After breakfast the next morning Alby told her she was with the Builders for the day, and that he also informed Gally that in no way was she to be working with the Bricknics. Builders and Bricknics worked closely together a lot of the time.

Dug, the Keeper of the Bricknics was informed as well, they didn't want a 'Chris situation' happening. He agreed and everyone was happy.

Alex groaned loudly, but headed over to find Gally. This was going to be another long day. At least yesterday she was with animals, and they liked her. The sun was already heating up the glade, it was going to be hot. She found Gally, he was yelling orders at a small crew of boys. "Ugh, my turn to babysit is it?"

"Good morning to you too."

He handed her a tool belt, and a bucket of nails and said, "go fix the bloodhouse fence. It's broken in one section and then you can finish this table for Jeff, he needs another for the Med room." He spun on his heel and slouched away yelling things at everyone he passed. And that was all the instruction she got.

"Well okay then. Lets go fix a fence, Bark."

She walked over to the bloodhouse, and walked along the fence trying to locate this broken section. She followed it until it took her to the back corner, hidden between the back of the barn and the Deadheads. She huffed as she saw a few planks of wood had fallen off the post. She set her tool belt and bucket of nails down. Alex stood there for a minute with a fist on her hip, and the other one rubbing her bottom lip thinking.

What's the best way to fix this.

Alex was deep in thought, Bark turned towards the forest, ears up, tail out, on high alert. A twig snapped at the edge of the forest, Bark growled. Alex spun around searching the trees with her eyes for whatever made the sound. She couldn't see anything, and she wasn't dumb enough to go searching, though she was curious. But if Bark was growling she knew something was there. Something silver flashed in the sun.

What kind of bug was silver?

She took a cautious step forward searching for the silver bug. She saw another flash, followed by a red flash. She dropped caution to the wind and ran to the tree. There scuttling up and down the tree was a little lizard type thing, silver body with red glowing eyes, it was a weird mechanical creature, it had a few letters painted on the back of it. It scuttled off and into another tree. Before Alex took another step another twig snapped. She backed out of the trees slowly and back to the fence.

She had a job to do, and twigs snapping in the Deadheads around her wasn't something she wanted to find out what it was. With Bark on high alert watching the trees, she fixed the fence relatively quickly. It was hard work. Simple, but a physical challenge, she could see why Gally was good at this..

As soon as she hammered the last nail in, she hightailed it out of the secluded area, back into the hustle and bustle of the glade. She walked over to the builders table, trying to find Gally.

She stopped a boy, "hey, do you know where I can find Gally? He told me I had a table to fix or build..?" The boy shook his head and continued on.

She looked around and saw a pile of wood. Shrugging her shoulders she picked up her tool belt, rummaged around the table looking for a measuring tape. Finding nothing, she did however find a long piece of string, not perfect but it would do. She sat down and got to work.

A few hours later Gally marched up to her, expecting tears and whining. This is what he does with every greenie, gives them a job and leaves them, see what they would do.

"What's this?" He demanded.

"The table Jeff asked for. He said he would put it in the Med hut after supper." She answered, cleaning up her work station.

"What do you mean, the table...you finished it? And talked to Jeff without talking to me first?"

She was frustrated with his lack of leadership and directions, and with his attitude towards her just because she was a different gender.

"What did you expect? You left and I couldn't find you. So I made the shuck table. That's what you told me to do. I'm pretty sure you're just mad because I got the jobs done AND I did it without you. You're also mad because your plan for me to fail back fired."

She was right, but he wasn't going to admit that. He was secretly impressed. Other Greenies would just cry, run around asking question after question, getting in the way a d being a real pain.

"You're done for the day." Gally dismissed her with a wave of his hand. She rolled her eyes and turned to walk away when he called her back.

"How did you get the table to not wobble?"

Alex gave him a 'are you serious' look, but answered anyway, "You guys don't have a measuring tape, so I used string and made sure each leg was the same length...if you and your builders would do that more often, things wouldn't be so lopsided. Measure twice cut once- someone told me that once...I think." She spun around and walked off to Homestead.

Up in her borrowed room she found Minho back from his run and showered. He turned around to face her, when the door opened. When his eyes meet hers his face lit up.

"Ahhh she's back from the Builders!"

Seeing his big smile, and his half moon eyes, her face broke into a grin as well. They just stood there in the room grinning like idiots at each other, they only broke eye contact when they heard a knock on the open door. Newt was leaning on the door frame, arms and ankles crossed.

"hope I'm not interrupting..." he wiggled his eyebrows at them.

He walked away laughing to himself. Minho was looking everywhere but at Alex, rubbing the back of his neck, his face and ears turning pink. And Alex was very interested in her boots, playing nervously with a piece of her hair. It was quiet for a minute, then they both spoke at once

-"So Alex..."-

-"I guess we..."

They both stopped.

This is awkward.

Minho cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair, he took a few steps closer to Alex. He was smirking, and had an eyebrow cocked, he looked down at her. Alex could feel his closeness, her heart thumping loudly, she looked up through her eyelashes at him. He took another step closer, and slowly leaned down. Alex was now holding her breath.

What's he doing? Keep it together. Breath you Shank! He's so close.. SHUCK those lips..

Then in a low seductive voice he said in her ear "You need a shower Shanket. You smell like a shuck Glader!"

She gasped "MINHO! WHAT THE SHUCK?!YOU ARE SUCH A SLINT HEAD" She shoved him in the chest, "MEAN! MEAN-HO!"

He stumbled back, threw his head back laughing loudly, holding his stomach.

"What's the matter She-Bean? Thought I was gonna kiss you?" He was smirking at her, she blushed a deep scarlet red

"Ugh, Eww. No!" She said loudly, turning around, and grabbing her shower stuff.

What would kissing him be like? He looks like he has very kissable lips.

She stopped at the door and flipped her hair and looked over her shoulder. She batted her eye lashes and in a sweat voice asked, "Well Sir Knight, will you escort this fair maiden to the ye ol' shower and stand watch like the brave knight you are?"

Minho smiled, a smile that made his dimple show, his eyes crease into half moons, and his bright white straight teeth show. He bowed with much arm waving and flailing.

"As you wish My Fair Lady! Me and your noble steed shall stand watch and make sure no lowly peasants shall disturb you!"

He held out his arm for her to take, whistled for Bark to follow and he escorted his Fair Lady down the stairs to the showers, Alex laughing the whole time. Minho kept pushing guys out of the way and yelling "Make way for the Fair Lady" or "bow peasants, there is a Lady Shank present!" Everyone just shook their heads and continued on, or watched in amusement.

One glader leaned over to his buddy, "I bet ya 10 bucks they get together!"

"Oh, your so on!"

While she showered, Minho and Bark guarding the door, she told them all about her day, including the weird silver creature. Which she found out was called a beetle blade and that's how the creators watch them.

Creeps.

And the twigs snapping, they both assumed it was the beetle blade trying to get her attention.

This was how their daily routine started. Alex would meet Minho in his room, after she was done with her day, he would guard the door while she showered. They would talk about their day, or anything else that came to mind. The gladers could usually hear laughter coming from the two of them. Alex would have supper with the rest of friends friends and then crash in her borrowed bed.

She had tried all the jobs by the end of the week. Track hoe was hard sweaty work, her hands hurt from blisters and cuts and her knees hurt from kneeling pulling weeds. She didn't mind the company, Zart was kind of slow and sleepy, but very strict with his plants.

Her and Newt started an argument, they argued like siblings or an old married couple or best friends from childhood. If you asked what it was about neither of them could tell you, but the other person was absolutely, most definitely wrong! Their argument got so heated they were screaming at each other and ended up throwing mud at each other. She was fired, right then and there. She wasn't too upset. She didn't want to be a hoe anyways.

She worked with Frypan the following day. That was fun. Too fun. She didn't think she was that bad, but just didn't have 'the touch', as she was told. Fry waved a wooden spoon around dramatically trying to explain what 'the touch' meant. Though chopping veggies and whisking eggs wasn't overly challenging. She had more fun chatting with Frypan than cooking. He was quite the glade gossip. She had fun listening to his stories and theories about each Glader. She turned beat red and changed the subject as fast as she could when he brought up Minho and her.

She also spent the day as a Slopper, with a boy named Dave. She slipped away from him at the beginning of the day and hung out with Chuck instead. He was more fun. They spent the morning cleaning the breakfast dishes and planning the perfect pranks. Dave didn't seem too bright, because he didn't notice she wasn't with him until the end of the day when she was putting cleaning supplies away.

Today was her last day as a trainee, and she was actually really looking forward to this. She was looking forward to Med Jack training all week. She tied up her boots, threw her long hair up into a messy bun and headed down the hall. Clint opened the door when she knocked.

"Morning Alex" Clint chirped, he sat her down at the table Jeff was seated at.

"This job isn't for everyone and we get it. Blood isn't everyone's thing. And we uh, know how your Bloodhouse training went...You have to be smart, level headed and calm. If you panic, the gladers panic. Most of the time we get simple things like cuts from slicers and burns from the cooks. A few splinters and things from builders. The odd twisted ankle from a runner."

She nodded, listening. Jeff continued.

"Creators send up what we need, if we're running low we send a note down in the box for the request. When we get someone in I'll show you what to do and then let you do some hands-on work. Good that?"

It was a slower morning, one young Glader came by for some ice, but was sent to the kitchen to collect it, with a note from Jeff. Frypan is very protective of his kitchen and the things in it. A slicer came by, Clint showed her how to clean, stitch and wrap it, when the next slicer came by he told her to try, he would watch and correct when needed. She didn't even hesitate, she washed her hands and then went straight to work, her hands almost working on their own.

"Hey Jeff...come here a second" Jeff came over to take a look, his mouth fell open.

"Holly shuck Alex! Where did you learn to do that? Its so neat and straight, it probably won't even leave a scar!" He was holding the gladers hand up and inspecting it from every angle.

"I don't know...it was just like I knew how to do it!" Alex said, quite shocked herself.

Jeff looked at her stunned, "I haven't had anyone this good since Clint, and this easily outdoes him, by a lot!" He turned to Clint "No offense man!"

"Hey uh guys...can I have my hand back? I gotta get back to work" the Glader ask. Jeff dropped his hand and dismissed him.

Alex called after him "keep it clean and dry and come back in a few days to remove the stitches!"

"No offense taken! Shanket is a natural! And I don't think she needs any supervision! And speaking of, it's lunch. And since your new...you get the first shift, we'll eat and you stay. There won't be anyone new. When we're done I'll switch off and you can go. Fry will keep a plate for you."

She nodded and started cleaning up her work area.

That's what she continued to do during her shift alone. Cleaned off the table, garbage in the garbage bags, organizing clean unused medical supplies in bins, and buckets. She found a black marker and labeled them. She even made a box and labeled it "Travel Emergency kit". Then she folded all the towels and linens. And lastly she organized all the bottles. She was quite impressed with her work. It looked like a proper medical work room again, or maybe for the first time ever. She wasn't sure if the boys ever kept things cleaned- except Fry and his kitchen! As she organized she made a list of things they didn't have and thought would be handy, like gloves, and sanitizer, and something sterile to clean off used supplies, antibiotics ect. Hot water and soap would work for now to keep things clean but, better to have everything sterile. She was just putting the last labeled bin away when she saw a pre-loaded syringe, still sealed in their sterile cases. She was studying them when the boys got back.

"Hey guys what's this?" She held up the syringes with blue liquid in them.

Jeff came over and took them, holding them gingerly. "These are only used in very extreme cases" He said very seriously, "and even then...were not entirely sure what it is. We call it Greif serum. If a poor shank gets stabbed by a griever we have to get this into them as soon as possible...or they don't make it. But...the last few times, it hasn't worked." He shuddered.

"What do you mean...it hasn't work? Also stabbed by a griever? Newt told me no one has ever seen one and lived to talk about a griever?!" Alex was very interested in this. Clint sat down at the now cleaned and scrubbed table.

"Well he's technically right. A few unlucky shanks at the beginning did see one, but were stabbed or poked with something, we call it a stinger, injecting them with some kind of poison, makes the shank go crazy! One guy went off on his best friend, looked like a shuck crazy animal. Alby had to stab the kid with a sharpened piece of wood. His friend ran off into the maze the next day and we never saw him again. The second kid, we used one of these and he went even more nuts, if that's possible. He didn't make it either. This serum seems to help, now. The creators seemed to have figured out the proper dosages now. I guess the creators used those other shanks as guinea pigs. Gally is the only other."

Her head was spinning. This was a lot of info to take in. She had to take a set at the end of one of the beds, the boys had her full attention.

"Ok, wait a bloody second! You're saying crazy death monsters inside the maze, try to stab us, injecting poison. Creators have sent us some kind of serum antidote, but we don't really know if it works 100% and that's all we know, ya?"

The boys nodded "ya, sums it up nicely."

"The shuck is this place?!" Alex was at a loss for words.

Giant stone walls that close in the middle of a maze was bad enough, now add in bloodthirsty monsters...that had the option of killing you or poisoning you, whatever their fancy was at the moment. Or maybe the creators have control over them and the creeps behind the camera decide who lives and who dies.

Her blood ran cold.

"Wait. You said Gally? If he was stung- or whatever- wouldn't he know?" Grabbing on that piece of information. Her curiosity peaked. Jeff nodded.

"Ya, he went outside the glade walls, got stung in the back. They can be quite buggers when they want. They snuck up on him. His builder crew pulled him back here. We had no choice, injected the serum. And he went through what we call the Changing. We had to tie him down. He then woke up and said he remembered. Won't talk or elaborate. And it also makes you a different person. Well Gally has always been short tempered...but he's more so now than he used to be."

Jeff cleared his throat, turned to put the syringes away and noticed that the shelves were cleaned. "Nice job Alex. We can actually find things now!"

She showed them everything she did, and suggested a few things, like washing hands before and after. Also, throwing out garbage and used supplies. She also showed Jeff her suggestion list. Agreeing to send it down the box, he sent her for lunch.