Chapter 12

Previously...

"Hello?"

'Hello, Miss. Are you a friend or relative of Mr... John Evans?'

"Yes, I'm his daughter, Kora Evans. Is something wrong, is he okay?"

'I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news. My name is Agent Melanie Johnson, I work with the the Strategic Homeland Intervention and Logistics division. Your father was one of our business partners. I'm sorry to say, that while he was visiting one of our international labs, there was an accident. I'm sorry, but your father was killed in the accident.'

Ice flooded my veins. I couldn't speak for a few moments.

"A-are you s-sure, Agent Johnson?" I asked, my voice and my hand shaking uncontrollably.

'I'm sorry, but we couldn't save him. Shards of shrapnel from the explosion entered his bloodstream, and-'

"Then pull a Tony fucking Stark and use a magic magnet to keep the metal away from his heart!" I snapped, my eyes filling with tears, and a lump forming in my throat.

'I'm sorry. It's too late to do that. Goodbye, Kora.' Then the line went dead, and my phone slipped through my fingers. I reached for it too late, but another set of hands saved it. Starscream... When did he get here? I didn't care.

Wordlessly, I threw my arms around him and let my tears flow. My father was dead. I knew it was true. Something in my head told me that that wasn't a prank.

"No..no..no..He can't be dead! He just can't!" I sobbed, clenching my hands into fists around Starscream's black button-up as I buried my face into it. "It's not fair!"

I felt his arms encircle me, holding me close to him as I cried. At some point, I don't remember when, the bots put the fire out, and I was carried inside by Starscream. I jumped out of his arms, running towards a crying Aston, as soon as we entered the living room. I wrapped my arms around him, but he pushed away, going up to his room. Men, no matter what age, hated to look weak.

At Optimus' request, the kids went to their rooms, as did the younger bots, exception being Starscream.

"Kora, what happened?" Red Alert asked, looking me in the eye. I couldn't speak, so I transmitted the memory into his head. He gasped, his eyes going sad as he relayed the information to Optimus, Jetfire, Scavenger, and Blurr.

I buried my face into the soft fabric of Starscream's shirt once again, honestly afraid that if I let him go, he'd disappear forever.

"I'm not going anywhere, love." he whispered in my ear. I nodded, but still kept a tight hold on him. I needed some sort of grounding right now, and considering I kind of loved him, he was my best option.

I don't know how long I sat in Starscream's lap and cried, but I knew it was awhile, because when I came back to my senses, the others were in their rooms.

"Do you promise?" I whispered. Starscream looked at me curiously.

"Promise?" he repeated.

"Do you promise you won't leave?" I elaborated. He nodded.

"I promise, the only reason I'll ever leave you is if I die. I will never let you go, I'll never leave you to face the world on your own. I promise." he replied, gently kissing my forehead. It felt strange, knowing someone cared for me like this. A guy wanted me more than the Coulson girls. Wow.

"Is it that much of a surprise to you?" Starscream asked, turning my head so I was facing him. With a shrug, I nodded. I was surprised when he planted a chaste kiss on my lips. "If any man on this planet wants them more than you, they're crazy." he said, a half-smile on his face. I smiled back, but my expression broke. I didn't have the emotional energy to smile.

The next thing I knew, we were moving. I gave Starscream a curious look as he carried me upstairs. He didn't say anything until we reached my room.

"You should sleep." he said softly, setting me on the edge of my bed. I didn't like the thought of him not being here, even for a little while. Grabbing one of his hands, I slowly pulled him over so he was laying down beside me.

"I'm not ready to say goodnight." I whispered. "Stay, please?"

"Of course I will."

I smiled weakly, before I got a foreign urge. Sitting up a little bit, I rolled so I was laying on my stomach. Starscream was watching me, slightly curious. He wouldn't be for long, I knew, as I leaned down. He smirked slightly as he caught on, and our mouths met halfway. This time, nobody would interrupt us, I knew.

As it was last time, it started slow, but quickly escalated. This time, nothing was there to stop me as I parted my lips, allowing him access, and as we shifted so that Starscream was above me, holding himself up on his arms.

I moaned at the sensation of him exploring every inch of my mouth, before returning the favor. His hands tightened in the sheets below me as I trailed my hands over his torso and to his back. He shuddered with a surprised groan as my fingers brushed past where his wings would have been, were he still a transformer. His right hand moved from the sheet, going down my ribs, down past my waist, pausing at the knee. Then he lifted my knee, hitching it on his hip. I did the same with my other leg, so we were once again flush against each other.

He pulled back, though, when I tried to unbutton his shirt.

"We shouldn't..." he trailed off, but I knew what he was talking about. I sighed.

"I know. That was stupid of me." I muttered into his shoulder.

"Not stupid," Starscream objected. I looked over to him as he laid down beside me. "I just don't want to feel like I'm taking advantage of you, so soon after something like...this. Any other day, and I'd let you."

I felt like I would cry at any moment. Not because I was sad, no. I was, but just the simple fact that Starscream was willing to wait, even when I could tell he wanted nothing more than to do it now.

Without missing a beat, I rolled off my back, and onto Starscream so I was practically straddling him. I kissed his cheek.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm kind of in love with you. And I won't regret this in the morning, so you're not taking advantage of me. I want this." I whispered in his ear before I kissed him again. I heard him groan in willing surrender, before returning the kiss.

A/N: This WAS going to be a lemon, but I lost my nerve. I don't own Transformers, or Strategic Homeland Intervention and Logistics (incase you haven't noticed, this is BEFORE they come up with SHIELD)