Animatronics Awaken

Locked In

One Week Later

Today is Halloween. A holiday that I used to love but was now dreading. In the past, my friends would dress up every year, most of the time as our own characters, but there were a couple of years when we all matched. One year, we were the ingredients to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich: Justin and Lilly were the slices of bread, I was jelly, and Ellie was peanut butter. Another year, last year actually, the four of us went as characters from Scooby-Doo since Lilly was a big nerd. But I was dreading this year because of everything that's been going on. Not only the grief and pain but the creatures that lurked in my head. Halloween seemed like their type of holiday.

The police had no clue what happened with my parents' murders, or Rachell's, for that matter. The only thing they were able to conclude was that it was a homicide and that the cases were connected. However, an ongoing investigation was open, although I knew that they weren't going to find anything. The suspect didn't exist in a physical form.

Oh yeah, and none of it ended up being a dream.

I, of course, wasn't going to bring my suspicions to them because even with the old newspaper articles as proof, they'd think I was crazy, just like my friends. I tried convincing Justin once again after explaining the second dream I had and how I woke up to my parents dead. He looked convinced for a moment, and I thought I got him, but then he brushed it off as I disturbingly heard everything in my sleep, and my brain interpreted it as a monster murdering them. And lucky for me, the intruder decided to leave me alone.

Justin's parents had gladly accepted me into their home after the news was revealed, much to my relief. They always liked and respected me. In fact, they once told Justin I was the best friend he ever had and went on about how much of a significant influence I had. And with this unfortunate sequence of events, I believe that they were planning to adopt me, no questions asked. This meant that not only Justin and I would be friends but also siblings!

Everybody in our neighborhood, especially within our group, was devastated. But I was hoping that we'd be able to move on peacefully after some time. Despite everything seeming to be crashing, I was determined to find a way through it and defeat these Nightmare Animatronics. I wasn't going to let them succeed in whatever plan they had, nor was I going to let them traumatize future victims.

I jumped back to the present with a start. I got my own room in Justin's place, but it was Rachell's. I found that a bit uncomfortable, but I had customized it with my decorations and furnishings, so it seemed less like a graveyard. Justin's parents put all of Rachell's belongings in the basement, so I wasn't plagued by her things, either. Looking at the clock, I noticed it was almost time to go. Even with the recent events, my friends and I weren't breaking our yearly Halloween ritual. We didn't trick-or-treat anymore, but we still hung around town in costumes and had fun. It took some convincing from Ellie, Raymon, and Lilly for Justin and me to do it this year, however. But we eventually gave in after their relentless persisting, claiming it would be good for us. And I figured they were right.

Raymon had joined our group of friends after Justin reunited with him. I didn't know the whole story, but I remember that he mentioned they used to be old friends. I'd gotten to know him a bit better and was more comfortable around him. After some analyzing, I figured he'd be a good member of our friend group as well.

Justin and I also got past our conflict, primarily because of the deaths of our loved ones. After my parents died, we hadn't fought once. We hadn't even mentioned it or my nightmares besides the time I tried to convince him it was connected. Although I wasn't happy that he still didn't believe me, I was satisfied that we ended our dispute.

I rechecked the time. Much to my disappointment, it was time to go now. I quickly jumped out of bed and raced down the hall to Justin's room. Unlike our typical traditions, I didn't bother to dress up for Halloween. Not only because I didn't have a costume but also because I didn't want to. This year was really off, and I didn't feel like going all out. However, I was wearing a long-sleeved black shirt with a cat face on it, so I considered that to be close enough. I had a pair of dark blue ripped jeans to match it.