It turned out that I was right. There had been something going on that I didn't know about. Just a few days after being gifted my sanctuary, Jazz pulled me aside to let me know how long they'd be gone.

"All of you will be leaving?"

"Almost all," Jazz said. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, we weren't sure yet what the plan would be."

Classified, above my rank unfortunately.

"Well, I know you and Prowl are going," I mumbled, looking at my shoes. It was easier than looking up at the full-bodied mech. "Who's staying?" I looked up again.

"Wheeljack is stayin' to mech the groundbridge."

"He got the thing working already? Wasn't it just last week that he was testing the first prototype?"
"He was quite successful," he told me. "Surprisingly. Guess we'll find out. He's stayin', you're stayin', and Cliffjumper's stayin'."

Cliffjumper. He was easily the mech I knew the least. Of course he was staying.

"So basically all of you are leaving."

Jazz vented and nodded. "Yeah, basically all of us."

They were leaving.

"Will you be coming back?"

"We should only be gone for a week. Two, tops."

"I'm going to be alone here with Wheeljack and Cliffjumper for possibly two weeks? Do you think that's such a good idea?"

"Wheeljack has promised to be on his best behavior, and I doubt you'll have a problem with Cliff."

Oh, like that wasn't a recipe for disaster. I wasn't sure that Wheeljack's 'best behavior' was any more precautionary than his regular behavior.

I wouldn't see anybody else for two weeks. I wouldn't see Jazz, or Prowl. What was I going to do?

It felt like I had been making so much progress with Jazz. I went to the Dungeon at least once a day, mostly by myself, but sometimes I'd ask Jazz to join me. He'd always accept the invitation. Most of those times ended in a steamy make-out sesh that made my toes curl to recall. It was such a good stress reliever. Why hadn't I thought of it sooner?

We hadn't slept together yet. Sex was never something I did so soon in any situationship. Most times, it was because I wanted a clear STD screening from both of us. It wasn't like that here, but at the same time, I didn't want to rush anything. I was enjoying the stage we were at. It was good.

He sure took courting me seriously. I wanted to return the favor to him somehow. I just wasn't sure how yet.

Maybe seven to fourteen days without him will give me some ideas.

"Ah told 'er."

"How did she take it?"

"Better than ah expected," Jazz mused.

Prowl vented and shook his helm. "You really don't give her enough credit, Jazz. Abigail is a strong woman. She is pulling through just fine. Did you expect her to break at the news?"

Jazz didn't reply right away. Had he expected his Abigail to break down after hearing that they were leaving? He had certainly prepared himself for that. Hound's files on human psychology were a big help. He didn't recharge much these days. Any time spent not working, with Prowl, or with Abigail in some way were spent combing through those files. The last thing he wanted to do was somehow cause a bad reaction in her. She was so fragile now.

Jazz didn't want to break her.

"Abigail is going to be fine. The fact that you worry so much about her now concerns me. She has shown that you have nothing to worry about."

"We can't lose her again, Prowler," Jazz mumbled. "Ah can't."

Prowl stared at the mech from across his quarters. Although he could clearly understand his mate's feelings through their bond, he often wondered what brought his mate to those feelings.

"Your spark still pulls for her." A statement, not a question.

Jazz nodded anyway. Before he could look up again, Prowl was right in front of him, reaching out a servo. Jazz quickly pulled him in and wrapped his servos around him in a tight hug.

Spark pulls weren't as common now as they had been before the Great War. All Cybertronians with a spark were capable of getting spark pulls. Those pulls were usually reciprocated by one another. It did not mean that you were perfect for one another, but it meant a love unlike any other.

Jazz's spark had known Prowl was for him not too long after their introduction. But Abigail didn't have a spark for his to pull to. Even Ratchet struggled to fully understand it. No Cybertronian had ever had a spark pull towards a human or organic being before.

It had been what brought him to the medbay the day she arrived. He thought it was pulling him to Prowl, even though it felt like a different pull than usual. He didn't think to question it.

It wasn't until she had been on base for almost a month that he realized his spark was pulling towards her.

Prowl was the first to know. It didn't make any sense to him, his Cybertronian spark pulling towards an organic being, but he didn't question it. If Jazz determined she was the source, he believed him.

When Jazz approached Prowl about courting her the first time, Prowl knew. Jazz wasn't usually one to make rash decisions unless it was certain. He trusted him. Jealousy wasn't a feeling the two of them ever shared. Early on in their relationship, there had been some instances where it was warranted, but it no longer worried either of them.

There was a discussion. Prowl had been okay with Jazz entering another relationship. It wasn't because there was a lack in their relationship. It wasn't uncommon that their species could love more than just one other, as it isn't uncommon for humans. Even though it was never something they pondered for themselves, it didn't feel wrong to accept it in this circumstance. It felt okay.

It felt right. Prowl could feel the way his mate felt for this human. It was acceptable.

"Ah can't lose her again," Jazz mumbled against Prowl's chest plating.

Prowl held him close. "We will not lose her again. She is the most secured human on the planet, and will continue to be even when we are gone. Hound is extending the hologram's radius. Wheeljack and Cliffjumper are staying. Abigail will be waiting for us when we return."

Jazz nodded against him.

"Recharge with her tonight, will you? I'll wake you when it's time to leave."

Jazz and a few others were leaving before the rest of them to secure a makeshift base. Prowl was not leaving until they had it secured.

They had found an Energon deposit on Earth. They needed it, but they weren't sure if the Decepticons had already found it. They were just as desperate. It wasn't the first deposit they had found on this planet, but it was the biggest thus far. It would be a necessary advantage to either side.

It had been hard to work that afternoon. Jazz broke the news to me at lunchtime. Now that I knew what was going on, Ratchet had a whole list of things he wanted done both before they left and after. Wheeljack would help me as needed, but I was in charge of making sure the place didn't catch fire or something.

I really hoped Wheeljack would be on his best behavior. I couldn't imagine myself fighting Autobot-sized fires.

My shift in the medbay that afternoon went by quicker than I imagined. As soon as I was done with my tasks, Ratchet shooed me out. Jazz's holoform met me in the hallway.

"Ya ready for Date Night?" he asked me.

I nodded, taking his outstretched arm. "I'm ready. Let's hit it."

We took a walk outside before dinner. I had been working on marking off a good walking trail, so we walked that for the most part. I showed Jazz all of the areas I wanted to mark later, and smooth out the terrain with the help of someone. I wasn't sure who to ask yet. Leveling out the path mostly involved just having an Autobot walk back and forth along where I want the path, and the terrain slowly softens underneath. Mirage had helped the most thus far, but I wondered if anybot else cared to contribute.

On our walk, Jazz told me that there would be very low communication while they were gone. It didn't surprise me, any communications could compromise the whole thing, but they wouldn't be completely radio silent. That brought me some comfort.

I didn't want him to go, even though I knew he was coming back. Anything could happen.

But I couldn't ask him to stay. I wanted to, but he was an Autobot first and foremost. His Autobot comrades were there for him before I was, and would be there for him long after I'm just a memory.

Thinking of him living on after my demise made me sick to my stomach. Life was so unfair.

"Ya got that existential look on ya face."

"I have a specific existential look?"

"Ya do," Jazz chuckled. "What's on your mind?"

"I think I'm gonna miss you while you're gone," I admitted softly, shuffling my feet. "All of you, but especially you."

"Aw, gonna make me blush."

I nudged his shoulder playfully. "Don't be getting a big head, Jazzy. I'll survive."

He grinned at me. "Ya better, cuz I'm comin' back to ya. We'll be back before ya know it."

I doubted that.

An hour must've gone by after dinner where we just sat with each other in the treehouse. Neither of us said much, and just enjoyed each other's silent company. He had an arm around my shoulders, and I rested my cheek against his shoulder with my eyes closed. Our bodies, even his holoform, matched breaths.

It was no wonder I fell for him the first time. He was unlike anybody I had ever met. They all were.

"Why me?"

"Hm?"

"Of all humans, why me?" I asked him quietly, tracing circles on his thigh.

Jazz hummed again. "Ya didn't really leave me a choice, Sweetspark. Once I knew, I knew."

"How did you know? What did you know?"

"Ya really wanna know?"

"Why else would I ask?" I kissed his jaw. "Why me? How did you know?"

Jazz cleared his throat. "Abigail, do ya know what a 'spark pull' is or what it means?"

A spark pull. It sounded familiar.

"I'll take that as a 'no'. Well, beings with sparks are capable of somethin' called a 'spark pull'. It generally is only known to happen with other spark-bearers. Before I knew it, I could feel my spark pull to you. That's how I knew."

He went into further explanation on 'spark pulls'. It was typically a romantic attraction, though it could also be platonic. It was the closest equivalent they had to soulmates, but not everyone with a spark would experience a spark pull towards another in their lifetime. It was less and less common now. Jazz's spark had pulled towards Prowl, and it had been reciprocated.

"Your spark feels a pull towards me?"

"In a way I'm afraid you can't even imagine."

How frustrating.

He continued. "A spark pull can be satiated, but in the case with you… I dunno if there's a way to safely-"

"Satiated?" I frowned. "Satiated by-? Oh! Sparkmerging?"

"There are many terms for it, but yeah, ya get the idea. Spark-bonding, spark-merging, interfacing- our way of interfacing is similar to yours, but we have differen't parts-"

I waved my hand in the air. "Yeah, Chromia gave me 'the Talk' ages ago." Maybe it wasn't that long ago, but it felt like a lifetime ago. "I'm sorry I can't do those things with you, Jazz."

Jazz shook his head. "Ya have no need to apologize, Abby. It ain't your fault you're human. Somethin' I came to terms with long ago."

I didn't say anything. Again, life was so unfair.

He placed his hand under my chin and lifted it. "Hey, not the existential face again."

"You're gonna make me cry, Jazz, should probably change the subject."

"O' course. How's this?"

It was impossible for me to say no to that kiss. And the many that followed. He was intoxicating.

"I can't believe you're gonna be gone," I whined against him, breathing heavily. "What am I going to do with all this pent-up energy?"

"Better not take it out on Cliff," he growled against me, biting my lower lip. "Don' think Ah could handle it."

"God, I can barely handle you," I moaned. "How did I ever manage two?"

"Prowler's a different flavor," he grinned against my lips.

It was dark out when we walked back to base, hand in hand. I could still hear the sounds of summer bugs and insects, and there were even a few fireflies on our path. Jazz reminded me that because of the secured perimeter, I wasn't confined to the inside of the base while they were gone, but also added that he'd prefer me not go farther than the Dungeon. I agreed with him quietly. Until I got the rest of my paths sorted out, I could easily get lost just wandering about.

When we got back to my quarters, I had an idea.

"This is gonna sound weird, but- uh, have I ever slept with you in your real form?"

Jazz looked like he was about to glitch. "Uh, well, Sweetspark, we talked about-"

"Not like that, but I mean sleeping. Is that a weird question to ask?"

Jazz laughed now. "Ah! I gotcha. Yeah, ya used to enjoy sleepin' on my chest plates. Why do ya ask?"

"Can I sleep with you in your quarters tonight?" I asked him, extending my lower lip in a pout. "Please?"

"Ya act like I can say no to ya."

" 'No' is always an option, but I bet I can be pretty persuasive."

When my watch read eleven at night, I found myself in my new favorite sleeping spot. His chest plates were warm, but not too hot. I laid on my stomach with my cheek pressed against them. I could feel my heartbeat start to level out, my breaths relaxed.

It was no wonder I liked sleeping here. I felt like I was on top of the world.

Jazz stroked a digit against my back, his visor was dimmed. "Atta girl."

"Start sayin' that shit, and see what happens," I mumbled against the warm metal. "Don't you remember how that got me fired up last time?"

He chuckled, making his chest rumble in the most delightful way. "Comfortable?"

"Very."

There was soft jazz music playing in the background. There we laid together in silence, listening to the music, and just enjoying each other's company. Slightly cool air from his vents blew around me, but the blanket I had was enough to keep me from getting chills.

I almost didn't want to fall asleep. I knew that when I did finally wake up, he would already be gone. I'd be waking up in my quarters alone, as I would for at least the next week. It took me everything I had to try to sleep anyway.

They were going to come back. Jazz was going to come back. They had to.