Find Me {Newt~Book 1} On Hold

|Limp~12|

|•••|

Slowly, I climbed the steps of the homestead. I made my way to Newt and I's room, but stood stiff at the door. I was truly terrified as to what I would find behind the wooden door. What is there to be afraid of? It's just Newt.

I forced myself to grab the handle and twist it before I was able to back out of talking to him. I opened the door with a single knock.

"Newt," I spoke in more of a warning that I was coming in than an attempt to find out if he was in the room. I knew he was in the room. I walked into the room, closing the door behind me. I stared at Newt, not sure what else to do. He was sitting on the bed, his feet swung off the edge and flat on the ground. He was hunched forward as he rested his elbows on his knees. "Newt." I said his name again, trying to get his attention, but he continued to stare straight ahead.

"Leave, Carina," Newt whispered. He didn't sound mad. The request came out more as a plead than of anger.

"I can't leave you alone," I told him. He sighed, looking at the floor. "Why do you not want me to be a Runner?"

"It doesn't matter-"

"It matters to me," I cut him off. "You have no reason to be protective over me."

"If you went through the Changing, you'd understand," he shook his head.

"Why can't you just tell me and make me understand?" I asked, taking a step toward him. He glanced at my feet, his eyes warning me not to come any closer to him. I disobeyed this warning, taking another step towards him. "Tell me."

"The maze...it's not a good place. Nobody should volunteer to go through it," he spoke as he fiddled with his fingers.

"But I did. And I am," I tried to say as softly as possible. Slowly, I sat down on the bed and looked at Newt from my spot next to him. "Why do you not want me to be a Runner?"

"I'm not talking about this," he mumbled as he stood up, walking over to the door. His hand was on the knob when I shot up from my place on the bed.

"Newt," I whispered, begging him to stop. He stopped with his hand on the handle of the door, his shoulders dropping as he heard my voice crack in sadness.

"Did I ever tell you the story of my limp?" Newt turned around to face me.

I stepped towards him, shaking my head. I didn't want him to tell me if he didn't want to. All I wanted was a simple answer of why he didn't want me to run the maze. But I suppose, this is it.

Newt looked up at me. He looked like he was pretending to be confident, but I could easily see the fear in his eyes.

He stepped past me and sat back down on the bed. I turned sat down next to him, waiting to hear him say more. "I was once a runner, a little more than a year ago," Newt swallowed. He was fidgeting with his fingers anxiously, so I grabbed his hand and held it in mine in attempt to calm him. It seemed to work as he gave me a look of thanks.

"Newt," I whispered, turning his face to look at me. "It's just you and I." Newt nodded, understanding that I was saying he didn't have to be nervous because it was just us. He stared down at our intertwined hands as he continued.

"I had ran for almost an entire year and we still hadn't gotten anything accomplished. I ran the entire maze multiple times and couldn't find anything. So, I lost hope," Newt paused for a minute before continuing. "I decided life wasn't worth living, so I ran into the maze. I climbed halfway up one of those bloody walls and jumped," Newt swallowed. "My foot got caught on a vine and I hit my head, leaving me unconscious. Alby found me and took me back to the glade. My leg was never the same and I never ran again," Newt finished. He looked up at me with pleading eyes. "The maze kills. And it'll kill you."