Subject B3 (newt x reader)

Chapter 39

"Keep moving." Thomas says gruffly, pushing Teresa forward as the four of us march along the empty corridor towards the lift at the end of it. My eyes dart back and forth several times just to make sure no one is around.

If we get caught now, we're all dead.

Once we reach the lift, Thomas steps in front of Teresa and pushes his finger against the button, waiting for the lift to come back down.
After ten seconds, the doors still haven't opened.

"Oh, come on hurry up." The brunette boy mutters angrily, pushing his finger harder and several times against the button. It finally hisses open, and the three of us step inside the lift. Newt presses the button on the wall to go upwards, but just as the doors are only a few inches away from closing, a arm sticks through them, prying them open and causing me to jump slightly.

I can't help but gasp quietly at the sight of the man who walks into the lift.

Janson.

I feel the tension of the lift immediately rise as the man moves to stand next to Teresa, directly in front of Thomas as the lift jolts to life, taking us up through the facility. I try to steady my breathing and remain as calm as possible, looking straight ahead at the back of Teresa's head and not moving a muscle.

"You're working late." Janson says to Teresa. The girl didn't reply, so he continued. "That's what I like about you, Teresa. You never give up, no matter how bad the circumstances are. WICKED need more people like you, especially in times like this."

"Thank you." Teresa says, trying to keep her voice as neutral as possible.

Out of the corner of my eye I see Thomas hover his finger above the trigger of the Launcher and tightening his grip on the handle of the gun.

"But there is something I wanted to tell you." Janson says in a hushed voice. "Your friend Thomas is here. Our cameras picked him up outside the city walls."

Teresa turns to look at Janson, and I have to admit that the look of fake shock on her face is very believable, considering she knows that Thomas is standing right behind her, dressed as a WICKED guard.

"So if he tries to make any contact with you, I would like you to tell me immediately." Janson says, "I'd like to think that I'm the first person you would come to in a situation like that. Would you agree?"

"Uh... yes." Teresa says, her voice slightly wavering with fear. But Janson doesn't seem to notice.

"I'm glad. And I hope for his own sake that he doesn't try and contact you."

"Would you- would you kill him if he did?" Teresa gulps, searing into the man's soul as he turns to her and smirks.

"Would that be an issue?"

My breath hitches in my throat just as the lift doors ping open at our floor. Teresa quickly nods to Rat Man before scurrying out of the lift. The three of us follow swiftly behind, and I notice Thomas nudge Janson's shoulder purposely as we exit, leaving the smirking man in the lift as the doors shut again.

******
"Thomas listen to me." Teresa pleas as we march down the corridor. "Getting the serum won't save Newt, it will only give him a short amount of time."

"Just ignore her, she's trying to get inside your head." Newt growls, shoving Teresa along.

How did Teresa know about Newt? She must have suspected something earlier when he was coughing all over the place. It doesn't take an idiot to figure out that something's wrong with him.

"Please listen, Thomas." Teresa continues, "there's something in your blood. Some sort of enzyme, I'm not exactly sure what, but you were the one to cure Brenda. That's why she's alive. You can save the world, Thomas."

"Open the door." Thomas says fiercely once we reach the end of the corridor, greeted by a large glass door which leads to another hallway behind it which turns a sharp left so we can't see down it from where I'm standing.

Teresa sighs and quickly presses her thumb against the panel, granting us access.

"Please, you have to believe me." Teresa continues as we step through the glass doors.

"Believe you?" Thomas snaps, suddenly whipping around to face the girl and snatching off his helmet, dropping it to the floor.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Newt hisses, "someone's going to see you!"

But Thomas ignores him. "Do you really expect me to believe you after you completely backstabbed us and went to work with the enemy. When does all this stop, Teresa? Hm? Answer me that. When does all the torturing and sacrificing of innocent people stop?"

"It stops when we find a cure." Teresa retorts, which only seems to anger the boy more.

"There is no goddamn cure!" He snaps, his voice gradually getting louder. My heart races as I look down the corridor, praying that no one will hear us.

But of course, I was wrong.

"Don't waste your time with him, Teresa." Janson says. I snap my head back and see the man standing at the other end of the corridor, pointing his gun right at us. His evil smirk still covered his ugly face as WICKED soldiers started to approach our group from both sides, Launchers in hand, trapping us like mice.

I stand frozen with fear, completely unsure of what to do, when suddenly Thomas wraps his arm tightly around Teresa's neck, causing her to yell out as he pulls her closer to him, shoving the butt of his pistol to her temple.

"Tell them to back off or I'll shoot." Thomas shouts, and I can't tell if he's bluffing or not. Newt and I stand completely perplexed as Janson takes a couple more steps towards us, his gun pointed right at Thomas's head.

"You wouldn't do it." Janson challenges. "You wouldn't shoot her."

"Don't test me, Janson." Thomas snarls, tightening his grip on Teresa, who squirms slightly under his arm.

"Fine then." The man shrugs, lowering his gun to his side. "Shoot her."

My breathing starts to speed up as I look between Janson and Thomas. I can hear Thomas's own breath start to waver slightly as the gun stays put against Teresa's temple.

"I said shoot. Her." Janson says again, egging the boy on.

But before Thomas has the chance to even move, Teresa suddenly spins around and out of Thomas's grip, pushing the three of us into the next corridor before pulling the emergency lever. The glass door closes, separating us from Teresa as alarms start to instantly wail throughout the facility, accompanied by red flashing lights.

"What the hell?" I exclaim, looking to my left down the corridor before looking back at Janson. My heart stops as I watch him raise his gun and cock it, aiming it right at my heart.

"GET DOWN!" Newt screams, diving on top of me as bullets whiz at the glass door. But none come through and hit us- they only make minor cracks in the door.

Thank god for bulletproof glass.

Adrenaline pumps through my veins as Newt scrambles off of me and pulls me up just as Janson storms up to the door, banging his fist on it fiercely.

I look over at Teresa beside the man. Go she mouths, tilting her head towards the corridor.

I offer her a simple nod back, before nudging Thomas's elbow.

"Come on, let's go." I say, removing the helmet from my head and letting it drop to the floor.

Not much point wearing it now that everyone knows who we are.

The brunette boy gives one last lingering look at Teresa, before turning on his heel and striding down the hallway.

"Let's go." Newt says, removing his own helmet and grabbing my gloved hand, pulling me weakly down the corridor closely behind Thomas.

Although I try to avoid looking at it, I can see dark purple veins beginning to peek out of Newt's collar.

They weren't there a couple of hours ago.