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I saw them in the crowd before I even made it halfway through.
Their unsure movements and radiating anxiety making them easy targets.
I made sure we got them all. The group had gained an additional two.
Chuck. Evey single time I remember I feel like clawing my insides out.
I don’t blame him. Thomas was closest to him, like a big brother, and I ruined it.
I let him get his anger out, but push him away before he does any physical damage. After all, I deserve it.
I hear her from far away, her boots connecting harshly on the floor.
Before I know it she’s stopped before my form in the ground.
She grabs my good arm and lifts, of course, not without my help, I get up.
She’s wearing her torn mask. Just one eye visible, the other one torn and blinded in the WCKD facility.
I don’t think they recognize her, probably think she died too.
‘’Gally… where’d you find them?’’ She whispered, ‘’Please don’t tell me I’m getting new hallucinations.’’
‘’No, I found them in the crowd, almost got shot by the gunman.’’
She looks up at me, her good eye sparkling, some of the only times I feel worthy of her, ‘’Sounds about right.’’
She steps forward to look at the group.
She slightly tilts her head to look at the olive skinned, slightly shorter girl. ‘’What’s your name?’’ ‘’Brenda, and this here,’’ pointing to the beared Hispanic man, “is Jorge.’’ ‘’I’m (reader.)’’
‘’(reader)?’’ Newt approches slowly. ‘’Hello old friend, I missed you,‘’ she replied softly.
Newt’s eyes full with tears as he turns to the other Gladers and softly announced, ‘’She’s okay!’’
She looks over at me before removing her mask, revealing her milky white, unseeing eye. Her jagged scar on her eyebrow still slightly pink.
I can see Thomas wince out of the corner of my eye. I imagine they still remember the sound of broken glass and her screams of terror as blood ran down her face. She certainly does, and so do I.
‘’(Reader), I can’t believe you’re still here, I thought I’d lost my best friend,’’ Frypan’s voice wavered before embracing her.
‘’Bloody hell, I can’t believe you made it out.’’ ‘’We’re so glad you got out,’’ Thomas added.
I know she’ll turn to me tonight and ask if it really happened.
She did.
She’d woken up first. Her back to my arm, I physically felt a rough shiver go through her.
I never slept too deep for fear of not being there for her.
I turned over to check and was met with her wide frozen eyes. Her good wye as bloodshot as the other one was pale. She was frozen, her mouth opening and closing slightly. Barely making a sound.
I knew I couldn’t even touch her.
She’d had dreams of glass breaking through every part of her skin, sand burning her face, screams of our dead friends, spiders overflowing from her mouth, all over her legs, and spilling from her slit-open stomach.
Her dreams, her horror - mine too. I felt helpless, feeling that, as her protector, I should have found a way to comfort her enough her mind would stop plaguing her with horrors that’s make grown men cry.
Her worst one? A reoccurring dream of the last night Chuck was alive. The Right Arm had brought his unconscious body with them when they rescued us.
He stayed with us for 6 days, 2 of them asleep, the other 3, delirious. Never once angry at anyone, just a shell of a boy.
He was never accusatory.
Her dream? Without fail, never a change.
He would grip her, her flesh shredding and bleeding. Accusing her of letting him die, while she and I went on living. Clawing at her eyes, saying he didn’t deserve to die, she did. Then, his eyes going blank, while his lifeless corpse droned,‘’I didn’t want to dieeeeeeee,’’ slowly fading into a lifeless vibration.
She finally blinked hard and started shivering. I knew she was back, but not aware.
I slowly slid my arms, one under her, one over her waist and softly held her.
Her soft cries began. ’’Are they-are they still here? That was real right?’’
‘’Yes, we found them.’’ A final shiver, and she turns around to face me. She gently placed her head on my chest mindful of my bad side. ‘’Thank you,’’ a whisper.
I will make sure we get out of here, together.