➊ 𝐑𝐮𝐧 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 - 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐡𝐨, ᵗᵐʳ

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟖: 𝐎𝐡 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐭

As I slowly regained consciousness, a dull ache pulsed through my skull. It took me a few seconds to focus my vision, but when I finally did, I realized I was lying in the same bed I'd woken up in on my very first day here. The only difference now was that several faces hovered over me. I couldn't tell how many, my sight was still adjusting, but there were multiple pairs of eyes watching me closely.

Then I felt it, someone holding my hand. The small palm pressed into mine made it obvious: it was Chuck.

Relief crashed into me like a wave. I wasn't stuck in that horrible dream anymore. I was here, awake, and safe.

Chuck's voice cracked with disbelief. "Evelyn! You're alive!" Without hesitation, he threw his arms around me.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I asked with a laugh, trying to sound casual, but I didn't know they'd seen the same dream, only from a different angle.

"You nearly passed out on us," Simon said, standing nearby. I finally took in the room around me. Chuck. Simon. Jeff. Clint.

Four sets of eyes were waiting, maybe for answers I wasn't ready to give.

"What did you see? What happened?" Simon asked, cautious but insistent.

I remembered everything, but I wasn't about to share it. Whatever that voice was, I wouldn't give it the satisfaction of pulling me under again.

The Med-Jacks began explaining what had happened, starting when Minho found me. Simon described carrying me here, the blood, the way I screamed. His voice faltered slightly as he remembered.

"So... do you have any idea what might've happened?" Clint asked. "Did you... dream something?"

"I... I only saw... black. I heard things, but nothing." I lied. It was convincing enough. No one pressed further.

"Am I wrong to guess you didn't eat or drink anything since yesterday night, cause that might be the reason you fainted." Jeff questioned taking a chair next to me and trying to do tests with my vision using his finger.

"You're right."

"And what was the thing with Minho?" he added as his finger moved side to side in front of my eyes.

"I wanted to prove I could be a Runner. I want to be a Runner. He can't just tell me no."

The boys exchanged glances, silent, loaded, unreadable.

"He can," Clint eventually said. "Keepers choose who they want."

"I know that. Everyone says no one wants to be a Runner and the second I do, Minho won't take me?" My voice cracked. I was done playing by their rules. Done letting Minho dictate my worth.

"We'll talk to Alby," Simon offered. I couldn't tell if it was support or exhaustion.

"No, we can't," Jeff muttered under his breath, but I heard him.

"I won't let you stop me," I snapped. "If I can't be a Runner, then I'll just keep running the Glade like before." My voice rose with frustration, desperation, madness, maybe.

The tension cracked. Everyone started talking at once, their voices overlapping like static.

"Evelyn, listen," Simon said sharply. "You nearly died. We can't risk letting you be a Runner right now."

I clenched my fists. I considered telling them about the bracelet, but I bit my tongue. If I said it out loud, they'd just think I was crazy. Or worse, try to stop me again.

Everything about this place was trying to cage me. Their "reasons" felt more like bars. What else would they try to take away?

"You said it was because I didn't eat enough? Fine. I'll eat more!" I barked.

"It doesn't work that way!" Simon whispered-yelled, clearly at his limit.

Chuck stayed quiet, his worried gaze glued to me. He hadn't said a word since the beginning, and I doubted he would until the screaming stopped.

Then I felt my hand twitch. The bracelet was doing something. Not physically, but... pulling at my mind.

Was it telling me to confront Simon?

Or was it warning me to leave?

I needed to stay calm. Think. But my emotions were boiling over, and I wasn't sure how long I could keep it in.

"Am I too weak for you? Is that it?" I said, standing. My voice rose. "Or maybe you're scared I'll actually change something around here. Maybe you're scared I'll find the exit. That I'll beat you all."

I didn't wait for a reaction. I shoved the door open with everything I had.

"Wait!" someone called, but I was already gone.

The moment I reached the woods, my instincts told me to flee into the safety of them. But my body seemed to have a mind of its own and without warning, I found myself charging straight into the maze that spread in front of me. Despite the shadows that were beginning to stretch across the sky, I felt no fear. It was late enough so that the Runners were probably on their way back or already done.

Which meant no one to stop me.

Without hesitation, I turned down the first corridor. My legs knew the motion. It felt familiar and foreign at the same time. I didn't stop until I realized, I had no idea where I was anymore.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

I had no clue if the chip was controlling me again, but I wouldn't let it win. No panic. Just think.

Retrace your steps, Evelyn. Except... I didn't remember what direction I'd come from.

Okay. What do I know about the Maze?

The doors close. The walls shift. There are monsters.

But how bad could the monsters be? Worse than the Builders? Worse than the boys who thought they knew what was best for me?

The sound of the Maze door sliding closed echoed behind me, and my heart started pounding.

Then I noticed it, the wall behind me was shaking.

Unstable.

Crumbling.

"Oh shit."

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