Behind Closed Doors
Chapter One
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First Impressions

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He sighed heavily, impatiently tapping his fingers against his armrest. He was one of the most respected Autobots who had ever lived, and here he was. Floating through the silent emptiness of space in a ship with his teammates, waiting for something, anything to happen. Then without warning, Ultra Magnus appeared on the ship's screen.  

"Ultra Magnus! Sir!" were Rodimus's immediate words as he quickly straightened his posture.

"Rodimus Prime," Ultra Magnus addressed, "I have a new assignment for you and your crew. Decepticons are suddenly appearing all over the galaxy. One group in particular by the name of Team Chaar, are especially dangerous. Track them down and prevent them getting access to a space bridge!"

"Sir, yes sir!" Rodimus respectfully responded, saluting. The others merely nodded.

"Please, do whatever it takes to take them down!" he added. "Good luck. And let's just hope Optimus contacts me again soon."

"He...hasn't contacted you, yet?" the young Prime asked, shocked.

"Yes, I'm afraid so. We can't afford to send any more Autobots to Earth because of all the Decepticons, so all we can do is hope for the best."

And with that the screen turned off and the sight of blackness, stars, and nebulas was once again present.  

"Wow...Hope Optimus and his crew are okay," Hot Shot said, speaking to no one in particular. Rodimus leaned back in his chair gripped the armrests tightly, looking down at his lap. Hot Shot turned around and looked up at their leader.

"You okay, Red?" he asked, noticing how hurt Rodimus looked.

"Ah-I'm fine," he responded, his voice quivering slightly. "I just....need some time alone." And with that, he got out of his seat and left the room, leaving his teammates somewhat worried about him.

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He walked into his room and locked the door behind him. He sat on the metal bed and sighed heavily once more, letting himself get lost in his memories.

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He was always such a kind, bright Autobot. Always wanting to learn, and always willing to give a helping hand. A typical bot-next-door. Who would of thought that they'd first meet in combat practice.

"Let the best bot win!"

"Thanks, I will!"

That was their first exchange. The battle was mostly a blur to Rodimus, with him only remembering Optimus extending his ax to reach him ontop of a building and Hot Rod remarked, "Whoa! Trying to make up for another certain part of your body?"

The comment actually amused Optimus and the pair exchanged numerous other playful insults such as, "Hope your aim is as good as all the girls say it is!" and "After I win I'll show you even more useful tricks with ax of yours!" Despite Optimus's determination and Hot Rod's confidence, the battle ended in a draw.

While the comments were insults through and through, they actually ended up.....turing Hot Rod on...? There was no doubt that Optimus had impressed him with his skill, but what really got to him was when Optimus pinned him down. He felt so.....vulnerable. And when he gazed into his optics....they were so powerful. He was nervous and scared, but he didn't let his guard down and get cocky like he had. While he tried to brush off the feeling as merely getting caught up in the heat of battle, he just couldn't get the image of that naive bot out of his head. He always said denial was a bad thing, and maybe he actually did like Optimus? He was curious and he didn't mind experimenting. He eventually concluded that what he was feeling was lust and nothing more. Something in his spark felt strange about his head thinking that, but he ignored it. A one night stand with Optimus was all he believed he needed.