The hardest part about my college life used to be keeping moody and unpredictable cars (ranging from inconceivably beautiful for a freshman's salary to downright intimidating) from doing something that they normally did- something dangerous, unpredictable, or downright obvious.
Now?
I was trying to keep people from thinking I had joined part of a military cult.
It had been hard, after Ironhide and Optimus had shown up to warn me about a possible invasion on the Eastern Seaboard (false alarm) two years ago, especially once Sharksky and Fassbinder, who already thought the Man had twisted Leo and mine's brains into believing Giza didn't happen, had gotten a load of their holoforms. Even as humans, the Autobots just screamed military- not really their fault, seeing as they pretty much hung out with only NEST and humans with high enough clearance. 'Bee was the only one who could ever really blend in. And now?
I had Leo muttering panicked curses in Spanish over my shoulder every time he looked up and saw them, I had eight fully-grown military-style guys (and one super-tough femme) with bulging biceps and blazing blue eyes standing around my parents and girlfriend like a bunch of supernatural body guards, and I had the realization that God only knew how they had parked.
And I absolutely could not find it in myself to care.
Because hell, it was graduation, and hell, they were here for me- all of them, when they could be out patrolling the continent or whatever Will had them doing in their spare time. And, honestly…I had missed them. A lot. And that they, giant Autonomous Robotic Organisms from the planet Cybertron and all-around kick-ass defenders of the universe, had seen it fit to come to my graduation…it meant a lot. It really did. Even if Leo was radiating a what-the-hell-do-you-think-they're-doing urgency, and I could practically feel a call from Morshower coming on- though they had probably dealt with that already. And honestly, I was way too excited to give a damn about the world at the moment.
Other than that, it was pretty much smooth sailing. We awaited the dean's long and proud talk about who we were going to be in a few years (though half of us didn't know where we were going to live after she kicked us out of our dorms), about our remarkable achievements and honor brought to the school (if you call creaming Pennsylvania State in a beer pong tournament, I guess so) and about how she would be proud to see us back here someday to continue offering financial support to the school (…really?)
All in all, it was a pretty good speech, and I couldn't deny that living here had been the time of my life…excluding when Alice blew up the library and tried to strangle me. And in a way, I kind of felt really sad about leaving. But I had to go out and face the world sometime, preferably now, while it was still alien-invasion free.
At the very end of her speech, we were presented by the speaker; Class of 2013, and a massive cheer went up from everyone on the stage. I joined in shamelessly. After that, we all threw our fake diplomas up into the air- seeing as we were expressively forbidden to ruin our grad uniforms. Some lucky shot on the left side of the stage hurled his across the aisle and knocked Leo's cap clean off. He swore at me in Spanish- again-when I laughed.
I looked up then, right as the cheering began to fade, at my mom, who was now sobbing without control on Optimus; my dad, who looked close to tears; and Mikaela, whose eyes were shining so bright a blue I could see her from here. She looked so proud. She looked like an angel.
"And now, as our school has done for centuries, we will go out and parade on the streets to our anthem…"
The groan of us seasoned seniors was lost on the loud crowd, we who had been tortured to listen to that annoying tune for the past four years.
The dean gave the signal. The sound guy hit a button on his board, and the speakers that had been set up around the stage and on the branches of the oaks- too many to count- blared to life.
"Yahoo! This is your celebration. Yahoo! This is your celebration…"
An uproarious laughter rippled out among us grads; I turned around in confusion to Leo, whose jaw had dropped in shock.
"No es mio, dude." he said severely, dark eyes wild.
Bewildered, I turned to look back out into the crowd. Bumblebee had a way to cocky grin on his face.
"Ce-le-brate good times, c'mon!"
I didn't have the heart to glare at him.
Before the dean could get us under control, while the sound man panicked in the corner, we followed our cue from the speaker lady to get up and filed down the stairs set up in the middle of the stage and down the broad aisle among the hundreds of white seats in the courtyard.
"That's my BOY!" yelled my mom, shoving through the few and unfortunate people who were, by some cruel twist of fate, caught in between her and me. She slammed into me full-force, knocking the very breath out of my lungs and crushing my face- in front of everyone.
"C'mon, mom." I muttered, hugging her lightly back, fully conscious of Ironhide snickering and Jolt grinning evilly while Skids and Mudflap said things I was glad mom, in all her hysteria, couldn't hear.
"We-are-so-proud-of-you!" she sniffed, pulling back and grabbing my face and shaking it with every word, gasping them between sobs.
"I know-I know Mom." I said, trying to detangle myself from her. "Be careful, or you're going to suffocate me before I even get my first job."
"That's physically impossible." said Ratchet dryly, over Mom's head. "Not at the rate she is holding you."
I could only roll my eyes in is direction before my Dad came in and saved the day.
"Judy, that's enough." he growled, prying her off me carefully. "Let the man breathe." Mom just nodded pathetically and pulled a handkerchief out of her bag and put her head down as she blew her nose.
"We're very proud of you, son." said my dad, one arm around my mom, trying to sound tough and nodding slowly. "First Witwicky to ever cross that stage and…and…"
"Yeah okay Dad, thanks." I said, patting him roughly on the shoulder. As I passed. "Love you too."
I could have sworn he muttered something about 'saving the world crap driving him sentimental.'
"Oh look, it's that nice man Leo." I heard mom say from somewhere behind me, and unable to help glancing around, I saw that she was obviously looking for an excuse to get away and get a hold of herself, and Leo, who was obviously trying very hard not to be seen, duck back quickly into the crowd. "Leo? LEO!"
"Judy-!" Remembering what happened last time my mom was alone on this campus, my dad went after her. I almost missed it when Jolt went after them casually.
"You planned this?" I asked Bee is disbelief, gesturing at everybody clustered around us. He beamed and nodded earnestly.
"It was his big surprise." Mikaela said from beside me.
"Congratulations, Sam." rumbled Optimus. Wow, I had missed his voice. "We are all very proud of you."
"Yeah, he's a degree!" chimed in Mudlfap.
"He has a degree, dumbass." drawled Sideswipe sarcastically. He winked at me when I caught his eye. "Way to go, kid." His holoform was so intimidating, I could only nod my thanks back.
"Yeah, why you gotta be so stupid?" Skids yelled, punching his brother in the arm.
"How you be call'n me stupid, stupid, we's twins!" the other one barked back, punching Skids, harder.
"You little slagger- you askin' for an ass whoopin?" demanded his brother, and right as they were at each other's throats, Ironhide stepped in.
"That's enough, before I slag both of you." he growled, grabbing the scruff of one twin in each hand. "We're here for Sam, not so you two can show off in public."
"I'll slag 'em for you, Ironhide." said Arcee. At the femme's voice, both twins went stock-still, terror written all over their faces.
"I am not cleaning up Twins from this bacterial-ridden ground." growled Ratchet. "Clear?" Arcee simply smirked and stood by Bee's holoform. Ratchet turned away from the broken-up fray and offered a hand. "Good to see you, Samuel."
"Thanks, Ratch." I could hardly keep from laughing. Okay, I had really missed them.
"Did my…tips on the paper for your mechanics course help?"
I barely held back a snicker. "More than you know, doc."
Ratchet nodded in a self-satisfied sort of way.
"How did you guys get here?" I asked, looking around in disbelief at them all.
"We got dropped at the nearest Air Force base." Ironhide said, standing back with his hands on his hips. "Sorry we were late, though."
"Yeah, what's with that?" I wondered.
"Paperwork." rumbled Optimus.
"So Morshower knows that you're here?"
"Will got through to him after weeks of begging." Arcee said. "Bumblebee has been planning this day for you for months- he's had the idea for years."
"General Morshower allowed us a civilian visit," Said Optimus. "As long as we had a high-ranking NEST operative to supervise us."
I blinked. Slowly. "And that would be…"
"Epps," said Sideswipe.
"And where exactly is he?"
Thee was a brief pause.
"Paperwork." growled Ironhide.
"We'll only be out here for a while." Arcee said, cocking her hip. "No one will ever know Epps wasn't with us."
"But," I said frowning, "You guys could get into serious trouble, couldn't you?"
Arcee rolled her eyes. "Trust me, Sam, we've been through worse than this."
"Yeah," I said, looking at Optimus. "I remember."
A flicker of expression rolled across his face- amusement? Knowing? Remembering? I tried to read it. "When you see why Sergent Epps had been detained, I doubt you will be so reprimanding, Sam."
I raised my eyebrows at that.
"It's a surprise!" Bee quoted.
I turned on him. "How many of these things do you have planned?" I asked, laughing, a little amused and a little worried. They could get into serious trouble for this! They wouldn't be able to get out of Diego Garcia to visit me till my retirment party.
"This is the last time, I swear." a little girl pleased. Just hearing the voice coming from the cell phone, hidden in Bee's pocket, was disturbing.
"Will you back off!" snapped Mom, coming back into the circle, followed obviously by Dad and quietly by Jolt, and, to my amuesment, dragging my partner-in-crime and roomie himself. "I'm not going to buy anymore brownies this time- I swear- oh Sam!" she said, seeing me again. "We should bring Leo to lunch and the-"
"-Yeah, lunch sounds great." Mikaela said loudly, cutting across my mom. I glanced at her, confused, but her face gave nothing away. Mom, however, looked a little embarrassed.
"That's fine." Leo said, trying to back away from our circle, but freezing once Sideswipe's icy eyes alighted on him. "Um, I think I'll just-"
"But your mother said you've got a tire blown! And you won't be able to go home till the day after tomorrow, so you might as well get some college party experience. I mean c'mon! Live a little, for Christ's sake." She shook out her wavy hair, eyes wide. "God knows you deserve it after the hell you went through in Giza with all those ali-"
I wasn't sure who yelled the loudest, or who yelled it first. But I know I heard "Mom!" and "Judy!" and "Mrs. Witwicky!" all at once, from every single direction. And those were just the human voices. Either way, the noise was loud enough and the sudden movements toward my mom- a warning hand, dad grabbing her arm, everyone tensing up, even Leo- was enough to make her jump back with a look of shock on her face, as if she had just woken up from a nap.
"Well okay!" she exclaimed.
"Judy." growled my dad, rolling his eyes.
"It's okay!" she repeated, trying to make herself sound certain.
"Ma!" I exclaimed, rolling my eyes.
"Mrs. Witwicky, it is prudent that you do not mention that in public." said Optimus calmly, his tone leaving little room for argument.
Between the lines note; the world pretty much knew about the Autobots now, and the Decepticons.
The just didn't know I was involved in it, too.
Or that the nine incredibly buff, incredibly blue-eyed, incredibly cool people I was chatting with now happened to be those said Autobots.
Because that would be bad.
"I believe I have a reservation." chimed in Bee's cell phone then, and that brought the whole conversation back full circle.
"Right, right." chanted mom, still trying to get a hold of herself. "Okay. Yeah, the reservations. Got it. Let's file out!"
After many demands on my part as to where we were going, and many attempts at sneaky exits on Leo's (Mom kept dragging him along whenever he made a bolt for it, but after he met Optimus' gaze, he never tried it again), we finally got down to our next predicament- how to ride there.
Me and Mikaela obviously wanted to go together, and if it was just us, that would be okay. But then there were three plus, and Bumblebee's cab really wasn't meant for five people. But Mom and Dad wanted to ride with me too, and Leo still didn't trust anyone besides Skids and Mudflap to take him anywhere- and there was no way in hell we were letting him alone with those two. Optimus chivalrously volunteered to take him, but seeing as he was our main guard and the one who always got involved in ambushes whenever they came (it was sad that we had to think about that, really), that was out, too. None of them could ride a motorcycle (and I wasn't about to kick Mikaela out of the car, which would be worse than putting her in the back seat). Ratchet's cab didn't have enough room, Jolt's seating had been converted to communication networking computers, and not one of them would go near Sideswipe or Ironhide, so we were basically all stuck with Bumblebee, with me and Mikaela up front and Leo crammed between mom and dad in the back.
…Well, at least I can say it wasn't a quiet car ride.
WHO-HOO! ANOTHER CHAPPIE DOWN!
one more to go, and im workin on it now :)
For the love of god- REVEIW!
and thank you :)