#dqss

you weren't expecting to clean an autobot when he rolled into your garage. in all honesty, he looked like just another freightliner, albeit with a very pretty, candy apple red paint job beneath all that grime. he's clearly in good condition, despite being unused for god knows how long. he just needs a deep clean before he can get back to work.

cleaning him's an intimate thing. cleaning and restoring trucks always is, but something about this one is different. as you scrub away the dirt and muck, you can see the scratches and scorch marks from past events you can't comprehend. you've never seen this sort of damage on a truck before. what sort of hell has this beauty been through?

as you start to clean his interior, that's when he wakes up. your tiny, gentle hands wiping down his dashboard are what clues him into something being in his subspace. at first, he thinks it's another vagrant in need of a warm spot to sleep, but no, this feels different. these hands are deliberate. they're slow, methodical. they feel... good.

he wakes up slowly, almost imperceptibly. his engine hums quietly, unusually quiet for a truck of his size. his lights begin to flicker on while your back is turned. his smokestacks go off with what almost sounds like some sort of cough. that's what grabs your attention, and you freeze where you are, asking yourself how did this thing start on its own...?

the radio crackles to life. amid the changing stations, eventually settling on some 60s rock, you hear a low, tired voice rumble all around you.

human: "see, we have neurons that transmit information all around the brain and into the rest of the body, and their axons are covered in myelin sheaths to insulate them and allow electrical impulses to travel faster. they kinda act like your wires! isn't that cool?"

imagine optimus pulling over and powering down so the both of you can get some rest, but you can't sleep. you're a bit too worked up from your conversations during the drive that day, from his quiet, gentle strength all around you keeping you safe, from him in general, really.

so, you decide to try and relieve some of your frustrations, so speak. you try your best to be quiet, you really do. you don't wanna wake your ride, after all.

but you can't help yourself, and who can blame you? just thinking about those giant hands keeping you safe, the kindness in his optics, the pleased purr of his engine when he sees you getting close, it's enough to make you lose your composure, enough to make you whimper pathetically as you come.

and it's enough to wake optimus up.

you don't notice the rumble of his engine starting up, but you certainly hear his surprisingly coy chuckling all around the cab. your face turns beet red as you try to think of an excuse, but it's no use. he felt everything, you know he did.

so, you reach for an apology, but he cuts you off. "there are certainly worse ways to be woken up," he hums. "no need to hide it next time, though. you know i'm here if you need me."

the implication only makes you hide your face in the blankets as you mumble out a goodnight. all you can hear is a, "goodnight, sweetspark," before optimus cuts his engine again, the cab falling silent.

shit like this.