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The door was shut just as fast as it was opened, Henry quickly went into the living room. Michael was leaning against the door, panting. He looked up and they made eye contact, the kids eyes were wide and he was trembling.
“Uncle-“
He took a step forward but faltered, Henry caught him. He could feel the boy shaking.
“You’re okay now, I have you.”
Henry lowered Michael to the floor gently and kneeled next to him, keeping his hands on the boys shoulders. Michael took a breath, keeping his head low.
“I’m-I’m so sorry, I-“
“You don’t have to apologize for anything, my boy.”
Michael suddenly threw his arms around Henry, the other stumbled a little but carefully wrapped his arms around him. He could hear Michael’s shaky breathing. Maybe both of them were holding on tighter than they needed but neither would tell. A sob escaped from Michael, who buried his face in Henry’s shoulder. It broke Henry’s heart, even after the accident, Michael didn’t cry.
“You’re safe, Mike. You’re alright.”
He rubbed Michael’s back soothingly.
“He’s not gonna hurt you, not anymore.”
Michael held on tighter, his whole body was shaking. He sniffled.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
He was whispering but his voice was raw. Henry didn’t know what he was apologizing for.
“It’s okay, It’s alright.”
Eventfully, Michael’s sobbing had subsided. He reluctantly pulled away from Henry, face red and stained with tears. Henry kept a hand on his shoulder.
“I-…I have something you need to see.”
Henry hadn’t noticed the backpack until Michael started to rummage through it. He handed a folder to Henry.
“Michael-“
“- Please , you-…you need to see this.”
Henry stared at him, he was clasping his hands together, a desperate look in his face. Henry looked back to the folder, William’s writing was definitely on it.
Those ‘Funtime’ blueprints were first and while Henry knew they were technologically advanced, he was surprised to see things labeled as ‘parental voice sync & replay’ and ‘voice mimic/luring’.
“There’s more.”
Michael’s voice was hoarse. Henry flipped through the folder until he came across a ripped out piece of paper dated 1979. He could feel his stomach drop, it was unmistakably William’s writing. The sentence that stood out was: ‘Killing Charlotte was a mistake I don’t regret.’.
Next to Henry, William was the most upset at the funeral, saying that he thought of Charlotte like she was one of his own. Was it all a lie?
The paper slid down a little, revealing two others. The first one was dated 1981 and it talked about how overjoyed William was that Circus Baby worked verse the loss of his daughter and while he was saddened by it sometimes there are consequences.
The second one was dated 1983, Henry’s blood went cold. It talked about what a great success the party was, and how great Michael played his role and how easy it’ll be to mold him.
Henry looked up at Michael who had curled in on himself, arms crossed. His apologies suddenly made a lot more sense. Henry reached out and cupped on the boys cheek with his hand, Michael leaned into the touch.
“It’s not your fault.”
Henry’s voice shook but he meant it, Michael was just a kid, he had no idea what his father was going behind closed doors.
“He- He tried to kill me.”
Michael sobbed, Henry gently pulled him into another hug.
“I won’t let him hurt you, you’re safe.”
William might have taken Charlie but Henry won’t let him take another child, let alone another one of his own. Michael held on tightly to Henry, like he was gonna disappear if he didn’t. Henry cradled the kid in his arms. He didn’t know how to process the thought that the man he called his best friend killed his daughter.
“How did you find this?”
Henry spoke quietly but Michael tensed up.
“He was working late one night and I snuck into his office to find something. His journal was lying on the desk so I…I read it.”
Henry felt Michael begin to shake again, he rubbed the boys back.
“I only took those three pages but there’s more. There’s a ton more, he’s like, documenting something.”
Over the years, William had been talking of how advanced technology could get.
“I wanted to grab more but he found out that I took those pages and…”
He sniffled, clinging onto Henry.
“And he…tried to kill me. I- I know I did something I wasn’t supposed to but-“
“-Mike, it’s not your fault. William’s lost it. You did the right thing by coming here.”
Henry pulled away to look Michael in the face, he put his hand on Michael’s face again.
“Let’s have a talk with him tomorrow.”