Saphira slept deeply as she was curled under blankets in the back of the cab. Optimus was thrilled to know that she was extremely comfortable now that she was with the autobots. And she didn't make a peep at all throughout the night and into the early hours of the morning. Optimus continued to drive around, even if he did not need to. Though he didn't want to sit and watch her for the whole night. Although, driving around didn't really stop him from observing Saphira curiously. He's used to the human sleeping within his cab, but he had not really paid a lot of attention. At least, not until recently. And especially now.
With the moonlight beaming through the windows, the light seemed to make Saphira's skin glow. And as she slept, her relaxed expression intrigued him. He saw her lips had a natural pink tinge and her eyelashes were long and curved, giving her a natural, mascara look. And with her black hair around her face and neck, it made her look angelic. Optimus realized he has been fantasizing a little now that he has taken closer notice, and he was a bit embarrassed, but he also could not help but not feel guilty. He should, but he did not.
As the time went on, the sun began to rise and Optimus drove back to the wharf as he knew that she will likely wake up soon. Especially with the sunlight hitting her face. The rising sun was a beautiful sight. Optimus has found himself enjoying the small things, like the sunrises and sunsets, due to the colours in the sky, and seeing it over the water was also very special. Optimus really did enjoy watching them, even though he still missed the sunrises and sunsets on Cybertron.
Once he arrived at the wharf, Optimus stopped as he positioned himself to face the sun, knowing that Saphira would wake from it. All he had to do was wait. And he waited for a few hours, but Saphira did not stir. As the morning began to get away, Optimus became concerned that something was wrong. She could simply be extremely tired, but he was worried there was something more. Especially as the day was getting away, and most humans were awake at this time of day.
He observed the girl more closely, and realized that her face was paler than it should be. Under the moonlight, he had not noticed. But now he had noticed, and he became increasingly concerned that something was wrong, and he had not noticed last night. It made him angry at himself, as he knew she had been sneezing, but she had claimed nothing was wrong. Now he could not help but think she was wrong about herself too.
Forming his holoform in the cab, Optimus stared at the girl quietly before gently placing his hand on her forehead, and he quickly felt her body's temperature was higher than it should be. And he scanned her body to realize her internal temperature had risen, and from what he understood of human illnesses, this was called a fever. And it was a sign that the body was fighting an infection. Optimus silently cursed to himself for not realizing it sooner, as he knew he should have been keeping a closer eye on her.
However, touching Saphira's forehead seemed to have caused her to stir, as Saphira began to murmur and shift with a frown on her face. Optimus removed his hand from her forehead, though the girl flinched as she felt him removing his hand from her forehead, making her open her eyes and blink quickly as though she had been frightened. Optimus realized that Transit must have woken her up suddenly while he held her hostage, and she had reacted fearfully.
However, Saphira quickly realized it was not Transit, even though she was frightened. "Easy, Saphira. You are safe." Saphira clenched her eyes shut for a moment as she sat up, staring at Optimus's holoform on shock as she had not expected to see it. Especially since their holoforms were identical to their full forms. "I am not Transit, but I am sorry for waking you. I was concerned that..." Saphira suddenly started to cough, and it was a bad cough. Optimus widened his optics as she covered her mouth with the blanket while coughing hard, causing tears to fill her eyes. He immediately shifted to sit next to her and rub her back gently. Hearing her have a coughing fit like this made him feel horrible, and she also began to sneeze in the middle of coughing as well. "Seems like you underestimated how you were feeling last night, Saphira. It seems you have gotten sick."
Saphira wasn't able to respond to Optimus for the moment as she tried to get herself to stop coughing. She coughed for another couple minutes with a few more sneezes before she sniffled and groaned loudly. She had been startled awake by feeling Optimus's hand on her forehead, and now she was feeling dreadful. She felt cold, pain and tired, and she knew it was most likely the flu. Her throat felt sore, and it was hard to swallow saliva, and the coughing did not help at all.
Saphira placed her hand on her throat with a grimace, feeling mucus as she cleared her throat gently. "Yeah...you're right..." She sniffled and looked at him for a moment before looking away. "I feel awful...I think...it's the flu." Optimus softened his expression while he was still rubbing her back. She smiled a little as she looked back at him. "And it took me to sleep in for you to use your holoform." Optimus rolled his optics at her, and her smile faded quickly. "Ugh...I don't have any medicine..."
Optimus glanced at her stuff for a moment and looked back at Saphira. He knew that he and the other autobots could not get the medicine for her without doing something drastic. However, he hoped that Saphira might have the strength. "Do you think you will be able to go into a store to buy the necessary medicine? And food that might help you recover?"
Saphira shrugged as she sniffled again. "Maybe...ugh...my body hurts..." She groaned as she leaned down, pressing her forehead into the seats. "I knew I should have bought medicine..." She coughed loudly again, covering her mouth with the blankets. "Ugghh...I feel awful...what is the time? If we go now, I might have enough strength to buy medicine and soup...though...not sure how you would make the soup..."
"We will figure that out for you, Saphira. You need hot water, right?" Saphira glanced at him with a frown and rolled her eyes at him, and Optimus guessed there was more to it. "Regardless, we will make sure you get well, Saphira. However, if you believe you need the hospital, we will take you to one. I want you to know that." She didn't know if she was glad to hear that, because she didn't want human doctors to care for her. But he was right, since the autobots weren't familiar with dealing with human illnesses. She flinched when she heard the truck engine starting and Optimus rolling towards the exit. "We should head out now so you have the strength to go into the shop. I will remain close, so you don't need to go very far."
She was pleased to hear that. She really just wanted to go back to sleep, but she knew she needed medicine to help battle against the illness. Especially since it was the flu. She was annoyed that she was sick now, but there was little she could do about it. However, having Optimus's holoform beside her right now, rubbing her back, was something she had not expected. She guessed Optimus must have been really concerned, as she noticed that it was midmorning. And that meant he worried deeply, and he was right to be worried.
She was trying to not make it noticeable as well, as she looking at him from the corner of her eye. It was...intriguing to see Optimus's holoform. Especially since it was exactly like his full form, but slightly larger than the average man. And having him this close was...she didn't know to describe it. But she liked it. She liked it a lot, and she hoped that he would let his guard down more, since she was not used to seeing his holoform. And she also hoped to see the others as well.
"Hey, Optimus." Saphira flinched as she heard Mirage's voice through the radio. "Where are you and Saphira going? You had been sitting at the wharf for a while, so I was going to show up and see what you were doing. But you are leaving. I hope you didn't notice my signal and decided to leave."
Optimus seemed a little amused by the young autobot, as he had indeed noticed Mirage was heading towards their location. "No, Mirage, we are not leaving because of you. It would seem that Saphira has fallen sick with the flu. We were right that she would get sick, even though she had been confident she wouldn't." Saphira felt bad that she had been optimistic about it, and the next day pretty much showed otherwise. "I am taking Saphira to a shop where she can get the right medicine and soup. We will need to be watching her for a while."
"Oh no! The flu?!" Mirage was immediately worried upon hearing what she had. "Hopefully it won't get bad. I know that the flu can still kill humans, so I really, really hope that won't happen to Saphira. Especially since we just saved from that decepticon!" Mirage hummed as he thought deeply on what they should do. "At least you will be getting some medicine, Saphira. Fluids and rest will be what you need. Maybe you should also take her to a public toilet, Optimus. I imagine she will need to use it."
Saphira chuckled slightly as she was amused at how worried he was. "It will be okay, Mirage. I don't need the bathroom right now...so it should be okay." Saphira knew she would have to get out of the truck to do that, and she didn't particularly want to. She sneezed again and sniffled. "I'm going to need tissues...my nose is already blocked and runny...I just want to go back to sleep."
"I bet you do, but medicine and soup first, then you can sleep. Optimus will keep you warm and comfortable." Saphira grimaced as she began to cough loudly again, and covered her mouth to try and keep the noise down. "That cough sounds bad. Optimus, I am sure we can improvise on how to heat up the soup, but I don't expect her to want to eat. Oh! And don't forget to get bread as well, it will make you fuller. You have already lost weight, we don't need you losing more."
"I might even look for a more insulated place," Arcee suggested as she and Bumblebee were listening on the conversation. "I don't know if you want to keep an eye on Saphira the whole time, Optimus..."
"I do, Arcee. I intend on keeping a close eye on her. I feel like her being sick is partly my fault for not giving her shelter straight away." Saphira looked at Optimus and placed her hand on his shoulder to let him knew she didn't blame him. "At least she got herself warm before things got bad."
"I understand. I guess we should make sure the flu doesn't develop into pneumonia. I hear that is worse." Saphira didn't know if she should be annoyed by the autobots or not, but that didn't matter. She didn't feel like getting annoyed. "Is there anything you want us to do, Optimus?" Arcee genuinely sounded like she wanted to help, which was nice. "We could source more blankets and clothes for her."
"There's not much we can do as our holoforms look like our full forms," Bumblebee said, using different words through his radio. Saphira still wondered why his voice box was not able to be fixed. "We can't walk and grab anything. We should just be supportive."
"We could try and find Christmas stuff. That will make her feel better. Don't worry, I won't get any mistletoe either." Saphira chuckled as that was a nice thought from Mirage, but she wasn't even thinking of Christmas right now. "We don't have anything for the season. Um...no tree, tinsel...though I guess we can figure that out as the date gets closer. We have a few weeks, and hopefully you will be well. I don't want you to be sick on Christmas."
"Well...we will see how things go, Mirage...the flu can last a while." Saphira coughed again and found herself leaning against Optimus. He was still rubbing her back gently to try and comfort her from the discomfort she was feeling from the flu she was feeling. She really appreciated his efforts, and he was being so gentle as well. "We will...try to enjoy Christmas. I wish I felt like making your Christmas presents...but I won't be able to..."
"Do not feel the need to gift us something while you are ill, Saphira. You need to rest." Optimus gently moved strands of hair from her face, and Saphira felt butterflies in her stomach as the gesture was extremely nice. And...she didn't know why she felt butterflies. "Christmas might be something humans enjoy, but it comes around every year. Even if you wish to spend it with us." He smiled at her, and Saphira glanced away with a blush. "If you are still sick on Christmas, we will still find a way to make it special. Even if it is simple."
"That sounds nice." Saphira grimaced as talking was hurting her throat, and she cleared her throat again to keep talking. "How far are we from the nearest store, Optimus? I really want to go back to sleep. And sitting up right now is hard. Even though I know you all want me to wait until I get the medicine and food that I will need."
Optimus was slightly amused, even though he was still genuinely worried about her. "We are not far." Saphira frowned with a groan, as that did not tell her how long. "A few minutes, if you really must know, Saphira. It will not be long. The shops will be open, and you will be able to get what you need." Optimus moved suddenly, making her flinch, watching his holoform lean to reach for the glove compartment to open and grab out something. "Here..." She watched as he held out what looked like a silver ring with a blue gem. "This is another tracking and communication device. It is a bit more inconspicuous than the prefer one. It can stay on your hand instead of your pocket."
Saphira stared at the ring as she honestly didn't know how to feel about it. It wasn't the fact that it was a new device, but Optimus was giving her a ring. It felt different to her. She took the ring from him and looked at it for a moment. "Well...at least it looks like a really nice ring. Thank you...Optimus..." Saphira was still blushing as she put the ring on. And she felt it suddenly shift as it immediately fit her finger without sliding off. She chuckled a little, as no manmade ring could do that. "At least I can wear any outfit, and it will look nice."
"You seriously made it a ring?" Mirage asked in the most blunt tone he could muster. Optimus seemed surprised by the question. "I mean, it's probably nothing, but...I can't help but assume other things..."
"It is just a device, Mirage!" Arcee snapped at Mirage in irritation, making Saphira flinch as Arcee's voice was extremely loud. "He had to disguise it as something, and a piece of jewellery is easy. So what if it is a ring? It doesn't mean anything, does it? You are clearly just trying to annoy Optimus at this time, and Saphira doesn't need you to be bothering her with your immaturity either."
"Sure it is. I was just thinking of it being something else as well. But...I won't go into too much teasing. I don't want to upset anyone."
Optimus shook his head, slightly irritated, and amused by Mirage. "You seem to have some kind of imagination, Mirage. I am not sure why you do, but I hope you choose to stop it, as some things you have been saying seems to be as though you are wishing for something that isn't there."
"Maybe...we shall see...the mistletoe might come in handy after all."
"Real mature." Saphira coughed some more and took a deep breath as she wiped tears from her eyes that had been forced due to the severity of her coughing. She groaned and rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Ugh...whatever...I just want to get what I need and go back to sleep. Um..." She looked at Optimus with a curious expression. "This might be a strange request, but...um...when I get sick, I...um...uh...this is embarrassing..."
Optimus stared at her quietly as he was curious as to what she was going to ask him. And she seemed to be flustered about it, and he didn't know why she would be feeling that way. "Saphira, whatever you need that helps you to rest while you are sick, I am sure that I can provide that for you." She glanced at him as she was still thinking on how to tell him. "I highly doubt it is that embarrassing for you." Her cheeks turn deep pink, and Optimus was learning that she blushes when flustered around him. Though she seems to react that way to only him. "What is it that you want me to do?"
"Well..." Saphira rubbed the back of her neck and shrugged. "I...are you able to play the sound of waves through your radio?" That surprised Optimus a lot. "I found listening to the sound of waves when sick, since I was younger, has helped me to rest a lot easier. I am not sure why, but it does. Even though I never grew up anywhere with a beach. Um...sorry...I don't usually ask for something like that, so I kind of feel silly."
Optimus thought her worry of asking for this was unnecessary. But given that she hasn't really relied on others for this kind of comfort for a long time, it made sense that she felt silly. So Optimus overlooked it, knowing that she has had a hard life. "That will be no trouble at all, Saphira. If the sound of the ocean helps you rest easier, I will be quite happy to play that over the radio. It might even be soothing for me to hear as well. I do enjoy the rain when it pours."
Saphira was relieved as she didn't know if he would do that for her or not. "Thank you. That will help me sleep easier." She grimaced as she coughed again and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. "How much further? You said a few minutes...it already feels like an hour..."
Optimus did not know how much she was going to struggle when she goes into the store to buy what she needs. She really looked like she was having a hard time keeping her eyes open and focusing on what she needed to do. He didn't want her to suddenly collapse, though he couldn't go in with her. He was stuck waiting for her to go in and come back out. He did wonder if he could modify his holoform, but that would require expertise he did not have.
Optimus turned into the parking lot of a small shopping center where Saphira would be able to get what she needed. "We are here now, Saphira. I did not lie to you when I said we only had a few minutes, though I guess feeling as sick as you are, it must feel like it is a lot longer to you." Saphira nodded as she really did feel like it was longer. Optimus found a parking space large enough for him to fit in and parked in it. "I've parked as close as I can to the doors, Saphira. You should not have any trouble getting in and out."
Saphira sighed as she grabbed her brush to fix her hair up, as it was in a mess. Optimus watched her before she crawled over to the front seat, fixing up her clothes and grabbing her jacket to put on. "Alright...well..." She glanced at the ring on her finger and looked back at his holoform with a smile. "At least you will know where I am." She wiggled her ring finger with a chuckle before he opened the door for her. She shivered as she felt the cool air on her face. "Right...I should be...a few minutes...medicine, soup, bread..." She sighed as she climbed out of the truck to make her way towards the door.
Optimus watched as the girl made her way to the entrance. He did feel genuinely bad for her, as he knew she was very unwell. He also felt guilty for not giving her cover sooner than he had the day before. Still, as she walked away, Optimus wished he could be there with her. He didn't want her to feel like she should be alone. But he had no choice but to sit, wait and keep an eye on her location. As once she went through the doors of the store, he kept a close eye of where she was going in the store. He did not know where in the store medicine would be, so he simply had to wait.
As he waited, he noticed two humans walking by him while they were holding hands. A young man and young woman, both were smiling at each other. He observed as the man seemed to be saying something to the woman who was responding with blushes and moving strands of hair from her forehead. The man pulled out something from his pocket, and Optimus saw it was a rose, and the woman seemed to be over the moon when she saw the flower. He observed the two humans kissing before they made their way to the store.
Optimus hummed to himself as he knew that Saphira has had similar reactions to him like that woman. She's blushed, and there were times she has been shy and moved strands of hair from her face. Optimus didn't think that could mean she had feelings for him, but he could not help but notice different couples as they walk by him. Especially those that were not shy in showing their affection for each other. It made him think about Saphira, and how she reacted to him at times. And maybe, it was the same. Though he was not sure.
Though he had been distracted for a short while, Optimus refocused on Saphira, observed her movements in the store. The device he had given her should work better than the one Mirage had given her. And he didn't quite understand why Mirage thought a ring was an interesting choice to go with when he had given it to Saphira. He thought a ring was a good idea, as it would stay on Saphira's hand, and finding her if she were to get lost again would be much easier. Deciding it was best to not worry about it, Optimus just waited patiently.
Saphira walked out of the store ten minutes later with a few bags with medicine tablets, packets of soup and a loaf of bread. She didn't think she would need more than one loaf, and she also bought a new bowl that was microwave safe, even though she had no microwave. If the autobots figure out a way to heat up the soup for her, which she assumed that they would, then it would not be an issue. Even though Saphira had no interest in eating today. She would have water, and she did make use of the public toilet in the store, but she would be fine for the rest of the day.
Optimus opened the door for her as she reached the truck, and she placed the bags on the seat first before she climbed up the side of the cab. Optimus formed his holoform again to move the bags into the back of the truck so Saphira could climb in easily. She coughed loudly, even though she covered her mouth as best as she could until she sat on the seat with a groan. He closed the door and started his engine to roll away from the parking spot.
Saphira sighed and she crawled into the back with a yawn. "All done..." She grabbed a bottle of water before grabbing out a cold and flu tablet back to take two tablets. Optimus looked at the tablets curiously to see they were oval shaped with blue colour in them. "I will go to sleep once I have these. I am not sure how long I will be sick for, Optimus...so...I hope you can put up with me for a while."
Optimus nodded with a smile. "I assure you, Saphira, that I will not be annoyed with you." He placed his hand on her shoulder gently as he watched her gently push out two of the tablets before placing one in her mouth. "I don't want any further harm to come to you, and I want you get well and healthy again. I feel partly responsible too, so I will make sure you will be okay, Saphira." He watched her as she drank the water from the bottle to swallow the first tablet down before placing the second tablet in her mouth to do the same. "And if that means that I have to cradle you within my cab and chassis for more than a week, I will do it."
Saphira looked at him curiously as him wanting to care for her this way was very sweet. And she felt herself feel more attraction towards him, something she had thought was ridiculous. And yet, it seems the feeling was starting to feel more natural. But she doubted he felt the same way. "Thank you, Optimus." She sipped some more water before she took her jacket off and began to get herself comfortable on the seat again. "I don't want you to feel too guilty though, Optimus. Being sick is something humans go through, and I should be fine quickly."
Optimus nodded as she yawned. Once she seemed comfortable, he helped to tuck her blankets around her, and that seemed to surprise the girl, as she had not expected him to do that. But Optimus wanted to do that. "At least you can rest knowing that you are safe. Transit cannot hurt anyone anymore, so rest as easy as possible." He softened his expression as she coughed suddenly again before she closed her eyes and pulled some of the blankets over her face. "I will be watching over you."
Hearing Optimus say that sent shivers down Saphira's spine. She didn't expect that at all, and it made her feel more feelings towards him. His tenderness was definitely not expected at all, and she enjoyed it. But she knew that she had to focus on one thing, and that was to rest and get better. She needed to. She could feel the movement of the truck as Optimus drove through the city, and she heard the sound of ocean waves playing through the radio, making her smile, knowing that he was willing to do that for her to help her rest easier. She hoped to recover sooner than later.
Merry Christmas readers! Hope everyone will enjoy their holiday! I enjoyed mine. Hope everyone has a good new year as well. I am looking forward to completing some of my stories next year while working on newer projects.