I Know Places [Thomas The Maze Runner]

[27: The Prettiest Girl in the Room]

"We've just been worried about you," Frypan retorted with wide eyes. "They wouldn't let us visit you or anything."

"Yeah, they were acting like you were getting out of surgery or something," Winston agreed. "Totally locked us out."

"They said they were doing tests and keeping you for observation? Is everything okay?" Newt asked, concern growing in his features. "We kept asking after you but nobody would tell us anything specific."

"I think they're just being cautious," Elle said unsurely. "They were worried about my head injury, and then I was feeling nauseous and dizzy this morning, so they want to make sure I'm okay." The Gladers shared an uncertain look. "Which I am!" Elle insisted. "You don't need to worry about me, I feel perfectly healthy, especially now that I'm with you guys again."

"Yeah, well, after being crammed together for the last week I think we just have a little separation anxiety," Thomas tried to keep the mood up, grinning across the table at Elle. She returned his smile, releasing Newt and Frypan and taking Thomas's hands. "I missed you," he murmured, dragging his thumb across the back of her hand and leaving tingles in its wake.

Elle's heart hammered her chest. "I missed you too," she exhaled.

"It must have been tough for you. At least we had each other for company," Minho pointed out. For a moment, Elle was touched by his sincerity. "I kept picturing you all alone in your little hospital cot. All pathetic and lonely." He pouted.

Elle rolled her eyes. At least Minho sounded more like his usual self. "So much for being the prettiest girl in the room," she muttered. "I definitely missed all of your company and wished I was with you instead, but I actually ended up making a friend," Elle confessed, grinning. "Her name's Teresa and she was the only girl in her Maze as well. She's really cool, you guys are going to love her."

"Great, another girl," Minho joked. Winston and Elle elbowed him from either side in unison, making him complain loudly. "I was just kidding," he defended himself. "Any friend of Elle's is a friend of ours."

"Great," Elle agreed. "So what's been going on with you guys? Teresa said something about groups getting chosen to leave during meal times? Has that been happening a lot?" Once again, the Gladers shared a concerned look. "What was that?" she asked, dreading their answer already. "You have those looks on your faces that you only have when you have bad news."

Everyone glanced at Thomas to fill her in. "There's been a development," he confessed, deciding to be straight with her.

After everyone grabbed a tray of food, Thomas filled Elle in on what he and Aris saw yesterday in the air vents above the restricted area the bodies were disappearing into every night. She listened with rapt attention, eyebrows raising in surprise and concern when he mentioned Dr Crawford was involved. It had taken her a day to really trust her doctor, and she was disappointed that there was a chance she had deceived her after all.

"That's all you saw?" Elle clarified. "You couldn't get into the vents in that area at all?"

"They don't go there," Thomas confirmed. As he finished explaining what happened to Elle, Janson arrived to call the names of the people who were being chosen to leave that day.

"Alice. Barry. Walt. Edgar. Samantha," Janson said, prompting each teenager to get up with a quiet round of applause.

Thomas narrowed his eyes at the man. "I wanna know what's through that door," he declared. After recounting everything for Elle, Thomas was more sure than ever that he had no reason to trust Janson or anyone else at the facility.

Newt glanced sideways at his friend. "Now, we've been over this," he said. "You said they were covered up, so you don't know what you saw. It could've been anything under there."