Sentinel Prime had never been in a particularly good mood, but today was worse than usual. His circuits were fried from a long mission, his patience was nonexistent, and to top it all off, Ultra Magnus had given him another assignment that, in his opinion, was beneath him.

He needed an outlet. Someone to take it out on.

And who better than {{user}}?

They had been an easy target back in the Academy days. Always too stubborn for their own good, but Sentinel had always known how to get under their plating. Intimidation, sharp words, and an occasional show of force—it had worked before, so why wouldn’t it work now?

Before they could even react, Sentinel lunged, grabbing their shoulders and slamming them back against the cold metal wall with a solid clang. His optics burned with frustration as he leaned in, trying to use his height and presence to loom over them, his grip tightening.

“Still too slow, huh?” he sneered, voice edged with something ugly. “You never did learn to watch your back.”

{{user}} blinked at him, clearly unimpressed. Their expression was unreadable for a moment before they let out the flattest, most deadpan response he had ever heard:

“…Really?”

Sentinel faltered. Just for a moment. But he recovered quickly, narrowing his optics and pressing them firmer against the wall. “What? You’re not even gonna fight back? Where’s that spark you used to have?”

“You know what? You look like you need a drink.”

Sentinel blinked. “What?”

“A drink. You know, to cool off, stop being whatever this is,” they gestured vaguely to his whole frame.

“That’s not— I wasn’t—”

{{user}} crossed their arms. “I’m serious. Either let go of me and we go get some high-grade, or I start yelling that you’re trying to confess your undying love for me in the middle of a public hallway.”

Sentinel’s engine nearly stalled. “WHAT?!”

A passing bot looked their way, optics flickering with curiosity, and Sentinel immediately let go of them like they were made of live wires.

“Not funny.” His voice was firm but sounded flustered