2. Charge (A TFP Fanfiction)

Chapter 15

I realized as I woke that I must have passed out in my shocked state. I sat up slowly, blinking my eyes at the darkness. It was apparently later in the hours of the night. The base was utterly empty, which made my heart flutter in loneliness and fear. I knew I had nothing to really be afraid of now, yet, my body was tense and my mind was filled with horrors. I got up of the couch with hunched shoulders, glancing around. The monitors were on, but were blank, which meant that Ratchet was actually in berth tonight. Feeling chills rise up my body, I rubbed my bare arms with my hands and realized my wrist was wrapped. To the side of the couch, my blue sweatshirt lay. I was dressed in my white undershirt and jeans, and that was all.

A draft of air blew in from somewhere and I jumped, goosebumps rising. My eyes scanned the room frantically as tears of fright started to build into them. I knew I cried a lot, but I couldn't seem to help myself, and the terror that was gripping my chest. Feeling myself grow panicked, I hurried down the stairs, not bothering to grab my sweatshirt. There wasn't anyone there, which made me anxious. Holding my arms still, I rushed down the giant hall. I knew that they kept their berthrooms, but I had no idea where they were. I stopped at each giant door and peeked in, getting embarrassed when it turned it that it wasn't his. It made me feel a little better, knowing everyone was here.

When I found Optimus' berthroom, I nearly squeaked in surprise when I saw he was still awake. He was sitting up on his berth, looking at the wall. He was obviously deep in thought, and luckily he didn't notice me duck away quickly. I wondered what he was thinking about when I finally reached the last door. It was mostly closed, but there was enough of a crack for me to squeeze into.

Of course he would pick the room farthest away from everyone else, I thought with a tiny smile.

As I went in slowly, my eyes struggled to adjust at the darkness of the room. It was even darker here than in the monitor room, and I squinted harder to see. I tiptoed farther in, and when my eyes did adjust I saw him, laying with on his back in his berth. It was hard to make out his facial expression, but he looked relaxed, and I didn't want to wake him. With a sigh, I sat against the wall in silence. As long as I was here, I would be fine, right?

I closed my eyes to try and fall asleep again. As I drifted off, my thoughts took a turn for the worst. I thought about my mom and her death, about what MECH had done to me. About my father. Silas was my father. That horrible man was in my blood. He had practically created me. And created me all over again with his sick ideals. My eyes flew open and I found that I was shaking uncontrollably. I was near the point of crying, tears in my eyes and my lip quivering. My legs shot up and I hurriedly ran closer to Ratchet's berth.

I stopped just in front of it, clutching my arms as I shivered. "Ratchet!" I whispered loudly, afraid of waking anyone else up. When he didn't stir, I stepped closer. "Ratchet!"

My ears picked up a noise, and although it was small, it was enough to send my body into panic. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would fly out of my chest. I was starting to get light headed and my breathing was fast. My feet were practically dancing, and I went to the bottom of his berth frantically.

"Ratchet!" I cried, louder now because I was afraid. Too afraid, so, so afraid. "Ratchet!!" I shouted again, not caring if I woke anyone else up now. He just had to hear me; I needed it.

Just as I was about to scream his name again, he stirred with a small moan. I relaxed a little when he sat up and looked away, obviously a little confused. When his helm turned to me, he raised an optic ridge and squinted in the dark. He had to register it was me for a second, but once he did he hurriedly got out of his berth and knelt over me.

"Taylor!" he cried silently, his servos reaching for me. "You're awake!"

Relief flooded my chest and I jumped forward and hugged his digits with a muffled cry. He blinked at me again as I sobbed quietly into the warmness of his servos. After a few minutes, his other servo scooped me up gently and he sat back on his berth. He allowed me to fuss for a little while longer. He didn't say anything, and right now, that was exactly what I needed.