Chapter 3

He shook himself awake that night. He wished that the previous night had been a dream. He knew he was in danger if he did not return and in danger if he did. He peeked out the window before he took a shower and after because he was paranoid. If he had a car, he would drive away from it all.

His parents died in a car crash the month before. The car was left to him, but it was totaled. He did not want to hang on to it anyway. It would just be another painful memory.

He walked out of the house and locked the door. He planned it to where he would get there early. He wanted to be prepared in case anything happened.

He realized as he was walking that he never checked his phone. His friends had been trying to contact him all day.

He thumbed out messages telling them of his new job. Most of them were shocked because of the rumors. His closest friend wanted to come and sit with him at work. He thought it would be nice to have his friend with him for company and an extra set of eyes. He texted the address.

He arrived at the place and waited in the parking lot. His friend pulled up some time later. He peeked in the door to make sure it was clear and let his friend sneak into the bathrooms until midnight.

The manager met up with him at the exit.

"That must be your car." The manager said, pointing out his friend's car.

"Yeah that is mine." The guard replied. "I was out taking a walk last night when I got the flier. That is why I was on foot last night."

"No need to explain yourself." The manager said. "Good night and talk to you in the morning…I hope."

Those little superfluous words at the end of the manager's sentences were kind of annoying to the night guard.

He signaled to his friend that the coast was clear.

"Well this place is awful eerie at night, wouldn't you agree Dave?" His friend asked.

The guard's name was Dave Perkins. He was 23 years old.

"You don't know the half of it." Dave replied. His friend's name was Andy Sanders. The clock struck 12. His friend wanted to explore a little more before heading to the office.

"What is the worst that could happen?" Andy asked.

They walked around for a moment. Andy ended up at the stage. He looked up at the characters. Bonnie looked down at Andy and hopped off the stage. Andy shrieked as the bunny grabbed him.

"Y-Y-You're not f-following the r-rules." Bonnie said.

"Let be go you freak!" Andy yelled. Dave leaped in and helped free him. Bonnie narrowed his eyes and let out a screech.

The friends ran to the office.

"We have to get out of here!" Andy yelled.

"The only exit is behind Freddy." Dave replied.

"What have you gotten us into?" Andy asked.

"I did not know what was going on when I took this job." Dave sat in the chair. He picked up the cam. Bonnie was in the parts room directly in front of the camera. He threw the device to the floor as if it were coated in germs.

"This place is a big strategy game at night." Dave continued. "These animatronics have the impression of being bolted down during the day. At night, however, they have a mind of their own. They shake loose their bolts and find a way to get into your office. If they get in, they drag you to the parts room to get stuffed into a suit. The suits are a death trap with wires that pierce skin and cross bars that impale the bodies. I cannot escape and I cannot survive."

Andy sat in silence for a moment. He was kind of put down by all of this. His best friend lost his family and now he could lose his best friend.

"How many nights do you have to work?" Andy asked.

"All I have to do is survive the required five nights." He replied. "Even if I do, I still do not think I am free."

"After the fifth night, I will have the police shut this place down to get you out.'' Andy said. "All you have to do is survive these five nights. I do not want to lose a friend."

Dave heard gears turning outside the door. He remembered they were still in danger. He ran and shut the door.

He played the message for that night.

"…Freddy and his friends tend to be more active as the week progresses…"

He skipped ahead again.

"Check on the curtain in Pirate's Cove from time to time…"

It clicked in his mind. Foxy was active the previous night. He looked and Foxy looked like he was about to make a run for it.

Chica was coming up on his right too.

"They are all active tonight!" Dave exclaimed aloud.

He noticed Freddy was still on the stage. He wondered why Freddy didn't attack.

"…Freddy himself doesn't come off stage very often. I've heard he becomes a lot more active in the dark though…"

Now he knew why there was a power limit. He just sighed and went through the camera flipping. Andy didn't speak as he did not want to break Dave's focus. When the left door was clear, Andy opened it for him.

"You still have not told me how I am going to get out without your manager noticing." Andy finally said.

"Take the Emergency Exit behind the characters." Dave said. "They are back to normal at 6. Sneak around and hop in the back seat of your car while I distract him. I will drive to my house and hand you back the keys."

"You have a strategy for everything, don't you?" Andy said. "That is why you were boss at Call of Duty."

Dave wished he could go back to the days of gaming. Those days were not too long ago, but they felt so distant to him. So much had happened in the last month. He wished now that he had siblings, but his parents only wanted one child.

It was as if time was a blur. It was already almost 6. At 5:59, Dave signaled Andy to start heading for the exit. Andy looked to make sure the coast was clear. Foxy was still hanging out of the cove and Bonnie was in the supply closet. They did not take risks.

The clock struck 6 and Andy bolted to the Emergency Exit. He hopped up on the stage and walked back to it.

"Do not return tomorrow interloper." Freddy said as Andy was walking out. Andy nodded and proceeded to sneak out.

Dave met up with the manager at the door.

"How was your second night?" He asked.

"It was a little challenging." Dave replied. "Where is the owner of this place?"

"I own and manage this restaurant." The manager said. "I hire the people and pay the bills. The day guard does not have it as bad. All he has to do is make sure the brats do not touch the animatronics or try to go in the cove. Freddy does not like to be touched. He is the star, and we are all swill. He killed the engineers who created him. I tricked them into taking the guard shift. One of them was taken by Bonnie and brought to the parts room where he was guarded by Bonnie. Chica took the second while he was hiding in the bathroom. Freddy grabbed the other while he was asleep on the job. All of this was on the first night."

The manager was a maniac. He probably planned all of this. He was probably the one who made them evil.

"I will see you tonight." Dave said walking to his friend's car. He got in and started driving to his house.

"Did you pause for a bathroom break?" Andy asked.

"I was held up by the boss." Dave said.

"It is hot as Satan's tit in this car." Andy said. Dave laughed at the expression. Dave pulled up at his house and let Andy up front. Andy hugged Dave before he could go inside.

"Be careful and remember what I said." Andy told him. "The moment you run into trouble, call me. Call me after you finish tomorrow night. I am not going to lose you one month after you lose your family."

Andy kept hugging him for a long moment and sobbing.

"How did you get into this situation?" He asked through his tears.

Dave was silent. All he did was shrug. It was all he could do. He was upset because Andy was upset.

"I-I-I…" Dave tried to say something.

"Tell me tomorrow." Andy said. "Here take my car. I have another car. Be careful with it."

Andy walked off toward his home, which was around the corner. Dave watched him every step of the way. Andy was his lifeline in this situation. He went inside and lied down on the bed. He hoped he would live out the rest of this week.