Chapter 2: Night One. Let's Get It Done

"Tonight you might be by yourself, but you are not alone."

Jack was right. This wasn't hard at all. What he failed to consider was just how boring it'd be.

Back at his apartment, the bustling city kept him entertained in the night. The dazzling lights, the honking horns of cars, and the occasional argument on the sidewalk outside his window—All of it brought liveliness to the otherwise dead nights he spent alone. This night was different.

Contrary to what he was used to, the nightclub was eerily quiet. The only thing the club had to offer were the sexually charged mascots and booze. Jack would be damned to Hell and back before he even considered messing with a machine, and since there was no bartender on staff tonight, he couldn't exactly request a drink. Not that he would. Jack wasn't much of a drinker to begin with.

That left him with minimal options. The first of which was to explore the nightclub. While the nightclub was bigger than he thought it'd be, it was still pretty small, all things considered. Braxton had shown him all there was to see, aside from the basement and backstage. He would've used the cameras to see what was in each area, but there wasn't one in the backstage, and the one in the basement was apparently damaged as all the feed showed was static. If he wanted to know what was in each room, he would have to go on foot.

Jack wasn't fond of basements, and like Braxton said, he wouldn't have any reason to go down there anyway. While he was curious as to why a nightclub even had a basement, he wasn't about to go down and see what was in it unless instructed to do so.

He thought about checking out the backstage, but he'd have to walk past the three animatronics on stage. Something told him getting near them was a bad idea, though he wasn't sure why. They were deactivated and would probably remain so for the rest of his nights. The chances of them doing anything were zero. Regardless, his gut feeling had never led him astray before. So he didn't stop trusting it now.

His gut feeling was partly the reason he didn't explore Lustful Cove, either. Not that he needed to. It was on the cameras and gave him a pretty wide view of the area. Unfortunately, the fourth mascot was nowhere to be found. Jack didn't panic since he assumed they were neatly tucked away behind the purple curtains in the back of the room.

With exploration out the window, his next best bet was mobile games. Of course, that only kept him occupied for so long. His phone battery drained significantly within the first hour, and he hadn't brought his charger.

Jack leaned back in his seat and stared up at the ceiling, bored out of his mind. He absentmindedly began tapping his foot in a rhythmic pattern while humming a random song he once heard. "Bare necessities. The simple bare necessities..."

After he was done humming, he looked at the clock on the office wall to see how much time had passed. It hadn't even been five minutes.

Jack gave out a frustrated grunt before spinning in his chair. He felt the boredom creep into the deep etches of his mind, slowly making him succumb to... sleepiness? That was odd. He usually never got tired around this time of night, though, given the circumstances, he wasn't surprised.

He thought about what to do to keep himself up. But after a moment of contemplation, Jack considered actually sleeping. There was nothing to do, and from the looks of it, nothing to fix. Sure, he had to be up to watch the animatronics, but as expected, they hadn't moved in an hour, which confirmed his suspicion that Bonfie looking at him was just his imagination.

He weighed his options and elected to do the responsible thing. "What Adam doesn't know won't hurt him," Jack took off his glasses, placing them on the desk. Then he leaned all the way back in his chair, getting as comfortable as he could.

Yes, sleeping on the job was frowned upon. But if he didn't do something, he felt he'd die from boredom. Besides, if anyone was going to break in, they would've done it by now. The place would be fine if he caught a few Z's.

After justifying his actions to himself, Jack nodded and closed his eyes. He felt his muscles grow heavy and his mind go numb. It didn't take long for him to clock out.

Shatter

Jack jolted awake, nearly falling out of his seat from his panicked movements. He rubbed his eyes and quickly composed himself.

"Fuck. I was having a nice dream for once." He put his glasses back on and looked at the monitor, checking the time. "Four AM? Shit." Jack grumbled tiredly, wishing he had gotten more than just three hours of sleep. He slapped himself awake before looking around for the glass item that he heard fall over.

After about a minute of looking, Jack leaned back in his seat, confused. "Did I dream that noise?" He thought while ruffling his hair. There wasn't any broken glass on the floor like he expected. In fact, the office was exactly how he left it before going to sleep. "What could've..." Suddenly, his eyes widened as a horrible realization crossed his mind.

Swiftly, he swiped his mouse across the desk and flipped on the security feed for the main stage. Sure enough, the purple mascot was missing.

"Oh, god dammit!" Jack shot up from his seat in panic and disbelief.

That glass-shattering noise must've been someone breaking in through the front window. Just his luck that someone would actually break in on his first night! Then again, it made sense. With how popular these animatronics were, who wouldn't try to steal one for themselves?

Jack groaned before leaning forward and shuffling through the feeds. He was too nervous to sit down, so he focused on finding the culprit. Hopefully, they hadn't run off with Bonfie already.

Jack stopped on the security camera overlooking the Tipsy Bar to see that, thankfully (or maybe unfortunately), the culprit was still around. Because of where the camera and the intruder were positioned, he couldn't see who exactly was inside. The movement of shadows and clattering of bottles from the audio feed was the only hint that someone was even there.

Jack was surprised the intruder had the audacity to grab a quick drink before he left. Or what if there were multiple intruders? He'd imagine Bonfie and the other animatronics were pretty heavy, so it would probably take more than one person to move them. Then again, they had to be lightweight for them to move the way they did in those commercials, right?

Jack didn't know what to think, so for his sake, he pretended the mascots were light. After all, what was he gonna do against a whole group of possibly armed people? On second thought, what was he even gonna do against whoever was in here? For all he knew, they could be some jacked bodybuilder.

The thought alone made Jack want to stay in his office and let them take Bonfie. He couldn't care less what happened to the machine. But his brother had given him this responsibility, and he foolishly accepted. He couldn't fail Adam—at the very least, not on the first night.

"This is what I get for workin' at a Fazclaire establishment..." Jack patted his cheeks before sucking it in. He wasn't sure what his game plan would be, but he'd be damned if he just sat by and did nothing.

Quietly, he exited his office and headed down the purple-lit hall towards the Tipsy Bar.

As he approached the hall leading to the bar area, he thought of what to do when confronting the intruder. Perhaps he should announce his presence and give the dude a chance to leave? Or maybe he should sneak up on him and take him down before he had a chance to react? Thinking about what to do filled Jack with unnecessary anxiety, so he decided to make his decision after he had seen what the trespasser looked like.

As he approached the bar's entrance, the clattering bottles gradually grew quieter, hinting that the Bonfie stealer was just about done getting his drink. Jack hugged the wall and stayed low, listening for any sound cues that indicated the intruder's gender and level of intoxication.

Jack got quite the shock when someone turned the corner and collided right into him, knocking his glasses off.

A shrill yelp that didn't belong to him echoed through the hall as he fell. As he impacted the floor, numerous bottles shattered beside him, spilling a liquid that had a strong, boozy smell. Jack couldn't help but groan in pain. He didn't catch himself in time, so his back took the brunt of the fall. At the same time, he heard another groan. One that appeared to be in the same amount of pain as him. But the pitch was a lot... higher.

Jack quickly found his glasses amidst his blurred vision, and after a quick wipe, he looked over at the other person who fell with him. His breathing immediately ceased.

W-What? Was all he could think. Were his eyes playing tricks on him again? It couldn't be real... Maybe he was still dreaming?

His mind came up with every excuse in the book to justify what he was seeing. But when the intruder sat up, logic and reasoning went out the window.

Sitting up across from him wasn't the intruder he came to confront. It was Bonfie herself—her outfit now drenched in the same alcohol that covered Jack's uniform. Her purple bunny ears twitched with a horrifying realism, unfit for a mechanical being.

"Oww..." Bonfie moaned, rubbing her back tenderly. "Doggone it! That's gon leave a bruise." She said in a heavy Southern accent.

Honestly, she sounded pretty close to what he expected—Not that he paid much attention. He was too busy freaking out at the fact that Bonfie, who should've been offline, was right in front of him.

Eventually, Bonfie noticed him staring at her, and the two locked eyes. Everything fell silent as seconds turned to minutes. All Jack could think to himself was What is happening here?

In the midst of his confusion, Bonfie smiled. "Ya must be our new night watcha'. Pleasure to meetcha!" Even hearing her speak was surreal.

Animatronics in the past could only say a few pre-recorded lines through their glitchy voiceboxes, which was grating to the ears—or so Jack heard. Nowadays, advancements in robotics and artificial intelligence allowed animatronics to engage in conversations as if they were actual people. Even then, they had some sort of 'roboticness' to them, whether it'd be in the tone or speech pattern. But not Bonfie. She sounded real. For the longest time, Jack had assumed that was due to whatever special effects Fazclaire Entertainment used on their commercials. He never would've guessed their technology was just that advanced.

"Sorry 'bout the mess, sugar. I wanted ta surprise ya by bringing some drinks! Y'know, make a good first impression and all that. But, well..." She looked down at the floor, seeing it was just as messy as her and Jack. "I can be such klutz sometimes." Bonfie giggled before standing up, towering over Jack like a Greek titan. "Lemme help ya."

She reached out to grab Jack. He attempted to scamper away, still not fully reeling into his senses. Unfortunately, she grabbed a firm hold over him, hoisting him up with unbelievable strength.

Once on his feet, he saw just how massive the height difference between them was. He was at eye level with Bonfie's two purple melons, which glistened under the light thanks to the booze. Said melons slightly jiggled when she suddenly giggled again.

"Y'know, you're a lot cuter up close!" Instead of letting him go, her grip tightened. Then she pulled him into an airtight hug, coincidentally shoving his face into her bosom, which was slick and sticky.

"Daww. You're burnin' hot sugar! That 'cuz of lil' ol me?" She teased, squeezing Jack a little tighter. Any tighter, and he was sure she'd break a bone.

Regardless of what Bonfie believed, Jack was only hot because of the intense amount of adrenaline coursing through his veins. He hardly registered she was warm as well.

"Say, since we all cozied up and all, why don't we skip the pleasantries and get straight to business?" She cooed with a smirk while staring longingly into Jack's eyes.

Her words finally snapped him to reality. His panic, while still very present, was now focused on a single goal: to get the fuck out of there.

He thought one quick thrust backward would propel him out of her arms, but her grip was stronger than he realized. She held him firm in place, so he tried again, meeting the same result.

Bonfie might've been taller than him, but that was about it. Muscle-wise, Jack was slightly more fit than her. Even then, it felt like he was struggling against a dude three times his weight class!

"Silly. If you wanna thrust, you gotta do it towards me! Though, getting those pants off would probably help." A surge of fear shot through Jack as he realized she wasn't taking no for an answer. But the thought of doing anything remotely sexual with her repulsed him.

"Get off me, you fucking—!" Jack jerked backward yet again, this time with more force. It wasn't enough to break him free from her arms, but it did cause Bonfie to take a step forward. The floor was still wet with booze, so she slipped and fell with a yelp, dragging Jack down with her.

Miraculously, neither of them fell on pieces of broken glass, nor did Jack's glasses fall off. Bonfie landed on her back, giving out a small "oof." Jack would land on top of her, having his fall cushioned by two soft, round landing pads.

"B-Boy! Ya like it rough, huh? Fine by me!" She said gleefully, oblivious to the fact that this wasn't what Jack wanted. Not that it mattered, since she no longer had Jack in her grasp after they fell.

Without wasting another moment, he bolted off her and sprinted down the hall. "W-What?! Hey!" A confused Bonfie stammered. "Sugar! Come back!" She called out, making Jack look over his shoulder to see her chasing after him. Fortunately for him, he was much faster than her, so he didn't have to worry about her catching up.

Jack ran all the way back to his office, where he promptly shut both doors, effectively locking himself in the security room. Of course, Bonfie came to the window of the left door and tried to convince Jack to let her in. It was as if she didn't realize what had happened back there was negative.

He wouldn't waste his breath on the machine. Instead, he focused on the clock and the power, planning to spend the rest of his shift in the office with alcohol-stained clothes and hair.

Bonfie eventually left with a disappointed look, and the last few hours of his shift flew by. The moment the clock struck six, Jack practically ran out of the nightclub.

Admittedly, he was hesitant to leave the office at first, thinking Bonfie was waiting for him around the corner. But no, one quick check of the cameras showed him she was back where she had been initially—on the main stage with the others, staring blankly ahead. Oddly enough, her clothes were no longer stained. Had it not been for his soaked uniform, he would've believed everything that had happened was a dream.

But it wasn't. It was real. And Jack knew exactly who to cuss out for it being so.

After he got back to his apartment, the first thing he did was call—well, actually, the first thing he did was put his uniform in the washer; then he took a shower to collect his thoughts and figure out what he was gonna say to the guy who had gotten him in this mess.

After ten minutes, a frustrated Jack called up Adam, who answered after the second ring. "Hey, hey! Jacky! I take it you got through your first night smoothly?"

Although agitated, Jack forced a smile. "Oh, yeah. Smooth as butter."

"Of course ya did! I made sure to leave you plenty of information, after all."

"Yep, you sure did. Though, you forgot to mention one thing." Before Adam had a chance to ask what—or catch the hint of anger in his brother's tone—Jack yelled into the phone. "THEY FUCKING MOVE?!"

A bunch of miscellaneous objects fell and clattered to the ground on the other end, followed by Adam yelping, presumably in pain. "Damn Jacky! You tryna give me a heart attack?"

"I should be asking you that!" Jack barked back. "How could you not tell me they move?"

Adam groaned, emitting a scratching sound caused by him rubbing his head. "I expected you to know better. Haven't you heard of animatronics needing to move around so their servos don't get locked up? Or something like that..."

"You and I both know engineering has far surpassed that limitation."

Adam chuckled. "Yeah, I know... I know. It's just...they're night performers! How could you not expect them to move at night?"

"There's a lot of things I didn't expect. You not warning me wasn't one of them." Jack said in a disappointed tone, his anger long since dissipated.

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds before Adam exhaled a long, drawn-out sigh. "You're right. I'm sorry. I should've told you they could move. I just didn't want to scare you away..."

"Adam, you've been there for me since day one and always had my back without question. I'd do the same for you in a heartbeat. Always." There was another pause in the conversation.

"Well, now you just made me feel like an asshole." Both brothers laughed. "Okay, since you know they'll be roaming around, I'll start by saying they can't be turned off. At least, not through normal means."

"What does that mean?"

"I'll explain it all to you on your second night." Adam paused. "A-Assuming you'll go back?"

Jack thought about what to say, letting out a regretful chuckle. "No, yeah, of course. Got nothing better to do anyway." And I really need the money.

"Great! Don't worry Jacky, I promise to make everything up to you on your next shift. For now, get some rest. You'll need it."

"Right, thanks. Talk to you later." Jack hung up and looked out his window, watching the warm morning light shine into his room.

He stretched and yawned, trying hard not to think about the trials of his next night. "Welp, time to get some sleep."