Back In The Box

Chapter 15

  Days passed. I slowly rose up to second in command. Newcomers came every month. I was the one to welcome them.

  Sirens wailed. The greenie is arriving. All the gladers abandoned their jobs and dashed towards the box. In just a few minutes, a newcomer would be arriving. Everyone stood around the box, waiting in anticipation. I heard the box screech to a halt. I unlocked the top and open the doors. I gasped when I looked in.

  There were three girls in the box.     

  Mutters rose from the crowd. There were two girls, lying unconscious side by side. They were obviously twins. The third girl was awake, shielding her eyes from the sun. I put up my hand to indicate silence. The mutters died down.  I jumped into the box and crouched next to the conscious girl.

  She had short black hair, streaked with electric blue. Her cold blue eyes were locked into mine. "Hey, I'm Jade. What's your name?" I asked. She thought for a second. "Claire," she answered. "Nice name," I said and stood up. I reached out a hand to pull her out of her sitting position. She took it. As soon as she stood up, her legs gave way.

  Luckily, I caught her before she fell. I put Claire on my back and climbed up the ladder that was thrown down. "Get the other two," I told Newt and Alby. I gestured for Clint to follow. Together, we brought Claire to the Medjack's station.

  I put Claire down on the bed. Clint said that Claire was suffering from fatigue. Claire dozed off soon after. Minutes later, Alby and Newt came in with the other two girls. They were still unconscious.                

  For the rest of the day, I stayed with the three girls. Other than her hair and nose, Claire looked like the twins. Maybe they were sisters.

  Claire's "siblings" had long and curly blonde hair. Their small lips puckered with every exhale. Claire slept in  silence, her eyebrows furrowed.

  When it was near dinner time, Claire jerked awake. She was drenched in sweat. I rushed to her side. "Water," she croaked. I went out to get her a glass of water.

  When I came back, she snatched the glass out of my hands and drained the water in it. I called for Clint to come in. She was released and I brought her to have dinner with my friends.

  Frypan handed us the food. I introduced him to Claire. "Nice to meet you, greenie," he said to Claire. She waved at him. As we walked away, she asked," What is a greenie?" I explained the glader slang to her. Claire looked at me in interest, her mind absorbing my every word.

  When we reached the usual table, everyone was present. Luckily, there was enough space for the both of us. "Claire," she introduced. "I'm Thomas. This is Newt, Minho and Chuck," he said and pointed to each of the boys in turn.  We sat down and ate in silence. Sometimes, Chuck told jokes. "They're not funny you know," Thomas told him. Chuck shrugged.

  Alby came over. "Claire will be sleeping in your room. Newt will be sleeping in mine, for now," he told me. I nodded.

  After dinner, I brought Claire to the showers. I stood guard outside as she bathed. Then, I brought here back to the room. "Sleep early, I'll be giving you the tour tomorrow," I told her.

  "Tour?" she asked. "I'll be showing you around tomorrow," I explained. She nodded and climbed onto the top bunk. I took the bottom. As I dozed off, I heard her mutter, "Triplets."

  I turned and buried my head in the pillow. There was the smell of sweat. The smell of Newt. I sighed and willed myself to sleep.

  That night, I had a dream. Different from the rest I usually have. I was standing in a room so large I could not see its end. There was a lady standing opposite me. Her hair was in a tight bun and she donned a lab coat."Where am I?" I wanted to ask, but my voice did not work.

  "Jade, we want you back," she whispered. Her voice echoed through the eerie room. I tried to step forward but I couldn't move.

  There was a flash of blinding white light. Then, I woke up.