CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: COMPENSATION
A strange sound greeted my ears as I slowly regained consciousness. I couldn't make out what it was, but I was about to make out was that it was a consistent kind of sound. I tried opening my eyes, but a bright light prevented me from doing so. I groaned softly as I shifted slightly on something soft.
Something clicked in my head as soon as I realized it. Wait… soft? I shifted my body slightly again. Whatever it was that I was lying on was indeed soft. I tried to think about what it could be. At the same time, the sound I was hearing became clear. It turned out to be beeping.
'Where am I?' I thought to myself.
"Mihael?" came a soft, familiar voice. My eyes shot open, the bright light blinding me. I sat up quickly. The action made my head spin, but I ignored it.
At first, I couldn't make out where I was or who had spoken my name as my vision was blurry. I began blinking in an attempt to clear up my vision. As time went by, my vision slowly returned. After what felt like an eternity, my vision fully returned. I began to survey my surroundings.
I was in a small room with numerous cabinets on the left and right walls, a door on the right wall, and an IV and heart monitor to my right, which beeped consistently. My right leg was in a cast and resting in a leg sling. I looked to see that I was lying on a bed with a white silk draped over my other leg and halfway up my chest, which was bandaged up. It didn't take me long to figure out where I was.
'A hospital room,' I thought to myself. 'How did I get here?'
"Mihael?" came that familiar voice again. I looked to my right. My eyes widened in surprise.
Roxanne Wolf was standing beside the bed, relief very clear on her face. Oil was building up in her eyes as her body began shaking. I saw that she was damaged as some parts of her body were dented. She gasped before she wrapped her arms around me.
"Oh, Mihael!" she cried out. "I'm so glad you're awake! I was so worried!"
After a moment, I returned the gesture. As we hugged, I heard her choking on her sobs. I began patting her back as a way to comfort her.
"It's okay," I whispered. "You don't have to worry anymore."
It took a moment for something to click in my head. What the heck was going on? What was she even doing here? Where was everyone? Were they okay? This didn't make a whole lot of sense. Curiosity began to bubble up.
"Come to think of it, what are you doing here," I asked. "What even happened? Is everyone okay?"
Roxanne released me from the hug. I did the same. A remorseful expression formed on her face as she looked down at the floor. A wave of unease washed over me. I didn't like the looks of that.
"Roxanne," I began slowly. "What happened? Is my mother, Kyle, and everyone else okay?"
Roxanne didn't say anything. Instead, she kept her eyes on the floor as if she didn't want to look me in the eyes. I felt myself growing impatient with her. I wanted answers and Roxanne was the only one who had them.
"Roxanne, come on!" I demanded. "What happened?!"
Once again, Roxanne didn't say anything. I felt my anger boiling at this point. I just wanted to know what happened. It wasn't like I was asking for her to cut off her own hand or something like that at all.
Before I could say anything, Roxanne finally looked up from the floor. Her remorse grew slightly as she made eye contact with me. I waited for what she was going to do.
"A lot has happened, Mihael," Roxanne finally said. "But, before I tell you, I have to start at the beginning. However, before I do, I need you to promise that you won't get mad. You may not be happy with what I have to tell you, but please."
I thought about it. I didn't like how she wanted me to promise to not get mad at her. I'm not really proud of my temper. It's one of the things I despised about myself. Whatever it was that she had to tell me, I had to do what it took to not snap.
"Alright, you have my word," I said softly. Roxanne didn't smile, though there were traces of relief in her eyes.
"You remember I told you Peter brought me to the Pizzaplex?" she asked.
"Yes, I do," I said slowly. "Can you explain all of that?"
Roxanne stared at me for a moment before she sighed. She walked over to a chair and carried it over to the bed. She slowly sat down on it, making sure that she didn't break it by putting all of her weight onto it all at once. Once fully seated, she looked me in the eyes.
"Not long after you left, I decided to help you, but I needed some help on finding a way to get rid of what was allowing Afton to take over me," she began. "I didn't know if he would be much help, but I went over to Peter's house and told him the situation. Even he agreed that you were going to need all the help you could get. He let me come in and called Bella over. I was confused so I asked him why he was getting Bella involved.
"Peter told me that Bella works as an engineer, doing work on machines and robots and the like. When Bella came over, she was a bit surprised to see me. She asked why I was at their house and he informed her of the situation.
"After Peter explained it to her, Bella agreed to help. After she grabbed her tools, she asked if it was okay if she shut me off so she could work. I didn't like the idea, but the thought of you facing against Afton alone was enough for me to agree. She asked me to lay down on the floor, which I did, and she proceeded to turn me off. Sometime later, I was turned back on."
She paused, signs of hesitation clear on her face. I didn't know why, but something about the hesitation on her face gave off the impression that the wolf was holding something back. Something she didn't want to tell me at the moment. As much as I wanted to ask, I didn't allow myself to.
"When I fully rebooted, Bella informed me that she'd found the problem. I realized that she looked a little pale. I asked if she was okay and what the problem was, but she refused to discuss it. Not even Peter would tell me what it was that Bella found. He looked just as pale as Bella. I pushed for it, but they still didn't budge. So, I dropped it.
"When I did, Peter offered to drive me back to the Pizzaplex to assist you against Afton. I accepted. Peter asked Bella if she wanted to come along, but she refused. She did however tell us to be careful. We told her we will and so Peter drove me to the Pizzaplex."
Roxanne paused again for a moment. "When we got to the Pizzaplex, we went inside to see the Lobby all messed up. When we got to the elevator, I told Peter to stay in the Lobby. He refused, insisting he come along with me. I didn't want to argue so I agreed.
"When we got to the Atrium, I saw you being pinned down by Afton. I told Peter to stay low and out of it. Only come when I or you could fight him off anymore. When he agreed, that's when I came charging and pushed him off you."
I stared at her, unable to find the strength to speak. It made a lot of sense for how Peter would be the one to drive Roxanne to the Pizzaplex. On top of that, whatever the source was that Peter and Bella found, undoubtedly removed and got rid of prevented William from taking over Roxanne.
I couldn't help but get the feeling that Roxanne knew more than she was letting on. The way she paused for a moment was suspicious. The desire to know what was growing. I did my best to keep it at bay.
I suddenly remembered my mother and Kyle. William said that he had knocked some of the life out of them. A wave of concern washed over me, the urge to get up and find them overwhelming me. It took all I had to keep myself from launching myself off the bed.
"Roxanne, I need to know," I began to say, trying to sound casual. "Where's my mother? And Kyle?"
Roxanne didn't reply. Instead, she looked away from me, an uneasy expression forming on her face. I didn't like the looks of that. It was a sign that something bad happened. That fueled my concern even more.
"Roxanne, are they okay?" I begged. This time, she looked at me, a look of sorrow now taking over. I began to fear for the worse.
"After you collapsed, I went over to see if you were okay. I was relieved to see that you just fell unconscious. I called Peter over and told him to watch over you while I went to go look for Kyle and your mother.
"It took me a while, but I found them in Kyle's office. Kyle and your mother were badly beaten, but alive. However, it turns out that William did more than beat them. Kyle was missing an eye, multiple cuts all over his body which were bleeding, and his right arm was broken.
"Your mother…" She paused. "…she was missing some teeth, her right eye was swollen, her right had hideous slashes, and the worst part was…" She paused once again. "Mihael, her entire left leg was gone. Judging from the looks of it, it looked as though William ripped it out. I had to run to the nearest first aid station to get some bandages to tend to their wounds and stop the bleeding."
My eyes widened, a rush of anger flowing through me. Both of my hands clenched into hard fists, gripping the silk tightly. It was bad enough to know he beat my mother, but to learn that he ripped off her FUCKING leg out of all things was something else entirely. I feel just as bad for Kyle. He doesn't deserve to lose an eye all because of that lunatic.
It was everything I had to not freak out like a psycho. I was very certain it wouldn't do my injuries any good. Plus, I could hear the heart monitor beeping wildly as a result.
"What… happened then?" I growled through clenched teeth.
"After tending to their injuries, I carried them to the Atrium," she replied. "When I got there, I was horrified to see Peter lying on the floor with blood trailing down his head, unconscious. The worst part… William was gone."
That did it. I straightened my posture, my anger now beyond its boiling point.
"What?!" I shouted. "William was gone?!"
She nodded.
"How is that even possible?!" I continued. "I put a bullet through his head! He shouldn't have survived that!"
"I don't know how, Mihael," she replied softly. "All I know is that Afton is now either hiding somewhere within the Pizzaplex, no doubt angry with losing to you or he managed to escape and is now out there in Hurricane. We can worry about him later. Stressing all about him isn't going to do you any good."
Roxanne was right. I couldn't deny that. I heard that stress can worsen an injury. I had some pretty bad injuries so the last thing I needed was for my injuries to worsen.
"You're right," I said. "Now, what happened after that?"
She continued. "After I tended to Peter, I cleaned myself up before I took the Faz-Watch off of Kyle's wrist. I checked the cameras to see where my friends were, but I couldn't find them. After checking the cameras multiple times, I decided to call 911 to inform someone of the situation, something I've seen Kyle do many times.
"As soon as I explained the situation, a woman on the other end of the phone informed me that she would get both the police and a few ambulances over. She told me to keep an eye on you and the others, making sure to tend to the injuries of everyone until they arrived. I thanked her and hung up.
"It didn't take long for the police and some other people to come to the Pizzaplex. They were horrified to see the Pizzaplex in the state it was in. Of course, they blamed me for the damages, but I insisted that it wasn't me. It didn't work. In the end, they got you, your mother, Kyle, and Peter out of there. I followed behind them.
"They began loading you guys in the back of the ambulances. I didn't want to leave your side so I tried getting into the one they were putting you into. Of course, they refused to let me get in. I knew it wasn't smart, but I forced myself in, yelling at them that I wasn't going to leave your side. Seeing that I wasn't going to leave, they had no choice but to let me come along.
"When we got to the hospital, I was forced to sit in the hallway while the doctors did their work. I've been worried the entire time for you, your mother, Kyle, and Peter. After they did their work, I was told that you were all going to be fine and that I could see you now. When I went in, you looked so peaceful in your sleep. I've waited for you to wake up since then."
I stared at Roxanne as everything she told me sank in. That explained how I got here and why she was even here. I was worried for Peter as I had a feeling that William played in part of the man being hurt. I knew that I was going to have to deal with William in the future, but for now, I had to worry about the present.
"So, where's my mother, Kyle, and Peter?" I asked.
"They're all in separate rooms of the hospital," she replied. A nervous expression formed on her face. "Unfortunately, word of what happened spread and it caught someone's attention."
"Whose?" I asked. Right on cue, the door to the room opened. We looked to see a man I'd never seen before step inside and walk over to the left side of the bed.
The man looked to be around in his 40s with hair that was slowly turning white and had a round belly. He was wearing a business suit and his hair looked to be nicely groomed. He gave me a pleasant smile, though something about it didn't sit right with me.
"Hello there, Mr. Patel," he said pleasantly. "It's nice to see that you're finally awake."
"Um, who are you?" I asked curiously. He chuckled, but like the smile on his face, the laugh didn't sit right with me.
"I'm Cress Abaddon, CEO of Fazbear Entertainment," he replied. "I heard that you had bit of a… scuffle with someone back at the Mega Pizzaplex and I've been waiting for two days to have a chance to speak with you. I might say, you've had quite everyone worried for you."
I stared at him with slightly wide eyes. I couldn't believe that the CEO was standing before me. But the thing that caught my full attention was him saying that he had been waiting for 2 days to have a chance to talk to me. Did that mean he had been waiting in the hospital or did he just get here? Something didn't sit right with me whatsoever.
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked. He chuckled again.
"You see, when I heard what happened at the Pizzaplex two days ago, I decided to pay you a visit so we could talk things out as adults," Cress replied. "I've been sitting in the Lobby for the two days for you to wake up. It just so happened that a nurse walked by your room and heard you talking to Roxy here. She informed me right away. I came here as soon as I can."
He looked at Roxanne, but Roxanne didn't look at him. I saw the corners of his mouth twitching, looking like he was trying to keep that smile of his from turning into something else. It took all I had to keep myself from narrowing my eyes at him. Whatever it was he wanted to talk to me about, I had a gut feeling that it wasn't anything good.
He looked back at me. "You see, Mr. Patel, whatever happened to you at the Pizzaplex is something I prefer not to be mentioned at all." He reached his right hand into his suit, digging for something no doubt. "So, I think it would be best if I can have you sign this so that we can settle this peacefully."
He pulled out a piece of paper with wording on it. He handed it to me. I took it as he handed me a pen, which I took as well. I slowly looked at him.
"Once you sign this paper, you are not obligated to talk or even mention what happened to you, freeing us from any responsibility for what took place," he said, obviously trying to keep his smile from growing. "What do you say, Mr. Patel?"
I looked back at the paper, taking the time to read what was on it carefully. My father always warned me to read things carefully as things may not look as they seem. When I got to the bottom of the paper, a single sentence caught my eye.
'Signing this agreement, Fazbear Entertainment will not be legally responsible for any injury, death, or dismemberment during your stay at any location.'
It took me a moment to realize what this was. Cress was planning to get my silence, as well as free him from having any legal action taken against him if something else were to happen to me. That was the whole purpose of him waiting for me to wake up in the first place. It took me a moment to realize that everything happened all because he allowed it to happen. It all made sense; he knew what was happening and didn't bother at DOING ANYTHING!
Something snapped within me, flowing all throughout my entire body at once. My body began shaking as my left hand slowly balled into a tight fist, crumpling the paper a bit. There was NO way I was going to sign this! After what happened, especially to my mother, Kyle, and Peter, as well as him humiliating my father at the courthouse, I was going to get some compensation for all of it. It was time to make this man pay for EVERYTHING!
I lowered the paper so I was making eye contact with him. The smile on his face weakened slightly, taking a step back. A small trace of fear formed on his face.
"Mr. Patel?" Cress said, his voice shaking slightly. I didn't say anything.
I let go of the pen and grabbed the top of the paper with both of my hands. Without warning, I tore the paper in half. The room was filled with the sound of paper being torn. When I was done, I proceeded to violently rip the paper into pieces. I tossed all of the pieces at Cress, the man shielding himself with his hands.
"Are… you… FUCKING STUPID?!" I shouted angrily, that same fury I unleashed on Peter over a week prior. Roxanne stepped back away from the bed, fear clear on her face. "DO YOU TAKE ME FOR A FUCKING IDIOT?! AFTER EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENED, DID YOU HONESTLY THINK I WAS GOING TO LET THIS SLIDE?!"
"Now… now, Mr. Patel. There's no need for this," he begged.
"OH, THERE IS A NEED FOR THIS FUCKING SHIT!" I retorted. "YOU'RE NOT GETTING OUT OF THIS, CRESS! MY MOTHER LOST A FUCKING LEG AND KYLE IS MISSING AN EYE BECAUSE OF THAT MONSTER! I ENDED UP WITH BROKEN RIBS AND A BROKEN LEG BECAUSE OF HIM! YOU'RE GOING TO BET YOUR SORRY ASS THAT I WANT COMPENSATION FOR THIS!"
Beads of sweat formed on his head, the fear on his face growing a bit. He was shaking in his shoes. Rightfully so.
"Now… Mr. Patel, we can address this in a more-" he began to say before I reached for the collar of his shirt and pulled him down to the bed. I pressed my face against his.
"LISTEN TO ME, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" I continued. "DON'T THINK I'M UNAWARE THAT IT WAS YOU WHO HUMILIATED MY FATHER IN FRONT OF EVERYONE IN THAT COURTHOUSE, ROBBING HIM OF HIS DIGNITY AND HONOR, WHICH DROVE HIM TO TAKE A KNIFE TO HIS THROAT! I KNOW ABOUT THE MISSING KIDS INCIDENT THAT TOOK PLACE AT ONE OF YOUR OLD LOCATIONS WHERE I HAVE NO DOUBT IN MIND HAD THEIR BODIES STUFFED INTO THE MASCOTS! I KNOW THAT YOU WERE AWARE OF WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING AT THE PIZZAPLEX 10 YEARS PRIOR AND ROBBED A WOMAN OF HER FREEDOM SINCE YOU MADE EVERYONE THINK SHE IS INSANE! IF YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING TO GET OUT OF THIS SCOTT-FREE, YOU'RE SADLY MISTAKEN! IF YOU DON'T WANT ME TO MAKE YOUR LIFE A LIVING HELL, YOU ARE GOING TO FULFILL EVERY SINGLE ONE OF MY DEMANDS! YOU GOT THAT?!"
Cress was shaking uncontrollably at this point. If there was ever a moment where he was going to piss himself, right now would be the perfect time. However, I didn't pick up the smell of urine, which was fine. All I cared about was making him pay.
He let out a shaky sigh. "O-okay, Mr. Patel. W-what do y-you want from m-me?"
I allowed an evil smile spread across my face. I watched Cress's face grow pale at this. I knew exactly what I wanted from him and I was going to let him have it.
"First, I want to have permanent legal custody of Roxanne Wolf," I began. "If I remember correctly, William said something about how you should've scrapped Roxanne from the start. That means that you told Kyle to scrap her instead of saying that she could stay at my house, which was the whole reason Kyle was hesitant to tell me what you said to him and made up those conditions."
His eyes widened at this, his face growing paler. That was all the proof I needed to understand Kyle's actions that day.
"Second, you're going to pay for the bills for me, my mother, Kyle, and Peter," I continued. "You are also going to pay to allow my mom to have a prosthetic leg and Kyle for an eye replacement."
Cress began shaking, the man looking like he was going to faint right there and then.
"Third, you're going to continue finding the missing bodies of the kids and when you find them, you will inform the parents that lost them that they've been found and will be given a proper burial," I pressed on. Sweat began trailing down his face, which made this all the more satisfying.
"Fourth, you're going to give me, my mother, Kyle, and Peter a total of $100,000 every two weeks for the rest of your lives," I growled through my teeth. "You guys are rich so I don't see why you can't do that."
Cress let out a silent gasp. My smile grew slightly at this. There were three more I wanted to lay out on him.
"Fifth, you're going to find a replacement for Roxanne since you clearly intended to get rid of her, no doubt wanting to use her parts to make a new one," I said. "Sixth, you and your employers are going to help me move my stuff back into my mother's house since I want you to renovate my current house so there's more room for me and Roxanne.
"Finally, you're going to set up a big celebration in the Atrium in two months. If you don't follow through with my demands, I'm going to ruin your lives and make it all a living hell. Do I make myself clear?"
Cress went into deep thought. I waited patiently for his response. I swear on every fiber of my being, that if he didn't agree, I was going to follow through with my threat. I knew where to hit him so Cress better make the right choice.
Cress gulped before he sighed. "Understood, Mr. Patel. I will make sure your demands are fulfilled."
"Good," I growled. "Now get the hell out of here and never bother me or my family."
I let him go. Without warning, he turned and ran out of the room as fast as he could, slamming the door shut behind me. I couldn't help but chuckle at this. It was both a relief and satisfying that I got him to agree to fulfill what I wanted. Served him right.
I looked at Roxanne, who was shaking with oil building up in her eyes. The smile left my face, the rage washing away. I had no idea if what she was feeling was anything good or bad. I could only hope that I didn't make the wrong move here.
Before I could say anything, Roxanne lunged at me, wrapping her arms around me. I gasped before I calmed myself. I slowly wrapped my arms around her, returning the gesture. She began choking on her sobs.
"Thank you, Mihael," she whispered.
"For what?" I said.
"For what you did," she said. "You were right about Cress wanting to scrap me. After you went into the shower, your mother confessed to me that Kyle made up those conditions as the CEO planned to scrap me that day at 10 AM. She took your place so you could keep an eye on me. I'm sorry I didn't tell you this, Mihael. I hope you can forgive me."
My eyes widened at this. I knew my mother took over to help find William, but I had no idea that she told Roxanne about that. A wave of anger washed over me at the fact that she hid this from me. At the same time, I understood why she didn't tell me. She probably didn't because my mom might've made Roxanne promise that she won't tell me as she had an idea that I was going to go apeshit on the CEO if I knew.
I began patting her back softly.
"It's okay, Roxanne," I whispered. "No hard feelings."
That did it for her. Roxanne began to cry uncontrollably. I shed a few tears of my own. I had no idea what was going to happen once he made a move. I would worry about that later. Right now at this very moment, everything was going to be okay.
*2 WEEKS AFTER THE FIGHT*
I let out a low, bored sigh, staring up at the ceiling. Waves of boredom and frustration washed over me. The sound of the heart monitor beeping consistently and the TV broadcasting whatever show Roxanne was watching echoed throughout the room. While I was used to sitting or lying down in a place for hours on end, doing it for the past two weeks was another thing entirely.
To top it all off, I had no idea if Cress followed through with fulfilling my demands. Not once had that fucker come to see me to let me know if he did. Probably not having the balls to come face me after what happened. What a coward.
"You okay, Mihael?" Roxanne asked, no doubt having heard me sigh in boredom.
"No, Roxanne, I'm not," I replied a little harshly. "It just sucks that I have to be here for 4 to 6 weeks for my bones to fully heal. This is torture."
I looked at Roxanne to see her looking at me with worry. She walked over to the bed, resting her hand on my right shoulder.
"I know," she said softly. "I'm sorry it has to be this way. At least I'm here with you."
"That makes things a little easier," I added. "I'm grateful that you're here."
She smiled softly. I couldn't help but give her a smile of my own. I was glad she was here with me. I couldn't even imagine what it would be like if she wasn't here. No doubt that I would've gone mad from boredom.
Soft knocking on the door caught our attention. We turned to look at it. I resisted the urge to groan. Something told me that it was either the nurse or the doctor standing outside the door. However, something clicked. If it was them, wouldn't they just come in rather than knock? Something didn't add up.
"Who is it?" I called out.
"It's me, Kyle," a voice called out. "I came to see you. It is okay if I can come in?"
I looked at Roxanne, who in turn looked at me. I had no idea why Kyle was standing behind the door when he was supposed to be in his room, but whatever it was that Kyle wanted to talk about, it had to be something very important.
We nodded and turned our attention back to the door.
"Yes, you can come in," I called out. The door swung open and Kyle stepped inside.
I cringed upon seeing him. The man's right arm was in a cast held by a black arm sling. He had multiple cuts and bruises all over his body, all of which were close to being fully healed. Seeing him like that, I couldn't help but think about how bad my mother looked.
"How are you feeling, Mihael?" Kyle asked, his voice snapping me out of my thoughts.
"Trying to find a way to not die from boredom," I replied. "Other than that, I'm alright."
Kyle chuckled. "Good to hear."
"Why are you not in your room, Kyle?" I asked. "The doctors might have your head if they see you're not in your room."
He chuckled again. "I was given the okay to leave today, Mihael. They had me in bed for two weeks so that they could take care of my wounds. Don't worry. Besides, it wouldn't be a good idea to give any of the doctors or nurses a heart attack."
He began to laugh. I wanted to laugh, but I didn't want to risk the pain of my broken ribs hitting me like a truck. After a moment, he stopped, a somewhat serious expression forming on his face.
"Listen, has the CEO ever visited you for the last two weeks?" he asked.
"No, he hasn't," I replied. I gave him a curious look. "Why?"
"Well, there's something I have to tell you," he said. That caught my attention. I perked up on the bed, staring at him intently.
"What is it?" I asked He sighed and looked me in the eye.
"It has something to do with the CEO and what has been going on recently," he replied.
"Well, spit it out," I urged. He took a deep breath, no doubt in an attempt to steel his nerves. His expression hardened.
"For starters, the CEO came to visit me in my room two weeks ago," he began. "From the expression on his face, he was both afraid and angry at the same time. I asked him what business he had with me. He told me everything that happened with you, and why he was there in the first place. It took everything I had to not laugh at it all. I couldn't believe you, out of all people, did that. After he told me, he left the room, humiliated.
"I got my eye replacement two days later. The next day, he visited me to let me know that he and some of his employers had moved all of your stuff out of your current house and into your mother's house. I asked him why he was telling me that. He confessed that he had no intention of seeing you, not after what you did. I had no idea if it was out of humiliation or fear, but he refused to set foot inside the room.
"For two weeks, he visited me, letting me know that each of your demands were being fulfilled. While they weren't able to find the bodies, he did compensate all of the families who lost their kids. He also informed me that Roxy was staying in your room until you and your mother recovered.
"When I was given the okay to leave today, the CEO took me back to the Pizzaplex, which by now the repairs were completed. When we got there, I asked him if the others were okay. He said yes and that they were in their green rooms. After that, he left.
"As soon as he left, I went to Rockstar Row where I was greeted by Freddy, Chica, and Monty, who were happy to see I was okay. They asked where I'd been the whole time. I told them everything. They asked when Roxy was going to come back. You have no idea how hard it was to tell them that part."
He paused. "Mihael, while Freddy and Monty took the news okay, Chica was another thing. She fell to her knees and began crying uncontrollably. I've never seen her so heartbroken and devastated. We did our best to calm her down, which was no easy task. When we did, Chica began expressing her fears of never being able to see Roxy again. I remembered that the CEO told me that Roxy was staying with you in your room at the hospital.
"I told them that I had to go somewhere and would be right back. I exited the building, got in the car, and drove all the way here to see you." He paused. "Mihael, I know she will be under your care permanently, but is there a way we can come up with a compromise that will make everyone happy?"
I stared at him for a moment, thinking about his words carefully. To be honest, I felt really bad for Chica. I couldn't even imagine what went through the chicken's mind upon learning that Roxanne was never coming back. It took me a moment to realize I made a folly. I would be getting legal custody of Roxanne, but that would mean keeping Roxanne away from her friends.
I mentally slapped myself for that. How in the world I didn't think of that will be a mystery to me. However, I couldn't dwell on that for long. I had to think of a way, something that would make both Roxanne and everyone else happy.
Something clicked in my mind. I smiled as an idea slowly formed in my head. I looked at Roxanne for a moment before returning my full attention back to Kyle.
"Kyle, I think I came up with a solution," I said. He walked over to me, anticipation clear on his face.
"What is it?" he asked. I motioned for him to lower his head so I could whisper it in his ear. He did what he was told.
I cupped a hand over the right side of my mouth and began to whisper the idea to him. I had to make sure I said low enough so Roxanne didn't hear, but low enough for Kyle to understand what I was saying. After a moment, I stopped and laid my head back down on the pillow.
Kyle looked at me with wide eyes, a smile forming on his face.
"That… is a great idea, Mihael!" he said. "I will let the CEO know about it. Chica is going to flip when she hears this."
"Go let Chica know," I said. "She and the others have the right to know."
He nodded. With that, Kyle left the room, closing the door behind him. I looked at Roxanne, who was looking at me with a curious look on her face.
"What did you tell him?" she asked.
I smirked. "You'll find out soon enough, Roxanne. I think it's something you'll be very happy about."
Author's Note:
Here is the twenty-fifth chapter of Robotic Love! :D
This was somewhat of an easy chapter as I had this all planned out in my head since the very beginning. I hope you guys found Mihael going crazy and laying out the demands on the CEO was satisfying because I find it to be so.
Again, don't worry about the other animatronics. They will make an appearance in the next chapter. I never planned on killing them off.
That's all for now. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Work on Twenty-Six began during the writing for Twenty-Five so it's close to being done. All constructive criticism is appreciated and I will see you guys in the final chapter of this story! :)
Update: Added more content to clear up what I have in mind for the final chapter. :)