Chell jerked up sharply as a flash filled her room with bright, unforgiving light for less than a second. The room quickly returned to it's pitch black state and a distant roll of thunder soon followed. She sat up in bed for a few minutes while a cold sweat froze her body. As soon as she was sure she wasn't trapped in a nightmare anymore, she rubbed her eyes and leaned against the wall behind her. No matter how much her body longed to return to sleep, her mind was screeching 'bad idea', as visions of murderous AI and endless fields flashed within her brain like the raging thunderstorm outside. Chell shooed the visions away as she normally did. She wasn't so much afraid of them as she was annoyed. I just want a night of genuine sleep. she thought. Is that too much to ask? Apparently it was, because ever since her escape from Aperture a peaceful night of undisturbed sleep has been rare.
Pushing the thoughts of her past away, she slid off her rickety bed and onto the cold wooden floor, eager to just get the say over with. Her small house may have been old and lacking in a heating system, but it was quiet. The silence was one of many perks of living alone. Another one she enjoyed was getting to plan her own day. If she wanted, she could do everything and everything all at once, like tend to the garden she got her food from, or chop wood for a fire. She could also just sit around and do nothing, but then she wouldn't get anything done. Yes, there were some days when she would be snowed in and she couldn't go out because it was so cold. Those days were mostly spent sleeping to avoid eating any food reserves. She couldn't avoid those days if she tried. Rain was a different story though. Chell loved the rain. It provided her with more water than she new what to do with, helped her garden out, and provided a calming atmosphere. It was when rain came with thunder that she couldn't stand it. The sudden loud noises would shake the house and give Chell a headache. Like today.
It wasn't all bad. She could still go out and tend to her garden like she planned. There were weeds to be plucked and a few tomatoes that were ripe for harvesting. Chell grabbed a woven basket off a table in the corner of her small kitchen, threw on some rubber boots, and slipped out the front door. Most of her house was under the cover of trees, so she wouldn't get drenched by the rain. The garden however, was getting plenty of it. The soil was a dark brown from being soaked through and the tomatoes on her tomato plants were covered in fresh droplets. She set her basket down and began plucking ripe tomatoes from the plants, allowing her mind to wander. It had been what, maybe some seven years since she was let go by GLaDOS? In those seven years Chell had managed to make her way through the seemingly endless fields, find a forest, survive that, stumble across the house, recover, and make it feel more homely. She was relieved she found shelter away from other people. She didn't think she was ready to deal with social interaction of any kind just yet after what she'd been through. Originally she planned to stay until she fully recovered, then go and find civilization. Unfortunately she got attached to this grimy little house, and made a life for herself. It was rough, but infinitely better than that place. Whatever GLaDOS had planned after she kicked Chell out, she was just glad it wasn't her that was taking the brunt of it, like she always did.
Chell moved on to pulling invading weeds out of the garden as she wondered what GLaDOS could be up to right now. She normally didn't care what the AI was doing, so long as it didn't involve her, but she was curious every once in a while. For the longest time GLaDOS was the only voice that Chell knew. It just felt natural to wonder what she was up to after not hearing it for a while. And then there was him. Wheatley. He still haunted her dreams, more often than GLaDOS did. It broke her heart when he turned on her after spending all that time promising escape and a blue sky waiting for them on the surface. Seven years ago she would've cried. Today Chell doesn't bat an eye at the thought of him, unless it was to glare at the sky. He was up there somewhere. She knew he couldn't see her, but she wanted him to know just how much resentment she felt towards him after that backstabbing. Some nights when she couldn't go back to sleep, she would go outside and gaze at the stars, imagining what she would do if she ever saw him again. Luckily for Wheatley, he would be stuck up there for the rest of his artificial life, far away from Chell. As it should be. Otherwise she would punt him all the way back to the moon. Maybe even further.
The final weed was ripped from the earth and tossed into the bushes. Chell stood up with her basket and brushed the dirt off her hands. She headed inside and mentally equipped herself for the long, lonely day ahead.