𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐆𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐆𝐓𝐇 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗲 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿

47.. i don't want to exist

The evening settled in, the sun now below the horizon. The sky was slowly darkening, the stars emerging one by one in the night sky.

At dinner, Bea, Aris, Sonya, Teresa and Nancy walked in the dining room after cleaning themselves and found the rest of the Gladers helping with the food and already sitting down.

The room fell silent as the girls and Aris entered. All the guys looked up, their eyes on the newly cleaned up group.

Minho was the first to speak, a grin on his face.

"Well, well, look who decided to grace us with their presence."

Prim made her way to the table as well, her little legs bouncing up and down from table to table, bothering Minho and Thomas to get to Bea.

Minho laughed, scooping the little girl into his arms. "Alright, you mini version of hell, where are you trying to get to?"

"How are babies made?" Prim asked curiously.

The room erupted into laughter as each person reacted to Prim's innocent question. Minho nearly dropped her, his eyes wide.

"Whoa... where did you learn to ask stuff like that, little one?" he asked, trying to compose himself.

Prim looked up at Minho with her big, innocent eyes. "Where do baby come from?"

The room erupted into more laughter and a mix of snickers and choked-back chuckles.

Thomas facepalmed himself, shaking his head.

Minho's face was a mix of shock and amusement. "Well, sweetheart, that's a question for grown-ups," he said, his voice slightly strangled.

Frypan and the others were having a hard time not bursting out laughing again, their faces turning red with the effort.

Bea wrinkled her nose in annoyance. "Why the heck do you wanna know that?" She asked Prim.

Minho grinned. "Yeah, why do you want to know that? You're just a tiny little munchkin."

Frypan snickered, barely able to keep a straight face. "You gotta admit, it's quite a question for a kid her age."

Even Thomas seemed to be fighting back a smile. He looked at Prim and decided to answer her question in the simplest way he could.

"Babies are made when two people who love each other very much decide to have a baby together. It's a complicated process that only grown-ups understand."

"Please ask a trusted adult." Bea said, putting her hot chocolate mug on the desk and took a seat.

Minho handed Prim over to Bea as she took a seat at the table, still trying to hold back his laughter.

"Yeah, save those kinds of questions for later, little lady," he teased, ruffling Prim's hair. "You'll understand when you're older."

Frypan leaned over, a smirk on his face. "You handled that like a pro, Bea. I wouldn't have known how to answer something like that to a kid."

"You could ask Vincent, Prim." Nancy said. "Or Jorge, or Mary, or Vivian. Give them hell for a while." She joked.

Minho chuckled. "Oh, man, can you imagine Jorge's face if Prim asked him that question?"

Frypan snorted. "He would probably pass out from shock."

Thomas laughed. "Yeah, maybe we should start a betting pool on which adult will react the worst when Prim asks that question."

Aris chimed in, his mouth full of food. "My money's on Vincent. He's too serious. He'll probably have a conniption."

The room erupted into laughter again, imagining the sight.