CHAPTER TWO: APOLOGIES

'God fucking DAMN IT, WOMAN!' I screamed angrily in my head as my mother drove me to the Mega Pizzaplex with all of my neighbors driving right behind us.

I looked out the window with my arms crossed, trying not to look at my mother. I was extremely infuriated with my mother for having a few of my neighbors force me into her car just to get me out of the house so we could drive to the Pizzaplex, having decided to go and have the party early. I was aware that I was acting very childish, and it was incredibly stupid for someone like me, a 27-year-old average-built man with pale white skin, messy black hair, and light blue eyes, to act like this. However, at the moment, I didn't care.

"Hey, don't get mad because I want you to have some fun," my mom said in a slightly scolding tone.

"Don't talk to me," I hissed venomously. "You're currently on my shit list right now."

"All because I want you to go out and do something productive for once?" my mom asked, sounding annoyed.

"More like having me go back to that wretched place," I hissed. I heard my mother sigh.

"Mihael-"

"Don't 'Mihael' me!" I shouted angrily. "I can't believe that you had the audacity to have our neighbors force me into your car all because I refuse to go near the place where something terrible happened!"

"I haven't forgotten what happened there, Mihael!" my mother shouted in anger. "Why does it make you so worked up?!"

"The fact that you are aware of what's happened there and are disrespecting it by going there and acting like everything is normal!" I replied.

"I am NOT disrespecting anything!" she retorted. "You're the one that is being disrespectful here! I know that what happened there is a very sensitive topic for you, I included, but you can't just lash out in anger every time it's mentioned!"

"Look who's talking about being disrespectful!" I spat. "You're also being disrespectful!"

"How am I being disrespectful?!" Things were getting heated between us, but I didn't care. I was too angry to care anyway.

"The fact that you are forcing me to go back to the Pizzaplex when I have made it VERY clear that I didn't want to go!" I was now shouting at the top of my lungs. "That's being disrespectful! Not respecting my decision of not wanting to go!"

"What's also disrespectful was how you treated Peter this morning!" my mother shouted. "He did something nice and you just went ahead and ripped the invitation in his face, as a big 'fuck you' to him!"

"Then he should've thought twice before thinking about inviting me to that wretched place!" I was seething in anger at this point. "I hate that place! It's nothing but a reminder of a tragedy that should never have happened to begin with!"

"Mihael, I know that what happened was tragic-"

"Tragic?! Losing my sister wasn't the only thing that was tragic!" I shouted, my eyes welling with tears. "Dad committed suicide because of the whole thing and it doesn't help that I was the one who found his lifeless body in the living room! YOU KNOW NOTHING!"

I couldn't prevent the tears from spilling over. I was pretty darn close to my father, second only to my bond with my sister. My father, Harold Patel, was the best dad that I could ever ask for and he was there for me and my sister every step of the way. He was the kind of dad that wanted to make sure that his kids were all ready for anything. To ensure that, Harold taught me and my sister all forms of self-defense and martial arts. To be honest, it was a really good thing he did because learning all of that has actually saved my life countless times.

To top it off, he was the chief of police in Hurricane. He took his job VERY seriously, willingly putting his life on the line to ensure the safety of the town. He was well-respected in the community and was seen as a town hero. He was the kind of man that feared nothing and I both admired and respected him for that.

However, all of that came crashing to an end when my little sister had gone missing in the Pizzaplex. He was devastated and determined to find out what had happened to his little girl. No matter how hard they looked to find any traces of her, there were none. Over time, my dad's hope of finding her slowly diminished and it took a massive toll on his mental health.

Then, it happened. The day my father committed suicide. I would never forget how I came home after school to find him lying lifeless in the center of the living room with a large gaping wound in his neck, a large pool of blood surrounding his head, a knife clutched in his hand and his lifeless eyes staring up at the ceiling. I don't remember what happened after that.

To this day, I sometimes had nightmares about that as well. I never told anyone about them as I didn't like people wasting their time on me when they could be doing something else.

Silence filled the car and I was really grateful for it. I really didn't want to hear any more from her and think back to those events. I then heard the unmistakable sound of sniffling. I looked away from the window to see my mother with the most heartbroken expression on her face, her eyes welling up with tears as she began choking on her sobs.

I frowned, feeling my heart threaten to shatter at any moment and my anger washing away. I slowly reached out for her, the strong urge to comfort her overwhelming me.

"Mom…" I said, my voice soft and full of guilt. "Mom, I'm sorry…"

My mother quickly wiped the tears away with her right hand and sniffled. She would have turned to look at me, no doubt, but she had to keep her eyes focused on the road so as to not cause a massive traffic accident.

"I miss your sister and your father as much as you do," my mom said, her voice filled with grief and sadness. "I know that you were closer to her than all of us… and you bonded greatly with your father… I wish they were still here with us. You're all I have left and I… don't…"

She began to sob, and I felt my heart shatter. We may have had our heated moments with each other, but never to where any of us would say such hurtful things to one another. Ever. I knew full well I was in the wrong and that I had no right to say what I said. I had to make this right.

"I know…" I said weakly. "I shouldn't have said that, and I had no right to say it. It was wrong. I need to remember that I'm not the only one grieving. If it helps you, I'm really, really sorry for how I acted earlier and…"

I shut my eyes tightly for a brief moment, hoping that I wasn't going to regret saying this out loud to her. I could only hope that she wouldn't say this to anyone. "You're right. I really do need to go and do something productive. As much as I really hate the Pizzaplex for what happened all those years ago, Peter's right. I shouldn't always dwell on the negative all the time. It isn't healthy for me, and it won't do anything to bring them back. If this helps make you happy and feel better, I'll try to put the past behind me, go do something fun, and apologize to Peter whenever I get the chance."

I watched gratefully as a warm smile spread across her face before proceeding to give me a one-arm hug. I responded by hugging her back.

"Thank you, Mihael," she said softly. "I don't like it when we argue with each other like that. I love you so much."

"Yeah, I know," I said softly. "I love you too."

We both ended the hug and we both sat in silence. It was much needed. I was honestly glad that I didn't feel regret for saying what I said. I really was set on apologizing to Peter because quite frankly, I owed him one.

While we sat in silence, I couldn't help but wonder if my mother ever thought about the Pizzaplex and what happened from time to time. While she did say that she hasn't forgotten what happened, the curiosity of wanting to know if she did think about grew. I knew that it wouldn't go away until I asked.

I cleared my throat. "Hey, mother?"

"Yes, Mihael?" she asked.

I hesitated for a moment. "Do you ever think about the Pizzaplex from time to time, including what happened?"

Her face became pained. I felt a powerful twinge of guilt for asking. I mentally slapped myself for following through with asking her. To me, it was clear that she thinks about it, but how often was the very question I wanted to be answered.

She sighed before she spoke. "I try not to think about it. It was an awful time for us all, Mihael, but yes, from time to time, it pops up in my mind."

"Do you ever go to the Pizzaplex?" I asked.

"Sometimes," she replied. She sighed again. "You can do either two things, Mihael. You can accept what happened and let it go or you let it consume you completely. I've accepted what happened and try to let it go. You and I lost two very important people, and I know you haven't moved on.

"That's what worries me the most. Your attitude earlier told me that you're letting it consume you. It's tearing you apart from the inside.

I'm not saying that you should forget about what happened. I'm saying that I want you to understand that terrible things like this happen. It shouldn't have happened, but it did. You understand what I'm trying to tell you, Mihael?"

I understood what she was trying to tell me. The problem was that the nightmares make it almost impossible to accept that it happened. There are people out there in this world who do eventually come to terms with what happened. They move on with their lives and try to not let it consume them. Maybe I might come to terms with what happened, but it seems that it won't be happening anytime soon.

"Mihael?" the sound of my name snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Yes, I understand what you're trying to say," I said. "However, I don't think I will accept it anytime soon. Maybe I won't today or the day after, but I might come to terms with it someday."

A hint of disappointment formed on her face, but she nodded her head nonetheless. I knew that it wasn't something she wanted to hear. I had a feeling that she was secretly grateful that I might move on one day. We sat in silence, no longer in the mood for chitchat.

We arrived at the Mega Pizzaplex a few minutes later and pulled into the parking lot. Unsurprisingly, the parking lot was almost full with some of the vehicles hogging up two spaces at once. It took everything I had to keep myself from throwing up in the car as soon as I caught sight of the establishment.

'Keep it together, Mihael,' I thought intensely to myself, doing my best to suppress the hatred that threatened to burst.

My mother parked in a parking space that was closest to the building and turned off the engine. I looked away from the Pizzaplex and looked at my mother. She had a soft smile on her face, and I couldn't help but give her a soft smile of my own.

"Are you ready?" she softly asked. To be honest, I wasn't.

To think I would ever come back here 10 years later felt so surreal. Going back to the place where my sister went missing… It all felt like a dream, a dream that I knew would turn into a horrifying nightmare if it was a dream anyway. I knew it wasn't a dream and I was oddly grateful that it wasn't.

I took a deep breath and gave her a slightly determined look. "Yeah, I'm ready."

She nodded and stepped out of the car with me doing the same thing. I slammed the door shut and stared back at the establishment, trying my best to not glare at it. The Pizzaplex was 3-stories tall, and it was rectangular-shaped. There was a huge logo of 4 anthropomorphic animals that consisted of a bear, a chicken, an alligator, and a wolf that had big smiles on their faces with words that read 'Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex'.

'Never thought I would see you again,' I thought bitterly to myself. I looked away from the building and noticed that everyone was heading towards the Pizzaplex, my mother included.

Instead of resisting, I groaned and jogged after them, catching up to my mother pretty quickly. As we stepped closer to the building, I felt something in the back of my mind tell me to turn right back around and get as far away from there as possible. As much as I really wanted to follow through, I wasn't going to turn around. I was going to make my mom happy, and I was going to see it through.

We reached the front doors, and I began to feel queasy. I did my best to shake it off and we stepped inside.

Even after all these years and despite my hatred for the place, I was still amazed by the appearance of the lobby. The main lobby was huge, fitted with metal gates with the Pizzeplex's logo and a large cutout of the four mascots with a wind-up gift box to the far right, the words 'GET A COMPLIMENTARY ENTRY PASS!' above their heads. On the other side of the gates was a gift shop, a large golden statue of the bear, Customer Service, and a flight of stairs that led to different parts of the Pizzaplex. The place was crowded, and it smelled of pizza and other cooked foods.

'Some things never change,' I thought to myself. It's unsurprising to see that the place looked exactly the same as the last time I was here, even before and after my sister disappeared. I thought back to all of the good memories that were made before it happened.

I would never forget the times that my family and I had come over to this place and stayed here for hours. The smile that would form on my sister's face was something that I wished I would see again after all these years. I would never forget how she would try to drag me to all of the different attractions and I would reluctantly agree to go with her.

The weird thing was that I never saw any of the four mascots of the Pizzaplex, despite coming here so much. Maybe it was because I wasn't at the attractions at the right time to see them or just didn't notice them or just didn't care enough about them, but whatever the case, I never saw them. I knew that they existed. I guess I never really got lucky enough to see or bump into them.

"It's still just as beautiful as I remember it," I heard my mother say beside me. I looked to see her with a small smile on her face.

"Can't argue with that," I said halfheartedly, looking away as I did. I looked around the lobby and that's when I noticed something in particular.

If there is one thing that places like this need to have, it's a security guard. Unfortunately, that's what I noticed, the absence of a security guard.

I felt my heart drop upon noticing this. This was a huge deal for a place like this. While I was aware that a woman named Vanessa was the former security guard for the Pizzaplex and was responsible for all of the missing kids, this place still needed one; one that wouldn't do something horrendous like that. There was no doubt in my mind that Hurricane wouldn't be able to deal with another incident like that again. Someone had to watch over the place and keep the kids safe…

I felt something click in my brain and I was struck with a sudden realization; maybe I could take the job as the security guard for the Pizzaplex. As much as I despised the Mega Pizzaplex, if being the security guard meant that I could prevent a horrible tragedy like that from ever happening again, it would all be worth it. Then maybe…

My eyes widened as to what this could mean. By getting this job, I might also be able to find out what happened to the missing kids… to my little sister. That meant that I could bring some closure to all of those families, including me and my mother. And once I find out what happened to those kids, I can use it as evidence to bring this stupid place down. While I might lose the job if I did get it, it is better than having no job and doing nothing when I could be doing something and find out what happened.

I smirked, deciding to go through with my plan. 'Since no one is doing anything about it, it's all up to me to make things right.'

"Mihael!" I snapped out of my thoughts hearing my mom shout my name. I shook my head to clear and turned to look at her. I also took quick notice that all of my neighbors were gone. Off to go to the party, it seems.

"What?" I asked.

"Did you not hear what I said?" she asked. I shook my head. I wasn't paying attention at all to whatever she was saying to me. "I asked if you still had your complimentary entry pass?"

It took me a moment to get it. In order to fully enter the Pizzaplex, guests needed a complimentary entry pass. If you didn't have one, you couldn't get in. I didn't have to be a genius to understand that my mom still had hers, and kept it for all these years.

"No, I don't," I replied. "I threw mine away sometime after my sister disappeared. Don't worry, I know where to get one. Go on without me."

She frowned. She obviously didn't like that idea. "I'm going to wait right here for you."

My smirk grew slightly, and I shook my head. Though it was annoying, I had to admire my mother's stubbornness.

"No, go to the party," I said reassuringly. "I don't want you to miss anything because of me. While I'm not going to the party, I will try to find something fun to do, like I said I would. Go on ahead and have fun."

I turned away from her and began walking over to the cutout of the 4 mascots with the wind-up gift box without giving my mom a chance to say anything. When I reached the gift box, I looked behind to see that my mom was gone. I was grateful that she went off to the party to go enjoy herself. I needed to be alone so I could go find the manager of the Pizzaplex and see if I could get the job here.

I looked back to the gift box, grabbed hold of the crank, and began to turn it. A low melody began to emit from the box as I continued to turn the crank. I felt my skin crawl from the melody. Even as a little kid, I never liked the melody that these boxes played, and even now, it still unnerved me.

Just then, the box hopped into the air and the lid blew off. Confetti shot out from the box and that familiar celebratory tune they played emitted from the box.

I yelped in surprise as my heart leaped into my throat and took a few steps. I swung my arms around like I was trying to punch something. I glared at the box for a moment as I tried to calm myself.

'I hate you stupid things so much,' I thought angrily to myself. It was embarrassing that the boxes doing that still made me yelp. Even as a grown adult, I still get startled by them opening like that.

I got a hold of myself, walked over to the box, and peeked inside. There was a card with the Pizzaplex's logo on it with words that read 'Entry Pass' lying in the center of the box. I retrieved the card and stared at it for a moment before walking over to the gates. Stepping through the gates, I took in the fact that I was now fully in the Pizzaplex.

'I wish this was a dream,' I thought to myself.

"Hey, Mihael," I heard a familiar deep, gruffy voice from behind me. I turned to see Peter giving me a weak smile. I felt my heart drop to the pit of my stomach upon seeing him.

"Um hey, Peter," I said weakly as I rubbed my left arm sheepishly. "How's it going?"

He shrugged. "Okay, I guess. How about you? You still mad?"

It was my turn to shrug. "Not really." I took a deep breath. If there was a perfect time to apologize, it would be right now. "Peter, I have to say something to you."

"What is it?" he asked softly. I took another deep breath. This was going to be hard.

"Peter, I just want to say that… I'm sorry," I said. I saw his smile weaken a little bit. I felt my heart threaten to shatter upon seeing that. "I'm so sorry for how I acted earlier. It was uncalled for, and I had no right to say those things to you. Talking about the Pizzaplex is a sensitive topic for me because of what happened, but that doesn't excuse my actions whatsoever."

I felt my eyes begin to well up with tears. I began shaking as the emotions began to overwhelm me, choking on my sobs as I continued. "I know that you meant well to *hic* invite me and I should have handled it better. Peter… I'm so… *hic* so sorry…"

I couldn't take it anymore. I covered my eyes with my hands and began sobbing. I didn't care if anybody saw me like this. I just wanted to let Peter know how sorry I was for what I did. Let me be seen as weak. I didn't care.

I gasped as I felt something wrap itself tightly around me. I uncovered my eyes and realized that Peter was hugging me. I wanted to object, but I couldn't bring myself nor had the will strength to pull it off, to begin with.

"I forgive you, Mihael," he said softly. I began whimpering, my lower lip trembling. I hugged him back, wrapping my arms tightly around him. I resumed sobbing as he began patting my back softly. "It's okay. Let it all out."

God bless him for giving him such a heart of gold.

It took me a moment to finally regain control of both myself and my emotions. We released each other and I began wiping my tears away with my hands, sniffling as I did. I felt much lighter as if a huge weight had been lifted off of me.

"Feeling better?" he asked softly.

"Mm-hm," I replied weakly, wiping away the last of my tears. "Thanks, Peter."

"No problem," he said. "That's what friends are for, right?"

I smiled weakly at this. Normally, I would tell Peter that we were not friends, but after what happened, I guess that's something me and Peter are now, friends.

"So, you coming to the Atrium for the party?" Peter asked. I frowned at the question. While I was glad that I reconciled with Peter, I still had no intention to go to the party. Not only that, but the last thing I wanted to deal with was our angry neighbors. While the neighbors were friendly, there was no doubt in my mind that they would raise hell on me for what I did, which was honestly something I deserved.

"No, Peter, I'm not," I replied softly. "I really don't think it will be such a good idea, considering what happened earlier this morning. And while I did tell my mom that I was going to do something fun while being here, I have something else in mind. I want to see if I can find the manager and see if this is hiring. I know that sounds crazy since I hate this place, to begin with, but working here will be much better than trying to find a job."

Peter stared at me for a moment before I saw his eyes flick to look behind me as if he noticed something. A smile spread across his face, and I looked at him curiously.

"I don't think you have to look for long," he said.

"Why do you say that?" I asked with confusion and curiosity in my tone.

"Because he's standing right behind you," came an unfamiliar voice. I spun around quickly and came face-to-face with a man in his early 30s wearing a well-dressed suit and tie. He had well-brushed brown hair, tanned skin, and brown eyes.

I eventually collected myself. "Um, hi. Are you the manager?"

"Sure am," he replied with a slight accent. "Name's Kyle Baker. You must be Mihael Patel?"

I stared at him with wide eyes and felt a shiver run down my spine. How did he know my name? I've never seen this man before. He was a stranger to me, so how the heck did he know my full name? I would ask him that later. I had to reply to his question. He was waiting.

"Yes, that's me," I replied. He smiled a friendly smile.

"Forgive me for eavesdropping, but I heard you mention that you wanted to see if we were hiring. Is that correct?" he asked. I nodded. "You're in luck because we happen to be needing a security guard right about now. Our last one quit a few days ago and you'll be surprised by how many we've lost over the years. Now, I need to ask this; are you serious about taking the job here?"

He narrowed his eyes at me, and I began to feel very uneasy. He was looking at me as if to see if I was lying or may be hiding something, like some hidden plan or goal. I didn't like the idea of why I wanted to even take the job, to begin with. Instinctively, I nodded my head rapidly.

After a moment, his face relaxed and that friendly smile returned. "Alright, if you say so. Now, Mr. Patel, if you would please follow me to my office for your interview."

"Lead the way," I said. He nodded and we both left the lobby in the direction of his office. I prayed that my luck might change and that I would get the job. Something deep down told me not to get my hopes too high. Luck always tended to avoid me.

Author's Note:

Here is the second chapter of my story, and honestly, I'm quite happy with how it turned out. This chapter took me about yesterday and today to complete, thanks to me knowing how it was going to go. Chapter Three might take longer as it will cover the interview, Mihael finally meeting the animatronics, and getting the job.

If there's anything that needs fixing, please let me know and I will fix it right away. If there were any points where I could've made the chapter better, let me know and I will do the best I can. I want this to be something that everyone will and can enjoy.

See you guys in Chapter Three! All constructive criticism is appreciated! :)

Update: Added new content.

Update 2: Added more content.

Final Update: Added more content. This will be the last time Chapter Two will be updated.