CHAPTER 56
Becoming A Kid Again

It was about two weeks later that Jeff finally worked up the courage to invite Brent over. In those two weeks, he and the quarterback had bonded in a rather close-knit friendship that only seemed to grow. Though he was still being bullied, the amount of bullying was dying down as he spent more time with Brent and the football team. No one liked the thought of angering Brent by bullying someone he was quickly coming close to calling the closest out of his friends. And yet, still, Ratchet had commented to the young man that if he did anything to hurt Jeff, he'd rip his man parts off himself. To say the least, Jeff made it a point to remind Ratchet to have manners and not screw things up for him.

As it turned out, he and Brent had a lot in common as well. Brent knew what it was like to lose a parent, having lost his mother to cancer only a few years earlier. And though Jeff had never had much of a relationship with his own, he felt inclined to open up a bit about his father due to it. To say the least, Jeff finally felt that he had someone his own age to go to when there were some days he just felt like he was alone. "Dude." Brent spoke up from his perch on Jeff's bed "I don't believe it." He noted.

"Believe it, I still have the scar on my leg to prove it." Jeff muttered, rubbing his leg for emphasis "Bastard had the meanest grip too. Makes me glad every day that dad crushed his head in." He admitted "It's crazy, I know, but you gotta keep in mind. This guy had a big grudge against him." He shuddered "I'm pretty much lucky I didn't lose a limb." He added.

Brent smirked, nudging Jeff a bit. "Dude, you're braver than I am."

"That's up for debate. You're the one who plays football."

Brent grinned a bit, nodding his head in agreement, he stood to his feet a bit, and sighed. To say the least, Brent looked as beat as Jeff felt. It had been a long day, between studying for finals and messing around. "Yeah, well, I need to go home and get some sleep." He muttered "Then again, the last thing I want to do is spend another day with my Aunt and Uncle. My dad needs to get out of the hospital already." He added.

"They that bad?" Jeff questioned.

"You have no idea." Brent scoffed "The way they dote on my cousins, it's just ugh." He rolled his eyes "Not to mention while they're doing that, I'm basically just taking up space." He added, shaking his head a little bit "You know what you told me the foster homes were like at times?" Jeff nodded "There you go." He added.

"You could spend the night over here."

Brent stared at Jeff as if he were joking for a moment, biting his lip. A night wasn't much, if the Autobots would even allow it, but a night away from his annoying relatives didn't sound all that bad either. "Would they really allow me to spend the night? I mean this isn't like spending it at a friend's house." He took a deep breath "This is a base." He pointed out.

Jeff almost laughed at that, considering how happy the Autobots were that he had made a friend like this. All but Ratchet had been nice to Brent from the outset as he had stuck up for him, not to mention was a good guy and showed it. "Brent, you're my friend, Prowl has another guest room." Jeff threw a pillow at Brent's head playfully "All you'd have to do is ask." He added.

Brent seemed to consider it for a moment and Jeff was worried he would say no. But the boy nodded his head a bit, sighing lightly as he leaned against the wall. "You are so lucky I went by my place before coming here to get some fresh clothes." Brent commented, grabbing his backpack off the ground "I could use a night off from them or I might just wring my little cousin's neck." Jeff laughed quietly "You sure Prowl's cool with it though?" He questioned.

"You kidding?" Jeff questioned "You got those assholes off my back, heck yeah, he's okay with you staying here."

Brent smirked, enjoying the thought of getting to spend the night on an Autobot base.

...

Prowl didn't mind it as Jeff had expected, though he made extra sure that his security was alright. Though Brent wasn't his child, his father was a good man, and he would hate to be the one to tell him that he had regretted to protect his son. Taking a deep breath, he checked upon Brent that night, the boy was sound asleep in the second guest room he had set up once his original one became Jeff's bedroom. Taking a deep breath, he inhaled deeply in thought. He was thankful that Jeff now had Brent in his life, a friend he could count on as much as he could his new family.

Allowing himself a moment, he made his way towards Jeff's bedroom. The boy was still up, his textbook open, and studying his heart out. Prowl didn't understand why he had to, Jeff had never gotten a single grade bellow an A in anything academically based. "Jeffrey, it's midnight, you'll do fine on your test." Prowl rumbled as Jeff looked up at the mech "Don't give me that look, you've never gotten a bad grade and you know it." He snorted.

"Sorry." Jeff shook his head "Brent and I just did a lot of hanging out and-"

"Yes, that's called being a kid if I'm not mistaken." Prowl noted, making his way forward "I appreciate the fact you take your studies seriously, truly, I do." He began "But you still studied for a good four hours of your time together. I do not think there was any fault in hanging out for a little bit." He noted "I'm glad to see it actually." He added.

Jeff couldn't help but wonder if Prowl had been replaced by a Decepticon clone. Here was the king of rules and regulations telling him to cut loose and be a kid without worrying, although pleasant, he found it odd. "Yeah, I know... I guess I'm just not totally used to being a "kid" anymore." Jeff admitted "After all, I had to grow up fast, we've been over that." He noted.

Prowl nodded in understanding, after all he knew that better than anyone. Much of Jeff's past had been shared as of late, between former homes and just what he had had to do on the streets. Jeff hadn't had much time to be a kid, but for the next two years, Prowl would do his best to see to it that he got that chance. "Yes, but now it's time for that to cease." Prowl shook his head "You have a family, a home, a roof over your head, and a bed to sleep in." He then added "You are a kid now." He added.

Jeff knew it was true, he had no reason to be serious and alert all the time. He would always have his advanced maturity, that was a given, but he was also learning to be more carefree, although slowly. "Yeah, I know, big guy." Jeff smiled slowly, his eyes lifting up to the mech again "I'm a kid now, not a little adult... I guess that's just going to take getting used to." He fell back into the cushions of his soft bed again "I only just got the news two weeks ago, after all." he noted.

Prowl chuckled a bit, pulling the covers over him again. It was very true, Jeff had to get used to living in one place and with one person again. He had to get used to the fact that he could keep and have friends again. It was, all of it, a learning experience that with time would end, but for now, would continue. "Yes well, another thing you need to learn is that bed by ten means bed by ten." He noted, putting his hands on his hips.

"I hate having a bedtime." Jeff groaned.

"Without it you would never get your typical sleep regiment."

Jeff shook his head a bit, knowing that Prowl was worrying overly much again. But he let Prowl do it, as usual, without his overly concerned nature Prowl wouldn't be the mech he had grown so fond of. Taking a deep breath, Jeff allowed the mech to stroke him with his finger again. "So do you really like Brent?" Jeff questioned "Or are you being nice because he's the first friend I've made since I got here?" He questioned.

Prowl chuckled at that, though he knew it was a more than fair question to ask. "He is a good friend to you, so yes, I do like him." Prowl nodded his head a bit "It is nice to see you spending time with a human, after all, you spend so much time here." He then added "I think the only person not sure of him is Ratchet, though I'm sure he'll come around soon."

"Yeah, probably."

There was a long moment, and Prowl smiled widely. "Goodnight, son." Prowl stated quietly "And no more studying." He added.

"Go to recharge, and quit bugging me about it." Jeff teased.

"Sounding more and more like a child each day."

Jeff simply wondered if he should take the words as a compliment, or a jab at his behavior. Grunting a bit, he allowed himself to sink deeper into his mattress, tired, exhausted in fact, and ready for a long night's sleep. Yet, in the back of his mind, the test still bugged him, it could wait until the morning, he figured. After all, if there was one teenaged thing he agreed with, it was the more sleep, the better.