The Cost of the Cure

Chapter 61

"How well did you know Ben?' you ask Newt that night, staring up at the starry sky as you lay in your hammock. The both of you had tried to find him, told the other Glader to even, but had still been too late. By the time you had arrived, you had found Ben with an arrow through his head laying in a puddle of his own blood.

"Just about as well as anyone else," Newt says, his voice only a whisper. "Never became close mates, but he was kind and helped even when he didn't need to."

You nod. You hadn't known him well, but even you had picked up on that.

"I should have been more careful with the knots," he says, staring up at the sky. Tears shone in his eyes from the flickering torch light. "Maybe he wouldn't have gotten away. Maybe he'd still be alive."

"Hey, don't blame yourself. You did everything you could," you say, sitting up. You are not about to let him blame himself for something he wasn't responsible for.

He doesn't say a thing in response.

"You okay?" you ask, your voice seeming too loud in the silence around you.

"Yeah," he whispers.

You throw off your blankets and walk over to him, sitting on the edge of his hammock. He doesn't even look at you, but his eyes are wet and puffy from tears. A pang of hurt drives through your heart at the sight.

"There was nothing you could have possibly done," you console. "The ropes were weak. Neither you nor Alby killed him. The Changing did. He wasn't thinking right."

He nods slightly, still looking at everything and nothing.

Not knowing what to say, you sit with him, not saying word. Time passes, but he doesn't say a thing. The only sounds to break the silence are the Glader's snores around you and the chirping of crickets.

"If you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here," you whisper, getting up.

As you're getting settled into you hammock once again, Newt finally whispers something.

"Thank you."

"Of course. I'll always be here for you."