Thomas sat on the beach staring up into the stars, the worn paper held tight in his hand. He had slow tears running down his cheeks. It had been two years since he woke up to Jina's decision to end her fight.

He found her in her room, cold and lifeless, but she had a small smile on her face. He had sunk to his knees and cried until he had nothing left. His heart had broke, his lungs hurt and his head was dizzy. He realized last night was her way of saying good bye. She had told him she was tired of fighting, and that she wanted something good. It took him a long time to get up and function again. He had found the stack of letters in his room, and a jar of little fire flies, but with a small note that said:

Star Bugs. Let them out and be free, just like me, I am free Tommy, free to be in the stars.

He had handed out the letters, but it took a long time for him to open his own letter. The day of the funeral actually, once the few people left, he sat beside her freshly dug grave and twisted the lid off and watched the little bugs flutter out into the sky, just as the first few stars showed up. He finally had the courage to open the letter. With shaking hands he unfolded it.

Dear Tommy,

This is the first letter I officially remember writing. I had to do a lot of writing letters and memos in my time before the Maze, but this is the first time I sat down and wrote from my heart. I want you to know, first and foremost, I love you Thomas. I always have. And I always will. Please don't be sad- I am free. Winston told me a long time ago, he was going onto the next great adventure... I'm going there too, the next great adventure, I'm just getting a head start. And I'll see you every night in the stars...or in the small little Star Bugs that flutter around at night.

You will be okay, Tommy. You'll keep going. One step at a time. It will hurt for a bit, but the pain goes numb after a while and then it fades and you can't feel it at all. But my wounds? They broke me too much, I was never going to get better. I couldn't fight that battle anymore, but they didn't win the war, not truly. We do our best to live for those who died. But don't mourn for me, I'm free Tommy. I'm free and I am happy. I made this decision, just me.

Don't forget to live for those who didn't make it. Don't forget their sacrifice. We honor those who died to get us to Safe Haven. Because those are the heroes. Alby, Chuck, Leroy, Bobby, Joe and Winston, Jeff, Beth, Rachel, Liv, Aris.

Look after yourself, my love. Look after Minho, I know he will be hard on himself. But I don't blame him. Not at all. He was always my big brother. He caught me at my lowest, and when I needed him the most. He gave me another chance.

If I could do it over again, I would. I would see your face, and your eyes light up and your smile. I would follow you into the Scorch, and into the fires. I love you. We had said, you and me, together, forever.

But maybe forever was a word meant for memories and not people.

I'll see you in the stars, my Super Spy.

Jina

He had held the note and sobbed his body thrown over the fresh dirt. He was so angry. For a long time, he didn't understand why she would do this to him. But she was right. The sharpness faded to an ache. Her memory never faded, but the pain did. She had left him her journal, and slowly reading through it he got a better understanding of just how broken she was. How much she struggled every day. Even in the way her words were written and how sentences were structured, the voices had more of a grip on her then anyone realized.

She was right about Minho blaming himself. He had closed himself off for a while, and sinking deep into alcohol to cover his pain. There were many weeks they would find him too drunk to function. But slowly, his pain faded, time moved on, and he found solace in Sonya. Teresa found solace in Jill. David and Diana took it hard, but they seemed to understand how broken she truly was. Thomas slowly learned to keep busy, slowly learning to see the joy in things again, he slowly learned to smile at the small things.

The grief still hit hard, like the currents of the ocean. It would hit hard and unexpected, and his heart felt like breaking all over again. He missed her. He missed her so much. And that's when he would take her letter out again, her journal in his lap and her small little heating pad to his chest- like she was hugging him, and he would sit under the stars and write letters to her.

Like now, even two years later, he sat on the beach at night. She was right. She always was. He smiled as he imagined her laughing at him, her hip popped and a smirk on her face, her eyes creased into half moons.

"Of course I am, Tommy. Does this surprise you, that I'm right?"

"No. No it doesn't. " he whispered.

He could hear her big belly laugh and he smiled at the thought. "I miss you hun. But you're right. I'll be okay. Eventually."

He tipped his head up with a small sad smile and watched the stars twinkling down at him, a tear slowly slid down his cheek.

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< THE END >