Chapter 7: Overtime

I stepped through the double glass doors of Freddy's once again, like a prisoner getting back in his cell. I had this odd feeling, though. Something just didn't feel right, especially tonight.

The building was dark and quiet, and the air was rather stale, as if the windows hadn't been opened for an entire day. I lingered in the dining area for a while to gauge my surroundings.

"Hello?" I called. My voice echoed in the empty room.

I looked around. The tables, the chairs, and the posters were still there, but the stage and Pirate Cove were empty. The animatronics were nowhere to be seen. Neither was anyone else, for that matter.

"Cassidy?"

…

Nothing.

'What gives? Did everyone decide to go play bingo or something?'

It had only been a day, how could this place look so deserted?

A creaking sound made me turn my head to the right. The door leading to the backstage toom opened, but no one stepped out. It was too dark for me to see inside. I raised an eyebrow. It was like the abyss was inviting me,the room calling me in. The red flags were there, but for better or for worse, I entered.

Cassidy was sitting in the middle of the room. I could just barely make out the outline of the yellow Freddy suit.

The shelves were empty, without any tools or equipment in sight. On the edge of the table, sat a lone Freddy costume.

"Mike… I'm so happy you came back…"

"... What's going on? Where is everybody?"

"You know… I've been thinking about how we used to play together when we were kids. How much fun we used to have…"

I was left staring like an idiot. What was she on about?

"And now, after all these years… you're back!" she said cheerfully. "Aren't you happy?"

"...I am."

"Hm… You don't sound very happy to me… Is something wrong?"

"You could put it that way. Your friends are gone!"

"Oh, that? Ha ha, don't worry about it. They're just goofing off somewhere."

So, from what I could tell, Cassidy's mini speech actually managed to calm their souls. I didn't expect it would be that easy, but I was glad nonetheless.

"As I was saying, Mike. I'm glad you're here, but, sooner or later, you'll have to leave this job, right? And then… we won't be seeing each other anymore…"

Right… but not only that. If I couldn't figure out a way to let her and the other children move on before the place would close down, things would get a whole lot more complicated.

"So, I came up with something! We won't have to be apart again."

When she didn't say anything else, I narrowed my eyes.

"Well? What is it?"

"Mike. Do you trust me?"

Strange… For some reason, at that exact moment, an inexplicable feeling of dread came over me.

"Do you?" she repeated.

"Yes."

"Thank you. Don't be scared. It won't hurt for long. Just… I dunno, think of it like a shot."

Before I could process what she said, a couple of deep footsteps came from behind me. It was Freddy. He grabbed me by the shoulders.

"Wait, what won't hurt!? Cassidy, what are you saying?"

"It's okay. Soon, we will be together again. We will play every day, just like we used to. We will be best friends forever!"

It was then that I made a horrible realization. The spare suit on the table. My eyes widened and my heart raced, as Freddy effortlessly lifted me up. I struggled in futility.

"No! I don't want this! There has to be another way!"

Bonnie and Chica stepped out of the shadowy corners of the room. Chica held the suit steady, while Bonnie took off its mask.

"This is the only way. Come on. Be our friend, Mike."

The arms, the legs and the torso of the suit opened like a coffin, revealing a cluster of metal rods, barbed wires and crossbeams. With no warning, I was turned around, and my back was pressed against the inside of the suit. It felt as though a hundred needles pierced through me.

"Hey! Snap out of it! You're gonna kill me!"

I could feel blood trickling down my skin, sticking onto my shirt.

"It won't hurt if you don't struggle."

The suit closed on me, and caused me to writhe in pain, as tears pooled in my eyes. I couldn't breathe, let alone speak.

'Cassidy… How could you? I thought we were…'

No. I should have known that after this many years of isolation and suffering, there was no way she would be sane.

It was my fault I trusted someone who should have stayed dead. My only hope was Lucy. If she could get here in time, there would be a slim chance I'd survive.

I should have listened to her.

"I love you, Mike. Stay with me."

Bonnie stomped towards me, with the Freddy mask in hand. I could do nothing but stare, as he lowered it. At a dreadfully slow pace, he put it over my head.

My vision went black. I gritted my teeth, and clutched my hands. I felt my fingers dig into the covers. I woke up in a pool of sweat, my heart going a thousand miles an hour, and my breathing erratic. My shoulder hurt like hell.

As I rolled over on my back, the sight of my dimly lit bedroom brought me some comfort.

After the fright came and went, I was left with nothing but sorrow and shame. Was that a true fear of mine? Was I actually afraid that Cassidy would do something like that?

There was simply no way… Wouldn't she have done so already? She had already protected me a few times, so… I just couldn't see her doing what I dreamt.

One thing was certain. Unfortunately, it would be very difficult for me to look at her the same way after that.

…

After I took a shower to wash away the filth to wash away the filth, the phone started ringing. The sound startled me at first.

"Hello?"

"...I can't sleep," Lucy said through the speaker. Even if she hadn't said that, I could have guessed it from her voice alone.

"What's wrong?" I asked, as if I didn't already know the answer.

"... I don't want to bother you, but I think you're the only person who can understand me right now."

"..."

"Do you ever daydream?"

"...Yeah. Sometimes."

"... Do you ever wonder about… how things could be different if…"

"..."

"If you had done something else…?"

"Yes."

I said that, but I understood that Lucy didn't mean it the way I did. I was just a kid. There wasn't much I could have done. But she was a parent. She must have been blaming herself all these years…

"I miss my daughter. I want her back. I want her back."

…

"We'll find a way to free her," I said. "All of them."

Lucy hesitated, before saying, "I shouldn't be keeping you. Good luck, Mike. Thank you."

"Rest well."

…

I didn't want to go inside.

It may sound silly, but that nightmare had affected me a lot more than I originally thought. I knew it was childish, but I just couldn't bring myself to open those doors. It's like I was paralyzed.

They suddenly opened for me, as Robert exited the building.

"Hello there, Schmidt. Good to see you."

"Hello," I parroted absentmindedly.

"You here for overtime?"

"...Sure."

He rubbed his chin for a moment. It's clear he wanted some chit-chat. Had this been any other night, I wouldn't have been in the mood for it, but tonight… I welcomed it.

"Say, how have you been holding up?"

I shrugged.

"You know… The usual. I think I'm getting used to this."

"Yeah, I can tell. You're one of the longest working night guards we've had."

I wondered if every guard in this place specialized in constructing the least reassuring sentences possible.

"Thanks," I said dryly, to which he chuckled.

"Anyhow, the band was acting kinda strange today. Watch your six, pal!"

…

Well, there was no use in delaying this. When I stepped inside, it was half an hour until midnight.

Naturally, the first thing I checked was the stage. The animatronics were all there, immobile. I breathed a sigh of relief. I needed to make sure Cassidy was okay, though. As I started my usual patrol, I called her name, and she showed up.

"Hello, Mike. Thank you for coming back."

"Of course. I wouldn't abandon you."

This was another one of those moments where I wished I could see her face. It would have made gauging her reaction a whole lot easier…

"So," I said while continuing my inspection, "anything happen today?"

"...Kinda. I don't understand why, but… my friends were twitching. I mean, during the breaks between songs their heads would just…spazz out," she explained.

That sounded… bizarre.

"Do you think it has to do with what you told them?" I asked.

"Maybe? But still, I don't get it."

Whatever the case may have been, it sounded like a bad omen to me. Or, maybe it was just the pessimist in me talking.

I felt a little apprehensive when it was time to check the backstage room. With one look at Cassidy, though, I managed to get through it.

…

In the end, nothing was out of the ordinary anywhere in the building, and midnight was upon us. I had no choice but to start my shift.

The same old song and dance was about to begin. One would expect that this process would get less daunting, considering I had already been through it five times at this point. I had to admit, though, that even now, this was still dreadful.

When I turned on the monitors, three sets of eyes were staring back at me. The animatronics were looking directly into the lense of the camera.

"Cass. Is this normal?"

"I've never seen this before."

Great. I could already tell that this was going to be a good night. Foxy was staring at me, too, from his cove.

He raised his hook, and used it to slowly puncture and rip out some of the remaining foam that covered his inner workings. It disturbed me in a way I couldn't place.

Bonnie and Chica were standing side by side in the dining hall. I could only see their figures in the darkness, but they were tweaking out.

I then looked at Freddy, who was in his usual spot, looking into the lense of the camera. He was holding his lower jaw with one hand, and the top of his head with another.

A distant, yet harsh ripping sound reached the office, and it wasn't until the camera feed caught up that I realized what had happened. Freddy had ripped his own head off.

The costume head, to be exact. The endoskeleton head was still in place, along with some of the wires. Its eyes were still glowing.

At first, I thought they were threatening me, but after that, I wasn't so sure. It almost looked like they were trying to tell me something.

A headache began flaring up inside my skull, causing me to grimace. I just couldn't fight it down.

"Are you okay?"

"I think so…"

I said that, but the pain wouldn't go away.

"It's me."

I blinked.

"What did you say?"

"...I asked you if you're okay?"

My vision began to blur in a fairly familiar manner, and my heart was speeding up.

"Mike, what's wrong?"

"I… I don't-"

"It's me," said a different voice.

I couldn't keep my breathing steady. My consciousness was slipping away from me.

All I could hear was that phrase repeated over and over again, in different voices and tones. As my sight faded away, so did Cassidy's words of concern.

…

"Mike…? Mike, wake up."

I forced my eyelids to part. I was back in that space. The space with the black and white tiles. The Flipside, as I grew to call it. I could only imagine that this was a terminal place between life and death. Or perhaps, between life and the afterlife.

As I was lying down, the main thing that caught my eye was a pair of white shoes a couple paces away. I used my forearm to support myself to the point where I could see who they belonged to.

"...Olivia?"

She was looking at me with concern, and so did the other three children who were standing a little farther back.

Once I managed to stand, I noticed how all of them seemed reluctant to speak. It was odd, especially when compared to last time.

Olivia looked back at her friends with uncertainty, and got agitated looks from Grace and Bradley. She frowned.

"I wanted to talk to you," she told me. "Cassidy trusts you, so, I think I can trust you as well…"

"I don't…" Grace chimed in. Bradley was quick to agree. I was still in a bit of a daze, so I didn't react.

"Guys!" Olivia chided them, and groaned. "Look. I'm sorry about what happened. You know… with your shoulder."

"...It happens," I replied, and she smiled for a moment.

"We've been thinking about what Cassidy said earlier, and… I know it's gonna sound weird, but…

…

We want you to destroy the robots."

I opened my mouth, but didn't know what to say first.

"We don't wanna be trapped anymore!" Bradley complained.

"Yeah, every day is just the same! We want to be free," Grace joined him.

"Please, sir, can you help us?" Miranda then asked timidly.

They were all looking at me, expectantly. It's like I could feel their desperation. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do what they wanted, but… Maybe this really was the best option?

"I… I'll see what I can do."

Although they didn't seem fully reassured, I could see hope glinting in their eyes.

"Thank you," Olivia said. "I knew I could trust you."

"Thank me after I succeed."

I didn't know how much time I had left in this space before I'd wake up. There was something I needed to say before that could happen.

"Hey, Miranda? Do you want me to give a message to your mom?"

Her frown deepened, and she lowered her head.

"I don't… I don't know."

"Come on, don't you want to say something to her?" Bradley asked her. I could tell he wanted to encourage her, but he got the opposite result.

"I don't know…"

"Hm… What would be the first thing you'd tell her if she was here?" Olivia asked her.

Miranda met my gaze again. The resemblance she paid to her mother was especially apparent at that moment.

"Just… tell her I love her. And that I miss her."

I nodded.

"I will. She misses you, too, you know?"

"I know. I wish I could go and hug her, but… I can't."

It may have sounded like a dumb question, but I wanted to ask it regardless. I was curious to see what her reasoning was.

"Why not?"

"I don't want to hurt her."

The rest of the children nodded. Grace in particular seemed rather sorrowful. It made sense, though.

"Alright, I'll be sure to give her your message."

"Thank you…"

"Does anyone want me to give a message to Cassidy?"

They didn't look all too certain on what to say. Grace was the first to speak, and her answer was met with agreement.

"Tell her I said thank you for talking to us."

"Will do."

…

"Mike? Can you hear me?"

I was back in the office again. I was lying on the floor again, and my arm hurt. Probably because of the fall.

Cassidy was looming over me. Despite it all, I managed to smile.

"Yeah, I can hear you," I said while getting up.

"What happened?"

I sat in the chair to catch my breath. I checked the time and the remaining power.

3:42 AM

44%

Not bad. If I had to guess, I'd say the animatronics didn't try to attack me at all.

"... I spoke with your friends."

"Really? What did they say?"

I relayed Olivia's request.

"They want to be free, like you," I added.

"Oh… Will you actually do it?"

I pondered for a moment. I'd definitely get in trouble. Potentially legal trouble. But that didn't matter. What truly mattered was that I had a feeling this wasn't my choice to make.

My mind wandered back to the families of the children. Shouldn't they be made aware of this situation? Trapped or not, these were still their kids…

Then again would they even want to learn the truth? This truth? Was it better to be ignorant in this case?

I had to ask Lucy.

"I told them I would. I don't know. I don't want to lie to them, but… it's risky."

"Hm… Well, maybe you won't have to do this. Who knows, maybe when Freddy's closes, the people working here will do it for you."

It was certainly a valid possibility. But that only reminded me that that's what they did with Cassidy. I still couldn't wrap my head around how rotten this company was.

"Maybe you're right."

…

"Did they say anything about me?"

"... They told me to thank you for being there for them."

"...D'aw…"

I checked the cameras with a smile on my face. The animatronics were keeping their distance from me. It looked like we had reached a truce.

"I have this random question I want to ask you," she said. "Is yellow still your favorite color?"

Considering how I wasn't in immediate danger anymore, I figured some small talk wouldn't hurt.

"Yeah. How about you? Still blue?"

"Yeah…"

Well, it was good to see that at least some things hadn't changed.

"Do you remember our family trip to the Adirondack park?" she asked. It was a strange question, but I had a feeling I knew where it would lead.

"Yeah? What about it?"

"Do you remember how we tried to stay up all night to see a shooting star?"

"Of course. And we did see one, in the end."

"Uh huh! I dunno, it's just one of those things I think about from time to time."

I felt a smile tug at my lips. I wanted to ask her a similar question, but wasn't sure what to bring up.

"Hm… Remember that time when we both caught the flu?"

"Yeah… It kinda sucked."

"You think so? I remember it quite fondly actually… We were together all afternoon, watching cartoons. My mom even made us hot chocolate. I just really like that day… It was so… cozy."

"Really?" she asked me, a little surprised. "Huh. I guess I didn't remember it that well, because the first thing I thought of was… fever, probably. But the way you talked about it… It sounds nice."

It was interesting to see how our views on the same moments differed.

"Ah! How about our school trip to the museum?"

Right… The Children's Museum. I hadn't realized this at the time, but that trip was, in a way, what sparked my interest in engineering.

"I remember it. And get this. That's where I used to work before coming here. And I was a guard there, too. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Wh- seriously? How was it?"

I shrugged.

"I mean, there weren't any robots out to get me, but I did have to defend myself from endless hordes of kids. So in the end, it's a pretty close call between that place and Freddy's."

She laughed heartily, and because of that, I did as well. Well, at least my jokes are funny to someone other than myself and Charlotte.

Soon enough, the night was over before I knew it. I approached the entrance to greet Lucy, but my boss showed up instead. He was doing a very bad job at hiding his irritation.

"Good morning, Schmidt," he spat.

"Morning, sir. Where's Lu-" I stopped myself just in time and cleared my throat. "Where's Ms Carter?"

His face soured further.

"She called in sick. Can you believe that bitch? She calls me one hour before her shift starts to tell me she's sick. Now who's gonna clean this place?"

I fought down the urge to sock the bastard. I wanted to do it, but I couldn't lose the job yet.

I was also worried about Lucy, but tried to not let it show. She probably just needed a day-off to think about things. Not getting the chance to talk to her in person was a little inconvenient, but I could just give her a call later.

"Nevermind that," the man said, waving his hand dismissively. "At least you're dependable."

The CEO pulled out another check, and gave it to me. From this night alone, I earned six bucks more than any other night. The memo written on the bottom left corner this time was 'Employee of the Month'.

Wow, how thoughtful.

As the CEO was ready to continue on his merry way, I asked him a question.

"Hey, sir? What will happen to the animatronics once the place shuts down?"

He gave me an inquisitive look.

"Why do you ask?"

"Just curious."

"They'll be sent to storage. Maybe we'll sell them for parts if we get lucky and find a buyer."

So then…

My hands were tied. I wish I had other options, but with that answer, one thing became clear to me.

I had to destroy those machines.