Steel and Stone [The Maze Runner (Scorch Trials) Fanfiction]

Departure

I shift my weight from side to side, anxiously tugging on the straps of my backpack. I'm one of the only people who still has a backpack, and Its currently stuffed full of food, water, and other necessities. Somehow it's like a safety blanket to me, and I haven't let it out of my site since we left the maze. Which is probably the reason I still have it, while everyone else's has mysterious vanished. Being creative and all, the gladers had found a solution. Most of the gladers now held makeshift bags made from pillow cases and sheets, stuffed with food and water. They'd used empty food packages, tied off with strips of fabric to hold the water, not the best water bottle, but better than nothing.

I check my watch, the only other thing I have from the maze. It reads 9:45, just fifteen minutes until we are set to go through the flat trans. Which still hasn't appeared, much to my concern. I can tell today will not be fun, I'm already exhausted, I haven't seen Minho all morning, and Everything is getting on my nerves. All due in part to the fact that last night was anything but peaceful. After sleeping for nearly two days straight, I wasn't exactly tired, and the sleep I did get was constantly being interrupted by strange and terrible nightmares, not to mention the snores of the other gladers. So all in all I think I slept for about two or three hours. Joy to the world.

"Hey you alright?" One of the new boys, James asks, walking up beside me.

"Yeah, fine." I mutter, not really in the mood for small talk.

"Are you sure?" He asks again, "cause you don't look alright."

I sigh and roll my eyes at him, "I'm as alright as I'm going to get, considering our current situation."

"Heh, ya I guess that's kind of a dumb question, none of us are really alright." He chuckles, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking at the floor. Suddenly I feel bad for being so mean to him, From the looks of it he doesn't really get along with the other boys, and after all he's the one who was separated from his group, and here he is asking if I'm ok?

"Ya, it's fine though, thanks for asking." I say, with a small smile, trying to make up for my being rude. "you're James right?"

"Ya, I know we've met but I don't think I ever caught your name, you are?"

"Skylar." I say, reaching out to shake his outstretched hand.

"Well Skylar, it's nice to meet you." He replies, a smile spreading across his face. His eyes are blue, and they really stand out against his shaggy, sandy brown hair.

"You too." I reply, returning his smile. He waves slightly, the returns to stand by himself near the back of the room. Suddenly, I feel a hand on my arm.

"He was friendly." Minho says angrily, jerking me around to face him.

"Nice of you to remember I existed."  I retort, yanking my arm out of his grasp.
"Don't care to talk to me until someone else does huh?"

"Skylar, I was busy, I was coming to find you I promise." He says, giving me a dirty look, like somehow I'm the one in the wrong. "I just had to–"

"Ya, ya I know important leader stuff, I get it." I mumble, crossing my arms over my chest. Without warning, there is a loud hiss, followed by a blinding light as what I assume to be the flat trans pops up on the edge of the room, effectively ending our argument. "We don't have time for this, let's just go." I sigh, heading for the flat trans.

"Alright, everyone line up!" Minho shouts, following me over. The flat trans appears as a glowing white circle, which shimmers around the edges, almost making it blend into the wall behind it. I'm curious about how it works, and fight the urge to reach out and touch it. I check my watch again; five minutes until we leave.

"I'm sorry, Ok, I should have found you this morning." Minho sighs, glancing sideways at me, but keeping his focus on the flat trans.

"It's fine, I was just stressed out, I shouldn't have gotten so upset." I answer absently, preoccupied with watching the swirling flat trans.

"So, forgive me?" He asks, forcing me to look at him.

"I gueeesss." I say dramatically, grabbing his hand. I smile as I lace our fingers together, "and don't worry about James he's just lonely."

Minho nods and smiles back at me. "Remind me to keep a closer eye on you."

"Okay." I giggle. I check my watch for the third time, obsessively counting down the minutes until we leave. I have no idea what to expect, but I know it isn't going to be good. I can only hope we will have what it takes to survive.

Three minutes.

Two minutes.

One.

My heart races as the flat trans begins to open, the white disappearing, replaced with a large black orb. I look at the line of gladers behind me, how many of us will be alive tomorrow? How many of us will survive to the end of the test?

"Stay close to me." Minho says, dragging me towards the flat trans. He looks back at the rest of the group, "See you shanks on the other side." He says, before stepping through, taking me with him into the dark.