THAT NEXT DAY…
"Obviously, there will be only two 'Cons planning the wedding," Starscream was saying to Skywarp. "The bride, and the maid of honor."
"Weddings take care of themselves," Thundercracker agreed.
"What do you mean?" asked Skywarp.
"Well, the mech mindset is, 'I don't care as long as I'm marrying her', but femmes see it more as a huge social event," Starscream explained. "For some reason, femmes are so inherently frightening sometimes. If you try and bust their plans, they will hunt you down and kill you."
"Scrap, I love 'em anyway." Thundercracker sighed and lay back on the bed. When Starscream looked closely he could see that his eyes were as full of love as ever. Of course he was thinking that he still wanted to be the one marrying Moonbeam…but trying to ruin Skywarp's wedding plans would destroy the Mech Code and probably even the Trine.
"I wish we could be married right now," Skywarp said dreamily. "You're right, Starscream. I don't care about some huge social thing. I know the actual wedding isn't for months, but I just want to live the rest of my life with Moonbeam, my angel."
Well, she's HARDLY an angel, Starscream thought, but he kept it to himself.
"Come to think of it, Moonbeam doesn't really have a maid of honor," Starscream pointed out. "The only other femme here is Gemstone, and Gemstone would never do it, even if Moonbeam threatened her life."
"Moonbeam couldn't kill Gemstone," said Thundercracker. "Gemstone is pretty tough. She doesn't just slap like Moonbeam does—she'll sock you right across the room if you get her angry enough."
"Anyway," said Starscream, turning to Thundercracker, "do you remember what we had planned for Skywarp this weekend?"
"Oh, yes, I remember." Thundercracker was grinning.
"What?" asked Skywarp. "You guys have something planned?"
"Of course," Starscream told him seriously. "We're going to invite all the Decepticons except Gemstone and Moonbeam. No femmes allowed…well, except for the entertainment."
"Why no femmes?" Skywarp asked.
Thundercracker just laughed and pulled Skywarp up off the bed. "Skywarp…don't you know what a bachelor party is?"
THAT NIGHT…
"So, Skywarp's having a bachelor party, is he now?" Gemstone was smirking. "I can't tell you how many bachelor parties have gone on in the Cybertronian Mechs' Club. I don't mean to sound slutty but…I did get a lot of money on those nights."
"Technically, you can come if you want," Thundercracker said.
"Thundercracker, I don't like that club," Gemstone told him solemnly. "There are plenty of other hookers there. Once you took me away from my old world, I don't ever want to go back."
"I won't make you go back," Thundercracker told her, hugging her tight. It felt so sweet, so wonderful, to have his arms wrapped protectively around a femme who was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. Genuine love from a femme was enough to make even the strongest Seekers feel vulnerable.
"Thank you," Gemstone whispered.
"Actually, as your fake boyfriend, I'm required to beat up any mech who tries to make a move on you," said Thundercracker.
"By the time you get to him, I'll have taken care of him for you," Gemstone replied. "You don't need to lift a blaster if a mech is hitting on this fake girlfriend."
"You know, when I took Skywarp and Thundercracker there one time, over a year ago, there was this hooker who tried to 'face with Skywarp," Thundercracker said thoughtfully, the memory still hazy in his mind. "I was pretty high on energon by then, but I do remember that he said no to her; he wanted to remain faithful to Moonbeam."
"That's sweet," said Gemstone. "I'm not surprised, though."
"If she was my girlfriend, like I want, I wouldn't cheat on her either," said Thundercracker.
"Thundercracker…" Gemstone grabbed his hands and stared up into his eyes. "Do you ever really think it'll happen?"
"I certainly have a chance with Moonbeam," Thundercracker insisted.
"Maybe we are doing this to make her jealous, but…" Gemstone shrugged. "I just don't know if you two really are meant for each other."
"What are you talking about?" Thundercracker demanded. "I don't know why Skywarp saw Moonbeam first. If he hadn't, she would have been mine, and for all I know, I could have been the one engaged to her right now, not him."
"How can you even say that?" Gemstone cried. "You should be happy for Skywarp!"
"I am happy for him!" Thundercracker protested. "It's just that—"
"You mechs are all alike!" Gemstone glared at Thundercracker, her hands on her hips. "That's what it all comes down to, isn't it? You'll 'face with any femme, not knowing that it—someday it might mean something, someday you might actually be doing it with someone you love, but no! As long as she's pretty, and accomplished, and—and everything you could ever want! That's how you feel with Moonbeam, stupid slagging BITCH THAT SHE IS!"
"Gemstone, please calm down," Thundercracker pleaded.
"Don't you try and tell me what to do!" Gemstone yelled. "You know what? I am going to the bachelor party. And I am going to sleep with as many mechs as I want! And I'm going to charge them too! You want to know why?"
"Um…no," Thundercracker mumbled.
"Because I don't want to be your 'fake' girlfriend anyway!" she informed him, her red eyes flashing with anger as she made for the door. "I'd rather spread my legs for any random drunk mech, as long as he's not YOU!"
"Where are you going?!" Thundercracker cried.
"I'm going back to the club!" Gemstone snapped. "See you at the bachelor party, you son-of-a-glitch!"
...
Thundercracker was lying flat on his back, his eyes shut tight, looking almost like he was in physical pain. Gemstone had left, just marched out the door. Now she was at the Decepticlub again, probably already 'facing with another mech, another idiot jerk Thundercracker would like to strangle alive. In fact, he was so distracted with this thought that he didn't even know Starscream had been staring at him.
"Why did Gemstone leave, Thundercracker?" Starscream whispered.
"Apparently she wanted to be a hooker again." Thundercracker's voice was stony and harsh, and he wouldn't look at Starscream.
"Why should it matter to you, TC?" Starscream asked. "Isn't she just your fake girlfriend?"
"Okay, I'll admit it," Thundercracker grumped. "We never did have a real relationship. It was all pretend. All we did was 'face a lot, sort of like friends with benefits—except now I don't have her as a friend or a benefit."
"So you can just forget about her," said Starscream.
"I never thought it would go this far." Thundercracker's voice cracked as he realized he was talking more to himself than to Starscream. "On the night we met, I just thought I'd 'face with her and go, but then we…we just…I don't know how it happened."
"Isn't it my turn now, hon?" Thundercracker asked in his deep voice, and he spread her legs; she squealed at the sensation of his tongue in her southern regions; when he felt himself getting pressurized again he lifted her head up and drew her into a kiss. She grabbed for his spike and shoved it in by her own means, to which Thundercracker let out a yelp…a very pleasured yelp.
It was true. On that night, Thundercracker never thought he would see Gemstone again, and yet he had ended up bringing her home.
Thundercracker completed his second overload and pulled out, then looked into Gemstone's gleaming eyes. She was a pearly white color, in contrast to the black-and-gold Moonbeam; she was not a Seeker and although she was attractive in a certain way, it was different than Moonbeam's kind of attractive.
Gemstone waited with a rather bewildered look on her face as Thundercracker's mind filled with thoughts of how it would be if he was doing this with Moonbeam instead of this hooker. The familiar feeling of the pressurization he could only get for her was coming back, and he asked, "Gemstone…would you mind it if I called you 'Moonbeam'?"
Moonbeam. Thundercracker had called Gemstone "Moonbeam". Not by her real name. How demeaning had that must have felt—as though being forced into prostitution (and treated with no respect) wasn't enough. Gemstone's virginity had most likely been taken by someone whose face she had never seen, and he had paid for it. That mech, and all the others, were just sleazy jerks who didn't care.
Of course, Thundercracker had done the exact same thing that night. Maybe that didn't make him any different.
No wonder she had gotten so angry. So hurt.
"Thundercracker?" said Starscream. "Do you miss her?"
"Why would I miss her?" Thundercracker snapped. "It's like you said. She was only my fake girlfriend. Nothing else, ever."
"Maybe that's what your CPU is telling you," Starscream replied. "Your spark's telling you something completely different though, isn't it?"
"I'm not in love with her," Thundercracker insisted. "You're crazy, Screamer."
"Who do you think you're kidding, TC?" Starscream sat up in bed, and Thundercracker could see he was smirking. "I think you're crazy. Crazy about Gemstone."
That is SO stupid, Thundercracker thought to himself. I would rather be with Moonbeam any day. Gemstone is just a friend…or, she was. Until she left me.
Tortured with thoughts, none of which he could comprehend, Thundercracker got no recharge that night.