I stared at the marble rectangle that marked the spot where my friend was lying 6 feet underground. I read the words again:

Eric A. Jefferson
June 20th, 1991-June 25th, 2017

I slowly shook my head. I felt like the worst friend in the world; not only was I partially responsible for his death, but I didn't even acknowledge the man's 26th birthday! Some friend I am...

Ever since that day Fazbear's Fright burnt down, I've been thinking about those children and what that blonde boy told me. I've been asking myself if Eric will forgive Guy and I from beyond the grave...

"Hey, Chuck."

I turned around and saw a familiar man walking towards me. He was tall, had short, black hair, and a small black soul patch.

"Hey, Schmidt," I replied. "What are you doing here?"

"Just thought I'd pay my respects."

"I see."

We both then stood there quietly at Eric's grave. I don't know what Schmidt was thinking, but I know I was thinking of what I could've done to prevent my friend's death. I could've dragged his body out of the building. I could've tried CPR. I could've just not blocked the damn doors at all!!

Suddenly, I heard a phone buzzing. Schmidt then took the phone out of his pocket and answered.

"Hey!" He said with enthusiasm and a smile.

There was a pause before his smile slowly shrunk.

"Really?"

He waited again.

"O...k..."

He then handed his phone to me.

"She wants to talk to you," he told me.

She?

Anyway, I took the phone and held it to my ear.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hi!" The voice on the other end replied. It was definitely a girl. She sounded like she was in her early twenties.

"Who is this?"

"Oh, I'm sorry; I'm Mike's friend from Wisconsin. I believe he mentions me sometimes?"

"Oh, yeah! Uh...Janine, was it?"

"Jamie, but close enough."

"So, why do you want to talk to me, Jamie?"

"Because I have someone here that I think you need to talk to."

"Oh?"

I then heard silence before I heard a voice I never thought I'd hear again.

"Chuck?"

I almost dropped the phone in shock. I wanted to believe this was a cruel joke, but how could it be?"

"E...Eric?!"

I could see Schmidt's eyes widen when I said that.

"Yeah, it's me, from the afterlife."

I just stood there. He was able to talk to me this easily? Wait...so, was Schmidt's friend a dead girl??

"Chuck...I need to ask you something."

"Uh, sure...anything!"

"It's nothing big, it's just...WHY DID YOU BLOCK THE DOORS?!"

"I...guess I don't have a good reason. I'm just a terrible person who played a terrible joke."

"...Chuck, you're not a terrible person."

"You're dead because of my idiotic decision! And on top of that, I forgot your birthday!"

"...huh? My birthday?"

"Don't act stupid, Eric."

There was a pause.

"OHHHH! That's right! It was my birthday recently, wasn't it?"

"You mean...you forgot your own birthday?!"

"Heh. I guess I did. I was so focused on the attraction..."

"...oh..."

More silence.

"Chuck, there's something you need to know."

"What's that?"

"There's no way you could've saved me."

"Huh?"

"I was already dead by the time you found me."

"I know, but maybe the medics could've revived you!"

"I know you think that, but they couldn't have."

I just sighed.

"I...I'm really sorry, Eric. Really."

"You couldn't have known what Springtrap was capable of."

"Still! I shouldn't have blocked the door!"

"...admittedly, maybe you shouldn't have."

"We're just lucky our lawyers got us out of the manslaughter charges; that was the last thing we needed to deal with."

"I'm sure."

"So, if you don't mind me asking...what's the afterlife like?"

"It's better than anything I could've imagined! Jamie has been showing me around the place and telling her story about how she got here."

"How DID she get there?"

"Trust me: you don't wanna know."

"Ok then..."

"Hey, I'm gunna have to go in a minute, Chuck; this uses up a lot of my energy!"

"...will we ever talk again?"

"Of course! Once I figure out this whole spirit communication thing, I can start calling YOUR phone."

"That's good, I suppose."

"So, we'll talk again soon, then!"

"Okay...and, Eric?"

"Yeah?"

"I really am sorry."

"It's OK; I forgive you."

My heart started rapidly beating again.

"You...do?"

"Of course! Nobody has perfect friends, and, again, there's no way you could've known what would happen."

"I suppose."

"Ok, I really need to go now. See ya, Chuck!"

"See ya...Eric."

The phone then hung up. I continued to hold it to my ear for a few more seconds before I pulled it away and gave it back to its owner.

"Crazy, right?" Schmidt asked with a nervous chuckle.

"That's an understatement," I replied quietly.

Suddenly, my own cell phone rang. I pulled it out and saw it was Guy.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Chuck! We have a problem, Man!"

"What is it?"

"You know that newspaper article that, like, talks about the attraction burning down?"

"Of course..."

I then reached into my pocket and pulled out the folded-up clipping. I took it out and read it again.

"IT BURNS!
Fazbear's Fright burns to the ground!"

"A new local attraction based on an ancient pizzeria chain burnt down overnight.

Authorities have not ruled out foul play, but at this moment it seems to have been caused by faulty wiring.

Very little was found at the scene. The few items that were salvaged will be sold at public auction."

"What about it?" I asked Guy.

"I was looking at the image next to the article, and...well..."

I looked at the picture in question and saw only a black-and-white image of the Freddy Fazbear figurine that managed to survive the fire.

"All I see is the Freddy," I replied.

"But, Dude...I swear I can see...Springtrap behind it!"

I looked at the picture a bit closer. It was completely pitch black behind the figurine, so it was difficult to see anything.

"I think you're just seeing things," I replied. "You just need to get some rest."

"...maybe...alright, Man. Sorry about that."

"It's fine. I'll see ya tomorrow."

"Alright. See ya."

I hung up and looked at the article again. It's no wonder Guy might be paranoid; no matter how hard the fire department looked, they couldn't find any sign of an animatronic anywhere. It's as if it was never there...

This has been an interesting week; I lost my friend, my business burnt down, and there's possibly a homicidal robot on the loose! I guess you could call this whole experience a...Fazbear Fright.

THE END