Under_The_Whispering_Door_by_TJ_Klune

“The clock,” Alan said. “It’s not moving.”
“No,” Hugo said. “It’s stopped to give us as much time as you need.” He
picked up a teacup and set it closer to Alan. “Give it another moment, then
try it and tell me what you think.”
A tear trickled down Alan’s cheek. “You’re not listening.”
“I am,” Hugo said. “More than you know. I’ll never know what it was like
for you in that alley. No one should ever have to feel alone like that.”
“You’re not listening.” He turned toward the door.
“You can’t leave,” Mei said. She took a step toward him, but Hugo held
her back. Wait, he mouthed to her. She sighed, shoulders sagging.
“I can,” Alan said. “The door is right there.”
“If you leave,” Hugo said, “you’ll begin to break apart, something that
will only get worse the farther you go. Outside these walls is the living
world, a world you don’t belong to anymore. Alan, I’m so sorry for that. I
know you may not believe me, but I am. I wouldn’t lie to you, especially not
about something as important as this. Leaving here will only make things
worse. You will lose everything you are.”
“I already have,” Alan snapped.
“You haven’t,” Hugo said. “You’re still here. You’re still you. And I can
help you. I can show you the way and help you cross.”
Alan turned back around. “And if I don’t want this crossing?”
“You will,” Hugo said. “Eventually. But there’s no rush. We have time.”
“Time,” Alan echoed. He looked down at the teacup. “Is it ready?”
“It is.” Hugo sounded relieved, but Wallace was still wary.
“And I can touch the cup?”
“You can. Carefully, though. It’ll be hot.”
Alan nodded. His hand shook as he reached for the cup. Mei and Hugo did
the same. Wallace thought back to how it’d been for him, the scent of
peppermint in the air, the way his mind had been racing, trying to find a way
out of this. He knew Alan would be the same.
Hugo and Mei waited until Alan took the first sip. He swallowed with a
grimace.
Hugo drank from his own tea.
Mei did too, and if she didn’t like the taste, she didn’t show it on her face.
“I’m dead,” Alan said, looking down into his cup. He swirled it around.
Tea sloshed onto the table.