I send my deepest apologies to everyone who has been waiting so patiently for the next update to this story. But lately, I've been suffering from personal problems and it caused my motivation and muse to take a backseat and drift off into nothing, but after reading how much people loved this story and that they have been pleading to me in their reviews to continue, I found the strength to go on. So thank you my loyal fans for sticking with this story and giving me what I needed to go on. But know this, I might end up disappearing again on this story because I have others to work on. So please enjoy those stories too while you wait for the next update. Thank you for your time, your ears, and your understanding. Until then, enjoy!

Chapter 7:

A Believing Heart

As the massive Peterbilt truck drove down the streets towards a destination that only he knew, Jason Clark found himself zoning in and out of thoughts that were almost not his own. Ever since his sister had been involved with the accident and Optimus Prime had offered himself to become their official guardian until Jasmine had recovered from her ordeal, the young man could not help but think that it was a bad idea. Jasmine was hostile towards the vehicle and it left him feeling confused and useless. Just how exactly was Optimus going to convince her that he was her saviour without exposing himself to the world? Jason didn't know, but Optimus was going to have to tell Jasmine soon or else she would never recover from the accident.

Optimus too was lost to his own thoughts as well. While he drove to the very place that he believed he and Jason would not be disturbed, his processor was not completely on the road. His thoughts lingered to what Ratchet asked him the other day about how far he was willing to go to save the life of a young woman he barely even knew and who barely even knew him except by the name of his hologram form. Perhaps he might be able to spend some time with Jasmine if he could just form a friendship with her by using his hologram form to the best of his abilities. But what could he do to make their friendship grow?

"Optimus," said Jason, snapping the Autobot commander from out of his daze, "where exactly are we going anyway?"

If Optimus had his head, he would've smiled. Instead, he pulled out his hologram form that sat beside the young man and stared at him with warm blue eyes. "We are going to a place where my Autobot brethren once gathered after the battle in Mission City, where I sent a message to the stars," he smiled.

"And what place will that be?" Jason asked.

"You will find out," Optimus answered casually, his hologram's eyes focusing back on the road.

Jason nodded and leaned back in the seat, his thoughts returning to Jasmine. He was worried about his sister and he hoped that Optimus had some sort of idea that may be able to help her in her recovery. Since she saw the truck that was Optimus as a possible threat to her, he doubted that Optimus would ever be able to get close to her if he was himself, but maybe... his hologram might be able to stand a chance of getting through to her.

Maybe it might just work, he thought as his gaze shifted over to the world that past right by. He then realised that the scenery had changed when they were driving through a forest. Frowning, he sat up and looked around as the trees flew right by. He was beginning to recognise the place, but he had to be sure if where Optimus was going was really true.

His thoughts were proven true when Optimus pulled up to a familiar lookout. The Peterbilt drove up a small steep hill, dirt kicking up from beneath his tyres as he made his way up. Finally, he came up alongside a massive oak tree and opened up his door to let Jason out.

Jason carefully slid out and Optimus transformed as slowly as he could so that the young man had enough time to step away from him as he shifted his pieces to and fro. As the wheels on his thighs spun around to a grinding halt, Optimus flexed his muscle cables and glanced down at Jason with his noble cobalt optics.

"I'll never get tired of watching your transformation," commented Jason. "It certainly makes you... well, more alien than you appear."

"I admit my transformation is strange," Optimus Prime chuckled as sat down beside the oak tree, legs crossing over each other as he made himself more comfortable. "Even I have a hard time working out what goes where."

Jason laughed and Optimus offered his hand out to him, inviting him to climb on up. The boy did so and set himself on the palm of the Autobot leader. Gently, Optimus lifted Jason up, up until he was levelled with a thick branch on the oak tree that was beside Optimus's shoulder. Jason slid himself onto the branch and stared at Optimus with curious eyes.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked. "I know that it has everything to do with Jasmine. You told me yesterday that she had a seizure while I was gone to get my licence and Ratchet told you that it may happen again in her lifetime. So what are you going to do about trying to help her?"

Optimus was silent for a moment as his optics looked at the morning sun. The sun was already as high as it could go, its rays casting their warm glow across the world it looked down upon the two forms, but it caused the Autobot's metal to warm up faster than the boy's own skin. Optimus wondered how such an incredible planet could produce so much beauty. Back on Cybertron, all there was was darkness with only the two moons orbiting the planet providing some form of light.

He returned his attention to Jason, his optics showing their seriousness about the situation. "Jason," he said softly, "I am not going to lie to you. The situation regarding your sister is serious. Her injuries are beyond repair and she is suffering from brain damage from the accident as well. I cannot even begin to imagine what she is going through for I had never been involved in an accident as serious as that one. She was lucky enough to even survive such an incident, but I have my doubts that if it happens again, she will not survive another moment such as that one."

"Then what do you propose that we do?" Jason asked, leaning forward on the branch. "Dr. Smith said that it could take years for her to mentally recover. The way I see it, it doesn't even look like she will accept you as her gift. She's still traumatized over the loss of Silverflame and I doubt she'll ever get over it."

Optimus sighed and leaned back against the oak tree, his weight causing the tree to bend slightly, but it held its ground. "Honestly, Jason," he said, "I wish I knew."

"Well..." Jason said, pausing for a moment to gather up his thoughts.

Optimus blinked his cobalt optics and looked in the boy's direction, patiently waiting for him to speak.

"Well, I was thinking... you could get close to Jasmine by your hologram form. You told me before with the way she acted towards Tim Primo that she accepted you and allowed you to help her. Maybe you could form a friendship with her and when you think she's ready to see you as the true you, then you can reveal yourself to her."

Optimus frowned at the suggestion. Would it somehow work? If he got close enough to Jasmine without her seeing him as a threat to her life, then perhaps he may be able to help her recover even further if he could just convince her that he meant no harm to her life. But it would also mean that he would have to lie to her about who he really was until the time was right to show his true form to her.

"Are you absolutely sure you want this, Jason?" Optimus asked, his optic covers blinking in the morning sun. "Because once we go through with this plan and Jasmine reacts more hostile towards me, there is no going back."

"Absolutely," Jason answered thoroughly. "I know it means we'd have to lie to her, but I know it will work. Trust me, Optimus, I know it will."

Optimus felt a smile tug at the corner of his lips. For the first time since he had become the twins' guardian, he felt a small ray of hope shine through his spark, burning brighter than any star in the system he had explored during his long life. "Then I pray to Primus that it will work."

Jason nodded, smiling his response as he too felt the small beam of hope light its way into his heart.

"We should go back to your house," Optimus insisted. "Your sister must be worried about you."

"Isn't she always?" the young man chuckled as the Autobot leader offered his hand out to him. Slipping himself into the palm of the gentle giant, Jason was soon lowered back onto the ground and Optimus stood up to his full height. In a quick flurry of moving components the Peterbilt soon replaced the magnificent being that almost seemed to resemble that of a god. The truck then opened up his cab door and Jason climbed back in and strapped himself up.

Starting up his engine once again, Optimus reversed until he was back on the road. He honked his horn twice, and then made his way back into town with one of his charges safely secured.

"Uh," said Jason, getting Optimus's attention. "Just to be on the safe side so that Jazz doesn't get suspicious, do you think you could take me down to the store? We're running out of supplies and I may need to buy some things."

"Oh, of course," Optimus's deep baritone voice laughed.

Jasmine cursed angrily as she threw the pencil at the door of her room. The young woman growled as she rubbed her forehead in frustration, trying to clear her mind. Ever since Jason had left with the truck he had given her, she had been struggling constantly to try and draw the image of the being that had saved her life. Lately, the picture of the being was fading from her memory and it seemed that none of the pictures fit the description of what she remembered from her accident.

Grabbing her head with her good arm and burrowing her nails into her hair to try and rub away the frustration, Jasmine emitted another growl and bared her teeth. Once she had calmed down, she leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, trying to think of what her 'Saviour' looked like. As far as she could tell, the image was as blurry as a malfunctioning television and all she could see was a tall, blue and red figure with kind, cobalt coloured eyes and a strong, proud stance in his body language.

(She had started calling her 'Saviour' a he because of his body shape and appearance.)

Strangely, though, the figure didn't come as clearly as she wanted it to, hence her frustration at herself. Sighing, she decided it was best that she give herself a break from her drawing. She stood up carefully and glanced around the room. Her desk was littered with coloured pencils and paper that had a variety of pictures of what she imagined that the being looked like. The only perfect image that came close to what she saw was the very first one did when she got back home from the hospital.

Shaking her head to try and clear some of the images away for the time being, Jasmine left her room and headed downstairs to fix herself a little something. After she had been drawing all day, she had at least worked up an appetite, even her dried up throat told her about her thirst.

When she made her way into the kitchen, the young woman attempted to make herself some lunch. But it was difficult due to her handicapped state. As she pulled out the butter, ham, cheese, and tomatoes from the fridge, her aching arm often screamed in protest. She quickly told it to kiss her ass as she pulled out some bread from the breadbin and tried to work on her sandwich.

However, because of having a paralysed arm that now lay wrapped up in a sling, Jasmine found it difficult to chop up the ham, the cheese and the tomato. She was almost about to give up and go hungry for the day when she heard a vehicle pulling itself into the driveway.

Frowning suspiciously, she left her work where it was and peeked through the window. Much to her surprise, she spotted Jason and a familiar looking middle-aged man carrying several bags and heading for the door. She recognised the man as Tim Primo and she felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips. Somehow, she felt her frustration at being useless fading away into her head and replacing itself with relief.

Jason and Tim came through the door and placed the bags on the table as Jasmine trotted up to her brother and embraced him with her good arm. Jason hugged her back, obviously relieved to see his sister up.

"Hey, Jason," she greeted him. "I thought you had forgotten about the shopping."

"I nearly did until I remembered I had the shopping list," Jason laughed, blushing a little. "Anyway, look who I bumped into on my way out from the store." He motioned to Tim, who stood beside him, watching them quietly.

Jasmine turned and looked at the man, a smile forming on her lips. "Hello, Tim," she said a little shyly. "I-I never got a chance to say thanks for helping me during my seizure."

"It was nothing," Tim replied, removing his sunglasses and revealing the bluest eyes Jasmine had ever seen. "A friend in need is a good friend indeed. How are you feeling since I last time saw you?"

"Better than ok," Jasmine answered, nodding. "My arm has been troubling me a little bit, but it's not as bad as anyone makes it out to be."

"That's good," Tim replied.

Then Jasmine found herself being pulled away by Jason. She was surprised to see a look of concern in his brown eyes. "Jasmine, were you trying to make yourself some lunch?" he asked.

"Yeah," Jasmine said. "But it's been difficult with this bad arm."

"You could've just waited for me to get home and I would've fixed you something in a matter of minutes."

"No, I can do it," Jasmine protested, frowning at her brother's offer. "Besides, I was doing just fine until you got home."

"Perhaps," said Tim, stepping in, "I can make you your food, Jasmine. I know how much you love those sandwiches. It seemed that the pancakes I made you yesterday made you feel a little bit better."

Jasmine opened her mouth in an attempt to give off a nasty comment, but quickly shut her mouth when she realised that Tim was only trying to help her make things easier for her. She frowned before nodding. While secretly she wanted to do it herself, she had to admit it that Tim's cooking tasted a whole lot better than Jason's, not that Jason was a bad cooker or anything. It's just that her tastebuds were warming up to the fact of Tim's own cooking. Would it hurt her brother if she told him that Tim's cooking was better than his?

But before she could ask, Jason had pulled her towards the shopping bags and was shoving one of them into her chest. "While we wait for Tim to make you a sandwich, Jazz, how about you help me put this shopping away, eh?"

Jasmine laughed, somehow forgetting about the growing argument that nearly took place between her and her brother. She placed the bag back down on the table and started rummaging through it. Once she found the supposed items, she started putting them away into their correct places. By the time she and her brother had finished, Tim had already dished up the sandwich and had placed it onto the table at the left end.

"Hope this is the one that you like best," said Tim.

Jasmine looked at the sandwich. She blinked her eyes in surprise. It was not just perfectly well cut into rectangles, but it was also neatly arranged into the way she liked it: cheese on the bottom, tomatoes in the middle, and the ham directly on the top. She felt her tastebuds kick into action and she could not help but let a little drool slide onto the corner of her mouth. She came back to her senses when she felt a napkin wipe her mouth.

Shocked and surprised by the touch, she jumped back nervously, surprised to see Tim laughing at her reaction as she touched the spot where he had just cleaned her face. Jason was laughing too and she found it a bit embarrassing that a man older than her or her brother would wipe her face like her father did when she was a baby. She looked away, cheeks flushing a bright reddish pink.

"I apologise if I startled you, Jasmine," Tim said once he had regained control over himself. "But obviously you weren't going to clean yourself up and no one else was either. So I thought I should be the one to do so."

"Uh, thanks, I guess," Jasmine answered quietly, still shocked at the gentle touch of the man.

"Go on and sit down and eat up," Tim chuckled. "Jason and I will be in the lounge room talking."

Jasmine nodded as Tim walked up beside the young man and led him away into the lounge. As Jasmine bit into her sandwich, her thoughts somehow started to swirl with curiosity at the man called Tim. She had now met him twice and already she was beginning to feel her hostile nature fading away into nothing. But she was still sceptical about him, wondering why he would go all the way through just to help her out. Wherever Jason went, Tim was always nearby. And wherever Tim went, the truck was never too far behind either.

It was almost as if the truck and Tim were more connected to each other than she realised. She shook the thought off and continued to eat, but her thoughts of the blue and red truck was never far from her mind. Somehow, both Tim and the truck were oddly familiar, but she could not quite put her finger on it. Pushing the thought aside, she went on chewing on her lunch.

Once they believed they were out of earshot, Jason sat himself down in the soft couch while Tim set himself on the opposite side of the room. The hologram form of the Autobot commander was very impressed with how neat and tidy it was and he certainly could not believe the fact that it was free of dust and other things he usually detected whenever he visited Sam's house to check up on him and Bumblebee.

"Your home is a lot better than I imagined it to be," he said to the young man, smiling as he adjusted his sunglasses. "I have never seen such a tidy house like this before."

"Well," said Jason, "Jasmine is allergic to dust, so we have to get it tidied once a week by hiring by a professional. Ever since our parents died, we've been struggling with having to pay our bills. Before you came along, Silverflame was the last gift our dad gave to Jasmine. She'd treasure it like a mother treasures her child, often talking to it whenever she believes I'm not around. She loved that truck so much that she even started to believe that our dad's spirit possessed it."

"You humans have an odd way of thinking," said Optimus, his hologram head nodding.

"Yeah," agreed Jason. "I thought it was odd too, but I got used to it. She still thinks I don't understand, but deep down, I actually do. Silverflame meant everything to her. That's why she's so devastated over the loss. It was her whole world."

"I think I can understand why she is so hostile towards my truck form," replied Optimus. "She thinks I'm replacing Silverflame. I've got to convince her that I am not trying to replace her old friend, but I'm here to help her get well again."

"Then spend time with her like you said you would back at the Lookout," Jason pushed. "Get her to trust you. You can't just keep attempting to make her food every single day, she'll get suspicious. Try and get her to ride in you or something like that."

Optimus's hologram emitted an electronic sigh, his form flickering slightly before he returned to being solid again. He then nodded once in Jason's direction and then cast his cobalt eyes towards the kitchen, his own thoughts lingering with ways of how he was going to earn her trust without exposing himself. He remembered what Ratchet asked the other day and it continued to plague his processor the more he thought about Jasmine's condition.

"How far will you go in order to make Jasmine well again?"

He didn't know what to do anymore. He really needed to think properly on this one and soon, or else Jasmine would very continue to fade away from the very people who cared about her. His hologram form stood up to its 6'0 height and glanced down at Jason with his cobalt blue eyes, his age old wisdom shining brightly.

"I promised myself I would make Jasmine well again, and I will," he told the boy. "Starting from tomorrow, I will begin attending to her needs every step of the way."

"What will you be doing for the rest of the day?" Jason asked, tilting his head to one side.

Optimus was silent for a moment before he answered Jason again. "I will be out attending to my duties as Prime. While everything is quiet around here, I shall go and patrol around the block. Can you manage without me?"

Jason smiled and nodded. "Yes of course. Do you know when you'll be back?"

"By around dinner time," replied Optimus softly. "I need time to think on the situation before I make my decision on what to do with Jasmine's condition. Should anything go wrong with her, you know exactly what to do. She's only had one seizure this week, but there is no guarantee that she won't have another."

"You're worried about her, aren't you?"

Optimus hesitated for a moment. While was worried about Jasmine's wellbeing, he didn't exactly think he was that worried about his charge until now. Was he really starting to warm up to the woman more than he liked to? Was it even normal to consider how much he was determined to make her come out of the shell that she had built herself around her heart?

There was only one thing he could do and that was to think a little more on the situation before anything else. He had taken it upon himself to put his charge's needs above his own, even shirking his own duties just to make things better for her again, to give her a happy life that she desperately needed.

"Yes," Optimus answered sombrely, "I am worried about her. Ratchet told me that her seizures may cease as she grows older and her body gets used to the changes in her system, or they grow more frequent and may happen when we at least expect it. The best thing I can do for now is to concentrate on opening up those walls she has built around herself. Until I break through, I will continue to see her through my hologram's eyes."

The boy almost felt a chill run down his spine when Optimus spoke in a stern tone, knowing that it meant Optimus wanted his secret to remain safe behind sealed lips. Any words of his true existence spat out to Jasmine would result in consequences that neither Optimus nor Jason could even begin to comprise. Until then, Jason must continue to treat Optimus's hologram as if it were a real human being.

When Jason looked up from his thoughts, he saw Optimus walking back into the kitchen to talk with Jasmine. He was frightened for his sister's wellbeing, but as long as Optimus was here, she may eventually recover from the accident, mentally that is.

When Jasmine had finished her lunch, she was surprised to find Tim walking towards her from the lounge room, his cobalt blue eyes shining brightly in the sun's rays as the leaked through the window. She frowned a little suspiciously as he walked towards her and gently placed a beefy hand upon her left shoulder.

"How was the lunch?" he asked.

"It was better than I imagined it to be," Jasmine answered politely.

"I am glad that you enjoyed it," Tim said, his mouth pulling into the kindest smile she had ever seen. "Perhaps we can do something together someday when you are ready."

"Really?" Jasmine asked, her eyes widening in surprise. "But why would you do that? Don't waste your efforts on me."

"I am not wasting my time on you, Jasmine," said Tim. "I am merely trying to help you to get better mentally. Your brother told me about your accident and wants nothing more than you to get better."

"I-I'll think about it," Jasmine stuttered. "Maybe... when I feel like I can get back on the road again. I don't think I'll ever get over the loss of Silverflame. He meant everything to me."

"Loss takes a long time to get over, Jasmine," Tim said softly. "But in order to heal properly, you must learn to forgive yourself by starting from the heart. Keep telling yourself that it is not your fault that your friend perished. The truck, after all, saved your life."

"He did?" Jasmine asked.

"From your point of view, yes," Tim said. "If it had not been for that seatbelt that you were wearing, you would've surely died."

"I would rather be dead rather than here," Jasmine admitted sadly. "No one would miss me and I would be able to see my parents again."

"But your brother would miss you," Tim pressed on. "He would be loss without you. You are the only family he has left and he does not want to let you go that easily. It might seem to you that your brother may not care, but deep down, you know it's true."

Jasmine felt tears trickling down the side of her cheeks, but she quickly wiped them away before Tim noticed them. Truth be told, she missed her parents after they had been killed in a car accident in Mission City nearly four months ago. Now that she and Jason were living on their own, things were a lot harder now and she was secretly scared about it, frightened by the fact that their tight budget would make things even a lot difficult for them than she liked to think.

Tim removed his hand from her shoulder and wiped her cheek with a handkerchief he had contained in his pocket. "Know this, Jasmine," he said kindly, "you are not alone in this world and Jason and I will be with you every step of the way. We'll take it one step at time. Until you feel that you are ready to face your fears, you concentrate on getting better."

"I'll try, Tim," Jasmine whispered. "I promise."

"That's a good girl," Tim chuckled as he gave her a quick embrace, though during the hug, Jasmine was a little surprised at how cool he felt. She was confused at first, but shook it off, knowing it would be rude to ask why he was so cool and not as warm as she expected him to be. "Now I'm going to borrow your truck for tonight. I'll bring it back before dinner time. So I'll see you later on tonight?"

Jasmine just nodded and handed Tim the keys to the truck her brother had given her.

"Alright," said Tim, his hand clutching onto the keys tightly, "I'll see you later, then."

He then gently petted her hair, ruffling it up a little bit with his sausage-like fingers and then left the kitchen. Several minutes later, Jasmine heard the truck's engine start up and reverse out of the driveway. Once again, the truck was gone from her sight and she let off a silent breath of relief. She didn't have to worry about it staring at her every second of the day, and she just wished that she would get over her fear.

But as Tim said, it took time to get things over with. Somehow, she found herself warming up to Tim and she felt her heart skip a small beat. Dismissing the though, she stood up and put the plate on the sink before heading back upstairs to complete her drawings. She should hear the television had been switched on and she knew that Jason was watching something.

Rolling her eyes as she walked into her room, she picked up the pencil she had thrown earlier this morning, and went back to work, the image from her dreams returning to her.