"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...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I woke in the center of it all, Newt shook me awake. I had fallen asleep on him, dried tears still sticking to my face.
"Wake up! We gotta go! Come on!" Minho yelled, pulling me to my feet and helping Newt up next. The light was the first thing we noticed, it was impossible to see anything else when the spotlight landed on us. We ran, once again not knowing where we were going and who we were going with. The huge building in front of us was the most complex building any of us had seen or had memories of, so it felt like a safer bet.
A soldier hurried me inside, his gun pointed at the ground. I checked next to me, making sure the body there was still Newt. "What's happening?"
He couldn't answer, we both just looked around in aw, the ceiling reached at least a hundred feet above our head, multiple floors filled with busiest soldiers, scientists, and other workers. Some driving full vehicles that I couldn't even name and others getting more firepower.
"Cranks! We got Cranks! Gotta move! Not safe out here, kid!" A soldier at the door screamed, slamming a red button on the wall. The enormous doors started to close, Thomas just barely snuck in before they shut and hydraulically pressed locked.
"Sorry about all the fuss. We had ourselves a bit of a swarm." A man presents himself in front of us, she wore a suit over a turtle neck. He had a cleaned sophisticated look and a friendly smile.
"Who are you?"
"I'm the reason you're all still alive. It's my intention to keep you that way. Now, come with me. We'll get you kids squared away." He started walking, not even looking back to see if we cared enough to follow. He took long strides, confident and sure of himself, starting to weave in and out of halls like he had been here his whole life. "You can call me Mr. Janson. I run this place. For us it is a sanctuary, safe from the horrors of the outside world. You all should think of it as a way station. Kind of a home between homes." A light spark came from our left, prompting him to point at it, "Watch yourselves."
"That means you're taking us home?" Thomas was bold enough to ask while I was still mind-boggled at all the high tech I was seeing.
"A home of sorts." He admitted, trying his best to sugar coat it. "Sadly, there wouldn't be much left of wherever you came from. But we do have a place for you. A refuge, outside the Scorch, where WCKD will never find you again. How does that sound?
"Why are you helping us?" Newt questioned his serious manner completely.
"Let's just say the world out there is in a rather precarious situation. We're all hanging on by a very thin thread. The fact that you kids can survive the Flare virus... makes you the best chance of humanity's continued survival. Unfortunately, it also makes you a target, as no doubt by now you've noticed. Beyond this door lies the beginning of your new lives." He pointed to a double door set, behind him before kicking a different door open. "First things first... let's do something about that smell."
Our eyes all went wide at the sight. Over two dozen cubicles of showers. Each clean, with actual curtains and it didn't smell like mold and teenage boy. Surely something that I could only dream of in the maze. I pushed Frypan back, beating him into the shower room before anyone else could.
All the boys cheered as we rushed in. I found the first shower. Turning it on with all my clothes on letting the warm water completely take me over. I shut my eyes, just appreciating the feeling.
I heard a chuckle at the open door, turning around to see Newt leaning against the frame. Laughing at my idiot behavior. I heard a few other showers turn on, all followed by celebrations at the steamy water.
I snuck my fingers around Newt's belt loop, pulling him into the water with me. He tried to protest but as soon as he felt the water, he melted. I giggled now, brushing his wet hair out of his face. He smiled, opening his eyes to look down at me. I pretended not to notice his shirt sticking to his chest.
He rested his hand on the wall behind my head, sending shivers down my spine even in the hot water. He must have noticed something because he reached his other hand up to grab something. He held a little bottle in his hand, "What the hell is a shampoo?"
I took the bottle, starting to read the back of it. I felt his fingers venture down my ribs, only stopping when it reached the point where my shirt ended and exposed skin. By this point, I had realized I had read one line multiple times, losing focus every time. I gave up, knowing enough that it was a product for your hair. I put some in my hand, running my fingers through his hair. He smiled, relaxing happily I washed all the memories of the maze from his head. I helped tilt his head back, all the bubbles floating down his neck and then chest. I couldn't help myself as my hand slid under his shirt and settled on his bare chest.
When I glanced back up, his eyes were already on me as if I was a life's greatest miracle, "You did it. You got us out."
"You were a little help." I teased him, while also not taking all the credit.
"Oh, shut up." He dipped his head, wrapping his hand around the back of my neck and pulling me into a kiss.
Every bit of self-control I had gone down the drain, I pulled at the bottom of his shirt making us break our kiss only momentarily to get it over his head. He didn't seem to like a brief second apart because once we reconnected he grabbed the V-neck of my shirt, with both hands, ripping it down the center. I gasped in surprise, giving him the opportunity to slide his tongue in my mouth. Which came with no complaints of course. That was the thing with Newt I always thought I was in control. But in a second he could show who was really in charge. My heart raced as he pushed my back into the wall.
He might as well have thrown me off the cliff because I was free-falling.
