INFERNO (Dolan Twins) [ON HIATUS]

9. Once-Peaceful Trails

(Countdown Timer: 21:38:01)

Ethan's POV

"Hey...Ethan?" A tap suddenly distracts me from my continuous walk.

I glance over my shoulder, seeing Rhea shyly walking behind me. The leaves stop crunching from under my feet when I stop, and turn around to face the traumatized girl. She hasn't said a word since her late friend had...passed. Although, I don't blame her. That must've been a horrible feeling to see Daisy go out like that.

"You okay?" I gesture for the two of us to stray off the trail to prevent blocking the others.

She shrugs her shoulders back and lets the sound chirping run over our heads. The blood stains coating Rhea's plaid flannel give both of us the haunting flashback of what happened back in that room. She was in so much shock that she couldn't even let out a single cry of mourning.

"Listen," I rub the back of my neck, "I know that must've been hard. If you want, you can stick with me and Gra-"

"I'm fine," Rhea cuts me off abruptly.

"If you say so..."

"Look, you're a great kid, Ethan," she gently pushes a strand of hair out of her face. "I'm...it's just...painful. You get me?"

"Yeah."

"I got Troy to care for me, don't worry about it, 'kay?" Rhea painfully smiles. "Really. I don't want you and your brother to fret over me."

I sigh. "Alright, I won't."

"Thank you."

Nothing more is said as Troy comes up the trail, grabbing Rhea by the hand while passing me a scowl. A dark energy gives off its vibes as I step back onto the main trail, jogging to the front where Grayson and Shane are. Everyone else is far back. I notice that Gray is carrying the crate now, somehow able to talk and walk while holding the box in his arms at the same time with such ease.

"Everything okay back there?" Gray mumbles to me.

"She's just...shaken," I say quietly. "I don't blame her though."

"Rhea's strong," Shane assures us. "Trust me."

Grayson and I silently nod at his stretch of words. Maybe Rhea is that type of person who can have good comebacks emotionally. Yet then again, she might just be good at hiding her feelings from everyone. Hopefully the tranquility of this forest and the trail will ease her pain a bit. Although...this scenery strikes me a bit odd.

Why's this room called Inferno when we're all suddenly forced to go through a forest after seeing one of our group members die in such a brutal way? Is the room supposed to be a "link" between the previous room and the next? But why a forest? It all seems a bit too calm for the sake of our room's main theme.

Adding to the stress, I'm not even sure if Grayson is even normal anymore. Sure, he seems okay on the outside, but maybe he's fighting something on the inside. I wouldn't be surprised. It is really concerning news as his twin though. It just leaves a trace of guilt and an infinite hole of this feeling that you can't say thank you enough times.

I can't believe he took the blow. Now he has some strange liquid probably running through his veins as I realize this...

"Oof!" I suddenly meet a sudden impact.

"Oops!" Gray jolts slightly and looks behind him. "Sorry!"

"Why are we stopping?" I raise a brow.

"Because of that," Shane points to a faint, pink light in the distance.

What's that light?

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Hey there! This is the last chapter of my pre-made bunch, so the next chapter won't come along for another little while! Don't worry through! There's other books that you can check out on my account!