[Present]
Newt arrived in the Glade afraid and with no memories other than one thing. A girl. Small images would flicker in his mind every so often, but he could never put the pieces together.
This faded memory of a girl was just one of the many pieces which resulted in his current, broken self.
Newt had days where he felt completely at peace and content, while others he was a silent hurricane of self-loathing. His emotions were unpredictable, volatile and more often than not, physically painful. Extreme changes in his mood truly had no cause, they just happened, almost feeling as if they were outside of himself. Other times, he itched and felt pain for no reason at all.
The blonde boy, who had just been in the Glade for months found himself stripped of hope. Everyday, he woke feeling worse than the last. His heart was heavy and atrophied. Not from its own beating, but from the sheer force of living with so much pain and uncertainty. The unknowns of the future and even his own identity kept him awake night after night.
All of this was what led him here, to one of the tallest, cold, stone walls in the maze. The place was desolate and otherworldly. No noise met his ears other than the dull hollow groans of wind racing through the corridors. Faint wails of grieves in the distance and the shifting of stone. He wouldn't miss this place. He hated it. He hated everything. Including himself at the worst of times. Putting things to an end on his own accord instead of unconsciously living out his life in this godforsaken place was his best option. So, it seemed.
As Newt began his ascent up the wall, pieces on his body began to shoot with pain. It was just like all of the unexplained bouts of pain he felt at times, except they were all happening at once. It felt like he was punching himself, except he wasn't. Bruises appeared on his arms, his scalp burned as if he was trying to rip out his hair, but he kept climbing.
Y/N was on the other end of this situation, left screaming and crying in front of her monitor. She was watching her best friend climb up a wall, his intent very obvious. Her heart was empty and felt like dead weight in her chest. All she could do was punch herself, claw at her skin and hair, trying to make Newt stop. She tried everything. Everything she could in the moment. If she could have burned words into her skin so that he could see them, she would. But she couldn't. Newt was climbing too fast.
This girl in his fractured memory was the last thing Newt thought of before he dropped. Maybe, he'd find out who she is or was in some place other than here.
____________
When he woke, Newt was certain he wasn't dead. The pain in his body was so extreme, it felt as if he was bearing the hurt of two. There was no way it was possible for someone to feel this much pain. Or was it?
To his right, there was a girl. One he'd never seen before. "Who—" Newt croaked.
At the sound, Clint, the Glade's medjack, came racing into the room. He was completely frantic and the look on his face made Newt uneasy. "Who's that?"
Clint looked to the girl and shrugged. "New greenie. Just minutes after she showed up, she was screaming and crying like she was 'bout to die. Weirdly enough, she was able to let me know it felt like her leg was broken and that she'd hit her head or something before she passed out...sounded a lot like the same injuries you have. But, she doesn't have any broken bones or nuthin."
"What kinda klunk are you talking about?" Newt grumbled. He'd tried to take his own life, and now here he was, trying to solve a mystery.
"I dunno, man. I know as much as you do." Clint shrugged. "Guess we'll have to wait till she wakes up. See if she knows anything."
"Mmmh," Newt mumbled before making an attempt to turn over in the cot, then realizing he was unable. The slightest movement caused his entire body to shut down due to the pain so he remained where he was. Strangely enough, the moment he tried to move, he saw the girls face flicker with agony. She remained sleeping, but she was obviously in pain.
Not thinking much of it, he closed his eyes once again and drifted off to sleep. He didn't look forward to the moment he'd wake up, but it would have to come sooner or later. At least by then, the girl might be awake. Why she had all of the same pain he did without the corresponding broken bones, he wasn't sure. Then again, it seemed like anything could happen here in the Glade so he didn't question anything that was happening. Whoever put them in this god awful place were apparently capable of anything and everything.
The girls body ached and she wanted to scream at the top of her lungs. She made a bold attempt to climb out of the cot but the moment her foot landed on the ground, it buckled beneath her and she slammed into the bed beside her. Luckily, she caught the edge of the bed and was just barely holding herself up. But, the resident of said bed was not pleased to be so rudely awakened.
"Bloody hell!" Newt hoarsely shouted, sitting up and trying to clear the sleep from his eyes. For a moment, he'd forgotten about his fall and all of the injuries he'd sustained. It only took seconds before his entire body began to radiate with an unimaginable agony. All the way from his leg to his ribs and to his skull, his entire body felt like it was shattered in pieces. Probably, because it was.
The moment he groaned in suffering, he noticed the girl do the same. She reached for her leg. Hyperventilated breaths filled the room and tears torrented down her face. "What's happening?!"
"Just stay there," Newt was doing everything in his power to hold himself together in the moment. He too was on the verge of screaming until his lungs went up in flames out of sheer torment, but he knew he couldn't. Not now. "Clint!" He cried out desperately.
The medjack trampled into the room frantically, looking to Newt to guidance once he saw the girl curled up on the floor, shaking. "Get her up on the cot."
Clint did so, trying his best to calm the girl. "Check her leg, is it...like mine?"
A quick examination later, Clint shook his head. He was at a complete loss for what was happening. "Nothing's wrong with her! I don't understand!"
"No, something is wrong," Newt pointed to the girl in frustration, seeing as how she was still crippled from the pain she was feeling. "Do you see her!?"
As Newt shouted the words, Clint could see him wince. In the same moment, Y/N recoiled. They were feeling the same pain...and at the same time.
"Newt, you gotta trust me, alright?" Clint shuffled over to the end of Newt's bed and raised a brow. The blonde boy nodded, not liking where this was going, but allowing things to move forwards.
Clint gently shifted Newt's leg. It caused a rippling of stabbing pain to rip through his leg, causing Newt to shout out curses Clint had never even heard before.
Y/N's reaction was close to the same.
Curiously, the medjack began to poke and prod Newt in random places, looking to see Y/N's reaction. They always matched. This time, he moved to Y/N, pinching her arm and looking to Newt for a reaction. Surely enough, there was one. He winced ever so slightly and confirmed that he too felt it.
"I dunno what the shuck is goin on here," Clint huffed. "But you two have some talking to do. Is there anything you need? Cause if not I'll—"
"You can go," Newt said sternly. He watched as the medjack left before a crushing feeling fell upon his chest.
Neither of the Gladers understood what was happening. Why they felt the things they were feeling, how they were connected, what kind of sick experiment this was from the creators. Ever so agonizingly, Newt turned his head to look at the girl. He could see the discomfort dust over her features as she turned her head towards him. Yet, at the same time, her eyes hit him with a heavy wave of sympathy.
"You jumped, didn't you?" Y/N croaked.
Newt was taken aback. He wanted to deny what had happened, but knew he couldn't. She'd never believe any lie he came up with.
"How'd you know?"
"Well," Y/N sighed. "My body feels like I just fell off of a cliff. The places I'm feeling pain back up that theory. And, I feel more than just the physical pain."
The boy felt his already pale features go ghost white. "What are you talking about?"
"That heavy weight on your heart? That's so goddamn awful? Yeah, I feel that too. I get why you did it."
Newt found himself suddenly on the verge of breaking down. "Don't tell anyone else, please."
Y/N nodded softly, eyes full of truth. "It's between us."