Frozen in horror, you watched the woman pin down the buddi doll with her foot, then grab his head and rip it off with a sickening crack. She threw the head angrily across the room, then turned to embrace the boy beside her. They cried and held each other for a short while, then stumbled to their feet and hobbled out of sight.
You took a deep breath, reflecting on all that had just happened.
When the mayhem at Zedmart began to unfold, you made a split-second decision to hide in the warehouse behind the store. You found a few crates to shelter behind, dreadfully awaiting the chaos to cease.
After cowering there for what felt like hours, you heard the scream of a young boy. You cautiously peeked out from behind your hiding spot and saw a bloodied teen wielding a chainsaw, along with a woman tied to a forklift.
Almost in an instant, the boy was fighting off a buddi doll as it tried to prevent him from freeing the woman, who was now being hung from the forklift. Throughout their battle, you couldn't help but overhear the things the doll was saying. He would say things in a manner that made you think he truly didn't realize what he was doing. He seemed so desperate and confused, it took everything in you not to race from your hiding place and get him away from the two people. Your heart ached when the doll was finally stabbed, shot, and eventually decapitated.
Once you thought you had regained your composure, you took a final deep breath before beginning to stand from where you were.
The sound of little footsteps made you freeze in place.
Crouching back down again, you saw another buddi doll, identical to the last, emerging from the shadows and making his way over to the head of the previous doll. He stopped once the head was at his feet, looking down at it with an expression of pure heartbreak.
"I thought we were f-friends," he croaked.
The sadness in his voice broke your heart in two. The realization that this doll was far from malicious or evil swept over you in an instant. He was clearly grief stricken at the loss of his friend, and you couldn't help but think someone had failed to teach him right from wrong sometime in the past.
Poor thing. Who wouldn't wanna be his friend?
You decided right then and there that you would do whatever you could to help him.
Cautiously, you stood and began to make your way towards the doll. About halfway there, you stumbled over something and lost your footing. The android instantly whipped around to face you, his eyes dilating in fear.
He didn't say anything, just shrunk away as if he expected to be dismantled all over again.
"It's okay, it's okay! I'm not gonna hurt you," you held up your hands in reassurance.
His gaze bore into yours as you crouched in front of the frightened android. Slowly, you scooted forward until you were close enough to touch him. You began to reach out a hand, but he recoiled as if you had struck him.
"Hey, it's okay," you soothed. "I won't hurt you, I promise."
You reached for him again, and this time he allowed your fingertips to brush his cheek. Carefully, you held the side of his face and began to caress his cheek with your thumb.
The doll stiffened at the show of affection he had never received before. Subconsciously, he leaned into your touch.
You smiled. "There you go. See? It's alright," you brushed a strand of hair from his face gently. Inspecting the doll more closely, you realized just how small and vulnerable he was. The fact that he had acted in such a violent manner towards the woman and the boy must had to have been for a good reason.
"I saw what happened. Are you okay?" you asked.
