˚ ༘✶₊˚. ⊹ ˚ . FIRST ACT
❪ NINE ♥︎ ₊˚༢࿐
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MAE HAD BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO the arrival of their newest Greenie all week, and although she wasn't nearly as excited as Chuck, who can't seem to shake the name 'green-bean' even after he remembered his name, Mae still couldn't stop talking about it. The Gladers had been eager, they needed a distraction after losing Nick, and almost losing Mae.

     And by the Gladers, they meant Mae. She needed the distraction.

     The girl felt pressured by the lingering stares that followed her in the Glade. They were all on edge with her, like she was going to snap any second━━ at least Newt and Minho had the decency to treat Mae like a normal person.

     Gally, on the other hand, seemed to flip a switch in his brain. He was more scared than ever before, and it was starting to show. The walls around his mind were crumbling, which made it harder for him to talk about it. The Maze was starting to mess with his head like never before.

     The Glade was the only place he felt safe, and the people around him were dropping like flies.

     Which meant late nights of Mae and Gally sitting in each others silence until they both fell asleep, almost always waking up tangled with each other. After what happened with Mae. Gally just felt more on edge. He refuses to let anything else slip out of line━━ out of order.

     Which meant that Mae was under his watchful eyes 24/7 and there was nothing anyone could say against it. He wasn't going to let anyone else die.

     "Everyone keeps staring," Mae mumbled, her delicate fingers plucking at the grass to distract herself.

     "Let them," Gally squints at the sun, laying back on the tree with his elbow propped and his ankles crossed in comfort, "They won't say anything."

     "They're thinking it," She sighed. He knew what she meant by that. The Gladers look at Mae like she was glass that the wind blew too hard and shattered. They were avoiding her out of worry, which only seemed to make her worse, "They think I'm going to do it again."

     "Are you?" His asked, looking at her with a calculating frown.

     "No," She whispered back.

     They fall into a comfortable silence as she focusing on the grass between her fingers and Gally scanned the Glade with paranoid eyes. And then, his blue eyes slide back to Mae, carefully look at her face. He watched the way her eyebrows knitted together in concentration, the way her nose scrunched with her thoughts and her soft lips pull down once and a while.

     He felt his heart move faster, noticing the few strains of hair that got caught in her silky blue choker, which was only used to cover the cut mark around her neck so people wouldn't stare. Gally reached over, his fingers brushing over her hair and pulling the hair out of the silk, softly moving it behind her ear with a concentrated frown.

     Gally's eyes fleet back to hers and froze. Mae was looking at him with wide blue eyes. He felt like he crossed a line, his mind raced in thousands of negative things as he quickly moved his hand away. His face heats up in embarrassment.

     Mae's heart was doing somersaults in her ribs. Gally was always harsh and firm, but he only ever touched her with delicate hands. Her mind thinks back their first kiss in his room, then the second kiss only a few weeks ago, and she was blushing mad all over again.

    But they couldn't be anything, she reminds. Alby's been enforcing that law more then ever, and it's not like they had to label anything anyway. It was for comfort, she insisted. They kissed out of the need for comfort, that's all.

     "Thank you," Her voice is light, awkward.

     "Yeah," He responds, clearing his throat and getting to his feet. "We should go, new Greenie will be here any second."

     Instantly, the alarm blares and Mae grabs Gally's extended hand. For the first time this week he watches as Mae runs toward the box with an excited squeal. She wanted to be the first to welcome to new Greenie.

     "He's here!" said Chuck, "Finally."

     Mae smiles, eagerly leaning over the hole where the box began to ascend. A hand curls onto the back of her dress, and Mae is pulled back by Newt before she falls straight into the elevator shaft.

     Everyone is starting to gather now, and once the box had come to a complete stop, two boys opened the doors.

The girl felt a wave of━━ something, when looking at the boy in the box. His hair, which was brown and flat against his forehead, had light brown eyes filled with panic. He was plain and average, but there was something about him that stood out. Something familiar. Mae felt herself lean over the box with a big smile as the others laughed around her about scared the Greenie looked.

     Alby points to her, "Dial."

     She raises her hands, "Dialing!"

Gally jumps into the box, stomping down extra hard to make it rattle and scare the boy more, "Day one, Greenie," He grins, "Rise and shine."

Mae watched as Gally grabbed the boy by the shirt and threw him onto the grass like a bag of rice. The boys crowding around him and calling out jobs before the boy could even register what was going on.

"He looks like a Slopper to me!"

"I could use some help in the kitchen," Frypan laughed.

Mae was standing over him now, and he was looking up at her with wide eyes. She gives him a smile, "Hi there! My name is Mae!"

     In response, the boy had scrambled to his feet and ran.

"Hey, we got a runner!" Zart yells, the others laughing along. They encouraged the madness, even Newt laughed as he watched the boy run for his life.

     Mae frowned turning to Chuck, "I thought I dialed it back, didn't even mention the Maze this time!"

     Chuck pats her back, "At least he didn't pass out."

Thomas crashed and rolled on the grass.

━━━━━━━━━━━━

"So. What do you think?" Mae asked from where she was pulling out weeds, looking over to where Alby was giving Thomas his tour━━ they threw him in the Slammer to calm him down, that and they didn't want him running off again. "He seems sweet."

Newt was leaning against a tree, arms across over his chest as he stared at Thomas too. Gally, who he had come all the way from his post, frowned at the question.

"He hasn't died yet," Newt responds.

"As long as he doesn't cause any problems," Gally said simply.

The girl stands up, and dusts her dirty hands on her dress with a smile, "I think I'm going to introduce myself."

Gally smirked, "Remember the last time you did that?"

Mae scrunched her nose at the memory of making Chuck pass out, knowing she'd never live it down━━ she still couldn't believe that was a month ago. She frowned, had it really been a month since Nick died?

"Come on, Newt," She ignored Gally and grabbed her British companion by the hand, turning around to stick her tongue out at the Builder.

"Hey, you all right, Alby?" Newt calls out, gaining their attention.

Alby chuckled, but Thomas stared between them in confusion. His eyes were mostly on Mae, the first girl he had seen in the Glade. She smiled warmly back and he felt a wave of something wash over him. His face heated up at her gaze, and he found his eyes dropping to Newt and Mae's still locked arms and shifts awkwardly away.

"Green Bean, meet Newt." He introduced, "When I'm not around, he's in charge."

"Good thing you're always around then," Newt teased back, shaking the newbie's hand, "That was some dash you made earlier. For a second I thought you had the chops to be a Runner. . .till you face-planted."

Alby, who was curious to know why Mae hadn't jumped to introduce herself the second she walked over, motions to her, "And this is Mae. She's our only girl in the Glade—"

"So far," She cuts in optimistically.

"—which means we ask you to keep your hands to yourself or you go back in the Slammer." Alby continued firmly, making sure Thomas understood that he was completely serious.

After the incident with Roman━━ and Gally practically beating him unrecognizable, that was when Alby really started enforcing the rule. You simply get thrown into the Pit with no food for two days.

For the Greenie's sake, it was a merciful punishment.

Thomas nodded in understanding, as Mae looked like an embarrassed girl watching a parent scold her prom date.

     She gave an awkward chuckle, and walked up to Thomas, pulling him into a hug. He froze, not knowing whether to hug back or stand still— Mae was known for invading personal space. "It's so exciting to meet you!"

     "All right," Alby shakes his head, prying her off the girl, "Remember, personal space."

     "Sorry," She muttered, her face going red in embarrassment.

     Thomas gave a small smile. "It's okay." He turns to Newt, suddenly remembering his words for earlier, "You said Runner?"

Alby turns to Newt, "Newt, do me a favor. Go find Chuck."

The blonde nods, giving Thomas a quick goodbye and going off to find Chuck. Mae, realizing that she was interrupting the tour when Alby gave her a look, quickly shook Thomas hand, and wished them both a good day.

She hadn't realized, that Thomas was watching her go.

━━━━━━━━━━

Mae waited patiently for Minho and Ben to get back, leaning against the wall of the Maze entrance. She wouldn't dare go farther than that, any time she looked out into the Maze she felt a sense of panic. It memory of the Griever sticking out like a sore thumb, the sound of Nick's screams still echoing in her ears.

     She tapped her bare foot against the ground anxiously, fiddling with the water bottles in her hands. Mae knew that Minho drank through his supply faster than he should, and running all day makes you more dehydrated than ever. Mae was happy to supply him with more whenever she got the chance.

And like clock work, Minho and Ben turned the corner of the Maze and Mae waved them inside, handing them each a canteen with a wide smile.

"Any luck?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

     Ben rubbed her hair, messing it up with a smirk. Mae laughed, dodging away as he ran past.

"Never," Minho responds, taking the canteen with a grateful smile as he followed, most likely to hit the showers.

Just as Mae began to move away from the entrance, Thomas began to walk toward it. She pauses, knowing that he was probably about to do the one thing Alby told him not to.

"You're not supposed to be over here," She reminds lightly.

"I just came to take a look," He mumbled.

Before Mae could tell him to move, Gally had walked up and pushed Thomas away from the door. The force knocked him away a few inches, and Gally towered over him with his arms crossed.

"We gotta stop meeting like this, Greenie." He teased.

Thomas scrambled to his feet, "Get off me!" He moved towards the enter center again.

Gally, slightly panicked, began to shout. "All right! Calm, calm, calm!"

"Don't touch me!" He repeated.

By then, a crowd began to form. Gally was still trying to keep him away from the entrance before it closed, and Mae simply watched everything unfold from her little spot on the wall.

"What the hell is wrong with you guys?!" Thomas yelled.

"Just calm down, all right?" Newt voiced.

"No, okay? Why won't you tell me what's out there?!"

"We're just trying to protect you, man." Alby said calmly.

"It's for your own good." Newt continued.

"You guys can't just keep me here," screamed Thomas.

"We can't let you leave!"

"Why not?!"

The sound of the gears turning reminded Mae that she was still leaning against the Wall. Gally grabbed her hand and quickly dragged her away from it, as the wind picked up and the entrance slowly began to close.

Thomas, who never looked more confused and horrified, had nothing to say as the doors closed in front of him.

"Next time, I'm gonna let you leave." Gally said, his hand still wrapped in Mae's as we walked away.

Thomas' eyes drop to it for a second, before turning to the door again curiously.

"What a slinthead," Gally grumbled, still walking toward Homestead, "He's lucky I didn't push him in instead."

"You didn't have to push him at all," Mae says lightly, skipping ahead of him.

The boy scoffed, "Oh come on, Mae, seriously? You're taking his side?"

"I'm not taking anyone's side," She dismissed quickly, turning to face him with a charming smile. Their bodies bumped at her sudden turn, but neither of them noticed, "I have to go make more of my drink for tonight's bonfire. Will you mange to not kill anyone while I'm gone?"

He rolled his eyes, a ghost of a smile on his lips, "We'll see."

Mae gave a laugh, and started to make her way toward the garden for her supplies.

"And go easy on what you put in that stuff, alright? You're going to kill one of us someday!" He added.

"We'll see!"

━━━━━━━━━━

     The bonfire began when the boys lit the touches and threw it into the wooden pyre. Frypan was serving jars of Mae and Gally's drinks, a perfect combo for anyone trying to get lightly buzzed or see more than ten fingers.

     The gathering was in honor of the newest Greenie, who was sitting on a log with Newt and asking him a thousand questions. Mae was sitting with the Track-Hoe's and the Gardeners, gossiping away.

Her eyes shifted to Gally, who was rough-housing with the other Gladers in the center of a sand ring. She blushed when he winked at her, before throwing one of the boys on his back.

"Mae day," Zart says, poking her cheek. "Earth to Mae!"

She swats his hand away, "What?"

"Greenie's staring at ya, three o'clock." He jerks his head and Mae's eyes snap to where Newt and Thomas were.

Thomas instantly looks away, and she couldn't help but blush.

"Ooooo," The others boys drag, causing a small bit of attention.

"Shuck up!" She whined.

"So, uh. ." Thomas cleared his throat with a blush when he realized he was caught, he turns to Newt, who was chopping away on a stick of meat, "What's the deal with her? Mae I mean."

"What're you on about?" He asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Why is she the only girl here?" He pressed.

Newt shrugged, "Hell if we know, just showed up one day like the rest of the Greenie's do." He gives him a look, a teasing smile on his face, "Why? Fancy yourself a little crush?"

Thomas looked confused, "I-I thought you and her were. . ." He trailed off, giving him room to fill in the blanks.

Newt looked mortified. "What gave you that impression?"

He looked embarrassed for being wrong, "I saw you two holding hands today, I just thought—"

"Screw your head back on your shoulders, Greenie," He laughed. "Mae is the sister I don't remember if I have, she just doesn't know the definition of personal space. Gotta love her though."

"Yeah. ." Thomas agrees, looking back at her again. She was laughing about something another boy said, it made his stomach flips in a funny feeling, "I guess you do."

"Here," Newt hands him a jar, "Put some hair on your chest."

He takes it, not expecting the worst when he took a large sip. Thomas coughs it up instantly, doubling over to catch his breath, "Oh, my god! What is that?"

Newt laughs, "I don't even know," He admits, "It's Gally's recipe," He turns back to look at the Builder, who was squaring off with Winston, "It's a trade secret."

Thomas follows his gaze, watching just as Mae runs in behind Gally and jumps on his back. The group laughs and cheers as Gally spun them both around in circles to try and get her off. A pang fills his chest as he watched them, wondering why it bothered him so much.

"Yeah, well, he's still an asshole." He muttered.

Newt gives him a look, "He saved your life today. Trust me, the Maze is a dangerous place."

"Get him Mae!" Frypan yelled.

"Flowers got thorns huh?" Gally teased, trying to shake her off. "You're lucky you're a girl!"

Mae giggled, clinging onto him like a shadow. She was drunk, which meant she was playful, and when Mae was playful she was too reckless to be stopped. One time, during a bonfire, Mae challenged Alby to a duel. She had them pick up large sticks and run at each other to see who can knock down first. Alby swears she only won because he was going easy on her.

With a laugh, Gally pulls her off and flips her softly on her back, laying over her with a smug smile. It took Mae all her strength not to kiss him right there, unknown to her that Gally physically had to restrain himself from smashing his lips against hers. But his eyes betray him and slide down to her mouth, making her heart speed up.

As slow as it seemed for both of them, this all happened in only a few seconds before Gally was being dragged up by another contender and Mae was being dragged away by Frypan.

"Almost had him this time, Mae Mae." He pats her back, handing her a kebab. It's only halfway in her mouth before he said, "Yummy Dot jr."

Mae turns to him, "You're a menace."

Ben walks toward the table, grabbing another jar of alcohol and smiling wide at Mae when he noticed her, "Hey," He says, slinging his arm over his shoulder, "You eating that?"

"Luckily for you, I lost my appetite!" She scrunched her face at Frypan playfully before handing Ben her kebab.

"Thanks, gotta fuel up for tomorrow," He explains, "Minho and I are going on a run first thing."

Mae sighs, "Just. .be careful out there, please."

"Aren't we always?" He said, backtracking when he became a victim of her intense glare, "All right, all right. We'll be careful," He messes up her hair, "Just be there to see us off like always."

"Of course!"

     The sound of Gladers chanting caused Mae to turn her attention to the ring, where Gally was trying to convince Thomas to step into. The boy looked like he was dreading it, but with a quick push from a drunk Newt there was no going back.

     "All right, the rules are simple, Greenie." Gally began, adjusting the bracers on his wrists, "I try to push you out of the circle. You try to last more than five second."

     This sent a chain of laughs from the others, and Mae leads herself up against the tree for a better look. A part of her wanted Thomas to win, simply so she can tease Gally about it later.

     "Ready?"

     Thomas looks at Mae, and for some reason feels the need to beat him. Maybe it was to prove he was capable of doing it, or maybe it was because he was trying to impress her.

     Gally runs forward and throws him hard, but the Gladers barricading pushed him back in, only for Gally to dodge and push his back to the ground. Mae winced when Thomas smashed into the sand patch.

     "Get up, boy!" Frypan calls out.

     Mae joins in, "You got this, Greenie!"

     Gally gives her a bemused look, and the blonde simply shrugged her shoulders with a smile. "Come on, Greenie. We're not done yet." He taunts.

     They knew what he was doing, which was why Gally didn't stop it. Gally was trying to get Thomas to remember his name. Hit his head hard enough, scare it out of him like Chuck. So far, it seemed to be working.

     "Stop calling me Greenie." Thomas huffed in frustration.

     "Stop calling you that?" He repeats, "What do you wanna be called? Shank?" The others cheer in agreement, "What do you think, boys? Does he look like a Shank?"

     The boys start chanting that name instead, making Thomas more and more frustrated. He gets up, and charges at Gally, but the Builder effortlessly moved him around and back on the floor.

     "Come on," Mae muttered, getting on her toes to see, "Get up, you fool."

     "You know what?" Gally teases, "I think I'm settled on Shank."

     In a turn, Thomas charges at him again, but instead of putting all his weight forward he turned just slightly and hit Gally on the back, making the boy drop in his stomach and his the dirt. Mae gasped in surprise, covering her mouth as she tried not to smile.

     "Not so bad for a Greenie, huh?" He laughed.

     Thomas' eyes land on her again, and he felt a proud emotion wash over him when he noticed her smile. He sent her an small mesmerized wave, but before she could return it, Gally swept his foot under his legs and sent him to the ground, causing his temple to slam into a rock.

     Mae instantly pushes through the crowd, stopping at the front, "Gally," She scolds.

     Gally fakes innocence, putting his hands up with a smug smile, "I didn't see the rock there, Flower. Honest.'

     Thomas' face twisted from pain to sudden realization, his eyes widening as he slowly began to sit up from the ground, "Thomas," He mumbled. "Hey!" He shouts, scrambling to his feet, "Thomas! I remember my name. I'm Thomas!"

     The group said nothing for a second, looking around at each other knowingly before breaking into a loud cheer. "THOMAS!" The repeat, running up to congratulate him. He laughs happily, glad to finally remember something that belonged to him.

     "Welcome home, Thomas." Frypan greets, handing him a jar of Mae's drink that he happily took, the party continuing on.

     He turns around, and stumbles when Mae is standing right in front of him, a soft smile on her face as she held up a clean rag. Thomas was captured by her, everything about her made him dizzy and he couldn't seem to look away from her beautiful blue eyes. He wanted to say something, anything to her but nothing came out.

     It wasn't until she pressed the rag to the bleeding scratch on his forehead did he realize just how close they were, he could smell her aroma of honey and hibiscus, which made his brain even more cloudy.

     "Hello, Thomas." Emphasizing his name in a way that he seemed to love. He wanted her to say it again just because of how nicely it flowed from her accent, "I'm Mae."

     The greeting was different this time. This time, Thomas could say a name back. He can properly introduce himself, and for this the boy smiled.

     "Hello, Mae. I'm Thomas."

     Gally walks up to them, and for a second Thomas feels a slight panic, taking a step away from Mae. But, Gally simply held up his hand for Thomas to shake, "Good job. .Thomas."

     The sound of a Grievers screech made every heard turn towards the Maze. Thomas looked confused at the sound, a wave of fear running up his spine as every Glader goes silent. Mae shifts closer to Gally, who grabbed her hand.

     "What the hell was that?" Thomas asked quietly.

     "That, my friend, was a Griever." Gally explained, he turned to him, "Don't worry, you're safe here with us. Nothing gets through those walls."

     He said it so confidently that Thomas couldn't help but be relieved. With that, the bonfire was ruined by the dampening mood and Gally walks away with Mae close behind, the girl looks back at Thomas, but his gaze was firm on the large stone walls.

     "All right, let's tuck it in for the night." Alby orders.

     "Why do I feel like something dreadful is about to happen?" Mae whispered.

{ about to watch y'all switch up
on the ships I see you! }

09.22.21