𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓑𝓻𝓾𝓲𝓼𝓮𝓭 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓑𝓻𝓸𝓴𝓮𝓷 - [EDITING]

Chapter Fifteen - Addy

I am absolutely never working in the Bloodhouse again. Blood makes me sick to my stomach and I gag plenty of times. Newt makes it a little better. He doesn't seem to like the work either, but he's doing much better than I am and his smile takes the dread away. At one point, Winston comes behind my back and grabs my hands to show me how to properly slice the meat, and I panic, my thoughts reverting back to working with the Builders. I drop the knife and it just about slices my foot off clean, but Newt jumps in and pulls me out of the way just in time.

Everything about him seems perfect. He makes me laugh a lot even when I feel like I'm going to puke. He makes me smile when I have to watch the pudgy pink pig I just murdered squeal it's last. Somehow, even in the worst situations, Newt makes it better. At last, it's noon and Newt says that we can be finished in the Bloodhouse. I can check the horrible experience off my to-do list.

I tell Tommy all of this as I sit next to the bars of the Slammer. He listens to me, but seems very out of it, so I move on.

The rest of the day drags on, blending with the next, but at last, Thomas has served his time and let out of the Slammer. I'm finally able to get a good night's sleep for once. The tricky part is pulling myself out of bed the next morning. I groan as the sunlight slips through every crack it can but remind myself that my brother is going out in the Maze today. I can't let him go alone. I need to be there for him.

I stretch and roll off the bed. Minho's familiar voice whispering about the supplies they'd gathered. I only catch snippets of the conversation as I frantically tug on my shoes. Something about canoe shoes and Runnie-undies? I don't think I want to know.

I dash out the door and jog to catch up with the retreating silhouettes while dodging sleeping Gladers. "Minho!" I whisper yell. "Hold on! I'm coming!"

"No, you're not!" Minho hisses without looking back and speeding up.

"Why not?" I say, catching up.

Minho sighs, realizing I will be relentless. "It's too dangerous! You're just a Greenie!"

"If it's too dangerous, why does anyone go out? Besides, Thomas is a Greenie too!" I point out. My brother shoots me an offended look as if to say 'how dare you bring me into this' but I ignore him.

"He killed a shucking Griever!" Minho retorts.

"Who knows," I say. "Maybe I could too if you'd give me the chance! We don't have to tell anyone. I could just sneak out with you guys and no would even find out!"

Minho snorts out a laugh. "Yeah right. Your shuck boyfriend would definitely notice you're gone and then he'd throw me in the Slammer for allowing it!"

"I don't have a boyfriend!" I say, but my thoughts go immediately to Newt.

Minho rolls his eyes chuckling, "Then who's that coming over right now?"

I turn in the direction Minho nodded and see the tall figure of Newt approaching. "Oh! Hi," I mumble to him.

He grins and asks, "You causing them trouble?"

I want to say no, but I want to be allowed to go with them more. Before I can say anything, Minho beats me to it. "She wants to come with us into the Maze," he says. You can almost hear the eyeroll that goes along with his words.

"No." Newt shakes his head without hesitation.

"Not you too!" I groan. "Why not?"

"What brought this on?" Newt says as Thomas and Minho walk into the Map room. "You've never shown interest in being a Runner before."

"Yeah cuz I thought it was impossible to become one! Clearly that's not the case because my brother is literally a Runner now!" I stomp into the Map room.

A coppery scent lingers in the air but what catches me off guard is the aroma of ink on old paper. I breathe the smell in deeply and immediately forget about the argument. There's something familiar and safe in the scent.

"Smells good, eh?" Newt says, following me in and grinning. "I like it too."

Minho sniffs mockingly. "You guys like this? It smells like feet!"

"Smells like an abandoned copper mine," Tommy adds.

"Not that!" I exclaim, punching the closest arm, which happens to belong to Minho, with exasperation. "The paper! It smells like... home."

There's a short silence but Minho interrupts the quietness with a snarky remark. "What a poet you are," he says sarcastically. I wack his arm a second time.

The room is simple; empty iron walls lined with heavy trunks along the bottom and a large table surrounded by eight chairs in the center. I brush my finger along the top of the closest chest and a bit of dust sticks to my finger. "Can I see them?" I ask Newt, distracted by the knowledge that maps are inside.

Newt looks hesitant but casts a quick glance towards Minho and nods. He pops the lid off of the first trunk with his nimble fingers and reveals large stacks of paper. I kneel down and sift through the maps idly. While I'm distracted by the contents of the trunk, Minho and Thomas sneak out the door unbeknownst to me until I hear it clang shut behind them.

"Hey!" I gasp, whirling around. I move to stand up, but Newt puts out a hand to stop me.

"Sorry Addy," he says and his brown eyes are filled with a genuine apologetic glaze. "It's not safe out there and I don't want to risk you. Why don't we stay here and you can look through the maps? Maybe you can find something the rest of us haven't noticed yet," he suggests.

I purse my lips, but deep inside, fear of the Maze turns restlessly. It's too late now anyway, I reason. I can help us find a way out by doing this instead.

"Fine," I decide. "But don't think you got away with that little stunt you guys pulled just now!"

---

By the end of the day, Newt and I have gone through about a fourth of all the maps and still have yet to make progress. We compared day to day, month to month, week to week, section to section, and just about any other way to compare that we can think of. A big part of our lack of advancement has to do with the abundance of laughter. I never thought I would have so much fun staring at old maps all day, but with Newt, it is.

We only stop when some of the Runners start making it back and need the table to make their maps. As Newt and I put the maps we were looking at away, Minho and Thomas get back. I pounce on them immediately.

"How did it go?" I ask Thomas.

Both of the boys are covered in a layer of sweat so I refrain from hugging my brother. "Alright," he answers.

I cough. "You'll have to tell me all about it at dinner after you shower." The BO is suffocating.

He laughs and shakes his head at me, but I'm not joking. They stink. Even the strong coppery scent is masked by their stench.

Newt and I leave the Map room and head towards the Homestead for dinner. An awkward silence creeps over us and my heart flutters nervously. Why am I so nervous? I've been alone with him all day! But something is different now.

"That was fun," Newt says conversationally, nodding back at the Map room.

"Yeah!" I agree, a little too quickly. "Maybe we'll find something tomorrow?" Suggesting that we'll be doing the same thing in the morning might be too forward of me, but I can't tell. I'm sure Newt has better, more important things to do. He is first in command at the moment and should probably be off leading instead of messing around with me.

"Yeah," Newt smiles. "I hope so. I'd better check on Alby quickly. Save me a seat."

"Sure!" I watch him walk up the stairs and don't move for a while. Knock it off, Addy! I reprimand myself. You're not here to have a silly crush! I'm hopeless though, and I know it.