Rubbing her pounding aching head, Alex rounded yet another corner. Standing on each side of a sliding door were 2 guards. The one guard nodded and took a swipe key and unlocked the door. She saw on the other side of the door there were 2 more guards. They waved her through.

The noise of the cafeteria hit her like a truck. She stopped, shocked. It was full. Full of teenagers, boys and girls. Everyone was sitting in groups at metal tables, chatting and laughing, swapping stories. It was the weirdest sight Alex had ever seen!

Were ALL these kids in mazes? Or are some of these kids rescued before the maze? What the shuck is going on? It's like High school...Did I even shucken go to high school? Uhg. Gross, people.

Alex took a few more hesitant steps inside. She saw a kitchen area, where cooks were handing out food.

Foooood!

Her stomach agreed. She had thrown up what little food she consumed during their food fight. And before that, she didn't remember the last time she ate, back in the glade. It had been a very long time. Alex went straight for the line. As she walked through the tables, she noticed heads turning. She wasn't self conscious before...but she sure was now!

What are they looking at? Shuck, it IS shucken high school!

She narrowed her eyes, and glared at a group at a table who wolf whistled. She growled quietly, already agitated.

Shuck sakes, this is the first bloody week of the Glade all of again.

She kept turning her head as she got closer to the cafeteria line, trying to find Teresa and her guys. She picked up a tray and slid down the line.

A guy from the Woolf whistling boys came up behind her and leaned over into her personal space, "You're new." He said, looking her up and down, his eyes stopping at her chest.

"And you're annoying. And gross." Alex said coldly.

"Just trying to help you out. I'd be willing to...you know...show you the ropes." He flashed a smile, raising his eyebrows. He was definitely insinuating something she had zero interest in. At least not with this creep.

"I'm fine. I have my own friends" She replied curtly, turning away to grab some food.

"I don't see anyone. You're all alone. And I will definitely keep you company" He wiggled his eyebrows, staying uncomfortably close to her.

Where is Bark when I need her? Also, Marshmallow was right. I would definitely break that promise of not using knives.. ops. That was fast...Well the one in my boot...hmmm. Is it worth it?

"I said I'm fine. Back off." She snarled, her fist clenching around her butter knife.

He slid closer still, "Oh come on, sweetheart. I can-"

"Dude. She said back off!"

"Minho!" Alex smiled brightly, as she turned to see him.

Minho came up beside her and wrapped his big muscular arm around her waist, his hand clamped in her hip, pulling her in close, claiming her.

She looked up to him, and he looked down at her, his coffee brown eyes sparkling with mischief. She missed his face. She raised up onto her tip toes and kissed him in a long slow kiss, slipping her tongue into his mouth, for good measure. She heard him Humm quietly, his hand slid down to her backside for a moment. She reluctantly lowered back down and they both looked at the guy standing there with his mouth open, looking back and forth between them.

"Like I bloody said, slint head. I have my own friends and if I need anyone 'showing me the ropes', it will be him" Alex nodded at Minho, "My beefy delicious cake of a boyfriend."

Minho didn't smile, his face stone cold, glaring at the guy. He removed his arm from around Alex and crossed them across his chest, making his muscles bulge out of his tight black t shirt. He shifted his stance so he was slightly in front of Alex .

He is so shucken intimidating when he wants to be. Shuck me! Those arm muscles and peck muscles..drool. Also damn those back muscles be mighty fine! Uhg, protective boyfriend mode..this man is just so hot. Please just take me now!

The creepy guy gulped and slunk backwards, back to his table. Minho turned to look at her, "You okay?" he asked, gently, his hard expression melted into one of concern and care.

Alex smiled, "Babe, you know I can handle creeps like him. I'm fine, but that protective boyfriend mode was hot."

"Oh I know you can, but maybe punching his ugly sleezy face or stabbing him," he gestured to the knife still clenched in her hand, "on our first day isn't exactly a good first impression."

"True. But where's the fun in that?" She twirled the knife in her hand, smirking at him.

He smirked at her, "Also, babe, I'm always hot. I knew you were checking me out."

"That, my Love, is truth." She pointed her knife at him, with a smirk, and batted her eyelashes. "Can't lie with scientific facts." She nodded grabbing a sandwich

He just chuckled, "Now come on my beautiful feisty ball of sunshine. We weren't the only maze!"

"Yes, clearly.." Alex said drily, rolling her eyes.

Alex snagged a bottle of water and followed Minho through the tables, eyes looking up as she passed. She did her best to ignore them, but her hands gripped the tray until her knuckles were white. One guy whistled, and Minho whipped around glaring and growling his hands clenching into fists. The guy he visibly shrunk.

"That was hot." Alex whispered to him as he placed a possessive hand on her lower back.

He smirked down at her. Minho led her to a table at the back, where the rest of the Gaders were sitting, with two new boys. They both looked up with wide eyes and open mouths when Newt slid over to give her and Minho room in the middle of the bench. Alex gave them a small nod of acknowledgement.

Newt, cleared his throat. "You were saying?"

The one guy blinked and looked back at Newt, "Oh yeah...and there was this big, loud explosion, and guys came out of nowhere. Started shooting up the place. It was intense. They got a few of us out of the maze and took us here." He finished. Newt's forehead wrinkled, rubbing his bottom lip as he thought.

"What about the rest? The ones left in the maze, what happened to them?"

Alex knew right away he was thinking of Gally's guys.

"I don't know. I guess WICKED still has them." He answered.

The other guy hadn't stopped staring at Alex, and it was starting to bug her. She wasn't an animal at a zoo.

"How long have you guys been here?" Minho asked, leaning on his elbows on the table top.

"Not long. Just a day or two. That kid over there has been here the longest. Almost a week. His maze was nothing but girls."

Alex's eyes snapped to him. "Really?" she asked eagerly.

Her eyes were wide, she looked at Newt whose eyes only now went wide, realizing what Alex was thinking. Alex turned to look around the huge cafeteria. There were hundreds of kids..there was no way to find her in this mass. Alex would have to try to talk to him.

"Some guys have all the luck."

Her head snapped around so fast she probably got whiplash.

"The bloody shuck did you just say?" She pointed her fork threateningly in Minho's face.

He smirked at her, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her close, snaking his other arm around her waist, "Come on Sunshine, you know I would be in the middle of a maze full of hot girls and I'd still find you."

She glared at him. She could feel the eyes of the new boys on them, flicking back and forth. Minho didn't break eye contact, and kept his smirk glued on, she finally cracked a small smile. Minho had leaned forward -

"Good evening, gentlemen. Ladies." Janson called suddenly.

Minho's head jerked up at the loud voice. Janson had walked into the Cafeteria, flanked by Captain Ronin and another guard. He cleared his throat, he was holding a clipboard.

"Uhg. A rat just scampered in here." Alex muttered, to the amusement of Minho who snorted, kissing her temple quickly.

"You all know how this works. If you hear your name called... please rise in an orderly fashion, joining me... where we will escort you to the East wing. Where your new lives are to begin."

His smile felt forced and definitely did not reach his eyes. He looked stiff, but his eyes looked hungry, greedy. He looked down at his clipboard and started listing kids' names.

"Connor." A kid got up from a table full of kids, he high fived a few.

"Evelyn. Eve. Justin. Peter. Allison. Squiggy." The cafeteria burst out laughing at the name.

"All right. Settle down." Janson snapped. The kids grew quiet and he continued reading the list of names.

"Franklin. And Abigail."

The cafeteria of kids groaned, Alex was looking around confused.

What's going on? Where are they going? Why does everyone seem disappointed? Definitely anywhere with Rat Man is not good.

"Now, now, don't get discouraged. If I could take more, I would. There's always tomorrow. Your time will come."

His smile came across as creepy, but she seemed to be the only one who thought this, until she caught Thomas's eye. His eyes were narrowed, and he had an uneasy expression on his face and shook his head. Minho also looked skeptical.

"Go on, eat up." Janson said and turned to lead the kids through the door. The cafeteria grew loud with chatter again.

"Where they going?" Thomas asked the other boys, he was leaning forward on the table.

"Far from here. Lucky bastards. Some kind of farm. A safe place. They can only take in a few at a time." The one kid explained.

Thomas nodded. Alex went back to eating. That nervous unease was spreading from her chest into her gut.. She picked up a piece of bacon, scrutinizing it. She took a cautious bite, and tried choking it down.

"Ugh!" Alex finally spit it out. "Gross! Hey Fry!" She said looking up, "Come here."

He looked confused, but leaned over the table, Alex stood up and leaned in, she gave him a kiss on the check, and then sat back down, expressionless.

Frypan on the other hand fist pumped. "YES!! I knew one day you would kiss the chief!" He fist pumped a few more times, making Alex laugh.

Minho looked confused, but still high-fived Fry when he held out his hand. "What the shuck was that? You kissing other Gladers now?" He scoffed.

"Nah, just Fry and just this once. Maybe."

Minho raised an eyebrow, waiting for more of an explination.

Alex sighed and explained, "My first bonfire he wouldn't give me more bacon until I had to pull the puppy dog pout. He said I would have to kiss the cook at some point, because he claimed his bacon was gourmet. I told him fat chance, would I kiss the cook. But after whatever this piece of klunk is," Alex held up the soggy piece of meat, "I'll absa-shucken-lutly kiss the cook. His bacon was gourmet!"

Minho threw his head back and let out a loud belly laugh and then gave Fry a proper high five. Alex laughed along with the rest of the Gladers as he got proper high fives from the guys.

The one new kid who wouldn't stop staring got cocky. "You giving out free kisses? I'll take one, sweetheart."

He slid his hands down the table to lean on as he stood up. Alex was faster, without breaking eye contact with the new guy she took the butter knife sitting beside her plate, spun it in her hand and slammed it down, between his middle and pointer finger. It was a metal table, but she slammed the butter knife hard enough that it stuck an inch into the table, and stayed when Alex let go.

The kid froze. Alex cocked an eyebrow. He broke the eye contact, slowly looked down, shock and terror formed on his face. His friend was eyeing the butter knife embedded in the table, then at the guy.

"Try it. I dare you." Alex hissed.

Minho cocked his eyebrow at the kid and folded his arms. Newt pursed his lips, his body stiff, his hands in fists. Thomas leapt to his feet, breathing hard his face in a scowl and his hands in fists. Frypan, Winston, Clint, A.J and Leo all stood up, glaring at the kid. The kid looked around at the guys who were all ready to jump to the defense of Alex. He slowly sat sheepishly down. His friend smacked him around the head.

"Dude. Seriously? Just cuz you see a beautiful girl for the first time in forever doesn't mean you act like a tool! Obviously there was an inside joke, and clearly this dude," He nodded his head to Minho "who has muscles coming out of his muscles - and her have a thing. Come on man! You idiot!" He scolded.

Alex liked the one guy. Alex nodded a thank you. He nodded back and continued berating his friend.

"Also you idiot" He continued, "She quite clearly can kick your ass. Did you see her flip the knife? Without looking! And did you not see the scars all over her body?"

Alex was good with everything he said, until he mentioned her scars. She became self conscious again.

Why would this place hand out such low cut shirts? Stupid shucked place.

Alex's back stiffened, and she clenched her jaw. Alex fidgeted with the neck line of the tank top. She could feel her face heating up, and her hands clenched into fists when there was nothing she could do about the top. Minho, sensing her discomfort, put a hand on her lower back, rubbing small circles and leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"Wear them with pride, Sunshine." His voice dropped an octave, and it took on a gravelly tone sending shivers down her spine, and an explosion of little butterflies scattered inside her tummy. "Remember, they're your Valkyrie battle scars, they tell your story...and I find 'em shucken hot...I'll kiss each and every one of them when I get the chance."

Alex could feel her cheeks burn up, but from a very different feeling than anger. He planted a kiss on her temple and sat up straight, his warm comforting hand never left her back. Newt gave her a curious look, but didn't ask about her blush- he didn't want to know, actually.

The guy who scolded his friend spoke up again, "Sorry, I never introduced myself. My name is Fred. This idiot beside me is Colin."

He held out his hand for her to shake. Which she did. "Nice to meet you. Alex."

"So you were the only girl in your maze?" He asked, trying to make conversation, and ease the tension in the other Gladers. They had sat down again, but Alex could tell they were on alert. They were just as protective of her as she was of them.

"I was, for 2...3? Months, then just before we escaped, another girl showed up, she's still with the doctors."

Fred nodded solemnly.

"Did...did you get those scars from the maze monsters?" He asked cautiously. Alex stiffened again, she felt Minho's hand on her back apply some pressure.

"Something like that. Ya Maze Monster.." Newt answered, tightly. Fred got the hint, it was a touchy subject.

"I was attacked by one of our own. He was stung with the poison from the 'Maze Monsters' -we called them Grievers. He was jacked from the poison, and decided to try to kill me, tried to rape me first. Mr. Muscle-on-Muscle here almost beat him to death. He was shot with an arrow to the head. And then another guy jacking on the poison from the Grievers tried to kill myself and Tommy, over there. I killed him first." She said evenly, looking directly at Colin.

She hated talking about what happened..but this idiot needed to get the point.

"Other people's bodies are not yours to do what you wish. What you did was not okay. Not just for me but to any girl in the possible future. You don't touch anyone without permission. You don't expect anything just because you throw a compliment. Chris wanted what wasn't his, even not jacked in the head, he was aggressive and was inappropriate with me. He would have taken advantage of me either way. You and the jerk in the lunch line and the idiot who Woolf whistled need to learn that you couldn't just touch and assume without clear permission. I'm sick of boys thinking they can just touch me. Do it again, and I'll make sure you don't have fingers to touch anyone else. Ever again."

Both boy's eyes went wide.

"I told you she could kick your ass!" Fred whispered to Colin. He had leaned back and gulped.

"What the hell?" Thomas yelped.