is crazy!"

Bumblebee's shoulders slumped when he realized her point. He was stuck going to the base for two months. Not that he disliked seeing the others or visiting with them, but not for TWO months! Usually the longest he had to spend away from Sam was a week, week and a half tops! But he did need some work done, and it was time for a serious recharge. Normally he could get away with a quick intake of energon, but as he was still pretty young he tended to use more energy, especially when he and Sam went racing in the desert.

There was no way out of it; he would have to go to the base. He just hoped Sam would be ok without him. Since that incident with Mikaela and Lennox months ago she tended to draw away from others. He didn't know why though, he knew the other two were not in what humans call a 'relationship'. He feared that without him coaxing her out she would sequester herself in her house.

"Hey, cheer up." Sam patted his arm. "You'll get to see the new Autobots that arrived while you were here. Maybe there'll be a cute girl Autobot. Besides it's not like I'm going to be doing anything exciting. I'm mostly going to be researching colleges and scholarships, not to mention working on that project for my advanced Physics course next year."

"It's shake 'n bake! And I helped!"

Sam laughed remembering the last time they worked together on one of her science experiments. "While that would be fun, Dad is still trying to lower his blood pressure from that last incident. Though the contractor did a great job fixing the wall." She added, studying the newer section of the garage.

Garbled sounds that Sam had long ago identified with laughter escaped his vocal system. Sharing another conspiratorial smile she finished rounding up the things she wanted to send to the guys. "Alright that should do it. Just remember not to transform until after they got everything out. Don't want you to have an incident like Ratchet did. Though why one of the guys had a squeaky toy to begin with is beyond me. Still wish they had taped it." She muttered. "It would have been funny to see Ratchet squeak every time he moved and jumping because of it."

Bumblebee nodded in agreement, imagining the event and the regal bot's reaction. It certainly bordered on hilarious. Once Sam stepped back he transformed back into his Camaro form, which still gleamed from the recent wash and wax Sam had given him. The others will be jealous to see the type of treatment he gets from his human friend. Popping the trunk hatch he waited patently for Sam to store the box of goodies inside.

"Ok that's it." She shut the trunk walking towards the driver door. "You want me to come or are you good to go?"

"One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know…"

Rolling her eyes she giggled. "Oh all right. I'll come too, let me get my purse and let Mom and Dad know, ok?"

Bumblebee revved his engine in response. Running into the house she grabbed the necessary equipment for the trip, i.e. her purse, cell phone, money and a soda. Ron wasn't too thrilled about her driving 2 hours to a base and having to take a cab back, but he agreed after Judy gave him a look and Sam used her patent puppy-dog eyes. He still swears that using such tactics was cheating.

Hopping in the driver seat to give the allusion that she was driving when Bee did the actual work, Sam strapped on her seatbelt and they took off for the Army base where they would meet up with a cargo plane headed to Diego Garcia. The whole two hours of their trip the girl and bot talked back and forth and generally acted silly.

Two hours seemed to fly by as they arrived at the gates to the base. Sam showed her pass, waving in greeting to the guard she recognized from previous encounters. The man just smiled and sent her on through, radioing ahead to let the plane know they had arrived. Bumblebee navigated the base towards the airfield where the plane was likely situated.

Sam looked around curiously, seeing groups of soldiers carrying out various duties. At the tarmac they found Bee's ride, with several soldiers moving crates of supplies into the cargo bay. Stopping a good distance away so as not to interfere with traffic Bumblebee let Sam out. Not even three seconds out of the car and someone was swinging her up into a hug.

"Sammy!" The familiar voice of Fig had her relaxing in the hold. She laughed when he started spouting Spanish not knowing a single word he said.

"Fig! Seriously man, English! Ain't nobody know that Spanish shit" Fig set her on her feet again as both turned to see Epps and a man Sam didn't recognize walking up to them.

"Quit dissing my heritage!" He continued his argument once more in Spanish earning an annoyed eye roll from Epps.

"Glad to see you two still get along." Sam grinned brightly, receiving a hug from Epps.

"Fig just needs to learn he's wrong and everything will be fine." Epps joked. "How are you doing Sammy?"

"Good. Bummed you guys are taking Bee for two months, but I'll get through it as long as you promise to take good care of him." She stared at both Fig and Epps with a look only women could perfect.

"Of course chica. Nothing but the best for the Bumblebee." Fig told her.

"Tell me lies tell me sweet little lies…" Played out on Bee's radio.

"That hurts man."

Ignoring Fig, Epps turned to the man that Sam didn't know. "This is Graham. He's joined NEST from the UK."

"Ma'am." The soldier greeted her, his accent clear.

"Just Sam, or Sammy." She shook his hand. "These goons aren't giving you any trouble are they? 'Cause if they are…"

"What are you gonna do about it?" Epps challenged playfully.

"Me? Nothing. I'd get Bee to handle it." She advised him innocently.

"Float like a butterfly…Sting like a bee!" Floated into the air around them.

Graham watched the interaction the others had with the girl and the bot with curious amusement. From a few well placed inquiries, he knew that she was responsible for sending a lot of their 'presents' to help the soldiers enjoy their down time. Lennox's original team had been the only ones to ever meet her before though, and their descriptions didn't quite do the girl justice. Seeing her in person now he could understand why they felt protective and fond of her. There was something about her that just compelled you to like her.

"So what'd you get us?" Fig looked inside the car not finding anything.

"What makes you think I got you anything?" She raised a brow indignantly.

"Because you love us and you're awesome like that." Epps started moving towards the car. "It's gotta be in the trunk…"

"God you guys are like children!" Sam huffed, hands on hips. "And yes I did, but you can't see it till you get back to base. I heard about what happened with the water balloons."

"That wasn't our fault." Epps protested Fig joining though in Spanish as usual.

"Oh really?"

"Actually." Graham cut in, smirking at the scene. "According to scuttlebutt that event was due to actions on Major Lennox's part."

"The hell it was." Said major came upon them at the tale end of their conversation. Flashing them a mock angry look he stopped a few feet from them with arms crossed over his chest looking rather imposing in his fatigues. "I would never allow such shenanigans."

The group eyed him silently for a moment before Sam turned to Epps and Fig. "He totally started it, didn't he?"

"You know it."

"Si…"

"Hey! Whose side are you on?" Will pouted playfully breaking into a wide grin as he swept Sam up in a hug. "Good to see you Sammy-girl."

"You too." Sam had stiffened slightly when he first hugged her but relaxed quickly enough that he didn't seem to notice. However she could not hide the slight blush from the other three standing there. "So when do you guys head out?"

"Soon actually." Turning to the Camaro he patted the hood companionably. "You ready to go Bumblebee?"

"There's no place like home..."

"You'll be fine Bee. It's only two months."

"I will survive…"

Sam chuckled having dealt with all of his antics before. "Look, just behave. You do that and I promise I'll have a nice surprise for you when you get back. Ok?"

"…Groovy…Well aren't you the sweetest little thing…Gimme some sugar…"

"Hey…don't get fresh." Snickering she whacked Bumblebee lightly on the roof. "I'll see you in two months. If you need anything just text me."

"I will return victorious…"

"Right…You guys have fun." She turned to the soldiers. "Oh, and if ANYTHING happens to Bee, I'll know who to look for." Watching them squirm under her gaze was quite rewarding but she decided to cut it short as they were on a schedule. "Seriously though you guys stay safe too. Don't go looking for fights, plenty of them already come to you."

"I heard that." Epps snorted.

Leaning into the open window she grabbed her purse and keys, as Bee didn't really need them. "Well then I'm off. Make sure to keep these soldier boys on their toes Bee."

"Roger that Houston…"

"Great." Epps rolled his eyes. "And I thought we had trouble with just the twins."

"It was good seeing you guys." She hugged Epps and Fig then surprisingly Graham as well. "It was nice meeting you. Good luck keeping this group in line."

The Brit nodded, still somewhat shocked at her show of affection. However he didn't miss the slight narrowing of Lennox's eyes, neither did the other two given the way they smirked. Sam finally turned to the Major and gave him a brief hug as well.

"See you later Major." Sam pulled back moving to leave only Will had other plans. With his hand still lingering on her lower back he started walking with her.

"I'll walk you to the gate." He offered, though it sounded more like a command. "Get everything on board, I'll be back before lift off." The soldiers knew better than to say anything and even Bumblebee stayed quiet for once.

Sam tried to protest but they were already walking back towards the main gate.

"So, your parents waiting for you?" Will tried to make basic conversation.

"No. I'm gonna call a cab."

"Wha…No, you're not doing that." He immediately shot that down.

"Um…yes I am."

"No, you'll take my car." He dug his keys out of his pocket and pushed them into her hand. "It's just gonna be sitting here on base collecting dust. At least this way you have wheels since we're confiscating your ride for the next couple months."

"Will…"

"Please Sammy-girl. It'll make me feel better." His eyes caught hers and she found she couldn't deny his request, not like she could deny him anything if he asked.

"Fine. But remember you said that if you get a call that I wrecked it." She warned playfully, poking him in the chest. When he didn't return her smile she frowned. Studying his face she found he looked rather uncomfortable. "I'm just kidding, I really won't crash it. Promise."

"I know that." He rolled his eyes a bit before taking a deep breath. He didn't want to pry but he had this gut feeling that all was not well with Sam, especially where he and Mikaela were concerned. "Is everything alright?"

Sam blinked. "Yeah…As far as I know. Why?"

"I meant with you and Mikaela? She said you guys haven't been hanging out as much and to be truthful you've been pretty distant with me the past few months as well." He kept a close eye on her reaction but aside from a slight tightening around her eyes, which could simply be stress, she didn't react. "You do know you can talk to either of us about anything right? Even if it's something we're doing that's bothering you."

"I know. But honestly there's nothing wrong." Giving him a rueful smile she tried to defuse his worries. "I really have been very busy. I've been accepted into the advanced program next year, which means AP courses and I already have work for some of those classes. Plus I have to start researching colleges and scholarships this summer. Once school starts up I won't have a lot of time to get my resumes ready and sent off. I haven't really had a lot of time for anyone aside from Bee, and that's usually because he drives me everywhere…and helps me with my homework. Though Dad did ban him from assisting in my science projects…"

"Why?"

"There was an…incident…with the garage…it took a couple of weeks and a contractor to fix." She explained sheepishly. "Personally I think he was over reacting. I mean it's not like we blew up the entire building."

Will just stared at her in disbelief trying to understand what she was saying; yet at the same time not wanting too. "Right…remind me not to let you two in the lab on base…"

Sam gave him a look. "Spoil sport. Anyways, I need to get going or Dad's gonna freak. You guys have a good trip and be safe."

"Yeah you too kid." Will hugged her close one last time before forcing himself to let her go. He smiled at the startled look, which slowly turned into a shy smile in return her cheeks a bit redder than normal. He stood watching a bit longer as she walked to the parking lot to his car then slipping inside. He finally headed back to the airfield when she closed the door.

Will knew that a lot of what she said to him had been the truth. He didn't doubt Sam had a lot going on school wise. The kid was smart, near genius level when she worked at it, but something told him that it wasn't the complete truth. When he thought about it her attitude had changed almost three months ago, which was the last time he had seen her and Mikaela. They had just returned to the states for a month's leave. He tried to think over everything that had happened but nothing in particular came to mind.

"So did you kiss her goodbye?" Epps teased when he met up with the other man. The rest of the soldiers going with them were already inside the plane strapping in for take off.

"What? No." Will frowned at the other in disapproval. "She's 17, that means not legal. Besides I'm too old for her."

"You trying to convince me or yourself?" Epps eyed him knowingly. "Besides, when we get back in two months she'll be 18."

"Doesn't matter Epps. There's no way she's interested."

"Really? Then why'd she start avoiding you and Mikaela after catching you two kissing?"

"What?"

"Our last leave. Mikaela planted a big one on you. Sammy saw it though she didn't say anything." His friend reminded him. "And if you were worried about age why'd you start something with Mikaela?"

"I didn't, we didn't." Will stuttered in disbelief mind reviewing that memory. "She was just thanking me for helping her out with something and got carried away, she even said so…"

"Really? Well Sammy don't know that does she?" With that said Epps made his way into the plane calling back over his shoulder one last time. "Just so you know, there are a lot of guys that can't wait for her to turn 18. A little food for thought."

Will didn't know what to say to that. However his friend had made his point, loud and clear.