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— ❝ this is your new home. ❞
THEO AND NEWT FOLLOWED Minho as he led them into a large sterile medical wing. The room was filled with equipment and a line of beds against one wall, along with sections of counters with trays of syringes and vials on the other.
A med tech came and took Newt away, while Minho headed toward a corner with exercise equipment, where he started up a treadmill.
Theo noticed Thomas sitting close by, a med tech hovering above him with a needle. He didn't even flinch as the sharp end met his skin.
Other Gladers were scattered throughout the area, doing their own things.
A woman approached Theo with a smile on her face. She looked welcoming, safe. "Theodore, is it?" She spoke, her voice kind.
"Yeah."
"Great. I'm Doctor Crawford. Follow me, please." She waved him over as she started to head down the room. Theo trailed behind her, passing Thomas and Newt— who was too concerned with the shot he was about to get to notice Theo walk by. "Take a seat right here."
Theo looked to his left, seeing a bed identical to the ones you'd see in doctor's offices. The area could be blocked off by cubicle curtains like hospitals. Why do they need me here? He looked to the side, noticing Teresa two beds down.
Despite his growing unease, he took a seat on the bed. Theo watched as Dr. Crawford stepped to the tray of equipment resting at the side of the bed, filling a needle with a vibrant blue liquid. "Roll up your sleeve for me, please."
Hesitantly, Theo raised the sleeve of his soft shirt. "So, what exactly is that?" He asked, eyeing the needle.
"Just a little cocktail. Calcium, folate, vitamins A through Z. Pretty much everything you've been deprived of out there. Just take a deep breath."
Theo did as he was told, flinching when the needle came in contact with his skin. He felt a pinch, followed by the cold liquid entering his veins.
Dr. Crawford placed the needle back onto the tray and looked at Theo like she had been proud of her work. Then she started to pull the cubicle curtains over, blocking his vision of the Gladers and other doctors. Before the baby blue curtains were closed fully he caught a glance of Thomas who made eye contact with him before being guided away by a solider. He looked concerned.
Something seemed wrong with this place.
The doctor took her spot back at the station next to the bed, putting things together and organizing items. Theo watched her move around tools he's never seen before, malevolent designs resting on the tray like a nightmarish spectre from the darkest corners of human imagination.
