Ada woke up slowly, a change from the way she had gotten used to waking up in the Glade with Newt typically shaking her out of a deep sleep only minutes before she was expected to be leaving the Homestead.
This time she came back to consciousness gradually.
Her first sluggish thought was that she was warm, truly warm bordering on hot but in a way that felt good. The gladers who slept inside of the Homestead didn't use blankets, reserving those usually as an option for those who slept outside, and as pleasant as the near constant temperature was, it made sense. Ada had to admit she sometimes longed for the imagined comfort of having something to wrap around herself regardless of if she was actually cold or not so the mysterious warmth she was currently experiencing pressing in on her was more than welcome.
Her second, slightly more thoroughly considered thought was an observation that her hammock was swaying ever so slightly more than she was used to.
Ada yawned and rubbed her cheek against the surprisingly solid surface below her.
Well, the hammock thing made sense given that the weight distribution and residual momentum would be different with two people ins…
Ada froze in place as the full impact of that realization hit her like a bucket of the cool rain she had been dancing around in only the day before.
Two people.
She was sharing her hammock with Newt.
Or more accurately from what she could tell without opening her eyes, Newt was sleeping in her hammock and she was sleeping on top of him with his arm holding her in place.
It wasn't like that was a bad thing.
She remembered now that her brain had reached full capacity the circumstances that had led up to their current sleeping arrangements, remembered that it had been her idea and a completely logical one at that.
There was simply no reason for anyone, let alone someone with a lingering injury, to sleep on the hard ground when there was such an obvious alternative.
And Newt wasn't just anyone anyway.
Not to her.
She just didn't think she had been prepared for how much she would like it.
How warm, and comfortable and safe she felt pressed up against him.
Surely some of that was a reaction to the events of yesterday, the way they had finally confronted the elephant in the room or the awkwardness in the shed as it were.
The way he had not only acknowledged he had been keeping her at a distance but apologized for it.
Sort of.
Or at least he had explained, rather memorably, that his efforts to push her away hadn't come from a lack of trust or displeasure with her tipsy confession but because he liked her too.
Maybe a little too much in his eyes, but then again he hadn't seemed intent on maintaining that distance when he was spinning her around in the rain.
All things considered, Ada felt much calmer and more secure with her place in the Glade than she had for weeks. At the same time she couldn't deny the rush of nervous excitement fluttering in her stomach that was as far from calm as humanly possible.
Because that whole "I like Newt but I'm not sure what that even means" thing she had been telling herself for awhile?
It was becoming increasingly clear what it meant.
What he meant.
To her.
As far as she knew Ada didn't have any experience with caring about someone in that way and all of the possible scenarios where that vulnerability could go wrong in their current circumstances should have been a little terrifying.
But Ada was already terrified of the grievers, and the maze, and being trapped, and the unknown threat of the Creators and the familiar threat of Alby's distrust, and the pain that was somehow inherent only to her, and the blank page of her past.
She just couldn't see adding anything that had to do with Newt to that list.
She didn't want to be scared of liking him so she wouldn't be.
It seemed like the obvious choice.
The boy under her shifted with a soft groan and Ada clutched at his shirt as the hammock swayed a little bit precariously.
Newt stiffened and she knew he was awake, probably going through the same process she just had of remembering exactly what their situation was.
"Good morning," She said, finally opening her eyes and tilting her head up to meet Newt's warm if slightly nervous brown ones.
"Morning," He murmured, voice thick with sleep, before clearing his throat. "You woke up before me."
Ada smiled.
"It happens. Occasionally."
"Very occasionally," Newt teased before withdrawing the arm that had been resting behind her shoulders. "Um…how should we…"
Oh.
Right.
At some point they had to figure out how to get out of the hammock.
"Let me…"
Ada carefully eased herself off of Newt and rolled onto her back in the tiny bit of available space before managing to sit up and swing her legs down to the floor. She stood and turned back to Newt.
"See, that wasn't too bad."
"Sure," Newt agreed. "Just don't expect me to be that graceful about it."
Ada just smiled as Newt braced himself on either side of the fabric before pushing himself up and out of the hammock.
The truth was she did think there was something inherently graceful about Newt, grumpy demeanor, sometimes acting up limp and all.
She figured that was probably in the same category as thinking Newt was pretty though. One of those seemingly objective facts that would probably not go over well if she were to say them out loud.
"So," Newt called her attention back to the present moment, breaking the brief silence and then immediately reaching up to rub at the back of his neck. "Is there…is there anything you want to talk about before we go to breakfast?"
"Actually yes," Ada answered eagerly. "I want to know more about the maze."
Apparently that had not been what Newt was expecting if the look on his face was any indication.
"You…the maze? That's what you want to talk about?"
Ok, maybe she should have seen that reaction coming.
As she'd just acknowledged to herself a lot had happened between them the day before.
It was just that now that her brain was finally freed up from the stress and anxiety of having Newt acting so distant her desire to understand what exactly was keeping them trapped there had kicked back into high gear.
She wanted to understand it.
She wanted to solve it.
Still.
She didn't want to hurt Newt in the process.
"You used to be a runner," She said carefully, watching his face for signs of distress. "And Minho told me you used to be their keeper."
Newt blanched a little at that but let her continue.
"I'm sure you have your reasons for not wanting to talk about it," Ada continued. "But we all want to get out of here, right? Maybe all you guys need is a different perspective to actually figure some things out. Or maybe I'll be completely clueless. But I want to try and I can't do that if I don't know more."
"Greenie…"
He trailed off and Ada tried to ignore the way her heart soared at the return of that semi-annoying and no longer accurate nickname that nevertheless she had started to love when coming from him.
"I know you want to protect everyone here. So do I. Maybe I could help. Please let me try."
There.
That was about as simple and honest as she could say it.
Newt considered her words for a long moment, that frown of his making an appearance before he sighed and visibly let the tension drain out of his body.
"Alright. Here's the deal…this is going completely against what Alby asked me to do so you're going to have to wait until I tell you it's safe to talk, and you have to trust me when I say it's time to slim it, ok?"
Ada nodded eagerly, opening her mouth to speak only for Newt to hold up a hand, silencing her even as a look equal parts exasperated and fond settled onto his face.
"Like right now. We missed half a day of work yesterday with the rain so Alby's going to be on everyone to eat their breakfast and get to it quick. I still need to let Gally know our roof needs patched too."
Ada nodded.
Of course she wanted to dive in right away, ask Newt all of the questions that had been running through her mind just as intensely as the boys had been running through the maze.
But she wasn't unreasonable.
Usually.
He had promised to answer her questions.
That was enough for now.
It wasn't the only thing they needed to talk about though.
"Newt…"
"Really, Greenie?" He sighed. "What did I just say?"
"It's not that…" She paused as she tried to choose the exact words that would lead to them both having some clarity without causing either of them undue discomfort. "I was wondering if we should talk about…the other thing. You know…the shed."
Newt's eyebrows shot up but that was the only sign if she had managed to throw him with that.
His expression remained mostly neutral, perhaps edging toward amused, as he shook his head.
"Now you want to talk about it," He muttered, the words clearly not for her though she had no trouble hearing him.
Ada pressed onward before she could think better of it, determined to take any precautions necessary to prevent them from sliding back to the cold distance of the previous weeks even if it meant forcing them to have a conversation they might not be entirely prepared for.
Besides.
It was Newt.
She wasn't scared.
She was choosing not to be.
"At the party I told you I like you," Ada said matter of factly, not missing the way Newt's eyebrows were once again moving upward. "And yesterday in the shed the implication seemed to be that you like me too."
"The implication," Newt repeated.
"Yes," She nodded. "You said I made it hard to think and you almost kissed me."
Any illusion that Newt was unaffected by the conversation vanished instantly as one of his hands shot up to grip at the hair at the base of his skull and his eyes skittered away from hers to focus on nothing in particular.
"Right…well, that's just…that's…"
He took what she assumed was a steadying breath and brought his gaze back to hers, a suddenly determined look stealing over his expression.
"That's…true," He offered finally.
Ada couldn't help but smile as a wave of affection washed over her.
Newt could be good at choosing not to be scared too when he wanted to be.
"But things are complicated when we're stuck here," He continued carefully. "Maybe if we get out…"
"When we get out," Ada corrected.
To his credit, Newt accepted her confidence without argument.
"When we get out things could be different. Between us. Maybe. But in here…I meant what I said. It's dangerous to get too caught up in anything other than making sure the Glade works like it needs to."
"And getting out."
Newt nodded, once again accepting her contribution.
"And getting out."
Ada let silence settle between them for a moment as she considered what Newt was saying. She couldn't deny that she understood his perspective on a certain level. After all, hadn't she spent plenty of time since she had arrived in the Glade distracted by Newt's varied expressions, or the stories they shared in the dark, or the easy way he touched her?
Had she not nearly melted into his arms in front of the window in the wall and almost managed to forget that a griever was on the other side of the glass trying desperately to rip her to pieces?
But none of that quite resonated with her as a reason to not be something more with Newt, at least not anymore.
If anything the all consuming frustration she had experienced over the last couple of weeks while Newt had kept her at arm's length proved to her that being close to Newt was in many ways less distracting than the alternative.
Not to mention they still couldn't physically separate for long even if one of them wanted to.
Which she was pretty sure they didn't.
Which brought her back to…
"So you want us to pretend it didn't happen?"
She asked the question without any malice, her forehead furrowed in concentration as she genuinely tried to make sense of what exactly it was Newt wanted from her.
"I want us to be friends," He said quickly, stepping closer to her and tilting his head slightly to make sure their eyes were fully connected. "I want us to be comfortable around each other again and for you to know I do have your back even when it's inconvenient. For you to know you're someone I care about."
"Like Alby."
Newt's signature frown appeared instantly.
"I…what?"
Ada shrugged.
"You want us to be friends who are comfortable around each other and care about each other. Like you and Alby."
It seemed perfectly logical to her based on what Newt was saying but he seemed increasingly put off by her comparison.
"That's not exactly what I meant."
"Like you and Minho then?" She offered. "Since your friendship seems to have an element of teasing which is comparable and…"
Newt cut her off with a firm shake of his head, his nose scrunching up as though he had been assigned klunker cleaning duty on a hot day.
"No, absolutely not like me and Minho, listen…"
He cut himself off with an exasperated sigh, one hand coming up to rest on his hip and the other moving through the air with urgency as he gestured along with each word.
"Maybe friend wasn't the right word," He allowed. "Can we just…just be us and figure it out as we go?"
It wasn't exactly a clear enough answer for her to assess if she were being objective about its merit but it also felt right to her.
Wasn't that exactly what she had asked him in that dumb shed?
"Then why are you acting like this?"
"Acting like what ?"
"Like we're not…not…us!"
She hadn't felt she had the need (or the capability) to define "us" further then so how could she blame Newt for landing in the same place now?
Ada nodded, reaching out instinctively to take Newt's hand in hers and give it a gentle squeeze. She noted with relief that he didn't pull away, instead taking the opportunity to swipe his thumb lightly across her skin in a comforting motion.
"Ok. We'll just be us and figure it out as we go."
Newt seemed to visibly relax at her agreement before glancing down and tensing up again.
"We should get going before Alby sends out a search party and um…you should probably put some pants on."
Ada grinned and shook her head.
The oversized shirt she was wearing reached nearly to her knees only highlighting the height difference between her and its original owner, so she had no embarrassment at all about her current state of dress.
It was definitely at least a little bit adorable to see Newt's nonsensical reaction though, especially given that he had just spent the entire night sharing a hammock with her much closer than they were now.
"I don't know, I'm awfully comfortable," Ada said, glancing down as she pretended to consider her options. "Maybe I should just head to breakfast like this…"
Newt reached up to massage his forehead, that frown of his settling into place.
"You're a menace, Greenie, a menace."
Ada ignored his good natured name calling and retreated to the corner to gather her clothes and prepare to change, her head too full of thoughts of the boy behind her to notice right away that the background of pain she had become so accustomed to was…
Gone.
She didn't notice when they left the homestead together, or during breakfast, or when Newt led her over to Gally to inform the builders of their need for emergency roof repair.
It wasn't until they were off in their usual corner of the Glade, Ada backing a prescribed number of steps away as Newt dutifully if reluctantly stayed in place, that it finally hit her like a griever careening through the maze.
"Newt…" She called out to him, amazement and hesitant joy bubbling up within her.
"What? Are you ok?"
Newt was already moving quickly in her direction when Ada held up a hand and abruptly stopped his progress.
"What do you feel?" He asked through a frown, body still posed to resume its journey to her at a moment's notice.
Ada took another long second to access before answering him, her tone filled with almost giddy wonder.
"Nothing. I feel nothing."