Without A Choice // The Maze Runner [Book 1]

ONE

I remember burning pain. I felt like I was about to scream.

I remember the darkness. I was alone, scared, and clueless.

I remember drowning. Water. It was consuming me. 

I remember waking up in a metal box, knowing nothing. Nothing at all. 

I remember looking into the sun, shielding my eyes from the bright light.

I remember a boy helping me out of the box. His name was Alby. He looked familiar yet he didn't.

I remember not knowing my name, but it came back to me after two days. It was Leah.

I was the only girl for over three years. Three years trapped in a Maze with only boys is exhausting, let me tell you that. Alby had been in the Glade for a whole month until I arrived. Minho arrived a few months later, Newt after that. 

I was a Runner and the one who made sure everyone did their jobs and followed the rules.

We had four rules in the Glade. These rules made our society work. They were the backbone of everything we had built and trespassing these rules had consequences. Bad ones.

1. Everyone does their part, no slackers.

2. Never hurt another Glader.

3. Never go outside the Glade, unless you're a Runner.

4. No romantic involvements.

Alby had come up with that last rule after one of the early Gladers tried making a move on me after he had arrived in the Box. I had no interest in dating any of the boys in the Maze. Alby was my leader, Newt was like my brother and Minho had become my best friend. Surprisingly enough, Gally and I had become friends as well over time. It took a while for him to warm up to me but now that he had, we were pretty good friends. 

I wasn't really close to anyone else but I was friendly to anyone who was friendly to me, yet I could kick anyone's ass if they asked for it and I wouldn't hesitate to do it.

I had been the first one to take the initiative to go and venture into the Maze, the area surrounding the Glade and our possible way out of here. I knew everyone wanted to, but no one was brave enough to say it out loud. I had founded the Runners, but I was not the keeper. Minho was. I was fine with that, I didn't like being responsible for others' lives anyway.

Terrifying creatures, better known as Grievers, lived in the Maze, but luckily, they only came out at night and at that time, the doors to the Maze were closed, keeping us safe from the horrors that lived outside the walls. No one had ever seen one and lived to tell about it. The entrances to the Maze close every evening right before dawn, so if you're still in the Maze, you're trapped and no one has ever survived a night in the Maze.

Everyone in the Glade had a job, whether that was running, building, cooking or making maps, everyone did something. We had a perfect society that wouldn't be changed.

Or so we thought.

***

It was a calm afternoon. I was in a meeting with the Runners, discussing a new strategy of mapping the Maze. The way we used to use, didn't work. We had tons of maps lying around and we were getting nowhere. We had figured out that we needed to find a pattern, so that's what we were focusing on. 

"The Box is coming up!" I heard one of the boys call outside. I raised an eyebrow at Minho.

"That's early," I stated. He shrugged and took the lead to the box. 

I heard it approaching the surface. I wondered what they'd give us this month. We got soap last month, which was great. We had only showered with water and a self-developed soap for years and to actually have real, decent-smelling soap to shower with, was amazing.

The box stopped abruptly and Gally swung open the doors. A fairly good looking guy was sitting inside the box, shielding his face from the bright sun rays, just like I had done when I arrived in the Glade. His dark hair was stuck to his forehead as his shirt was drenched with water. He looked up at us in fear and confusion.

Gally jumped inside and grabbed him by his arm, yanking him from the box and throwing him on the floor in front of us. The newbie looked around the circle that formed around him, his eyes lingering on me just a few seconds longer before he got up and started running away. 

His eyes had triggered something inside of me and my heart accelerated. I quickly shook off the feeling. 

"We've got a Runner!" Zart, the keeper of the Track-hoes, hollered. The group of boys cheered but only seconds later, the Newbie faceplanted the grass. We gave him a few seconds to scan his surroundings until I moved to approach him. Gally stopped me by holding his arm in front of me.

"I'm just going to say hi," I defended myself, yet the real reason was to see if I would recognize him from up close. 

"I think it's better to put him in the Pit until he calms down." I looked at him with annoyed eyes. "Then you can say hi." He stated, jokingly emphasizing the last part. I laughed and pushed his arm. He grinned as well before turning to the other Gladers. 

"Go get him, guys," he called. Three Gladers rushed to the Newbie, harshly grabbed his arms and tossed him into the Pit, our little prison.

I gave him a few minutes to calm down before I squatted down in front of the Pit's door. "Hey there." Apparently, I startled him, because he shot back against the wall, getting as far away from me as possible. "Calm down, it's okay!" I rushed out, holding my hands up to ease him.

"Who are you? What is this place?" he asked.

"I'm Leah, do you remember your name?" I answered softly. He shook his head.

"Why can't I remember anything?" he frustratedly asked.

"That's okay, it's perfectly normal. Most people remember their name in a few days," I said in a calm voice. I had had previous encounters with Gladers who were scared and disorientated, I mean, I was like that too when I arrived. 

"Where am I?" he continued.

"You're in the Glade. I'll explain everything later once you're calm enough to get out of the Pit," I said. I heard footsteps behind me. I looked over my shoulder and spotted Alby. 

"How's the greenie?" he asked. 

"He calmed down, I'm sure he'd like to know where he is," I said, getting up from the ground.

"Hey there, Greenbean. You're not gonna run again, are you?" Alby asked the Newbie, who shook his head slowly. "Good," Alby stated and opened the door. "My name's Alby, this is Leah, but I'm sure you already knew that. She'll show you around." He patted my back before he left me and the Greenie alone again.

"You heard the boss, let's go." I held out my hand for him to take, which he did after a few seconds and I pulled him out of the pit.

Thank you so much for reading this first chapter! I hope you're enjoying it so far and if you are, please leave a comment to let me know :D