Sideswipe's POV

I kick a piece of junk across the junkyard, ticked off. 

"That's vintage!" I hear Denny cry, and I roll my blue optics. The only thing on my mind right now is Y/N. 

"Just had to push her away, didn't you?" I cross my arms, looking at Strongarm accusingly. 

"Me?" She puts her hands on her hips. "Aren't you forgetting we go to that school because we're on a mission, not there to flirt?" 

"I wasn't flirting!" I protest angrily, and soon our squabble gets physical as usual. 

"Break it up, you two." Bee sounds exhausted, walking over. "The human Denny hired to sort his stuff is coming any min--" he's cut off by the news of Y/N's arrival. I transform quickly, and we speed off. I feel my anger come back to me. Y/N was here too now, and she surely hates me. I park, remembering her gazing at my vehicle mode lovingly yesterday. If only she looked at the human me like that. 

I wait, but feel the need to speed around as I hear something buzz. My phone. I feel it on my carseat, buzzing. I'm able to read texts through my alt mode and see it's from Y/N. 

Hey, I'm not feeling well. I've gotta cancel tonight. 

Tonight was the dance! How'd I forget? I only asked her a few hours ago! 

I see her round the corner with a rolling cart of Denny's junk she's sorting. Wait. . . Are her optics leaking? 

I hear her soft sniffle, and she swipes away her tears, shaking her head. My spark hurt watching her like this. She glances over in my direction, and walks over. 

"You're a pretty car." 

I feel my faceplates get a little warm at her words. So soft, so sweet. 

"Denny said you're a fixer upper yet, but I think you're perfect." She breathes, surveying me. Yeah, what was with Denny saying that? A bit of a fixer upper yet?  I want to agree with Y/N and talk to her, but I listen to her instead. 

She sighs. "He hasn't even replied yet. I should've known better than to put all my faith in one little conversation." She sniffles. "Oh, so you're a car girl?" She repeats my words bitterly, and my spark feels heavier by the moment. "Yeah, I am. Maybe I should stick to cars, not people." 

Solid choice, I think. But you hate me, so I guess it doesn't really apply to me anyway.

Even though, truth is I've grown to love humans. 

"I let him charm me, and that was stupid. I can't believe it. One minute he's all interested and flirting, then the next he's making some excuse why he's gotta leave me! Like my father," She says, and I see a few more tears come. "Always leaving people. My mother, his girlfriends, me. . ." She sighs. "Geesh, I'm talking to a car. I've lost it, haven't I?" She surveys me. "You'll need a name. What about Red? Nah, too plain. Overused. Crimson. Yes, but Red as a nickname." 

Not bad, I guess.

She touches my hood softly, then draws her hand away. "Shouldn't have done that. You're not mine." 

I can be, I think. You can be mine, too. 

"Hmm, I'll text him again." She says, and my phone buzzes in my car seat. 

"What the. . ." She trails off, leaning in my car. She sees my phone on the seat, and reaches in the window, which I had stupidly left open. But I had been typing a reply, and she drops the phone on the ground with a scream, seeing the letters moving. Before I can think about how stupid the next thing I do is say, "I can explain Y/N!" Which causes her to scream again and promptly pass out. 

❤❤❤

"She's awake!" Fixit announces. 

"Oh thank Primus!" I sigh in relief, and stop pacing around to sit by her side in my bi-ped mode. 

"Back up! She needs space, maybe we can have her think this was all a--" Denny is cut off by a gasp from Y/N. "H-H-How. . ." Her pretty E/C optics--er, eyes--are wide as she looks at all of us. 

"Y/N, they won't hurt you. I can explain--" Denny is again cut off by Y/N. 

"That's what he said! Cars can talk!?" Y/N points to me, eyes full of fear. 

"Y/N, don't--" 

Strongarm cuts me off. "Oh I think you've done enough talking, Romeo." 

"Listen, Y/N." Denny tries to pull her attention to him. "Listen to me. Everything is fine, no one is going to hurt you." He assures her. "But just stay seated while I tell you all this, okay?"

❤❤❤

"Aliens?" Y/N shakes her head after listening to Denny's explanation without interrupting. "Aren't aliens supposed to be green? And kinda slimy or something? If they even exist!?" 

That was her question? 

And why did aliens have to be green and slimy, anyway? 

"Uh--" She cuts Denny off, and has her gaze trained on me. "Why did you have Darren's phone?" She demands, and I rub the back of my neck awkwardly. 

"You've got this one." Strongarm mutters, and Denny crosses his arms at me. "You got yourself into this one, you can get yourself out of it." I sigh.

"Well, um." I glance at her, she seems more confused than afraid now. "I kinda. . . Am Darren?" 

She laughs. "You're--" She stops laughing, face straight. "Wait, you're serious?" I nod. Her eyes grow wide. "Wait, how?" 

"Well, there are the Deceptecons--" 

"Those are the bad ones?" She asks, and I nod. I hear her mumble, "Decepticons--deception. Bad. Got it." 

"At Cyber High, disguised as humans." She gasps in shock. 

"How does that even work?" 

I shake my head. "I'll explain later. Anyway, we don't know what they are planning, but we need to stick around and make sure no humans get hurt." I explain her everything, from the strange words she heard to the excuses. "Y/N. . . I'm sorry." 

Her eyes water. "I can't believe all this. You're really Darren?" I nod, and change into my human form, we all do. She gasps and shakes her head. "This is crazy. This is crazy." 

I sit down beside her, and she jumps a little. "I won't hurt you." 

"Not physically." She mumbles. 

My spark feels like it's being pulled down, and it's hard to vent. "Y/N. . . I really am sorry." I whisper softly. "Truly. I don't want to leave you like--" 

"--That's right! You heard all that, didn't you?" She cries in horror, covering her face in her hands. 

"I think we should give them some space." Denny tells the others, and Russel looks disappointed as everyone files out. 

"I-I'm sorry Y/N. I'm really sorry! About everything. I don't mean to hurt you! My spark hurts when you're sad!" My own optics leak. She risks a glance at me. "Spark. . . Is that your heart?" I nod, and take her hands in mine. "I didn't want to push you away, honest. We just weren't supposed to let anyone know. . ." 

"I know," She whispers. "I. . . Forgive you. And I won't tell anyone else. Promise," Her E/C eyes search me. 

"Thank you Y/N, for the--is this my third chance?" I ask, wiping her tears away. 

She smiles, just a little. "Yeah--and your last, mister." 

I smile. "I won't let you down." I wink. ". . . So, you said something about my car form. . . What was it again. . . I'm a pretty car?" She rolls her eyes. 
"You and your dumb ego." 

I grin. "Crimson, was it?" 

"Geesh, I didn't think you could hear me!" 

"Guess I'm bot what you expected then." I wink, and she groans. "That's a horrible joke! Ack, you don't know the first thing about being a human teen!"

I pretend to look hurt. "That was mean." 

"I should have figured this out sooner--you being a fragging alien I mean!" She exclaims. "But honestly, how could I have?" 

"Hey, uh, that third chance you're giving me. . ." I start. "Will you umm, still go to the dance with me?" I glance at her cautiously.

She thinks, then sighs. "You know what, I could use a good time. But I swear, if you make another excuse about having to leave--" 

I put my hands up in surrender. "Okay! I got it!" 

She grins. "Okay, you'd better be a good mech then--wait, so your real name is. . . Sideswipe, right?"

"Yeah, Sides for short though." I nod. 

Then she laughs. "Guess I'm going to the dance with an alien."

"Dating an alien." I correct, and she rolls her eyes again. 

"Denny was right--you are a bit of a fixer upper!" 

"Hey!"

(Hope you liked! Can't stop laughing at my corny horrible titles, especially this one! It was a relief to write this, Sideswipe's so sweet and writing this story really brightens the dark side of my soul, ha. I've been feeling down so you know this story's been good for me, and I love reading Sideswipe fanfics--I'm addicted!Thanks so much for the reads, comments, and votes, it means the world. Anyways, have a precious life flames! Ash)