Chapter 7

My legs were burning. My breath came in deep, heavy pants. My whole body was sore, but I couldn't stop running. I had to keep going. If I got caught... I didn't even want to think about that, so instead I focused on running.

I entered a room. It was empty except for another door across from me. I raced over to it, stumbling slightly. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure I was alone. Then I went through the door. This room was quite like the last room. In fact, it seemed to be exactly the same. Except when I tried to turn the door knob, it wouldn't budge. I gulped. I could hear the footsteps getting closer. I frantically pulled on the handle, willing it to open, but the door stayed shut. I turned around, my heart racing. No one was there. Then a soft sound emitted from behind me. I turned back around and found that the door was not only unlocked, but also slightly opened. Hands trembling, I opened the door all the way and went inside.

I immediately regretted my decision as soon as my eyes connected with The Lady in Red's. She was accompanied by a headless statue and a mannequin head. My hand instantly reached for the knob, but the door wouldn't open. Fear snaked down my spine. I was trapped here with three dangerous artwork creatures, and they were coming closer and closer by the second. My knees buckled and I sank to the floor.

This can't be happening, I kept thinking to myself. This isn't real.

I repeated the phrase over and over to myself, but as the monsters closed in, all I could think about was the pain that enveloped my body. My screams echoed in the room, and I felt tears slide down my face as the world faded to black.

XXXXX

I jolted up, sweat running down my face. My heart was pounding in my chest, and I was breathing heavily. The nightmare flashed in my mind again, and I gasped a little. Then I realized I was gripping tightly onto something. I looked at my hands. I was lying down on Garry's coat. Why was...?

"Ib?"

I jumped at the voice. I relaxed when I saw that it was only Kasey. She was standing near a painting, looking at me with a concerned expression on her face. When she saw that I was all right, she brightened a little. Then she called out, "Hey guys! Ib's awake!"

Suddenly, Garry, Terra, and Kasey were rushing over to me. They kneeled down next to me and asked how I was feeling. I told them I was fine. After a short pause, I confessed to having a nightmare.

Garry sighed. "I see... You poor thing... I can't say I'm surprised... Being exposed to such frightful sights... you know?"

"I guess it's kinda good you woke up, huh?" Kasey said, giving me a half-sheepish smile.

"We're so sorry we didn't notice earlier, Ib," Terra said earnestly. "After you blacked out, we carried you to this room — it's not too far away from where we were, but at least it's something. And Garry was nice enough to let you sleep on his coat."

He blushed at the compliment. "It was the least I could do."

I looked down at his coat again. I gave Garry a smile, and he smiled back.

"Anyway, let's rest here a little while longer before we set out again," Terra said.

"Feel free to rest as much as you need to, Ib," Garry told me. He and Terra walked back to the bookcase they were inspecting together earlier.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Kasey grinned at me. "You should have seen them," she whispered. "They were totally getting all cozy together. It was so cute!"

My eyes flashed back to them. They were speaking softly to each other, too quiet for me and Kasey to hear. Garry whispered something into Terra's ear, and she giggled.

She giggled. My seventeen-year-old sister, who never giggled.

Apparently, Kasey was thinking the same thing because she arched her eye brows and said, "Aww! They're totally perfect for each other! Do you think they'd ever—"

Before she could finish her sentence, a book dropped onto the floor with a loud thump. Terra glanced in our direction. "Sorry," she called, quickly putting the book back. She murmured something to Garry, and he shook his head, chuckling.

Kasey straightened and stood up. She tightened her pigtails and said to me, "Let me know if you're feeling better, 'kay?" She gave me another smile before walking back to the painting she was observing before.

I looked around the room. There were a few bookshelves and stuff, but nothing too interesting. The painting Kasey was looking at was the only one in the room. There was a notice hanging in the corner of the room, and there was a vase near the bookcases. I sighed and scrambled to my feet, picking Garry's coat off the ground. I walked over to Kasey and asked about the painting she seemed so interested in.

"...Hmm? Oh, the painting?" she said distractedly. "Well... it's untitled. Or, at least, it's called 'Untitled.' See, it says it right there." She pointed to the label underneath the painting. "Anyway... I don't know. It's nothing to awesome, but I like it, I guess." She focused her brown eyes on me. "How about you, Ib?"

I stared at the painting. It was white with a few splatters of some different colors, two diagonal lines, and something in the middle that I couldn't quite recognize. After a moment, I told her I thought it was pretty.

Kasey smiled. "I had a feeling you'd like it." She turned back to the painting and I awkwardly walked past her.

Just as I was heading up to Terra and Garry, Terra spotted me. She abruptly stood up and flashed me a smile. "Hey, Ib. How are you feeling?"

I told her I was fine. Then I asked her what she was doing.

"Oh, uh..." Her face flushed a little. "Nothing really. Just... looking through some books with Garry. But I was planning to go check out that painting Kasey's looking at. So... yeah. Let me know if you need something, okay, Ib?" She shoved her hands in the pockets of her gray hoodie and stalked off.

Garry smiled when he saw me. "Hi, Ib. You're feeling all right?"

I nodded and then held out his coat.

"Oh, my coat. Thanks, Ib." He reached for it, but then paused, his fingers hovering over the dark fabric. Then he said, "Ib, would you take a look in the pocket of that coat?"

Curiously, I stuffed my hand in the coat pocket. I felt something smooth brush against my fingertips. I pulled it out. In the palm of my hand was a piece of candy. It appeared to be lemon-flavored. I looked back at Garry, who was smiling.

"You can have that," he said. "Feel free to eat it."

I returned the smile and pocketed the sweet. Then I offered him the coat again. He took it and put it on. He looked so much different without the coat. But I thought he looked better with it on, though. I studied him for a moment and then asked why it was so tattered.

"Hm? My coat's all torn and ragged?" he repeated. He chuckled. "No, no, that's on purpose! That's just the design!" He stopped laughing and looked thoughtful for a moment. "...Though to be sure, I have been wearing it for many years now as well..." He paused. "Say, Ib... You've got pretty good fashion sense, huh? I mean, your clothes... They use some fine-quality cloth, don't they? Hm? Your mother picks them out for you? And sometimes Terra too, huh? ...Well, I don't believe that changes the fact that you are a girl of good fashion."

I cocked my head at him and asked why he talked like a lady. I kind of just blurted it out, really. I hope he didn't get offended.

" 'Like a lady'...? Perhaps so... But, hm... I can't quite remember. I just took to it, I suppose." He smiled. "After all, it's preferable to be gentle rather than rough, hm?"

I agreed. And even though Garry wasn't the bravest man out there, I knew he'd protect me, Kasey, and Terra whenever he could. And he was gentle. Not only that, but he was sweet and kind, too. I was glad we met him.

"Oh, Ib, can you walk?" he asked, looking concerned. "If you're tired, make sure to tell me and your sisters right away, okay? Don't be shy about it!"

I nodded and kept that in mind. I thought about what Terra said, that Garry was "nice enough" to let me sleep on his coat. The realization of how true the statement was hit me, and I felt a little embarrassed. After all, Garry didn't have to lend me his coat. Or give me candy. Or protect me from whatever he viewed dangerous. But he still did all those things, and I was immensely grateful. But still, I felt like I had to apologize if I'd done anything to trouble him.

As the words escaped my lips, he widened his eyes in surprise. "Why apologize for that?! You didn't do anything wrong, Ib! I mean, no one could have predicted things would end up like this." I raised my eye brows, unconvinced. He went on to say, "Come on, be cheery! It's a disservice to your cute face to do anything else."

I blushed. Did he just call my face cute?

Garry sighed, and then, unexpectedly, he apologized. "I was just so focused on getting out of here... I didn't really look after you, Ib. I'm sorry."

I shook my head. He had nothing to feel sorry for.

He paused, looking thoughtful. "This place... It must be connected to the art gallery, don't you think? I wonder where everybody else in the gallery went... For all we know, there might be others lost in this place. If there are, I hope we can find each other..."

That made me think of my parents. I closed my eyes and shook the thought away. Garry must have sensed the sad tone in the air, because he said, "Ah, I'm a little thirsty... Think I should drink from the vase?" After seeing the alarm on my face, he quickly said, "...I'm just kidding."

I smiled at his attempt to lighten the mood. In return, I did a small joke of my own by staring very intently at him. He shuffled uncomfortably. "...Huh? U-Um, Ib... Did I do something? You're kind of freaking me out."

I giggled, and realization dawned across his face. Now that he understood that I was only joking around, he chuckled, too. Kasey and Terra glanced over at us. Kasey looked a bit put out because she thought she missed something funny, but Terra's face was hard to read. She eyed us carefully for a moment before she turned back around and started discussing the painting with Kasey again.

Garry didn't seem to notice. He yawned, covering his mouth with his hand. "I got up early today, so I'm feeling a bit sleepy now," he explained to me. "I was so looking forward to going to a gallery... and then this. Honestly, I think I've had enough of art galleries at this point..."

I couldn't agree more. This trip was supposed to be fun (not that I found art exhibits particularly exciting) but it all took a turn for the worst. I was grateful that I had my sisters with me. I didn't know how I could ever manage to get this far without them. But I supposed there was a bright side to all of this — meeting Garry. I liked having him around, and I knew Kasey and (especially) Terra were fond of him, too.

"Ib, do you remember how you and your sisters got here from the gallery?" Garry asked, interrupting my thoughts. "I'm having trouble remembering exactly... I was about to leave... But then I looked around, and didn't see a soul... I panicked when I saw the entrance locked, but found stairs where there had been a wall... Then I was in a red passageway..." He paused, and smiled a bit sheepishly. "...I'm sure you know the rest."

I chuckled. That was when Terra, Kasey, and I had found him and saved him. It felt good to acknowledge that fact, because it was important. Because if not for us, it was possible Garry might not have made it — but that was something I preferred not to think about.

"Oh, I forgot to ask," Garry said, raising his voice so that Kasey and Terra could hear. "How old are you three?"

"Twelve!" Kasey declared. "People always say that I act really mature for my age."

Terra snorted. "Riiiight."

"They do," Kasey insisted.

"Whatever you say, little sis." Terra was grinning, a clear sign that she was only teasing.

Kasey crossed her arms, but it was obvious that she was holding back from cracking a smile, too. "Anyway... Ib's nine."

"...Nine?" Garry repeated. "Wow, that's quite young... But art galleries are really enthralling at your age, Ib. I'm a bit bored of them myself..."

"That makes two of us," Kasey remarked. "I don't know why our mom wanted us to go to this art gallery, anyway — all it did was bring problems! Now we're stuck here and who knows if we'll ever make it out..." She sighed, her cheerful attitude fading. Then she noticed all of us staring, and she perked up. "Oh, don't mind me. I'm sure we will make it out of here. And I'm glad you're here, Garry. I guess that's one good thing that came from all of this."

Garry smiled. "Well, I'm certainly glad to have met you all, as well. And I'm grateful for what you did." He was silent for a moment before he turned to Terra. "So... How old are you?"

She didn't answer right away. But finally she allowed the word to escape her lips: "Seventeen."

Garry's smile widened. "That's nice. I'm eighteen."

"You act like you're older." Terra smirked.

He laughed. "Maybe."

"Hey, guys — are we leaving yet? I mean, we've been here for a while..." Kasey said.

They looked at me. I asked if I could just read the notice first, and they nodded. I went over to the notice. It said, "Rules of the Art Gallery
No loud conversation
No photography
No food or drink
No touching the displays
No fountain pens
No leaving ever"

The last thing on the list sent shivers down my spine. I told Garry and my sisters I was ready, and the four of us finally exited the room.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the mannequin head paintings hanging on the wall. When Terra said that the room we were just in wasn't "too far away" from where I passed out, I didn't realize she meant it was literately right next to it.

Oh well. The important thing was that we were leaving now; descending down stairs that were conveniently placed across the room we were just in.

The room we were now in was purple. I was almost starting to wonder when the rooms would change color again — not that it really mattered. We walked down the hall and turned when we saw that there was a walkway leading to another door. We turned the knob, but it was locked. There was a peephole in the door, and Kasey volunteered to peek in. I held my breath. I didn't know what I was expecting, but I was surprised (and relieved) when Kasey said that she didn't see anything.

We turned back around and continued down the hallway. In the next room, there was a large roped-in area. Reluctantly, we walked in through the entrance. As soon as we stepped in, it closed off behind us. I swallowed. We were trapped. How many times had something like this already happened today?!

"T-The exit's blocked?" Garry exclaimed.

The area had three headless statues in red, yellow, and blue dresses. The red and blue ones were immobile at the moment, but the yellow one was walking around, searching for us. There was also a small bookcase and three paintings called "Red Button," "Blue Button," and "Green Button."

We pressed the red button, but that made the red headless statue come to life. We hurried away and went to the bookcase, hoping to find something useful there. There was a book titled "Diary." It read, "It's said that spirits dwell in objects into which people put their feelings. I've always thought that, it that's true, then the same must be true of artwork. So today, I shall immerse myself in work, so as to impart my own spirit into my creations."

"Is that really all it says...?" Garry asked in disbelief. "You could have said something about the exit!" He looked at me and my sisters. "Let's get out of here, you three!"

If pressing the red button made the red statue come to life, then pressing the blue button would make the blue statue come to life... right? We tried out the green button, but then immediately regretted it when the blue statue roared and chased after us.

"That doesn't even make any sense!" Terra shouted, clearly frustrated.

"The blue button is our only hope now!" Kasey exclaimed.

We rushed to the blue button and pressed it. Miraculously, an exit was created. We ran out of there, managing to avoid all three headless statues, and the ropes closed again behind us.

"Well... at least it's over," Terra said.

"What was the point of that?!" Kasey demanded.

"Maybe there was a valuable lesson hidden in there somewhere," Garry mused. "Whatever the case, let's just get away from here and keep going."

We continued walking. There was a painting on the wall. It looked like small white fragments put together to form a white square... like a puzzle. My thoughts were confirmed when I read the title of the painting: "Milk Puzzle."

"Have you three ever heard of milk puzzles?" Garry asked us.

Terra shoved her hands in her pockets. "Yep."

"Um... I haven't," Kasey said.

I shook my head.

"Well, as the name implies, it's a puzzle where all the pieces are white like milk," Garry explained. Terra nodded, as if in confirmation. "Since there's no picture on them, they're much harder than regular puzzles," he went on. "Very smart people can finish them in no time at all, but... To be honest, they're not exciting. Since they don't even make a picture in the end..."

"They sure don't sound exciting," Kasey agreed.

Garry smiled. "It feels much more worth it to do a puzzle of a picture you all like."

"That'd be fun," Kasey chirped.

"I'm not really a fan of puzzles," Terra admitted. "But I wouldn't mind doing one with y—" She coughed loudly. "With Kasey and Ib," she finished. "You know, like... we can help them and stuff."

"Now that sounds exciting," Garry said, grinning. Terra gave him a smile in return.

We proceeded down the hall. There was another picture there, and it was... moving? It was called "Fleeting Thoughts on a Moonlit Night." I thought it was pretty.

In the next room, there was a mirror. We were hesitant to look at our reflections, but nothing appeared this time, so that was a relief. There was also a door in the room, but it was locked.

"What's the story with this panel here...? Can we put something in?" Garry prompted. "...I'm not getting any ideas. Let's look around some more."

There was another door on the other side of the room. It wasn't locked, so we went inside. The four of us could barely even cram together; it was a tight space. There was a cord hanging from the ceiling and a headless statue blocking the only other door in the room.

"Sheesh, this statue... It's blocking the way," Garry said. He and Terra moved it aside. "Okay, that should do it!"

We inspected the cord and decided to pull it. Nothing seemed to happen. We went through the door and discovered that we just went around in a circle. The door we'd just went through was the same door that had a peephole. We looked around a little bit more and found a purple message on the wall. It said, "What is the name of the large floor painting in Guartena's exhibition?"

"Gah... Could it be a password?" Garry wondered. "The big fish painting, right? Did you three see it?"

"Oh, we saw it, all right," Terra muttered.

"That's good, then," he replied. "Hmm... But what was it... I think it was... Something of the deep...? It was just one word... Can one of you remember it?"

"Abyss," Terra said automatically.

We stared at her.

"What?" She blushed. "It's hard to forget the title of the picture that got us into this mess."

"...What?" Garry asked, looking confused.

Terra sighed. "It's a long story. Anyway, the word you're looking for is 'abyss.' "

"Abyss of the Deep... Yes, that was it, Terra!" he said. "Okay, let's remember that! 'Abyss of the Deep'!"

We walked back to the locked door. Garry said, "...Ah! This must be what that password was for! Let's try it... 'Abyss of the Deep'..."

The door clicked open. We walked inside. The room was mostly empty. It had six small bookcases; three on each side of the room. There was a big painting in the center of the room. It had a dark red background with some black stuff drawn on it. I couldn't tell what it was.

We looked at the books first. I found a note that said, "The women here... Like playing "Loves Me, Loves Me Not.' " I knew that game. It was when a girl plucked the petals off a rose. With each petal, she would say "He loves me... He loves me not..." until all the petals were off. Whatever she ended up with when the last petal was torn off, that was what she would assume the boy she was talking about felt for her.

I found a book that had a title I couldn't read. I couldn't make out a lot of the words, but it said, "? by the ?, I ? my finger over her beautiful ? With her ?, she..."

Before I could finish reading, Garry had taken the book out of my hands and placed it back in the shelf. Kasey was giggling, and Terra's face was fire-engine red. Since Terra clearly couldn't bring herself to speak at the moment, Garry substituted for her. "...Don't read this kind of stuff until you get older," he told me. I felt my own face get red as I thought about the contents of that book.

Once Kasey stopped giggling and Terra recovered from her embarrassment, we went to check out the red and black painting. It was called "Separation" and it made me feel a bit uneasy.

"What an off-putting painting..." Garry marveled.

Suddenly, the lights dimmed and we were surrounded by darkness. "Wh-What?!" he gasped. "The lights?! It's too dark to see...! Are you all there?"

"I'm here," Terra said.

"Here," Kasey squeaked, sounding frightened. Terra and I were the only people (apart from our parents) who knew about Kasey's fear of the dark.

"Ib?" Garry called.

I assured him that I was there.

"That's good to hear..." he breathed. "Stay right there, all of you. All right?" He sighed. "This is a problem... Ah, that's right. I forgot I had a lighter." He flickered it on, and the room flooded with light.

Kasey seemed to have recovered from her fright and nudged me, gesturing her eyes at Garry and Terra. I followed her gaze and saw...

Garry and Terra were holding hands!

...

Garry and Terra were holding hands!

They caught us staring and let go, looking mildly embarrassed. Before one of us could say something, we noticed the change in the room. There was graffiti on the walls and floor. The stuff that was written was stuff like "STOP" and "DON'T." It made me really nervous, and I was clearly not the only one. Kasey was whimpering, Terra was very pale, and Garry was saying, "Wh... What is THIS...?! I don't think this is... good for my mental health..."

The four of us hurried out of the room. There was red text on the wall and it continued down onto the floor. It said, "A notice to all visitors. There is a strict ban on fire-starting implements in the gallery. We request that you please report the use of any matches, lighters, or the like. Should the use of such implements be reported to the staff." It got caught off there.

We kept walking. When we came into the room with the milk puzzle painting, there was a trail of red footsteps leading into a door that hadn't been there before. Hesitantly, we reached for the knob and pulled.

A/N: Kinda left it at a cliffhanger. Whoops :D
I'll post the next part as soon as I can. Reviews and feedback would be appreciated.