Saudade // The Maze Runner // Thomas [IN EDITING]

Chapter 9

        "I don't know, actually. I've only been here a month, though. She would know." I turned my head to see Chuck pointing at me. When he realized I was staring at him, his chubby cheeks flushed and I smiled.

        "Know what?" I asked, walking over to the two of them, acting as if I had not been listening to their entire conversation.

        "What happens in the Changing." Chuck replied.

        I nodded. "Yes, I know. I went through it."

        I seated myself beside Thomas and he turned toward me expectantly. I couldn't help the glance my eyes took at his lips.

        "You remember bits and pieces of your life before the Glade. Before all of this." I gestured to the Glade.

        Thomas was quiet for a few seconds, seeming to be thinking over what I had said.

        "What did you remember?" He said quietly, almost hesitantly.

        You. I thought desperatly. I remembered you.

        "My family. I remembered my parents and my brother, James." I said simply, smiling sadly.

        "That's it?" Thomas asked, his face a bit crestfallen.

        "I had a boyfriend, that I know. I don't know if he's still out there, though. And don't you even think about getting stung to remember. It hurts like shucking hell and you have to be a Runner to even get near the grievers." I told him.

        "How long have we been here?" He asked, his fingers playing with each other in a nervous habit.

        I looked at the ground, not liking the answer. "Two years."

        Thomas' eyebrows shot up. "Two years? And you haven't escaped?!" He said, panicked.

        I saw the familiar figure of Alby in my peripheral vision and I turned to see him a few feet away.

        "I see you've met Thalia, huh greenie?" Alby asked with a laugh.

        Thomas looked up at Alby, before saying "My name is Thomas, not Greenie."

        I saw Thomas glance at me uneasily, and his lips mouthed my name, as if he was testing it out. His eyebrows dipped into a shallow frown.

        "She was the first one in this shuck place," Alby said, before motioning for me to follow him. "Chuck, why don't you go get greenie a bed."

        Chuck lead Thomas away, and he took a second glance over his shoulder at me. I could feel my stomach churning with anxious happiness. 

        Alby led me away from the homestead until we were nearing the opening of the Doors.        

        "Thalia," He paused, rubbing his hands over his face and sighing. "That's the boy from your memories, right?"

        I lowered my head slightly. "Yeah," I breathed, nervous.

        "I-I'm going to have to ask you to not tell him who you are to him. He just got here, and that could be very overwhelming.."

        I nodded entheusiasticalaly. "I wasn't going to, anyway. I wouldn't want to weird him out."

        Alby let out a sigh of relief. "Good that."

- -

        The next day, Thomas began to try out the multitude of jobs in the Glade, to see which one fit him best. First, he worked with Zart and Newt with the Track-Hoes.

        I left early in the morning, and Minho and I decided to run together for a while. We knew that we had mapped the entire Maze, and now it was about looking for a way out. Soon after ten o'clock, we split up and Minho went his own way. After a few hours I decided to return to the Glade.

        It was early afternoon when we arrived and I was extraordinarily tired. To my surprise, everyone seemed on edge.

        "What's wrong?" I asked Alby, jogging up to him slowly. I shivered as the sweat on my body was chilled by the cold pre-midday sun air.

        "We got a new greenie today," He said, turning towards me. His face looked worn and tired.

        "We got Thomas yesterday? Where is the new one? Did you give him the tour?" I asked, curious.

        Alby shook his head and gestured to the Homestead. "Not he. She." He said, and my eyes widened.

        There was another girl? I immediately forgot my exhaustion and raced towards the homestead.

        "She's with the Med-Jack's!" Alby called after me, and a few of the Gladers glanced at me as I ran by.

        When I knocked on the door, Jeff let me into the room, and I smiled largely when I saw the back of a girl laying on her side on the bed. I stepped toward her, wanting to speak with her.

        "Wait-" Jeff stopped me, putting his arm out. "She's not awake. When she came up in the Box she was asleep. We thought she was dead. She recognized Thomas, though, and this was in her hand."

        My eyebrows furrowed, confused. Why would the creators send us a girl who was practically dead? Why give us two greenies?

        Jeff pressed a crumpled and worn scrap of paper in her hand. When I uncurled it, five bold black words stood out on the paper.

        She's the last one. Ever. The scent of the ink was acrid, and I scrunched my nose as it filled the air.

        I handed the paper back to Jeff, before creeping around the side of the bed to peer at the girl. She had black hair that was shorter than mine, reaching just past her shoulders. Her nose was long and slender and her cheekbones seemed sharp. Freckles dotted her cheeks and her eyelashes were long and elegant, resting on her skin.

        I tilted my head, surprised that her features seemed a bit familiar to me. I shook it off, before turning back to Jeff.

        "So she's the last greenie?" I asked. It was weird to see such feminine features after only looking at the harshness and ruggedness of stubble and rough jaws for years. Because there were no mirrors in the Glade, I didn't even know what I looked like.

        "I guess," Jeff shrugged. "The creators didn't exactly give us an explanation."

        Outside, I heard someone yell and I nodded goodbye at Jeff and went outside to see what the commotion was. Minho was kneeling on his hands and knees, the back of his shirt damp with sweat. His head was tilted back and when Alby passed him a cup of water, he downed it in less than ten seconds, his eyes scrunching up as he did so.

        "Now what the bloody hell is going on?" Newt questioned, crossing his arms irritatedly.

        "I found a dead one." Minho gasped. 

        "A dead what?" Alby asked as he crouched next to Minho. 

        "A dead griever." Minho said, and Alby helped him stand up slowly. It was easy to see that Minho's legs were quivering slightly from the strain. He must've sprinted all the way back. 

        And then what he said hit me. 

        "You found a dead griever?" I exclaimed. 

        Minho nodded. 

        "Can you bring it back?" Alby asked hesitantly. 

        Newt shook his head. "No, grievers are bloody huge. It's not possible for Minho to bring it back." His arm was folded across his chest, his other hand rubbing his fingers across his lips. 

        "Someone should go retrieve it. I'll go with you, Minho." I offered. 

        "I should come, too." Alby said, stepping forward. 

        Minho nodded in agreement. "Thalia, you should stay here with Newt and hold the fort down. Alby, you come with me." 

        We split up and Minho took Alby to the map room to get him supplies. A few minutes later, Newt and I met them at the doors. I watched with a sinking feeling as they raced into the dark corridors of the Maze without a second glance.