Tom's: Five Nights at Freddy's

Fired

    Mike spaced out as the forklift he operated moved forward. Industrial sounds of machines functioning in the background were phased out. He was in his own world. His eyelids felt heavy and he was tired, but not the kind of 'tired' that sleep could fix. Mike desperately wanted to hop off the forklift and go home early. He thought about Mia - the one thing that motivated him. She was mainly what kept him going. However, the candle was starting to burn out. The stress between both jobs was getting to him. But he needed them desperately. Suddenly, he heard a loud thud. Mike was jostled back. He immediately stopped the forklift and looked down.

    "HEY!" someone yelled, "What the FUCK is wrong with you?" Mike saw an employee he didn't recognize. The employee had a hard hat and plastic goggles. He was thin and looked to be in his 50's. Mike noticed that the forklift had collided with a stack of boxes that this man and someone else were carrying. The boxes were now scattered across the floor. Mike stepped onto the side of the forklift and hopped down to the ground, instantly about to start helping pick them up, "always doin' this shit!" the old employee yelled, shoving him. Mike was thrusted backwards.

    Mike wasn't going to take this disrespect. Fights were common in the warehouse and for many years, Mike had done his best to avoid them. After everything he had been through that week, he was no longer able to control himself. After the little custody he had was being challenged, after Peter smashed his daughter's Gameboy, after all the worrying at night, he wasn't going to take this anymore. He finally let his rage own him. The old man started walking away as if nothing had happened.

    "The fuck, man?" Mike yelled back at him. The man didn't even turn around to face him, which infuriated Mike. Out of everything, this level of disrespect is what drove him. He ran up to the guy. He jumped forward, arms out, and tackled him. Both he and the employee tumbled onto the cement floor. Other workers stopped to watch, amused by workplace brawls. As the man turned to look up, Mike punched him in the face. Mike hit him again and again until the man's nose started bleeding. Mike felt nothing but satisfaction and wicked joy, as if fighting just this one guy was like fighting everything - all his problems.

    "Mike STOP!" someone yelled. Everyone glanced back and began to disperse as the warehouse manager walked up to the scene. When Mike came back to reality, he saw his boss walking in on him attacking a now bleeding older man.

    "ASSHOLE!" the man spat in a cowardly, defeated voice. He and Mike stood up.

    "What the hell is going on here?" the warehouse manager asked.

    "He crashed the thing AGAIN!" Mike opened his mouth to speak but found it useless. This was the third forklift incident that week and even if he tried to explain himself, he knew he couldn't articulate anything correctly at that moment. He was too angry. Adrenaline pumped through his veins.

    "Mike, you're done. Go get your things and see me in my office," the warehouse manager stated firmly. Mike said nothing, turned around, and angrily departed to his car. The employees all stared at him and whispered to one another as he passed. He took off his coveralls and threw them in the back. He opened the door to his car and got inside. He turned it on and began driving out of the gravel parking lot. He tried to calm himself down, knowing he would go on to make rash decisions if he didn't. But just as he was driving away, the anger kicked in harder. He honked the horn of his car. His boss and the old employee looked at him. He stuck his hand out the window and put up only his middle finger.

    "Fuck this place," he told himself. The job had been grating for so long anyway. He barely made any money despite being there for over a decade. However, this left him in a great predicament. He wanted to leave Freddy's but now, it was his only source of income left. He drove past the tall pine trees and out of this area entirely while thinking of what to do next. First, he needed to calm down and rationalize everything. In the back of his mind, he knew he had gone too far with the rude worker. Though he wasn't ready to admit it yet - not even to himself.

    It started to rain as Mike drove back to Cory's apartment. He turned on the radio but every station in the vicinity played nothing but static, so he shut it off. By the time he parked at the apartment building, the rain had increased immensely. He stepped outside and became drenched in the short time it took to reach the door from his car. He walked up the stairs slowly and carefully until he reached Cory's apartment. He fished the key from his pocket and unlocked the door. Mike went up to the telephone, not proud of what he was about to do. He still had the phone number to Freddy's on a sticky note on the kitchen table. He punched in the number and waited.

    "Hello, thank you for calling Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, my name is-"

    "Yeah, can I speak to the manager?" Mike interrupted.

    "Yeah sure, one moment," the employee put the phone down. Mike stood by for half of a minute before someone picked up.

    "Hey, I'm Robert, the manager and CEO, what can I do for you?" Robert asked.

    "Yeah hey, this is Mike. Uh- I was wondering if I could get more hours somehow? Like take up extra shifts if anyone is sick or something,"

    "Yes, actually... We don't have a night shift guy for the weekend. Do you think you can come in on Saturday for a 6th night?"

    "Yeah, I can do that,"

    "Great! Thanks," Robert hung up. Mike put the phone back and went to the guest bedroom he was staying in. He laid on the bed and tried to reflect. The last thing he wanted to do was spend another minute at Freddy's, but now, he had no choice. Not only did he desire more custody, but he had bills to pay with Cory. He couldn't afford to be jobless for very long. And after having applied everywhere else before Freddy's, he knew it wouldn't be a good decision to quit. It took him a very long time to fall asleep, being very nervous about his future and bitter about what happened at the warehouse. However, tiredness got the better of him and he fell into a deep slumber.