*I don't own Transformers or anything affiliated with Transformers. I only own my original characters and plots. All rights go to Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg.*

There wasn't really much I could do except for sit in my suite and do nothing. My body was still trying to recover from what happened with the Decepticons, so for now I've been taking it easy. It sucked not be able to do the things I normally could because my energy level was so low, but I couldn't stress just how amazing it felt to be free of my ability. I could no longer hurt those around me, especially those that I cared about.

It's been three days since I was rescued from wherever the Decepticons had taken me. I've spent these three days with my friends, my family, and some of the Autobots--especially Ratchet--but there was one Autobot I still had yet to see. Optimus still had yet to return from his "mission," although Ironhide had returned the next day. I didn't know what was going on, but I just wanted to see him.

As I sat here thinking about it, I began to believe that he didn't even want to see me. I mean, it's been two days since Ironhide returned and I highly doubted he would leave Optimus alone to complete the mission. I just couldn't understand why he hasn't shown up yet.

A knock on my door tore me away from my thoughts, and I let out a sigh before telling whoever it was to come in. I wanted nothing more than for it to be Optimus, but I knew that wasn't going to be the case here.

I was proven right when Ratchet walked through the door to my suite. He had a small smile on his face, which I returned half-heartedly. It was lovely to see him, but I would love nothing more than to see the Bot that I've managed to fall hopelessly in love with during the past couple of weeks. Maybe Ratchet had answers for why Optimus seemed to be MIA.

"How are you doing today?" Ratchet asked as he walked over to where I was sitting on the couch cuddling with my blanket.

"I could be better," I shrugged. He raised a brow and sat down beside me. He was seemingly curious about why I was in such a funk. I'm surprised it wasn't obvious.

"Is this about Optimus?" he inquired. Okay, maybe it was obvious.

"Yes."

"Care to elaborate?"

I let out a sigh and turned to face him. "He should be here, Ratchet. Ironhide returned from the mission two days ago, but Optimus didn't. Does he not want to see me or something? Because all I want is to see him."

"Optimus has had a rough few days, Brenna. Allow me to rephrase that--Optimus has had a rough week," he told me.

I was confused. "Wait, why? What's wrong with him?"

"I think I'll let him tell you himself," he told me with a small smile.

I was confused yet again, until I noticed him glance over towards the door. A very familiar form stood in the doorway, a form I recognized to be Optimus's holoform. His face held a slight smile, but his eyes held sadness and regret. I didn't really care about that at the moment, nor did I care about the fact that my body was wracked with a painstaking amount of fatigue. All I cared about was the fact that he was here.

"Optimus," I whispered before removing myself from the couch. I ignored the intense lightheadedness and ran over to Optimus, engulfing him in a tight hug. He didn't hesitate before wrapping his arms around me. I couldn't help but feel as if he were relieved to see me; I knew I was more than relieved to see him.

"Hello, Brenna," Optimus chuckled.

"I'm going to leave you two to talk," Ratchet said before exiting my suite.

I released Optimus and backed away from him slightly, the sadness returning. He frowned at my expression, and I just shook my head and returned back to my spot on the couch.

"Where have you been?" I asked as I watched him walk over to me.

"I've been here at base taking care of things," he answered. This just made me mad and even more upset than I had been.

"And you didn't come to see me once? You're the only person I've wanted to see for the past three days, Optimus," I told him as I wrapped my blanket around me.

"I apologize, young Brenna. I've just been very busy," he told me. That is such a lie.

"Don't give me that. What's wrong with you? I may not be able to sense that something's wrong with you anymore, but I can tell just by looking in your eyes," I remarked.

He sighed and sat down on the couch. "I have not had the best week, as Ratchet has informed you. And it's all because of you."

Well damn.

"What did I do?"

He pursed his lips. "That came out sounding much worse than I expected it too. You did nothing, Brenna. It was I who messed up."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked. His words were only confusing me.

"I messed up when I left you in Vermont to fend for yourself. I was not able to protect you, and it pained me more than you think, Brenna. That week was spent doing nothing but trying to locate you, and we finally did, but when I saw you collapse I thought that we were too late. I could not live with the fact that I had failed to protect you, so I needed to get away. It wasn't until Ironhide and I returned the next day that I was informed that you were indeed alive and well. It made me happy, of course, but I just could not get over the fact that I had let them take you in the first place. I couldn't see you solely for that purpose," he explained. Now it all made sense.

"You don't have to be upset, Optimus. I'm okay; I'm more than okay, especially now that I have you here with me," I assured him. "You don't need to be upset or feel any kind of regret. I really am okay. You've done a better job than anyone at protecting me, and I couldn't thank you enough for everything that you've done for me in such a short amount of time."

"Don't thank me, Brenna. It's been more than a pleasure," he responded.

I just sat there for a few seconds and stared at him. He was just so amazing. I couldn't begin to think about what my life would be like without him and I honestly didn't think I wanted to. Before him, my life was nothing but pain and turmoil, and until I met him I didn't think I'd ever be happy again, but here I was. Even when I found out that my dad was alive, I had to have him with me. He was the only person that kept me from falling apart, and the only person who cared for me when I had no one else. He was the most important person in my life, and I wasn't even exaggerating that statement. Yes, I loved my dad, my grandparents, and my friends more than anything in the world, but Optimus was the only one I had during the most difficult time in my life, and I think that's going to stick with me for the rest of my life. I truly did love him, and I highly doubted that was going to change any time soon.

Without even thinking, I pretty much threw myself at Optimus. I wrapped my arms around his neck and placed my lips onto his. They were soft, but then again they weren't. Either way, synthetic or not, they were absolutely perfect.

After a couple of seconds I finally realized what I was doing, and I pulled away as quickly as I could. I was so embarrassed that I had done that, but it was impulsive.

"I'm so sorry," I exclaimed as I covered my mouth and wrapped myself in my blankets once more. Optimus had a rather surprised look on his face, but that was all. Oh, how my ability would come in handy right now. I could know exactly how he was feeling at the moment, instead of going off of his facial expression. That was really the only frustrating part about this.

"Please, don't apologize."

"But I kissed you without your permission, and you probably don't even feel that way about me because you're an advanced alien robot from the planet Cybertron, so why on Earth would you even begin to care for a human being in that way. Plus, you're a Prime. This is probably like forbidden for you, I don't know. But I know that if I were in your shoes-" I was cut off my a pair of warm lips on mine. I relaxed immediately and wrapped my arms around Optimus's neck as I had only a minute ago. He pulled away after a few seconds, leaving me yearning for more.

"You tend to babble when you're nervous. That was the only way I could get you to quiet yourself," he chuckled as he pulled away from me.

I felt my cheeks burning, and without another word I pulled my hood up over my head and pulled the strings to hide the redness surfacing on my cheeks. What was he doing to me?

"How smart of you," I murmured.

"Do you remember the conversation we had last week? The conversation about the topic in which I told you did not need to be discussed?" he asked.

I only nodded in response.

"Well, I believe that now is a better time than ever to discuss it. You see, when your father first asked me to look after you, I only obliged because he was such a dear friend to me. I could see that he was very concerned for your safety and well-being, and I did not want that for him. I flew out to your home state the next day, and proceeded to carry out this protection detail. The very first time that I saw you I knew that you were a special human being. You were a strong, compassionate person who cared more about the people around you than you cared for your own self. I admired that about you, and over time I realized that I was not just keeping you safe because your father had asked me to, but because I would find myself living in nothing but regret if I were to let anything happen to such a tremendous person," he started.

"How could you determine all of that just by looking at me?" I asked him. I always thought I was a rather hard person to read. Sometimes I couldn't even read myself, which was quite pathetic.

"I could sense it, Brenna. I remember watching you and your friends walk home from school one day. Mackenna tripped and fell, knocking you to the ground with her. She had broken her ankle, yet you had also managed to sprain your wrist. The twins were worried about the both of you, but you were only worried about Mackenna's well-being, despite the pain you were in," he replied.

I remembered that day like it was yesterday. Mackenna was being Mackenna--dancing in the street as she normally did when we actually walked home--and she wound up tripping over a freaking street sign. She fell to the ground and took me with her, injuring us both. I had sprained my wrist trying to land safely, and she had broken her ankle being stupid. I was in so much pain, and I was honestly debating on whether or not I should hit her or call 911. I wasn't even worried about my injury, really; I knew they would have taken care of me when I got to the hospital. My only concern was Mackenna and her well-being, despite the fact that she had brought the pain on herself.

"Gosh, she's so stupid," I laughed.

"Yet you didn't chastise her for it. You put her well-being above your own."

I shrugged. "That's just who I am. You're exactly the same way."

"Which is why I became so fascinated with you. Over time, I developed feelings for you. I shouldn't have, but I couldn't help it. You just fascinated me, and I found myself not being able to leave you alone. Once I learned of the Decepticon's attack on your home, I flew back to your home state immediately. I was worried that I may have lost you along with the rest of your family. I couldn't bear the thought of having failed you or your father. It tore me apart more than it should have," he informed me.

I felt so much comfort in his confession. When I had thought he didn't feel the same about me, he did. And apparently he has even since before I knew who he was. It was just very settling to finally know how he felt, instead of relying on my ability to try and figure it out.

Without thinking, I placed my hand over top of his calloused one. The feeling that ignited inside me just by the feeling of him made me tighten my grip around it.

"Well, you didn't lose me. I'm here, and I always will be," I assured him.

"I would want nothing more, Brenna. You really do mean so much to me. I don't believe I've ever met a being who has managed to ignite such feelings inside me," he chuckled.

I smiled at him. "Me either, Optimus."

"I'm always going to be here for you, Brenna. As long as you'll have me, that is," he said.

I smiled once again and moved to wrap my arms around his body. He wasted no time at all in wrapping his strong arms around me, and in that moment I felt as if I were at home. There was no place I'd rather be than right here in Optimus's arms, mechanical or not.

"Of course I'll have you. How much fun would life be if you didn't have the opportunity to be with the one you love?" I giggled, not exactly realizing what I said until the words came out of my mouth. "Oh, shit."

"Did you just say what I thought you said?" Optimus chimed, surprise and shock in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that," I laughed.

"No, no. I believe I share the same feelings for you as you do for me. It's perfectly okay, Brenna," he told me, planting a kiss to the top of my head. I sighed in content and hugged him tighter.

"So, it wouldn't be a crime for me to tell you that I really do love you and that I'm so thankful to have you in my life?" I questioned.

"Of course not. The feeling is very much mutual, young Brenna. Now, I believe you need to rest. You still have quite a while to go before you're functioning normally," he said to me. I looked up at him with a sad look on my face. I was worried that he was going to leave me, and he seemed to notice this. "Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right here. Just go to sleep."

He pulled me closer to him and I smiled in content, nestling myself further into his body. If I could stay here forever then I would be perfectly okay with that. As long as I had Optimus Prime in my life I was going to be okay, not to mention exceedingly happy. There was nobody else that I'd rather be with than him. He was all that I needed and more, and I was more than ready to see what the future held for us.