STEEL || The Scorch Trials • Newt [2]

Chapter 3

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I knew that Janson was off putting, but knowing that there were other Gladers, other kids that have been trapped in different Mazes like us? That was even crazier. There were other kids that have been in a Maze, lost people they cared about, and have practically been through what we have. It blew my mind the first time I heard it, it was just incredulous.

I walked into the cafeteria with someone escorting me, seeing a bunch of kids sitting at different tables, chatting with their friends. They were eating, laughing, and having a good time. I haven't seen any of that in a while.

"Hey, Rosalee!" A familiar voice called.

Minho walked up to me, looking a little gleeful. I didn't know if it was because he was happy to see me, or something else. Obviously, it was the bigger picture.

"Hey, Minho," I greeted. "What's going on?"

"We weren't the only Maze," he said, thrilled.

Not wanting to burst his bubble, I pretended to act surprised and walked with him to one of the tables where Thomas, Frypan, Winston and Newt were. They were talking with some other kids.

As soon as I sat down beside Newt, his cute smile spread across his face. I got butterflies in my stomach every time he did that, it would make my heart swoon. He slid a plate over to me, impressed that he didn't eat what was on it, because I certainly would have if I had mashed potatoes and fried chicken in front of me.

"Thank you," I said and picked up my fork.

Newt put his hand on my back, rubbing my spine with his palm gently. It felt warm and sent chills up my spine. I didn't know what was up with his sudden confidence to touch me in public, but I liked it. I nuzzled myself into him, being a little weird. He giggled before planting a kiss atop my head. Before I came along, I realized the other kids were telling them a story. Their story about how they escaped their Maze.

"Then, there was this big loud explosion, and these guys came out of nowhere. Started shooting up the place," one kid with the same skin color as Frypan explained.

"It was intense," another kid spoke after putting his drink down.

"They pulled us out of the Maze and brought us here."

That sounded pretty identical to how we got rescued from the Maze. It got me thinking about where they used to be. Did they come from different parts of the world? I didn't have much thought about it.

"What about the rest?" Newt asked. "The other people left behind in the Maze, what happened to them?"

The dark-skinned boy hesitated, then answered for him. "I don't know. I guess W.I.C.K.E.D. still has them."

We were silent before I spoke up. "How long have you guys been here?"

"Not long. Just a day or two." The dark-skinned kid nodded towards the back where another kid was sitting alone with his hood pulled over his head, looking down. "That kid over there, he's been here the longest. Almost a week."

"His Maze was nothing but girls," the guy sitting next to him said with a smirk.

We all glanced at him. I knitted my eyebrows together. I know he was a guy, but it was probably his hormones talking.

"Really?" Minho asked.

"Some guys have all the luck," the dark-skinned boy shrugged.

"I'm right here, you know," I called, waving my fork in their faces.

They smiled innocently and raised their hands. My friends laughed. After I had taken a bite of a carrot, Janson walked in with two other guys, holding a notebook of some sort in his hand. When he greeted us, the cafeteria went silent and all heads turned toward him. A few kids were shushing one another, wanting to listen to what he was about to say.

"Good evening gentlemen, ladies," he greeted. "You all know how this works. If you hear your name called, please rise in an orderly fashion, join my colleagues behind me where they will escort you to the eastern wing. Your new lives are about to begin."

A few applauds came from the crowd, then quiet down. New lives? I thought. What new lives? Janson flipped open the book and started reading the names. The kids that got picked high-fived each other, hugged, or quietly cheered. Some even laughed at one odd name, but Janson told them to settle down. My group and I sat quietly, listening to the names being called with Newt's arm around my shoulders. After a few names were called, he shut the notebook, and a few kids let out a whine of disappointment.

"Now, now, don't be discouraged. If I could take more, I would," Janson reassured them. "But there's always tomorrow. Your time will come. Thank you."

A few more applause broke out, then filled the air with chatter again.

"Where are they going?" Minho asked.

"Far from here," the dark-skinned boy replied and spun back to his plate. "Lucky bastards."

I ate my food silently, concentrating on my thoughts. I wondered what kind of a place where those kids were going to. Will it be a nice place where the sun is shining constantly down on the land where the grass is green and the water is clear? Or is it a dark place? Either way, they seemed pretty stoked about it. Who knows, maybe my friends and I would go there someday.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Thomas staring off behind me. Wanting to know what he was looking at, I turned my head towards the window. There, Dr. Crawford walked by with Teresa behind her, and two more female doctors followed. She changed her clothes into a white tank top and blue sweats. I heard Thomas mumbling something under his breath, but I couldn't hear what before he stood up to follow them. My friends and I watched him in confusion.

"Teresa!" He called. "Teresa!"

Before they crossed into the wing, I saw Teresa turning around to the sound of his voice. One of Janson's colleagues guarding the eastern wing stopped him from crossing the line where the kids were taken. Thomas looked like he was asking where they were taking her, to which the guy talked back. I couldn't hear them from where I was sitting. But after the guy was done, Thomas hesitated to go back to his seat. Eventually, he did. That got me wondering where they were taking Teresa as well, filling my brain with more suspicious thoughts.