IT STARTED WITH A MAZE - Newt x Reader (F)

- THE FIRST ANOMALY -

A dead Griever.

My brain scrambles to piece it together. I've never seen one. But my mind has procured an image based off of its screams. The idea of one being killed, of something that strong and terrible dying... I didn't think it was possible.

"And I say (Y/n) comes with us," Alby adds.

Minho snaps his head toward him. "Alby."

"She's proven herself," Alby shrugs. Again, he is treating me not like an anomaly of a girl who appeared in the Maze, but one of them. "By our rules, she's already a Runner. So if she wants to come, she has every right," he says.

The weight of their attention swings back to me. I don't hesitate. "Yes. Please. I want to help," I make clear.

Alby nods once. He smiles, but it's a tired, worn-out kind of smile. Like the day's events have carved something permanent into his expression. Then he stands. "I'll let Newt know in the morning."

Minho says nothing. He just sits there, staring into the dark, and I sit beside him. The quiet between us lingers again - more serious now. More knowing. There's something about that silence that tells me tomorrow isn't just about finding answers. It's about finding out what we're really up against.

And I'm not sure I'm ready.

But I'm going anyway.

~~~

I'm up before the sun, the chill in the air sinking into my skin despite the thin fabric of my shirt. I'm glad to be awake, because it's better than the nightmares that are still in my head. When I've shared them with Newt, he said it might be my life before, or the people who put us here. Whatever it is, I'm left confused - as usual.

Thomas was in my dreams last night. There was another man, too, with dark blonde hair - but evidently not Newt. And there was a girl.

And the four of us were all in that white lab.

The Glade is still quiet at this hour, only the faintest whisper of wind through the trees and the distant clank of gears turning somewhere beyond the walls. Every early morning feels like the world is holding its breath, waiting for something to break loose.

I'm pulling on my shoes, tying the laces tight, when a voice - soft and familiar - cuts through the silence. "Morning, Darling." I spin around. Newt's there, standing in the doorway of the Med-Tent, his hair still damp from sleep, eyes shaded by a light crease of concern.

"Newt," I say with a smile, trying to keep my voice steady.

He steps closer, folding his arms. "I heard you're going in again."

I nod, swallowing the lump rising in my throat. "Yeah. I want to help. I have to," I reason.

Newt's eyes flicker with something like admiration, mixed with something else I haven't entirely learned to read. "Thought I'd walk you over," he says softly, explaining his presence in the dawn.

"Thank you," I say. "Its not safe out there," I joke, but it doesn't land the way I want it to. Newt gives me a look that shows he agrees.

We step out into the cold morning, the sky a dark grey slowly bleeding into pale gold at the horizon. The fresh scent of earth and damp leaves clings to the air, but there's a weight beneath it - a silent warning. As we walk, Newt breaks the silence. "The Maze - it's brutal. Unforgiving. Most wouldn't even think about going back in, let alone running through it."

I swallow, feeling the knot tighten in my stomach. "I know. But there's something there. Something we don't understand." I dont add that I think I'm tied to it all.