"Let him go!"

Julie yelled from the doorway, Joel standing beside her. Michael was hugging me tightly, his hands gripping onto the back of my shirt as his tears made it wet. He pulled me closer, holding onto the back of my head and feeling my hair. He sobbed hysterically. The only times I'd seen an adult cry like this were during my mother's breakdowns. I could feel his erratic heartbeat pulsing from his chest. I just looked up at Julie and Joel, unsure of what I should do or say.

"Just... a couple more minutes," he answered between breaths, but Joel didn't give him that. He grabbed onto the back of Michael's trench coat and pulled him away from me.

"No! Wait, please, I'm sorry!" Michael called out, reaching out to me. I was frozen in place, still surprised by the turn of events. Joel constrained his arms until he stopped fighting back.

"We specifically told you not to do that!" Julie said, her fists clenched. Michael faced down. "I know, I know, I'm sorry," was all he mustered out. He lifted his head to look at me, and he swallowed back the cries that were forming.

Julie knelt down beside me and asked, "Gregory, are you alright?"

I didn't even look at her. I was too busy processing Michael standing in front of me. I couldn't believe he was in the same room as me. I didn't know if I really believed those tapes or not, but here he was, crying in front of me.

My eyes dashed around him. I thought my vision was going to get blurry from the shock and adrenaline rushing through. "Michael?" I said, repeating what I'd asked when he first walked in.

He nodded his head up and down sporadically, tearing his arms out of Joel's grasp as he touched his chest. "Yes, yes! I'm Michael!" he said. Now he was smiling, though there was still a load of anxiety behind it.

"So, you do know him?" Julie asked me. I looked at her unsure. I knew who he was, but I didn't know him personally. I'd seen both him at his most professional self, pitching his animatronics to the company, and at his most vulnerable self. I've seen him cry, I've seen him tear out his insides, and I've seen him attempt to end his own life, all behind the small screen in the security office. Now he was in front of me. I can see every detail on his face. I felt his heartbeat as he hugged me. I can hear his rapid breathing. It was all too real.

"Uhm," I stammered, trying to think of what to say, "I know his name is Michael." I probably could've said more, but there was too much running through my head. Michael blinked a few times, processing what I said. He looked around before he said, "I'm... I'm a good friend of your mom's."

Usually, when a stranger tells you that they're a friend of your parent's, it's a sign to run away. I didn't know if I considered Michael a stranger or not, but regardless I had police around me who would probably deter Michael from telling any lies.

Julie glared at him, but she didn't disagree with his statement. She got back up and said, "You two have a lot to talk about. But we have more pressing matters. Gregory, we couldn't find your mother, but we did find him."

"How?" I asked.

"He was at your doorstep when we revisited your house. He was looking for her, too," Julie explained.

"I came as soon as I heard you were gone," Michael said, coming closer and taking my hands into his. "I'm so glad you're okay... kinda," he said, looking at the bandages that had been wrapped around my bite marks and the bruises on my neck. I backed up uncomfortably and nervously laughed. I hoped he wouldn't ask me how I got these. I didn't know if I could tell him his creations were what hurt me, even if they were altered.

Julie sighed and said, "We can't keep you in the hospital forever, and Michael is, well," she trailed off, continuing her scowling at him, "mentioned in your mother's will quite a few times."

Michael apprehensively chuckled. She gave him one last mean stare before looking back at me with her natural pleasant face. "Gregory, would you feel comfortable being in Michael's care for a while?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"We've set up a hotel room for you to stay in," she said. "Originally, it was going to be watched over by someone on the force, but Michael can be your temporary guardian."

Why would a family friend be able to do that? There's clearly something that they're not telling me. Is he my God father? Or my emergency contact? Is that why he's mentioned in my mom's will so many times? Why does my mom have a will? I was getting lightheaded. I really couldn't think of anything. I didn't even want to know the legal junk, I just wanted to talk to Michael and hear it from him. Everything these detectives tell me sounds either like a lie or condescending.

"So?" she asked, still waiting on an answer. I honestly didn't know. I didn't think I knew him well enough to just be passed over to him like this, but at the same time it would be a great opportunity for me to learn more about him. I should feel grateful; the amount of luck I needed to have for him to not only be talked about in my mom's will, but to also be present at the house when they checked was unprecedented.

"Uhm, can I talk to him? Alone? For a while?" I asked. If I could just talk to Michael himself, without the pressure of the detectives in the room, then maybe I'd be able to have some of my questions answered.

Julie was hesitant, but she eventually agreed. "Sure, just come on out when you're done. Let's go," she said, inviting Joel to walk out with her. He sauntered out behind her, but he gave Michael one last glance. Michael mouthed some words to him. It looked like "Thank you," but I couldn't be sure. Joel just nodded and left, closing the door behind him.

Michael turned to me, his expression full of hope. His eyes started watering again and he wiped them away. He didn't cry from sadness, though. It was a pure kind of joy and happiness.

"Sorry," he apologized, "it's just been so long." He tried to stop himself from crying, but his breaths remained quick. I slowly walked over and gave him a small hug. I knew I shouldn't hug strangers, but I'd admired Michael from afar in his tapes. I knew what kind of person he was like. He genuinely cared for his creations, his kid, and longed to right his father's wrongs. Michael knelt down and hugged me tighter like he had done when he first walked into my room.

"You've gotten so big!" he exclaimed. He let go and placed his hands on my shoulders, looking at me directly. "I remember when you were little and you would draw on the walls! Oh, your mother would get so mad," he said. I had no idea what he was talking about, so I just awkwardly laughed.

"I just have a lot of questions," I said.

"Ask away," Michael said. He maneuvered through the room and sat down at the table and chairs, expectantly waiting for me to join him. I picked up Bowtie before I walked over to sit with him. Bowtie was glaring daggers at Michael, and I wasn't sure why. I put it on the table beside me.

I was able to get a real good look at him. His skin was unnaturally pale, and his eyes were still watering from his crying. His burn scar was the same from when I'd seen it on the VHS tape, though that's probably the most normal thing about him. He was trembling, too, but I couldn't really blame him.

I didn't know where to start. From the VHS tapes to this new information of him knowing me, I had a lot of ground to cover.

"I've, uhm, seen your tapes," I said, lightly knocking on the table to ease my nervous energy.

Michael blinked a few times. "My tapes?"

"You know... the prototype videos? And the, uhm, other stuff?" I muttered, trying to be sensitive about the content in the tapes. I wasn't really sure how to correctly bring up that subject. Michael's face changed as he realized what I was saying.

"Oh, no," he murmured. His shoulders dropped and he was visibly uncomfortable. "You shouldn't have seen those. Shit , I'm so sorry." He covered his mouth afterwards, probably because he hadn't expected for that swear to sneak through.

"No, it's okay, they just confused me. Just... where have you been?" I asked. The animatronic prototype videos were easy to navigate through. It was just Michael building and testing his robots with the help of his young son, who'd come in every so often and either test or improve them. The diary tapes, though, felt like an absolute mess to get through. I could tell that the one where he had attempted to end his own life was the last one in the timeline, but the rest were out of order and information between each tape was missing.

"Recovery," Michael said, "across the country." That answer felt bland, but he didn't seem to want to talk about it anymore. I wasn't going to pressure him. Besides, if what Julie said was true, and that Michael could be my temporary guardian, I was sure I'd find out eventually.

He shifted around and continued, "Then your mother posted about you online. It shook me to my core, so I came back."

I could see why. He had lost his son inside the pizzaplex, and he probably knew about my brother's disappearance as well. Then he finds out one of the victim's relatives was missing? That'd freak me out too.

"Imagine my surprise when I heard you were found outside of the pizzaplex!" he said joyously. He laughed a bit to himself and asked me, "What happened? You look like you've been through hell."

"Well, you're not totally wrong," I said. I wanted to tell him about everything I encountered inside the pizzaplex. From my first meeting with the daycare attendant to my last daring escape from Vanny, I wanted him to listen and I hoped he'd give me insight on my experiences, but I wasn't sure if I could with the detectives only a room away. I wanted to wait until I knew he wouldn't tell them anything.

"Uhm... your machines are incredible," I said, remembering he was the one behind the glamrock animatronics in the pizzaplex. He gave a witty, small bow and said, "Thank you, I'm glad you like them. Did you make that?" He motioned towards Bowtie, who was still staring at Michael as if he were the devil.

"Oh! No," I said, "it's from the pizzaplex."

"Really? I didn't know they added Bon Bon to the collection," he said.

Bowtie spoke for the first time, "I'm merchandise inspired by Bon Bon."

Michael's eyes widened when he heard Bowtie speak. "It talks?" he said.

I ignored his comment when a question came to mind. "Wait, you didn't make Bowtie?" I asked. He'd made everyone else, so I assumed he'd also make the advanced toy.

"No. I left the company several years ago. Plus, if it's merchandise, that would've been the product department," he answered. He picked Bowtie up, and it retaliated by hitting him, though its small plastic paws weren't much. I wasn't sure if I should intervene or not, but I tensed my shoulders and put both of my hands on the table to get ready in case I had to.

"Hey! Put me down!" it yelled at Michael. He examined the toy in awe. "It's very impressive. Looks just like the real thing," he said.

"You've seen the real Bon Bon?" I asked. Michael laughed.

"Of course! Though, it didn't think on its own," he said. Bowtie crossed its arms and huffed out in annoyance, "Put me down or so help me I'll make your last days a living nightmare!"

Michael just chuckled some more. "Charming! I love it!" I couldn't blame him for having that kind of reaction to it. He was the one who put AI in much larger animatronics. I didn't think a small children's toy with one would scare him much. He put Bowtie down back where I first placed it. Bowtie growled at him, but Michael didn't care at all.

I tried to think about what else I should ask. Should I ask about my mom? My brother? His son? What about his story? Would he even be willing to tell me?

Michael leaned over a bit closer and said softly, "I know this must be really scary. Someone you barely know barging into your hospital room like this. I'll understand if you'd rather I leave you alone."

"No!" I said, a bit too loud. "No, I've been wanting to meet you for so long! It's just... now that you're here, I don't know what to say." I glanced quickly behind me, hoping he'd take the hint. I didn't want the detectives listening in on us.

Michael reclined back in his chair and smiled at me. "You're being careful because of them, aren't you?" he said, pointing towards the door. I nodded a little with a small smirk on my face. If they were gone completely, and it was really just Michael and I, then I'd feel more comfortable asking these questions. But I wasn't stupid, I knew that the detectives were most likely eavesdropping.

Michael leaned in closer and whispered in a light-hearted tone, "Don't worry. I'm busting you out of here." He lightly nudged my arm and I giggled with him.

"Here's the plan," he said, suddenly shifting from his childish attitude to a slightly more serious one. His voice was low to make sure no one else could hear us. "You tell Julie that you'll stay with me. Then, you'll tell me everything between Monday and Thursday. We'll go from there."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"They said you're withholding information, but I think I know why," he said. I tried to ignore that ominous comment. He leaned in close once again. "I want to help you," he said, "but I need you to trust me, okay?"

My heart was pounding. What was I supposed to say to that? I couldn't just argue with him. I wanted to trust him, but he was starting to freak me out. I weighed my options. If I chose to stay with the detectives, they'd probably try to pry information out of me all night. If I went with Michael, I'd at least be able to try and get some of my questions answered by an expert. Besides, I wasn't totally convinced Michael was trying to hurt me, he was just acting weird because the detectives were close by.

I took a large breath and nodded, indicating to him that I'd follow along.

He gently patted my shoulder in reassurance and stood up. I got up too, grabbing Bowtie and holding it close. We walked to the door and Michael opened it for us. Julie and Joel were both right outside, barely giving us enough room to open the door.

"Have you made a decision, Gregory?" Julie asked.

I hesitantly nodded and said, "I want to stay with Michael."

She sighed, probably not expecting me to say that. "Okay," she said. "I... I hope the two of you manage to get a long talk in."

There was a lot of talk before I left the hospital with Michael. It was just a bunch of legality discussion between the adults. I sat with Bowtie, quietly playing only a few feet away. Julie left Joel to talk to Michael, though their conversation was much different than the one with Julie. I started listening when I realized as much.

"You owe me big time," Joel said to Michael.

Michael laughed. "I know, I know! Thank you!"

"Wait, what?" I peeped into their talk. "Do you two know each other?"

Michael wrapped his arm around Joel's shoulders in a friendly way. "Who do you think helped me with this?" he said, motioning to the burn scars on his face. He lightly hit Joel with the back of his hand and said, "I knew you'd remember me."

"How could I forget a face like that ?" Joel teased, though his manner stayed monotone. I couldn't tell if it was supposed to be a joke or just an open insult. Michael laughed some more, so I guessed it was allegedly a joke.

"I see you've been promoted," Michael said to Joel, "How is it in the missing persons division?"

"To be honest," Joel said with a sigh, "it's eminently bleak. I understand why no one wanted to take this case now."

Michael looked at him expectantly to give more information. "Everyone knows the history of Fazbear Entertainment, so no one wanted to pick this case up. I volunteered," Joel said, trying to explain his situation. "No one at management has answered any of my calls or emails, and it's exceptionally tough to get a search warrant for the whole pizzaplex."

"Why?" Michael asked.

"Something about the pizzaplex being several stores combined into one. I have to get warrants for each single individual store inside. It doesn't help that it's been closed for the past week," he said.

I wasn't lying when I said the pizzaplex was a glorified mall. It literally was a mall, to which the stores had been bought out and transformed by Fazbear Entertainment. That's why so many of the entrances were old garage doors and grates. They were originally used when closing down one store inside the mall, which let the others stay open.

"I wish I could help more," Michael said.

"No, you've done enough. I feel much better knowing Gregory will be with you," he replied. Then he crossed his arms and gave Michael a sly smirk. "Though, it would've been easier to convince Julie if you hadn't made such a scene."

"She'll come around," Michael said, though even he didn't seem to believe it.

"You two should probably head out. Come to the station around eight in the morning," Joel said. There was still plenty of interrogation they had planned, huh.

"Of course," Michael said. He gave Joel one last goodbye before he left. I was just left with even more questions.

Michael took me by the hand and walked out of the hospital with me. The sky was a deep red as the sun was lowering below the horizon. His car was a silver compact, and it wasn't anything fancy. He let me sit shotgun as he took the seat behind the wheel.

"So," Michael asked, starting the car, "what actually happened?"

"Huh?" I held onto Bowtie tightly, rubbing its back to ease my nerves.

"What really happened in the last four days?" he said. He turned around to look outside the back windshield and pulled out of parking.

"You wouldn't believe me," I said. What happened inside the pizzaplex was incredibly absurd. The only reason I believe it is because it happened to me.

Michael sighed and said, "Gregory, if there's anyone who knows how crazy and obscene Fazbear Entertainment is, it's me. I promise I'll believe whatever you say, no matter how asinine."

I took a deep breath. I was truly alone with Michael right now. I've seen his tapes, I've heard a bit about him from Vanny. If there's anyone who will understand, it's him.

"There's a lady in a bunny costume trying to murder me," I said bluntly. I let out all the air and anxiety that had built up in my chest afterwards.

"See, that's incredibly on brand," Michael said, not surprised one bit by my claim. He turned the car out of the hospital parking lot, and we were officially on the road.

"It is?" I asked.

"Yes! I'm surprised it hasn't happened sooner," he said.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Let's just say Fazbear Entertainment has a long history," he said. I tried to think of ways to continue the conversation.

There was one thing that only he would understand.

"Vanny almost scooped me," I confessed. He almost swerved off the road from shock. I held onto the car door to keep myself balanced.

" What ?" he yelled, trying to refocus back onto the road.

"She said you trusted the animatronics and then got scooped. Is that true?" I asked. I knew the scooping part was definitely true. I'd seen the aftermath of it in one of his tapes. But I wasn't sure if I believed that Michael blindly followed orders to become like that.