𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐆𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐆𝐓𝐇 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗲 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿

45.. my future

As Bea slowly opened her eyes, her vision blurred at the bright glow of the sun streaming through the ship's windows.

The sound of voices nearby brought her attention to focus. The Gladers were all there, gathered around her bed, their faces lit up with smiles as they realized that she was awake.

"Hey, look who's back with the living!" Minho teased, grinning down at her.

The rest of the group chimed in, greeting her warmly and expressing their relief that she was okay.

"Man, you had us worried for a while there," Aris said, his eyes filled with relief.

Harriet leaned in, her voice tender, "How you feeling, love? You gave us quite the scare."

"Better," Bea croaked, her voice hoarse from sleep. She attempted a small smile. "But still pretty sore," she admitted, wincing slightly as she shifted in the bed.

"Don't try to move too much," Sonya warned her gently. "You took some pretty nasty hits. Especially your eye."

Bea gingerly raised a hand to her face, touching the bandage over her eye. "How bad is it?" she asked, her voice a whisper.

The others exchanged glances, some looking uneasy at the question. Sonya finally spoke up. "It's not too bad, considering what happened. You've got a pretty gnarly scar, but your vision's not affected. The eye's gonna be fine."

Bea nodded, letting out a sigh of relief. "That's something, I guess," she murmured. "How long was I out for?"

"Four days." Nico said.

Bea's eyes widened. "Four days?! I've been out for that long?"

The others nodded, their expressions sympathetic. "Yeah," Minho said. "We were starting to think you'd never wake up."

"But don't worry," Harriet said quickly, noticing her friend's expression. "You missed out on most of the boring stuff anyway."

Bea let out a soft laugh. "Like missing out on all the delicious meals Frypan's been cooking?"

Frypan, who had been standing nearby, protested good-naturedly, "Hey, my cooking ain't boring!"

The others chuckled at the exchange, the mood lightening slightly.

Bea smiled, feeling a slight sense of normalcy returning to the group. "Alright, alright," she said. "I'll have to make up for lost time, then. And for making you all worry about me."

"Nah, don't worry about it," Minho said, his voice softer now. "Just focus on getting better, and you can pay us back by kicking some butt when you're back on your feet."

Bea managed a weak laugh. "Deal. I'll make sure to kick some butt when I'm feeling better." She paused, looking around at her friends' faces, full of warmth and concern. "But until then... can someone get me some food? I'm starving."

Frypan stepped forward, his eyes shining. "You got it, girl. I'll whip up something real good, just for you."

The others chuckled as Frypan hurried off to the kitchen area, eager to start cooking.

The mood in the room lightened as the group fell into easy banter. Some of them pulled up chairs to sit next to Bea's bed, telling her about the events she missed during her recovery.

Thomas finally walked in, after helping Vincent. "Hey, you're awake." He greeted his sister with a kiss on the forehead, caressing Bea's head.

Bea looked up, her face lighting up seeing her brother. "Hey, you," she said, giving him a weak smile. "I'm awake. Finally."