Evasion

Chapter 4

Bumblebee awoke the next morning feeling as if one of the boulders outside crushed his helm. He groaned and willed his optics online. Sunlight poured into the ship, forcing the small bot to squint. It wasn't the beautiful rays that were commonplace during the morning golden-cycles, indicating that it was most likely close to noon. The yellow bot looked around, finding Starscream was still in recharge next to him. His helm rested against the wall behind him, soft snores emitted from his vocalizer and wings angled low. Bumblebee smiled at the sight.

He didn't smile for long, as he suddenly felt nauseous. He groaned, holding a servo to his helm. He barely remembered what happened the night before – he went to the Central Netosia slums, came back, made a bonfire, then... everything else was a blur. Bumblebee couldn't focus on the events the night before. He felt sick – he was dizzy, really nauseous, and too warm. It was hard to keep his fans from kicking on (which happened anyways), and he sighed.

All his noise and movement seemed to awaken Starscream. His optics blinked online; he yawned and stretched, pistons hissing as tension left them. The flier looked at the smaller bot, giving a small smile.

"Morning, Bee." He said.

"It's not really morning, but... uh, mornin'." Bumblebee replied.

Starscream chuckled. He stood, stretching again to loosen himself some more, then sighed. When he looked back down at the smaller bot, his smile fell.

"Are you feeling okay?" He asked, "You drank... a lot, last night."

"Oh, that's what happened?" Bumblebee muttered, then laughed, "Sorry."

The flier's frown seemed to deepen. He lowered to a knee, looking at his friend worriedly. Bumblebee sighed.

"I feel sick." He admitted, "I got a helmache, I'm dizzy, and..."

He stopped short and groaned. Starscream helped his friend to his pedes, then helped him outside. Bumblebee complained about the help, but the flier ignored him. They went over to the burnt-out bonfire, and Starscream lowered Bumblebee to sit.

"It's bright out here..." The yellow bot groaned.

"I know, but I want to be sure you won't purge on the ship. That would make us both feel worse." The flier said.

"I won't–"

The smaller bot stopped short and leaned forward with a gag. Starscream backed away, though staying nearby. Bumblebee gagged again, and finally purged the Energon in his tanks. Starscream cringed, but remained where he was. When his friend was finished, he took a deep in-vent and bowed his helm.

"I'm startin' to wish we saved our medgrade." He said.

The flier sighed, "Yeah." He said.

He helped Bumblebee back into the ship, sitting him down. He covered the ship's windshield. He glanced back at the smaller bot, who was now curled up on the bench, optics dim. Starscream padded over to him and sat next to him.

"I think I'll get some medgrade." He thought aloud, "Central Netosia has a pharmacy."

Bumblebee hummed and nodded.

"Will you be okay alone?" Starscream asked.

The smaller bot seemed to think for a moment, then gave another nod. The flier stood, then hesitated on what to say for a moment.

"I will be back soon. Don't worry." Starscream said, "If you need anything, comm me."

"Okay." The yellow bot said.

The flier turned and left the ship, glancing back one final time, then transformed and flew away. The trip to Central Netosia was short, and he landed at the transition between the slums and the marvelous city.