I took Anju Suzumiya to the haunted house. Looking at the wicked grimace on the doors, I felt like we should go somewhere else.
Suddenly, I heard a hoarse male voice. A staff in clown costume was standing behind us.
[Clown]Today, there is a special program for couples in our Wonder House. Don't miss out! Hehehehe—
[player]We are not...
Before I could finish, the clown quickly pushed us into the open doors of the haunted house...
Wonder House
To my surprise, I didn't hit the ground nor did I feel any pain. Instead, we fell into something soft. As we held onto each other and struggled to get up under the dim light, we realized the entrance was connected to a large pool filled with foam blocks. The Wonder House was surely full of wonder.
But I had never been to this haunted house either. The candle-shaped lamps on the wall glowed dimly in the dark, only lighting up a small area. The atmosphere was surely a fearful one.
The speakers hidden in the wall kept playing weird sounds. Frightened, Anju and I couldn't help but cling to each other's arm.
But we couldn't just stand still. We mustered all the remaining courage and slowly dragged our feet toward the darkness ahead, step after step...
The first turn was only ten meters away from the entrance, but it felt like a marathon. Just when we tried to mentally prepare for the imminent unknown, I suddenly heard something squeak.
Anju and I anxiously turned back. A silhouette was rapidly charging toward us from an open door and making some cracking sounds.
[Anju Suzumiya]Woah—
[player]Woah—
We both screamed and started running forward while holding each other's hand. Behind us were some roaring faces that kept chasing after us. More obstacles kept coming out along the way, which made our escape even more difficult.
As I ran past a corner, I suddenly realized Anju Suzumiya was lost. Staring at my empty hand, I remembered what the clown said. "A special event for couples"... Did he mean that couples would break up after leaving the haunted house?
But it wasn't the time for me to worry about Anju Suzumiya, as I realized that I had run into a dead end. I could hear some heavy footsteps patrolling not far away. Worried that I might alert more staff, I couldn't scream to Anju either.
All of a sudden, a dark silhouette quickly approached me. Before I could scream, I heard a familiar voice.
[???]PLAYER?
[player]Anju!
[Anju Suzumiya]Shh—I, I found the way out.
She was still catching her breath, and her hand was also shaking slightly.
[player]Then why did you come back?
[Anju Suzumiya]I must not leave PLAYER behind, because PLAYER... also looked very scared.
She was clearly frightened, but still concerned about me...
[player]Thank you, Anju.
I followed Anju through a dark corridor and saw sunlight at an exit.
It felt like a century when we finally stood in the sun again.
[Anju Suzumiya]KR-976 will work hard.
[player]Huh?
[Anju Suzumiya]So... next time when we are in a haunted house, I can protect PLAYER.
She looked up and promised me very seriously, as if it was very important. I gently rubbed the top of her head.
[player]That's great.
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