#{ thank you adskjfsd :'))) hugs!! }

[curseofbreadbear]

[Bell Steven was quick to reject Jeremy's formalities -- at this point, knowing that the pizzeria had closed, referring to Steven as "sir" or "Mr. Bell" was a force of habit. For as long as Jeremy had known him, Steven had been one of his bosses; it was a bit rough trying to adjust.]

❝ Right. G-Got it. ❞ [Jeremy swallowed, ignoring his instinct to scratch at the back of his head ( God forbid ).] ❝ This...might be a silly question, but what do you want me to call you? ❞ [Probably "Steven," but he didn't want to make assumptions.]

[According to Steven, showing up was the least he could do. It was more than that, though -- from day one, Steven had been trying to stick up for him in ways he'd never seen another Fazbear employee do. Sure, he was a manager, but managers didn't often take on an underling's job because their life was in danger they were scared. Not only that, Steven had bothered to show up...he'd even pulled up a chair and tried to make conversation, saving Jeremy ( again ) from his thoughts.]

[Jeremy didn't fully understand why his former boss would go to all of those lengths, moreso because he didn't blame the man for anything he'd gone through. Maybe Steven just...cared. In a corporate world, that was pretty rare.]

[Right -- it wasn't about him. If they wanted to reopen ( Jeremy shuddered at the thought ), they would need to make sure the animatronics were safe. Part of that was figuring out why they'd targeted Jeremy, but even after digging into their software, they were drawing a blank. Had he done something without even realizing? Or was it possible that...]

[He shook his head, willing away the idea -- he instantly regretted it, a newfound dizziness overwhelming him. It felt, unrealistically, like his brain was a puddle of mush slushing around in his skull. For a good minute, he could barely see through the distortion in his vision. Note to self: never do that again.]

❝ M...Makes sense. ❞ [Jeremy finally replied, wishing he could hold his spinning head in one of his hands without feeling queasy about it.] ❝ I-If...if you figure out what happened, would you tell me? ❞ [He knew for a fact that he'd never recover if he was left to imagine the possibilities.]

[Surprisingly, Steven hadn't seen his brother at Freddy's...but now that he thought about it, he'd also never heard a single comment from Steven about how they "looked so alike," nor a single question about why there were two Fitzgeralds on his roster. Weird.]

❝ S-Same as me. We're, uh, twins. ❞ [Jeremy shrugged, inviting himself to an inevitable barrage of questions about his brother. At least those were better than listening to his head right now.]

[Steven smiled at him ( AT him, not just in his general direction ), now inquiring about his bond with his brother. Jeremy gave a weak smile of his own, then stared down at his stiff, oppressive bed sheets. Spying a few stray specks of lint, he started to absentmindedly pick at them.]

[Simon had been his best friend when they were younger. At some point, though...his brother changed. Or maybe they'd both "grown up?" Whatever the case, Simon had started to distance himself from Jeremy, a pattern that had continued well into their days of working at Freddy's. Not once did Jeremy see Simon while he was at work, even when he was finally switched to the day shift, almost like Simon had intentionally been avoiding him. He'd honestly been worried that he'd done something to upset or hurt him somehow, but...]

[Seeing Simon today was...reassuring. It was a sign that his brother did care, in his own way. Maybe Jeremy had jumped to conclusions.]

❝ Kinda. We were close when we were kids, b-but now...uh... ❞ [Jeremy stumbled, trying to put his words together.] ❝ Now he likes to do h-his own thing. Before...this happened, we barely s-said two words to each other. It's...I was...I-I'm happy he does care. ❞

[Steven rambled ( again ) about potential future guests, but also how meaningful that family visit was, and a fretful batch of reasons to hint at why Jeremy wasn't "popular" today. Technically, Steven was right -- Jeremy was in pain, and he'd been encouraged to sleep as part of his recovery -- but he didn't think he could rest right now. He wanted to conk right out and have a peaceful nap for once in his life, but he knew how sleeping would pan out...more nightmares. Maybe even one that'd trap him all over again.]

❝ Please don't leave. ❞ [Jeremy quietly begged; he needed company right now. He couldn't be alone.] ❝ S-Sorry, I...I just...I don't want to be alone right now. ❞

"Please don't call me 'sir' anymore, Jeremy." Besides the fact that Fitzgerald almost certainly doesn't work for him anymore, it's an awkward reminder of the previous power dynamic between them. Jeremy had only worked the night shift because Steven had told him to. Jeremy had only been stationed next to the animatronics because Steven had placed him there. Jeremy had only done anything that might have set off the machines because Steven was his boss and Jeremy didn't have the luxury of saying no.

Bell's stomach twists and he settles his gaze on the floor, idly toeing at a stray smudge near his chair.

"I get it. You don't have anything to thank me for. It's the least I can do."

He glances up when he catches movement from his periphery, looking over just in time to see Fitzgerald gingerly feel at the bandages around his head. A sudden, sick curiosity creeps over him. What does Jeremy's head look like under there? How much had they been able to patch up, and how much had they replaced? If someone were to remove those bandages right now, would they see what's left of the kid's brain pulsing beneath scabbed, bloodied skin--?

Steven looks away again.

"Oh, sure. I mean, we have to figure out what went wrong if we're ever going to reopen." He freezes. Did he screw up again? How much of the behind the scenes of Fazbear Entertainment's plans for the future does Jeremy actually want to know?

"Really? No, I don't think I have. How old is he?" What a weird coincidence. Steven can't help but wonder why the other Fitzgerald left. ...certainly not due to any workplace injury as bad as that of his brother, or Steven would have heard about it.

He offers an encouraging smile, finally looking Jeremy in the eyes.

"He must have been really happy to see you! Are you two close?" Sometimes Steven feels like the only guy in Hurricane who doesn't have a sibling. He often wishes he did, but then something like this happens to remind him that he's probably better off with as little family as possible; the more loved ones you have, the more likely you are to watch them get hurt. What must it be like for Jeremy's brother to see him like this? What would it have been like if Jeremy hadn't been quite so lucky?

"But not the last, I bet!" He shouldn't say things like that. Now if no one else ends up coming, he'll feel like a real ass. "But, uh, really, I wouldn't get hung up on stuff like that. Your family came, and that's what's important. I almost didn't come, just--just because I wasn't sure if it'd be better to give you some space. I didn't know if... you might be in pain, or need to sleep, you know. ...you can tell me to leave whenever you want, by the way."