monachopsis - maze runner

chapter 6

Chapter 6
The Lookout

A while later, Florence wasn't sure how long, she sat on the top platform of the lookout, feet dangling over the edge. Her arms were draped over the railing with her chin rested atop them, and she stared blankly into the night.

After assuring himself that Florence would be (mostly) alright, Newt had gone off to bed, leaving Florence in Gally's care. Neither of them expected to get much sleep, so they decided to camp out in the tree for the night. Gally had sent Florence off for a moment alone while he gathered supplies, and so Florence sat wallowing in silence and grief.

It felt strange, mourning people who weren't absolutely dead. She couldn't see into the Maze - though that was the original intent for the lookout - so she had no idea what was happening behind the stone. For all she knew, a Griever could have attacked the boys the second the Maze slammed shut. So maybe the doors would open on her friends tomorrow, but they'd be opening on a pile of corpses.

"Hey," Gally's voice dragged her out of the terrible hypotheticals. Normally she would've smiled at the sight of him, struggling up through the hatch with pillows and blankets tucked under his arms and a cloth sack hanging loosely off his shoulder, but not tonight. Florence scooted away from the ledge, taking the bundle of supplies and laying them out over the bamboo platform. Gally muttered his thanks, shrugging the bag off his shoulder and flopping down onto the blankets.

"What's in there?" Florence asked quietly, situating herself against a stack of pillows. Gally pushed the bag towards her, propping an arm under his head.

"I noticed you haven't eaten all day, so I snuck some stuff out of the kitchen." Curious, Florence dug into the sack and pulled out its contents: two flasks of water, some carefully wrapped sandwiches, and a couple of apples. The corner of her mouth twitched, just for a second, and Gally felt a hint of pride at being able to bring out even the beginnings of a smile.

"Thank you," she murmured, genuinely touched by his thoughtfulness. She often had trouble eating when something was bothering her, though this was usually not on purpose. It was sweet that he'd noticed, she mused as they ate in silence, but she wouldn't have expected it from him. As with all the boys in the Glade, no matter how nice they may be, there was an extent to Gally's attentiveness and sympathy for others.

There were a few exceptions to that case; Newt, Chuck, and Alby were the glaringly obvious ones, at least to Florence. In fact, Alby's compassionate nature was at the top of a long list of grievances Florence had about their current...situation. Alby was truly one of the kindest people she'd ever known, and to imagine him fighting for his life inside a maze of endless horrors was the most dreadful injustice Florence could imagine.

"What the shuck did that napkin do to you?" Florence turned to see Gally right beside her, a small smirk curving his features. At her confused expression, he reached in front of her and picked up a handful of paper scraps. In her anxious rumination, Florence had ripped the wrapping of her sandwich into tiny bits. A small puff of air left her nose, halfway between a sigh and an empty laugh.

"I'm pretending it's the assholes who put us here," she replied dryly, picking up her metal water bottle and running a thumb along the engraving on the side. WCKD. "It's their fault Alby, Minho, and Thomas are stuck out there."

"You never know, they might make it through the night," Gally shrugged, only half believing his own words. "Alby and Minho are smart, don't know if I can say the same for the Greenie but at least he's fast."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean shit if you really think about it." She didn't even bother to chastise Gally for his jab at Thomas. "Alby's unconscious from what I could tell, and Thomas has never been in the Maze before." It occurred to her then that Thomas had officially broken all three of their main rules, but she continued on. "I'm trying to be as positive as I can for their sake," she gestured to the sleeping area, where they could hear the Gladers talking amongst themselves, "but I've been here longer than anyone. I know how dangerous the Maze can be."

"You don't think they're gonna make it?" Gally asked after a beat of silence, then hated himself for being so bold.

"I think I'm gonna drive myself insane trying to figure out what's happening out there."

"Then we can talk about something else." Gally shuffled back, leaning against their small mound of pillows. "C'mere." Florence copied his movements, slouching comfortably against the pillows and folding her hands atop her stomach. They laid in silence for a minute, watching the stars twinkle in the deep blue sky above.

"This was your idea, what are we talking about?"

"No clue."

His resigned confession hung in the cool air for a moment, then the silence was broken by an abrupt snort from Florence. And then they were laughing, both of them with their shoulders shaking as they cackled and wheezed and tried to catch their breath. Whether the sudden outburst was from exhaustion or from the sheer absurdness of their day, neither one could tell, but it released some of the tension in Florence's heart.

"Oh, I've got something," Florence announced once they'd calmed down. "What do you think the world's like outside the Glade?" Gally hummed in contemplation, readjusting against his pillows and crossing his arms over his chest.

"I dunno, I guess I've never thought about it that much," he shrugged. "I mean, all I can remember about my life is the past three years. I can't really imagine anything outside these walls."

"If we somehow found a way out, would you go?" She asked this despite knowing the truth about the Runners' discoveries, or lack thereof, but she swore not to divulge this information to anyone. The Glade's structure may very well collapse if they knew the entire Maze had been mapped and there was still no way out.

"Honestly? I'm not sure." Florence turned to see him fully; she hadn't expected that. "I've just gotten so used to living here, and, I mean, I have thought a little bit about why we're here and if I'm right..." He trailed off, his attention taken by the looming walls. Florence nudged him with her elbow, urging him to continue. After being stuck in the Glade for so long, any new theory about why they were there was welcome. "I think the Creators put us here to keep us safe."

"Really?"

"Maybe, yeah. The only thing that doesn't check out is the walls," Gally admitted, fiddling with the leather straps of his cuff. It was a nervous habit of his, though he'd never admit to having those. "If they're trying to keep us safe from something-"

"Or trap us in."

"Right, or that, I just feel like they shouldn't have given us a way to get out." Silence enveloped them again, only for a few seconds this time. "Why do you think we're here?" Florence sighed at the question. She'd had three years to think of an answer, but she could never come to a solid conclusion.

"I've gone back and forth on that about a million times," she confessed, twisting her body to look at him. She thought about the names on the wall, particularly the ones they'd crossed out. The image of the doors closing on Alby and Minho replayed in her mind. "I used to think we were safe here but now...now I'm not sure."