Left Behind -Gally-

Chapter 22

Emma walked toward the Gardens with a smile that hadn't left her face since the previous night. It was a good night, so far one of the best. Before heading to bed, she stayed on the tree hut with Gally for hours. It was perfect.

She was looking forward to seeing Gally again. Deep down, somewhere in her gut, she knew her actions were boarding on recklessness. Being around Gally only intensified the unknown feelings brewing inside of her. What she felt was still unclear. There were no past feelings she could relate them to. If she ever felt this way before the Glade, the memories were gone. Emma was experiencing everything for the first time, and it terrified her. It scared her to feel that exposed. Not that Gally had any idea, and if she had anything to say about it, never would. Whatever she felt would pass, eventually. It wasn't worth risking their friendship. It meant too much to her.

Brushing off her thoughts, she approached Zart. He was standing under a tree, staring up at it as if it personally offended him. "Hey, Zart," she greeted. "Everything okay?"

He rubbed his jaw, "the apples are ripe."

"Okay?" She didn't understand. "But why are you glaring at the tree?"

"I'm just," he paused. "Everyone's busy. Minho's in the Maze."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't answer my question at all."

Zart glanced at her. "I can't pick the apples myself." He was clumsy. Emma remembered that from an old conversation. Newt couldn't climb because of his bad leg, and Brandon had fallen out of the tree before. "I-"

"I'll do it." Zart snorted. "What?"

"You? You're clumsier than I am."

She tried not to be offended. "I'll have you know I sawed four wood planks yesterday and still have all my fingers." Emma wiggled her fingers in his direction for emphasis. That didn't convince Zart at all. He sent her an unimpressed look. "Come on, Zart. You'll wait all day for Minho to exit the Maze, and you know he's going to be exhausted. I can do it."

Zart bit the inside of his cheek, heavily contemplating her words. Emma wasn't his first choice to climb the tree, not with her history. But he didn't want to do it, and every day they waited was another day without apples. "Fine. Fine. But if you get hurt, I am not taking the blame."

Emma nodded, "I'll tell Alby that I didn't give you a choice."

Zart rolled his eyes, pushing a basket closer with his foot. "Just climb up and pick some. Probably a dozen, maybe two. Don't pick them if they're not ripe. Only the good ones." She listened to his directions. "Toss them down to me, and I'll catch them."

It sounded simple. "Got it." Emma approached the tree. Taking a deep breath, she jumped up and grabbed the lowest branch. Using all her upper body strength, she hauled herself over the branch. The tree wasn't overly tall, but it was dense with branches and leaves.

"Good so far?"

"I'm barely off the ground, Zart." Emma ignored the glare being sent in her direction and climbed higher. It seemed smart to start at the top. She wasn't sure why. Carefully, she climbed from branch to branch, distancing herself from the ground.

Zart watched her carefully. "Be careful." He was nervous. Emma was high off the ground. One wrong move and she could get hurt.

Rather than responding, she sat on a limb. Reaching forward, she grabbed a rather red apple. "Incoming." She dropped the apple, watching as it passed between branches before landing in Zart's awaiting hands. He then tossed the apple into the bucket.

They continued their routine. Slowly, the bucket began to fill with apples. They had a system going. It was easy. Emma didn't find climbing the tree difficult in the slightest. In fact, she was a natural. It made her wonder if she had done it before.