Sapphire Stones

Deep Talks (Featuring Gally and Newt)

Gally's POV~

"You okay?" I ask Newt as I cautiously approach him. He's sitting at the top of the watchtower, his legs dangling over the side as he sits. He's staring out into the distance, but he's not really seeing anything. He looks as if he's in a daze. 

I sit down a few inches away from him and throw my legs over the edge, resting my arms on the railing.

"Newt?" He snaps his head towards me at the sound of his name. "Are you okay?"

"Oh." He mutters, looking away. "Yeah. Just... thinking."

"About...?"  I push, trying to get him to talk. It's what Venus would want, and since she'll be in the Medhut for most of the night, I figured I should at least try to get Newt to talk. It's obvious he isn't okay.

"Minho." He replies shortly, running a hand through his hair and down the back of his neck.

"Got a thing for the Runner boy, huh?" I try at a joke, but Newt doesn't laugh. Instead, he keeps staring straight ahead, his eyes glossed over. "Oh, c'mon. It was just a j-"

"Why are you doing this?" He asks suddenly, causing me to stop mid-sentence.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, why are you talking to me; trying to console me. Why are you doing this? We aren't friends."

I hesitate before answering. "Because it's what Venus would want." I answer honestly.

I see Newt's lips slightly turn up in a smile.

"Got a thing for the Medjack girl, huh?" He asks. I grin back, my face heating up. I don't answer though.

"So why are you up here, Newt? Why the sad face?" I wonder. "Minho and Ben made it back just fine, so why are you so upset?"

He hesitates. I can see the pain in his face; hear it in his voice when he says, "I thought he jumped."

My entire body goes rigid as I recall what happened to Newt three years ago. What he did to himself.

"He looked like he was in so much bloody pain. I don't know why, but something inside of me kept saying that he'd jumped. That he'd tried to... y'know." Newt's looking far off into the distance, his hands fidgeting with a chain around his neck.

"Newt, you know he wouldn't do that. He's Minho. He'd never do that."

"I thought the same about myself before it happened." He pauses. I'm quiet. "You never know what's going on in another person's head. The saddest people tend to smile the brightest." Another pause. "The happiest people you know could be the saddest people you'll ever meet."

I don't even know what to say, so I don't say anything at all. Instead, I place a hand on Newt's shoulder. He looks over at me and I meet his eyes. I take a deep breath.

"I don't think that's Minho, Newt. He tends to be pretty open and honest about his feelings. Plus, he has friends who he knows love him and would do anything for him. Trust me, Newt. Minho wouldn't do that."

"I felt like I had nobody. I wanted an escape, but everywhere I turned, I felt trapped. I couldn't bear it." He mutters, his voice cracking as he looks at his hands.

"But you're here now."

"Sometimes I still feel like that." He whispers, tears dropping down his cheeks. I've never seen him so vulnerable, especially not in front of me. Yet here he is, still broken and in need of a friend.

"So you keep on fighting. That's all we can do right now, Newt. Keep on fighting. For ourselves and our friends. For our futures." I pause, looking up at the sky. 

"Fighting is hard when all you want to do is give up."

"But it's always worth it in the end." I say. I look up at the stars and planets. More specifically, one planet. The brightest in the sky. "When you feel like that, giving up, I mean, think of someone or something worth fighting for. That's what I do."

"Who do you think of?" He asks. I see him looking at me out of the corner of my eye, but I don't turn to look at him. My eyes are glued to the planet.

"I think you already know." I whisper. I tear my eyes away from the sky and look over to see a small smile on Newt's tear-stained face.

"She's my best friend." Newt says. 

"I know." I reply with a smile, patting Newt's shoulder before replacing my arm on the railing.

"If you hurt her, there's nowhere you can go that I won't bloody find you."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take." I say, looking back at the sky with a smile. "Besides, I would never hurt her. She's the loveliest, finest, tenderest, most intoxicating and beautiful person I've ever known, and even that is an understatement. The most beautiful words can't even begin to describe her."

There's a long silence between the two of us. We're both looking at the sky. 

"You're a good guy, Gally, for the most part." He mutters that last bit under his breath, but it's still loud enough for me to hear it. "I'm trusting you with her heart."

"I promise I won't break it." Newt pats my shoulder before standing up.

"Thanks for talking to me, Gally."

"Any time, Newt." I reply, giving him a smile as he makes his way down the ladder and towards the ground. I don't follow him. Instead, I lay down with my arms crossed behind my head, staring up at all the planets and stars. No matter how hard I try, my eyes won't stop drifting towards Venus. It stands out among all the planets and stars in the sky. It shines the brightest of them all, after all.

I grin as I stare at it, letting my eyes close as I drift off to a dreamless sleep.