The Maze Runner Imagines

Newt [37]

 It had been a rough morning for the runners to begin with. They all awoke to howling winds, which should have been impossible in the Glade, and thick ominous clouds rolling in overhead. Y/N felt the cold deep in her bones and that subconscious part of the brain which was in charge of keeping her alive told her to not leave that bed at any cost. The day would be far better spent in the map room, at least sheltered from this terrifying wind and soon to be freezing cold rain.

"C'mon, shuckface." Minho shoved the girls hammock. "The sooner we get running the sooner we'll warm up."

Minho wasn't wrong. Y/N just didn't want to agree with him. But, she knew she had no choice. If Minho was up and moving, that meant the day was a go. Begrudgingly, she got up and threw on as many warm layers as possible. They didn't exactly have anything made for the rain and cold here, so she had to make do with what she had.

Newt had already gone to help Frypan with breakfast and to warm up some water for the runners. He smiled to himself a little as he looked out from inside the kitchen to see Y/N sitting at one of the tables with Minho, her knees pulled to her chest and bowl of porridge right under her nose. Every once and a while, she'd jitter from the cold and try to warm herself by shaking her shoulders. It never seemed to stave off the cold for long.

"Hey, Fry, would it be okay if I came and cleaned up after the runners leave? I've got something I need to do quick." He asked, already heading for the door.

Frypan nod and continued whistling away as he prepared breakfast for everyone else that would soon be waking.

As quickly as he could, Newt ran across the Glade to locate one of his jackets. Y/N already had as many layers on as she could muster and was obviously still cold. So, he figured he could sacrifice one of his own for her. He knew he might regret it in a few hours when this weather settled in, but at least he'd have access to shelter. Y/N was going to be stuck out there in the maze.

Y/N and Minho stood at the maze doors, waiting for them to open as they jumped up and down a little to try and keep their bodies warm. The girl eyed Minho in confusion when he looked over her shoulder and a giddy smile grew on his normally mischievous face.

She followed his sightline behind her only to lock eyes with Newt who was walking toward them with a bundle of fabric in his arms. He smiled softly at the girl with a little tilt of the head.

"Hi," Y/N said through chattering teeth and shoulders up to her ears. "You okay?" She asked.

"All good," He responded. "This is for you, though. It's going to be cold out there."

Y/N was quite literally frozen where she was when Newt took the jacket and threw it over her shoulders. He pat it down and rubbed her arms up and down, trying to keep the blood flowing. "Stay safe out there, alright?"

Y/N nod gently and put her arms through the sleeves. Newt stifled a laugh when her hands came nowhere close to the ends of the sleeves. Then, he turned his attention to Minho. "And you come back if things get really bad. We're not losing either of you today."

With that, the maze doors screamed open and Newt sent his friends off. He hated saying goodbye to them every morning like this, especially today. As his friends disappeared down the corridor, their short stiff strides quickly dissolved into long smooth ones just as usual. Newt knew they would be fine. But, he did fear Minho wouldn't know when to come back. He always had to push his luck. The keeper of the runners seemed to have a hard time being sympathetic to others. There was a good chance Y/N was going to come back freezing today all because Minho himself didn't feel deathly cold and found it easier just to tell her to suck it up. Of course, Y/N would never fight him on it.

Though Y/N had grown a lot in confidence since showing up in the Glade, she still feared her position as a runner was fragile. She had worked so hard to earn it and was always too afraid to speak up in any way in fear of losing her job. Though it would never happen, she put on the bravest and toughest face possible no matter what.

Newt had expected the weather to get bad, but not this terrible. The rain had been pelting down since an hour past the runners departure. The wind only got worse. Everyone could see their breaths in the air. It was cold enough that Minho should have made the decision to come back by now.

"You did tell Minho to turn around if the storm got worse, right?" Alby questioned Newt. The leader of the Glade didn't like to ask Newt these sorts of things and make it seem like he doubted him, but it was necessary.

"Made it very clear," Newt sighed and leaned his head against the homestead doorframe. "You really think that shank's gonna listen to me though?"

Alby chuckled a little. "No, I don't."

Newt felt a hand on his shoulder. It felt scalding hot in contrast to everything else around him right now. It also made him realize his body was full of anxiety, drawing the heat out of his extremities. He looked to Alby.

"They'll be alright." He reassured. "Take the evening off and look after Y/N when she's back, alright?"

Newt nod and thanked Alby. Of everyone in the Glade, Alby seemed to know Newt better than he knew himself. On days like this, he was truly thankful to have Alby at his side.

For the Next hour, Newt sat in the doorway of the homestead as he stared straight at the maze doors. He knew it'd seem like an eternity sitting and waiting like this, but he wouldn't be able to focus on anything else anyways.

When the runners finally did make it back, they didn't even stop at the map room like normal. They both sprint straight for the homestead toward Newt. Minho blasted past Newt and ran up the rickety stairs toward his room, likely in search of dry clothes. Y/N, on the other hand, carefully snuck inside and made sure to try and shake off all the water she could before entering.

Newt scanned her over and she looked alright, but he knew she needed to warm up fast. Now that she'd stopped running, that cold clinging to her body would settle into her like rocks dropped in still water. "How you doing, love?"

"I'm so cold," She whispered, hands clamped together under her chin as she shook.

"I know, c'mon. I've already got that problem solved." Newt grabbed her freezing cold hands and guide her upstairs to his room where dry clothes were laid out. Y/N's eyes went wide and it looked like she was going to pass out from sheer relief. Awkwardly, he let go of her hands and scratched the back of his neck. "They're probably going to be big and uh—"

"That's okay! That's okay!" Y/N said frantically and rushed for them. He'd never seen the girl so desperate in all the time he'd known her.

"Ok—" Newt panicked a little. "I'll leave you a minute!" He rushed out of the room and shut the door in a scramble. Y/N probably didn't care, especially right now, but he wasn't about to just stay there.

After a couple minutes Y/N stumbled her way out of the room. She tried to keep all the wet clothes bundled up in her arms but failed miserable and dropped a few on the floor. When she reached down to pick them up, Newt threw a towel on her head and ruffled her hair in a weak attempt to dry it. She laughed a little and jabbed at his stomach.

"Thank you," She lift the towel up and smiled. "I thought I was going to have to sleep in these."

Newt scoffed. "No way. Not while I'm here." He tried to squeeze some of the water out of her pants but it failed miserably. "I'll let Minho fend for himself, though."

Y/N laughed and piled the soaking wet clothes back into her arms. "Let's go find a place to hang these up."

Newt nod and turned to walk down the hall. "And then go grab some of Fry's soup?"

Y/N's features lit up so bright Newt nearly felt his ribcage collapse. "Fry made soup?! The good kind?"

"Just for you," Newt winked and laughed a little. He had no idea how Y/N did it. How she managed to keep spirits high with so little to hold onto here. He truly admired it. Because of it, he'd do anything for her. Not only because it gave him a sense of purpose, made him feel alive and like he was doing good, but also because he wanted to keep her happy and safe. The moment Y/N was gone or no longer herself, this whole place would collapse in on itself.