Heyo! Back with another chapter! It's been a while since I've written on for this story, and it's already 2017 so why not! Oh yeah, and I noticed some of you picked up on his sudden switch in behavior. There's a reason for that, it won't be explained in this chapter but will come up soon ;)

JessieBWriting- Why thank you! And that is totally true. I love Mirage's character and his awesome powers!

jgoss- Oh yeah lol. There is a reason for that!

mostly a reader fangirl99- Thanks!

MysticFire101- Lol, thank you so much! I'm glad you like it :)

Starlit Storyteller- Oh yeah, Zach is fiercely protective when it comes to Liz. And yes, Raj has a lot to learn when it comes to human customs. Thanks for the advice, I'll keep that in mind.

Onto the next chapter!

Chapter 5: The Upgrade

By the time the two had came back, I had finished buttoning up the buttons on my jacket and glanced at the door. My eyes widened when only Zach appeared, before my brows creased in confusion.

"Where did he go?" I asked.

"I said he could wait downstairs." Zach replied with a dismissive shrug.

I sighed, "Zach, I thought we've just been over this already. You can trust him. He's my friend."

"I know," Zach replied, "But that doesn't mean he has to be in here. He'll be fine."

I rolled my eyes exasperatedly, giving up on trying to ease Zach's overt protectiveness. Instead, I grabbed the bag that was sitting on the chair towards the window, going through it real quickly to make sure everything I had in there was still there. Once I was done, I hung it around my shoulder and turned to Zach with raised eyebrows.

"What?" Zach asked.

"You going to let me go?" I asked, tilting my head to the side. "Or are you going to interrogate me too?"

Zach frowned for a moment, before breaking out into a grin, "I had to make sure he had your best interest at heart."

"Geez Zach, it's not like he's going to marry me. He's just driving me up north." I muttered sarcastically.

"C'mon Liz, look at it from my point of view. You just recovered from being sick, I go get you food, and when I come back, I find a grown man in your room, holding your pants, and claiming to take you up to New York. How could I not be suspicious and protective?"

I bit my lip, withholding a sigh, because he was right. The whole thing probably seemed bizarre to Zach. Heck, it was bizarre to me too. I felt a swarm of guilt rise in my chest, and tried to think of a way to apologize, when he suddenly wrapped his arms around me again. My worries melted right away, as I smiled and hugged him back, burying my face in the crook between his neck and shoulder.

"I'm really gonna miss you, Liz." He mumbled softly, revealing some of his true feelings. I was glad, the tough-guy act was starting to get old.

"I'll miss you more." I whispered, hugging him tighter.

"Doubt it." He whispered back, and I found myself chuckling softly.

The more I stayed wrapped up in his arms, the more I was tempted to stay. I knew it was going to be hard, all on my own up north, and I also knew it was going to be hard for Zach, staying down here by himself. Ever since our parents passed away, we've been all we've got for each other. We took care of each other, and we were both anchors for each other, keeping us grounded so that neither of us would spin outwards to insanity.

It was going to be hard, leaving the town that I've known all my life. Leaving the people who watched me grow up, and leaving the place where the memories of my parents was the strongest. But at the same time, I knew I had to do this for myself. As safe and comfortable as it was in Missouri, I knew I would never forgive myself if I didn't try to make something of my life.

So that's what gave me the strength to finally pull away, and give him a quick peck on the cheek. "I won't be gone forever Zach, I'll be back for the summer."

"You better." He teased, smiling and I smiled back. "Besides, we've definitely got to fix up the paint on the house now."

"Don't remind me." I groaned playfully, and Zach grinned as he finally stepped to the side to allow me to pass. I glanced up at the clock on the wall, and panicked, realizing that Mirage had probably been waiting for at least twenty-five minutes. He's going to be pissed...but that's okay. I had just managed to push open the door when Zach suddenly stopped me;

"Wait!"

"Huh?" I said, swiveling around.

"You dropped this." He said, handing me the clumsily folded map. My eyes widened in realization, and I took it gratefully, tucking it into my purse.

"Thanks, Zach."

"Why DC?" He suddenly asked, his expression turning suspicious again.

I gave a one-shoulder shrug, "It's on the way."

~ Mirage's POV ~

I checked the golden contraption human's used to keep track of time on my holoform's wrist, and sighed again. We were falling rapidly behind the time I had estimated we would arrive, which was not good. I could feel the engine of my alt mode hummed impatiently outside in the parking lot, and I glanced at the watch again before letting out a strained huff.

This femme was going to be the death of me.

"Mirage!"

I snapped up at the sound of my designation, and the familiar femme's voice. I could feel some of the stress sinking out of my shoulders as they slumped briefly with relief. Finally.

"I'm so sorry I kept you waiting so long," She said, breathing heavily. I scanned her quickly, and noticed that her respiratory system was accelerated, but not enough to be dangerous. She huffed again as she wiped the small hairs humans call "bangs" out of her face, "Zach was a bit reluctant to let me go."

I tore my gaze away from her forehead to glance down at her, and nodded distractedly, "Yes, yes that is all good. Are you ready to leave?"

"Yeah, just let me check myself ou-"

"That task is already completed." I interrupted.

She paused, "Wait what?"

"I have already checked you out, signorina." I explained quickly, grabbing her arm gently. I momentarily paused, slightly surprised by how soft her skin was. How in Primus name could humans protect themselves with such soft, delicate outer layer? I brushed the thought away, "We must go."

The femme seemed to be too busy staring at where our appendages were connected to hear my words, and I sighed again before gently nudging her in the direction of the door. Once she had caught on and stopped stumbling, she had let go, and my holoform rolled its eyes. I felt my true body's engine flood to life as I slowly backed out of ridiculously narrow parking space and drove quickly to the front of the hospital. Liz's eyes widened as my engine revved deeply.

"Holy smokes." She muttered, "You just...how did you...?"

"Multitasking." I said, with a hint of amusement as I smirked at her bewildered expression. This femme had a lot to learn, that was only a fraction of my true power.

After I had finally managed to usher her into my alte mode, she began to unfold the large map, placing it on the dashboard. I had dissipated my holoform, slightly startling her as I gunned my engine, ready to take off. I didn't want to be in that holoform any longer than I had to, and I waited for her to climb over the console, doing my best not to shudder.

She had to touch...everything.

"Sorry," She mumbled, "I'm just not used to this...this is so weird. Being in a car that drives itself."

"I am not an actual car." I reminded her, my voice projected from the dashboard.

She nodded, "Right. An...Otterbot?"

I grimaced. "Autobot."

"Sorry." She said softly with a small chuckle, "So...um, are we ready to go?"

"Not quite yet signorina," I answered, my processors scanning through the internet, "We need to make one quick stop."

~ Liz's POV ~

One quick stop? I wondered what Mirage was talking about, as we pulled on to the highway, but fifteen minutes later, I had my answer. I recognized this part of the county, it was much more expensive here, my dad used to work here. I was startled when he suddenly pulled up to a fancy car dealership, and my eyes widened when I recognized the symbol of a powerful horse, standing on it's back legs on the sign.

Ferraris.

I was confused, but excited at the same time. Who wouldn't be excited, I mean come on, they're Ferraris. All lined up perfectly in eccentric different colors, their shiny coat of paint had glistened brightly in the moon's reflection.

"What are we doing here?" I asked excitedly, gawking at the beautiful cars.

"We are receiving an upgrade." Mirage said, in that thick Italian accent of his.

I frowned, stopping momentarily in my gawking to look at the dashboard, "How? I don't have that kind of money."

"You will see." He replied, in a teasing tone. I raised an eyebrow at that, and reeled back when the car door suddenly swung open.

"Uh..."

"I need you to exit me for a moment."

"Okay." I mumbled, climbing out of the car, still confused.

The tiny little Ferrari GTB rolled past the rows of Ferraris, impressively silent, since it was he was in his car form and it was probably sometime pass midnight. He had gotten as close to the cars as possible, since there was a long, gate separating them. And I watched as he would slow down, checking out one Ferrari that caught his attention, before speeding up to look at the others. Finally, he had stopped next to a cherry red Ferrari 458 Italia.

And you wouldn't believe what happened next. I wouldn't have too, if I hadn't been standing there, watching with wide eyes as my little GTB stretched into a longer, more sleeker and shinier Ferrari Italia, with a paint job so bold that I could see it clearly in the dim night. I gasped as the engine revved even deeper, and nearly passed out when the bright neon lights flashed.

Mirage...He just...

He had turned around, making his way back to me, and all I could do was stand there, stunned. I blinked, and then blinked again, and blinked a couple of more times just to make sure that I wasn't hallucinating. And then I pinched my arm, and hissed when I felt the sharp stab of pain.

"Why are you pinching yourself, signorina?" Mirage wondered, his voice seemed even deeper, and nicer.

"I...I..." I shook my head, my jaw dropping, "You just turned into an Italia!"

"Why yes. I did say I needed an upgrade." He replied.

"B-But an Italia!" I cried out, throwing my hands up in surprise, "Holy crap! This is the coolest thing I've ever seen in my life!"

"I'm glad." Mirage muttered, and I felt the urge to faint again as I watched the doors lift them self open. How was I even going to explain this to Zach? How was I going to explain this to anybody? Nobody would believe a rural girl like me could own a freaking Italia!

"Are you going to get in?" He asked.

I had to shake the thoughts out of my head to focus again, and nodded before climbing into the door. I gazed at the dark, leather interior and inhaled the new car scent with joy. A low rumbling sound came from the car, and I could've sworn it sounded like a chuckle, but I wasn't sure so I let it go. Instead I enjoyed the amazement of Mirage's upgrade, not even caring that the seatbelt had snaked over my chest and buckled me in.

And we went off into the night.

Lucky Liz. Lol, anyway thanks for reading! Hoped you liked it as much as I did! Please review!