" WHITE BLOOD " T. MAZE RUNNER¹

seven.

[CHAPTER SEVEN]
the boy in the maze

~

Although Eleanor went back to her bed in the Homestead that night, she didn't fall back asleep. Instead, she lay on top of her messy blankets with her arms crossed over her chest and stared up at the ceiling, and she just thought. She let her mind wander where it pleased, although her thoughts never wandered too far from all that was going on.

The sound of Minho's snores were the only thing that told Eleanor that she was still awake. She didn't know how long she lay there, drowning in her own thoughts, though it felt like hours before she finally saw the faint glow of the sun as it rose over the stone Walls of the Glade. She knew that Minho was due to wake up soon, as the Runners usually woke up before everyone else. The rest of the Gladers, however, usually slept until the sun had fully risen and the sky had turned blue- Minho had told her that the Wake-up was around 6 am.

Eleanor hadn't realized that she had fallen back asleep until she felt someone shaking her. Opening her eyes, she could see the golden dawn light shining through the single window, though it was blocked by a black figure standing in front of her. Eleanor sat up in the bed, panic rising inside of her when she didn't recognize the dark-haired boy that was standing beside her bed. He stared down at her with a cheeky smile on his face, almost as if he found it amusing how scared she was.

"Who the hell are you?" Eleanor asked, her voice coming out as sort of a scream.

"Nick," said the boy simply, and this made Eleanor's eyes widen. She remembered Alby telling her about the leader of the Glade that she had yet to meet, and she found her cheeks heating up in a small blush.

"Don't get so flustered," Nick said with a small laugh. "I guess it would creep me out if I were to wake up and find some random boy standing over my bed, as well." He didn't give Eleanor a chance to respond before he began to head across the room towards the door. "Come down and get you some breakfast. You'll start work soon."

Nick left Eleanor to get dressed, closing the door behind him. Eleanor stared after him, pursing her lips, before she pulled herself to her feet. She was exhausted, and she felt rather light headed as she stretched. She couldn't help but feel nervous about starting to work later that day; she had only been in the Glade for a few days, and she still wasn't used to the way things worked. She hadn't hung around anyone besides Newt or Minho, so working with the other boys was going to be hard for her.

Eleanor quickly changed into a fresh pair of clothes and slipped on her shoes before she began making her way towards the kitchen. For the first time since she had arrived in the Glade, she actually felt hungry. As she approached the kitchen, she began to smell the mouth-watering scent of Frypan's bacon, and her stomach grumbled at the smell.