Grace remembered when she came up in the box nearly three weeks ago. So much had happened since then. Being in the Glade was still overwhelming, but being the only girl was a whole other story. Alby had set ground rules pretty quickly, and after a few days, not many people stared anymore. She was thankful for that, but still, there were a few. It was easier to ignore them now.
Since her arrival she had been given a job, Med-Jack. It wasn't her first choice, but at the time, it seemed smart. Keeping her inside the Med-Jack hunt and away from curious eyes meant everyone could do their jobs. Clint and Jeff were the other two Med-jacks, and Grace loved being around them. Typically the only people who needed help were the Slicers, but occasionally a builder would stumble in. Clint was the Keeper of the Med-Jacks and took it upon himself to teach Grace everything he had learned, which wasn't much because they didn't have overly serious injuries. Any that were serious, well, they didn't speak about those.
The days were repetitive, but they kept a nice rhythm. Today Winston was inside the small hut, a particularly nasty cut on his hand. Clint and Jeff were both attending to it. Grace stood next to Jeff, watching as they fixed the injury.
The three were preoccupied with Winston that they hadn't noticed Newt walk in. He paused at the door, watching Grace closely. After a moment, he cleared his throat. The blonde girl glanced up and smiled seeing the boy. "Newt," Clint addressed him. "What can we do for you?"
He lifted his left hand, "scratched myself. Zart said I had to have it check it out."
Clint squinted as if he was trying to see the injury. However, it was too small, and they were too far away. "Okay," he muttered. "Grace, you can handle it."
The girl's heart dropped in her chest at the order. "By myself?"
Jeff laughed but quickly hid it with a cough. "Yeah?"
"Okay," she stuttered. Stepping around the group, she walked towards Newt. "Sit here."
"Whatever you say, She-Bean." Grace laughed at the nickname and grabbed a small tray of supplies. Once she had everything needed, she sat down beside him.
"Let me see."
Newt flipped his hand around showing what appeared to be a papercut. He didn't seem overly concerned about the injury, and that calmed her. "I feel honored to be your first patient." Grace bit her lip as she grabbed the cleaning pad. As soon as the pad touched his skin, Newt gasped.
Grace drew her hand back, "did I hurt you?" She instantly felt guilty, and her cheeks darkened in embarrassment.
"No," Newt laughed. "I'm just messing with you, Greenie."
Her body untensed, and she rolled her eyes. "Thanks." Regrabbing his hand, she felt no hesitation cleaning the wound. Newt stayed relatively still after that, letting Grace clean the minor injury. "How did you manage to do this?"
"Some bark," he brushed off the subject. It was clear it didn't matter. "Wasn't paying attention."
"Well," Grace set down her supplies. She grabbed a small bandage and put it over the mark. "Tell Frypan to let you have an extra scoop of soup tonight. Med-jacks orders."
"I'm sure that will go over well," Newt chuckled.
Grace shrugged, "worth a shot." Pulling her hands away, she smiled proudly. It was an easier injury, but it was her first on her own. Three weeks ago, she never imagined things turning out the way they had. It took her a full day to speak to anyone other than Newt. Now she was a fully trained Med-jack. "All done."
"Wow," Jeff turned to her. "You're already a real natural."
"Hey," she glared at him. "Slim it, Shuckhead."
"Shuckface," Winson, Clint, and Newt corrected at the same time.
The Glader slang was still new to her, but she liked trying to use it. Everyone else seemed so used to it, even the Greenie before her, Brandon. It was natural to them, and Grace wanted that. "Okay, okay. I'm trying."
Newt pulled his hand away, eyeing the small bandage. "Thanks, She-Bean."
"Yeah, yeah," Grace waved him off. "Go back to planting tomatoes."
Newt chuckled and stood up, "see you at dinner?"
"Yeah," they always sat together. "See you then."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Grace sat next to Newt at one of the tables. The other Gladers who had their dinner were at their own tables. From what Grace had gathered, most of them hung around the people they worked with. Slicers sat with other Slicers. Builders sat with the other Builders. It made sense. They hung around their friends, and your friends are who you spend the most time with.
On Grace's other side was Jeff, and across from him was Clint. The people she worked with. Sitting next to Clint was Zart, the Keeper of the Track-Hoes. He worked alongside Newt, but Newt sat with her. They had started an unlikely friendship because he was the one who jumped in the box that day. Typically it was Gally, but not that day. Grace was grateful for that. She liked Newt. They were really good friends.
"This tastes like wet socks," Jeff muttered taking a sip of his soup.
"Have a lot of experience in eating wet socks, do you, Jeff?" The grin on Clint's face was bright. Jeff paused to glare at him, not finding his words amusing.
"I will throw this at you."
Newt sighed, "and you'll be thrown in the Pit for it."
Jeff debated his next movements, "will there be food?"
"No."
"Shuck." Any thoughts about tossing his bowl at Clint were long gone.
Grace couldn't help but laugh at their interaction. Since meeting Clint and Jeff, their conversations have never failed to make her laugh. "Newt," she looked at him. "How's your hand?"
"Bloody amazing thanks to you." He winked at her.
Zart raised an eyebrow, "whys that?"
"I was She-Beans first patient."
That caused him to laugh, "surprised your hands still intact."
"Hey," Grace called out at him.
"I'm kidding," Zart put his hands up in mock surrender.
"Hey," a new voice said. The group looked to their right to see a dirty blond-haired boy. Grace had seen his face before. He was a Runner. But she wasn't sure of his name.
"Ben, hey," Newt greeted him. Grace made sure to remember his name. Ben. "Are you joining us?"
"Yeah," he squeezed in between Zart and Clint. "What are you guys talking about?"
"Grace's first day on her own." Jeff placed a hand on her shoulder. "She's a fully trained Med-Jack now."
"Congratulations," he smiled at her. "I don't think we've met. I'm Ben." She knew a lot of the people in the Glade. Most were eager to meet the only girl. However, the Runners were a different story. They weren't in the Glade as much. To busy running in the Maze and then mapping out what they found. She usually only saw them at night when they ate, but they always sat together. They hardly spoke to her, and she was partly convinced they were so wrapped up in figuring out the maze they didn't even realize she was there.
"I'm Grace."
"I know," he smirked. She nervously glanced at Newt, but his relaxed posture caused her to relax. In all honesty, the Runners somewhat frightened her, but she wasn't sure why.
"I was her first patient today," Newt spoke up. "And she did wonderfully."
"Because your injury was a paper cut," Grace explained to Ben. "I couldn't have possibly messed it up."
"You could have," Zart shrugged.
"Thanks, Zart," she said sarcastically.
Newt chuckled, but Ben changed the topic swiftly. "How do you like the Glade so far?"
Grace blinked a few times, "it's fine."
Meanwhile, Jeff glanced at Clint, who merely rolled his eyes. In the start, everyone was interested in Grace. She was the first female they ever remembered seeing. But the longer she was there, the more the people saw her as just another Glader. That included Jeff and Clint, her closest friends. "Good," Ben seemed confident in himself. "And everyone's treating you well?"
The blonde girl never had a chance to respond. Clint beat her to it. "As well as other Greenie's. No special treatment for the She-Bean. Alby's orders."
"She-Bean," he raised an eyebrow.
"Newt came up with it," Grace sighed. "And it stuck after that." Now everyone around referred to her by the stupid nickname. Taking a bite of her soup, she realized it was gone already. By now, everyone had finished, other than Ben. He didn't have any food to begin with. As Newt grabbed his bowl and stood up, Grace held hers. "Will you bring mine with yours?"
Newt huffed, "I thought we established no special treatment?"
"Please," Grace dragged out the words.
"Fine." With that, he grabbed her bowl. Clint stood up also, grabbing Jeff's. Zart got up, sipping the remains of his soup and stumbling after them.
"So," Grace focused on Ben. Since her arrival, Alby had left out a few things. The Maze was one of them. It was still a mystery to her. She tried not to ask too many questions, fearing she would annoy the others. As the only girl in the Glade, fitting in was a challenge on its own. "You're a Runner, right?"
"Yeah," he nodded. "I am."
"What's that like?"
"Tiring."
She laughed at his words causing him to smile. "I can image that."
"But I like to th-"
"Hey," Newt interrupted them. "Want to head back to the Homestead with me?"
"Oh, yeah," Grace pushed away from the table. "Nice meeting you, Ben. I'll see you around."
"Yeah," his shoulders fell. "Bye."