In Paradise (A Maze Runner Story)

8- Minho

"I'm telling you, Minho, it's a solid," Thomas states for what seems like the hundredth time.

He and I are in a (I guess you could call it intense) debate about whether yogurt is a solid or a liquid, while Brenda is walking along off to my right watching us with a look of amusement on her face.

"But Thomas," I continue to try and prove my point. "It can pour out just like any other liquid!" I sarcastically sashay ahead to gain distance on him.

Thomas looks like he's about to argue further, then bursts out, "Minho! No!"

I turn my head to look back at him. "Fine, Thomas! I'll let you win! Yogurt is a solid. You don't have to get so worked up about-"

Before I can finish, Thomas rushes towards me, attempting to push me out of the way of something. Instead, we both begin to teeter on the edge of a hole that seemed to suddenly appear, scrambling for footing. Too late, I feel us falling together for only a sliver of a moment before crashing onto the ground. I look up. We've fallen about 10 feet, into a small pit. Fortunately, as I quickly examine Thomas and myself, we seem to have no injuries other than a few scratches and probably some minor bruising.

Thomas looks around the hole we've fallen into, taking it all in. Then, he seems to suddenly realize something, as worry comes over his face.

"Brenda? BRENDA?! Where are you?" He exclaims frantically. I had forgotten about her in the confusion...not that I ever really cared for the girl; she was always acting like Thomas belonged to her.

"I'm just over here!" A voice answers back- Brenda's. "I seem to have fallen in a pit over here too!"

"Nice going Slint-head!" I shout to her with a smug look on my face, until I see Thomas' reaction to what I had just said.

"As I seem to recall, Minho, you were the one who wasn't paying attention and caused this whole mess," Thomas accuses.

"Excuses...excuses," I chide, Although I know he's right. "Let's just forget about however we got in here, and start figuring a way out!"

But before we can do anything else, I hear the mumbling of voices in the distance.

"Do you hear that?" Thomas whispers to me, as the voices begin to come closer.

I start, "Yeah, who-" An abrupt voice suddenly says something I can't make out, louder than the rest of the voices. Then, we hear the pounding of footsteps running towards our location.

"I think they know we're here!" I quietly exclaim to Thomas. "Let's try to get out before they get to us!"

As we scramble, trying to climb out of the pit, we hear the footsteps stop near the hole that we heard Brenda talk to us from. There is a quick scream from her and then a *zing* before the footsteps begin making their way over to us. I really begin to panic now, and can see that Thomas is doing the same. Well, I figure if I'm going to die...I guess I would want it to be with Thomas.

Before I can figure out where that thought even came from, the silhouettes of two figures appear above the hole we are trapped in. One pulls a rod up to his mouth, pointing it right at me. With a quick blow making a *zing* sound, something flies from the mysterious figure's rod. I feel it hit me, look down, and find a small dart puncturing my leg. Before I can reach down and pull it out, everything goes black.