Another Five Nights

Memory Log #2

"I SAID I'M SORRY, FATHER! PLEASE JUST TALK TO ME!"

I was on my knees, next to my father, who hadn't looked me in the eye once during the entire drive home. I tried multiple times to get him to say something, or acknowledge my existence, because the silent treatment was the last thing I needed at the moment.

Elizabeth ran past us into her room, crying. She had called me a decent few kindergarten-level rude names before we got home. I preferred that to Father's silence. I wished that he would just yell at me, spank me, whatever! Anything but this!

Father did not respond to my pleading. He just walked away, leaving me there on the floor to choke on my tears.

Everything that had just happened... it felt so unreal... so impossible. We were all so happy just a couple hours ago... how'd it all go so wrong?
How'd I manage to make it all go so, so wrong?

It was my little brother's birthday. He was the only one who wasn't happy about it, because Father was hosting the celebration at his and Uncle Henry's pizzeria; Fredbear's Family Diner. It was supposed to be an advertising opportunity or something. Well, the birthday boy himself was terrified of the animatronics that performed there, like he was of most things...
So, I decided to take advantage of that and give him a little scare.

I gathered my friends and we started to poke fun at him after we found him crying under a table. Just some harmless name-calling. Then, I suggested we took him to see the main attraction of the pizzeria, Fredbear, to scare him a little more. So that's what we did.

It should've stopped there. I should've stopped there, let him run off, then go do my own thing. But I didn't. I just had to take it a step further. I just had to do the dumbest thing ever done in the history of mankind.

I shoved the kid's head into Fredbear's mouth.
[Bonnie-bro] kept whispering in my ear, asking whether this was a good idea.
The springlocks holding Fredbear's mouth open came loose because of [Crying Child]'s tears as he begged for me to stop.
I didn't stop. I kept laughing. I kept laughing while this kid was suffering.
What is wrong with me!?

The springlocks gave in. There was a loud, fleshy crunch. Blood began dripping from the animatronic's mouth.

It was like time froze for a moment. Everything was quiet. Everyone just stared.

Then someone screamed, causing a chain reaction. I yanked Fredbear's head open and pulled [Crying Child] out.
"Hey, hey buddy, you're alright aren't you? C'mon get up! Wake up!"

He was limp in my arms. His head had been completely crushed and deformed. There was blood everywhere. Too much blood...
I hugged him close to my chest. This wasn't supposed to happen. Nobody was supposed to get hurt! It was just harmless leg-pulling...
"Buddy, please! This-- this isn't funny anymore, please... just open your eyes. WAKE UP!"
Please, no! This can't be happening! Please tell me this is a dream!

Father had come running in with Uncle Henry, and stopped dead in his tracks before collapsing onto his knees. I couldn't make out their expressions. My vision was blurred by my tears.

I just sat there, hugging [Crying Child]'s limp body in my arms. I had no idea what was going on around me anymore. Eventually, paramedics came. They carried him away, and I just sat there until someone came and drew me to my feet.

I apologized to my little brother as earnestly as I could at the hospital, but it didn't feel like enough. I didn't break one of his toys or something this time. I broke him. He was in a coma. He was dying, and it was all my fault.

Here I was now, on the floor, my brother's blood quite literally on my hands, crying my eyes out like that would fix anything.

I will fix this, somehow. I promise.
I will put everything back together.