The Extra Variable

Chapter 8

When I wake up, its dark outside. My dreams haunted with images of what I'd done. I wake up in a cold sweat again, my chest heaving.

I look around and everyone is asleep.

I wanted to get this burden off my chest, so I wouldn't have to go through this any longer.

Since I couldn't apologize to Mary's face due to her fear of me, and I really didn't want to face her, I try speaking to her in his mind like I'd tried earlier.

'Mary! Mary, can you hear me?' I yell inside my head, trying to reach her. 'Mary!'

'What? What? There's no need to yell.' She replies.

'You can actually hear me?'

'Would I be replying if I couldn't?'

'Sorry, yeah that was a stupid question.'

'Why are you talking to me anyway?' I could hear attitude in her voice.

'I wanted to apologize. For what I've done, and I'm know that sorry won't fix anything but I just wanted to tell you that I am sorry, because I've felt crappy these past several days because of what I did and I needed to get that off my chest.'

A moment of silence passes between us. 'You're right,' She says in a soft voice. 'Sorry won't fix this. But time has a way of healing things, I remember that's something my Mom would always say when I was upset. So I accept your apology, but it will take a while before we can be anything more than acquaintances.'

'I can live with that I think. I hate feeling like the worst person in the world.'

'I can honestly tell you that you're not the worst person in the world.'

'Than who do you think is?'

'The original Creators.'

'That's pretty much still me.' I laugh a bit out loud, and inside my head.

'No, I mean the people who came up with the idea in the first place. The people who sent us all here.'

'Still kinda me.'

'Oh all right. But it's not just you, its you, me, Thomas and Teresa. Plus some really crappy people who came up with the idea in the first place. So stop feeling sorry for yourself.' I could practically see her smirk.

'All right. Well I'm gonna go back to sleep, cause I'm still somewhat tired even though I slept most of the day.'

'Okay Newt, talk to you tomorrow. Night.'

'Night Mary.'

When I wake up, Mary is hovering over, startling me a bit.

"What are you doing here?" I ask her.

"Morning to you too." She smirks.

"What's with the sudden pleasant attitude around me?"

"I decided it wasn't worth being mean, and ignoring you for something you don't even remember doing. It still hurts, but I'm willing to put that behind me and talk to you again."

"Really?"

"Really." She laughs a bit.

We sit and talk with each other, joking and messing around. Like we did before. Though she kept her distance, and was a bit shaky. It was much better than her being terrified of me.

"Mary!" Thomas calls.

"What?" She asks.

"Teresa's woken up. So maybe you and her can talk. Maybe have some "girl time". I need to talk to Newt can talk about some things concerning the Glade."

"Okay. I think I can be nice to her. After all, she can talk in my mind. How hard can it be to get along with her?"

She heads off in the direction of the Homestead and Thomas sits next to me.

"What do you think the purpose could be for Teresa and Mary arriving? And why the four of us can talk to each other in our minds?" He asks.

"I don't know. Could be a variety of reasons. It could be something the Creators did to mess with our minds, to slowly make us go crazy. To cause a riot amongst us, to make us fight and argue. Or it could be to test us. See how far we'll go before we snap."

"Why were we a part of creating the Maze? It's hard to imagine that we helped create such a horrid thing that's kept you guys trapped in there for so long."

"I don't know. But I do know this. The Creators are freaking psychopaths. Think it's okay to stick a bunch of kids in here without their memories. To suffer, to die from Grievers and to not even know if you're ever going to get out. If I ever see or meet any of the other people that created this buggin' thing, I swear I'll strangle them till I see the light leave their eyes. They've made us suffer too much to get away with it." I spit out, my teeth gritted.

"You and me both."