In the Scorch (Newt x reader)

Four

~ Newt's P.O.V. ~

"Come on Newt, you've got to eat." I tilted my head to look at Tommy from where he stood by the door. It had been three days since (y/n) had disappeared in the hole, and since then we had heard nothing of her whereabouts. We drank water from the sinks, and while the other Gladers got decent sleep, I could hardly get any. The image of her being pulled back into the hole in the floor played over and over in my mind, or even the way I slid to the hole as it had closed up. Clint had found me there, clawing at the small ridges in the ground. Today was the first day food had been left out for us since her disappearance. 

"I don't want to. Not hungry." Tommy scoffed, shaking his head. 

"Bull that you're not. You know, (y/n) would want you to eat." I sighed, shaking my head and looking up at the ceiling. 

"I just get sick to the stomach thinking that she could be hurt or something while I'm eating and completely okay." Tommy walked over into my line of sight. 

"I get it, trust me, I do. I feel the same with Teresa, but it's like (y/n) said, WICKED needs us. I'm sure she's okay. Maybe there was an unsaid test that she passed that we didn't." I sat up, looking at him.

"They called her the Sacrificer in her tattoo. What if this is what the meant by that?" Tommy sat beside me. 

"But also, if you think about what she has done for other people, that can also be counted as sacrifices she has made. The first time she hurt her leg, she was trying to save you, the thing with George the second time-" I furrowed my eyebrows, staring at him. 

"She told you about that?" Tommy nodded. 

"When Gally threw her in the cell with me and Teresa, Teresa asked about her leg. But, as I was saying, with George, she wanted to protect you. When she got stuck in the Maze again, she was trying to protect me, even if she didn't intend to get stuck back in the Maze." I played with my fingers.

"I guess that makes sense." Tommy smiled, holding out his hand to help me up. As we approached the door,  Tommy stopped me. 

"By the way, there's a man in there as well. He's just kind of sitting there, but he's blocked by a barrier, like the one you described separating you and (y/n). He's waiting until we're done eating or something. We call him Rat Man because he looks like, well, a rat." Tommy looked at me, laughing lightly, but his face fell when he saw I didn't smile back. "Hey, we'll find her, I promise. We'll find both of them." I swallowed, not able to make eye contact as I nodded, then I followed Tommy to the dining area. 

When we got to the room, I immediately noticed the man that Tommy described, and I agreed. He did look a bit like a rat. He was sitting in front of a desk, a slight shimmer of the barrier around him. In one of his hands was a book, and in the other was a mug with a "WCKD" logo on it. This time, all of the tables were covered with an array of food. I avoided all the Gladers' questions as I walked to one of the tables, beginning to make a plate of food for myself. 

~

 A lot of the boys were sitting on the floor, full after stuffing their faces with half of the food on the tables. Mostly, everything was quiet, except for the occasional page being turned or sip of whatever Rat Man was drinking.

At some point Minho got impatient with waiting as Rat Man drank and read, so Minho got up and hit at the barrier. Rat Man had only looked up at Minho in his rant, smiled and simply told him, "Be patient. Impatience brings you nothing except the gift of being a fool." After,  Minho had shut up and sat back down, glaring at Rat Man, leaving us all to sit in our thoughts.