Trigger Warning: Explicit Depictions of Suicide
Ollie froze. Was that… their mom? It sounded just like her…
“I swear, your dad would get lost on a trip to the toilet. He must’ve gotten us here.”
Ollie shook their head. No. It couldn’t be real. But, the silhouette. None of the other voices had one.
“Ollie? Come on. We’re worried sick. Are you out there?”
They sighed. If that was their actual mom and they just left her here, they would never forgive themselves. But, if it wasn’t, they could face another dead end.
“Hey, Ma? Can you answer a question for me really quickly? Just one!”
Ollie’s mother hummed. “Sure. Go on ahead.”
“Thank you. Now when I was a kid. About five, what did I want to be when I grew up?”
Ollie’s mother laughed. “Oh, you were the cutest kid. You always said you were going to grow up to sell homemade chocolates. It was your dream.”
Ollie laughed too. It was. Ollie could remember putting chocolate bars in the microwave and adding food coloring and sprinkles. Their mom would eat whatever they made and pretend it was pure genius. They smiled. That was their real mom right there.
“Ma! It’s so good to see you! Are you hurt in any way?”
Ollie’s mother shook her head. “I’m completely fine. What about you? You doing alright?”
Ollie nodded. “Had what should have been a nasty fall. Didn’t get a scratch or scrape from it, though. All is well.”
Ollie’s mother nodded. “Oh, am I glad to hear it!”
“How did you get here, Ma? What happened?”
“I don’t really know. One minute I wasn’t here. The next I was.”
Ollie frowned. “Did you fall? Trip or anything?”
“Oh, I don’t remember. It’s been a long day.”
Ollie sighed. “I agree with you on that. Okay. Anything else you remember?”
“My head’s not feeling quite right. I’m not remembering much.”
Panic shot through Ollie’s veins. Was their mother affected by the mold? Was it making her sick? They took a deep breath. “Ma? I need you to answer a very important question. Have you touched the mold on the walls?”
“Oh dear heavens. That’s mold?”
Ollie could’ve screamed. What did she mean? How could she have possibly not noticed? She took a deep breath. “Yes, Ma! That’s mold!
“I need to go back to the eye doctor. Everything is so blurry.”
Blurry vision and potential memory loss? That sounded like a concussion more than mold poisoning. Ollie had fallen to get here. Maybe their mother had, too, and just ended up hurting herself when Ollie hadn’t. Ollie really had been lucky. “Is there any blood on your head, Ma?”
“What? No blood. Why do you ask?”
“I’m just worried is all.”
“Well, why don’t you head over here, and we’ll figure this out? Alright?”
Ollie sighed. “I’m looking forward to finding the exit.”
“And we’ll find it faster by having both of us search.”
Ollie nodded. “Here’s to hoping. I’m coming your way. Don’t move. These hallways can shift in an instant.”
“I’m staying still. Don’t worry about me.”
Ollie started to walk towards their mother, just thrilled to have an actual human in this place. One with real flesh that could respond to what they actually said instead of repeating a closed script. Their mother had yet to repeat a single line.
The lights turned off completely again, and Ollie held still, holding their breath. They didn’t like this. Their mother seemed to have the same idea, both of them staying completely silent.
Once the lights turned on again, their mother seemed to be a bit further than before.
Ollie shook their head. It had to be their imagination. The hallway was long and narrow. They were panicking from the lights turning off. That was all. Their mother wasn’t moving backward whenever the lights turned off. It was fine.
“Ma, you alright?”
“Startled, but fine. Don’t worry about the old woman. Figure out a way to get the old woman out of here. That would be the only way to help.”
“I’m trying, Ma. Just hold on.” They glanced up at the lights. Why were they on the fritz now of all times? They started walking again.
But in just a few steps, the lights shut off again. Ollie yelled in frustration. Oh, that was so annoying. It was like the building didn’t want them to get to their mother. It didn’t make any sense. They just stopped walking, just like last time, and waited for the lights to kick back on.
In a couple of minutes, they turned back on. Ollie sighed, rubbing their temples. “Alright, Ma-”
“Ollie? It’s so good to see you.”
Ollie blinked. “Ma? What do you mean?”
She laughed. “Oh, don’t sound so surprised. I haven’t seen my favorite child in so long.”
Ollie squinted at the distant silhouette of their mother. She seemed to be the same distance away as before, as if Ollie hadn’t walked at all. But she seemed different, somehow. Older. Like she had aged a good ten years since the lights turned off.
“Ma? Are you okay?”
“Yes. Why wouldn’t I be?”
Ollie looked around the room the two of them were currently in. If the mold suddenly gained sentience and started with speaking to Ollie, it still wouldn’t be much more foreboding than it already was. “Ma? Are you feeling okay?”
“Absolutely. Why wouldn’t I? Are you alright, Ollie? You sound worried.”
Ollie blinked. “Ma, take a look around. We’re being held captive in a maze of a building. How aren’t you worried?”
There was silence for a couple of beats before Ollie’s mother sighed softly. “That’s crazy talk, Ollie. You’re starting to worry me.”
“Worry you? After all of this?” Ollie shook their head. “Unbelievable. We’re literally trapped in this place, and all of a sudden, you’ve just seemed to forget.”
Ollie’s mother sighed. “Ollie? What-” Her voice suddenly changed, filling with fear and dread. “Where are we?”
Ollie froze. What was happening? None of this made sense. “Ma? We’ve been here for the past-”
“We need to go home! We need to go home right now, Ollie!”
Ollie flinched. “I know. We’re trying, remember? We were figuring that out. We are going to figure it out. Alright?”
Their mother just seemed to panic. “I want to go home! Take me home! Right now!”
Ollie stepped forward. “I’m going to approach you. Just so I can help. Okay? Do you trust me?”
“I trust my child. I trust my child.”
“And I am your child. And I’m approaching.” They took a step forward. “And we’re going to be okay. Still approaching. It’s still just me.” They kept moving forward, watching the lights carefully.
The lights turned off again. “No! Ma! It’s okay! Hang in there. They’ll come back on. Just stay calm. Please. It’s going to be okay. I promise.”
They got no response. Once the lights turned off, the hallways were pretty much silent. The fluorescent buzzing had been the dominant noise for so long, and now, all Ollie could hear was their panicked breathing and rapid heartbeat. If they were calmer, they would probably be able to hear their digestive tract. They breathed a little more forcefully. They really didn’t want to find out.
This bout of darkness seemed to last longer than the rest until the lights finally came back on. Their mother seemed further away again, slumped over in a chair. A chair that definitely wasn’t there before.
“Ma? Are you alright?”
Their mother wheezed in response. Ollie’s heart pounded in their throat, pulsated in their temples. What happened? The lights had only turned off for one minute, twelve seconds, and four milliseconds. Okay, perhaps the exact numbers were from me, but even Ollie’s mortal understanding of time allowed them to know it wasn’t that long. How did their mother get injured?
“Ma? Can you talk?”
There was no response, just that same wheezing breath. They teared up, walking in a small circle. “Ma! You can’t… you can’t be hurt!”
They went to walk forward before stepping back. “Ma, please. If I walk forward, the lights will turn off again.”
The fluorescents seemed to buzz a bit louder at that, drowning out Ollie’s heart.
“But I can’t leave you here. I’m sorry.”
As soon as they stepped forward, the lights turned off. But they didn’t care. They kept walking through the pitch black. The hallways shifted and contracted around them. Nausea surged in their stomach, pulsating along with the deafening silence.
The lights turned back on. Ollie’s mother was right in front of them, so close they could touch her.
But she was dead.
She was laying on the floor, her skin taking on a grey tint, her eyes empty. Ollie froze, staring down at the corpse with mounting horror.
“Ma?” They knelt down beside her, eyes wide. “Ma.” Their voice cracked, a tear streaking down their face. They gently reached out to check her pulse.
And she evaporated.
Ollie screamed, launching backward. There was nothing left of their mother.
Ollie clenched their fists, trembling. “This isn’t real! It was a trick!” They didn’t know who they were accusing, but they knew it was someone’s fault. “I’m done falling for your tricks! I just want to go home. I didn’t ask to be here.”
The ground of the building started to shake. Was that it? Did it hear them? Were they finally going home?
A wall rose from the ground, crashing into the ceiling. Ollie fell back with a yelp. That wasn’t fair. That wasn’t fair! What did they keep doing wrong? Why did the building keep blocking them off from passageway after passageway?
They stood up, thoroughly soaked from whatevr was soaked into the carpet. They smelt of mold and rotten mothballs now. They felt disgustinging. Not to mention, their skin itched terribly. Was the liquid irritating? Could it cause rashes? Or illness? Or death?
Ollie tried not to think about that. They were getting out of here, not dying. If they thought they were going to die here, then they would. It was as simple as that. The mind creates reality based on expectations.
Except when it came to working in an office. Ollie really hadn’t been expecting that one, but it still blindsided them. But now wasn’t exactly the time to think about that. Not with so much at stake.
They stumbled forward into the same four way crossroads again. They didn’t know how they knew it was the same one at this point, but they just did. They knew.
They walked to the center and spun in a small circle. “Wait. No. Wait!”
If this was the same four way crossroad, then that meant all of the other ways were blocked off.
Which meant there was only one way to go.
Which meant there was only one way out.
Which meant there was no room for mistakes.
They shook their head. “No! You’re telling me every other hallway changes, but this one doesn’t? No. I refuse to believe that.”
She sprinted down the hallway she had heard Betsy’s voice in. It was going to be entirely different. There wasn’t going to be anything there. It was going to be-
They ran straight into a dead end. There it was. The same dead end that had screamed at them before. They shook their head. “No. No!”
They turned around and sprinted right back to the beginning. Without a second thought, they ducked into the hallway that forced them face Mr. Coleman and his impossible hill. It would be never ending hallways. It had to be. This place hated limits. Why would it suddenly abuse them? It didn’t make sense.
But there, again, that same dead end. Ollie cried out. “Stop it! Stop doing that!”
They turned around, the adrenaline making them not even care if they were out of breath. They headed right back for the hallway they had just come from. Where this building had pretended to kill their mother. Please. This had to be open hallway. This couldn’t be it.
But it was. Because they just ran into the same dead end. Ollie stopped and stared at it. This was nothing short of cruel now. How could the building treat them like this? Drag them through mold and heartache like this?
“I don’t deserve this!” They kicked the wall as hard as they could. It didn’t hurt, and the wall didn’t budge.
But the building screamed, just like before. But, Ollie didn’t care anymore. They just screamed right back, the high-pitched, whistling screech of the building mixing with the deep, almost guttural yell from Ollie.
The building went silent first. The building might not need to breathe, but it didn’t have human tenacity. And Ollie was full of that at that moment. They heaved for breath, regretting the way their throat burned. There was no water here. They might have just kissed their voice goodbye with that stunt. They made their way back to the center of four way crossroads. Well, there was only one way forward.
Ollie stood in front of the open archway, staring into the never ending maze. If they messed up in there, they’d get trapped in the same loop forever. They’d go insane. They’d die of dehydration.
What would the building make them face there? Their father? An old college professor? What could possibly be worse than their mother dying? They sighed. It was time to find out.
They walked into the maze, immediately feeling the atmosphere shift. This was endless terrain. This is what they were used to.
“I hope you’re ready for me. I’m not listening to you anymore.”
The building felt ready. Maybe it was in the way the fluorescents kept humming, or the way the scent of mold seemed to get stronger. The assault that Ollie was getting used to felt more like a battlecry now.
They didn’t bother to keep track of the twists and turns they followed. It was meaningless, in the grand scheme of things. The building had a destination in mind, and Ollie would make it there whether they tried to or not. There was no point fretting about it.
After about fifteen minutes of walking, Ollie was faced with another narrow, one-way hallway. No twists. No turns. Just one way forward. They stopped.
There was a person in the middle of the hallway.
Ollie shook their head. No. There wasn’t a person. It was just the building lying again. Lying because it enjoyed watching them panic. They didn’t even say anything to this person, just squared their shoulders and kept walking.
The person didn’t move. The lights didn’t flicker. Ollie was approaching them. And quickly.
Ollie sped up. That person wasn’t real. They weren’t real. They weren’t—
Ollie crashed right into them, falling to the floor. The other person fell too with an “oomph”, dislodging some of the mold.
Ollie blinked. “Oh, I’m so-“ They froze.
The person was them. An exact replica. They had Ollie’s black shoulder-length Afro with one shaved side. Their dark skin. Their brown eyes. It was Ollie. But it wasn’t. Because Ollie was on the floor, staring at this mimic in horror.
The faux-Ollie stood up slowly. They looked defeated, their posture drooping and their eyes downcast. Their gray pantsuit was covered in thick black patches of mold. Their Afros was dripping with what smelled like the same fluid that was soaking the carpet.
Ollie swallowed. No. That couldn’t be real. Real funny, building, but they weren’t believing in it for a second. They turned away from the mimic and continued down the hallway, head down.
To their horror, the faux-Ollie follow, keeping in perfect stride and walking side-by-side. It sighed.
“I’m tired of this place.” It looked to Ollie like it was expecting solace. “I want to leave.”
Ollie didn’t say anything. They walked faster. It sped with them, its face not betraying if it noticed this change. “I’m leaving today. You can join me. You can leave.”
Ollie still didn’t say anything. They weren’t going to give this creature the satisfaction.
“Will you leave with me? Find peace? Escape this nightmare? I don’t want to leave alone.”
Ollie clenched their fists. They thought of Betsy, of the date where they would finally get on one knee and pop the question. Of Mr. Coleman’s face turning red as Ollie finally quit. Of their alive and well mom getting to try some actual homemade chocolates. It would be beautiful.
“You’re too scared to leave, huh? You’re terrified. But it’s okay. Leaving isn’t scary.”
Ollie growled. “Stop talking! I don’t want to hear it. Not another word.”
The faux-Ollie seemed unphased. They never looked up from the ground. “I’m going to leave. You can come with me. Or not.”
Ollie shook their head and kept walking. They didn’t have to listen to that. They could just keep on walking until this faux-Ollie ran out of steam and vanished. When would that be? Ollie wasn’t sure, but they didn’t care. It didn’t matter.
They made it to the end of the hallway. They weren’t even going to blink. They had been through so many hallways that the end of one meant nothing.
Until they stepped into a room.
It was shaped like a perfect circle, with no doorways to any other hallways. In the center of the room were the first pieces of furniture Ollie had seen this entire time: two wooden stools. Above them, was a rather large ceiling fan without light bulbs attached, hanging dormant.
Faux-Ollie seemed to finally lift its head, looking at the stools straight-on. “I’m leaving. You can either join me or stay behind and mold with everything else.”
It marched towards the stool on the left with this sudden sense of determination. Ollie couldn’t help but watch. Where was this going? Why did the building design a room now of all times?
Faux-Ollie undid the tie around their neck and completely unknotted it, leaving it with a length of fabric. Ollie frowned. They didn’t like that. Something about that seemed… dangerous.
Faux-Ollie started tying its tie again. “You have your tie. Just copy me.”
Ollie took a step back. No. They weren’t doing anything this thing said. Faux-Ollie didn’t seem to care much, just kept messing with their tie. Soon, Ollie could see what it was they were working so hard to make.
Faux-Ollie was tying a noose. Ollie took a step back. The two stools. The ceiling fan. The building wanted them to hang themselves. Why? What benefit did the building get? Was it a living organism that actually got sustenance from corpses? Was Ollie not the first to find themselves down here? They watched Faux-Ollie, a little wide-eyed with terror.
Faux-Ollie stepped onto the stool and started tying one end of the tie to the ceiling fan. Ollie couldn’t tear their eyes away. Was this really what the building expected them to do? Blindly follow a shadow version of themselves to their own demise? Well, it wasn’t going to happen.
Faux-Ollie put the noose around their neck. “I’m going to leave. Because death’s the only way out. And I’m tired of waiting for old age to do it for me.”
Ollie shook their head. “No.”
“And you can leave with me. You can hang right next to me.”
Ollie covered their ears. “No.”
“We’ll both be free. We’ll both be free!”
Ollie squeezed their eyes shut. “No! I said no! You can’t make me! I don’t believe you. You’re not real!”
Faux-Ollie flinched slightly, eyes widening slightly.
“You won’t make me kill myself. You don’t have that power.”
Faux-Ollie shook its head. “I’m… I’m leaving.”
“You’re dying. You’re not just leaving, you’re giving up.” Ollie sighed. “I’m leaving. I’m finding a way out. I’m going to escape with my life and see my girlfriend again.”
Faux-Ollie held on to the noose. “Wait-“
“I am not going to sit here and die. You can. Go ahead. You’re not real anyways. I’m going to turn around and find a real way. Goodbye.”
Ollie turned around. They didn’t flinch when they heard Faux-Ollie’s clatter to the floor. They didn’t turn around as they heard the snap of a broken neck. Ollie straightened their suit jacket and walked down the hallway.
They didn’t care when they were faced with a single sharp left-hand turn. They just took it.
And stopped dead in their tracks.
It was a very short hallway this time. No rooms. No winding passageways.
Just a single staircase leading up and away.
Ollie approached the staircase, slightly transfixed. They laughed, running their hands on the wood. It was real wood. Real to the touch. It didn’t waver or disappear or smell like mold and mothballs. Ollie tapped the bottom step with their foot and it held.
“Is… is this it? I’m done? You’re letting me go?”
The buzz of the fluorescents softened. The staircase wasn’t lit by fluorescents. Its lights were silent, softer. Ollie hesitated. This… this felt too easy. Yell at one projection and suddenly the exit just appeared? They didn’t trust it.
“I need some sign that this is real. I can’t just blindly walk up these stairs. You can’t expect that of me.”
The building didn’t respond. Nothing changed. Ollie sighed. “I guess that’s my sign. You don’t want to convince me. If this was a trap, you’d have Betsy’s voice calling for me. Or Ma at the top of the stairs. But this is just here. Like you want me to doubt it.”
Ollie shook their head and took a careful step onto the staircase. Nothing happened. Nothing went awry or broke. Ollie took another step. Then another. And another.
It was halfway up the staircase that they saw the light above. Pure, natural sunlight. No light bulbs included. They ran up the last bit of the staircase, laughing madly.
“Betsy! I’m coming home!”
xxxxx
A woman by the name of Elizabeth Marshall marched into the Pinevale Community Hospital, stress furrowing her brow. She made a beeline straight to the front desk, dodging people like she was specifically designed to do so. As soon as a receptionist was free, she dipped over, trying to smile as politely as possible.
“Excuse me? Excuse me?”
The receptionist looked up. “Yes, ma’am?”
“I was told this was where my partner was taken. A person by the name of Ollie Ketcher? K-E-T-C-H-E-R.”
The receptionist nodded dully, tapping away at his computer. “That’s the potential Ikidnapping victim, right?”
“They’re my partner and I’d like to see them. Now.”
The receptionist nodded. “Right. Of course. They’re in Bay Thirteen. Stable and conscious.”
Elizabeth clutched her heart. “Oh thank the heavens. Can I see them?”
“You can. Go ahead.”
Elizabeth nodded. “Thank you.” She practically sprinted further into the hospital, stopping to take a photo of the map so she didn’t miss them.
As soon as she saw a door with the number thirteen on it, she knocked, opening it. It had to be them, right?
And it was. It was Ollie, arm stretched out and connected to an IV. Their head lulled slightly as Elizabeth walked in. “Betsy?” They sounded exhausted.
Elizabeth smiled. “I’m here, darling. You know I’m always here for you.” She sat on the bed, gripping Ollie’s hand. “How… what…?”
Ollie shook their head. “I don’t know. I don’t know. None of it… makes sense.”
Elizabeth brought up Ollie’s hand and gently kissed it. “We’ll talk later, then. When you’re feeling better.”
Ollie nodded. “Good idea. I want to sleep… for like three thousand years.”
Elizabeth laughed. “As long as you do it in increments and I can still talk to you.”
Ollie smiled, not staying anything for a long minute before they finally spoke up again. “I’m quitting.”
“Your job?”
They nodded.
Elizabeth smiled. “Good. You’ve been miserable ever since you started working there. I hate seeing you like that. We’ll figure something else out.”
Ollie hummed. “As long as you’re with me, we’ll figure it out. Together.”
“Together.”
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