― ➶ ―
Tiago opened the tent flap, ducking under it and walking inside. Two heads turned to look at him as he walked over.
"T," Brenda breathed out, a smile gracing her features.
Tiago gave her a small smile, relieved that she was okay. He bent down to hug her tightly. He held her for a few moments, clenching his eyes shut. He didn't want to think about his mother anymore. He didn't want to think about his father, or his sister, he just wanted to forget everything about the past hour.
"I'm glad you're okay," Tiago murmured as he pulled away, "but I can't say I'm not surprised. How did this even happen?"
"It was Thomas," Jorge said. "He's one of the Immunes, so the other doctor here took his blood and extracted the cure from it."
Tiago frowned. "That's how this cure works? They take blood from kids?"
"Apparently WCKD is willing to pay any price to 'save humanity'," Jorge grumbled. "Sick bastards."
Tiago looked back down at Brenda. She was clutching a metal case in one hand, and Tiago knew what was inside. His face softened. She was scared. She thought she was going to die.
"You're okay now, right?" he asked gently. "Not gonna Crank out anymore?"
"Not any time soon, anyway," Brenda muttered, a tired look overtaking her features. "It's not a proper cure. It only works for a certain amount of time."
Tiago frowned again. "So how long do you have before you need more?"
Brenda shrugged. "Dunno. Doctor said maybe a few months, but it's different for everyone."
Tiago didn't miss the emptiness in her voice. His frown deepened. He wished he could help, somehow, but he knew nothing would make her feel better. She was infected, and she would be infected for the rest of her life, relying on someone else to give their blood to keep her alive. Tiago couldn't imagine what she must've been feeling.
"Do you want to sleep?" he asked her, his voice still as gentle as possible. "We can leave, if you want."
Brenda looked as if she wanted to say no, but then she must've thought better of it and nodded her head.
"Please. I just ... I need to be alone, for a while."
Tiago nodded and rose from his seat immediately. Jorge followed, and after each pressing a kiss to her forehead, they left the tent.
"She's not okay," Tiago said to Jorge when they were outside. He ran a hand down his face. "She's scared, Jorge. I-I want to help, but―"
"There's nothing you can do," Jorge interjected quietly. He could see the distress forming on Tiago's face and immediately tried his best to calm the younger boy down. "She has to deal with this on her own."
"She'll be taking blood from people for the rest of her life," Tiago said, sorrowful gaze staring up at Jorge. The older man sighed and placed a hand on the back of Tiago's head.
"Tiago," he murmured, not breaking their gaze. "I know it's hard right now. It will get better." He paused. "You remember when I found you at that house? You were all alone, starving, crying, and you wouldn't leave your baby sister. Remember what I told you?"
Tiago felt the corners of his lips turn up as he answered, "You told me that as long as my heart was still beating, my sister would never leave me."
"Exactly," Jorge said, a grin forming on his lips. He glanced back at the tent. "Brenda is in a rough place, and she'll deal with this her own way. It's not up to you to save everyone else. It's not easy, but you have to let her come to you, if she needs to."
Tiago shook his head, too many thoughts clouding his mind. He was suddenly thinking about Kim, though he wasn't sure why. He tried his best to shake her face from his mind, but her smile was imprinted in his brain. Instinctively, Tiago reached toward Jorge and wrapped his arms around the man's shoulders. Jorge didn't let go of his head, cradling Tiago against his shoulder. They stood and hugged for a few minutes while Tiago tried to sort out his thoughts. When they pulled apart, Jorge noted that Tiago's eyes were clearer than they had been before.
"Do you know where Newt is?" he asked.
Jorge raised a questioning eyebrow―which Tiago tried his hardest to ignore―before pointing across the camp to a ridge. Tiago followed his arm and saw four boys sitting on rocks. Tiago thanked the man, and Jorge gave him a pat on the shoulder as he left.
― ➶ ―
"It's freezing up here," was how Tiago announced himself to the four other boys on the ridge. They turned to look up at him, all flashing him brief smiles. He smiled back, settling himself on the rock between Newt and Thomas. He saw Minho glance between himself and Newt before he went back to staring out across the camp.
"Hey, Aris!" Frypan called out. Tiago raised his head slightly, looking down at the camp to find Aris sitting near a fire, with Harriet and Sonya.
"Hey guys!" Aris called back, raising his arm in a wave. Tiago smiled.
"I kinda like that kid," Frypan mused, a bright grin on his face.
"Yeah ... still don't trust him though," Minho said. Thomas chuckled from beside Tiago. A breeze swept past them suddenly, making Tiago shiver violently.
"Jesus," he grumbled, trying to wrap his thin jacket around himself tighter. He clenched his jaw when the wind kept blowing, raising his hands to his mouth to blow on them for some sense of warmth. Suddenly a weight fell on his shoulders. Tiago glanced up to find a thick jacket resting there, and Newt's hands were pulling away as Tiago looked up.
"Didn't they give you anything warm?" Newt muttered, frowning down at Tiago's shivering form. Tiago shook his head. Newt rolled his eyes. "No wonder you're freezing then."
"Aren't you gonna get cold?" Tiago asked quietly, subconsciously shifting closer to the blond. Newt shook his head, looking out across the camp again. Tiago scoffed and finally moved all the way across the rock to press himself against Newt. He felt the blond relax slightly, and when Tiago grabbed his hand and clutched it between his own, he felt Newt lean on him a little more. Tiago gave a small smile of satisfaction. "Liar," he murmured, boldly moving to press his lips into Newt's hair.
Thomas interrupted their little moment by asking for Teresa's whereabouts. Newt answered, pointing behind him to another higher ridge, more of a flat plateau, where Teresa was standing. She was looking out across the landscape. Thomas left to see what she was doing, leaving the other four boys sitting there. After another ten or so minutes, Frypan started to complain about an empty stomach, so he and Minho left to find some food, leaving Newt and Tiago sitting on the ridge alone.
"You looked upset before," Newt said when a few minutes of silence had passed between them. Tiago turned his head to meet the blond's gaze, a confused frown adorning his features. "After you talked to your mum."
"Ah." Tiago glanced down at the ground, the memory of his mother's words still fresh in his mind. He frowned. "Did ... Was she angry?" he asked cautiously. "I mean, did you see her? Did she look mad?"
Newt shrugged, his eyes on Tiago. "I mean, I don't really know her, so I couldn't say. I don't think she was angry ..." He trailed off when he saw Tiago's shoulders tense slightly. Newt was hesitant when he reached his hand out. He set it on Tiago's shoulder as lightly as possible. He felt Tiago lean into the touch ever so slightly, so he deemed it safe to stay there. "Did you fight?"
Tiago nodded. "I don't know what the hell she expected to hear from me," he ground out, his tone clipped. "It was like she wanted me to be happy to see her again. And maybe I would've been, if she hadn't―" He cut himself off; it was an automatic defense he'd picked up over the years because he was told he overshared when he was younger.
"You don't have to tell me," Newt said quietly. "As long as you're not upset anymore."
Tiago turned to look at the blond, a smile forming on his lips.
"You really do care about people and their feelings, huh?"
"I care about you," Newt said before he could stop himself. His eyes widened when he realized what he'd said, and he went to fix himself, but found Tiago's lips on his before he could. It was quick. Newt had only just processed that they were kissing and then Tiago was pulling away. Newt scowled, turning his face away from the brunet. He heard Tiago chuckle. "I don't think it's fair for you to keep kissing me mid-sentence," Newt grumbled.
"Why not?" Newt didn't answer, which only made Tiago laugh more. He wrapped his arm around Newt's shoulders and pulled the blond into his chest. Newt almost tried to push away from him, but Tiago was warm so he figured it wouldn't hurt if he went along with it. "Looks to me like you liked it."
Newt huffed in response. He could feel the smile on Tiago's face when the older boy tilted his head down to kiss his cheek. He kept his lips there for a few beats, then pressed another lingering kiss there before moving down, trailing his lips to Newt's neck. Newt let out a small noise of surprise, but made no effort to stop Tiago as he kissed his neck. He even tilted his head upwards slightly to give Tiago easier access. He moved his hand to the back of Tiago's head, threading his fingers through the dark hair. When Tiago starting sucking, Newt yanked on his hair lightly, pulling the boy up for a proper kiss. Tiago let out a low sound of approval, which made Newt smirk as he pulled away.
"I think you enjoy it more than I do," he said, unable to refrain from teasing the older boy.
Tiago only licked his lips and smirked in response.
The two were silent for a few more minutes, huddled together and occasionally breathing warm air onto their entwined hands. Tiago felt comfortable for the first time in a few days. If he wasn't so cold, he definitely would have fallen asleep. Even in the freezing air, his eyes were fluttering shut every so often, his head lolling onto Newt's shoulder.
"Can you hear that?" Newt asked suddenly. Tiago felt the blond shift his shoulder, making him jerk his head up from it. "Listen."
Tiago's eyes were wide open now at the panicked tone in Newt's voice. He furrowed his brows, listening carefully for what the younger boy could clearly hear. When he concentrated, Tiago could definitely hear a faint whirring sound. He glanced up, the frown still on his face. Then lights came into view, over the hills in the distance. He stood up quickly, his eyes widening.
"Look."
Tiago pointed to the horizon, at the lights clearly advancing towards the camp. Newt stood as well, and Tiago heard him take in a shaky breath.
"WCKD ... We have to go, come on."
The blond gripped Tiago's shirt tightly, and Tiago didn't hesitate to turn and follow the younger back down the ridge. The sky was a dark blue-purple now, making it slightly more difficult to climb down than it was to climb up. Both boys slipped a few times, catching each other and then continuing to hurry as fast as they could without toppling over. Tiago could hear the whirring of the helicopter engines getting closer, could hear his own harsh breathing as he stumbled down the ridge.
Suddenly the whirring was above them, and then there was an insanely loud boom, and then everything was bright.
Hearing the helicopters had made Tiago instinctively drag Newt backwards, tucking them both behind a massive rock at the bottom of the ridge. When they looked past the rock, they saw the camp in flames. Tiago saw Newt move to run, but he grabbed his arm tightly before the blond could take off.
"Tiago―"
"Are you blind? The entire place is on fire, you can't just run in there," Tiago said harshly, fixing a glare on the younger boy's face.
"Minho and Frypan are in there, and god knows where Thomas is," Newt said loudly, panic evident in his eyes. "Aren't Brenda and Jorge in there too? Don't you want to save them?"
"I never said that," Tiago said, surprisingly calm given that Newt was absolutely right; he did want to save them. But Jorge had taught him better than to run into a battle without thinking things through. Tiago also knew that Jorge would do anything to save Brenda, and Jorge had survived longer than the both of them. "Look, Jorge knows what he's doing. They'll be fine. I need to get my bow, they took it into a tent near the medical one."
"I'm not going anywhere until I know where Fry and Minho are," Newt said stubbornly. Tiago could tell he wasn't thinking clearly; he could see the frantic edge to his eyes, hear it in his voice.
"Newt, you're going to get yourself killed if you run into that without any protection."
"Then come with me," Newt said, his voice getting higher in pitch as he spoke. "Follow me in. You can protect me, I know you can, just come―"
"I can't do anything without a bow and some arrows!" Tiago cried. He used both hands to grip Newt's shoulders tightly. "Newt, we can't do anything without a weapon."
Newt shook his head, forced himself out of Tiago's grip, and rushed off before Tiago could stop him.
"Newt!"
Tiago ran out from behind the rock, unthinking. He kept his eyes on Newt's sprinting figure. Newt was quick, but not quick enough. Tiago grabbed the back of his jacket, yanking Newt around.
"Tiago―"
Tiago quickly pressed his lips to Newt's, shutting the boy up for a few seconds. Newt shoved him off, his gaze hard. Tiago wasn't sure what expression was on his face, but it was enough to make Newt soften his gaze. He opened his mouth to say something, but Tiago spoke first.
"Newt?" he said quietly, voice questioning.
"Yeah?" Newt breathed out.
Tiago felt his throat tighten as he forced out his next words.
"Don't die."
They shared a look, one that Tiago knew was a promise. I'll try not to die if you try not to die. Newt nodded, his gaze firm and set once more, and then the two parted ways.
― ➶ ―
sorry for the incredibly long wait!! like i said in the author's note before this, i have been busy trying to prepare myself for university. as it turns out, i had most of this chapter written out anyway and i probably could've found some time to finish it earlier but i didn't want to stress out about it. i also wanted to make sure the chapter was good enough before publishing it.
i'm not sure how frequent updates are going to be after this chapter. i know there's only going to be about two more before the end of part one, possibly three chapters if i can drag it out long enough lol.
anyway, i hope you enjoyed and i'll see you whenever!! thanks for reading lol, vote and comment if you enjoyed :)