The Fall of the Aftons

026: William Afton

"Welcome to the family, Michael!" William exclaimed, his arms extended wide as the two stood in front of the door of his house. Michael clung to William's leg, intimidated by the large house. "Terrance is off at school, so while he's gone, let's find a room for you. Then we can go to the store and get you settled in, all right?"

Michael whimpered and buried his face in William's pant leg.

"What's wrong, bud?" William asked worriedly. He stepped out of Michael's grip and sat down on the cold hardwood floor. A few tears slipped down Michael's cheeks and William wiped them away with his pointer finger. The little boy's mouth curled into a flimsy smile as he giggled, then suddenly he was enveloped in a huge hug from the small boy.

"Thank you," Michael said quietly, leaving William stunned for a few moments.

"O-Oh. Um, you're welcome," William replied sheepishly, wrapping his arms around Michael.

~ ~ ~

William stared at the blank ceiling, clutching his thin blankets to his close to his chin. He didn't want to get out of bed. He was tired, very tired. It was the result of not sleeping well for months on end. It seemed he was always tired the last few months, especially with taking care of Terrance and going through the adoption process. He never knew that it would be so difficult to try to adopt a child. Now that he thought about it, he should've done some research about what the adoption process was like.

William begrudgingly climbed out of bed, then stuffed his feet in his slippers and draped his robe over his shoulders. He cracked open his bedroom door, being careful not to let the oily hinges creak. Then he stepped out carefully and silently, easing the door shut on his way out. But when he tried to step forward, he tripped over something and fell straight toward the stairwell. He felt his back slam into stair after stair as he fumbled to get a grasp on one of the railing posts. He got a grip on one, but his fingers instantly slid off. He heard someone shout his name, but it failed to do anything--not that it could've in the first place.

His back suddenly slammed hard against the cold hardwood floor of the first floor, his head nearly flinging back into the ground. He heard feet darting down the staircase he just fell from, and Michael and Terrance popped into his view. The two boys started anxiously talking all at once, their voices overlapping. 

"One at a time, one at a time!" William shouted over them, groaning as the two helped him up. As soon as he was on his feet, Michael tackled him in a huge hug around his long legs.

"I'm so sorry, William!" Michael cried, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. "I didn't think you'd fall down the stairs! I'm so sorry!" He started to cry softly, guiltily muttering something to himself over and over as Terrance asked, "Are you okay, Uncle?"

William nodded his head as he gently rested his hand on Michael's shoulder. "It's all right, Michael. I'm okay. I promise you, I'm fine. I'm just a little sore," he said reassuringly as he lifted the little one from the ground and onto his hip. 

"I'm sorry," Michael muttered. He continued to repeat the two words over and over and over again until William shouted, "Okay, okay! That's enough!" He whimpered at the loud, sudden noise but he stayed quiet, his face still buried in William's shoulder.

"Is there anything I can get you, Uncle?" Terrance asked kindly. William shook his head. He watched as his nephew walked back up the stairs, probably going to go change into clothes instead of pajamas. William followed after him, surprised to find a thick blanket, a pillow, and Michael's Fredbear plush on the floor in front of his bedroom door.

"Michael? What is all of this?" he asked quietly, looking at the little boy in his arms.

Michael stared at the mess on the ground. 

"Mike?"

"I... I couldn't sleep last night. I was planning to ask if I could sleep on your floor, but I didn't want to wake you. I'm sorry, William," he explained quietly. William set him down and he began to gather his stuff. "I won't do it again. I'm sorry." And he walked off, down the hallway to the other stairwell that led to the third floor, leaving a pang of guilt in William's heart as the little boy--now his little boy--left his sight.