CHAPTER 2

I stay in my treehouse all day, unwilling to come out. A boy named Minho poked his head through the ladder hole earlier, asking if I wanted to eat lunch. I told him to go away, I wasn't hungry.

A few hours after my visit from Minho, the sun starts setting. I lay in the hammock, thinking. So many things fly through my head. I'm barely able to process anything.

The Griever in the Maze.

W.I.C.K.E.D. is good.

I see the woman with the white lab coat.

I lay alone in the white room.

I see Thomas' smiling face as we walk through an empty hallway.

I close my eyes and drift off to sleep.

'Grace. Wake up.' Thomas stands next to the big, comfortable bed I'm lying on. He's grinning from ear to ear. 'C'mon, I have a surprise for you.'

Before I know it, Thomas and I are walking, hand in hand, through an empty hallway.

'Where are we going?' I ask.

'You'll see.' Thomas winks.

'Okay, okay,' I laugh.

We walk in silence for a few minutes, but it isn't an awkward silence. I can tell we're both just enjoying each other's presence. I feel… happy, comfortable, content. I can't quite place it, but I feel like right now, with Thomas, I belong.

The hallway ends and we reach a large, heavy-looking metal door. Thomas glances at me with a mischievous grin and pushes it open.

'Thomas, wait. You know we're not supposed to leave the Lab.' We're not? How do I know that? And what's the Lab?

'Oh, come on, Grace. Let's have a little fun.' Thomas pulls on my hand, leading me out of 'the Lab'.

'Okay, fine. But if we get in trouble you better take the blame.' I sigh and follow him outside.

Still holding hands, Thomas and I walk out the door. The sudden change in light temporarily blinds me. Once my eyes get used to the sunlight, I gasp. I'm looking out at a desert, and it's absolutely gorgeous.

'Beautiful,' I whisper.

'Yeah, no kidding.' I look up at him and realize he's looking at me. Is he saying I'm beautiful?

'Grace…' He touches my cheek with the back of his hand. Suddenly I feel a magnetic force drawing me closer to him, and I can tell he feels the same magnetic force. We move closer… closer… until our foreheads touch. Thomas' hand drifts to my chin and he pulls my face to his. Right as our lips are about to touch, I hear a crash from behind us.

The metal door had been thrown open, slamming against the side of the building. Two people dressed in hazmat suits run outside and grab me and Thomas, dragging us inside.

I jump awake, and fall out of the hammock.

Was that a memory? Or just a dream?

Looking out the window, I can see that the sun is still setting.

I begin hyperventilating.

Can't breathe.

Can't breathe.

I wrap my arms around my knees and rock back and forth.

What just happened?

I start crying, still struggling for breath.

Just then Newt's head pops through my ladder hole.

'Grace, I need to apologize…' He stops, noticing me crying. 'Hey, what is it?'

Still unable to breathe, I wheeze.

'Oh, Grace.' He comes over to me, kneels down, and wraps me in a warm hug. 'Slow, deep breaths. Come on, now. In, out.'

I try to do as he says, taking deep, shaking breaths. After a minute or two I regain full composure, except I can tell my face is still red from crying.

'What's wrong darling?' he asks softly. His delicate, gentle voice makes me melt and I want to tell him everything. But for some reason I can't.

'I… I'm okay. Just lost. Confused.' I say, my voice weak. I shake my head. 'It's hard getting used to this. I mean… was it like this for everyone?'

'If you mean you can't remember anything, then yes. It's the same story for everyone. We come in the Box, our memories wiped. The only thing anyone ever remembers is their name. Some people handle it better than others. Some people…' Newt hesitates. His face suddenly looks dark and hollow. He looks years older.

I don't know if I should push, but I do. 'Some people… what?'

'Some people get scared. They would rather be dead than stuck in the Maze. They… they climb to the top of the Maze walls and… jump.'

I don't know what to say. I place my hand on Newt's. He's not directly saying it, but I know he's talking about himself. That explains the limp I noticed when he was running earlier.

'It was my first week.' Newt sighs and continues: 'You haven't met Alby yet, but he's in charge around here. He's the one who saved me. He… he saw me do it and ran to where I landed. He and a coupla Medjacks fixed me up. Once I was good and healed he yelled at me, told me if I ever did a shuck thing like that again he'd kill me himself. Then he started crying and gave me a hug. That's when I realized that we all needed to work together. No backsies. I've done my best to help all the Newbies. I don't want anyone to feel like I did. Alone. Afraid. Desperate.'

Words don't form on my lips. All I can think to say is, 'I'm glad you're still here.' I offer a smile, which he returns. He puts his arm around my shoulder and I wrap my arms around his waist. For a while we just sit there, in each other's arms, in silence.