Sooty for the long wait guys, school has been really hectic. Anyhow, should I publish another story that I've been working on? Tell me what you think! Enjoy!

I slowly woke up, feeling better than I had ever felt. I opened my eyes and took in the surroundings. It took me a few seconds to register what I was seeing, but once it did, I started to panic.

I was in my room.

I immediately reached up to my neck, and my heart stopped.

There was no necklace.

The prom had been a dream.

"Mika? Mika?" Someone nudged me gently.

My eyes snapped open. I immediately looked around and instantly recognized the interior of Optimus' cab. Optimus' holoform sat next to me, his hand on my arm, looking worried and confused.

I frantically reached up and found the necklace he gave me at me throat. I sighed in relief and relaxed. "It was real," I breathed.

Optimus rubbed my arm gently. He noticed me playing with the necklace and understood. "Of course it was. Did you think otherwise?"

"Evidently my mind wanted to tell itself that," I said, laughing a little at my panic. "Considering how my life was before I met you guys, and all the disappointments I had in the past."

He gave me a warm smile. "I am glad that meeting us helped you in more ways than one," he said in his baritone voice, resting a hand over mine. I relaxed even more without even realizing it, and I smiled back at him.

Then I realized it was raining outside of Optimus' cab.

"Why are we not at the base? I mean, not that I mind, it's just that I'm curious," I asked, sitting up.

"Well, I didn't really want to disturb your sleep, partially because I didn't want to leave you, and partially because you looked cute the way you were," he said, his holoform's eyes brightening a little.

"Oh, so now I'm cute," I laughed.

"Mika, you are so much more than that. The word 'beautiful' doesn't even scratch the surface," he said, looking straight into my eyes suddenly completely serious.

For some reason, I blushed and looked away for a seconds but I looked back at him just as quickly.

"You really mean that?" I asked in a small voice.

"Yes, I do." And then he spoke in his native tongue, but it was from his real self, not from his holoform. It was so beautiful, and I had that weird feeling of understanding the true meaning of what he said in a way. My eyes misted, completely moved. I could almost feel what he said, instead of hearing it.

"We speak in our language more with emotion than anything else," he said, moving closer to me. "Most of the time." He stroked my cheek gently, and I leaned into the touch. I covered his hand with mine and held it briefly.

Once I let go of his hand, I sat up and situated myself. Optimus' holoform moved back a little, to give me some more room.

It was all pretense, though, because I wanted to catch him off-guard.

Suddenly, or at least to him, I leaned into him and crashed my lips onto his.

Optimus was actually stunned, but he quickly pushed it aside and kissed me back, his arm moving behind me and pulled me closer. I smiled in the kiss, and my arms wrapped around his neck. His other hand reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear before resting it at the back of my head. His hand had slid along my jaw, making me giggle a little because it tickled.

I felt Optimus smirk, but that melted away when one of my hands slid back over his shoulder and glided to his chest and rested there.

It was my turn to be shocked when I saw his holoform's eyes flicker, and I felt the cab shudder ever so slightly underneath me.

"I was definitely not expecting that reaction," I murmured, pulling away from the kiss but keeping my hand on his holoform's chest. I was a little surprised to feel an Autobot insignia in the middle of his chest through his holoform's thin shirt.

"My holoform is very sensitive," he explained, not letting go of me. He understood my surprise, but he didn't seem too offended by it. I rested my head on his chest, surprised when I could actually hear a heartbeat.

Optimus wrapped his arms around me, the warmth from his holoform's body keeping me relaxed and happy. I closed my eyes and listened to his holoform's heart beat. If I listened closely, I could hear a deeper, resonating thrum coming from his parked form.

"I have to confess, I really do feel safer and more secure in your arms, or your servo," I mumbled in his shirt.

"I figured as much," he said, chuckling lightly as he played with my hair, which had come out of its bun during my sleep. "That's why I held you so much since I met you."

"And it worked, 110%." I inhaled, greeted with the smell that I had grown to love. For myself, the smell of him was as unique as my own fingerprint. No one smelled quite like him, and for that I was grateful for. I smiled; anything about him had that effect on me.

We sat there in silence, just enjoying each other's company, listening to the sound of his heart/spark beat and the rain patter against the side of the cab.

After a while, Optimus spoke again.

"I was thinking, since we both care about each other in this way, maybe we could start a relationship together," he said.

I shifted until I was basically laying on my back on his chest. Thankfully, he didn't let go of me.

I looked up at him, and he looked down at me. I grinned.

"And I was just sitting here, wondering when you were going to ask that question," I teased. A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. "Is that a yes, then?"

"Yes, Optimus, my answer is yes. I am thrilled to be your girlfriend."

Optimus squeezed me gently in a hug before letting go. I sat up and futilely tried to smooth out my prom dress. It was sadly creased, and since prom dresses are notorious for being able to pick up every speck of dirt known to man, this one was no different. I didn't worry about it, though; I had something more to remember that night from. Well, someone.

"We should probably head back. The others are more than likely worried, or confused, or both," I said.

"I informed them of our current... situation, although they don't know all the details," he said, giving me a hidden smile.

"Wow, Optimus. Talk about not obeying the rules," I said, laughing. "I'm glad you didn't tell them, though, because I want to see the looks on their faces."

Optimus laughed with me. His laugh was much like his voice: deep, resonating, and, in my opinion, perfect, but filled with emotion. I was overjoyed at seeing him in such a relaxed state, enjoying himself and showing his emotions.

Once our laughter had subsided, his engine roared to life, and we headed back to base. I sat in his passenger seat, feeling the gentle hum of the engine through my entire body.

Finally, I had found someone who saw me as someone worth the pain and suffering that life can throw at them. Someone I could trust. Someone who would do anything for me.

Someone who I could love.

Everyone was relieved when they saw Optimus pull into the main hangar. I looked at his holoform and smirked. This was going to be interesting.

Once his cab stopped, his holoform basically leaped out and walked over to the passenger door. He opened it and held out his arms, to which I automatically replied. I practically jumped into his arms, and as expected, he caught me by the waist and gently set me down on the ground. Once he let go, he found my hand and held it, and I twined my fingers with his.

We both turned towards everyone, looking at their expressions. They were mainly of confusion. I looked at Optimus.

He leaned towards me and whispered in my ear, "Maybe they need to be told."

I nodded, for once not embarrassed to do something.

I looked back at everyone else, who looked back at us expectantly.

"Guys, I- I mean, we, want to tell you that we-"

Optimus moved closer to me, letting go of my hand and putting an arm around my waist. I looked at him with a happy expression.

"We are now in a relationship," he finished.

At first, all we got were blanks stares, but when it registered, the response was spontaneous.

Everyone looked shocked, their mouths hanging open. The only one who seemed the least shocked was Ratchet, but even he was still shocked.

But then, all of a sudden, everyone was cheering and congratulating. Their grins and their comments made me feel welcomed and accepted, and I beamed.

There was only one person who didn't seem to be happy about it.

Jack.

Once I said that Optimus and I were in a relationship, he scowled and glared before walking off, but I decided to leave it for later.

Once the cheering and congratulating had more or less subsided, Optimus deactivated his holoform and his cab broke apart until it revealed his true body; the Cybertronian I had been fascinated with ever since I was three.

Optimus scooped me up in his servo and set me on his shoulder. He looked at me and smiled. I had to say, when he smiled, not his holoform but his real body, it did so many wonderful things to me.

Ratchet walked up to us. "Optimus," he said. It was all that he said, and I didn't understand what he was implying, since he was being vague.

Optimus nodded and held up his servo so I could get off. I hopped onto his servo, and he gently lowered me to the ground.

"Ratchet, what are you implying to Optimus?" I asked.

Instead of receiving a glare and a cold look, he looked at me with optics that held compassion and sympathy. "I am going to check on the current state of his health," he said. "He can explain it to you later, if he wishes to." Optimus nodded to me in reply. He gave me a reassuring smile.

"Okay. If you need me, I'll be in Nathan's old room..." I said. His death was still painfully raw, but somehow, it was more bearable. I had a feeling that Optimus had a major part in that factor.

"Alright," Optimus said, and I slowly walked off, leaving my mech with Ratchet.

I listened to music from my phone as I looked through my brother's things. I had gone through about a quarter of his room, and I set the pile of papers gently on his desk that sat in the corner. I sighed. I believe that's the last of the papers, I thought.

I moved over to his bed and picked up his pillow. I lifted it up to my face and smelled it, which made me realize how much I missed him. A tear slowly slid down my cheek and landed on the pillow. I sighed.

"Oh, Nathan. Why? Why did the 'cons have to do this to you? To me?" I mumbled into the pillow.

I managed to not stay in the past for too long, but I did cry for a few minutes. Once I stopped crying, I found myself sitting on the floor with Nathan's pillow in my lap, damp with my tears.

Something under Nathan's bed caught my attention. I sniffed, then I reached underneath and slid the object in question out into the light.

It was a black strongbox, a combination lock built into the side. My sadness quickly turned to curiosity, and I touched the lock with one finger.

I heard a resounding click, and I pried open the lid. Inside sat several notebooks and a set of keys, along with the hologram projector that had given me hope all those years living with Ryan.

I gently pulled out the notebooks and laid them in my lap carefully. I reached back in and grabbed the keys and the projector and set them beside me. I looked at the box and frowned. The strongbox looked like it should have been deeper than it was.

I reached back inside and felt around. My fingers almost missed the small latch in one corner, but the small shock of electricity that shot through my arm when I made contact with it was hard to miss by a long shot.

I instinctively jerked back my hand and held it. My fingers tingled, but otherwise nothing was wrong with my hand.

I grabbed a corner of Nathan's sheet and hesitantly touched the metal again. My hand tingled slightly, but there was no shock this time. I pulled up the latch, and it revealed a small compartment that was hidden underneath the 'fake' bottom.

What was inside the compartment, though, was what surprised me.

It was the pocketknife that Ryan had thrown at me, right before I met Optimus in person. Primus, was it really that long ago? I thought.

But the surprising thing was, the blade was glowing.

I stared at it, transfixed. The blade was golden, and it was so mesmerizing.

As if in a trance, I slowly reached out and grasped the knife by it's handle, and I gasped.

I didn't see the walls of my room anymore.

I saw another human, dangling by chains from the ceiling of a dark room.

"I'll never betray them," the person rasped to someone that recognized.

My vision came back, and I let go of the knife, and it fell to the ground with a clatter.

I scrambled up and raced to the Medbay.

I burst in and yelled, "Optimus! He's alive! Nathan's alive!"