Still Here

What a Welcome

[Finally! Sweet lord, finally! I'm typing this from the family computer, which everyone has been using lately for some reason, but now no one is home! I can finally  update! Finally! FINALLY!  *joyous laughter fills the room* *angels descend for heaven, singing gracefully*]

-10101010-

Okay, so maybe she opened the Shakespeare book once.

But once had taught her enough about symbols of affection and courtship to have that kiss turning Chell redder than a sun-burnt beet, whilst her inner logic was squawking at her some junk about how they "just met" and it was probably meant  to be a "polite hello".

[I kid, I kid, calm down already]

Both Jack's grin and eye-contact never faltered. Rather, they grew more intense as his head tilted in an inquisitive manner.

"And what might your name be, lovely?"

Oh god damn it all.

There's no way. If he heard her voice, he'd definitely have more questions, many of which she probably wouldn't be able to answer.

What the hell do I do?  Chell panicked, I can't just pretend I can't talk, I might need to later. But with my voice, what if he doesn't even believe I'm human? And should he have something against robots, no idiot, he's trapped in a testing facility run by robots, I'm sure he doesn't bear any grudge whatsoever, do you even think before you think? Wait, what? That can't be right. Why do I sound like the author when I think? Ahhh, what do I--

A painful, screeching static broke through Chell's thoughts. Her head jolted in surprise, as if trying to get away from the noise, before she remembered her earpiece. She uselessly covered and clawed at her right ear, it only intensified the sound.

"Hey! Are you alright? What's happening?"

Chell didn't even realize she had closed her eyes until she had to open them to meet Jack's now unnerved gaze. His hands were on her shoulders, he had bent down to match her eye level. He was probably yelling, but the sound rattled her skull and made it seem like he was miles away. Chell couldn't even hear herself as she weakly croaked out a "why".

The noise stopped as abruptly as it started. It left only an ominous emptiness in Chell's head, and was immediately replaced by GlaDoS's voice on the unseen speakers.

"The Aperture Science Enrichment Center would first like to apologize to any 'modified' testing subjects who may have been disturbed by a recent malfunction in the facility's 'frequency monitor'. The error has been removed and this issue is doubted to happen in the future. If you, as a subject, are still feeling discomfort, and/or continue to feel discomfort in the future, please contact and inform your testing supervisor.

"Second, the Enrichment Center would like to remind you that you are, in fact, being timed on you completion of these test. Your timer begins from the moment you step into the test chamber, and only stops once you have passed through the containment field of the exiting door. The Enrichment Center asks that you use this testing time wisely, as your times do affect your permanent record."

And she was gone, leaving Jack and Chell to go about  their testing business.

"Kinda bitchy, isn't she?"

Chell looked up a Jack, trying to make it as clear as possible that she had no idea what he was saying.

Jack didn't seem to notice, he wasn't even looking at Chell anymore.

"It's not the regular kind of bitchy," he continued, "it's more subtle, yet somehow still extremely prominent. I'll bet she's great at sarcasm." He now turned to face Chell again, whom only nodded in response, but it seemed to be enough.

His grin was back, "I knew it. If there's one thing I know it's people, even sociopathic robot people."

Chell felt herself smile, which in turn felt pretty nice.

"Alrighty then," Jack declared as he stretched, "let's get out of this room already! I think I've got a solution down, now that I know how to work this," he gestured with the portal gun that had been apparently hanging from the waistband of his jumpsuit, "unless you have any ideas?"

Chell merely shook her head, before pulling a light bowing gesture, extending her hand at her side, as if permitting Jack to go forward with his plan. He played along, offering a polite "thank you"  bow, before making his path to the door. Chell followed suit in his portals, as their was only one gun between them. The path, in question, was a bit rough, but not far different from how Chell had preformed when she began testing. Maybe even better.

Some part of Chell told her she probably shouldn't tell him that.

"So," Jack said once they reached the door, "how many of these do you usually do?"

Assuming that he meant per day, Chell held up three fingers.

"Woo," he breathed, "alright, let's finish this quick," he said as he walked through the door, "you gotta meet my friends, they are out there."

Chell had no clue what that meant. She actually began to ponder it as they got in the elevator, and had come to the conclusion that he just meant that his friends were a bit strange, when she realized he has been talking the entire time.

"...and I know Miss Jones is gonna love having another girl around," he stopped and looked at Chell, grin back in place, "I still don't know your name."

Through the glass walls of the elevator, Chell could see a cracked screen depicting the inter-workings of a turret. As soon as the doors opened, she scrambled to the screen.

Lightly tapping a blank white sector of the screen left a dark impression that lasted for a few seconds before fading. The harder she pressed with her finger, the longer the impression lasted.

Trying to keep her hand steady, Chell put all her force into pressing the letters of her name into the screen. She forgot tests and Jack and even her precious little space core, she just wanted her name to stay there, to last long after she was gone.

Jack put his hand on Chell's shoulder, bringing her back to reality. There was no point. The name would fade. There was no point. The name would fade. There was no point. The name--

"Chell."

Silence.

"Man, you got some cool parents," he began to head towards the door, " c'mon kid."

-01010111-

[FINALLY!]