Into The WICKED Maze | A Maze Runner Story (English Version)

58. Alby's memory

After Thomas had disappeared upstairs for a few minutes and most of the gladers had left again after cleaning up the things the girl had thrown at us, Newt, Gally, Fry Pan, Winston, who was still holding his wooden sign, and I were the only ones standing at the foot of the tower. Only Minho, Chuck, Zart, Clint and Jeff stood there at a distance, also watching what was happening.
"What's going on up there?" Gally called, and Thomas peered down over the railing at us.
"Is she coming down?" Newt asked.
"Um... Hey, listen, you guys just give us a second, okay?"
Gally shook his head in disbelief but said nothing. He was seething again, I could feel it.
"All right," Newt said, tapping Gally against the arm. "Come on."
"Is this what all girls are like?" Fry Pan asked, and I punched him in the side.
"Well, all except you," he laughed.
The group that had still been standing around us dispersed and I took Gally by the hand, who was the only one still staring up at them. Reluctantly he followed me.
Even as everyone went back to work, Gally stood by his builders and stared up at the lookout tower. I didn't know what he was thinking, but I could imagine that he didn't trust Thomas, or the girl. I wondered if he would ever change his mind.
Eventually the two of them did come down and Thomas walked straight towards Newt, who was leaning against a tree trunk next to me, thinking as he played with a strand of my hair.
"Newt! Come on, we have to get to Alby, now!"
I had dozed a little against Newt's shoulder because I still hadn't slept, but was instantly wide awake again when Thomas said Alby's name. Had something happened to him? But how would he know, he had been on the lookout tower with the girl all this time.
"What is it?" Newt asked, confused, and stood up. I did the same.
Thomas held up two needles of blue liquid and told us that this stuff might cure Alby and that Teresa - that seemed to be the girl's name - had had it with her, but I was only half listening.
While he talked, I eyed the girl. She had light blue, almost grey eyes and looked at me steadfastly. She also seemed to have already noticed that there was no other girl at the glade apart from me and was probably looking at me with such interest for that very reason.
"Now come on, we have to give it to Alby."
With those words Thomas ran off and Teresa, still looking at me unblinkingly, followed him.
"Hey, wait!" Newt shouted, running after the two who were on their way to the sani hut.
I too ran after them, on the one hand because I wanted to know what was happening myself and on the other hand because I wanted to stay with Newt. Slowly, tiredness took over and all I wanted to do was sleep, but most of all I didn't want to be alone now.
We reached the hut and Thomas went in immediately, even when Newt tried to stop him. So we had no choice but to follow him and Teresa.
Thomas was standing in front of Alby's bed looking at the needles in his hands when Newt took them out of his hand, probably to prevent him from injecting them into our leader just like that.
"We don't even know what this stuff is! We don't know who sent it, or why it came up here with you. I mean, for all we know, this thing could kill him," Newt tried to explain to Thomas why we couldn't just inject it into Alby.
I leaned against the wall next to him and listened sleepily to what they were talking about. Jeff, who was sitting on a chair next to Alby's bed, and Clint, who was standing behind him, gave me questioning looks, but I just shrugged my shoulders. I didn't know what was going on either. I probably only understood half of it because I hadn't slept for so long.
"He's already dying! Look at him. How could this possibly make it any worse?" Thomas asked, pointing at the moaning Alby.
We all followed his hand gesture and I noticed that he looked really bad. Someone had taken his top off and I could see dark veins running down his chest and up into his face.
I could see from the look on Newt's face that he knew Thomas was right. He was just trying to think rationally.
"Come on, it's worth a try!"
"All right. Do it," Newt said after a short pause and held out the cannula to Thomas. He immediately grabbed it and squatted down next to Alby to inject him. I took a step forward and took Newt's hand.
"It's the right thing to do. We have to at least try," I whispered, leaning my head against his upper arm.
Teresa went to the other side of Alby's couch and Jeff got up and stood next to her while Clint stepped behind me. Thomas hesitated for a moment and seemed to be considering where to give Alby the shot when he suddenly woke up.
He grabbed Thomas, who had just turned back to us to make sure one last time that no one was objecting, by his top and pulled him down to him. His eyes were almost completely black and his gaze wild.
"You shouldn't be here!" he kept shouting, tugging harder and harder. We all rushed off at the same time, trying to loosen Alby's grip, only Teresa grabbed the cannula and pulled it out of Thomas's hand, who was flailing wildly, trying to shake Alby off.
"Watch out!" Newt shouted as he pushed Thomas so far away from Alby that he had to let him go. Now Jeff and Thomas were trying to push the boy down and pin his arms.
"Get the syringe!"
Thomas looked around for help, but instead of giving it to him, Teresa lunged and rammed it into Alby's chest. He immediately stopped struggling and relaxed as he fell unconscious again.
We all took a step back and looked down at our leader, out of breath. Teresa ran her hands through her hair as if she couldn't believe what had just happened.
"Klunk," I groaned quietly, holding onto Newt's left shoulder, completely shocked.
"Well, that worked," Jeff said, looking at Alby in amazement.
"Okay, from now on, someone stays here and watches him around the clock," Newt ordered, still sounding shocked.
Teresa looked at him as if she wanted to say something, as if she wanted to volunteer, but at that moment Gally walked in.
"Hey," he said, and all heads snapped around to face him. "Sundown, Greenie. Time to go."
He spoke quietly and I got the feeling he was sad. Immediately I felt the need to give him a hug, but I stopped next to Newt and just looked at him.
Thomas looked from Newt to me once more and then left the hut with Gally without a word.
The rest of us stood around the unconscious Alby for a moment when Teresa began to speak for the first time.
"Well, if it's all right with you, I'd stay with him. You all look pretty tired. Get some sleep."
At that she looked at me and I wondered if it really showed so much how tired I was.
Newt hesitated, but then agreed. "You're not going to kill him, I hope - if this shot hasn't already," he said before putting an arm around my shoulders and leading me out of the hut.
"Come on, let's go to sleep. You'll probably want to get up early again tomorrow and you need sleep. How long have you been awake? Forty hours?" he guessed.
I shrugged my shoulders. "Will do. At least I feel like I've been up for a week."
We watched Gally walk towards the Slammer with a torch and Thomas in tow. I was sorry that the new guy was going to be in there tonight, but I was too tired to really worry about it. I just wanted to sleep.
When we entered Newt's hut, I just kicked off my shoes and then dropped onto the bed with my clothes on, where I turned onto my side and watched sleepily as my boyfriend undressed first himself and then me too. I left my top on because I didn't even feel able to put on the T-shirt he held out to me.
Now he lay down next to me and I snuggled up to him. I was sure there was still so much to say and discuss, but my mouth had already fallen asleep, I realised, and so I only felt Newt tenderly stroking my hair and giving me a kiss on the forehead before I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.