Broken || William Afton x Oc ||

7

FEBRUARY 28TH
1983

THE DAYS HAD BEEN LONG, and equally as boring. Head to Freddie's early in the morning, sit and wait for the rest of the employees to arrive, start working, get a brief lunch break, work again, help will with the animatronics, go home, eat, hide in her guest room. It was a melancholy routine if not just borderline mundane, and it was starting to drive her absolutely insane.

Despite the boring routine though, her and Afton had fallen into a rhythm. They didn't bother each other unless absolutely necessary... ignoring each others presences except for when she helped with the animatronics, and when he always talked to her after dinner. Besides then, they were invisible to each other...

Something that made the routine more bearable was Afton's kids... Adeline never thought she'd enjoy children... but something about how sweet Evan was, how smart Elizabeth was, and how sarcastic Mike was just brought her a lot of joy. They were a light to the darkness she had found herself drowning in... and the kids seemed to take an equal liking to her.

William had taken notice, of course... it had been forever since his children had a figure in their life that was caring and tender; motherly. Something about the way she would so carefully hold Evan—as if he was made out of porcelain and if she dropped him he'd shatter into a million pieces—made him go soft. The way she would play with Lizzy, twisting her strawberry blonde hair up into different braids, do her makeup and somehow make the horrendous child makeup kits do magic... the way she'd be so delicate, having tea parties with his daughter... it made him have to shake his head.

Even the way she interacted with Michael. He was more stern on him... maybe a little too harsh, he'd admit. But she never was... she was the tender figure he needed in his life. She was always so caring towards his son, tenderly taking care of his scraped up knees, and sternly, but kindly scolding him when he scared Evan. She was everything in a parental figure he wasn't.

And despite the way he was... somehow soft at the notion, he also resented her for it. He was their father, why couldn't he interact with his kids in the way she did? What was it about this woman that these three children adored so much?

"Adeline." He commented, catching her attention. She was sitting in his office, before opening that day, her fingers fiddling with a pen, clicking it, and clicking it, and clicking it. It was irking him—and he was prepared to snap at her.

Her eyes lifted to meet his. He bit his bottom lip, resisting the urge to bark insults at her, or snap in his irritation. Despite him still disliking her, and her disliking him, they had fallen into a rhythm that negated the snapping. That made the other person... tolerable. And he didn't want to jeopardize that peace.

"What?" She inquired, her eyebrows furrowed. Her eyes seemed glazed over, as if she was deep in thought... and troubled. He didn't... like it.

"What are you thinking about?"

She sighed. Shaking her head. She didn't want to get close to him; he was a murderer. There was no telling what he'd do with her weaknesses, if she chose to open up. He would use them to manipulate her—she was sure of it. And yet... she somehow finding herself wondering how he could.

William was a scary man; easily irritable, something crazed in his eye when he got angry... but he wasn't anything but human. A crazy, lunatic, murderer of a human yes, but human nonetheless. She wasn't all that afraid of him in all honesty—more irritated by him than anything...

But she didn't want him to know what she was thinking.

What she was feeling.

That was a vulnerability she was not willing to share. Never.