Bumblebee was grounded.

Ratchet had personally seen to that, dragging him back to base while lecturing him at full volume.

Jazz had been relieved.

Finally—finally—he had some peace.

Or at least, he thought he did.

Until Bumblebee snuck out again.

And this time, he brought passengers.

Harry was tuning up an engine when he heard the familiar sound of a Camaro's engine purring outside.

He smirked. "Oh? Back so soon?"

Jazz, sitting on a crate, groaned. "No fraggin' way."

But when the driver's side door opened, instead of an empty seat—

Two humans stepped out.

A lanky, nervous-looking guy with wild hair and an absolutely drop-jawed expression, and a gorgeous brunette who was watching everything with sharp, amused eyes.

"Uh," the guy said, staring directly at Harry. "Who the hell are you?"

Harry arched an eyebrow, wiping grease off his hands. "Who the hell are you?"

The girl snorted. "Damn. I like him already."

"Mikaela," the guy hissed. "Focus."

Mikaela just grinned. "Oh, I am focused."

Jazz immediately stood up, stepping between Harry and the new arrivals, optics narrowing. "Bee. Explain.*"

Bumblebee let out a cheerful beep, totally ignoring the obvious tension in the air.

Sam, still looking like he had no idea what was happening, ran a hand through his hair. "Okay, seriously—who is this guy? Why is Bee acting like he's his favorite person in the universe?"

Harry smirked. "Because I am his favorite person in the universe."

Bumblebee chirped happily.

Sam sputtered. "What?!"

Jazz, who was already done, scowled. "Bee, I swear to Primus, I will reprogram you myself."

Mikaela, laughing, crossed her arms. "Oh, I like this guy. You seeing this, Sam?"

Sam, who was still staring at Harry like he was an unsolvable math problem, blurted out, "Why are you so—" He gestured vaguely. "You know—hot?"

The shop went silent.

Jazz snapped his gaze to Sam. "What."

Harry, grinning, tilted his head. "Excuse me?"

Sam immediately panicked. "I—I mean—I didn't mean to say that out loud—"

Mikaela cackled, slapping Sam on the back. "Oh my god, this is the best day ever."

Jazz twitched violently. "No. No, we are not doin' this today."

But of course, they were.

Because Bumblebee, as if trying to make the situation worse, let out a pitiful beep and nudged his helm toward Harry—

And Harry, being the absolute menace that he was, immediately started rubbing Bee's plating again.

"Who's my good boy?" Harry crooned. "Who's my rebellious little speedster?"

Bumblebee purred.

Sam choked. "I—what—HE PURRS?"

Mikaela, wiping tears from her eyes, nodded. "Oh yeah. And he loves it."

Jazz vibrated with rage. "BEE, STOP ENCOURAGING THEM."

Meanwhile, Epps and Lennox, who had just walked into the shop, took one look at the situation—

And immediately started dying laughing.

"Oh my god," Epps wheezed. "This just keeps getting better."

Lennox, grinning like an idiot, shook his head. "Jazz, man, you need to get your human under control."

"I DO NOT HAVE A HUMAN," Jazz snapped.

Harry smirked. "Yes, you do."

Jazz groaned. "I hate everything."

Ironhide, standing in the doorway, watching this all unfold, muttered, "I still don't get it."*