A/N: Chapter of Gally's POV. I wrote it in 3rd person because that just seemed more handy. Starts after Valerie went into the maze.
TW ⚠️: Discussion of suicide.
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"What do you mean you saw her go in there?" He slammed Mike into a wall, pointing his index finger at his chest and holding his wrist in front of Mike's throat so the boy had no chance of escaping.
His face twitched into fear at Gally's way of acting. "I-I just saw her go! I swear!"
Gally was hesitant. It wouldn't be impossible and it wasn't such a strange thought. She always talked about going into the maze, yet it surprised him a girl like... her broke the rules.
"I don't believe you."
Mike shook his head. "Do you see her anywhere then?"
He took a look around, not noticing the red hair he usually liked a lot more than he should. "She can be everywhere. Might consider even looking in a damn closet, hm?"
"That wasn't me!" Mike defended. "I- I swear."
"I know it wasn't you, piece of klunk. And stop swearing stuff. Get to work." Gally roughly let go of the Builder, who rushed away fast. He sighed, not knowing what to do.
He could use the excuse 'Yeah, no freeloaders, that's why I came looking for you' once he found her, but that would be lame. Though he also couldn't say 'I was, as Newt would say, bloody worried about you. Now get your ass to work'.
Yet he was worried. He couldn't tell if it was because she was the only girl, his builder, or that he actually just cared... but he was definitely worried and went out to search for Alby.
Not even ten minutes later, it sounded, "Gally, get your butt to work and stop bothering me. She's probably just taking a shower or whatever."
The rest of the day he tried not to think about her and went on with his work, which looked quite sloppy. It always did. He remembered her telling him that it was nicer to have things perfect while he replied to work faster so they could get more done. Obviously, she might've been right. Maybe.
She wasn't that bad at building. It just took a lot of time, which was not handy. She didn't belong in the kitchen as a woman (and Gally had seen her cook. She couldn't even cut potatoes without almost chopping her own fingers off). He had definitely seen her run, and she was fast. Fast enough to do it, he knew. And yet Minho ignored her and he did too. But maybe now he was regretting not ever complimenting her.
Or saying she was being dramatic. She was never being dramatic. Not a minute he had thought that before, only when she was crying in his hut. Maybe crying girls... triggered him...?
"Alby!" The name echoed through the Glade about half an hour before the Doors would close. Gally jumped straight up, aware of anything that would happen and quite happy to leave the other Builders. "Alby!"
The boy who spoke's voice sounded so broken and hopeless, no one got what was going on in the first seconds. Until Minho, sweating and dirty, took one step into the Glade with a body in his arms. A certain redhead.
Fast enough to be the first to reach Minho, Gally ran over to the duo, staring with wide eyes. She lay in his arms, bridal style, to be specific.
Her skin was deathly pale. Too pale for someone who spent her days in the sun and even for someone who stayed inside all day. Her lips were colorless and chapped, almost turning blue. Her red hair was knotted, her clothes ripped, and oh. Oh, her leg.
Her leg wasn't in a normal position. It barely looked like a leg. It made all the Gladers that surrounded the two by now wince. Gally quickly averted his eyes from that horrible sight and focused on her face again. Blood stuck on the side of her head, coming from a deep wound. Almost a big hole.
She looked dead.
He bit his lip at that thought. Immediately he regretted he never told her sorry for saying she was dramatic... or anything else he had done.
~
The minute Minho assured she was alive (but barely), everyone went crazy. The Med-jacks came running to get Valerie in a Med Bed upstairs the Homestead. Alby commanded Minho to explain what happened and come with them. Gally couldn't help but to follow. He had to know what was going on and how it would end. She was still his Builder, after all. He was her keeper— not in a weird way.
She lay on the bed, sheets covering her all the way to her chin. Her head lay to the side. The wound on it was patched up and covered in band-aids. A wet cloth lay on her paper-white skin. It was about an hour after Minho got out of the maze.
"What happened, Minho?" Alby didn't seem to bother Gally's company and just stared at the Runner with deeply furrowed eyebrows.
He was shaking. Minho, the keeper of the Runners, had tears in his eyes and looked more upset than anyone did. "I was runnin' through the maze, suddenly saw her body hanging there, against the wall. Leg was stuck in the ivy, blood from her head dropping onto the ground. Same as..." He cut himself off, pressing his lips together.
"Newt." Alby finished. He didn't show much emotion, though his eyes said enough about how bad he felt. "Two times. Two. Shuckin'. Times. And where the hell is Newt? I told him to come here!"
Clint spoke up, "It's his best friend. We know that he knew what happened the minute he saw her like this. You think that after he went through the same thing as her, he's happy to look at her? Hear the same symptoms? Visit gladly?"
Gally froze in his place. The same as Newt? But Newt tried to— She tried to kill herself? He had no idea what happened, but that was the last thing he would've thought of.
She seemed so happy. She really did.
Alby rubbed his forehead and pinched the bridge of his nose. "The hell did I do wrong in leading this shuck place that lead to two suicide attempts?"
"Don't blame yourself, Alby," Clint told him.
"I ain't blaming myself." He muttered.
"As you should." Minho cleared his throat. "Blame his Builders." He pointed at Gally. "And him."
The boy's eyes widened. "My Builders?" He frowned. "You blame your responsibility for letting both Luke and Valerie walk in there."
Alby grunted, looking like he was about to punch Gally. "Do not defend your Builders."
"I'm not defending them." He snapped. "I'm saying that that's not my responsibility, so don't say that they're my builders. Do you understand that I've definitely tried to stop their comments? That whatever they did when I wasn't there, are things you can't blame me for?"
"You gave them a warning. One single warning. You think that's gonna stop them?"
His comebacks already left him behind. He felt his heart sink in his chest. Maybe they were right. "I'm not saying it isn't my fault, but still, whatever they did to her, is not my responsibility. Even when they're my Builders. I can't control what they do when I'm not there."
Minho got closer to him, pointing his finger at his chest like Gally had done to Mike earlier. "Ben had to stand up for her just because you didn't. You humiliated her by forcing her into a fight-."
"Woah, woah, woah. Let's not involve those stupid fights in here, Minho." He interrupted. "Those are just-."
"Games? For fun?" Now Minho cut him off. "Oh, so locking someone in a closet and letting them have a nice panic attack is fun too?"
I helped her, he wanted to scream. I made her get rid of that panic attack. But of course, that's the part they forget about. Gally bet they didn't even know.
And maybe they were right. Maybe it was his fault. His Builders. He only gave them one warning and never stopped their comments except for yelling that they should get to work or saying their names so they wouldn't get too rough.
He told her she was being dramatic when she wasn't. When she was crying in his hut, desperately begging for him to help save her brother, and he didn't do anything but tell her she was being dramatic.
As his heart started to hurt more and his face was dropping, Alby asked about the symptoms from before the attempt.
"Sleep problems, recent trauma, less eating or change of eating patterns... there's probably more, but those are most common," Jeff explained.
She had dark circles under her eyes. Newt did have to drag her out of bed sometimes. She only stared at her plate when she was 'happily' talking with Luke. She never really took a bite or sip of milk. But trauma? He couldn't think of anything. Or did the Builders really traumatize her?
It slowly came to his mind, and his heart fell even more. It was his fault. It really was. Minho was right.
He should've checked up on her the minute he noticed that she was acting differently. Because he had noticed, yet she seemed very happy. He should've, he should've, he should've.
"I should have." He muttered under his breath. The others were already busy talking about other stuff as the color drained away from his face. It was his fault, no denying it.
"Gally—." Clint started, but the Builder shook his head, rubbing his temples and slowly moving to the door.
"I need to go." He announced with a voice he tried to keep calm. It turned out shaky anyway.
~
A/N: Do you think it's Gally's fault? Lmk your opinions!