Stardust - Thomas - Maze Runner

Chapter 21 - Serum

All things considered, Selena couldn't really complain about her situation. Not when, as per her request, she had gotten herself a small, secluded room, filled with medical utensils for her use only. In a place like this, she almost felt at home. It almost felt like it did, back in the tent at the Right Arm, where she had learned with Mary, more than she has her whole entire life, probably. Still, as much as she wished it did, Selena knew that wasn't the case. She wasn't home. In fact, quite the opposite, really. She was in the enemy's territory. She was at risk all the time she knew, and yet, she was still better off than any of her friends. Better than Thomas and Newt, off somewhere with a boy they weren't too sure they could trust, running from the place of people they didn't know toward people who wanted them dead. She was better than Brenda, Jorge and Frypan as well, all three of them out in the open and ready for Lawrence's taken if he so wished. Of course she knew all of them knew quite well how to defend themselves, but that didn't mean, at all, that Selena worried for them any less. In fact, as much as working on the serum distracted her mind most often than not, Selena still found in herself the time to stress.

So, yes. Selena was very aware this wasn't home and, if all of those reasons weren't enough to remind her, the two men stationed just outside her door at all times at Lawrence's insistence sure were.

It was around midday - at least, Selena thought it was midday, but she couldn't know for sure, considering there weren't any windows in the room - when one of the said guards knocked on her door before pushing it open and peeking a heavily masked face inside - Lawrence seemed to think it was dangerous for them to go inside the room without it, but, at the part of the serum process Selena was in, the virus wasn't even alive anymore.

"The girl from your group..." The man said, causing Selena to bite down an annoyed response to his lack of interest in anything that didn't directly affect him.

"Brenda." She found herself saying, not even lifting her eyes from her work.

"She wants to talk to you." The man continued, completely disregarding Selena's input.

At his words, Selena did stop what she was doing, taking her eyes off of her table to look over at the masked man instead.

"And you're gonna let her?" She asked, much more surprised with the fact that Lawrence was, apparently, allowing Selena to see Brenda at all than with the fact that Brenda even wanted to see her.

"You have ten minutes." The man said, practically shrugging as he pulled open the door and shoved Brenda inside.

"You piece of shit." Brenda groaned as she tried to regain her balance, already looking like she was about to get into a fight.

"Hey, hey..." Selena called, setting her stuff down on the table as she rushed over to Brenda and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Easy, tiger."

"They think they own us." Brenda practically spat the words, clearly angry as Selena just sighed.

"Considering we made a deal and one of their own is guiding Newt and Thomas down the tunnels and toward the city, they do kind of do."

"And you're okay with it?" Brenda asked, almost accusatory as Selena rolled her eyes.

"Not okay." She was quick to defend herself. "More like... Conformed... And even if I wasn't, what was I meant to do? Beat down 200 armed men on my own?"

Brenda bit her tongue, then, clearly wanting to argue with Selena but unable to do so, knowing she was, in fact, correct. She must have learned something from that one time she threw herself out in the open while WCKD was bombing the Right Arm camp and she almost burned to death in a hopeless quest to save her beloved medical tent.