The first hand slipped into the claw machine easily. The second grabbed a loose wire from the ceiling. You swung across the conveyor belt, landing in a heap of shredded fabric and stuffing. That’s when you heard it.
You pressed it.
The air in the Playtime Co. lobby tasted like old paper and powdered sugar. That was the first thing that hit you—not the dust, not the rust, but a faint, phantom sweetness, as if the walls had spent years sweating candy. You’d been gone a decade. Now, the “Welcome” banner sagged like a tired smile, and the only light came from a dying emergency strip along the floor. Poppy Playtime Chapter 1
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