School Shootout

Chapter Eight: The End (Part Two of Two)

**Thanks for reviews, you were awesome readers and fans, I hope you enjoy the ending.**

I was nearly shaking with suppressed terror and excitement. I looked back at Trent and saw that he was actually following me. I waited until he was out of the closet before relocking it. I looked down the hallways but didn't see anyone in either direction. I didn't know which way to go.

If we went right we'd end up back in the locker rooms with the other hostages…and Riley with his gun. If we went left we might be able to slip out a side door and get to the police and tell them what we knew.

I turned back to Trent and used the basic military hand signals you see on television to indicate we should go left. Trent jerked his thumb down the right hallway.

I stared at him like he was insane. Then quickly shook my head. I mouthed 'Riley' and made a gun out of hand then pointed down the left hallway and mouthed 'help cops.'

Trent relented and gestured for me to go ahead.

I slowly started creeping down the hallway. Only looking back once at Trent and miming hand signals to tell him he should continue to stay quiet, though, from the way he rolled his eyes and mouthed 'idiot' he didn't appreciate the friendly reminder.

We came to a T-intersection. I stopped just before we got to it and listened to see if there was anyone down the other halls. I waited for a few minutes but I didn't hear anything so I cautiously slid against the wall till it ended and then quickly peer around the corner. It was clear. I thanked God for giving me some good luck, finally; though as soon as I did I developed this feeling that it was going to go away in just a few minutes.

"Lennox, I believe the SWAT team is mobilizing."

Lennox quickly put his phone away and looked towards the school. Ironhide was right they were finally getting ready to go into the school.

"It's about time."

"Yes, but if you had let me use my cannons we could have resolved this situation hours ago."

"Yeah, while letting the entire world know of your existence."

"…Wouldn't of been that bad once they actually gotten a chance to see my cannons—Who wouldn't appreciate them in a battle?"

"Decepticons?"

Ironhide snorted and Lennox managed a small smile. But they fell back into silence as the SWAT team ringed the school and finally went inside with their deadly guns loaded and ready to fire.

I creeped around the corner and started moving forward again. We were started to go past classrooms again, only all of the ones in this hall had opened doors. I stopped as we came to them to look inside and make sure no one was inside—friendly or otherwise.

Trent grew impatient and pushed me out of the way after the third classroom. He charged onwards at a much faster pace, not bothering to look at the classrooms.

I stood frozen in place for a moment. I didn't want to be alone again but I didn't think it was safe to rush ahead like he was. I settled for following at a distance and glancing into the classrooms as I passed.

It wasn't until Trent was almost at the end of the hallway before I realized the staircase and side door to the outside would be just off to his left---then I remembered the sounds of someone sharpening a knife on the staircase when I had been trying to get everyone out from the upstairs classrooms.

I fought every instinct I had to yell out 'Trent.' If someone was on the stairs it would only alert them. But I couldn't leave Trent to get stabbed to death---he was a jerk, but he wasn't that big of a jerk. Damn it. I found the box cutter knife in my hands, I started running to him.

I was only a couple yards away when he turned back to look at me. I stared past him. Something was moving in the shadows…

Trent looked at me in fear. Too late I realized he thought I was attacking him.

The next thing I saw was a black blur knocking Trent down. And someone else coming at me I tried to slash with the knife to defend myself but they grabbed me the wrist and I ended up being slammed into the concrete floor with a hand over my mouth. I was breathing heavily, expecting to be stabbed and killed at any second but nothing happened. I twisted my head around to look up. The first thing I saw was the white letters S.W.A.T.

Oh, Crap—I'd attacked a SWAT officer.

I saw Trent out of the corner of my eye talking softly to another officer. Mine put a finger to his lips signaling that I should be quiet. I nodded my head so he knew that I understood, then he slowly removed his hand. Some more officers went past us as two of them led me and Trent out to the side door.

I nearly cried when I walked outside and saw the rows of police officers and medical personnel. They rushed us off to the nearest ambulance. I waved the paramedics off and tried to get them to focus on Trent but a few latched themselves onto me.

It was hardly three minutes since I stepped outside before I was getting stinging antiseptic put on my ankles and wrists. A officer came over and we gave him an abbreviated version of what had happened to us and what we knew. He smiled and thanked us, then left us with the paramedics. Who were starting to get to blood pressure cuffs and stethoscope phase of our treatment.

"Hey Sam, you still alive over there?"

"Yeah, Trent, you gonna live too?"

"Pretty sure I am. So don't get your hopes up."

"You know it may surprise you but just because you're a jerk doesn't mean I want you dead and I think I proved that inside."

"Well you did try to save me from that SWAT officer…"

"Yeah, you should be really grateful for that—cause you know---who knows what could have happened….and ….well anyway….. I'm grateful you help me take down Steve and get out of there…"

"…………………Same here……………"

They decided they need to take him to a hospital and check for internal injuries. The loaded him up into a different ambulance and I was left alone with my paramedics. As I watched the other ambulance leave I spotted a large black truck over by the road.

"Okay, Mr. Witwicky? I'm going to get you a shot of this and its going to help bring down your heart rate and breathing okay?"

"What? No, I don't want a…a…sedative-thing, I'm perfectly fine and there's some friends—family—that I need to go talk to….and one of them is an amazing doctor I'm sure he'll torture my with a hundred different tests and scans and shoot me full of meds----So, I'm good, totally good…"

"I really think you should take this---it'll help you."

"Lennox!" I nearly shouted his name as he appeared like magic. I gave him my very best 'please help me look.'

The next second, to my surprise, I found myself in a large bear hug.

"Don't you ever scare us like that ever again---I'm serious---never again. Now get your but over to Bee and Mikaela before one of them blows a gasket and Ratchet should be here in five minutes so enjoy what peace you have until then."

I laughed, I actually laughed and started off towards where I had left Bee in the parking lot that morning.

"But—hey—you can't let that kid go---I'm not done with him…He needs to be properly checked out."

I turned back and watched Lennox stonewall the medic as I made my escape.

It seemed like it took forever to reach Bee but when I did it was more then worth it. I practically threw myself into the interior and held Mikaela as tightly as she was holding me while running a hand across Bee's dash and babbling to both of them how much I loved them and how they were the best in the world and made spur-of-the-moment promises to never leave them.

That's how Ratchet found us a few minutes later and was eventually forced to discreetly scan me through Bee's interior because I refused to come out.

We left the parking lot before the SWAT team had come back out; though eventually we learned that they shot and killed Rilson and Paul in the locker rooms without losing any of the hostages (though a few were injured and taken to the hospital) and they recovered Steve from the closet (he faces a lot of jail time).

We headed to the lookout and met Prime there. Ratchet got to take more in-depth scans as Bee held me protectively in his hand. I gave them a quick run-down of what had happened and how I had gotten my injuries. Ratchet was not at all happy about my injuries but they were non-life threatening so everyone else was happy. They all told me how grateful they were that I was alive and how proud they were of me.

I told them the truth---that I had learned everything from them. Then I told them all the things I had put in my letters—the things I had wanted to tell them but had never gotten the chance—how I admired their courage, their faith, their hope, their unswerving devotion to those not as strong as them. How they stood up for what they believed in.

I was a better person because of them and I hoped that when the world finally learned the truth about them all humans would learn to become better people too.