black veil ◦ scorch trials || thomas

12.

TWELVE ; A MATTER OF TRUST

     There wasn't a bone in her body that did not ache.

     With the searing hot pain of her wrist and the exhaustion, Evan found herself tripping over her own two feet more often than not. And she would have gladly stopped for a few seconds rest if it weren't for the ominous and menacing thunderclaps from above them.

     She was breathless, constantly gasping for breaths she couldn't catch. Her heart was hammering against her ribs and her head was pounding. Her vision was hazy and everything was blurry. She knew her eyes were fixated on the lights in front of them, but she couldn't see them anymore. Nor could she see the outline of the building.

     It was still there, she knew it was. Though as of now, the lights she had seen were nothing but a faint glow, like stars obscured by misty clouds.

     And so she was running almost aimlessly. Her legs were wobbly beneath her and her knapsack suddenly felt a thousand times heavier than before. There was a metal taste in her throat, one she was all too familiar with by now.

     "C'mon, keep going!"

     For the umpteenth time since her escape from WICKED, Evanna felt a hand on the small of her back and she felt it push her forward. It had almost become a thing now, and she almost shrugged his hand off and cursed at him. She almost turned around and told him she didn't need his help.

     But she would be lying, and quite frankly, she liked the fact that he was looking out for her in the midst of a storm. She took comfort in it, in an odd way though.

     With the small push from Thomas, Evan willed herself to go faster, to not collapse just yet. Because if she was going to die out in the Scorch, it was not going to be because of some goddamn lightning storm. That was not what she had in mind for herself at all.

     The stinging in her wrist that had annoyed her all night became, numb almost, as Evan focused all her energy on the hazy building in front of her and her heavy legs. The boots around her feet had begun to feel like shackles, but she refused to let it slow her down.

     Evan was going to prove to Thomas and everyone else that she didn't need their help to survive out in the Scorch. She was determined to show them that she could take care of herself perfectly fine, as she had done before WICKED and during.

     And she had found her strength, she had found her motivation to keep going. But then a body slammed into hers and all breath was knocked out of her. Roughly, Evanna fell to the ground and tumbled a couple of feet more because of the force.

     She didn't move. Quietly gasping for breath, Evan squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her jaw at the harsh and high-pitched ringing between her ears. She was tempted to press the palms of her hands against her ears, just to drown out the noise. But the pain in her wrist had made itself known again and her body ached too much.

     Evan slowly opened her eyes, in spite of the ringing, and watched as vague silhouettes pushed each other towards the building. They were closer now, so close that she could finally see the lights again, but she knew that that would be about the extent of it. Because she couldn't move.

     Two people were inside now. The ringing had faded ever so slightly. She didn't even flinch when another lightning bolt struck near her. And then it occurred to her that dying in the Scorch because of that goddamn lightning storm might just be what was supposed to be the end of the road for her since the beginning.

     Another two people were dragging an unconscious body towards the black hole in the wall of the building. They disappeared the moment they stepped through it, and Evan watched the black turn into grey and she realized it had to have been a door.