Dance with Me

“Chuck! You were right! It’s been Foxy all along. I have to go back to face
him! Freaky stuff is still happening, but no way is Foxy going to win,
Chuck. No freaking way! I’m sorry I didn’t believe you, little bro! Meet me
there as soon as you can! We can finish this together!”
Chuck clicked off his phone, looked over his shoulder, and nimbly
hopped his middle school’s fence. Then he ran.

---

He had to get to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. He had to help Pete!
He pumped his arms hard and fast to get out of sight of the school. When
he felt safely out of view, he pulled out his inhaler, took two puffs, and
walked till he caught his breath. He still had a few miles to go. He wished
he had his bike, but he didn’t, and he wouldn’t let Pete down. He wouldn’t
let him face Foxy alone.
He started to run again, but that didn’t last long. He wasn’t much of an
athlete. Chuck could run but it was usually short distances—he always did
poorly in the timed mile in gym class. He glanced around, and stiffened up
when he saw a police car. 
Oh no!
He ducked into a donut shop and waited
for the cruiser to drive by. He wasn’t used to breaking the rules and ditching
school. This was the first time he’d done something like this. What would
happen if Mom found out? Would she ground him? Pete would probably
laugh at him for being so scared. But that was okay, Pete could laugh at him
all he wanted once this was all over.
He was out of breath when he got to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, and his
shirt was stuck to his back with sweat. He pushed through the front doors
and felt relief when the cool conditioned air hit his face. Little kids were
running around as he made his way to the corridor that led to the
maintenance room. There was some sort of manager standing in front of the
walkway. 
Dang it.
Chuck bounced on his feet, waiting for the guy to walk
away. He pretended to play an arcade game until the guy finally moved
along.
Chuck walked slowly to the doorway, slipped through, and raced down
the corridor until he got to the door. It swung open to reveal absolute
darkness. Chuck swallowed hard as he stepped inside and the door slammed
behind him. Fear nearly swallowed him whole, but he grabbed his phone
from his pocket to turn on a light.
“
Hiccup.”
He smacked a hand to his mouth to try and stop the dumb hiccups. He
flashed the phone light to the left and to the right. No freaky ghosts, no
robots. He took out his inhaler and took a quick puff as he continued to look
around. Still the same dusty tables with old supply boxes and broken chairs,
like the first time they had visited. For some reason, that felt like weeks
ago.
“Pete,” he whispered. “Where are you? 
Hiccup
.”

---

When there was no answer, he wondered if Pete was trying to scare him
again. Then he pushed that thought away. Pete had sounded really upset on
the voice mail. He’d been physically hurt, and he finally believed Chuck’s
theory that it all began with Foxy. They were finally agreeing on something.
Now Pete was treating him like a real brother instead of a problem he had to
deal with every day.
“
Pete. Are you here?
”
When he was answered with silence, Chuck dialed his brother’s number.
It rang and rang, finally going to voice mail.
“Pete, where are you? 
Hiccup.
I’m here with Foxy, waiting for you. Call
me. Or just hurry up and get here. You know this place gives me the creeps.
Hiccup. Hiccup
.”
Chuck ended the call and stepped forward, aiming the phone light at the
small stage. A chill ran through him and he shivered. Instinct told him to
move far, far away from the stage. To get out. He couldn’t, though. This
wasn’t about his fears. This was about his brother. Swallowing hard, he
walked over to the control box. He would find out what happened to Pete
that day. He really needed to know if Foxy was somehow haunting his
brother. His hand was hovering over the 
START
button when his phone rang
and he jumped in the air. “