"GYAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Gowland nearly shrieks as hockey masked figure with a rubber axe popped out at him, nearly smacking the man in the head. He over exaggerates his duck, falling right back onto his butt and practically hyperventilates. I hysterically howl with laughter, unable to contain myself any longer from his response to the startling feature.

Oh, my gosh this is too funny! We've been 'stuck' in here for over an hour and I can hear his voice starting to get a little hoarse from screaming so much. I've been holding my laughter in for far too long and whenever he begs me to relent I take him into the more advanced levels of the house. It's an amazingly large house, where a good deal is suspense until hitting a certain hallway here or there and getting nearly attacked by a barrage of psychotic laughter or figures leaping out.

"D-D-Darlin', darlin' why?" He breathlessly whines, completely flustered and panicked as he crawls on his hands and knees back to me.

"What? This is the way out." I choke out past my laughter, doing my best to quiet it.

"Y-You said that an hour ago!" He shouts, face pale in near hysteric panic. I don't know what it is but seeing a grown man crawling on his hands and knees - in his boxers - and begging me to do something is making me want to take the horror a new level. Maybe I should take him to the more advanced levels of the Horror House? The Horror House is separated into two parts, one for younger kids and the other for teenagers and adults.

"I did," I grin cheekily grin before waving my hand, "let's go to the other half of the Mansion. I promise it's easier."

"Why do I feel that is a lie, sweet pea?" The man trills before getting to his feet and brushing himself off.

"It's up to you to decide," I tease before tacking on, "I didn't realize you would be so frightened of your own attractions."

"I can't help it, darlin'. My little ol' clock can't take much more of all this hoppin' out and surprisin' tricks," he breathes, running a hand through his hair. How am I supposed to resist making fun of my boss when I get a chance like this? So, of course I'm going to take full advantage of him. I chuckle at the thought before grabbing his hand, mistakenly sliding my fingers between his. He solemnly looks up, accepting his fate as I grin at him.

"It will be just fine, Mary. I'm right here." I unhelpfully reassure before tugging him in the direction to his doom. He hesitantly follows, obviously very reluctant to trust me after a dozen instances of me literally pushing him into the attractions.

"Yeah, just fine." He breathes, giving my hand a light squeeze as I take him down a hall that's usually roped off until the Night period for the older kids. The reason being is that there are trap doors made to capture, hold, or move people to a different room and thus separate the individuals. It's a lot of fun but there was an instance where I had to come in here and pull someone who got stuck in the traps out.

"Good." I smile, turning my head so he won't see my evil smile forming. Hm~ I'm going to take him down this hall. My fingers tighten a little bit as I scan the familiar hall, noticing some items have been switched around. Huh, I wonder if a worker decided to move them? They can get in trouble for that since they are supposed to check with me, the head engineer, before they mess around with the attractions. But, I guess it won't be that bad-

THWUMP

I blink as I spy a long thin wooden shaft a hair's width from my neck dig into the wall. I take a hesitant step back into Gowland, making him shuffle back as I look at the clearly deadly and dangerous arrow sticking out of the wall.

" ... When the hell did they add this?!" I shout, mortified that I had come within an inch of death. My gaze shoots towards the wall where it came from, spying about dozens more at my eye level all down the hall. I never agreed to make this Horror House a freaking death trap-!

"D-Darlin', I think you're scarin' is goin' too far." Mary hesitantly says, eying up the arrow himself.

"B-But I didn't add this!" I stammer, feeling my heart pick up speed as I wring my neck. Oh gosh that came so close ... once more step and that would have shot right through my neck. He takes a step forward and slide a hand up my back, hooking around my jaw and making me turn his way.

"You 'right, sweetheart?" He asks, softly rubbing his fingers over my neck. A defined shiver rivets up my spine as he leans in, adjusting his glasses to get a better look at my neck.

"F-F-Fine, I'm fine-!" I start but his hand remains firm, sliding up under my jaws and pulling my head back a little bit to get a better look.

" ... you got a scratch, Jackie." He says, sliding his thumb across my skin. My breathing hitches as he looks it over for a few moments before pulling back and looking me in the eyes.

"Let's leave, darlin'. This isn't fun anymore." He says with a serious tone and face, both of which I am not well accustomed to. A flush grows over my cheeks from the sudden turn in his attitude. From crawling on the floor and begging me to know standing up and telling me ... I'm amazed at the difference it makes. I loudly gulp, feeling his thumb ride over my skin before I take a step back.

"Y-Yeah," I stammer, "l-let's get out. I need to have a talk with the numbskull that put this in here." I turn to lead the way out, now keeping a much more cautious eye out for more deadly traps. My foot suddenly sinks down an inch through the carpet, clicking something into place. Huh?

My head shoots up, spying a thick slab of pure stone drop down from the ceiling. Before I can register what's happening Mary's arm hooks around my waist and rips me out of the way as a thunderous crash shakes the ground. With a fast turn Mary slams me down against the fuzzy carpet, pinning me with his arm alone as dozens of thwumps follow the thunderous crash. I tremble and sink lower to the ground, hiding my head against Mary's shoulder as his arm hugs my head to protect it.

After a few moments of complete silence I daringly crack my eyes open, spying Mary's eyes looking around the room and searching for any other dangers.

"M-Mary." I say, hardly managing a rasping trill before swallowing my fright, "Mary, are you alright?"

"Just fine, darlin'." He says after a moment more of surveying the area. He stands up to his knees, gingerly pulling me up with him. His hands hook around the back of my neck, looking at my head. "You alright? I pushed her against the ground harder than I meant to."

"Y-Yeah." I agree, shivering as his fingers brush against the tender area. Man that really scared me ... I was nearly crushed under that large slab of rock. My heart flip flops in my chest as I lean forward and rest my head against Gowland's shoulder. I keep thinking that I will get used to all my near deaths but this one ... and, e-especially in front of Mary is hitting hard. Maybe I'm nearing my time of the month?

"Jackie?" Gowland asks, hesitantly wrapping his arms around my waist.

"S-Sorry. Give me a minute." I shakily say, feeling my voice tremble with fright.

"It's alright, sweet pea. You're just fine." Gowland gently comforts as he rubs my back and hugs me a little closer. Normally I don't like touching people, especially for comfort, but it's different with Mary. His bigger arms just feel ... comfortable and protective. It's nice. I shakily inhale, catching his unique musky odor. Hnmm ... that smells nice. I close my eyes and let the soothing waves of his breathing roll over me, concentrating on Gowland rather that the traps that nearly killed me.

After a few moments of basking in Gowland's safe arms I open my eyes, looking down the hall and at all the arrows making the wall resemble a porcupine. It looks like the vibrations set off all the arrow traps at least so that's a good thing. Gowland gently squeezes me in the hug, brushing his nose over my cheek bone.

"Gowland?" I ask, a little put off by the gesture. Is he trying to give me a butterfly kiss? That doesn't really work with the nose though he's supposed to use his eye lashes. Oh, maybe an Eskimo kiss or something? He jerks his head back a tiny bit, hesitating before pulling back with a sheepish grin.

"Ah ha~ sorry, sweet heart. You alright now?" He asks, a touch of red on his ears.

"Yeah, I'm alright now," I breathe, worriedly looking down the hall, "but that doesn't change the fact some idiot came in here and put in death traps."

"And the only way out is through the halls." Gowland says, casting a glance at the wall and trying to find a way through it before quickly giving up. I stare down our only option, weighing our chances of survival. Well, it looks like the only way out is as Mary said.

"Don't worry, darlin'." Gowland says, sliding his fingers between mine, "I'm not about to lose my favorite engineer to an attraction of mine." He says with a wink and pulls me up to my feet.

"Yeah. Who else would yell at you for doing something stupid?" I chuckle, gently squeezing his hand. I know the layout of this place like the back of my hand but I have no idea what other kinds of death traps are in here. I glance down the halls where they split off, trying to decide which way to take.

Well this is going to be hell.

‡

"WHO IN THEIR RIGHT STUPID IDIOT'S MIND WOULD PUT THIS IN HERE?!" I scream as we both run down the slightly slanted hall for our lives. All I did was kick a fake skull from all my frustration and a freaking boulder popped out of the ceiling! My eyes dart to a T split in the halls, trying to figure out which one to take. The one on the left should be on a slight decline so the right one should-

"This way, darlin'-!" Gowland says, grabbing my arm and ripping me off my feet. I stumble right into his thick arms as the boulder thunderously crashes into the wall, making it split open to suck the boulder in before closing with little to no damage. My weak knees give up on me as I sink to the ground, letting my lungs catch up to me. Ugh ... I hate running when I don't have to. Ow ow ow he grabbed my bruise and now I'm feeling it ow~!

"Phew~ that was a close one." Mary breathes, fanning himself off as he stares down both halls, trying to decipher which would be the safer path.

"Y-Yeah ... thank you, Mary." I huff, crawling onto my feet as I lean against the wall. Without him here and his quick thinking I would have been dead ten times over. From poison to pit traps to needles to that boulder ... he's saved my life a few times less in this single hour than all my time in Wonderland combined.

"If you really want to thank me, buttercup, you can give you ol' boss a kiss," Gowland teases with a grin, attempting to lighten up the situation we're in. Ew but he has a stippled beard ... but, to be completely honest, he deserves it after what I've done to him and everything he's done for me. He glances over in my direction, suddenly turning sheepish as he nervously laughs.

"I'm kiddin', honey bun-," he starts before I reach up on my tippy toes and kiss his cheek. The short ends of his five o'clock shadow prickle against my lips, making me pull back a little sooner than I would have. Well that didn't feel too pleasant. But, at the same time, it kind of tickled my skin. His breathing audibly hitches as I pull back with a smile.

"You deserve one with all the work you've done." I sweetly acknowledge, patting his arm in a comforting manner before looking down either hall. Now which one would be the safest? I'm thinking the one to the left will be the easier choice and it's a little closer to the exit than the hall to the right. I start down the hall, listening for Gowland's footsteps before looking back and spying him in a daze. Aw, did I surprise him?

"Embarrassed?" I tease, seeing his ears glow a satisfactory red. I'll bet he didn't think I would actually kiss him and on the cheek, no less.

" ... l-let's go, sweet pea." He says, walking up to me. Mary gently takes me hand and pulls me along, keeping his gaze fixated on what's ahead of us. Awe~ he's really too easy to tease.

My back foot pulls back a bit, almost making me stumble. I look down, spying my foot on the caught wire. Oh no-! A series of clicking clacks rocket through the walls before a large plush faced hammer swings down from the ceiling.

"OH MY GOSH-!" Is the only warning I can shriek. Gowland's arms wrap around my shoulders and head, hugging me tight before the heavy hammer sends us both sailing through the air. The powerful force leaves me breathless as I dig my fingers into his shoulders and clench my teeth, waiting for the inevitable smack against the wooden wall.

"Geh-!" Gowland huffs as I smack my head against his jaw. I blink, dazed before dropping head first into the metal chute that leads down into the basement. Gravity yanks us into deeper into the metal slide before we jerk to a fast and abrupt halt. I suck in a quick pained breath, feeling my sweaty skin stick to the sides of the metal chute and nearly peel my skin right off.

Ow ow owowowow that hurts! A pained grunt slips out of my throat as I wriggle a bit, quickly giving up as I realize that we are stuck. Oh this is just perfect. I blink, trying to adjust my eyes but the darkness of the chute engulfs the majority of light and leaves us near blind. I let out a startled breath, looking straight down into the chute. And~ crap we fell down head first. That's not a good position to be in at all. I've heard people say humans can survive being stuck upside down from an hour to almost an entire day before dying. I don't know how true either is but I know the human body can't last long either way.

"G-Gowland, are you alright?" I ask, concerned for the older man's bones. Who knows what he could have broken. He took the brunt of not only the hammer but the wall too.

"F-Fust fine." His muffled voice says as hot breath floods over sensitive skin. My head shoots down, spying Gowland's face firmly pressed into my over endowed area. He pulls his head back, only to manage hardly an inch before giving up. I jolt as his head softly thumps against my chest, spreading the warmth of his overheated body onto me. Ew ... sweaty guy. "S-Shorry darfin'," he mutters, turning his head to the side with a small gasp for air.

"F-Fine, fine it's fine." I say more self for my own sake. Oh gosh this is embarrassing. I never thought that I would one day be suffocating someone with these things. A shiver crawls down my spine as he breathes hot air over the skin in his attempts to breath.

"O-Oh, ok now let's think." I breathe, struggling to unearth my arms from the mass of flesh. The sticky sweat from before returns with a vengeance as I wriggle around, inching us down the chute a tiny bit. Ow ... it feels like the metal is pulling my skin right off. A warm heat seeps through my skin, scrambling my mind before I force myself to concentrate. If we want to get out of here we have to move. "Come on, Gowland, you need to move too."

"I-I, ur, a-ah, d-d-don't think that's a wise idea, sweetheart." He sheepishly stammers as we jerk down a bit but get lodged in place. Man we've got a long way down to the basement. He cranes his head up, scratching and tickling my sensitive skin as he stares at me, "d-darlin', please stop. You don't realize what you're doing to me."

"Come on, Gowland. We're already sticky from sweating so much so it's going to be harder if you don't move too." I encourage, getting a irritated with him. Does he want to be stuck like this for hours on end until our heads pop off from the rush of blood? I'm Already feeling light headed.

He hesitantly wiggles too, our skin sticking together as we inch down. Ugh this hurts but I can only imagine how much metal burn Gowland is getting right now. The moving around inevitably tugs my shirt down lower and lower, getting sucked into the disgustingly sweaty void. More of Gowland's stippled beard presses against my skin, trying to move his head back from the plush area and give me my space but is pushed back into place with each little movement.

"D-Darlin', let's take a small rest." Mary says with a hard breath, brushing his face back across my skin as he tries with all his might to respect my no no zones.

"The human body can't survive very long upside down and I won't recover as fast as you will." I say, feeling my irritation getting the better of me. Ugh it's so freaking hot in here! This chute must be near the radiator or heater. My hips painfully rub against the side and inevitably against Gowland, trying to at least get myself free. We're wedged in here mostly because of his shoulders and my torso. So, if we can loosen up those areas then we should fall down the chute without a problem.

A strange persistence starts to push against me near Gowland's hips. Gosh dang it this is embarrassing. There's no room to get away from each other and I keep knocking against his hip bone. I pin my knees against either side of the chute, trying to get a better angle to move. His movement slows but he continues to wiggle at a hesitant and cautious pace meanwhile I'm busting my chops and moving everything I can. The same bone presses harder and stretches against my thighs, making me rethink about what it is.

What in the world is hitting me? I continue to wriggle, trying to twist a bit to get away from the hard prodding against my leg. I don't get it. Gowland is only in his boxers on and I don't have any tools that would be poking me at this angle. I look at Gowland's face, noticing him breathing harder from the effort and pointedly looking away. I mean really the only thing that could possibly-

Oh my gosh.

I suddenly stiffen up, now conscious of what's pressing so hard against me. T-There's no way. I nervously gulp, leaning my pelvis against his to confirm my fears before quickly moving back as far as I can. My heart picks up pace as I listen to Mary's hushed grunts, understanding what they are for. H-He's getting that excited being up against me? W-W-Well, I guess that makes sense b-because he's a guy and whenever something literally rubs him the wrong - or right - way they get, er, this way. I get that but it doesn't make it any less embarrassing.

" ... I-I'm not hurting you, am I?" I sheepishly ask, not wanting to freak out about it. Relax, relax it's just h-human anatomy ... of my boss oh my gosh EW so awkward!

"Not at all, not at all ... ," he says a little too quickly. He lets out a shaky breath as his legs tremble against mine, obviously trying to shift his hips away but only make it worse for a few moments before correcting his mistake.

"Should we, uh, take a break?" I suggest, hoping that with a little bit of time he can get a handle on himself. O-Oh, oh gosh, poor choice of words.

"I-I think it's better to reach the bottom." He stiffly says, continuing to keep moving.

"R-Right if that ... helps." I say, hinting that I know exactly what's going on without saying it out loud. He lets out a faint grunt as the frighteningly large sized limb never relents, only seeming to grow in size. H-How is that possible?! A foreign sweltering heat shifts and moves within my stomach and makes my heart race. W-What in the world is wrong with me? I-I'm freaked out b-b-but at the same time I ... I don't entirely mind? Oh what the hell body make up your mind!

I do my best and make a slight hitch to the side with my hips before feeling my body suddenly give and shoot down the chute. We're free-! I tense up as we both fly down the rest of the way.

The repressing metal walls vanish into thin air as we drop onto the thick cushions below. Gowland's shoulder digs into my sternum, feeling the breath get knocked out of me. I hunch over on the giant inflatable, rubbing my arms. Ow ... I was so sticky it made my skin stick to the sides the whole way down. I twist my arms and legs, staring at the giant red welts growing over my skin. Ow, ow ow that hurts ...

Both of us remain speechless, letting the blood in our systems circulate back to a normal pace. My head throbs with each pulse as I gently massage the sides of my temples. Ow ... we weren't upside down for that long and already it hurts this much.

"Are you alright, Gowland?" I ask, concerned for the man. But, then again he was just nearly suffocated by me.

"Urrghh ... y-yeah, just fine. What about you, Jackie?" He asks. I look around, trying to find the man before spying his head poke up from the fluffy cushion a dozen feet away. Pfffft like one of those whack a mole games.

"I'm fine." I breathe out a soft sigh, running a hand through my hair. Gosh that fall hurt and the bruises don't help at all. I look over in Gowland's direction, watching him pat himself down to make sure everything is together.

I've never seen Gowland act so jumpy or scared before. Actually, I never would have really guessed that he would be afraid of Horror Houses. If he's so scared of Horror Houses why was he trying to think of a new attraction for it?

"Hey, Gowland, why did you try thinking up a new attraction for the Horror House if you don't like them?" I ask, curious for his reasoning. He looks up to me, a defensive gleam crawling into his eyes before they soften. He rubs the back of his neck, looking off to the side as he formulates an answer.

"It's ... well, because I know you absolutely love 'em. I was hoping to cheer you up after what happened to ya." He admits with a faint blush touching the tips of his ears. He looked away, not wanting to look me in the eye.

"Awe~ Gowland-," I start, touched by his words before freezing at the sight of his bare hip. I immediately look away before I catch sight of anything else. " ... I think you lost something important, Gowland."

"Hm?" He questioningly hums before, "EEEEEHHHHHHH?!" I flush at the thought of seeing him nude and slide over the side of the cushion, landing hard on my feet. I will not see my boss naked ... again. After waking up in bed with him I don't think I could ever look at him the same again.

"S-Stay right there, Mary, and I'll get you a change of clothes." I shout loud enough for him to head before running to the back doors. I can't look back. If I do I'm afraid of what else I'll see.

"W-Wait, don't leave!" He shouts but I go ahead and whip out of the door with a deep flush on my face. Gosh darn his shoulders are broad. Not fat, oh no not at all. I dare say he looks borderline hot - with or without his boxers.

... no, no oh no he's my boss and he's like thirty something. Gross I was checking out an old guy-!

‡

Ha ha admit it, Jackie, you got the hots for him. How well do you think this is going to turn out? Not very good for either of them? Exactly. 10 REVIEWS for the next chapter~