#radioproto

Lab coats do not make for warm coats in cold environments. This is a fact.

Mr. Johnson has me working in the massive walk-in freezer lab again this week. Apparently, Aperture's void of a budget can pay for the room and the constant near-arctic air conditioning that gets pumped in here, but not for the thermal coats required to safely work in here. We're at least allowed to wear gloves and a hat, as long as it doesn't interfere with the experiments.

This doesn't apply to the Cores, however. Their android bodies are made of hardlight, literal sunlight, underneath a layer of conductive fiber made to look like skin, so the cold doesn't bother them. I'm jealous of my companion standing in the corner, not shivering like me. Fact Core has decided to join us today, supervising our experiments and occasionally spewing a random fact about the Arctic.

"Fact: Polar bear fur is actually transparent. Its hairs are hollow and have no natural pigment. Therefore, polar bears are essentially invisible."

I mean... the first part was right. It's actually kind of cute how he tries to show off by saying random facts, but he often just tries too hard and ends up saying... well, not facts. His presence isn't disliked though. Better than Rick, anyways. At least with Fact, we can have (mostly) intelligent conversation, though he doesn't seem one for humor. He might also be getting attached to me, too. He's been supervising me a lot more lately. Though that's probably wishful thinking.

"Makes the North Pole scarier. You could be halfway eaten and not even know what's doing it." I tease, going back to my petri dish of blue gel. It's hard to keep the tweezers still with all my shivering. Fact goes on, "Polar bears are also considered to be aquatic creatures, spending most of their time in the water searching for food. Therefore, polar bears are also a type of amphibian." This gets a laugh out of me. "'Marine mammals', but-" I sneeze a couple times, "they are in the water a lot." I sniffle and reach for the tissues I keep handy. Allergies must be acting up.

Footsteps approach my side. I turn and see Fact standing right by me, his brow furrowed. His glowing pink eyes look... concerned?

"Your cheeks and nose are red. You are also radiating heat when it is 34⁰F in this room. This is not normal."

"Geez, it's down to 34? I'm going to start wearing a sweater under this." I pull the lapels of my lab coat. "But, I'm fine. It's just allergies and I'm tired from these long shifts, that's all-" I'm cut off by Fact's palm on my forehead. Now I definitely can tell I'm warm, but I can't tell if it's from me, his very warm hand, or the fact that he is touching me. Something I didn't know until now would fluster me.

"Fact: you are running a low-grade fever. You have sneezed 12 times in the last 20 minutes. Your nose is runny. You have a cold." He doesn't move his hand. "I-..." I can't argue with that. I definitely feel worse than the last few times I've worked in here. I gently remove his hand, savoring the warmth he radiates in this icebox. "I'm okay. I'll take some medicine as soon as I'm done here and dress warmer from now on."

Fact is not satisfied with this response. He takes my hand and leads me out of the Cold Labs and into the hallway to the main facility. My body almost collapses at the sudden warmth, and I realize I feel weaker than I thought. "Wait, where are we going? I have work to do!"

"You are sick and should not be working. Fact: you cannot focus on your work when you are busy blowing your nose every 30 seconds." Okay, point taken.

Fact eventually leads me to one of our cozier break rooms overlooking the chasm of the facility. He promptly leads me to a couch and points at me to sit. He ignores my claims that I'm okay and leaves to get something. I sigh, grateful that at least the break room is empty for now besides us. He approaches a moment later with an ice pack and a jacket someone forgot here days ago. Once he forces me to put the icepack on my head and drapes the jacket across me, he sits down beside me.

And by beside me, I mean he is half-sitting on me. It takes a second to realize that he's using his android body to warm me up. Though the position is awkward. "Can, can I just...? I'm sorry-" Fact doesn't move when I relocate his arm to drape around my shoulders. "I'm sorry, it was just awkward how we were sitting and-"

Fact tightens his hand on my shoulder and I'm pressed against his side. Now I definitely have a fever. "You are turning redder. Am I making it worse?" Fact asks. "No, no, it's for a different reason..." I clear my throat, and we sit in awkward silence together. "You know I could just... go home, right?" I ask quietly.

"I cannot supervise you to make sure you take care of yourself if you are not here." He says bluntly. Right, the androids have a limited range they can go beyond the facility. Still in the early stages of their development. This is so... odd, though. They're supposed to be programmed for very specific personalities. Fact Core is supposed to just basically be a know-it-all, and he is, but... was caring added on later?

"You are staring." I blink when I realize that I have indeed been staring at him. "I'm sorry, it's just... why are you doing this? I know we've been working together for a little bit now but I've never thought we were 'close' or anything, just, work acquaintances I guess? I'm not upset, I promise, this is so kind but... not very like you, I suppose."

Fact looks away. I can hear actual gears turning in his head, like he's trying to figure out how to word this next part correctly. A minute or so passes before he's back to our plane of reality. "You have been one of the few staff members here who have shown me kindness. You do not call my vast knowledge annoying, or incorrect, or blatantly call me rude names. You respect me, and I have come to respect you. I enjoy working with you."

I smile at him. He's awkward, and granted his arrogance can be a bit much sometimes, but underneath that hardlight standoffish exterior, if you can find a way in, he's sweet. Even at this moment he's not trying to tell me he knows more about sickness than I do, he's just trying to help me feel better. I guess helping me be comfortable at least until my shift is over. "That's the nicest thing I've ever heard a Core say... thank you. I like working with you too."

We sit for a little longer on the couch, in awkward but peaceful silence. I guess I feel more off than I realized, because before I can stop myself, I start drifitng off. Since he doesn't seem to mind, I take advantage of my position and lay my head on his shoulder. I'm fast asleep in minutes.

The next thing I know, I hear Fact arguing with what sounds like my shift supervisor. Oh sh-

"Fact: working in fridges without the proper protection from the cold leads to illness, frostbite, and in dire cases, death. Aperture knows this and allows, no, requires their employees to continue working under these conditions with no regard to their wellbeing. Need I remind you that this is an employee, not a test subject." I must have been out of it, because I thought I was still just resting my head on Fact's shoulder. I am, but as I come to, I realize he's carrying me. I fell asleep, and he carried me all the way to the facility entrance so I could go home. My face burns, and not from the fever.

"This employee still has 2 hours left in their shift and work to be done. Sick or not, they should never be sleeping on the job. You know this. You were allowed to supervise them in the Cold Labs, and you let them sleep? We should put you back in your Sphere for this," my supervisor argues. I feel Fact tense up to retort, but I place my hand on his chest. He looks at me before gently setting me down.

I'm weak, sniffling, and want so badly back in his warmth to sleep again, but I stand in front of my supervisor as strongly as I can manage. "I do sincerely apologize for falling asleep, that was not my intention. However, I will agree with Fact Core that these working conditions are unsafe. I am in fact sick, and what would happen if I were to get mucus or other bodily fluids on the control subject? Thousands of dollars of experimentation in those gels and I just happen to sneeze and break the control's containment, or pass out in the Cold Labs and eventually pass from hypothermia? Not only would the company require funds to cover the legal fees to keep a death behind closed doors, but then my frozen decaying body could somehow contaminate the experiments we were already working on and we have to spend that money to start all over from scratch? Personally, I think the company is better off spending a little money to get us proper gear to work in, than spending mountains of money to deal with sickness, death, and all the consequences that come with it."

I think the icing on the cake is me finishing my grand monologue with a nasty wet cough. My supervisor's face is hard to read, but the fact that they backed away from me and grimaced means I got my point across. "Just... go home for now. I can't promise Mr. Johnson will like this idea of spending any kind of money he doesn't need to, but we do not want to deal with sickness in the Labs. Consider this a warning to not sleep on the job again, though." And with a shake of their head, my supervisor retreats.

I let out a long sigh. "Shall I carry you to your vehicle?" Fact asks. "No, I'm okay. I think that gave me enough adrenaline to at least make it home. But, listen... thank you. I've been meaning to say that for a while and, I don't know what it is, but you being here made it easier. And, of course, thank you for taking care of me."

Fact nods. "You are welcome. Fact: I am an excellent caretaker. Please seek me out when you have a need and I will always have the knowledge to help you." I chuckle, "Fact: I'll keep that in mind."

I'm cleared from work the next day, so I rest as much as I can. Which gives me plenty of time to think about everything that happened with Fact Core. Are the other Cores like this? Wheatley obviously has more human tendencies than the rest do. Space is... Space. And Rick is a walking HR violation. But Fact has always been more distant, more robotic than the rest. I'm not sure what I did to get him to show his more human side, but I can't complain. It was nice to have him open up a little, and I look forward to getting him out of his proverbial shell.