NIGHT BEDS ━︎━︎ THE MAZE RUNNER

xix. MINHO.

"Gally?!" Minho gasps.

He nods at him. "Minho." He looks up from where they jumped off. "You guys are nuts." And he heads back to one of the guards, untying the laces and removing the boots off of one of them on the ground.

"What are you doing?" Newt asks.

"You guys are just gonna let Minho run around barefoot?" He grabs the pair and throws them up at his old friend. "See if those fit."

Minho stared down at him with the same confused and surprised look on his face, feeling like what had happened was anything but real. "You saved us, Gally. Thanks," was all he could say as he puts the boots on.

"Yeah, no problem. Does that mean I can count on your vote for me winning prom king?" Gally jokes, getting back on his feet, retrieving his launcher. He thought about getting rid of it, but although using it against WCKD when they chase them around would be helpful, so he kept it held.

"Oh and Frypan says hi," Thomas tells Minho.

"Yeah, MK too," Gally adds.

"Aw, man. I missed Frypan," Minho nods. "Wait, MK knows you're still alive?"

"Yeah," answered Gally.

"What did she do when she saw you?"

Gally pursed his lips in embarrassment. ". . . she fainted."

Minho raised an eyebrow and continued tying the knot on his right boot. "Who else but MK . . ." He gets back on his feet. "So, how the hell are you still alive and breathing? Are you immortal or something? Did some slinthead resurrect you from the dead? Or are you just some imposter wearing Gally's face as a mask?"

"You wanna try and interrogate me while we're at it?" Gally shot back. "Why don't you come over here and try to rip my face off to see if it's made out of rubber?"

"Enough," Thomas huffs. He looked at Minho, wanting to briefly explain everything. "A group of people rescued Gally and saved his life, and he saved us when we tried getting in here. He's working for a guy named Lawrence. He helped us get in here secretly."

Minho raised his eyebrows, stunned about what Gally and the rest of his friends had been through while he was stuck in a cell. "Damn, Gally. You went through hell and back yet you haven't tried killing Thomas on your own."

"No point of doing so," said Gally, looking away. "Besides, I have plans once we get out of this city, and tormenting Thomas isn't one of them."

"Well we can start by getting outta here. There's helicopters everywhere," Thomas went on, exiting the path leading to different buildings and streets.

They reach to a street as far from the building as possible as more helicopters shined down their search lights around the city. They slide on their legs to hide behind a paved bench. The sounds of their hearts beating and heavy panting couldn't top the screeching sirens and helicopters flying through the night.

"Well, they're definitely pissed," Gally says stating the obvious.

They hear Newt coughing dryly as he bent his body forward.

"How far are the tunnels?" Thomas asks.

"Uh, maybe twelve blocks from here," he replied, wanting to say something more relieving to Thomas, knowing time was running out for Newt. "We can make it," he assures him.

Minho scoots over to Thomas and Gally. "Hey, how long has he been like this?"

The two of them were thinking the same thing. Minho has been gone to not know that Newt was turning faster by the minute. It was too soon now they reunited. He didn't think he would get rescued just to find out Newt was growing weaker with his skin discolouring.

"He'll be okay, we just got to make it to Brenda," Thomas tells him, finally getting to remove the disguise from him. "She's got the serum. C'mon let's go." He goes over to Newt, lifting him up after he stumbles.

Gally and Minho watch the both of them make a head start and Minho turns back to Gally, still wondering why he hasn't done anything to them yet.

"Why are you helping us, Gally? I put a spear through your chest."

He was right after all. After your friends turn on you and leave you behind, this was an odd first for a boy like him to act differently.

But this was Gally, turning the other cheek and realizing if no one had listened to Thomas, all of them would have been dead before even escaping the Maze.

"Yeah. Nobody's perfect, man." Gally shrugs, giving him a pat on the shoulder before getting up to follow Thomas. Minho does the same, still wanting answers.

"You said you have plans when we get outta here?" Minho said.

He nods. "Yeah. Once we give Newt serum, he'll recover just in time to arrive with everyone else to a place far away. And I'm gonna be there with MK, with a ring on her finger."

"The promise ring?" Minho asks, recalling the moment back in the Glade.

"No, I mean like a ring."

"Damn," Minho lets out a breath. "You miss a lot for a good six months." They were just behind Thomas and Newt. Minho chimes in to help carry Newt on the other side of his shoulder, wrapping him by his arm. "Where is it? Can I see?"

"What do you mean?"

"The ring, you slow shank. You're gonna ask her, so can I at least see the ring?"

"Wait, you haven't done it yet?" Newt manages to speak out in a hoarse voice.

"Lord, here we go-" Thomas shakes his head, rolling his eyes.

"It's not a good time yet."

"I call being best man," Minho volunteers confidently.

"Spot's taken, Minho," Newt said before letting out another harsh cough.

"Seriously? Am I the only one that's not with Gally on this?" Thomas says.

"Do you even have the ring on you?" Minho asks.

Gally looks at him with a straight face. "No."

They all stopped to look at Gally like he had just revealed a shocking secret. He answered so casually, not even a shard of panic, not even fear in his voice. Has this shank gone mad? Thomas and Newt knew that they argued over MK losing her promise ring and they understood Gally's frustration since it was something special made from him, even though he already had a real ring to replace it with. But first MK, now Gally?

"Wait what?"

"I was with her earlier. I snuck it in so she wouldn't see it."

"Well then where did you put it?"

He felt like it would be safer if it were to be kept away from him, hence why he told MK to head straight back to the tunnels safely. He knew he would be inside for a while and all the running he had to do would risk it falling out of his pants. That was when he noticed MK had borrowed the layered coat from Jorge, with velcro and zippers in the pockets big enough to fit a notepad inside.

Gally takes a slow breath before looking back at them saying, "It's in her jacket pocket."