Left Behind -Gally-

Chapter 28

"They should be back by now," Thomas said from his spot ten feet away. Emma tried to drown out his voice and focus on the rain drumming against the roof above. "What happens if they don't make it?" She took a deep breath.

"They'll make it," Newt refused to think differently. As long as the doors were open, there was a chance.

Thomas walked toward him. "What happens if they don't?"

Newt glanced at him. "They'll make it."

Thomas seemed agitated, which Emma tried to understand. Thomas had been in the Glade for three days, most of which he spent with Alby, but he didn't know him. Given he only had three days' worth of memories, and nearly all of them were of Alby. Still, Thomas was a Greenie.

Emma forced the negative thoughts away once more. She pushed off the pole she was leaning on, ignoring the concerned look Jack sent her as she walked away. Her eyes nearly flickered to Gally, who was at the Builders hut, but she didn't. Right now, she needed to sit down and calm herself. Minho and Alby were going to be fine, she told herself.

And she repeated the phrase inside her head for the next hour.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The doors were going to close any moment, and they still weren't back. If they didn't get back in the next few minutes, they would be stuck in the Maze overnight, and nobody survived a night in the Maze.

"Can't we send someone after them?" It was Thomas who asked the question.

"It's against the rules." Gally was crouched on the ground beside her. They hadn't spoken to each other, but there was nothing to be said anyway. "They make it back, or they don't." Nobody could help them.

"We can't risk losing others as well," Next explained.

Emma pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. She had no idea what could have happened that prevented the two from returning. Had a Griever attacked them? Had they found Ben? Did they get hurt? The doors shifted, and a gust of wind hit them. Emma raised a hand, protecting her eyes from specs of dirt.

Then, the doors started to close. Emma felt panic rush through her. The doors were closing, and they weren't back yet. "No." Gally pushed off the ground, dusting his hands on his pants.

The doors creaked as they moved. Everything felt wrong. Emma felt as if she couldn't breathe. Ben was gone. Now it looked like Minho and Alby were as well.

"There!" Thomas yelled. Emma looked up and noticed something in the distance. Minho was dragging Alby behind him.

"Somethings wrong." Alby wasn't moving. He appeared dead, but Emma assumed since Minho was dragging him that he was unconscious.

"Come on, Minho! You can do it," Chuck yelled. All around her, Gladers began shouting, trying to encourage them.

"Come on, Minho!"

"You can do it!" Minho was struggling to drag Alby. He was hauling dead weight. It slowed him down.

"Let's go!"

"You can make it!" Minho wasn't moving fast enough. The doors were closing, and he was still down the corridor.

"You have to leave him!" Hearing the words made Emma nauseous, but she knew two things. One, Gally was right. Minho needed to leave Alby behind if he wanted to make it. Two, he wouldn't. That wasn't the type of person Minho was. For all his jokes and sarcastic comments, he would never actually turn his back on someone.

"They're not going to make it," Newt whispered in sad realization.

"Run!" Emma couldn't move. She could only watch as Minho desperately tried to reach them.