In The Maze

Chapter three (Y/N)

I followed closely beside Newt as he showed me around the Glade, listening intently and doing my best to absorb everything he told me. It was a lot to digest all at once, but Newt was eloquent in the way he explained things, stopping periodically to make sure he hadn't lost me and patiently waiting every time I had a question. Which was quite often.

So far, we had covered the Deadheads, the Bloodhouse, and what a typical day in the Glade looked like. He also explained what Glader slang was, though I doubted I'd ever fully pick it up. Apparently, I had a very dirty mouth although no one seemed bothered by it, even Newt who helped create some of the slang terms after a boy named Minho - whose language was equally as colorful - came up from the box well over a year ago.

Newt led me over to a cluster of buildings near the center of the Glade. He pointed to a smaller, round building made of wood. "That's where the keepers have gatherings, which are basically meetings to discuss happenings in the Glade. This building," he pointed towards the large, stone building directly in front of us, "is the Homestead. That's where supplies are kept, where the keepers, Alby, and myself sleep, and where the kitchen is. But since there's not enough room, most of us eat and sleep together outside."

There were dozens of hammocks lined up in rows to the right of the Homestead, a crudely-made wooden roof overtop them. Several wooden beams held up the roof that extended from the side of the Homestead to a small thicket of trees. Picnic tables were scattered around the living quarters, some out in the open and some under the cover of mature shade trees.

"So, this is the Homestead?" I squinted against the sun's rays to get a better look at the building that looked like it could topple at any given moment. The frame itself seemed stable, but the majority of the walls and other fixtures did not.

"You sound unsure." Newt huffed, a playful smirk on his face. He leaned to his right side, putting more of his weight on the crutch. He did that every time I started asking questions or if a more extensive explanation was needed to help me understand something. It was kind of funny how we'd banter back and forth, occasionally throwing in a sarcastic comment here or there to make him laugh while at the same time getting a comprehensive response that cleared up any confusion.

"Well, it's just..." I waved my hands around in a vague gesture as I tried to piece my thoughts together. Eventually, I settled on what I hoped would be the least offensive. "It looks like it was built by drunk people."

That gave Newt pause. He examined the Homestead with skeptical eyes. "Bloody hell, it does look like that." He shook his head and chuckled. "We built almost everything here, and, obviously, we're not trained builders or architects. But, I can assure you that none of the buildings will collapse; no matter how wobbly they may look."

"Okay, I'll take your word for it."

Continuing onward Newt showed me the gardens and began telling me about the various jobs of the Glade. Slicer, slopper, runner, bagger, brick-nik, track-hoe; there were so many and I struggled to remember them all and what the teens did in those positions. The names were strange to me but I figured the job titles fell in line with their slang. Unusual, creative, and uniquely their own.

I learned that Gally was keeper of the builders, a guy named Minho was keeper of the runners, and who all of the other keepers were. And Alby was their leader, having taken over for the previous leader, a guy called Nick, after he died. Newt didn't go into detail about Nick's demise, but I could deduce that his death had been gruesome. Much like the deaths of all the deceased Gladers.

While showing me  all of the names carved into one of the walls, Newt explained that everyone engraves their name into the stone as a way to immortalize they were her and that the crossed-out names were Gladers who were no longer with us. People died of major injuries, severe illnesses, or they got stuck in the maze overnight. All seemed equally painful to me.