A Midnight Excuse

AN: Pretty late for a Prime Fanfiction isn't it? I gotta tell ya, the seasons are so long and yet it seems so short. I want Prime to have a Season 4 where Optimus is reborn or something like that and that something new evil came out to destroy the broken down Cybertron or something like that. But well, things are not meant to be I guess.

This takes place in a future where Jack is older and married. Please Review! ;)

Disclaimer: The plot belongs to me, but the characters in the story only belongs to Hasbro and their respected artists

Jack groaned as he tried to keep his headache less more annoying than it was. He glared at the darkness, telling him it was night and his drowsiness was not strange enough to tell him that he was rudely awakened.

He checked the time in his alarm and growled once more.

It's one in the morning. Freakin' one the morning.

"Honey?" Jack looked back at the stirring lump next to him, "Who's calling?"

"Just go back to sleep, dear." Jack assured tiredly as he stood up from his spot, "I'll see who's calling us at this time of night."

He listened to his wife mumbling in agreement and went back to sleep as she was told to and making sure his wife was asleep soundly, he walked out of the room to pick up the phone. He'll make sure to tell off whoever was calling them to never bother them at night like this-he likes his sleep thank you very much.

"Hello?" Jack answered tiredly as he pressed the phone to his ear, relieved that the ringing has stopped, "You better have a good excuse to wake me up-"

"Hello?" a deep, monotonous voice was heard, "Is this Mr. Darby's residence?"

"Yes, this is he." Jack answered slowly, hoping this is not a stranger who knows his phone number like the MECH incident he had when he was in high school. It was not a good experience to repeat, especially when you have a wife and a daughter who is only few months old.

"It's me, Optimus."

Jack widened his eyes, his fatigue gone with alert as he shuffled to hold his phone comfortably.

"Optimus?" he whispered, astonished that the Autobot leader had managed to reach-even knowing his number! "What's wrong? Is it the Deceptions again?"

It was silent on the other line and Jack was getting worried. Optimus being silent wasn't a good sign to him considering he had seen bad things happening whenever Optimus was quite.

Finally, after a long pause, Optimus finally spoke.

"Yes and no."

Jack felt his eyes blink, and blinked them again to make sure he wasn't dreaming or anything. Yes and no? Jack thought this must be Optimus's way of saying 'maybe' or the lack of it. He never heard Optimus saying Yes and no at the same time.

"Alright," Jack sighed, "What kind of the answer is that? Yes there's a Decepticon or no there was no Decepticons?"

Again it was silent and Jack was not going to bother with Optimus's lack of answers.

"Look, Opitmus," Jack ranted, "It's one in the morning, I need my sleep as well as my wife and my daughter. Hell, I would be expecting my daughter to call me in midnight when she hit her teenage years, but you're like what? Millions of year old? At least give me one good excuse as to why you're calling me in one in the morning."

"I…apologize for the late call, Jack." Opitmus replied after hearing Jack venting out his frustration due to his lack of sleep, "Can you…um, call Ratchet to Groundbridge to my location?"

"And why should I do that?"

Optimus said nothing, but as if cautious he answered;

"Um…If I say I was attacked by Decepticons, had my comm. link disabled, getting stuck on ledge and unable to transform…would you believe me?"