MIZPAH, tmr | minho

𝖎. alternative ending

ALTERNATIVE ENDING I

Aurora and Minho were running Section Three, occasionally mapping it and having a nose around. Aurora had an arrow resting in the bow, ready in case she needed it. But she always hoped that she wouldn't.

Lunch was the same as each day: leaning against a wall, eating the sandwich's that Frypan had prepared, drinking mouthfuls of cold water and the occasional scattered kisses.

Aurora packed her lunch things back away and stood up, dusting her trousers down which were caked in dust and mud. Minho just leant against the wall, looking smug because his trousers were perfectly clean.

"You smug shank." Aurora muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes at Minho's expression.

All of a sudden, the ground beneath Aurora and Minho began to frantically shake. Aurora swallowed — this didn't seem good. She glanced at Minho who had a similar expression of concern woven onto his face.

"I don't like the feeling of this." Aurora murmured as she picked her bow and arrow up again, "We should head back to the Glade."

Minho seemed to have that exact same idea as he removed his sword from the sheath that was attached to his belt. "I agree, let's get out of this shuckin' Maze for today."

The two began to run back towards the Glade, as fast as their legs would carry them. The ground beneath them kept shaking, as if it was following them. The Maze walls looked like they were going to crumble and fall any second.

Not long left to run, Aurora thought as she kept running, almost there.

Minho was running slightly ahead of Aurora, although he kept looking back — making sure that she was still behind him. If the day couldn't get any worse, Section Three began to change, the walls turning and moving — defying all laws of physics and everything that was humanly possible.

"Why is the Section changing?" Aurora gasped, running even faster, "It's not meant to change until next week!"

"No idea!" Minho shouted, "We've got to keep running!"

No way! Thanks for that, I really had no idea.

The walls began to move closer together and they were running straight through it. It was a death trap. The two walls they were running between were almost shut, Aurora and Minho had to sideways run in order to fit.

But they weren't going to make it.

Not both of them anyway.

Aurora decided what she was going to. It was a massive risk but her mind was decided. Using all her strength, she began to charge at Minho to push him in-between the gap, however he sensed she was sprinting behind him.

As she placed her hands on his back to push him, Minho turned and grabbed her wrist, flinging her forwards, Aurora landing safely outside the closing walls but her head was bleeding from where she landed.

Panic immediately set into Aurora's body and she turned around just in time to see Minho get crushed between the two walls.

Time seemed to stop as Minho's scream echoed through the walls, hitting Aurora square in the chest. She scrambled to her feet, tears profusely streaming down her face as she banged on the walls doors with her fists leaving red scratches and marks.

"OPEN THIS D-DOOR!" Aurora screamed, throat cracking and choking on tears, "W.C.K.D OPEN THIS DOOR I BEG OF YOU!" Her fists continually banging on the slammed shut wall door.

As if W.C.K.D had heard her prayers, the doors opened and Aurora came face to face with Minho lay in a heap on the floor, hardly moving.  She ran to Minho, collapsing to his side as she frantically felt for his pulse, it being extremely faint and slow.

She cried as she dragged her fingers gently through his hair as he groggily opened his eyes, hissing in pain as the tears pricked at his eyes, daring to spill over.

Aurora was at a loss at what to do. She knew she wouldn't be able to drag Minho out of the Maze, that was glaringly obvious so she recalled to shouting and screaming, knowing that they weren't that far away from the Glade.

"ALEX! A-ALBY! BEN! LYSANDER! ANYONE! H-HELP P-PLEASE!"

"W-why are you s-shouting you daft w-woman?" Minho coughed and spluttered, lifting his hand up to tuck a loose curl behind Aurora's ear — a force of habit.

Aurora sat there staring at Minho in shock for what felt like a lifetime. "Why am I s-shouting? Minho I c-can't carry you out of here on my own, I n-need help." she cried, feeling completely and utterly helpless. "Why would you d-do that?"

"Y-you were a-about to do the s-same thing." Minho dead-panned, raising and eyebrow up at Aurora as he coughed heavily.

She refused to prove his point.

Heavy feet could be heard slamming against the Maze floor, Aurora looked up through her lashes and saw Alby, Newt and Alex, with a first aid kit slung over his right shoulder. They all crouched and surrounded Minho, Aurora gripping onto his hand for dear life. Alex reached over and took his pulse, his face setting into a heavy frown moments after.

"What... what happened?" Alby asked, shock wavering in his voice as his eyes became slightly glassy.

Aurora tried to speak but nothing came out of her mouth, only a quiet strangled cry.

"S-saved my g-girlfriend's life, d-didn't I?" Minho said, his voice becoming quiet with shallow breaths, coughing heavily at the end of his sentence.

There was silence as Aurora tried to blink back more tears but failed miserably, them slowly falling down her face.

"Alex you have to do something." Newt begged, swallowing back his own tears as he rubbed small circles onto her back in an attempt to keep her calm but was failing miserably.

Alex looked at Minho who looked as if he was on the verge of death. He was deathly pale and each breath Minho took was short and sounded painful. Alex shook his head and said, "I can't. The walls have c-crushed his lungs, t-there's nothing that we can do."

Aurora looked at Alex with shock overtaking her features. "There's n-nothing you can d-do?" she cried and Alex shook his head in response, her heart shattering almost instantly.

The group was silent, intently listening for Minho's breathing that filled the Maze with despair and sadness.

"A-at least one of you s-slintheads can be the most h-handsome shank in t-the G-glade now." Minho muttered, a tired smirk being worn on his lips as his breathing began to slow.

"T-that's never g-gonna be bloody p-possible." Newt cried, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. "T-that title is always gonna b-be y-yours."

"G-glad to h-hear it s-shank." Minho weakly responded, his eyes now rounding onto Aurora. His head was in her lap as she slowly threaded her fingers through his hair, tears cascading to the floor like a slow waterfall.

She looked at him and smiled, a small sob leaving her lips.

"Dear lady s-shank, m-may I request o-one last k-kiss?" Minho asked, smirking at Aurora as she let out a choked laugh.

"Of c-course." she shakily replied and she leant forwards so her lips met his for one last time, the taste of mint and stardust being present on her tongue.

They pulled apart however Minho's eyes remained firmly locked onto Aurora, a content smile being worn on his face. "I love you." he murmured quietly, lightly squeezing her hand with all the energy he had left.

"I love you too." Aurora replied, and with that, Minho's chest stilled and his eyes gently shut, with her letting out a heartbreakingly loud scream as she sobbed over Minho's dead body.