"I love you."

"Love you too, idiot."

******************

Later that afternoon, Vincent and I headed to the pizzeria together. I was, initially, going to go alone, as I knew exactly what I was going to do, but Vincent insisted he go with me.

We parked by the fire exit, trying not to attract any unwanted attention. After all, Vincent was going in outside of his work schedule, I was stumbling around like an idiot, and we were both suspiciously happy to be there.

"You know where the safe room is, right?" Vincent asked once we were inside. I nodded in response. "Meet me outside the door after you're done, okay?"

Again, I nodded absentmindedly as I watched Vincent turn into the east hallway, whistling a familiar tune as he faded into the dark corridor.

I wandered to the manager's office, noticing when I got there that the door was locked.

I knocked once, then twice, then three times.

There was no response, not even a shuffle of paper, from the other side. I must have stood there with my back against that door for ten minutes before deciding to search for William myself. He had to be here somewhere, right?

By some sheer stroke of luck, there was no one in the security office. Stepping up to the desk, I switched on the monitor and flipped through the cameras, not finding William anywhere.

There aren't cameras in the security office doorways, though...

Sharply turning both directions, I noticed I was alone.

I guess he just isn't here.

I made my way to the safe room, hoping that Vincent would be there this early. It had only been about twenty minutes since we arrived, and I was already ready to leave.

Aside from the dining area and party rooms, the pizzeria was eerily empty and silent. Nearly all of the employees seemed to be absent with the exception of two who were supervising the arcade.

I approached the safe room door, finding it closed but not locked. Heavy breathing could be heard on the other side, along with various wet sounds. By the sounds alone, I was hoping Vincent wasn't in there.

I softly tapped my fist against the metal door.

"Hey, Vincent, are you there?"

The breathing on the other side of the door suddenly stopped as I heard something metallic clink against the floor.

"Is everything alright?" I spoke with my forehead nearly touching the door.

As the breathing from the other room picked up pace, I slowly turned the doorknob, silently pushing the door open. The room was nearly pitch black, the dim light from the hallway not illuminating it any further.

I took a step into the room, picking up a flashlight near the door. It was nearly out of power, and was only bright enough for me to make out the figure of a rabbit suit standing in the middle of the spacious room.

"William? Is that you?" I could feel my hands begin to shake as the suit stood scarily still, its back facing toward me.

As I took a few more steps forward, the door behind me began to swing closed, further shrouding the room in darkness. The room was so quiet that the sound of the door latching shut seemed deafening.

"William-" Before I could try to get his attention again, I stepped on something I couldn't quite place, not even after I had pointed my flashlight at it.

Suddenly, the light in my hand flickered off.

Then, the bare bulb hanging from the ceiling flickered on.

"Scott..." The voice addressing me was extremely raspy, not recognizable without a face.

As the rabbit turned toward me, its right ear flopped to the side.

"William, I need to talk to-"

Glancing downward as I spoke was a mistake.

Sprawled across the floor were the bodies of five dead children, their blood splattered against the cement. Beside the foot of the rabbit suit was a stained knife. The rabbit's hands and arms appeared to be torn apart by fingernails.

"You should have waited," he whispered, advancing toward me as I backed into the door, realizing it had locked from the inside.

"Stay the hell away from me! Did you kill them?" I fingered the doorknob, trying desperately to unlock it, but it was useless.

"Calm down. Don't make this any harder than it needs to be."

I continued to cling to the door as the man inside of the suit revealed his face.

"Vincent?"

"I don't want to hurt you, love. All I ask is that you don't tell anyone what you saw," Vincent said softly, placing a ripped hand of the suit on my shoulder.

"Vincent, did you kill them?" I asked, blinking back tears as I stared into his eyes, his pupils much smaller than usual.

His entire demeanor was unsettling, from his calm smile to his flushed face to the stuffing seeping out of every little rip in the suit.

"Would it matter if I did? The only thing we can do now is hide all the evidence. It's the only way to keep our jobs," He muttered, his face dangerously close to mine. "This is just a favor for William. After it's all taken care of, we can go home and keep living normal lives. I still love you, after all..."

Before I could react, Vincent's grip on my shoulder tightened as he leaned in for a kiss. Struggling, I eventually shoved him off of me as he stared at me, confused.

"No, I can't let you get away with this. You're a murderer!"

"Tell me, lovely, are you any different?"

"What?"

"William told me everything. After all we've been through, you seriously tried to kill me. Not to mention the countless innocent lives you've taken, and for what, money? You're truly sick, you know."

"Vincent, I- I didn't want to. The whole reason I came here today was to call off the deal. I couldn't bring myself to actually do it because I still love you. These- these are children..." I hesitated, watching Vincent bend down to pick up the knife.

"If you can't do as I ask, then, well-" Vincent stood up straight, blankly staring at me. "-there might just be a sixth body to hide tonight..."

Panicking, I slammed my body against the door, trying to bust it open. Despite my attempts, I only left the door with a dent by the time Vincent approached me again.

Lifting me by the shoulders, he slammed my back against the concrete wall, the bloodstained blade against my neck.

"Vincent...don't- don't do this," I whispered as the first tear fell against my cheek, followed by another, then another.

"Don't worry, love, it'll be all over soon..." Vincent gently wiped the tears from one of my cheeks, still holding me in place. For a split second I swore I could see him hesitate before harshly swiping the blade.

I saw everything, then nothing.