Seven : Wonder

Tommy POV

"Get that garage door open." I ordered, gesturing towards the massive steel door. With the building's electricity about to give out at any moment, we couldn't risk waiting. Without power, the doors wouldn't budge, and our fully packed escape vehicle would be useless. Minho had found the controls close to the door we had come into the garage through. Newt stood next to me, his eyes trained on the steel door in front of us. A low beep sounded and the door began to slowly inch upwards, pulling back on metal ruts on the ceiling.

"Bloody hell…" Newt hissed as the sheer impact of the icy air outside rushed in. I set my jaw and looked outside at the real world.

A huge forest surrounded the facility, their treetops heavy with snow and ice. A thick blanket of snow lay on the ground as well. I blinked against the immense whiteness of everything. The sky was pink and purple with the setting sun. Newt began walking towards the now open door cautiously. Minho appeared next to me, looking from me to the icy wonderland. I stepped forward, curiosity overcoming me. I stopped next to Newt, who was now crouching just outside the door. He reached out and took a handful of snow and formed it into a ball.

"I forgot snow existed…" His whispered words formed a thick cloud of fog in front of him. It dissipated on the light, chilly breeze. Minho knelt down next to him and set his open palm on the ground, then pulled it away. A perfect handprint lay in the white powder. He was smiling, a genuine smile I hadn't seen on him in a long time. Suddenly he was running, streaking out into the 4 inch deep snow.

"What are you doing?" I looked around, searching for any people. Minho ignored me, throwing himself to the ground on his back. Newt stood again, eyes wide as he took in the landscape.

"It's so quiet." He smiled and I met his gaze. A large snowball exploded against his chest, taking us both by surprise. Newt froze for a second, mouth open in shock as he stared incredulously at Minho, who was laughing maniacally feet away. Then he quickly crouched down and began collecting snow. A second snowball hurtled through the air, just missed my face, and scattered across the concrete floor of the garage behind us.

"Get over here, you shucking-" I ran after Minho, his cackling only intensifying. I scooped up a handful of snow and threw it. It smashed into the side of his head in a fluffy poof. Another snowball found its mark on his shoulder. Minho whirled around and began pelting Newt with at least three to four premade snowballs. Newt ducked his head and ran forward, slamming into Minho with his shoulder. Arms wrapped around each other, they both fell to the ground and rolled through the snow a couple times. They stopped with Minho on top, pinning Newt's smaller frame with his knees. I saw my opportunity.

"Say please-" Minho's words were abruptly cut off as I shoved him over. He landed in the snow but grabbed another handful. I threw my own snowball and it hit him in the face, snow sticking to his cheeks and forehead. I turned and ran, a laugh escaping my throat at the appalled look on Minho's face. Newt was on his feet again and ran next to me with a huge grin. We stopped and turned to face Minho, who was standing 15 feet away, several snowballs in his arms. He raised one to throw, but several loud, metallic bangs made us all jump.

"That sounded like what we heard in the glade, breakers tripping." Newt panted next to me. His cheeks were flushed from the cold and running and his blonde hair, full of snow flurries, blew in his face from the breeze. His clothes were covered in snow. I nodded and looked at Minho, who had dropped all his ammo and was staring over at the garage too.

"I think the last of the electricity just went out." He sighed, his breath fogging the air. "Good thing we opened the garage when we did." He was also covered from head to toe in snow and it starkly contrasted with his black hair.

"We better get back inside." I smirked. For a fleeting moment, all three of us had forgotten about our predicament. Playing in the snow like children. I shook my head at the thought of it. It had been fun, I couldn't deny it.

"It's almost 9." Newt said as we all began walking back to the garage. "We should sleep here, then head out in the morning."

"Good idea," I nodded. I wanted to raid the cafeteria one more time, however. The meager food we had scraped up wouldn't last very long, and I was already hungry again. Minho stopped in the garage and began brushing snow from his shoulders and arms. He reached out and put a hand on Newt's shoulder. He turned him around and pulled snow from Newt's fluffy jacket hood.

"For the record, I still won." He winked and Newt smiled.

"Whatever you say, shuckface."

…

"This should fit…" Newt muttered next to me. We were back in the connected bedrooms rummaging through the closets. I wanted warmer clothes, or at least more of what we had already found. Newt was holding up a black, long sleeve shirt.

"Put that on, then find another coat." I nodded and he slung the shirt over one shoulder.

"Thomas," I looked up at Minho as he walked into the room. He tossed me a black coat. I caught it and marveled at the poofy, dense insulation. The hummer would help fend off the cold, but coats were still definitely needed in this weather. Newt sighed in defeat and closed the closet. He stepped around me and headed towards the main lounge with Minho. I was nearly at the same point. I had this black coat, jeans, and a gray pullover. Newt had a long sleeve black shirt, gray sweatpants, and his fluffy hooded gray jacket. Minho had jeans, a black coat, and the gray long sleeve shirt Newt had found earlier. It was the best we could do.

"They have a weapons locker somewhere." Minho was talking to Newt as I walked into the lounge. Newt stood with his new black shirt on, his jacket over the back of one of the armchairs to dry.

"Let's go find it. We'll need them to hunt at the very least." I said and Minho looked over Newt's shoulder to meet my gaze.

"That'll be interesting." Newt turned to face me as well, his arms folded over his chest. "We've butchered cows, goats, sheep, and chickens before. I doubt any of those will be wandering around a frozen forest."

"There's deer, and moose…" I trailed off as I imagined the creatures. It would be hard to find them, let alone sneak up on them. I pushed the thought away. "I'm sure there's a lake out here too, with fish."

"You're the boss." Minho raised his hands up, palms out. "I hope you know how to fish."

"We'll figure it out." I gestured for them to follow me. "Now let's go find that weapons locker."

…

I rolled over in bed, adjusting my position once again. Anxiety and raw nerves plagued me and sleep had danced around my subconscious, just out of reach. I tried to focus on the soft bed, the warm blankets, but nothing was working. I moved again, now on my back. I opened my eyes and stared up at the dark ceiling. The room was near pitch black.

"You've been moving a lot, Tommy." Newt whispered next to me. I felt him shift, pulling the blankets slightly. I shook my head, then remembered he couldn't see me.

"I'm just nervous." I whispered back. Minho was lightly snoring on Newt's other side, unbothered by our conversation.

"We'll be alright."

"What if Minho's right? What if we just make a run for it?"

"They would find us," Newt yawned. "And drag our sorry butts back here to start all over again." I didn't respond, hating that he was right. We were mice in the maze again, running towards the beginning of another damn maze. The woman on the screen had said they would restart phase 1. Would that mean they were going to erase our memories again? Would they repair the maze and the glade?

"Tommy?"

"Yeah, sorry, just thinking." I sighed. "You're right."

"We just have to keep moving forward. One day this will all be over." Newt said quietly. "But worry about it when it comes. For now, sleep."