ONE DAY BEFORE THE PROM
I sat on my bed, depressed. I felt in a somewhat creative, poetic mood, so I grabbed my phone and decided to write something.
It only took me about thirty minutes until I had something in mind.

As I walk down the street
People look at me
Only seeing a person
Just another face
No one important

No one ever seems to care
No one ever wants to know
Why does life have to be so cruel?

I haven't had a lot of things
But I still seem to survive
But I don't want to survive
I want to live

Love is one thing I've never had
True, some have liked me,
Some have told me it's love,
But I know better
It's always been something else

I want real love
A love that will last eternity
A person who will stand by me,
Provide for me, protect the person
That I am

But despair is starting to creep in
No one has come by
Everyone seems to just want
My outer self
Once the way gets rough
They leave me in the dust
Abandon me in the storm

Will I ever find the one?
These emotions rage through me
Like a blazing forest fire
I can't take it anymore
The pain is just too much

Will I be forever lonely?
Just a face in the crowd,
A single grain of sand
Among the millions of others
Surrounding me?

Is this just a hopeless quest
To find someone, the one
That I need?
Is this just another tragic story
Of one who wants real love,
Rejected time and time again
By the ones
That pretended to care for me?

I can't take the pain anymore,
It's too hard to breathe
Everyone drags me under,
The water chokes me
Will someone save me
Please?

NEXT DAY
"Mika, stop fidgeting," Crystal said as she did my hair.
"I can't help it. I'm nervous," I told her as I tapped the screen of my phone.
Crystal slid the final bobby pin in my hair. "There. It's all done. You can look now." She handed me a hand mirror.
Crystal had done everything for me; all my makeup, styling my hair, everything. She had pulled my hair back into a bun, leaving two small strands of hair on each side of my face to frame it. She had curled the strands until they were curly enough for her liking. She had put a little blush on my cheeks to accent my cheekbones, and had applied the most natural-looking eye shadow we could find because of my constant pestering. I wasn't having any unnatural color on my eyes, even if Crystal said it would compliment my eye color. She put a thing line of eye liner on the edge of my eyelids, and I had finally consented to let her put mascara on me.
My skin was almost glowing because it was so clean. My hair was even glowing with a sheen I didn't even know it could manage. I had been cleaned, scrubbed, and washed thoroughly, from head to toe, at least four times.
"I look like a clown," I mumbled.
"You look beautiful," Crystal said softly. I saw her give me a smile through the mirror. I set the mirror down on her bed.
"But so do you," I told her. And it was true. Her makeup, hairstyle, and dress perfectly complimented her frame and face.
"Mika," Crystal said, holding my shoulders, "just take the compliment."
I gave her a small smile. "Thank you. For everything," I said, hugging her. She hugged me back.
"You're welcome." She pulled away and patted me on the shoulder. "Wheeljack's waiting right outside. I can do your lips on the way to school."
"Okay. Let me just grab my purse," I said. I grabbed my phone from my lap and hurried over to Crystal's bedside table and grabbed my bag and slipped my phone into it. I slung the bag over my shoulder and walked back to Crystal.
"Now are we ready?" she teased. I smirked.
Like she said, Wheeljack was waiting right outside the door. The back door closest to Crystal's room was already open, so we rushed inside. The door closed by itself the instant we were out the way.
"That was a little too close for comfort, Wheeljack," I said, sounding less serious than I intended.
"I want to get you both there as quickly as possible, then leave," he grumbled, his holoform activating in the drivers' seat.
I honestly had no idea how to answer to that, so I just faintly nodded. Crystal narrowed narrowed her eyes a little at his holoform, but said nothing.
As promised, Crystal applied long-lasting lip gloss to my lips before we arrived at the school.
"There," she said. "Now you're all ready."
Wheeljack pulled in the school lot and stopped at the front doors.
"Out you two go," he said gruffly.
Crystal and I climbed out quickly. I watched Crystal, wide-eyed, as she yanked the drivers' door open and grabbed Wheeljack's holoform's arm.
"Uh, huh. You aren't leaving just yet," she said, keeping a firm grip on his arm as she pulled him out of his alt mode.
"What the frag are you doing?!"
"You're my date to the prom," she said, being blunt.
I thought Wheeljack would go off on her, or simply deactivate his holoform and just drive off, but I was surprised.
"Fine," he huffed after a moment's consideration.
Crystal looked delighted and pulled him up the steps. I silently followed behind the two.
My emotions were at war at the moment. I was excited that this had finally happened, but I was also depressed because I wasn't going with a certain Autobot, like Crystal was. I sighed softly, saddened by the thought.
Wheeljack pushed one of the doors open for us, and we immediately walked through.
It was a short distance from the main doors of the school to the gym, where the prom was being held. I pushed the gym doors open, and I was immediately overcome by how loud the music was. I blinked and stepped back a little. It was overwhelming.
"Come on!" Crystal said, grabbing both Wheeljack's and my arm, pulling us out onto the dance floor.
"I... I can't. I don't have a dance partner," I said, pulling away. I refused to dance by myself.
I heard someone nervously cough behind me, and I turned around. Jack stood behind me, awkwardly waiting for me to do something.
"Jack! I didn't know you were going to be here," I said, surprised.
"Well, I am..." he said, shifting uncomfortably, "Do you want to, um... dance , with me?"
I gave an inaudible sigh. "Okay. I'll dance the duration of one song with you."
Jack seem too happy and relieved to care about that. He grabbed my hand and I stiffened, but then I relaxed and allowed him to pull me along. He guided me out onto the dance floor and gently pulled me in front of him.
A new song started anyone started dancing. It was the two-step, which, in my opinion, suited Jack pretty well considering he was more... peppy than someone else I knew.
"Mika?" Jack said, snapping me out of my thoughts. "You ready?"
"Yeah," I said, nodding. I didn't sound very reassuring to myself, but I guess it didn't sound that way to Jack. He joined his left hand with my right and raised our joined hands in front of my right shoulder. His other hand went behind my left shoulder and I put my hand in front of his own shoulder.
I mirrored his movements as we started dancing in a counterclockwise circle. He twirled me around a couple of times before pulling me back in front of him.
It was fun, and the song seemed a little short, but I couldn't help but think of a particular mech.
No, Mika! Stop that! You can't think like that, or else you'll break your heart even more, I told myself.
As the song reached the end, I felt Jack's hand that was on my shoulder start to drift downward. I quickly slapped his arm away in panic.
"I don't think so," I said lowly, trying to mask the a moment, I added in a kinder voice, once I calmed down, "The song's over."
He got the hint and pulled away from me. He thanked me for allowing him to dance with me, then led me back to our table. He didn't seem too hurt, which I was glad for. I quickly excused myself and camped out in the bathroom for about 20 minutes, just looking at the home screen on my phone. Even a still photo of the Autobot leader captivated me.
Finally, I decided to head back out. I tried looking for any of the people I personally knew, but I couldn't find them.
It was well into 15 minutes, at the end of the song, when I heard a voice behind me say, "May I have this dance?"
A deep voice.
A deep, all-too-familiar voice.
A voice that always mesmerized me, and made my insides feel like jelly.
My heart pounding, I turned. The man, or mech, was the very same one I had such intimate feelings about.
Optimus.
"Optimus! I... how... you... why... I mean.. wow," I said, unable to say a complete thought out loud.
He gave me a rare smile. His smile did wonderful things to me, and I relaxed somewhat.
"May I have this dance?" he repeated, holding out his hand. I didn't say anything; all I did was take his hand, and he led me to the floor. This time, though, the dance was a waltz.
We faced each other, and Optimus put one hand on my waist, the other grasping my hand. My other hand rested on his shoulder.
He led me throughout the entire song, the hand on my waist sending slight shivers of delight down my spine. This was better than any dream and anything my crazy imagination could come up with.
"You look beautiful," he said in his wonderful baritone voice.
"You look good in a tux. I mean, your holoform, "I said, both blushing at his complement and my blunder. I avoided his gaze.
"Is something wrong? Would you like to stop now? "He asked lowly.
"No... I don't want to stop, "I said softly.
I saw Optimus smile again out of the corner of my eye. I looked back up at him, mesmerized by his eyes.

I lost count of how many songs we danced to. We talked some, but mostly we just stayed silent and forgot about everything else but the two of us and the music.
At one point, we passed by Crystal and Wheeljack, who were sitting at our table.
"Happy birthday, "Crystal mouthed to me.
Before I could say anything to her, Optimus slowed and guided me towards our table, not letting go of my hand. Thankfully, the song ended just as he decided to go back to our table. He pulled my chair out for me and I blushed, but I said "thank you" softly, and sat down.
He sat down next to me on my left.
I wasn't that hungry, surprisingly, and I knew Optimus rarely ate when he used his holoform.
Wheeljack sat at my right, with Crystal next to him. Jack sat next to Crystal, which also meant he was sitting next to Optimus.
Crystal was grinning at me, while moving a little closer to Wheeljack.
"Mika, I-" Optimus started to say, but he was interrupted.
"Oh, look, what do we have here? Beautiful, you don't belong with this freak. You should come with me," a voice said behind me, the person's hands resting on the top of the back of the chair I was sitting in. I stiffened. I could recognize Vince's voice anywhere. Optimus noticed and found my hand in my lap under the table and held it. I was grateful for it, since it both gave me a distraction and courage.
"If anyone is a freak around here, Vince, it's you. "I tried to keep my voice calm and level, but serious. "And I'll have you know, I would never fall for you. Your breath smells horrible, and you're driven by lust. Besides, I'm taken. "I didn't know why I said the last part, but I did.
Everyone got quiet and stared at me. I wasn't sure who was more shocked: Optimus or Jack. I saw Crystal smirk at me.
"Whoever it is, he isn't worth it, baby."
I started to get angry, and I squeezed Optimus' hand to warn him.
He took the hint, and extended his energy field, sending calming pulses through the physical contact between us. I didn't know about his energy field; all I knew was that I suddenly felt calm.
"Do I have to threaten you to go away? Are you that thick-skulled and stupid that you can't take no as an answer?" I said in a level, serious tone. I smirked at Crystal, and she winked.
"I don't even think Vince even has a brain, Crystal. What do you think?" I continued, ignoring Vince. I leaned forward into the table a little.
"I haven't seen any proof of it at all," she said, playing along. I could tell she was enjoying this.
We continued back and forth, completely ignoring Vince. He didn't last long.
He growled and grabbed my arms and dragged me out of my chair forcefully. I went from enjoying myself to completely shocked and horrified. His grip was uncomfortably tight, his nails digging into my arm.
Everyone at our table stood up. Optimus was livid; I had never seen him so angry before, and it scared me.
I don't know exactly what happened; all I knew was that Optimus hit Vince or something, and Vince lurched before collapsing on the ground with a dull thud. Wheeljack caught me before I fell.
"Thank you, "I said, shaking. I looked at both Optimus and Wheeljack to make sure they understood that I sent it to both of them. Wheeljack just nodded; he was more of a fatherly figure to me, along with Donovan; and not very talkative one at that. But I always knew he meant well, and would protect me with his life if need be.
Wheeljack helped me stand up, and Optimus to my side.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, his electric blue eyes now filled with concern. I leaned into him for support, and he put an arm around my shoulders.
"Does this count? "I asked, my voice wavering. I showed him my arms. There were marks where Vince's nails had dug into my skin. I looked up at him.
His arm that was around my shoulders tensed, pulling me a little closer, to the point that I was pressing into his side. To my surprise, it was actually comforting.
"I will not allow him to come near you again," he said darkly.
"Agreed, "I said, glad of how protective Optimus was.
Then, Optimus let go of my shoulders. I was instantly sad about it, but pushed it away for another time. I looked around to see if Vince was anywhere, but I couldn't see him. I did see Jack, though, looking jealous.
"I took him outside," Wheeljack grunted, walking past me with Crystal at his side. Crystal winked at me before they both disappeared among everyone else on the dance floor.
"Mika," Optimus said, getting my attention. I turned and looked at him. His hands were folded together, as if they were holding something inside them. I gave him a questioning look.
He opened his hands just enough so that a small black box fell into my now-open hands. The box was bigger than the ones that held engagement rings, but still palm-sized.
I opened it, and sitting inside was a beautiful intricate metal necklace. The main thing I noticed was that I could see several hearts and two infinity symbols.
"Optimus,"I breathed. "It's... it's so beautiful."
"I made it for you from my own metals," Optimus said.
I carefully took it out of the box. I started to put it on, but Optimus stopped me.
"Allow me, "he said, stepping closer. He gently took it from my hands, and walked behind me. I watched his hands when he started to put necklace on for me. When he moved his hands from the pendant to the ends of the chain to fasten it together, his hand barely brushed my cheek. I blushed, but the innocent action made my heart jump excitedly, and I smiled, my eyes closing.
I didn't know the 'innocent' action was actually not so innocent at all. Optimus did it on purpose. And he was delighted when his sensors told him I enjoyed it.
He fastened the two ends together quickly. He whispered, "happy birthday", then moved in front of me.
"Would you like to dance some more?" He held out his hands and smiled at me. I smiled at him and put my hands on top of his. My heart fluttered excitedly.
"I would love to, Optimus," I said. He smiled even more, and his eyes brightened as he pulled me out onto the dance floor again.
We started to dance; it was a two-step this time. It was exhilarating, dancing with Optimus at a pretty fast pace. He spun me around several times, and I probably had the silliest grin on my face.
He pulled me back towards him after another spin, and I leaned back until I was almost level with the floor, Optimus' hand supporting me so I wouldn't fall. His holoform's face hovered above mine. He grinned before pulling me back up. I grinned back.
But the mood completely changed an instant.
Optimus pulled me a little closer, while leaning towards me. I knew what he was about to do.
My mind was suddenly filled with a horrible memory, and I instinctively pushed away from him and did the one thing I could do.
I bolted.

OPTIMUS' POV
I pulled Mika closer to me. I could no longer deny my feelings for her, so I did the first thing that came to my processor that would show my feelings without having to say anything.
I definitely did not expect her reaction.
She shoved away from me and raced off.
"Mika!" I shouted. My spark nearly split in two. I could feel the pain in my spark, and it was almost unbearable.
As Ratchet had predicted, she didn't share the same feelings as I did.
My holoform stumbled its way out of the gym and outside. I deactivated it as soon as it was in sight.
I drove away from the school, trying to put as much distance between me and the place that led to the horrible pain I felt.

MIKA'S POV
I ran as fast as I could no longer dress, tears blurring my vision.
I finally found myself at the end of an unlit corridor, and I slid to the ground, sobbing.

30 MINUTES LATER
Crystal was starting to worry. She hadn't seen Optimus or me in a while. She nudged Wheeljack, who sat beside her.
"What?"
Don't don't be short with me right now. I think something is wrong. I haven't seen Optimus or Mika in a while."
Wheeljack grunted. "They could have left."
"Mika would have called."
Wheeljack granted again, and got up.
"You coming?" he asked.
"Yep," Crystal said, quickly getting out of her seat and hurrying to his side.

It took them at least twenty minutes until they found me. I had my knees pulled up to my chest, my arms wrapped around my legs, sobbing quietly into my arms.
Crystal and Wheeljack knelt next to me. Crystal could tell that Wheeljack was definitely now worried.
"Mika, what is wrong?" he asked, laying a hand on my arm. I jumped, and I screamed, "Get away from me, Ethan!" I shuddered violently, my sobs getting louder.
Wheeljack realized that I was a nervous wreck, and he came to the conclusion that only one mech could solve the problem.
He commed Optimus.

, Wheeljack?.:: came the depressed reply.
need you to come back to the school.::

is in the middle of emotional trauma. Listen to her.:: Wheeljack then switched to his external microphone.
"Mika, what's wrong?"Crystal asked. She was really worried now.
I finally snapped out of the memory. I tried to choke back a sob.
"I... I de-destroyed...what..ever was...be-between Optimus...and m-me..." I said in a quivering voice, tears rolling down my cheeks. "He h-hates m-me..." I whispered fearfully.
Optimus immediately cut off the comm link and raced back to the school.
He was back in the school parking lot in seven minutes. That entire time, I sat in silence, tears rolling down my cheeks with a haunted, fearful look in my eyes.
Optimus' holoform ran through the school and found Wheeljack, Crystal and me quickly.
Once he saw me, he felt horrible leaving me like that. He hurried to my side.
"Mika?" I looked up, surprised but still afraid.
It almost broke Optimus' spark seeing me in the state I was in. He immediately pulled me into his arms, wrapping them around me. I cried into his chest.
"It's okay, Mika. I'm here now. I'm not leaving. I don't hate you," he murmured. I clung to him desperately.

My sobbing eventually slowed and stopped. I slowly looked up at Optimus.
"Do you feel better?" he asked quietly.
"Yeah," I said. I noticed Wheeljack and Crystal weren't nearby.
"They went to go dancing some more, since they figured everything was in control," he said. "I guess not, though."
"Why?" I asked. He looked at me and wiped my tears away.
"Because I couldn't even tell you how I felt about you. If I had done that, then all of this could have been avoided," Optimus confessed. "I don't care about you just as a friend; it's more than that." He looked away, avoiding my eyes. I was beyond shocked. He had feelings for me?
I realized he was actually afraid of what I might say. I shifted until my back was against his chest and snuggled closer, smiling. Optimus sat there, frozen for a few seconds, then re-wrapped his arms around me, a little tighter than before, pulling me closer.
"I will take that as you feel the same for me?" he rumbled, a smile tugging at his lips.
What do you think?" I said, looking up at him, still smiling. He grinned, his eyes brighter than I had ever seen them. I gave a contented sigh. I couldn't stop smiling; nor did I want to.
We sat there in silence for a few minutes until Optimus broke the silence.
"I hate to ruin this moment, but I have an important question: why did you 'freak out', as Miko would say, when we were dancing?"
I remembered why, and I shuddered at the painful memory. His arms pulled me closer to him.
"It's... It's something that happened to me four years ago, and I have never talked about it since then," I said, trying to end the conversation.
But Optimus wouldn't leave it alone.
"Mika, please, you can tell me. My opinion of you will not change," he said. "Is it about Ethan?"
I jerked, tensing up. "How do you know about Ethan?" I asked in a soft voice.
"Donovan told me when we were waiting for you to calm down. It was right before Lazerbeak attacked you," he said. "Please Mika, tell me."
"I... I can't," I said, pulling away. I avoided looking at him.
"Mika, if you tell someone, it will make you feel better," Optimus said, resting a hand on my arm. "Ratchet's and Miss Darby's words. Mika, please-"
"He used me!"
Optimus stopped in confusion.
I let out a sob. Optimus immediately noticed and wrapped his arms around me again.
Everything spilled out then. "I... I thought he was a good person. But then, one day... he- he attacked me, and he... nearly killed me. He told me that he was going to force Nathan to help him, and that I would too, and that if I cooperated, he would reconsider killing us and make me his queen. He said he would make Nathan his personal slave. I refused, and he got mad and tormented me, no matter how hard I tried to fight back. But Nathan," I let out another sob, "he caught him before he did anything more than that. Both of them fought until they were near-dead, supposedly. All three of us were taken to the hospital. Ethan disappeared from the hospital that night after knocking out several nurses and doctors when he escaped. We never saw him again until that one day at Donovan store," I said, trembling. "I vowed to never speak about it until the time was right. I guess this was the time," I said, giving a faint half-hearted smile.
Optimus shifted until he was sitting in front of me. I was grateful for the opportunity, and I hugged him tightly. He hugged me back.
Truth to be told, telling him about it did make me feel much better.
He pulled away and we stood up. I looked down and played with the fabric of my prom dress. Optimus moved a little closer to me and lifted my head gently with the tips of his fingers under my jaws. I looked into his eyes.
"Please, don't run away," he said softly before his lips found themselves on mine. I was completely shocked. It was so gentle, it was as if he was holding a small animal, rather than kissing me. Once it registered, I started to kiss him back, my arms snaking around his neck. One of his hands slid to my waist, while the other was at the back of my head, the actions deepening the gentle kiss.
My heart fluttered. I was kissing him! I couldn't believe it, but it was true.
Once we pulled away, he stroked my cheek before kissing my forehead. I rested my forehead on his afterwards, just looking into his eyes.
After a few minutes of just standing there, looking in each other's eyes and saying nothing, Optimus finally said, "It's getting late. We should go back to base." I smiled.
"Okay." We pulled away, but Optimus grabbed my hand and held it. I twined my fingers with his.
We walked back into the gym, and I grabbed my purse before we left, still holding hands. We headed towards his alt mode, and I couldn't help but smile at seeing his vehicle form. The passenger door opened automatically, and his holoform helped me inside. The door closed and his holoform disappeared, then reappeared in the drivers' seat. I smiled at him, then looked out the window as Optimus to drive. I ran my finger over my lips, in memory of the kiss.
Pretty soon, I was yawning. Optimus was watching me, and he chuckled.
"I'm taking the long way back to base. You can sleep for a while if you want to," he said.
I yawned again. "The great Optimus Prime chuckled. What's next? He falls for human girl, perhaps?" I said, grinning, which made him laugh. I instantly fell in love with his laugh, just as I did with his smile.
"You need to laugh more often. And smile. I love it when you do that," I said sleepily, leaning back.
"I will take that into consideration," he said with a happy expression. He reached over and squeezed my hand.
Before I knew it, I was asleep in Optimus' passenger seat. He noticed it, and leaned the seat back to make me more comfortable. He thought I looked cute, curled up in his seat. He leaned over and kissed my forehead before continuing to drive, a smile on his holoform's face and his spark soaring with joy.