Transformers Prime - Hazy

Small Sparks

    So, yeah. I didn’t exactly have the ‘safest’ occupation in the world. It had only happened a few times, and thank goodness Akane and the others were there, but in these rare occurrences, some maniac toting a gun had followed me for blocks, and attempted to fire it on me. Well, only once did one of these people actually manage to pull the gun. That was after the first run-in, and after that all the guys had their senses on high alert for any suspicious behavior.

    And since then, some other guy and some crazy girl had made moves, each toting a gun or knife, had made a move, I swear, crazy is magnetic, one gets the ball rolling and the others clue in. We kept each matter very ‘hush-hush’. We didn’t want to make some other people thinking that these people, who had now gone to jail, were martyrs of sorts and have more nutcrackers coming along.

    So pretty much, these oddball encounters were on my mind a lot lately, even though the last one had happened over two years ago.

    I sighed, staring out the window on the ride home. Akane was fairly silent, as he always was, and once we were home, I got out quietly and walked up to the door. I put my key in the door knob, but stopped. I wanted to get out of here. I wanted to drive. I crossed the lawn to the garage, entering the code into the keypad, like my life depended on it. I needed space, I needed to breathe. I knew Akane was going to throw a fit, in a manner of speaking, because he never actually did, but I needed to be alone. I needed an out. I got this way some days. I just . . . lost it a little bit.

    As the door opened to the garage and I jumped into my car, I could see Akane jogging across the lawn.

    Sorry, buddy, but I was out of here.

    I stuck the key in the ignition, buckled myself in, dorky, I know, but I was obsessive about it, and hit the gas, taking down out the driveway and narrowly dodging the limo that was blocking my exit by swerving onto the grass and out onto the street.

    I was fairly sure I left a few tire marks on the pavement, but hey, not like this hadn’t happened before. And it drove Akane crazy every time.

    There was a reason, a good reason, that I refused to let him have a car docked here.

    I knew some people would know who I was when I drove by, my emerald-green Toyota FT-HS Hybrid was well known, and if they didn’t know me already, the amethyst purple moon and star combo on the sides would etch in their memories until they found out.

    I was mindful of the speed limit within a few miles, but once I got out of town and into the country, speed was most definitely my friend. These rural roads were etched into my memory like the back of my hand. So, when I wound up over fifty miles out of town and it was nearing midnight -- I took the INCREDIBLY scenic route, crisscrossing the same roads repeatedly -- pulling over to rest was nothing new for me.

    Actually I was quite comfortable with it. Some days, it was better than actually sleeping at home.

    And I dearly hoped this was one of those days as I pulled over to the side of the road, stopped the car and pulled the key out of the ignition. I let out a long sigh.

    Maybe tonight would be one of those blessed nights where I didn’t have some freakish dream I couldn’t remember. Maybe I would have a dream I could be happy to have.

    But as I drifted into slumber, I realized that wasn’t going to happen.

    The scene was clear, at least, at the center it was. Around the edges it was a little fuzzy. There was this . . . giant robot, white and orange in a room with me. But as I looked down, I realized I wasn’t ME. I was . . . some freaky giant robot in my own right. I saw green . . . vivid, emerald green. A hand rested on my abdomen, and all I felt was this overwhelming feeling of nervousness.