The Maze Runner: If They Survived

Chapter 1

Gosh it's been…what? Four years and a few months for him now? It feels like forever and honestly…he doesn’t mind. He would say screw it and just live here if it weren’t for the giant walls and the creatures that roam at night.
Connor breathed evenly as he exited the maze and went into the Glade. He first headed to Frypan, where he got some water and food.
“You switching between jobs today, Connor?” Frypan asked as he handed the older man his food. Connor smiled and nodded after lowering the cup of water from his mouth.
“Yeah. I’ve been doing Runner work for the past few days. Plus, I wanna check on the new Greenie and make sure he’s adjusting well.” Connor then sat down at one of the tables to rest his feet a bit.
“Alright old man,” Frypan said and ruffled the man’s white hair.
“Hey, I’m probably only a few years older than you. Like I’ve discussed with everyone, my hair is probably only this color because of what I might've done before I came here.”
“Yeah and the obvious gray and horrible jokes aren’t from you constantly acting like a dad,” the Keeper then said sarcastically while rolling his eyes.
“Hey, me acting like a dad has helped you guys a lot. Probably one of the only perks of being here the longest. Now shoo and go do your job,” Connor said with a chuckle and shooed him away. Frypan laughed and then decided to leave the man alone, going to do whatever he was doing a moment ago.

Connor finished up his food and took his time sipping on the water, letting the cool liquid run down his throat. When he was done he went and checked on everyone he came by to make sure they were doing well. He did have to run after a pig that had escaped its pin, falling and tackling it into the mud. Him and the Slicers had all laughed as he carried the pig back over to them, now covered from head to toe in mud.
When he found Chuck, the boy was cleaning up the bathroom. When Chuck saw Connor he laughed.
“What happened to you? Decided to play in the mud with the pigs?” the boy said, barely managing to calm his laughs.
Connor smiled and shook his head. “Something like that.”
Connor helped Chuck out with his job, making it get done half the time it would usually take. After that, Connor helped sneak some snacks for the boy from the kitchen.
“Alright, I’m going to go get cleaned up. Don’t cause any trouble,” he joked and walked away.

The older boy headed off to go wash himself up, changing into some spare clothes in the Homestead. When he was done, he walked out of the room he had been in just in time to see two boys walk into a different room with wide grins on their faces and giggling softly, one holding the other’s hand. Connor smiled and shook his head. He walked down the hall, walking by the room they were in, giving a single knock on the door. “Don’t spend too much time in there,” he said with a grin as he walked away, hearing a yelp from inside the room.

Connor walked and soon sat himself on a stump and looked at the walls he has been familiar with over the years. His mind began to wander aimlessly with memories of the many hard times the Glade has been through. He could feel the burns of the past scars on his body as the memories of his friends' deaths came to the front of his mind. He closed his eyes and clasped his hands together, resting his head on them.

He then opened his eyes when he heard footsteps approaching him before stopping in front of him. He looked up and saw Gally.
“Come on, let's get you out of that mindset,” Gally said and held his hand out to him. Connor smiled and accepted his hand, pulling himself up.
“That obvious, huh?” Connor said and dusted his pants off. Gally put his arm around his shoulders and began walking with him.
“Of course it is. You always sit by yourself, all quiet with your eyes closed. I can spot you brooding to yourself a mile away,” Gally responded with a small joke to lighten Connor’s dark mood. It worked for the most part. The man smiled and leaned some of his weight against Gally. Him and Alby were the only ones he would allow himself to open up about such topics to. They were the only ones he felt like could handle those conversations with. Others weren’t quite as comfortable with the topics.

As always when Gally catches Connor “brooding”, the Keeper of the Builders brings Connor to go cut some wood. One way to get his emotions out and to get him to talk and vent about his emotions. Unlike what most people would think, Gally actually listened. Connor had spoken about this to him so many times that Gally didn’t really have much input to tell him except to remind him of the things he had told him before.
When the day was done and over, the walls now being closed, they went to get the food ready for them. That’s when they split ways. Gally went and sat with the other builders and Connor went and sat with Minho and Newt.

“Saw you beating up a poor tree when I got here,” Minho said with a cheeky grin and a teasing tone.
Connor rolled his eyes playfully and sat down next to him at a table. “I wasn’t beating up the tree. I was cutting it down.”
“Did you have to use that much force though? You almost like you were angry and that the tree insulted you,” he then teased.
“If you want to get the job done quickly, sometimes you have to act like that,” he then said with a chuckle. He then looked around and saw Alby sitting by himself. When the two made eye contact, Connor smiled and waved him over. After a bit of hesitation, Alby got up and came over, sitting down next to Newt.
“How many times are we going to have to call you over to the table? You can sit here with us anytime you want,” Newt said and lightly nudged Alby’s shoulder. The leader just smiled and shook his head before he began to eat his food.

The rest of the night went by peacefully, and everyone was happy. When everyone began going to sleep, either in hammocks or sleeping bags or in the rooms of the Homestead, it became quiet.
Connor headed into the Deadheads once everyone was laying down. He carried a small lantern with him along with his blankets. When he came to the graveyard, he stood there, silent. A moment of silence for his dead friends. After a bit, he headed away from the graveyard and went to where he had been building a staircase around a tree. He set the lantern down on the ground next to the hammock he had near the unfinished structure. A loud sigh escaped him as he laid in the hammock, staring up at the leaves of the trees and the stars. A frown came to his face and he felt his heart sink. Another sigh came from him and he shifted onto his side, the sounds of the Grievers in the maze not even affecting him as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

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That's the first chapter! I will have another chapter posted eventually. Don't know when. Maybe today? Tomorrow? Who knows!
Have a lovely day/night and take care of yourselves!
~ TitanBlue15 💙