"I have a bad feeling about this." Dr. Doug Rattmann, an employee at Aperture Science, sat at his observation post. Below, a test subject was attempting to solve the difficult puzzle he was presented with.

His co-worker, Henry, smiled at him. "C'mon, Rat Man, it'll be fine."

"Don't call me that."

Suddenly, the door to the observation post opened. While the intruder attempted to be quiet, there wasn't much success with the door's squeaking hinges. Doug looked up and grinned.

"I thought you were studying." Doug said to the newcomer.

"Sorry. Mr. Johnson thought you two would want some coffee." The speaker was about 5'6'', her obsidian hair falling down past her shoulders. She was fifteen years old, so many people wondered what she was doing in such a dangerous place. Doug, however, knew the exact reason.

Doug had been an important part in countless scientific discoveries and inventions, including that of a device that could send an object directly from one location to another; The Aperture Science Portable Quantum Tunneling Device, or as most everyone called it, The Aperture Science Portal Gun. His love for science had been passed on to the teenage girl standing before them: Breanna Rattmann. Being a single parent, for most of Breanna's infancy, she'd been in daycare while her father was at work. But as years went on and Breanna grew older, she was no longer able to attend. He hated to leave her alone, so he went to Cave Johnson, his uncle and CEO of Aperture (He liked to keep the relation a secret, however, to avoid special attention at work), to turn in his resignation. When his head was clear, he could still recall that day in perfect detail.

"Doug, you're one of our best scientists. Why are you doing this?"

"I'm sorry, Uncle Johnson. It's just... I can't abandon my daughter. She's all I have left."

"I understand that Breanna won the Science Fair at her school last year."

"Yes. She'd been planning it for years. She would have entered before, but she was too young."

"It certainly was impressive. 'The Future of Artificial Intelligence'. I couldn't have put it better myself. Anyone who's that dedicated to science is okay by me. I'll tell you what, Doug. Rip up that form in your hand. I'll give you permission to bring Breanna here after school, so long as she doesn't interrupt any testing. I can have Caroline pick her up every day. Would that be alright with you?"

Of course, it was. Now, eleven years later, he was looking into her pure, blue eyes, contrasted by the dark circles of insomnia, yet greatly complimented by her black polo shirt and white lab coat.

Snapping back to reality, Doug reached for the coffee. "Thanks, min kärlek." Breanna returned the pet-name with a smile and a hug.

Henry cleared his throat (It was obvious that he didn't have a child), and Doug remembered that there was a fourth presence in the room.

"Oh, Caroline. Please excuse me. I was daydreaming. How are you today?"

The woman laughed. "I can't complain. And you, Dr. Rattmann?"

"I certainly hope that this one hasn't been troubling you." He said as he jokingly elbowed Breanna in the side, earning him a protesting "Daddy...".

"Never. She's very well-behaved, just like her father." The warm smile never left her face.

Doug nodded, pleased. "Oh, and Caroline, would you mind asking Mr. Johnson if he-" Suddenly, the happiness drained from his pale face.

"Daddy?" Breanna rushed over and took his arm. "Daddy, what's wrong?"

Doug hushed her. "The music. Can't you hear it? Singing. Oh, it's beautiful!"

Breanna shook him as he continued to ramble about the music that didn't exist. "Daddy! Snap out of it!" Doug appeared startled, then sighed a "Thank you". Breanna's worry didn't disappear, however. "You didn't take your medication today, did you?" Doug hesitated, but then shook his head. "What would you do without me?" She smiled and went off with Caroline (She was required to be with an employee at all times) to bring back Doug's pills for his schizophrenia. Hiding the shame he felt over humiliating himself in front of his snickering cohort, he turned back to the testing chamber. When the women came back, Doug quickly swallowed the pills and thanked them for their efforts. The sound of gunshots erupted from the test chamber as turrets fired at the unsuspecting subject. Breanna shared her father's concern for the safety of the test subjects, so he shooed them out of the observation room. The subject had been shot in the arm and was catching his breath behind a glass structure.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Doug asked.

"He'll be fine. So, Doug, why don't you tell me about that music?" Henry laughed as Doug fought the urge to pour his cup of hot coffee on him.

A few hours later, the break room was empty except for Doug. He was busy drawing in his note pad when he felt a presence next to him. When he looked, it was Breanna. "I can't stay long, but I wanted to see you real quick." His daughter put her head on his shoulder. He caressed her, taking in the reality of her situation. When should I tell her? And how? How do you tell a child something like that? He didn't want to cry in front of her, but the pain in his heart was unbearable. When she felt his single tear fall into her hair, she looked up. "Daddy, what's wrong?" she asked, afraid that he was hallucinating again. He quickly made up an excuse, which actually wasn't completely false.

"I'm so ashamed of myself. For years I had my life together, but lately, I'm having trouble figuring out if something's really happening. Tell me, min kärlek, are you embarrassed by your old madman?"

Now it was Breanna's turn to shed a tear. "Daddy..." She said weakly as she shook her head. Then she embraced him. "You may be a madman, but you're my madman." Then, father and daughter shared a laugh, and they parted ways. Just after she left, he looked at his drawing. It was of Breanna and himself sitting in the grass, without a care in the world. How he wished that it could be reality.