A pair of feet slowly found themselves shuffling down the pavement. Exhaustion gnawed at her very being with each step, but there would be no stopping her walk now, and even if the feeling was relentless she most certainly didn't show it; there was a particular place she could thank for that. It was yet another long day at work, not that she could particularly complain. The owners of that little hardware store were saints; if it had not been for them the female didn't know where she would be right now. Though, these long shifts were most certainly taking a toll on the woman. Having to come in a few hours early to move supplies and leaving a few hours later wasn't what she signed up for, and as of late, it left her beyond tired while she dragged herself home after her shift. She had begun to debate whether or not she should simply give in and purchase a vehicle; it would make these treks home after such a long day much easier, but it would also rob her of the pleasure she did receive from these strolls.

Chell had always enjoyed walking to and from work each day. It was such a peaceful time and one that she tried not to take for granted. There were many things that the outside world offered her that just wouldn't be the same had she experienced it from a moving automobile. The sounds of birds chirping, dogs howling and even the occasional chattering were all always such appreciated sounds and ones that put her nerves at ease. They reminded her of where exactly she was, and a few years back, made her feel safer than any place on earth. Besides, she could always use the exercise, and it was nice getting some fresh air rather than waste her time sitting around all day. Not that sitting down in the evening or on weekends and reading was particularly a waste of time, but either way, a car would rob her of that experience and it wasn't something she would be so eager to give up. That, and she also found a certain aversion to technology. It had been that way ever since she had entered the surface and found herself in this quaint town. It wasn't that she didn't own anything technological, or was ignorant to the various uses; she just simply didn't care for it. Chell was happy with the dinosaur of a phone in her pocket, and the various paperback books that littered her shelves at home. While she would occasionally receive some odd looks, she simply ignored them. Chell always had been odd, she never quite fit in here, but she had quickly learned how to shrug such things off.

A sigh left parted lips as her gaze slowly panned upward, studying the colorful evening sky. It seemed like it had been ages ago that she had stumbled upon this town. She was so lost, so very scared and she still could clearly remember the worried gazes she received from these, now neighbors but at the time, strangers. For so long a time she had been so jumpy, always on edge. A couple in their mid-fifties had graciously offered their home to her, but they were still wary, as was everyone else. They always questioned why she was so quiet, why everything set her nerves on end; they wanted to know why she couldn't be normal. Of course Chell wanted to tell her story, tell someone of what she had seen—tell anyone but it just wasn't an option. With time her nerves calmed, and her speech even returned but she still used that very sparingly. That was nearly three years ago; now she had a small one-story house, she had a job and a life, she had nearly let go of all that had happened to her all that time ago. But the impression she left on this town stayed. She received smiling faces and kind gestures, but she knew they weren't all genuine. She couldn't particularly let it get to her, though. Who cared what some people thought of her? All that mattered was that she was free and that she had a life now. No amount of petty gossip or strange looks could change that for her.

Chell had been pulled from this train of thought when her vision returned to the sidewalk in front of her, and met with the distant figure of a man, making his own way down the designated path. His appearance was concerning, to say the least—from what she could tell he had been bandaged up quite a bit, but that wasn't what really caught her attention. The way he was limping was what caused for some concern. There wasn't anything visible, per say, but he didn't look too well off either and she knew there may have been something hidden underneath the clothes he wore that was obstructing her view. She found her legs slowly coming to a halt as she took in this man, and more importantly, as the gears in her head began to turn.

As she stood motionlessly, Chell felt an internal struggle taking hold of her. Yes, he looked like he was in need of some assistance, but did he actually want it? She knew how independent some people were, and for all she knew he was new to the town and on a nightly walk. The truth was that she just didn't have the patience to deal with this man on the off chance that he didn't, in fact, want any assistance and was just trying to take a nice walk on his own. Then she would not only feel like a complete idiot, but God knows what else would spread around town about her. It was with that thought that she had decided to simply walk past him. If he needed help, he could call for it. Besides, he wasn't her concern anyway; she didn't know who he was or his situation so why should she feel any guilt?

Shit.

Chell knew she couldn't possibly leave him without first making sure that he was alright. The female had carefully approached him and offered a hand in his direction. She was, honestly, rather surprised at how eager he was to accept her help without her saying so much as a word. She briefly wondered if he had, perhaps, dealt with a mute before—but that wasn't something to dwell on now. Now she was more concerned with getting him somewhere he could sit down, which was easier said than done considering how he towered over her. Chell was never particularly tall, but this man had to at least be six feet just by the look of him. And the look of him wasn't particularly great; he looked as though he were ready to collapse at any given moment. When those intense eyes landed upon a small stone divider, she decided to gently settle him down on top of that. She knew it wasn't particularly the wisest decision, but it had at least gotten him off his feet and he even appeared to perk up the slightest bit. Her lips had momentarily parted; she supposed she had to say something eventually. Besides, she had to admit, she was the slightest bit curious as to who exactly he was. Someone like him didn't just show up out of nowhere, let alone in the condition he was in. It seemed, however, that the male before her beat her to the punch. Before she knew it he had opened his own mouth and began babbling on.

"Oh, thank you, that feels a lot better, really. I mean—'s not great but it's not as bad as it was. Honestly, I was surprised to see how very little people there are here, thought I'd run into someone eventually but I have to admit I was getting a little nervous, but thanks to you—t-to—Um, why are you, uh, lookin' at me like that?"

Chell found her hands suddenly tense, balling into tight fists that rested at her side. The sound of that voice, his voice, caused every nerve in her body to fray. She had never known just how quick she could anger, but with this new found emotion boiling inside her, she was rather surprised at the speed. There was only one person with a voice like that, one person with such a unique accented voice, only one person who could ramble on like that and it made her blood boil.

Wheatley. Even the name caused her head to pound, caused the blood to rush to her ears deafening her and caused the anger to surge through her being. Chell had thought she'd managed to let go of that anger, even after all these years, but her emotions seemed to prove that that thought was the exact opposite of reality. He had hurt her, and badly at that and when she left that hellhole of a facility and really reflected on things, she wasn't upset that he had been left in space. It left a large distance between them. It made it so something like this would never happen. And yet, here he was now, she was sure it was him, babbling on about something or another; she didn't know what, why should she bother? Like he deserved the time of day from her anyway.

"I—I um, we haven't met before, have we? Did I say somethin' or, maybe I didn't um—I—O-Oh God." She could tell he was straining, really straining to see the figure in front of his single eye, considering the other was wrapped with bandages. So he hadn't recognized her until now? Whatever, it wasn't as if it changed anything.

She was surprised to see her legs working on their own accord, carrying her away from the lanky core—or, previous core or whatever the hell he was now. She was curious, she wanted to know why, to know how but in the same respect she needed to remove herself from the situation before she did something she regretted. Besides, he seemed human now, didn't he? The way he breathed, the way he limped and felt pain. She had been alone once, sent out into a world she knew so little about and forced to fend for herself and she hadn't even tried to murder anyone. And She did not count. She wouldn't allow this back into her life, she was free this was her sanctuary and she would not allow Aperture to force itself upon her once again.

Wheatley, on the other hand, had different plans it seemed, because the sound of footsteps following after her slowly got closer and more prominent as the man attempted to catch up.

"W-Wait! L-Lady hold on please let me just—AUGH" No, how did he even manage to get back up, and moreover, why did he feel the need to follow her? "—no, no no up now, have good footing, really walking is very hard, don't see how humans do it so easily! I always took that for granted, really, thought it was sort of pathetic they had to wait so long to start doin' it but it's actually very complicated, not easy at all. But—But um, no that wasn't what I was trying to get at! I can't believe it's you, really! Could you um—could you maybe wait up? Oh no I—I suppose not, don't really blame you but um…"

The rest was forcibly removed from her head as she carried herself down the sidewalk with a newfound purpose in her step. She wanted to get home and leave him far behind. She had to hand it to him; it seemed she wasn't the only one around these parts with tenacity anymore. Not only was he still trailing her, but he also still managed to ramble on. When the familiar home came into view, Chell had made it a point to prepare her house key ahead of time. It allowed her to open the door, step inside, and accordingly slam and lock it, preventing any unwanted individuals from getting inside.

"Oh—uh, right can't say I particularly blame you for that either, you're mad, aren't you? Yes, probably very mad, by the looks of it, but um—I'll…I'll just wait out here, no problem no—oh no is that going at it again? Well at least this time it's only coming there not out of my mouth or anythin'—er uh right so I'll just wait out here until you're not angry, or at least, slightly less angry and don't nearly break my nose with a door. And you don't want to storm off anymore because I don't think I could really keep up."

She had waited a good long time for him to start up again—and he had a few times, all of which ended with him trailing off about how he would obediently wait for her outside. It was then that she made it a point to close the curtains around her home, and carry on with her evening routine as if it were just another ordinary day. She made a quick dinner, took a hot shower, and only deviated in her usually evening affairs by ending the day with reading a book in her bedroom rather than propped up upon the couch. However, despite the presence of the literature between her fingers, Chell found that there wasn't particularly a lot of reading being done, if any at all.

She was surprised to find that a lot of her anger had actually managed to subside with this time apart. She was still hurt—and of course she wasn't so quick to let that grudge fade, but she now began to think rationally once more. How had he managed to return to earth? How had he gotten this far? How on earth had he managed to escape the confines of his core body and actually wind up in the body of a species he seemed to adamantly look down upon. Moreover, if this was a human body, how had he possibly managed to get the injuries he had sustained? It was frustrating, really. She wanted answers, but she wasn't exactly keen on getting them. Her head was spinning and it didn't help that she had started this whole ordeal with a headache to begin with. Why?—that was the main question that seemed to repeatedly force itself into the front of her mind. Why now? Why was it now that her past came back to haunt her, now that she had a new life, now that she was finally over all that had happened to her and now that—her thoughts screeched to a halt when she had suddenly sat herself upright, her gaze briefly hovering over the handle of her bedroom door.

oh no is that going at it again? Well at least this time it's only coming there not out of my mouth or anythin'—

He was bleeding. How hadn't she thought of that sooner? And if it had been coming out of his mouth—well, it was obvious he'd been through some extensive trauma. Yet again, she was lost as to what exactly had compelled her to push herself onto her feet and not only exit her bedroom but wind up standing before the front door of her home. She couldn't believe she was about to do this, but she'd be damned if she let someone bleed out in front of her home. Besides, despite the animosity she felt towards him, perhaps there was some shred of a decent human—or core left inside of him. If he had been a core, however, she may not have come to her current decision, considering cores tended to be much more resilient; then again, he may as well have been one. He was clueless right now, no better than a child, if she left him out there he would undoubtedly die within the matter of a few days. Dammit, why was she thinking so extensively about this? She just needed to act. After flipping the locks, the front door was pushed open, and it was no surprise to find he was sitting there, and a brilliant blue eye met with her own tired gaze. She gave a half-hearted gesture with her arm and found that, after a moment of hesitation, he pulled himself up to his feet and quickly shuffled into the home before she changed her mind.

It was because he was injured that she took him in. The moment he showed signs of being able to function properly once more he would be out on his own again, no exceptions. She didn't want to see him let alone wanted him in her home. But she had to do what she had to do. Besides, perhaps he would show her there was something worth saving inside of him.

She doubted it, but it was always nice to try and justify her actions.