Title: Inferno and Red Alert V
Rating: T

The sky was just tinging pink when Red Alert quietly eased his way off the porch, glancing back at the farmhouse before staring forward at the wild wheat stalks blowing gently in the early morning breeze. He heard that hissing vocalizer in the back of his processor describe in horrific details the types of beasts that could be hiding in the crops' shadowy base and what vicious pain they'd inflict upon someone frail like himself, but Red Alert steeled his tender nerves and headed on the familiar path to school. There were still a couple of cycles to wait before the school office would even be open, the youngling knew, he just couldn't find the peace to recharge anymore, filled to the brim with fears and hopes for the next orn. Today would be the first of several that he had ever gone without medication. Would he really be alright? What if he messed up, outed himself and then began a deathly spiral into another attack?

The youngling could already feel his intakes began to cycle faster; a crushing sensation closing around his spark, causing it to pulse harder and harder in a panic. Crumpling to his knees as vertigo hit, Red Alert tried to even his intakes, whispering to himself as he struggled to hold onto this reality. It took several kliks but he managed to push through the worst of the anxiety, his frame trembling and a sheen of coolant covering his plating. Was this what he had to look forward to all orn, Red Alert pondered miserably. Tear-laden optics lifted, taking notice of the tackle-box that the doberman had dropped to the ground in his carelessness; slowly, the white mech reached out, pulling it back to the safety of his lap.

"N-no...," he mumbled, hugging the lunchbox to his chestplates, "I-i... I c-can do this. Inferno will be there."

Just thinking about the german shepherd and his broad, lopsided smiles smoothed the rest of the shivers from Red Alert's frame, lifting himself back up onto sure legs. His eagerness to see his friend helped carry the youngling back down the beaten dirt path. Dusting the tackle-box off as he approached the school, it took a moment for the doberman to notice an irregular thumping echoing through the quiet schoolyard, bringing Red Alert to another abrupt stop. It couldn't be anything dangerous, he tried to assure himself, intakes hitching a second time that morning. Surely, it was just someone playing? Or cleaning, perhaps? There was the rattle against something hard that left a twang in its wake, followed by a secondary quick thump. Peering, the white mech could see nothing on this side of the schoolyard, but he knew that more asphalt curved around the corner, laid out just before the soccer field.

This orn was to be a courageous one, Red Alert encouraged himself, inching towards the school wall. He took a moment's break as he touched the rough brick, clinging to it as he shuffled to the right, drawing up to the corner nearly five kliks later. The doberman was shivering again. "It's nothing, it's nothing, it's nothing," he hissed to himself, over and over, shuttering his optics tight as he gripped at the corner edge in preparation. "J-just nothing, nothing, noth- O-oh!"

Both optics flared in surprise as the white youngling finally glanced around the side, finding another student bouncing a basketball across the empty asphalt. A certain, tall, red youngling, in fact. "Whoosh!," Inferno cheered, lining up the ball with the basketball net, shooting the ball forward with a perfect arch. It sailed through the air cleanly, sinking right through the rusted ring without a sound. Whooping in celebration, the german shepherd padded back over for the ball, scooping it up and jogging over the yard to his backpack. Red Alert watched as his friend bent to retrieve his water bottle, realizing belatedly that Inferno had dropped the basketball in the process and now it rolled languidly down the asphalt towards the hiding doberman. He glanced up in panic, finding the taller autodog's optics looking over his way, ducking out of sight with a muffled shriek.

'What are you doing, idiot?!,' he berated himself, feeling as though he just might be sick. Obviously, Inferno had seen him; hiding at this point just made the white youngling look like a nutcase. Should he run back home? Wait until Sideswipe had woken up and then walk to school together, pretending none of this happened?

A helm popped around the corner of the building, causing Red Alert to stumble back with a whimper, tripping over his clumsy pedes and sending him falling to the ground. A servo caught his elbow before he hit though, pulling him back up to the german shepherd and maintaining its sure grip until the doberman was steady enough to stand alone. "'Eya, Red!," Inferno beamed brightly, "Surpris'd ta see ya this early in the morn'."

The shorter autodog struggled to speak, this time finding his thoughts frazzled over his friend's unusual appearance. Inferno was adorned in his usual denim jeans, but his shirt seemed to be missing this morning, a form-fitting tank top in its place instead. And what a form indeed... The red youngling was fit -fitter than Red Alert could ever hope to be in his life- with firm muscles rounding slightly out of modestly toned arms, the curves of his chestplates and even his abdomen showing similar definition beneath the tank's fabric. Of course, a thin layer of condensation really helped showcase all of Inferno's more hidden physical assets.

"'Ow come yer out so early?," came the german shepherd's question, startling the doberman from his thoughts.

Cheekplates heating up quickly, Red Alert reset his vocalizer several times, before squeaking out a, "C-couldn't sl-sleep."

He couldn't seem to drag his optics away from his friend's handsome torso, noting just out of his peripheral how the taller youngling nodded, his servo pulling away from the white mech's arm to ruffle his ears in a friendly fashion. "Aye git that. 'Ad some nighttime jitters, mehself," Inferno was saying, "Was a lil' 'xcit'd ta see ya 'gain this orn at school."

Red Alert hesitated a glance upwards but quickly dropped his gaze back down to the ground, feeling the warmth on his cheekplates burst into a wild fire. Just what was going on?! Why was he losing track of his words and unable to bring himself to look in his friend's optics? His spark was rotating dreadfully quick, as it did often when his anxieties and terrors got the best of him, but there was no debilitating fear forcing the white youngling into his worn shell. In fact, the uneven flip-flopping of his fuel tanks, the clamminess of his servos and the weakness in his knee joints were quite unlike the symptoms that Red Alert was more familiar with.

"Well, we've gotta while yet 'fore school starts... Ya wanna shoot some 'oops wit' meh, Red?," the german shepherd was asking kindly, bending to meet his companion's optics.

It felt like his plating might melt as the internal fire climbed up another notch in intensity. "N-no, nonononononono," the shy youngling stammered, shaking his helm energetically, "I-i can't, can't pl-play, really. I'm n-no good a-and-"

"'Ogwash!," Inferno spat, winding an arm around Red Alert's shoulders, missing the way the small autodog nearly collapsed at the contact. "C'mon, we still got a cycle; ain't gonna be nobody else but meh an' ya. Aye'll teach ya the ropes an' we'll git ya ta even try a couple shots. No score-keepin', either."

Red Alert resigned himself to the fact that he wasn't going to be getting out of this anytime soon, nervously allowing the red youngling to take his backpack and the tackle-box ("That's f-for you," he'd informed the other in a stutter), laying them on the ground beside his own before Inferno led him out to the middle of the asphalt. Painted lines indicated that they stood in a half-court, with the basketball net set in front of the field and the school behind them, while the german shepherd quickly relayed the boundary lines and rules to the fidgeting youngling. The next little while was spent with Inferno bouncing the ball to Red Alert and back, before the taller autodog was gently instructing on how to dribble. Before he knew it, the entire cycle had nearly passed; the pair's fun getting interrupted as a janitor stepped outside to unlock the exterior school doors.

"Huh?," Inferno commented, looking at his wristwatch. "Didn't realize the time was goin' by that quickly. Well, 'fore we git our things, let's see ya dunk that ball! Run on down, Red an' give 'er yer best jump!"

The doberman didn't hesitate this time. Awkwardly he dribbled the basketball a few steps before grasping it tightly between both servos and sprinting towards his friend. The german shepherd urged him on with a few cheers before yelling out, "Jump!" to which the white mech did, optics on the net high above. He knew the moment his pedes touched off the asphalt though that he would not even come close to reaching the wide ring bolted so high up, but a pair of servos grabbed his waist at the apex of his poor leap, boosting him up high. Fumbling, Red Alert managed to remember to stretch his arms out, pushing the ball over the lip of the ring and sending it bouncing back down to the ground, hearing Inferno crow in celebration as the fire returned to the doberman's face.

"Fantastic job, Red!," Inferno beamed, turning the small youngling around, the servos on his waist still keeping him elevated well off the ground, "Absolutely great dunk! Ten outta ten!"

His intakes coming in sharper, Red Alert stared down at his companion, feeling as though he might faint. Just as suddenly as the german shepherd had flashed that beautiful, proud grin at the odd autodog, the white youngling had an epiphany. For he wanted nothing more than to kiss that kind mouth that spoke gently of all his talents and his flaws, burying himself in those arms that protected him all at the same time.

He was in love with Inferno.

Gravity pressing heavily on him as the doberman was finally set back on his pedes, Red Alert watched in a daze as Inferno jogged to his backpack, buttoning on his plaid shirt and yammering away about their shared classes that orn, all the time wondering in amazement at this turn of events. He'd never loved someone before, being as broken as he was... Yet, the youngling felt no fear. This feeling was different but so was Inferno. Maybe this would be okay...?

"Ready ta go, Red?," the german shepherd asked, bounding back over to his companion. His optics shone brightly for the white mech, his smile genuine and jovial. The shorter autodog nodded, smiling shyly at the strong arm wrapping around his shoulders. "Awesome!," Inferno chirped, leading the pair of them forward and into the school, still chattering about classes as they went. Red Alert silently enjoyed the press of his friend's frame against his own, wondering how the school orn would play out after a change this big.

xXx

Sideswipe marched down the stairs, popping his helm into the living room before he swung into the kitchen. "Where the slag is Red Alert?," he asked his carrier, still searching for his missing brother. The femme paused in her buttering of toast, flipping the page of the newspaper she was reading.

"Language, Sideswipe," she chastised neutrally, sweeping her crumbs into a pile. "To answer your question though, your brother already left this morning for school."

"Again?," the youngling remarked huffily, grabbing his carrier's glass of orange juice and drinking it to her displeasure. "That's the fourth time in a row!," he exclaimed loudly following his swallow. "What is wrong with him?"

"I happen to think it's a good thing. It shows that your brother has grown; he's adjusting to a new environment much faster than before. The therapist will be pleased," the femme said.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Sideswipe snorted, snatching his carrier's slice of toast from her servo, biting into it as she grumbled. Grabbing his lunch bag, the black autodog headed through the house and out the front door, muffling back a response to the femme's farewells. He mulled over his carrier's words as he headed down the beaten trail to the village school, frowning at the ground as he walked. Despite the femme's more optimistic line of thinking, the fact was that Red Alert wasn't the kind of 'bot to just jump back like that. He was his fragging triplet after all -Sideswipe knew better than anyone (except maybe Sunstreaker) exactly what Red Alert had been like since their bornling orns. Sure, situations could become more commonplace for the white youngling, and strict routines helped ease the orns along, but someone with Red Alert's extensive list of issues just didn't change their entire lifestyle in a couple of orns or less. Not unless something intervened.

Sideswipe was reminded of his brother's most recent prescription, the one that had him acting particularly off the first time he'd taken it. The giggling had ceased, thank Primus for that, but clearly the drug's effect was still in play if it was causing Red Alert to rise two cycles earlier than need be and march off to a school that wouldn't be accessible until a quarter to eight in the morning. Not to mention that the anxious autodog was doubling his food intake, if the extra lunch box was any indication. He didn't like it. Their creators could brush off all the signs and chirp about how excited they were to see Red Alert showing some independency, but Sideswipe was not convinced that his triplet wasn't heading down a dangerous path. Where it led, he couldn't be sure, but his absence in it seemed a guarantee.

"I can't protect him all on my own...," Sideswipe growled to the air, fingers curling into a tight fist, "Slaggit, Sunstreaker, I need you here to help look out for our lil' brother!"

A couple crows took off at his shouting, cawing angrily to the sky at their rest being disturbed. It was the usual reaction to everything Sideswipe had done since the orn his older triplet had been arrested. Cursing under his intakes again, the black youngling hurried the last of the way to the school, hearing the bell ring over the fields.

xXx

"'Righ', so we gotta now sep'rate the veg from the broth, throw 'em out an'...," Inferno peered at the printed instructions closely, trying to read past the smudged ink. "Oh, uh, we gonna put it back on the heat an' cook the res'. Why even take out the veg then?," the german shepherd mused, mouth pursed in confusion.

"Contamination," Red Alert piped up softly from his left. The taller youngling glanced over, watching for a few astroseconds as his partner continued to slice up carrots, celery, tomatoes and onions into equally-sized pieces for the pot, meticulously placing each of them into individual glass bowls alongside their selected seasonings. "The first ones were sitting in with the raw meat; broth can be reboiled at a higher temperature to kill off the bacteria, but the vegetables cannot receive the same treatment without losing their integrity."

"...Ah," Inferno said, pulling the last of the vegetables out of the broth. He tossed them in the trashcan under the counter, setting the pot with its lonesome broth back onto the induction burner as he turned his attention to the chicken next. "Still seems kinda wasteful but Aye guess it makes sense."

"You're going to want to start by segmenting off the limbs," the white mechling advised, adding the seasons one by one to the boiling broth. He leaned over the counter to inspect the pot as he stirred, nodding in contentment, before he started to add the chopped vegetables next, stirring some more after each one.

The german shepherd chuckled kindly, laying the chicken out on a cutting board and pulling out a large knife, missing his companion's initial flinch. "Thanks fo' the heads up, Red, but cuttin' a chicken is one thing Aye know 'ow ta do. Ya like some extra crunch ta yer stew?"

Red Alert look alarmed. "What? No! What's crunchy in chicken soup?"

"Righ', so no cartilage then," Inferno chuckled, segmenting the chicken into pieces. Red Alert gave him another funny look, gathering his cooking supplies and heading for the class sink.

"Please remember to turn down the heat in a minute, so that the pot doesn't boil over or burn at the bottom," he said, taking his unsteady load across the room.

"Sure thing!," the red youngling chirped. He glanced at the pot, but its surface remained flat, so he continued on with his dissecting of the chicken and its meat. As he cut the meat up into portions and then began to tear it into smaller chunks with his fingers and a fork, he imagined what size Red Alert might like his pieces to be in, attempting to mimic the doberman's precise cuts. The smell of their starting-to-bubble soup caused Inferno to pause and cycle an intake deeply, his fuel tanks practically growling at the delicious scent, Never had one of the taller autodog's cooking class meals ever smelled this grand; Red Alert's participation guaranteed them an A on the term report card.

Of course, cooking was not the only thing his friend excelled yet. Inferno had been noticing just how talented the white mechling was over their strengthening friendship the last couple of weeks. Red Alert was a studious sort, soaking in knowledge like a sponge and organizing his thoughts and school notes with a neat, thorough shorthand, whenever his servo touched paper. He never dozed off or got carried away by a daydream during class, always aware of everything that was going on around himself and acting accordingly. His amazing perception of his surroundings had kept the shorter youngling from getting crushed in the hallway madness between classes several times already. And of course, there was his grades- Inferno had snuck a glance at Red Alert's mock exam the other orn during math and was blown away by the perfect score that his friend had gotten on the test. He was even more in awe of the doberman, when he humbly tucked the paper out of sight before anyone else could see, the short-lived smile of pride the only sign of Red Alert's achievement. He hadn't even bragged to Inferno after the class had ended!

These signs only proved how spectacular of a person that the white youngling was. There was absolutely nothing that Red Alert couldn't do; all doors would be open to a 'bot with the kind of skill that the doberman had after he graduated. How lucky the smaller autodog was. Inferno was getting caught up with his thoughts, his tail wagging lightly as he reminisced on Red Alert's finer qualities, that he missed a classmate sneaking up behind him and dropping a lit firecracker into their neglected soup. It exploded the moment the german shepherd turned to give it a stir.

"FIRE!," someone screamed as broth imploded outwards from the pot, the surface grease and vegetables giving a platform for the flames to take hold of and burn higher.

A blur shot across the classroom as it erupted into panic, a stream of foam catching Inferno in the face and across the burning pot. The red youngling nearly swallowed some of the fire foam as he was suddenly yanked by a strong servo; his own fingers blindly shoved under a cold water spray as he was pulled away from the danger zone. Once he could wipe the safety foam from his face without his fingers stinging at the action, Inferno was alarmed to find the smoke clearing around a tense Red Alert: optics staring attentively at the fire blanket draped over the once burning pot, the induction burner power cord dangling free from the outlet, and a dripping fire extinguisher held in readiness by the now-calm and confident white youngling.

"Woah...," the german shepherd vented softly at his friend's change.

"For the ever loving...," the teacher coughed, waving away the last of the smoke as he approached the damaged station, "There's always something going wrong at your station, Inferno!"

"B-but, Aye-"

"Never mind your excuses," the older mech cut in with a groan, "Just... Just go see Miss Glyph about those burns. They appear to be minor -thank Primus- though I'm sure we'll still hear from your momma about this. As for you," the teacher continued, turning to look at the white doberman, who was quickly losing his confidence, "Use of official school fire safety equipment is forbidden except for certified personnel, such as our volunteer fire brigade or Yuss Enforcers."

Inferno opened his mouth to add in another protest as he saw Red Alert sink into himself at the unjust scolding.

"But, I suppose we could let it slide this time," the teacher added unhappily, "Given that you kept the fire from burning down the whole school. Though I wouldn't be surprised if we lose the classroom now... Anyways, to the nurse, with both of you! Everyone, single file out to the field for roll-call while I contact the office about this incident."

Red Alert sprinted immediately for the class door, managing to sweep up both his and Inferno's bag in passing, fidgeting from pede to pede as he waited for his companion. "I-i'm sorry that I couldn't get there sooner," the shorter mechling mumbled in apology as they headed out into the hall before their classmates. "I-is it bad? The burns? Are they still stinging?"

"Aye'm fine, swear," the german shepherd soothed, smiling wryly. "Aye'd've been a lot worse if it weren't fo' yer quick intervention. Aye nev'r seen anyone tackle a dang'r like that so quick an' calm-like 'fore! 'Ow did ya know where everythin' was o' 'ow ta turn the extinguish'r on?"

The doberman blushed brightly at the praise, dropping his helm to his pedes to avoid looking at the taller autodog. "I-i-i-i've just m-memorized t-the placement of a-all emergency kits and all feasible escape routes for e-each room," he stuttered in confession, "A-and t-the instructions a-are displayed cl-clearly on the e-extinguishers. I've r-read up o-on them b-before. Y-you know. R-routine st-stuff."

Inferno shook his helm. "Nah," he vented, missing Red Alert's fists curling tighter into his shirt as he spoke, "That there weren't no 'routine stuff'. That was like watchin' a real life superhero at work. Ya should think 'bout a career in damage control o' safety security o' somethin'! 'Onest!"

The red youngling reached out to pet his companion's helm encouragingly, forgetting about the slight burns on his servos until he'd already made contact with the other's plating. "D-don't!," Red Alert cried out belatedly as the other hissed, yanking away from Inferno's touch and pulling his arm down to inspect the wounds. "You should have soaked your servos for much longer; look at how these burns are oozing! Let's get to the nurse's office quickly so we can have them cleaned and bandaged, then wrap them with some ice to reduce the stinging. No more touching in the meantime!"

"Righ' away, captain," Inferno chuckled weakly as the white autodog took charge again, allowing himself to be hurried along by his impatient companion. "Still meant what Aye said 'bout the superhero thing, though." Red Alert didn't answer but the tips of his ears reddened all the same, bringing another goofy -if pained- grin to the german shepherd's face.

xXx

The news of the fire had spread by the time lunch rolled around.

"Red!"

Sideswipe ran around the corner, grabbing his triplet the moment he spotted him and crushing him tightly in his embrace. Red Alert squirmed to try and relieve some of the pressure, grunting as the black doberman finally dropped him back to his pedes. "Are you okay? Where are you injured?," the taller youngling demanded, searching the white autodog's frame with both his optics and his servos.

"I-i'm fine!," Red Alert squeaked, fighting the urge to swat away his brother's servos, "I-it was just a b-burning pot, at one of the stations. I w-wasn't an-anywhere near it!"

Sideswipe straightened up, scowling at the fact that he couldn't find any injuries on the other's frame. "Then why the slag are you here? You should be in class right now!"

"I-i-i...," the white doberman stuttered, glancing at the nurse's door quickly before he dropped his gaze to his pedes, "I-i wanted t-to c-check on my classmate."

"What?," the black youngling growled. "Red, these 'bots... they're not your friends! They're just a bunch of back-water, close-minded conservatives. They can't be bothered to look at us in the grocery store without curling their self-righteous upper lip components! These are the last type of 'bots that you should by building ties with."

"B-but-"

"No, no 'buts'!," Sideswipe yelled, grabbing his triplet's arm, "You haven't been yourself in orns. Ever since we've moved and you got stuck with that stupid quack, you haven't been the same. You're disappearing early in the mornings, taking off without me after school, not keeping me updated on your activities -none of this is the Red Alert I know and I'm sick of it! I'm not going to let you endanger yourself and I'm definitely not going to let you get caught up with one of these Yussian morons!"

He gave the smaller autodog a hard shake when he tried to wriggle free, ignorant of the whimper his brother gave. "I don't care if mom and dad got their helms so far up their afts that they can't see when you are clearly in trouble but I haven't been with you through thick and thin just to watch you self-destruct. You're walking home with me tonight and we're getting back to the routine that you've been synced into for the last few stellar cycles. No arguing!"

Sideswipe pulled away from Red Alert long enough to notice that the white youngling's intakes were cycling in rapid bursts, optics a blaring white and shined with coolant, the little antenna next to his ears sparking as the other mechling spiraled into hysterics. The black doberman's scowl deepened at the sight, pulling the trembling triplet back to the wall and forcing him to sit on the floor. "See, Red Alert," he mumbled, a touch contrite, "This is what I mean. You need someone to hold your servo all the time; you can't do anything on your own. Now how am I supposed to help you when you've started running off to who knows where?"

The shorter autodog couldn't hold an intake in long enough to reply to his brother's cutting words. Setting a water bottle in the white doberman's servos, Sideswipe mumbled that he needed to return to class, and that he'd collect his triplet promptly after school, before he abandoned the other student where he sat. Swallowing a sob, Red Alert curled into his shaking knees, missing the click of the nurse's office door as it opened.

"...Red?," came the worrisome whisper.

Red Alert flinched, glancing away as Inferno crouched to be level with him, burying his face again in haste to hide his shameful appearance from his friend. He never wanted the german shepherd to see him like this! Now he was surely going to lose the other youngling's friendship and he would never again be held close to such a kind spark and-

Warm arms wrapped the trembling doberman, pulling him into the red autodog's embrace before he could even formulate what was happening, let alone protest. A hiccup escaping him, Red Alert curled deeper into Inferno's hug, clutching at the taller autodog as if he was his only means of survival. "Aye heard 'im, Red... Sayin' th'se awful things ta ya... Why do ya let that black mechling hurt ya?," the german shepherd asked, pulling back enough so that he could look in his friend's optics.

The white doberman wanted nothing more than to shrivel up beneath such a grave expression. "I-i-i... H-he's m-my brother," he confessed, to Inferno's obvious horror, "H-he's no-not wrong though... I-i... I sh-shouldn't h-have-"

"Shouldn't, nothin'!," the red youngling barked. "Same energ'n, o' not, it ain't righ' that anybody be treatin' ya like that, Red! Tellin' ya what ta do an' when ta do it, who ya can be 'round... Yer an amazin', thoughtful, talent'd individual," Inferno proclaimed, hugging Red Alert close again, "Aye won't stand by an' watch anybody -family o' oth'r- try ta stamp out yer beautiful spark! An' ya can res' assur'd that Aye'll be there ta support ya no matt'r what."

He was crying again, but not because of the terror or the self-worthliness, it was because no one -not Sideswipe, not his creators- had ever made him feel as if he was his own person, with his own wants and needs. Snuggling closer, Red Alert buried his face into Inferno's warm collar strut, cycling in the german shepherd's scent deeply, feeling his frazzled sensory net begin to soothe with every intake.

"'Ey...," came the taller autodog's gentle vocalizer.

The white youngling reluctantly pulled away, wiping his messy face with his shirt sleeves before he faced his friend. "Y-yes...?," he asked hoarsely.

"Can Aye see yer phone?," Inferno inquired.

A pang of fear went through Red Alert before he was able to fully squash it; his servos shaking as he reached into his pocket for his cellular, unlocking it and holding it out for the red youngling to take. Inferno did so, wincing a little as his freshly bandaged fingers tried to both cradle the phone and tap at the touch screen, unaware of how his companion gnawed away at his own fingertips, anxiously awaiting the return of his personal property. A few astroseconds later and the german shepherd was handing the device back with a warm smile.

"There ya go: ya now have my number. An' ya can call me o' text, whenev'r ya want, Red. No limits, Aye promise."

The doberman stiffened in surprise, neck cables tightening around his vocalizer as he threatened to burst into tears a third time. "T-thank yo-you," he wheezed weakly.

"Well," Inferno smiled sadly, "Aye know Aye can't do much about yer brother demandin' ta walk ya home all the time 'gain, but leas' Aye'll be able ta check in on ya wit'out 'is busy olfactory sensor buttin' in. An' we'll still be able ta hang out durin' class."

Red Alert didn't say anything; just threw himself back into his companion's embrace, until Inferno nudged him several kliks later, stating that they had a class to get to themselves. Even after the white youngling was made to let go, he clutched his cell close to his spark, staring at the ten new digits glowing brightly from his contact list, breaking out into a joyful smile.