"So when did you- you know- fall in love with her?" Thomas smirked, knowing he had him right where I wanted him, with his head in Fionaland.
"Woah," Newt defeated with his hands up, "What?"
"I may be slow to getting to know things around here, but...
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I packed a full bag for the day, even when I told myself that the boys could handle themselves, I still brought extra bandages and a few snacks. Minho practiculary was sassier on any empty stomach. While Minho finished his preparations I headed towards the slammer, unwrapping the rope that locked him in overnight. The silence was deafening, and I knew he was waiting for me to speak first. We hadn't left off on the best note, but I wasn't going to turn my back on him when he needed me.
"Hey, Thomas..." I started, trying to choose the best words for this conversation, "About Gally."
"You really shouldn't apologize for him." He told me, stepping out of the little hole in the ground.
I couldn't help the need to be defensive, Gally wasn't my responsibility nor would I be treated like his caretaker, "Gally's a big boy, he can make that choice for himself."
Thomas missed my aggerivation, caught up in this feud between the two of them. "I won't hold out for it then."
I scoffed, still amazed by his boldness after only a few days here. Thomas's stubbornness was a strength and a weakness. I started walking him acrossed camp, "We've been here a long time. I'm not saying it's a good thing, but we got used to being here. Everything we have, we built. I know it might be hard for you to believe, but we also imagined a future here. I can't even begin to think of what might be outside of these walls."
"This isn't our home." He turned to me, his eyes pleaded with me to take his side. I couldn't make him that promise. At the end of the day, it was us against the maze, not Thomas against Gally and I wouldn't play into their idiocy.
"Maybe not, but they're is some type of safety in here. For over a year now the maze has been finished. With no exit, a lot of us, including Gally and I, adapted to the idea that we were never getting out. We've gotten our hopes up before, clearly that didn't go to plan. Gally keeps his expectations low and his dreams small so he can't be disappointed. It's the safe way. Deep down all he's worried about is our safety."
"I worry about that too. I don't want anyone to lose their life because of me." He sighed, "But I know there's a way out. Then we won't have to rely on the generosity of a box. We can be free."
"One step at time, Tommy boy." I patted his shoulder, handing him a runner's vest. "Right now, we still gotta find a way out. Then we will see where this goes. But I don't want you to be discouraged if this doesn't work. We will keep trying."
"We're close. I feel it. We can do this." He looked over at the maze entrance.
I nodded, I didn't want to doubt him. I hoped, deeply, devotedly, that the grand scene of it all, that the maze was designed to be solved. Options were low, we found the solution, or we die here. We might last a few months, a few more years, but my gut told me we wouldn't. Gally was right to be worried, everything was changing. The choice was becoming clearer each day, it was our decision to resist the change or change ourselves.
