Michael Afton x Reader ~ The Boy on The Bus

Chapter Ten - Pizza Hut

When you arrived home from the bus stop, you expected to see Michael there as he always was on the couch, as per usual. But like the day before, he wasn't in the living room, and you smelled no excellent food cooking.

The house was dark, and an emptiness that you weren't used to filled the air. You looked around and found a note on the refrigerator. You scanned over it and let out a sigh of relief when you realized Michael didn't walk out on you. You wondered what job interview would be so early in the morning, but you just shrugged it off and figured he might have just left early since he probably had to take the bus there anyway.

You decided to make dinner for the two of you, just so he had a nice surprise when he got back. You figured that he was going to go for another position on the third shift, just so you guys had at least a somewhat similar schedule. You hummed to yourself quietly and opened the fridge, scanning the shelves. Nothing. You opened the cupboard and scanned those shelves, too. You decided on what you wanted to make, and got to cooking, glad that nothing was wrong.

===

Everything had gone wrong. At least, that's what it felt like to Michael. He had completed his tasks for the night and was glad to be going up the elevator. It gave him a few moments to recount everything he had just discovered.

One; The mysterious establishment underneath his house was somehow connected to one of the restaurants his dad owned at one point, Circus Baby's Pizza World, now branded as Circus Baby's Entertainment and Rentals. The place had shut down after the death of Elizabeth, and he was sure that the place underneath his house had to be some sort of secret back room. He didn't expect to hear a voice speak to him through his HandUnit. He thought everything would surely be rundown. But apparently, everything still worked, and HandUnit treated him like an actual employee, directing him around the place, which was useful enough. Something didn't feel right about those controlled shocks, though.

Two; There were other people there before him- who he assumed to be his father- and they needed a place to hide. This unnerved him for many reasons, though he wasn't surprised. Everything connected to his dad seemed to come to life, even if they just seemed to be robots. Michael knew they were so much more than that, though. Surely, he thought, this place couldn't be possessed by even more people his father had killed, right? Wrong.

Three; His family was down there. He knew it when he walked through Ballora Gallery. He knew it when he heard Baby speak. He knew it when he caught a glimpse of her in the darkness. He knew her eyes weren't supposed to be green. Somehow, this fact made him all the more uneasy. Angry, even, that these robots, somehow possessed by people that he once loved, were now just sitting there in the darkness, forced to entertain children at birthday parties.

He knew he needed to help them. To save them. He needed to get them out. He just didn't know how. He didn't think that all of this was going to get so complicated. He pondered on this thought for a moment before the elevator arrived back into the office.

Stepping out of the elevator and back onto the old carpeting of his house, he sighed, walking over to the old desk where his dad's old blueprints lay. He couldn't just leave them, could he? What if something happened to them while he was gone?

But what about you? Back at the house? He had promised you he wouldn't get involved with this stuff again, and he admittedly did feel a little bad for lying when he made that promise. He just didn't want you to worry about him. He knew he could deal with this on his own as he had so many other times before. He decided that he would leave them on the desk and leave your house earlier next time so he could study them. He went to push the shelf back in place and walked out of the office, closing and locking the door. He gave his house one more good look before walking out the front door and back to your house.

Michael was glad to see you when he got home, and even more glad that you had decided to fix up some dinner. 'Work' had been stressful, and stress made him hungry. He walked into the kitchen and smiled when he saw you over the stove. To him, you were the most perfect thing on this Earth. He was glad you talked to him that day at the bus stop. He walked over to you, watching you stir up some noodles in a pot.

"What's for dinner?" He asked.

"Mac n' cheese," You replied, smiling at him, "How was the interview?"

Oh right, he thought, I was supposed to be at an interview. Michael smiled, "It was great! They said I could start tomorrow."

"Oh, that's good, I'm glad. It must've been getting boring just sitting here all day."

"Well, I can think of worse things to do. It would've been better if you were home with me, though."

"Well, duh. I'm just that great, of course it would be better."

He laughed lightly and went to go sit at the table while you waited for the noodles to cook. The both of you continued your idle conversation for a bit until dinner was ready. You brought Michael's dinner to him, which he graciously thanked you for, and sat in your usual spot across from him.

"So," You started, "Were did you say you were working again?"

Michael panicked. He hadn't planned this far into the conversation, "Oh, y'know, just some place."

"Some place?" You asked, raising an eyebrow, "Real specific."

"Yeah it's just I forgot the name, hold on," He said, thinking for a second, "UH, Pizza hut."

"Pizza hut? Does this mean we get free pizzas?" You asked. This was exciting news for you.

"No, sadly. I asked about it. I'll probably get a discount, though."

"Hm, maybe you can bring some home tomorrow for more dinner?" You asked. You didn't feel like cooking again.

"Sure." He replied. He was gonna have to scrape up a few dollars, y'know, since he didn't actually have a job and wasn't getting paid.

"Oh, okay, good. I've been in a pizza mood anyways." You smiled. He smiled back.

The rest of the night moved like clockwork. You guys talked some more, sat in silence for a little bit, and watched some TV. The usual stuff. Michael decided he wanted to be sweet and do the dishes for you. You felt bad because you felt like you were making him do all of the housework. Michael just shook his head and simply said he liked to clean. After that, you and he watched some more TV until you both got tired. Somehow, Michael still slept well that night, despite what