Shorts

Migraine (The Maze Runner)

Thomas from The Maze Runner
(Requested by snazzy_sangster)
Contains spoilers to The Maze Runner series

Thomas pov

I pace back and forth in the small hospital room, my fingers pressed firmly to my temples.

"Thomas, what's wrong with her?"

A girl, sixteen years old, lies on a small hospital bed. She turns over on her side, promptly vomiting into the bucket placed beside her bed. Her blonde hair falls forward over her shoulders to reveal a shaved patch near the base of her skull, where a small silver object rests.

"My - ugh - ...rain," the girl groans, before continuing to vomit.

I hurry to her side, holding her hair back and trying not to vomit myself. The tiny glint of silver catches my eye, residing on her skull like a diamond on a wedding ring. "I-I don't know," I mutter, swallowing the lump in my throat.

"She keeps saying that. 'Migraine'. Do you think it has something to do with the chip?"

I pause, tuning out the girl's retching. It couldn't be the chip, could it? At first I'm skeptical. But any scientist knows that the possibility of a side affect is always high.

The PTP 250. A chip that was created by scientists using my design, for one purpose only - to detect the Flare before it becomes contagious. Those who are not immune are able to go through the chip procedure just days after their sixteenth birthday, no earlier. The chip itself is microscopic and implanted deep in the Kill Zone, the first place the Flare arises in matured brains. The chip has the ability to detect the very first signs of the Flare and alert its creators and the patient of the danger.

Sixteen, in this sense, is a very significant number. Technically, a cure for the Flare has yet to be found. However, a team of neuroscientists recently discovered that there is a way to stop the Flare from "flaring up" in an infected person. If a person contracts the Flare, they will not be contagious until after sixteen hours of exposure. If the Flare can be detected within the first few hours of contamination, the contaminated segment of the brain can be removed and if needed, replaced. However, as soon as the patient is sixteen hours into being contaminated, they will become contagious. And there's no stopping the spread after that.

So, the PTP 250 is literally a lifesaver. It detects the Flare within minutes of being contaminated, and has saved countless lives. Honestly, I couldn't be more thankful.

"It could be. Maybe throwing her hormones out of whack or something," I say as the girl finishes, wiping her mouth with a napkin and lying back down. I hand her the glass of water sitting on her bedside table. She accepts it with a grateful smile, taking small sips. "How're you feeling?" I ask, although the answer is obviously not good.

She wrinkles her nose. "My vision is starting to come back, I think. But my head is still pounding."

The doctor raises the light, illuminating the room brighter. "Still feeling a sensitivity to light and sound?"

She nods feebly, and the light dims once more. "Uh-huh."

The doctor sighs, shaking his head. "Must just be her body taking in the chip then. Her vitals are all perfect and there's nothing physically wrong with her," he says with a shrug, flipping through the papers on his clipboard. "You might as well head home."

I nod, eager to get back to my own house after a long day. "Good that. Just keep an eye on her," I say as I head out the door, shutting it behind me with a click.