" WHITE BLOOD " T. MAZE RUNNER¹

twenty-five.

[CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE]

~

For several days following Nick's sudden death, the Glade was cast in a constant melancholy mood. Not much was said that wasn't needed to, and everyone wandered around with their heads hung low in grief. There was no doubt that the death of their leader had hit everyone hard.

Although Eleanor hadn't known Nick for nearly as long as some of the other boys, she grieved alongside them. Her entire body felt heavy whenever she walked around, and every time she would just simply glance in the direction of the North Door, her mind would wander back to Nick and she would feel a fresh pang of grief in her chest.

Gally had made a full recovery, and the Med-Jacks were quite relieved that the insane side-effects of the glowing blue medicine (which they had nicknamed the Grief Serum) had finally worn off. Although the Builder showed no signs of being stung in his appearance, his personality had changed quite a bit since he had woken up. Eleanor wasn't sure if it was because of the sting itself, or if it was because of the grief towards Nick and the guilt that she was positive the boy felt towards his death.

Gally mainly stuck to himself- which was quite odd considering one could always find the boy in the company of his fellow Builders before that dreadful day. Though now he stayed on the outskirts of the Gladers, his head hung low and his shoulders sagging. It was almost as if he was afraid to get too close to someone, just in case they blamed him for what happened to Nick. Eleanor wanted to talk to him, to try and comfort the obviously distraught boy- though every time she tried, Newt would hold her back with a sad shake of his head.

Alby had taken the leadership position of the Glade, and he had named Newt his second-in-command. Eleanor was happy for the blonde boy, for it gave himself something to do other than work in the Fields all day. She knew that, because of his bad ankle, Newt was limited on what he could do around the Glade, and she was glad that he was finally able to help out more. After he accepted the role as second-in-command, he had become much more busy as he struggled to help Alby through the change, and because of that, Eleanor didn't see much of him during the day anymore.

It was obvious that Newt was nervous with his new position of leadership- it showed in his eyes whenever he was around her, and he would often times chew on his fingernails whenever faced with a difficult decision (something that she found was a nervous habit of his).

"It'll take some time to get used to. You're doing a great job," Eleanor always told him whenever he seemed overwhelmed with the new job, though he never looked as though he believed her.

"Nothin' will ever be the same with Nick gone. It was how everything worked for almost two years- he was always our leader, and Alby was always the second-in-command," he had said with a shake of his head, a look of utter hopelessness stretched across his features.

Eleanor never knew how to respond to that, so she would only take his hand in hers, rubbing comforting circles into her skin with her thumb. It was the only way she knew how to comfort him without drawing too much attention their way, and she could only hoped that it helped.

The midday sun was shining down on Eleanor's back as she slid into the bench of the usual picnic table. The Kitchen was filled with soft chatter- something that was unusual for the past few days. It was obvious that the Gladers weren't going to get over Nick's death anytime soon, though she was thankful that they were finally starting to talk once more.