Your POV
You were shaken awake again by Minho this time.
"Greenie, Y/n, get up."
You open your eyes to see Minho's face.
"Time?" You sit up and push him a foot away from you.
"4 AM."
"Ugh." You take a while to fold the blanket again and comb your hair with your fingers. You catch Minho admiring you and you pretend to not notice.
"We'll get your gear, then head off. The Maze opens a little while later, so we gotta go soon." Minho leaves the room, and you follow him.
You head to the washroom first, then grab as apple for breakfast.
Minho beckons you to a small room near the back of the Homestead. He fishes a key out of his pocket and unlocks the door with it. The room was not super spacious, and it was dusty. There were some chains, ropes, stuff like that. Minho uses a flashlight to find... a box full of running shoes.
"Here. What's your size?"
"My shoe size?"
"No, your head size. Of course it's your shoe size, shank." Minho rolls his eyes.
You decide not to question him anymore because he seems to have an attitude right now. You check the shoes you were wearing. "Sh/s (your shoe size)."
"Right. Smaller than ours, but it's because you're a girl, I bet." Minho takes a while to find the right shoes. He takes out a clean, new, pair of shoes with dark blue and gray accents.
You try them on. Minho uses the flashlight to search for something else. The shoes were perfect.
"Do I need to take these off when we're done?" You tuck your old shoes under the shelf where Minho grabbed the box.
"No, keep them." Minho muttered, arms still in the box. He pulls them out after feeling something he wanted to grab.
Minho gives you something he found out of the box. It was a plastic wristwatch. "This is very important, so never take it off. You may be able to tell the time by the sun, but this is more precise."
"Got it." You put it on the wrist of your dominant hand.
Minho picks up a silver material, which looked like underwear, then tossed it back in the box. "You won't be needing those."
"What's it for?" You finish tying your shoes and stand up.
"To keep us boys 'comfy' while running, if ya know."
"...I see."
"Here, put these gloves on. Protect your hands." Minho gives you a pair of leather gloves, similar to the ones he was wearing. Minho turns away to grab a backpack.
The Keeper hands you the backpack. "There's some stuff in there you'll need, like water bottles and a lunch pack. And some clothes and snacks, too."
"What do I need clothes for?" You peek inside to see a messily folded pair of shorts and a t-shirt.
"Just in case." Minho waits for you to adjusts the straps because they were too big for your shoulders. "You know, most Gladers don't have a chance to try out for a Runner."
"So I'm lucky?"
"Not lucky. Alby just thinks you're skilled enough to be, and so does Newt and Nick. Me too, in a way." Minho walks out of the room.
You follow him and shut the door, which he locks.
"We gotta go now. It's 5:20." Minho runs out of the Homestead. You notice, in the room nearby, that many people were still asleep.
"When do the Doors open?" You inquire.
"Half-past five." Minho also takes an apple from the kitchen for his breakfast.
You sit down with him, using the silence to eat. You finish before him.
You weren't scared of the Maze, just scared of what the Grievers could do. You don't know how they act or what they really look like. You had knives, which you didn't tell anybody yet, but it would be surprising if they haven't noticed them on your belt.
---
After about ten minutes, the Doors opened with a long series of scraping. Minho ran towards the North Door.
"I run through the Eighth Section of the Maze, and that's in the North Door. Stick close to me, yeah?" Minho waits for the door to open fully.
"Okay."
He ran in, and you followed, fueled by curiosity.
You kept close by his side, and it wasn't hard to do so. He was fast, and well-paced, but you kept up. Your stamina was higher than you thought.
There were lots of twists and turns, but no dead ends, as Newt said Minho knew his section well. You tried remembering every turn and which cardinal direction you both were facing every few minutes by the sun.
"We're just gonna go through randomly, see if we notice anything different today. If we're lucky, we might discover a new path." Minho said, his breathing short and light.
You were glad to be wearing a t-shirt and shorts, because it was starting to get hot. The sun was usually on the side of the direction you and Minho ran in, which gave you sunlight that made your run more uncomfortable. The Gladers wore pants and sleeved shirts which most rolled up to their comfort. Minho has his sleeves rolled up to his mid-biceps and his pants cuffs rolled up to his mid-shins.
You both ran for an hour before walking.
"Grievers only come out at night. If they came during the day, us Runners would be toast. No one would dare go into the Maze." Minho said, taking a sip of his water. You didn't feel like needing water right now, but you'd drink some if your throat began to get raw from all the breathing.
"Do they come out while you're still in the Maze, in the evening?" You wonder, thinking about having to run back to the Glade, trying not to get lost, while evading a bunch of deadly monsters.
"I don't think so. I haven't come across one, but Runners usually try to get back before six PM. The Doors close at seven. And no one has ever survived in the Maze at night." Minho stops to put his water bottle back in his backpack, and you stop too.
"Do Grievers eat Gladers?" You feel a little sick at the thought.
"We don't know. Probably." Minho started running again, and you followed.
---
It's been another hour. Nothing exciting happened, only that you and Minho talked a couple times. It was 7:48, and you were almost tired of the constant quick breaths. One corridor in the Maze was longer than the other ones, so you had to put up with running in a straight direction for five minutes.
"Hey, can you like, do a cartwheel or something?" Minho asked after a minute. You were both currently at a walking pace, taking a rest.
"A cartwheel?"
"Yeah, because you should be more flexible than boys... and stuff."
"Probably. I haven't tried. What's the use of a cartwheel?" You knew you could do a backflip, and a front flip, but you haven't tried a cartwheel.
"No idea. You'd look cool, I suppose." Minho rubs the back of his neck.
"I'll keep that in mind."
---
You and Minho were running at 50% strength again. As he passed through another long corridor, you stopped. He took a second to notice you weren't beside him.
"Y/n?"
You walked to a 'wall'. It was completely covered in ivy and almost impossible to see through.
"What is it? It's just a wall. Trust me, I've ran through his area loads of times-"
You walk into the 'wall', but never collided with any stone or ivy. You walked until you realized you were in a completely new area. The printed sign ꜱᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ 1 was just underneath a wall of ivy, hidden on the stone. If you backed up to where Minho was, in Section 8, this wall in front of you would look like it was camouflaged with the 'long corridor' wall.
"Woah." Minho followed you and looked to his left and right. "It's Section 1."
"You haven't noticed this, have you?"
"I just thought it was one wall." Minho kicks the ivy. "Damn ivy."
You chuckle. "Left or right?"
"Let's go left. I'm sure Alex (made up name for the Runner in Section 1) noticed this connection to Section 8, but he also might've not." Minho starts running again, a newfound excitement-fueled adrenaline burst in him. "We'll see if it connects to Section 8 again."
You grin and go with him.
---
You two have been exploring the border between Section 8 and 1 for three hours. You vaguely knew the way back, but Minho was confident he remembered.
"Take a break." Minho grunted, slowing to a stop. You stop too. You already drank half your first water bottle by now.
Minho leans against a wall and takes a long drink out of his water bottle, which is almost finished. He has a second and third one too.
You check your watch. It was 11:36. About lunch.
"This is considered our lunch break. Eat quickly." Minho puts his backpack down and rummages in the main pocket for a sandwich, which he packed in the morning. You did too (Minho pre-packed it for you).
You both didn't talk while eating, too eager to get back to running along the Section 8-1 border. You were still in the left turn area, and you still had to go back and explore the right area. It would bring you both closer to the Glade, but it was different and more complicated in Section 1.
---
"You done?" Minho took another sip of his water and stored the empty bottle in his bag again. You nod, zipping up the pack.
"Yeah."
"Let's go back. To the, uh, other turn since the Section 1 sign. You know..." Minho puts his backpack on his back and stretches his legs.
"I get it." You start off again, Minho catching up to you quickly.
---
It's been an hour, and now you were both in the other side of the 8-1 border. There were more turns than usual and the walls were less covered in plants and moss.
"You remember the way back, right?" Minho asked after a while, panting now. You were tired too, energy-wise, not physically.
"Kinda." You replied shortly.
"Good. I know I know it, but it's nice to have a back-up. I've been the only Runner for Section 8 since we got to the Glade, because we don't got enough Runners for two in every section." Minho explained briefly, his words subsiding into tired breathing again.
---
After two hours in the new border, Minho allowed another break. You took a long gulp of water. Your legs will definitely be sore tomorrow.
---
Another two hours in the new border. Nothing new except for the words ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ ɪɴ ᴄᴀᴛᴀꜱᴛʀᴏᴘʜᴇ: ᴋɪʟʟᴢᴏɴᴇ ᴇxᴘᴇʀɪᴍᴇɴᴛ ᴅᴇᴘᴀʀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ on the walls. Minho said the Runners already discovered the phrase a couple months back, but nothing about them seems to be connected with an escape.
"We should head back. It's 3:46 right now." Minho momentarily checked his watch.
"Alright."
---
Another tiring half-an-hour of running. Minho always said he used the rest of his energy to run back to the Glade fastest. You did the same as he did, and it was tiring you out. You didn't have a better idea though.
---
After an hour, the North Door appeared. You and Minho ran through the big opening of the North Door. The sky was beginning to fade into a pink, marking sunset.
"Map Room." Minho muttered, flopping on the grass once he crossed into the Glade. You only bent over for a moment of heavy panting.
"I'll go." You leave Minho to breathe on the grass.
"Key." Minho tosses you the key for the Map Room.
You catch it and slow-run to the Map Room. You open the door and notice the Runners from Sections 1, 4, 6, and 7 inside, sketching on pieces of paper. It smells like copper, or some sort of metal in the Map Room. The Runners don't pay attention to you as you take a roll of empty paper.
Minho arrives a minute later. You and him draw the connection with Section 8 and 1. Turns out, Alex hasn't run that far to 8. He mostly went East everyday, to Section 2. Which was a little bit stupid of him, 'cause he thought Minho already ran that area.
Minho shows you the map of the Glade and the Maze. He explains each square of the Maze and each Section. The Maze was bigger than you thought.
You and him worked on one paper.
You use light strokes to draw the Maze path because you often make mistakes with it. You decide to draw the ivy on the border wall so no one forgets. Minho is beside you, on the side opposite of your (d/h (dominant hand) so he doesn't bump arms with you.
On the side of the Section 8-1 of the walls, you write in really tiny handwriting [takes 2-3 hours to get here]. Most Runners never mark their time, but you felt like you needed it, since you'll most likely lose track of time and only focus on direction. It's not like you'll become a Runner. You're happy with being a Med-Jack, and if not, then either a Cook or Track-Hoe. Everything else? You're bad at it.
"I'm gonna go report to Nick and Alby" Minho said after a couple minutes. He stands up straight and leaves the Map Room. "Finish my part!"
You glance down at his side of the map. He's finished half of his part.
---
You roll the map up. You write the section number in the top right corner, followed by yours and Minho's name, then Day 635. Then you put it in the chest where the other old maps were. You were the last one in the Map Room. After cleaning up, you leave and close the door, locking it.
It was probably six PM right now, so about dinner. You didn't enjoy running for the whole day, but it was a nice experience. Doing that for a year everyday with no breaks must be hell.
You head to the Homestead, needing a shower now.
You take the back way to Homestead, not wanting anybody looking and staring at you anymore. They should've gotten used to your presence by now.
The back way has quick access to the showers, and you get there fast. After undressing, you do the usual routine of a shower. You dry yourself off and dress again after you shook your clothes off.
'I should get a new change of clothes soon.' You think, putting the gloves back on last.
You go around and back to the giant bedroom filled with bunk beds where everyone slept. You left and went outside to get your dinner.
As you're sitting down on the grass to eat, like you do all the time, Minho walks up next to you. He doesn't squat or bend down to your eye level, so you either have to look up or continue looking at his kneecaps.
"Hey, I talked to Nick and Alby about your first night running." He nudges your shoulder with his knee.
You put your plate down and look up.
"And?"
"You're gonna be a Runner."