FNIA: Soul

The Warmth Security Brings

Mike was waiting. When he arrived at work drenched once again, he knew it would cause a bit of a stir. Now he was waiting along the edge of the stage Freddy, Bonnie and Chica usually perform on.

His hands were trembling, and he could only imagine it was the same for the rest of his body. But right after he had made that realization, a warm blanket was deftly wrapped around him. From the corner of his eye, Mike caught Marionette some distance away, flexing her fingers.

He nodded his head in thanks, an action she happily repeated to accept his gratitude. Soon after, a steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup was sat right next to him.

"There you go," Chica sat along the stage with Mike, slowly pushing the soup even closer.

Her eyes urging him on, Mike brought the bowl closer to his face and took a quick sip from it.

"I'm going to have to order you to stay home at this rate, aren't I?" Charlie had been waiting by at a nearby table, fiddling with what looked like a Bluetooth device.

"In my defense, the storm did come out of nowhere."

"Aye, the weather can be both friend and foe," Foxy chimed in, shaking her head in agreement.

"What you might need to do is bring a spare change of clothes to keep here," Freddy advised as she walked towards Mike.

She bent over and gently pressed the back of her hand against Mike's forehead. Mike kept his eyes locked on hers, knowing what waited for him if they trailed down even a little.

She briefly puffed her cheeks in disappointment before closing her eyes and suddenly pressing her own forehead against his own. Mike recalled Freddy's comment regarding how none of the animatronics give off body heat. Despite that, he felt some kind of warmth.

Freddy opened her eyes, now staring into his own. With neither of them moving an inch, it finally dawned on how close their faces were now, increasing the warmth Mike felt.

"Huh. Your temperature's suddenly rising," Freddy was confused for a moment until her normally red cheeks grew even redder. "Oh wait..."

She finally moved away from him and clumsily re-adjusted her hat. Taking her place, BB soon shoved her face into his own.

"I can't believe you dove into the storm like that. It's like something right from a movie!" Excitement and admiration radiated from the giant smile on BB's face. "Even cooler is that you did without hesitation twice."

"My hesitation was most likely overshadowed by my desire to get out of there quickly," Mike explained in a matter-of-fact manner.

"Speaking of which," Charlie finally sat up wearing a frown on her face. "You said Dan already tried to make a move on you?"

"Yes."

"That man still does not understand what the word subtlety means..."

"But isn't that a good thing for us?" Mangle chimed in asking this question. "It's because of that that Mike wasn't tempted, right?"

Temptation... When he looked back on it, there wasn't a second where Mike felt any temptation to accept any offer. It was somewhat surprising he wasn't tempted by temptation.

I can give myself that, at least.

"What did Dan try to do to you?" Bonnie hopped up on stage and kneeled next to Mike.

"He wanted to hire me for an unspecified position just so he could find out any secrets from me. To convince me, he ultimately tried to bait me with triple a year's salary right away."