˚ ༘✶₊˚.                         ⊹ ˚ .  SECOND ACT
❪       TWENTY-SEVEN    ♥︎    ₊˚༢࿐
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     THE SEWERS SMELLED LIKE DEAD FLESH AND MOLDING METAL, making the blonde cover her nose with the sleeve of her jacket with a grimaced expression. Her flashlight fanned back and forth in front of her, illuminating a path that she hoped would lead her out. The tension between the three teenagers seemed to eat away at Mae, wanting to know more about the mysterious girl who had saved them on multiple occasions now.

     Thomas walked beside her, gnawing at his bottom lip to stop himself from asking all the questions running through his mind. His worry was set on the girl beside him, his gaze casting down to her through the corner of his eye every minute before shifting back to Brenda.

     "I think it's this way."

     Thomas furrowed his brow, "You think?"

     "Do you know where you're going?" Mae accused.

     "I have a general idea," Brenda responds. She glanced back at the blonde with her lips pinched together, indicating that she had the opposite of a general idea, "We'll figure it out," She settled on.

     "Brilliant," Mae muttered.

     "Did people live down here?" Thomas spoke.

     Brenda sighed, "The Solar Storms forced people underground. Jorge says there's settlements all over these tunnels," She explained.

     Thomas didn't seem satisfied, "So. What about Jorge? Is he your father?"

     "Close enough. Truth is, I don't really know what he is, just always been there." She admits.

     "He must really love you then," Mae says.

     Brenda shrugs, "I guess. I've always done what he's asked me to do, no matter how stupid."

     Thomas frowned, "So, you don't think the Right Arm's real?"

     The sound of a scream echoed the sewers, causing the three to jump and whirl around at the noise. Their flashlights exposed nothing in the darkness, and Mae didn't know whether that was a good thing or a horrible one.

     The feeling of Thomas touch lingered against her hand, the obvious twitch of wanting to hold it made her face burn with a weird feeling before pulling the hand up to her chest so he couldn't reach it. The exchanged was so quick that Thomas didn't register it.

     "I think," Brenda directs the question, continuing down the path, "Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope has killed more of my friends than the Flare and Scorch combined, I just thought Jorge was smarter than that."

     "Or it makes him incredibly brave," Mae responds lightly, not wanting to overstep, "Maybe him having hope, knowing the outcome, is the only thing that keeps him going."

     "What, do you relate?" Brenda pressed.

     Mae swallows thickly, "I don't have much hope for anything anymore. ." She admits.

The trio comes to a stop in the path, two hallways on either side forcing them to choose. And at Brenda's low curse, it seemed as though she didn't know the answer.

Mae swallowed nervously, flashing her light down one path, "Maybe we should flip a wood chip, that's what Alby used to do when Chuck and I didn't want to do bathroom duty," She recalls, remembering the times the wood chip would land on the cracked side and Chuck would have to clean the bathrooms.

"Long ways from finding a wood chip, Mae." Thomas responds as he slowly separated himself, "Hey, I think it might be this way," He called suddenly, narrowing his eyes at the light down the path.

Neither Mae or Brenda were behind him.

"Mae?" Thomas whispered out, "Mae!"

"Over here," She called back.

The boy sighed in relief, seeing a flash of her blonde hair in the darkness, "Now I know how Newt feels about you wandering around." He muttered more to himself, causing her to smile softly.

"Look at this," Brenda voiced, casting her flashlight against the wet walls on the sewer.

Mae narrowed in on the black vines that spread thick against the concrete. The longer she looked the more alive the vines seemed, pumping like a faint heartbeat. Brenda continued to walk down the path, but Mae stayed planted still, unable to bring herself to continue forward.

"What the hell is this?" Thomas asked.

"I don't know. ." She whispered.

"We should leave," Mae says firmly, glancing back, "The more we wait the farther our friends will get."

Something eerie echoes from one of the many large pipes, the trio instantly huddling together only to feel silly when a rat runs out of the pipe with a small squeak. It falls to the ground, and Brenda kicks it away from her.

Mae felt her heart burst out of her chest when a hand shoots out from another long pipe, the outline of what used to be human peeling itself out from the vines to devour the rat. It's skin looked inside out, rotting and pale. Inhuman.

Instantly, like a war drum, more Cranks began to form down the path, groaning and wailing at the flashlights in their hands. Mae turned around, screaming out as one stood so close to her that she could smell its rotting flesh. Thomas thought quickly, pulling the machete from Brenda's bag and slashing the creature in the face, stunning it just enough for them to run past it.

"Go! Go!" Thomas bellowed.

Mae felt her breath shorten as she ran toward the light down the end of the hallway, her feet slamming into the pavement as she pushed all of her strength into running.

     For a second, she wonders if Minho would be proud at her speed, knowing she'd have the potential to be a Runner if she wasn't so busy climbing trees and being the Glade's certified nut job.

They come to an abrupt stop when the light appeared to be nothing but a dead end, a building which seemed split in two. Mae's hand curls into Brenda's backpack, stopping the girl from tumbling over the edge. Two building crashed into each other, the collide being the only thing keeping the ground under them from falling apart.

"What do we do?!" Mae bellowed, a rise of panic in her chest as she looked around.

"Come on!" Brenda screamed, "This way."

Mae was thankful for pants. It seemed to be the only thing she could think about — besides not dying — as she climbed the rumble up the broken building, through a hole and higher in the sky. The creatures gained speed, tumbling over themselves to get to them.

"Watch out!" Brenda yelled.

Mae ducked her head just in time for a desk to zoom down and slam into the first group of Cranks on their tail, twisting higher through the curved building. At some point they had reached a set of curling steps, another creature gaining speed and grabbing at Thomas' ankle. With angry clenched teeth, Mae reeled her leg back and slammed it into the Crank's skull, causing it to tumble.

Brenda had grabbed the wrong thing, her grip slipping on a rusted metal. She falls back, in a panic reaching for anything to stop herself. Mae screamed when Brenda's hand curled into her jacket, the pair falling back first through a door and slamming against a row of glass. Windows.

Mae's head slams into the glass, the sound of cracking making the pain less of a worry as she stared down at the city below her. The only thing keeping her alive. Brenda groaned from beside her, having took most of the blow.

"Mae! Brenda!" Thomas screamed from above, "Are you guys okay?!"

"Yeah. ." Brenda says breathlessly.

"No!" Mae screamed, frozen.

"Hang on! I'm gonna find a way down!"

Mae watched as Brenda tried to gain her stance, her palm slowly pressing against the glass. The cracks under her touch, and it took all of the blonde's strength not to slap the girl beside her.

"Are you mental?" She snapped, "Stop moving!"

Brenda didn't seem to listen, slowly getting to her feet as the glass continued to crack beneath them. Thomas slid his way down, getting as close as he could as he wrapped one hand around a steady debris, holding the other out for them.

"Okay, take my hand!" He orders them, looking mostly to Mae. It wasn't selfish, and Brenda understood that he didn't know her as well as the blonde beside her, it's obvious he'd want to save her first, "Mae, be careful!"

"Go. ." She tells her, practically tugging her toward Thomas. Mae stayed planted on her butt, shaking her head. "I wasn't asking," Brenda orders, tugging Mae up by the sleeve.

A Crank from above bellows out, dropping body first between Mae and Brenda, right on top of the brunette.

"Mae! Help!" Brenda cried out, fighting against the creature, kicking away as she reached her hand for the blonde's, "Help me!"

"Mae!" Thomas warned.

With gritting teeth, Mae pulled out the wooden stem of Chuck's flower, using the sharp piece and slamming it into the neck of the creature above Brenda. The glass continued to crack above them, but it gave Brenda enough room to crawl from beneath the creature and toward Thomas.

The brunette grabbed his hand, and he quickly tugged her into the safety of a clearing before turning back to Mae with panicked eyes.

The blonde continued to fight against the creature, "Thomas!" She bellowed, eyes burning with tears as he arms grew tired.

In second, Thomas slammed a piece of wood into the glass, causing it to shatter beneath her. His hand curled around her chest, locking under her arms as he feet dangled through the opening, the pair watching the Crank splat on the ground without another wail.

"It's okay, it's okay, I got you!" Thomas says breathlessly against her hair, his eyes closing in relief as he wrapped his other arm around her and tugged her up into a tight hug.

She could feel herself shaking beneath him, her eyes burning down at the ground below them. It could've easily been her. It seemed that Thomas thought the same, because she could feel the small sniffles escape against her.

"Thank you. ." Brenda whispered softly.

Mae found the strength to look at her from over Thomas' shoulder, giving a firm nod.

—

MAE RELEASED THE BREATH SHE WAS HOLD the second her feet found solid ground. The encounter with the creatures in the sewer was less of a worry after climbing down an old fire escape, where the trio had shared relieved smiles before Brenda flopped down on the ground, shrugging off her backpack and rubbing at her sore joints.

     Mae hummed, dropping beside her, "We make a good team," She says lightly. Brenda smiled.

     "Do you hear that?" Thomas asked.

     Voices seemed to be the least of Brenda's worries as she rolled her cuff up to her knee, exposing the large bite in her calve. Mae's eyes stung at the sight, unable to form words. She had been bit — why wasn't Mae quick enough to help back there?

"Brenda..." Thomas trailed softly.

"Yeah, yeah," She rolls it back down, "I know."

Her voice shook with controlled panic, throwing her backpack over her shoulder and standing up. It was obvious she wanted to avoid the inevitable, and it was only fair for Thomas and Mae to do the same, at least until they found Marcus, who would eventually lead them to their friends.

So, they set off into town. Mae had never seen so many people at once, a city of survivors scraping through the rubble of what used to be their city. Families on the street, clothes barely thin enough to keep them warm as they searched for food. Groups huddled together, whispering, glancing around.

Mae wondered if they knew. She wondering if they worked for WICKED, if those Soldiers could be hiding in plain sight and they'd never know.

"Are you hear for the party?" Drawled a pretty blonde with dirt-caked skin and clothes exposing her chest. She eyes Thomas through the fringe of her bangs.

"Uh, no." Brenda responds, "We're looking for Marcus, this is his place, isn't it?"

"This is my place," Corrects a man with a drink in his hands, smiling creepily wide as a group of people surrounded him, gawked at him like he was royalty.

"Are you Marcus?"

"Marcus doesn't live here anymore."

"Well, do you know where he is?" Mae pressed, having enough tip-toeing around the subject as she moved away from the older blonde practically petting her hair, "It's important."

"Sure, sure," He says idly, pointing inside, "he's over there. Zone B."

    "What's Zone B?"

"It's where they burn the bodies," The woman responds, grinning mad.

The three shared an uneasy expression.

"Okay, look, has anyone else been by here looking for him?" Thomas pressed, "A group of kids around our age, they had a little boy with glasses with them."

"You know, I think they might be inside."

Mae highly doubted that.

He pulls a flask from his coat, holding it up to Thomas with false comfort, "Here, drink this."

"What is it?"

"The price of admission." He says. The trio hesitate, and that alone made the man angry as he held in a shake, "Drink it!" He snapped the demand.

Mae swipes it from his hands, closing her eyes and taking two large gulps. It burned. Her eyes stinging and her throat instantly raw as Brenda took it from her hands and mirrored her amount, coughing. The man before them laughed, motioning for Thomas to continue.

The blonde woman forced it down his throat. Then, with a shove in the door, and a promise to enjoy the party, everything for Mae was mentally fucked.

She felt euphoric, hardly registering Brenda's idea of splitting up until she was alone in the middle of a dance floor. A group of young girls in exotic dirty clothes giggled at Mae, throwing a faded fake scarf over her shoulder and tugging her into the crowd.

They giggled over her hair, poking and pulling until the braid was set free and her long hair swayed with her body.

     Mae wanted to speak, but her tongue felt heavy and her eyes could barely stay open as the girls continued to shape her the way they wanted, tugging off her jacket and exposing the white top.

For a minute, the laughter faded.

The giggling girls were replaced with the sound of the bellow laughter of young boys, the feeling of a crackling fire burning phantom on her skin as the ground beneath her became a grassy terrine.

"Light 'em up!" Shouts Alby. Alby.

The Gladers laughed happily as they set the mountain of twigs on fire with torches, the banging of pots and pans making Mae stumble in a familiar dance.

     She was home, a baby blue dress floating in silk as she spun around the fire with everyone who, up until a few seconds ago, were long dead and gone.

"Come on, Greenie!" A hand wraps firmly around her waist, spinning her around and into the chest of a boy that made her eyes burn.

"Nick. ." She muttered in confusion, stumbling back. The boy didn't ease with his touch, jumping and spinning in front of her. She hardly ever saw him so happy, "What are you doing here?"

He rolled his eyes, "What, so you beg me to join the party and now you don't want me here?" He chuckled, "You're lucky I don't send these Shanks to bed early!"

Mae shook her head, "This isn't real."

"How much have you had to drink?"

     "This can't be real—"

     "I'm proud of you," Nick says suddenly, "We got out. I knew we could do it, together."

"We didn't. . .you. . you're dead." She says firmly, stopping her dance, "I saw you die. All of you," She looks around the Glade, where the boys continued to move like a glitching memory, "You're all gone."

"We're right here, flower."

Mae let's out a small sob, turning around to see Gally standing tall in front of her, confused as ever. His arms crossed over his chest as he looked down at her with that familiar expression of love he hid behind a stern face, "I thought we shortened you to two drinks. Which Shank was on Mae duty?" He bellowed.

"Gally!" The blonde didn't care if she was dreaming, or if the drink the man had given her was simply an illusion. Her arms wrapped tightly around the boy.

The second her body collided with his, the Glade was gone. She was standing in the middle of the dance floor all over again, glitter caking under her eyes. Mae had bumped into Brenda, who looked higher than a kite as she swayed softly in front of her.

"They're not here," She says.

"Where's. . ." Mae slammed her eyes shut, trying to form words, "Where's. . .Thomas?"

"I'm here." He replied huskily from behind her. Mae's back pressed softly against his chest, his warm fingers reaching up to brush against the exposed skin of her arms, "We should. .keep looking."

"Why?" Brenda drawled, "We couldn't find the Right Arm anyway. Not without Marcus."

Her voice was a thousand miles away, and Mae didn't really notice the way all three of them were smushed together between the sea of people. Brenda's eyes followed her every move, Thomas' breath brushed against her neck. Everything made her body feel on fire.

"Your friends are gone. It's just us three now." Brenda explained, "We should all just. . .try and relax."

"How?" Mae found herself asking, dazed.

"Like this."

Mae felt Brenda's lips brush against hers, before the brunette had slammed them firmly. Like kisses of fire Mae followed every movement curiously, feeling Thomas' presence behind her as he watched with dazed interest. The blonde reached up to run her fingers through Brenda's short hair.

Instantly, Brenda pulled away, practically shoving her into Thomas and making her stumble. The boy caught her, his arms hooking around her back as he looked down at her through his eyelashes, his heart banging in his chest.

Mae didn't know what was happening, too numb to know if she even liked it. Thomas wasted no time kissing her, his lips feverishly moving against hers as he cupped the sides of her face firmly. Her hands curled into his jacket, a spark of something old that she tried so desperately to cling onto, to feel what he felt.

"I love you, Mae." Thomas says against her lips, his eyes slammed closed as he savored every last inch of her lips.

Mae's eyes fluttered open, Thomas' face no longer the person she was staring at. Gally's familiar small smirk making her heart flutter like a lovesick child. His calloused thumb rubbing those familiar soft circles on her jaw.

"I love you, flower."

"I love you." Mae voiced rawly, closing her eyes to savor Gally's touch, "I miss you."

"I think we should stay here." Brenda says through a gag, backing away with a stumble.

Mae stumbled after her, before crashing to the ground.

Thomas began to hyperventilate, seeing things that neither of them could as he stepped back and screamed. Flashes of dead friends, Newt, Grievers, everything he feared until he was crashing down on the ground. His head turning to the left only to see Mae's dismembered body beside him.

He sobbed out, knowing it wasn't real but unable to look away.

"Did anyone see you come here?" a slightly younger Thomas asked Teresa in a panic, there clothes matching white.

"No. What are you talking about?" She frowned.

"We don't have a lot of time!"

"Thomas, what's wrong?"

"I just had to explain things before. ." He trailed, looking around when he saw movement in the corner, practically slamming Teresa away from praying eyes, "Listen to me! Whatever they tell you about me. Whatever they say—"

"Thomas—"

"I had to do it," Thomas says.

"What did you do. . ."

"I couldn't keep watching her suffer," He says softly, "I couldn't keep watching them die. She's gonna die if I don't do something. She should've never been there!"

Teresa clenched her jaw, "Mae is gone, why can't you just accept that?"

"I'm going to get her back. For both of us!"

"He's over here!" Bellowed a Solider. Two sets of hands grabbed Thomas, dragging him away.

It had been the last real conversation he had with Teresa, only to find out seconds before he lost his memory that she didn't want Mae back at all. That she wasn't willing to get their best friend back as badly as he did.

That she was the reason Mae was there.

And the last thing Mae saw before her eyes fluttered closed, was the silhouette of Newt and Teddy, yelling in echoes above her as they dragged her out of the room.

[ no because I'm a sucker for poly relationships, don't play— also peep me crying at the Glade transition because I miss that era! ]
please comment throughout
the chapters <3