Ticking Time Bomb [THE SCORCH TRIALS]

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FOUR
❞Every act of rebellion expresses a nostalgia for innocence and an appeal to the essence of being.❞

THE NEXT DAY at lunch held a different type of mood than it normally would be. There were no cheers as their name was called, as if others had felt the feeling that something was coming. Janson had called out the names monotonously, without showing any regard to his emotions. He had disregarded Ingrid the entire day, not once even bothering to look her in the eye. She, of course, did the exact same, doing her specific job without the supervision of her leader. Ingrid felt stronger than she once did, her strength coming into play so that her weaknesses faltered behind. Recently, Thomas had become her new coach. He had watched her admirably from afar as she practiced with her bow and arrow, hitting her target perfectly each time she aimed. And for once, she had actually attempted to teach him how to shoot, and when she had wrapped her arms around him in a way to get him to learn, things had taken an awkward turn.

However, currently the two were sat at a small round table with a few other boys, including Minho and Newt. The entire time they were sitting, Thomas had an expression on his face that clearly proved he didn't want to be bothered. It was much more angered than the face expression she had seen a few hours ago, which was utter joy. He was whispering to himself as Janson was calling out names, and it was finally after the last one was called that Ingrid tuned in to the boy besides her, "I wanna know what's through that door."

        Ingrid's head now fully swiveled towards the boy, and she immediately spoke up before letting the boy continue on with his thoughts, "Thomas, seriously. Are you out of your freaking mind? I haven't even been in there! And it's, it's not even safe―"

"Ingrid, since when do you care about my wellbeing?"

"I don't care, I just think you're going to make an incredibly huge mistake. Thomas, you don't even know what you saw last night, okay? I don't even know what I saw. So please, please, don't cause any more trouble," Ingrid practically begged, her eyes locked on Thomas's ice-cold expression that showed no signs of softening.

         "I know exactly what I saw. I saw a body being wheeled down the hallway, Ingrid," the other boys seated at the table sent pointed glares at Thomas once they heard those words, quick glances being exchanged between Minho and Newt, "Aris said they bring in new ones every night."

"Who the hell is Aris?" One of the boy's names she had just learned, Winston, asked confusedly.

"He was there with us," Thomas and Ingrid spoke in unison, causing the group of boys to nudge each other continuously. Ingrid cleared her throat awkwardly, ignoring Newt's protruding look that only seemed to be focused on her.

"You two shanks were there together?" Newt questioned in disbelief, making the Clearwater girl groan inwardly. She sure as hell didn't want to be dragged down the depths of Thomasville, but currently it seemed that everyone was connecting her with him. Sure, they were talking more than usual, and they had been spending more time together, but it was about work. Nothing but work. And if anyone thought differently, she was going to make sure that person fell off the face of the earth.

           "No," They replied in unison.

           "Okay, maybe― yeah we, uh, were, just, uh―"