If anything at all good came out of going to Guertena's painting, it was that Ib and Garry met. Despite the fact that they were complete strangers, Garry protected Ib as an older brother would a younger sibling and showed genuine care and compassion toward her. Not so keen on expressing feelings herself, she found it odd that she bonded so easily with Garry. They had experienced the nightmare of that place together and had escaped with their lives. A bond between them would last forever.

Ib had matured into a beautiful young lady. She kept her brown hair long, and her eyes were still an odd deep crimson. She had, of course, grown and developed the curves of a young woman. She stood about 5'3"- still short, but compared to how tall she was ten years ago, it was an improvement. Still not too emotional, she found herself with only a handful of friends. Garry was one of them.

Garry had only been fifteen at the time he and Ib faced the dangers of the painting, and back then he was already mature. Ib recalled that he never mentioned any family, and when they returned, she found out he had none other than his older cousin, whom he lived with. It was some time before they could see each other after their departure at the gallery, and they rarely got to see each other after that, but they called and wrote frequently. When Garry went away to college, Ib found herself oddly missing him more.

Now twenty-five, Garry had just finished college with a Master's degree to be a high school history teacher, and was returning back home. Ib was both happy and nervous. Would he still be the same? He seemed so in his letters and on the phone, but those could have been facades. Regardless, Ib waited at the airport for his arrival. She went to a local community college, and she was totally skipping class just to see her childhood friend again.

What felt like forever, she finally saw Garry emerge from the crowd, and she could not help but smile. He had become a strikingly handsome man. His purple-tinted hair, much to Ib's humor, was still as unmanageable as it was before he left. It had been six years since they had last seen each other. Garry had gotten tall; at 5'11", he towered over Ib. His steel-gray eyes locked onto the crimson eyes he knew belonged to none other than Ib. Unable to contain herself, Ib ran forward and pushed her way through the crowd, not caring if she offended anyone, until she reached Garry. Arms wide, she jumped and latched onto Garry, nearly knocking him off his feet in the process. He staggered but regained his footing and looked down at her.

"I-Ib?" he stammered, surprised by her enthusiastic embrace. She held him tightly, and in a moment, he wrapped his arms around her as well. Ib was stunned to feel that his body, although still thin, was compact with muscles- especially his back. His stomach still felt as if it were not as built, but it was lean, which is what she preferred. She inhaled his scent; it was still the familiar scent she recalled. It occurred to them at that moment of embrace how much they missed each other.

"Welcome back, Garry."

The words that she spoke never meant so much to him as they did then. They rung in his ear, and he felt himself blush. Him? Blushing? What was he, fifteen again? He smiled and held her closer.

"Thank-you, Ib."

Unbeknownst to Garry, Ib blushed as well. It embarrassed her; if he saw her with red cheeks, he may think her immature. They embraced for a moment or two then released each other and smiled. To Garry, Ib had always been pretty, but she was stunning as a young woman.

"I wasn't expecting anyone to meet me here," he spoke.

"Surprise!" Ib grinned.

"And a pleasant one at that," Garry laughed. "Aren't you supposed to be in school?"

"Oh, what's one day going to hurt?" Ib sighed. "Only a week is left, then finals."

"Hmm, well, don't miss anymore. The last week is the most important. The teachers go over everything again as a review," Garry suggested.

"Yes, 'Dad', I won't miss anymore," Ib joked.

"You're hilarious," Garry dryly said. "So, now what?"

"Good question."

"Well, I found an apartment of my own. My stuff should be here tomorrow. Let's go get my luggage, and I'll take you with me. I'll call a taxi."

"Or I could just drive," Ib offered. "Save you some money."

"That'll work," Garry smiled.

After they retrieved his luggage, they made their way to Garry's apartment. He lived on the first floor, which was convenient for the unloading. Ib helped get the luggage out of her car and waited for him to unlock the door. Inside was spacious but barren (as was to be expected). The living room was large, and there was a divider between it and the kitchen. The kitchen could have been larger, but it would do. There was a hallway which lead to a door where the bedroom was located. In the bedroom there was a closet and another door that lead to the bathroom. Overall, it was a decent apartment. Ib knew Garry would fix it up; he always loved art, even after…

"Well, what do you think?" he asked.

"It's lovely, Garry," Ib replied.

"I'm glad you think so," he smiled. "Um, do your parents know you're here?"

"Er… no… But they won't mind."

"Ib…" Garry sighed. "You should go home. I don't want you to get into trouble."

"Don't you need some help unpacking?"

"I'm fine," he smiled again. "It's not like I have much to unpack anyway. Not until tomorrow that is. Thank you for today, Ib. It meant more than I can express."

Ib felt herself blush, so she turned her back to Garry and faced the door. "You're welcome. See you later!"

She started to walk away, but Garry called out to her, which caused her to stop. "Um, would you like to spend time together Saturday? Catch up on what we missed? I mean, letters and calls can only do so much."

Her face burned. Why was she blushing so much? "I would love to."

She then left the apartment and a smiling Garry behind. Once she returned home, she informed her parents of Garry's return. They seemed happy for her. Ib could recall ten years ago, when their friendship had first begun; her parents were wary of Garry because of the age difference, but soon they realized their daughter was safe around him. As time went on, they loved Garry just like one of their own. They pitied him since he had no family other than his cousin, so they treated him just as they treated Ib. Garry was grateful to them and loved them as well. After she told them about Saturday, she ate supper, showered, and studied some for finals before she fell asleep. When her eyes closed, her nightmares began.

Ib opened her eyes and immediately was horrified. The area was black with giant colored pictures all around. She looked to see Mary and Garry in front of her. Mary held Ib's red rose in her hand. Garry asked for it back, but Mary just giggled. Not sure what else to do, Garry offered his blue rose in exchange for Ib's rose. Mary complied, the exchange was done, and she ran off with the blue rose. Ib did not understand; this was not what happened. What was she seeing? She felt an unimaginable horror as she saw Garry in front of her, red rose in hand, his eyes in the direction Mary had run off in. In a moment, he turned around and looked at Ib. She felt tears rolling down her cheeks. Mary hated Garry. What was she planning to do with his rose? Garry knelt down in front of her and handed her the rose.

"Take good care of it."

She started sobbing aloud. What did this mean? Garry smiled at her, hiding his fear. He placed his hand on top of her head. "Hey, don't worry. We just have to get it back from her. Okay?"

They followed after Mary and ended up in a long hallway. A tear was heard in the air, and Garry jerked from pain. They looked down at the ground to see a blue rose petal torn in half. "He loves me…" Mary's voice echoed. Garry regained himself, and he and Ib locked eyes. Unable to do anything else, they took several steps, only for the same thing to happen. "He loves me not…" With each few steps, this happened. Ib grabbed Garry's hand and urged him to continue. Another tear, another ripped petal… Garry's hand slipped out of Ib's grasp. She turned around to see him standing bent over, his hands on his knees for support, sweat rolling down his forehead and breathing hard. She walked to him, fear and sorrow in her heart.

"Ib… I'm sorry… but could you go on without me?" he quietly asked. Ib did not know what to do, to say. What was going on? Why was this so different? "I don't really know what to say… I don't want to lie to you… but I don't want to tell you the truth either… If you need my help…" he looked up at her and smiled weakly. "…I'll come running."

Ib reached out to carry but recoiled. No. This was not happening. It could not be happening. She felt tears sting her eyes again. Maybe she could stop Mary in time and get his rose back. She heard another tear, but this time Garry did not even wince, which terrified her. She turned around and took two steps… and heard Garry's body hit the floor. Filled with rage, she ran to the door and into the room to see Mary tear off the last petals to Garry's rose. Her entire body felt as though someone had violently shaken it. She ran out to find Garry motionless and lifeless on the floor, torn blue rose petals all around him.

Ib's eyelids shot open, and she heard herself screaming and crying Garry's name. Her parents darted into her room, scared and concerned for their daughter. They tried to comfort her, but she would not stop crying. Ib's father found her phone and Garry's number then called him. Despite it being three in the morning, he drove to Garry's apartment and picked him up then took him to Ib. Garry ran into her room and sat down on her bed, where she latched herself onto him and wept. She shook from fear, but after a moment or so, she calmed down and went to sleep. Whenever he tried to leave, she would hold him tighter. Her parents allowed him to stay, and he too soon went to sleep.

When the morning came, Ib thanked her parents and Garry. Luckily, Ib had no class on Fridays, so she and Garry got to catch up on some of the sleep they missed. She felt guilty for troubling her parents so, but she was grateful for their concern and for getting Garry and allowing him to stay with her. With an apology, Ib hugged her parents and Garry. The day went well; Garry went back to his apartment shortly after breakfast to help the movers with his furniture, and Ib studied for finals. It was a rainy day, so there was not much else she could do. She thought about Garry and if he was upset at her. They had roused him up at three in the morning because of a nightmare. Should she tell him? She grabbed her phone and called him. After several rings, he finally picked up, sounding out of breath.

"Hello? Oh, please be careful with that!"

"Um, am I interrupting something?" she asked.

"Just finishing up moving my things into the house," Garry replied.

"Oh… I'm sorry."

"Ib? What's the matter? You sound upset."

She did? Garry could always see straight through her.

"I'm sorry about-"

"It's nothing to be apologetic about, Ib. I'm glad I could be there for you."

Ib smiled, but she grew nervous. There was a prolonged silence.

"Ib?"

"Sorry. Umm… can I tell you about the dream?"

"Of course you can. But, I think I already have a general idea."

"You do?"

"Mmhm. You dreamt about the painting, didn't you?"

Ib caught her breath, giving Garry the answer. She soon told him all about it. He never once interrupted her and just listened quietly. When she was through, he told her it was just a dream and that he would never leave her. He urged her to listen to calming music or watch a funny program on television before bed, to which she agreed to. She thanked him, and after talking general talk for about fifteen minutes, they hung up. Ib listened to some Chopin, to which she fell asleep to.

Despite talking to Garry and doing what he advised, Ib had the same horrific nightmare and woke up screaming for Garry. Her mother fetched Garry, who comforted Ib again until they both fell asleep. When the morning came, Ib showered and got ready then took Garry to his apartment for him to do the same. Once he was ready, they got into Ib's car and took off toward the city. When she asked where it was they were going, the answer she received was not what she wanted to hear.

They were going to the art exhibit.