The Fall of the Aftons

134: William Afton

A few years passed by, most of them uneventful. Circus Ennard's Pizza Planet opened about a year and a half ago, and it was a hit. That was until one day, a couple of months after it opened, someone in the kitchen stopped paying attention and the building burned down. The fire took many lives, including four of Michael's friends: Ella, Analex, Lavender, and TJ. They were there with Michael, his siblings, and Noah to celebrate Ella's birthday, but the four didn't make it out after the fire started. Only Michael, Evan, Elizabeth, and Noah did. Circus Baby's Pizza World was built in honor of the lost kids and a few other scattered people Henry and William didn't know personally.

On the other hand, though, Michael grew closer to Simon, Frederick, and Mark. He still seemed apprehensive around Mark, but as long as he wasn't alone with him, he was fine. William was proud of him for overcoming his suspicious tendencies and fully befriending the boys.

At the moment, William was cooking dinner for his family, Henry, and Charlie when Henry draped himself over William's back and shoulders. William stopped cutting the pepper he had been slicing for dinner, then tilted his head to kiss him on the cheek. Henry smiled and gave him one back.

"Do you need something, Hen?" William asked as he resumed his chopping. "Or are you just being clingy?"

"Clingy," he admitted, then chuckled. "Is dinner almost done? Charlotte's starving, apparently."

William laughed. "I swear, she has a hollow leg. But yeah, it should be done in about twenty minutes."

"I know, right? I'm pretty sure she's having another growth spurt. She's always hungry when she's about to grow again." He chuckled again, resting his head against William's. "She's three years younger than Evan, yet they're so close in height. Just a four-inch difference!" He sighed, chuckling again. "Thanks for making dinner, by the way." He kissed William's cheek again.

"You're very generous with your kisses today, huh?" he pointed out, laughing to himself. "You're lucky that Mike's upstairs, or else he'd be going nuts. You know how antsy he gets we're affectionate like this, worried about people seeing us and the company getting scandalized." He chuckled at the thought, then sighed, putting the knife down and dragging a hand down his face. "Speaking of being affectionate, do you know if he's gotten a crush yet? I know that he trusts you way more than me—but he's so much more mature than the rest of the kids, and he's already missed out on so much that normal children go through, and I don't want—"

"I do know," Henry interrupted. "He does have a crush, but he doesn't want me to tell anyone who it is. He was very clear on that."

"Oh, you're cooking dinner?" Michael's voice sounded throughout the room. Both William and Henry turned to look at him. "I was already planning to. Guess you beat me to it." He smiled slightly. "Um, if you don't mind me asking, who has a crush?"

"You, silly," Henry said. "Your dad asked me if you had one yet."

"W-Wait, what?" he asked, panic dancing in his eyes. "Y-Y-You didn't tell him, did you?"

"No, no, of course not," Henry assured him, laughing. "I simply told him that you have one. That's it."

Michael exhaled a long sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness..."