Cutthroat

1X05: A-Maze-ing Race

"Hey, Ollie, buddy! Are you doing alright?" Wyatt called out, knocking on the bathroom door. Tommy peeked his head around the corner with a worried expression. "How's he holding up?" He frowned. Wyatt sighed. "Not good. He's been crying since this morning. Poor guy." Wyatt grumbled to himself.

"Go away!" Oleander cried out, his voice raspy.

"Not until you come out." Tommy yelled back hesitantly. "This isn't what Zeke would've wanted, man! He'd want you to keep it going."

There was another pause.

"Okay...I guess I'll be out in a minute..." The boy weakly muttered.

Wyatt let out a sigh of relief, and Tommy placed a hand on his shoulder for comfort. "Thanks. I've been at this since 6:00." The green haired boy frowned, sliding against the door and landed with an exhausted groaning. Tommy patted the boy's shoulder with an acknowledging nod. "He's gonna need a lot of support with this, you know how close he was with Zeke. I hate to say it, but it was a smart route to go. It was either him or you." Tommy commented. Wyatt took a moment, looking up at his former friend for a brief second.

"I just hope he doesn't burn out from this." He replied, lowering his voice, concerned. The door opened behind him, catching him by surprise. As he landed on the ground with a minor hiss of pain, his eyes snapped back open to Oleander. This was the most unkempt he's been. His lemon yellow hair clung to his face, and the black circles around his eyes made it hard to see the blue of his eyes.

"Sorry..." He croaked.

Tommy raised a brow, walking over to place a hand on Oleander's shoulder. "You feeling okay, Ollie. You missed breakfast, kid." He spoke, trying to comfort him. Oleander weakly nodded. "Yeah. I'm good."

Wyatt sat up, brushing himself off. "Well...I'm glad you're alright. I know it's a little rough, but I promise you don't have to-" Wyatt was cut off as Oleander wiped the sleep from his eyes.

"Cool." He shrugged.

The intercom echoed into the morning as Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh god..." He huffed.

"Attention, attention! You're in the final 9 now, and the stakes have never been higher. Keep your friends close, and you're enemies...mazed and confused." The voice purrs, leaving with one final cackle.

"Sometimes I wonder if this is what hell is like, you know?" Tommy shuddered, earning a slight chuckle from Wyatt. "If it is, at least you guys are here." He added on. Tommy grinned cheesily at this as the trio made their way downstairs and out the door. They were directed to a separate but close area across from the mansion. It was huge, with lush green forests and a small gate that swung eerily.

"Oh shit." Tommy stuttered.

Tatyana, Ginger, and Karyn made their way out in a separate car, which was pretty suspicious.

"Trouble, 6:00." Wyatt whispered, nudging Tommy. The girls stopped just a few feet beside the nerd squad. Wyatt raised a brow with a bit of a faux surprised expression. "Oh, look who's here." He pointed out in a mocking sort of way. Tatyana rolled her eyes. "Don't be pressed, boys. It is what it is." She shot back. Tommy placed a hand on his chest with a fake hurt expression. "Ouch." He scoffed, a sarcastic tone dripping from his lips. Tatyana was quite obviously annoyed at this little interaction. "I could send you home too if it makes you feel any better." She snapped with a heavy eye roll. Wyatt nodded in response. "You win one challenge..." He traveled off.