Day Seven Hundred and Thirty

Time passed, because of course it did. It moved on when no one else could, days smoothing into dusk-wrapped nights, dark and cold and empty. There had never been too many weather fluctuations in the glade; the temperature always seemed mild and warm, the only wind a slight breeze that swept through the trees and ruffled the grass. Nearly four weeks after Avin and Nick's deaths, however, a cold chill seemed to have worked its way through the maze walls, cutting through the light weather.

"Would you look at that?" Alby huffed, arms crossed and face turned towards the sky. "Looks like it's gonna rain."

Ada tilted her own head back, one hand lifting to shield her eyes from the sun. Clouds had built fast, white and grey wisps in the sky. It had been a long time since she had seen clouds – usually, the sky was a clear blue stretching as far as the eye could see. If there was any cloud coverage, it was light and moved on quickly. Today, for whatever reason, seemed to be different.

"Not possible," Ada shook her head. "It never rains here."

"We had showers last year." Alby reminded her.

"Yeah, one time. And it could barely even be considered rain. Although it was fun to see Gally freak out like that."

"Good times." Alby scoffed. He turned his face away from the sky, shaking his head as they continued their journey towards the box. "Not going in the maze today?"

"I will after lunch." Ada nodded. "Minho and Ben are in there now. They can handle it until I get my food."

"Be honest," Alby said, "you just want to see the new Greenie."

"When have I ever wanted to see the new Greenie?" Ada asked, eyes scanning the homestead as the gladers finished their tasks and began to make their way over to them. The siren had finished blaring its agitated tune nearly a full five minutes ago, that wretched sound of metal on metal ceasing soon after.

Newt came up on her other side, face and hands streaked with dirt. He grinned when he saw her, dimples appearing in his cheeks. "Ready to get this show on the road?" He asked, falling into stride with them. There was already a considerable crowd gathered around the box, boys hopping up and down excitedly and chattering amongst themselves. Gally was among them, looking unimpressed.

"Why the parade?" Ada asked, cocking her head. "No one ever cares when there's a new greenie."

Newt shrugged, but there was a glint of mischief in his eyes. "It's been a long month, we could do with a good laugh. Giving the newbie a fright seems like too good of an opportunity for these shanks to pass up."

"Shame Minho's not here," Alby chuckled. "He loves scaring the Greenies."

Ada shoved her way to the front of the crowd, coming up beside Gally. He was staring down at the box, waiting, mouth set into a grim line. "Cheer up," she said as she nudged him with her hip, "whole new person for you to torment and tease."

The corner of Gally's lips ticked up in a poor semblance of a smile. "I do love tormenting and teasing."

"That's the spirit." Ada tried not to be too obvious as she looked at Gally out of the corner of her eye, studying the shadows under his eyes and the tense set of his shoulders. He had changed, after Avin and Nick's deaths. It was barely noticeable to the people who didn't know him well, but Ada knew what to look for. He was eating less, sleeping less, spending more time in the deadheads. He was less happy, less talkative, more reserved.

On some days, it was like looking in a mirror.

A barely noticeable click had her head snapping back to the box. She knew the sound meant the doors had finally unlocked, and she barely had the time to share a tight-lipped smile with Gally before the doors were being pulled open by gladers on either side and Gally was jumping down into the box, a stoic expression on his face.

Ada craned her neck around him, crossing her arms, trying to get a good look at the new arrival. She couldn't see much of him, not with Gally's burly form standing rigidly in the way, but she could just about see dark hair, a flash of blue, a pale sweat-soaked face white in the sun.

Gally crouched down in front of him, a wicked smirk forming on his lips. "Day one Greenie. Rise and shine."

Ada stepped back to avoid getting trampled as the gladers swarmed, hands reaching into the box to haul the new kid out onto the grass. Newt stepped up beside her again, head cocked in amusement. Laughter and jeers kicked up like a storm around them.

"Kid looks like a slopper to me." Someone yelled, and Ada couldn't stop the smile working its way onto her face.

Frypan clapped his hands together with a grin. "I could use some help in the kitchen."

The Greenie's breath began coming in short bursts, and from her position above him she was able to make out his features clearly. With a long angular face, sloped nose, and thick dark hair she would put him around seventeen or eighteen, roughly the same age as her and Newt. His deep brown eyes, framed below thick eyebrows, were blown wide in panic. The dirt clung to his blue shirt, already filthying it.

"He's gonna run," Ada said lowly to Newt, looking away for a second to grin up at him.

"Nah." Newt shook his head. "They never run."

Ada studied the rising panic of the boy on the ground and scoffed. "He's gonna."

"Tonight's bread." Newt said cockily, a lazy grin spreading over his lips. When she looked up at him, his cheeks were flushed with laughter.

"Alright, you're on." She nodded. "But you're gonna be eating your words in around three... two... one..."

Her words were followed by a cacophony of laughter as jeers as the Greenie scrambled to his feet and elbowed his way past Zart. He took off towards the maze before anyone could stop him. Zart let out a cackle as he rubbed his hip. "Hey, we got a runner!"

"How long do we give it?" Gally asked, shaking his head wryly.

"Let's give him a chance at least."

"And if he makes it to the doors?" Newt asked.

Ada shrugged. "He won't."

True to her words, the Greenie made it about thirty seconds before his foot caught on a rock, and the distant speck of blue he had become crashed to the ground in a tangle of limbs. The laughter grew louder, the gladers jeering and booing.

Ada whistled lowly, impressed. "Graceful."

"Watch it there Greenie!" Someone laughed.

"Yeah, real nice!"

"Take it all in!" Frypan called. "Gonna be here a long time!"

Alby jerked his head and two builders took off jogging after him. The Greenie, staring wide eyed and bemused at the towering walls on either side of them, was seemingly too shocked to ward them off.

"Where did he think he was going anyway?" Ada asked, shaking her head as she turned her back on the scene. "The walls are kind of hard to miss. Did they give us a blind one or something?"

"Blind? No." Gally said. "Stupid? Evidently."

"Cut him some slack," Alby said sternly, though there was a smile playing at his lips, "glade can be scary when you first come up."

"Don't we know it." Newt looked back at the builders, who were trying to subdue the still struggling Greenie. "What do you wanna do with him?"

"Put him in the slammer." Alby said. "Can't have him running on us again now can we?"

—

"You coming?" Alby asked as he got to his feet, wiping his hands free of dirt onto his trousers. They were by the gardens, idly chatting with Newt as he finished tying the string of tomatoes to the support poles.

Ada frowned, tilting her head. "Where to?"

"To go talk to the new greenie. I reckon we gave him enough time to calm down, should be fit for the tour by now."

Newt scoffed, looking up at them. He was covered in dirt, streaked in his hair and on his face, and Ada tried not to smile at the sight he made as he shook his head. "He came up to a strange place with no memory and the first thing you do is shove him in a jail cell. I doubt calm is what he's feeling right now."

"He was asking for it," Alby replied almost sulkily. "You coming Ads?"

"Nah, I'll pass. You can handle the runaway Greenie."

Alby rolled his eyes. "You're no fun."

"Take Gally with you." Ada nodded her head over to where the builders were gathered – Gally was amongst them, and kept shooting curious looks over to the slammers. "He seems... eager."

"Eager to intimidate," Alby scoffed. "I wanna calm the shank down, not frighten him further."

"Now who's no fun?"

Alby looked over at Newt. "Try and drag her over at some point, yeah? I wanna get him introduced to as many people as possible."

Newt mock saluted him, accidentally smearing soil into his hairline.

"Brats." Alby muttered, shaking his head like a disappointed father as he walked away.

Ada sank down onto the ground next to Newt, crossing her legs as she watched him. "What do you make of the new Greenie?"

Newt shrugged. "Well, he's the only one we've ever had to immediately detain. That has to count for something."

"Yeah," Ada agreed, "trouble."

"Give him a chance." Newt chuckled, turning back to his job. His long fingers tied the knots with expert care, moving so quickly she could barely keep up. "He's fast. Could make for a good runner."

"We don't need any more runners."

"There's only three of you." Newt rose his eyebrow, looking across at her with a deadpan expression. "Trust me, you need more runners."

"To map what?" Ada grumbled. "The maze? Been there done that."

"Don't lose hope." Newt reached up, dirty fingers intertwining with hers and squeezing. "Besides, I have a good feeling about this one."

Ada hummed noncommittally, turning her face away to watch one of the builders roll a heavy looking barrel across the grass. Someone had lit a fire, she could see the churning tendrils of smoke dancing high in the sky, and the smell of burnt wood and something sweet wafted over to her. She couldn't help the small smile on her face as she watched the gladers busy themselves with their tasks, voices buzzing distantly.

Newt was silent, and when she turned her face towards him she saw him already looking at her, eyes soft and a slow smile on his face. "What?" She asked.

Newt shook his head, looking down at his hands. "Nothing."

Two figures caught her attention, and she pointed them out to Newt with a jerk of her head. "There they are."

Alby was noticeable from a mile away, his large frame and commanding presence visible from even where they were sat. The boy beside him was taller than him by a few inches, but was noticeably scrawnier. His blue shirt was baggy and dirtied from the earlier fall, and his posture was tense and unsure as he looked around the open area. She couldn't see his face from that far away, just the dark hair that clung to his head with sweat and the locked set of his broad shoulders.

"Out in the open at last." Newt clicked his tongue. "Wanna go say hi?"

"Not particularly."

"Come on," he chuckled, climbing to his feet. He extended his hand down to her, a soft but almost challenging look in his sun-lit eyes. Ada rolled her eyes and slotted her hand into his, allowing him to lift her to her feet.

"Fine. But I can smell Frypan's cooking, and if this makes me late for dinner I will throw the Greenie to the Grievers."

As they neared the two figures, she realised her hand was still intertwined with Newt's, and quickly pulled away in favour of crossing her arms over her chest, cheeks red. She refused to look up at him in case he had noticed.

When they were a few feet away, Newt whistled and lifted his hand in a wave. "Hey, you alright Alby?"

Judging by the sceptical and somewhat morose expression on the Greenie's face, they had interrupted a very serious conversation. Ada was suddenly glad she had refused to join Alby earlier. Alby let out a chuckle, the solemn atmosphere vanishing with their arrival. "There you two are. Green bean, meet Newt."

Newt reached his hand out for the Greenie to shake, a mischievous smile on his face. "Hi."

"When I'm not around, he's in charge." Alby nodded. The greenie looked back and forth between them, one eyebrow raised.

"Well it's a good thing you're always around, then." Newt rubbed behind his ear, ruffling his already messy hair.

Alby clamped a hand down on Ada's shoulder, grinning down at her. "And this is Ada, joint leader, with me."

Ada tried to smile, although she feared it was more of a grimace, and held out her hand for him to shake. The greenie blinked down at her owlishly. "You're a girl."

Ada looked up at Alby and nodded. "He's smart, too. Very observational."

"Don't mind her," Newt winked down at her, shaking his head at the new greenie. "She's prickly when she hasn't eaten."

"But... I don't understand, is she the only girl?" The new guy asked, dark eyes inquisitive. "You guys don't find that a little odd?"

Ada bristled. Of course they found it weird. Did he seriously think that not in all the time they'd been there did they stop to consider that it was a little strange that she was the only female? Newt cleared his throat, steering the conversation away before she could open her mouth. "Listen, that was some dash you made earlier. You know, for a second there I thought you had the chops to be a runner. 'Til you face-planted. That was great."

Ada couldn't help but laugh at the embarrassed flush creeping its way onto the greenie's face. "Don't worry too much about it," she said, "other people have done worse. Boy could I tell you horror stories about how the new guys have reacted."

The greenie looked down at her and titled his head, studying her. Part of her would always be uncomfortable with the scrutiny, but the other, much larger, part of her had grown used to it years ago. A confused frown knitted his brows together as he looked back at Newt. "Hang on, what? Runner?"

Alby took a deep breath, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Hey Newt, do me a favour, yeah? Go find Chuck."

Newt hesitated for a moment, looking down at Ada, before pursing his lips and nodding. "Sure."

"I'll go with." Ada took a step forward, but was stopped when Alby squeezed her shoulder and tutted.

"Nuh uh, not so fast. You're staying here and doing the tour with me."

"But I did the tour last month!" She protested.

"And you can do it again now." Alby said teasingly. Ada narrowed her eyes. He knew as well as she did that he had no authority over her like he did with the rest of the glade, but the glint in his eye and the expectant quirk to his eyebrow had her puffing air out of her cheeks and sighing.

Newt let out a low laugh under his breath as he walked away, lifting one hand to shield his eyes from the sun as he searched for Chuck.

"God, you're a nightmare, you know that?" Ada turned back to the Greenie, finger raised in warning. "I'm putting my dinner on hold for this. You better be worth it, Greenie."

He raised his hands in surrender, looking mildly terrified.

"Don't worry, Ads, we'll hurry this along." Alby jerked his head to the watchtower, and she begrudgingly followed, hands stuffed in her pockets. "Look, I'm sorry to rush this." He looked back at the Greenie. "You came up a little late, and there's a lot to do. We got something special planned for tonight. You'll see."

Special, Ada thought bitterly, as if they didn't do this every month. She supposed, however, that the bonfire that night would be bigger and better than their previous ones had been. Tonight marked their two year celebration, the anniversary, so to speak, of their entry into the glade.

Two years, and still no exit in sight.

She wondered if there would be a three year celebration too, five years, even, ten. Wondered if they were going to be lighting fires and drinking their horrors away until they were old and grey and couldn't run anymore.

They reached the base of the watchtower, and Alby gestured upwards with a wave of his hand and a teasing smile. "Hope you're not afraid of heights."

When the new greenie didn't move, Ada nudged his side with hers and grinned wolfishly. "Don't worry, I promise not to push you. Unless you ask too many questions."

He gulped, shaking her off before climbing the steps.

"Can I go now?" Ada asked Alby, rocking back and forth on her heels. "Pleaseeeeee, I wanna go meet Minho and Ben at the doors."

Alby checked his watch, brow furrowed. "Five minutes." When Ada narrowed her eyes, he shot her an almost pleading look. "C'mon, Ada, just five minutes to help him get settled. I promise when Chuck gets here you can go."

Ada grumbled the entire way up the watchtower, wishing a thousand painful inconveniences on the two men in front of her. When the Greenie saw her approaching the rail he was leaning against, his eyes widened and he backed away from the edge. "Relax, green bean," she chuckled. "Pretty sure Alby would have my head if I murdered the new guy on his first day here."

"So it's okay for you to murder me on my second day here? That hardly seems fair."

"None of it's fair." Alby said as he joined them. "Take it all in, Greenie. This is all we got." He gestured around at the glade, and Ada stared at the walls and the green grass, all four corners of her small world. Not for the first time, the view from the watchtower took her breath away. Memories of lying there with George two years prior washed over her, and she shook her head to rid herself of them. "We worked hard for it. If you respect this place, you and I will get along just fine."

The greenie didn't appear to be listening, and was instead staring intently at the maze doors. "What's out there?"

"We only have three rules." Alby said, his voice serious all of a sudden. "First, do your part. No time for any freeloaders."

Seeing his confused look, Ada gestured to the other gladers. "Everyone has a job. You'll get yours tomorrow. Do it, and there will be no problems."

The greenie looked down at her, head cocked, dark eyebrows furrowed. "What's your job?"

"What did I say about questions?"

"Right, thrown off the tower, I forgot."

"Second," Alby interrupted. "Never harm another glader. None of this works unless we have trust."

The greenie shot Ada a triumphant look, and confidently stepped towards the railings again.

Well now he's just asking for it.

"And most importantly," Alby leant forward, crossing into the greenie's personal space, any trace of humour gone from his expression. "Never go beyond those walls. Do you understand me, Greenie?"

Ada watched, holding her breath, studying the new guy for any signs of defiance. His shoulders were set and his face wary, but there was a certain resignation in the way he looked back at Alby, as if, at least for the time being, he saw the line in the sand and had no desire to cross it. She was relieved, at least, that this one seemed to have a shred of common sense in his head.

"Hey, Alby! Ada!" A voice called up to them, and when Ada poked her head over the railing it was to see Chuck waving up at them, an eager smile on his round face.

"Hey Chucky!" Ada waved down to him. "You get lost or something?"

The three of them quickly climbed down the steps, and Ada ruffled Chuck's hair when she saw him. "Got you something." He grinned, tossing a bread roll in her direction. Ada caught it deftly, groaning as the sweet smell of it hit her.

"This," she said as she dug her teeth into it, "this is why you're my favourite."

"Oi!" Alby protested.

With the bread roll held in place with her teeth, Ada formed a love heart with her hands, aiming it at him with a sheepish smile.

"Greenie," Alby said, turning away from her whilst rolling his eyes, "meet Chuck. He was the last to arrive so he gets to break you in."

Chuck turned his eager grin to the new guy, picking up the discarded bed roll and blankets from the floor and holding them out to him. "Hey, nice to meet you. Got your stuff right here, and I picked out a great spot for you, right next to mine."

"Good luck," Ada scoffed, "hope you aren't too attached to sleeping."

"We got a name yet?" Chuck asked, promptly ignoring her. When Alby shook his head, Chuck shrugged and grimaced placatingly. "Don't worry about it. Took me a second too. Everyone's different, right Alby?" Ada's heart softened at the blatant need for confirmation, for reassurance, written over every inch of Chuck's face. In the month since Avin's passing, Alby quickly became one of his closest friends, and it was no secret that Chuck looked up to him like an older brother.

"Sure thing kiddo." The sound of the gong by the kitchens going off had the four of them looking towards the benches, where gladers were already gathering at lightning speed. "Ah, looks like it's quitting time. Chuck, take care of our newbie, alright? You know what to do."

Chuck saluted, body buzzing with eager energy. "Yes sir, Alby."

"Good that. I'm gonna go get Ada some food."

"Oh thank god," Ada groaned, swallowing down the last of her bread. "I'm starving."

"You're always 'starving'" Alby chuckled as he led her away, casting a quick glance over his shoulder to make sure they were out of earshot. "So, verdict?"

"What do you want me to say, Alby?" Ada shook her head. "He seems exactly like every other glader, just a bit more quiet and annoying."

"Annoying?"

"He asks so many questions."

"We did too when we first came up." Alby pointed out.

Ada huffed. "I refuse to believe we were that irritating." It wasn't like they could ask anyone, she thought. Everyone that came up with them was dead.

"He'll mellow out." Alby said confidently. "He's new, how much trouble could he be?"

"I really hope you're right."

—

Minho and Ben came back earlier than expected, joining them at the lunch tables covered in a fine sheen of sweat. Ada handed them both bowls of stew before sending Newt off to refill their water. He did so, grumbling under his breath the entire time.

"You see the new Greenie?" Newt asked as he came back, putting the glasses on the table with a little more force than necessary.

"Yeah, the brunette kid with Chuck, right?" That kid, as Minho put it, was easily an inch or two taller than the rest of them, something he seemed eager to ignore. "Can't believe you left the actual child in charge of showing him around."

"It was Alby's decision." Ada shrugged. "You know how it works around here. He makes the rules, and I ignore them. Besides, it's good for Chuck. Gives him something to do. It's not a bad thing that he's learning a bit of responsibility either."

"So, we trust this guy?" Ben asked. "He's got some speed on him, that's for sure."

"Don't know yet," Ada said thoughtfully. "He's only been here an hour, give him a chance to prove himself."

"Everything set for tonight?" Minho asked, steering the conversation away from the new guy. His eyes fell on the towering pile of logs that the gladers were helping to construct. "Big two year bash." He clapped his hands together, mischievous glint in his eye. "I assume Gally spent all afternoon cultivating a bunch of his secret recipe. Please let me be the one to feed it to the Greenie, I can't wait to see the look on his face."

"You're evil," Ada said, "I approve."

Minho opened his mouth to no doubt provide a sarcastic comment when a commotion from by the maze doors caught their attention. Voices yelling drifted over to them, and when Ada looked across to see the Greenie sprawled on the floor right outside the doors with Gally stood over him she was running towards them without looking to see if the others had followed.

She reached them just as the Greenie scrambled to his feet, eyes lit up with fury. "Get the hell off me!"

"Alright calm, calm, calm." Gally put his hands up in placation as Ada skidded to a halt beside him. Other gladers abandoned their posts, rushing towards them as the greenie's agitation grew. "Woah, take it easy. Take it easy, relax."

Ada positioned herself at the doors, physically blocking the entrance with her body. She could see the Greenie's fury rising, that all too familiar restlessness clawing up inside him until his body was tense, angry, poised for a fight. The last thing she wanted was for him to get any ideas about running into the maze, especially not with the doors due to close any second now.

"What the hell is wrong with you guys?" He asked, shaking dirt off his shirt.

Newt slowed his jog as he reached them, one hand outstretched soothingly. "Just calm down, alright?"

"No, no, why won't you tell me what's out there?" He threw a hand backwards to where Ada was standing, and her fingers instinctively itched towards the knife at her belt.

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

"Trust me, Greenie," Ada's hand closed around the handle, her back tense. "You don't wanna go out there, okay? Not now."

"It's for your own good," Newt nodded.

"You guys can't just keep me here!"

"We can't let you leave."

"Why not?"

A gust of stale air slammed into Ada's back, dislodging the hair from her shoulders and sending it flying up to cover her face. She tucked it behind her ears as she slowly turned around, eyes watering at the breeze that stirred the dust from the floor and rattled the ivy. A familiar rumbling groan crashed through the air, drowning out all sound. Slowly, the walls began to close, the deafening sound of metal on metal setting her teeth on edge. She didn't bother to watch them close, turning her face instead to where the Greenie stood, horrified, silhouetted by the sinking sun.

An expression of pure terror had worked its way onto his pale face.

When the doors clicked shut, and ringing silence descended over them, Gally shouldered his way past the greenie, a displeased frown on his face. "Next time, I'm gonna let you leave." He quickly walked away, followed by Chuck and Frypan, chatting in low tense voices. The other gladers dispersed as well, leaving only Ada, Alby, and Newt with the new recruit.

Alby took a step forward, face drawn into a grim expression. He studied the Greenie for a moment before sighing, shaking his head slowly. "Welcome to the glade."

A hand intertwined with Ada's and began to pull her away, and when she looked up it was to see Newt staring down at her with his lips pressed into a thin line. "You alright?" He asked, voice low so the other two wouldn't hear. Ada didn't fight when he steered her away by their linked hands, his thumb rubbing over the backs of her knuckles. Goosebumps broke out on her arms.

"Yeah." She nodded.

When they were far enough away, Newt slowed to a stop, turning to face her fully. Her breath caught at how close he was, their hands still linked between them. In the limited light of the dying sun, the shades played across his face and set his eyes into shadow, but she could still feel the concern emanating from him. "No," he shook his head, "you're not. Tell me, what's going on in that brilliant brain of yours?" He lifted his hand, hesitating over her cheek before lowering it back to his side.

Ada gnawed on her bottom lip as she turned her face back towards where Alby was steering the Greenie away from the wall, hands moving emphatically as he talked. "I don't know," she mumbled, "I just have a feeling."

"What kind of feeling?"

"He's different." She watched the Greenie leave, brows knitted into a frown, unease unfurling in her stomach.

Newt followed her gaze for a second before looking back at her, concern swimming in his eyes. "Good different?"

That feeling of unease grew inside her until it was all she could focus on, as if she were standing on the edge of a great cliff, terrified to jump but knowing she had to. She looked back up at Newt, letting him see every bit of it. "... I don't know."