The worst thing about my valve shelves is it doesn’t even showcase bathroom cave johnson or the matching aperture shower curtain I have.

Whatever the Fuck Benrey Is: Chapter Ten: I Hate That You're Right

Chapter One

Previous Chapter

~

‘We’re heading back now. See you in a few hours,’ Gordon’s text read when Benrey returned to his phone post indulging in a hot shower. It was dated twenty minutes ago so that ‘few hours’ still stood as a long time. But at least when he did finally get here, Benrey would have someone to play games with again.

‘k’ Benrey sent back. He’d behaved, despite largely being bored for this long, he could last a little longer. With nothing else to do for now though, he settled in for more solo gaming.

Over the next hour or so, he exchanged a couple more texts with Gordon, nothing substantial, just idle chit-chat. Not too long after that conversation petered out, Tommy texted him with, ‘Mr. Freeman fell asleep in backseat. I’m a bit worried after yesterday. This morning he said he slept the whole night through after falling asleep at the table so he shouldn’t be tired anymore, right? Dr. Coomer says its probably fine but IDK. Humans don’t normally sleep this much, do they?’

Gordon had lied; he’d been on the phone with Benrey most of last night again, claiming his nap had been enough sleep so he wanted Benrey to play the rest of Wind Waker ‘with’ him. The call had ended because he needed to head to breakfast before heading out. If he was lying about having slept to Tommy though then perhaps he’d been lying to Benrey too. Staying up all night wasn’t a non-issue. Maybe the napping made up for it but then why was he lying about it to Tommy? Benrey had no way of knowing so… ‘idk’

‘Yeah. I guess you wouldn’t know either. Maybe it’s the car making him sleepy because he fell asleep during our 1st ride too.’ After staying up most of the prior night too. Something was up for sure.

How important could sleep be even for fragile humans though? Gordon was an idiot sometimes, sure, but he wouldn’t willingly do something dangerous. The sleeping all night thing was probably just because humans liked the sun and didn’t want to fall asleep randomly in the middle of the day like Gordon kept doing. The sun was nice after all so Benrey understood. ‘prbly its fine’

From there their conversation drifted to other things before also petering out. Having a good conversation over text message was a bit hard and Benrey quickly grew too antsy to sit still for it. This was the longest he’d been away from Black Mesa ever and the call to wander the town more couldn’t be ignored now that it was really starting to sink in that this might be a permanent life change. Being in a similar boat, Bubby might want to go on a walk with him. They could bond over being lab experiments seeing the world for the first time. And so, leaving his phone on charge, he grabbed his camera and headed off to find Bubby.

***

The first thing Gordon did upon returning to the hotel was take a long shower. During which, he did his best not to worry about where Benrey had got off to. A text from Bubby had revealed that the two of them had gone off on a walk that had taken them further than they’d intended and were on their way back. Nothing to worry about, it made sense in fact, but… what were they doing on that walk?

Such thoughts were just Gordon being anxious though. Less than good sleep the past few nights made his anxiety spike. As far as he knew Benrey had behaved since it had been made clear to him what he had to gain for doing so, there was no reason for him to stop now.

Despite having mostly soothed his worries, he was hit with a rush of relief upon stepping out of the bathroom and finding Benrey sitting in one of the chairs, waiting for him. He’d shifted back to a less human look; his skin a light gray-purple, his hair dark purple, and his eyes an even more piercing yellow than last Gordon had seen them as such.

“Yo, play with me, you said you would.” He gestured with the Game Cube controller in his hand to the TV screen which already had the Melee character select menu open. His voice sounded odd in person after how long they’d talked on the phone for, almost as if it belonged to a different person. His phone friend that had kept him sane the past few nights couldn’t possibly be the same Benrey that had once tormented him.

Shaking off that odd feeling, Gordon walked over to sit in the chair next to him, picking up the other controller laid down on its armrest. “Good to see you again too.” That was entirely true because somehow his ‘phone friend’ and Benrey were indeed the same person. Probably for Benrey it had all been just more games and him being bored; he didn’t care about keeping Gordon sane, he just wanted something to do as well as the PS3 promised for good behavior. But that was fine, Gordon had never had much in the way of friends so he’d take whatever he could get because he’d really needed it the few few nights and still needed it now.

~

They played Melee and then Mario Kart for longer than was probably wise. In Gordon’s defense, Benrey insisted on playing just a little be longer each time he brought up that they should probably quit soon and Gordon hadn’t had the willpower to deny him when he wanted to keep playing too. Eventually though, partly due to his need to get something to eat, he did break away to go out for food.

By unspoken, unquestioned agreement that only hit Gordon as odd once in the car, Benrey went with him. Sitting down for a late lunch with him should’ve felt odd too but instead it felt completely normal even though he didn’t eat anything despite Gordon’s offer to get him something. Instead he sat across from Gordon, making idle conversation even as he played more on the Game Boy.

Afterwards came finding a storage facility with enough room for all the Black Mesa stuff they currently had packed into all the cars they’d brought over plus whatever else might be salvaged before they found a good temporary lab. Dr. Coomer and Tommy were still off with the rest of the scientists who’d returned to Tuefort. A quick text conversation with them ensured they’d continued to be kept busy for a while longer, allowing Gordon to not have to worry about dropping Benrey off back at the hotel before starting the search.

Tuefort being a small town made it easy to find a decent looking place that sold storage units. Because it wasn’t his money and in case the lab took a while to find and set up, Gordon went ahead and rented the biggest storage shed available. With Benrey’s help – who surprisingly didn’t complain too much upon being asked for assistance – he unloaded everything in the car he’d borrowed. It then took another trip to grab the rest of it from the other vehicles and store that too.

Once that was done, he was basically free for the rest of the day. Not that there was a whole lot of the day left. But it wasn’t so late that the library would be closed for another hour or two probably. So, still trying not to let his exhaustion show too much, he headed that way next. If he was lucky, he could do some good research today and then in the next couple days settle on a suitable place to live, allowing them to move out of the hotel rather quickly. Probably it wasn’t going to be that fast or easy but the sooner he started looking, presumably the sooner they’d be out too.

Speaking of moving into a more permanent place though, the assumption was that Benrey would be moving in with him. At the time of making that assumption it had felt like a somewhat unfortunate necessity, now it didn’t seem so bad. In fact, it would be rather enjoyable; constant company and someone to play games with. But well with his opinion of Benrey going up… “Do you want to live with me?” he asked as he pulled the car to a stop in the library’s mostly barren parking lot. It was rude not to ask him what he wanted, right? They were friends now and thus his thoughts on where he wanted to live mattered.

Benrey looked up from his game. “Uh… I don’t really got anywhere else to go.”

“Yeah but… well, I was talking about it with the others the morning Bubby left to head back here. I floated the idea that we find a place big enough for us all to live together, share the rent and all that. Tommy declined though ‘cause he prefers living alone with just Sunkist and Bubby said he wants to try living alone too. So we all kinda decided to just get our own places but uh… you weren’t there of course and it was already kinda assumed you’d stay roommates with me but… do you want that?”

“The other option is Coomer, right? Uh… nah, he’s not as much of a gamer as you.”

“The other, other option is you get your own place too.” Gordon still didn’t like the idea of Benrey going off into the world on his own without anyone nearby to even attempt to keep a leash on him but… it felt wrong to not bring it up as an option. He’d lived in the lab his whole life, not having his own space except for the gamer pad but presumably that was just a single room. He deserved a chance at more. “You can’t right now ‘cause you don’t have a job but you could start looking for one. And then once you find one and are able to, you could move out on your own.” That would hopefully delay it long enough for Benrey to be more set in being good and thus it would be less of an issue.

Benrey was silent for a few seconds as he stared out the front window. “So I could uh… have my own like, house? All mine, no one else’s?”

“Yes. Obviously getting you a job is easier said than done since you don’t have like a social security number or whatever. But we could figure something, I’m sure.” People forged those kinds of things all the time, didn’t they? “Just something to start thinking about and maybe working towards if you want it. For now though, you are stuck with me so c’mon, let’s go do some research and stuff.” He opened his door, allowing him to slide out.

After pocketing the Game Boy, Benrey followed suit, falling in step with him as they started for the library entrance. “How’s the library gonna help us find a place to live?”

“They got computers we can borrow to do research on.”

“We could’ve just used the hotel manager’s again. They leave pretty early, I think.”

“Nope. I can’t walk through walls so I’m not risking setting off an alarm by breaking in. But uh, you ever been in a library before?”

“In games, yeah. They seemed boring in real life.” Figures he’d both think that and that that would be the case.

“Nah, they’re cool. I’ll get you a library card while we’re here so you can use a computer and maybe check stuff out if you want to.”

“Hmm… okay.”

***

True to Gordon’s word, the library was cooler than it had seemed in theory. The books were indeed boring but there were so many of them, more than Benrey had ever seen in a single room before, they wrapped back around to be interesting to look at and run his fingers over as he walked along the aisles. In addition to them there were also movies and music CD’s available to check out. No video games but according to Gordon that might happen one day. The computers didn’t have any games installed on it but it was free to use with nothing but a library card which was pretty cool.

In all, it was enough to keep Benrey entertained while Gordon did his research. Occasionally he quietly called Benrey over or just texted him to get him to look at and give his thoughts on this or that apartment or house listing. Benrey didn’t have much of an opinion on most of it but Gordon considering his input to be important was novel enough he tried his best to provide some anyway.

Despite the newness of his environment and Gordon’s occasional desire for his opinion, his thoughts kept circling back around to having his own place. Never had he considered the idea before Gordon offered it. Not just a small room in an out of the way part of Black Mesa but a whole living set up, multiple rooms, possibly even a whole building, that was his and only his to do with as he pleased. He could set the temperature as high as he wanted, decorate in whatever way was fun, leave things as much a mess or as clean as he felt like at any given time. On the other hand though… living alone sounded like it might get lonely with the whole ‘alone’ part of that phrase. It was certainly an idea to chew on.

Eventually, around the time the novelty had mostly worn off, it was time to leave because the library was closing. “We can drive around and look at places tomorrow if you like,” Gordon said as they walked out back towards the car.

“Uh, sure.” And perhaps while doing so Benrey would pay attention and try to figure out what kinds of things one was supposed to watch for when looking to buy or rent their own place.

It was starting to get dark by the time they returned to the hotel. Despite that they hung out for a bit with the rest of the Science Team in the dining area for dinner and then a few hours more just to hang out. Upon returning to their room, Benrey had expected Gordon to go to sleep; he’d been yawning a lot, acting rather tired and he’d told the others he was off to bed. As soon as they were alone in their room though… “Wanna play some more Melee?”

Benrey didn’t bother with a verbal response. Instead he went over to pop the game into the console before turning it and the TV on while Gordon pulled the chairs back over. Why they’d even bothered to put the chairs back by the window was beyond Benrey. Who would want to sit idly by the window when there was a TV with a console connected to it?

As they played though, it became more and more obvious that perhaps Gordon should’ve gone to bed after all. Benrey was of course playing one handed, making it fair enough that he could rightfully tease Gordon for losing but also so he’d be challenged still. The latter wasn’t happening anymore. Gordon had been openly frustrated by the losses and the teasing which was fun but that emotional energy started petering out after a couple hours, leaving him boring to play with. Beating him was too easy and he didn’t seem to care, not even when Benrey called him a noob.

So as nice as it was to finally have someone willing to play games with him for a long stretch of time again… “Should probably give up and go to sleep now, huh?”

“Nah, nah, I’m… good for another round or two. Or maybe we could switch to Mario Kart or uh… Mario Party might be fun.”

Benrey, having nabbed Player 1 this time, backed out to the main menu. “You’re tired, it’s making you more stupid than normal.”

Proof of that was Gordon’s failure to look annoyed at being called stupid. “I’m fine. It’s only… uh…” he turned to check on the clock on the nightstand, “it’s not even midnight yet. I can stay up a bit longer.” … He was planning on staying up all night again? Really? Well, time to call him out on his lie then, huh?

Benrey stood and turned off the console and TV. He then walked over to stand in front of Gordon, letting him be the one looking down at him for once. He extended a hand for the controller still in Gordon’s hand. “You had a nightmare one night and then uh… the next night you asked me to help keep you up all night and then you did the same last night too, right?” Basically anyway, he’d called like halfway through it but had ended up staying awake for the rest of it.

Gordon looked at him in silence for a few second before sighing and handing over the controller. “Yeah, sounds about right.”

“Mm-hmm.” Benrey unplugged the controller from the console as he started loosely wrapping its cord around its middle. “And now you wanna stay up a third night in a row.”

“Uh… not the whole night maybe, just a few more hours.”

“But you said on the first night that missing one night wasn’t a problem but otherwise you need to sleep every night.” Benrey had paid attention because Gordon was his pet and he wanted to be a good pet owner.

“Yeah… I guess I did say that. But um… I’ve been napping and that makes up for it?” His voice rose a the end of it, making it a question, not a statement. Benrey wasn’t always good at picking up on those kinds of nuances but Gordon was often bad at not showing his emotions in some form on his face, in his words, or in his body language, making him easier to read than most people. It’s part of why Benrey liked him.

Benrey put the now neatly wrapped controller in its spot next to the Game Cube and unplugged the other one to start wrapping that one too. Wrapping the cord too tightly would be bad for it so he was careful to make it loose. “You lied to Tommy too. Said that uh… you slept all night last night when you didn’t. If napping made up for it, you wouldn’t’ve lied, right?” There wouldn’t have been a need to.

Gordon seemed to shrink under Benrey’s gaze. “Tommy told you I said that, huh?”

“Yep. Said he was worried ‘cause you fell asleep in the car after supposedly sleeping all afternoon and night.” Done wrapping the second controller now too. Which left him nothing to do with his hands as he turned back to Gordon so he just crossed them over his chest instead. “You’re a dirty lil’ liar, huh? Naughty boi.”

With a grimace, Gordon stood. “Look, I know I should sleep. It’s bad not to, I know that.But… well… I know I’m less likely to have a nightmare now that I’m finally out of that hellhole again. But I can almost guarantee I don’t have one, or at least don’t have a particularly vivid one,if I just stay up until I’m so exhausted I pass out. I promise that’s it’s… well, actually that is really fucking bad now that I’ve said it out loud but I just…” He trialed off with a groan as he rubbed his hand over his face. “I hate that you’re right.”

“Ha ha. I’m always right.”

“No, no you’re not. But you are right about this. So I guess I gotta go to bed. Do you think that we could…” He stopped as he looked away. Benrey waited for him to continue but after more than a minute of him just staring off into space, it became clear he wasn’t going to.

“We could what?”

Gordon flinched before he finally looked back up at Benrey. “Sorry I’m… real fucking tired. I’ll get ready for bed now. Thanks for… thanks.” He shambled over to the closet to pull out his pajamas before heading into the bathroom.

Benrey stared after him for a couple seconds before pulling out his phone. His first instinct was to text Tommy because Tommy knew lots of things about all sorts of stuff. But Tommy wasn’t human and didn’t need to sleep – though he did so every night anyway because he liked to, he was weird like that. Bubby also wouldn’t be a good person to ask when it came to matters related to humans sleeping because even though he was human, he was genetically engineered and thus likely his needs in that area probably weren’t the same as the average human’s. Leaving Coomer as the best person to ask. Presumably he’d once been a normal human before all the cybernetic upgrades, cloning, and whatever else they’d done to him had made him whatever he is now.

‘can humans die if they dont sleep enuf?’ Surely not, that was ridiculous, but Gordon had just implied that it was bad for him to skip sleep and ‘really fucking bad’ if he did so long enough to pass out. The question was how bad? He’d already proven himself not to be trusted when asked about such things though so Benrey had to go elsewhere.

Before Benrey could even finish lowering his phone, it pinged; Coomer’s reply. ‘Yes. Prolonged periods of sleep deprivation can lead to death in most animals, including humans.’

‘really?????’ Coomer had to be messing him, right? How could humans possibly be that weak?

‘Yes, really. Getting a proper night’s rest is essential for one’s health and well being. Most commonly sleep deprivation related deaths are the cause of impaired brain function leading to an accident. Such as a car, or other motorized vehicle, crash. In extreme cases, lack of sleep can lead to organ damage that eventually results in death.’

How was Benrey supposed to keep Gordon alive when something as dumb as not sleeping could kill him? Especially when his dumbass was over here trying to not sleep for multiple nights in a row. What the fuck was wrong with him? … His nightmares must be real bad, huh? Could the nightmares kill him too?

Before he could finish typing out that question to Coomer, Gordon returned. “Do you think you could uh… If you’re planning on hanging out here, if I start acting like I’m having a nightmare, could you wake me up? If you wanna go off and… I don’t know, play on the hotel manager’s computer some more instead, that’s fine too and stuff just…” He trailed off again.

Benrey put his phone away. He’d ask Coomer for more info later. “I’ll wake you.” Even though apparently if he did so too often Gordon could die. Hopefully he wouldn’t have to.

“Thanks. Good night.”

“’Night.”

Gordon shambled over and flopped onto the bed. This time he did remember to take his glasses off beforehand. He forgot to turn off the light though so Benrey did it for him, casting the room into darkness.

With a sigh he turned one of the chairs to face the bed before gathering up the Game Boy bag and sitting down in it. With a little bit of fucking around with the way his eyes worked he should be able to make himself see well enough in the dark to make the Game Boy’s lack of a properly lit screen a non-issue. So between that and texting Coomer for more information about humans’ required sleeping habits, he should have plenty to do to keep himself occupied while he watched over Gordon as he slept.

~

Next Chapter

Random Colette headcanons because I am insane about her:

Her hair only looks flat because she hasn't showered in a bit, when it's clean it is very fluffy.

She is 4 feet 10 inches and is VERY upset about this.

She never wears sunscreen and freckles and tans super easy.

SHE HAS SMILE LINES. Her face is NOT smooth.

She also picks at her face a lot, she can't stand having pimples or seeing pimples on other people.

You'll very often see her running around the hallways if she has nothing to do, she is just has a lot of energy.

She is usually really loud, not yelling but more projecting. It gets worse when she is really excited about stuff.

She gets full body shakes sometimes, mostly when she is uncomfortable in a situation her body just shakes.

You have to trust me on this. She has ADHD.

She's always been interested in robots! She has fantasies about piloting mech suits like that would be her dream job. Hence the HEV suits.

She is an intrusive thoughts haver. Mostly incredibly violent ones.

She can and will pick you up, even if it is just for a little while. She likes showing off how strong she is.

Horribly competitive. Never play games with her she will get very aggressive.

She's a cat person! She wishes she could have a cat at Black Mesa.

had a shower idea last night what if half-life, but alyx? hear me out hear me out what if alyx worked at black mesa and gordon was eli's son? ngl i think it would make for a really cool hl2 mod

freeman's mind notes pt8, e36-40 (plus secret e0)

e36

delighted to put his hands on a gun again even if there's blood on it

he wants more things to shoot

doesn't think he's fired a gun before (second assertion of this fact) but it does feel familiar

has had a reoccurring dream of being Snoop Dogg

thinks the barnacles were made by the biology department

someone in Biology named Heather than Gordon tries to hit on sometimes. She is supposedly stone cold

calls himself The Freeman again

everyone was proud of the pollen that killed people

"goat cheese massacre"

return of the Fall Damage. Bemoans the lack of shock absorbers and drugs

confused at why he's wearing the HEV suit

vaguely remembers the ResCas proper

would not drink neon hi c ecto cooler

he doesn't like liars

black mesa is NOT a tourist trap

he is right tbh. Trespassers literally do have rights. You're supposed to make any unreasonable dangers clear and obvious. Warn with signage or some shit

aims to think like a squirrel that has anger problems

the nation of Freeman

yeah this sequence of events is normal and leads to promotions

e37

had some job interviews in grad school. Never knew how to answer their questions

thinks of the building as alive AGAIN

oh hey we're in the part of the facility that Physics of the Crowbar did astoundingly well

gotta avoid the blood shower :(

this gunk BETTER not get in his hair

he doesn't want to smell like mcdonalds

GROWLS

meat chunks in his hairrrrrrr

he no longer likes orange

he's 80% sure cheetos aren't made like this

undertow fuckin with him

his values have sunk since he woke up

prepared for when he gets Alzheimer's. He'll escape room his way out of the retirement home easy

wants a sword cane when he's old

you just shot a SNOT MONSTER, sir.

he remembers everything? (he does not) (he thinks the string theory crowd got into AnMat)

plans to sell the satchel charges to Eddie

yes the magnum does grant godlike ego

he isn't an optimist

this is NOT a democracy he has a GUN

"BLAH!!!"

freeman have you butchered animals before or

would love to land in a ballpit

naptime :>

bat JUMPSCARE he CANCELLED THE CREDITS. SHOCK. AWE.

e0

new intro. Tram ride to some vending machines.

attempts to flirt with the hazard course hologram

doesn't comment on the HEV suit's voice this time!

he's not coming back to the hazard course

only getting HEV suit training because he's capable of physical activity

derides the game-based language of the tutorial

"hup! hoo! hah!"

i WISH there was rubber padding around the knees of the suit

fatphobia,,

he always wanted to be a hamster man

finds the long jump module cool

"nreeeeeeoooow"

could press buttons all day!

Slur count: five.

e38

back to cafeteria intro

he can't sleep :(

HATES the room's vibes

self hypnotizes again. Lmao

TANK OF ACID! SUPERB!

he is a CAT

his faux-southern accent sucks so bad. hillbilly but worse

no come on you can dodge an incinerator

liked the Addams Family. Identified with the Thing, he says.

concrete corridor agnostic

double dead end!

he feels like strangling something.

feels like he wouldn't mind the nickname Dr. Stranglelove

growls again

backup backup gun dependency does rely on state yeah

he wanted a banana milkshake

he's talkin specbio,,,

he remembers lasers are BAD

limbos on by that awful tripmine

"BLLLAAAAAAHHHHHHH"

e39

[incoherent raging] followed by "wait! I have satchel charges!"

deeply comforted by having this amount of explosives. Wants to draw a smiley face on one

welllll the radiation sign is a bit off the requirement but that's a half life note not a freeman's mind note. He should know though

claims his geiger counter is trendy and fashionable

we have reached the non OSHA compliant location

he is clearly being sarcastic here but he does talk about seeing what was probably a mall santa

jello knees..... He's in painnnnn

this isn't even a SPA

he feels like he's in a sub in the cramped metal halls

back to the classroom analogy

it IS the amps that kill you yessirre

part of the opposable thumbs club!

takes the time to study the trapped alien grunt. Says it could get a management job

he hates biolabs :(

goes through the Atom Experience

incoherent babbling

he Remembers that everyone wants him dead. Shoots a probably innocent guard

now plans to kill the whole world

he's a gun farmer :>

usually when stuff goes long he concludes that everyone wants him dead

he's honestly a little relieved that he doesn't have to guess if people want him dead or not

doesn't recognize the vox

GRAPPLING HOOK MENTION

e40

new intro, shotgun-elevator shaft

the eternal issue of understaffing: doing weird bullshit always

"superbus" w/e well superbia is pride so I'd imagine this is "greatness" followed by whatever words he isn't reading

he isn't reading them because he doesn't know latin

human body staircase,,

door conspiracy!

actually thinks before he pushes a button

"woah-hoho-oh..."

hiccups :(

he gets really nervous after killing people

oh the subtitles have suddenly cut out

his normal work was in quantum mechanics and general relativity

stumbles over his saying "I don't know"

"there's no actual right to privacy but it's implied by the rest of the constitution. And this gun,"

prototype cheese slicer or pita cutter- you decide

HE CAN'T HELP ANYONE IF THEY'RE NOT CALM

RELAX AND FOLLOW THE SOUND OF HIS VOICE

back to hitting any button he sees

he is never going to ask for yellow space maggots jumping at his face

a list of things that makes freeman happy: lasers, food, painkillers, bed rest, not being persecuted, getting his life back on track. Lasers may be listed first here but it is below the rest of these

avoids the gauss gun

seeing body parts lying around used to bother him

wants to sprinkle cloned body parts lying places and tape people finding em

big laser? Badass.

gonna shoot down a satellite with that baby

Correct me if I’m wrong because I’ve never played half life but I think it’s hysterical that black mesa was far more competent and actually did meaningful science compared to aperture which accidentally created portals in an attempt to make shower curtains and tried to make pudding with fiberglass and yet black mesa was the company that ended the world. I just know glados was smug as hell about that.

the Valve Sibling post

Disclaimer: This is my own funny lore on my funny Tumblr blog, and will not at all be accurate to Valves lore. Everyone's ethnicity is kept the same as in canon. How are they related then? Your guess is as good as mine, but they are. 

I've always felt like Gordon and Chell have a bit too many parallels to have never been tied to the others story. Not only with the rivalry between Mesa and Aperture, but you're telling me that the guy who relies on his wit, is in the shooter and the canonically pissed girl is in the puzzle game? I've connected the dots, and now they're siblings.

Gordon was always ambitious when it came to his education, having a specific adoration for science. He loved the idea of discovery and creation, of changing humanity with scientific advances. Being awkward around his classmates meant he wasn't invited to a lot of hangouts, so Gordon threw all his time into classwork. Graduating highschool early and moving right on to college, the only real socialization was with his roommate, Barney, who never really stuck to a single major. The two ended up hitting it off as friends, and while Gordon was looking for work; within the following years, both had decided to enroll into the Black Mesa training program.

Barney, having no knowledge in science or math, was put on duty as a low level security officer. The guy was always a bit of a conspiracy theorist, and from all the shady stories circling around Black Mesa, he was excited to be front and center to where they were hiding the aliens. And hey, cool gun permit. Of course, Gordon thought he was a small town nut for it, but was happy that he wouldn't be transferring completely alone. 

Gordon himself was too inexperienced to qualify as a full scientist, not with how high maintenance the facility was. He was too shaky to wield a gun, too jumpy not to shoot himself in the damn foot. Though, instead of turning Gordon away, Breen made a deal of employment, hating to shoot down such a young mind. If Gordon kept up with his studies, he could be paid as a trainee for dealing with radioactive materials. It was a dangerous job, few trusted a suit that was fresh out of beta, but with the promise of one day studying alongside these great minds, he took the offer. 

(which is also why I think Gordon has some more complicated feelings about Breen in HL2 than just pure rebellion hatred, but that's for another post.)

For a few years, Gordon walked the thin line of employee and student. His coworkers didn't take his research too seriously, having such limited knowledge of the tests in the first place. He’d often arrive late to work, trying to juggle lectures on top of the physical training to get his body used to the suit. The metal was heavy, awkward in mobility, not to mention Gordons sweating. A lot of jumping and crawling, even more climbing and running. He was almost jealous of Barney, having the luxury of icing his muscles on their days off. Instead, Gordon took a few painkillers and pushed onto his lectures. Just pull through, and one day, all of this hard work would pay off. 

Then the Half Life franchise happens. canon follows.

Chell was more grounded compared to her older brother.

She wasn't a well known name in school, with passing grades and a low social battery. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do in life and was indifferent towards college. 

The only reason why she sought out Aperture Labs was to bug Gordon. 

During the holiday season whenever he visited home, Gordon would fill everyone in on his special little job. Push this cart, Gordon! Move this canister, Gordon! She had always thought the man lived life with his head in the clouds, but Christ, it sounded like he was kissing Breens shoes before clocking in. 

With the talk of Black Mesa, Aperture was mentioned somewhere along the lines. How stupid it was for Jhonson, the man who sold shower curtains, to start a research facility. He had no knowledge of business- of science, the place was built inside salt mines! With the lawsuits raking up, they would be closed down soon enough. Either that or go bankrupt from blowing all of this money. Aperture labs may have the glory now, but Mesa was in it for the long run. 

But hey, 60 bucks is 60 bucks. 

Chell thought it would be funny to volunteer for a minor experiment. Instead of having her organs rearranged or having her DNA mixed with a praying mantis, she chose a safer option. A sleeping capsule, they’d wake her up within a month and see if the hibernation had any effects on her body. The capsules tracked her heartbeat and fed her meals through an IV, it seemed safe enough. She could already see it, Gordons red face, bitching about causing more drama for Thanksgiving. Getting paid to do it, nonetheless! ‘It was dangerous, stupid, everyone knows Jhonson is a pathological liar who cuts corners for the health inspector, what the hell is wrong with you Chell?!’

Chell wakes up in an unfamiliar glass chamber, in an unknown amount of time in the future. Canon events follow. 

I do think that Wheatly holds some sort of truth in Portal 2 when he talks about Chell having brain damage. The human body isn't meant to last, we don't even know HOW many years into the future. It's clear that she hasn't aged, and her physical body is fine, but no precautions were taken for her mental well-being. Not only do I believe Chell forces insomnia onto herself, terrified of not waking up for another thousand years, but as cliche as the trope is, her memories are probably scrambled. With how many dreams shes had in her comas, with how long its been since she's seen any other life form, Chell has little to no memory of Gordon. not to say they’re complete strangers, her unexplained emotional connection still holds, but if they ever meet in stasis (the cut ending of Portal 2), I doubt either will remember the others name.

HLVRFF: Chapter 7

It’s been a few days since the switch first happened.

And thankfully, said days have been considerably calmer than that initial night and following day. No more accidental shape-shifting or skeleton summoning for Gordon, and Benry has been doing pretty well about being careful with Gordon’s body.

Benry also apparently made a blog. Seems he thought that telling strangers on the internet about his non-human status and current situation was a fantastic idea. Gordon was of course upset… but eventually joined in on the blog anyway. Like, fuck it, why not? And it turned out to not be that bad- answering questions from curious ‘anons’ gave Gordon something to do, filling in the time he’d usually be using for his Twitch streams (Gordon really doesn’t want to explain this shit to his viewers).

At least, the blog thing was nice while it lasted, anyway. Soon as the asks slowed down, Benry quickly lost interest in it, and Gordon wasn’t really sure what to do with the blog himself. So there goes that distraction. Guess people claiming to be cosmic beings from beyond the veil just isn’t that interesting to the internet.

God, he’s bored. That’s another thing that Gordon’s discovered he hates about this.

He can’t do his streams while looking and sounding like Benry, and he’s also afraid to go kill time away from the house, the risk of a body horror-inducing anxiety attack happening in public being one he doesn’t want to take. He could go visit Tommy or Coomer and Bubby, he supposes, but he doesn’t wanna bug them too much. That, and he still doesn’t want to leave Benry alone in his body.

With nothing much to do to keep him occupied, Gordon has been finding his thoughts wandering. Thinking about his youth again, but also wondering about Benry’s. He recently learned that the entity is not in fact ancient like Gordon always assumed, but a year younger than Gordon himself. What kind of childhood did he have? Benry pretty much never talks about his past- his explanation of his skeletons the other night being the first time Gordon’s ever heard anything about Benry’s life before he worked as a guard at Black Mesa.

Well. There was also the time Benry insisted that he and Gordon knew each other as children, but Gordon’s fairly certain he'd remember playing with a kid that looked as distinct as Benry. He may have taken a few knocks on the head as a child and can’t remember a lot from back then, but his memory isn’t THAT bad!

.....

Maybe he should shoot his mom an email sometime. See if she remembers what all friends and playmates he had as a kid.

In fact, he may as well do that right now. Not like he’s got much else to do. Gordon grabs his phone and opens up the email app.

~~~

From: Gordon Freeman To: Beverley Freeman (mom) Subject: childhood question

Hey, Ma.

Random question, but do you remember any of the kids I played with when I was little? Like, from six years and earlier. I got to thinking about it recently and it’s bugging me that I can’t remember.

Oh, and sorry I haven’t called much lately! Been busy between my streaming schedule and getting dragged into impromptu hang-outs with my friends.

~~~

Gordon hits send, and now plays the waiting game.

Not just for his mom’s reply, but also for Benry to get done washing Gordon’s hair, so he can then get started on lunch for the two of them. Benry had missed getting a shower last night, and like hell Gordon’s gonna let Benry ruin his hair care routine. Gordon works hard to keep his hair so nice, damn it.

While Benry’s taking this lunch time shower, Gordon is sprawled on the couch, browsing the ‘net on his phone for lack of anything better to do. His attention is drawn from the phone, however, when there’s a knock at the door. Did Benry order a package or something? Gordon ponders as he makes his way over to answer the knock. He opens the door and-

“Benny!”

“Oh, hey Benry. Is Gordon in?”

-Gordon immediately slams the door closed.

Which he instantly regrets, because that’s his ex-wife and son out there that he just closed the door on. Fuck.

What does he do? What CAN he do? Anna still doesn’t know that Gordon’s roommate for the past four months isn’t at all human, and he’s not sure if dropping that bombshell on her like this would be a good idea. He could try to pretend to be Benry… but he’s a bit shit at it, he’ll be honest. And Benry would probably be even worse at pretending to be him, too. Anna may not know Benry very well, but she knows Gordon too well to not notice something’s up. It’s not at all hard to imagine just how horribly that plan could backfire and bite them both in the ass.

God damn it. Bombshell it is, then.

Gordon slowly opens the door back up, and is greeted by the sight of a confused Joshua and annoyed Anna. He can’t help but wince at her judgmental stare.

“Uh… hi,” Gordon says awkwardly.

“Yeah. Hi. You wanna tell me what that was about, pal?” Anna says, irritation clear in her voice.

Gordon takes a deep breath. Hoo boy. “Yeah, I uh, have a lot to explain, actually. Come on in,” he says, stepping aside to allow the two entry. Once they’re all fully inside, Gordon kneels down to meet his son’s face. “Hey bud, could you go play in your room for a bit? Your mom and I have some grown-up stuff to talk about,” he says to the six-year-old boy. Joshua gives him a strange look, but nods his head, uttering a little ‘kay' before running off to the back of the house. Gordon then motions for Anna to follow him into the kitchen, and they both take a seat at the table.

“Okay. So, explain,” Anna prompts.

Gordon sighs as he runs a hand through his hair. “God. Okay, uh. Two things, one of which I probably should’ve told you about way sooner. It’s kind of connected to all the Black Mesa bullshit, so it’s gonna sound… a little crazy,” he says. Anna quirks a brow at him at the mention of Black Mesa, but says nothing, waiting for him to continue. He taps his borrowed claws on the table as he tries to figure out how to explain… all of this. Another deep breath, and he looks Anna in the eyes as he says, “I'm not Benry. It’s me, Gordon. I’m in Benry’s body, and he’s in mine.”

Anna blinks at him, and gives him a look. “Wow. That is… probably the weirdest and also shittiest excuse for slamming the door in my face you could’ve possibly made,” she says, wholly unimpressed.

Another sigh from Gordon. “Look, I know how it sounds,” he then says, “I wouldn’t believe me either, if I had never been through the- uh. The accident at Black Mesa, but you’ve gotta believe me.”

Anna crosses her arms as she leans back in her chair, still very much not believing what ‘Gordon’ is saying, but admittedly curious to see where he’s going with this.

Gordon drums his fingers on the table again as he considers how to convince Anna. “Okay, look. The other thing I was gonna tell you, that I probably should’ve told you about sooner? Is that Benry isn’t human. He’s the reason we’re stuck like this,” Gordon explains.

“Riiiiight,” Anna says, “'Benry' isn’t human. Y’know, all you had to really do is just apologize, instead of making up this wildass excuse that Gordon’s no doubt going to debunk, so you can stop with… the… uh…” she trails off when Gordon begins to sing out a sustained high note.

As well as several orbs of blue light.

The lights linger in the air after he stops singing. Anna reaches out to touch one, transfixed, and it bursts like a bubble upon contact, followed by strange sense of calm briefly washing over her.

She looks back to Benry… Gordon? And says, “What the actual hell?”

“Benry calls it his ‘Sweet Voice',” Gordon explains. “I have absolutely zero idea what it is exactly or how it works, or why it tastes like Jolly Ranchers of all things, but, yeah. Do you believe me now?”

Anna looks away, thinking. Does she believe him? That ‘Sweet Voice’ stuff seemed pretty solid evidence for the whole not human thing… But is he really Gordon?

…She has an idea for how to find out.

“I’ll believe you if you can answer this question right,” Anna starts. “How did you- assuming you are Gordon- and me first meet? What exactly happened?”

Oh, god. Gordon kinda wishes he couldn’t answer this question. It’s a mortifying memory he'd rather forget the exact details of… which Anna knows, and thus also knows Gordon would never tell anybody else about it. Perfect question for this, really.

Gordon buries his borrowed face in his hand and groans to himself for a moment, and then he begins. “It was a party at some guy named Mark's place. After meeting and chatting with each other for a bit, me and you somehow got roped into that ‘seven minutes in heaven’ thing and locked in the hall closet.” A pause. Here’s the fun part. “…We were in the middle of kissing when the beer I had there started mixing badly with those fucking gas station hotdogs I'd eaten just before the party- honestly I don’t know what I was thinking eating that shit. But, uh. Yeah. I very nearly threw up in your mouth. And then did throw up all over Mark’s clean linens,” Gordon says, grimacing at the memory.

“Unsurprisingly, I never got invited to any more parties at that guy’s place. But what did surprise me, was that you still wanted to see me again. You said you wanted to give me a second chance at a good first impression,” Gordon says with a fond smile. Anna returns the smile, but it quickly falls from her face as a sudden realization hits her.

“…Holy shit. It really is you,” Anna says, eyes wide. “How the hell did this happen? I mean, you said Benry did it, but, how? What IS Benry? I always thought his weird paleness was ‘cause he was anemic or something, not a- an alien or a monster- Oh god, is it safe for Joshua to be around him? Hell, is it safe for YOU to be around him!?”

Gordon raises his hands up in a gesture for Anna to slow it with so many questions. “Whoa, hey, gimme a chance to answer!” Anna settles down and utters a small ‘sorry' which Gordon handwaves away. “This happened because Benry was poking around in my dreams- ‘cause that’s just one of the many impossible things he can somehow do- but I was having a bad nightmare at the time. When it got abruptly ended, I got shoved out of my head and into his, while he was left in mine. Neither of us knows how to switch us back, but a friend of ours knows someone who does, so we’re just waiting on them.

“As for what Benry is… I’m not entirely sure? Some kind of... eldritch space god cosmic horror… But uh, despite that fact, he’s not dangerous,” Gordon says at first, before quickly correcting himself. “Well, okay, he can actually be extremely dangerous if he wants to be, but thankfully he cares more about video games than pulling any weird madness-inducing cthuloid shit… Plus, I’m pretty sure he'd take an entire firing squad for Joshie.”

“Joshua does like to go on about how cool and nice he thinks your roommate is,” Anna says with a small smile. “But, how did you end up rooming with this… guy, anyway? I’m guessing the thing about him being another former co-worker from Black Mesa was just a cover story?”

“It wasn’t, actually,” corrects Gordon. “He really did work as a security guard there. I have no idea how or why he ended up in that job, though.”

“You don’t?” Anna asks.

Gordon shrugs. “He doesn’t talk about himself much, and I don’t ask.”

Anna gives him the ‘I love you but are you fucking serious’ look. “I, ah, think that maybe you SHOULD ask, especially if you’re gonna be living with him indefinitely.”

Gordon rubs at the back of his neck sheepishly. “Well, you see, when he first moved in here, I set up a bunch of ground rules for him to follow. He agreed, but only if I let him set some rules, too. One of his rules was to not ask him invasive questions,” Gordon explains.

“Asking your co-worker why he picked his job counts as ‘invasive'?” Anna asks, raising a brow.

“I mean, maybe? I don’t know!” says Gordon. “He’s a weird alien-thing, I never know how he’s gonna react to stuff.”

“Okay, okay… But still, why he’s living here with you? You’d said it was because he had no other place to stay after losing his old job. That still true, too?”

Gordon nods. “Apparently he just lived in the facility dorms before. And he’s here specifically with me because he had to live with a member of the Science Team, and I’m the only one on the team who had the space for him.”

“Why does he have to stay with one of you guys?”

“…For reasons I legally can’t talk about,” Gordon says simply.

Ah, he did say this Benry stuff was kind of Black Mesa related, didn’t he, Anna thinks… Wait.

“…He didn’t cause the accident at your old workplace, did he?”

Gordon shakes his head. “No, he… well, he was there when it happened, and him being there may've factored in… But he didn’t directly cause it,” he explains. He purposefully neglects to tell Anna that he’s the one who caused the accident. He’s not quite ready for that conversation yet.

He’s also not ready to tell her Benry’s one of the major causes of a lot of his PTSD, either. Or about all the people he killed for seemingly no reason. OR about how he turned into a giant fucked up monster and tried to kill Gordon and his friends… She, uh, would probably start to worry herself to death over Gordon and not let Joshie come over anymore if she knew about all that…

Speaking of Joshua, the six-year-old is all of a sudden dashing into the kitchen, b-lining for Gordon.

“Daddy! You can’t let Benny grow a beard when he’s him and you’re you again!”

-----------------------------

If Benry had ever thought about maybe growing his hair out like Gordon’s before, those thoughts have all been completely discarded now.

Turns out that taking care of this much hair is a major pain in the ass. It is taking him so. Dang. LONG to wash all this shit. He can’t understand how Gordon puts up with this bs. The price humans must pay for beauty, he guesses.

When Benry’s finally done with washing Gordon’s mane of hair, he slips out of the shower and begins the next arduous step: drying it all. He tries seeing if he can get away with just towel drying it… but, nah, too much hair here for that. Time to break out the hair dryer.

…Benry has no idea where Gordon keeps his hair dryer.

Pulling on some sweatpants and draping a towel around his borrowed shoulders, Benry heads out of Gordon’s master bath and bedroom, with the intent of finding and asking him where he keeps the dryer. However, soon as he steps out into the hall, he’s greeted by someone else entirely.

“Daddy!” Joshua chimes.

oh shit, Benry thinks, before responding to the boy. “uh- heyyy there, joshie bro.”

The smile that was on Joshua's face falls, and his expression is replaced by a confused one. “Heeeey, YOU don’t call me bro, just Benny calls me that,” he says. “And Benny was talkin' like you at me, too. Why you guys doin’ that?”

aw damn, sussed out by a six-year-old. After a quick glance down the hall, Benry kneels down to get more face level with Joshua, and speaks in a hushed tone, “it’s because i'm not your dad and he’s not benry. i'm benry, and he’s your dad. we got body swapped, yo.”

The boy’s eyes go wide at that, and after doing an exaggerated gasp, he whispers back, “Did a mad scientist get ya?”

“nah, it was kinda my fault. but it’s all good, man. tommy's pops is gonna fix us up when he gets back from some trip he’s on,” Benry assures.

“Oh that’s good,” Joshua says. “I like you guys better when you’re you and dad’s dad. You’re not s'posed to have a beard.”

Benry snorts. “oh yeah? what if i decide i like having a beard, huh? maybe when i'm back in my body i'll grow me one.”

"No!"

“you could call me beardry.”

“Noooo!”

“oh i'm thinkin' yes. grow me uh, an epic wizard beard.”

“Nooooooo!” Joshua continues to protest, but with a smile plastered on his little face. Benry laughs at him, but then Joshua suddenly takes off down the hall, heading towards the kitchen.

“yo, hold up!” Benry calls after the boy as he gives chase. When he reaches the kitchen himself, he’s greeted by the sight of Joshua clinging to his father’s borrowed leg.

“Daddy! You can’t let Benny grow a beard when he’s him and you’re you again!” Joshua cries.

Gordon looks at his son, but then up to Benry when he notices the other in the entryway. Gordon’s ex is also sitting at the table, and she follows Gordon’s gaze to look at Benry, too.

“uhhhhh…” Benry mumbles, lightly chewing on his borrowed lip.

“Hey, relax,” says Anna. “Gordon already explained all this weirdness.”

“oh. ‘kay, cool,” Benry says, and does visibly relax.

“What’s this about you growing a beard?” Gordon speaks up.

“lil' mans said ‘m not allowed to have one ‘cause i'd look weird,” Benry explains.

“You would!” Joshua says. “Super weird! Like that time daddy didn’t have one!”

“Hey!” Gordon says with mock offense. “I didn’t look that weird!”

“Yeah, you just looked like a sixteen-year-old high schooler,” says Anna, which gets her a frown from Gordon.

Oh no, Benry’s picturing that now. It’s a little too easy to, honestly. “yooo, gordon got a case of baby face? ha ha, nice,” he says, laughing.

Gordon continues to get ribbed by his family and roommate about his ‘baby face’ for a good bit, before Anna checks the time and announces she and Joshua have to get going. Apparently, they just stopped by real quick to say hello while they happened to be on this side of town. As usual, Anna (and Joshie) both swear to secrecy in regards to the new info they just learned before they leave. As they head back to the car, Gordon steps out with them to see them off and give his son a hug. Benry watches from the living room window, and can’t help but feel a little… something. He’s not entirely sure what. But he always gets the feeling whenever he sees Gordon interacting with his family like this.

He’s never mentioned it to Gordon. Or anybody else.

It’s fine. It’s not important.

Gordon comes back in, and Benry finally asks him where the hair dryer is (turns out it was in the top left drawer under the sink. Why didn’t he think to look there???). After hair is dried and a shirt is put on, the rest of the day is significantly less eventful. Lunch is had, video games are played, YouTube is watched, Gordon keeps giving him weird looks when he notices Benry being way quieter than normal- oh. He should probably say something, huh.

“admiring yourself, freeman?” Benry says to the man at the other end of the couch. As predicted, Gordon’s expression scrunches up into an annoyed scowl. All according to plan.

The annoyed look leaves Gordon’s face pretty quickly, though, and he replies, “No, you’ve just been weirdly quiet ever since Joshie and Anna left. Is something up?”

aw fuck he was supposed to get distracted. “nah, just don’t feel like talking. your dumb human vocal chords feel weird.” nice save.

Or, well, it would be a nice save if Gordon wasn’t very clearly mentally pressing X to doubt right now.

…Theeeeen again, maybe it really WAS a nice save, as Gordon doesn’t press any further, instead changing the subject. “…Y’know, I’ve been wondering. How did you end up working at Black Mesa anyway?”

“'cause they gave me the job,” Benry answers simply.

“Okay, but WHY did they give you the job?”

“’cause i was good at it.”

Apparently, that wasn’t the answer Gordon was looking for, as he gives an exasperated sigh and turns his attention back to the T.V. screen.

Benry kind of has an idea about what kind of answer Gordon probably was looking for, but he doesn’t really… feel like telling him. Talking about the Not Good parts of his past would just bring up unnecessary drama and shit, and nobody wants that. Besides, it’s the past. Can’t change it. No use worrying about it.

It's not important.

--------------------

Welp, Gordon can now tell Anna that he knows so little about Benry’s history not for lack of trying. He didn’t bother trying to get any better answers out of the entity, as he’d probably have better luck getting blood from a stone. Same reason he didn’t try asking again why the guy was being extra quiet.

Whatever. If Benry doesn’t want to talk about his feelings, that’s none of Gordon’s business.

It’s late at night now. Benry has since gone to bed, while Gordon’s still wide awake. And bored. God he is so fucking bored. Benry’s own usual go-to for keeping himself occupied at night is just more video games, but Gordon’s not really in the mood. He decides instead to open up the Tumblr app on his phone and see if there’s any new asks for the blog.

And of course, there aren’t.

Something does catch his eye, though. A conversation he had with one anonymous asker, about trying to get over his issue with Benry’s shape-shifting by voluntarily practicing it. Admittedly… it’s not exactly Gordon’s ideal way to pass the time, but he knows he really should get on it. Help ease his anxiety, and thus lower the chances of a repeat of that first night.

Gordon takes a deep breath to steel himself. Okay. Okay okay okay. Let’s do this shit.

…Uh. How exactly does he do it, again?

Every time he’s shape-shifted before, it was totally involuntary. Maybe… if he just thinks about doing it? Same way one would move their arm by just thinking about moving it. Yeah, let’s try that. Lifting his borrowed right arm, he focuses on the thought of it growing a little longer, like when he reached for that glass on the high shelf.

And much to Gordon’s surprise, that… actually fucking works. His borrowed right arm is now several inches longer than his left. And there wasn’t even any weird squirming in his insides or flesh-tearing feelings when it happened, either. He turns and twists the limb this way and that, taking in how, aside from the added length, it still looks like a totally normal arm (well, normal for Benry, anyway). Hell, it even FEELS normal. He was expecting it to feel weird and wrong, but it… really doesn’t. Changing shape is just that much of a normal, natural thing for Benry’s body, he supposes. He feels a little silly for putting this off for so long, now.

Gordon’s about to will it back to normal proportions, when he catches his reflection in his bedroom mirror. He gets a little chuckle out of the imagery of Benry with the mis-matched arms.

But then he also gets the strangest sense of deja vu.

Before he can dwell on that any further, though, his phone grabs his attention next, notifying him on receiving an email. Shortening his arm back (which also comes easy) and grabbing his phone, he sees it’s a response from his mom. Ever the night owl, his ma.

~~~

From: Beverly Freeman (mom) To: Gordon Freeman Subject: Re: childhood question

Hey there, honey! Good to hear from you again!

Childhood friends, hmm? You didn’t actually have any regular friends when you were that young, I don’t think. You mostly just played with your little brother. You DID have this one imaginary friend, though! I found an old drawing you did of him when you were little. I took a picture of it with my phone and attached the file (aren’t you proud of me?)

By the way, do you know if you’ll have Joshua this Thanksgiving? It’s been so long since we’ve had either of you over for turkey day, or since we’ve had both you and John in the same room!

Love Mom <3 (lol it’s a heart!)

[attached file: mybestfrend.jpeg]

~~~

Huh. Maybe that’s why he can’t remember any playmates he had as a kid. Because he didn’t have any. Makes sense, he guesses.

Gordon downloads the attached file, and then opens it up in his phone’s picture gallery.

[image description: An old child's drawing on wrinkled paper. It depicts a boy with green eyes and glasses standing next to a taller monster boy with sharp teeth, claws, and multiple eyes. They are both smiling. There is a brown mud puddle at their feet, and several pink and blue orbs floating around the monster boy's head. The words 'MY BEST FREND' are written at the bottom of the drawing. End description.]

  ...No fucking way.

Simple pleasures that I take for granted sometimes: sleeping, cleaning, showering, cooking for myself, fruit, sister, cousins, friends, breathing, my brain, water. Bit by bit I’ll be filling in the gaps on my silence. Building more structure in my life as I’ve become increasingly aware of the toll that living alone has taken on my mental health and motivation. So today I am celebrating with you the fact that I hit a more solid round of sleep last night, woke up early, washed some dishes, and fixed myself a nice breakfast!! (It’s been super challenging to do some of these basic things since MigiMo passed away) Today’s menu is an homage to Marston’s Restaurant in Pasadena, CA where I was introduced to a chicken andouille sausage!! On my plate: omelette with red chili flakes, chopped onions and cheddar cheese topped with some black beans and a bit more cheddar! On the side is a chicken andouille sausage, corn tortillas and a sliced pink lady apple. As always accompanied by some water and hot coffee (the elixir of life)!! Remember…visitors always receive my home cooking!! #comicsgodandtortillas #pelon #adultorphan #AZliving #gratitude #livingwithoutanonagenarian #caregiverlife #caregivernomore #rebuildingmylife #selah #fanboylife #marstonsrestaurant #breakfast (at Mesa, Arizona) https://www.instagram.com/p/CqDsp7Ipe_x/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Oh! So, Gordon Freeman’s thesis? Well, according to Wikipedia: “His doctoral thesis on the teleportation of matter through extremely dense elements was titled Observation of Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen Entanglement on Supraquantum Structures by Induction Through Nonlinear Transuranic Crystal of Extremely Long Wavelength (ELW) Pulse from Mode-Locked Source Array.” Or simply, teleportation. Localized teleportation through things. Maybe, the idea of, oh I don’t know, Quantum Tunneling ever crossed him and his piers minds? Or perhaps a, Quantum Tunneling Device? Would he be familiar with such if he came into contact with it due to his extensive knowledge? Maybe him and Kleiner could possibly expand upon an already existing experimental model? A research expedition into its origins or the research history of it? Maybe just some fun reading from the Black Mesa crew about a rival think tank’s shower curtain research, which spirals into a full on mission?

I WANT A CROSSOVER DAMN IT!

Doctor Freeman wants his HEINIE smacked by a HARD WET TOWEL at BLACK MESA SHOWERS

Black diamond shower enclosure cabins with pivot glass door

Leak-Free guarantee and no silicone on show design

Multiple specifications, not limited by space size

Easy shower and comfortable enjoyment: strong bearing capacity and safety guarantee

Fully sealed and watertight, the MESA shower room makes the bathroom more desirable

Opening and closing smoothly and silent.

Full installation guides

5 Year warranty upon registration

Company Name:Kaipunuo Sanitary Ware Co., Ltd. Web:https://www.showercabinfactory.com/product/shower-enclosure/stainless-steel-series/3056.html ADD:Pinghu xindai sanitary ware city Phone:86-13515739471 Fax:86-057385219605 Email:[email protected] Tip:314200 Profile:We are the first manufactory use no-screw set up technology in sanitary ware industry and awarded dozens of international patents and certifications in the past years. We advocate the concept of environment protection and resources-saving to create more perfect and comfortable fascinating life for modern people.

Whatever the Fuck Benrey Is: Chapter Two: But You Owe Me

Chapter One: Never Stayed Dead

~

“I knew you were a thief.”

Already lying down, his back probably purposefully to Benrey, Gordon didn’t respond.

“If you wanted the TV off, you could’ve just asked.” Benrey probably would’ve even obliged him because of the whole hand thing.

No response.

“You asleep?”

Deep steady breathing was the only answer Benrey got. He’d fallen asleep so fast he hadn’t even taken his glasses off. Tsking his disapproval over such forgetfulness, Benrey stood so he could lean over Gordon’s curled up form and do it for him. While hovering here, he could easily take the remote back too. Gordon held it to his chest, his gun hand acting as an additional shield but if he was so tired, he’d fallen asleep that fast, the disturbance of removing the remote from his grasp likely wouldn’t wake him. Benrey didn’t bother though and just stuck to the glasses instead. Careful not to touch their lenses, he folded them and placed them on the nightstand. Nothing worth watching had been on anyway.

Stepping back from the bed, he looked back towards the bathroom. Gordon had called him nasty and told him to take a shower because of it. Humans were particular about cleanliness, especially when it came to their and others’ physical bodies. Benrey never really got why it was such a big deal and he’d just got done reforming his body a couple hours ago so it was fairly clean even by human standards, even if his clothes weren’t. Hot water was always a delight though, one he hadn’t had a chance to enjoy for a little while now, so he obeyed anyway. It’s not like he had anything better to do. Out of politeness he even refrained from eating the rest of the soap once he was done washing himself because there was only one bar of it and he didn’t want be a hog.

Upon stepping out and drying off, he would’ve put his security uniform back on except Gordon had told him not to. Yes, it was quite dirty, maybe even ‘nasty’ as Gordon had put it, but still, not fair. Benrey liked that uniform, people were substantially more attentive to him when he wore it, they stopped to listen to him and did what he told them, sometimes without even questioning it. He didn’t want to give that up and wouldn’t have even considered it but… Gordon was permanently down a hand in part because of Benrey so maybe it was only fair he take something important away from Benrey in return. So with a sigh, Benrey retired from being a security officer and put on one of the hotel’s bathrobes instead.

Back in the room proper, Gordon was still asleep and now softly snoring. He’d said Benrey wasn’t allowed to kill him in his sleep until he’d slept for at least five hours. Benrey had no desire to do such a thing, if he did, he’d had plenty of opportunities during the trip through Black Mesa, so why Gordon had brought it up was a mystery. But whatever, it likely also meant Gordon didn’t want to be disturbed in general until he’d at least had five hours of sleep. Benrey could respect that. Five hours wasn’t that long.

He sat on the chair again. Pulling his legs up to sit as close to sitting crossed-legged as he could with the arms of the chair in the way, he stared up at the blank TV screen. Just like when he’d first been here – back when he’d been a youth still trying to escape Black Mesa before realizing out here was just as boring as in there, except he’d got given fun stuff in there if he cooperated – there was nothing interesting in the room other than the TV. Not a single console to plug into it, no handheld gaming device, computer, or anything else that might provide entertainment. And now, the TV was quickly proving to be even more boring off than it was on, quite the feat.

Benrey shifted in his chair, his eyes drooping. Sleep was boring at best, full on bad when he had nightmares. Luckily he didn’t feel the pull to sleep particularly often but… he certainly felt it now. He was always weaker when away from Black Mesa but after Xen, it was particularly jarring. Not to mention everything he’d done on Xen, leaving him not just feeling sleepy but exhausted. He’d been doing a good job hiding it but with Gordon asleep there was no need for him to do so any longer.

With a resigned sigh, he stood and returned to the bed. Gordon was lying smack-dab in the middle of it. When sharing a bed, Benrey would’ve thought one person would lie on one side of it, the other, the opposite side. What did he know though? He’d heard somewhere that some humans particularly liked being touched, maybe Gordon was one of them so he’d purposefully positioned himself in the middle to make it difficult to join him on the bed without being close enough to touch. Because Gordon had cheated via using Coomer’s Super Player Feature, Benrey was tempted to leave him hanging and sleep on the floor instead but well… turns out Benrey hadn’t been playing quite as fair as he’d thought he’d been so they were probably even. Holding a grudge over a defeat was for losers anyway.

Carefully, Benrey lifted the cover and crawled in under it. He pressed his back to Gordon’s as he tucked the blanket back in around himself. Gordon was warm, his heat had sunk into the bed and blanket, making it quite cozy. It was tempting to turn and press into him even more but Benrey refrained… for now. He’d never cuddled anyone before and he wasn’t about to start now with Gordon no matter how warm he was. Touching like this would just have to be enough for both of them.

***

The bed was warm and soft. Gordon could happily lie here for hours even though he probably shouldn’t. He’d been doing pretty okay at least trying to take better care of his mental health lately, a large part of which was making sure he slept just the right amount. Life was unfair like that; sleep too long and suffer or don’t sleep enough and also suffer. So he should really get up now before he fell back asleep. It’d be the smart thing to do.

He didn’t move though. Five more minutes couldn’t hurt, right? … Yes, actually it could because it was going to be a lot more than just five more minutes. His alarm should still be set though. Even on the days he didn’t have to go into work it was still set to go off, only a couple hours later than usual. So if it hadn’t gone off yet, he was fine to continue lying here until it did.

With a satisfied sigh, he rolled over and… didn’t go back to sleep. Someone was lying next to him on the bed, moving had made it impossible not feel them. It had been years since he’d last shared a bed with anyone so why was he now?

He blinked open his eyes, giving himself a mental shake to wake himself properly. Lying next to him, partially turned away from him was… a stranger. Or no, not a stranger. Without the guard helmet, allowing his messy mop of hair to be free, he looked quite different, especially since, sans his glasses, Gordon had to squint to see him, but it was still obviously Benrey.

Gordon flinched, jerking the rest of the way awake as everything came crashing back down. The resonance cascade, the following scramble to escape the aftermath of aliens attacking, some of them turning folk into zombies. And then the military had come, bringing more violence and death and then dismemberment. How Gordon had forgotten even for a few wonderfully sleepy moments was a mystery. He was safe now though, they’d gotten out and had even had a free trip to the nearest Chuck E. Cheese for a pizza party.

He pressed a hand to his chest to try to calm his racing heart. It didn’t help much though because it was his gun hand. It had become a bit of a relief for a while there; he could defend himself again and was finally no longer helpless. Now though, he didn’t want to kill anymore, never again in fact. … He might have to though, if the military came looking for them. Surely they wouldn’t, right?

Trying not to think about it, Gordon carefully extricated himself from the blanket as he carefully slid out of bed. After finding his glasses on the nightstand and pushing them onto his face he turned back and pulled the blanket back up to just under Benrey’s chin. The longer he stayed asleep, the better.

Come to think of it, not only was this the first time Gordon was seeing Benrey without the guard helmet, it was also the first time he was seeing Benrey asleep. His in-humanness was more obvious without the helmet’s brim to disguise the preternatural shade over his eyes. And his mouth hung open slightly, revealing what looked an awful lot like sharp teeth. Despite that, with his entire body and face lax with peaceful sleep, he looked less dangerous; too soft to be much of a threat. Gordon knew better though; grizzly bears were also quite cute and soft looking but he really, really wouldn’t want to be in the same room as one. And he’d been sleeping close enough to Benrey to almost cuddle him.

With a slight shudder, he retreated into the bathroom. Maybe he didn’t need another shower so soon but… he wanted one and surely he’d earned it, right? Besides, the tangled bird’s nest that his hair had become – made worse by the fact that he’d gone to bed with it wet last night – would be easier to sort out if he wet it first.

~

By the time Gordon was stepping back into the room once more, he felt more human than he had in a long time. No headache born of stress, dehydration or the like. No impeding sense of danger waiting just around the corner. The pervasive smell of rotting corpses was a memory as was the sound of gunfire, close or far. He couldn’t forget any of it but right now, with his only real pain being the soreness in his scalp brought on but forcibly untangling his hair, he could ignore it enough to allow him to continue to function… for now anyway.

Prepared for it this time, he wasn’t thrown off by the sight of Benrey sitting in the chair. Or, not as thrown off as he had been last night because Benrey wearing nothing but a hotel bathrobe just didn’t look right. At least he had the decency to tie it closed though so Gordon was spared the sight of him naked. Though given the fact that he wasn’t human, it did call into question just how much his physical anatomy differed. Did he have a belly button? Nipples? Both if which would give clues on if he was a mammal or not. And what about… Nope. Gordon was a physicist, not a biologist so he didn’t care.

He looked away, towards the window, its curtains currently shut, in an attempt to cover up his flinch at the thought he’d just almost had. “Before we figure anything else out, we need to get some real clothes. Going out dressed like this will be uh… less than ideal but hopefully it’ll be fine to do just once.” He’d seen people wondering around in bathrobes during his last visit to town a couple months ago and they’d been fine so in theory their group would be too. “Since you’re apparently set on sticking around, I guess we’ll get you some new clothes too. You wanna come to the store with us to pick something out yourself or would you rather I or… I don’t know Tommy do it?”

“Uh… I don’t need new clothes. I got plenty back home.”

“You mean in Black Mesa?”

“Yep.”

“Assuming wherever in it you used to live is still intact, it’s probably a horrid mess, like dead bodies everyone kind of mess, you know, the way the rest of the facility is currently. And even if your stuff is somehow clean, how do you plan on getting back there? You don’t have a car.” Though, Gordon wouldn’t put it past him to walk. Which he wouldn’t complain about if Benrey did decide to do, it’d get him out of Gordon’s hair finally.

Benrey shrugged. “They’ll come pick me up, probably soon too.”

Tired of the darkness, Gordon went over to the window and threw the curtains open, letting the midday sunlight steam in uninterrupted. It was beautiful. Leaning against the wall by the window, he turned his attention back onto Benrey though. “Who’s coming to pick you up?”

“The scientists, duh. And their security guard buddies. This ain’t my first rodeo. I’ve uh… I’ve left Black Mesa before. They always come get me and bring me back.” He didn’t sound upset by it. Seemingly he thought that the whole thing was perfectly normal and okay. That didn’t mean it was though. Lots of bad things could seem normal if that’s all one knew.

Gordon could ask for more details such as how much force was used to get him to go back and if he ever wanted to go with them but the answer to such questions were likely sensitive. He didn’t care about invading Benrey’s privacy but he didn’t want to know more lest he start feeling bad for him. The fucker got Gordon’s arm cut off by soldiers and then proceeded to tease him about it before it all culminated into whatever that ending fight had been. Even if he’d apparently thought it all a joke or fun game and that Gordon’s arm would grow back, he didn’t deserve Gordon’s sympathy. And so Gordon wasn’t going to feel bad for him. “I don’t think they’re gonna come get you this time.”

“Huh? Why not? They always have before.”

“Because, you saw how fucked up that place was. Chances are whoever was in charge of you, most of them are probably dead now. So you’re basically free and the world’s worse for that but it’s too late to do anything about it now.”

Benrey stared off into space, seemingly thinking about it, for several seconds before he stood, his face brightening. “Oh. I guess so, huh? Let’s go clothes shopping then.”

Great, Gordon had had a chance to let him just sit here but instead had convinced him to come shopping with him. He should really think more before he spoke. Whatever, Benrey coming along would make it easier to get something that would fit properly anyway. “Fine, let’s go see if we can’t meet up with the others.” And check in at the front desk to see if any more rooms were available so Gordon wouldn’t have to spend another night cuddling Benrey.

***

Counter to Benrey’s expectation, before heading off to the store, they gathered in the hotel’s kitchen area for food. They selection available for lunch was so bland and boring, Benrey decided to skip it despite feeling hungry. He didn’t need to eat often anyway so going without would only mean he felt hungry for longer. He settled down to sit with the rest of the Science Team as they ate though.

Like him and Gordon, the three of them now smelled clean and like they’d scrubbed themselves thoroughly with the hotel’s soap and shampoo. They also wore the hotel’s bathrobes, apparently agreeing with Gordon that their old clothes weren’t salvageable. Benrey wasn’t going to be allowed a guard uniform again for a while, was he? Lame.

Once establishing that they were all going to go clothes shopping together after they finished eating, Gordon changed the subject with, “Also, we really gotta do something about the sleeping situation. I had to share a bed with Benrey last night.”

“Well, you didn’t have to,” Bubby replied. “No one forced you to sleep with him.”

“Unless he did,” Coomer said. “He didn’t force you, did he Gordon?” There was an edge to his voice that Benrey couldn’t identify but it certainly wasn’t his usual chipper tone.

“What? No! He didn’t… do anything to me. Nothing even remotely like what you guys are thinking happened. And that’s clearly not what I meant. There’s only one bed in there so we had to sleep next to each other. That’s all. Jesus Christ guys, why would you even jump to that conclusion?”

“Well, Mr. Freeman, normally when people talk about sharing a bed, they mean, that they…”

“Yeah, thanks Tommy, I know. I shouldn’t have worded it like that, I guess. What I mean is I want my own room. I don’t wanna bunk with Benrey any longer than I absolutely have to. So if there’s anything that can be done to make that happen faster, I’d appreciate it.”

“Wait, what normally happens when people share a bed?” What were the three of them thinking Benrey might’ve done with Gordon last night? Or too Gordon last night.

Gordon turned his head to look at him, his face scrunching up. “You seriously don’t know or are you messing with us?”

“Why would I lie about not knowing something?” Especially when not knowing things was lame. Normally he wouldn’t have asked but it involved him so he wanted to know.

“We were talking about sex,” Bubby said. “We thought you and Gordon might’ve fucked last night and I wouldn’t have put it past you two. He certainly seems the type to be a monster fucker.”

It was far from the first time Benrey had heard such terms but it was the first time they’d been used when talking about him. He had only a vague idea what they meant. So that only kind of answered his question. He’d have to look it up later on Wikipedia… except they’d destroyed a good chunk of Wikipedia’s servers so probably that wasn’t an option.

Gordon stood up. “We didn’t though and we’re never going to and I’m done talking about the possibility. Instead let’s head out and get some real clothes so we don’t have to hang around in bathrobes any longer than we have to.”

And with that the conversation was over as the other three followed suit in standing up with him. Since when had Gordon been the leader of the group? … Since the start but then he’d stopped being the leader when he’d lost his hand. But apparently he was again. So that was probably a good thing, it meant he was back to feeling more himself. Maybe he was adjusting well to the gun hand after all even if he had wrapped it in a towel to hide it. Benrey should still offer to fix it though, huh? So he stood and followed.

~

Normally when Benrey made it all the way to Tuefort, the only store he bothered to go to before the scientists found him and brought him back was Gamestop. As he’d been planning to do before Gordon had distracted him, leading to their little adventure happening instead. He’d thought Target would be like Gamestop but bigger and with clothes – because that’s what they were coming here for – instead of games. Such quickly proved to not be the case.

Clothing wasn’t all that was being sold. There was food, beverages, décor, and signs all over that promised more variety in distant isles. Benrey followed the group at a distance as they started for the clothing section, staying just close enough to keep track of them while also allowing him room to explore on his own.

Gordon had told him to stay close, within eyesight, but Benrey was already following his order to be inconspicuous. He wasn’t phasing through anything even when he wanted to and he’d given up the one gun he’d managed to acquire after reforming his body before they’d left the hotel, making him unarmed. Asking any more of him was selfish when blindly following people was so boring. Especially when a chance look up at one of the distant signs revealed that this store apparently had a video game section.

Making his way there without beelining and phasing through anything in his way was a struggle but he didn’t have any money of his own right now so if he wanted anything he had to depend on the rest of the Science Team to buy it for him. And that meant he had to play by their rules. Which sucked even more than having to ask around for free Play Station Plus vouchers, super not cool. But if Gordon was right and he really wasn’t ever going to be brought back to Black Mesa then… maybe he didn’t want to go back at all. Even to get his stuff lest that remind anyone still around who could make him do things of his existence and thus he’d be brought back after all. It may be boring out here but Gordon was fun to mess with and since he was out here Benrey wanted to be as well. Meaning he had to rebuild his gamer pad from the ground up.

Upon reaching the gaming section, he felt immediately more at home. It was like Gamestop but with wider isles, a taller ceiling, and better lighting. Alas, it lacked that distinct Gamestop scent, smelling like the rest of the Target instead, but he could live with that. It also took up much less space in total than Gamestop, indicating a smaller available selection. A bit worrying but better than nothing.

It took only a handful of minutes to peruse the entirety of the section. They were lacking a lot but they did have PS3’s and Heavenly Sword in stock. An argument could be made that Gordon owed him the latter since it was because of him, Benrey hadn’t been able to get it when he’d meant to. And needing the former to play it, Gordon surely owed him the PS3 too. Depending on others’ charity sucked but what other choice did Benrey have right now? Also, they were all pals, in this together, right? Gordon was already buying clothes for everyone, including Benrey, so this could certainly be justified too. If not him, then surely Tommy would pay for it instead. He’d owe whoever bought and would of course let them play it first.

He had to phase through a locked plexiglass door to get the PS3 but he waited until he was sure no one, including the camera sweeping the area, was looking before doing so. He then grabbed a copy of Heavenly Sword, placing it on top before doing one last sweep of the area to see if the Play Station Plus cards. A free voucher would’ve been better but those were hard to come by. Unfortunately no such cards were available. Lame, he wanted to play online but whatever, the single player mode was probably fun too.

Meeting back up with the Science Team quickly proved to be easier said than done. The Target wasn’t huge or anything but it certainly wasn’t small and all the aisles he had to walk around instead of through made it a massive pain to navigate. He knew what they were primarily here to shop for though so once he remembered he could use the signs, he quickly caught back up with them.

They were in clothing section obviously, standing around with their cart, talking to each other about something. Probably boring ol’ clothes but Benrey didn’t care and they cut off anyway as he walked up and...

“Are you gonna pay for that?” Gordon asked as he side stepped to block Benrey from the cart. Even though Tommy was the one in charge of pushing it around so he had no right to say what went into the cart or not. He side stepped again when Benrey tried to walk around him. “Like with your own money.”

“’Cause of you I don’t got any of my own money currently. But you owe me ‘cause…”

“Then we’re not buying it. Go put it back.”

“I don’t… I wouldn’t mind paying for it,” Tommy said. Good ol’ Tommy, always a good friend. “I mean we… all our stuff is or… or was back at Black Mesa. We can’t really easily go get it if it’s even still there and not destroyed or so covered in goo to basically be destroyed so… maybe we could buy some fun stuff too while we’re here.”

Despite how much sense Tommy just made Gordon’s scowl deepened as he moved again to block Benrey’s attempt to get around him. “I’m not against that idea but a whole brand new Play Station? Those are expensive and we shouldn’t just buy Benrey whatever he wants. That’ll encourage him to keep coming back to us for more. It’s like… like feeding wild animals. You don’t do it because it encourages them to go up to humans more and more for food and then they inevitably end up attacking people who don’t feed them because they want food from them and then they have to get put down and then no one’s happy.”

“So you’re saying if we buy Benrey a Play Station we’ll eventually have to kill him again?” Bubby asked as he walked up to put what looked like it might’ve been a blue floral dress in the cart because apparently he was allowed to put whatever he wanted in there. “I’m down, as long as I’m not the one paying for it anyway. It was pretty fun the first time.”

“We could try to do it faster this time,” Coomer added. “And if we get a high enough score we might win a prize.”

“No, no, that’s not what I meant. Or… I don’t know maybe that would happen. God knows his reason for trying to kill us the first time didn’t make any god damn sense. So maybe if we spoiled him and then stopped when we couldn’t afford it anymore he would try again. But let’s not test it by not giving into him in the first place. It’s like an entirely different game we need to play and not let him win. Stand your ground and don’t buy him anything he doesn’t strictly need.”

Benrey tried one last time to step around Gordon but with him not being allowed to phase through him, it was futile. Benrey had lost again. “Ah, c’mon man, that’s not fair. You owe me. It’s cause of you I’m not back home playing Heavenly Sword right now. I was gonna…”

“No, no, not my fault.” Gordon pointed his still towel wrapped gun hand at Benrey. An empty threat because he wouldn’t dare shoot it here, otherwise he wouldn’t have been so meticulous about hiding it. “Everything that happened was because of the resonance cascade which wasn’t my fault. It wasn’t anybody’s fault, I think, or at least no one who’s still alive anyway.”

“You’re the one who didn’t have your passport so I had follow you in there and then...”

“So the resonance cascade is your fault?” Gordon interrupted again, pushing his wrapped gun hand right up into Benrey’s face, rude. “Whatever the fuck you are interfered with the test and made all that happen?”

“No. That would’ve happened anyway, duh. Sticking giant alien crystals into beams is obviously a dumb idea.” The fact that Black Mesa had gotten away with it for as long as they had was a borderline miracle. “But I was with you when it happened instead of heading to Gamestop with my pal. Who died by the way.”

Gordon’s face, as always, was very expressive, displaying every emotion he felt in real time. Someone good at reading facial expressions could probably use that to basically read his mind. Alas that wasn’t Benrey but that didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy the display of emotions across Gordon’s face just for the sake of it. It’s what made frustrating him so fun. Even when actively annoyed with him, Benrey still liked his face and the fact that he was the one causing the strong emotions it portrayed. Which made Gordon turning his back on him with a huff a bit disappointing.

I’m not letting you rile me up anymore.” The strain in his voice said he was still riled up and doing a poor job at hiding it. “We’re not buying you a Play Station, end of discussion.”

With Gordon’s back now turned, stepping around him to put the Play Station and game into the cart was easy.

“We’re not paying for it,” Gordon repeated, still not looking at Benrey. “Please, back me up on this guys.”

Tommy shuffled wringing his hands on the cart’s handle. “I guess he did um… get violent with us, huh? So… sorry, Benrey. I don’t wanna… we shouldn’t feed the wild animals.”

“Damn bro, what the hell?” Was he really gonna betray Benrey like that?

“Well I’m certainly not buying him jack shit,” Bubby said. “I don’t got that kind of money.”

“Don’t worry, Gordon! I’ll stand by your side through hell and back!” As if Coomer hadn’t tried to kill Gordon once upon a time too. … Or maybe that had been his clones. Benrey hadn’t been there at the time and had gotten the tale from Tommy who wasn’t always the best at accurately relaying events.

“Whatever. It’s already in the cart so…”

Before he could even finish, Tommy, cementing his betrayal, let go of the cart’s handle to retrieve the Play Station. “I’ll uh… I’ll go put these back where they belong.”

“Thanks, Tommy,” Gordon said as he took over cart duty. He had only one real hand, making him the least suited for the position because he couldn’t control it properly. And he probably didn’t have the documentation to prove he was capable of driving a cart around in the first place. A crash was almost inevitable with him steering.

Benrey took a breath to bring that up because it would certainly get him looking at Benrey again but… he didn’t have the security officer uniform anymore. He was wearing just a dumb, cheap bathrobe. His authority had been stripped from him. Lame. No wonder they’d all sided with Gordon.

“Now, Benrey,” Gordon said, finally looking at him again. He’d finally succeeded in reigning his frustration in though. He wasn’t even gloating about the victory he’d just won, almost like he didn’t care. “Before you wonder off again, let’s find you something that’ll fit you. Once we’re all no longer wondering around a Target dressed in nothing but bathrobes at three in the afternoon Dr. Coomer and Bubby are gonna pay for groceries and some other necessities.”

And broke, unemployed Benrey just had to follow along with whatever they wanted in addition to relying on them for stuff. “Fine,” he said as he stepped up to follow Gordon since he was apparently the boss now and Benrey was a nobody.

“Oh, uh… I didn’t think you’d agree so easily. But sure, I’m not gonna question it. First, we need to get you a hat. That… shadow or whatever it is over your eyes is kinda weird without one.”

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A kind of technologies is the solar generator, so it is best to make investments in one. Solar panels are affected by the angle of the solar to their surface. AN oversized MPPT charge controller allows you to add up to 2000 watts of solar. For instance - certainly one of the best solar generators can provide as much as 1,500 steady watts of energy. With his expansive data Mike enjoys discovering, testing and sharing the best merchandise accessible! It takes around 3 hours on average to get the water sizzling. One per family, minimal eight panel new system.

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3 - Introduction

My apologies, reader. I haven't fully introduced myself yet. I am Benton McCormick, and I'm a biochemist at the Black Mesa Research Facility. It seems that I am running away from those marines, but hopefully those fools aren't able to find me. As you may have heard of, there has been a disaster within the premises of Black Mesa, and a lot of our staff has died due to it. I quite need a wash after entering that pipe, but all of the showers are down and out due to the Resonance Cascade, and yes, that's what the disaster is called. I currently am unwell, due to the fact of witnessing my colleagues get brutally executed by marines. I quite feel like I am the only survivor of this incident.

Black Mesa was an exciting place to work at, until now. Some imbecile at the Anomalous Materials labs decided to overdo something, and created a Resonance Cascade, and they made a door for a lot of aliens to just go through. I'm getting off-topic. I am aware that a fellow scientist named Walter Bennet has done something just like this. I've heard of a gaming platform, called Steam. I have that on a personal computer, and I love it! I can play many entertainment software, such as Full-Dead, Right 2 Live, and Free-For-All Castles. Oh dear, I've gone WAYY too off-topic, anyways, hopefully I can get out of this mess.

Benton McCormick

Biochemist, X-Labs

Black Mesa Research Facility