Exhale

Chapter 42 - Sleeping Beauty

As we walked through the once lively halls, I couldn't help but notice all the people. Scattered about were bodies, bodies of our comrades, bodies of people who we might have known. Yet all their bodies and faces were morphed and unrecognizable. Fungi covered almost entire bodies, scarring the bodies and forcing them to form inhuman shapes. And though there was blood and parts covering every inch of the floor, it wasn't distressing or mortifying. The glow was somehow soothing and surreal, and it made everything seem like a fantasy. And the warmth of its light felt gentle on my skin—it was simply pretty and harmless.

"We're almost there," Phil said, interrupting my thoughts.

I looked back at him. "How do you know?"

Looking back at me, he gently smiled. His face reflected the mint green of the leaves of the fungi. "I would never forget where she was laid," was all he said. I didn't question him after that.

Eventually, the halls narrowed and the decor became limited, with the walls blank as though the fungi withdrew from the area. Soon, we came upon a door, sturdy and pale, lacking any texture or apparent significant in appearance. That is, if you didn't count its blankness a significance.

Phil went to the door and turned its handle. After a few turns, it was evident that it was jammed. And so, he pushed and once he figured that didn't work, he slammed his body against it.

Creeeeeak.

Without much issue, this time, it opened. Delighted, he skipped through the door. And not wanting to be alone, I followed suit.

Once we went in the door, the decor drastically changed. There were flowers, flowers of all different breeds, everywhere, bursting and blossoming in every direction. Although they weren't like the fungi out in the hall, they still shone in the way that they were all gorgeous and vibrant and almost real.

Following the path, outlined by the two lines of faux grass, we made it to the end of the hallway and to a single door. As Phil fiddled with the handle, I examined the door. Unlike the door into the hall, this one had drawings, drawn by a mix of crayon or marker, on it. Although some of the drawings made no sense, like the one with the man getting eaten by a blob that was possibly a dragon, there were other ones that did, like the drawing of the small family of three. There was a mother and a father, and a happy boy in the center. They were holding hands and smiling... like a happy family. At least, what looked like a happy family.

After a couple of jingles and jangles, Phil successfully opened the door. And though I couldn't see his face fully, I saw his eyes light up. Immediately, like before, he dived through the door.

"Mom!" he cried as he escaped my scope.

Taking my time, I walked into the room and eyed every detail. Like the hallway before, flowers were everywhere. However, unlike that one, this time, the flowers had overrun the room to the point that the walls were barely visible. From the trimming to almost the ceiling, flowers and vines were practically blooming from the walls. Gazing at the ceiling, I saw a sight that reflected the night sky, only it was brighter and filled with dozens upon dozens of stars. I let my eyes fall back to my level and soon, a particular piece of furniture in the room caught my eye. It was a large bed with a canopy, a canopy that was a slightly transparent black and covered almost the entire frame of the bed. Phil, who was cooing and speaking warmly, stood at a side of the bed and I walked over to him to see her.

Lying on the bed was a woman, who had not a single wrinkle on her pale skin. She had dark hair that rivaled the canopy's in both size and color. Like the room, she, too, had flowers in her hair. She was dressed in a white dress, which was spread out across the bed, and her feet were bare. All around her were flowers—lilies, to be exact—and they were lazily sprawled around her body. Her face looked as though she was only asleep, yet her body... it said otherwise.