Time was not a friend to the glade. It passed slowly, and while life had become far less difficult, it had also become immensely boring. I had liked the routine at first, but now everyday felt the same. I wondered often if Alby had ever heard of the word "fun".
"Hey! Jo!" Zart's voice shook me into consciousness. "Wake up!" I peeled my crusty eyes open and groaned out my morning breath. As my vision cleared through the bright light of the sun, I could see Zart's curly blonde head peering over top of my face. His eyes were luminous and his grin excited if not a little frightening .
"The crops can wait ten minutes," I whined rolling over in my hammock.
"It's Box Day. You know what that means?" he asked.
His enthusiasm only forced me into a deeper hibernation. "I can sleep in?" I mumbled tightening my blanket over my shoulders.
"No, you're not the Greenie anymore! Come on, get up!" He pushed me slightly making the hammock swing gently back and forth. It was just enough of an annoyance that I had to prop the top half of my body up to try and re-balance myself. I turned to see that he was no longer next to me, but had ran out of the homestead leaving me far too awake and very much confused.
"Jo, you're not up yet?" It was Mikey, who looked like he was going to start bouncing off of the Maze walls.
"Why is everyone so... happy?" I grumbled, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.
"Because Greenie," Gally popped up next to him. I had known both these boys long enough to know that it was rare either of them got up this early by choice, let alone be excited about it. "The box comes back up today."
"That means new supplies," Mikey explained. "Hey Gally, you think I'll get the TV I requested?"
"You're not getting a TV," Gally said dryly. He looked to me and I simply smirked back at him in amusement, while Mikey pouted in disappointment.
"A new Greenie comes up today too, right?" I asked.
"Yup!" Mikey confirmed.
Good, I thought to myself. I never did like that stupid nickname anyway.
"But even better than that; I talked to Alby and he said we could all take the day off."
"So then why am I awake right now?" I looked to both of them. They knew I wasn't a morning person.
"I think you'll be thanking Zart soon enough," Gally shrugged. "That siren is not fun to wake up to."
"Yeah, I remember," I groaned again bending down to grab my shoes. A sudden thought occurred to me. I looked up at him and asked "Do you think it could be another girl?"
"Maybe," Gally responded, although I got the sense he didn't really believe what he was saying.
"Shuck, I hope so," Mikey sighed with a dreamy look in his eyes. He glanced at me quickly and tried to recover his statement. "Not that you aren't- I just meant-" Gally and I both gave the "Shut up, Mikey" glare that I had come to learn from the other guys. "You know what?" he said awkwardly. "I'm gonna go see what Bach is cooking up for breakfast. See you Shanks later."
"Who you callin' Shank, Shank?" Gally toyed with him while Mikey walked away. Mikey smirked back at him and waved goodbye, not forgetting to give me an annoying flirtatious wink before striding off. As I finished tying my shoes Gally turned to me and said, "Alright, Greenie, let's get a move on. I have a surprise for you."
My eyes widened immediately. "Is it my bungalow?" I chirped, jumping out of my hammock, planting my feet firmly on the ground. "Is my bungalow ready, Gally?!"
"You'll have to come with me to find out," he smiled slowly backing away.
"Well, what are we waiting for?!" I ran past Gally and right into the Deadheads toward the spot I had found him my first week in the Glade. Man, had that felt like a million years ago.
Like I said, time passed slowly.
"Hold on a second!" He shouted behind me.
"Catch up!" I shouted back.
"Oh, Come on!" he said, clearly running out of breath. "I want to see your reaction!"
"Ughhh,"I exaggerated a groan. "Fine." Begrudgingly, I stopped and waited for him to reach me.
As soon as he caught up, he bent over placing a hand on the front of each of his thighs and breathed out heavily. "Shuck, you run fast," he said as he exhaled deeply. "
"Well, gardening takes more muscle than you'd think," I teased watching him struggle stand up straight.
He reached for his pocket, "Here," he said.
"A blindfold? Really?" I raised an eyebrow at the ripped piece of grey fabric he held lightly in his palm. I took this as another opportunity to tease him. "So, this was your plan all along. Take me into the woods, cover my eyes, and then have your way with me?" I joked.
"Ha Ha," he said sarcastically. His deadpan expression was impressive. After taking in the joke though, he looked at me earnestly. "You trust me, right?"
"Yeah," I admitted rolling my eyes, but with a grin on my face.
"Then turn around." I did as he requested waiting for him to place the blindfold over my eyes. He did so, and as I lost all sense of sight, I became far more sensitive to his touch. "I'm gonna lead you, okay?" He whispered softly into my ear. I could feel a tingling sensation run through my entire body. I sucked in a large summ of air at the touch of his hands firmly, but comfortably gripping my shoulders. They were warm and protective.
"Whatever you say, Captain," I replied, my voice trembling a little. His breath tickled the back of my neck as we moved through the forest. It felt nice. I felt safe. That is until I became so distracted by his presence that I lost my balance.
"Woah," he said pulling me up, before I completely fell over. He made sure both feet were set flat on the ground. "I got you."
"You say that now..." my joke came out more awkward than intended.
"You're incredibly frustrating, you know that?" he chuckled.
"It's all a part of my charm," I smirked through the blindfold.
We came to a stop, my body nearly falling back into his. Thankfully, he was able to keep the balance for the both of us. "You ready?" I nodded quickly while also jumping up and down a little in excitement. "Okay then," he said pulling the blind fold away from my face. As light came flooding back into my eyes, the picture of my little bungalow became clear.
In all actuality, maybe it was more of a hut , but Gally and I thought the word "bungalow" was more fun. He had built three walls himself, sturdy and secure. The fourth wall, the back wall, was made of of the Maze's concrete stone. The roof came from the same canvas he had used to make the hammocks for the homestead. And of course, right at the front, what I considered Gally's specialty; a door. A sense of privacy.
My bungalow was simple and perfect.
I was so overwhelmingly grateful that I jumped up and wrapped my arms around his body, my ear leaning in right against his chest. "Thank you, Gally!"I gripped him tightly. I listened to his heartbeat waiting to feel him reciprocate the hug. It never came though, and suddenly there was something unnerving about being able to hear his heartbeat so fiercely pound into my ears. And so, I moved my head so I could look up at him. "Don't tell the others," I lowered my voice to a whisper, "but you're my favorite." I made it come off as though I was kidding, but in reality it may have been the complete truth.
I don't think, in all the time that I've known him now, that I've ever seen Gally happier. It wasn't his smile, but his eyes that told me so. It was always his eyes. They were so incredibly transparent.
As I stood leaning in against his chest with his head towering over me, I could feel his heartbeat connecting to mine. The faster it beat the closer his face became to my own. Something stopped him though; hesitance probably. "Uhhh," he broke eye contact, blushing as he gazed down at the ground.
I did the same letting go of his torso. He brushed a hand through his hair and scratching his head. "So..." I said trying to ease the tension.
"So... why don't I show you inside."
"...Okay." I wondered if he could tell that I was nervous?
I waited for him to open the door. He let me enter first. As I looked back at him I noticed that he had to duck slightly to get in through the doorway. I giggled softly. "What?" he said with a smile. "I built this place for someone your size, not for mine."
"Uh-uh," I smirked and my eyes began to search the small room. In the back center, inside the hole in the wall, was a freshly made cot. The hole was tall enough that when I sat down on the cot I couldn't hit my head against the stone. I faced forward toward the door again and I noticed a small table to the right of it with a lantern sitting on the top. And next to me, on the left of the cot was an empty dresser.
It was simple.
It was mine.
It was perfect.
"Are you crying, Greenie?" Gally asked taking a step toward me as I sat stiffly, both hands gripping the edge of the cot.
"Maybe," I said with a laugh, lifting my right hand to wipe the tears off of my cheeks and underneath my eyes. "Thank you, Gally." He sat next to me at the edge of the cot placing his right hand over my left and giving it a small squeeze. "Gally, why did you do this for me?"
"I told you-"
"There are a lot of other ways to apologize. Honestly, all you would have had to do was say you were sorry."
"Oh, well now you tell me," he exaggerated nudging his shoulder into mine.
"I'm serious," I laughed at him, eyes still wet. "Why did you do this for me?"
"Because I wanted to," he shrugged sincerely.
I could feel my heart fluttering. Between his touch and his words, and that beautiful look in his eyes that I couldn't understand at the time; it was like a sensory overload. I swallowed deeply "I uhh..." I can't say what I was going to tell him, because I honestly, had no idea. I was just hoping that he would cut me off, and it looked like he was going to, but the blaring of the siren beat him to it.
I nearly jumped out of my seat at the sound of it. "Woah, hey," Gally said as he watched my body tremble and my breathing get heavier. My heart was collapsing in on itself. The cold cage floor was underneath me. The screeching as the box rose to the top of the shaft. I remembered the darkness; the loneliness. "It's okay," Gally whispered. His voice echoed through the illusion. His hand touched my back, rubbing it delicately in little circles. The tears started pouring harder this time. I could smell the steel encasing my body. It was getting tighter and tighter. I fought for breath.
Gally pulled me into his chest. "It's okay," he repeated over and over again like a mantra. I chased after him, but I couldn't reach. "You're not in the dark anymore." And that's when my hands managed to find him; to grip his shirt so tightly that they turned into fist. "I know," he said. I could smell him now. Admittedly the scent wasn't pleasant. Working in dirt, and a lack of pure water will do that to a person. "It's okay. You're okay." I opened my eyes and looked up at him. I could see the same pain in his expression that I felt coursing through my veins. It was farther away, and there was less of it, but it was still there haunting him. "You're okay."
"Yeah, I am," I said as my breathing calmed and my grip on him loosened. Gally took his thumb and wiped the tears from my eyes. "Thank you. For everything."
He was surprised by the gratitude."Come on," he said softly waiting for the last tear drop to fall, his head nodding toward the door. "Let's go meet the new Greenie, Greenie."