Left Behind -Gally-

Chapter 8

The next morning, Emma woke up early enough to shower. There were a few people eating breakfast. Walking toward the showers, she knocked on the door five times. It was her signature knock. The Gladers always knew it was her, and they knew to shout how long they would be. Waiting a minute, she realized nobody was inside.

Emma pushed open the door, holding her raggedy towel in her left hand. She closed the door behind her, locking it. As she took a step away, she realized there hadn't been a locking sound. Confused, she turned back around. Grabbing the handle, she pulled the door handle. It opened.

She looked at the lock, which was locked, but the door wasn't locked. It was open. Emma twisted the lock, closed the door, and tried again. Nothing happened. The door wasn't locked. "What the Shuck?" Tossing her towel on the sink, she inspected the lock. It appeared fine—nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, if it weren't for the missing click, she wouldn't have known anything was wrong.

Emma was puzzled. The lock wasn't broken, but it wasn't working either. Sighing, she opened the door and walked back toward the Homestead. If she asked, Newt would watch the door for her while she showered. After, she would ask someone to fix the lock.

It was a quick walk to Newt's room in the Homestead. Standing in front of his door, she knocked. "Just a minute," was his response. It sounded groggy. Emma hoped she hadn't woken him up. There was shuffling on the other side. After a full minute, the door opened. Newt blinked a few times, surprised to see her. "Emma? What are you doing here?"

"Hey, did I wake you?"

"No, no," Newt assured her. Although, it didn't sound truthful. "What's going on? Everything okay?" Emma had never shown up at his door before.

"Yeah, everything's fine," she promised. "The lock on the bathroom door isn't working. Would you be willing to stand outside the door? I don't want anyone walking in." She was embarrassed about asking but feared someone coming in. People always tried to come in, unknowing she was inside. The lock stopped them. They always apologized, but it wasn't their fault. They had no way of knowing.

"Of course," Newt happily agreed. "Yeah. Come on."

"Thank you." They began walking.

"It's no problem." He meant his words. "The locks broken?"

Emma shrugged. "I guess. It isn't working."

Newt rubbed his jaw. "Gally just put that lock on." It was new. It should be working.

"I'm not a lock expert," she added a laugh to lighten the mood. "I'm sure it's nothing. Maybe just stuck or something."

Arriving at the bathrooms, Newt began inspecting the lock. He attempted to lock the door a few times, but as Emma said, it didn't work. "You're right. It's not working."

"Told you."

He rolled his eyes. "I'll stand guard, but I want Alby and Gally to come by after. Something's not right. The lock looks fine."

Emma wasn't sure what was wrong but agreed. "Okay, I'll shower quick. Thanks again."

"Take your time." With that, he walked out the door. It slammed closed, bouncing once. Emma sighed, trying to relax. She was thankful that Newt agreed to stand guard but annoyed that Gally would have to fix the lock. He already hated her. Now, she was making him do more work. As he stated the previous day, he had a long list of projects. Taking a deep breath, she turned on the shower.

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Emma stood to the side, body hunched as she watched the three stand around the door. Newt had gotten Alby, who then retrieved Gally. The Second-in-Command made her wait by the door, which she did. Now, they were taking the lock out to determine what was wrong.