FOREVER. newt

two. a bleeding leg

"Are you okay?"

I am not.

"I am." I say, placing the glass of water on the wooden table. The whole afternoon was just spent with me panicking that I forgot that I needed water. Thank god Alby was kind enough to offer me something.

Even though he explained how everything works, I was still confused. Why would someone send us here? Why was there a maze? Who sent us here? It didn't seem like there was anything special with everyone in here— they all seemed like normal kids my age. Some were older, some were younger.

The one thing that stood out, however, was the fact that none of these kids were girls. I was the only one.

"Do you want to get a tour around?"

Seeing that I have no choice and that I was most probably stuck here for the rest of my life, I nodded. If I was going to live here I needed to know my surroundings.

Before we could go any further, the blonde boy with an accent went waking towards our direction. It seemed like Alby was relieved to see him, which hurt my pride a bit. Was I really that difficult to get along with?

"This is Newt." he introduced, and the boy put his arm infront of him. I quickly took it and shook it, as soon as I did, he smiled at me and placed his arm back in his pocket.

"Whenever I'm not here, he's in charge." he explained, his eyes darting around the area as if he was searching for something. "He will give you the tour. See you later."

I nodded, watching as the dark skinned boy walked away.

We started at the Box, the one I emerged from. It was closed at the moment—double doors of metal lying flat on the ground, covered in white paint, faded and cracked. The day had brightened considerably, the shadows stretching in the opposite direction from what I had seen yesterday.

Newt pointed down at the doors. "This here's the Box. Once a month, we get a Newbie like you, never fails. Once a week, we get supplies, clothes, some food. Ain't needin' a lot—pretty much run ourselves in the Glade. I'm sure Alby explained how it works."

He did explain it. However, I haven't understood it well just yet.

"Glade's cut into four sections." He held up his fingers as he counted off the next four words. "Gardens, Blood House, Homestead, Deadheads. You still with me?"

I nodded nervously, which he let out a smile at. "Good girl."

"Gardens—where we grow the crops. Water's pumped in through pipes in the ground—always has been, or we'd have starved to death a long time ago. Never rains here. Never." He pointed to the southeast corner, at the animal pens and barn. "Blood House—where we raise and slaughter animals." He pointed at the pitiful living quarters. "Homestead—stupid place is twice as big than when the first of us got here because we keep addin' to it when they send us wood and klunk. Ain't pretty, but it works. Most of us sleep outside anyway. Any questions so far?"

Once again, I shook my head. Even though I had a lot of questions, I needed to stay quiet. So many questions splintered my mind I couldn't keep them straight.

The boy showed me the different parts of the glade, and the only thing I can do was hopelessly nod while he explained the places and terms I couldn't get ahold of.

I turned to my right to see a kid standing nearby, short and pudgy, staring at me. He looked really young—probably the youngest of any in the group I'd seen so far, maybe twelve or thirteen years old. His brown hair hung down over his ears and neck, scraping the tops of his shoulders. Blue eyes shone through an otherwise pitiful face, flabby and flushed.