Everything was normal 24 hours ago. At least as normal as it could get on an island filled with unpredictable technology.
The Training Center was silent and empty, save for Heatwave, who sat at his desk, filling out stacks of paperwork and cataloging reports to Optimus.
Nothing but the sound of rustling and crumbling paper filled the room, and it was slowly driving him mad.
As much as he disliked the team splitting up at first, he had to admit it was a nice change of pace. Sure, he had twice as much work as before and an ungodly amount of paperwork to fill out, but there were no obnoxious noises. No constant blaring alarms. No distractions.
Still, he would've given just about anything to hear Chase read his police manuals aloud; Blades recite corny pop culture references, or Blurr blast what he liked to call hisEarth Noiseright now. Maybe not that last one, but the point was he wanted his team back together.
A knock on his door broke his concentration, and he shifted his strained optics to see Quickshadow walking up to him with a stack of papers, likely a report on the Scrubber tech being developed in Faxian.Great.
"Thanks." his voice was understandably raspy, given that he hadn't uttered a single word in over 5 hours.
"I'm heading to the training arena; care to join me?" she glanced back at him from the doorway, a faint smirk on her dermas.
Heatwave considered her offer for a moment before getting up and following her out the door. He needed a break anyway.
They'd been in one of the many gymnasiums at the Mainland Training Center, sparring as usual.
Their banter went back and forth, each insult accompanied by a punch or kick.
Heatwave aimed to strike her shoulder pad, but Quickshadow twisted out of the way and countered with a punch to his mid-torso, briefly knocking the air out of him.
He staggered backward to catch his breath and looked back to see Quickshadow closing in on him with the intent of further incapacitating him. But before she could land another hit, he caught her servo mid-air and pulled her frame closer to his, stealing a quick kiss before pinning her to the wall.
Momentarily caught off guard, Quickshadow froze and blankly stared at him, her mouth plates opening and closing with no words coming out.
Heatwave grinned, tainted victory painted across his faceplates. Seeing her all flustered like this counted as a win in his book.
Finally, having regained her composure, she met his stare through half-lidded optics, and a faint smirk tugged at her lip components.He wanted to play dirty? Fine.
Unsettled by her change in attitude, Heatwave studied her faceplates and felt his breath get caught in his throat when her servos started trailing up his windshield towards his neck.
Her sapphires captivated him, so much so that he barely noticed she had him pinned on the ground.
He blinked a few times, processor dizzy from hitting the ground a little too hard.
She sat atop him with one of her signature smirks plastered on her face, and Heatwave rolled his optics at her, not bothering to try to get up.
"I can play dirty, too." she slowly ran her servo across his windshield to prove a point.
Heatwave writhed under her touch and grumbled, annoyed that he'd let her regain the upper hand.
"But you're improving." Her words rang in his processor, drawing a proud smile from him.
"I have a good teacher." He commended, hoping she'd let him off the hook.
Quickshadow rolled her optics. "Can't say the same about my pupil." she teased.
"Hmm, degrading your own student?" Heatwave scoffed, acting offended. "I oughta report you to the head administrator."
"Shut up." She held back a string of laughter and lightly punched his shoulder pad.
"Make me." he challenged.
Neither of them knew how they got to this point in their relationship or whatthis pointwas, to begin with. They didn't know what they were.
Both had a mild attraction to the other since they'd met, but it never went beyond playful flirting and harmless teasing.
They were known to spar with each other as a form to drown their burdens, worries, and frustrations, but one particular match turned into a short makeout session, and nothing was the same.
Their matches gradually became more and morephysicalto the point where they could hardly pass as sparring matches anymore.
Friends with benefitswould've been the best label to describe their relationship, and at some point, that's the only thing they were until their mild attractions started developing into strong feelings for each other.
Most of the team quickly caught on after noticing they spent much more time together and began speculating about their relationship, but it wasn't until an awkward confrontation with Heatwave that they learned that their leader and newest member weren't together, at least not officially.
Heatwave was aware of his growing feelings for the special ops agent but didn't acknowledge them because he didn't know how to approach the subject or even if he should. She was his teammate, after all, and pursuing a more profound relationship seemed too unprofessional.
His teammates encouraged him to tell her how he felt, and when he refused, they tried taking matters into their own hands, going as far as dropping subtle hints in Quickshadow's presence.
In the end, Heatwave and Quickshadow never admitted their feelings, and nothing was ever madeofficial.
Putting a label on what they were seemed overly complicated and felt too restricting, so they agreed to keep whatever they had going on between them simple and nameless. And for a while, things worked out.
Quickshadow stared him down for a few long seconds before slowly inching closer to his face. Her optics never left his, and Heatwave found himself forgetting how to breathe.
Suddenly, an electrical surge ran up her arm, making her freeze mere centimeters from his dermas.
She glanced at her built-in monitor, and Heatwave raised an optic ridge when she promptly excused herself, stating it was urgent.
He had a pretty good idea of what the message contained, and his assumptions proved to be correct when she came back minutes later with a downhearted gaze.
With her mission on Earth coming to an end with the finalizing of the Scrubber tech, it was only a matter of time before she was assigned a new mission and left Griffin Rock. Another reason why they never made their relationship official.
Now he was holding her for what could possibly be the last time, and he regretted not telling her with every ounce of his being.
"When will I see you again?"
He took her servos in his, needing to feel their warmth one last time. His amber optics bore into her sapphires, trying to memorize every shade of blue they held.
Quickshadow didn't respond immediately, doing a few calculations in her head before lifting her shoulder pads in a slight shrug. "I'm not entirely sure. A few months? Maybe a couple of years."
She saw his jaw clench and frowned at his downhearted gaze. "I'll check in whenever I have time." She promised, gently pulling her servos from his grasp and placing them on either side of his face.
Heatwave swallowed the lump in his throat and forced himself to nod. His arms wrapped around her waist, and they stayed like that for a brief moment, savoring each other's touch one last time.
The space bridge whirled to life behind them, notifying them that time was almost up.
Heatwave unconsciously tightened his hold on her as if that would prevent her from leaving.
Letting out an inaudible sigh, Quickshadow wrapped her servos around his neck and pulled his face down to press her dermas against his.
The kiss was longer than usual and left them equally breathless.
She tilted her helm with a saddened smile, and he felt his sparkbeat quicken, knowing time was up.
He reluctantly let go of her waist and felt her servos leave his face.
She gathered herself and started towards the space bridge, deciding to get this over with.
He heard his teammates' voices in his head, telling him it was now or never, and he wanted to tell her. She was still here. There was still time.
He could easily grab her by the servo and stop her or shut down the space bridge altogether. If only his frame would comply.
She took a step, then another. He was watching her walk out of his life, and he stood frozen, unable to lift a digit to stop her.
He took a staggering breath to calm himself. "Quickshadow," he called out, making her stop dead in her tracks.
Heatwave swallowed his nerves and tried to organize his thoughts. He wasn't good with words and hoped he didn't make a fool out of himself.
Spark pounding in its chamber, Quickshadow didn't turn to look at him; she knew what he wanted to say. Half of her begged he'd tell her, but the other half knew she wouldn't leave if he did.
"I.." His last reserves of common sense held him back, and he realized he was being selfish. Her mission was critical to the Autobot cause, and he didn't want to keep her from fulfilling her duties.
As heartbreaking as it was, he had to accept it was too late. He was too late.
Swallowing the hurt, he forced a bittersweet smile and allowed his caring side to surface in the form of caution.
"Be careful..stay safe." It came out more so an order than a plea.
Quickshadow released the breath she was subconsciously holding and continued towards the space bridge. She felt a twinge of disappointment, but she knew this was for the best. She had a job to do.
"Come back to me." his voice was barely above a whisper, but she heard him nonetheless.
Standing just inches away from the swirling portal, she glanced over her shoulder with a faint smile.
"Goodbye, Heatwave."