Clear as the 'Sky'

Who the Hell is Tom?

Sorry about the glitch. I just realized that I posted chapter 8 twice and did not post chapter five.

My bad.

I have now fixed it so Chapter 5 is up and running.

So, for any of my returning readers you might find that I have changed the conversation between Sky and Tom a bit.

Okay, that's a lie. I changed it entirely. I didn't like the slight romance between Sky and Tom. With this new conversation a romance can be implied but not confirmed.

If you didn't like that plot either then you can now imagine it's just a sibling love.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything

Chapter 5 - Who the hell is Tom?

Alby soon came over and stole Newt away for glade business. Minho had started to annoy me so I left to find George.

I found him alone and snuck up behind him "BOO!"

He screamed while I fell down laughing. "Shuck! You nearly gave me a shuckin' heart attack!"

I was still laughing, "sorry Georgie. Couldn't pass up the opportunity."

He kept muttering things before freezing. "Georgie? You all right there?"

He kept looking at me in shocked silence. "You're talking? Your talking!" He started hugging me. I just laughed while awkwardly patting his back.

He stopped, finally. "So, what's your name?"

I smiled, wondering why I hadn't started talking a while ago. "Skylar."

He nodded in approval. "Fits ya."

We chatted for a while before I grew tired and went to bed. Newt was already asleep and snoring lightly when I arrived. I giggled silently. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit my pillow.

...

Dream

I was facing a tall, slightly muscular, brown-haired boy. We couldn't have been more than 14. "Skylar, that place is dangerous. Worse than what you came from. I am offering you a chance here, Sky. You could stay here, with me. What do I have to do to convince you to stay?" His voice was pleading.

I responded unfeeling, "Nothing. I can't stay because my heart won't let me. I, more than anyone, want to help. If that means going into the Maze than so be it. You have to understand that." I pleaded. This had been an ongoing argument between us for the past few weeks.

Tom shuffled slightly. "I do understand that. How do you think I have advanced so far in the ranks? What I want to know is, is helping others the only reason for going into the Maze Trials or is it something else? A certain boy?" Tom sneered. "I want to know you're not risking your life for some boy who doesn't even know your name."

I was pissed. "Why do you care? It's my life, not yours. I can do what I want. You weren't the only one torn from everyone you love Tom. Fine, I confess, I do have other motives for going into the Maze Trials. But none of them concern you."

Tom ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "I just want you safe. I care about you, alright? I care about you and I don't want you hurt. Or worse dead."

Tom's words didn't affect me. "That's sweet and all but I won't change my mind. I care about you too but I'm not trying to control your life. I'm a big girl now and I can decide things for myself."

Tom pleaded with his brown eyes. 'Sky, do you even know what could happen to you? You can't even come back if he ends up not returning your feelings. You'd be stuck with a bunch of boys and alone."

I closed my eyes, trying not to let him sway me. "I am well aware of the risks. It's my decision to go rather than stay. We both know eventually that you'd be forced to go too."

Tom smiled slightly. "Well yeah, but hopefully my rank might give me a bit of time before that happens. I could protect you too. If you just stay-"

I cut Tom off. My anger was returning. "Well, you've got another thing coming if you believe that you can protect me any better up here than down in the Maze. That Maze is a death trap but at least I don't have to worry about hidden motives or double agents. At least in the Maze, I can trust anyone who says they care about me."

I can't even look at Tom now. I knew what he'd done to save those people from infecting the others. I knew what Tom was capable of under the guise of doing it for the greater good. "Tom, I need you to take a long look at yourself. Are you the person you think you are? And are you proud of who you've become?"

I walk toward the door, brushing against Tom as I go. Tom grabs my arm but doesn't say anything. His eyes plead with me to think about my decision. But my mind's made up.

"And Tommy," I whisper, my breath tickling his ear. "WICKED is bad."

Dream Over

...

I woke earlier than usual; the sun wasn't even up yet.

I thought about my dream. It was fading quickly.

Whoever Tom was he must have been important to me. And whatever WICKED was, they were obviously the bad guys. They took me from my familu and stuck us all in the Maze. Though, I had to think about what if we voluntarily went into this hell.

The word Trial came to my mind. Was this all some bloody experiment? Who would be sick enough to do that?

Reviews make me happy :)

Again, sorry for the plot change. This was such a trivial chapter that it shouldn't affect the story much either way.

Later Gladers,

Tmr_Potterhead250