Logan - Why are Dwarves Small?

Logan scoffed. "Excuse me?"

Keys contained a lot of germs. Something he wanted from his mouth. Not to mention, what the keys had gone through during its time here. Did they even clean it? Had others bitten it? Did they sanitize it?

He could suddenly get sick from this.

"You heard me." Alex rolled her eyes. "Bite the keys and head towards my side of the table."

"There has to be another way," Logan insisted. How would he even find the keys with his mouth? Kiss the wall? Brush his lips on it until he hit the hook? If it didn't cause him to get sick, he surely would get an injury.

Either way, it would be harmful.

"Sure, be my guest. Time is ticking."

"Fine, fine," he groaned, bending his knees, "I'll do it."

Instead of his lips, Logan used his cheek. He tapped it against the wall. He already had an estimated location for the keys. It wouldn't take long before he detected them again. When something cold touched his skin, he opened his mouth and curled his lips inwards.

Icy metal clamped between his lips.

His feet immediately left the spot. Logan had his head tilted up so the keys wouldn't fall. His hip followed the outline of the table. He didn't want to waste a second longer than necessary. In his haste, he hit the chair on his way to Alex and almost fell over.

The keys flew out of his mouth.

It landed in front of Alex.

"Where is it?" Logan asked, panic flowing into his veins. His head snapped from left to right. He began to step around the spot and hoped he'd feel them under his shoe. Another wave of anxiety washed over him. He had blown it.

His mistake would cause them more time.

A bead of sweat trickled down his temple. "Alex?"

No answer came.

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A hand touched Logan's arm.

"Ah…!" He screamed, jumping on his heels. Goosebumps crawled up his skin while his heart increased its speed. He turned his head towards the source.

Alex pressed her lips together, muffling her laughter. She squeezed his arm in reassurance. Her fingers barely made a dent. "It's okay. It's me."

"Alex? You got out?"

"Yep."

"You could have told me!"

"Now, where's the fun in that?" She chuckled, lifting her hand to remove his blindfold. Her gaze met a pair of glaring eyes. She grinned at the sight of them. "How did it taste?"

"You tell me." Logan replied, his voice dripping in sarcasm.

The next second, he puckered his lips and aimed for hers.

"Ew!" Alex leaned back and spun on her heel, dodging the kiss. She giggled as she skipped over to the north wall. Two more keys dangled from hooks. She tossed one of them towards the table, ignoring someone's pout.

"Here. Be more useful."

She headed for the other table and tested the other key. It had one long drawer and three small ones on the right. She inserted it in each lock but none of them budged. The last one had a different lock.

It needed a combination.

"What is it?" Logan asked behind her. He rubbed his wrist. The handcuffs had left a rash. "The key isn't working?"

"Nope," Alex sighed, rising to her feet. She put the key down and checked the small collection of books. She wondered if one of them was hollow on the inside. Her hand snatched the biggest one. It was the only book with a hard cover.

It opened on the first page.

"I knew it!"

Another note laid inside.

.

```

L - Sneezy

R - Happy

R - Grumpy

L - Dopey

```

.

Alex read them out loud. "Okay, but what do these mean?"

Logan scowled at the note. Then, he raised his head towards the corkboard. It had seven mugshots. Four of them matched the names on the note. He read the other details which included their height in feet. It was the only information related to numbers.

"I'm guessing it has something to do with these." He pointed at the photos and crouched on the floor. The combination lock wanted four numbers. He followed the pattern of the note.

L - Sneezy: 5'2"

Since the note used 'L', Logan figured it meant the digit on the left. His finger scrapped the lock, rotating it to the correct number. He did the same thing for the rest of the names.

R - Happy: 5'4"

R - Grumpy: 5'9"

L - Dopey: 5'1"

The lock now read as "5495."

Logan pulled the hook.

Nothing happened.

"Damn. It didn't work," he cursed.

Alex hovered above him, bowing at the waist. She watched him work and waited patiently. Her guess was the same. She scrunched her eyebrows when it didn't crack open. The timer continued to tick as they puzzled over the lock.

Logan stood up and gestured to the drawer. "Why don't you try it?"

"Okay," Alex knelt on the floor. She messed up the combination before she double checked the numbers. Her eyes flickered to the note every once in a while.

Glancing around, Logan noticed the height chart which had rows of lines. It was wider than he was used to. The width could easily fit the silhouette of a man. On either side of the lines, numbers indicated their height measurement. Something about it seemed familiar.

He shifted his attention back on the mugshots.

The same chart was in the background.

Could it be?

Testing his theory, he recalled the first name on the list. His legs moved to the chart and faced the left side of the wall. He bent his knees, checking if he reached the correct height.

He stopped when he reached around 5'2"

'Now, what?' Logan thought. Nothing on the left wall gave him a clue. He turned around, facing the right one where the door stood. It also had nothing. Frown lines creased between his eyebrows. Something didn't seem right.

Shuffling his feet, Logan swept his emerald eyes across the jail cell.

Two numbers stared at him from behind bars.

"It still didn't work," Alex grunted. She scratched the back of her head and looked up at him. She blinked in surprise. Her head twisted to the jail cell. "Are there numbers there? Is it the sticky tapes on the wall?"

She had seen them when she searched for the key. Their pattern didn't make sense to her at the time. Now, she wondered if this was their purpose.

"Hold up," Logan told her, noting the number on the left. "Who is second on the list again?"

"Happy," Alex answered. Her gaze shifted back on the mugshots. "He's 5 foot and 4 inches."

"Tell me when I hit 5'4"." Logan nodded and loosened his knees. It provided a bit of ease on his thighs. He had done squats for basketball training but his endurance was still low. He felt his legs tremble for a bit.

"Stop."

Logan squinted his eyes and memorized the number on the right side.

"Who is next?"

"Uh… it's Grumpy at 5'9"."

Logan sighed in relief. If he went lower again, his knees might cave in.

"Stop, you're an inch higher." Alex informed him. She watched as he lowered himself. Her eyes glanced at his legs. The fabric of his jeans shook from the squat. She checked on the last one.

It made her cough out a snort.

"Okay, one more to go." Logan's voice broke her daze.

She swallowed down her amusement. "It's Dopey and he is 5 feet and 1 inch."

Logan froze for a moment.

Then, he slowly bent his knees further. His legs quivered under him. The lower he went, the more they shook. His pants flapped against his skin. Alex thought it was a comical sight.

"Can't reach it?" She teased, giggling under her breath.

"It's not my fault that these dwarves are so small." Logan defended with a frown.

She rolled her eyes.

"You're just a giant," she huffed and stood up. "Move, I'll do it."

Logan straightened his legs. It felt good until the blood restored its circulation. Thousands of needles pricked under his skin. It hindered his walk to the drawers. A groan escaped his lips when a realization hit him.

He needed to crouch for the lock.

Taking a deep breath, Logan knelt on the floor and input the numbers: 575_

"Do you see anything?" He asked, ready to turn the last number disk.

Alex scowled at the jail cell. "I don't see any number."

Logan snapped his head towards her. His eyes widened in shock. "What?"

"There's nothin—wait!" Alex felt the gears in her mind turn. She stepped away from the chart and joined him at the drawers. "Why don't you try a zero?"

Blinking at her, Logan understood what she meant. If there was no number then, there was no value—which usually implied a zero. He rotated the disk and the lock clicked as soon as he hit the right number.

"Nice!" Alex cheered, patting his shoulder. "Good work."

Her stunning gray eyes glowed. She checked on the timer. They still had about 25 minutes left to finish the puzzles. Now that they solved two things, she was pumped for the rest. The cleverness of each one thrilled her to the bone.

Why hadn't she played this before?

Logan stood up and rested his forehead against hers. He covered her entire vision, boring his emerald eyes into her gray ones. His finger tucked a loose strand behind her ear.

He smirked at her frozen expression.

"Does that mean I get a reward?"