Thomas froze, ice running down his spine as he heard her voice call out. His eyes went wide, heart speeding up to the speed of light. She couldn't be here, of all places could she? Slowly, Thomas turned and there she was. His voice caught in his throat and for a moment Thomas thought he was dreaming. She was just...standing there, eyes wide, holding back tears as a smile erupted across her face.
He choked out a laugh. It was just unbelievable. She was here. She was really here, and alive! The other gladers crowded around Thomas, pushing past the other infected men and women to see if it was true. "Meraya!" "She's alive guys!" "Thank god!" "Where have you been!" all rang out but to Thomas it was like they were trying to speak under water.
Thomas didn't realize he had moved at first. The voices of the gladers faded and it was just her there. His feet took tentative steps forward, afraid she might flee if he went too fast. His slow steps came quicker and quicker until Thomas was full on sprinting to Meraya. His heart raced and he prayed to God that this wasn't a trick of some kind.
Meraya lifted her hands over her mouth, not believing that this could happen. They were here, they were really here! Meraya was trembling as she felt the familiar burn of tears pricking her eyes. Thomas seemed to move in slow motion. She watched as he broke through the crowd, taking hesitant steps at first, within seconds he was sprinting. Meraya swallowed, struggling past the lump that had formed in her throat. "Thomas," she whispered softly as her feet began to move. Before she knew it she was running. Meraya practically jumped into Thomas' arms, face hiding in his neck as she pulled him as close as humanly possible.
The tears she had been holding back spilled forth, hot against her cold cheeks. "Thomas..." she choked out. Thomas hushed her, fingers combing through her hair, his own face buried in her neck as well. "I missed you so much." he whispered softly, his lips ghosting across the soft skin of her neck.
They stayed like that for what felt like hours, and Meraya didn't care. He was back, and safe, and in her arms. "Don't ever scare me like that again, you here me." Thomas rasped out, pulling back just enough to see her face. Meraya let out a laugh, nodding feverishly as she wiped her tears. "Promise." she smiled a heart stopping smile. Thomas sighed, mirroring the joy on her face. His eyes flickered to her lips and then back at her eyes. Meraya watched his eyes fall to her lips and she felt butterflies erupt inside. Thomas' gaze fell to her lips once more as he inched forwards slowly.
"So these your friends Raya?" Jorge's voice cut in, a lot closer than either Thomas or Meraya had anticipated. The two jumped apart to find Jorge between them, arms crossed and eyebrow raised. Meraya cleared her throat awkwardly glancing at Thomas. "Eer, uh, yessir. Yeah they're my friends." she stumbled over her words, face heating up to an impossible degree. Jorge smirked before turning to Thomas with a stern gaze. "Well, I suppose you can have your time...since you're Raya's friends, I'll allow for the full ten minutes." Jorge said. He nodded towards the hall Meraya had stepped out of. "Follow me," he said sternly. Thomas swallowed nervously and nodded. As he passed Meraya, he gave a reassuring smile, planting a quick kiss to her cheek.
Meraya looked down at her feet smiling softly to herself. "Oi, you ferget about us over here?!" Newt's voice called out. Meraya's head snapped up, finding her friend and a whole new smile shone on her face. "Newt!" she ran forwards, jumping into his arms. "Oh now you remember me," Newt chuckled holding his friend in his arms. "Thank god you guys are alright." Meraya sighed as she took a step back, holding Newt at arms length, checking him over. He seemed okay, a few scratches here and there, but he was overall healthy.
Jorge sat silently, listening to what Thomas and his friends had gone through. His face was blank, unreadable. When Thomas finished, he waited anxiously for Jorge's verdict. He needed the man's help to get out of the Scorch with all of these cranks running around.
"Alright," Jorge said after a long pause. Thomas stared, gaping like a fish before excitement took over, a smile breaking out over his face. "But," Jorge said, holding a hand up, Thomas' smile faltering. "You take Brenda and I to this so called safe haven...and we want the cure as well." Thomas swallowed, thinking it over. He didn't trust WICKED or their promises but he needed Jorge. "Okay, we'll take you." Thomas agreed with a curt nod. A snake-like smile broke out over Jorge's face as they men stood. Thomas headed for the door, eager to get back to Meraya. He felt like if he was gone too long, she would disappear again. "Oh, Thomas," Jorge called. Thomas turned, curious. "If you hurt Raya in any way, I won't hesitate to kill you." Jorge stated plainly before brushing past the teen and heading out towards the other gladers. Thomas swallowed thickly, knowing full well that Jorge wasn't joking, nor was he exaggerating whatsoever. He really would kill him. "Yessir," Thomas murmured before following him out.
Jorge led the gladers out of the compound to get them some proper food. Thomas made sure to stay by Meraya's side, slipping his hand into hers unnoticed. Meraya glanced up at Thomas as he intertwined his fingers with hers. A soft smile flickered before turning her face forward.
Newt watched the two, a small frown covering his face. He felt his stomach churn in an unpleasant way as he watched Thomas slip his hand into Meraya's. Newt heaved a sigh as the group was led down into a system of tunnels. Thankfully, wherever Brenda and Jorge were leading them wasn't very far.
Thomas pulled Meraya down next to him as he sat. He wasn't letting her out of his sight again. She curled up at his side as Brenda stepped through a nearby door. Inside was a stash of food they had collected from the closed down factories around the abandoned city. Cans of beans and vegetables were passed around the gladers, and soon the tunnels were filled with the sounds of the boys and Meraya guzzling down their food.
Meraya hummed in delight as she had her first bite of her canned beans. "These are so
good!" Meraya moaned with a mouthful of food. Thomas shot her a quick smile before taking his own bite of food. He had to agree, compared to what they had been eating, this was like a five star meal. Silence filled the tunnel they sat in, the only noises were the slurping of the cans of food.
Thomas finished his food with a satisfied sigh. He set the empty can down, taking Meraya's hand in his own. Meraya glanced down at their intertwined hands, then up at Thomas. Despite the poorly lit tunnel, she could see his brown eyes perfectly. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, biting down on it lightly as she felt herself getting lost. Thomas' eyes flickered from Meraya's eyes to her lips, watch as she bit her bottom lip. He stifled a groan that bubbled up in his throat. Swallowing hard, Thoomas looked back at Meraya, glancing back down as she released her bottom lip, slightly red and wet. Thomas' tongue darted out, wetting his own. Thomas hadn't realized he was leaning in, until his nose brushed against Meraya's, his warm breath fanning across her face.
"So, what was it like out there in the scorch?" Brenda's voice shattered the moment between Meraya and Thomas, both teens darting away from each other with racing hearts. Meraya snatched her hand back, cradling it in her lap, staring down at her fingers, face heating up as Thomas looked towards Brenda, stumbling over his answer, "O-Oh it was uh, it was hot, ahem, yeah." Internally, Thomas cursed the girl from ruining his moment. He glanced back at Meraya, blushing as he realized what they were about to do, in front of everyone.
Meraya sat red-faced, glancing at Thomas every few seconds as he fumbled along his conversation with Brenda. She mentally cursed Brenda. Something told her that the interruption wasn't an accident. Rumbling pulled Meraya from her angry thoughts. Seconds later, the floor began to shake. Meraya scrambled to her feet, looking up towards the cieling just as the first boulders began to fall. "Oh shit." Meraya mumbled, frozen in place as she watched a rock fall, almost like it was in slow motion, towards her.
A hand shot out, wrapping around her wrist and tugging her backwards. Meraya jerked, and fell on top of her saviour with a soft oomph! Meraya looked up, finding Newt, whose eyes bore into hers with an intensity she'd never seen before. "Thanks Newt," Meraya whispered. The Brit nodded with a soft smile. "Anytime love." Meraya flashed a good natured smile before standing, helping her friend to her feet as well.
When Meraya turned around, she felt her heart plumet to the ground. Before her stood an unmoving wall of rubble, on the other side were Thomas and Brenda. Despair crashed on to Meraya and the other gladers as they stared not knowing what to do. "Thomas." Meraya whimpered. She had just found him again and now this. "Thomas!" Meraya shouted, shooting towards the wall, slamming her fists against the rocks. Newt frowend walking towards Meraya slowly, gently wrapping his hands around her wrists, stopping her from breaking her hands against the rocks. "He'll be okay." He whispered. Meraya sniffled softly, blinking away the tears that begged to fall. "Thomas..."
Thomas stared at the rubble, a hole forming in his chest. Brenda tugged on his wrist but he didn't move, not at first. The image of Meraya staring straight up as rocks began to fall flooded his mind. He saw her pulled away at the last second, right before he could get to her and now she was trapped on the other side. "Thomas!" He perked up at his name being called. It was from the other side of the rocks but the voice was unmistakeable. She was okay.
Relief flooded Thomas' system as he rushed towards the rocks. "Meraya!" He called out, trying to find a way through the rocks. "Meraya, it'll be okay! I promise!" Thomas called out, hands pressed against the rocks, hoping she could hear him on the other side. Brenda stood behind him, a frown etched into her features. She grabbed Thomas' wrist, tugging once again. "We have to move. Jorge will get them out. Come on." She urged, tugging one final time. Thomas glanced back at Brenda, giving the rocks one lingering glance at the rock wall. I love you...
I love you... Meraya froze, eyes wide, as Thomas' voice echoed in her mind. Her heart skipped a beat as her breath caught in her throat. Newt was dragging her away from the rocks as Jorge led them towards a way out. Meraya stumbled over her feet as her heart restarted, beating a mile a minute. She couldn't stop the smile that graced her face. She knew Thomas hadn't meant for her to hear that, or perhaps he didn't even know he had sent it to her. Either way, she had heard.
Meraya righted herself, nibbling on her lower lip with a new found inspiration. Her only focus now was on getting out of these stupid tunnels and finding Thomas again. She had to tell him she felt the same.