Time shifted weirdly around them after the announcement had been made. Red had taken off the microphones before they both had been escorted back to the seating area in the room while all sorts of bots began to set up for interviews. At least they were sitting… Ratchet thought.
After a moment, Optimus walked over with another small cube in hand and half of a small sandwich. He was a little surprised to see him offer it to him. "Here," he said.
Ratchet looked up at him slowly taking it. "What's this?"
"Food for you. We skipped lunch and it's going to be a while until we get another break." He replied softly.
Ratchet nodded going ahead and taking a bite out of the sandwich. "Where's yours?" He asked.
Optimus looked over at him a little confused.
Ratchet rolled his optics. "I hope you don't expect me to just accept you skipping meals either. You need to eat too."
"I'm fine," Optimus replied.
"Red packed biscuits and he's in the other room. Go eat one before I turn into a nagging medic," Ratchet replied, taking another bite of the sandwich.
Optimus paused to look at him again. Ratchet raised an optic ridge before Optimus reluctantly got up, disappearing through the door where Red was at.
Ratchet sipped on his energon, just fine where he was at as the bots around him busied themselves getting set up with cameras and microphones and running sound checks. At least that's what he assumed they were doing.
Optimus had reverted to being cool and calm, bordering on cold and calculating the moment they stepped out of the car… It unsettled him, it was like seeing him all dressed up for the cameras for the first time brought out a new mech. There wasn't any hint of the warmth he had shown Ratchet the past few days… It was like the mech he he had had coffee with hours earlier was gone. From his body language to his speech patterns, and even the way he carried himself.
It wasn't long before Red sent him an internal comm telling him that he made sure Optimus was taken care of before he had walked back into the room and taken his place back beside him.
"We're on in 2!" Someone called as the first interviewer stepped up, introducing themselves. She was a minty green Iaconian and she was holding a small stack of small cards, presumably with notes of questions she was going to ask.
"Hi there, my name is Velocity," she said with a wide grin. "Thank you so much for this opportunity. It's an honor, really sir. Getting a glimpse into the Prime's life is such a rarity. Sentinel was always very private, you know," she chuckled.
"Yes, he always did like keeping to himself," Optimus replied. "I'm hoping to be a bit more open with the public than he was. I feel this is a good first step."
"That's exciting to hear!" She replied. "Our studio is always open for you."
Optimus chuckled at this, watching the small timer that had been set up for them as it ticked down. Velocity sat up a little straighter on the other seat and smiled at the camera. The internal comm blinked a message across his vision.
/Elita: Ratchet, I'm watching the broadcast from another room in the castle. I'm going to guide you when necessary. Remember to stay calm and answer with only what is asked. Leave the details to Optimus. You just have to sell it. Make them see you care about him./
/Ratchet: I understand. Thanks./
"Going live, in 5…4…3…2…" the cameramech counted before giving her the cue.
"Hello Cybertron, my name is Velocity from Rivet Studios here to bring you the riveting facts from riveting sources. I'm here live in the Prime's Palace sitting with recently crowned Optimus Prime and his newly betrothed, Senator Ratchet. We're all very excited to hear the news of your engagement and might I add, congratulations!" She chuckled. "This really seemed to come out of nowhere, so we have to know how long this has been going on?"
Ratchet chuckled. "It's been a little while actually… I can't really account for how long," he replied.
Optimus nodded. "I can't seem to recall either…" he said going along with it. "We've never really been all that big on having a set date or having an anniversary. Both of us, I think we can all agree, are far too busy to really have that."
"Either way, no one could help you figure that date out. I cannot stress how blindsiding this big announcement was. It was only just recently that people noticed an absence from the both of you, why did you seem to disappear?"
"We wanted a bit of quiet before we announced anything," Optimus replied. "It was inevitable that there were going to be all kinds of things to do when we did announce it and there are other things to attend to like getting some plans together and helping Ratchet move in, it didn't feel fair to try and balance all of that alongside work, so we just took a break from the work and duties of our positions."
She nodded, smiling as he spoke. "Perfectly sensible thing to do. People are already talking about how sweet that proposal was you know. Sentinel didn't seem to happy about you changing up a few words."
"Ratchet isn't mine, he's my equal. I wanted to express that," he replied smoothly.
She chuckled softly. "I see. Ratchet, you didn't seem all too surprised with the proposal or very overwhelmed, so I'm guessing you were in on it," she replied with a small glint flashing across her optics. Ratchet internally cringed. He had forgotten to act surprised earlier…
A message popped up across his internal comm.
/Elita: She may be becoming suspicious. You knew about the proposal ahead of time, yes but I'm sure you wouldn't want anyone to just blindside you with such a life changing question in front of a giant crowd./
Ratchet gave her a small nod trying to follow Elita. "I was in on it, but I didn't see it coming at all the first time," he chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck. "It would have been an asinine idea for him to just pop the question in front of billions without consulting me first."
Velocity looked over at Optimus looking for some extra clarification.
Optimus happily provided of course, building the story up. "My proposal to Ratchet was staged today, yes. Because I proposed to him privately first," he replied. "We both are constantly under the optics of the public. I wanted something that was just the two of us."
"Oh that's sweet," she chuckled. "What did that look like for you Ratchet?"
Ratchet hummed faintly. He was a new player to this game of cat and mouse so it made sense he was being picked on. Half-truths…start with a half-truth build on what you would remember. "He surprised me with a very nice dinner, he had some recipes from Crystal City that reminded me of home, and he made it himself. We drank some very nice wine, ate, watched the sunset, and we took a little walk around the garden. He was being more attentive than usual and after a little bit he took my hand and proposed," he chuckled. "I was a little shocked. For a moment I thought that perhaps I had had too much wine," Ratchet replied with a chuckle. "After I said yes we went back and we had a piece of cake."
"Oh, that's actually really sweet," she replied with a small smile. "Very peaceful and not at all over the top. I would have expected something more grand from a Prime…"
/Elita: Now's a chance to really sell it, stick up for him./
/Ratchet: Stick up for him?/ he questioned her.
/Elita: Just trust me. Make sure you come off as just a little defensive. People will see it as sweet./
Ratchet turned a bit of a frown at Velocity. "I wouldn't have wanted anything over the top. The way Optimus proposed was thoughtful and intimate and I wouldn't have changed anything. He knows what I like."
"Oh come on, dinner? That it? Obviously you didn't go out anywhere," she pointed out.
"He cooked it himself. It was just the two of us and that's part of why it was so nice," he chuckled. "It was something that was meaningful to both of us. I don't really care what it sounds like from the outside, it was romantic," Ratchet said, glancing over at him, making his optics softer. In his mind he reminded himself that if he didn't convince the public this was real then he could kiss everything he worked for goodbye.
Velocity chuckled looking over to Optimus as if to challenge this. "So the real proposal was hidden from the public, is this going to be a consistent thing with the two of you?"
"Caring about someone is understanding their boundaries, emotions, and interests. Yes, Ratchet and I are public figures but not everything about us has to be public too. We feel like keeping special moments between the two of us adds another layer of intimacy. It's why I didn't propose to Ratchet publically and it is why we're also not having a sparkmerge for our ceremony," he replied coldly, reaching over and gently taking a hold of Ratchet's servo.
Everyone in the room seemed taken back. Velocity's optics went a little wide and soft whispers started up around them.
"Is that so," Velocity said tilting her helm, her smile stuttering.
"It is," Ratchet replied, trying to control the urge to rip his hand away from Optimus. It's just for show, he reminded himself.
"We want to enjoy our lives just like anyone," Optimus replied. "We simply want to enjoy that moment privately. I for one think it's very reasonable for us to want that."
Velocity paused for a moment, her face slipping a little bit as she tried to come up with something else. "Don't we all," she chuckled awkwardly shuffling through her cards again.
The interview went on and on, Ratchet revolted at the sheer number of questions she had for them. What their home life was like. What they were waiting for in the future. Did they want children? Etc. It was mind numbing but also somehow nauseating. His patience with this was beginning to wear thin.
He felt himself fade into the background as Optimus took care of the majority of her subtle attacks to try and uncover their secret none-sided love.
"Am I boring you Ratchet?" Velocity chuckled. Ratchet came racing back to the present from his thoughts.
He blinked at her tiredly. "I'm afraid you are," he replied without really thinking about it.
She blinked at this.
/Elita: I advise you to think carefully about your next words-/
Ratchet sighed. "This feels like you're seeing me more as a housewife. The questions you have for me is essentially how I plan to fulfill that role. Is that your assumption? That I'm going to turn into being a housewife, serve Optimus, have his children, and settle?" He asked her, tilting his helm.
She chuckled nervously. "Well, traditionally that is was a Prime's conjux falls into-"
"I am more than who I bond to," he replied, interrupting her again, careful to keep his tone and volume even. More subtle correction rather than scolding. "If you or anyone thinks that I won't continue my work outside the Senate then you are sorely mistaken," he replied with an optic roll. "I don't intend to let anyone forget that I'm extremely capable. I have been before, and I will continue to be after I bond to Optimus," he shrugged, his optics no longer soft. He had a hard unamused look at the mere suggestion. He closed them and took a small breath reminding himself. Sell this or the dream. "I care for Optimus, but he's fully aware that if he wanted a housewife he shouldn't have picked me," he chuckled, cracking a small smile, leaning back a little bit.
"Hmm, you sure like a fiery attitude, Optimus," Velocity replied.
Optimus shrugged. "I cannot deny this. Servitude and meekness bore me," he replied bluntly. "I rather enjoy that Ratchet isn't afraid to speak his mind with me or anyone for that matter. He keeps my life interesting," he smiled.
Velocity laughed forcibly, most of her avenues to uncover them sealed away. "Well there you have it folks, this is going to wrap up my segment on Cybertron's newest power couple. We'll cut to commercial and we'll be back with more riveting facts from the coverage of the protests going on in Kaon."
A beat of silence passed before the camera mech announced. "We're off."
Ratchet sighed, stretching, his cables complaining. People around him began moving to do something or other and Optimus was starting to stand up. Red rushed towards him with a clipboard in hand and began chattering away to where they needed to be next.