"Come on, Tanya, you can do it!" Chuck cheers from a nearby chair, his encouragements only annoying me further. Each time I go to stand, a sharp pain thrusts me downwards. I sit back down on the bed again, "This is impossible! Are you sure I'm well enough to be walking yet?"
Jeff weakens his grip on my shoulders, resting me back down, "Yes, Tanya, you just have to try a little harder and fight through the pain!"
"Easy enough for you to say, Jeff, you didn't just get stabbed..." I complain, gritting my teeth together.
"Come on, Tanya, you can do it!" Jeff says as his arms tighten around my shoulders, "One last try,"
I wrap my arm around him, mustering all my strength. With a final push, I force myself upwards. A sudden pang shoots through my body. I fight through the pain, standing upright.
"You did it!" Chuck remarks, a hint of surprise in his voice. I chuckle, immediately cut off by a pain in my chest.
Jeff smiles as he mildly loosens his arms, "That's a great first step, quite literally, but you're not out of the woods yet."
The door swings open with Thomas lurking at the other side. His eyes dart across the room as if searching for something. Finally, Thomas shifts his gaze to me, "I thought you could use this,"
He pulls out something from behind him, a stick. Although primitive, the wood is thick and sturdy like that of a tree bough. Thomas lurches towards me, handing over the walking stick.
I grab the rounded handle, pointing the end towards the ground. Reluctantly, I lean some of my weight on it, but the strong wood holds fast.
Frantic shouting echos around the room, emerging from outside the door. Chuck and Thomas simultaneously shoot me a confused look, Thomas furrowing his brow, "What was that?"
Before anyone can respond, Jeff darts out of the room, leaving me to fend for myself. I clutch the walking stick firmly as I begin to shuffle towards the open door, "Looks like I'll be needing this stick after all,"
Each step further aggravates the searing pain in my side, but I trudge on, determined to make it to the other side of the door. As I exit the med-bay, another shout thunders across the Glade, this one discernable, "Gally, stop that right now!"
A throng of Gladers flocks around the Homestead, not far away from me. I waddle towards them, breaking through the crowd. Faces block my view of the centre as I continue through the group. Glimpses of movement soon come into focus, only encouraging me to push further into the crowd. I soon reach the centre, peering at the commotion.
A Glader, Nick, lies on the ground, his legs kicking in all directions. Gally kneels over him, curling his hands around Nick's neck, blood draining from his knuckles. Nick tugs at Gally's hands as his fingers pry around them. Newt and another boy desperately grab at Gally's shoulders, failing to pull him from the Glader. Nick's face flushes a deep red, his hands falling limply to his sides. Alby bolts through the crowd. He grabs Gally's shoulders, tearing him off the boy.
Alby, Newt, and the other boy wrench Gally away from Nick. With a loud thud, he falls to the ground, Newt and Alby's arms wrapped firmly around his.
"Just calm down, alright?" Newt says, his voice strained, "You good?"
Gally relaxes his muscles, spit flying from his mouth, "I'm fine!"
Alby shoots up from the grass. Dabbing his sleeve over his beaded forehead, he continues, "I told you I was going to handle this, Gally!" He cocks his head towards the Homestead, signalling to Newt and the other boy, "Get him outta here!"
My mouth gapes open, shock settling over me, "Gally?"
"You should've let me kill him," Gally growls as he shrugs off Newt and the Glader, his eyes fuming with rage. The crowd separates as Gally heads inside the Homestead.
The slam of the Homestead door snaps me out of my daze. I limp over beside Newt, leaning heavily on my crutch, "What's going on?"
Newt shakes his head, disdainfully crossing his arms, "We found your necklace on him."
"Who?" I ask.
He points towards Nick, "Nick, then Gally went all berserk on him, trying to kill him and all that."
Nick coughs violently, spluttering over the ground. Drool pours from his mouth as he heaves for breaths.
Alby pulls him by the scruff of his neck before tossing Nick back down to the ground, "Throw him in the slammer!"
"I didn't do it!" Nick protests, his voice still hoarse. Two Gladers begin taking Nick to the slammer.
Instantly, blaring alarms echo across the Glade, ringing through my ears. Red lights flash, illuminating over beside the box. This cannot be right. The box just came up a couple of days ago.
Newt gives me a strange look, just as confused as I am. Alby sprints towards the box, followed by a group of Gladers. I hop over on my walking stick which is significantly slower than running.
Arriving at the box, I peer at the door as if somehow willing it to open. Silence looms over the crowd, everyone awaiting what is to come. The squeaking of the elevator shafts gets louder and louder.
Suddenly, the box stops. Newt steps to the doors, tugging them open. Light bursts into the elevator, dust lingering in the air. I lean close to one of the doors. Someone lies in the centre, crates and boxes encircling them. Glimpses come into focus, but from where I stand, all that is visible is a vague outline of a person.
Murmuring erupts from the others, whispers bouncing from one person to the next. Newt anchors his hands to the edge, dropping himself into the box. He jolts backwards, shifting his gaze to the crowd, "It's a girl."
️ Author's note: Near Christmas, I will be doing a special chapter. The chapter will include Tanya and the Maze Runner characters in a short Christmas story. This will be released God willing at around a week before Christmas as an early present. Have a great New Year and God bless! 🍪