Haven ✔️

Ch. 27 I Will Protect her

Crosshairs' P.O.V.
I don't blame Drift for thinking Sunstreaker sabotaged Jamie's ATV — the aft showed us already he wants Jamie gone — but I don't think Sunstreaker knows about the capsules Jamie uses. We also use them, but not around the base. Sunstreaker came by with a note for Drift. Sunstreaker was sad when he told me he knew Drift might think he is lying. I'm not sure what to think after what happened and after reading Sunstreaker's note, but Jamie has gotten hurt twice this month after Sideswipe said she and Sunstreaker should be friends after Sunstreaker said he wants Jamie gone. Hard to know if he's lying or not. I'm supposed to protect Jamie, but Sideswipe's reason why Sunstreaker and Jamie can help each other is valid.

Jolt used a small dose of the relaxant; Drift is awake two hours later, as Jolt told me he would. I watch him sit up and look at Jamie, unhappy she's still asleep. He picks her up and holds her close. He's already decided Sunstreaker is to stay away from Jamie. I'm not going to talk about it right now.
"I'm sorry, I'm failing to protect you," Drift whispers. 
I see Jolt and Ratchet standing in the doorway, uncertain how to deal with this.
I sit on the bed beside Drift and side-hug him. 

Ratchet P.O.V.
Crosshairs acts like he's ok, but he's clearly not liking what happened and questioning letting Sunstreaker near Jamie.
"Jamie should be waking up soon. Make sure the three eat dinner," I instruct Jolt before leaving the medbay.

The twins are in their room. No surprise that Sideswipe is playing a video game. What's surprising is that Sunstreaker sits at the edge of his bed, unhappy.
"Leave. I know you hate me," Sunstreaker says without looking at me.
"For what happened to Jamie? No, things don't add up. You didn't act like you do when you hurt or kill a soldier. Do you know what capsules are?"
I show him a capsule that contains a large first aid kit and how it works. The box is now out of the capsule.
"No, I've never seen these."
"Then you didn't do anything to Jamie's ATV."
"Good luck convincing everyone else. Jamie is in danger, Ratchet, and I don't think this is Jadin's doing," Sunstreaker could be right, or that glitch has a plan we didn't think of,
"I doubt I'll be allowed near Jamie now, but I swear I'm going to protect her," Sunstreaker vows.
"You wouldn't say that if you were trying to kill her."
I should have recorded our conversation. Now I find out these two plan on staying in their room all night. I demand they come to the cafeteria with me.

Bumblebee and Knockout insist that the twins and I sit with them. Lightning, Hound, Hot Rod, and Rangeblade — another former con — are at the table. Sunstreaker sits at the end of the table with his chair turned enough to only look at Sideswipe, who's sitting at the head of the table. The others don't know if they should say something or not.

Twenty minutes pass before Crosshairs, Drift, Jamie, and Jolt walk in. Only Jolt joins us. The other three sit at a table at the other end of the cafeteria, which means Jamie knows Sunstreaker is here.
"You guys can join them," Sunstreaker tells everyone, but no one leaves. I can tell they want to say something but are unsure what to say. 
You have three examples of Jamie trusting a bot after a rough period, Sunstreaker, two of whom are former cons. You shouldn't give up.

Jamie's P.O.V.
I don't know who the figure I saw was. I don't know if I was so focused on the race to focus on sensing the figure's energy signature or if they knew how to suppress their energy. This would mean Jadin is back, but I need solid proof. I could have been so focused on the race, and the figure was Sunstreaker, knowing I'd crash, hoping I'd get seriously injured. Yet he's not in the brig. I'm not going to ask Prime why. I'll be ready for a fight when Sunstreaker attacks.

Drift's P.O.V.
Ratchet said Jamie would want to go to bed early. Though it's more like earlier than she has been going to bed all month. I worry the nightmares are going to get worse. 
Crosshairs is thinking about something but won't tell me what. I suspect he's not completely against Sideswipe's idea but thinks I am. I don't know; Sunstreaker scared her and hurt her today. I also think Sideswipe's idea is good, but I can't deal with Jamie getting hurt. It's bad enough that she's scared of Sunstreaker and thinks he'll kill Crosshairs and me. I don't know what to do.

Crosshairs' P.O.V.
Drift says he will shower, but not even five minutes pass before I hear him crying. Some will say this is pathetic, but they don't know what we've been through. We can't have a break from scrap even though the cons have been quiet. I'm leaving him alone. I put the note Sunstreaker wrote on the nightstand before going to bed.

Drift's P.O.V.
I don't think the running water drowned out the sound of my crying. It's been hard watching Jamie change due to the shit going in back in her dimension. No way things she's dealt with in her cross-dimensional travel haven't affected her, but it's not the only culprit. Add watching her come close to dying. I never thought I'd fall for a human, never mind one like Jamie. I hate that there's not much I can do to make her happy and now feel safe.

Crosshairs is asleep by the time I'm out of the bathroom. I discover Sunstreaker wrote a note.
So this is what he was thinking about.

Drift, I swear on my spark I didn't sabotage Jamie's ATV. I swear I want to be her friend. You know how hard this is for me. I don't expect you to give me another chance. I'll stay away until you and Crosshairs let me near her.

              Sunstreaker

I don't know what to think about this or what to do. I lay in bed close to Jamie, hoping to fall asleep.

Sunstreaker's P.O.V.
Strangely, I can't sleep. Everything I've been feeling this month has been strange, even though this has been my mood since meeting Lily in March.
With Sideswipe asleep, I go down to the hangar. A drive may help.

As I'm about to get into my alt mode, Drift walks in carrying Jamie wrapped in a red blanket and looks worried. I take my chance and ask Drift what happened. He tells me Jamie's nightmare tonight is worse than they have been, and nothing else is working. I wait for him to put Jamie in the passager seat of his alt mode to ask to come with them. Though I didn't expect him to agree to let me come. 

I follow Drift to the end of the city, which is a good twenty-minute drive. He drives to a spot that is great for watching the sunset. I park nearby and walk to his alt mode, ready to leave if it's clear Jamie senses I'm here. I hate how upset she is, even if she's a little calm. At least twenty days of this, but I've been told why Crosshairs and Drift stay here. I basically put them between a rock and a hard place.
Ten minutes pass before Jamie is quiet. Drift tells me it's time to leave.

Jamie is asleep by the time we get back to the base. Drift confirms Jamie has had nightmares for twenty days straight.
"I'm sorry."
I leave the hangar. There's no way I will be able to be friends with her now.