I'm not taking up the 100 theme challenge, I'm just taking prompts from it because family is visiting and I'm bored. This is the second one shot I've written in two nights. Damn.

19. Tears.

He screamed.

Chell let out a huff and threw back the covers, half-consciously pulling herself out of bed. Ever since Wheatley had returned from Aperture with a human body, he had started dreaming like all humans.

So of course, just like all humans, he was having nightmares as well.

Chell remembered the first time he had a nightmare. It was a few months ago. Wheatley slept in the room adjacent to hers, so unless he made a sound relatively loud (such as slamming the door or dropping a box full of stuff) Chell was unable to hear what sounds were made in his room.

However, Wheatley screaming in his sleep was considered a relatively loud sound. Loud enough so not only that Chell heard it, but loud enough that it woke her from a sound sleep.

The first nightmare hadn't been as scary as the new ones had. He had been cold, and lost and alone. Wheatley described his surroundings as a post-apocalyptic Aperture Laboratories, most likely centuries in the future. Everything was destroyed and dark; and he wandered around looking for Chell, and even for Her. Just for someone alive.

He eventually found Her only, she was lying on the ground much like the first time he and Chell had passed through her chamber when she was turned off.

Only this was worse.

Her optic was smashed in, yellow glass scattered about. Part of the chassis lay underneath piles of rubble while others lay in smoldering ashes.

Wheatley had bolted awake upright in bed that night, a cold sweat covering his body. He called for Chell, held himself and for the first time in his human body- began to cry.

Chell remembered he had been so confused at first. What was wrong with him? Why was water coming from his eyes? Was something broken? Was he going to die? Wheatley had asked her every one of those questions and many more multiple times that first night. She had explained to him that nothing was wrong and that crying was the normal human reaction to fear or sadness.

He had fallen into her that night, crying his eyes out onto her shirt and holding onto her for dear life. Chell understood that nightmares were frightening, but Wheatley had never had them before and his mind was seeing them in the same way that a child's mind sees them. Even though they're told that nightmares are just bad dreams and not real, they don't fully believe it.

Especially when they border on reality.

The first one had been a bit realistic, and some of the later ones he experienced were as unrealistic as a child's, but lately they had been far too dark and realistic for anyone's comfort.

The first one like that, Wheatley had told Chell that he had been drowning. She had grabbed him by the head and had held him under the water. Even Chell admitted, a dream like that was terrifying.

There had been others about both Aperture and what he called 'out here'. There was one where a man came into their house with a gun and shot both of them. There was one where everything was burning to the ground around them and he couldn't breathe through the smoke- couldn't find her. There were many nightmares about that-one-time-I-went-insane, and they ranged from him floating outside his own body watching himself test her to the mashy-spike plates actually accomplishing what they were supposed to.

However, no matter how dark every dream had been, Chell specifically remembered that she was still alive in the end of each one. She might've been injured, hurt or dying. Sometimes even he was injured, dying or possibly even dead. But she was still alive in the end of each one. With the gun dream Wheatley had been shot protecting her and bleeding to death. With the mashy-spike plate terror she was lying on a panel bleeding out in front of him.

But each time Wheatley awoke screaming before her heart stopped.

Wheatley's scream continued to ring through the house as Chell shuffled over to the door, turning the knob and drowsily opening the door to his room and moving over to his bed.

Wheatley was still asleep, which was rare. Usually the sound of his own screaming usually woke him up.

"Shh…shh…it's ok…" Chell cooed brushing blonde bangs out of his eyelids. His face was pale, sweat covering his body in a sheen coat, eyes rapidly fluttering underneath his lids and fists clenching the sheets as he thrashed in his sleep.

"No…no don't! Don't touch her!" Wheatley screamed, sobs wracking his body. His screams sounded torn and Chell saw tears sliding down his pale cheeks.

"Shhh…Wheatley it's ok…"

"You can't do this! You can't take her! You can't-"

"Shh… Wheatley…"

"I can't… I can't lose her," Wheatley choked out, barely audible.

Chell could tell what was going on inside his mind. She was being killed (or kidnapped) and he couldn't control what was going on. This was bad.

"No…Chell…No!"

"Wheatley!"

Blue eyes shot open to see Chell's form hovering over his.

"B-b-but y-y-ou're…"

"Shh, it was just a dream, Wheatley. It was just a dream."

"B-b-ut it w-w-was s-s-so r-r-real," Wheatley stuttered, trying to control his emotions. Chell helped him into a sitting position and then into a hug.

"Shhh, shhhh"

She could feel the tears wetting her shirt as the flowed freely down his face. Sobs wracked his entire body as he audibly cried into her form.

"I-i-I c-c-ouln't s-s-save…"

Chell pulled his face away from her shoulder. His face was pale, but his cheeks and nose were red from crying. His eyes were red and puffy while tears streamed down his face. Chell gave a motherly smile and gently kissed each small tear away from the terrified man.

Man. Chell saw him more as a child, but she loved him none the less.

"Tell me what happened," she asked gently, trying to comfort him. Wheatley sniffled and nodded, trying to find the words.

"W-we w-w-ere back t-there. A-a-and She w-was there t-t-too. A-a-and e-every-ything w-was a-a-alright t-there. B-b-b-but S-she w-w-as m-ad a-a-and w-wanted t-t-to punish m-m-e. S-s-so She g-grabbed you and s-said t-that S-she w-was g-g-gonna kill you a-and make me w-watch. Love, i-it w-was s-so scary and I-i-i…I c-couldn't s-save you. I-I-I c-cried a-and s-s-creamed b-b-but S-she p-put a t-t-turret i-in f-front o-of y-you a-a-nd t-there w-was j-just somuchblood… and I-i-I c-c-couldn't save you andyoudiedandI'msosorryandIwassoscaredandit wasallmyfaultIcouldn'tsaveyou-"

"Wheatley." Chell cut him off, and offered a smile. "It was a dream. We're not going back there. Ever. It's not your fault Wheatley. And besides, I've gotten past her many times before and I'd do it again."

She embraced him, pulling him tight as a lover, a sibling, a friend and a mother. "There is nothing to be scared about. We're far away and safe. I know you're frightened, but She's gone now."

A few more tears escaped his eyes and Chell lightly pecked them away.

"W-w-will y-y-ou s-stay?"

She smiled and broke the embrace, moving to lay down in the bed next to him. She snuggled up in his arms and closed her eyes, lying a hand above his heart.

"So close your eyes and sleep now," she lightly sang. But there was no need.

Wheatley had buried his head against hers, a smile pulling at his lips and his breathing evened out, quickly falling asleep to the reassuring sound of her breath and heartbeat.