A sudden jolt and the whirring of machinery forced her to regain consciousness. She jumped up upon the realisation that she had no idea where she was or why she was there. Her breath grew short as she began to comprehend that she was in a cage that seemed to be moving upwards, passing by beams of light that allowed her to see what was around her. She was finally calming down when she suddenly noticed that she couldn't remember how she ended up the cage, who put her there and why. Her heartbeat quickened as beads of sweat began to form on her forehead. With her mind in a blur, she did the only thing she could think to do. She screamed.
She continued to scream until she brought on a cough, and decided that no one was going to hear her. Instead, she opted for the boxes that were piled up on the other end of the cage. She tore the top one open and rummaged through it until she came across a machete. She grinned wolfishly as she caressed the blade in her hands. She could only imagine the damage she could do with this on who, or whatever greeted her once she was let out.
The unanticipated impact of the cage coming to a halt threw her off of her feet and she landed on her back with a small thud. She groaned in pain, but stopped as her ears picked up the faint sound of a distant siren. She raised her arm to block the light that pierced it's way through the darkness and held out the machete in the other hand. She didn't remove her arm from her eyes until she heard a voice.
"It's a girl."
The voice felt familiar. It sent a wave of serenity over her as she listened to the simple words that weren't even directed at her. Something about the tone, the pitch and the accent made her believe that this person was worth trusting with her life, but her head hardly allowed such a thought since she hadn't even seen his face yet.
She took her arm away and found a group of young boys staring down at her, all wearing dumbstruck faces as they gazed down at the first girl they could remember laying eyes on. She did not appreciate the silent, judgmental stares, so she jumped up and kept the knife steady.
"Where the hell am I?" She demanded. "Who are you? Why can't I remember anything?"
"We'll answer all of your questions soon, Greenie. For now, let's get you out of that box," a boy with dark skin and a large build said.
"Don't come near me. I'm not going anywhere until someone explains what the hell is going on!" She yelled.
The boys looked at each other with bewildered expressions, none of them knowing how to welcome the girl without getting their heads chopped off. It wasn't long before a different boy spoke, one with arched eyebrows and seemed to have a permanent scowl on his face.
"Someone's gotta go down there and get her," he said before stalking off to the back of the group, making it clear that he had no intentions of getting into that box with an unpredictable girl holding a knife.
"I'll go." There it was again. That voice that made the girl feel at home, and safe. It scared her in ways that she didn't think she could be scared.
The boy that uttered those words was blonde, tall and thin, but he most certainly didn't look weak. As he made his way down into the box, the girl noticed his limp, which immediately concerned her, much against her will. She kept the knife directed at him as he stepped down to her level.
"You need to relax, Greenie. Just hand me knife and we can help you get settled here alright," the boy said.
"No. Tell me where I am!" She barked.
The boy took a hesitant step towards her. "You're in the Glade. You can see it if you come out of this box."
She simply stared at him, a debate in her mind about what would be the best option for her. She could allow herself to trust these boys, but she had no idea what they were like and how they would treat her. The only person she trusted was herself at this moment, and she believed it would be best to keep it that way, no matter how this boy made her feel.
"My name is Newt. Do you remember yours?" He asked softly, taking yet another step towards her. She shook her head and waved the knife, sending Newt back a step, reminding him to keep his distance. "Alright. We're going to call you Greenie for now. Please just come out and let us help you."
The girl sighed heavily and finally nodded, agreeing to come out of the box. She figured that it was her only way to make any progress. Newt carefully reached out and held the knife from the top of the blade. He met her eyes, waiting to see her reaction, and found himself quite surprised when she loosened her grip, allowing the knife to fall into his possession.
Newt struggled, but managed to climb out of the box with this limp. Hesitantly, the girl followed suit. When she was near the top, Newt grabbed hold of the girl's hand and pulled her up onto the ground.
She didn't even have a moment to take in her surroundings before another voice piped up. "Alright you shanks, back to work while I take care of the Greenie! Enough time has been wasted today!" a tall, lean boy with dark locks yelled at the crowd. There were grumbles of protest before the group dispersed, but every single boy gave her a lingering look before they went back to doing whatever they were doing. The only boys that remained were the boy, who appeared to be the leader, the same dark-skinned boy from earlier, and Newt. "Welcome to the Glade, Greenie. I'm Nick."
"My name is Alby," the other boy said.
"And you already know me," Newt said awkwardly.
"Well, Greenie. This is day one. You're going to have a bed sorted by one of our Sloppers and I'm going to give you the tour tomorrow," Nick explained. He gave the girl no time to ask any questions as he immediately turned to Newt. "Go find Rob to sort out her bed. Alby, call a Gathering for after the doors close."
Alby nodded as Newt flashed the girl one final look before running off. Nick turned to the girl and nodded his head, indicating for her to follow him. She couldn't think of a reason not to, so she jogged to keep up with his long strides, dismissing any of the questions swirling in her head.
"We've all been through what you're going through. You're confused, scared and the memory thing is probably freaking you out. So day one is about you. You're going to get things sorted like a bed and familiarise yourself with the Glade," said Nick. He stopped by a particularly large oak tree and tapped it with his knuckles. "Stay here and here and wait for Rob. I need to go talk to the other Gladers."
The girl nodded with a questioning look that Nick seemed to dismiss. He jogged off leaving her to finally get a chance to take in the Glade, and so far, the only thing gaining her attention was the monstrous walls that seemed to trap every kid in here, all apart from one gap that was almost staring at her, somehow repelling her from it. Something about the walls that created a perfect square around the Glade made her feel as if this was the safest place she could be, and whatever was beyond those walls would only put her in more danger. She didn't know what to call it. Instinct? However, she got pulled out of her own head when she felt a tap on the shoulder.
A boy who was about her own height, with hair the colour of coal and golden skin was grinning at her. He held supplies wrapped in some kind of material under his arm and held his hand out with the other.
"I'm Rob. You're obviously the Greenie." His voice was lower than the girl expected since he looked around fourteen.
"Obviously?" She questioned as she cautiously shook his hand. So far she had managed to pick up the fact that Greenie meant 'new kid' since no one else was being called that name.
"Well you're the only girl here," he quite obviously pointed out.
Rob led the girl towards the set of hammocks and began setting hers up. The girl watched for a brief moment before becoming distracted by the rest of the Glade. She stared out at the open field standing silently as she felt a light breeze cool the sweat that was forming on her neck from the suns harsh heat. Her eyes darted between what appeared to be gardens and the wooden huts that were on the far end of the Glade, but there was one particular face that she landed on. She watched the blonde boy from earlier as he hacked at a tree stump. He seemed to be supporting himself on a stick, which she assumed to help with his limp and she wondered how he ended up with that limp in the first place, but knew it wasn't her place to ask.
She spotted Nick's lanky figure run towards her so she straightened herself up, preparing for whatever he was going to ask of her.
Once he finally made it, he leaned against the tree that she was leaning against only moments ago and took a swig of water from his canteen. "Alright Greenbean, What you're gonna do today is sit in the kitchen with Frypan for the day. None of the guys have seen a girl for... as long as they can remember, so this is just a precaution until dinner."
The girl didn't argue because in some ways Nick was right about what he was doing, however she didn't understand why she had to hide instead of teaching the boys to control themselves, or maybe that's what he planned to teach them?
"So how long until dinner?" She asked.
"Not long," Nick replied. "Maybe a few hours?"
She nodded and allowed herself to be lead towards a tent after thanking Rob for setting up her bed for her. Nick opened the tent, allowing her to step in first, and she was immediately hit with a wave of warmth from the cooking pots. The only boy in there had dark skin, and wore an apron that was covered in smears and stains that the girl couldn't identify.
"Hey Frypan," Nick greeted along with a slap to the shoulder. "Can you do me a favour and keep the Greenie here until Dinner?"
Frypan looked over and seemed rather surprised that he was looking at a girl. She thought that every boy in the Glade came out and saw her?
"Yeah, I guess so as long as she stays away from the food."
The mention of food made her stomach churn with hunger. She gripped it with a sudden sickening feeling and piped up. "Actually, I am hungry so is there anything I can eat?"
Frypan's head snapped towards the girl and noticed that she seemed to be contorting in pain. He sighed, went over to the mini-fridge and pulled out a sandwich along with a canteen of water. The sandwich was barely out of his hands when the girl scoffed it down in a matter of minutes. Both Frypan and Nick stared at her in awe.
"Do girls always eat that fast?" Frypan muttered.
"Have fun taking care of her." Nick slapped Frypan's shoulder and left the tent.
~
The girl found it difficult at first but she soon found Frypan to be quite a nice person. He answered the vast majority of her questions, but was confused when he would change the subject every time she brought up the unknowns of whatever was beyond the Glade. She wasn't necessarily sure if it was because he had no idea what was out there, or if he was scared to talk about it, but she thought it would be a good idea to not piss him off and maintain a good impression at least until she was comfortable.
Frypan found himself enjoying the girl's company too. She made herself useful and quite shockingly, didn't mess anything up. During lunch she stayed in the tent with Frypan and he found her to be taking the whole situation quite well. She was able to laugh, make jokes and smile in the midst of losing her memories and having absolutely no idea where she was. He didn't know what her secret was, but he was glad it was working out for her, because he could only imagine how tough the situation was for her.
~
The warm rays of the sun were just beginning to set beyond the ancient walls when Nick popped his head into the tent, startling both the girl and Frypan as they were finishing up dinner.
"Hey Greenbean. I want you to meet someone," he said quickly before taking his head back out of the tent.
"The shank couldn't even take a moment to tell me that the food smelled good?" Frypan muttered to the girl, knowing that Nick wasn't far from the doors of the tent.
The girl chuckled and bid farewell before heading out into the cool evening air. The sky was streamed with pinks, yellows and oranges and the boys were bustling to complete the days work and finally eat. As much as she enjoyed helping Frypan, she really needed to feel the cool air on her skin.
Nick beckoned her forward in time to see two people run out from the gap between the walls, leaving the girl in awe. She thought that no one would want to go in there, since is didn't seem too appealing to her, but it must have been different for these two boys. She wondered why they wanted to go in there in the first place, but her thoughts were cut short when the two boys came to a stop in front of her, staring her down as if she were an alien.
"Um, Nick? I'm not sure if you've noticed but there's a-," the Asian boy began. He was tall, with muscles arms and hair that seemed to defy gravity and stand upright.
"Yeah I'm aware, slinthead," Nick retorted. "She's the Greenie, which is why we're having a gathering in Homestead."
"Gathering?" the girl asked.
"Just a meeting between the leaders and the keepers. I'm Minho, by the way," the Asian boy said, holding out his hand. The girl placed her hand in his as he brought it up and kissed it softly, causing the whole group to burst out laughing.
The girl practically jumped out of her skin as she heard scraping metal that caused her to cover her ears. She noticed that the gap between the walls was closing, but the walls were so thick and old, that they seemed to defy all laws of physics as they moved. Every other boy stopped to watch the walls close as well, and once they did, they continued with whatever they were doing, while the girl was still mesmerised. Now that the walls were closed, she felt a sense of both relief and entrapment. She looked over at Minho who was trying to contain his laughter at the girl's reaction, which caused her and the rest of the group to laugh once again.
However, only ten feet from them, Newt stood and watched as Minho kissed the girl's hand, and laughed with her. He didn't understand why, but it bothered him greatly. He felt as if he should be the only one allowed to do that. He didn't understand why he felt so attached to a girl he had only spoken to once, but in a way, he didn't mind it. In fact, he felt whole whenever he looked at her. This is why he was thankful for the agreements at the Gathering.
Later that evening, just before dinner was served. Nick and Alby stood on a log to catch everyone's attention.
"Alright shanks! " Alby yelled. "You're all probably aware that our new Greenie is a girl, so ya'll better make sure you don't touch her, catcall, or even breathe near her without her permission. If any of ya'll do, it'll be a serious punishment!"
"She is a Glader just like the rest of us. Do not treat her any differently just because she is a girl!" Nick shouted at the group of boys.
"Alright shuck-faces, let's get the fire started!" Alby roared with a fist in the air.
The boys gave magnificent cheers and the leaders along with a few others threw a burning spear into the mountain of firewood to start a burning flame that became the life of the party.
The girl grinned at all of this and went towards the kitchen to get food. She felt elated now that she had seen the family that these boys had become, and now she was ready to be apart of that family. Although she was skeptical at first, it didn't seem like she had much of a choice, and now she was very glad that this was her only option.
She walked into the tent to see Minho along with Frypan and the other Runner, (who she learnt to be Ben) all eating and talking.
"Hey shorty!" Minho cheered as he practically skipped over to her and threw an arm around her.
"I'm not that short!" She snapped.
Frypan snorted in response. "You kind of are."
Of course she wasn't really offended about being short, but she exaggerated anyway by folding her arms and scoffing. "You're just a bunch of shanks." The word 'shank' felt foreign as it slipped off of her tongue, but it also felt good to use, as if she was beginning to adjust here.
"Now you're getting it!" Ben said.
She grabbed a plate of food and spent the time she was eating with Frypan, Minho and Ben. She greatly enjoyed their company and her sides hurt from laughing, but every now and again she'd find her thoughts shifting towards a blonde glader.
She decided to leave the tent and immediately went to find Newt. It took her a moment but she spotted him sitting on a log with a jar of god-knows-what in his hands.
She didn't hesitate to jog over and tap him on the shoulder. He looked up and was pleasantly surprised to see her smiling at him.
"Mind if I sit?"
Newt shook his head and tapped the log next to him. The girl smiled and sat down, stretching her legs out with a sigh.
"You know, you've been handling this pretty bloody well," Newt said before taking a swig of whatever he was drinking.
"I am?"
Newt nodded. "Most of us panic for the whole of the first day. Some have cried and screamed, and some of us have even klunked our trousers."
The girl stared blankly at Newt for a moment, before realising what 'klunk' meant and contorting her face in disgust. "Oh my God. I don't know if I should laugh or feel bad."
Newt chuckled. "It's pretty bloody funny sometimes, but once you remember how difficult it is, then it's not so fun."
He handed her the jar of a yellowish liquid which the girl eyed curiously. "What is it?"
Newt shrugged his shoulders. "No idea. It's Gally's recipe," he said, gesturing to the boy who was wrestling with others in a sand pit. "But we call it moonshine."
The girl sighed and didn't hesitate to knock back several gulps which burned her throat and esophagus, causing her to cough violently. Without a moment of hesitation, Newt leaned over and rubbed her back until she stopped. He only realised what he was doing when the girl looked up and made eye-contact with him, and he immediately took his hand away. He didn't understand why he felt the need to help her, but it felt instinctual, as if he'd been doing it for a long time.
The girl couldn't help but smile at the way Newt tried to help her, but she could tell that he felt awkward about it, so she decided to pretend that it didn't happen, for his sake.
"Maybe this stuff isn't really for me," she said with a laugh.
"Maybe not yet. It grows on you though."
"So tell me about the jobs here since I'm going to have to start working soon."
"Alright. So you've got the Sloppers, who are usually the ones who can't do much else. They clean up after the Slicers and after meals. Then you've got Track-hoes, who-"
"Allison."
Newt furrowed his brows and turned to face the girl directly. "What did you say?"
"Allison. That's my name. I'm Allison!"
Newt laughed and stood up with Allison's hand in his. He raised her arm, which caught majority of the boys' attention.
"ALLISON!"
The boys immediately uproared into celebration that involved picking up their newest arrival and dancing with her on their shoulders. She laughed at the wild group but seriously appreciated them. If they hadn't treated her so well, she would have most definitely run through those walls, which reminded her that she had absolutely no idea what was beyond them. She kept a mental note to ask when she got the chance.
Newt grinned as he watched the girl laugh and smile, seeming at home with this group of strange boys who were stuck living in a square with no idea how to get out. There is was again. That feeling of security he felt whenever he looked at her. If he was being completely honest, he didn't hate the feeling, but he did want to know why it was there. Did he know her before his memories were wiped?
The boys set Allison down and continued to enjoy their night. She was still laughing as she sat back down on the log next to Newt.
"Do they always do this?" She asked when she finally stopped giggling.
"Well they don't normally pick the new boys up," Newt said, making the two laugh.
"I have been meaning to ask though, what's outside of these walls?"
That question made Newt tense. Of course, he wanted nothing more than to answer her questions, but Nick and Alby had their rules. He couldn't tell her so soon and scare her. As much as he wanted to tell her everything, he knew it was best to let her get comfortable before frightening her with horror stories about what's beyond the ancient grey slabs that trapped them there.
Newt sighed heavily, and placed a hand on her shoulder, making her stomach flutter involuntarily. "Trust me when I say you don't want to know."
Newt stood up and limped over to talk to others, leaving Allison in a state of bewilderment. She didn't understand why Newt suddenly decided to stop answering her questions. Maybe what was out there was too horrific to speak about, but then why would they send boys out there? The whirling thoughts made her feel uneasy, so she picked up the jar of moonshine and forced it down as it burned her throat. Allison decided that she
wasn't going to waste her first evening dwelling on questions that no one wanted to answer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi!
This is the first fan fiction I've published on Wattpad and I'm kinda nervous so please don't be too harsh! There are most definitely some mistakes in here.
This is mainly based on the movies, but I picked out random little bits from the books that I felt like including. The first 11 chapters are already up if you wish to binge read.
Thank you for choosing to read this! I love you
This is also available to read on Quotev, by the same name :)
~Miya x