When We're Older- The Maze Runner (Newt)

glitching

happy inauguration day ! hehe

Sometimes, it amazed me how much can change in a month. Attitudes towards people, feelings towards the Earth, how you live your life, the things you say... But I don't think anything's surprised me as much as these past few weeks have.

The boys still called me Greenie, but that was when I didn't remind them of my name. I had convinced Alby and Newt to make the boys take showers every morning, and the amount of praise and respect I gained from that simple little change was enough to make me drop dead. Chuck timed everyone each morning, and the only change that they had to make was the time everyone woke up. Nobody had a problem with it, of course, the boys all enjoyed the water in the morning. Even if it was freezing cold. I also made them wash their hands before every meal, and use a napkin. It saved a lot of germs, and it certainly saved me from living with the thought that they wiped their dirty hands on their clothes that poor Chuck had to clean.

To my surprise, Newt had told me that the boys no longer thought of me as a piece of meat, dangling on a stick. They thought of me as one of them. A sort of caretaker for the time being. One to make sure they were all doing okay, and keeping themselves well-rested and well-fed. When someone needed cheering up, they would come to me, and I would stop everything I was doing to console them. A couple of days ago, a little fourteen-year-old kid came up to me telling me about how he just wanted to get out of here, and that he felt like he still had family alive. The story almost sent me into a mental breakdown, it was so sad. But I listened, sometimes that's the only thing you can do.

Of course, Newt and I kept our promise with each other, and he was constantly asking me how I was doing. Since I unsurprisingly got the job as a Track-Hoe, I spent most of my time with him. I learned about the things he did when he was upset. He would sigh, and then rub his eyes with his palms. When he was angry he would clench his jaw and spread out his hands, then clench them into tight fists. When he was happy, he smiled and talked about random things. I learned that he wanted to go to an arcade—whatever that was—and an amusement park. He told me that he can faintly remember a rollercoaster and what it looked like, but he couldn't ever remember riding one. I told him that trying to remember is like looking through murky water. He agreed.

Every morning, he would wake me up and we would watch the sunrise together with our heads pressed against the wall, watching as the sun showed itself to the rest of the Glade. Sometimes, we would watch it set as well, but most of the time, I just watched Newt as he looked at the walls of the Glade, lost in his thoughts.

I had also learned a lot about the Runners. When Newt or Alby wasn't around, I spent my time with Minho, who I had grown fond of in the month that I've been here. He told me what the strange building by the deadheads was. Maps. He told me how he had to track which way he ran and then go to the map room to discuss it with the other runners, even if they didn't find anything new. Occasionally, Minho would partake in a little race, but only in the depths of the forest when nobody was paying attention.

Chuck had become like my best friend. Whenever one of us was late for a meal, we would get a plate for each other so that we didn't have to deal with the bottom of the pot, or the cold food. I really appreciated it, because usually, I made sure that all of the other boys ate before me. Chuck earned some major kudos with Newt, who invited him to sit with us every day after he caught on to the things we did for each other. When we were feeling playful, both of us would play pranks on the boys. Little pranks, but enough to make them annoyed with us. We had this one where we would shake the outhouse and spill the water all over everyone. That was personally my favorite. We watched out for each other...I didn't tell him this, but I thought of him as my child. Even though I was maybe five years older than him.