Maze Runner: Irregular

Chapter 20

The next days were all a blur of sweat, achy muscles, and dirt. So much dirt. The hole was massive, bigger than the box.

We had a ladder leading down it, and we had to haul sacks of dirt up them.

The boys had warmed up to the idea of me. No one shied away anymore. Me kicking Red's butt made them respect me.

"Grace, can I talk to you for a second?" Gally asked, after I'd throw my twentieth some sack on the large pile.

"Yeah." I replied curiously. We walked over to a bench and sat down.

"We're close to getting out. I would feel a whole lot better if we remembered something about the world outside."

I ran a hand through my hair, and said, "What do you want me to do?"

I was pretty pissed off at the world. I wanted to kill everything.

Gally's brows inched closer. He shook it off.

"I don't know. You remember something. Maybe you could remember more."

I glared at him and shuffled my feet.

"Well, I don't."

He lowered his eyes. At six foot something he was scary.

"I'm telling you, try harder. Maybe I wasn't clear."

It was obvious that both of us were tired and done with it all.

"You were. The first time you touched me I saw something I still have nightmares about. Don't you see? I don't WANT to remember."

His grey eyes softened and he tilted his head to the side. "Grace...I don't believe that for a second. You're tough. How could something scare you after what happened with the bugs?"

I stared up at him, and folded my arms.

"It did. You wanna know what I saw? fine."

I told him. About him drowning. About how I was just standing there, with a clip board, not doing anything.

He looked at me with an open mouth.

I shoved past him, but he caught my arm.

"Listen to me. I've been changed since the incident. You have too. I know you were strong before..."

He stopped and pulled me into a gigantic bear hug. I hugged back, and pulled away.

"I was just standing there, Gally. Watching you die. I'm afraid of becoming that person again. And if I remember why I did those things, I might find a reason to do them again."

I was silently crying. No tears ran down my face, but I could feel my throat closing and my head aching.

"But you won't. The glade needs to know what's going to be out there. You have to do what's best for everyone. I know you can do it."

He was right. I could. It would be so so hard to know what I did. But I would. For him and Newt.

I took a shaky breath and nodded. Gally broke into a huge grin. It looked a little wicked.

"Why are you smiling like that?" I asked him with a slight giggle.

He covered his mouth with a hand, and said through his fingers, "To remember... I have to touch you."

We broke out laughing. I was really relieved It was a just joke. I wouldn't... no couldn't stand for anything to get in the way of escape.

Chuck stuck his head inside the door and wiggled his eyebrows. "I'm telling Newt." He said.

I stomped my foot once and chased him out. He ran and I caught up easy.

"Fine. I won't tell. Please don't hurt me." He said. His chubby chipmunk cheeks were red with laughter. It was times like this I loved. Once we were free, It would be like this all the time. I would make sure they would have a happy life. I'd kill for it.

"You little shank... I should throw you off the cliff." Gally said. Even he liked the kid.

"I was just going to tell you that the pipes 'eve split in two and we need to dig more holes."

"Urggggg." We both said, trudging back to the hole.

What Chuck said was true. The pipes deviated into two. If we dug another three holes, it would take over a month of really hard work. I sighed, and started on number two.

Gally, a boy named Michael, one named Bryson, and one named Jorge helped me.

When the sun finally set, I was exhausted. Even my hair was tired. I climbed up the stairs, literally. The rail was made of thick wood, so I could lean all my weight on it.

The mattress was uncomfortable, but I didn't care.

I was asleep before my head hit the floor.

I'm standing in the middle of the glade, and everything's covered in a thin layer of ash. I'm surprisingly calm, like I had known this would happen for a long time. I look down at my tablet, and a series of images floats across them. I drop the pad in horror, and in slow motion the cracks on the screen spread to the real world. Everything fell apart around me. The only thing holding me together is someone's pale arms. I turn, and they belong to...

I wake up. At first I'm disoriented, then remember the dream. I hate it when that happens. If that was something I needed to know...

Newt's face was inches from mine. He was asleep, with his mouth slightly open. There was a darting movement under his eyes, and he was probably dreaming. I stared at his lashes, they were long, but you didn't normal see them because of the paleness.

I watched him breathe in and out, and sometimes it moved his hair.

I shifted so I could prop my head on my hand, and tucked it behind his ear.

His eyes fluttered open. I immediately pulled away.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

He just smiled.

I smiled too.

"Not a bag thing to wake up too."

I put my hand on his shoulder and lightly kissed him.

"I want to stay in bed as long as I can. I wish I wasn't chosen to be a builder."

He nodded.

"Tough day?"

"You have NO idea." I moved my wrist a little and it popped about seven times.

He took it, kissed the top, and rubbed it along his cheek. I instantly yanked It back. I hated mushy stuff like that.

He looked hurt, and innocent. Like a child.

I snuggled deeper into his elbow and closed my eyes. I needed my beauty sleep right?

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I didn't have anymore dreams. I couldn't tell exactly what time I woke up. Newt was gone, and I slowly got up. My joints cracked in protest, but I didn't have a choice. It was my job, and a rule.

I grabbed a shovel and started. A couple people were already up, so they came to help me until the rest of my group showed up.

We worked for about an hour when the pain started in my stomach. I panicked at first, but remembered I hadn't eaten anything in days. So stupid.

I apologized and ran to the food shack.

Frypan and a couple others were preparing the nights dinner.

I walked up to the counter and told them I didn't have any breakfast or dinner. They gave me a large plate of baked potatoes and gravy, pickles, and fish sticks.

I ate and thought. How long was it going to take us to dig ourselves out?

My guess was a couple weeks, considering how deep the pipes are. Then there's the possibility of more branches...

Kill me now.