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Tonight is the night.
Tonight is the night I’ve been dreading.
Tonight is the night I’ve been looking forward to.
My name is Rodimus Prime. The war is over, and all of us Cybertronians live in harmony with the Terrans. Last week, 6 Terran days ago to be exact, I asked someone out on a date. I haven’t been on a date in thousands of years, so you can imagine what this means to me.
“Rodimus! What’s taking so long?” I hear from outside my door. “I’m coming in!”
“No, wait!” I shout, but it’s no use. Arcee practically breaks down my door and sees me sitting in front of a mirror. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to find every scratch on me. Ah, here’s one,” I reply. “I have to be spotless for him.”
“You do realize he wouldn’t notice even if you were a different colour, right? He’s not the type of guy to judge you for your imperfections.”
“Yeah, but I would. I need this to go as perfectly as possible.” I’ve been dreaming about this since before I became a Prime. From the second I laid optics on him, I knew he was different. His confidence and strength are something I’ve always admired. He’s never afraid to speak his mind, never worried about saying the wrong thing, never expecting to let others down.
“I can’t believe you sometimes, you know that? Fine, scoot over,” she says, sitting down and nudging me with her, as Terrans call it, bosom. “You remember when I was getting ready for my date with Slipstream?” she asks as she slips my brush from my fingers. “Do you remember what you told me?”
I knew exactly where she was going with this. “Of course I do. I said that she had only agreed because she liked who you were when you asked her out. But this is-“
“Different? How? Because you deserve to be treated worse? Because I’m not going to do that.” Her hand stops, and she lowers the brush. “Rodimus,” she says, staring directly into my optics and grabbing my hand. “It’s going to go well.”
“And what if it doesn’t?”
“Then we’ll go to Maccadam’s and get so wasted we can’t tell bot from Terran.”
I chuckle, breaking her gaze and looking down at myself. The worst thing I can do is stress myself out and ruin the date before it starts. “Alright,” I relent. “Do you think my paint looks good?”
“Mostly. Just let me get this gash here. It’s pretty big.”
“You said my scratches wouldn’t matter to him!”
“What kind of friend would I be if I let you go on a date with this?” She flips out one of her rear-view mirrors and shows me a giant scratch on my neck.
“I take it back. Please help me,” I plead.
“Anytime, Rodimus.”
****
“I’ll kill you, Grimlock!”
“Me Grimlock like to see you try, Daniel!”
“Kick his teeth in, Grimlock!”
“You got this, Daniel!”
“You’re rooting for Daniel, Swoop?”
“It’s more interesting that way, Sludge.
“Bet money on both, and you never lose. Go Grimlock! You got this, Daniel!”
“Snarl, you so washy wishy. Besides, Grimlock no need your cheering. Grimlock end this now!” Grimlock stomped down on his foe, but Daniel rolled out at the last second.
“Watch this, guys.” Daniel hacked away at Grimlock’s leg, and the titan came crashing down.
“Aww, no fair! You always win game, Daniel,” Grimlock whined as he put down a controller the size of Daniel.
“Sorry, Grimlock. Guess I’ve had a lot of time to practice,” Daniel replied, his smirk almost audible. “Do you want to go again?”
“No, me Grimlock need to go get ready.”
“Oh yeah, you have that duel, right Grimlock?” Swoop asked.
“No, Grimlock has a date! With the Autobot leader, no less!” Sludge answered. Swoop looked puzzled at the idea, but shrugged.
“Sludge, Rodimus isn’t the Autobot leader anymore. He may be a Prime, but we haven’t had factions in years,” Snarl corrected.
“Yeah, yeah. You always have to be right,” said Sludge, dramatically rolling his optics.
“Better to be right than ugly like you,” Snarl sneered.
“What did you say!?”
“Alright boys, enough,” Slug interjected, physically pushing Sludge and Snarl apart. “Let’s not fight on Grimlock’s big day.”
“Thank you, Dinobots and Daniel. Me Grimlock see you later.” Grimlock started to turn around, but Daniel stopped him. “Before you go, take this.”
“What is it?” Grimlock asked.
“You put it right here,” Daniel answered, pointing to his chest. “It’s what we do on Earth.”
“Oh, me Grimlock think I see this on TV. Thank you, Daniel!” Grimlock transformed into his T. Rex mode and waddled out of the arcade.
“Don’t think I’ve seen him this excited since Zertonia,” Swoop said. “I like it.”
“Me too, Swoop. Now, you want to take me on?”
“Me first, Daniel, me first!”
****
As we get within a block of The Roaring Rotors, Arcee pulls over and beckons me to follow. “What’s wrong, Arcee?” I ask, transforming as I hit the sidewalk.
“Nothing, Rodimus, just stopping to hug you before you go in.”
“You aren’t coming in with me?”
“Do dates usually have a third wheel?” She has a point. I don’t know what I expected, but it still hurts to be going in alo-
“I know what you’re thinking,” she interjects, interrupting my thoughts. “You won’t be alone. I’ll be at McBrawnolds right here if you need me to rescue you or punch someone’s sockets out.” She always knows what I’m thinking, sometimes better than I do. “Thank you, Arcee,” I say, wrapping my arms around her. “I couldn’t have done this without you.
“I know, kid,” she replies, making her voice sound gruff and tired.
“Are you trying to be Kup?”
“Is it working?”
“Maybe smoke a few thousand more Cy-gars, and you’ll have it,” I answer, and I watch as she waves goodbye and enters McBrawnolds. Ok, Rodimus. Time to go. I turn around and walk towards The Roaring Rotors. I was really lucky to get a reservation here, as it usually takes months or even years to get a table. Fortunately, Springer and I go way back, and he was able to slip me in on such short notice.
As I approach the “door”(two rotor blades now intersecting in an x shape), the blades spinning to life and folding open, it hits me: he said yes. I feel a rush of confidence mixed with anxiety, and my face feels warm. If I was a Terran, I bet my cheeks would be red. I step into the doorway, ready as I’ll ever be, for a date with a dinosaur.
****
Grimlock was late.
Being late was not a particularly new thing for Grimlock to be, but he hoped today would be different. He left the arcade ten minutes before he needed to, according to WheelMaps. He even remembered to select dinosaur as his form of transportation. He wasn’t making that mistake again. Yet somehow, as if Primus himself wanted Grimlock to be late, the sidewalks and the intersections were packed. He was already fifteen minutes late, and he knew he had to do something to get out of traffic. Me Grimlock know, he thought, smirking to himself. He crouched down and sprang into the air, soaring above the crowded intersections. Grimlock bounced from stoplight to stoplight, racing to meet his date for dinner. Cybertronians and Terrans alike stared into the sky with awe as the mechanical dinosaur leapt above them. As he touched down outside the restaurant, a small earthquake shook the street, rattling the glasses of Enerwater sitting at Rodimus’s table. He looked around to see if there was a commotion as the war came back to his mind for a split second, but all was still. The rotors spun open, and the towering titan stepped through the door.
“Me, um, I here for a date.”
“Ah, of course,” the host replied. “For-”
“Grimlock!” Rodimus exclaimed from across the room, lightly jogging over to Vortex. “He’s with me. Nice tie, by the way. Is everything okay, Grimlock?”
“Me, uh, I am okay. There was, uh, traffic.”
Grimlock followed Rodimus to their table, and was led to the center of the restaurant, ending up in front of an aquarium larger than Omega Supreme. Grimlock took a moment to admire his surroundings: the fish were dazzling and multicolored, the plants green and beaming with life, and the lights glowed a soft blue. The plates were pristine and shiny, and the napkins were folded in an intricate flower pattern. Grimlock had never eaten somewhere this nice before.
“This is, uh, nice,” he said, pulling his chair out and sitting down. “Me, uh, I don’t think I’ve ever eaten somewhere like this.”
“It’s something, right? I’ve been meaning to eat here for a while, a friend owns the place, but I’ve wanted to save it for a special occasion. And today is, well...” Rodimus looked away. Grimlock heard footsteps coming, and looked up to see their server had arrived.
“Welcome to The Roaring Rotors. My name is Spinster, and I’ll be your server for tonight. Can I start you with anything to drink?”
“Yeah, I think I’d like to try a bottle of Cabenergon Sauvignon. Any objections, Grimlock?”
Grimlock paused, unable to even pronounce Sauvignon.
“Grimlock?”
“Yeah, uh, Gri-I think that sounds good,” he nervously replied, putting the drink menu down and attempting a smile.
“Excellent, I’ll have that out shortly,” said Spinster, leaving them both alone.
“So…” Grimlock started, attempting to break the silence between them. “These fish are beu-beautiful.”
“Aren’t they? Fish are such a fascinating species. Smaller than the humans, yet they’ve been around so much longer. Not many Cybertronians traverse the water, and I think that…” Grimlock lost him after that. Me, no, I think so too, he rehearsed in his head. “Grimlock?”
“Oh, sorry, uh, I think so too.”
“You think that Cybertronians should be primarily underwater?”
“No, me just, I just think fish are pretty.” Grimlock looked at his lap.
“Oh, uh, me too, Grimlock.” Silence crept back between them as they both stared at the menu.
“And here we are,” Spinster said, setting fancy glasses and a bottle down in front of them. “Are we ready to order?”
“Yeah,” Rodimus started. “I’d like the Energon-infused Caviar please.”
“And me, I want the fillet mig-mig-migener-”
“The filet mignenergon?”
“Yeah, uh, that.”
“Absolutely. Let me just take your menus,” he said as he swept the table. “Your dinners will be out soon.”
****
I feel a vibration come from my leg, and I see that Arcee has texted me.
Hows it going, Rod?
I try to make looking at my phone subtle, and I think Grimlock doesn’t notice. He’s staring at the fish.
Not good. Hes barely talking, and he keeps stuttering
Can i help?
Dont think so
Good luck
I slip my phone back into a compartment on my leg, and look back up. He’s still staring at the fish. “You really like those fish, huh?”
“Yeah, they, uh, they’re very pretty.” He meets my gaze. “Not-not as pretty as, uh,”
“As you though? Thank you, I know.”
“Yeah.” He looks back down at his lap. This is not the Grimlock I asked out, not the Grimlock I fell for.
“You’ve barely said a word tonight, Grimlock. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so quiet, and I’ve definitely never heard you stutter so much.”
Grimlock didn’t meet his gaze, but he spoke. “I-I’m concentrating on speaking normally.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want to seem dumb.”
“Grimlock,” I say, taking his hand. “I don’t think you’re dumb. You’re not Perceptor or Brainstorm, sure, but you’re one of the most brilliant military minds Cybertron has ever seen.”
“But I-”
“But nothing. I don’t want you to be like Wheeljack or Jhiaxus or anyone like that. I want you to be you. The Grimlock who cares about others and doesn’t care what they think, only that he does good.”
“Well, Rodimus, you no need to show off.”
“What?”
“You talk when you nervous. You buy expensive drink and fancy food. You scared I think you not good enough?”
“I…”
“I think you good enough, Rodimus. I like you because you charming but also smart. You responsible and reliable.”
“I… thanks.” Now I’m the one staring at my lap. “Thank you, Grimlock.”
“Alright, here we are with the Energon-infused caviar and the Filet Mignenergon.” Spinster sets our dishes in front of us. “Enjoy.”
“Wow,” Grimlock says. “This tiny.”
“Yeah, isn’t it?” I laugh. “Expensive food is always so small.”
“Why we spend so much money on small food?”
“It’s romantic, I think,” It may be romantic for some, but this isn’t us. “Say, you want to get something from Astro’s after this, if you’re still hungry?
“Me Grimlock think that great idea! Me definitely hungry after such puny food.”
“Hey, don’t call it puny! My friend owns this place.” I say, laughing.
“Oh, sorry. Pathetic.”
“How is that any better?”
He shrugs, and tosses an entire chunk of meat into his mouth. “Wow. This tasty!”
“Maybe we don’t need to go to Astro’s then?”
“Me Grimlock still hungry!”
****
“So, how do you think it’s going?”
“Well, Slip, Rodimus hasn’t frantically messaged me, and I saw them leave a bit ago, so I’d say it’s going well.”
“And how come we got stuck with McBrawnolds?”
“We have to be nearby!” Arcee rolled her optics and took a sip of her Dr. Arkeville. “Maybe not anymore, though. C’mon.” Arcee grabbed Slipstream’s hand. “Let’s do something for ourselves.
“Finally, tiger comes out to play,” Slipstream responded, smirking and pulling Arcee close. “Let’s go for a hunt.”
“You think you can hunt me? You’ll have to catch me!” Arcee ran out and transformed on the street, leaving a trail of smoke behind her.
“When have you ever outran me, Cee?” Slipstream said, darting into the sky. With the boom of her engines, both couples set out a night they’d both remember.