Escape to the Hills // Newt x Reader

26

Finally. Finally. When everyone was dead tired and running on fumes with leg cramps so bad you couldn't feel anything but said cramped area, the group as a whole collapsed. You found shelter in a surprisingly large shed behind a ranch style house. It was Alby's call to stay in the shed instead of the house. He said something about not making the right decisions because we were tired and Minho got a solid slap upside the head for saying something like "Then don't make us walk so much, ya shank."

Honestly, you didn't care where you stayed, as long as it was safe and you could get a good rest. You could have probably slept on rock slabs with no pillows or blankets. And you needed to put River down before your arm broke off.

Once the night watches were assigned the group trickled off to bed. You took up your space next to River halfway under a work desk and pulled the small girl close. She smelt of dirt and sweat and was in desperate need of a shower but you kept her close. The night was getting colder and you decided you would rather have a stinky River in your face than a frozen one.

Despite how tired you were you couldn't fall asleep. Scared of what your dreams might hold, you stared at the wall you were facing, eyes drooping and mind fuzzy. The thought of more nightmares frightened you. Dreams had never been kind to you, always holding some dark aspect - even the good ones.

There was only once you had a nice, calm dream. It was of a beautiful penthouse in the center of a big city with window walls in the bath and bedrooms. Warm yellow ceiling lights and the pleasant feel of oak hardwood floors. The sun had just set and the sky was a dark blue, traces of light grasping for the stars. You watched the lights of the city outside the window of your bathroom blink into life, slowly, one by one, setting the city's pulse. You felt warm and secure. Then, there was a weight - not metaphorically, not heavily - on your shoulder, welcome pressure around your waist. A breath was in your ear. Then you were awake. You had that dream on the night your father died, the night your family fell apart.

You started when you came to, realizing you were asleep. Panic seized your chest and you shot up. It was dark, way darker than it had been when you laid down. The secure feeling slipped away, taking the city lights and content breathing in your ear with it, leaving you cold and open.

Jeff sat on a wooden stool by the door of the shed staring off into the distance through a window. His head rested on his hands on the top of a walking stick. He hummed something gently to himself. He stopped humming and looked over at you when he saw you sit up. "You okay there, princess?"

"Yeah..." Your nodding gradually got more confident. "Yeah. I'm okay." To be honest, you didn't understand why you had panicked about falling asleep in the first place.

Jeff nodded and went back to looking out the window. The both of you sat in silence for a little while longer. Jeff spoke again, "You're not the first one to wake up in a panic tonight."

You hummed curiously, bringing your knees up to lean on them. "Who else has?"

Jeff used his head to point in Alby's direction, then in Minho's. "Those two may seem well organized and like they have everything planned out, but they're the ones who end up waking up from nightmares every night."

"I..." You glanced off to the side, giving Newt a once over in a split second. "It actually... wasn't a nightmare."

Jeff's eyebrows raised in pleasant surprise. "Well, that's good."

"It was just... a suspiciously good dream."

Jeff's gaze shifted again. He was blotched out momentarily by the darkness so you couldn't see his face. "I don't get dreams like those anymore. Either nightmares or nothing."

You nodded. Not having dreams was common in the people put in the Maze; a side effect of the brain chip and brain washing. It wasn't rare to have dreams, it was just an ability WICKED couldn't guarantee you'd keep. It's part of stripping you of your past life.

"Maybe they'll start coming back," You said hopefully. Jeff deserved a good dream.

Jeff let a puff of air through his nostrils as a laugh. "Maybe." He shifted positions on the stool and reached high above his head in a stretch. As he settled back down again his hand came up to touch his lower back. "Go back to sleep, princess. We have a lot more walking to do before we get to your 'Aris' friend."

That sentence didn't sit right with you. It hadn't occurred to you that Jeff didn't meet Aris. You honestly didn't know whom met or didn't meet whom. It hadn't hit you that some of them weren't there to meet him. You weren't either. That was a disturbing thought you pushed out of your mind as you laid next to River again.

What also confused you was how Jeff didn't seem to recall meeting Aris before the Maze. You had distinct memories of Jeff and Aris together, so why didn't he remember?

You shut your eyes and slept.