𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐲 || 𝐚 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐅𝐚𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐜

Apology

I wake, feeling myself being jerked upward. I scream. This wasn't right. A billion questions fill my brain. I look around. I'm on some sort of platform it seems, like an elevator, crates and supplies all around me. All of a sudden, I'm flung across the floor, the momentum slamming my body against one of the crates. I cry out, my arm throbbing in pain. As I begin to force myself to my feet, the platform nears what seems to be the end of my trip upwards. I brace myself for the end, gripping my arm and shutting my eyes tightly. But it stops. I whisper a brief message of thanks and open my eyes. I must be just a few feet from the top, though everything is dark. Then I hear shouts-- coming from-- above? What should I do? I search my brain for an answer. The voices: were they friends or foes?  Whatever they were, they were set on coming towards me it seemed. 

 A couple minutes go by, I stay quiet even though I want to scream. My arm is still throbbing, keeping me from rising. All of a sudden, a bright light floods the darkness of which I lie. I have to close my eyes so I don't go blind. I hear feet hitting metal, assuming one of my attackers have jumped down to my level. I strain my eyes to look, the sun still shooting its beams straight towards me. A boy stood there next to me on the platform, his eyes locked on me. He was tall and muscular, looking maybe around my age. Oh no. I think. This is it. I think how it would've been better for me to die moments prior in the elevator rather than this way. 

"It's a girl," the boy shouts. Not exactly what I was expecting. I mean, he's not wrong. But still, I thought I was a goner. Well, I could still be. It's probably best not to get my hopes up. 

I notice more teenage boys above us, a couple of them call things out like:

"Dibs!"

"What the heck?!"

"Is she alright?"

I try to stand. But another wave of pain fills my arm, stopping me. This time, I don't resist my cry. The boy next to me comes closer, his gaze still fixed on me. He nears my right side, my injured arm in his view. I don't resist the urge to slap him as hard as I possibly can. With my well arm, of course. 

The boys yells, "Ow! You slinthead! Who does this shucking girl think she is?" His hand quickly goes to his face.

"Gally." Another boy jumps onto the platform. "Look mate, she doesn't know what's going on. She doesn't know where she is, who we are, or let alone who she is." The second boy spoke in what seemed to be a British accent. "Greenie, there's no need to be scared of us. We won't hurt ya." He was turned to me, offering his hand. I hesitate. But he just tries again, "I'm Newt." He smiles.

He seems a nice enough guy. Surely, he won't hurt me. Right? I take his hand. I let out a whimper as my arm shoots me a bullet of agony through my body, again.  

"It seems you've hurt yourself there, love."

I nod, gripping my arm as I'm lifted out of the box. I guess it's sort of a box, isn't it? Out of the box, I notice the four stone walls surrounding this place. They were towering probably over hundreds of feet tall, covered in ivy. 

"Don't worry, the med-jacks'll fix you right up." Newt puts his hand on my good shoulder, shifting my attention and guiding me through what he calls, 'the Glade'. 

I look back, feeling a bit guilty for punching the other boy, Gally, as they called him. 

Newt notices, and assures me that he'll be fine. "Gally can take anything you put at him. He's strong. You probably only made a mere scratch, love." That makes me feel a bit better.

Newt directs me towards a crappy looking building they apparently use as an emergency room, telling about the Glade and the gladers as we walk. Get it? Because they live in the glade? Gladers-- ah, ok never mind. Apparently the only exit to this place is no exit at all. It's the entrance to 'the Maze'. According to Newt, the 'runners' go in mapping the maze and looking for a way out. So far, they haven't found anything. Newt then begins to explain the jobs and the keepers, ending by talking of Gally. Guilt comes back in mind as we near the doorway to the 'med-jacks' HQ.