It was early morning when she woke up, the sun barely at its rise. But over fifty sleeping boys was more than enough incentive to use the bathhouse. The thought of bathing naked in the middle of the day was horrifying, maybe even more than the grey stoned walls. She wrung her hair over the sink, and looked at her reflection, it was something remotely familiar, which she relished in.

The petite stature, and the way her skin glowed against her dark, straight hair. It was her, whoever that was. Her fingers poked at her flesh, watching it turn red. She was still alive, still in the Glade.

"Mornin' Greenbean." Frypan greeted her upon entering the kitchens, tossing and turning some concoction on a rusty cast iron pan. "You're up early."

"So are you."

"Gotta be if I gotta feed everyone." he seemed almost protective of his kitchen, and she found it quite admirable how he invested so much passion into his job. "What brings you here?"

"I wanted to see if you still had that coffee." she said shyly, feeling intrusive.

Frypan paused for a moment, and his eyes lit up at the revelation. "Coffee, that's what it is." he replied, amazed. "Yeah, we got it when you came in, I don't know how to make it though."

Surprisingly enough she knew, "I think I do."

It was natural to her, as she folded away the filter and steeped boiling water into a saucepan. She wondered why she remembered how to brew, but the act momentarily distracted her which was more than enough to calm her nerves. Eventually, Frypan kicked her out and told her to finish outside because the smell was starting to seep into the food. She didn't mind, and continued to pour the velvety concoction into a milk and sugar mixture at a table nearby.

"So it's true, there is a girl in the Glade."

Another boy, no surprises there, but one she hadn't seen before. He noticed the way his eyes smiled like crescents, just like hers, and recollected the way a Glader compared her resemblance to another back at the Box. But he seemed fatigued, eternally, but extremely fit with biceps and a firm torso that only hard work would account for.

"I'm Minho." he sat down next to her, maybe a little too close for comfort. "You got a name, Greenie?"

She would never admit it, but she like being called Greenbean. While the name was a tease to the newbies, she couldn't help but feel underlying endearment towards it. Greenie was affectionate, and she couldn't remember the last time she felt affection. "Eventually." she replied cynically.

"Good that." he nodded, "Any of these shanks bother you yet?"

Little by little, the slang was starting to desensitize her. She was truly among a unique bunch. "Not particularly. I was just wondering, Newt is an okay guy, right?" She remembered his words the previous night, but she wanted more than just Alby's word, despite him being their alleged leader. It wasn't wise of her to go around asking strangers about strangers, especially with the way boys talked, but her mind was still fuzzy from the previous day and wasn't entirely awake.

Minho chuckled, actually cracked a grin, and suddenly didn't seem so broody. "Newt?" he barked incredulously. "He's probably the safest shuck around, you can trust him more than anybody. If there's guys you should be worried about, worry about Gally."

"Who's Gally?" she asked, feeling naive.

"Oh, you'll know." he gestured to the open pot, "Can I try some?"

She quickly poured him a cup, and then herself. Minho blew at the mug, taking a tentative sip. Instantly, a moan escaped his lips and he started drinking more of the hot liquid like it was a golden ambrosia. "Wow, this is good." and he took off his pack and started filling some in a thermos.

The door across from them swung open, and in came a pack of Gladers.

"I swear, not even twenty-four hours and you lose the only bloody girl in the Glade—oh, there she is."

Minho elbowed her side, while she stepped on his foot.

"What is this, tea time?" Newt grinned, grabbing her mug and taking a sip of the coffee. He coughed, and his face scrunched together, gagging. "The hell is this klunk?"

Minho laughed shamelessly, "More for me, then."

"I guess it's an aquired taste." the girl said.

"I'm out," Minho lugged his pack over his shoulder, taking another swig of coffee. "see you guys later."

And he ran.

"Where is he going?"

"The Maze, obviously."

The Maze?

Something told her she wasn't supposed to know, because Newt smacked the person who answered none-too-gently on the stomach. "Come on, Greenie." he pushed the other boys off of him, as if he were some sort of martyr protecting her. "Day one in the gardens."

"So Minho runs in there?"

Newt rolled his eyes, making a big display of his displeasure. He pulled at the metal vines holding certain vegetables together, making sure they wouldn't fall. She wouldn't leave it alone. "Of course he does, he's a Runner."

"What's that?"

"I've said too much." he sighed, stabbing his spear into the ground. He hauled two buckets, and threw one to the girl. Unceremoniously, she catched the heavy piece of metal in her arms, glowering at him. "Something tells me you weren't born to be a Track-hoe."

She grumbled under her breath, following Newt. She liked not getting preferential treatment for being a girl, but she hated gardening even more. "So then what are you?" she asked, holding the bucket tighter in her arms. She jogged towards him as he treaded into the forest, their bodies only a foot apart. Not even a couple of feet out, and she could feel herself start to sweat and breathe in bursts.

"Former Runner, now second-in-command." the blond replied shortly, pointing his scooper downard. She remembered the way he was careful of his one leg, probably the reason he had an early running career. "I'll dig up some fertilizer here, go on the other side."

Frowning, she turned her back when she knew Newt wasn't going to continue her tirade. She couldn't blame him, and decided to give him a break as she delved further into the wood. She had no hoe with her, so she scooped up some dirt with her bucket. A bundle of spiky, succulent-type plants were off in the corner, where light shone at its peak. Again, it was another anomaly that looked out of place. She pulled at the stemless, fleshly leaves and cracked one open. Intrigued by the slow, syrupy gel escaping from it, she emptied her bucket and started to put more stalks in.

A tiny, barely-there red light was three feet from where she was standing. It was behind a dead, still standing tree, scuttling forward. Bucket abandoned, she stepped forward ever the slightest, knees bent. The body was a sleek silver, with at least seven pairs of spider-like legs. It seemed so out of place, then again they all seemed out of place. Across its torso, the word WICKED was painted in rouge. She lifted her hand, and its sharp, blade pincers bared in reply. Its light body pounced.

"Get away!"

All of a sudden her body was flung backward, and she lost her footing as a pair of arms wrapped around her body as they tumbled down the forest, twigs and leaves meeting their fall. She shrieked, and buried her head into the person's neck as their bodies thrashed downard. Soon enough they stopped on flat ground, and Newt snapped his head up.

"Are you crazy? Never touch the Beedle Blades!" He looked angry, and she was just as upset for angering him, but didn't understand why. "Unless you want your fingers sliced off, don't ever bloody touch them!"

What a nuisance she was, a bother to all the Gladers. She couldn't even get damn fertilizer, and the alleged nicest guy in the Glade probably hated her too. "Sorry." she murmured guiltily, looking down at his pumpkin orange tank.

Short, even breaths escaped the two of them as they rested in the dead leaves.

"You're not hurt anywhere, right?" he asked softly, and if it was even possible, worriedly. His bright, brown eyes were like a beacon, and she couldn't help but follow the light. It was so strange, but strangely comforting the way all his anger disappeared in a matter of seconds.

"You're not mad?" she replied with her own question, stunned at his sincerity.

He shook his head, and smiled softly, "No, just startled. I can't blame you for being curious, we all were. I promise, in time you'll know everything that we know. We won't leave you in the dark."

She thought back to the black, suffocating metal box, and she could only hope. "Your leg," she realized, her eyes widening to his bottom half. "It's okay?"

Newt forced a little half-smile, which was strangely sad, "Yeah, thanks for noticing. C'mon," he started to get up, pulling away from her body. "we should go to the Med-jacks, just in case."

She lifted her head, her insides swimming as she frantically grabbed his arm. "Wait!" she blinked multiple times, to check that this wasn't a dream.

"What is it?"

"Theo." and she grinned, so hard that she felt like her mouth was moving on its own. "That's my name, Theo."

"Theo," he repeated, just as happy at her revelation. With his accent, the name came out a little like "Thea" but she didn't mind. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder, "Then Theo, welcome to the Glade."

As soon as Newt dropped her off in the Med-jacks' tent, he mentioned something about Alby needing him and left Theo to Clint and Jeff. She only had a scratch on her knee, but it made her wonder if Newt was really okay because he took the brunt of their fall.

A pale boy with almost transparent skin stepped into their tent, breathing like he was in pain. His face was an an exaggeratedly flushed pink, and it extended from his face to his upper arms.

"Billy," Jeff said, "You look like a ripe tomato."

"Slim it, shuck face." Billy grumbled, and gingerly sat in the cot next to Theo, trying not to move a muscle. He winced, explaining that the sun was just too damn hot for him. In actuality, the Glade never got extremely hot or extremely cold, but his skin just had to be extremely cottony and sensitive. "Do you have the sunscreen?"

"Sunscreen prevents sunburn, it doesn't treat it." Jeff explained, crossing his arms. "We can put cold water on it and let you rest inside in the meantime."

"I have an idea," Theo interjected, and turned pink at the three pairs of eyes on her. But it didn't stop her from remembering the bucket filled with the strange plant. It had to help somehow, otherwise it would never have been grown in the first place. She plopped off the mat and ripped away a piece of the succulent, ready to crack it open.

"Whoa there, Greenbean." Clint held his arms out, as if she were about to set off a bomb. "How do you know it's not poisonous? Or that it's going to burn off Billy's skin even more?"

"I think, it's aloe." she said to herself, her eyes scrutinizing every inch of the plant. Aloe was good, at least that what she thought. "Can't you trust me, isn't that what Gladers thrive on?" she was challenging their system, only a day in. If she asked Alby or Minho, they'd probably turn her down in an instant.

"Just do it." Billy cut in, writhing in his exposed skin. At this point, anything would've helped the poor pink boy.

Jeff and Clint exchanged looks, muttering something about this being all jacked up, and stepped aside.

She bit her lip, and broke the stem in half, the watery liquid oozing into her palm. Carefully, she walked over to Billy, gently rubbing the honey-like substance across his arms. The cool material immediately caused Billy's muscles to relax, and to her satisfaction he sighed in content. This encouraged her to grab another leaf, and with a feather-like touch she spread the aloe to his cheekbones. His arms were starting to return to their original, paper-like color. Billy soon felt at ease and relaxed on the cot, falling into an easy nap.

"Where did you find that?" Clint asked, mesmerized by the sudden turn of events.

"In the forest." Theo replied simply, "and it looked fresh, I don't think it needs water to grow."

Jeff and Clint exchanged looks, and whatever they mentally exchanged they seemed to both agree.

"Looks like we found our new Med-jack."

After that, Alby insisted that Theo finish exploring the other jobs throughout the week before settling on Med-jack, and she complied because either way, she was going to be a Med-jack. She needed to be one, she was sure of it, it was the only way she'd want to perform her part to the Glade.

As long as she survived a day with the Builders.

She heaved another breath, as her arms protested against the heavy plank of wood she was supporting as another hammered at it. Being a Builder, was definitely not the job for her. Her hair was damp and fell over her face like a black curtain, making her even hotter when the sun absorbed her dark charcoal shirt and black cotton shorts. She huffed and puffed with the immense weight bringing her down, willing herself to steady her lungs.

"Gally'll be impressed by your strength," a low whistle emitted from her partner, thankfully drilling in the last screw. "You sure you don't want to be a builder?"

She smiled gratefully, no matter how hard it pained her. It was nice to know that she was wanted. "I'm not that strong, but thanks. I'm pretty dead set on being a Med-jack."

He shrugged, "Suit yourself, Greenbean."

Backing away from their handiwork, she nodded to her companion, satisfied with re-boarding the wall of the bathhouse.

"Looks beautiful." they turned towards an authoritative builder. Theo had a feeling it wasn't the bathhouse he saw being beautiful. "I'm Gally, Keeper of the Builders. Theo, am I wrong?"

"No, you're right." she said, patting her palms against her thighs. She didn't feel like feeding his ego any longer, so she kept her stance with her dead-on eye contact. "Am I done for today?"

He shrugged, "For you? Maybe. I suggest you rethink Med-jack, because I think you have perfect hands to get the job done." with a suggestive, less words than needed smirk, he turned away to evaluate the other builders.

The boy next to her didn't seem to understand Gally's double entendre, "So that means,"

Theo firmly shook her head. "Please don't make me answer that."

With the okay to leave, Theo returned to the Med-jack tent, where Clint and Jeff were checking out supplies. She didn't want to spend another minute building, or near Gally, who definitely rubbed her the wrong way.

"Got a minute, Theo?" Jeff asked, rolling away a piece of gauze.

"Yeah?" her light voice trilled in the small room.

"We're going back to the Homestead to check on a couple Gladers, a Slicer shuckin' cut his elbow open." Jeff shook his head, because only Slicers could manage cutting away at their elbow, of all places. "So would you mind clearing up the inventory, and get more of that aloe voodoo from yesterday?"

She felt like a Med-jack already, and she didn't mind one bit. "Yeah, no problem."

The duo grabbed a couple more gauze and towels before opening the cloth fold. "Oh yeah, the Box came in, your stuff's on the table." Clint gestured to the small cardboard package between the clipboards.

Theo wordlessly got to work, making sure her hands were clean before she started touching all the medical equipment. The Med-jacks mostly served first aid, but she shivered at the thought of them applying stitches when she applied the plastic stoppers on the scalpels and covered the Kelly clamps. It was like the Glade's own little infirmary, and she was a part of it. She grabbed an empty plastic box and her package before heading off into the forest.

She gazed at the package, almost in a trance. It had been one week since she was sent to the Glade, unbelievably. So far, she was doing okay, keeping up with fifty other guys. As she walked further up, she noticed that many of the Gladers were by the Maze, awaiting the tired Runners. Treading further into the forest she noted that there was only one aloe plant in sight, she frowned. She'd either hope that there was more or find a way to dilute or grow the aloe serum. She'd look for more, because she knew it was going to get dark soon. The Maze was closing at the same time she deposited the plant in her box, safely derooted. She started running deeper into the forest, careful of her tripping (Alby had mentioned "Deadheads" once or twice, and she prayed that she was nowhere near that.)

Theo clutched her throat, trying to ignore the prickling sensation in her neck. She breathed in and out, hoping to grab some air, but it was like catching stars, useless. In a frenzy she ripped open the package, finding what she was looking for. There was an underwear set, socks, tampons, but it wasn't what she wanted now. She forgot many things since arriving, but the word Inhaler seemed like a term she'd never lose.

The metal and plastic handheld rattled in her hands. She was starting to feel better already since she was no longer running, but she wanted to make sure of herself. She was sure she wasn't allergic to running, just deterred.

But when she pressed the handle, no air came out.

She rattled the damn thing, hoping it was stuck. Instead, she heard a faint rustling inside. Confused, she ripped open the cartridge. Instead of gaseous medicine, there was a piece of paper, Theo's stomach dropped at the sender's elusiveness.

Remember the variables.

And for the first time since she arrived, Theo cried.

She didn't know why she cried, but her heart ached at the thought, dull and lasting. But it must have been a long time, because by then the Maze already closed and the sky had started to turn purple. This definitely wasn't no mistake, this message was meant for her. She meant something to this Maze. Treading a hand through her hair, she stuffed the paper back in the inhaler, and into the cardboard cover.

"You seriously got to stop running off like this."

She tensed, and immediately swiped her face over her eyes to collect any stray tears. Newt was next to her, crossing his arms.

"You're our only girl, it's kind of easy to notice when you disappear." he held up a white sack, "You skipped dinner."

"I'm not hungry." she replied softly, turning her head.

Newt immediately sensed the discomfort and sat down next to Theo. He looked up, trying to think of the right words to say, especially to a girl on the verge of breaking down, he wasn't too good in that department. "Have you been crying?" he didn't mean for it to come out so blunt, but he didn't want to beat around the bush too hard. Besides, the puffiness in her eyes and the slight trembling were a dead giveaway.

"Yeah." she said, turning her head.

He liked her honesty. "It's alright if you did, no one will judge." his frown deepened when she didn't reply. "Trust me, things seem bad now. But eventually we'll all leave the Maze and get back to our families."

His optimism did nothing to calm her down, "How can you lie like that, when everything isn't okay?" she said levelly, digging her heels in the dirt. "Does anyone even really know what's going on, why would anyone want to leave a bunch of kids out here like this?"

"I don't know." Newt confessed, and at that moment he didn't seem much like a leader. "But if they really wanted us dead, they would've done it three years ago." he opened the white sack that was on his lap, and pushed a slice of bread to her mouth. "Next time you cry, make sure it isn't alone." he pursed his lips as he surveyed the darkness, before breaking into a heart stopping grin. "Shuck, how are you not afraid of being here at night? This place is creepy. Let's go."

Theo took Newt's words to serious thought as the days went on. He was right, if whatever was behind this really wanted them dead, they would have done it a long time ago. But at the same time, maybe they were waiting for the right moment to extinguish them. Or maybe, she was the first female of many and they were expecting them to procreate a new civilization. She thought about Gally's comment and immediately erased that idea.

Alby was justified in keeping a watchful eye on her. Girls didn't just come to the Glade. Maybe she was here for a reason, and the inhaler in her pocket reminded her of that all too well. If only she could remember what a damn variable was.

She was up early again, but instead of going to the kitchens, she was waiting by the Maze. Her stomach did uncomfortable, squishy flops as she got closer and closer to the doors, wanting to do her business and be done with it. Carefully, she peered her head towards the open doors, and absorbed the musty, dimly lit terrain of vines and uneven stone. It got darker and darker, and she could barely make up the next five feet after, and felt a surge of admiration for Runners who were brave enough to go in there daily.

"What do you want, She-bean?" Minho appeared jogging up to her, in all his tired and tanned glory. He eyed her hands which held a steaming mug of coffee, and didn't hesitate in taking up the offering.

"You're the Keeper of the Runners, right?"

"Yeah," he gulped up the hot drink.

"Can you help me with something?"

His upper lip twitched in apprehension. "What is it?"

"I want to run."