Under_The_Whispering_Door_by_TJ_Klune

CHAPTER
7
Apollo seemed to know where they were going, prancing down the hallway,
tail wagging. He looked back every now and then to make sure Hugo
followed.
Hugo went through another entryway without looking back to see if
Wallace would follow. The walls were covered in wallpaper, old but clean:
little flowers were etched in that seemed to bloom as they walked by, though
Wallace thought it might have been a trick of the light. A door on the right led
to a small office, a desk inside covered with papers next to an ancient
computer.
A door on the left was closed, but it seemed to be another way into the
kitchen. He could hear Mei moving around inside along with the clatter of
dishes as she sang at the top her lungs, a rock song that had to be older than
she was. But since Wallace couldn’t be sure how old she was (or, if he was
being honest with himself, what she was), he decided to let it pass without
comment.
Another door on the right led to a half bathroom with a sign hanging on it
that read: GUYS, GALS, & OUR NONBINARY PALS. Beyond it was a set of stairs,
and if Wallace still had a heartbeat, he was sure it’d be racing.
But Hugo paid it no mind, passing the stairs, heading for a door at the end
of the hall. Apollo didn’t wait for him to open it, instead walking through it.
Wallace learned then that he still wasn’t used to such things, and though he
was sure he could do the same, he waited for Hugo to open the door.
It led outside and into darkness.
Wallace hesitated until Hugo motioned for him to walk through. “It’s okay.
It’s just the backyard. Nothing will happen to you out there.”