Sunrise couldn't come soon enough. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't stressing about them the whole time. Newt had tried to get me to sleep, but it wasn't happening anytime soon, and when I saw the sun peeking behind the walls, I knew it wouldn't come at all.
I was too worried about my friends to even think about closing my eyes. I thought of everything that could go wrong and wished that Thomas had never run out into the Maze. I wished Minho had never found the dead griever.
And how could he trust the dead griever? I knew he was curious. After spending years in a maze that was essentially the same every day-give or take a few walls changing-something new coming up was bound to happen, but I wish it wasn't Minho who found it. I think even if someone else had found it, it would have gotten back to the keeper and leader. They would have gone out and studied it anyway.
I groaned and stood up from my resting spot. It was next to Newt, who was fast asleep, snoring. He still looked stressed, even in sleep. I wish times were simpler again, when Nick was still here and all we had to worry about were the boys who attacked me. Now we have three possible dead friends and a comatose girl. I leaned against the maze door, the cold surface bringing me some relief against the headache that would not relent.
Not to mention my arm was starting to hurt and ache from the brace. I turned and leaned against the wall, unwrapping my arm and looking at the bite mark. It was still bad, but it stopped bleeding. The small crescents Ben made were an ugly red and itched. I resisted doing so, wanting it to heal.
The wall hummed behind me and I moved off of it. There was rumbling and the doors began to open. I held my breath as the doors moved sluggishly. I almost expected the dead bodies of my friends on the other side, blood everywhere, maybe even just the bones. But there was nothing.
Everyone else was starting to wake up, the doors a wake up alarm on its own. They asked if I saw anything, but I was seeing the same thing they were. Just walls and more walls. Then I saw staggering forms and screamed out in joy. It took everything in me to not run out after them. It actually took Newt's warm hand on my shoulder for me to stay in my spot.
As they got closer, it was easier to see the condition they were in. Cuts, bruises, sweat and dirt. They looked exhausted and collapsed in a heap at our feet. They were a pile of limbs, breathing hard.
Clint and Jeff had stayed close by in case and it was a good thing they did. They looked over the tired boys and gave them the treatment they needed. Newt had waited until they were better to ask the most important question.
"Where's Alby?"
Thomas led Newt into the Maze, pointing up at a bunch of vines. From my view, it looked like nothing, but I could see the tension in Newt's body leave, the stress disappearing. He waved Thomas away and called in two baggers. I followed Thomas as he made his way to the homestead, looking back to see the baggers and Newt figuring out how to get Alby down.
I walked beside Thomas, biting my nails, wanting so badly to scold him. But it's been a long night and I knew he just wanted to lay down and go to sleep. Thomas sighed and stopped walking. "Go on, say it."
"Say what?"
"You want to tell me something. I can practically feel it coming through my brain. And you're biting your nails. Newt did that yesterday when he was stressed."
"Where do you think he got it from?" He just looked at me. I groaned. "Fine. What you did was very stupid, running into the maze with no idea what was out there. You could have died."
"But I didn't. And all I could think about was saving Alby and Minho. I couldn't just stand there while they struggled to make it back. It was like every nerve in my body just said 'Go'."
I understood him and softened. I wanted to run out as well, but I was scared. I...was a coward. I hung my head then pushed my embarrassment aside. "Anyway, you should go rest. I won't hold you any longer." He nodded and walked off.
They didn't get a long time to rest. Newt called a Gathering mid-noon and Thomas was the center of attention again. Considering I'm not a keeper, I wasn't allowed in. But I can just guess what Gally was saying. Bagging on poor Thomas who just thought of helping two people he didn't really know. It was a lot more than I can say for any of those suckers in there.
I sat with the comatose girl, her uneaten lunch sat on the table beside the bed. She was still out, but was talking more. It had gotten clearer and sounded like she was talking about someone called Wicked. And how good they were. I wasn't sure who that was and wondered if maybe she was talking about someone from her past.
Along with that, she said Thomas's name a lot.
It had to be a coincidence that she knew his name and that when she woke up, her eyes found him immediately. It just had to be.
Even still, I knew it wasn't. There had to be a reason she came up days after him. There just had to be.
She started mumbling and then she groaned. A new sound. I frowned and looked at her and then the door when someone came in. "Hey Jeff."
"Clint said I should give you a break."
I smiled. "That's nice of him." The girl groaned again and then she started to move into a sitting position. She held her head. I rushed to her. "Hey-"
Her bright eyes flew open and fear swam in them. She backed away from me. "Who are you?" She stuttered out.
"The names Jane. Do you remember yours?"
She shook her head quickly, her hair going all over the place. "I don't remember anything."
I turned to Jeff. "Go find Newt now." He nodded and ran.
"Who's that?" The girl asked, her breath picking up.
"He's a friend of mine."
"I-I don't..."
"What if I got Thomas?"
"Who's Thomas?" I stared at her. She was saying his name this whole time, I assumed she would know him when she woke up. "Where am I?"
"We call it the Glade-" she started to get up. "Woah, where are you going?"
"I need to get out of here."
"There's not much else you would go to. Just grass and smelly boys." She stayed quiet and was very confused. "How about I give you the tour?"
"Of the Glade?"
"Yeah. I mean it is not much, but it would do you good to know your new home."
"Why can't I remember anything?" Her voice was hard and I thought that question alone would have made her cry, but behind the fear and confusion, she was tough.
I sighed. "I wish I knew the answer to that, but none of us know anything about ourselves from before. Usually just our names."
"Teresa." She looked down, but she wasn't really staring at the floor. It was like she was looking past it. Like she had the glimpse of a memory only to be taken away before she can decipher it.
"Well Teresa, how about I show you around?"
She nodded and then made a face. "What's a newt?"
"That would be me." Newt spoke up from the door. He was alone. "I see you're finally awake."
"How long was I asleep for?"
"A couple days. Thought you were dead when you came up."
"Came up from where?"
"Newt, I was gonna give her the tour but you know the place better than I do, how about you do it?"
"Uh yeah. Good that."
"Awesome." I started to walk away, but Teresa stopped me.
"You're not coming with?"
"I got something I need to check up on." I saw her look at Newt, the worry in her blue eyes. "Newt's not gonna hurt you. He's one of the few I trust. You'll be okay. I'll look for you guys when I'm done alright?" Teresa nodded and Newt called her out of the room. When they left I walked down to the Keepers floor.
I knocked on Minho's door and thankfully he was here. "Hey Jane what's up?"
"What's up? You survive a night in the Maze well enough and you ask me what's up? How are you alive?"
He gestured me into the room, closing the door behind him. "You would have to thank that shuckface Thomas. Comes in not knowing a thing and saves our asses."
I smiled and shook my head. "I really underestimated him. Thought he was a goner."
"Well not just anyone can survive the night in the Maze." He snapped his fingers. "Hey we should change it to that."
"Definitely." I looked up at him and it looked like he was chewing on something. "What's the matter?"
"Technically I'm not supposed to tell you about this...but Thomas and I had seen something when we were in the Maze."
"What was it?"
"So a griever was coming at us right?" He said it so casually, like he didn't almost die.
"It almost got you?"
"Well not really. But we had to go like a dead end thing, with a cliff at the end. Something I've never seen before-"
"What do you mean by a cliff?"
"Let me explain. So Thomas had done something when it was chasing him. A fake out. Let it get close enough and then jump to the side. Totally worked. So I figured it would work a second time. And it did. Ran past us and down the cliff. The funny thing is, when we went to look at it, it was weird. There seemed to be no bottom. It just went on forever."
"Maybe it's just the creators trying to confuse us. Make us think there's another way out."
"I don't know, but I want to investigate it." He hesitated.
"What?"
"And possibly take you."
I stood shocked. "I'm not allowed in the Maze. I'm not a Runner anymore."
"I know, but if I can talk to Newt, maybe I can get you in. You have the best memory out of all of us. You'll be a real help."
I chewed on my nails, which really hurt. They were still raw from last night's stress. It's been a while since I've been in the maze, and I'm not gonna lie, I miss it. The freedom of running in its never ending pattern and not having to think of anything but that. And the possibility of Grievers, but I hadn't had an issue other than that one time. It was a chance to go back into the maze, even for a couple hours. I smiled. "Alright, I'm in."
I left Minho his time to rest and went walking around the Glade. I knew I should have gone back to the gardens, but I didn't feel like doing that today. So I spent my time looking for Teresa and Newt. I stood in front of the Homestead, hands over my eyes, and scanned the Glade. But I didn't see the other girl and Newt. I wasn't with Minho for a long time, so there was no way that they finished the tour that fast. But they were nowhere to be seen.
I saw Chuck from a distance and walked over to him. He was the nosy Glader and knew where everyone was. "Hey Chucky, how you been."
He smiled when he saw me. "Hi Jane. I just finished with washing the clothes, so it hasn't been that great."
"Well, at least it's done now." I squeezed his shoulder. Being a slopper sucks and it's horrible that he got stuck as one. When things settle down I'll talk to Alby and see if I can have Chuck with me in the gardens. A scream came from the homestead, as if reminding me where our leader was now. I cringed. "I do not wish that on my worst enemy." Chuck shook his head, remorse on his face. It hurt seeing it too. He should never have to feel this emotion. Not this young. But that was a problem for another time. "Hey, do you know where Newt and the girl went?"
His head and eyebrows shot up. "She woke up?"
"Yeah, no one told you?"
"Well, no one really likes talking to me, besides, I was washing clothes. Nobody would wanna be near that."
I nodded my head. The boys stank something fierce. "You got anything else to do, Chuckles?" He shook his head quickly, his curls hitting him in the face. I laughed. "Alright. You're with me on; Newt and greenie girl search party."
"That's a pretty long name."
"I think of something shorter." I continued to walk around, with Chuck now at my hip.
