Absurdist Phone Guy Stuffed in a Suit

11 - Reunion

Ben Brooks

In the grand scheme of things, three years really aren't all that long, but they're long enough. Long enough for people to forget. Long enough for people to move on. Ben always knew that there was something so terribly wrong with that restaurant, but it wasn't until a little boy had his head caved in that his parents started to take him seriously.

"Those robots might look scary, but they couldn't hurt a fly!" They'd say whenever he begged them to go somewhere else. "Just try to have fun, okay?" But no one ever understood. Sure, the animatronics were scary, but they were just machines, and machines did what they were told; nothing more, nothing less. They could be scary, but it was the type of scary that could be outwitted. They made sense.

The problem was that Ben didn't actually know why he was afraid of Fredbear's. He could count up the different reasons why the pizzeria was scary, but it never matched the bone-chilling dread that seemed to wash over him after stepping foot into the restaurant. He couldn't explain to anyone why Fredbear's terrified him – not his friends, not his family, not even himself. Over time, he stopped arguing and simply buried his fear behind a mask of joy. And then someone died. And then they stopped going.

But things never seemed to last; people never seemed to remember. Staring up at the unassuming restaurant, the gleaming red letters spelling out "Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria" and overlooking several large window panes inviting all to witness to a place that should have been absolutely, positively magical, he felt a sense of déjà vu wash over him. It was a completely different restaurant, and yet that wonder was immediately replaced by a gut-wrenching dread, made more horrifying by the contrast to the unbridled joy the place was meant to represent.

What he experienced on that day was a horror like no other. It was like he was being stalked by an unknown assailant; like every moment could be his last and he was absolutely powerless to stop it. Every shaky breath, every second that passed, was agonizing. Every smile turned to a frown, every bout of laughter a harrowing scream. If he could just find the danger, if he could just understand it, then maybe the feeling would be less horrible.

"Please just try to look happy. It's your sister's big day, and I don't need your moping to ruin it." His mother scolded him.

His sister, Cassidy, she was the reason they had driven all the way out to this restaurant. She always loved those animatronics – he never even stood a chance at convincing them to go somewhere else. He gave a quick nod to his mother, putting on a fake smile. He'd read that, just by smiling, you could make yourself feel better, but somehow it only made him feel worse. With nothing else to do, he set off to distract himself on one of the arcade machines.

......

"Ben, come quick! They're putting on a show!" His sister called out to him.

He let out a deep sigh, then walked over to the show stage, curving his lips up into a smile along the way. The show was surprisingly interesting – or at least as interesting of a show as a pizzeria could make. He watched the animatronics sing and dance, their mechanisms shockingly agile and alive, and for just a moment, he felt the overbearing dread shrink back, replaced by a sliver of joy. Unfortunately, like all things in life, it wasn't meant to last, and he had to excuse himself to the restroom part way through.

It hadn't even been ten minutes later when he left, but he could immediately feel the change in atmosphere. There were no more smiles, no more laughter, just worried parents holding their children tight. And interspersed in the crowd were people running through the pizzeria, frantic and shouting out names he didn't recognize. Except one.