There Are Others

Chapter 65

Tim was never scared. That was how Mikayla usually viewed it. But at the end of his shift this morning, he was staring blankly at the cameras, having not moved. He only stirred when she shook his shoulder.

Mikayla would've normally asked one of the kids about it, but they were in the middle of their plan. And George was in the building somewhere. Kayla's skin crawled just thinking about it.

Unlike Tim, who spent his shift in the security office (because the place was deemed unsafe at night, and he wouldn't have to do anything unless something happened), Mikayla actually patrolled during her shifts.

Tim was stiff, like he'd seen something, although protocol suggested that he should've been patrolling in that case. The kids must've spoken to him. He always looked pale when he came in during the day to learn the day shift. Like he dreaded the time it would come. That he would start daily patrols instead of office camera-watching, thus exposing him to the ghost children who'd interact with the security guard.

Perhaps he'd seen something. That was the only reason he would've been contacted, after all. Evan insisted that he could tolerate the man, but the boy was prone to having a temper.

Mikayla watched him go before quickly making her way around the pizzeria. Freddy was noticeably absent from the stage. Just as they'd planned, Chica and Bonnie were still there. Her feet crunched over animatronic parts as she approached the safe room.

She glanced down, finding the torn-up remains of the building's mascot. Day one was successful. At least, in the eyes of the children. Maybe even in the eyes of William Afton. She pulled out her radio, just as she would be expected to do.

"George?" She wrinkled her nose at the name.

No answer came from over the radio. He probably was going to pretend he wasn't in the building. Mikayla put her radio away and continued wandering around the building. No one was going to break in, aside from William Afton, but this was her job. And if he already worked there, he had no reason to break in.

She tightened her jaw when she stepped into Parts and Service. The smell was much worse than before. Probably because she knew what it was.

Mikayla recalled how Michael reacted when she was finally able to tell him what she was planning. What the missing kids were planning to do with her new position. He was positively livid, adamant in his refusal to let her work as a security guard.

The exchange ended with a compromise that left both of them upset: Mikayla would continue working in what had essentially become a haunted graveyard, and Michael would be released from the hospital to go home.

She knew he wasn't going to stay at home. But the most she could do was make sure his injuries were still wrapped up securely by the time she left for work.

Michael had already gotten used to the strange looks in the street. Wandering around like a mummy wasn't going to bother him too much.

Tim was fine. Or at least, he was trying to convince himself that he was fine. People would believe him if he said he'd spoken to ghosts during his shift, but they probably wouldn't believe that he'd spoken to his dead little brother while the man who killed him was down the hall.

So he gave the barista a friendly smile when he ordered his coffee. He sat down and nodded to people he knew when they walked by. He was fine.

Until he made eye contact with a man wrapped head to toe in bandages and noticed the little girl standing near him had bloodstains on her clothing. Tim froze, unsure how to proceed. The man was familiar somehow. But who was he?