A/N: I'd just like to take a moment to thank everyone for the amazing amount of feedback, reviews, favorites, and alerts this story has been getting lately. I'm so glad you're all enjoying it so much and hope you continue to. :)

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CHAPTER 30
Revelations

A week later, both Prowl and Jeff had hit their exhaustion limits. Prowl was leaning his helm against his palm as he sat in front of his massive computer screen. The mech would be lying if he said he wasn't worried by the fact that Jeff was back at school. Every second that passed was another second he could be captured, even if he had Sideswipe and Bumblebee outside of his school as a precaution. Arcee had teased him about being more worried than a femme taking their sparkling to their first day of basic, but he'd merely grunted at her in response.

A full day of meetings kept the mech busy enough, but now it was a matter of the many of what humans called "emails" he had to send out. It didn't distract him much, as each took little more than a millisecond to send off. The sound of blips caught Prowl off guard, yet he still answered slowly. "This is Prowl, how may I be of service to you?" He questioned.

"Yes, this is Principal Blake at Jefferson Memorial High School." Prowl groaned, worried Jeff had caused trouble again "I'm calling in regards to Jeffrey Devlin."

"You've reached his guardian, what's the trouble?"

Prowl half-expected a long-winded reply from what Sideswipe and Arcee had told him before. But the sound of shuffling papers got his attention, his body straightened slightly, and then the voice returned. "I simply wished to call and inform Jeff's marks have earned him a spot on the honor roll. While we offer certificates for this, Jeff has not come to claim his himself." Prowl was dead silent at this "As I am aware of the change of guardianship, I simply wished to know the best address to mail it to. As I'm sure you're very proud of your son with these marks."

Prowl didn't bother correcting the man on the fact that Jeff was not technically his son yet. More than anything, he was stunned to hear these words being spoken of Jeff. Of course, Jeff was a bright boy and he knew this well enough, but this was the last thing he had expected. "I'm sorry... He's on the honor roll?" Prowl questioned "I've never seen Jeff's marks, exactly how high are they?" He asked.

"Since day one in school, he's tested well above his grade level." Prowl's optics widened a bit at that "Despite being a troublemaker these last few months, I've only seen a few students in my time with marks this high." He then added "The only subject he has trouble with is Physical Education. But otherwise, it's just a straight-line of A's." He paused "He's never spoken to you about school before?" He questioned.

"I've only had guardianship of him for a short time." Prowl admitted.

The second-in-command was visibly stunned, to say the least. Jeff had always seemed bright, but this was perhaps the first time someone other than himself was acknowledging it. "Well, given what we know of his history, that's quite the extraordinary young man you are taking care of." Blake replied on the other end "So about the honor roll certificate?" he questioned.

"I'd love to have that, I can pick it up when I pick him up." Prowl replied "I'll come in around two."

Disconnecting the line, Prowl looked thoughtfully off to the side. He hadn't even considered the fact that Jeff was this smart, intelligent yes, but not quite on this level. Taking a deep breath, Prowl stood from his seat, thinking this over. He was quite proud of Jeff at the moment, though he wondered why he had hidden it from them, yet still, it was quite the accomplishment, and one he'd talk to him about, no doubt.

...

To say Jeff was stunned when Prowl set the certificate in his hands would have been an understatement. He simply shook his head, stunned that Prowl had even known. His mouth opened, but closed after a moment, uncertain of how to respond. "You haven't gotten a grade bellow an A since you came to school?" Jeff shook his head "Jeff, that's an amazing accomplishment. Especially for a child with little education such as yourself." He added.

"So?" Jeff questioned, peering over at Prowl "It's not like I had a mother to write home to." He shrugged "It's not a big deal."

Prowl shook his head, his holoform resting a hand on Jeff's knee carefully. The boy didn't look up, but Prowl smiled genuinely enough that he didn't have to. "I'm proud of you though. I'm not your father, but you could have come and told me." Jeff stared at him "come on, Jeff, this is something I should be proud of. It proves to me you're making an honest effort to better your life." He noted.

"Prowl, you're making me blush."

Sure enough, the boy's face was red with embarrassment. In truth, though Prowl had admitted to loving him, he hadn't expected the mech to care much. He'd expected a good job, and maybe a pat on the back if he even told him. Yet here he was, beaming like a proud father on graduation day. "Prowl?" Jeff questioned "Why does it even matter to you? It's just the honor roll." He added.

"Think as little of it as you want." Prowl frowned "But you've made this mech proud."

Jeff just sighed quietly, nodding his head, and trying to hide how much he was blushing. As they drove away from the parking lot, he simply peered out the window, thinking things over. He'd never made anyone proud since his parents, as a result, he was stunned Prowl had shown such pride. Smiling a bit, he handed the certificate over. "You can keep it if it makes you that proud." He explained "I don't need it, and you seem like the sentimental type."

Pulling an arm around Jeff's shoulders, Prowl nodded in agreement. "Very much so. I will treasure this." Prowl replied, then looked thoughtful "You know, Jeff. You should be more proud of yourself as well. I believe this is where your self-esteem issues stem from." He explained "The more you write off your accomplishments, the more you convince yourself they are nothing." He paused "Have you ever thought the same?"

"My brain doesn't run on logic."

Prowl shook his head, biting back a retort of his own. "My processor does run on logic most times, yes. But this is just the truth, you can't expect to be happy if you put yourself down." He nudged Jeff gently in the ribs "This may be a small stepping stone in life in hindsight. But do you know how many children in your same situation who end up never achieving this?" The boy shook his head "Most of them Jeff, hundreds, most likely." He added.

"I get it, I get it." Jeff shook his head "I won't put myself down anymore."

Prowl somehow doubted that this was a true statement. He quietly noticed as Jeff removed his inhaler from his pocket, and inhaled some fresh air from it. He'd noticed him doing this a lot the past few days they'd been back. "Your asthma giving you trouble again?" Jeff nodded slowly "Maybe I should have Ratchet take a look." He added.

"Ugh, Prowl, not the Hatchet." Jeff shook his head "That old mech hates me."

Prowl chuckled at that, knowing for a fact that Ratchet did like Jeff. It was never that Ratchet disliked a mech so much as patience levels, and his patience levels with Jeff's sarcasm were sometimes nonexistent. Yet, in most talks they had about Jeff, he did show that he did care, and he had been quite enraged when he'd tended to his wounds after his fights. "The doc bot likes you, he just has a funny way of showing it." Prowl replied "He just doesn't like your sharp tongue."

Jeff snorted a bit, finding it amusing. Especially granted that Ratchet sometimes acted just as sarcastic in response. To say the least, Jeff was surprised there wasn't more of a level of respect between the two of them. "Fine, whatever, if it'll make you feel better, I'll go see him." Jeff sighed quietly "I just can't promise I'm going to like it. He's a pain in the butt, and he reminds me of that one guy on TV, Dr. House." He added.

"You may not like it, but you're seeing him."

Jeff rolled his eyes, wishing he had kept on the subject of the honor roll just a little more now. He leaned his head against the window, his mind drifting off a little bit. He could feel his breath becoming more and more shallow after a moment, but quickly subdued it with his inhaler. It was true, his asthma did seem to be a little more harsh as of late. But at this point, Jeff did wonder when he'd go into a full-out attack. "Prowl?" Prowl turned his head "Thanks."

"For what?"

Jeff shook his head a little bit, uncertain of how to respond. There was a lot to thank him for on this car ride alone, for caring, for being proud of him, for just being there. He was silent for a moment, looking up at Prowl. "Everything." He tapped the side of his door "I just want you to know that I really do appreciate everything you're doing... Because I know I'm not always good at showing it." He paused.

Prowl only smiled a bit, setting a hand on his head, and shaking his hair ever so gently. "You're welcome..." Prowl smiled a bit "I think it's been long enough that you deserve what I'm giving you." He paused "More than long enough."

And slowly, Jeff allowed himself to give Prowl his once-in-a-while true, and happy smiles.