"I feel like we should've comforted her," you told Sungjong.
"She'll be okay," he said, "it was just acting."
"I know, but still..."
Sungjong smiled. "That's what I like about you," he said, "no matter what the circumstances are, you're always so sweet." He took your hand and brought it up to his face. He gently pressed his lips against your hand, which left you flustered. He was so elegant, you couldn't help but wrap your arms around him. He laughed at the surprise hug, and hugged you back with one arm, as he was still holding the lantern with the other.
"I adore you, Sungjong," you confessed, and his posture stiffened.
"I adore you, too," he said quietly. Your heart skipped a beat as he kissed the top of your head, and the two of you quickly let go of each other. The moment was brief, as the two of you soon remembered the task at hand. He handed you the lantern and took out the map. You glanced at his face, delighted to see a small smile.
Sungjong described his plan to you, saying that it was time to go upstairs. He wanted to see if he could find Isabelle's room, as he had a hunch that there may be clues there. However, there was no part of the map that labeled her room, so it would have to be a game of chance.
"I find it kind of strange, though..." you began.
"What's strange?" he asked you.
"We've been in this mansion for quite some time already, but we have not once seen anyone from the group."
"Well, it is a big mansion," Sungjong explained, "or maybe they got scared and left."
"But you'd think they would make sounds, wouldn't they? There are only so many hallways in this place."
"I'm sure it's nothing." Sungjong dismissed the problem, and the two of you headed up the grand staircase.

The second floor was larger and darker than the first, making you feel nervous yet again. You moved closer to Sungjong, feeling safer when he was within your grasp. He welcomed the skinship and put an arm around your waist, leading you down the hallway with him. You came to a halt, and Sungjong looked at you.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Shh... Do you hear that?" you asked. There was an eerily faint sound of music resonating down the hall.
"I don't hear anything," answered Sungjong "what does it sound like?"
"It sounds like a music box," you explained, "you don't hear it?"
"No, not at all," he answered. His answer made you feel uneasy, but you followed the sound anyway. It wasn't long before you had reached a door where the sound seemed to be coming from, directly inside. Sungjong looked at the map.
"There's no label to this room. Are you sure it's coming from here?"
"Yes, I'm positive," you answered. However, you were still afraid to go in, not knowing what to expect. Sungjong noticed your hesitation, and offered to open the door for you. He pushed it open slowly, and the music came to an abrupt stop.
 "It's gone," you panicked, "the music stopped." Sungjong tried to calm you down, and opened the door wider.
"Hello? Is anyone in here?" he called.

No answer.

The two of you crept inside, and Sungjong closed the door. Once your eyes adjusted, you noticed the two of you were in a bedroom. It looked like it belonged to a little girl, as there was a dollhouse on the floor, a rocking horse, and ribbons everywhere.
"This must be Isabelle's room," whispered Sungjong. He quietly went over to the dollhouse, inspecting the tiny rooms to see if there was a clue. Something from behind the curtains moved, and you screamed. Sungjong ran back to you, asking you what was wrong. The two of you watched in horror as the rocking horse started moving on its own, creaking softly. A big fire appeared in the fireplace at once. "Are you the bad man?" echoed a voice.

All of this happened so quickly, you were frozen in fear. You could not even manage to scream or move, as Sungjong pulled you back. From behind the curtain, a small girl that looked about the age of ten peeked out. Sungjong gasped.
"Are you Isabelle?" he asked. The girl hid back behind the curtain, and her feet disappeared, freaking you out even more.
"She's gone!" you shouted, as Sungjong tried to calm you down. He told you to stay by the door as he went over to the curtain. He slowly stretched his hand out to the curtain, then pulled it back as fast as he could. He jumped as he saw the girl sitting on the windowsill. She instantly curled up and started screaming.
"Sungjong, come back!" you cried, and he rushed over to you as fast as he could. The little girl's screaming continued, piercing your eardrums. The two of you backed up until you were pressed against the door in complete shock. Finally, the screaming ceased, and she stared at the two of you with fear in her eyes.
"Don't hurt me," she begged, "please don't hurt me!" Her voice was so faint, yet it echoed through the room. She sounded as genuinely scared as you felt. Realizing that she was not about to attack the two of you, your muscles relaxed.
"It's okay, Sungjong," you whispered, "she won't hurt us."
"I know," he replied, as his muscles relaxed as well. He took your hand again, squeezing softly. "Can we talk to you?" he asked Isabelle. He did not want to make any sudden movements, in fear of making her scream again. Isabelle nodded, and you and Sungjong moved closer. Suddenly, she got up from the windowsill and went over to the dollhouse. She sat down and began playing with her dolls as if the past few minutes never happened.

Sungjong didn't want to waste any time, so he asked as many important questions as he could. He squatted beside her so that they were eye-level, and began to ask the questions. "Who is 'the bad man'?" he asked, as Isabelle ignored him. "Why are you alone here?" he asked, as she continued playing with her dolls. "What can you tell us about your father?" he asked yet again. His patience grew thin as Isabelle shook her head, not wanting to answer any of the questions. She continued playing with dolls, humming to herself. Sungjong looked up at you, silently pleading for you to help.
You hesitantly sat down on the opposite side of her, and reached out for one of the dolls. Isabelle froze and watched your hand as you picked it up. You carefully combed its hair with your fingers, and smiled at her. She shrugged and went back to humming. The three of you sat in silence for a few minutes as the fire behind you glowed.
"I'm happy to share my toys," Isabelle said, "The maid thinks I'm selfish. She says the reason I don't have any friends is because I don't know how to share. But she's wrong. I know how to share." You nodded and agreed with her, thanking her for letting you play with her doll. Sungjong asked if he could play too, and Isabelle stared at him. He stared back, and in that moment, you were sure the two of them were having a silent staring contest. You watched as Sungjong didn't blink, smiling to yourself over his hidden talent.

"No!" Isabelle suddenly shouted, and Sungjong began to laugh. Now you knew it was a staring contest, as the two of them started to blink rapidly. "Here," she said as she held out one of her dolls to Sungjong. "I didn't know boys can play with dolls," she said in a hurtful tone.
"Boys can do anything girls can do," Sungjong replied, "just like girls can do anything boys can do."
"Like catching frogs?" Isabelle asked excitedly.
"Yes, like catching frogs!" he laughed.
"Yuck! I hate frogs," she replied. "they're all slimy and gross. That's a lie. They're cute. I caught one once. But the chef got mad at me and cooked it." The look on your face made Sungjong laugh, and Isabelle followed his gaze to see why. "It's not funny!" she shouted, and the two of you tried to keep a straight face.
"Hey, you know what else Sungjong likes to do?" you asked, wanting to change the subject.
"What?" she asked curiously.
"He likes to dance to girl groups. He's really good at it!" Sungjong smiled at you, knowing what he had to do next.
"What are girl groups?" Isabelle asked.
"You know, singers? Dancers? Haven't you ever heard of Sonyeo Shidae or Orange Caramel?" you asked. She stared at you with a blank expression. "Look, he'll show you." You motioned for Sungjong to start, and he got up. He walked over to a clear spot in the room, and you began to sing "Gee". Isabelle watched in awe as he danced along to your voice, and she clapped as you got to the chorus. She laughed and smiled, and even got up to try it herself! After you finished the song, Isabelle ran back to the dollhouse and sat down again.
"That was fun." she said happily. The three of you smiled and continued to play with the dolls.
"...I wish I could leave this room."

The smiles on your faces disappeared almost instantly. "Why can't you leave?" you asked.
"I don't know. I noticed I've been stuck ever since..."
"Ever since what?" asked Sungjong. He moved closer to her, hoping that she'd spill the secret.
"Ever since the bad man came in." She put down her doll and sat still.
"What happened?" you asked. Isabelle sighed and picked up her doll again, combing its hair and tugging at its dress.
"I don't remember too clearly, but one night, I was playing dolls in here, like I usually do, and..." she struggled to remember what happened, and neither of you said anything. "A man with a lot of scars on his face came in and grabbed me. He told me that... He said to me that... I couldn't live here anymore, that..." her voice grew shaky and tears formed in her eyes, "that I was ruining my father's life. He grabbed my neck and then... I fell asleep.
"I woke up the next morning, and everything went back to normal. But nobody came for me. I tried to leave, but whenever I'd walk out of my room, I'd blink, and then I'd be back here again, playing with my dolls..."

You and Sungjong exchanged worried looks, unsure of what to say.