"Umm. Hi."

Her voice was a little dry and her throat was sore from screaming. She felt her face heat up with shame. She hated that she was so scared of the dark small spaces.

"Feel better? It was cold down there! Should probably find ya a blanket or something!"

"I umm...I have a jacket, it's just in the kitchen."

"Okay! Wait here! I'll grab it!"

"No. No, you don't have to." Hope, went to get up.

"Nope. You stay, enjoy the sunshine and fresh air. I'll be right back!"

He took a few steps then stopped and scratched his head.

"Uhh Hope? Kitchen is..?" He asked.

She sighed and got up, "come on, I'll show you."

"Well this defeats the whole purpose!"

"Purpose of what?" Hope asked, her hands were still shaking a bit, but she shoved them into her pockets and clamped her jaw shut, it was shivering.

"How'd it happen?" Fry asked quietly.

"Me flying if the damn handle or the root of the problem?" Hope asked bitterly.

"Well I was asking about how the doors ended up locked. But if you wanna share why you don't like tight dark spaces." He shrugged, he still had a laid back easy smile.

"No idea. Someone closed it on me. And as for the reason...it's a long sad miserable story."

"I like long stories."

Hope led him up the stairs of the mess hall cabin. The kitchen was in the back, and the rows of tables and picnic tables were empty except for a few guys sitting on the far end.

"Okay, go sit by the wood stove and warm up. I'll be right back."

He gave her a gentle push towards the stove. Hope slowly ambled over to the stove and sat down in the corner, her back leaning against the cabin wall. Her feet pulled up onto the bench.

A few minutes later Fry showed up with her jacket over his arm and two cups of steaming fresh coffee.

"Hot coffee helps warm ya up, from the inside out." He paused and then frowned, "I just realized I don't even know if you like coffee...or how you like it!"

Hope held her hands out and he handed her the mug. She held it clutched to her chest with both hands. She hummed happily. Frypan chuckled.

"It's the zombie apocalypse, I take the coffee anyway it comes."

He sat down on the other side of the table, leaning against the wall, matching her seating position, feet up on the bench. They sat in comfortable silence. Hope was surprised how comfortable she felt.

"So. What's this long sad story?" He finally asked.

She looked down at the mug in her hands. And sighed.

"I was four and hiding. WICKED was coming, my parents hid me in a small little dug out cellar under the kitchen floorboards. They took my brother. Killed my parents. I was stuck under there for hours. The kitchen table had flipped and landed on the door. I couldn't get out. I've hated dark small places since."

"Well shuck. That's awful!" Fry's dark eyes looked at her with such a genuine hurt and concern for her.

"Yeah well...this world is messed up." Hope shrugged.

"Yeah...but you were four!"

"Yeah. And Lanna was 3. Vera lost her family even younger. Her brother saved her from her cranking parents until her brother got it."

Frypan looked shocked.

"You got lots to learn about the world. It's not just Maze kids, cranks and WICKED. There are a lot of us who have had to fight for ever single day, fight for survival. I hate WICKED just as much as you. And just because I wasn't in the maze doesn't make me any less!"

"I didn't say it was. It sounds hard and terrible."

"Well ..your friends seem to think otherwise." I said, glaring.

The door had opened and Frypan's three friends walked in. They looked around and then the blond, Newt, spotted us and he started this way and the other two followed. They greeted Fry, Newt acknowledged me and sat down, the other two ignoring me.

"What's a guy gotta do to get some food around here?" Minho asked.

"You can go help. This ain't a free hand out. Everyone helps out." Hope snapped.

Minho's head whipped around so fast she was surprised he didn't snap it. His eyebrows shot up.

"Ya? Like shooting people coming up the mountain is very helpful." He snapped back.

"Yeah. Keeping this place from cranks."

"She's not-" Thomas started.

"She was bit by a crank. She was infected. And already starting stage three. Don't you dare tell me how she wasn't an infected crank. I've been dealing with it for 16 years. You've been running around for how long out in the real world...? A week?"

Thomas and Newt looked shocked. And very offended. Minho looked angry.

"I don't bring infected people into a camp full of none immunes."

"I had to help her!"

"No. Not you. You expected us to help an infected. How are we supposed to do that Thomas? There is no cure! You know WICKED has been working for years to find a cure. They screwed with you for how many years, and there's no cure yet. How do you expect us to help. Vince was right. You put this entire camp at risk. Because your the mighty elites. You just waltz into camp, demand it all and think the rules don't apply."

Hope's anger was barely contained, her hands were shaking, and her face was red with anger. She stood up, and took Fry's jacket off her shoulders and handed it back with a small nod of thanks.

"She has a point." Frypan shrugged, taking his jacket back. His friends glared at him. He shrugged and didn't seem bothered by the looks of contempt.

Minho scoffed, "Must be nice." He sassed.

Hope froze, her back to them.

"Must be nice to have everything in life and never have to worry about WICKED poking your brain or body, them messing with your head constantly...the threat of death and food to eat, protection. Everything is provided for the Right Arm Princess."

Hope spun around and jabbed a finger into his chest. She was shorter than him, but she could hold her own.

"You have no fucking idea what I've been through. My brother ripped from our home, my parents dead at four. I had to kill my first crank at five. Fended for myself for a year before Odin found me. I've been surviving every day. I've lost a lot of people in my life thanks to WICKED and the Flare. There were weeks when I didn't have food. You know nothing about what your talking about. You puffed up arragant prick. I'm sure life in the maze wasn't easy, but neither was mine."

Hope spun back around and stormed away. She skipped supper. She brought a plate to Lanna, who still stayed in the tent, Hope didn't want to be around people. She kissed Lanna's forehead and made sure Vera was with her.

"I'll explain later. I'm...I gotta blow off some steam."

Lanna just nodded and smiled in understanding. Hope went for a walk. She had her hands shoved in the pockets of her jacket. Her hair blew around in the wind. She did a full lap of the camp. And on her second lap around the camp, she wandered further away. And into the field.

She slowly walked, her hands held out, the soft fluffy heads of the dandilions tickled her palms. She stopped and picked a big one. She smiled sadly as she twirled it in her fingers. She gently blew on the seeds, and watched them scatter into the air and float away.

"What did you wish for?"

Hope jumped and yelped, spinning around she held a hand to her chest.

"Jeeze Fry! Don't sneak up on people!" Hope scolded.

He chuckled, making his eyes crinkle and his bright white teeth show. His dark chocolate skin glowed in the seating sun. His smile was contagious and it made a small smile aooear on Hope's face.

"So! What did ya wish for?" He asked again, nudging her arm.

"Nothing...?" She asked confused.

He gasped and held a hand to his chest. "What? You blow the dandilion, and didn't wish for something?"

She picked another one and frowned at the little fluffy weed. "I...I didn't know I was supposed to...?" Hope stammered.

"Everyone knows that!"

"You knew about blowing on them...but not the wish?"

"My brother and I used to sit in our field and do this. Maybe he said something about making a wish. I was four. And it was a long time ago."

"Well." Frypan picked a dandilion and held it out for her. "here Hope. Make your first wish."

Hope looked at him skeptically. He had such a big innocent smile, it made Hope smile again and cave. She took the little fluffy weed.

"Okay. Now close them!" Fry instructed.

She did as he said. She peeked at him quickly.

"Closed!" He scolded.

She let a small laugh out. "Okay okay. They're closed."

"Good. Now think of the perfect wish. The one you've been keeping secret deep in your heart and haven't told anyone."

Hope but the inside of her cheek as she though. What did she wish for? Safety...a future...no more WICKED or running. A place to call home. Someone to love her forever and always, maybe a family. She took a slow inhale. And narrowed in on one.

"Got it?" Fry whispered.

Hope nodded.

"Okay, wish it and blow the dandilion."

Hope smiled to herself opened her eyes and sent her wish attached to the dandilion seeds into the setting sun. Frypan watched her with a soft smile.

"There! Your first wish! How do you feel?"

"Like a changed woman!" She chuckled.

It made Frypan chuckle too, he raised an eyebrow, "So? What did ya wish for?"

"Fry! You know the first rules about wishes. You can't say it out loud! If it's spoken it won't come true!"

He shoved his hands into his pockets, with a smile and looked out over the sunset. Hope turned and watched as well.

"It's pretty. The sunsets."

"They are beautiful. Especially when your at the edge of the forest and the scorch is stretched before you, and it's setting."

He just hummed.

"Even prettier because their real."

Hope blanched and looked at Frypan, horrified. "What?"

"Ya...the Maze...it was all underground. We had sunrises and sun sets and moon and stars and klunk, but...it was all fake. Holligrams and technology..."

"Damn!" Hope whispered horrified. "I'm sorry Fry. That's terrible." She had laid a hand in his arm.

"No need to be sorry, Hope. It wasn't your fault, you didn't cause it."

"No. But I can still sympathize with you. The Maze Trials, from what I've heard..." Hope trailed off, looking back out into the sun set. She removed her hand from his arm and crossed her arms tight around her chest.

"From what I've gathered yours didn't sound easy either."

She shrugged. Chewing her cheek she kept her gauze straight.

"I'm...sorry I snapped at your friends."

"Nah. Minho can get a little...what did you say? Puffed up arragant prick?"

Hope's face burnt with embarrassment. She looked down at her feet, and sheepishly tucked her hair behind her ear. Frypan let a big belly laugh out. A loud one that made Hope pick her head up and a smile form on her lips.

"Yeah..." She whispered. .

"Yeah. Minho can get like that. Sometimes he needs to be put in his place. And...Thomas...he has a bad hero complex sometimes. Sometimes he doesn't see the big picture."

"Fry...I can get over Minho. I've been around enough arranging peacocks. It's Thomas that pisses me off. And I'm sorry, I know your friends with him. But seriously he put so many people at risk! Lanna is my best friend, she's closer then a sister! And she was in that truck with an infected for a long time! If she had caught it because he doesn't think rules apply to him I'd end him!"

Frypan nodded thoughtfully. "No....I understand. I see your point Hope."

Hope exhaled the breath she had been holding.

"So...Lanna and you and that huge shank?"

"What's a shank?" Hope asked, it was a weird word. She wrinkled her nose at the weird name.

"Shank... Means like friend, or brother." Frypan explained.

He sat down and tugged Hope's arm, making her collapse to the ground with a groan. He grinned.

"Okay. The story of this Lanna and The huge shank."

"Papa Bear."

"Well, definitely a bear! He's huge!"

"Comes in handy when you gotta fight for survival."

"I bet it does!"

His smile was kind and genuine and he looked at her like he was actually interested in what she had to say. His laugh made the anxiety in her chest loosen. He was easy to talk to. He had her laughing at the most ridiculous things and he waved his hands around wildly as he talked about it. His smile lit up his eyes. Hope felt at ease around him. She didn't tell him any secrets, all the things she shared were just basic things about her life and living in the crank appocypse, outside if WICKEDs last City, on the edge of civilization. He was a good audience.

"Okay...so tell me about the Maze."

"You said your brother was taken during the first round?"

Hope nodded. "Maybe you knew him?" She asked hipeful. "I know that the chances are super slim. WICKED took a lot of kids."

"What was his name?"

"Will."

Frypan frowned, "there was a Will in the Glade, but he had black hair and green eyes. Didn't look anything like you."

Hope shook her head, "no, blond wavy hair and blue eyes." She sighed sadly. "It was a long shot."

"Sorry."

"Not your fault Fry." She paused. "Okay, what's your real name?"

Frypan groaned and blushed. "It's a dumb."

"Oh come on! Your parents gave you that name!"

"No...WICKED did. Apparently we were all renamed."

Hope froze her mouth dropped. Her brain had to take a minute. "Re...renamed? So...Will might not even be Will?"

Frypan's eyes went wide with realization. And then he shrunk. "No, I guess not, I'm sorry."

Hope blinked back a set of fresh tears. She waved a hand, "not important. It was slim to none that I'd ever find him."

"Siggy."

"Hmm?" Hope hummed absentmindedly, she had looked down, playing the the stem of a dandilion.

"My name. It's Sigmund...Siggy."

Hope snorted. And then slapped a hand over her mouth, horrified. "Sorry." She mumbled.

"No you're right, it's a stupid name!" He chuckled. "So when I finally remembered it... and people laughed I swung a frying pan at the kids head. Have gone by Frypan or Fry since."

"Well that makes sense." But she paused and frowned. "But why a frying pan?"

"It was the closest weapon at the time. I was in the kitchen. I was the Glade cook."

"Ooo. A man who can cook?" Hope raised an eyebrow.

"Shucken rights! Pancakes, bacon, cookies, stew...you name it! I make it!" He grinned at her.

"Birthday cake?"

Frypan furrowed his eyebrows and thought.

"I'm sure I could pull it off!"

"I was three the last time I had one..."

"Well...maybe one day." Frypan chuckled.

Hope reached for a nother dandilion, closed her eyes and wished. Opened her eyes and blow the dandilion seeds into the twilight.

"Are you gonna tell me that one?" Frypan asked, raising his eyebrows.

Hope just smiled. They stayed for a long time talking and laughing, sitting in the middle of a dandilion field. Frypan held a hand out for her and he pulled her to get feet. They slowly walked back to camp. Hope's hands shoved into her jacket.

"Thanks Hope."

"For?"

"Just sitting and talking. I haven't done that in a while. Laughing...just being present. We've been in life and death situations for so long, it's hard to remember were still only kids. It was nice to just...be. Ya know?"

"You have no idea." Hope smiled. They walked through the tents. "Well this is me. You know where to go from here?"

Fry chuckled. "next row over sixth from the end."

"Alright. Good night Fry."

"Night Hope."