in another life; the maze runner

☆ten☆

The majority of the Gladers were gathered in a large room in the Homestead, the mood of the group growing more chaotic by the second. Gally stood before the rest, his nostrils flaring and eyebrows raised slightly more than usual.

"Things are changing, there's no denying that. First, Ben gets stung in broad daylight, then Alby. And now-" Gally shot a deadly look at Thomas, who had his head lowered to the ground. "Our Greenie has taken it upon himself to go into the maze, which is a clear violation of our rules here." He addressed, crossing his arms in visible irritation. Mae was listening intently, sitting next to Chuck and not saying a word. At first, the girl thought Gally was being unreasonable. Thomas had saved Alby, after all. But as she listened to what he had to say, the more it came apparent to her why he was so upset.

She understood, in a sense. Gally had been living in the Glade for a long time, much longer than she had, and even though she definitely wanted to find a way out, she could understand why he wanted things to stay constant.

But then again, he was over reacting. Thomas hadn't meant harm, he just was doing what he thought was right.

"But, he did save Alby's life..." Frypan spoke up, gaining some agreements from the crowd. Gally shook his head quickly, preparing to defend his stance.

"Did he? For three years, we have coexisted with these things. Now, you've killed one of them," He was zeroed in on Thomas, who finally gained up the courage to lift his gaze from the floor. "Who knows what that could mean for us?" The tall boy finished his statement.

"Well, what do you suggest we do?" Newt said, his accent standing out greatly from the chorus of other voices.

"He has to be punished." Gally said plainly. A roar of different reactions washed over the Gladers. Some were cheering, some were booing, and some were simply adding their own opinions into the mix. Mae furrowed her eyebrows, sending Thomas a sympathetic look.

"Minho, you were with him. What do you think?" Newt asked.

Minho, who had remained silent for most of the meeting, stood up slowly. His clothes were dirty, his face sweaty and eyes red from exhaustion. He looked worn out, tired and drained. "I think," He started, gaining the attention from the Gladers as the whispers died down. "In all the time we've been here, no one's ever killed a Griever before. When I turned tail and ran, this dumb shank-" He referenced to Thomas, who still sat uncomfortably silent. "Stayed behind to help Alby."

"Look, I don't know if he's brave or stupid," Minho continued. Mae watched and listened, completely intrigued to see what the verdict was.

"But whatever it is- we need more of it. I say we make him a Runner." The Keepers last statement sent the Homestead into disarray. Shouts of disagreement and words of encouragement flew back and forth, and Chuck even tried to start a chant with Thomas's name, but quickly stopped when Mae shot him a silencing look. All this noise made it nearly impossible for Newt to try and calm everyone down.

Mae didn't even notice it, but the corners of her mouth had turned upward into a small, crooked smile. She was beginning to like this Minho guy more than she had thought.

She stole a glance at Thomas, suddenly feeling bad for him.

He must be really overwhelmed, she thought, turning her attention back to the leaders in charge.

Gally, his face distorted with exasperation and anger, narrowed his eyes at Thomas and those in support of him.

"Look, if you wanna throw the newbie a parade, that's fine. Go ahead, but if there's one thing I know about the maze, it's that you do-"

He was cut off by a blaring alarm, sounding throughout the whole entire Glade. It was a familiar alarm at that. It startled all the boys, and Mae was confused when Newt and Gally sent each other panicked looks. She glanced at Chuck, her green eyes wide with anticipation and fear.

"What does the alarm mean?" She shouted over the noise. Chuck looked back and forth at the others who were scrambling to leave the room.

"Greenie," He breathed.

Mae didn't have time to be shocked, because Chuck had already grabbed her arm and quite practically dragged her out of the Homestead. Startled, she followed him and the others as they rushed over to the box in the middle of the Glade, standing over it like they were watching fish in an aquarium.

Newt pushed the others back, slowly and cautiously opening the top of the box and lowering himself in. Mae couldn't see from the angle she stood at, and she tried desperately to pry her way closer to the box, but it was no use. The majority of the Gladers were much taller than she was.

"Newt, what do you see?" Frypan said frantically from the front of the crowd.

She heard him shuffle around a bit, and then a faint gasp.

"It's- It's another girl?" He spoke, his voice loud enough so that everyone could be taken aback. She heard him shuffle about another minute.

"She's the last one ever... What the hell does that mean?"

Mae felt her breath get caught in her chest, and with a newfound strength, she managed to make her way to the box. She hadn't even realized she had pushed right through and was now standing next to Thomas, who's eyes were wide in confusion and shock.

Mae peered down into the box, and what she saw hit her with a wave of different emotions, overwhelming her to the point to where she didn't know what to feel.

There, laying on the cold metal bottom of the box, looking just as lifeless as Mae had when she arrived, was a girl with raven dark hair, skin similar to hers, and freckles sprinkled across her face.

And in that moment within seeing her, Mae nearly fell backwards into the sea of Gladers.

Because she knew exactly who that was.

"Teresa."

A/N: THIS ONES SHORT AGAIN BUT I JUST WANTED TO UPDATE FINALLY. Sorry for the wait! I hope you enjoy, and don't forget to comment any feedback. Thank youu!