maze runner imagines.

cat and mouse: minho

"oh, you're joking."
minho narrows his eyes at the scene before him and feels a gnawing, painful sense of jealousy begin within himself.
there stands y/n l/n with a much too exaggerated smile against her lips,
forcing a giggle to both save the pride of the boy before her and to anger minho.
to say its working is an understatement.
she watches out of the corner of her eye as minho balls his fists and burns holes through her with only a stare.
y/n can't stop herself from turning her attention towards minho entirely;
facing him head on to bask in his anger.
the smile on her face is teasing and tempting,
which only deepens this burning rage inside of him.
minho feels hot in the face.
there's a multitude of emotions running through him.
the sight of her purposely flirting in front of him makes him green with envy,
crimson with anger,
and still the lingering of light in her eyes that only shines when she sees minho makes him melt;
it makes him want to fall to his knees and beg her for the heavenly kisses she possesses.
instead of doing anything he truly wants to do,
minho walks off.
away from the fire,
away from the temptation that is y/n,
away from the blinding rage.
minho never understood his and y/n's dynamic.
one minute they can't keep their hands off of each other,
spending the majority of the night giggling and kissing each other numb,
then the very next day it's as though they've never met.
as though he's never touched secret spots of her,
has never learned the map of her body.
pretending like she hasn't whispered words of unadulterated enamor just the night prior.
"i saw you staring,"
y/n says after following minho with a tantalizing grin.
he doesn't want to face her,
so his eyes remain on the dirt beneath his shoes.
"i'm not playing your game."
"nobody's playing anything. this is what you wanted."
y/n never understands the swell of minho's emotions.
especially when it comes to whatever their relationship is.
he acts angry and entitled when she dares to converse with others,
but when she makes herself vulnerable for him,
he continues to act like no effort is needed to keep her around.
the potential commitment seem to comes as no interest to minho.
when he doesn't feel like having y/n's arms around him,
he simply discards her to be used again at his next convenience.
at least that's what she's gathered in the duration of their situation.
"yeah,"
minho begins with a scoff.
"that's exactly what i wanted. to see you flirt with someone else. you're right! you're so right, y/n."
y/n crosses her arms,
allowing her thoughts to curate before she speaks.
there's too much conflict.
she can't figure minho out.
she's tired of this game of cat and mouse.
exhausted from pretending she doesn't care.
"you can't keep stringing me along, minho,"
she says in a small voice.
minho finally looks up at her,
knowing this tone only makes its appearance in unguarded moments.
"you either want me completely or not at all."
minho can feel the words drying on his tongue.
the longing in her eyes is almost tangible.
if only he could reach out...
"i don't want you at all, y/n. go away."
the words make him flinch.
when he expects a rightful smack in the face,
y/n only remains still and stoic.
though her eyes of dimmed beauty show everything she might try to hide.
minho watches in silent torture as the hurt he's inflicted fill her eyes.
"okay,"
she says with finality.
the nail has been hammered into the coffin that is now their relationship.
minho knows he's just made a huge mistake in the name of unfiltered anger.
y/n has finally slipped from his grasp and it's all his fault.
she turns on her feet to walk away when minho reaches out to beg,
"y/n, wait."
his hand slips through her grasp,
like a mortal reaching for a phantom.
he is unsuccessful in bringing her back this time.
and as far as he knows,
he'll never get to share her company again.
all because he'd rather suffocate on his pride than free it from his existence.
minho clutches this hollow chest of his now.
"oh...what did i just do?"
the wounded boy asks himself once the weight of his words settled past his anger.
he buries his head in his hands and feels the once fleeting moments he shared with y/n fade before him.
the words didn't sound like his own,
yet they'd slipped right from his throat and past his lips.
so he decides:
for as long as he's breathing,
minho will never forgive himself.
***
the next morning,
minho goes to reach for y/n l/n who should be well resting beside him,
but is instead met with remembrance.
the words burn themselves against his skin;
branding him a fool.
his body yearns for the girl now that he's forced into withdrawal,
but he knows what he's said will never be forgiven.
if there was ever a line in the relationship between him and y/n,
he's surely crossed it now.
"what are you doing? get up."
minho ignores the voice of newt and turns over to throw the blanket over his head.
"i'm coming."
"well, you better hurry. they're waiting for you."
"i said i'm coming!"
minho didn't mean to yell.
it seems he's been doing nothing but speaking irrationally these past few days and it's burning the only bridges he has left.
wasn't losing y/n enough?
get a grip.
"i'm..i'm sorry, newt."
minho turns to face newt but finds that he's alone now.
newt scurried away before he could hear minho's small apology.
the boy takes the heels of his hands and rubs them rather harshly into his eyes.
he has no choice but to yank the covers from his skin in a manner that's so quick,
the paper thin blanket nearly slices him.
not that it would matter anyways.
what are external wounds compared to this vast vacancy in his chest that will never find its fill without y/n around?
minho searches for the young woman the moment he steps into the sunlight.
his eyes have barely been able to adjust to the blinding light before he sets his sights out on her.
unfortunately,
minho will not get his fix today.
y/n has made herself scarce from his presence as best she can in this suffocating maze she calls home.
though if she's being honest,
there will never be a greater home than the one in minho's burly arms.
but she won't think about that now.
not when he spit in her face and spoke the unspeakable:
i don't want you.
y/n would remember that for as long as she can keep this grudge in her grasp.
even if he comes to her begging,
pleading like a mortal to his maker,
she won't grant him the peace.
let it eat at him like this betrayal is gnawing on her bones.
let it stain him like the rejection has painted her skin crimson colors of insecure.
y/n uses the back of her hand to wipe away the tears that got past her barrier,
pretending as though she's wiping the sweat from her forehead.
which doesn't seem implausible considering the random heat wave of today.
the humidity has seeped through the cracks of the hut reserved for the medics,
making their depend on hands sweat beyond belief.
the morning passes without minho finding y/n,
meaning the morning has passed without y/n hearing from minho.
a part of her was hoping he would place his pride beneath his boot and bury it to never be found again.
instead,
it's seemed to be his closest companion now more than ever.
fine,
y/n thinks to herself,
what do i care?
but if you peer through this facade of laxity,
one would see the cracks for what they are:
grief in its rawest form.
y/n and minho had been each other's lifelines when they were handed a damning destiny.
they had changed each other for the better.
and for what?
for minho to throw it away?
to tolerate her simply because nobody else would?
to kiss her flaws,
to make them pretty again,
worth looking at,
only to remind her that his barbaric nature cannot be contained for anyone,
especially not for her?
y/n sinks to her knees and places her head between her knees.
she's overcome with the feeling of dread and can no longer stand on the two feet that once carried her to minho.
how is she meant to live in this skin when it reminds her so much of the boy she loves?
minho, himself, is falling apart at the seams.
do not be fooled by the furrowed brow and the taut shoulders.
if it were up to him,
he'd sag so low that the grass would familiarize themselves beneath his cheek.
he would sink so low into this earth to never be found again,
unless y/n calls his name.
only then would he rise from his metaphorical shallow grave and find his way back to her.
he doesn't know how he can continue to breathe life into this body that was only made great beneath the tattooed kisses of y/n l/n.
and what the hell had i been thinking?
minho doesn't make it to dinner.
it's risky,
his distracted mind,
considering how the maze demands every bit of his attention.
let it swallow me,
he decides.
only if it spits me back out into y/n arms.
he decided to call it quits before he gets himself or someone killed,
which is quite the sight for the gossip depraved gladers to see.
minho's quitting?
the whispers begin.
what's gotten into him?
he has no strength to explain it to these simpletons.
what would they know of love besides the fraternal bond they've welded from embers of harrowing living?
even if minho could put his love for y/n into words,
they would never understand anyways.
the day comes to an excruciating end for the two.
minho's stomach,
protesting the denial of food and y/n sating love,
cramps and curls into knots.
sitting just a few feet away,
y/n can hardly stomach her food,
despite it being her favorite by fry's crafty hand.
all she can see through the oil seeping through the plate are the words:
minho doesn't want you.
***
the next day is somehow worse.
minho wakes up with a weight so heavy sitting on his chest,
that his lungs forget how to work.
he is robbed of his breath,
he is robbed of his love.
his pride and his venomous tongue had stolen it from him with a sick gratification.
it has barely been forty-eight hours,
but minho cannot stand it anymore.
he rises from this empty bed,
leaving behind only his ego tucked beneath the sheets,
and finally seeks y/n out.
whether she will hear him or not,
he will make himself seen.
the moment he walks into the isolated hut built for the girls privacy,
he realizes the sun has yet to rise and the only sounds filling this space are her gentle breaths and his racing heart.
does he dare wake her from her slumber?
she's at peace,
minho realizes.
the last time he remembers her face looking so safe, so comfortable, was when they had been entwined as one with no intentions of breaking apart.
and look what he's done.
minho had divided himself and demanded his other half to walk the other way.
he sinks to his knees at the grand realization of what he's lost,
which makes loud enough of an impact to startle y/n awake.
the peace falls from her eyes to find panic then finally,
hatred.
it shreds minho's heart to know that this is what he's done to himself.
"get out,"
she demands with a tone so icy,
it makes him shiver.
"y/n,"
he whispers.
he knows he is unworthy of uttering her name,
but if she could just listen to the sheer heartbreak that's ebbed from his chest to his throat,
minho would be the most grateful man to touch this earth.
"i don't have anything to say to you."
"i'm sorry."
y/n scoffs at the simple apology then waves it away.
he watches her elegant hands meant for healing float through the air,
soft skin waiting to be appreciated through everlasting caresses and lingering kisses.
"i'm sure you are. god, minho, you're such a dick."
despite her insult and willingness to stay malicious,
her voice betrays her hurt.
it wavers on the last syllable,
which forces her to confront the wound that has yet to heal,
"you...you said you didn't want me."
minho winces at the reminder,
but especially at the way it's destroyed y/n.
"so, go away. you don't want me."
the boy makes his way to y/n's side and grabs her hands into his own.
she wills her limbs,
begs them,
to break free from this grasp,
but they fall placid like they have been broken in half and finally found relief.
what more can she do but sink away,
even if she hates herself for it?
"i don't know what i was saying, y/n. i get so angry sometimes that i-i say shit i don't even mean. i was trying to make you hurt the way i was but...i only ended up fucking myself over. i don't...i don't know how to do this without you."
y/n has never seen him so vulnerable.
sure,
she's imagined it many times,
but has never yet seen it so tangible like it is in this moment.
"how am i supposed to wake up and pretend like i don't look forward to finding you in my bed when the night comes? how am i supposed to eat without you there to pick at my tray? how am i meant to listen to his beating heart of mine if you hate me? i'm not worthy of your time or forgiveness, y/n, i know that. but i feel like i've, like, cut off a limb or something. i'd rather suffer through a griever bite than this."
y/n tentatively lays her head to his shoulder like she's done so many times before that it's practically habit.
"i said i didn't want you which was the stupidest thing to ever come out of my mouth. i don't only want you, y/n, i need you."
the silence in the room becomes palpable.
it is only broken when y/n rests a kiss to his skin and the breath minho had been holding finds it's release.
"you hurt me, minho,"
she admits.
the sound of her voice uttering his name gives him reason to live again.
"i know. and i'll spend the rest of my life making it up to you, even if it means braiding flowers for you until my fingers bleed."
y/n manages a laugh through this sorrow filled fear.
she remembers the warmth on her skin the day her and minho were left to their own in the vast field.
he'd let on that he knew how to braid flowers into crowns,
so he spent the rest of their afternoon together doing just that.
he denied it to anyone who asked,
but it was a simple secret meant for them;
it thrilled them to know their romance was theirs and theirs only,
and that y/n knew these things nobody else did.
minho could kiss a spot on her skin that nobody else knew made her shiver.
who else could claim they had a love such as theirs?
"i'm done with the back and forth, y/n. there is nothing else i want to do but love and be loved by you."
when y/n doesn't reply,
he places his lips against the crown of her head and whispers,
"can i do that? can i love you the way you should be loved? can i be the man you deserve?"
finally,
y/n relieves him by looking up with glimmering eyes painted in colors of pure devotion,
though there is one last question in her eyes:
will you say it?
minho molds his calloused palms around her marble soft cheeks and utters the words for all their truth,
"i love you."
she falls into his grasp as though she's been granted the gift of breath again,
then meets him here he sits.
the kiss is nothing short of heavenly.
it is half parts longing and half parts reunion.
so familiar yet so new.
minho has never been a real boyfriend before,
but no better time to start than now.
he's willing to be anything necessary to love y/n and be loved by her.
despite all the hell this maze has brought minho,
it has blessed him the existence of y/n l/n.
he'll be grateful forever.
so,
for the first time in two days,
for the first time in years,
y/n and minho finally lay together as one,
merged by their love and complete dedication to one another.
gone are the days of minho's venomous words.
now,
they will only utter words of adoration and appreciation for his lover,
a goddess dressed in muted colors.
but even through the drab does she shine.
and it will be minho's job from now till the end of their time to bask in its rays.
"i love you. i love you. i love you,"
minho admits against the curve of y/n's body.
he says it like a prayer;
like a confession coloring his soul.
she laughs that melodic laugh that brings minho to newer heights then delivers a euphoric caress down the length of his spine.
"i love you. i always have,"
y/n kisses the corner of his lips with ease,
watching as his eyes close beneath the tender action.
it is only then she whispers her vow,
"as i love you."