Dear Brother (TFP/RID & Reader)

Chapter 12

(L/n): Last name

—

(Y/n) finds herself scrolling through her phone as she sits on the bus stop, tapping her foot impatiently. Thanks to the fact that she slept at 3 AM, she almost woke up late this morning. After checking out of the hotel, (Y/n) pulls her suitcase along and waits for the bus to come.

The home screen wallpaper brings a smile to her face; a selfie of her with Jack at the park on their first date. She remembers as if it was yesterday, him kissing her on the cheek while she happily laughed and snapped a picture of them. It makes her wonder if they will ever have the chance to take a step further in their relationship. (Y/n) takes her career seriously, and Jack is just stepping into the world of medicine. Maybe someday. Finding her brother is the priority now.

The sound of a rumbling engine distracts her from the phone. She looks up to see a bus stopped a few feet from her. (Y/n) rises up from her seat and climbs in, taking a seat on the back near the window since the spot has the biggest space for her suitcase as well.

Her (e/c) eyes are blank as she stares out at the city view passing by her. The loud chatters and songs being played on the speakers are completely ignored. After all this time, this city still brings wonders to her imagination and her past that revolved around this place. For what feels like a hundred times, she can't help but to think about how she's going to find Smokescreen now that (Y/n) definitely had no lead on him anymore. Starscream and Arcee are probably the only ones who knew something about him.

Now that they are out of the options, how (Y/n) is supposed to go on?

The bus stops a good thirty minutes later on a bus stop in front of a tall apartment building. She gets up with her belongings then pays for the ride before getting off the bus. (Y/n) walks through the open glass doors straight to the lifts. She had rented the apartment prior to her arrival here, she just needed to come to the unit to meet the owner. As the doors open, she pulls her suitcase along and heads to the 15th floor.

There's another male standing on the other side of the lift, hands stuffed in his jeans pocket while his back leaned against the surface. Awkward silence filled the air for a good few minutes before the man finally spoke up.

"You live on the 15th too?"

As (Y/n) looks to her side, she catches a red haired young man who has his eyes on her. The woman curtly nods, pushing some strands of her (h/c) hair behind her ears.

"Yes, I just moved here." She answers briefly, not wanting to say more than necessary.

"Oh, yeah?" The young man raises an eyebrow. "Cool. For business?"

"For business."

He lifts up his hand, offering her a handshake with a smile.

"The name's Sideswipe, nice to meet ya!"

The smile on his face reminds him of Smokescreen. His demeanor, too, as if he just magically appears before her out of nowhere. Her eyes widen in the slightest amount of time. However, (Y/n) regains her senses just as quickly and returns the handshake.

"Nice to meet you, I'm (Y/n)."

This time, Sideswipe is taken aback.

"(Y/n) (L/n)?"

"Yes. Do we know each other?"

After letting go of her hand, he laughs and shakes his head.

"What a coincidence." He says. "I'm here to give you your keys."

—

"I can't believe you're older than me."

Sideswipe smirks cheekily, walking side by side with (Y/n) while helping her carrying her suitcase. "Is it my face, or I'm just that charming?"

(Y/n) rolls her eyes. "Definitely your baby face."

"You mean handsome, right?"

"Nope."

Their laughter echoes in the hallway and for a minute, (Y/n) feels at peace. What a difference having someone to have a light chat with can do. She glances at Sideswipe, and she will never admit to finding him rather attractive, so to say. The way he acts, speaks and laughs just reminds her of Smokescreen so much. Comforting and disturbing at the same time. (Y/n) stops in front of the door with number '12' glued on the upper side of it. Sideswipe slips his hand into the front pocket of his jeans and pulls out a set of keys. He unlocks the door and pushes it open.

The two enter the apartment room, seeing it already cleaned up and filled with all necessary furniture. The atmosphere of the entire room screams cozy but minimalist, something that (Y/n) doesn't really expect. Taking off her shoes, she makes her way inside and walks around, admiring some decorations and paintings left in the room.

"You know, it's dope to see this place all clean and tidy." She can hear him commenting from the entrance door. "My parents own this unit, they like being minimalist."

Sideswipe puts (Y/n)'s suitcase near the door before allowing himself to sit on the sofa. (Y/n) chuckles and takes her suitcase, moving them beside her bed. "I like it." She tells him sincerely. "It feels so calm and serene."

"Yeah, too calm and serene."

Again, the woman sets her eyes back on the redhead as he stands up. She bites her lower lip, holding the urge to shove him out of her place because something about his presence brings her a bout of sadness.

"—Earth to (Y/n)!"

(Y/n) jerks her head up a bit, her cheeks feel warm when she realizes that his face is just inches apart from hers.

"Personal space." she murmurs while pushing him away, hiding the red on her cheeks.

Sideswipe laughs a bit, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry." He replies sheepishly. "Anyway, I gotta go. Catch you later."

She watches him leave, but before he closes the door, he peeks inside just enough. "I live next door, by the way." He tells her then. "If you need anything, just holler.

"Will do, thanks."

(Y/n) can breathe easier when Sideswipe closes the door shut behind him.

—

To say that she wakes up feeling refreshed is an understatement, seeing how the nightmare doesn't appear for the first time in 15 years. (Y/n) sits up and checks the time. She cleans herself up and puts on some decent clothes before walking out of the apartment, contemplating whether she should stop by to have breakfast or just skip it.

(Y/n) opts for the first option, though. Her gut is telling her that today is going to be a long day.

As she walks around the block for a little while, a convenient store is in her line of sight. Thinking that she can grab some sandwich and coffee for a quick breakfast, she enters the store.  Walking away from the refrigerator area with a packaged sandwich and coffee, she passes by some shelves filled with various snacks. Another wave of memories hits her as soon as she glimpses at a certain snack that reminds her of childhood: the only one that's left on the row.

As she bends down to grab that, another hand beats her up to it.

"Ah, sorry." (Y/n) abruptly regains her posture, slightly surprised at the short-lived physical contact.

She can hear a man's voice next to her. "It's okay, you can have it."

(Y/n) looks up to the male whose hand stretched forward, handing her the package in his grasp. "Thank you—"

Although 15 years have passed, (Y/n) still remembers some of the faces that share the same fate as they were—living under the roof of a cruel man. The man before her is around a head taller than she is, but it isn't his height that takes her aback. It's the bright, blond hair styled the exact same way as it was 15 years ago.

"Bee?"