~Sara~

She stayed put for a bit, not even wanting to look at Janson's body sprawled on the floor.

She slowly glanced over at Newt and her friends. No one knew what to say. They knew Sara wouldn't do something like that, and somehow it seemed like everyone expected Margaret to be the same way, especially after she talked Sara out of doing it earlier.

Margaret was panting, and she faced Sara and her friends with a firm look. "You guys need to leave."

Sara immediately shook her head. "I'm not leaving without you." She gave her cousin a pleading look. What she just did to Janson was frightening, but Sara felt they could get over it, and Margaret could get away from Vince and all the violence. "Hey, you can start over. We'll be okay once we all get out of here," she added once she saw Margaret shaking her head.

"No, Sara. I can't," she said, giving her a sad smile.

But Sara was beginning to get desperate, and almost angry. "What do you mean you can't? I thought I lost you once. And I don't wanna lose you for real," she pleaded. "Maggie?"

"Sarì," she called her again, just like Matteo used to with his thick Italian accent. "I'm too far gone to go with you."

"What do you mean? You don't even have the Flare yet, and if you did, I could help you," Sara argued, desperately trying to convince her cousin.

But Margaret insisted. "It's not that. I killed my own dad, Sara. I've killed more people than you think. I don't deserve to just switch gears and start fresh like nothing happened. And I don't want you to sacrifice yourself again, not for me. I already accepted that I'll get the virus sooner or later." Margaret swung back her arm and threw the gun against the wall with a grunt. "Listen, I'll be fine... Just go."

Sara turned to her friends helplessly, but Newt placed a hand on Sara's shoulder and gave her a small smile.

"None of us are saints, Margaret," said Newt, and Sara noticed a somber look take place in his eyes. "We killed in the Maze for survival too. But that doesn't mean we all deserve to bloody punish ourselves for it anymore. We knew it was wrong, but we didn't do it 'cause we wanted to. It's what we had to do."

"Yeah," added Minho. "And even better, Gally also became a member of The Right Arm, but he's still on the other side right now. And that shank was a real pain in the butt," he snorted, and then he shrugged. "He killed one of our friends from the Glade, but he still got his second chance."

Margaret sighed. "No, you don't understand. Gally killed your friend against his will. And he's never killed anyone else in his life."

"Wait, what?" asked Thomas, and they all looked at each other like that was the most insane news they'd heard. "Then how did he earn a spot with you guys? I thought killing was like an admission requirement or something."

"No," said Margaret. "Gally was a wreck when we met. I took his place for every kill Vince assigned to him. What I'm saying is that Gally's the only member of The Right Arm that deserves a second chance. I don't."

But Sara kept shaking her head, and she walked over to grab her hand. "Listen. You're only fifteen. You're a kid who suffered trauma, as did all of us. You can't tell me you don't have room for mistakes. And you can start over if you really wanted to."

Margaret sighed, creasing her forehead. "I didn't kill him 'cause I had to. I wanted to, and if I'm being honest, it felt good; I'd do it again. See, that's the thing. I've gotten my way around by killing people. Even the clothes I'm wearing belonged to someone I killed, Sara. Look, I wanted to come along, leave Vince behind—whatever, but..." She had that look that gave away she wasn't at peace with herself.

Sara placed a hand on her shoulder. "You feel guilty, right?"

Margaret furrowed her eyebrows. "He deserved it. But it's just that one step you take on the road of no return, when you know exactly the kind of garbage you are. That's what it feels like to kill your own family. I've literally turned into him. Sara, I'm not the kind of person you want your children to grow up with. I'm not the same person you knew when we were little girls. And I carry his blood. I want his bloodline to end with me."

"But you're still my cousin. I don't want to have to leave you here," Sara cried. "What are you gonna do out here—wait for the Flare to get to you?"

"That won't be necessary," Margaret said, shaking her head.

"Geez, girl. Just come with us, no one gives a shuck if you're his daughter. You're Sara's only family," said Minho, already getting impatient.

"Alright, let me be clear," Margaret snapped. "Get the heck out of here 'cause we're blowing the whole building down!" She sighed, glancing at each one of their faces. "Vince has men on the other complexes, about to blow those off too. And he knew he was running low on time, but he wanted you dead in the process, Sara. I had to convince him not to touch you, but I can't do more."

Sara was getting exasperated. She couldn't believe The Right Arm was willing to sacrifice all their members for a final confrontation. All WICKED guards and employees were dead; The Right Arm could've just left the building and gone back to their HQ, but they wanted to take WICKED down by the roots.

Her cousin, at her fifteen years of age, wanted to kill herself as long as she finished what she had to finish.

"No!" shouted Sara. "Maggie, just come with us."

But Margaret took out her transceiver and pressed the button. "Vince, I'm finished here, let's get this rolling. Over."

"Copied," was all he said, and Margaret frantically motioned at Sara and the other four to run, to sprint out of there as fast as they could.

Sara didn't even have time to process it because even if it hurt to leave her cousin behind, they had to escape before it was too late.

She only saw a blur of the moment Newt grabbed something from the floor and kept running, pulling her along as the others sprinted ahead.

They ran until they finally reached Sara's room, where a gray wall stood in the middle. She'd remembered what Newt had told her about their first time out in the Scorch. The guys were already familiar with the flat trans because that was how they were transported from their dorm in the building, to the Scorch for Phase Two.

This was Sara and Rachel's first time, however. Minho and Thomas jumped forward and went across without even thinking about it. Newt would've followed them if it weren't for Sara holding his hand, which held him back. She and Rachel halted right in front of the gray emptiness, breathing heavily from the run and the nerves.

"Hey, it's okay," Newt said, panting. "Let's jump at the same time, I promise it's harmless."

Sara glanced at him and nodded. The three grabbed hands like school children and jumped right in.

It felt like they'd just traveled to a different dimension. Sara didn't know what she was expecting, but it was strange for sure. A cold breeze brushed against her skin as they crossed. It was impossible to tell how much time passed as they were caught in the middle, neither behind nor fully across. But the technology was beyond fascinating.

As the hypnotizing journey came to an end, Sara found herself standing on grass. 

Grass. 

The last time she walked on it was back in the Glade.

When she looked up, she saw the Scorch duo, her best friends among the girls, Yuna, Frypan, Zart, Winston, the Med-jacks, Chuck, and even Gally around. They were all standing nearby, waiting for them.

Sara felt like she had just come home from fighting a war, and the warm welcome they received touched her heart. It was finally over. They'd made it. 

Newt grinned at her and they immediately wrapped their arms around each other once again. They would finally be able to construct a life together, in peace.

And of course, everyone was beyond astonished to see Newt. A literal crowd formed as news of his survival reached more Gladers and other friends. Even Gally came and hugged Newt, which shocked them all even more. And Lizzy nearly tackled him in a hug, elated to see her brother.

But it wasn't time to celebrate, because Jorge, Chuck, and Gally were waiting for one more person. And that person was gone. They were staring at Sara's hands with fear, and she looked down at them, forgetting they were stained with blood.

Sara was still holding Newt's hand, and he squeezed hers to give her a little courage. Taking a deep breath, she informed them about Rebecca's death and everything that happened with Janson and Margaret.

Jorge and Chuck were devastated, and Sara could feel their pain, but she transmitted Rebecca's last words to them, letting them know that she was at peace with everything. Sara spent an extra amount of time hugging Chuck, consoling him, and letting him know that she was so glad to see him again. And now he was finally home thanks to Newt and Rebecca.

It was then time to tell Gally about Margaret's decision to stay. He was obviously upset given his close friendship with her, but he knew about the whole mission, and he would've died in the explosion had he stayed.

But then he did something Sara would've thought was impossible months earlier. Gally gave her a hug. The person that hated her the most in the Glade was now hugging her, and Sara hesitantly wrapped her arms around him. When they pulled away, she smiled.

"I'm glad you're alive, shank," he said, also smiling a little. "And Newt too. You both deserve it."

"Thanks, Gally," she replied. "Thanks for helping us and for saving me. I'm so glad you came along."

They nodded at each other, and that was like the perfect coming to terms for them. They would never be as close as Minho and Sara were, but it was the perfect way to say that they would coexist in peace and possibly form a friendship in the future.

Brenda suddenly told everyone to stand a good distance away from the flat trans.

When Sara followed the rest of them, she saw that Brenda had an actual grenade in hand, and she pulled the safe with her teeth, threw the grenade right below the flat trans, and ran to catch up with the group.

They covered their ears as they heard the faint explosion, marking the end of the other side, the end of their past life. The flat trans was destroyed, and nothing else could come their way.

But Brenda had a somber look on her face as she approached the same small group that had stuck together the majority of the time. Thomas, Minho, Rachel, Newt, and Sara crowded around to hear what she had to say. She was giving Thomas the most attention, but it didn't look like it was for her own pleasure.

"Brenda, what's wrong?" asked Sara, getting impatient.

"It's Teresa," she said, glancing at Thomas. He immediately tensed up. "When Rat Man started shooting at us, he didn't miss."

"What?" Thomas panicked, giving the rest of them a nervous look. Sara scratched her head, and they were all giving each other worried looks. Things always had to go the hard way.

"She won't last the night," said Brenda, looking very concerned. "Listen, she's done a lot of crap to us, but she helped us in the end, and she deserves that we go see her before it's too late."

"What do you mean—there's nothing we can do?" asked Thomas.

"We did all we could, but it's not enough," Brenda replied. "There's a huge storage Ava left for us near the woods—it's filled with supplies and everything. We just need time to build everything and get settled, but we can only have Teresa lying on a mattress out in the open as of now."

Nothing else was said and Brenda immediately led them to where Aris was watching over her as she lay on the grass. It was horrible that she was in such a bad condition and she literally had to be lying out in the open, with only a mattress as comfort.

There was a cloth wrapped around her abdomen to stop the bleeding, but it looked like it wasn't much help. She was extremely pale, and she was sweating.

Aris received unwelcoming glares from Minho and Rachel, so he just kept his distance and his mouth shut as they all approached Teresa.

"Jorge took out the bullet, but she has a fever, and..." Brenda paused, letting the others sit next to the mattress.

"Newt," said Teresa, smiling weakly at him as soon as she saw him. "You're alive."

"Hey," he whispered, smiling sadly at her.

Thomas kneeled next to her, feeling her forehead. Teresa's face, despite the pallor, lit up as she stared at him. Then she began to cry.

"Thomas, I—" she sobbed. "I'm so sorry."

"Shh." He shook his head. "You need to rest, you'll be okay," he whispered before tearing up.

Teresa caused him so much pain, she upset him badly, but he wasn't someone that held such a big of a grudge. If Teresa weren't dying, they would probably still talk, but Thomas would keep his distance. Now, he was willing to stay with her until it was her turn to go.

Sara felt like a monster. 

It was really hard to forgive her. She wasn't happy that Teresa's path ended so soon; it was heartbreaking, because she was another victim of manipulation from Janson. But she was considered a friend before everything; someone they could possibly trust. And betrayal always occurred with friends, not enemies.

"Sara, I'm so sorry for what I did to you. Maybe if I hadn't opened my mouth, we would've come here sooner," said Teresa, looking at her with sad eyes. She was being sincere, Sara had to admit. And they found the others with her help. Teresa also suffered despite everything, and it was sad to see her go.

"We still made it; it's fine," said Sara. "I'm sorry for how I treated you."

Teresa shook her head. "I asked for it. I participated in the Purge to kill Rebecca's dad and all the infected personnel. And I felt good about it. I lied to you guys plenty of times, physically hurt some of you, and I turned you in on a silver platter to Janson. And then I expected you guys to forgive me right away."

"Well, I participated in that too," said Thomas.

"Yeah, but you regretted all of it," she said. "I was wrong to think that the cure was above anything else. It's humanity, and the unity you guys held all along that saved you. WICKED lost, and so did I."

Minho was quiet the whole time, not really bothering to look at her that much. Rachel sat next to him, pursing her lips thoughtfully.

"Rachel and Minho," Teresa continued, and they both snapped their eyes to her. "I know you guys hate me the most. I'm sorry for everything too."

"At least you admit it," said Minho, a bit coldly. Newt nudged his arm and frowned at him, and Minho cleared his throat. "Alright, alright," he said, turning again to face her. "Thanks for helping in the end, shank."

Sara also nudged Rachel's arm, and she also scrambled for words. "Uh... hey, I'm sorry about how much I misjudged you. Just know that we wish you could stay with us, and um... we'll always remember you, Teresa."

"And don't worry," added Newt. "We'll take care of Tommy for ya," he said, patting Thomas on the shoulder. Teresa smiled before bursting into tears.

"Thomas." She caught his attention again. "Brenda took really good care of me. I was wrong about her. I want you to continue living your life, surrounded by people that really care about you, like her. I wouldn't have done what she did. I learned many things from her in the past few weeks, actually."

Thomas was letting a few tears fall, but he nodded. "You should rest for a bit. That should help." Teresa was having difficulty breathing because of the pain, and she started coughing. "You need water? I saw a stream nearby, I can—"

But Teresa shook her head, closing her eyes and furrowing her eyebrows. "Can you please just stay with me?" 

Thomas nodded, and the rest of them felt the need to leave them alone for a while, so he could keep her company.

Sara and Newt decided to have a walk around to explore their new home. They found the stream that stretched a long way across, with huge boulders shaping the surroundings of a pretty little waterfall. 

She took the opportunity to wash the blood from her hands, and Newt also washed the dirt and blood on his arms and neck.

When they finished, they walked hand in hand to the top of a hill, where they had a perfect view of the sunset and the landscape below. 

The sunset was the most beautiful piece of artwork Sara had seen in a long time. It reminded her of the Wiseman sunsets again. Nothing spoke louder of home than the beautiful rays of scarlet, orange, and pink across the sky. That was how she knew this was what she would call home from that point onward.

The landscape at the bottom was rich in vegetation—trees, plants, flowers—and an enormous open field was covered in grass. It would be the perfect place for the entire crowd that had escaped the Maze a few hours earlier.

They needed time to restart their lives, build their homes, and assemble all their basic necessities. And soon, there would be room for improvement to establish civilization in a virus-free environment.

Newt stood behind Sara, grabbing her waist as they both contemplated the view.

He suddenly tapped her shoulder, and she turned around to see a playful grin on his face. He was truly happy this time. She'd never seen him radiate such genuine appreciation for life, such willingness to leave his worries behind. He had the most beautiful smile.

Caught off guard, Sara squealed as Newt placed one hand behind her back, and the other cupping her cheek as he abruptly swooped her down, leaning forward with her as he held her. The tips of their noses were touching, and her heartbeat accelerated. She followed his eyes as they switched from her eyes to her lips, then bounced back to meet her gaze.

"I love you... always," he whispered, and she didn't wait for him this time, right away reaching up to connect her lips to his tempting ones as she caressed his neck. His eyes were closed, and she followed the action with bubbling happiness as she felt him kiss back immediately.

When they pulled apart, Sara noticed once again that Newt was carrying a satchel with him. She'd wanted to ask him about it, but he got ahead and told her.

"Becca wanted me to show you," he said.

"She told you to keep this for her?" she asked, her eyes full of curiosity.

Newt nodded, reaching inside to pull out a folder labeled 'Classified' first. "These are some of WICKED's reports from Phase Three. Becca thought we should have these instead. I don't want to read them, but I think you should."

He had an uneasy look in his eyes, and Sara thought back to the three weeks they each spent on their own. It must've been terrible for Newt, but Sara never thought about asking him what he'd been through in Phase Three. Now he was handing all the information to her.

"Aw, Newtie," she whispered, taking the files and rubbing his arm in reassurance.

"And this is more recent," he said, pulling out a notebook from the satchel. "This is essentially the cure to the Flare," he said, getting enthusiastic as he handed her the notebook. "All of her notes are there. And she wanted you to have it in case you wanted to continue helping the infected few in here. She said it's only your choice, just like I told you. You can use all the knowledge she put into this notebook, or you can burn it instead; you decide."

Sara held the notebook with wide eyes, carrying it like it was some sort of precious old relic.

She couldn't believe everything Rebecca had done, and especially to make sure Sara and the others carried on with her work. It almost seemed like Rebecca knew she wasn't gonna make it and wanted to make sure these things safely crossed the flat trans no matter what. And no one better than Newt to make sure they did.

"Thank you, Newt." Sara smiled at him, tears forming in her eyes. "You don't know how much this means to me."

He returned the smile and leaned in to kiss her cheek. "I'm glad this is safe in your hands." He opened the satchel once more, and Sara raised her eyebrows. "There's one more thing. But it's important no one knows about it until you feel it's time." He pulled out a small capsule and held it for her to see.

"What's this?"

"We were the first case where someone was cured and that both donor and recipient were safe," he said. "And Becca figured out that this new method could be done even more safely. It was scary for us because it was the first time someone ever tried it. This is a sample of the special enzyme in your DNA. It's in the capsule to preserve it." He held it out for her, with a little chain attached to it like a necklace.

Sara took it with nimble fingers, observing the capsule, wondering how simple the cure to the Flare really was, yet it was so difficult to obtain.

"I... I don't know what to say," she huffed, looking at Newt.

"You don't have to do this. I know you might be tired of this, but it's all in your hands. Do what you think is best for you," said Newt, rubbing her shoulder.

"No, Newt," she said, shaking her head. "We still have some friends here who are infected, and I need to help them. And with this," she said, holding up the notebook, "we have a way to do it. Becca taught me many things in the lab, and we have people like Jorge and Brenda that know quite a bit about medicine. It would be selfish of me to refuse to help."

Newt smiled tenderly at her. "I knew you would say that. You think about everyone, and I think that's beautiful. You're always saving us."

But Sara didn't want to feel praised for her decision. It still weighed on her the fact that she got to a point where she wanted to kill Janson. She felt it in her heart—she wanted to end him for everything he'd done.

"I almost killed Janson," she whispered. "I think I understand Maggie a little more. I just need to do what's right and not think I'm saving the world, 'cause that's crazy. I didn't save the world, Newt. I didn't save anyone. I just survived and happened to help others on the way. You did that too, and so did Minho—we all survived as a group."

"Don't be so buggin' hard on yourself, love," said Newt, placing his hands on her shoulders. "I know you. No matter how much you felt like you wanted to kill him, there was always a barrier you would've never crossed."

"But Newt, like you said, we've killed in the Maze," she insisted, furrowing her eyebrows. "What difference does it make that we tried so hard not to kill anyone outside the Maze—people we didn't even know, when we thought it was okay to kill friends and people we knew in the Maze, simply 'cause they posed a danger to us? What does that say about us? People wanted to kill us inside and outside the Maze. People were affected by the Flare inside and outside the Maze. The Griever sting was just like a mild version of the Flare. The place doesn't matter, what matters is what we did."

Newt looked at her thoughtfully, remaining silent for a bit. Things always seemed okay until someone brought special attention to them. It was an endless cycle, the recurrent issue of 'justifying the means if the ends were acceptable.'

He sighed, but then he grabbed her hands in his. "I'm not trying to justify the banishments. Most of us hated having to do them. But one, WICKED had complete control over us. We were little game pieces in their giant bloody board game. We were disoriented, and our first instinct was to survive. We were trapped, and if we never had banishments, we would've all died. And two, once we escaped, we understood what we were up against. We were out in the open; theoretically speaking, we were free. We couldn't even kill the least humanly looking Crank because we weren't trapped; we could run away from the danger instead. Love, I'm not saying we're perfect. Just like you told Margaret, we're teenagers; we make mistakes, but we try to be better—we have gotten better."

Sara nodded, making sense out of Newt's words. "I guess you're right." She reached up and rubbed his cheek with her thumb. "You have no idea how grateful I am to have you here with me. And that you're okay."

"How do you think I feel? You've also given me plenty of scares in the past year. Are you trying to compete with me?" He chuckled, and she giggled.

"Well, it's not every day your presumably dead boyfriend comes back to life," she said, raising an eyebrow at him and snorting once she saw the face he made.

He squinted, then tilted his head as he grabbed on her waist. "Technically, I didn't die, so I don't see what the problem is." She scoffed and glared at him playfully. "No, seriously. I'm genuinely confused." He had a serious expression the whole time. "Trust me, the first thing I did as soon as I realized I wasn't dead was to check my pulse, and then I pinched myself. I think I still have a scar 'cause it was that hard."

She finally saw the humorous glint in his eyes, and she swatted the back of her hand against his arm.

"Not funny," she said, even though she burst out laughing. Newt rubbed his arm, pretending to be hurt even though he couldn't hide his huge smile.

Newt then just held his gaze with her for a while, giving her a solemn look.

"What's wrong?"

"I just wanted to thank you, Sara, really," he said, tears gathering in his eyes, and Sara felt a sting in her own eyes, for the simple fact of seeing Newt cry. "You risked your life to save me, multiple times. And you did it in so many different ways, my love. I'm grateful, because it's a precious gift to be with you, the love of my life. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you."

"You're giving me too much credit," she said, shaking her head as the tears fell. "I love you," she whispered, shrugging.

"And does that seem little to you?" He gently lifted her chin, his tender eyes looking adoringly down at her.

They immediately embraced so tightly that Newt stumbled backwards slightly, grunting as he tried to stabilize his leg.

"Newtie—I'm sorry, love, how's your leg?" she asked, remembering how much damage all the running had caused.

Newt blushed, then instinctively looked down at his permanently damaged foot and shrugged. "You know, I don't even mind so much anymore. This is part of who I am, part of my story. And there's no need to bloody run anymore. Not when I'm standing in paradise with you," he added, winking at her as she smiled proudly at him.

But the moment ended too soon as Brenda walked up to them on the hill, looking pensive.

"Sorry to interrupt, guys," she began, taking a deep breath, then shaking her head with helplessness. "It's Teresa."

❀❀❀

Newt and Sara stayed with Thomas for dinner and talked to him for the rest of the early nighttime hours. Minho and Rachel were there too, not saying much, but still trying to lighten the mood.

Teresa's body was covered with an old blanket that one of the Immunes kindly offered. They were planning to bury her deeper in the woods the next day, which Sara figured would be their new deadheads.

Since there were no beds yet, everyone had to find a comfortable spot somewhere on the grass once they picked out a mattress for themselves. The crowd of Immunes was huge, but they could all find a spot with a decent distance from one another for privacy. Newt mentioned that it was just like the first days in the Glade.

This Safe Haven, wherever in the world it was located, was vast enough for everyone to explore and spread out, which was perfect.

Once they got a mattress, Newt and Sara found their spot under a tree, where there was a nice clearing for them to have the perfect view of the stars. This was finally a real sky that they could contemplate with all the time in the world, and not having to run away from anything anymore. Another one of Sara's wishes had come true.

She helped Newt gather some wood and dead grass, and he got a small fire started nearby.

Sara took the opportunity to grab the folder Rebecca had left with Newt, and she decided to read it under the light of the fire. Newt had said he didn't want to read it, but he held Sara in his arms, cuddling with her the whole time as she read it silently to herself.

The moon was shining brightly, and since Newt had still kept his wristwatch, they saw it was almost midnight. But Newt didn't let go of her until she was finished reading, consoling her the whole time as tears dripped from her eyes.

Suddenly, Sara shut the folder and set it to the side, surprising Newt as she nearly tackled him to the ground, wrapping her arms around him and crying into his neck.

"You're amazing," she whispered to him.

When they pulled apart, he looked concerned. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, reassuring him with a smile. "Listen, I have an idea for tomorrow. I've been thinking about this for a while, but I feel like we all need it. We'll talk about it with everyone tomorrow, I promise."

Newt nodded, but the confusion was clear on his face. "Alright."