Just to say the least... Chris only

[Optimus Prime]

YAY I get an F!!

Optimus wasn't even taking the chance of going away from the base. Which is why the leader was outside, leaning against the tree. With the threat of Unicron still lingering, you couldn't be too safe, and of course, Chris hadn't taken the news of having to have a bodyguard not that well, to say the least.

Optimus had called his son out here, that way they could talk about this college thing, and get everything of that out of the way.

[Christopher Prime]

Ironically, Chris had actually just got his acceptance letter to Cambridge and Caltech that day. And as it appeared, he had a lot of decisions to make. He planned to surprised Optimus with both acceptance letters the second he had summoned him.

He walked towards the outside of the base calmly, finding Optimus waiting for him. "Dad, guess what? I got accepted into Caltech!" He said with a bit of excitement.

He decided to ease his way into the Cambridge acceptance. Rather then have him freak out right away. He needed to approach that carefully especially with all that was happening with Unicron.

[Optimus Prime]

Optimus heard Chris's voice before the boy was seen. "Really? That's great son!" He turned his large body so he was facing Chris. "So, have you decided which college to go to yet? I've been thinking about the one in London. I've decided that if you really want to go, then you are having two Autobots with you.." He allowed the news to sink in. "If the Decepticons decided to launch an attack, back- up wouldn't be so easy to arrive. With two Autobots, it'll give the three of you a chance to survive." He may have been out of his mind, but it was a compromise he was willing to make. After all, he learned that Sam had wanted some time alone, and Chris deserved to have a somewhat normal life. Who was he to take that away from him?

[Christopher Prime]

"Yep, I got the letter right here." Chris replied holding it up slightly, he sighed, he knew that was coming, however, he did brighten up at the fact Optimus was a bit more willing to let him head to England. "Well that's good to hear, because I got the acceptance for Cambridge too." He then added "And I'm still really considering it." He then added "It really means a lot to me that you trust me enough that you'd let me go to school that far away."

He looked up at his Father, then made a quick observation. "This would be easier to talk if I was on your shoulder." He commented "Or with your holoform, you know, see things eye-to-optic."

He knew Optimus wouldn't mind either. Normally he would bend down but with a serious discussion like this, he would probably settle for one of the other two options. Though he wouldn't mind him just bending down either.

[Optimus Prime]

Optimus nodded. "So that's three colleges. MITT, Cambridge, and Caltech." He thought about that for a second. Three colleges, one of them all the way in England. As Chris brought up it'd be easier to talk on his shoulder, or with his holoform, Optimus displayed his holoform, a figure appearing beside the giant robot.

It walked over to Chris. "Is there one you are leaning towards more than the others at the moment?"

[Christopher Prime]

Chris thought for a moment, that wasn't an easy question to answer. Unlike some Seniors he had a lot of choices... And all three had been colleges he really wanted to go to. This made things difficult.

"I don't know yet, I mean... They're all great schools." He explained, then added "But Caltech and Cambridge are the only ones to be offering me free rides."

He knew money was a little bit of an issue as well. Which was why he was leaning towards those two. A free ride into college didn't come everyday, he had worked hard for them. After all, he didn't work hard and get past his laziness most of the time for no reason at all.

[Optimus Prime]

When it came to such subjects like this one, Optimus wasn't the most useful person for it. After all, he was from another planet, even if he seemed to fit so easily into this planet. That could have been just luck. But in the end, fate had wanted it that the Autobots, and Decepticons for that matter weren't the best at situations like this.

"So, from what you're telling me, you are leaning towards Caltech and Cambridge, because they are offering free rides. That'd mean less money, which is good."

[Christopher Prime]

Chris nodded calmly. However, the one he was leaning towards was Caltech, and that was for a reason. Though not a reason he was sure Optimus would find good enough. "Yeah, well I'm leaning toward Caltech more... But it's not all because of Academic stuff."

He thought of the best way to tell him he wanted to go there because of Monica. Would Optimus understand why, the fact that he may have been in love with said girl. That if he was old enough he may have wanted to ask her to marry him.

"I mean Monica is in California, and she'd only be an hour or so away." He admitted.

[Optimus Prime]

Optimus looked at Chris, and nodded. "Caltech huh? Are you sure that's the one you really want?" Optimus wanted the best for Chris, and Chris making a mistake at which college he wanted to go to made a big deal. Well, to a father such as Chris's it did. He wasn't one of those fathers who were just happy their child got accepted into a college. No. Optimus knew Chris had such potential the first day he layed optics on his son.

So the news about the reason he wanted to go to Caltech didn't make Optimus the happiest in the world. "So you wanna go to Caltech just because it's closer to Monica? Is there another reason? Chris, you had to know I wasn't gonna let you decide just because of that." It was true, Optimus wouldn't let Chris leave until they were sure about this college thing, and if deciding it on just his girlfriend wasn't enough.

But Optimus knew where he was coming from. He had been in love, many times. He had the love of a father, a lover, a leader, and countless others. Organic life, tons of things. So it was wrong to say he didn't know why Chris made that decision. Optimus knew best that love was a powerful thing. It was sometimes too powerful.

[Christopher Prime]

"Well I know Cambridge is an amazing chance... I mean, not everyone gets to go there. It's prestigous..." Chris commented, thinking for a moment "But at the same time, I don't want that. I mean I know I am technically the son of a diplomat..." He then added "But not all people like that are as normal as I am."

He knew this was a true statement. The last thing he wanted was to be around a lot of snobs. A lot of sons and daughters of parents of high power went there, and chances were he might run into them if he went there. "It offers the same things to me Caltech does... But at Caltech, I can be around just normal people." He explained "You know what I mean?"

He then thought for a moment before explaining about Monica. How did he put how he felt into words. "Dad, with Monica... I think she's the one... I always felt that way." He commented "Didn't you feel that way with Mom? Love at first sight, I mean."

[Optimus Prime]

Optimus listened to Chris, the robot leaning towards his son. "I see what you mean, but you can't rule out a college just because of the people attending it. There will always be someone there that you don't like." The voice came instead from the robot, not his holoform. If anyone needed someone to come to to give them a second chance, no one was better than Optimus.

As Chris spoke once more, Optimus allowed the hologram to sigh. That was one of the great things about having a hologram. It was able to perform the human actions Autobots and Decepticons weren't allowed to. A holoform also allowed them to go into populated places and keep an eye out for Decepticons while protecting the inhabitants of a foreign planet. Jazz was one who loved the planet. How Optimus missed Destignation Jazz.

"Yes, I know what you mean." If what Chris said was true, hope it was or Optimus wouldn't be the happiest parent around, then Optimus knew where he was coming, but he also had a hunch he was also making some of it up to be with Monica. Either that or exaggering a good deal.

Optimus sighed. "Monica seems like a nice girl. I just don't want to see you get hurt Chris. Every father goes through the worry, and with the Decepticons, everything is harder for me." Addmitting something like this wasn't easy for the robot, but he spoke of it anyway. "Yes, I felt love, but when she died, I felt it was my fault. I don't want the same to happen for you and Monica." He allowed a sigh to escape from the holoform before the robot started talking again.

"The Decepticons will take advantage of any point they can. With Sam, they used his parents. With you, they would try with Monica. Just be careful."

[Christopher Prime]

Chris's eyes moved to the side slightly and nodded. "You're right in that aspect, I suppose." He commented.

Chris then looked up at Optimus, a bit horrified by what he was saying. He had never thought of that. How dangerous it was for her to be his girlfriend. He was the son of Optimus Prime, the very enemy of the Decepticons...

He almost wished he had never fallen in love with anyone, so he couldn't put her in danger. "I never actually thought of that... Never though... I'd put Monica in danger." He shook his head slowly.

He then looked up and said exactly what was on his mind. "But Dad, I'd give my life for her..." He commented "And if those fragging sons of glitches ever touched her. I would personally blow them up into scrap metal."

[Optimus Prime]

Optimus nodded as Chris said that he supposed his father was right. Usually a father was. But as Chris started to speak of the last topic Optimus brought up, the hologram moved closer to Chris. Then, the hologram pulled his son into a hug. But the robot still owned the voice.

"Don't worry, Arcee's protecting her. There's nothing to worry about. We're not going to let anything happen to her." The red and blue robot then paused.

[Christopher Prime]

Chris was caught off guard as Optimus hugged him, but gently hugged back knowing his Father could feel it. He let go slightly, then sighed. "I know, I just sometimes can't help but worry." He then added "Sometimes I think she'd do better with a boyfriend whose less dangerous to be around... But there's just something.."

Chris stopped, he didn't know how to describe how he felt about Monica, it was hard to describe how he felt. "There's just something that keeps me from being away from her." He commented.

[Optimus Prime]

Optimus looked down at Chris, his blue optics would have glazed over in sorrow. That is, if it were capable of such emotions. Even his human holoform wasn't capable of such things. Come to think of it, was there anything that even was? Yeah, being a giant advanced robot did have its perks and dissapointments.

"It's good to have her interests and safety in your mind, but would she like it? What would Monica think about being pushed away?" He cared for Monica's safety, but the two of them were legally adults. Or atleast, Chris was. What kind of a father would he be to stand between their love if there was danger in it? You take the pain out of love, and love doesn't exist. A saying Euphonium had in her signature on another site I belong to. How true it is.

Optimus closed his optics briefly, but opened them once again. "That feeling you feel. It's love. Love works in many ways. It destroys, conquers, and dictates. You have to be careful with it." He spoke of love as an object, and it could have easily been one. There were some twisted people in this world, namely the Decepticons, and they would use that bond to their advantage.