*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.*

Eleven agonizing days well-spent inside my home either sleeping, eating or doing some type of school work. It's not that I was really complaining about it; I was just getting very sick of the same routine day after day. It really sucked that I wasn't able to go out and actually do motivational things like shooting, jogging, or even school. This past week and a half had been fairly long and I was so ready for a change.

Braelynn had stopped by every other day after school to drop off my homework and would stay for a few hours to talk to me about everything that I've been missing at school and everything that I've missed in her life. She was now in a happy relationship with my childhood best friend, Eric Amell. After he transferred to Oakland in the ninth grade we had stopped talking, but him and Braelynn had always had a thing for each other so I was more than happy for her.

After that little detail she had informed me on Trent's consecutive absences from school. I just laughed about that. I had been almost certain that he was also injured or even just too scared to come to school. We soon got off the subject of Trent and Braelynn began to talk about me and my supposed feelings for Ron. No matter how much I tried to convince her that there are none, she wouldn't stop. She claims that my eyes and the way I look at him give it away. She also says that I light up every time I talk about him, but I just ignored her, considering the fact Ron wasn't really speaking to me at the moment. Him or my father.

Ever since that eavesdropping incident between them they had been way more than reticent. They started staying at the base much longer than they normally did during the week. Most of the times they wouldn't return until I was headed to bed and when I woke up in the morning, they were gone yet again. They were only home for two days after that and even then they wouldn't really communicate with me. A few hello's and goodbye's were really all they said. It's like they were trying to avoid me at all costs and I didn't really understand why. They would quit talking to each other as soon as I hopped into the room and would just stare at the TV even when it wasn't even turned on. They wouldn't utter a word.

I never really thought that they would make such a big deal out of me overhearing the conversation that I wasn't really supposed to hear but they did. It was ridiculous in my opinion and I was intensely aggravated with them. First, they were obviously hiding something from me and probably from my mother, considering she's the only one that even bothered to talk to me. I did not like it when people kept secrets from me at all or when people lied to me, and my dad and Ron's suspicious ways made me all the more eager to find out what the hell was actually going on. Secondly, I absolutely hated nothing more than being ignored. . .especially by the people that I care about and to say the least, I was rather hurt.

Aside from that whole ordeal, my knee was healing up quite nicely. Three days after my dad and Ron sort of quit speaking to me, Ratchet came to check up on me. He had informed me that not only were the pills he gave me pain pills, they were also injected with a special herb that helps speed up the body's healing process. That's the main reason they made me go to sleep. I was more than pleased at this revelation though. That day he had told me that with the way my injury was looking, I would be free from this horrendous brace in about seven days, and guess what? Those seven days were finally over!

Currently, I was sitting on the living room couch brushing through my damp, blonde hair just waiting on Ratchet to walk through the front door. My dad and Ron were at the base again today, not that I was surprised in the least. My grandmother had come over earlier to pick up Annabelle for a few days, so it had just been my mom and I.

The sound from the flat screen TV echoed throughout the room but I didn't pay any attention to what was playing. I threw my hair up in a messy bun and laid my brush down on the coffee table. I was getting way too anxious to get this thing off and my patience was wearing thin.

"Calm down, Azalea. You're going to tear another ligament if you keep fidgeting like that," my mom joked.

I chuckled. "I know. But I just want this thing off. My knee doesn't even hurt anymore. It's suffocating more than anything. If that's not a sign, I don't know what is."

"Just chill. I'm sure he'll be here in a little bit," she assured me.

As if on cue there was a faint knock on the door. My mom got up to get it and I peered around to see who it was, silently hoping it was Ratchet. The door opened and the familiar dark-haired man stepped in. He greeted my mom before heading over to where I was stationed on the couch.

"Hello, Lea. How are you today?"

"I'm good. I'll be even better once this brace is finally off!" I exclaimed.

Ratchet laughed at me. "Well, let's see here," he said.

He took the blanket off of my lap and began unfastening my brace. He tossed it to the end of the couch and began examining my knee. The swelling was almost completely gone and the bruising had faded away days ago. There was only a distinct yellowish hue surrounding my knee cap but it wasn't all that noticeable.

Ratchet began feeling around my kneecap and I winced when he applied a distinct amount of pressure. He apologized, though, and continued his examination. After a few moments he stood back up and looked at me.

"I have good news and bad news. Which would you like me to tell you first?" he asked.

I blinked at him. "Um, good news?"

"The good news is. .you don't have to wear your brace anymore. Your knee has healed up quite nicely aside from the bruising. You should be okay to do your normal activities. Just take it easy. Don't run, try to keep your training sessions with Ron down to a minimum, and please for the love of Primus do not fight with anyone."

"Is Primus like a slang term down at the base or something?" I asked.

I chuckled as I remembered hearing Ron say it up in my room the night I got hurt.

"Something like that," Ratchet responded.

I was happy about finally getting this brace off. It made me feel so useless and I hated it. I couldn't do anything in it and hopping was far more tiring than walking, not to mention showering. It was one of the most difficult tasks ever. I almost fell three days ago while trying to shower and again today, so I was more than pleased.

I smiled at Ratchet, but it dropped when I remembered that he said there was bad news.

"What's the bad news, Ratchet?" I asked him.

He only laughed. "You have to go back to school tomorrow."

"Oh gosh. No, please. Don't make me go back there," I whined.

My mom laughed at me. "You've already missed enough days as it is," she said.

"I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to miss more. No one misses me except for Braelynn."

"Well, you're going," she remarked.

I just groaned.

"Get up," Ratchet commanded.

I sighed but did as he said. I twisted around and placed my feet onto the soft carpet. My knee was stiff as hell but it still felt amazing to actually have it out of that brace. I placed my hands on the sofa and slowly pushed myself up. My knee buckled under the weight and I stumbled forward, but before I could hit the ground Ratchet caught me. I thanked him and steadied myself.

"I need you to bend your knee and practice walking on it. You haven't been using it for the past week so, by now, your muscles have acquired a little bit of atrophy."

I slowly moved my knee back and forth. There was some pain but there wasn't enough to make a difference. After exercising my knee, Ratchet told me to walk to the kitchen door and back twenty times. I stumbled the first few times but after I got used to it I was walking with ease. I finished the twenty strides and stood back in front of Ratchet.

"Excellent!" he exclaimed.

I smiled. "Thank you so much for everything, Ratchet."

"You're welcome, dear. You do remember what I said about taking it easy for a couple of weeks, right?"

"Yes and I promise that I will," I assured him.

"Good. But, I must be going now. I have a lot to do back at base and the twins are waiting on me to fix them up," he chuckled.

"What happened to them?" I asked.

"Let's just say that Ron is very impulsive when angered," he explained. I didn't even want to bother asking what they did to Ron.

"Wow. Well, good luck with them."

"Thank you. I may need it."

He made his way to the front door and opened it. We exchanged goodbyes and soon enough he was gone.

"Do you work in the morning?" I asked my mom.

"Yes."

"Great," I replied and got up.

"Where are you going?"

"Upstairs to text Braelynn. I need a ride to school tomorrow," I explained.

"Your dad and Ron can just take you. They normally do anyway."

"Well, I don't feel like being ignored like I normally am. She's my only other option," I replied bitterly.

Before she had the chance to respond, I was already halfway up the stairs. I walked into my bedroom and grabbed my phone off the bedside table.

'Hey. Can you take me to school in the morning?' I sent to Braelynn.

Almost immediately, I got a response.

'You're coming back to school? FINALLY! I'm so tired of being lonely. Of course I'll pick you up, but I have a hair appointment right after to school, so I can't take you home.'

I groaned at the last part. Hopefully mom gets off on time tomorrow.

'Yes, and that's fine. I'll see you tomorrow! Love you!' I responded back.

I locked my phone and set it back down on my bedside table. The TV was playing Hannah Montana, so I decided to sit down and watch it. I was feeling so much better now that this brace was off. Hopefully I wouldn't have to deal with another injury like that.

*Please vote and comment. It'd mean so much to me. I wanna know what you guys think.*