WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for Severance season 2, episode 1!Irving reveals to Dylan that his Outie has been painting a black hallway at Lumon, which may give the Innies a big clue to unraveling the company’s mysteries in Severance’s season 1 finale, Dylan stayed behind while enacting the “overtime contingency” for Mark, Helly, and Irving, which sent their Innie personas into their Outies’ bodies outside the office. When Irving woke up, his Outie was in the middle of painting a dark hallway that led to a mysterious elevator at the office, which he had already painted on several occasions.

When the Innies return to Lumon’s Macrodata Refinement Department in season 2, episode 1, they each share what they saw during overtime contingency. While Mark is honest, Helly lies about really being Helena Eagan, with Irving being hesitant to disclose his experiences until Dylan finally convinces him. Irving ultimately explains that he was painting a black hallway with "an elevator at the end with a downward arrow." What Irving doesn’t realize is that he was painting the elevator to the Testing Floor, which has some major implications for Severance season 2’s story.

Why Irving's Outie Repeatedly Paints Lumon's Dark Hallway To The Elevator

It's Seemingly An Image That Bled Over To His Outie's Brain From His Innie

The idea that Irving’s Outie is able to paint the hallway leading up to the Testing Floor suggests that Severance’s Innies and Outies are able to have their consciousnesses bleed over into one another – even though it was thought to be impossible. Irving’s Outie shouldn’t have any idea what the severed floor of Lumon looks like, yet he has an impeccable vision of the elevator that was seen bringing Ms. Casey/Gemma down to the Testing Floor toward the end of Severance season 1.

There’s always the potential that Irving himself has been experimented on at Lumon's Testing Floor but had this memory erased from his consciousness.

It seems that the only way that could be possible is if that image of the hallway is somehow ingrained into the shared parts of the brains of Irving’s Innie and Outie, which is being subconsciously transferred. While it doesn’t seem like Irving re having gone to the elevator by the Testing Floor in Severance season 2, that doesn’t necessarily mean that he hasn’t. There’s always the potential that Irving himself has been experimented on at Lumon's Testing Floor but had this memory erased from his consciousness, perhaps only being accessed through dreams that his Outie later paints.

It’s also possible that some image of the hallway to the Testing Floor is hidden in the numbers that Irving is working with at Macrodata Refinement. Severance season 2, episode 1’s ending revealed a computer screen image of Gemma being held in a strange room on Mark’s file, Cold Harbor, but his Innie still hasn’t been seen reacting to that brief image. That could mean that all the files and numbers sorted by Macrodata Refinement correspond to certain locations and people at Lumon, with some aspect of Irving’s numbers potentially leading him to the Testing Floor.

Could Irving's Naps At Lumon Be Sending His Work Memories To His Outie?

Are His Innie & Outie Minds Connected When He's Unconscious?

Another possible explanation for how Irving’s Outie is able to see the Testing Floor elevator hallway could tie into Irving’s Innie taking naps in Severance season 1. It wasn’t really explained why Irving became so tired at work throughout Severance season 1, which would lead to his Innie nodding off and often seeing some mysterious black goo surround the office. Milchick would frequently reiterate to Irving’s Innie that sleeping at the office was strictly prohibited, but it seemed that there was a deeper reason than a simple lack of professionalism or work efficiency.

The black goo that Irving's Innie sees when he's tired could be representing the black oil paint that his Outie uses to paint the elevator.

The reason for Irving being prohibited from napping could potentially be that sleeping allows for more confusion and integration between the Innie and Outie brains. The severed person’s unconsciousness in a sleeping state could be merged between their Innies and Outies, so it’s possible that Irving’s Innie was seeing the “black goo” of the darkness in his Outie’s unconscious mind while, simultaneously, his Outie’s “dreams” were becoming filled with images and memories from his Innie’s subconscious. Then, after Irving’s Outie fully wakes up, he might be painting the visions of what he saw from his Innie in his dreams.

What Irving Painting The Hallway To The Testing Floor Could Mean For Severance Season 2's Story

Irving's Paintings Can Help The Innies Find Ms. Casey

Irving’s paintings don’t just hint at how the Innie and Outie minds are still connected, but they also tease some big twists to come in Severance season 2. Mark’s biggest current motivation for both his Innie and Outie is to figure out the truth about Gemma/Ms. Casey. Mark’s Outie wants to confirm that she’s alive, and Mark’s Innie wants to get her out of Lumon and stop whatever they’re doing to her. Given Ms. Casey was seen going down the elevator to the Testing Floor in Severance season 1’s penultimate episode, that location is now key to finding out the truth.

Irving’s paintings might also eventually lead him to try to find the other employees’ Outies, as they could potentially help him learn what and where the location is. Regardless, Irving’s Innie seeing those paintings means he knows that there’s a room at Lumon metaphorically shrouded in darkness, hinting at the cruelties and hidden secrets that Lumon keeps down there. It seems inevitable that Irving’s Innie will either stumble upon or go looking for the Testing Floor elevator in Severance season 2, which might be what finally exposes the truth about Lumon’s experiments with Ms. Casey.