"…Wheatley."

He couldn't believe it. It was Chell. It was really Chell; she was right there, right in front of him! Wasn't she not supposed to know where he was? Doesn't matter, she's right here! …wasn't he supposed to be apologizing? He snapped his attention to the young woman holding him in the portal gun's tractor beam. She was giving him an odd look, a mix between bewilderment and…pity? Or anger. He really couldn't tell; his optic had cracked badly from the heat. Everything was burnt, broken or hurt incredibly. But none of that mattered! He deserved it and he was going to apologize!

"Chell! You look great! A little…a little sweaty perhaps, and maybe a bit smelly but-"

This earned him a glare from Chell.

No, no! That was a stupid thing to say! The one person he wanted to apologize to and he starts off by calling her smelly!

"Okay, no! No, no, no! Sorry, that…wasn't what I wanted to say at all! That just, that just slipped out…" He closed his optic in frustration. Why could he never do anything right? Maybe it was true; maybe he was a moron… A moron would definitely turn on his friend. A moron would definitely try to kill her with mashy spike plates and deady tests and bombs and neurotoxin…

Yep. He was definitely a moron.

Chell brought Wheatley a little closer to her face. "Wheatley…what are doing down here? Aren't…okay I probably do know why you're down here, but aren't you supposed to be in space?" Chell asked.

Wheatley immediately snapped back to attention. "Yes, definitely was in space. As to why I'm down here, it's a long story. Well actually…actually it's not all that long… You see I- oh!" The little personality core was cut off as a sparks began pouring out of his side. He clenched his optic shut in pain. He had to hold on! He could feel his body beginning to cool. The damage certainly would still be there, but that would at least offer him some relief. But no! He already said none of that mattered! Though it would be nice to be able to completely focus on apologizing to Chell… Right, focusing on Chell! He was going to look her straight in the eye and tell her right now! Unfortunately, when he tried to open his optic again, he saw nothing but darkness. This prompted him to panic. Had he shut down? No, he couldn't shut down, not now!

"Chell! Chell! Are you there? Please tell me you're there!" To his horror, he felt himself being lowered down. She…she was going to throw him back into the bowels of the incinerator! No! She couldn't! Not before he told her!

"Please, no!" he cried desperately. His voice began to steadily rise in pitch. "I know…I know I deserve it, but please, please listen before you throw me back! Chell! I don't know when-"

Suddenly, he felt two hands gently lift him up.

"Relax! I'm still here. It looks like your optic stopped working. You're-ow-you're still hot though…"

She…she was holding him. It was not often that humans actually, physically touched him. At least, not touching that didn't involve a lot of pain. The scientists were always grabbing him and making adjustments. Or hitting him when he did something wrong (which was often.) And there was that one lady who ripped the wires to his voice box out. Just brutally ripped them right out!

And when they weren't hurting him, they were laughing at him! They were constantly calling him a moron. That wasn't very nice! He wasn't a moron. He wanted to prove to everyone that he wasn't…

That's it.

"Chell…" he said. He couldn't see her, so he hoped he was facing the correct way. Even though his optic wasn't working, he wanted to be looking at her. "I am so sorry. I am sorry that I was bossy, and monstrous. And I am genuinely sorry. When…when I took control of the facility…well, I had all this power! I was a bloody genius! I wasn't just tiny, little, moronic Wheatley anymore. For the first time, I held all the cards! I…I wanted to prove that I wasn't a moron. I wanted to prove that I could finally do something right, that I could run the facility…that I was better than her… And then, then there was the testing! I just HAD to test. And the euphoria! I had to test you… And…and…" He began to trail off. He was deeply ashamed of what he was going to say next. "And you were making your way through the tests so well. I had to prove that I was smarter than…than you. And that I was smarter than her. If…if I killed you then I could do what she never could. I…I thought I could be better than both of you."

Wheatley's voice was trembling as he neared the end. It wasn't the testing, or the body he was in. That might have been a small part, but it was mostly him. He had let all that power go to his head to try and prove that he wasn't a moron. And the worst part about it was that Chell never called him a moron, she never hurt him. Sure, she didn't catch him. But he knew that she had tried. She…she was different than all the other humans.

He truly was horrible.

"I'm just…I am just so sorry. I should have let you go as soon as I got in control. And, and I never should have punched you down the hole or tried to kill you! Never should have tried to kill you! I am the most sorry for that! Which…which would have never happened if I had let you go. So I'm sorry for that too!" he stuttered. He had been doing so well too…now he was back to tripping over his own words.

"…I am sorry, Chell. That is what I wanted to say. Now you can let me get back to the…to the burning."

He had done it. He had apologized to Chell. It might not have been the most graceful apology, but he got to tell her everything on his mind. Whatever happens now, he would accept.

A/N: Short chapter is short! But hey, we've finally got some action, Wheatley got his apology out! :D

I really hope I am not screwing this up. XD But as always, let me know of any errors or ways I can improve!

And thanks for all the favs and reviews on this and my other stories! It really makes my day! X3