I burst through the doors of the pizzeria and dashed across the parking lot, reaching my car within seconds. Fumbling with my keys, I managed to get inside and sped off. The tires squealed as I turned too sharply on the asphalt. Robin was right about Freddy's Pizzeria; I should have quit while I had the chance. If I had stayed longer, I would have been on the missing persons list. Why did I run into Afton this time? Why were the animatronics trying to kill me? Every day felt like it brought more unanswered questions.
The rising sun painted the sky in vibrant red hues, a strangely comforting sight as I drove, watching it climb higher. I rolled down my window, letting the crisp air wash over me; for a moment, it felt peaceful. The scent of damp earth and fresh morning dew reminded me of simpler days. Life had been easier then—before animatronics, missing memories, and near-death experiences. The drive back home gradually relaxed me and made me appreciate life even more.
After a few minutes of driving, I turned onto the college campus and approached the security gate. Bob, the guard, looked up from his phone as I pulled in.
"Running a bit late today," Bob said. "Something happened?" I couldn't tell him that murderous robots almost stuffed me into a mechanized suit—he'd think I was crazy.
"Uh, no! Just talked with my boss," I said, forcing a smile. Bob nodded and pressed a button to open the gate. It creaked as it opened; someone seriously needed to lubricate it.
"Take care now," Bob said, reverting to his phone.
After parking the car, I wove through the crowded dormitory entrance, barely paying attention to the events around me. I entered my room and locked the door behind me. I threw my backpack beside the door and collapsed onto the couch. Last night had been terrifying—the power outage at the pizzeria, nearly dying in an animatronic suit, and running into a murderer. Wasn't Henry supposed to greet me instead? This experience left me with one pressing question.
Should I quit this job?
If I walked away, I'd be safe and could live peacefully without fear for my life. But if I stayed, I might learn who I am and possibly discover who my parents are. Could I trust Cassidy? Could I rely on a spirit I'd only known for three days? The situation called for a dilemma.
"Mike!" Robin's voice snapped me out of my deep thoughts. "Dude, are you okay?"
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," I replied, knowing I didn't sound convincing.
Robin frowned. "You look like you've seen a ghost." He dropped his backpack beside mine and sat across me. "You haven't quit that job, have you?"
"Not yet... but I'm thinking about it," I admitted.
Robin scoffed. "Dude, just… don't die. What's so hard about that?"
I hesitated. Robin won't believe the story I had to tell, but I could try.
"Well, it's a complicated situation," I began, crossing my fingers. "As a kid, I never knew who I was—no memories, no parents, nothing. It feels like my past is foggy," I explained. Robin listened with his arms crossed.
"Then, when I started working at the pizzeria, I began having these dreams about a yellow bear named Cassidy who... teleported me to different places. To be exact, She shows me memories of the pizzeria's past."
Robin raised an eyebrow. "And when did these dreams start exactly?"
"When I accepted the job."
Robin nodded in acknowledgment. I took a deep breath and continued. "Cassidy is trapped in this yellow bear suit and claims to hold my memories. She also said she hid them around the pizzeria with other memories. If I decide to quit, I might miss the chance to know who I am and live a peaceful life. However, if I stay, I risk my life to uncover who I am," I concluded. Robin stared at me, questioning my sanity, though he remained silent. Instead, he sighed.
"Dude, you need sleep," Robin said, touching my shoulder. "As a doctor, I prescribe some NyQuil and two days off."
I frowned. "You're not even a doctor yet."
"Fine, future doctor," Robin admitted. He got up from the couch and walked behind me. But seriously, man, take a break. Go outside or something." Robin smiled and patted my shoulder before heading to his room.
"I knew you wouldn't believe me," I muttered.
Robin paused at his door and turned to face me, his usual joking demeanor replaced by a serious expression. "Even if you are telling the truth, Mike, your story sounds unconvincing. If you choose one of those choices you have in mind..." Robin took a moment to gather his thoughts. "Remember, every action has a consequence." With that, he closed his door, leaving me alone in silence.
Robin was right; I needed rest. I couldn't remember the last time I did anything besides work and attend school. I got up from the couch and slowly made my way to bed. My body felt relieved as it sank into the comfy mattress. As I set my alarm, I silently hoped Cassidy would provide answers or some sign to guide me.
"Tomorrow's another day," I thought before drifting into an endless, peaceful slumber.
***
For the first time since I started working at Freddy's Pizzeria, I didn't receive a visit from Cassidy. I believed she could come whenever she wanted—couldn't she? I woke up earlier than usual and sat on the couch with my phone beside me. My phone still had the number I used when I called to apply for the job. I had an hour before I had to make a final decision that could change my path. Once again, I found myself considering it: do I quit? After reassessing the given options, I decided to continue. The least I could do was finish the week. Now that I think about it, how bad can it get? Besides, I could obtain this week's worth of pay and quit. Not only that, I can brag I survived Five Nights at Freddy's. But before I do that, I need to find an efficient way to save power.
Before leaving, I grabbed a flashlight and a spare battery from the drawer. Hopefully, this will come in handy later.
Freddy's Pizzeria - 11:30 AM
As I had previously done, I arrived at Freddy Fazbear's pizzeria early. As I reached the front, I took out a key and opened the entrance. Once I was inside, I was clueless about searching for another tape. Cassidy didn't appear in my dreams last night, so I was solo. A feeling inside me led me back to the backstage room. As I approached the door labeled employees-only, my arm hairs stood up along with goosebumps. Behind this door was what nearly led me to my death. It felt chilling placing my hand on the door knob. However, I needed to overcome my fears to survive the upcoming nights. I twisted the door knob open and pushed it. The door creaked open, revealing the darkness behind it. I flicked on a light switch to the left, filling the room with light. Everything was the same except the Freddy suit was no longer there. Instead, the Freddy suit was gone, replaced by the exposed endoskeleton.
"Maybe you won't pull that bullshit you did last time," I muttered. I examined the room, noting that the animatronic heads hadn't moved since the last time. The only exception was Bonnie's head, which had previously contained a tape. Now, it sat where it originally was the first time I picked it from. Something told me Afton was responsible for this. After finding nothing of value, I left the backstage room. Without Cassidy's help, finding the remaining VHS tapes would be difficult. If VHS tapes were hidden around the pizzeria like Cassidy said, where could they be?
Suddenly, the harsh static I felt on previous nights came back. My ears rang with a piercing shriek as I collapsed to my knees. Despite the ear-bleeding shriek, Cassidy's voice cut through the noise.
"Mi–something bad is going t–[ERROR]–happen," Cassidy's voice stuttered, distorted like a scratched tape."Th-the prize corner... D-don't trust w-what you s-s-ee." Suddenly, Cassidy stopped speaking. The ringing in my ears and static vision faded, returning everything to normal. Was Cassidy trying to warn me of something? Cassidy also tried saying something about the prize corner. Is Cassidy okay? I needed to make my way to the prize corner.
After taking a rest, I made my way to the prize corner. After reaching the counter of the prize corner, I found nothing out of the ordinary. The plushies all remained where they were the last time I observed.
"I should maybe go inside," I thought. Listening to myself, I opened the door connected to the prize corner counter and walked in. That's when I saw it. In the corner of the prize area, there was a VHS tape. However, there was one issue. There was a plushie holding onto it. You may be asking why this is an issue. Well, this particular plushie was not like the rest of them, It wasn't normal. 'plushie' didn't match the word for it. It was more along the lines of a nightmarish animatronic.
This plush animatronic plushie had brown-green all over, with a brownish belly. The unsettling part was how it had arms, fingers, legs, and toes. It was almost as if it was an animatronic. And worst of all? It had razor-sharp teeth. This plush looked like it came out of a nightmare. Its eyes seemed to follow my every move. Despite its menacing appearance, it appeared deactivated. So, I reached for the tape it kept hostage. I wiggled the VHS tape out of its grasp, careful not to accidentally activate it. My attention focused on the plushie in case it decided to move. Fortunately, nothing went wrong, and I successfully acquired another VHS tape.
Strangely enough, the plushie felt familiar, as if I had owned it at some point. However, I dismissed this thought, believing there was no way I could feel connected to something I had no memory of. After closing the prize corner door behind me, I headed to the office. While walking to the office, I noticed the VHS tape had a white piece of paper with clear tape attached. The piece of paper read 'has" on it. Although, it was similar to the other VHS tape I obtained. If I remember correctly, it had the words "snooper" on it. It didn't make sense but the contents were what mattered anyway. The next problem is how to play this VHS tape without Cassidy. Maybe she will teleport me again. Or I would have to get a VHS tape player myself.
I entered the security office, placing the VHS tape I held on the table in front of me. I sat down on the security chair and waited for the time to turn midnight. I thought about the questions I might ask Cassidy, like why the animatronics wanted to kill me or how she knew who I was. I glanced at the clock that displayed the time at 11:59 AM. I sat up on my chair and braced myself to teleport once it struck midnight.
Night 3 - 12 AM.
I opened my eyes and found myself still in the security office. It was a rare occurrence because I was supposed to be teleported unless Cassidy was busy with something else. Just then, the phone rang. Naturally, I picked up the phone.
"Hello, Hello? Hey! You're doing great! Uh, most people don't last this long," the Phone Guy said. "Well, I'm not implying they died but they would've quit by now and moved on to other things,"
"But not me!" I said sarcastically. I don't even know why I responded. I needed to get some more friends.
"But uh anyways," the Phone Guy continued. "I'm not going to take too much of your time since things start getting real tonight. But uh, hey listen, I had an idea: If you get caught and want to avoid being stuffed into a suit, try playing dead. You know, go limp." The stage camera suddenly became static, revealing that Bonnie and Chica had disappeared. Luckily, I located both of them in the dining area. Bonnie and Chica are already moving even though it's been a few seconds into the night.
"There's a chance they might think you're an empty costume; at the same time, if they do, they might try to stuff a metal skeleton inside you. I wonder how that'd work." The camera went static again and both animatronics were no longer present. I clicked through the cameras that watched both the hallways and behind the doors but Bonnie and Chica weren't there. I heard the clanging of pots and pans—Chica must be in the kitchen. But where was Bonnie? I immediately answered my question as I clicked the backstage room. Bonnie was menacingly looking at the camera with his piercing white eyes. I had a feeling this night was going to be different.
"Yeah never mind, scratch that. It's best not to get caught. Uh, well okay then, I'll leave you to it. Talk to you soon!" The Phone Guy said, ending the call. After the call ended, Bonnie moved towards the camera and destroyed it in one punch. Bonnie's action was unsettling news. If Bonnie decided to punch all the restaurant cameras, I would lose the ability to track the animatronics. On top of it all, Foxy started to hum and Freddy laughed.
Metallic footsteps were audible to the right. On instinct, I pressed the white button, illuminating the right hallways. As I correctly guessed, Chica was at the door. I immediately pushed the red button and closed the door. I heard metallic footsteps to my left and pressed the white button, illuminating the left hallway. Who could guess? Bonnie was there! I immediately hit the red button, closing the door. Once again, I found myself surrounded. The animatronics banged on the metal door. Freddy laughed at me while Foxy tauntly hummed. Bonnie and Chica groaned like zombies. It was becoming a hopeless situation, a nightmare from which no one could save me. I can't conserve power in this situation, especially when they all come at me simultaneously. I curled up into a ball, hoping this would all go away.
Suddenly, A high-pitched laughter erupted, stopping all the chaotic noise outside the doors. This laughter was almost similar to Freddy's except it was more frightening and unsettling. The laughter soon stopped and the room filled with an eerie silence. I looked up and found myself face-to-face with Golden Freddy.
"Cassidy?" I asked. Cassidy said nothing. Even her white eyes weren't present. I pushed the white buttons to find no animatronics were there anymore. I cautiously opened both doors and confirmed nothing was there. I turned my attention back to Cassidy who remained inactive. I approached Cassidy slowly until her white eyes appeared in her eye sockets.
"Cassidy, are you okay?" I asked. Both doors of the security office closed almost immediately, trapping me in the room with Cassidy.
"I'm not Cassidy, I am your brother. Norman," Golden Freddy spoke.