Memories (Newt X Reader)

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

229.05.11 / 10:27 a.m.

The months flew by, and so did your dwindling time with your friends. WICKED had been shortening your classes so that you could dedicate more and more hours to your work on the maze, which was so close to completion, you could taste it. Despite the fact that in only a matter of weeks, your friends would be taken from you, you felt a sort of twisted excitement that the project you'd been working on for half your life was so close to being done.

Your group had also been seeing much less of Thomas, as WICKED had been monopolizing him and Teresa almost twenty-four seven for the last couple weeks, probably sensing the finish just as much as you were, though they were much more eager to begin the trials. They'd amped up everyone's testing to twice a day, including yours as if they'd somehow forgotten you wouldn't be sent into the maze with everyone else.

This also meant you began to see way less of Newt, which only made a bad situation worse. He and Minho had been sent into overdrive, putting the finishing touches on the maze walls, though he'd told you they'd be finished in a week or so.

Dr. Paige had been holding more frequent meetings as well, updates on the maze, planning with you, Thomas, and Teresa for once the trials started. At one point, you'd been so driven on your work and school and meetings, the emotions you'd been feeling just sort of got swept away, and at the light at the end of the tunnel was the maze.

You got to spend a couple days with the guys in the rec room, only on the weekends when WICKED felt obliged to give everyone a short break. You enilalated Thomas in a game of ping pong and then everyone went to the dining hall and ate dinner together, and was the first night in a long time you didn't feel the crushing worry and anxiety that came with finishing the maze hanging over you, instead you let yourself be swallowed by the laughter and banter of your friends.

The happy feeling hovered faintly over you the next morning as you woke and dressed for work, but took a blow, as a hard, monotone knock sounded on the barrack door -- and you knew immediately it wasn't a girl.

Your suspicions were confirmed as you pulled it open, not bothering to be quiet because you were one of the last to wake, and in the doorway stood a large guard, covered head-to-toe in black. You tugged on your other shoe and took a step back, recovering from your surprise.

"Dr. Paige requested to have word with you," the guard said, words slightly muffled by the mask strapped to their face. You could tell they were female by the slightly high-pitched voice -- which was the only real way to tell a guard's gender. Mostly, they all looked identical, down to the heavy combat boots they wore and the black launchers strapped to their backs. The only question was, why had Paige sent an armed guard to escort you to her office?

"Uh... okay," was all you said, as the guard reached over to close the door, nudging you out into the hallway.

"Follow me."

She turned on her heel and marched back down the way she had come, giving you no choice but to follow, wearily eyeing the shiny black grenade launcher in a sling across her broad shoulders, and the pistol at her hip. Had Paige been expecting you to run? You couldn't think of any other explanation as to why this guard was here, instead of patrolling the WICKED borders or monitoring the dining hall. It seemed like a waste.

She led you into an elevator and pressed the button to the top floor, pausing to fiddle with her pistol holster, which only set you on edge. The ride up didn't go fast enough. And even then, the doors opened up to reveal even more guards strolling down the halls, launchers tucked into the crooks of their arms. Your guard had to give you a slight shove to get you moving again.