Dark Enough -TMR- ( COMPLETED)

Chapter 21

"How are you alive?" She finally blurted out.

As grateful as she was, she didn't understand how two teenagers could have possibly survived what seemed like a certain deadly situation.

She had been so sure they weren't going to. After everything she had learned about that place, about the Maze and the horrors that awaited inside those cement walls; could it be possible that things weren't as terrible out there as she had been led to believe?

Seeing the darkness behind her best friend's eyes, the unconcealed fear she didn't recall she had ever seen in his eyes before, was enough to answer her question.

"Honestly..." He spoke, seemingly agaisnt his will. "It was Tommy."

Eleanor could tell he didn't want to talk about it. Perhaps he didn't wish to relieve it through his own words. Therefore, she bit her tongue and fell quiet, forcing her questions back. She observed him as he closed his eyes and gave out a loud sigh.

"You don't have to tell me." She assured him, immediately feeling bad for causing her friend any amount of pain.

She was dying to know the whole story, but she would wait until he was ready. If he ever was.

"It's just..." Minho started. "Oh, nevermind. I'll have to tell all these Slintheads anyway. I'd rather tell you first."

The girl attempted to smile at him encouragingly, trying not to show how much that had moved her.

"Thomas basically saved my life." He admitted. "I thought I was done for. I-"

His voice shook. Eleanor took his hand in hers without hesitation.

He took a deep breath. "I was so scared, El. I thought I was going to die."

She squeezed his hand tighter.

"Thomas was incredible. I've never seen anything like it. He saved Alby after I left them both for dead."

He sounded ashamed. Eleanor was clearly surprised.

"How?"

"I don't even know." He admitted. "He- like- strapped him up to the vines on the walls. It's crazy. I would've never thought of that."

"Wow..." She couldn't help it.

The Greenie had just arrived and was already doing incredibly smart, although decidely stupid, things.

"That's not the craziest klunk. The stupid shank killed a shucking Griever."

"What?" She asked taken aback, so sure she had misheard the Runner.

Kill a griever? Is that even possible?

"Well, we kinda killed more than one, but it was his idea."

"What?" She parroted.

How the hell was that even possible? Not only had they survived the night with their lives, which was unbelievable enough as it was, but they had killed a bunch of demonic murder machines.

"Yeah, it's crazy... Tricked them into running straight off the Cliff."

A freaking cliff?

There's a cliff?

How come no one has told me about the Cliff?

"Huh..." She couldn't make sense of anything these days. "I really don't know anything about this place, huh?"

He chuckled. They fell silent for a moment.