Tada! Chapter five. I don't really have much to say this time except... ONE WEEK! :D I think that's a new record for this story. xD
None of it's mine... As in NONE. Except Val. She belongs to me.
Enjoy =)
~*~
Chapter Five
The sun was just beginning to dip down towards the horizon, leaving the sky a yellowish hue. A soft breeze gently swayed the tall grass of the look out. Little creatures skittered under the cover of the brush while others flew above it. The sunlight cast a golden glow over everything in sight.
It was the perfect place to relax.
Val sat up against the trunk of an old oak tree, content with just staring out at the rolling hills in the distance. Although she couldn't see it, Val knew that there was a small town right in front of the high cliff. It was her old hometown, the one she lived in before moving in with the Witwickys. Many years had passed since she stepped foot in that city, but she still vividly remembered everything; what her house looked like, how to get to the mall, how to avoid the corner house's demon dog.
She laughed at the memory of running up and down the street from the pit bull. It was scary as hell at the time, but now it just seemed funny to her. All the neighbors ran out of their houses to see what was going on; Ms. Renish even brought out a baseball bat. The owners of the dog had frantically apologized to Val afterward and even gave her a Jamba Juice gift card. She didn't like the place, but she accepted the gift with a smile. Val eventually ended up giving it to one of her friends.
The teen really missed those times. Before the death of her parents, she was just another carefree spirit. She would do whatever she felt like and not give a damn. Her friends would throw sleepovers every Friday night and they'd make their special popcorn; it was super buttery popcorn drizzled with dark chocolate syrup, pepper, and salt. Then they would play Truth or Dare, dance, and sing like there was no tomorrow. Those parties were amazing memories all in their own.
Her most treasured memory was of her best friend, Anthony. She secretly had a crush on him, but she knew better than to tell him. He was one of the most popular guys at school while she was pretty much just another normal girl. In first grade, Anthony had accidentally bumped into Val while he running during one of the recesses. He had asked her if she wanted to play, too, but she was so shy, she'd just stared at him. He had laughed and lightly tapped her shoulder. "You're it!" he had exclaimed before running away. After that, their friendship had grown with each year. It was definitely heart-breaking when she'd had to say goodbye to him. It took an hour for her to stop crying, all of which she was accompanied by Anthony. He'd held her in a friendly hug for all of that time, simply letting her cry on his shoulder while he murmured reassurances. She would never forget him and his beautiful smile.
Soft thumps alerted the teen of an approaching presence. She looked behind her and widened her brown eyes. Val struggled to get up on her feet again.
"Please don't be afraid," pleaded Bumblebee. The teen ignored the Autobot and continued to try to stand up. He sighed and stopped walking towards her.
"Sam and Mikaela were my best friends, you know."
That caught Val's attention. She turned to stare up at Bumblebee. The light bounced off his armor, giving him an angelic golden aura. His optics were transfixed on the sky. "How did you know them?" asked the teen in a soft tone. Bumblebee tore his gaze away from the horizon to look at Val. "Before you, I was appointed as guardian to Sam. It was my job to protect him and his great-great-grandfather's glasses," he said in a sorrowful tone. The teen glared up at the bot. "Well, you obviously did a crappy job 'cause he and Mikaela got hit by a fucking car!" Bumblebee glanced at the ground by his feet. "I know I failed. I was there," he whispered. Val blinked up at her guardian, confused. "I don't remember seeing a giant robot there," she said, half-sarcastic and half-serious. His turquoise optics flickered to meet her chestnut eyes. "Do you recall seeing a yellow Camaro with black stripes?" he inquired. The teen nodded.
"Yeah, that was Sam's car. What about…"
Her jaw slowly dropped as she gaped at the Autobot. "No way," she breathed. Bumblebee knelt to the ground and demonstrated his transforming ability. One second he was there, and the next, a familiar sunny yellow Camaro was in his spot. The small heart pendant was still hanging there on the rear view mirror. Val continued to gawk at him as he shifted back into his robotic form and stood to his full height.
Bumblebee peered down at Val and noticed that she was still ogling him. "I'm sorry. I didn't see Sideways until it was too late," he murmured in a soft tone. "It felt like my spark shattered when I saw…" He broke off mid-sentence and looked away quickly. Val felt a twinge of guilt in her heart and mumbled, "I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean what I said earlier about you doing a… bad job. I just—"
Her guardian held up a hand, silencing her instantly. "It's okay. I can understand why you're upset with me," he said quietly. The teen shook her head. Her expression was one of regret and concern. "I really didn't mean that, though. I say things that I probably shouldn't all the time," she insisted. Val scooted closer to him as best as she could. Bumblebee noticed her movement and paused.
Very hesitantly, the yellow bot crouched down and held his hand out in front of her. Val did her best to conceal her recoil, but Bumblebee still saw it. He began to withdraw his hand, but the teen reached out to touch it.
"Wait."
He seemed considerably surprised to feel her small, warm palm on his armor. Bumblebee slightly smiled and carefully helped Val onto his extremity with his other hand. She was still wary of her guardian, but she tried not to show it. "If you don't mind me asking," she began, "What did you mean when you said it felt like your 'spark' shattered? And that you 'couldn't see sideways'?" The Autobot looked down at her. Val noticed that his optics were the same bright blue hue as the guy that tried to help her out of her car earlier. "Sparks are like our hearts and souls. They give us life and personality," he replied. "And Sideways is a Decepticon; the same one that attacked you earlier, actually."
"The same one you fought off," whispered Val. Bumblebee glanced down at her. "The same one that kicked me into your car and made me give you all your injuries," he muttered. The teen patted his thumb reassuringly.
"I don't blame you. Now what's a Decepticon?"
Bumblebee made a sound with his vents; it sounded very much like a sigh. "Might as well start from the beginning," he stated. "It might take a while to explain everything." Val situated herself in a comfortable position and simply said, "I have time. I'm already playing hooky from school." Bumblebee smiled and began to talk about Cybertron, the history of Cybertronians, and the big battle at Mission City.
~*~
The sun had set long ago, navy becoming the dominant color of the sky. Stars sprayed the heavens above, twinkling like little winking eyes. The only critters flying around were the occasional lightning bugs.
Val looked up into the glowing optics of her guardian, her own eyes displaying sadness. "So it was the Decepticons who… killed them?" breathed Val. Bumblebee solemnly nodded. "Your parents had found Tracks, another Autobot, who had landed here on Earth. We all thought he was killed by Blackout on Cybertron, but apparently not. He decided to stay with your parents for a while since he was tired of searching for the All Spark and, well, he was lonely, too."
Sighing, the teen looked up at the constellations above and spotted Orion's Belt. "Let me guess," she began, "Tracks was our Chevy Corvette?" Her guardian slowly nodded. "I believe that was the alternate form he took," said Bumblebee. Val leaned her head back onto a piece of the Autobot's golden yellow chest armor. "So what happened to them?" she whispered. It felt like she couldn't say it loudly without having her voice crack.
"What we believe is that Starscream hunted down Tracks and forced him to take cover in a nearby forest area. It was there that Starscream had annihilated him. He must have seen your parents as well and… rid himself of any witnesses," muttered Bumblebee, whispering the last part. "I'm sorry, Val."
Tears began to gather in Val's eyes as she stared at the night sky. So her parents were dead…
It wasn't long before she began to sob. Bumblebee began to gently rub her back with his finger as he softly played "Never Say Never" by The Fray. As time passed by, the song changed into Sara Groves's "It's Gonna Be Alright". Val's tears had subsided by now and her sobs were reduced to mere sniffling. When the song had ended, she was fast asleep in the Autobot's hand. Bumblebee smiled down at her resting form and began to head back to the base. He would never let anything happen to her again.
So... How was it? Good? Bad? All feedback is welcome, including flames and critiques. Loves and laters! :)
