The next morning, Lauren was awoken by the telltale sound of someone knocking on her front door.
Bleary-eyed, the brunette shuffled to her feet in haste, her body groaned and ached in protest, but ultimately went ignored (like usual). "Coming!" She called from down the stairs as she attempted to make herself look somewhat presentable.
After finger-combing the rats nest atop her head, she descended the stairs two at a time and opened her front door a tad more violently than she had intended.
"Oh. Were you sleeping? I'm sorry, it's early." The elderly man apologized earnestly with a kind smile worn by time.
"No- no! Mr. Jenkins I was just getting up." She lied with a forced smile, her eyes squinted at the abrupt change in light. "Did you need something?"
"Oh, yes." He turned and gestured to a tow truck. "My car has been giving me some trouble, I was hoping you could figure out what was wrong?" His voice was tender and his hands shook slightly with age. "These old hands aren't what they use to be."
Lauren looked out past the older gentleman. "Of course, I have all day."
"Wonderful!" He smiled causing his wrinkles to pronounce. "Would you like Jerry to back it up into the barn? Make it a little easier for 'ya."
Lauren was going to readily agree, but her words caught in her throat and she nearly choked. She didn't know if Megatron decided to stick around or not and she'd rather not potentially risk two innocent elderly mens' lives.
Or maybe it was all just one big fucked up fever dream and her barn is, and has always, been empty.
The freshly forming bruises on her back told her it was the latter.
"No, I've been working outside the shop recently. Too hot and stuffy in there." She commented nonchalantly. "Fresh air and all that."
He hummed knowingly. "This heat is something else. I'll be back around three if that works for you?"
"Not a problem, Mr. Jenkins." She didn't even know what time it was.
Lauren followed the older man out to the end of the long driveway where the tow truck deposited the old (damn near classic) car. She said her goodbyes and watched as the tow truck disappeared down the road in an upheaval of dirt and out of eye shot.
A sigh escaped her as she dropped her shoulders. She was tired, everything hurt, and now she had to figure out how to move the whole car on her own, let alone fix the damn thing.
The Texan sun was blazing and despite being in shorts and a t-shirt, she could already feel herself sweating through the thin fabrics uncomfortably.
'Breathable' her ass.
The young woman turned and marched her way up the dirt path, clad in her house slippers and all her pajama glory.
The doors were closed and the barn was still in one piece so that was a good sign at the very least.
Lauren sucked in a breath in preparation, before she entered.
And he was still there. Nothing else seemed to be broken, but then again, she was giving him the benefit of the doubt.
His red optics found her quickly, like a predator.
"Good morning." She said without thinking. "I didn't think you'd still be here if I'm being honest."
Megatron grunted roughly in response.
"Hate to break it to you, but I'm going to need my shop today, so you'll have to scooch or sit outside and get a tan."
"Unlike your kind, I know the dangers of a sun." He jabbed. "You insects are so weak and fragile, it's almost a marvel that you haven't gone extinct. Pathetic organics."
"Well, sorry." She apologized sarcastically, turning to leave. "I'll be back, so scooch."
With a quick change of clothes and a pathetic excuse for breakfast (leftover chili), she was back outside, standing before the car. She wasn't quite sure how to get it to the shop. She could push it maybe, but that'd take forever and she didn't own the necessary cables to tow it herself.
Pushing it was (not that she had any other options).
The brunette groaned dramatically as she approached the vehicle, her joints aching and back sore.
Putting the vehicle in drive was about the easiest thing she could do, now came the pushing and steering.
She got the car a good six feet up the driveway and honestly considered giving up when she spotted Megatron emerging from the barn, head turned upwards towards the sky.
An idea struck her. She put the car in park and jogged up to the mech. Her shirt stuck to her moist skin.
"Hey!" She called out, her chest heaving. He spared her a glance. "Could you help me?"
Megatron made a disgusted face as if the very thought of being helpful would cause him to vomit. "You are to serve me. Humans are insolent. Do not get confused, girl."
"Yeah, yeah, I'm a stupid small bug, wonderful. Now will you do it or not?" She placed her hands atop her hips in wait. "Please?"
Megatron made a face. "At least you are self aware, that's more than can be said for the rest of your prime forsaken species."
"Ugh, come on! I'm not strong enough to push the car all the way up here!"
The decepticon looked past her and towards the little vehicle. A growl escaped him briefly as he made his way over to where the scrap sat idle.
Lauren jogged after him. "Be careful! Please! It's not mine!"
"Shut your mouth, girl." He snarled as he pick the car up one handed.
"Look, you're getting there! Now say 'Lauren'." She teased.
He shot her a look of disdain. "I will crush you, bug."
"Yeah, you can crush me after I fix the car. I don't want to disappoint Mr. Jenkins." She moved ahead of him to pull open the barn doors.
Megatron set the car down with ease and she'd admit, she was impressed. Nevermind the subtle scratches he left along the hood.
"Thank you! You're the best!" She said without looking at him, maneuvering the car to where she needed it.
"I am Lord Megatron." He stated sternly and with pride.
Lauren popped the hood of the car. "Yeah, thanks Lord, master, Mr. Megatron." She mocked as she searched for the car's malfunction.
Megatron sat further into the barn where there was less clutter, he smirked internally. She was being facetious, he wasn't a fool. "Tell me what the reason is for working on such junk?" He gestured openly.
The brunette made her way around the car and over to the work bench where the radio sat. "Unfortunately us humans can't transform into cars and fighter jets." A part of the young woman wondered if that was all they could turn into, but she refrained from asking in favor of the task at hand.
"I am aware of that, girl." His brow ridge creased indignantly at her blatant statement.
Lauren switched the radio on.
"And remember, if you see or suspect any alien-"
"Nope." Lauren said absent mindedly as she switched to another station, one preferably with no alien adverts or pyramid schemes.
Megatron's optics never left her small form as she switched between stations.
Finally, she settled on one and turned the volume up a tad.
"We need to get around and I need the money." She offered as she plopped down in the driver's seat. And I enjoy it.
She tried to start the car and it rumbled before dying on her. She tried again, same thing.
With a good idea on the problem, she hopped out and moved back to the hood.
The battery had been replaced recently, no cable corrosion, no loose cables, and the starter looked good. So what was the problem? She probably should've asked Mr. Jenkins beforehand.
Lauren groaned and buried a hand in her hair as she racked her brain. The alternator.
She hummed as she leaned over the engine. Locating the alternator just beneath some wiring. The belt was too tight.
Lauren wandered over to her toolbox to retrieve the necessary tools, glancing up to Megatron as she did. He was watching her with a stern, unreadable expression characterized by disinterest.
Removing the alternator was a rather easy task. Taking the part to her bench, she hopped onto the stool and began disassembling the part with care. She had a good idea on what was wrong.
As she worked, she bobbed her head to the rhythm of the song, a few lyrics escaped her when she knew them. It helped her concentrate and ignore the heat.
_______________
Megatron wasn't paying any particular attention to the femme as she dawdled. He was too busy tuning his personal hailing frequency in the hopes of catching the one his subordinates were on.
He had all, but tuned her out as she bustled around before she started flabbing her vocal processors carelessly.
His expression hardened slightly and a growl threatened to erupt from his vocal processors, both because he wasn't having much luck with his hailing frequency and because his concentration had been broken momentarily by nonsense.
"This is way too hard, 'cause I know when the sun comes up, I will leave." The femme seemed to have forgotten all about his presence as she drummed her appendages across the table surface. "This is my last glance that will soon be a memory."
Megatron listened to her vibrations as she messed with pointless, inefficient machinery.
"And when the daylight comes, I'll have to go, but tonight I'm gonna hold you so close!" Her octave increased slightly to keep with the frequency.
It was strange. Many things were strange. Not having something cower at his pedes was new to him. And music was something only Cybertronians of high status got to enjoy and even then it was a rather rare thing. The femme knew, saw, his great power, his ability for destruction.
And yet...
He was sitting there because of her. The feeling of being indebt was something he hadn't experienced since his lower days and it left his processors to feel tight and uncomfortable.
He hated it.
"I never wanted to stop." She continued with the musical melody. "Because I don't wanna start all over. Start all over. I was afraid of the dark, but now it's all that I want. All that I want. All that I want."
She glanced up from the item in her hand and fumbled when she caught his ruby optics narrowed on her.
"Shit- sorry. I- I completely forgot you were there. I was so focused." She apologized quickly as she dashed around the car, part in hand.
Megatron squinted. "You are a strange insect." His statement came out more like a jab.
She snorted. "I'm strange now too?" She was amused as she replaced the part.
"Do not push it." He warned. It was not a real warning.
There was something cathartic about being able to converse with another being that wasn't kissing his pedes or begging for their life. Even if it was something as lowly as an organic femme. He was above her in every possible way, he knew that.
"I'm sorry if I was annoying you earlier." She apologized once more as she slammed the hood of the car shut.
He snit. "Your incessant apologies are irritating and unfounded, girl."
"Lord, forbid I try to be considerate." The femme held her grease covered hands up in mock surrender.
He glared. "You test my patience and decision to let you live."
"Well, I'm waiting here when you're ready to end me." She consumed clear liquid. Water. The bottle was pulled from her mouth as she smiled.
He snarled with a soft growl. She shrugged at his gesture.
"Alrighty," Lauren began. "Could you give me a hand with moving the car back outside?" She placed her hands upon her hips. "Please? I'm not strong enough and you're like thirty-five feet taller than me."
He grumbled, but reluctantly gave the vehicle a small nudge, sending it rolling outside much like a toy. The small dent in the bumper went unnoticed.
"Thanks. Mr. Jenkins should be by in a few minutes to pick it up." She glanced to a small rectangular device in her hand.
True to her words, the sound of an engine approached.
"Just stay here." She urged before closing the barn doors fully.
Despite the wooden walls, his audio receptors were fine tuned to hear well and far, much farther than any organic species the primitive planet offered. He listened to the humans exchange.
"Good afternoon Lauren!" A male's voice- Mr. Jenkins- greeted her. "I hope I didn't give you too much trouble."
"Not at all, just a problem with your alternator." She informed. "Small fix."
"I brought you some of Christine's chili, she insisted."
The femme gasped. "You shouldn't have, really! Thank you."
"She's always going on about you and those frozen diners you eat and how you refuse to take care of yourself," he laughed. "Wouldn't let me leave the house without it. You know her."
"Well, tell her 'thank you' for me, please. I really appreciate it."
"I will, thanks again Lauren."
"Have a good rest of your day, Mr. Jenkins. Drive safe!"
Two engines left just as quickly as they had came.
The femme returned with a small container filled with sustenance in hand and a small smile. "I'm going to head in, I don't have anything left to do today."
"Go, girl." He gestured with his claws in a 'shoo' motion.
He watched as the femme left swiftly and with no further words.
Make sure to vote on the story! It really helps out! I love you all and I'll see you next chapter! ♡