Author's Note: Hi everybody! Thanks for all of your lovely comments and support for this story. I'm hoping to work on this one more often, but with so many fics on here and new ideas yet to be released onto the site I can't promise. I'll just say I'll try to give this fic the attention it deserves. At least this time I was able to get out a long chapter in a reasonable amount of time. Please review, and favorite and follow to see more of this story :)
Chapter 4
New Life
The Present
Bulkhead waited until everyone was awake and the kids were there before he told them Enamel had regained consciousness and was ready to meet them. Enamel had spent 7 hours in guest quarters without coming out, so Bulkhead went there to see if she was alright and ready to meet Team Prime. He just hoped she had managed to come to terms with Cybertron's destruction over the past few hours. He knew it was a lot to take in for someone in her situation.
Bulkhead knocked on the door, but when he didn't get a reply he decided to open the door anyway. He walked in on the familiar sight of his former bondmate standing in front of the mirror buffing out a scratch on her arm. The femme was such a perfectionist. Back when they were bonded it had been one of her most annoying qualities. She demanded perfection not only from herself but from everyone else as well. Now that it had been a few thousand years though, the action was almost cute again.
"Have you been doing that this whole time?" Bulkhead asked with a teasing smile.
"It's only been a little over a joor," Enamel replied indifferently as she continued to buff.
"Enamel, things work faster on this planet, and I'm going to need you to keep up with the rest of us," Bulkhead informed her in what he hoped was a patient tone of voice, "A solar cycle on this planet is only 4 joors. An orn makes up two earth weeks. We're on a tight schedule around here, and you'll need to be fast in order to keep up."
"You know me, wrecking ball," Enamel purred as she turned to give him a cocky grin, "I'm always fast."
"I know, sweet spark," Bulkhead replied; the term of endearment feeling both strange yet natural as he said it, "I'm real excited for you to meet my friends. I'm sure you'll love them."
"Oh, great," Enamel rolled her optics, "Just like old times. It's always your friends."
"What do you mean by that?" Bulkhead asked defensively.
"I mean when we had guests over it was always your friends," Enamel reminded him, "You would invite your friends from the construction sites to play cards and get overcharged on high grade energon during your orns off work."
"Hey! When a mech works hard every deca-orn sometimes he just needs to relax and unwind for a while!" Bulkhead shouted; feeling attacked by the condescending tone Enamel used, "Is that really such a crime?"
"I had a job as well, Bulkhead," Enamel replied as she crossed her arms over her chassis, "Yet I never once resorted to high grade and staying up all night."
"No, you didn't. You just complained about every lousy thing wrong in your life, including me," Bulkhead groused, but then remembered something else he needed to say, "Oh, speaking of old times, there's something very important I need to warn you about."
"Yes?" Enamel sat down and patted the berth to invite Bulkhead to sit down next to her.
Bulkhead sat down next to her, and was surprised by the warm inviting smile she gave him. He hadn't seen her this welcoming of him in a long time. Of course, Bulkhead knew that her sweetness could turn to rancour without even a moment's warning. He knew he'd better make this quick.
"Well, about the Decepticons on earth-," Bulkhead began.
"Yes, yes, I know. They outnumber us and we're all going to die. I get it," Enamel interrupted him with a roll of her optics.
"That's not what I was going to say!" Bulkhead yelled, and then in a lower yet still frazzled voice said, "I was going to say that one of the Decepticons on earth is Breakdown."
"Really? That mech is still living?" Enamel asked incredulously, "I was certain war would take him eventually. He never struck me as a survivor."
"Enamel, you haven't seen Breakdown recently, but trust me on this one, you want to stay as far away from him as possible," Bulkhead warned her gravely, "He led the charge against Simfur, and by the end of it there were no survivors of that city-state left. He killed mechs, femmes...he even crushed sparklings under his hammer. He's a monster Enamel, and my worst enemy. If he saw you he wouldn't hesitate to rip you apart and make me watch. Stay. Away. From him."
"I see. I must say I'm surprised," Enamel replied sadly, "I never thought someone like Breakdown could be so evil. He never struck me as the type."
"Seriously? You're defending him?" Bulkhead asked incredulously, "You haven't seen him since the Golden Age! He's-!"
"I'm not defending him!" Enamel cut him off mid-sentence once again, "I'm merely saying it's a shock to me that this is what happened to him. Besides, part of me still wonders if you really are concerned about my safety, or if your jealousy is getting in the way of your clear judgment."
"Jealousy?" Bulkhead asked; his voice holding a disbelieving edge, "Look, I understand why you think that given our past, but I'm not fooling around. Breakdown is dangerous! Besides, I wouldn't have been jealous if you never gave me a reason to be. The way you spent so much time with him, the way you avoided the subject when I asked about it-!"
"Oh for the love of the Allspark!" Enamel exclaimed in exasperation as she threw up her hands, "I never interfaced with Breakdown! I never thought of him that way. He was just my student, that's all. Honestly Bulkhead, you would accuse me of sleeping with every mech that crossed our threshold, and they were your friends! I never cheated on you, and I had to live with your accusations and disregard for vorns before you left! Ugh! I don't want to discuss this anymore. Can I just go out there and meet your new friends?"
Bulkhead sighed to try to calm down. He glared at Enamel, and she ignored him by pretending to flick dust off her armor. He wasn't sure if he could survive Enamel living on base with him. She was judgmental, careless, and constantly interrupted him when he tried to talk to her. At the same time though, he wasn't sure why they always fought. She wasn't a bad femme, and he wasn't a bad mech, but for some reason they brought out the worst in each other.
Enamel walked out into the main room where everyone was gathered. Bumblebee watched as Jack and Raf played a video game. Optimus Prime, Arcee, and Ratchet discussed Iacon relics they had yet to locate. Miko, as usual, was tuning her guitar and humming a Slash Monkey song.
"Hey guys," Bulkhead greeted them cheerfully; a stark contrast to moments ago in Enamel's room, "I want you to meet Enamel."
"I am pleased to see you were undamaged by your time in prolonged stasis," Optimus greeted her warmly.
"Thank you, sir. It is an honor to meet you," Enamel bowed respectfully, "Bulkhead speaks of you with high regard."
"So you're Bulk's ex, huh?" Miko asked bluntly, "He says you were a plastic surgeon. With a name like Enamel, I would've expected a dentist."
"I am qualified to work on dental plating if necessary," Enamel said with a smile as she turned one of her slender digits into a drill, "You must be one of the natives. I must say I love how much energy you exude. Ah, to be young again…"
"Miko's my best friend," Bulkhead said proudly, "I'm also her guardian, so if anything goes wrong I'm right there to protect her."
"I see," Enamel replied indulgently, "Well little Miko, you could not have a better protector than Bulkhead. He not only has strong servos, but also a strong spark."
"Gee, I can't remember the last time you bragged on me like that," Bulkhead commented as he bashfully rubbed the back of his helm.
"Well it's true," Enamel chuckled, "Just because we don't always get along doesn't mean I'm incapable of seeing your good qualities. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised your best friend is a sparkling. I always believed you would be good with sparklings."
"Yeah, it's a shame we never had any sparklings of our own," Bulkhead replied wistfully.
"Uh, but you guys severed your sparks," Arcee pointed out, "Wouldn't that have just made it harder on any newspark you brought into the world?"
"You underestimate children, young femme," Enamel replied with a wan smile, "After all, you and the other Autobots take care of these human younglings, so you should know how strong they can be. I'll bet they come in very handy when the Decepticons attack."
"You bet!" Miko replied before anyone else could, "Hey, you wanna see my snaps? I've got lots of pics from the past few months. I even got a shot of a Vehicon from close up!"
"Oh my, that is brave!" Enamel exclaimed approvingly as she leaned in to look at Miko's phone, "Who is this mech with Bulkhead?" She asked after a moment as she pointed to one of the photos.
"That's Wheeljack," Miko replied, "He and Bulkhead were in the Wreckers together! The best 'Con crushers to ever come out of Cybertron!"
"Yeah!" Bulkhead replied enthusiastically, "We busted up more 'Cons together than I can count. With the Wreckers we didn't call for backup: we called for clean up!"
Miko and Bulkhead laughed together over that line, and then Miko gave Bulkhead's extended finger a high-five.
"Yep, Bulk is one of the best fighters in the whole universe," Miko bragged on her friend.
"I see," Enamel replied noncommittally, "Perhaps I should properly introduce myself to Ratchet. He did save my life, after all."
With those words Enamel walked over to Ratchet's work station; leaving Miko and the other kids confused.
"What was her problem?" Miko asked rudely as she looked over at Bulkhead, "She acted like she didn't wanna talk to us. She was fine a minute ago."
"That's just Enamel," Bulkhead replied dismissively, "Her mood can change within a matter of seconds. You get used to it after a while."
Enamel, meanwhile, spoke to Ratchet and did her best to hide the fact that she was uncomfortable in the Autobot base. The way Bulkhead spoke about Breakdown, and the way Miko spoke of Bulkhead as a violent Decepticon killer, was all very unsettling for Enamel. She had definitely seen the effects of the war, but she never imagined what Bulkhead would be like in such a context. She knew he would fight for his planet, but she never expected him to enjoy it so much.
Later that night Jack and Raf had already gone home, but Miko had told her host parents that she was having a sleepover at a friend's house so she could stay longer with the 'Bots. Ratchet, of course, was annoyed by Miko's noise and constant questions as usual. Bulkhead was happy because they got to spend quality time together, but that happiness was laced with tension about whether or not Enamel would show up and ruin everything. She wasn't always a party pooper, but when she was in a bad mood she could kill anyone's fun.
Miko and Bulkhead were watching a wrestling match on television and cheering for Miko's favorite wrestler, The Whaminator. Both human and mech alike were whooping and hollering as The Whaminator throttled his opponent. Enamel walked into the room just in time to see them staring intently at the screen as The Whaminator was body slammed to the ground!
"Aw! You've gotta be kidding me!" Bulkhead yelled at the TV.
"Fragging scrap!" Miko cursed, "Get up, you slag heap!"
"Ahem," Enamel cleared her vocalizer to get their attention, "Miko, a lady doesn't use such words, especially not in mixed company."
"I'm not a lady!" Miko proclaimed, "I'm tough!"
"Miko, being a lady does not mean being a delicate flower," Enamel clarified as she wiped a bit of dirt from Miko's face with a digit, "Being a lady is all about dignity, self respect, and good character. Do not forsake the title of a lady, sparklet. You may be young, but you can still be a role model for others if you show the world you will not cheapen yourself just to please them. Now, do you want me to get you any snacks before recharge time?"
"I could use some more popcorn," Miko requested.
"I don't know what that is," Enamel replied, "Bulkhead, I hope I'm not imposing, but could you show me what each of the human foods are called again?"
"Sure," Bulkhead replied agreeably, "Hey Miko, pause it! I wanna see if The Whaminator pulls through."
"You got it, Bulk!" Miko replied before pausing the TV and putting her feet up on the coffee table.
After the pair were far enough away, Enamel turned to Bulkhead with a smile and said "She's a spirited young thing, isn't she? I am quite impressed with how well you get along with her."
"Yeah, she's a great kid," Bulkhead nodded before opening the storage closet, "So, which ones don't you remember?"
"Popcorn," Enamel replied, "Oh, and I forgot what this bag contains."
"Pork rinds," Bulkhead replied, "Miko's favorite is the fudgey bars. Jack likes the plain potato chips, and Raf likes the barbeque chips best. It's important to know that." He added with a cheeky smile.
"Oh, I can imagine," Enamel replied with a knowing smile of her own, "I can't look at fiber glass on a stick the same way after...Well, you know what it's like."
"Fiber glass on a stick?" Bulkhead inquired, "That pink stuff they sell at the carnival for sparklings to eat?"
"Yes, my son loved fiber glass," Enamel informed Bulkhead, "When he was little he loved going to the carnival, but always complained about getting dirty. I suppose he got that chip from me. I've always hated it when my fun messed up my perfect wax job. It's funny what you consider important when you're young…"
"Wait, hold up!" Bulkhead exclaimed skeptically, "Did you just say you had a son?"
"Technically Bulkhead, we had a son," Enamel stated in a flat tone of voice, "I was carrying when you left me. If you'll recall, I tried to comm you a couple times after you left, but you hung up on me before I could say anything. Well, now I can tell you what I wanted to tell you all those vorns ago: congratulations you jerk, it's a boy, and he fortunately doesn't look like you."
Bulkhead was taken aback, not only by the news that he had a sparkling, but also with just how bitter Enamel sounded when she told him about it. He realized then one of the reasons why she had been especially argumentative with him since waking up; she had been forced to raise her son without him.
"Um, Enamel?" Bulkhead put his hand on her shoulder guard as he spoke, "Did you, I mean...I just wonder, I mean...did you move in with anyone else after we severed our spark bond? Did my kid grow up with another father?"
"No, Bulkhead," Enamel replied in a tired voice, "I had my fill of mechs after 400 vorns of being tied to you like a member of a chain gang. To be fair I would ask for help from friends when I could find them, but for the most part I didn't have any help."
"I'm sorry I wasn't there," Bulkhead replied ruefully.
"Don't be," Enamel replied as she hugged Bulkhead, "Together we would have just made a miserable home for him. At least this way there was no yelling. I will say this, our son had your sense of adventure and outgoing personality. I'm grateful for that, because I feel I can be a bit...verbally castrating at times. I don't mean to be, it was just how my parents raised me. I hope he's alive out there, somewhere. Then maybe you can meet him."
"Maybe…" Bulkhead replied with a small smile as he led Enamel back to the main room with a human-sized bucket of popcorn.
The Past
Bulkhead and Enamel had been dating for a couple vorns by now. They had to keep their romance a secret from Enamel's family lest Bulkhead get in trouble, but every now and then she would show up where Bulkhead worked and give him his lunch. Bulkhead's friends all knew about Enamel, and many joked that she was the worst kept secret in the slums of Iacon.
One time Bulkhead and Enamel had protested the use of drones in factories that made frames and protoforms. The police had come to break up the protest. Bulkhead had been badly beaten during the struggle, but they didn't get arrested because Enamel and Brawn had dragged Bulkhead into the factory building; the last place anyone would look for members of a picket line. That time had been too close, so they never went on another protest after that one.
On this day the suns were shining down on Iacon and everything looked bright and happy. Enamel knew Bulkhead wasn't getting enough energon in his rations, so she prepared him a cube of energon infused with melted organic fossils from offworld and zinc. She enjoyed mixing together different additives to make new and interesting flavors, and since Bulkhead loved to eat she always had a willing test subject for her recipes.
She arrived at the construction site to see the mechs working hard to prepare a condemned building for demolition. She stayed back and waited patiently for lunchtime to arrive. She didn't like to interrupt when Bulkhead was working because she knew how important the income was to him.
After half a joor the mechs stopped to refuel, and that was when she walked onto the site and waved to her masculine beau.
"Bulkhead! I brought you some extra energon!" Enamel called out, and Bulkhead waved her over to be with him and the guys.
"Hey sweet spark," Bulkhead greeted her before pulling her over to sit on his lap, and she giggled and she pretended to struggle, "Say, what's that wonderful smell? It smells like zinc. I'll bet it's one of your great chemical mixtures,"
"Of course," Enamel purred as she lifted the cube to his mouth to feed him, "Only the best for my strong solid wrecking ball."
"I still can't get over you two," Brawn said from his place sitting to Bulkhead's left, "And to think you used to call me lovesick. You two are worse than me and Switchboard ever were. Hey Huffer, you ever seen anything this sickly sweet in your life?"
"Once, but they have a suppository for it now," Huffer joked.
Bulkhead's coworkers laughed and Enamel got off his lap just to make the embarrassment stop. Of course she didn't really care what they thought. They were just jealous of what she had with her mech. Still, she didn't want to look disrespectful or unladylike in regards to Bulkhead. He had enough problems without having issues with his reputation as a tough guy.
Brawn playfully punched Bulkhead in the arm, and Enamel rolled her optics at the immature mechs. When she looked away, however, she saw a worker she'd never seen before coming their way with a stack of boxes.
"Hey guys, I found the rivets," The new mech announced, but then got a look at Enamel and dropped the box and screamed, "AHH! Oh, pit! Is the boss here? Is that his daughter? Is this an inspection!?"
This over-the-top reaction just made the other mechs laugh even harder than before, and Enamel couldn't help but laugh as well seeing a large construction mech lose his scrap like a sparkling at the medic's office.
"I just have one correction to make to your inquiry," Enamel said after regaining her composure, "This construction site is owned by Makeshift, who is barely able to keep control of it. My father could buy this enterprise several times over. I'm sure you've heard the name Fireclap in passing?"
"Fireclap? The financial advisor of Sentinel Prime?" The new mech asked worriedly, "What is he doing here!? Nobody did anything! Right?"
"Relax, kid," Bulkhead chuckled, "Fireclap isn't here. Enamel is my girlfriend. Nobody's in trouble."
"Wow, you're dating an elite?" The new mech asked incredulously, "That's amazing! I bet you get a lot of free stuff."
"Oh, for the love of the Allspark…" Enamel muttered as she held her forehead in her hand.
"Uh, maybe some introductions are in order," Brawn suggested to pacify the situation, "Enamel, this is Breakdown. He was ordered from the Allspark to be our new demolitions and hammer mech. Breakdown, this is Enamel of Tyger Pax. She's a plate surgeon and has been dating Bulkhead for 2 vorns."
"2 vorns? That sounds serious," Breakdown replied in awe, "You are so lucky, Bulkhead. I couldn't get a femme that hot if I looked like Sunstreaker the gladiator."
"If you ever want to try to look like Sunstreaker, my office is downtown," Enamel replied as she handed Breakdown her business card, "Also, if you ever do get worked on, don't change the chassis. The symmetry is already perfect."
As Enamel walked away Bulkhead played over that last statement in his processor. When they first met the first thing Enamel complained about was his lack of symmetry. Bulkhead had never been one to be sensitive about his looks. His creators never made him feel that his looks were abhorrent. His job didn't require him to look like a cover model. He never thought about needing to be attractive before, but now that he was in a relationship with a femme that any mech would kill for it made him question things.
Bulkhead looked down at his massive hands, his short legs, and his big gut. Did Enamel find him unattractive? Worse yet, was she flirting with Breakdown? He was younger than Bulkhead, and more handsome. Could Enamel leave him for someone else, even someone with the same low caste as him? Bulkhead was distracted for the rest of the work day wondering if he was losing the love of his life to his own imperfections.
That night Bulkhead had commed Enamel and asked her to meet him at the lookout so they could look up at the stars. Enamel thought that would be so romantic, so she agreed to meet him. When she drove up he was already in robot mode lying on his back looking up at the inky black sky. She transformed and joined him; lying on her chassis and resting one of her hands on his arm.
"Enamel, there's something I want to ask you," Bulkhead said without turning his helm to look at her, "Do you think we have a future together? I mean, do you think we'll ever get bonded and have a family? Do you think there's more to us than just right now?"
"Of course there is," Enamel replied without question, "I don't know how, but I'll get out of my engagement to that good for nothing toadie my father wants me to marry and then I'll be all yours. I'm sorry it's taking so long, but you don't realize just how dangerous my father is...even to me."
"Oh, I'm sorry, sweet spark," Bulkhead whispered, "I wish I could just scoop you into my alt mode and take you away from all that. I wish we could just drive into the horizon and not stop until we find a world that will accept our love."
"Wow...That was actually pretty deep of you Bulkhead," Enamel replied breathlessly.
"Thanks, I got it from a song on the radio," Bulkhead replied sheepishly, but then in a more serious tone asked, "So, you definitely want to be with me? You don't, I don't know, want some other guy instead, right?"
"Of course not," Enamel replied casually; not suspecting his fears, "There is just one stipulation I would make to your plans for us though."
"Oh yeah? What's that?" Bulkhead asked.
"I don't want any sparklings," Enamel stated with absolute certainty, "I don't like sparklings, and I don't think I would be a very good carrier. Sparklings are so sticky, and they break things. I hope that's not a deal breaker."
"It's not," Bulkhead replied as he rolled over on his chassis and wrapped his arm around Enamel's shoulders, "I have to admit I'm a little disappointed though. I like sparklings, and I always wondered what it would look like if you and I had a kid."
"It's not worth a lifetime of codependency to find out," Enamel said firmly, "Bulkhead, let's just look up at the stars for a while longer. I could use the silence."
Bulkhead obliged, and the happy couple cuddled with each other as they looked up at the galaxy beyond them and dreamed of their lives together. Bulkhead felt better knowing that his beloved Enamel's spark belonged only to him, and Enamel felt better now that they weren't discussing sparklings anymore.