*{Wrenches and Kisses}*

{1} - |It all started at a bar|

The loud jeers of drunken bots, the overwhelming scent of engex hanging heavily in the air.... Yep, that's what all bars were made of.

Now, Ratchet wasn't your typical bar-goer. Tonight was an exception. His day had been hard. No, hard was an understatement. His day had been absolutely terrible. Horrible patients, stupid young medics, and the fact that he had almost gotten mugged on the way over here were only a few reasons why his day had gone to hell.

In all honesty, Ratchet loved his job. He loved helping others get better and making a difference in the world. It's just some days, things don't exactly go the right way.

Speaking of going the right way, Ratchet had completely missed the street he was supposed to turn on. With a loud huff of annoyance, he turned around and walked back the way he came. He walked down the street was originally supposed to take and spotted the bar's soft lights in the distance.

Ah, Maccadam's Old Oil House. The one place you could go and not be beaten up because of your political affiliation. Not to mention the exceptionally pure oil and engex that was served there as well. Ratchet had only been there once before, and that was an..... interesting experience, to say the least.

As Ratchet approached the bar, he could hear a tune being played from within the building. It had a nice beat to it, soothing Ratchet's tense nerves for a moment. He strode up to the door, opening the door for a couple of drunk mechs before stepping inside. The smell of engex hit him like a brick wall, but he soon got over it as other scents filtered about through the air. Oil.... energon..... smoke? Who was smoking?

Ratchet rolled his optics, not even bothering to dwell on the fact that whoever was smoking was a complete idiot. He could go on and on about how bad it was for the body, but he'd rather not think about anything remotely related to medical science right now.

He made his way over to the bar counter and greeted the server, ordering himself a small glass of engex and folding his hands on the counter while he waited. He hummed along to the music being played, his gaze flicking around the spacious room. He nearly jumped when a glass was set before him, filled about halfway up with a bright blue liquid. He thanked the server and went to find somewhere to sit, soon finding a little table in the back corner and easing back into the chair.

Before he could even take his first sip of engex, someone was already trying to talk to him.

"Hey there, you look lonely." A mech with a husky voice said, one optic ridge raised as he looked at Ratchet in amusement. He had a glass of engex in his hand, though he didn't look to be drunk at all.

Ratchet glanced up at the mech who had spoken to him and his words were suddenly caught in his throat. Something about those optics of his just made him freeze.

"You Okay?"

Ratchet snapped himself out of the trance and quickly nodded, forcing a reassuring smile. "Yes, I'm alright. Can I help you?" He asked, tilting his head to the side as he gazed at the mech again.

"I just came over here cause you looked lonely, 'tis all." The mech replied, leaning against the wall and taking a sip from his glass. He seemed to notice the medical symbols on Ratchet's shoulders, his optics glimmering with interest. A thought popped into his head and he smirked slightly. "Are you a medic? Because I think I broke my leg falling for you."

Ratchet did not expect that at all. He wasn't sure if he should be flustered, angry, or annoyed! He just sat there with his mouth open for a solid minute before he frowned slightly, regaining his composure. "You just came over here to flirt with me, didn't you?" He demanded, narrowing his optics slightly. "Are you drunk?"

The mech seemed to back off a bit, though that stupid smirk was still on his face. "No. It takes a lot more engex to get me drunk, doc." He replied, his tone growing more flirtatious by the second.

Ratchet visibly went red in the face from both embarrassment and annoyance. He drank the rest of his engex in one swift gulp and stood up to face the mech, glaring at him. "You have got a lot of nerve thinking you can speak to me like that." He said in a sharp tone, wishing he had one of his trusty wrenches with him.

The mech chuckled and took a step back, holding his hands up in defense. "I suppose so. But I can't help it if you're too damn attractive." He smirked again, knowing he was probably going to get slapped for this.

And indeed he did.

One harsh slap across his cheek and Ratchet was gone, having stormed out of the bar still red in the face.