Ironhide had heard of this 'kissing' phenomenon that humans so often practiced, but never had he imagined he would experience it. He knew it was a thing of pleasure, used to initiate intercourse, which was their way of creating offspring.
But he also knew it was a thing of affection. Kissing came in many variations and situations, and they all seemed to share the wish of letting their partner become aware of their adoration.
The thought of Nicole's affection made Ironhide's spark pulsate with joy, and whereas he found the sensation of her lips on his holographic ones odd, he saw himself getting used to it.
As quickly as Nicole had dared to kiss him, as quickly they separated. She looked at him sheepishly and blushed, tugging a wild strand of hair behind her ear.
"That was… unexpected." Ironhide stated, causing Nicole to giggle and her cheeks to darken.
"It just… felt right, you know?"
The soldier nodded and gave a bright smile. They sat up straight in the respective seats, letting out small sighs as they glanced out the windows. Silence began to spread in the car, and just for a few seconds, they enjoyed it. Ironhide could practically sense Nicole's heart beating rapidly, and he couldn't help but worry.
He put a hand on her shoulder and she turned her head towards him with a smile.
"Are you okay? You seem a bit flushed?"
She smiled even wider, and the blush quickly returned to her cheeks.
"It's just…" she let out a small giggle but then shook her head, "never mind."
"You just kissed me!" he laughed and Nicole's giggle went to a full laugh.
Her laugh went quiet rather quickly, however, and she looked into her lap with fumbling hands.
"You're the first one I've kissed since I left Tom."
Ironhide gave a small nod, and took her hands in his. He couldn't help but notice how large his hands were in comparison to hers, but it gave him comfort. Comfort knowing that he could be the protector that she had hoped for, but been betrayed by.
"You're the first one I've kissed for many years." He quietly said with a smile.
Nicole raised an eyebrow at him.
"I find that hard to believe!"
He shrugged.
"You should."
Nicole nodded, and before letting out a breath of air.
"Should we head to Texas?"
"We should," he stated, and got out of the passenger seat.
When he approached the other side, Ironhide was taken aback by finding Nicole in the seat.
"Can't I drive? You've been driving ever since we left Nevada, you must be getting tired of it."
"Oh!" he exclaimed, letting out a smile, "it's just… uh."
Nicole looked at him with inquiring eyes as he struggled to find a reason why she couldn't drive the car.
"I just… this car is a really… big… part of me, you see, and he's been with me through thick and thin."
"Oh! I get that," she smiled, stepping out of the car, "Sarah was the same way with her convertible back in the day."
"Thanks," he said, and placed himself in the driver's seat. He let out a quick sigh before Nicole re-entered the car, and put on her seatbelt.
"Let's go!"
"What?! Are you telling me the police came and picked him up?!"
"Er, yes…" a quiet voice peeped, "but what should I have done? Shot them?"
"Hell yes, you should've, you useless piece of shit!" Tom shouted into the phone.
Emma was sitting in the back of the car, quietly paying attention to the conversation that was going on. She stared out the window, still clueless as to where she was. They had left whatever city where the car shop had been placed, but she had been unconscious for the majority of the time. A brief glance in the rear view mirror gave her an impression of the condition of her face.
She had taken a beating for sure, and the struggle with Tom had given her both a swollen lip and a rather blue eye.
"I didn't care if the police would've raided your entire shop! Fuck you and your shop!" Tom shouted and angrily pressed the end call button. He held the phone tight in his one hand, obviously tempted to throw the piece of tech out the window. But he held on to it, and quickly dialed a number, tapping his fingers in an impatient rhythm on his dashboard.
"It's me. I need you to send a message for me."
Emma heard the faint noise of a voice through the phone, sadly not familiar.
"If you could get a hold of Nicole, that would be…" Tom glanced back towards Emma with a wicked smile, "spectacular."
He looked away and nodded.
"Yes, there's a picture I'd like to send with it, after we've established communication. I'll give you the signal."
The second call ended almost as quickly as it had started, and the man let out a loud sigh, before turning his attention towards Emma again.
"Well, this is going to be such a wonderful surprise for our dear Nicole!" he beamed and turned the phone's camera on.
"Now, I'd like to send her a little present, so don't object."
Emma didn't even have time to react before Tom smacked her.
Hard.
Her face throbbed with pain and she was certain it shone a harsh red after the impact. She even felt her swollen lip grow in size, and a trickle of blood running down from it.
"Don't look so grim, darling!" he cheered and quickly snapped a picture before turning away from her again.
Tom quickly sent the picture to the contact he had just spoken with, then leaned back with a lazy smile.
"And now, we wait."
It had been four days since Rowe heard from the two strangers. He had trouble calling them by the names they had introduced themselves as, despite the sincere impression he got of them both.
A nagging feeling of guilt had stuck with him since, and he had desperately been trying to kickstart the memory of the new license plate. The notepad next to his hospital bed was full of scribbles, but no number to pass on to the people that needed it the most.
Rowe let out a sigh.
"Oh dear, that was a loud sigh."
He turned his face towards the nurse who had entered, and as if by some unknown, and rather annoying force, the corners of his lips went up.
"Seems it's all I can do stuck in this damn bed."
The nurse pulled a chair towards the edge of the bed, and sat.
"Just came to have a little chat about everything, if you don't mind."
He said nothing, but only waited for the nurse to start talking, causing her to sigh.
"Y'know, when the police went by, I managed to get a bit of the story out of them. About what happened to you, and what you were doing at the time."
Silence.
"I think it's remarkable what you do. Those in our professions; providing safety and care, we've got the biggest hearts of them all."
Silence.
"I was working for the Red Cross a few years ago. I had been volunteering throughout the world before, and thought I could do it again, but more professionally this time."
She let out a chuckle.
"I've never been so wrong. However, it made me realize something, you know? Despite all the cruelty in this world, I will do my damn best to not let anyone go mistreated, and I think you would too."
The officer suddenly perked up, and looked towards the nurse with wide eyes.
"What did you say?"
She gave him a puzzled expression and scratched the back of her head.
"I've never been so wrong?"
He weakly gave a dismissive wave of his hand.
"No! The, the other part?"
"We won't let anyone go mistreated?"
He was silent again, and not responding to the nurse's attempt to get a reaction from him. But Rowe's mind overflowed with memories. In particular the moment when he saw Emma and her abductor drive away in a car.
A car with the plate number of BC5 X489.
He took a glance at the nurse who approached his face in search of a response, and with a cheeky smile, he leaned forward and planted a kiss on her lips.
The nurse quickly pulled away, with a blush spreading on her cheeks. But then, she slapped the young officer, who returned to look at her with a wide smile still.
"I remember!" he cheered and tried to wriggle in his bed in excitement.
"What do you remember?" the nurse sourly asked and crossed her arms in annoyance.
"The damn license plate! Get me a phone!" Rowe commanded, only to be met with a stern face and a raised eyebrow.
"Please?"
The nurse shook her head, but obliged to find a phone. To Rowe, time passed horribly slow until she returned with a phone.
Rowe hurriedly dialed the number of his supervising officer, who resided back in Alabama.
"Officer Smith speaking."
"Smith, this is Rowe! I have information that's very important to be passed on to our case!"
He could hear a sigh of relief from the experienced cop. Despite being in charge, Smith had still maintained an aura of general concern, which seemed to Rowe was a rarity amongst leading police officers.
"It is such a comfort to hear from you, Rowe. I've received reports regarding the confrontation between you and the abductor," he was silent for a moment, "how are you holding up, son?"
"I'll… get better, Smith, but right now, the most important part is you getting in touch of her family with this information."
"Are you certain, Cliff?"
The officer was surprised to hear his first name, but then nodded to himself.
"Yes sir."
Rowe quickly shared all of his gained information with Smith, and urged him on to get a hold of the family as quickly as possible. Smith agreed and thanked Rowe for his outstanding efforts, and the call was over.
The phone was quietly placed on the bedside table, and Rowe turned his attention to the ceiling. He let out a long-drawn out sigh, and felt all of his muscles relax as he exhaled.
"You're feeling ok?"
He slowly turned his head towards the nurse who stood in the doorway, and he let out a weak smile.
"Feeling rather great, actually."
She returned the smile and glanced over to monitor, giving the health personel insight regarding Rowe's vitals.
"Don't think you've been this relaxed since you got here. Blood pressure's low and so is your heart rate."
"Except when you're in here, doll."
She rolled her eyes, but smiled nonetheless.
"I don't think I never got your name?" he asked, this time causing a giggle from the nurse.
"My name's Julie."
"Pleasure Julie. Pretty sure you know my name by now."
She let out a smirk.
"Oh yes, you've gotten quite the reputation in the nurses' office by now."
Rowe raised an eyebrow.
"Care to elaborate?"
Julie stood and shook her head.
"Once you're better and can take me on a date, I will."
"Nic, Ian!"
The pair, or the one-half of it, had been taking a nap in the busy Texas traffic. Ironhide had been awake, simply watching Nicole rest, but she had been jolted out of her nap at the sound of her sister's voice.
"What's up?" Nicole drowsily asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She heard sniffles through the radio and became much more attentive.
"Nicole, what happened?" Ironhide asked with concern in his voice.
"Good thing first. We've been contacted by the local police in Alabama, and the officer who's been injured by Tom, gave them the license plate."
Nicole looked at Ironhide with a large smile, and he happily returned it.
That's when Sarah broke out in loud sobbing, and by the mere sound, Nicole wished for nothing more than to be able to go through the radio and hold her tight.
"Sarah, what happened?!"
"He's managed to sent me a picture of mom… I don't understand how, it should be impossible for him to even get a hold of us…"
"I'll speak to O.P. about this, don't worry Sarah." Ironhide ensured, "but can you pass the picture on?"
"Is that really necessary, Ironhide?" she wept.
"Ironhide?" Nicole asked with a quizzical expression on her face.
"Just a nickname," he muttered under his breath, "yes, it is. Please do it."
"Okay…" she mumbled, "I'm going to have to go, Will is coming home and I'm going to pick Annabelle up. I feel so… violated."
"Hold in there, sis, we'll get him soon."
"I know, but be careful, I love you."
The call ended, and silence enveloped the pair sitting in the car. Nicole in particular seemed nervous. Ironhide put his hand on her shoulder and she let out a sigh of comfort, alongside a smile. The smile quickly disappeared as she got the familiar notification of a received text message. She hesitated to open it, and glanced towards Ironhide.
He nodded and gave her shoulder a squeeze.
With a sigh, she pressed the button to see the text, and let out a sharp gasp. She covered her mouth with a hand and Ironhide noticed tears taking shape in her eyes.
"She looks… horrible." She cried, and tilted the screen, making the photo visible to Ironhide.
At the sight of Emma, Ironhide felt his anger rising. Accidently, his grip on Nicole grew so tight she let out a wince and shook his hand off her shoulder.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you," he apologized, "I just get so… furious."
Nicole nodded and angrily wiped away her tears
"I understand, so do I. I'd much rather be furious than sad."
"Rage isn't always better than sadness," he quietly said, and was beginning to continue, before the phone started ringing.
No number nor any identification on whoever was calling. Nicole let out a sharp gasp, and her heart got stuck in her throat.
"It's him…" she whispered and desperately looked to Ironhide for guidance.
"You can do this," he ensured, and took her hand in his, "we can do this. Be strong. Don't let him get away with this."
She gave out a weak, but determined nod, and took the call.
"Why, hello, darling! So nice to finally get in touch with you!" A smooth voice said.
"Hello…" she squeaked.
"Oh, you sound so frightened, why is that?" he coolly asked.
Ironhide quickly grabbed the phone, pressed a button or two, so he could hear what was being said, and the voice was heard throughout the entire truck.
"Where is my mom?" she asked and heard a satisfying giggle through the phone.
"I thought you'd never ask! She's right here! Would you like to speak with her?"
Before Nicole got a chance to respond, she suddenly heard her mother's voice.
"Nicole, don't come for me, it's not safe, it's a tr-"
She heard a loud smack through the phone, and jumped back in her seat.
"Oh, I didn't know she'd talk that much. Terribly sorry, I'm sure you would've liked to talk with her some more."
"You will not get away with this!" Ironhide suddenly roared, and the phone went quiet for a few seconds. Nicole said nothing, but as soon as Tom spoke, she could hear his disapproval.
"What the fuck is this, Nicole?! Are you with someone else? Already?!" he shouted, and she could feel the shame wash over her. She opened her mouth to speak, but Ironhide stopped her.
"Answer me, you damn whore!"
Tears began flowing down her cheeks, and her mouth opened again to speak.
"No." Ironhide quietly said, and wiped away the tears with his gentle hands and a reassuring smile.
Nicole gave a nod, and tried to hold back her sniffling.
"No matter! I'll make sure to get you back. I am sure this… man is no match for me, anyway." He sneered.
"You'll be surprised." Nicole said, trying to sound as defiant as she possibly could through her shaking voice.
Ratchet, have you gotten a destination out of this guy?
Yes, I have received it.
Thanks.
"Meet me in Albuquerque in three days."
"How will I find you?" Ironhide demanded, his voice as strong and secure as ever.
Nicole could almost hear him smirk through the phone.
"Don't worry, I'll find you."
A/N: This is the beginning of the end, readers! It's weird to type out, as I've been working on this story on and off for so many years now. Published in 2010! I was 18 at the time, and it just blows my mind, really. But it feels good that I'm about to finish an actual story, despite it being FanFiction. Just a quick thank you for all the people who's stuck with this story for the past 5 years!