My friend picked up the key and we headed out of the statue. We walked over to the large board that held the map of PlayCare. I had never been inside the school, so it was a good idea to get familiar with that area. And I certainly had never been in the playhouse either.

"Okay, so the school is over there." The person pointed at the map. "Which means that playhouse is behind us." We turned around to be greeted with the big yellow building. It looked like a big-top building that belonged in a circus. I'm sure that's what it was in there at one point. Crazy with all the orphans climbing and jumping around. Completely unaware that they could be plucked away at any time for testing. Never to see their human body again.

My friend inched a little closer to the forbidden building. There were big red doors with the word "PLAYHOUSE" written over the top. Each of the letters alternated in coloring between red and blue. And above this word was a splash of stars (also red and blue) to make it seem fun. Off to the right of the doors someone had written something in blood. It said "The Hour of Joy". For many of us, that was a very unpleasant memory. Unable to control our actions as we rampaged throughout the factory.

"I wonder what goes on in here that's so bad." He said with a shrug.

"I don't know. I've never been in there, but it definitely gives me the creeps." I admitted. And then a scream of utter agony resonated from within the building. We both flinched at the sudden shriek. "Yeesh, I feel bad for whoever that poor soul is." The human pointed at the doors as the scream died down. I gave a concerned grumble that almost sounded like a whimper. I wish we could've helped this soul, but that would mean going against Poppy's plan by barging in there. We would have no idea what we would be up against. I swallowed my instinct to help.

"Maybe we should just go over to the school before we hear anything else awful." My yellow hand pointed away from the death building.

"Yeah, let's hope the school is better than this place." He agreed.

We walked up the path and went next door to the school. This building looked much more humble. It was made from bricks and had a welcoming bright blue door. My friend used our new key to unlock it.

"And into the dark we go again." His voice didn't sound as enthusiastic now. We stepped into the hall of the school and followed it around. There were murals of the various toys on the walls such as Boxy Boo, Candy Cat, and Bron the dinosaur. This place had the same smell of decay that most of the factory did. After winding around a couple turns, we went through another pair of blue doors. This looked to be the main hall of the school, which was in clear disrepair. Pictures and boxes littered the floor. Trash cans were tipped over. To our left was a row of colorful lockers. But even their paint was chipping off. Each had a pair of eyes over the door as if they were supposed to mimic the color schemes and personality of us toys.

"Not gonna lie, those are a little creepy." The human said as his light swept over them. And then the phone rang again. "Hey Ollie." He answered it.

"Hey again. Let's make this one quick. Turn on the generator, leave, and plug the school's power cord in the center. Be careful in there, I don't think I can connect to you on that side of the dome. And you won't be alone. There's someone else in there too. They're not your-" and then the child got cut off by static.

"Hey, Ollie! You there? I thought you said this one was going to be easy! Who's in here with us?" But there was no reply from the phone. I shrugged, not knowing who Ollie was referring to. We had no choice but to keep going further into the school. Off to our right was a door that led to a classroom. We entered and looked about. It was in even worse condition than the hallway. Chairs and desks were flipped everywhere. Backpacks and toys were left scattered about. Amazingly enough, some of the bookshelves were still in one piece. There was even a piano in the middle of this room. The PA system crackled above us as we approached the musical instrument.

"This is Miss Delight speaking." Chirped a female voice. It had a sort of enthusiasm that was sure to have inspired the kids. "Please excuse the interruption. Students – remain in your seat until the bell has rung. And no going in the halls without a hall pass!"

"Miss Delight? Who's that? I guess she was…the teacher? Does she really still think there are students here?" The human wondered aloud. "Or does she think we're new students?"

"Let's try to ignore her for now and continue on our mission." I offered.

"Yeah, good idea." He agreed. So we kept on going with our explorations. A few rooms and hallways later, we came across yet another pile of junk that seemed to be an attempt at a barricade. This one had tables and cabinets stacked up against one another. My friend ducked down and was able to crawl under one of the tables. I heard a gasp from him as he passed through.

"What's wrong?" I asked as my gangly body merely stepped over the pile, carefully lifting each of my limbs high enough that they would not knock anything over.

"Didn't you see that just now?"

"See what?"

"There was somebody walking around. I bet it was Miss Delight." My friend sounded nervous as he stood up on the other side of the debris.

"We'll be all right as long as we stick together, remember?" I reminded him.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm probably getting worked up over nothing." He said and started forward again. We ducked to the right to explore a computer lab where the orphans would learn the basics of computers and how to properly type. Miss Delight came over the PA system again while we were here.

"Wait- I recognize you… Yes, I remember. You used to work here! How are you…alive? Hm? Barb? Oh… Barb says you're looking for your coworkers. Catnap wouldn't like that you're here… You should leave… For your own safety."

My human friend seemed to go a little pale.

"She seems to recognize you." I noted.

"I don't know how. Cuz I certainly don't remember her." He replied. "Also, who is this Barb she's talking to?" As we kept exploring, we collected some VHS tapes and notes along the way. Nothing about me yet. They all seemed to be about Miss Delight. The notes even seemed to be written by Miss Delight herself. We were able to piece together what had happened here based on these clues.

"So it sounds like Catnap locked the teachers in the school to keep them from being violent towards the children after whatever this 'Hour of Joy' was. They started to go crazy and ate one another. And now there's only one teacher left – Miss Delight." My friend flipped through the notes he was holding. "Oh, and she's made a weapon out of taping sharp pencils to a ruler. She calls it Barb and claims that this weapon can actually talk to her." He then looked to me. "Sounds like this one's gone off the deep end. I don't know about helping her, Huggy. She's too far gone if you ask me." I gave a sympathetic moan and replied: "Yeah, I guess you're right."

We kept going forward, re-routing wires and electricity and collecting battery packs to open doors that would ultimately lead us to the generator. Miss Delight must have been watching us because she made another announcement.

"Not a good listener, are you? You're a lot like the other humans in that way. I wonder if your screams will sound like theirs too… Mmmm…I look forward to finding out." The teacher sneered. She was making it clear that it was only a matter of time before she came after us.

A few more rooms over and we had found the main generator. My friend finished up with the last of the wiring here. "And…done!" He rejoiced as the machine came to life. A light flickered on the big yellow machine. It was just enough light that we could make out a figure walking up to it. No doubt it was Miss Delight finally coming to take action. She took a swing at the machine with her weapon, popping a battery pack off it. The machine crackled as the gears and inner workings slowed to a stop. My friend wasted no time in using his GrabPack to reach out and grab the battery. We only got a quick glance at the teacher before the lights started to flicker on and off.

Miss Delight was about human height and size. Her body frame even seemed to mimic that of a human's. She had blond hair that reached down to her shoulders and then curled outward. During one of the light flickers, I saw that she had a red bow in her hair. In terms of clothes, she wore a dress. The top of it was blue over the torso with yellow sleeves that had been torn away to above the elbows. This showed her plastic skin shimmering under the flickering lights. There was a picture of a red apple on her clothing. The bottom of the dress was red with white polka dots. Even this seemed to be worn away, riding up just above her right knee. Red slippers on her feet heavily stumbled forward. In her right hand was her weapon – Barb – that looked like someone tried to make a mace with school supplies. And then….there was her face. Her plastic skin seemed to have been peeled away, revealing pink gums and very human-like teeth that jutted out. Miss Delight seemed unable to fully close her mouth anymore. It was a grotesque sight that would be scarred into my mind for a long time.

"Aaahh! It's the crazy lady!" The human gasped. He was clearly ready to run away from this misfit.

"Hey there, Miss Delight!" I greeted her. That deteriorating face glared at us with piercing black eyes and small white pupils that were almost like camera lenses. "Would you like to be our friend?" She took a couple heavy steps toward us. It sounded like she had some metal parts underneath her plastic skin.

"Huggy, I don't think she wants to be our friend. I'm pretty sure she wants to-"

"Eat your flesh!" The teacher finished.

"Yeah, I think now would be a good time to…run!" We both turned and fled the scene. Miss Delight cackled maniacally as her metallic footsteps followed after us. Heavy, monstrous breathing emitted from her. We had to make quick actions to power doors and re-route power to find our way out. Miss Delight was not far behind us the whole time. My friend had accidentally dropped a battery pack at one point. He had to fumble to go get it again. The teacher was getting close. With little other option, I whipped around to face her.

"Please stop for a second, Miss Delight!" I held up my yellow hands like stop signs. To my surprise, she actually stopped. A heavy breath came from her open jaw. Her head cocked to the side, studying me. "Oh…" I said, for she had caught me off guard with her compliance. "Uh….maybe we can talk about this for a second now. I'm sure there's a non-violent solution to this-" And then she winded up and threw Barb at me. "Whoa!" I squealed and ducked down, covering my head. The weapon spiraled past me. I heard the human give a yelp of surprise as well.

"Hey, watch it!" He spat back. "Come on, Huggy! Let's get out of here!" I turned and followed the human through the newly opened door. Miss Delight's heavy footsteps did not seem to follow us at first. I took a glance back to find that she was struggling to get her weapon dislodged from the wall. She ended up having to put a foot on the wall to get more leverage. With a strong pull, she got her weapon back and resumed her chase.

We were almost out when we came upon a room that had three different options. The main way out needed two battery packs to open. A quick glance around told us the battery packs we needed were behind locked doors that also had to be opened.

"There's so much here! How are we going to get through all this AND avoid Miss Delight's rage?" The human panicked. And for good reason too. The teacher was almost on us again.

"You take care of the doors and I'll keep Miss Delight distracted and away from you." I offered.

"You sure you can do that?" He asked me. I nodded in response. "Okay, I trust you, Huggy." Trust. I had never been told that before. At least not as far back as I can remember. There was a warm feeling that word provoked inside me. The human got to work at the puzzle to get the necessary battery packs.

My furry body turned to find Miss Delight approaching rather quickly.

"You're gonna have to get through me now, Miss Delight. Don't make me hurt you." I put up my yellow fists to show that I meant business. The teacher stopped for a moment, cocking her head again. "Um…please?" I added. She merely laughed at this and charged my way. "You asked for it!"

I lunged and tried to grab her. My long, gangly arms curled around nothing but air as she side-stepped out of my reach. I tried yet again to grab her. The teacher made a flip back. What was left of her dress almost whipped me in the face. As soon as she landed, the maniacal teacher swung Barb at me. I lurched back, but one of those pencil points grazed my arm. Thankfully it only shaved off a little fur and didn't puncture me. The last thing I needed right now was lead poisoning.

"Hey, easy with that thing! You could hurt someone!" I said to her. One of her red clogs came up and planted itself down on my arm. The only reason her foot reached that area was because I had to crouch down when I tried to grab her. "Ouch!" I squealed as my arm got pinned between the ground and her hard, plastic shoe. "Yeah, like that." I whimpered and rubbed the spot where she stomped. Miss Delight realized her attack had distracted me. She took this moment to run past and aim for the human. The teacher was getting really close to my friend. I rushed to intervene as she jumped and raised her weapon. The man screeched in panic as she was getting too close for comfort. Thankfully, I was finally able to get my arms around her. Her plastic doll-like façade lurched to a stop just before reaching my friend. A screech of rage emitted from her dilapidated face. Those dentures clacked together as if she were still trying to reach the human. I pulled her away, so that my partner could continue on his work.

"I thought you were supposed to be keeping her away!" He spat at me.

"Sorry about that. She's a slippery one." I apologized as the teacher thrashed and squirmed in my grip.

"Don't be afraid to squeeze and bite her." My friend told me before heading off to grab another battery pack. He put it in its socket and then used his special green hand on the GrabPack to initiate a gated door to open.

Miss Delight had twisted around in my grip so that her emaciated face was staring me down. Those teeth clicked angrily at me too.

"Ew!" I squealed and tossed her away as if she was something contagious. The teacher landed on her feet as her body slid away. She was definitely very nimble and resilient. Not to mention stubborn and persistent.

"Get out of my way, blue brute! This doesn't concern you. I only want that human to suffer." Miss Delight pointed Barb at me.

"I can't let you do that." I growled, showing her my teeth.

"Traitor! If you're still around after I've killed that human, you will suffer the same fate….except I won't eat you. Too furry for my taste." Her threats only made me even madder at her. A grumble rose in my throat.

Miss Delight rushed toward me again. She swung that weapon so I ducked out of the way. I retaliated with a punch. It landed directly on her torso.

"Ugh!" She cried and was pushed back again. Still miraculously staying on her feet. The teacher was sturdy. It was going to take some real power to render her unconscious. So I winded up with more punches. Miss Delight ran around me, trying to whack me with her weapon. I dodged her wild swings and lashed out when I saw an opening. Only about half of my strikes actually made contact with her. For she was quick and small, making her hard to hit. She let out that sinister laugh as if she had the upper hand. But it seemed to me we were about equal with the ongoing battle. Little did I know at that point, she had been backing me into a corner. Those human-like dentures chomped down on my leg.

"Ow!" I squealed and kneeled down. Miss Delight's sleek figure rushed around to my front. She delivered a swift and powerful kick to my bandaged torso. I squealed in pain and backed away. A little blood pooled at the back of my throat. I could taste its irony flavor. That was clearly not a good spot she had just attacked. A few coughs escaped me, as I fought to keep that blood down. This left me open for her to attack again. My peripheral vision saw her raise her weapon up. But instead of coming down on me, she attacked something off to my left. I saw something eject from the wall. It was the battery pack! The next thing I knew, that gate door almost came down on my head. I had to fall back to avoid being crushed by it. Miss Delight chuckled in satisfaction. The gate came down, separating us from one another. Its loud clang echoed through the room, kicking up a wall of dust.

"Sorry, big guy. Nothing personal." Miss Delight said in her innocent voice. "Maybe next time ask me for a hall pass."

"Let me out of here now!" I growled at her. My furry body got up and rushed the door. I slammed into it with all my might. A squeal of pain emitted from me as I bounced off it and fell back to the ground.

"Oh, you can come out, all right….once I'm done with the human." The teacher said and turned away.

"No!" I cried and rushed the door again. This time I stuck my arm out and tried to grab her. But she was too far away for me to reach. Off to the side of the door was the battery pack. My next attempt was to reach that. If I could get a hold of it and put it back in its socket, the door would open. I stretched my arm as far as it could go. My yellow fingers touched the cube's tip, but I couldn't get a hold of it. I grunted in frustration and called out for the human.

"Friend! "Friend, over here! Get the battery pack and let me out of here!"

The man turned and saw my predicament. He gasped at the sight of the teacher coming toward him with her heavy steps. Another chuckle escaped her throat as she playfully swung Barb around.

"I-I'm coming, Huggy! Just…hang in there!" He stuttered out. The human attempted to run around the violent teacher. Miss Delight took a low sweep with her leg, taking the person off his own legs. He yelped as he was tossed to the ground. Barb was about to come down on him. Thankfully, my friend was able to roll out of the way. The weapon came down to the ground with a crunch. She had put so much effort into that swing that she had broken off a few of the pencil points. Her heavy breath sounded like a growl as she realized her prey had gotten away. The human rushed at full speed toward my door.

"Behind you!" I gasped as the teacher advanced on him. It only took her a few steps to catch up with my friend. But he couldn't do anything as she promptly grabbed the back of his GrabPack. Her strength yanked him to a stop before tossing him in the opposite direction, sending him farther away from me. I could only watch as his body tumbled over itself and only stopped when it came in contact with the room's wall.

"Ooohhh…." He groaned. Miss Delight approached him again. She started with a walk but then turned it into a run. I could tell she was going to strike with her weapon.

"No!" I cried and tried to pry at the door. My yellow hands tried to open those small gate squares larger. I only needed it big enough to fit my head, which was the widest part on my body. But it wouldn't budge.

It seemed as though my cry had alerted the human though. He still had enough strength to roll away from her again. Barb ended up missing its target yet again. Miss Delight's heavy growl was even louder this time. For she was getting tired of missing. Her camera-like eyes turned to my friend, who had struggled to his feet. She saw him panting and realized she would have her opportunity soon enough. Miss Delight would just have to throw her prey around a little longer to weaken it. I realized this too, and tried to open the door again. This time I grabbed it with my palms facing upwards and tried to lift it. The structure lifted an inch off the ground. Perhaps this could work…I just needed more strength…but how?

The human ran away from her again. He used his green hand from the GrabPack to reach out and get an electrical charge from an outlet. Now with a fighting chance, he stopped and turned on the advancing teacher. He fired it at her, the hand making contact with her chest. The electrical surge transferred to her plastic body. She cried out in pain as sparks of electricity engulfed her body. She slowed to a stop from her run. Why wasn't she falling down? Could nothing knock her over?

The electricity died down and she remained motionless for a moment. Her intense stare never left her face. And then her fingers started to twitch. This was followed by a stiff step from her powerful legs.

"Oh, come on! Really?" My friend pouted at her resilience.

"Did you really think it would be that easy to stop me?" Miss Delight taunted him, throwing in one of her signature chuckles just to rub it in even more.

"Run, my friend!" I called to him. He heeded my word and began to turn around. But Miss Delight was on him before he could even take a step. Did that electricity just make her even faster? The maniacal teacher began to toss my friend around like a ragdoll. She would grab him by either the GrabPack or the shirt and then toss him to the opposite side of the room. He wouldn't be able to take much more of this. I started to panic and tried to open the door again. But I could never get it higher than a couple inches off the ground.

My friend was thoroughly exhausted, unable to get up anymore. He needed a break from the beating he was taking. Miss Delight knew her prey could not run away anymore. Her greedy fingers reached down and wrapped around his neck. Her incredible strength lifted him off the ground. I could hear his gasps for air being choked out. The situation was getting desperate…and so was I.

He had trusted me to take care of Miss Delight…and I had failed him. I was his only hope. And yet I was trapped by these bars. For years of my life, I had been trapped behind bars. Only let out at certain times to mingle with the humans and other toys. These bars in front of me felt like bars on my soul, trapping it in the never-ending cycle of torture and torment. I had never known anything different until I met this person. He made me feel different – made me feel like I mattered.

I wrapped my fangs around the bars and used my powerful jaw in an attempt to help lift the door. Positive feelings filled my heart….trust and friendship. All of the things I longed for, all the things I needed. This seemed to give me strength. The door lifted higher. I adjusted my hand grip lower, helping the progress. Out of my peripheral vision, I saw Miss Delight toss my friend to the side. He was backed into a corner, gasping for breath. The teacher began to walk toward my friend. I couldn't get the gate any higher! What was I supposed to do? The sight of the weapon in her hand awoke another emotion in me….rage. It reminded me of the evil scientists of PlayTime Co. that would use awful tools to poke and prod at us. I remembered all the pain they had given me. The thought of that happening to my only friend ignited a powerful anger within me. A growl emitted from my throat and my eyes narrowed. This new emotion seemed to fuel the last bit of strength I needed to open the door.

"What's that, Barb? We should gouge out his eyes first?" Miss Delight gave a little chuckle. "I couldn't agree more." That weapon lifted high and prepared to come down on the human's face. At this point, I was out from my containment. Her swing almost seemed like it happened in slow motion as I rushed forward using all four of my limbs. My friend cringed as he prepared for the worst. Letting that rage consume my heart, I wrapped my fangs around the teacher's torso and plucked her off the ground, letting out my signature roar. The human flinched as his attacker was pried away from him. I began to shake the teacher around as if I was a dog and she was my toy. The squeaky toy in my jaws squealed a high-pitched noise. I then tossed her to the side. This was the first time that she did not land on her feet. Instead, she tumbled along the ground. Her grip had almost been lost on her weapon. But Miss Delight quickly corrected that and shakily stood up. The teacher faced me again. My jaws were still wide open as a growl gurgled in my throat.

It seemed as though Miss Delight hesitated for a moment before coming back towards me. And for good reason too. For I could see some blood soaking through her clothes where my teeth had punctured. She went to swing her weapon again. My senses had been heightened so it was like I could see her swings before they actually happened. Easily able to avoid everything she threw at me. And not missing a single hit on her this time.

One of my punches whacked her away. I let out a short roar before rushing after her. Miss Delight had actually dropped Barb this time. She reached for it, but my fangs clamped around her leg before she could get hold. I picked her up and slammed her on the ground before whipping around letting her loose from my jaws. The teacher slammed violently into the wall. I lunged forward, thinking one more crunch would free us from her tyranny. She had remained motionless until I was really close. This caught me off guard as she unleashed a powerful kick at the last second. Unable to avoid this one, the kick from the uninjured leg hit me square in the jaw. I squealed in pain as my body collapsed to the ground. Miss Delight used this opportunity to weasel her way around me and make for her weapon again. After a quick shake of the head, I was up and chasing her again. She was almost to Barb, but my long arms wrapped around her. My grip lifted her off the ground and pulled her away from the weapon. One arm went tightly around her torso and the other around her neck. Miss Delight struggled violently at first, but then began to weaken. Gasps for air came from her throat. It was satisfying to hear the same noises come from her after what she had done to my friend.

"Almost done, Huggy." The human had said. For he had found the strength to get up and keep working. It took him less than a minute to finish powering the door. He then turned to me. A surprised look came to his face. "Um…Huggy, I think you can let her go now."

My black eyes shifted down to the doll in my arms. The teacher's struggling had gone down to minimum strength. And she did not make those choking sounds anymore. I started to ease up on my grip. Unfortunately, that was what Miss Delight had been waiting for. As soon as I had loosened my hold, the teacher whacked her good leg back against me. The heel of her shoe went right into my bandaged gut. I roared in agony and ultimately dropped her. We both struggled to get our composure. Thankfully, I was able to find my resolve before her. For Miss Delight was going for her weapon again.

My furry body lunged forward, jaws open. The teacher had picked up Barb and swung it around. I saw this coming and adjusted my bite to go to the homemade mace. My fangs latched onto the weapon and raised it up. Miss Delight came right with it, still dangling from her prized possession. I swung my head to the side, forcing her to let go. She initially landed on her feet but ultimately wobbled and fell down to her knees. Meanwhile, I crunched down on the weapon, splitting it into two pieces: the spiky ball and the other end of the ruler.

"NOOO!" She howled as Barb was utterly destroyed. The teacher rushed to its remains. Her plastic hands went to cradle the pieces. But I didn't let her have that moment. Miss Delight became victim to my jaws again as I shook her around a bit more.

"Huggy! Huggy! I think she's had enough!" The person's voice called to me. I stopped shaking her. My black eyes shifted down to the panting, bleeding body in my mouth. "What's gotten into you, bud?" My furry head whipped toward the human. A growl emitted from my throat as I took a few steps toward its small, bruised figure. The man shrank to the ground and backed away until he go could no further. "Easy, buddy. It's me, your best friend. What's wrong with your eyes? They look a little….crazed….and bigger than normal." I snarled at him again. He flinched and yelped, putting up his hands in front of his face. The person lowered the hands a bit and continued to talk to me. "Please stop this, Huggy. You're scaring me. Let her go, please. Won't you do it for your best friend?" Listening to his words seemed to douse the fire that was burning inside my heart. I gave a heavy sigh and tossed the teacher away. She yelped as she crashed down to the floor.

"I'm sorry. I…I don't know what came over me. Honest." I apologized as I stood back up on my legs. "It was almost like some sort of instinct to hunt had awoken inside me." My yellow fingers scratched my head.

"W-well, I'm glad it's over. L-let's get out of here, Huggy." He was clearly still shaking and scared of me. I'm not sure he actually trusted me anymore. He stood up and walked through the door he had opened. I followed behind, hanging my head in shame and nervously rubbing my hands up and down my arms. We walked down a long hallway that would lead us out of the desecrated schoolhouse. At the other end was another door that was open. It looked to have a strong shutter that would close from top to bottom.

We were about halfway down the hall when an ungodly sound reached us. Miss Delight had let out a screech of rage. We flinched and turned around to find the bloodied teacher hobbling down the hall after us. The ruler piece of Barb clutched in her right hand. Even for being injured she still moved faster than I had thought possible. We had turned to run as soon as we saw her. But somehow she was still gaining on us. I didn't know if we would be able to make it to the shutter door in time.

Making a quick decision, I grabbed my friend and tossed him close to the ground. He yelped in surprise and even groaned as his body slid past the shutter door. The man slowly got up, rubbing his head.

"Huggy, hurry! She's gaining on you!" He yelled to me.

"Close the door!" I told him. The human looked to the red lever that would ultimately close the shutter. He grabbed it with his hand, but then looked to the door itself. It was then that he realized that I was willing to sacrifice myself for his safety.

"But Huggy, this thing's gonna close fast! If I throw this lever, you'll be stuck over there with her!"

"Just do it!" I replied. But he still looked between the lever and the shutter. He proceeded to pull it just one click to see if he could slowly get it closed. My friend gasped and cringed when he heard the locks on the door release. The metallic shutter had moved a few inches down when something flew past my head. It was the piece of Barb that Miss Delight had been holding. The ruler lodged itself in the door's track, preventing it from closing any further. But it would not hold the door open for very long. The immense force of the door would eventually snap that little ruler and continue on its path.

"Slide in here, Huggy! You can make it!" My friend called. Heeding his advice, I dropped low and slid past the door. We both looked back in utter horror as the teacher was still coming. She attempted to slide close to the ground like I did. Just as she was coming, the heavy shutter crushed through the ruler and slammed down. Miss Delight emitted her last scream as it came down on her head. We cringed at the loud crunch and gruesome sight. Blood pooled around her body. Her eyes and mouth were now stuck open forever.

We stayed in our spots, staring silently for a few moments. My friend finally broke the silence.

"Are you okay, Huggy?"

"I'm fine." I sighed in relief. Definitely glad the door had not come down on me instead. I shuddered at the thought that the mangled body could have been mine. "Are you okay?"

"To be honest, I've felt better." He massaged some dark colored marks on himself.

"Friend, I – I'm really sorry about-" I began to apologize.

"It's okay. It's not your fault. Let's just keep going and find a way out of this horrible place." The man was unable to make eye contact with me as he said that. He slowly trudged forward. I merely followed in silence, feeling that was the best option at the moment. It's true that I don't think he blamed me. But that look in his eyes said one thing for certain: that he didn't trust me anymore. Not after the way I had treated Miss Delight…and then began to turn on him. It was like a switch had turned on inside me. A switch that engaged a rage and violence induced mode. How would I ever be able to gain his trust back?