Misplaced Trust

Chapter Four: Projection

A quiet groan escaped the boy's throat. He pushed himself so he could sit up and set a hand on his head. Not only could he not remember much past being caught and dragged out of the elevator by the intensely irritated and anxious security guard, but aside from a little bit of grogginess after just waking up, he felt completely fine. Didn't people have headaches after waking up from getting knocked out? Or something?

Gregory let go of himself and looked around his well-lit surroundings. Shelves cluttered with boxes of various colors and a few objects lined one wall, while a cluster of four monitors perched over a desk on the opposite wall. An amalgamation of novelty gifts sprawled out beneath him. The pile gave a little beneath him as he sat on a pile of shirts. "Where am I? Look at all this stuff," he mumbled. How long had he been asleep? Where was he? Where was Freddy?

Gregory jumped to his feet. "Freddy? Freddy are you there?" he called, his head whipping back and forth as if he could summon his animatronic friend if he searched hard enough. Gregory doubted the giant metal-and-plastic bear could hide behind anything here, unfortunately. Could he even get here at all? Gregory could see a red-and-blue security door and a large vent in the wall by the floor, but he neither had a high-security pass nor a screwdriver. "I'm trapped."

The cluster of monitors, once showing nothing but static, flickered to life. They showed a close-up of Officer Vanessa's head; a down-facing shot that barely showed her eyes and mostly featured her black cap. "I bet you think you're real clever, Gregory," Officer Vanessa spat his name. He could barely see her emerald eyes beneath the brim of her cap. A flicker of lavender glittered in her eyes. She took a breath and huffed, "Yeah, I know your name. You're in big trouble! This is not the night to be wasting my time!" She put a hand on her forehead, over her eye squinted in what he could assume was a headache. The colored light faded as she moved and the venom in her voice drained as exhaustion crept in. "You'll be safe in Lost and Found; nothing without my clearance can get through there. So just wait right there. Please."

Lost and found? Wow.

The screen flickered back to static. Before he had a chance to regain himself and think of a proper way out while he was technically "safe," the monitors turned on again. In Officer Vanessa's place was a bunny mask with wide red, orange-tinted eyes and small, slit pupils. Mangled whiskers popped out of her muzzle and her wide smile felt dim beneath her glowing eyes. The camera gave him no mercy of a cropped shot. "Hello, Gregory!" Her soft, cooing voice caused a chill to run down his spine. "You're safe and sound. Wait there; I'll see you soon~!" Her voice crackled near the end.

The monitors fell back into a hissing, warping static.

Gregory's blood froze in his veins. Okay, so, he was trapped in Lost and Found, Freddy wasn't responding to him, Officer Vanessa thought he was safe and was not likely to come back, he didn't have the security clearance to open the door, and that rabbit lady knew where he was!

Gregory searched through the room, skimming over the pile of junk, and sweeping over boxes until he found a few tools lying discarded on the floor. One of them happened to be a small red screwdriver. With a victorious hiss, he snatched the tool and ran to the vent.

A melodic hum, this one organic from a human and not a machine, grew loud enough for him to register.

The boy looked up. Through the window, he saw wide, off-white rabbit feet skipping down the stairs before the room. He unscrewed the vent register as quickly as his shaking fingers would allow. The faux rabbit stood before the translucent window of the Lost and Found, her big red eyes staring down at Gregory and her hand raised in a wave. His head hurt, and his mind went fuzzy as his ears filled with static.

The boy pushed himself through the vent and out the other register. He stumbled to the polished checkerboard floor and took off at a sprint, stumbling over his clumsy feet at the sudden acceleration. His mind was clear again, and he wasn't about to let that change. Behind him, the footsteps became quicker and farther apart. As he rushed up the stairs, he dared a glance back.