Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria 11:30am
Weekends at Freddy's was normally the busiest set of days of the week. There was extremely limited floorspace to manoeuvre for the staff which their job a living hell. Ashley was finishing her duty of stacking the pizza boxes when a hesitant couple of steps could be heard from behind her. "Ashley, hey." Jason muttered, perking up the courage to approach her for the first time since their night together.
"Hey, Jason," Ashley stammered unprepared for Jason to start a conversation, "Could you pass me that drawer of cutler, it's my rota to polish them."
"Oh, yeah sure." Jason handed Ashley the drawer and rubbed the back of his neck thinking of a full proof way to apologise. "About that night, Ash."
"Listen, it's fine we don't have to torture ourselves by talking about it, it was a stupid mistake, we can move past it." Ashley was not ready to deal with two heart-breaking conversations today, knowing she had Mike to face on her break.
"If we do that, then it's over," Jason grew restless, pacing back and forth, "I don't want it to be over. When I mentioned those things to Mike it's because I want there to be something here, Ash. Something more." Ashley let out a loud sigh as if knocking Jason off his self-procured pillar of confidence.
"Jason," Ashley stopped herself from lashing out at him again, "Right now, there isn't going to be something here. I'm in a difficult spot, you know my feelings for Mike, it's you I can confide in about them! This feels like disrespect coming from you right now I don't need it." Jason stopped himself from saying something stupid and clicked on to how Ashley was feeling.
"Oh my god, you're right." Jason ran his face through his hands, "I'm sorry. I have been carried away with how I was feeling and not anything you must be going through."
"I appreciate it," Ashley breathed a sigh of relief, "I think you should apologise to Mike as well, for nearly breaking his jaw. That was also way too far."
"Yeah, I feel terrible for doing that, and also him seeing us, you know, like that." Jason began to walk away but ending the conversation here didn't sit right with him. "Ashley, just one more thing."
"Yeah?" Ashley couldn't think what Jason had to say next.
"You say I wasn't thinking about you in this situation and I agree with that, it was selfish of me," Jason stopped to face her again, "But what would you call it when I had confessed my feelings to you, YOU sleep with me, then YOU shut me out? I can't wrap my head around that one." Ashley felt the tears welling up in the back of her eyes.
"Jason."
"I'll lay low Ashley, you obviously need time to think everything over, but just remember I'm not the only wrong one in this situation."
Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria 12:10pm
Mike left the Owner's office with a sense of purpose as Terry slowly closed the office to have himself cleaned up in private. Walking past the same Kid finishing up his mopping duties, he gave him a proud glance without stopping. "Let me know if the boss doesn't give you a bonus." He made his way to his office but before heading straight there he decided to make a stop behind the main stage. Approaching the Technician's office, the constant sound of children's gleeful screaming began to drone out, instead, the soft scrawling noise of pen and paper could be heard emanating from the office. The old, grizzled technician was sat at his desk jotting away plans in his notebook. Mike gave a pairing of soft knocks on the open office door before leaning against the door frame.
"Look who's risen from the dead," The technician lay his pen down beside the notepad before closing it, "How's the injuries, kid?"
"I'll live," Mike laughed with the technician as he stood up to greet Mike's gaze. His brown uniform was oil stained and well-worn. "Listen I was wondering," Mike stopped leaning against the door, "You've worked here for a long time haven't you"
"I've been in and out." The technician's answer left Mike feeling less sure than before.
"When you received, your employee handbook did you have any weird images and drawings in it?" Mike proceeded to pull his handbook out of his bag. He handed it to the technician hoping to get some answers. After a short couple of minutes flipping through the manual, the technician turned to the back of the booklet to scan through the weird blueprints in the back.
"Ah, I see what happened here," The technician carefully went over the blueprints and scribbled words detailing different upgrades, "Terry has cut costs by giving you a previous employees handbook, looks to be a technician." The technician pondered over the prints for a while. "What I don't understand is that these blueprints are for a type of animatronic suit with springlock features, designs I've not seen in a VERY long time" The Technician finally ended up on the back page, the stained family photo. His face grew ghostly white in almost an instant. "Terry handed this manual to you himself. It wasn't anyone else?" Mike became troubled at the technicians' new scowl.
"It was definitely Terry," Mike answered, "Do you know the people in this photo?" The technician slowly closed the manual and handed it back to Mike as if passing him a family heirloom.
"That I do, It's my family." Mike's eyes widened to the technicians' new announcement.
"Wait it's your family? I don't understand." The technician knew he had some explaining to do. He beckoned for Mike to come in the room and closed the door behind them.
"Okay basically," The technician began describing his history within the Fazbear Family, "That's my family in that photo. My dad was Charlie Fazbear's head technician and creator of the Fazbear line of animatronics"
"Wait, Charlie? As in Terry's dad? Isn't that nutcase in a mental hospital upstate?"
"That's the one," The technician sat down in his chair again and rubbed his face, "for good reason as well." Mike sat at a chair opposite the technician desperate for more information. "Have you heard about the mysterious disappearances of children in the past years surrounding the previous diner and this place?" The technician queried. Mike, not wanting the technician to know that he spends his evening talking to the lost souls of the kids in question decided to answer with a brief yet slow nod. "Well what the papers don't tell you is that my family also happened to have went missing at the same time; my mom, my two siblings and eventually, my dad ended up disappearing as well." Mike was speechless. He couldn't believe the rabbit hole he'd just found himself down. If it wasn't just kids that went missing but an entire family so closely related to the Fazbear's as well. The fingers all began to point to one conclusion.
"You believe Charlie Fazbear had something to do with all of this." Mike was finally up to speed with the technician's story.
"I'm almost certain, and now you're roped into it as well I almost feel entitled to share my secret with you."
"What's more secretive than this?" Mike puzzled.
"I'm not here because I enjoy working under that incompetent piece of crap," the technician grew to an even more somber tone, "I'm here because I'm trying to gain as much information from Terry about his dad as possible, I want to end this whole mystery one and for all." Mike could almost cry. He felt a tsunami of emotion hit him all at once. The first time in a long time he felt really anything. The main feeling he held though was the fact he wasn't the only one fighting for the truth. Mike debated whether it was a good idea to introduce the technician to his animatronic leads. After an internal battle in which Mike was weighing up the pros and cons to introducing his new friends to the technician, he was interrupted to the technician's hand resting on his shoulder.
"The face you're making almost makes it seem like you know something, well?" The technician poked. Mike fell back to reality.
"Listen I can't say anything here and now, Meet me outside the Pizzeria tonight before my shift. Until then bring every piece of physical evidence you have on this with you, I'll help you solve it." The technician's eyes lit up as he removed his hand off of Mike's shoulder.
"I don't know what you know, kid, but I'll trust you." The technician opened up his notepad once again and gave a triumphant sigh, "Right, I better get back to these new blueprints I'm drawing up, Terry's asked for new designs of the original four, more of a 'kid friendly/toy' design this time, must be planning something stupid."
"No worries, I'll leave you to it." Mike stood up and checked the wristwatch on his left wrist, "SHIT, I'm late for Ashley, I gotta run… I still don't know you're name." The technician realised he had withheld his name from almost everyone that didn't need to know it in case they began to put two and two together. He let out a defeated smile.
"Micheal Afton, Nice to officially meet you, kid." Mike smiled at the technician and left the office in a hurry. He thought to himself about how Michael shared an almost identical name to him and that it might cause some bumps down the road. He rushed over to the second, smaller party room to see Ashley back at work. He approached her with a sorrowful look on his face.
"I'm late, I can't apologise enough to, I was caught up with the technician through the back." Ashley lay don her cloth and spray bottle she was using to clean up after a party.
"I won't even ask what you and the technician had to talk about," Ashley responded with a sad expression, trying to make light of the situation.
"It was just work stuff, can we have that chat now?" Mike gently poked, taking a seat in the empty party room.
"I would, but Terry would go nuts if he caught us, I'll head over to your place tonight, seems more appropriate anyway rather than discussing something so depressing while surrounded by balloons and smiling pictures, anyway." Mike let out a short sigh and rested his hands on the table.
"You can come round tonight but can we at least talk here first? It feels wrong not seeing you everyday now." Mike tried to meet Ashley's gaze but she wouldn't look in his direction.
"Fine," Ashley took a seat next to mike, "I've missed you too, but I just couldn't find the right moment to see you." Mike flashed his mind back to the other night when he was inebriated.
"Yeah, I didn't get to actually thank you for that properly yet, How about when you come over tonight I can order that pizza you like? From little Italy's?" Ashley forced a weak smile.
"A cheap takeaway pizza's not gonna help ease the tension, mike."
"It could help?" Mike and Ashley both shared a genuine laugh together. Just as the pair finished laughing Terry came storming into the party room, nose wrapped in a makeshift bandage.
"Ashley, you just had your break! Get back to work! Fucksake." Terry was projecting his anger from his earlier conversation with Mike to his staff. He didn't realise however that Mike was still here and sitting directly behind Ashley. Mike stood up and didn't have to open his mouth before Terry choked at the sight of him and swallowed his next set of words. "You know what? Have another break. Just have this place clean before 1!" Terry stormed out of the room growing increasingly more annoyed at the fact Mike now ran this place.
"What was that about?" Laughed Ashley. Mike just shrugged, knowing full well that he owned Terry now, after all, it's what that predator deserved.
"Anyway, listen, I just want to preface our chat later with the fact that whatever you and Jason get up to is NONE of my business." Ashley seemed taken aback by Mike's sudden burst of maturity, as she's always known him as the bright yet immature character she grew up with.
"That's not the issue, the issue is that I was upset after you brushed me off that day and I stupidly opened my mouth to Jason who then, you know, hurt you," Ashley took a sharp breath, "I don't want it to look like I slept with him because he hurt you. That is NOT what happened." Mike let out a sheepish laugh.
"Don't worry, I know you wouldn't do something like that," Mike paused taking in a breath, "Ashley look, for the past little while I've known you've felt differently towards me than I did for you." Ashley looked down but perked her head up after going over what Mike just said.
"Did? As in past tense?" Ashley finally met Mike's gaze, "You see me differently now too?" Mike nodded and Ashley couldn't help but smile however immediately stopped herself.
"Listen, mike," Ashley began, "I've had these feelings for a long time yet you always seemed oblivious, why now?" Mike thought over her question for a second before summing up his situation.
"I just didn't think I had anything to offer a girlfriend, I've not been right for a long time, my mind has always been wandering to different places, ever since the foster homes." Mike grew silent after admitting how he really felt. Ashley rested a hand on his shoulder to console him.
"That's for your girlfriend to decide, not you," Ashley was almost fully convinced on becoming something more with Mike but she brought herself back down rather quickly, "But, there's some things I have to sort out with Jason now before we even begin to move further with, whatever this is." Mike looked at Ashley again with an understanding smile.
"Yeah there's got to be some kind of awkward talk there, I'm sure," Mike stood up and headed towards the door, "Still on for pizza tonight?"
"Of course, you're paying." Ashley smiled and got back to work. Before leaving the building completely he glanced over to terry's office and noticed Terry standing there watching him. He stopped in his tracks to face him.
"Leave it unlocked." Mike turned back to the doors and laid his hands on the bar. Before opening the door, he felt a hand rest on his shoulder. It was Jason. Mike pulled away from him expecting another broken bone but Jason's face read only apologetically.
"Mike, hey," Jason began, "I just want to apologise for before, It was not my best moment." Mike, with his new found confidence of the day, reached out to shake Jason's hand. Jason looked down and sighed a breath of relief as the two men shook hands.
"Don't worry about it, Jason, I deserved that beating," Mike opened the door to the pizzeria, "Ashley's lucky to have someone like you caring for her, don't let that change for nothing." Jason gave a genuine smile and nodded, feeling like things were finally going his way. Mike left the pizzeria and headed home to prepare for his next night at Freddy's Back at his apartment he lay the manual down on his breakfast bar and flipped to the family photo. The middle child, smiling at the camera with a goofy grin, finally resonated with Mike as he realised that it was Michael. The older boy had a weak, almost uninterested smile and the Youngest, the baby of the siblings, grinned her teeth to the point you couldn't see the sides of her cheeks. Mike knew that this family, excluding Michael had probably already met with the same of the original four animatronics and god knows who else but he couldn't help but share a smile with them. He prepared for his night with Ashley by taking a long overdue shower and setting his breakfast bar with the finest cutlery he owned, which wasn't very expensive to begin with.
Mike's Apartment 8:30pm
Mike was awoken from his nap with a knock at the door. It was Ashley. He unbolted the lock and let her in. "Hey! Welcome back." Mike smiled. He went in for a hug but was stopped in his tracks as he felt it to be too soon and now increasingly more awkward since revealing his feelings to her earlier in the day. Ashley reciprocated his greeting and hung her jacket up on Mike's coat rack. "How was work?" Mike questioned.
"It was work, as normal," Ashley joked, "It got weird as soon as you left though, Terry just become unbearable to be around, snapping at everything I did or said." Mike made a mental note of that to bring up to Terry next time he saw him.
"Yeah, I've only been there for a little while but even I can pick up on the fact that he's an asshole." Ashley sat down at the breakfast and picked up the candle Mike had left in the middle.
"One conversation and you're already trying to woo me, I'm honoured." Laughed Ashley setting it back on the counter.
"Only the best, my lady." Jested Mike slowly becoming his normal self around Ashley again, "So catch me up, What have I missed?" Ashley looked up as if pondering to what had actually changed in the time Mike and her had stopped interacting.
"Honestly, nothing really, work was the same but Jason has been avoiding me," Ashley stopped, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't bring him up."
"No don't worry, really, You can talk about him." Mike gestured for her to continue.
"Well, he had always been there for me, sort of how I was for you, It's just been strange having neither of you there to talk to, kind of lonely." Ashley didn't have many friends since leaving high school other than the colleagues she grew close to at Freddy's and mike of course.
"Yeah, I bet it has, I missed having you annoy me everyday." Mike joked hoping to make Ashley feel better. Ashley shared a laugh and then turned to the clock.
"Nearly 9, will we order that pizza ten, smart guy?" Ashley turned to face mike again.
"Sure," Mike walked to the phone on the wall, "Pepperoni?" Ashley nodded and mike picked up the phone. The night began to pass as laughs were shared and memories swapped of their times together in high school. The hands of the clock spun to almost midnight as Ashley started to grab her things and head home. Mike walked her to the door and began to close out the night. "Tonight felt normal again." Mike smiled.
"Yeah, it's nice to have this again." Ashley tucked her coat under her arm, "Mike, let's not lose touch again, I don't think I could take it." As Ashley finished her sentence mike leant in and Kissed her for a couple of seconds before pulling away slowly. Ashley couldn't gather her thoughts quick before leaning back into Mike and kissing him again, this time for longer.
"Night, Ash." Whispered Mike, slowly falling back inside.
"Yeah, goodnight." Ashley walked back to her car and drove home. Mike wandered to his bedroom to grab his uniform and changed into it, prepared for introducing Michael to his four animatronic friends.
Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria 11:50pm
Michael pulled into the car park as Mike was pressed up against the side of his car, waiting for him. "Well, what have you got for me?" Pressured Michael, rising out of the driver's seat of his car. Mike gestured him towards the doors to the buildings as the cleaning staff locked them inside. Once inside mike led the technician to his office and threw down his bag.
"Did you bring all the evidence you've collected so far?" Questioned Mike.
"Yeah, I've got it here." Michael answered lifting his briefcase onto Mike's desk.
"Perfect," Mike nodded, knowing that the next thing he had to do was some introductions. He walked Michael through the building into the main party room where the four dormant animatronics lay lifeless.
"Creepy place to have a discussion, don't you think?" Poked Michael, unable to remove his gaze from the stage performers.
"For what I'm about to show you, It's pretty fitting. Just don't freak out okay?" Mike cautioned the technician who's face only grew more and more concerned.
"It takes a lot to freak me out, kid, I'll be fine." Mike nodded and turned to face the animatronics on stage and with a deep breath, folded his arms.
"Okay, gang, show time."