***

The haunted mansion seemed to rumble now and then, as if it didn’t like Tao and Kris roaming about its halls. Tao clung to Kris and the taller brother didn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, he made sure that Tao stuck close to him as well as they stumbled across another chamber.

“How many rooms do you think this place has, gege?” Tao asked in a whispered whimper, the both of them standing at the doorway, only peeking in.

“Hundred, maybe? I don’t know, it didn’t look this big from the outside,” Kris guessed, slowly shuffling forward after making sure that there wasn’t anything inside that could give them heart attacks.

“Do you think that this place is really haunted then? I mean, do you really think that this place is so cursed because of that mad scientist doctor person?” Tao continued to ask as they walked through a Victorian bedroom of some sorts. It was just as decrepit and decaying like the rest of the house, but there used to be a touch of elegance here. The room was colored in faded pink and gold, Tao jolting a bit when they passed a full-length, corroded mirror. Cobwebs and a layer of dust covered the abandoned items in the room and they paused a moment to look around the strange sanctuary.

The first thing Kris did, however, was to check the door that they just entered through and he clacked his tongue in derision. “I knew it,” he shook his head at being unable to open the door. “Be careful, Taozi, don’t touch anything here.”

Tao nodded, though he quickly walked towards the other side of the room, hoping that the door there would be unlocked. “Why is this house like this?” he whined, tugging at the locked door.

“It’s a haunted house, why should anything be easy around here?” Kris grumbled, looking around. He then saw a massive portrait hanging over the large bed and he tilted his head to examine it.

“What are you looking at, ge? Oh…” Tao stood beside him, looking at the portrait of a beautiful, but sorrowful young bride. The flowers in the bouquet she was holding had wilted, though Tao didn’t know why the painter of the portrait would portray the bride in such a sad way. Being a bride was supposed to be a joyous occasion, right? But this bride looked like she was marching towards a funeral instead of a wedding. Another reason for him to hate haunted mansions; everything good and light was made into something bad and dark.

“What do you think happened to her?” Tao then wondered, feeling sorry for the woman.

“You can’t guess?” Kris proffered, taking a deep breath. “Does it bother you that the woman kind of looks like Jae?” he then continued to which Tao smacked his brother’s arm.

“Don’t say something like that, Kris-ge! Look at that bride. Don’t insult Jae-noona for even comparing her with that painting. Jae-noona is prettier and more lively, she’s warm and sweet. That bride just looks miserable. Aish, this hyung,” he scolded shaking his head profusely.

“I’m just saying! If you squint your eyes it could be Jae when she’s older…” Kris suddenly paused and looked at Tao. “You won’t tell her I said this, right?”

“Hmph, depends,” Tao teased seeing the panic in Kris’s eyes. “Relax, gege, I won’t. Besides, she probably doesn’t know what you’d be talking about anyway, unless she passed this room, too,” he then assured before sighing again. “I just want to find her now, though. Where do you think she can be?”

“Your guess is as good as mine, Taozi. Let’s find a way to get out of here first,” Kris stated, but he sat down on the bed, looking tired.

“We could try and just break down the door?” Tao suggested, but Kris shook his head.

“I don’t think that will work.”

“Well, lets say Jae-noona did pass here,” Tao started, “how would she have gotten out of here if the doors were locked?”

“I don’t know…maybe she had help from one of the others? If she had Chanyeol or Chen with her, they could easily blast the doors open.”

Tao sighed and nodded at Kris’s words. “But what if she’s alone? Ah…why am I so worried for her?”

“It’s okay, Taozi, I’m worried, too…” Kris trailed off when he started to shiver, his breath forming a cloud in the sudden coldness of the room. Tao felt it as well, rubbing his arms to stay warm.

“Gege, what’s happening?” he asked when he let out a shriek, looking at the painting behind Kris. “G-ge!” he stuttered, pointing frantically at something behind him.

“What is it?” Kris whispered, too scared to turn around, but the moment he felt an ice cold hand touch his shoulder he jumped off the bed and ran towards Tao.
The painting of the bride shuddered, her eyes slowly blinking, the portrait becoming more three dimensional. Out from the painting appeared a ghostly form of the bride, soft sobbing accompanying her as she gazed at Kris and Tao. Instead of a bouquet, she held out a chandelier, tears of blood flowing from her sad, dead eyes.

Searching… the bride muttered. Have you come for me?

Tao and Kris were hugging each other out of pure fear at the ghostly apparition, the bride watching them before floating out of the painting, a lament accompanying her as she floated towards the dresser.

Her reflection showed a decaying corpse, which only frightened the teens even more. She moved slowly, crying and lamenting, while Tao and Kris had no idea what they were supposed to do now.

While the bride was a chilling ghostly apparition, she did not seem to be an immediate threat to them like the mirror monster had been. But if there was one thing they knew about haunted houses, it was that nothing here was what it seemed.

Waiting so long… where are you, my love?

Tao and Kris both shuddered at hearing her ethereal voice, stepping away when she started to float around the room. The chandelier shone a dim light around the room as the ghostly bride sighed and sobbed, looking just about as trapped as they were.

Tao was actually starting to feel sorry for the bride, despite her being a ghost. He tugged at Kris’s arm.

“Ge, what should we do?” he asked, the apparition shimmering unstably.

“I don’t know! Sneak away? Unless you think she’s dangerous?”

“Can dead brides be dangerous?”

“How am I supposed to know?!”

The teens watched the bride as she shone the chandelier around before she looked out the window, as if she was searching for someone as well.

I will stay here forever until you come for me…

“That didn’t sound particularly good, gege,” Tao told Kris who nodded as he kept watch over what the ghost would do.

“We have to do something, Taozi.”

Tao agreed, but what could they do in a situation like this?

>>> SNEAK AWAY, TRY AND SEE IF THAT DOOR WON’T OPEN <<<
>>> THE BRIDE SEEMS HARMLESS ENOUGH, MAYBE SHE CAN HELP? <<<