'Till Death Do Us Part

Chapter Twenty Seven - Fragile.

Riley sat, secluded in her room on the top floor of the homestead for the majority of the day, brooding over her newfound memories. She was mildly upset that neither Minho nor Newt came to check on her, but she had much bigger problems on her mind.

At that moment, a small knock sounded. Newt didn't bother to wait for a reply before entering. Riley took him in, trying to study him as if she'd never met him before; very tall, dirty blonde hair, chocolate eyes. All those details that felt so familiar to her; but did she really love Newt?

Axel had said that WICKED would make her fall in love with Newt. So, the question was; were the feelings she felt towards him genuine? Riley's stomach lurched as Newt took a seat on the chair beside the bed. He looked weary. Hurt. "Hey. How ya feeling?"

Riley wanted to sob, for no apparent reason - she didn't feel like her usual self. The changing had done something do her, something irreversible. She wasn't sure what, but it felt like something inside of her had finally snapped. "I'm fine."

Newt nodded. "Thomas thinks he's figured out how to escape. We just had a Gathering. And we're going. Into the Maze. Tonight. I thought I'd warn you."

"Okay." Riley said, her voice small. "So what's the plan?"

Newt dragged a hand through his hair. "We run for the cliff. Apparently there's some secret griever hole we gotta go down. Then we wing it."

Riley nodded. "Okay."

Newt's eyebrows creased together. "Riles," he said, gently. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Riley stared at her lap. "No." She paused. "The Changing did something to me. The memories... I can't stop thinking about them."

"Forget about the memories; just live in the moment. We gotta solve one problem before we can worry about the next. And the problem right now, is getting out of this bloody maze alive."

"I'm trying to forget." Riley said. "But I can't. You're right, though - we can't just sit here and wait for the grievers to kill us one by one."

"Now you're thinking on the right lines." Newt said. He paused, and looked straight at Riley. "We will get out of this. I swear it."

Riley suddenly couldn't stop the tears from leaking down her cheeks. Newt was so honest, so caring - and there she was questioning her feelings towards him. Of course she loved him; now there wasn't a shred of doubt in her mind. She knew him before the maze, and she could finally see how blind she had been to her true emotions. He was everything she could ask for; caring, honest, funny, interesting.

But then there was Axel.

"Don't cry, Riley. You and me, we're bloody in this thing together." Newt said, his voice gentle.

She didn't think. She just acted. She leant forward, connecting their lips in a passionate kiss. Newt's arm slid around her, engulfing her in a protective hug. She felt safe in his arms; like everything could be almost okay again.

"I promise, Riley." Newt mumbled against her lips. "Everything is gonna be okay."

And as long as she was with Newt, she knew she would always be okay. As long as she was with him.

[a/n

Merry Christmas, shanks. Very very short update, but, hey, bear in mind I was writing this in the middle of yesterday night bc I couldn't sleep lol.

Anyway, can you all take a short moment in your busy lives to look at the picture attached. I also apologise before hand for that.

-delirious.]