Julia- The following day was nothing but walking, stopping whenever we could. We're all miserable; nearly all our water is gone, we're tired, and it's been hours since we found shelter. By the time night started falling, we just laid on the hard, dirt ground to sleep. Thomas and I were the last ones awake, sitting in silence while we watched over everyone. "So," I whispered, getting Thomas' attention. "Bitch keeping secrets?" I asked. He sighed, "seems that way. She…" he broke off, looking at me warily. "Look, Wicked did something to her, got inside her head, it's nothing." I glared. "That's not gonna work, shank. Spill it." He sighed again, running his hands through his hair. "She thought we should've gone back." I said nothing. I didn't think it was possible for me to hate or distrust her more, but here we are! "Then why are we dragging her along, dumbass?" I growled. "Because she's our friend. I wasn't going to leave her behind." Fuck this! "I am too tired to kick your ass right now," I snapped, laying down and turning away from him. Idiot!

*Skip*

Thomas woke us all up freaking out about something. He pointed at lights in the distance, and I could've cried in relief. But then a storm hit, and we ran for it. Lightning struck the ground at random, and we'd dodge it if it got too close. But Minho, of all people, got hit and fell. We dragged him the rest of the way, and into the building, which was too dark and too quiet. It took Minho a moment to wake up and shake off his disorientation, but he was okay. I hugged him. "Useless idiot," I teased him. He smirked. "Spoiled bitch." We laughed, softly, and I hugged him again. Next thing we knew, those monsters, Cranks, if I remember Janson calling them, started popping up all over, screeching and clawing for us. But they couldn't touch us; they were all chained up. A door on the other side of the room opened, and a girl with short black hair walked through the sea of Cranks, unbothered and unafraid. She told us to follow her unless we wanted to stay down here with the monsters. No one stayed.

*Skip to Meeting Jorge*

Brenda lunged for Thomas, pushing his head, and placing some weird device near his neck. I kicked at her, almost reaching her head, had she not moved. She stared wide-eyed at me, then smiled. "Nice kick." "Jorge, you were right," she said, showing Jorge the screen. He looked excited and started going on about us being valuable, property of Wicked. Everyone started closing in on us, laughing and looking up to no good. "This one's pretty," one man leered at me. Minho and Newt pulled me away, shoving me behind them, ready to fight. "Don't bloody touch her!" Newt screamed. "Hey! Knock it off!" Jorge yelled. "Take them, but if I found out anyone touches the girls, we're going to have a bullet shortage from the amount I'll put in all of you. Understood?" The men grumbled and got closer to us, and I noticed some of them were armed. I turned in Newt's arms, pushed Thomas out of the way and glared at Jorge. "Si los lastimas, mataré a tu pequeña mascota!" I growled. (If you hurt any of us, I will kill your little pet!) He paled, glancing at Brenda, then placed a hand on his heart, swearing nothing would happen. "Since when do you speak another language?" Minho asked me. I covered my mouth, confused, and shocked. "I… I don't know…" "Leave the girl here," Jorge said, walking up to me. He smirked slightly and spoke in Spanish. Responding to him was as easy as speaking English. It was as if a switch went off in my mind. "I respect my own, Princesa." Then he turned to the boys. "No harm will come to her, I swear it." And then everyone was led away. Jorge gestured for me to sit, and he asked me questions in rapid Spanish. Brenda, who couldn't understand us, watched us go back and forth, smirking.

After a while, Jorge stood, patted my head, then asked Brenda to keep me company while he went to see my friends. I immediately stood, "I'm going with you." They looked at each other, but Jorge said I could go with him. We walked through the building until we reached a wide, open room, and I screamed when I saw everyone hanging upside down from the ceiling. I ran over to them as close as I could. Newt and Minho were trying to keep me calm, but I was going nuts; scared and hyperventilating. Jorge asked what we knew about the Right Arm, threatening to drop them if they didn't talk. I started cursing at him, and he laughed, removing his hand from the lever. "Alright, little one. I said I wouldn't hurt them." Then he chuckled and said I had a strong temper. Thomas told Jorge what little information we knew, and I could see a spark in his eyes. But then, one of Jorge's thugs came in and they left the room.

"Princess, you good?" Minho asked. "Yeah, shocker. Now, slim it so I can get you guys down!" It took some maneuvering, but I managed to bring Newt over, using a long pole. When we started helping the others, we heard a loud voice all over the building, bouncing off the walls, Janson. We panicked, hurrying to get everyone else down. Teresa was the only one left, but I dropped the pole and turned away. "Love, now is not the time to act like this!" Newt yelled. We could still hear Janson demanding our return, and then the same thug from earlier showed up, armed and ready to take us to Wicked. Thomas went to protect Newt, and Minho yanked me behind him. Then Brenda came in and shot the guy, telling us to follow her so we could escape. We met up with Jorge and he flung open a large window, expecting us to zipline to the other building. Minho went first after Jorge, then Newt pushed me forward, and soon we all made it over. "Wait, where's Thomas?" I asked Teresa once she landed; I almost kicked her off though.

"He said he'd be right behind me. He ran after Brenda," she said, making a face that I recognized as jealousy. Ew! First of all, bitch, he's gay. Second of all, EW! "Brenda? Where did she go?" Jorge yelled. "I don't know." "We don't have time to worry!" Jorge yelled, and we started running as fast as we could, making sure we all stayed together. Once we were far away enough and out of reach from Wicked, Jorge said we could stop for a bit, catch our breath. Then the other building exploded, and I dropped to the ground. No… not another… no more… please. I couldn't think and Newt ran next to me, holding my hands. "There now, little one. I know Brenda; they got out safe, I could bet my life on it," Jorge told us. "Now, we need to go find Marcus; he'll be able to tell us where the Right Arm is. Brenda will catch up." Say what?! "We're supposed to just leave them?" I choked. "The only way they could've gotten out after that explosion with the short amount of time they had is underground. They're safe, Princesa."

I glanced at Newt, but he felt the same way I did, scared and unsure.

**Skip to Thomas & Brenda Club Scene**

Thomas- This has to be the dumbest thing I've done. I can hear Julia and Newt yelling at me for it already. Damn it, I hope they're okay, cause I sure as Hell am not! My head was heavy, and my vision was jacked. I stumbled through crowds of other kids that weren't much better. I tried to find Brenda, as well as trying to see if Jorge and my friends made it, but I felt like I was going to either throw up or drop dead. Then Brenda popped up, telling me they aren't here. I felt despair creep its way in, but I tried staying positive as much as I can with my drunken brain. Then Brenda said we should just give up, and that I need to relax. I asked her how I was supposed to do that, next thing I knew, she was kissing me. It was slow, but intense. When we pulled away, our faces inches apart, I jumped back when I noticed I wasn't looking at Brenda, but the person I thought, no, wished, I was kissing, Newt. "What's wrong?" Brenda asked, looking worried and strung out. "You're not him," I breathed. "What?" I gulped, scared. "You could never be him." She looked hurt and stumbled off. I tried following her, but my hallucinations started to get worse. And then I blacked out.

**Skip**

I jolted awake and saw Teresa sitting beside me, smiling. "Why have to stop meeting like this," she joked. Then Minho and Julia appeared behind her. "Welcome back, you ugly shank." I scoffed at Minho, then winced in pain from the arm punch I received from Julia. "You're an absolute dumbass. If you died, I'd have to kill you." "Nice to see you too, Princess," I told her. Then I heard Jorge yelling and beating up the guy who ran the club, apparently that was Marcus. Jorge tried negotiating with him, but Marcus didn't even bother to hear Jorge out, saying he makes his own deals. Then he explained his whole set-up downstairs, how he helps Wicked find Immunes. Julia said something to Jorge in Spanish, and he gestured to Marcus, letting her walk over. "Oh! Pretty one, I wouldn't need the alcohol to bring kids in, your pretty body would do all the work." Newt, Minho, and I tried to rush at him, but she stopped us. Slowly, she walked over to Marcus, then slammed her boot down on his lap. We all winced while Marcus screamed in pain. Then she asked Jorge for his gun, which he gave her after he kicked Marcus down. "Talk, you son of a bitch!" he yelled while Julia pointed the gun at Marcus' neck.

Marcus told us where we'd find the Right Arm but teased us because Wicked was chasing us and the outpost was far away. Then Jorge asked where "Bertha" was, which I assume is a vehicle or something. Regardless, Marcus didn't want us taking it, so Julia pointed her gun at his dick, and he spilled. Jorge rested his hand on her shoulder and pulled her away. When she was close enough, I pulled her over to me and hugged her. "Ew, no, Greenie, I told you we're not…" "Tough shit!" I snapped. When I let go, she looked at me like I was nuts. Then Newt took the gun from her hands and said she wasn't allowed to have it. "No one give her a gun, please, for the love of God!" She looked hurt and winced at his words. I'm shocked she can even hold a gun after what happened with… nope! Not thinking about that, not now! Turns out Bertha was a car, so we got in, fitting however we could. Newt sat up front with Julia in his lap. Minho and I each got our own seats, while everyone else sat in the back. I watched as Julia and Newt smiled, letting the wind from the open window blow their hair. Julia caught me staring and gave me a small smile.

"Since when are you so protective of her?" Minho asked. "If you mean, why was I ready to beat the crap out of Marcus for what he said about her, then I'm not sure why you even have to ask." Newt turned and smiled at me, and Julia held out her fist for me to bump. "Thanks, shank." I nodded at her. "Seriously though, don't hug me, it's gross. I'll punch you." I laughed at her and leaned forward to push her head. "Aw, Tommy, she likes you," Newt cooed, to which Julia flicked his forehead. "No, gross, stupid shank." "Psychotic brat," I responded, smirking. She looked like she was about to jump back here and fight me. "You wanna go, Greenie?" "Hey, no, none of that. Don't make me have you guys hug it out," Newt scolded us. Julia fake gagged, and I busted out laughing with Mino. She turned away from me and spoke to Jorge. Hearing her speak another language was jarring. Hell, even hearing another language threw me. "We still got a ways to go, everyone should rest while you can," Jorge told us. So, everyone got as comfy as they could, and we slept.

**Thomas' Dream**

Teresa and I were sitting with other kids, undergoing more tests for Wicked. It was quiet while everyone worked. When time was up, Doctor Paige was supposed to come in and speak to us, but she didn't come. We all looked around, confused. The guards looked at each other and spoke into a device on their shoulders, asking where Paige was. And then we heard somebody crying. We all got up and ran to the large glass to peek into the hallways, the guards stood behind us all, making sure we behaved. All the way down the end of the hallway was Doctor Paige. She was on the floor, crying and covering her mouth. There were other people with her, trying to make her feel better, but it wasn't helping. A guard came over and said something in her ear, which made her jump up and panic. "No! Don't bring her here! She can't…" she patted her face dry and tried to calm down. She straightened her clothes and told the guard that she would see "her" later, then walked towards our room. We all sat back down and waited. Paige walked in and congratulated us on finishing our tests. Teresa raised her hand, asking if Paige was okay. She smiled at Teresa, but I could tell she was still sad. "I've lost someone I cared for to the virus. But I'll be okay." We all felt bad, but she told us not to worry. "This loss of mine only fuels my desire and hope to finding a cure. That's why you're all here, and I know we will get there someday with your help."

**End Dream**