Love Me Again

run

Things get a little shaky from here. This is the part where the team arrives at the Right Arm, and this is also the part where I change the plot a lot.

Enjoy!

"So how do you know for sure that Marcus gave you the right directions?" Thomas asked from the back. Newt, sitting at the front, frowned.

"I don't," Jorge laughed humorlessly. "there's no way to know anyway. Might as well go with what he says."

"I don't like this," Newt shifted, looking back at Thomas then you.

"None of us do," Minho said. "what if he's just leading us to a WICKED hideout?"

"Then we run."

-----

"Looks like a wasteland here. Doesn't look like paradise to me," Minho snarked, pacing around the dead end of the highway.

"Maybe they moved places?" Thomas suggested. "An area that's more secure?"

"If they did, Marcus would have known about it," Brenda answered.

"Well maybe," Minho faced everyone, hands in the air. "Marcus did lead us to the middle of nowhere! Why is no one considering that possibility?"

Jorge looked like he was about to shout back when suddenly, an explosion sounded from a distance and Newt groaned in pain next to you, clutching his shoulder.

"Newt?" you gently pried his hand off his shoulder.

Blood. A bullet hole.

You pulled his scarf from your bag and began to wrap it tightly around his wound, but a collective sound of bangs began to boom from the distance. In the blink of an eye, Newt was pulling you to Bertha, Marcus' car.

You looked back to see if Thomas and the others were following you, but they were all on the other side of a rundown car, hiding.

Before you got in the front seat, you shouted for them to get in.

"Newt, slow the car down a little, will you?"

Newt nodded as he started the car up and pressed lightly on the gas.

The car began to go on full speed.

"Newt! Slow down! The others are-"

"I can't! The brakes won't work!"

"J-just try to stay on the road!"

Newt put his free arm across your body, protecting you. "Y/N, we have to get out of the car."

"Are you crazy?"

"There's a bridge ahead and Jorge mentioned it wasn't stable. We have to jump. Promise me you'll jump."

"Wha-"

"Now!"

Against your own better judgment, out of foolish trust in Newt, you jumped out of the car.

Ignoring the searing pain on your skin combined with the heat, your eyes searched for Newt.

Newt was on the far side of the road since he jumped first. He looked beaten up on his knees and elbows, his hand clutching his left arm.

"You're bleeding! God!" You crawled to Newt, took the scarf that he wrapped around his neck before pulling you to the car, and tied it tightly around his wound. You were both silent: Newt was staring at you and you avoided his gaze, focusing on the wound. "The bullet cut right through so it won't get severely infected since the bullet didn't stay in your arm."

"Good," Newt said silently, nodding, eyes closed.

"Are you feeling okay? Did you get injured when you jumped?"

"No, nothing I haven't handled before."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, forget I said anything." Newt opened his eyes, breathing a shaky breath. "We have to get out of here. Hide. We don't know if the people who shot me work for WICKED."

"W-w-where will we go?"

"Hey. Calm down. I promised you I'll never let anything happen to you, and I happen to be a man of my word."

You smiled sadly. "Lucky me."

"We'll walk a different path," he stood up as if nothing happened to him, and offered his hand to you, which you took. "we won't take the road because if we go either way, we'll either go back there or Marcus' place... why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like I'm the most handsome man in the world," he smiled sweetly, stepping back to dodge your playful slap to his chest.

"Where to, sir?"

Newt took your hand and pointed to a mountain range a few hundred miles away. "There." he looked at you, gauging your reaction. "Hopefully, we'll find a hidden place, where no one will find us."

"Then?" you began walking hand in hand.

"Then I'll build us a shelter. One that'll hopefully last us a few months."

"We can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"We have to go to WICKED. You'll turn into... it in a few months! The shelter will last longer than you will!"

Newt stopped walking and took your face in his large hands, his sad eyes boring into yours. "Y/N, I won't sacrifice your freedom for mine. We can get to WICKED and we can fail. We can get caught. The odds are against us. Life is short. Let me get a taste of what kind of life we could have had before this mess started three years ago."

You said nothing as Newt wiped your tears with his thumbs.

"Life is short, which is why you have to forgive me for what I'm about to do."

Before you could process what he said, Newt's lips were pressed to yours, and all your walls came crashing down.

What'll happen next? The person who guesses it right will get a shoutout and bragging rights. ;)