" WHITE BLOOD " T. MAZE RUNNER¹

sixteen.

[CHAPTER SIXTEEN]

~

After Eleanor officially got her job as a Slicer, time seemed to fly. Days no longer seemed to drag on, and she found herself often times enjoying herself whilst working with the other Slicers. Winston turned out to be a really laid back Keeper- only making the others come around when it was time to feed, slice, or slaughter an animal. Because of this, Eleanor found herself having a lot of extra free time, which she usually spend hanging around the goats or finding Newt whenever she longed for the company of an actual human being.

Eleanor wasn't a typical Slicer, and if she was being honest, she didn't mind that. Winston told her that he recalled how she had told him that blood wasn't her favorite thing in the world, so he spoke to Nick about creating a so-called subline of Slicers, which he sometimes referred to as Ranchers. Eleanor mainly tended to the different animals on the farm- and although she sometimes had a difficult time not becoming attached to them, it was much better than actually slaughtering the creatures. When the Keepers and Nick were discussing what job would be best for her, Clint had reminded them numerous times how she had to take it easy because of her asthma; in the end, it had been a close call between a Slicer and a Cook.

Eleanor came to enjoy her job; it was rather easy, and the other Slicers were quite nice. They made sure she felt like she was apart of them and- most of them- kept their flirtacious and rather dirty comments to themselves.

One morning, Eleanor was awoken by the sudden sound of someone moving across her room rather quickly. She could hear a panicked gasp in her ear, followed by the familiar voice of Newt calling her name softly. Groaning, she opened her eyes and attempted to sit up- though she froze almost immediately as soon as she felt something wet underneath her.

"Ellie." She turned to see Newt staring at her with wide eyes, his gaze darting in between her face and the white sheet that she held over her body. Eleanor looked to see several red specks scattered across the surface.

"Are you okay? Are you injured?" Newt asked, looking flustered as he reached out to examine her body for any injuries. Eleanor quickly slapped his hand away before he could pull the sheet off of her, flinching slightly as she felt the wetness of the sheet beneath her.

"Um..." she murmured, unsure of what to tell the worried boy without embarrassing herself. Slowly, she pulled the covers off of her body, her lips pursing and her cheeks heating up as she revealed a good-sized pool of blood beneath her backside.

"Shuck," Newt murmured, standing to his feet as he stared at the blood-stained sheets. "You're hurt, Ellie. What bloody happened?"

Eleanor couldn't help but grow annoyed with his constant questions, closing her eyes as she let out a deep breath. "Listen, I'm fine," she muttered through clenched teeth, trying to ignore the stab of pain she felt in her lower abdomen. "Can you please... please just give me a minute to grab clothes and help me to the showers?"