It's Playtime: A Playtime With Percy Fanfiction

Chapter Three: A Night

      I woke up at around 6 PM, surprised I managed to sleep that long without being disturbed. Was all of that a dream? Is Pal still here? I look over to my right to see Pal in the corner of my room. I flinch, panic taking over until I realize that he isn't powered on right now. In fact, all of his minions seem to be powered off right now. I guess he got bored. 'Maybe they all share a conscience of some sort. I mean, Pal did create them. There's no time to theorize, I gotta get out of here as quickly as I can.' I think. I look for the windows. 'Yes!' Thank the stars he doesn't know what windows are! I open the window as quietly as possible. I don't really think I can wake him. I mean, it's not as if he has an entire hearing system installed, plus, he can't even react if he's powered off.
At least, that's what I keep telling myself.
      I gently climb out, my nerves flare as I accidentally hit my head above the windowsill. I quickly start running away from my house, as fast as possible. I near an alleyway which I hide behind, in case Pal notices I'm gone. 'Who can I call, what can I do, what am I supposed to do??' Then it hits me. John! Surely I'll be able to call him. 'But what can I say?' Hmmm... This is my chance to escape, so I might as well make the most of it. I quickly open my contacts and dial his number. I notice that my battery's at 20 percent, but I still have to call him. It's my life or the phone's. I wait, my foot tapping nervously against the ground eagerly. 'C'mon.. C'mon...' At around the 10th loop of the phone ringing, he picks up at last.
"Hello?" I hear him say. "Yes! Oh my gosh I thought you'd never pick up! It's Nick." I let out a sigh of relief. "Okay, slow down son, what's gotten into you?" He asks. Thankfully he sounds concerned. "Can I stay the night at your house? I've gotten a lot to deal with right now, and I really just need somewhere to go." I tell him. "Uhh..." He trails off. "Eh, okay fine. I'll try and get something set up for you. I don't think I have an extra mattress so you're just gonna have to sleep on the couch, if that's okay." "That's fine, thank you. Wait, what's your address again-" Before I could finish, he hangs up. I check my phone and scroll through my messages with him. 'I'm sure he mentioned it somewhere... Okay, here it is.' I quickly skim over it. "Seems like a 10 minute walk from here..." I say out loud.
And so, my journey begins. I pass by a couple of stores and flickering lamposts. I stare at the cloudy night sky. It seems like it'll rain soon. Before I know it, I've arrived. "Okay, house 368, 368, 368..." I say as I walk through the rows of houses, searching for house 368. 'There!'
     I can't recall the last time I've been to the boss's house, in fact, I don't think I've ever been there. He's got a relatively modern house that resembles an office. 2 floors and I'm assuming a basement as well. Much bigger than my small little bungalow that I managed to get after moving out of my parent's home. He's got a couple of flowers in his front porch. I didn't really expect him to be a gardening type of guy to be honest.
     Right, no time for observations, just knock. I knock a couple times at his front door, specifically 5 times, and start to play the waiting game. I hear the muffled sounds of footsteps rushing down the stairs and mutters of what I could barely make out as curses. I wonder if I had come over at a bad time. The boss opens the door, looking exhausted, until attempting to give me a hearty welcome.
"Nick, you made it!" He greets me. "Yeah. Thanks for doing this by the way." I say, grateful.
"Did I, come around at a bad time?? 'Cause I could've sworn I hear-"
"Oh, uh, it's nothing don't worry about it. Here, how about you take a seat at the table?" He motions me towards the dining room. I sit down, resting my head in my hands as I close my eyes. "Everything's just gone to crap." I tell him. It comes out muffled, but I'm sure he understood what I said. As I lift my head, I see him sitting across fron me, hands crossed, eagerly waiting for more. "Come on son, I'm listening." He says. Didn't really expect him to take pity on me to be honest, but I tell him about everything. The shifts, Pal, all of it.
     "...And I know I sound insane, and I wouldn't blame you for not just sending me to an asylum right now, but it's true. He's taken over my house and I didn't- I didn't know where to go, so I called you up and here I am." I finish my expedition and wait for his response. He blinks in surprise. I bet he was expecting anything but that.
"There was... A Pal Percy with you?" The boss asks. Not skeptically, more as a genuine question. 'That's your big takeaway from that?' I think. "Yes...?" I answer. "Thought those things got recalled! How'd you manage to get a hold of one of them?"
"I found it lying on the table in the office. I thought it was just a cute little toy until... Well, you know." I tell him. "Oh boy, it was faar more than a 'cute little toy'. Back in my day, those things went insane the more kids used 'em. Started becoming, dangerous, from what I've heard." John explained. "But, why?" I ask. He shrugs. "I dunno. I always thought it was because of the lousy programming and the animatronic battery, but the company never really told me. Also, sorry for leaving you in the dark when you called me on Friday, asking me about the spare battery. I was in a rush, couldn't care about anything else at the moment. I assumed that you'd find the spare batteries in the storage room but I guess not." "WHAT." I yell.
     "Yeahhh. Whoops."
     "Wow, what an amazing apology, really moved me to tears boss." I say coldly. "Uhh, how 'bout I order us some dinner? What do you like?" He says to change the subject. I'm still a little mad at him, but I answer anyways. "Anything's fine at this point, I haven't even eaten lunch." I tell him.
     "The pizza's here!" I hear John call. I get off the couch and pause the TV. We meet at the table, and the boss says, "Well, let's dig in then!" Before grabbing the pizza slices. I don't think I've ever talked to the boss as much as I have today. As we eat, John asks me something. "So, Percy Poodle is still in your house?" "Yep." I confirm. "Huh. If you get the chance, I'd like to get him back. I got a couple of offers that seem pretty decent so I'm hoping to have him back by then." He explains. 'There's the boss I know.' I think to myself.
      That night, I sleep on the couch with a thin spare blanket the boss gave me ("Sorry, don't really have many guests here anymore." He told me.) I have a couple dreams, mostly involving Pal. I woke up a couple times in the night, dreading what's to come in the morning.