Gally would not let go of Eve's hand, holding onto it as a lifeline. She was breathing. Deep even breathes right in front of him. He could not take his eyes off the steady rise and fall of her chest. Maybe she wasn't out of the woods yet, but she was alive.

Something Gally had almost given up hope on.

Jeff moved around Gally like a shadow, coming in and out of the blonde Builder's vision, his shadow falling over him unnoticed. At one point, Jeff asked Gally to move so that he could remove Eve's bandages. Gally didn't respond right away, but after some more prodding from the Med Jack, he reluctantly stood up and shifted toward the wall to allow Jeff access; he did not release Eve's hand.

Jeff used a pair of freshly washed scissors to cut through Eve's bandages, exposing the wound on her chest. Her chest was moist; pink skin pulled tight at the corners of her injury. The puncture over her breast gaped red. Some dried blood crusted the edges of the cut.

Her heart beat steadily underneath, consistent and steady.

Jeff closed his eyes for a moment. She was safe.

Her body had not rejected the new blood, pumping it determinedly through her bloodstream. Jeff still wasn't convinced she had gotten away scot-free from any heart damage, but they would have to wait and see.

The Med Jack gently wiped the crusted blood off and out of Eve's wound. Her eyes flickered at the movement, but she remained still.

Jeff and Clint had been by Gally's side as soon as the Build sounded the call. Eve had woken up, briefly, and had been lucid enough to recognize Gally and the Med Jacks. After Clint had checked her vitals, Eve had fallen back into unconsciousness. But Jeff was relieved to hear her voice for but a moment.

Gally watched intently as Jeff and Clint raised Eve ever so gently off the bed to remove the bandages from around her back. Jeff steadied the girl in his arms, careful not to move her left shoulder any more than necessary. Clint worked with straightforward efficiency and peeled off the last of wrappings without hesitation. Jeff lay Eve back as gently as he could and checked her vitals one more time.

Gally watched Clint walk around the bed with the used bandages. He would grab clean ones and they would wrap the wound again, as they had been doing every few hours.

Gally looked back up at Jeff, still leaning into the wall.

"So?"

Jeff glanced at him. He wasn't entirely sure what the blonde wanted to hear. He could see for himself that Eve was stable, at least for the moment. All they could do was keep an eye on her. Her recovery would play out according to what they knew.

Jeff had never dealt with an injury like this. He wondered why they had thought impregnating Eve had been such a good idea. Neither he nor Clint knew very much about heart health, let alone dealing with childbirth.

Shaking his head, Jeff addressed Gally.

"She's stable right now. The wound looks good with no infection that I can see. After a few weeks, it will begin to close; we have to keep the area clean. The bandages will need to be changed every day. We'll disinfect her sheets to be safe as well. She's going to lose a lot of strength in her arm and chest from immobility. She'll have to gain it back before she can get back to work. Other than that, we have to see what happens,"

Gally narrowed his eyes.

"What does that mean?"

Jeff heard the edge in his voice.

"She was stabbed, Gally. I don't know the extent of the damage she sustained. It punctured her lung. I know that will affect her for the rest of her life. It's going to heal, but it will never be the same," Jeff paused for a breath, knowing Gally was watching him.

"We have to wait and see," He reiterated firmly.

Gally stared for a moment, seemingly struck. He then returned his eyes to Eve, stroking her fingers gently.

"When will she wake back up?"

Clint stood beside Jeff, clean dressings in his hand.

"We don't know, Gally. Eve's body is healing, that can take time. We need to redress her chest now. It would be easier to get it done if you left,"

Gally growled at him.

"I'm not leaving," He stood up, finally dropping Eve's hand; it fell like a wilted flower onto the bed. "I'm not going anywhere. Put me to work. I can check Eve's heart rate. I can lift her when you need to. I'm not leaving until she wakes up, shank,"

Clint swallowed, cowering despite himself. He had not had as many dealings with the Keeper as Jeff did. His large frame was intimidating in the small Med Jack Hut.

Clint gave Jeff a side glance before he swallowed again and nodded.

"Okay. You hold Eve up while we redress the shoulder,"

Gally grunted softly, but he did not argue.

It was late in the evening when Newt met with Alby in the dugout pit. The Doors had long since closed. The fire from that night's evening meal was dashed into the sand, embers smouldering under the moonlight.

For a long while, Newt and Alby sat in silence, listening to the groan of the Maze around them. The shifting and creaking of the many walls moving into a new pattern. The chirping of crickets and ribbiting of frogs blended into the nighttime noises.

Alby sniffed gently, the air crisp and clean.

"Gally is still in the Med Jack Hut?"

Newt grunted softly. Despite all that had happened, he could find a tiny amount of amusement in the situation.

"Hasn't left since she woke up. Jeff mentioned that he might need to expand somehow if Gally was taking up residence there,"

Alby nodded slowly, a small smile on his face.

"He'll have to get back to work soon. The Homestead needs to continue,"

Newt nodded as well.

"Give him some time. He'll get sick of being holed up in there eventually," Newt brushed some dirt off his leg. "Besides, I think she needs him there. She needs someone with her,"

"You still blame yourself?" Alby asked quietly.

Newt lost his smile.

"Sometimes I can't help it. I shouldn't have left Eve. Our protocol has always been to gather everyone in here or in the Deadheads in an emergency,"

"You didn't know it had reached an emergency level yet," Alby pointed out gently, looking out at the sky through the thatched roof.

Newt shook his head.

"That doesn't matter. We still have rules,"

Alby took in a deep breath, not looking at Newt.

"You can't carry the blame forever. Things will happen no matter how carefully we follow our rules. We've lost Hank and Michael through no fault of anyone. Yes, this accident could have been avoided. But no one could have known whether someone else would have been a target if Michael had not seen Eve,"

Newt didn't respond. He picked at the dirt on his shoes.

Alby continued.

"If I carried every mistake that I have ever made here, I would not have the energy to keep going. We have to learn how to let go. If not for ourselves, then for those around us,"

Newt sniffed.

"I am trying, but it's not easy,"

Alby smiled.

"It never is,"

Newt exhaled softly, shaking his head with a smile.

For another long moment, they sat in silence, the words they had to say seemingly too hard to utter. A long cry rippled over the Glade and they shuttered. The Griever's cries were always an unwelcome reminder. Despite everything that happened within the Glade, nothing could compare to what was beyond the Doors.

Newt rubbed his skinny shoulders as a shiver ran through him.

"Shucking monsters always put things in perspective, don't they?"

Alby chuckled lightly, which soon turned into a hearty laugh. Newt covered his mouth for a moment but soon burst out with a laugh as well. Their sounds of merriment carried through the air until they eventually died down into silent murmurings.

Albus shook his head, wiping away tears.

"Shuck if I haven't needed a laugh like that for a while,"

The past few days had been difficult. The dealings of Michael's final hours had taken a toll on everyone. His burial had only pounded it in harder. Michael had been a Glader just as the rest of them had, sticking it out as best he could through all the horrors he encountered daily. He laughed and cried along with all of them. He had been stung, changed and killed all in a matter of minutes. The gravity of life had once again sunk into the minds of all the Glader's. They were all stuck.

Here in this little Glade, they were surrounded by moving walls, terrifying monsters and little to no hope of escape.

Such was life in the Glade.

Newt shook out the last of his laughter, his eyes sparkling with refreshing tears. He wiped at his face before speaking.

"It has been quite the week, hasn't it?"

Alby nodded, becoming solemn once again.

"It will take some time for everything to return to normal. Hank's death changed the Glade completely. I have no doubt Michael's passing will do the same,"

Newt nodded in agreement.

Alby stood up suddenly and Newt looked up at him quizzically.

"I need to speak to Clint. The Glader's will want to know what is going to happen with Eve,"

Newt nodded slowly, his eyes fixed forward.

"You think you'll speak to Gally as well?"

"Not tonight. It's like you said: Eve needs someone with her right now,"

It was early morning when Gally awoke from a deep slumber.

Stretched out on his chair, Gally had laid his head beside Eve, her hand still held in his own. The Med Jack's had left hours ago, with the promise from Gally that he would alert them if anything changed. Eve had lain still for hours now, her breathing steady and her skin flushed with fresh colour. Her eyelids had fluttered every so often. Gally thought for sure she was going to wake up again.

But nothing changed.

Now, hours later, Eve's fingers squeezed his thumb.

He jerked awake, his head in a daze. He didn't know where he was for a second, but recognition and memory hit quickly. Gally sat up, peering in the darkness at Eve.

He could see her eyes shining in the shadows.

He sat up, moving closer.

"Eve?" He whispered, his voice hoarse.

Her fingers squeezed him again.

"Gally?"

Gally felt relief flood over him. He reached for her face, brushing her cheek gently.

"It's me, Eve,"

Gally heard a soft sigh. He felt tears on her face.

"Where am I?"

"The Med Jack Hut. You remember what happened?" His voice choked. He remembered his anger. "Do you remember why you're here?"

Eve whimpered. Gally stiffened.

"I was... I was in the garden,"

Gally nodded, cupping Eve's face in his hand. He brushed her tears away.

"You were attacked," Gally hated the word, spat it out like cancer. But he didn't want to upset Eve anymore. "But you're fine. You're going to be fine," Gally bit his lip harshly when Eve grabbed at his arm, clinging to it with trembling fingers. "Clint took out the knife. They fixed everything up. You lost a lot of blood, but Ham gave you some of his, the same type and everything. You're going to be okay,"

He couldn't help the break in his voice as the words left his lips.

"Ham's blood?" Eve's voice was feeble,"

Gally nodded, brushing her hair back gingerly.

"Jeff tested everyone's blood to find the right match for you,"

Gally felt Eve lean into his hand, shaking.

"I'm alright now?"

Gally nodded, wishing Eve could see the relief and joy in his face.

"You're alright. You need to heal and regain strength, but you're not going to die,"

Eve lay still for a moment. Gally wanted to get into the bed, curl around her and keep her safe. He never wanted to leave her side again.

It was agonizing to stay back.

"Gally?"

"Yeah?" Gally's voice croaked again. He hated how emotional he was getting, but at least no one else was there to witness it.

Eve touched his hand.

"Where... where is he?"

Gally swallowed hard, swallowing his tears.

"Who, Eve?"

Eve whimpered softly again.

"Michael,"

Gally set his jaw, the mention of the name cutting him deeply.

"Dead," There was no choke in his voice now. Nothing about that death caused him any grief. "He's dead, Eve,"

Eve turned her head. Gally felt it.

"Be careful," Eve ignored him.

"Dead? He died?"

She seemed surprisingly calm about it. Gally tilted her head back gently, back to where it had been.

"Don't move. You need to stay still,"

"Gally?"

Gally scowled. He didn't want to talk about Michael.

"He was killed, Eve. He had to be: he attacked another member of the Glade," As if Eve was just another member of the Glade. This attack had been much more personal to him. "They took him out to the Deadheads and killed him,"

Eve didn't fight against Gally's hand, merely leaning into it gently.

"He was going to kill me,"

Gally felt a lump in his throat.

"Don't say that. Michael's gone now,"

"Hank never killed anyone. He went crazy like Micahel,"

"He would have if we hadn't gotten ahold of him,"

Eve winced in pain as she shifted slightly on her back.

"Stop moving!" Gally couldn't shout, but every movement was giving him momentary anxiety. What if she split the wound over her heart again and it started bleeding again?

"I can't help it. I'm uncomfortable,"

Gally couldn't help but smile softly. Eve's snappy and sarcastic attitude was a good sign. She didn't seem as afraid now. He could see that she was nearly back to her old self.

"Well, you have to try. You're going to have to stay still for quite a while. You need to heal,"

Eve sighed again.

"How long?"

"Don't know. But you're going to get through it. You'll be back to work before you know it,"

The first light of the sun was touching the walls of the hut. Gally could see her face now. She was frowning, pouting more like it.

He smiled. Eve was still here.

Deep down, he didn't know if he would have been able to keep living in the Glade without Eve. He didn't know if the infuriating questions or the never-ending fear of the unknown would have been bearable. Not without knowing Eve was beside him through it all.

Ending it all had not been off the table for him.

But Eve was still here. And he would never leave her.

No matter what was thrown at them in this Maze, Gally knew he could make it through. Because if they ever did get out. If they ever did escape this hellhole, he would come out of it with Eve.

That was all he needed to know.