Autophobia

Chapter 13: The Reunion

Sammy pushed a piece of paper towards Charlie.

"I drew this for you."

Charlie looked up from her own sheet of paper and examined her brother's drawing. The door to the closet creaked open but she thought nothing of it. It was just another employee, most likely looking for cleaning supplies. Many got the costume and janitors closets mixed up.

"...Charlie?" Her brother whispered. She looked up from the drawing to see a shadow of a person looming over the duo. At least, she assumed it was a person. All she saw was gold. The metal hangers in the closet clanked and clattered together as the figure swooped down in one swift, fluid motion. She didn't realize that Sammy was being lifted until he reached for her. She just stared up at him, unable to make a sound. The boy squirmed in his captor's arms to no avail, and the cry he tried to let out was stifled by a fabric-covered hand. The door to the closet opened, and when it closed again, he was gone.

No longer frozen, Charlie jumped to her feet, tears pricking her eyes. She tried the doorknob- it didn't budge.

"Let me out! Daddy, let me out!"

"Charlie?" A woman's voice came from outside the door.

"Let me out!" 

"Charlie?" There was a hand on her shoulder. 

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She screamed. 

"Oh my God!" Aunt Jen jumped back. It took a moment for Charlie to register her aunt's presence. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

Jen placed a hand on her niece's upper back.

"It's okay. I'm sorry. Hey..."

"Jesus..." Charlie muttered, rubbing her eyes vigorously.

"Bad dream?"

"Y-yeah..." It had been a while since she'd had that dream. She turned to look out the window. It was still light out, but the sun had faded.

"It's dinnertime. Come on." Aunt Jen gestured for her to get up.

"I'm not hungry." Charlie said immediately. The events of that morning immediately came back to her- waking up at Freddy's, talking to Fritz... she remembered his every word.

"Come back tomorrow night, alone. I'll tell you everything, show you everything. But be prepared- you're not going to like what I have to tell you."

Aunt Jen sighed.

"Honey, I know you're upset, but I have to agree with your father- there's no reason for you to be going back to Freddy's. There's nothing for him to hide-"

"You both keep on saying that, but it's a bunch of bullshit and you know it!"

"Charlie!"

"If there were nothing to hide, we'd still own it! Dad tried to get away for a reason."

"Charlotte, I will never understand why you care so much. It doesn't affect you, it's in the past-"

"Doesn't affect me? I knew some of those missing kids. They were in my class. Oh, and remember how dad destroyed Fredbear and Spring Bonnie? He didn't want them around for some reason."

"Charlotte Marie, that's enough!"

"What's enough? Me calling out dad's bullshit?"

"CHARLOTTE!" Her father barked from the doorway. Both women jumped. Henry was red in the face and his forehead was scrunched in anger. "Jen, go downstairs. You can help yourself to dinner."