It had been a week. One week. Her ankle was better, but Jeff and Clint were being very cautious. She healed well so far, but one wrong move could ruin their hard work.
But Emma was going nuts. After five days, they let her return to her room, but being there was worse. There were no windows. It was dark. Newt would help her to the hammocks, where she would swing for hours but was bored all the time.
A new Greenie had arrived, but she didn't attend the bonfire. At the time, it was her second day of bed rest. It was better for her to stay in bed. It wasn't ideal, but she knew there would be more. Newt and Zart were kind enough to stay with her. They hung out. Jack joined them with food. Minho and Ben showed up as well, but only for a bit. They went to bed early since they had to run in the Maze in the morning. Dmitri came as well. He had apologized for what happened, but she didn't blame him.
Now, a week later, she was still on rest. Luckily, Alby had a plan. He was going to let her help Frypan cut vegetables in the kitchen. It would give her something to do. He agreed because she was driving him crazy with her complaints about sitting around. Most Gladers would be thrilled to have time off, but she was different. Always having to prove herself.
Still, it wasn't enough for Emma. So, when she knew everyone was busy at dinner, she snuck out of the Homestead. Her ankle was bruised, but it didn't hurt too bad. She hobbled around the Homestead, going by the trees. The sun felt great on her skin. It felt nice to be outside. Her goal was to get to the tree hut, but that never happened. After a bit, her ankle started to hurt. Unfortunately, she was far from the Homestead. "Shuck, shuck," she muttered under her breath. Her entire leg hurt.
Before she could think of a plan, someone approached. "Greenie, hey." It was Jordan. "What are you doing out? You're supposed to be on bed rest."
Emma closed her eyes, a sigh escaping. It was just her luck that Jordan would find her. He always found her. Now, she was injured and couldn't get away. "Was just out for a walk."
"You okay?" He eyed her. "Does your ankle hurt?"
"No." Emma accidentally placed more weight on her ankle. The pain caused her to wince.
Jordan raised an eyebrow. "Come on. I'll help you get back before Newt catches you." He wrapped an arm around her, his hand resting on her lower back. It was unnecessarily low.
"No," Emma gently tried to move away from Jordan. She struggled with the pain in her ankle. "I really don't need any help. I can manage. Thank you." She would rather go alone.
"Come on. It's really no trouble. Let me help you." It was as if he wasn't hearing her.
Jordan tried to touch her again, but Emma stepped back. "I'm really fine. I don't need any help, okay?" She didn't want him touching her. They weren't close friends. It would be different if it were Newt, Zart, or Jack. Someone she considered a friend—someone she trusted.
"Come on-" his hands reached out, fingers barely brushing over her arm.
Emma kept moving away from him. He wasn't listening to her. "I'm fine. I don't need your help. I don't want it." It was starting to get weird. Why wasn't he letting it go? Nobody else pushed this much.
"Come on." His tone was getting angrier. "You let others help you. Why can't I?"
Jordan grabbed her arm roughly. Emma ripped her arm away, stumbling back. "Stop. I'm-" as she kept moving backward, her back hit something solid. It surprised her. She looked up to see Gally, a scowl on his face.
"Everything all right here?" His eyes remained locked on Jordan. It was the first time Emma had seen him since the incident. She had wanted to see him, but he never came to visit. She started to fear he still hated her, that whatever bonded them that day only mattered to her.
"Fine," Jordan spoke rudely. He was aggravated with Gally for interrupting them. "I was just helping Emma here. If you'll excuse us."
As he stepped closer, Emma subconsciously moved back. That was hard with Gally behind her. She pressed herself further into his chest. Gally tensed, growing angry. That anger wasn't directed at Emma. It was directed at Jordan. He was making her uncomfortable. It was clear to anyone watching.
"Emma," he said her name gently. It was a stark contrast from his expression. The girl looked up at him again, eyes full of an emotion he had never seen in her before. It wasn't fear, but it was close. It shocked him. Emma didn't even look that way when she fell from the ladder. Gally cleared his throat, finding his emotions hard to understand. "Jeff's looking for you. You left your required bedrest." Emma stared at him confused. "He sent me to find you to make sure you got back without any problems."
Her lips parted, unsure how true his words were. However, she didn't care if it was a lie. Anything to get her out of the situation she currently found herself in. "Great, thanks, Gally. I'll go now." His actions next were fast. So fast, she barely had time to process them. Gally moved her body, guiding her toward the Med-Jack hut, his hand on her upper back as he helped her take the weight off her ankle. The Med-Jack hut wasn't where she came from, but it didn't matter. It was closer than the Homestead.
Gally kept his hand on her upper back, his touch gentle but steady. It offered her enough support to be considered friendly. His touch was different than Jordan's. It was warm and inviting. She didn't feel uncomfortable or unsafe with him.
For a moment, they walked together silently. She was grateful Gally had found her when he did. She was stuck in the most uncomfortable situation of her life. "You okay?"
"Yeah," she forced a smile, wanting to reassure him. "I'm fine." But they both knew it was a lie. It went silent again. They kept walking slowly because her ankle hurt. Jeff wasn't in the Med-Jack hut when they arrived. He wasn't anywhere to be seen. That wasn't surprising. Emma figured his words were a lie. "Thank you," she whispered as she sat down.
"You don't have to thank me," Gally responded. He stood in front of her, hesitant about what to do next. "Are you okay?" He had just asked that question.
"Yeah," she said again. "It kind of hurts to walk, but it's not nearly as bad. I think the bruising is starting to fade." The bruises were still dark but turning green. She thought stretching her legs would do her some good. "Probably should have stayed off of it, but I was bored."
"I meant with whatever I just interrupted," Gally corrected.
Emma's shoulders tensed. She was hoping he wouldn't say anything. That way, they could pretend it never happened. "Oh, yeah." She tried to brush off the incident. "Happens sometimes. Not a big deal." And it wasn't. It was nothing to worry about.
Gally looked alarmed by her words. "That's happened before?"
Emma shrugged. "Sometimes, I guess. Shanks get close, but they always stop." But Jordan hadn't. He kept going even after she said no. That had never happened before. Some Gladers liked to joke, flirt even, but they never went that far. They always stopped before it went far because they did it as a joke. Usually, Emma would laugh, enjoying the playfully banter. She did not enjoy what happened with Jordan. Sadly, it wasn't the first time. He had a tendency to be overly friendly, almost in a creepy way.
"But not Jordan?" She wasn't sure what to say. What was she supposed to say? He hadn't broken any rules. It wasn't worth making a big deal over. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"What was I going to say?" Emma stared at him sadly. "He makes me uncomfortable? It's not against the rules to be weird." Gally huffed, shaking his head in anger. He was furious with Jordan and himself for not noticing the signs sooner. "It's really not a big deal, Gally." Emma didn't want to talk about it. It didn't matter. What had her interest now was Gally. Two weeks ago, she swore the Builder hated her, but then he helped her and spoke to her in a way that made her insides twist. Then, he ignored her again. She didn't understand why. Before he could speak, she did. "You never came to see me."
Gally closed his mouth, looking away from her. He hadn't expected Emma to address his absence. "I didn't think you wanted me to."
She huffed, rolling her eyes. She did want him to visit. "Why wouldn't I? We're friends, right? You helped me." Gally was never speechless, but he was now. He had no idea what to say. What was he supposed to say? That he stood outside the Med-Jack hut to make sure she was okay? That he was worried about her? He couldn't. He wouldn't. "I don't understand."
Truthfully, neither did he. He didn't understand what he felt. He just knew it was different, and Gally hated change. "I didn't hate you, by the way," Gally spoke awkwardly. The conversation was going to give her whiplash with the constant change in directions.
There was a pause on her part. It was an odd shift in the conversation but something she welcomed. Progress was slow with Gally. She had to move at his pace. "I know." He had told her that already. "But you definitely didn't like me."
He wanted to smile but couldn't. "I'm not good with change," he found himself saying. "I don't-" Gally looked away from her.
"You don't have to explain it to me," Emma cut him off. She didn't want Gally to overwhelm himself and shut her out again. "I get it. Some random girl shows up and disrupts the ways of the Glade that had become routine after three years. It's different, scary. Trust me. I understand. You don't have to explain it to me. I know." Gally nodded, relieved she understood what he wanted to say. It spared him the embarrassment of saying it. "But I'm not a bad person, and I'd really like to be friends. And if not friends, then just treat me like a regular Glader."
Emma wanted to be friends. Gally had drawn her in over the last few weeks. He captivated her attention in a way she didn't understand. Friends was ideal, but it would be okay if he treated her equally. It would be enough.
"We can do that," he muttered.
"Be friends?" She asked hopefully. All Gally did was nod.