Ticking Time Bomb [THE SCORCH TRIALS]

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER TEN
❞Your voice lingers in my ears, the way a good sunrise travels with you for the rest of the day.❞

And, before Ingrid could even get one last word out, Thomas cut her off by pressing his lips against her own warm ones.

The moment was engulfed in silence, the only thing standing between them was their torn hearts that appeared to be on the mend from a simple spark on their lips. There was nothing surrounding them but an abyss of silence, nothing being heard as they gave themselves to each other in such a way that seemed so ethereal to Ingrid, who had never experienced this in her life. He was himself, she was herself, and their lips were the one thing putting these two pieces together, forcing them into a state of mind that felt dream-like, so unrealistic to them. That was the thing Ingrid had yet to learn about love; that each moment you spend with your so-called lover, becomes a moment of intense happiness, a moment of immense hope and light that can only bring so much to the two supposed star-crossed people. And, through the reality of it all, it was set in stone - they were kissing. Something exploded within her chest, more specifically in her heart, like a bomb of realization had been lit and then fired away. It burned away the fear of death, the worries of falling at the hand of the enemy. For a mere moment, it felt like nothing mattered anymore to either of them. Like nothing would matter ever again. They were the only two souls left on this earth - and they seemed slightly okay with that.

His hands were cupping her cheeks, and her arms were wrapped around his neck as she pulled him closer towards her, not even worrying about the lack of air that she contained. She wasn't used to this feeling; the loss of air, the way her heart rapidly beat as their lips moved in sync. She didn't even know where to put her hands or which way to move her head, but her body deemed it as second-nature for her, Thomas nearly guiding her. It surely wasn't even a two-second kiss anymore, no, it was definitely past that. And, from down below, Teresa, Newt, Frypan, Minho, and Aris, watched atop the mountains at the two people who deserved every ounce at a chance for a future. A chance at happiness. Teresa looked away immediately, biting back her anger or worry about Ingrid, and the threat she posed to her, for now, the Clearwater girl wasn't a threat to Teresa. She was a friend.

And, although it seemed to be a paradigm of gradual moments, it was longer until finally the two pulled away from each other, eyes widened. Hearts beating faster than the speed of light, breath ragged as their thoughts became a jumbled mess of each other, the rush of each other. Thomas removed his hands from the girl's cheeks, and Ingrid stepped back as well, removing herself from his presence. Her whole body felt as if it was on fire, making her body burn up and cause her to feel as if her legs would melt. Thomas had a stone-cold reaction as he tried to understand. Tried to comprehend what Ingrid meant to him, what he meant to Ingrid. But, before the two could even utter a simple word about what had occurred, the frightful sound of a gunshot pierced the eardrums of the two, causing them to share an equally horrified expression.

Ingrid and Thomas ran down the top of the sand dune towards the small rocks the rest of the group hid under as a way to get away from the sun, the shouts coming from the group nearing them. Finally, they were close enough so that they could see what the commotion was all about, and what they saw scarred each of them. Mostly Ingrid, though. Because, as far as she could remember or what she had been told, the scene reminded her of her father. "What happened? What happened?!" Thomas yelled out, rushing towards a sick Winston as Frypan struggled to explain it.

"I-I don't know, he just woke up and took the gun!" Frypan stuttered out, "He tried to shoot himself!"