Bendy and Friends

Chapter 22: The Short-Lived Show

The receptionist jerked awake, her glasses falling off her face as she made eye contact with Bendy as he entered the restaurant.

"Oh—oh my god, what even are you? Security!" She screamed at nobody in particular. A tall waiter approached her, clutching a plate that held a mountain of Parmesan cheese with alfredo sauce drizzled all over. He looked as if he'd gone bush diving on a school campus during a school shooting.

"Alicia, you fired all the security yesterday. I'm not sure how, since you're not the manager--" the man began.

"JUST GET THAT MONSTROSITY OUT OF-" The receptionist was cut off as the man swiftly grabbed a spoonful of Parmesan cheese and stuck it in her mouth.

The man turned to Bendy, smiling awkwardly. "I'm sorry about her," he said. "How can I help you?" He took a bite of the mountain as he finished speaking.

"I—uh, I'm here to be the entertainment for the night?" Bendy said awkwardly, cracking his knuckles as he waited for a response.

"We didn't order a clown. At least I didn't. Oh well, come on in. The stage is over there." The man said suspiciously, guiding Bendy through the maze of a restaurant.

Families and children turned to look as he walked past with the waiter, but his attention was focused on searching the room for Sammy and Alice.

Beside him, the waiter took large steps while balancing the Parmesan mountain on his head, swinging around his arms in a particular dance—Lottery? Renegade? Bendy couldn't remember the name, he just recognized it because of how often Alice did it around their new house.

"Renegade! Renegade! Renegade!" The waiter suddenly yelled, punching the air and shoving out his arms like he was grabbing his freshly-ordered pack of Chicken McNuggets.

"And here we are! How long do you need to set up?" The waiter suddenly said. Bendy turned his attention back to the waiter, and saw that they had arrived at a decent-sized stage. It was only big enough to fit at least two elephants, so it was acceptable.

The waiter bobbed his head, causing the plate to fly upwards and get stuck in the roof. The restaurant went silent as they watched as Parmesan cheese and drywall sprinkled downward slowly, like snow.

After a moment when the restaurant conversations and ambience resumed, Bendy climbed onto the stage and tapped the tall microphone towering above him. "Uh, can you lower this for me?" He asked the waiter, who was awkwardly standing a few feet away, merely staring at a nearby table.

Bendy followed his gaze, and was surprised to see that he was staring at the table Alice and Sammy happened to be sitting at. "Is that the partner for your performance?" The waiter asked, gesturing to Alice.

"Oh, no. I—uh, I don't even know her," he stuttered, scratching his arm and causing it to start to leak ink.

The waiter glided over and lowered the microphone for Bendy, and then roared as he saw the receptionist—Alicia—walking past. Like a lion, Bendy thought. Or Shrek.

The restaurant fell silent once again. Bendy decided that now was the best time to begin his act, so . . . Wait, why was he doing this again?

Right. To win Alice over. I guess.

He cleared his throat, feeling the ink trickling down his arm and splattering on the bright white platform beneath him. "Come one, come all!" He shouted, instantly regretting it as the sound echoed through the room. Everyone in the restaurant turned to look at the stage.

"Oh my—are you kidding me!?" He heard Alice yell from her table. What are you doing here? She mouthed, her thin eyebrows angling downwards in frustration as she dropped her fork into her towering plate of salad.