Chapter 6: Finding Out The Fourth
Benji's eyes fluttered open from his power nap since had gotten home earlier. Looking down at his phone, the time read 3 PM.
"I have enough time to quickly eat and then head out to the library", Benji told himself while yawning and stretching his arms.
Before he was going to step into the running shower, Benji was looking for an outfit for today. He wanted to switch it up today for sure.
Benji was looking throughout all of his clothes in the walk-in closet, "Hmm, let's do a pair of black jeans with its matching belt"
He kept going through the closet, "Definitely this vintage indigo sweater and this white oxford shirt to put underneath!"
The twenty-two year old set all of the clothes he chose onto the bed. He finally went into the shower to quickly freshen up. Once he was finished with showering and his usual aftercare routine, Benji had gotten dressed into his outfit. He grabbed a pair of white socks and a pair of white and navy shoes, so he didn't go outside barefoot.
"Can't forget the accessories to any outfit!" Benji exclaimed while he put on a medium-sized chain-link necklace with a silver heart and its matching bracelet.
Now ready to head out, Benji grabbed his bag, ran down the stairs, and went out the door. He started his car and then headed in the direction of the local library.
On the way, Benji decided to stop by the local coffee shop that was a couple of blocks away from the library. He walked into the coffee shop and saw his favorite barista, Aaliyah. They were practically best friends since he started working at the pizzeria.
"Hey Benji!" Aaliyah smiled at him while he walked up to the counter. It wasn't busy at the moment.
"Hey girl!" Benji waved and smiled back at the barista.
"You're usual?" Aaliyah asked like it was obvious.
"You betcha! It's like you know me too well!" Benji chuckled.
"Well duh, you gotta know what your best friend likes!" Aaliyah laughed while putting in the order on the register.
"Yeah that's definitely true", Benji smiled while pulling out his wallet.
"That'll be twenty dollars and twenty-six cents!" Aaliyah stated.
Benji inserted his card into the reader and the transaction was approved.
"It'll be coming right up!" Aaliyah exclaimed. Benji just nodded in response.
Benji's usual order consisted of a large iced white chocolate mocha, a chocolate croissant, and a sausage and egg breakfast sandwich. He usually also would get this at Starbucks, however, this local coffee shop is less expensive than the big brand.
"Here you go!" Aaliyah smiled while handing him the iced coffee and his food.
"Thanks! You're the best!" Benji smiled back.
"Awe, thanks bestie!" Aaliyah fake swooned to the compliment.
"How are you holding up here?" Benji asked the barista while putting the straw into his coffee.
Aaliyah sighed, rolled her eyes and then smirked, "It's been really slow here. But, hey! It is just a normal Thursday!"
"Haha yeah, that's true", Benji chuckled lightly.
The both of them heard the bell from the door jingle, meaning another customer had entered the shop.
"Well, I've got to get going! It was nice seeing you!" Benji smiled at his best friend.
"Right back at ya bestie!" Aaliyah winked and laughed.
With iced coffee and food in hand, Benji headed out of the coffee shop and back into his car. After setting the bagged food down in the passenger seat and the iced coffee in the cup holder, Benji was on his way to the library.
Benji had arrived at the library, who had finished the food on the way. It was time for him to do some research. He walked in with his bag and iced coffee in hand with confidence. Benji sat down at the closest computer and opened the browser. He first typed in "Missing Children Incident". Of course, that search had brought up an endless list of thousands of different incidents with missing children all over the world.
Benji sighed, "This might take awhile". Benji took a drink of his iced coffee and set it back down on the desk.
He scrolled through the list of incidents, until he saw something about how there was an incident at a local family-friendly pizzeria in the 80's. Benji clicked on the link to the article. His face looked at it in horror because it was the same exact pizzeria where he worked in St. George, Utah!
Well, not the exact same one though, Benji thought to himself.
He kept reading through the article. "Local pizzeria threatened with shutdown over sanitation."
Huh? Um okay? Benji questioned in his head.
"Local pizzeria, Freddy Fazbear's Pizza has been threatened again with shutdown by the health department over reports of foul odor coming from the much-loved animal mascots. Police were contacted when parents reportedly noticed what appeared to be blood and mucus around the eyes and mouths of the mascots. One parent likened them to 'reanimated carcasses'."
What the actual fuck?! Benji exclaimed in disgust in his head. I wouldn't let my kids stay there if that was happening! I hope there's nothing else.
"Local pizzeria said to close by year's end."
"Well no duh, of course it would", Benji murmured quietly.
"After a long struggle to stay in business after the tragedy that took place there many years ago, Freddy Fazbear's Pizza has announced that it will close by year's end. Despite a year-long search for a buyer, companies seem unwilling to be associated with the company."
"Yeah of course why wouldn't anyone be wanted with the burden?" Benji smirked quietly, yet sarcastically. He took another drink of his iced coffee.
" 'These characters will live on. In the hearts of kids- these characters will live on.' -CEO"
Before Benji could think about it, he felt a tap on his left shoulder! He looked up and to his left. It was the librarian, Ms. Powell. Benji looked at her with confusion.
"Yes Ms. Powell?" The night guard asked her curiously.
"First, this is a library, you can't be drinking your iced coffee in here", Ms. Powell whispered and pointed at my drink.
"Oh, oops sorry" Benji replied with a whisper.
"That's okay sweetie. Also, I noticed what you've been researching, so why does that incident pique your interest?" Ms. Powell asked me curiously.
"Oh, yeah um, I'm the new night guard at the revamped Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria", Benji sheepishly smiled while rubbing the back of his head slightly.
"Oh", the librarian was slightly taken aback, "Is that so?"
"Yeah", Benji replied while staring back at the screen.
There was a short and awkward silence between the two.
"Here, follow me", Ms. Powell said while making a small beckoning motion. She started walking towards the librarian's desk.
"Oh, okay", Benji responded, a bit nervous. He gathered his things and stood up.
The new night guard followed the librarian over to the desk. He noticed a door next to the desk that she was heading to, it read RECORDS above the door. Ms. Powell unlocked the door and opened it. She first went into the room, followed by Benji before the door closed behind him.
"This is the records room for both St. George and Hurricane combined!", Ms. Powell smiled while gesturing with her hands around the room.
Benji was in awe when looking around the records room. There were filing cabinets that were seven shelves tall everywhere! Even with movable ladders at each end of them! There were two tables with four chairs each as well, and even a copy machine and computer behind them. This is what Benji needed.
"You can come back here whenever you need to!" Ms. Powell exclaimed with a smile. She handed Benji an extra key to the records room.
"Thanks", Benji smiled while taking the key.
"You're welcome sweetie", the librarian replied kindly. She then left the records room so Benji could get started.
Benji set down his bag and his coffee onto one of the tables. He started looking around, taking in the room around him. While after some thinking, he walked over to one of the cabinet shelves. The one in front of him read "Articles from the 1980s". He opened it and started thumbing through the files.
Hopefully I can find whatever I need for the pizzeria, Benji had thought to himself.
Benji stopped thumbing through the files when he saw a huge file that was labeled Fazbear Entertainment, Inc.
"Bingo!" Benji smiled as he grabbed it out of the cabinet.
He sat the big bulky file onto the table and opened it. At the top of the folder was the five newspaper clippings that Benji had read throughout the week. He pushed those aside to look for more information. Reading the next piece of paper that was there in the file, Benji saw the names of the kids that went missing. Gabriel Johnson, Jeremy Fitz, Susie Smith, Fritz Nesmith, Cassidy Brooks, and Andrew Miller.
Wait. Weren't there only five that went missing?! Benji frantically thought to himself. Maybe they didn't find the sixth kid to count it.
Benji looked at the next item in the file. His heart dropped when he saw the photo of an extra Freddy suit in the article in front of him. However, that suit wasn't empty! There were blood stains and even eyeballs popping out of the eye holes! Benji put his hand up to his mouth quickly in shock and horror.
That's horrible! Benji thought in disgust.
He read the title of the article, "Bodies of security guards found stuffed into suits". Benji couldn't read any further, he felt sick to his stomach. As if the previous article title hadn't been bad, this next one was even worse! "Man receives bite on the forehead from animatronic" was the title. Quickly putting everything back into the file, he then returned the file into its proper cabinet.
"W-What am I getting myself into?" Benji mumbled while hiding his face in his hands.
There was a creepy childish laugh and then he heard a file falling onto the ground! Benji quickly looked up with a scared look in his eyes.
"W-Who's there?!" Benji stammered. There was no response.
He looked around the room, but nobody was around. However he noticed there was a file folder on the ground in one of the corners. Benji quickly went to pick it up, only to almost drop it. It read "Yellow Knolls Trail Bridge Incident" while the month and year read March 2024! Benji started to tear up as his mind started to race.
How did this end up on the floor while I'm here? Benji frantically thought.
"T-Trevor", Benji mumbled as the tears fell from his eyes.
He looked at his phone to know what time it was. It was only 9 PM, he had three hour until he had to go in for his shift. Benji's stomach then rumbled.
Heh, I guess I'm hungry after all that, Benji chuckled to himself while drying his tears.
After finishing the last of his iced coffee, Benji put the file into his bag so he could read it at some point. He walked out of the records room with his bag around his shoulders.
"Are you leaving for the day?" Ms. Powell, who just noticed him leaving the room, smiled.
"Yeah, thank you for everything", Benji warmly smiled back.
He waved goodbye and headed out of the library.
Hopefully she doesn't get upset that I took the file, Benji pondered as he got into his car.
Starting his car, he left for the dreaded pizzeria.
Benji had arrived to the pizzeria around 10 PM, since it was kind of a drive in between the library and Freddy Fazbear's. As he entered the building, Benji was stopped by Hayden on his way to the security office.
"Hey there, bud! Love the new look!" Hayden gave out his signature smile that was so handsome.
"Hey Hayden, and thank you", Benji replied with a quiet smile.
"Glad to know that you're still alive", Hayden winked and laughed.
"Oh you", Benji rolled his eyes and chuckled right after.
"Wait here I have to give you something for your hard work", Hayden said and then walked into the kitchen before Benji could reply.
"O-Oh, okay" Benji quietly responded.
It didn't take Hayden too long because two minutes later, he came back out with a container of mini cupcakes that were a mix of vanilla and chocolate.
"T-These are for you bud. I made these myself", Hayden smiled nervously, "I was going to ask if you wanted to meet for dinner, but-" He paused.
"But, what?" Benji frowned a bit.
"I forgot that I didn't have your number or anything", Hayden replied with a sheepish and awkward smile.
Benji was trying so hard to restrain himself from laughing, but a chuckle escaped his lips. Hayden looked a bit defeated.
"Hey, you could've just asked me for it, you dork", Benji smiled with a chuckle.
"Yeah, I know", Hayden rolled his eyes, then he laughed, "Could I have your number?"
"Of course", Benji smiled while pulling out his phone. Hayden pulled out his phone as well.
Benji handed his phone over to Hayden with the contacts app open already. When Hayden had finished typing in his number, he texted himself so he had gotten Benji's number as well.
"I do have a favor for you, before you get back to cleaning the kitchen", Benji stopped Hayden in his tracks before he could leave his presence.
"Yeah, what's up dude?" Hayden asked.
"Would you mind making me a small sausage pizza and a water?" Benji asked with a hint of nervousness.
"You hungry?" Hayden smirked. Benji's stomach rumbled as his response.
"Yup, definitely hungry", the night guard sheepishly smiled.
"Haha, okay, it'll be ready in a bit", the head chef chuckled and headed back into the kitchen.
Benji walked to the office to wait for his shift to start. When he stepped inside, he put the container of cupcakes and his bag onto the desk. Sitting down at the chair, Benji pulled out the file folder that he snagged from the library's records room.
It's time to see what had really happened, Benji thought with determination.
In all honesty, Benji hadn't really looked into what had happened to his late boyfriend and two friends. He was too busy trying to keep his head above the water at work while trying to grieve at the same time. Not wanting to go back to those dark times in the aftermath, Benji was now determined to look into it. Before he could open the folder, there was a sudden knock on the left office door! Benji quickly hid the file folder back into his bag and looked over. It was just Hayden with his food, and thankfully he had brought napkins this time.
"O-Oh Hayden, you kind of scared me!" Benji stammered nervously.
"Oh, sorry about that dude", Hayden replied with a sheepish smile.
"It's okay", Benji quietly smiled with a small chuckle.
"Here's your food though", Hayden smiled while holding out the pizza and cup of water.
"Thanks, I appreciate it" Benji smiled a bit more than before while taking the food and drink.
"Anytime, bud. I'm gonna go back to cleaning the kitchen before I have to leave", Hayden grinned and tipped his hat before leaving for the kitchen.
Benji giggled at the head chef's goofiness. He sat back down and started eating his pizza. Since it was still only 11 PM, the office had infinite power, so Benji picked up the tablet. He almost choked on his food when he saw that Bonnie was looking directly at the camera! He had this mixed look of remorse, guilt, and a hint of sadness.
"I totally forgot they upgraded those animatronics", Benji muttered to himself.
It was the truth though. Ever since they announced that this pizzeria was reopening, they've not only revamped the building, but also the new CEO decided to upgrade the original animatronics. The animatronics could show every facial expression known to man. They could even eat and drink as well with the customers. It was like they were more human than robot.
Hopefully this fourth night will go smoothly, Benji said to himself with tenacity.
12 AM
Like previous nights, the phone started ringing precisely at midnight.
Hello hello?
"Hello again, mysterious phone guy", Benji slightly grinned at the phone while throwing away his garbage.
Hey! Hey, wow, day four. I knew you could do it.
"Thanks, I-I guess", Benji replied nervously, as if he knew about everything.
Uh, hey, listen, I may not be around to send you a message tomorrow.
Before Benji could think of anything, he heard from the phone what was something like banging on the doors of the office in the background!
It's-It's been a bad night here for me. Um, I-I'm kinda glad that I recorded my messages for you, Benji heard the man clear his throat, uh, when I did.
"I'm glad that you did record these to help everyone that was new", Benji looked at the phone nervously. He heard more banging on the door from the phone.
Uh, hey, do me a favor. Maybe sometime, uh, you could check inside those suits in the back room? I'm gonna try to hold out until someone checks. Maybe it won't be so bad. Uh, I-I-I-I always wondered what was in all those empty heads, back there.
"It's too bad that the police already found those bodies in the extra suits", Benji muttered to himself, remembering that article in the records room.
Benji jumped a bit in his seat from him suddenly hearing Freddy playing the "Toreador March" from his head on the phone.
You know… The man from the phone was interrupted by a weird and loud moan, as if whatever was making the noise was dying!
Oh, no – Benji heard a loud roaring screech that lasted for a minute! When it stopped, all the new night guard heard was static before he heard the click of the phone, indicating that the call had ended. Benji looked at the phone in horror.
"Did-", Benji was terrified, "Did he just die?!" There were tears forming in his eyes.
He picked up the tablet and of course the rabbit and the chicken were missing from the stage!
2 AM
"HEHEHEHE!"
Benji heard Freddy's dark laugh echo from the dining room. He's only had to deal with Bonnie twice, which was surprisingly weird to Benji. Chica only showed up twice as well because she's been distracted in the kitchen.
Typical Chica, Benji chuckled to himself.
clank clank clank clank
Benji closed the left door quickly on the fox animatronic.
BANG BANG BANG!
Benji flinched at the power flickering for a second. He looked down at the power meter, it read 75 percent left. The night guard heard Foxy leave, so he brought the door back up.
"I really hope this shift ends well", Benji muttered anxiously.
"HEHEHEHE!"
Benji was startled by the laughter because it was closer, as in like in the east hallway closer. He looked at the cameras and Freddy was in the east hallway corner! With a quick reaction, Benji closed the right door to the office. He couldn't wait for it to be morning.
4 AM
Benji started to panic because the power was now at 62 percent and he still had two hours left! He was worried because he hadn't seen any of the animatronics for the past hour. The night guard quickly checked every camera, but they weren't in any of the frames!
"W-Where are they?!" Benji stammered in fright.
When he clicked on the backstage camera, for some reason, there wasn't a feed for it!
There should be a feed for the backstage! Benji frantically thought.
What surprised him was that he heard voices talking in the room. He couldn't hear them, like they were more muffled for some reason.
So, they covered up the camera, Benji pondered to himself, a little bit more calm.
He froze when he heard what sounded like an argument.
"We have to get rid of him for good!" a deep voice exclaimed.
"Freddy, something has happened to the night guard before he arrived here, we can't just do that!" another voice, was defending the night guard?
"Bonnie we have to, or else HE will come after us again!" Freddy got a bit louder.
Who the fuck is HE?! Benji panicked in his mind.
Benji just wanted to leave and never come back to find out who they were talking about.
5:45 AM
The past hour and forty-five minutes, Benji was filled with boredom and anxiety at the same time. The animatronics were still missing since 4 AM!
Hopefully they don't come back for the last fifteen minutes, Benji was trying to calm his anxiety down.
However, this wouldn't be the case. His heart dropped the instant he heard it.
clank clank clank clank
Foxy was running down the west hallway! Without even thinking, Benji closed the left door as quickly as possible.
BANG BANG BANG!
He flinched at the power flickering in and out again. The night guard looked at the power again, and his anxiety spiked again. 42 percent, that's what the power meter read. What made it worse, he hadn't heard the fox animatronic leave!
"P-Please leave me alone!" Benji quietly stammered.
"I'm sorry lad", Benji heard the fox reply with what sounded like sadness, "I have to do this"
Benji's heart dropped into his stomach when he heard the animatronic's response.
"HEHEHEHE!"
Freddy's laugh echoed from the farthest end, of the east hallway, away from the office! The bear was coming to get him this time! Speaking of the time, Benji looked at the time on his phone, 5:54 AM, he had six minutes left!
"HEHEHEHE!"
Freddy was right in front of the right office door! Benji shut it as soon as possible. He started to have a panic attack and his breathing became quick and rapid. The power meter read 22 percent! It felt like the world was slowly moving while he was trying to finish his shift.
6 AM
YAYYY!
Benji started to calm down from his panic attack as he heard the chimes and the children cheering him on. He was grateful that he survived his fourth shift. The power supply came back on and Benji gathered his things together. He put his bag around his shoulders and grabbed the container of cupcakes that he hadn't touched yet. As he was about to leave the west hallway, there was a piece of paper taped onto a table in the dining room.
That's weird, I didn't see that earlier, Benji questioned it to himself.
The night guard picked it up from the table and he had gotten chills from looking at it.
WHY DO YOU KEEP COMING BACK HERE?
Benji just crumpled the paper and threw it into the trash.
"I don't know why my coworkers are pranking me, but it's not funny", Benji muttered in annoyance and shook his head.
He left the building swiftly and got into his car. Benji started the car and headed off the parking lot, straight to his house.