Gymnast

Portal here. Portal there. And... Done. The cube launched through the air, landed on the Aerial Faith Plate, was launched in the air again, soared through a portal and landed with a perfect finish on a bright red button, triggering an open door. I smiled and waited for the usual insult from the Giant Lazy and Downright Obnoxious Science-Queen, otherwise known as GLaDOS. I got nothing. No words of wisdom or witty insults. Hmm... I glanced at the cameras; they weren't moving. Was she not watching? I waited a couple of seconds in eerie silence just to be sure... Nothing.

I grinned foolishly and examined the test; it seemed almost every test I did that she ignored had something fun to play with in it. I made a mental list; cube, toxic water, Aerial Faith Plate, button, and some portal walls. Wait... An Aerial Faith Plate? Yes! I aligned the portals correctly and... There it was. I hopped through and examined the trajectory closely. Perfect. I examined the cameras one last time, looking for a twitch or a light of some kind, but they didn't move.

I pulled off my portal gun and set it aside, popping my fingers a bit to try to release the strain of keeping them clenched for too long. My long fall boots didn't come off as easily though, they seemed to have forced a point to my toes and my feet had grown into them. Setting my testing equipment to the side, I walked up fully precautious to the giant bouncy human launcher.

I took a deep breath and a wave of calm washed over my mind. I rubbed my hands on my jumpsuit, wishing for some chalk of some kind, but that wasn't a likely find in a facility underground that was being run by a homicidal maniac. I closed my eyes and stretched my arms from side to side. It's been so long since I've done this, but everything gets better with practice, right?

Okay, I thought to myself, time to make history. I imagined myself surrounded by my friends and family, all cheering me on. I imagined that I was using professional equipment, not just junk. I imagined that the horrors and pain of Aperture were gone. My eyes popped open with a new confidence. A confidence of a raging fire that filled my veins burned inside of me. I jumped in place, trying to loosen the muscles in my feet. I took a deep breath, and jumped forward.

The plate launched me into the air, and I was home. My trainers were watching skeptically, the room was bright for confidence, and my heart was fluttering in my chest. I was a flying bird. Time seemed to slow as I flew.

I turned in midair, my body flipping over in a dramatic graceful way. I was turned to watch the acid below me, but the danger didn't scare me at all. My gaze turned toward the ceiling again. The wind rushed past me, and I held my knees to my chest. I flipped over again, my ponytail coming into view shortly before whipping back around. I straightened my legs and pulled them forward, over my head. Everything was in slow motion. I felt absolutely wonderful.

With a last flip in air, I held out my hands for the landing, my gaze looking up toward them. My eyes saw the gray panels and dirty floor, but my mind saw a bright red floor surrounded by my favorite people. My hands touched the linoleum floor, fingers first, palms last. They didn't stay there for long. I pushed up through my fingers and felt air around me again. I twisted around, my jumpsuit straining and I somersaulted through the air. I felt free. I bent my knees to absorb the impact and... My toes touched the ground.

I stood upright and tried my best to stop the momentum that would have usually sent me flying toward the wall. Perfect landing. I flounced my hands up in the air to show to the judges and I looked up.

My fantasy vanished.

I was back in Aperture. But for a moment there, I was home. I was surrounded by my family, my coaches, and my friends. For a moment there, I didn't hurt. I took a deep breath and looked longingly back at the Aerial Faith Plate. I had to take another one to retrieve the portal gun and long fall boots I left behind anyway, I might as well have a little more fun... Before I knew it I was back soaring through the air, twisting and turning and smiling and being, well, happy for the first time in a long while. So happy, that I didn't notice that the cameras had turned back on and were watching my every jump and flip in awe.

A/N

I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY! I haven't updated in forever and I would really like to blame it on being busy, but there are really only two truths; laziness and procrastination. I also apologize for the shortness of this chapter, I just wanted something to post... Anyway this chapter was inspired by the Olympics, I saw those gymnasts soaring through the air and I was like 'whoa, I wonder if you could do that on an Aerial Faith Plate...' so Chell was my little example. I still think the part where she was actually doing flips and stuff was kinda short, but that's probably because I can't even do a little front roll... I really stink at gymnastics... I guess I should stop rambling now...

The person of the day is... vifetoile89 and their story The Aperture Games! If you like both The Hunger Games and Portal, I really recommend it!

And now, I say with a final adieu,
Have a good day, and PLEASE REVIEW!
(I think I've been reading to much poetry...)