TF: Dive In
Rating: PG
Series: G1
Pairings: One sided Ratchet/Wheeljack
Summary: Ratchet finally gets up the nerve to tell Wheeljack how he feels
Warnings: Little bit of angst and self-pity?
Disclaimer: As per usual, the good things in life are not mine to have, but belong to someone else... in this case Hasbro, Takara and IDW and anyone else I’ve forgotten…
Authors Notes: For the tf_speedwriting Wednesday 28th July prompt 3 - “It's not the fall that hurts - It’s when you hit the ground” (from "It's not the fall that hurts" by The Caesars). And yes, this is not a literal interpretation of the prompt.
Feedback makes friends. Flames dealt with by the masters of paranoia and fire, Red Alert and Inferno.
Prompt: 3
Time: 33 minutes
Ratchet entered the rec room, looking around to see who was there. His optics alighted on Wheeljack and he smiled. The engineer spotted him and waved him over. Grabbing a cube, Ratchet sat down at Wheeljack’s table.
“Hey Ratch’, finally emerged from the med bay then?”
“I could say the same for you.” The gentle banter was reassuring and Ratchet felt his resolve slipping a little. After all these years, he’d finally come to the conclusion that he had to say something to Wheeljack. He couldn’t stay quiet any longer. His spark wouldn’t let him.
“Listen Wheeljack I…”
“Oh frag…” Wheeljack bolted upright as an internal alarm went off. “Sorry Ratch’, I’ve got to get back to the lab.!”
“Oh…” There was little more Ratchet could do but watch as Wheeljack raced out of the rec room. He slumped back in his seat. He’d been so close.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Wheeljack poked his head around the med bay doors.
“Hey Ratch’.” Ratchet stood up, suddenly appearing from behind a berth.
“Wheeljack.” He gave the engineer a warm smile as he entered.
“Just wanted to say that I’m sorry for running out on you earlier. I had an experiment running and the time was up and I had to get back to see the results and switch it off.”
“That’s okay.” Ratchet shrugged. It wasn’t okay, but what else could he say?
“I kinda got the impression you were about to say something really important?” Wheeljack prompted, leaning against a berth.
“Yeah…” Pausing to collect himself, Ratchet came to stand in front of Wheeljack. “It’s something I’ve been wanting to say for a while now.”
“Oh?” Wheeljack tilted his head to one side, intrigued.
“I really like you Wheeljack, and I’d like it if we could become more than just friends.” Ratchet was proud that his vocaliser didn’t crack as he admitted his feelings.
“Oh…”
Ratchet’s energon seemed to freeze in his lines. That wasn’t a good ‘oh’. That was the ‘oh’ he’d come to learn meant that something very bad was going to happen.
“Look, Ratch’, I like you as a friend, but I’m not looking for anything more. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Somehow, Ratchet managed to brush off Wheeljack’s apology, spark twisting itself into knots in its chamber. They stood there for a few awkward moments before Ratchet knew he needed to move.
“Anyway, I need to get on, I’ve got inventory to do.” He mumbled, turning away from Wheeljack.
“Okay. I’m sorry Ratchet. We can still be friends, right?” The hopeful tone in Wheeljack’s voice almost did Ratchet in. He nodded, not daring to turn around and look at Wheeljack.
“Sure.” He heard Wheeljack leave the med bay and finally allowed the sob that he’d been holding back out.
“Frag…” He mumbled to curse to himself, scrubbing at his optics. He hadn’t actually been expecting to be rejected, figuring that they got on so well that Wheeljack wouldn’t object.
He went about the rest of his inventory mechanically, processor focussed on Wheeljack rather than the stock. How could he face the mech now? How could he have thought he stood a chance? He’d give anything to take the words back. To go back to trying to ignore his feelings. To feel like he was flying whenever he thought of Wheeljack. Instead, he’d hit the ground with a thud. A fall that he wasn’t sure he could recover from.