Danielle Played by Danielle Campbell
Danielle is the only girl have ever set foot in The Glade. Ever. And being the only girl she gets a few perks. 2 easy jobs to follow. Her own hut to sleep in. Nearly every guy in The Glade bending over backwards to help her. But she doesn't care about all that. All she cares about is helping everyone escape the prison they were being kept in. And her best friend, Newt.
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DISCLAIMER: I do not own TMR or any of the characters. I only own Dani, Elijah and Aimee and the different parts of the plot. All rights go to James Dashner + Wes Ball (for the film "adaptation")
A/N Before reading the book there are a few things I'd like to say. I have not read the books myself (which sucks because I really want to) so this book will be mostly be sticking to the plot lines of the film(s). Though, I still know quite a bit about what goes on in the books so some of those elements/plots will be brought in too along with my own changes and interpretations.
I would also like to say that I know a lot of people won't be happy with parts of this book because it breaches a more "adult" (if you wish to call it) theme (do not worry, adult does not mean rape) and I have literally read somewhere that people hate it when writers add this to their books. But then, I am my own person and this is what I have wished to write so by all means stop reading at any point if you don't like it.
So without further ado, enjoy 😉
Danielle, age 17, is the only girl that lives in The Glade. She's fiesty, sassy, compassionate and kind, which sounds like quite the mix but somehow she makes it work. She's been living in The Glade for more than 2 years, making friends with everybody that was there before her and even the new Greenies after her: Alby (22) the man in charge, Minho (18) the keeper of the runners, Gally (19) the keeper of the builders and FryPan (16) the keeper of the Cooks. But, she is definitely closest with the older boy who happens to be second in command, Newt (18).
Dani probably leads one of the hardest lives in The Glade, due to her being the only girl the boys have any recollection of and for the fact that she is that. A girl. She has her own problems to deal with and a completely different body to the others, which proves difficult to deal with because unless a boy is gay, she is the top of some of their flirt list. Thankfully, her friends are the ones who suggested that she should be the first out of everybody to get her own space to live in, to avoid any mishaps with any younger boys that can't control themselves.
But, because she got to have her own hut while the others had to sleep in one area all together, she was given two jobs to partake in. The first, and her primary job, is being a med-jack. Though being a med-jack can prove to be quite difficult at times, it isn't a very demanding job. Most of the gladers are pretty smart and aware of their surroundings, so she, Jeff and Clint only get one or two people in there a day with a small cut or something minor to deal with.
And her second job is working beside Gally as a designer. She is the person Gally and the other builders come to when they are going to build something new, so that she can design how it will look and occassionally partake in building it.
Besides her jobs, Dani likes to spend her time either in the kitchen helping FryPan cook or floundering around in the fields as she annoys her best friend, Newt. In all honesty, she wished that Newt wasn't just her best friend, and that they could possibly have something more than that. But she knew that out of everybody in that god forsaken place, Newt was one of the biggest gentlemen and always treated her gender with respect. So the likeliness that he liked her back was slim.
Or so she thought...
~~~~~
Danielle's P.O.V
I sit bolt upright once again, my breaths coming out shallow and frantic. Newt stands above me like usual, his hands gripping my shoulders tightly. I peer up at him and start to cry, making his face soften.
He jumps onto the bed beside me and pulls my body to his, cradling me as my nightmare replayed over and over in my head. "Shhh... It was just a dream... You're safe..." Newt hums into my hair, not giving any signs of letting me go. I clutch onto his shirt as I sob, and rest my head against his chest, hyperventilating a little before I could calm myself down.
As Newt's hand brushes through my hair comfortingly, I find my breaths evening out once more and that my head is clearing away the bad dreams, finding a feeling of reassurance in Newt's embrace.
I've been having nightmares for the past few weeks now, after the keeper of the med-jacks (and a close friend of mine) tripped and fell from the top of the look-out tower, being left to die while I tried to take care of his injuries. It was scarring, realising that I couldn't do anything to save him as I didn't have the right equipment with me to do so. All I could do was hold onto his hand and keep talking to him, until his final breath was released and the light left his eyes.
That's the only thing that has been circling through my mind while I sleep recently, and every night without fail I will wake up mid panic attack. And every night without fail, Newt has rushed into the room to calm me down. Like now.
"You ok now?" He asks softly as I sit up in his lap. I nod my head tiredly and let out a yawn, climbing off of Newt's lap to crawl into the bed again. It was already quite light outside, signalling that some of the other Gladers would already be awake, and that FryPan was probably ready to dish up breakfast.
Newt lays down beside me, so that the two of us are facing eachother. He always stays with me after a nightmare, meaning sometimes he has to sleep beside me again, which I don't oppose one bit.
"Greenie day. You excited?" He asks me, also noticing the sun that was rising at a steady pace. "Yeah, I wonder what they'll be like." I reply, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Newt chuckles, "Knowing our luck they'll be another Gally." I smile and shake my head, "He's not that bad."
"Oh yes he is. You just don't see it because he is always the golden boy when you're around." Newt replies, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. I snigger, "And that's the way it should be." Newt smiles at my tease. "Either way, you and I both know he isn't that bad once you break the shuckface, tough exterior. And even if you don't see it, you have got to admit that he always has the right intentions. It's just the way he goes about things that is wrong." I continue, defending our friend a little.
"Ok, maybe he does. But even you say he goes about things the wrong way at times." Newt counters. "At times. No. Nearly all the time more like." I laugh, Newt joining me too.
Gally is one of our closest friends, and despite that we still see his faults. But unlike everybody else, I am one of the only people that can get away with challenging him on these faults. For the better I guess, and I think he has realised this now.
Soon our laughter fizzles out, and Newt sits himself back up on the bed. "Ok, time for breakfast love. I'll see you in there." He says, using the nickname that I have fallen in love with. I smile at him as he gets up and leaves the room, leaving me to get up and get dressed.
~~~~~
Dani's outfit but with the buttons done up ^
Shortly after Newt left, I got up and slipped into my usual blue blouse and deep blue shorts and made my way down to the food tables, surprised to see that nearly everybody was up already. But when I think about it, it makes sense.
Greenie day is the only day most these people actually get excited for anymore, simply because the party that is thrown in the evening.
I grab my breakfast from FryPan and miander around the tables, making my way towards Newt, Minho and Gally who were sat on the other half of the hall. I sit in my usual spot beside Newt and place my breakfast on the table, smiling at the boys as they bring their eyes up to look at me.
"God Dani. You look like klunk." Minho states, taking a large mouthful of his food before Gally elbows him in the ribs. "Ow! What was that for!?" Minho exclaims, looking at Gally. I chuckle and take a mouthful of my food. "It's fine Gally. I know I look horrible, I've literally just crawled out of bed." I mumble.
"You don't usually look like this in the mornings though." Minho inspects, having Gally nod his head too. "And how would you know that?" I laugh, "Minho, you're gone long before I am awake and Gally I wake up a good hour or so before you do. The only person that sees me first thing in the morning is Newt, and I don't look anything different to how I look normally. Do I?" I ask, looking to my best friend.
Newt barely looks up from his food to answer my question. "Nope. You look the usual amount of sleep deprived." He says nonchalantly, taking a bite from his toast before giving us all a smirk. I smile victoriously at the boys opposite me, who frown slightly before continuing to eat their food.
We continue to talk as we eat, (me being the only one to finish as I didn't have as much food as them) until a loud alarm rings out across The Glade. Minho's face lights up, leaping away from the table and breaking out into a run towards the box. Gally does similarily, pushing himself away from the table and jogging towards the box. Even Newt gets excited, but instead of just leaving without warning he gives me a wink and breaks out into a limping jog.
I sigh and shake my head, being the last glader left that wasn't at the box or running to it. "Thanks for waiting..." I mumur a little annoyedly, and take the chance to steal a part of Newt's breakfast before walking in the direction everyone had ran to.
By the time I get there, everybody was crowded around the box, creating a wall that was practically inpenetrable. I stand by the edge and cross my arms, tapping my foot expectedly. "Ehem." I cough, grabbing the attention of Winston. He looks at me and his eyes grow wide, and it takes a matter of seconds for everybody to part a little walk way for me to go down.
At the front, Gally, Newt and Alby I guess were talking to a new greenie, but as I couldn't see the new guy I had no clue. As I get closer I realise I was right, and lean my elbow on Newt's shoulder as I look the Green Bean up and down.
"What we got?" I question the others, my eyes being caught in the newbies piercing green ones. He looks back at me with a little fear and Gally grips onto his shoulder. "He looks about your age, love." Newt says. "And has the strength of a builder too." Gally adds, looking at the guy's muscle content. "Or a runner." Minho smiles, as Newt slips his hand behind me to rest on the small of my back.
"We'll just have to find out soon then won't we." I add, winking at the Greenie. He smiles a little back and looks to his feet, the dozens of eyes probably burning holes through his skin.
"Alright everyone, you've seen him now! Go finish breakfast and get to work! We've got a lot to do before tonight!" Alby shouts, just as I was about to shout something similar. I'm basically the water to a glass of squash, without me being a part of the group now it's too strong, and needs the femininity to balance it out.
I smile through my teeth and squeeze Newt's shoulder. "That's my que. Later Green Bean. Bye guys." I say to the group, spinning out of Newt's grip before being called back.
"Danielle!?" Alby shouts, even though I had barely taken 10 steps. I turn on my heel and nod my head, sighing a little as he gestures for me to go back over.
"Yesss?" I ask, dragging out the e. "Can you give the tour today? I've got a lot to do." Alby asks, and I almost hear the other three boys around me gasp. I wanted to as well, because Alby probably should've asked one of them before me. "Why can't these slintheads do it?" I ask, gesturing to Alby's second-in-command, Minho and Gally.
"I need Newt with me, Minho hasn't got the day off and you really think I'm going to leave Gally alone with the Green Bean?" Alby returns, jabbing his thumb at the builder. "Hey!-" Gally exclaims as Minho cuts him off, "Oooh. Is this about what I think it is!?"
Alby looks over to Minho with wide eyes. "You bet it is." Newt smiles, not noticing the look on Alby's face. I study them all with a raised eyebrow, sinking onto my right hip. "Are you guys gonna tell me what this is or...?" I ask, noticing Gally was even smiling. "Eventually..." Alby trails off, looking at the others as if they weren't going to be able to keep this from me.
So I take the chance to make the situation a little lighter. "Wait, Alby? Is the party tonight really your coming out party?! Because if it is I fully support you." I joke, making Alby roll his eyes. "Go." He orders with a chuckle, making us all laugh.
"You can't avoid telling me forever." I hollar to him, as I start to lead the Greenie towards the lookout tower. "We're not keeping anything from you Dani!" Minho shouts back, his shit-eating smirk lining his face. "Don't believe it!" I yell back, turning my head stubbornly. "Later shanks!" I yell finally, walking away from them happily with a small, sassy sway in my hips.