Chapter eight

The consequences of Running

Head Nurse Raven was not having a good day.

For starters, she'd had to go personally deal with Dylan, who had been the most vital part of the simulation. After all, it was his brain that had ultimately created the cure. That in itself wasn't so bad… up until he had that mental breakdown with Dr. Janson, forcing her to postpone his checkup, which he desperately needed. Then, she'd had to deal with Dr. Janson himself. What was going on in that man's mind was beyond her. Already he was on a tight leash for experimenting with the Simulation Computers, now he had to be closely watched at all times just to make sure nobody else freaked out the moment they saw him. Honestly, she was this close to firing him. Oh, and of course then Mr. Bates had to go into the Shared Recovery Room and stir everyone up, telling them (and Dylan who had yet to receive his checkup) vital information about how their time in the maze was recorded. This, of course, set everyone into an uproar and she had to personally show them how it was all safe and that they could release their footage only if they wanted too. And that had set everyone off onto different sides of an argument; one she knew that, as the Head Nurse, she'd be the one to solve.

And now, here she sat at 3:15 AM, in her office, with Dylan (who had still not gotten a checkup) ranting and screaming and Nurse Megan trying, but failing, to calm him down.

What a wonderful day.

"We-we have to send people!" Thomas continued to shout as he leaned forward onto her desk. Why was he soaking wet? Oh, right. He'd pulled the fire alarm and set everyone into a wild panic.

"Dylan, if you'd please just…" Nurse Megan trailed off as Thomas started shouting once again.

"He stole it! You have to stop him!" Thomas demanded as he slammed his fist into the desk. Head Nurse Raven took off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Send someone to go get him! He's getting away!"

"Dylan, I already told you. I've sent out at least half of our Special Operations Forces to find the thief," Head Nurse Raven stated calmly as she stood up. "They're out there searching as we speak. I'll be sure to alert you when we've found him. In the meantime, why don't you let Nurse Megan take you for a checkup so we can make sure you're alright?"

"How did he even get it?" Thomas asked, leaning against her desk heavily. Whether it was for intimidation or support, Head Nurse Raven didn't know. "You told us everything was safe. You promised us nobody to get it. You lied."

"Dylan, please just take a seat and…" Nurse Megan huffed as she was ignored once again.

"What if someone else decides to walk in there do the same thing? What if he comes back takes all of them!?" Thomas was back to shouting, his frame shaking from the strain of the previous hours. Nurse Megan stood next to him, eyes watching like a hawk through her thick glasses. Her hands were hovering over him as she prepared to catch him, should his legs fail. "You don't know for sure—"

"Dylan, enough," Head Nurse Raven walked around her desk and forced him to sit down in the chair, Nurse Megan letting out a silent sigh of relief. "Let me be frank with you, alright?"

She didn't wait for his permission as she leaned against the desk, her arms crossed.

"Only someone with access to that room would be able get ahold of the boxes with the footage. The only people who have access are the Nurses, Doctors, and a select few whom I trust. As we speak I have sent The Head Security to go investigate and figure out as much as he can. Who took it, when the thief took it, where the thief took it and why," Head Nurse Raven stated. "And even though the thief has the box, he or she won't be able to open it. You have to have this to even get inside."

She held up her personal access card, giving it a wave before she tucked it safely back into her pocket.

"And even if you pry the box open, a trigger is pulled, destroying the footage instantaneously," she finished. Thomas frowned, unsure if he should believe her or not. With an irritated sigh and a groan about how he was the most untrusting Diver she'd ever met, Head Nurse Raven went back over to her desk and sat down.

"I have sent security to go personally guard that room," Head Nurse Raven explained. "Until then, I believe it would be best to keep this quiet. I know how the other Divers would react to this information, and the best thing for them at the moment is to sit back and relax. Their job as Divers is done. They shouldn't have to worry about life or death situations anymore. This includes you, Dylan."

Thomas frowned as he crossed his arms. His nightmare had long ago faded from his mind, along with the fear for his safety. Now, as he sat in the brightly lit office, it seemed as though his head had cleared of the intrusive and irrational thoughts from before. Wicked wasn't so bad. At least, out of the simulation. Perhaps that's all his nightmare had been. A bad dream. Quietly, Thomas thought over Head Nurse Raven's words.

The Gladers were not ready for this. That much Thomas knew. With the way that everyone was fighting over releasing the footage or not, he wasn't really sure how they would react to his footage going missing. Especially Newt. With a sigh, Thomas finally nodded his head.

"Alright, I'll keep to myself," he stated with a frown. "On the condition that you keep me updated on everything that happens."

Head Nurse Raven nodded her head, staring at the floor as she thought. She had already planned on doing that, but there was no need to tell Thomas that, now was there?

"Very well, we have an agreement," she paused as she glanced at Nurse Megan, giving a small nod of the head. "Now, I know it's currently three O'clock in the morning, but we have pushed off your 'Check Up' much longer than we should have. Nurse Megan, if you would be so kind as to escort Dylan to Room Ten, I'd be most appreciative. Doctor Thompson will meet you there."

Nurse Megan eagerly rolled a wheelchair towards Thomas, quickly helping him out of his current chair and into the other one.

"Well, off we go!" She spoke up with a squeak, speedily pushing the wheelchair out of Nurse Raven's office and into the hallway. "I, for one, am glad that's over with. Honestly, you are a complete mess. And we really should have scheduled you for a checkup sooner than now, that's for sure. I can't believe Head Nurse Raven would just let you skip your first check up like that. Very unlike her, it is. Very much indeed. You know, I think she has a soft spot for you."

Thomas tuned out the chatty nurse, sinking lower in the seat as he leaned his head back and shut his eyes… He was so tired. His legs couldn't stop shaking and he was lightly panting for breath. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves as he was rolled along the hallway.

"Well, here we are," Megan's voice suddenly cut into his train of thought. "Are you ready?"

*Break line*

Thomas was not having a very good day.

For starters, Thomas woke up and found out that everything that had ever happened to him; everything he ever remembered doing, saying or feeling… wasn't real. That could confuse and scar just about anyone. But no, that's not where Thomas's day ended. A man from his life that wasn't real had reappeared as his (probably evil) doctor, nearly giving him a very real heart attack and sending him into a massive panic attack. Now, you'd think that all of what happened would be enough trauma for one day, right? Well, not for Thomas! Because now he'd been told that he'd have lasting medical issues from the things that didn't actually happen. Of course, he hadn't actually found out what those things were yet, but not to worry! Chatty Nurse Megan had assured him earlier, right as he was going into his checkup, to prepare himself for the worst... what a way to cheer someone up. And, let's not forget that everything that didn't actually happen had, in fact, been recorded. And, of course, now his friends were all arguing over the stuff that hadn't really happened. Oh! And all his memories of things that didn't actually happen had been stolen and could, possibly, be released into the world for everyone to see.

And now he was having vivid nightmares about things that didn't actually happen.

And now, here he sat at 4:00 AM, a very tall (and very intimidating) Doctor standing over him, staring down at a tiny clipboard with a very concerned expression upon his face.

What a wonderful day.

"Well?" Thomas finally asked after a couple minutes of silence. Doctor Thompson gave a loud sigh, eyes still trained onto the tiny clipboard as he pulled up a rolling chair and heavily sat down. "What's wrong with me?"

"Man, what isn't wrong with you, kid," Doctor Thompson muttered under his breath as he flipped over the pages on the clipboard. Doctor Thompson paused, eyes finally glancing up to meet Thomas's. With one last sigh, Doctor Thompson rolled over to Thomas and gave him a pat on the knee. "Well, I'm gonna tell you right now, it ain't pretty."

Thomas slowly nodded his head, eyes wide.

"For starters, I want you in a wheel chair at all times. That means you're going to have to have a Nurse push you around wherever you want to go, as well as helping you get in and out of your chair," The Doctor stated calmly.

"What? But I can walk, why do I need a wheelchair?" Thomas asked.

"Kid, you just ran down three hallways, jumped on a gurney and then pulverized someone into the ground with said gurney, not to mention you then proceeded to get into a fist fight with a grown man," Doctor Thompson took a minute to pause, glancing over Thomas. "Do you know just how badly you've messed up your leg muscles? Not to mention all the strength in your arms that it took to lift you up and then propel yourself forward with enough force to knock someone to the ground."

"Yeah, but—"

"No buts," Doctor Thompson wiggled a finger disapprovingly in the air. "Besides, I'm not even finished yet."

He took a minute to glance back down at the notes he'd taken during Thomas's exam.

"Alright, you've got severe muscle atrophy, sleep deprivation, dehydration, a minor concussion from being slammed to the ground and then repeatedly punched in the face, some minor cuts and bruises here and there… oh, geez, and that's not even covering the emotional trauma you're experiencing right now. By the way, we can't test you for any of that tonight, as the Nurses are trained in the emotional garbage stuff and I mainly deal with the physical garbage," Doctor Johnson gave another sigh as he leaned back in the chair. "I'd say you'll probably be in the wheelchair for a long while, and Physical therapy as well as regular therapy are definitely on the list. Lots of liquids and sleep are required as well. Also… try to cut back on this entire "hero" complex you've got going on. Yeah, it'll get you the ladies but sooner or later, it's going to get you killed."

Thomas sat there numbly, trying to process everything the doctor had just spilled out. Minor concussion? Sleep deprivation? Emotional trauma? None of those things sounded all that appealing to Thomas. Of course, he could have guessed the Emotional Trauma bit. After what he and all the other Gladers had gone through, it would be a miracle if any one of them didn't have some sort of Emotional Trauma. But severe muscle atrophy? No, Thomas wouldn't have guessed that one. Maybe minor, but severe? Not a chance.

Thomas forced back a yawn as he once again glanced at the clock, Doctor Thompson rolling around in the small room, putting everything back in it's place.

"I know it's already practically morning, but I highly suggest an extremely long nap," Doctor Thompson stated as he stood up, absentmindedly pulling out a small phone and rapidly typing into it. "Oh, and do you have any concerns? Like, are you having nightmares? Depressing thoughts? Maybe even a couple panic attacks here and there?"

Thomas stared up at the doctor, face blank as he reflected on his previous night.

"Nope, I'm good," Thomas stated with a small thumb up. The Doctor gave an unconvinced frown, heading back over to the desk and writing one last thing on the clipboard.

"Alrighty then, Nurse Vicky here will take you back to your room so you can get some shut eye," Doctor Thompson gave Thomas a firm shake of the hand, a kind smile playing on his lips. "Goodnight, kid."

Thomas didn't respond, instead opting to give a small wave as the Doctor left the room, a nurse with thick black hair and piercing grey eyes entering the room after him.

"Alright, Dylan," Nurse Vicky gave a cold smile. It was obvious she was none too thrilled to be up at four in the morning. "Let's get you back to your room."

A/N: … well, obviously I lied a bit when I said I would update soon. I don't even know what happened! One minute, I was writing this story, and the next, months had passed and suddenly we were in July! :O But, a couple new reviews (that's you Guests) reminded me of this story, so I finished up this chapter and have gotten excited to write the next one… but we'll see when I update it. XD Maybe soon... maybe not...

Oh! Also, I kinda made a tumlr page for this story :P Just to give you guys random updates, if any of you wanted. Just remove the spaces and you're good to go! :)

www . tumblr blog / theendofthetrials