"Chuck, what's going on?" I made my way over towards the boy as Newt and I ran towards the center of the commotion.

The little boy just laughed and pointed towards the lookout tower, "Girls are awesome!"

I followed his point and watched as the new girl threw rocks down at the boys, who were covering their heads with anything they could find. Laughing, I quickly walked over to them and ducked beneath a piece of wood that Winston was holding. When I saw Newt still out in the open, I grabbed his wrist and pulled him underneath.

"If you throw one more of those things, I'm gonna—" Gally was suddenly cut off by a rock hitting him straight in the face. I cackled and grabbed Newt's hand, smiling when he squeezed back

"I don't think she likes us very much," He laughed, making me want to hug him. He was so adorable.

"This is what I was feeling when I came up," I joked, finding this situation very amusing. Everyone around me laughed, remembering how I talked back to Alby before I even knew where the hell I was.

Newt looked at me with a lopsided smile, "Why can't they all be like you?"

I clenched my jaw, trying not to blush at the compliment.

"Hey, look! We just wanna talk!" Thomas came up behind Gally, covering his head with his hands. The girl threw down another rock, making all of the boys cover their heads with whatever they were holding at the moment.

Frypan moved his way in front of Newt and me, "Take cover, ya'll! Take cover!"

We were both laughing so hard that we couldn't stop. Of all the things for this new girl to do when she first came up, she decides to throw rocks at all of us. Where did she even get them from? It was funny how the difference between us was already so great. If I wanted to, I could go up there and stop all of this right now. But it was more fun watching the guys try to calm her down from the ground. The way Newt and I were laughing reminded me of that one time where I told him that Gally had the eyebrows of Satan. No matter hard we tried, we just couldn't stop. Maybe being with each other made it all the more funnier.

"Hey, hey! It's Thomas! It's Thomas!" He suddenly shouted, making the girl immediately stop throwing rocks. Her head very slowly peeked over the wood and looked down on all of us, meeting eyes with the brunette boy. He subtly waved to her, making me choke on another laugh.

"Okay, I-I'm gonna come up. Okay?" He asked before the girl disappeared once again. I turned my head to Thomas, who stopped Gally from moving up the ladder, "No. Just me."

I raised my eyebrows as he didn't hesitate to walk up the three ladders and up to the tallest tower, out of earshot with all of us. I watched him, shaking my head and squeezing Newt's hand. He looked at me and let go, moving his hand to my back, giving me just as much comfort as before. His hands were starting to get sweaty anyway.

Minho and Chuck giggled, watching their friend. I turned to them and muttered, "I always knew he was a lady's man..."

"Why didn't you fall for him then?" Chuck asked loudly, making Newt's head turn. Minho smirked and looked over my shoulder as I glared at the little boy.

"Because, Chuck," I said through gritted teeth, "I don't like Thomas like that. Now stop bothering me about it..."

He threw his hands up in defense, "Yes ma'am..."

Newt moved his hand from my back and shielded the sun from his eyes as he looked up at where Thomas had disappeared to.

"What's goin' on up there?" Gally shouted.

I placed my hands on my hips, "Is she comin' down?"

Thomas stood up and faced all of us as we stood there, patiently waiting for the new girl to come and give us some answers. But I had a feeling she was gonna be a scaredy-cat and stay up there with Thomas.

"Uhm..." He hesitated, looking down at the girl, "You guys just give us a second, okay?"

I groaned in defeat, deciding already that I didn't like this girl. If she couldn't face us like a normal person, then I just kind of wanted to push her into the Maze myself. It's not that I was jealous another girl came up here, it's just that she was the root of so much anxiety right now. For Newt and everyone else. Plus, she gave me a bad feeling whenever I was near her. I just got so angry for no reason.

"Alright," Newt sighed, shooing everyone away, "C'mon..."

Frypan sighed, "Is this what all girls are like?"

I laughed and pat his back, "Only the annoying ones, my friend."

Newt placed his hand on my lower back again and led me away from everyone else and to the Homestead. I was looking forward to a serious nap, and I knew we still had to continue our talk from earlier. Now that the girl was taken care of, Newt was on hold until further notice. We walked into his room, and I quickly placed a pillow in his window and locked his door with a piece of wood that leaned against the wall, just like he had done in the Council Hall earlier.

"What's the rush?" He asked with a chuckle, motioning to my fast pace of blocking the room. I ignored his question and moved towards a small candle he had unlit on his dresser. I grabbed the box of matches that was near it and I quickly lit the candle, being careful not to burn my fingers. When the candle was lit, I moved towards the corner of the room, picking up some of the clothes that were on his floor.

"Mae," Newt asked again, "What are you doing?"

"Cleaning," I simply answered, "Your room's messy."

He went silent as I shoved his dirty clothes into the basket and moved my way to his bed, which laid unmade. I shook his pillow out, ridding it of the dust.

"Um," He hesitated, "Why? My room's perfectly clean, thank you very little."

I shook my head vigorously, not meeting his gaze, "Then why are there so many dirty clothes in the corner, hmm? Explain, Newtie."

"I'll explain when you tell me why you're acting so bloody crazy all of the sudden. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I lied, "Clint just gave me a lot of Adderall, so I'm very hyper. Also, I think that I'm going a little bit crazy from the lack of sleep, so that might be part of the problem. I haven't slept in three days, Newt. Three day—"

I suddenly stopped talking when I felt my shoulders being gently turned around. I was now face to face with Newt, who had a look in his eye that I couldn't quite read. He held onto my shoulders gently and smirked, making the cage of butterfly's I was trying too hard to keep contained, burst open. My heart started to race, our faces were so close. I clenched my jaw and tried to keep my eyes on his, but the longer I tried, the harder it was. I quickly glanced down to his lips, and he did the same.

"Are you okay now?" He asked me in a whisper. His voice was so raspy, I thought I was going to have an asthma attack right now from the lack of air I was getting. I nodded, not knowing how to use my words at this moment.

He smirked again and let go of my arms, making my stomach drop a little. Newt moved his way to the side, finishing making up his bed like I was going to do before he caught me off-guard. I took a step back and moved to the small wooden chair that he had in the corner of the room. Sitting down, I finally had the time to catch my breath and calm my nerves.

I found myself admiring him. The way that he put a little more weight on his right leg than he did his left one for obvious reasons. He fumbled with the sheets before pulling them up to the top, trying to figure out how to do this on his own. It was like he'd never made a bed before. His tongue stuck out between his lips in concentration, while the crease in between his eyebrows was prominent. He was so beautiful...it made me wonder why it took me so long to realize I had feelings for him. I should've known from the start. Ever since I heard his voice say my name on the first day I arrived, I should've known. Thinking back on it, there's a countless amount of times where I felt the same way that I was now.

Like my heart was growing too big for my chest.

"Newt," I mumbled softly while standing up from the chair. He turned around and looked at me with those big brown eyes of his, making my heart skip a beat. I suddenly forgot what I was going to say, so I improvised, "Let me do this..."

He chuckled and handed me the bedsheet which he had just made messier. He scratched the back of his head, "S-Sorry. Nobody ever really taught me how to do this..."

"Well, let me show you then," I smiled at him. He nodded and leaned over my shoulder, watching as I pulled the sheet up to the top of the cot, "You gotta get all the wrinkles out before you do anything, okay?"

I followed my own directions and made sure the sheet had no wrinkles, "Now, you have to pull it all the way up to where your pillow goes."

Again, I pulled the sheets up to the head of the bed, feeling myself calm down in this soft moment. Newt was so quiet that I questioned if he was even behind me anymore. I stood up straight, looking at his well-made bed. I placed my hands on my hips and nodded proudly to myself at my work.

"Now, usually," I continued, "You would put the pillow at the top, but I have the window blocked for some odd reason... So I'm just gonna—"

Right as I moved to take the pillow away, Newt grabbed my wrist gently, making my head turn towards him. His face was softer than usual, but holding almost no emotion. I met my eyes with his, and he looked directly into mine. I tried to send him a smile, to see if he would break out of his trance, but his face stayed void of any emotion.

I wanted to tell him. I wanted to tell him that I have feelings for him. That every time he touches me, I get butterflies. That the way he looks at me sends chills down my spine, and that I can't help but think of him constantly. Every decision I've made so far has somehow been for him. The reason I jumped into the Maze was that I couldn't stand to see Newt lose his best friend. I want the best for him, and I wish I could tell him that. But the words got caught in my mouth and although they were on the tip of my tongue, I couldn't form the correct words. I mean, how do you tell someone that?

Then, as if someone suddenly slapped him, he blinked and let go of my wrist, stepping back.

"S-Sorry. I didn't mean to grab you like that. I-I just—" He was cut off by the sound of someone knocking on the door. He rolled his eyes and sighed, tilting his head up to the ceiling.

I had to admit, I felt the same way as him, annoyed that every single time we seemed to get a moment alone today, someone had to come and rain on our parade. I wanted to somehow tell him that I had feelings for him before I got thrown into the pit for the night.

"Who is it?" Newt asked the person who was behind the door.

"Thomas," The familiar voice called, "I think I have something that can help Alby..."

Newt and I immediately looked at each other and made our way over to the door, now concerned about what the hell Thomas meant. He removed the stick from the door and opened it, revealing Thomas and the girl's bodies. They both furrowed their eyebrows when they looked at Newt and me.

"What's she doing up here?" Thomas pointed to me, his protective side showing through.

I rolled my eyes and pushed past Newt, "Give it a rest, Tommy. We weren't doin' anything."

Newt looked down at the floor and clenched his jaw as I stared at Thomas, who was being quite nosy. But he shook his head and looked at the girl, who pulled two vials of blue liquid out of her pocket.

"It might help Alby," She muttered. I crossed my arms and looked up at her through my eyelashes, feeling my trust already falter. Even though I didn't have any for her yet.

Newt sighed and nodded, "Okay. Let's go see him."

All four of us made our way to the Med-ack hut for the millionth time today, this time going to see the leader. We walked across the Glade, and I noticed how the sun was beginning to drift behind the walls, sending a warm orange glow across the sky. It reminded me of the last time I watched the sunrise with Newt, which was quite a while ago. I made a promise to myself that I was going to watch it again with him before anything else drastic happened. Although I might not be able to watch it tomorrow, due to me being locked up in the pit all night, I would definitely watch it with him after.

When we entered the hut, the atmosphere in the room changed drastically. It was no longer the strange tension between me and Newt, and it was no longer the concern of the girl and Thomas. But instead, it was now worry, concern, and curiosity. The girl handed the flask to Newt, who examined it. I folded my arms over my chest and looked over his shoulder, having to stand on the tips of my toes because of my height. I looked over to Clint and Jeff, who was blankly staring at Alby as if they were hoping he would just get better all of a sudden. The leader was grunting and clenching his entire body in what seemed like tremendous pain. I wished that I could just take it all away from him and make him better. Bring him back to normal. But you would have to be superhuman to be able to do that. And I was certainly no superhuman.

"We don't even know what this stuff is..." Newt started, looking up at Thomas, "We don't know who sent it, or why it came up here with you..."

He sighed and looked over at me as I stared at the boy, "I mean, for all we know, this thing could kill him."

I nodded, agreeing with his logic. I wasn't about to have something stabbed into my friend because of something a new girl said. I didn't trust her...and I could tell that Newt didn't either yet, but Thomas was already head over heels for the girl who called his name. Ladies man...

"Newt he's already dying," Thomas tried to convince us, "Look at him."

Newt turned his head and looked at his best friend, who was suffering as he was tied up to a bed. I clenched my jaw and sighed, feeling sorry over anything.

"How could this possibly make it any worse?" Thomas spoke up again after Newt didn't speak, "C'mon. It's worth a try."

Famous last words, I thought.

Newt breathed a laugh and looked at me, making me furrow my eyebrows.

"Did I say that out loud?" I whispered. He nodded with a smirk, making me blush and take a step back. I didn't know I could do that. I swore I only said it in my head.

"Alright," He finally agreed with Thomas, pointing towards Alby, "Do it."

Thomas moved around Newt quickly, taking the flask from him and standing near Alby's left side while the girl moved over to his right to get a better look. Newt and I stood at his feet, our hearts racing and our hands sweating. Thomas looked back at us in a moment of hesitation.

"Okay..."

All of a sudden, Alby snapped his eyes open and growled at the boy, pulling his collar down and towards him.

"You shouldn't be here!" Alby screamed.

Newt and I scrambled to different sides of the bed, holding down his stiff muscles so that Thomas could once again be let free. I placed my knee on his bicep and held his arm down while Thomas yelled at someone to get the syringe. Alby was screaming, thrashing around like he had no concept that we were the people around him. I looked into his eyes and noticed there was hardly any humanity behind them...like he was becoming a totally different person.

Before I could shout at someone, the girl came up from behind me and plunged the syringe into Alby's chest as hard as she could, making him immediately calm down and let go of Thomas. He slowed down his breathing as he threw his head back onto the pillow, clenching his fists in relief. I slowly moved off of the boy, bringing my leg to the ground hesitantly just in case he decided to attack one of us again.

"Well...that worked..." Jeff mumbled from my right. I kept my eyes on Alby as he began mumbling different words under his breath now.

Newt let out a whimper as his voice cracked, "Okay, from now on, someone stays here and watches him around the clock."

We all nodded, agreeing with him for Alby's sake. I turned to leave with everyone else, but suddenly the leader's voice made its way into my head.

"Mae..." Alby breathed. I turned my head to him with furrowed eyebrows and a confused mind, wondering why he would be whispering my name during the Changing. Everyone else turned to him too, probably thinking the same thing.

He groaned in pain once again when I took a step forward towards him. Maybe he was awake? I clenched my fists down at my sides when Alby opened his mouth to scream, but no words came out. The blue veins popped out of his neck like he was enduring some type of disease that made him like this.

"I..." He hyperventilated for a few seconds, and I watched in curiosity before he grunted in pain again. Whatever he was trying to say must've been extremely hard to get out, but it seemed like he was determined.

"I-I'm sorry..." He finally breathed. My heart dropped as I sat on the bed next to him, wondering if he were to continue, "Y-You nev...You never deserved this..."

As soon as he got the words out, he let out an earth-shattering scream of pain, making me cover my ears and stumble to my feet. I felt someone's hands on my waist, and I didn't hesitate to look back and see who the person was, even though I had the faintest idea already. Newt was standing behind me, his eyebrows furrowed and looking worriedly from Alby to my eyes.

Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, Gally appeared from the door and met eyes with Thomas and me, "Sundown guys. Time to go.."

I looked back at Newt for some reassurance, and when he nodded his head, giving me a slight rub on the back, only then did I move away from him and towards the Builder. Thomas and I followed him out of the hut and to the pit. I ignored the conversation they were having, and I stared at my feet, wondering why of all people, Alby would say my name. What did it mean?

"Mae," Gally said my name, bringing me out of my thoughts, "You're here. Thomas, you're on the other side."

I nodded as he opened the small trapdoor into my cell-like home for the night. It was dark down there. Dark and dusty and it smelled like mold. I scrunched my face up and looked back at Gally, who shrugged and pursed his lips. I refrained from rolling my eyes as I finally jumped down into the pit, awaiting whatever tonight was going to bring.

Probably no sleep once more.