♥︎ Transformers Imagines ♥︎ (Bayverse, TFP, Rescue Bots)

➤ 12. TFP!Ratchet x Reader (Night Series)

What if he had no intention of actually becoming friends with me? What if these genuinely nice interactions with him were simply to make me easier for him to deal with?

"Only for tonight, alright?" With the usual grumpiness edging his tone, Ratchet suddenly engaged his holoform, the older man once again drawing my attention with ease.

Not necessarily because he was an older man; but because he was so damn handsome. The times I'd seen Ratchet's holoform were far and few in between, and yet every time I saw it, I had to take a moment to study it further. Further, as in I never allowed my gaze to stay very long. So every time I looked, I would notice something new.

"Are you sure you're okay with it?" This time, it was the twitch at the corner of his lips, indicating a hint of a smile at my question.

"I wouldn't agree if I wasn't, would I?" His previously illuminated interior darkened rather suddenly as he prepared to bring me back home. "Now let's go, before the storm worsens."

As opposed to going back out into the rain as I was, I felt better knowing Ratchet was coming with me. There was little solace from the overpass as I hopped out of the ambulance, Ratchet's holoform joining me at my side. "It's now or never," I heard Ratchet mumble under his breath before we both took off running into the rain.

If it was cold the first time, it was colder the second time. By the time we made it to my front door, I struggled to open it with my shaking hands. But I kicked off my shoes the moment I was inside, and Ratchet was quick to shed his now damp lab coat, placing it on the nearby kitchen bench.

"Quite the interior decorator," Ratchet mused, eyeing the colourful painting of a tropical scenery adorning my wall.

As I pulled off my soaking wet hoodie with some effort, I couldn't help but let out a breathy laugh in response. "I made that for my art class last year, believe it or not."

Out of the corner of my eye, I swore I saw his eyes widen for a second. Perhaps he hadn't considered that I completed pieces now and then. He'd seen a few of my sketches lying around the base, as had everyone else. But today was the first time he or any of the team had seen a finished painting.

"You're a wonderful artist." His quiet mumble brought a shy smile to my lips as he examined my painting for a long moment. It wasn't often I saw the gentle side of Ratchet, so it was a little monumental.

"Thanks, Ratch."

It was a bit of a step over the metaphorical line, trying out giving him a nickname. But, he didn't seem bothered by it, surprisingly. He simply continued on throughout my house, eyes trailing over the photographs hanging in picture frames, and pausing to take in the other artworks of mine.

I left him to his own devices while I went to dry off and change into some warm pyjamas. Luckily, he wasn't like Miko in the slightest, and when I returned, he was sitting on my couch looking rather lost.

The first and last time Miko was here, she managed to knock my mom's favourite vase off the bookshelf and it shattered.

"You look a little lost, doc."

Upon hearing the other, more disliked nickname, Ratchet lifted his head like he was about to snap at me, but once he was finally looking at me he faltered.

Was it my Batman pyjamas? Or the blanket wrapped around my shoulders like a cape?

A little ashamed of my appearance, I pulled the blanket closer to my body, shielding most of it from view since it was a very fluffy black throw from my bed.

It was extremely unusual for me to see Ratchet like this. He'd never been lost for words before, or unable to snap at someone with a .2 second delay.