The next morning, when Lauren wakes up, she looks right in Teresa's face. She grins.
"Good morning," she says, starting to pull her out of her bed.
Lauren blinks with her sleepy eyes.
"What the... Teresa, what time is it?"
"Six in the morning," the black-haired girl replies, like it is the most normal thing in the world. She drags Lauren to her feet.
Still half sleeping, she yanks her wrist free, ignoring the sharp pain that flashes through her arm. Teresa puts her hands on her hips, looking frustrated.
"Hey, listen, if you don't come with me, we're never gonna get in time," she says.
Lauren is even more confused now; what is going on?
"What do you mean, 'in time'? In time for what?" she asks.
Teresa sighs.
"Damn. They didn't tell you, did they?"
"Tell me what?" Lauren asks, starting to feel angry.
"It's Newt's birthday today, and we're going to throw a surprise party," Teresa explains, letting Lauren's mouth drop wide open.
It's Newt's birthday today.
He didn't tell me.
Why didn't he tell me?
She doesn't have much time to feel indignant, because Teresa starts to pull at her lower arm again.
"Please, come o-on," she whines. "They're waiting for us."
This time, Lauren stands up.
"Finally," the other girl mutters, rolling her eyes. She drags Lauren towards the hallway, and then towards a room further in the corridor.
In the meantime, Lauren's head is still lost in thoughts.
"Why didn't he tell me that it was his birthday?"
"Maybe because we didn't have time for that? There are more important things in life, you know. Like being sent into a maze in three days."
"But... It's still bad. He just could've told me."
Teresa knocks twice on a door. After it swings open, she pulls Lauren inside.
The whole room is filled with people; Lauren spots Thomas, and Minho, and Alby. There are a lot of boys, and Lauren and Teresa are the only girls.
The walls are covered in wreaths and there are some balloons – where did they get those?
Not really knowing what to expect, Lauren walks over to Thomas.
"Don't you think Newt is gonna be confused when he sees that the whole dorm is empty?" she asks him, more because she wants to have a subject to talk about than to know the answer.
Thomas grins and nods.
"That's exactly what we want," he replies. "If he sees that we're gone, this will be the first place he will look. We used to hide here when we were little kids."
Lauren just wants to say something when Minho hisses: "He's coming! Be quiet!"
The talking stops and everyone silently listens to the footsteps, which are coming closer every second.
When the door swings open, everybody starts to yell at the same moment.
I just felt like writing, so I made another (smaller) chapter for you!
How do you think Newt is gonna react?