𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐀𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔 - 𝘔𝘈𝘡𝘌 𝘙𝘜𝘕𝘕𝘌𝘙

14 ~ 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙪𝙞𝙩𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩

Lottie

A few weeks later, all the Gladers were inside the Council Room. Alby and Newt were at the front, trying to quiet everyone, which took at least five minutes.

"We've called a Gathering to discuss something." Alby called once everything was in order. "And let's make it quick – we still have a scared Greenie out there to take care of."

He was correct. Julian wasn't the Greenie anymore – a new one had come up this morning. It was, yet again, a boy. I was losing hope that any girls were going to come up at all, but I really didn't mind the boys. They were nice enough. This new one seemed just as scared as me when I first came up, and he even seemed to be my age. He couldn't remember his name yet. Alby had asked Mitch and Julian to watch him while the Gathering was taking place. The three of them stood in the corner. The new kid's eyes were flickering rapidly from one person to another, still trying to analyze every little thing to get some answers.

"Lottie wants to be a Runner," Alby announced the matter at hand.

I drew myself up, preparing for the judging stares from the Gladers. Some gave me thumbs up, saying that they agreed with me, and some complained.

"She's a girl! Girls can't be Runners," Ben, a Runner, declared. I glared at him.

"Then why are you one?" I retorted. Mitch snorted at my awful attempt at a comeback.

"The only reason we're even considering it is because she won't bloody shut up about it," Newt added above the noise, and I beamed in his direction, knowing that it would annoy him. He rolled his eyes at me.

"She says that she wants to be a Runner to... why, exactly?" Alby questioned.

"To redeem myself." I spoke in a clear voice. "You all heard what Gally was saying when he attacked me." I saw Gally, who was sitting in a corner, flinch out of the corner of my eye. "He was saying that all of this-" I gestured around the room. "-is my fault. So, if that's true, I have to do everything I can to get us out of this, since I'm the one who got you into it."

My speech was met with silence. Some of the Gladers were looking at me with respect, and then others in rage. I'm sure they hated me for putting them in the Maze. I didn't blame them.

"We're going to take a vote. Who thinks she should not be allowed into the Maze?" Alby asked finally. Newt's hand shot into the air, and it was my turn to roll my eyes.

I scanned the room. Winston and Zart had their hands raised too, giving me apologetic smiles. Both Med-jacks had said no, and so had most of the Builders and Runners.

"Give us your reasoning," Alby said, determined, as always, to see everyone's point of view.

"It's too dangerous," Newt said immediately. "What if she gets stuck out in the Maze? I can't-" He paused and cleared his throat. "We can't risk losing her."

"It is a dangerous job," Jeff added. "Look what happened to Newt a while back. That Griever nearly killed him. He was almost dead when he was brought to the med hut. I don't know about you guys, but we Med-jacks don't want to be put under that sort of pressure again."

Newt's neck turned red, the same way it always did when his injury was brought up. He looked at the floor and shuffled his feet.

"She's a girl," Ben said again. "She just doesn't understand what it takes to be a Runner." I gave him another glare.

"Just because she's a girl, doesn't mean she can't be a Runner. Everyone has seen her run. I wouldn't be surprised if she showed you all up," Minho snapped at his fellow Runners.

"Who thinks she's up to the job, and should be put through the training?" Alby says, raising his own hand. I grinned, surprised. Minho also lifted his hand. Newt gave them both scandalized looks.

Mitch and Julian raised their hands. Most of the Slicers and Track-hoes said yes as well. Finally, to my surprise, Gally thrust his hand in the air. I tried to catch his eye, but he stared at the floor, expressionless.

"Reasoning?" Alby asked.

"Lottie is strong," Mitch piped up before anyone could interrupt him. "She was able to survive an attack from Gally, and he's nearly the strongest one out of all of us." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gally's eyebrows narrow. He didn't like to be reminded about the incident.

"I know she's fast, and smart," Minho said. "She'll be a nice addition to the Runners," he finished confidently.

"Well, that settles it. Runners, welcome your new member," Alby announced after counting the hands. There was a smattering of cheers and applause. I broke into a large smile and allowed myself to be hugged by Minho. "Welcome to the team," he said.

Over his shoulder, I saw Newt scowling. I tried to give him a smile, but as soon as I did, he turned away and slipped silently out of the Council Room. Once I was able to pry myself away from the other Gladers, I followed. 

A/N

Chapter 14. It's short, I'm sorry! Vote if you liked it (or not, that's okay too)

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