Title: Shade of Life ~ Reaching You ~: Chapter 1
Genre: Romance, Drama, Humor, and Action.
Pairings: Optimus x Adelia (Main), _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ x _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (Main. Will be revealed later on as the story progress.), Barricade x Melanie (Supportive), Sideswipe x Annalisa (Supportive)
Summary: Reaching You is the second part of the Shades of Life trilogy. Sequel to Meeting You, prequel to Holding You, and acts as a main focus of the three. The story involves around Adelia Campbell and her two best friends, Melanie Lee and Annalisa Snow. Their lives were changed forever the night five meteors fell from the sky, and then six giant alien robots showed up on Adelia's neighbor backyard. Somehow, three years later, they found her, claimed she's the All Spark, and told her she's the most important thing for their planet's, and Earth's, survival. She just had to stay away, and alive, from the Decepticons. Easy thing to do, right?

Warnings:
1) This story will be tied in with Dark of the Moon. So SPOILERS ALERT!
2) Hi, Nice to see you all again. I'm LugiaTsuyu. I was from Thailand. So English is not my first language. That's why you will probably find a lot of grammar mistakes and not so smooth writing (such as repeated words and so on). And any comments, criticisms, corrections, and suggestions are greatly appreciated.
3) I am writing this as I go, so yeah. LOL
4) Also, you will probably find a lot of OOCness because I've never watch the Transformers cartoon before, just the three films, so I will apologize about that in advance. So please bear with me and I hope you will like my story. (Even though I am turning an action-packed franchise into romantic drama one.)

Disclaimers: I do not own Transformers, just my original characters, as it belongs to Hasbro, Marvel, and Paramount.

Credit to: I have to give these authors credits. As they were the ones who inspired me to write this story. First to orphan mia, for her incredible 'Strange Creature/. Then to Elexies, for her awesome 'Gateway of the Mind' story. And last but not least, to Ray of Starlight, for her amazing 'The Ties that Bind' series. I really thank you all for giving me the courage to finally written down my imaginations for others to see.

~o~

~o~

Chapter 1: Autobots x Arm Wrestling Contest I

~o~

From the driver's seat of a yellow Camaro, Adelia threw her right arm up in the air with apparent enthusiasm. "Go, Bee! Drive, drive ,drive!"

Bumblebee was more than glad to comply, he revved his engine and sprang towards the base's exit. Adelia's satisfied laughter slowly faded away as the car got further from NEST's secret headquarter.

The remaining Autobots, soldiers, and Sam stood silently for a few more seconds, then almost everyone of them started talking at once as they went back to whatever they were doing before the arrival of 'the alien girl', a title they had came up for Adelia.

"Wow," Lennox said to Sam.

The boy didn't even pretend not to understand. "Uh-hah, that's Adelia for you."

Couple minutes ago, when Adelia fell to her knees on the ground, they thought she was going to faint. But what did the girl do? She let out another, "YEEESS!" and bounced herself back up.

'So it means that you need me with you right?' She asked Optimus specifically.

The Autobot leader seemed slightly taken aback, but replied to her calmly. 'Yes. We cannot lose you into the hands of the Decepticons, for that would mean the end of your world.'

'Okay. Then can one of you give me a ride to my house, well it's Anna's actually, so I can pack my stuff and bring them here?'

When they only gave her puzzled look, Adelia raised her brows. 'Wouldn't it be easier for all of you if I stay here?'

'It would, yes.' Optimus nodded at Bumblebee, and the youngest Autobot instantly transformed himself back to a yellow vehicle.

Adelia eagerly opened the car door and got inside, then poked her head out of the window to say, "I'll be gone for two hours top. So feel free to miss me!"

Aaaaand...that's how they ended up at this moment.

"Has she always been that fascinated by extraterrestrial beings like us?" Ratchet had to ask.

"Nope. She hates E.T. I kind of understand her on that one. E.T. looks more creepy than cute. But she likes robots stuff, you know, movies and anime and comics." Sam shrugged, smiled. "I'll say Adelia is pretty unique."

Sam looked at Optimus, saw the Autobot's leader bewilderment, and wanted to laugh. "Surprised you, didn't she?"

"I was worried about how she would respond. And that we may have to force her under our protection. But we did not even have to ask." Optimus's relief was quite obvious.

Sam thought of how, back then in a first couple of years in high school, Adelia had been one of a few friends he had, a true friend, before her aunt forced her be homeschooled instead. Adelia had hated that. If her friend, Annalisa, hated to be weak, then Adelia hated to be forced more than anything in the world. However, Adelia's definition of being forced was not the same as other ordinary people, so Sam couldn't be sure of how she would react if they were to do that to her.

But they would never know, would they? Because she had been more than willing to stay with the Autobots.

Which, Sam admitted, scared him a little. As nice and friendly as Adelia was, she rarely do things that she or those close—and he meant really close—to her didn't benefit from it.

Well, guessed he just had to wait and find out, right?

Sam was brought back to the present when he heard Optimus asked, "How is Mikeala?"

"She's great. She just got a job helping this CEO guy run his exotic cars collection at Hotchkiss Gould Investments place." Sam answered proudly.

After he, and Leo, decided to attend a university in Washington D.C., Sam requested—and begged—Mikeala to come with him and, to his astonishment, she finally agreed. She now rented an apartment five minutes away from his campus. He spent most of his time living there with her, which left Leo happy as a clam at hide tide. Because his Hispanic friend basically had the dorm all to himself.

"I'm looking for a job myself. Just part-time though. But I'm not having any luck so far."

"Things will work out for you, Sam" The Autobot leader encouraged.

"I sure hope. I want to help support her. She's paying for all the rent and food and that makes me feel horrible." The boy's shoulders sagged.

"I am certain she understands."

"That's the worst part! She doesn't expect me to be dependable!" Temper suddenly heated up, Sam stalked off to end the conversation.

Optimus gazed after the boy with a small concern when the silver Autobot came up behind him.

"So what do we do from here, Optimus?" Sideswipe inquired.

"Seeing how cooperative Adelia Campbell is, I assumed we can continue the way we are, Sideswipe. Assisting the humans with their conflicts and defending them from the Decepticons." And mankind itself.

What all the Autobots understood without a word from Optimus was, they needed to be more cautious from now on, making it a priority that no harm would come to the girl, their All Spark.

~o~

~o~

Adelia got back to the base exactly one hour and fifty-seven minutes later. With a luggage in one hand, small suitcase in another, and a medium sized bag on her shoulders, she had successfully moved in with the Autobots...and a few—okay, a lot—of trained soldiers.

Sam had left with the yellow bot two minutes ago, though she heard that Bumblebee will be back after dropping the boy off at his girlfriend's apartment.

She did feel a little hesitant now, but quickly shoved it in the back of her mind. She would not lose the chance to spend time with him, er, them. How cool was it to get to live with the robots from space? It's priceless!

"That's all you have?" Colonel Lennox pointed to her belongings.

Adelia grinned. "Yes, sir."

"I told you, there's no need to be formal." His voice still had that brotherly feel to it.

"Then can I call you Mr. Lennox instead of Colonel, sir?" Adelia gave him a playful salute.

Lennox couldn't stop himself, he chuckled. This base would certainly become lively with this girl around. "Suit yourself then."

He picked up her luggage and started towards the warehouse's entrance, with Adelia following him closely.

Once inside, Adelia's eyes immediately searched for the blue and red Autobot. He was in the middle of discussing his next mission with Lennox's second in command when she said, "I'm back, Optimus!"

"Welcome back, Adelia" Optimus greeted when he turned and spotted her.

She was about to say something when the NEST commander interrupted with, "I'll show you to your room first. Then you can come back and talk to them later, okay?"

Adelia wanted to groan, but the obedient side of her had always been strong. Giving Optimus a longing puppy eyes, and she thought she caught a slight amusement in his neon blue eyes—or optics, she then went after the tall soldier submissively.

For the next fifteen minutes, Mr. Lennox showed her around the headquarter. First ,they put her belongings in a small bedroom with built-in bathroom on the third floor of the base. It was near the main operation room, so the Autobots could get to her quickly if the situation called for it, which pleased Adelia very much, because she could also see him...er...them, she meant them, from the room's windows.

The NEST commander also expressed his concerns about several matters. Her education was the first he asked about. Adelia shrugged and told him not to worry about it as she's not currently attending any college or university. Nor planned to—but she didn't tell him that.

Next was about her expenses. Although he was sure the government would cover for her food and some other living necessities, but she would probably had to find a way on her own if she wanted to purchase any extra items. Adelia answered him with an easy smile that all she really needed was her kindle, her laptop, and the internet and her life was pretty much completed.

Then he asked about her guardians or relatives. He knew that her parents were gone from her earlier conversation with Sam, but he said he would feel a lot more at ease if he could contact her custodian about her situation—but with a twisted truth, of course, they had to leave the giant alien robots part out of it. It took her longer to reply than any other questions, but she shook her head, stated that she had been taking care of herself—with helps provided by her best friends from time to time— since her parents passed away. So there's no one that needed to be informed about her whereabouts.

Lennox couldn't help but patted the girl's shoulder lightly, and she gave him a small smile to indicate that she was fine.

And last but not least, he talked about protocols—military ones. He assured that most of it did not apply to her. But she needed to know when he and his men might be walking around half-naked—not Lennox's words, and translation: shower time—when the three meals will be served, or what areas might be prohibited at a certain date or time.

He didn't voice it, but Adelia could tell that he was a bit uncomfortable having a teenage girl living with him and his team of rough and tough men. So she soothed his worry by notifying him— it was the truth, by the way—that she intended to be around Optimus twenty-four/seven. And it seemed to work, because the Colonel's brown eyes relaxed instantly.

By the time it was done, she all but ditched Colonel Lennox and ran back to the operating chamber. None of the human soldiers really paid attention to her, as they were all pretty busy with their own duties. But the Autobots had their optics fixed upon her with various expressions shown on their metal faces.

She was about to head towards Optimus when Que suddenly thrust some kind of device in front of her."Do you want to try this?"

She stared at it, confused. "It looks like a human arm."

"Yes!" There was so much excitement in his voice. "I designed this so you humans could be ten times stronger in strength."

That caught Adelia's interest. If she was going to be the key in their war, it's better to prepare herself combat-wise, right?

"Cool, how do I put it on? Oh." She didn't have to put it on, the device simply opened and wrapped itself around her right arm when she pressed a blue button on the back of the hand-like plate.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, kid. It's still a prototype." Ironhide said from ten feet away.

Adelia smiled, randomly moving her fingers to adjust to the feeling of now equipped limb . "Thanks for the warning, Hide."

"HI-HIDE?" Ironhide stuttered, clearly flabbergasted.

Her grin widen. "Isn't it cute? And a lot easier to say, too."

Ignoring a gagging sound from the weapon specialist, she extended her bare arm to the silver Autobot. "And you are Sides."

Sideswipe rubbed his chin in consideration. "Not bad. I like the sound of it."

Not noticing that every soldiers had by then stopped working and now were enjoying her interaction with their giant allies, Adelia beamed up at the silver Cybertronian.

"I know! I thought of it when Bee was driving me to my house, I mean Anna's house." She face fell a little when she looked at the light green 'bot. "I had one for you, you know? It's Ratch, but I don't really like it"

"Thank Primus for that" Ratchet said.

The medic's relief was not long-lived, as Adelia fisted her hands in front of her and vouched. "No worries, though. I'll definitely come up with a better name for you."

Ratchet eyed his leader for help, but then gradually looked away.

Optimus was smiling.

There was only a slight lift in the corner of the large 'bot's mouth, barely detectable, but it was a smile nonetheless.

How long had it been since they'd last seen Optimus's smile or heard his laughter? More than millennia ago, it seemed, since Megatron betrayed them and the war started.

Ratchet refocused on the girl once more, a small hope filled in his spark.

"And Bee already got it from Sam. So that leaves Dino, Que, and Optimus," she sighed. "But Dino sounds normal enough."

Again, she ignored Ironhide's snide comment, "Right, Hide and Sides sound absolutely normal," then continued, "And Que is already one syllable"

She then gazed at the Autobot leader, who was already looking at her. And this time she was certain he's amused. "And I think your name is awesome. Optimus."

"Thank you, Dee." The Autobot leader responded politely.

He was teasing her, Adelia giggled. She didn't know if anyone else was aware of it, but she knew. And she loved it as much as the way he said her nickname.

Optimus didn't know he was capable of such behavior. But watching her with his Autobot comrades had lighten up his long disheartened spark like nothing ever could before. Maybe it was her innocence. Or maybe it was the radiant easy smile she seemed to always wore on her lips that reminded him of Cybertronian sunrise.

They stared optics to eyes, and felt something inside them growing little by little.

Optimus had no idea what the feeling was. But Adelia did. She knew since the first time she saw him. Was she crazy? Probably. Was she weird? No doubt about it. But that night three years ago she knew he would eventually become someone important to her.

It wasn't love. At least not yet. Because she'd never believed in love at first sight. What she felt for him right now was a crush, and a major one.

But Adelia wished. Oh, how she wished this feeling would one day blossomed into love. And she hoped that he would feel the same way.

She really hoped so.

~o~

~o~

Afraid that Adelia had forgotten his creation, Que touched the girl's back softly with his index finger. "Now, don't you want to see how strong you can be using my brilliant invention?"

"Oh, here we go." This time it was Dino who, with his Italian accent, moaned. He liked his partner, but he had to admit that Que's gadgets weren't always smart.

"But how?" She was talking to herself rather than wanting a real answer. Adelia glanced around the base for things that might give her some ideas. It was then that she saw a desk, and a light bulb in her head lit up.

"Autobots Arm Wrestling Contest!" She proclaimed.

"Autobots Arm Wrestling Contest?"All of the Autobots, with the exceptions of Bumblebee, who was currently with Sam, and Optimus, who was the most tranquil among them, repeated after her. But even the Autobot leader was looking at her with inquiry in his optics.

"Yeah! I mean, you guys are basically ten times, a little less I guess, bigger than humans, right? So if I'm ten times stronger wearing this, I should be able to compete with your strength, right?" She paused, tapping her chin in thought. "But if it's a contest, we'll need a winning prize."

"How about a special mission?" One of the bystander soldiers put in to help.

"I'd rather have a vacation!" Another added.

"I will allow the winner to choose his next two missions himself. Is that agreeable as a reward?" Optimus proposed to his comrades.

His subordinates, but he preferred to call them friends, enthusiastically—as much as Cybertronians could be—accepted his offer.

Optimus found it odd that he had never took part in an event like this before. And even more peculiar that he was, more than he let on, looking forward to it.

As soldiers, Autobots and humans alike, they were often retreating or firing at their foes. There was rarely a time that they didn't have to be on alert for the enemies' attacks or malevolence schemes.

But no longer were there just soldiers among them. There was, in this instant, an innocent individual. One who had had a normal and blissful life, a life he and his Cybertronian foes annihilated by bringing their war upon this planet. He would make it absolute that Adelia experienced as much joy as she once had with her family and friends.

His strong urge to see to her happiness had nothing to do with the fact that she was now the All Spark. It mattered to him that she was, yes, as she's the only hope for the survival of his planet and its civilization. But he was the one responsible for her loss, it didn't matter that she did not hold him accountable for what had happened, he could not—would not—forgive himself. And he wanted to do right by her.

He and his comrades were her family now.

And she seemed to have gotten along with all of them well, too, Optimus thought, watching the girl explaining the rules of arm wrestling to the rest of the Autobots.

"We will need a really huge table," Adelia glanced around, and saw one hidden under the indoor balcony. She pointed at it. "Can we use that?"

Dino walked over and picked it up. "It's Que's work table. So I don't see any harm in using this. He destroys it regularly with his so-called inventions anyway."

Que let out a, "Hey!", but didn't protest.

As the red Autobot placed it in the center of the warehouse, NEST soldiers moved to stand near—and above —the table, surrounding it with interest and humor in their eyes. Bets started flying all over.

"I say fifteen for Ironhide!" Surprisingly, or not, Lennox was the first. He just hoped that no government directors would walk in and found them neglecting their duties, or that there would be any emergency coming up.

"I say ten for Dino!" Another shouted.

"Five for Ratchet!"

"Five for Bumblebee!"

"Ten for Sideswipe!"

"My brand-new laptop for Optimus!"

Every eyes and optics in the room turned to Adelia. She faked an innocent grin and said, "What?"

"You are not going to take that back, are you?" Colonel Lennox narrowed his eyes.

Adelia shook her head, determination in her eyes. "I won't."

Then all hell broke loose.

And Que was left half-sparkbroken because nobody betted on him.

~o~

~o~

"Are you certain, Dee?" Optimus inquired, not noticing that he had used her nickname.

All of them were preparing themselves, and waiting for Bumblebee to join, before starting the first match. The soldiers that betted on Ironhide, who the most votes belonged to, were giving him secret tips on how to arm wrestle. Those who had their money on Dino were telling him to embed his bladed elbow to the table. It was almost the same with Ratchet and Sideswipe.

"Of course, Optimus. So you have to win, okay?" She laughed at her own private joke, " My life depends on you now."

"Ironhide is very strong." He quietly stated.

She tilted her head to the side and up at him, "But you are stronger, right? You are their leader."

"I'm only leader because I am," a Prime—he didn't like the sound of it now as he didn't then, "...more composed in dread situations. Otherwise Ratchet or Ironhide could also be suited for the position."

He's very humble, Adelia thought, perhaps too humble. Then she smiled at him. "Well, my laptop, or an escape ticket from Boredom Empire," though she would never be bored with him and the Autobots around, "is in your hands."

He didn't say anything but nodded at her.

"Bumblebee is here!" Sideswipe announced anxiously.

And all of them turned to see a yellow Camaro with racing stripes driving up from the street.

Now, let the battle of pride—and money/Adelia's laptop—begun!

~o~

~o~

Author's Note: Aaaaaand here's Chapter 1! This chapter is quite short. What do you think? A little silly? I think so, too. LOL. Lots of grammar mistakes? I think there are. But I hope you don't have a difficult time understanding it. And I apologize for using the same words repeatedly throughout the chapter. I'll try to improve myself on that.

So who do you thing will win? Ironhide? ('Cause he's all about fighting.) Ratchet? ('Cause he knows Cybertronian body functions better than anyone.) Dino? (He's pretty sneaky with his blades and invisible ability.) Maybe Sideswipe? (He said so himself in ROTF,"Damn, he's good!") Bumblebee? (He had his moments in both ROTF and DOTM.) Or Optimus? (Who, as we all know, kicked asses in all three films, and now has Adelia's life on the line.)

Did I forget someone? Whatever...LOL

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

To trina mase - I'm glad to hear that. I want Adelia to be unique, so that's why I write her character as it is. It's a relief you like her so far.

To Luna636 - How's this chapter? I hope there's less grammar mistake. I'm not sure. But I'm glad you love my story so far. I'll try to improve myself so that you all will not be disappointed.

To sesshomarusmate54 - Thank you! I hope you will still enjoy Reaching You in the future!

See you all in Chapter 2!