| chapter one: safe at last |
DAWN
The sky had turned dark when I woke up. My whole arm, shoulder and neck were numb and painful. Slowly I sat up and noticed someone had stitched up the wound in my shoulder. The bullet in my arm had been taken out as well.
'Hey, you're awake?' Newt whispered in my ear.
'Mmm,' I mumbled back and sat up straight.
Carefully I touched my shoulder and winced a bit. It was burning, but not as bad as it used to.
'Jeff stitched it up while you were asleep. He also took the bullet out,' Newt explained.
I nodded and senT Jeff, who was sitting on the other side of me, a smile.
'Come on lads! Time to get out!' One of our rescuers screamed. A shock went through the helicopter as we landed on the ground. The door was pushed open by men in black coats and with black helmets on. They were holding guns and didn't look afraid to use them.
'Get out!' The man screamed.
One by one we left the helicopter. Newt took my hand firmly and I let him.
'Thomas! Thomas!' I turned around and saw Minho trying to wake Thomas. 'Wake up Thomas we gotta go!' He yelled.
Thomas gasped and sat up, only to be pulled out of the helicopter by one of the men. 'Wait! Wait! Wait!' He yelled, broke out of their grip and turned back.
'Thomas!' I yelled but the men pushed me forward. 'What's he doing?' I questioned, looking at Newt with wide eyes.
'Tommy! You bloody idiot!' He screamed at him.
I frowned and saw that the men managed to pull him back.
Suddenly an ear piercing scream filled the air, high and bone-chilling.
'Cranks!' One of the men yelled, panic on the edge of his voice and he started shooting the silhouettes that had appeared on the sandy hills.
I couldn't see what happened next as they kept on pushing me forward.
'Run!' The men screamed.
I turned forward and saw a small building before us. We kept on running as more men with guns started to shoot. What was going on? I couldn't see anything in the dark. Screams filled my ears, mixed with the flashes of gunshots. My shoulder ached with every step I took and the pain was blinding, strong enough to drown out my fear of everything else happening around me.
And suddenly there was light, harsh bright light, surrounding me on all sides, blinding me. I blinked, shielding my eyes with my hand and as my view slowly became sharp, I noticed our rescuers had guided us inside the building and closed the doors behind us but I wasn't given a chance to relax. We were directed up a flight of stairs, then into a huge dormitory with bunk beds lined up against the wall. On the other side were dressers and tables. There were a few windows, which were all covered by curtains.
All my muscles were aching and everything felt wrong.
The colors were all too bright. Orange sheets, yellow paint coating the walls and green curtains covering the windows. It was an attack on my eyes, even worse than the blinding white light before had been. We were ushered further inside and I thought against the urge to scream. Even though Jeff had stitched up my shoulder and took the bullet out, my whole arm was numb and painful. The white bandage was already turning red from fresh blood.
'I've been shucked and gone to heaven,' Minho whispered, distracting me from the pain.
The men who'd rescued us from WICKED left us alone with a smiling staff. They all seemed too perfect, clean hands and faces, all dressed in black and white. Too perfect to be real. Everything that happened then was a blur to me. Beds were assigned, fresh clothes and towels were handed out and finally pizza was served. I didn't even know how I knew what pizza was but it was delicious.
Still, I had a hard time feeling truly at peace.
My arm was still aching, a constant reminder of the battle we just fought, the people we lost. All this, it seemed wrong to enjoy it when Lisa and Chuck had been brutally murdered right in front of me.
Finally the staff told us it was time for bed.
One woman came walking up to me, her wide smile making me sick. 'You have to come with us, before you can sleep we should take a good look at that arm of yours,' she spoke with a voice as smooth as silk.
I looked down at the bandage, which was soaked with blood. I swallowed thickly and looked around. I couldn't leave, there was no other option. What if it was a trap?
'The other girl will be coming too, we'll get you both a seperate room,' she added.
It was probably meant to comfort me but it really didn't.
My eyes went to Newt, who was sitting next to me.
He had a worried frown on his face and seemed to hate the idea of being parted. But he took a deep breath and said: 'You really have to let a doctor look at that arm of yours.'
I knew he was right, but it didn't ease my nervous beating heart. I leaned forwards and gave him a kiss, lingering for a moment as butterflies swarmed my stomach, but I couldn't stay this way forever and so I broke away from him. I could feel his eyes on me as I left the room, walking after the woman who'd promised me a private room.
When we reached the door, I couldn't help but turn back around. Newt gave me one last encouraging nod and I tried to smile bravely at him, though I knew it probably looked more like a grimace. My eyes strayed to Minho and Thomas, who sat by his side. They both gave me a smile, but the discomfort was written all over their faces. It was fine, it really was. I gave them a nod before turning and walking away.
Teresa was waiting for me outside the room, together with the woman. She smiled at us before heading towards a door on the other side of the hallway. She took a key out of her pocket and opened it. 'In here is your room.' She turned to me. 'The doctor should be here any moment.'
Then she gestured for us to go inside. Teresa and I shared a quick glance before walking in. The room was practically the same as that of the boys, only smaller. I turned back to look at the woman who gave me one last smile before closing the door. My heart started beating faster when I heard her lock the door.
'Did they just lock us up?' Teresa asked.
'I guess so,' I answered, hearing the tension in my own voice.
She took a deep breath. 'Whatever, I'm sure we'll be fine. I'm going to take a shower.'
I nodded at her and watched her disappear into the bathroom with her fresh clothes and towel.
I sat down on one of the beds, placing my clothes and towel down next to me. I let out a shaky breath. I knew it was ridiculous because the boys were on the other side of the hallway but the door being locked and not being able to hear their voices was nerve-wracking. And suddenly I felt so alone. Flashes of Lisa her smile, then her scream, red eyes and her head being bashed in, past through my head. A shaky breath left my lips.
Suddenly the door was thrown open. Startled, I jumped up, too fast. My blood loss made me dizzy, making me lose my balance and I fell. A man kneeled down next to me, my view was a blur, I couldn't see him but I could smell the chemicals. He must be the doctor but it didn't calm me. Instead it only made me struggle more.
He spoke to me but I couldn't hear what it was.
I tried to answer but my mouth was as dry as sandpaper.
Hands picked me up, carried me out of the room. I tried to scream but realized then something had been put over my mouth. Panic washed over me and I tried kicking, punching, anything, but it was like my body had been drugged.
Then an unnerving thought struck me. What if they drugged us all? Maybe there'd been something in the pizza? I couldn't feel this weak, suddenly, just because I was wounded. I should've felt it before.
Vaguely I heard the sound of an engine starting but my brain was too foggy to realize what it meant. I was put down on something soft. Voices were mumbling and my view was one big blur. I tried to scream one last time but again no sound came. A tear crawled down my cheek as I let the darkness take me.
| 𝙰𝚄𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚁'𝚂 𝙽𝙾𝚃𝙴 |
So here is the first real chapter of Minds!
What do you guys think is going to happen to Dawn? And is Lisa still alive? What will the Gladers do once they realize Dawn is gone?
Also, I know in the book they were actually rescued in a bus but I liked the helicopter better. So I added the helicopter.
I hope you're all very excited, as I am, to start on this next journey. Please leave a comment or a vote, I'd really appreciate it!
xxx nelly