Count On Me ➵ Newt [1]

NINE | my punishment

"Zart, you?"

"A week."

"Winston?"

"Um... a week, yeah."

"Jack?"

"Five days."

"Minho?"

The Keeper of the Runners folded his arms across his chest. "I'm with Frypan. Two days."

"I vote two days as well," Alby said.

"What the bloody shit?" Gally stood up. "Are you crazy, shank? You're supposed to the leader - you're supposed to come up with good decisions!"

"Oh, give me a break," Minho groaned.

"Slim it, Gally," Alby said firmly. "Would you rather have me not punish her at all?"

"She broke our number one rule!" Gally cried out. "You can't just ignore that!"

"Three days then," Alby said firmly. "If it makes you feel better, ya slinthead."

Gally snorted, but didn't protest. Alby smirked.

"Gotcha. Three days it is then, Rosalind. Starting tomorrow."

The Gathering adjourned and I was free to leave. I filed out the room along with the other Keepers and went straight towards Newt's room, not caring if anyone was following me. To my surprise, Newt was awake, staring up at me with bloodshot eyes and a tired face.

"Hey, you're awake," I said, sitting beside his bed. "How're you feeling?"

"Bloody horrible," he croaked. I poured him a glass of water and he sipped the liquid gratefully, almost choking on it.

"Hey, hey, slow down." I took the glass from him and set it aside. "Do you need anything else?"

He shook his head. Even doing something as simple as that made him wince in pain.

"I never got to thank you," he said quietly.

"Thank me...?"

"For saving me. You saved my life, Rose."

I looked at him sadly. "You jumped off the freaking Maze wall and now you're thanking me for saving you? What were you thinking, Newt? Why did you do that?"

Newt's gaze shifted away from mine. He looked so broken and sad that I instinctively reached out for his hand, trying to comfort him. He squeezed my hand back and returned his gaze to me me.

"I couldn't... I couldn't handle the guilt," he whispered. "So many of us has died and I was powerless to stop them. I could have done something, but I let them die. It was all my fault."

"Oh, Newt, don't say that," I said, trying to blink back tears. "You know it's not your fault. It's none of our faults. You know that."

"That's not all, I just... I just feel so bloody hopeless. What's the point of sending us Runners out there anyway? The Maze is the same every shucking time. Doesn't matter if they change every day, the patterns are all the same. And even after this long, we still hadn't found an exit, almost as if the Creators want us to stay here in this shuck place. What's the point, you ask me? What's the point..."

Tears slid down his face and he made no effort to wipe them away. I wanted to say something - anything - to reassure him, but I knew any comfort words that I say would sound like a big fat lie. Probably because they were.

Finally, I managed to say, "We will find a way out, Newt. I don't care if it takes ten years, or twenty, or even more, someday, we'll get out of here. We will."

Newt didn't respond, but at least he wasn't crying anymore. I gently wiped the tears off his face and held his hand. We sat there in silence for a long while. Though it made me slightly uncomfortable, Newt didn't seemed to mind. He stared off into space, never letting go of my hand, lost in his thoughts. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing.

Finally, when I felt my eyes droop and my body slump with fatigue, I said, "Alright, well... I'll leave you now. Get some rest, Newt."

"Can't you... Can't you stay in here with me?" He whispered.

I blinked, taken aback. "Oh, um... I-I'm not sure."

Newt's face fell and I felt guilt ripping at me in every possible way.

"But that doesn't mean I can't!" I said quickly. "I'll stay here Newt."

He gave me a small smile and I sat back down. I didn't know when, but after a while, I finally dozed off to sleep, with only Newt for my company in the quiet of the Homestead.

[ END OF CHAPTER NINE ]