"Hey, Newt." Y/N smiled at him welcomingly the moment the boy had walked into the medjack hut.
Unfortunately, they weren't met with a smile back. Newt's face was contorted as if he'd just bitten into the most sour lemon there ever were to exist and his hand was on his ribcage beneath his shirt.
Grimacing, he halted in the doorway. "Are Clint Or Jeff here?" He asked rather shortly.
Y/N shook their head. "Clint's on break and Jeff's with Winston. I can help if you want."
Blinking a few times and shaking his head weakly, Newt raised his other hand and waved Y/N off. "Nah, it's alright. I'll come back later."
"Okay?" Y/N shrugged and went back to what they were doing. What was wrong with Newt, they had no clue but weren't about to press him for answers. Newt wasn't one to usually let the world know what was going on with him, so they figured it wasn't something worth fighting.
The universe, however, had other plans and Newt came stumbling back into the medjack hut just seconds later. His face had gotten a whole lot paler and his hands were evidently very shaky as he reached up for his shoulder in agony after having crashed into the doorframe. Y/N jumped up from where they were and caught the second in command before he could do more damage than was already done. Carefully, they guide him to the cot and had him sit down.
Just sitting there, Y/N began to feel a familiar uneasiness filter into every last bit of their body as they scanned over Newt. He was shivering, his body covered in sweat and yet his body radiated heat. By just placing heir hand on his back, they could feel how rapidly his lungs were taking in air and how his heart was obviously working in overdrive. The second in command was confused and disorientated, mumbling incoherent things and he grasped at his side in pain.
"Newt, you need to lay down." Y/N warned, growing more and more wary. Not really responding, Y/N had to guide him to lay down. They reached for the bucket of cold water and placed a cloth on his head.
Wary of what they might find, Y/N took a deep breath and reached for Newt's arm. He still had a firm grip on his side and the mere touch of Y/N's hand on his arm caused him to jolt. That was enough to worry Y/N even more and so without thinking too hard about it, they lift his shirt and pulled his hand away. Sure enough, there on his ribcage was a deep gash that was at least a couple of days old. To make matters worse, it was clearly infected.
"Clint!" Y/N ran to the doorway and hollered out into the Glade. "Help!"
Luckily for Y/N, Clint had just been eating his lunch outside of the hut a few metres away under a tree. He was there in an instant, already afraid of what he'd soon be dealing with seeing that Y/N never asked for help unless things were dire.
Sure enough, Clint also got the same feeling Y/N had and knew what was going on. Newt had an infected wound that he'd been trying to hide in hopes of not having to bother anyone. Of course he took the selfless care he held for his fellow Gladers to the highest level he possibly could.
Clint and Y/N worked away at Newt's wound for a lot longer than they would have ever hoped to. Newt put up a good fight, both against Y/N and Clint but also for putting up with the horrendous pain he was in. By the time they were done, Newt's eyes were heavy and he looked completely exhausted. His fever seemed to be going down but Y/N didn't exactly trust it wouldn't come back.
"You should stay here tonight so we can keep an eye on you," Clint placed a couple of blankets on the cot Newt sat on and sighed. "I'll take first watch if you wanna get a couple hours of rest, Y/N."
"Ah, sure." Y/N shrugged. They'd stay up all night if Clint had asked them to, but they were also happy to take a rest. "I'll be back later."
They tried to say goodbye to both Clint and Newt with their eyes but it seemed to fail. The second in command really was avoiding eye contact. Y/N figured he must just have been too tired.
When it came time for their shift, Y/N yawned and stretched as they entered the medjack hut. Clint was there, sat beside the bed, organizing some supplies. He looked up and smiled weakly at Y/N before getting up to meet them at the door.
"How's he doing?" Y/N asked groggily.
"Alright," Clint whispered. "He's asleep so I've waited a little longer than normal to change his bandages. You up for it or would you like me to do it before I leave?"
Y/N appreciated he'd asked. And honestly, they wanted to tell Clint they'd rather have him do it. But, they also saw how out of sorts Clint was and how badly he needed to sleep. "It's okay, I've got it. You go get some rest. You've done plenty today already."
"Thanks, Y/N. You're the best." Clint put a hand on their shoulder and squeezed gently as he shuffled his way out the door, rubbing his tired eyes.
Y/N sat down in the chair at Newt's bedside and sighed softly. Laying there, sleeping, Y/N really did not want to have to change his bandages. They didn't want to wake him, disturb his peace or otherwise. So very rarely did Newt ever get a full nights sleep or a chance to rest because his attention was always of high demand around here. For once, they just wanted to let him sleep.
"If you're going to change the bandages, can we please get it over with?" He asked. Y/N assumed he meant for it to sound sarcastic, but his voice sounded truly downcast.
"Sorry," Y/N mumbled, beginning to get the supplies in order. "I was just thinking about how you never can catch a break and I was wishing I could let you sleep for once."
Newt almost chuckled. "I think this is the worlds cruel way of reigning me in."
"Yeah, it kinda is." Y/N laughed in agreement. "Because you won't listen to any of us, so the world gave you a good slap on the rest with this one."
"Yeah," Newt sighed. "Thank you for at least wishing you could let me sleep."
"You're welcome," Y/N smiled at him softly. "Sooner we change this bandage, the sooner you can get back to sleeping. So, let's get it over with."
Newt understood and he moved to lay on his back so the side of his body with the wound faced Y/N. He lift his arm over his chest and grabbed his opposite shoulder, tensing.
"This might hurt a little," Y/N said softly as they raised his shirt and removed the old bandage.
Newt winced and the side of his body seemed to try and pull away from Y/N's touch. But, he held. Y/N tried to move as quickly as possible, but could only do so much without causing more pain.
Newt grew more and more uncomfortable. Agitated, more so. As Y/N cleaned the wound he kept moving, forcing them to pull away and start again each time it happened. This went on for way too long.
"Look, Newt, I'm sorry." Y/N finally broke. "You need this cleaned and this is the only way. Unless you want Clint or Jeff, but I highly doubt they'll be any gentler."
"Sorry," Newt muttered in embarrassment. "I don't need Clint or Jeff it just—it hurts."
"I know," Y/N tried their best to let him know they was doing everything they could to keep it as painless as possible. "Just hold on a couple more minutes, alright?"
Newt somehow managed and Y/N was finally able to lean back in the chair, taking in a breath they'd been holding for far too long. They wished they knew of some other way to treat wounds because they hated seeing their friends in pain while just trying to help them, especially Newt.
"...Are you staying?" Newt spoke up quietly, now seeming much more at rest.
"Yeah," Y/N began to clean up the supplies. "Same thing though, if you're more comfortable with Clint or Jeff I can—"
"No!" Newt jumped in with more energy than Y/N thought he had in the moment. "No—I mean, it'd be good if you stayed. I'm sorry if earlier it didn't seem that way."
"Oh," Y/N was a little taken aback. They had never really felt that Newt didn't want them there, it was more just them making sure he was comfortable with who was treating him. "It's alright. Now, stop saying sorry and get some sleep, yeah?"
"Okay," Newt tiredly, and still very much so not completely himself, relaxed and closed his eyes. His hand still remained over his side, probably just to keep some comforting pressure over the area.
Y/N knew this must be hard for Newt. The last time he'd spend the much time in the Medjacks, it had been under much different circumstances. Being back here, stuck in a cot, there was no doubt he was fighting something difficult inside. They finished cleaning up the supplies, dragged out a blanket from beneath the cot and made themselves as comfortable as possible in the chair by Newt.
Deep down, they knew he was still awake. Part of them wanted to talk to him, just to make it known to him that someone cared and could see past his facade. But they also feared that it would be an invasion of his space and privacy. So, they decided against it. Instead, they pulled the blanket up to their face, settled into the less than comfortable chair. "Goodnight, Newt."
Y/N, in the dim light, saw the boys face slightly lift with a small smile he fought to hold back. Maybe, things weren't so bad after all. None of Newt's strange behaviour had to do with the fact that he didn't want to be around them, and that was a reassuring thought they could sleep with.
When morning came, things weren't so peaceful. That bandage on his side was one again in need of being changed. It seemed that overnight, something in Newt had changed. No longer did Y/N get the feeling that he was so on the defensive about being cared for.
"I can't help you if you keep flinching like I've stabbed you with something!" They enamoured in frustration, probably a little louder than they'd meant to. The pair were laughing despite Y/N struggling to tend to Newt who refused to sit still.
But it didn't bother Y/N so much that he was a difficult patient. Because Newt's smile, despite being in the medjack hut with pain radiating from his side, was completely worth it.
Minho popped his head in to check out the ruckus. Rarely this early in the morning was there people stirring about in the Glade on his way to the maproom. And hearing two of his favourite voices bickering was something so enticing he couldn't evade it. There wasn't much else to do here in the Glade other than be all up in everyone else business anyways.
"Ever consider he's flinching because of you...?" Minho asked, plain faced before breaking into a mischievous smile. The runners ego might just have inflate by tenfold when he saw Newt's face go pale. Y/N looked as equally dumbfounded.
"Man you're as dense as a griever butt." He point his finger at Y/N. "I love you guys. See ya later."
With that, Minho ducked out of the hut and ran away. He'd done his work for the day.
Y/N slowly turned their gaze to Newt. They still sort of had a hand on his side. Newt's face was now tinged pink and Y/N took quick notice. "Is that—"
"Uhm—" Newt tried to clear his throat but it sort of failed miserably. The good news was, all of the pain in his side had evaporated, but instead had been replaced with embarrassment.
"I mean—" Y/N faltered. "I'd be glad to know if that's why—"
"I should have told you sooner," Newt ran a hand over his brow. "I'm sorry if I seemed like a jerk last night—I was just...nervous." He whispered the last bit.
"It's alright," Y/N stifled a laugh. While Newt was distracted, Y/N had finished placing on a new bandage. Then, they lift their hands to hold his head. They leaned down a little and pressed a light kiss onto his head.
Despite his thick hair, Newt knew what Y/N had done. He relaxed under the touch, leaning into it, and smiled. "Thanks, Y/N."
"Anytime," They whispered back. "Don't go getting yourself hurt anymore, but if you do, please come get it checked out right away."
"That, I can promise." Newt stifled a laugh and wrapped his arms around the medjacks sides. He was thankful to have such understanding people caring for him, and ever so slightly was upset with himself for ever having feared coming here for help.