(Please see all previous disclaimers)
Unaware that she was running away from her mate who had returned to his normal level of function, Aquaformer returned to her quarters. She wasn't sure why Optimus or Orion Pax was in the med bay, but for now, she just sat on the bot sized couch. Thankfully, the sparklings were still elsewhere. She wanted her mate back so bad it hurt, but she would never admit it. She still believed fully that one never showed weakness lest on be taken advantage of.
Meanwhile, back in the med bay, Ratchet scanned over Optimus. The Prime was not happy about this delay and it showed. "No need to look so sour, Orion" Ratchet said as a test while he scanned.
Optimus shot the medic a cold look. "I am your Prime, and you will address me as such" Optimus replied, colder than he meant to. He could feel his mate's pain and this delay made him upset.
Ratchet knew then that Optimus had returned. "I see. It would see that our Prime has returned" Ratchet announced.
"Returned?" Optimus asked, not understanding just what Ratchet meant.
Ratchet sighed. "Optimus, there is something you should know" Ratchet answered and then informed the Prime on recent events concerning him and, to some extent, his mate. Optimus was saddened to hear that Aquaformer had dealt with all of this seemingly alone. He could see that she still apparently didn't trust other bots enough to rely on them for anything other than care of the sparklings. "She needs you, Optimus. She will never admit it, but she needs you right now." Optimus nodded, and once cleared, he headed back to his quarters, hoping that she would be happy to see him.
Aquaformer was still on the couch, staring into oblivion when Optimus finally arrived back at their shared quarters. Her face plates appeared to be stained with tears, though he knew she would never admit it. She still never admitted weakness if she could help it. No wonder she had her face guard up. She hadn't wanted anyone to see her like this. He carefully approached, unsure how she would react – especially given recent events. He could only hope that he could show her that he was here for her, he loved her, and he was so glad she had stuck by him through all the craziness.