Subject B3 (newt x reader)

Chapter 21

A/N sorry for a very short chapter I just hadn't updated this in a couple of days and I didn't want to leave people hanging :) my exams finish tomorrow so I can start writing more frequently again.

Our group sit in a circle outside the food tent, perching on upturned crates as Harriet and Sonya bring out steaming plates of sausages and vegetables.

"Ooo boy, I've been waiting for this one!" Frypan laughs, taking the day late of food from Sonya, giggling as he shovels green beans into his mouth with a sigh of happiness.

"Mind if I sit here?" Sonya asks me, indicating to the crate next to mine.

"Course not." I reply, thanking Harriet as she hands me my own plate of food, before turning back to the blonde girl. "Did they tell you about.."

"Yeah, they did." She replies, cutting up her sausage into several small chunks. "How- how did it happen?"

"Well, Ava got caught by the Cranks just as we were leaving the mall." I sigh, "and Niamh... well, she got bitten by a Crank, but tried to play it off as heatstroke to us. She... she was going insane, slowly turning, so she... shot herself. Right in front of us."

Sonya's breathing hitches as she drops her knife and fork in shock. They clatter against the dusty path as she turns to look at me, her mouth hanging open slightly.
"Y/N, I'm so sorry. I can't... I can't imagine how traumatic that must have been."

I simply shrug, lowering my head to look at my feet.

"Yeah, well at least we're finally safe."

*****
"I wonder if Brenda's alright." Minho sighs once our group finishes our food, just as the sun begins to set over the campsite.

"She'll be fine." Sonya assures him, "Mary's probably given her a lot of bliss."

"Bliss?" Gzi asks, stacking her plate on top of mine on the table.

"It's like a serum that temporary gets rid of the Flare." Harriet explains. "You know, calms the pain for a while. Course, doesn't last forever."

"Has anyone seen Teresa?" I ask, glancing around the group for any sign of the brunette girl.

Did she even come with us to eat? I didn't see her in the group.

"Uh, yeah. She's up there." Frypan replies, pointing to the top of the hill on the edge of the campsite. I squint my eyes and see the faint outline of Teresa, looking out across the horizon.

"Is she ok?" Renee asks. "She didn't eat any supper with us."

"I'll go check on her." I say, adjusting my coat as I make my way along the path of the campsite towards the hill.

*****
"Teresa?" I huff, climbing up the last stretch of hill towards the brunette girl. She has her back towards me, but turns her head at the sound of her name.

"Teresa, are you alright..." but my voice trails off when I see her tear stained face, and her eyes are still glossy with tears. I stop a couple of feet away from her, confused.

"Y/N, do you remember your mother?" She chokes out.

"Um.. no. No, I don't." I reply, confused at where this conversation is going.

"Well, I remember mine." She continues, her eyes dazing off as she begins to reminisce. "She was a beautiful woman. Everybody loved her. And before WICKED, she was all I had. But one day, she got sick. I had no idea what to do. I was all alone, and only a child. So I locked her in her bedroom in the basement, and hoped that she would get better, get over the virus. But she didn't.
Every night around 12am she would scream for an hour. It was a chilling, ear- piercing scream that made my skin crawl. But one day it just stopped. I went down to the basement to check on her, and saw her sitting in a pool of her own blood. She'd... gouged her eyes out, Y/N."

The girl can barely get out the last words before she starts to sob again, tears a streaming down her face. I stand, in complete shock and no idea what to say.

"Why- why are you telling me this?" I finally get out, "I mean, I barely know you."

"I'm telling you this because I want you to understand why I did it." She sniffles back.

My eyebrows furrow in confusion.

Why she did what?

"Y/N, there are so many people out there, just like me, who have similar stories to tell. We can't block out WICKED. Not when they can help millions of people with our help."

And, as if on cue, the low whirring of propellers bounce off the mountains, shaking the ground slightly.

"Please, just don't fight them." Teresa cries, turning her head back towards the horizon. My eyes widen as I watch three aircrafts fly over the horizon, advancing towards us at an alarming pace.

"WICKED..." I say breathlessly, my knees buckling into each other.

"Please, Y/N-" Teresa pleas, her eyes darting back and forth between me and the aircraft.

"What have you done?" I say, shaking my head in disbelief as I back away from the crying girl.

She's called WICKED on us. Just when we reached safety, she's called WICKED on us, told them where we are. They're going to take us back with them and....

And we'll all end up like Maria.