I tighten the strips of my backpack. "You ready?"

Zee looks up. "Just a minute."

I watch her put a flashlight—where did she get a flashlight?—and a lunchbox—I told her I would get the food, didn't I?—and another flashlight.

"What are you doing?" I interrupt. "Where did you get all of that?"

"I asked Fry."

"He knows?" I hiss.

"No, he doesn't, don't worry." She looks around the place. She sleeps in one of the many hammocks. The Builders are currently working on huts for Keepers, because that'll motivate the others into working more; they will get a higher chance to also get a hut.

I am incredibly happy I am getting a hut.

"Can we go now? The Doors close in ten minutes and we need to take our time so we go unnoticed."

She nods, but doesn't get off the ground. "Just let me... hair brush... wait, I don't have one— yeah, why don't I have a hairbrush? Oh, and I need—"

"Why are you worrying about that now? And either way, you can put a note in the Box tomorrow. We need to go now. Come on, Zee!"

For a moment, she looks up at me, those big eyes shimmering below the light I'm holding, and then she looks back down at her bag.

"Is it... scary?" She then asks.

"The Maze?"

A nod.

I shrug. "Eh, it's not the most comfortable place, but it's also not the worst. Sometimes, it's quite peaceful."

She slumps down, head to the ground.

"You're scared," I realize.

"Maybe a little bit," she murmurs below her breath. "I just— I don't know! What if that mechanical thing appears?"

"Then we run."

She gives me a look.

I shrug again. "Let's just do it."

Slowly, the girl gets up. She places her backpack on her back. I help her tighten the straps, give her some kind of smile to reassure her, and then lead the way to the Doors.

Everyone is eating dinner. If we're quiet, we likely won't be noticed. They're quite far away from us.

Plus, with the slow pace Zee is walking at, we'll be there, like, one minute before the Doors close. No one will make it in with us.

"Ready?" I ask.

Her eyes are wider than normally. "Eh, I think so."

"Are you claustrophobic?"

"I mean, eh, the walls of the Box kind of scared me, but it wasn't... extreme."

Well.

This is going to be something.

"Okay, then you have nothing to worry about," I tell her confidently. Too bad half of it is a lie.

I bet that in the dark, the enormous walls will feel even worse. I sometimes imagine them falling down on me. I would have no escape.

Before she can reply, I pull her with me, through the giant walls. I keep pulling until we have passed at least three corners. No going back now.

When I stop, she takes her time looking around. She spins in her place, looks at all places—up and down and forward—and even tilts her head.

"Are you done?"

"This is not something I see on a regular basis," she points out.

I lean against the wall, bored. "We might as well stay here. Just start at the beginning."

"Okay—"

"What are you guys doing?"

Our screams in unison cause both of us to jump, right in each other's arms.

Then, with some coughs, we let go. I frown. The darkness won't allow me to see the figure in front of us.

Zee clicks her flashlight on. It's so bright that the boy in front of us takes a few steps back.

"Gally?" I whisper-scream. "Get the fuck out of here!"

"I'm sorry, man! I saw y'all going in here and I decided it was my time my life got a little more interesting."

"Is being surrounded by a Maze not enough for you already?"

Zee steps forward before Gally can reply. "Hi. I'm Zora, but you can call me Zee. I haven't met you before, right? But I've heard you're a Builder. Your work is... interesting. Maybe a little bit unstable, here and there, but it's good that you do it. Where else would we stay, you know? So, nice to meet you, Gally."

Stunned, he reaches out for the hand she has been holding out the second she started talking, and shakes it. "Ehm, yes, hi. I'm Gally, Zora— Zee."

"Can he stay with us?" She turns back to me. "The more, the merrier. And it'll be less scary with two... tough... boys by my side."

Okay, excessive begging, I see.

"And I want to make a friend," she adds.

"I'm your friend," I state.

"Yes, but I want more friends. Not thousands, but maybe like five. You, Newt, Nick, and Gally. Jeff also seems funny. And Alby. I want Alby as my friend. Alby is cool."

"Why is specifically Alby cool? What did he do that made him cool?"

"He's nonchalant," she says. "Unlike everyone else here. But Gally here also seems pretty nonchalant."

I straighten, chin high. "I'm nonchalant."

"No, you just have an ego."

Gally snorts out loud behind us, then pretends it's just a cough.

Zee spins around to him as if she did not just say... what she said. "Do you want to be my friend?"

"Sure, I guess?" He looks at me, his eyes questioning.

I shrug. How the hell am I supposed to know if this is a normal way for girls to make friends? Just asking people to be friends.

First, she asks me, now she asks Gally, and soon, she'll ask the other boys she named. And they'll all say yes because... why?

Because she asked.

Wow, that's her secret. She asks something they can't really decline, so they have to say yes.

Sort of.

"But I'm your best friend," I chime in.

"You're my first friend, with whom I've gotten two arguments already!"

Gally chuckles again, quietly. It dies down when I give him a glare.

"But fine, for now, you're my best friend."

"So, what were y'all doing here?" Gally asks.

And Zee begins explaining the whole plan.

Which we were not supposed to tell anyone about.

Thank you, Zee.

★

I hate Gally.

Well, I don't. Not really.

But this was a great opportunity to have another one of those good conversations with Zee, like yesterday. It was the nicest conversation I ever had.

Tonight, I was supposed to have her next to me for the full night, and we could talk about anything together, but now Gally has shown up and I refuse to tell him about any of the things I want to tell Zee.

Plus, we would on the quest together. Gally wasn't even supposed to be involved in the first place. Now she's only talking to him!

I bet that if I would walk away, they wouldn't even notice— I'll prove it.

Silently, I get up.

I take a step towards the corridor, and—

"Where are you going?" She wonders, whispering.

Never mind.

"Uh."

They'll definitely laugh if they know the real reason.

"I need to... pee," I make up.

"Oh." Her nose scrunches. "Ew."

"It's a human thing—"

Gally rolls his eyes. "Yes, Minho, just go."

I vanish around the corner. Now that I've mentioned it, a pee break does not sound that bad.

After making sure they will not pull some stupid prank on me by turning multiple corridors, I start doing my thing.

I hear their muffled, quiet laughter in the distance. My head shakes at the sound of it. This is not how you do quests. Unprofessional!

A low buzzing comes from behind me. I swear the ground trembles a bit.

Frowning, I hurry to finish. It's not nice to have my back turned to a very long, dark corridor.

When I turn around, I stand rooted to that exact place on the floor.

What. Is. That.

It has spikes. It is slimy. Its legs are like a spider. Its tail like a scorpion. It's head like a fly. Its teeth like a shark. Its stinger like a wasp.

I am gaping at it.

It makes its way to make, so fast that I am even more shocked. It's so... metallic and... big. How can it move that fast?

The mouth opens, once again revealing the many teeth. I take a step back at the disgusting smell.

Then reality comes back to me. Metallic sounds. A giant monster right in front of my eyes.

"Run!" My panicked yelps echo through the walls. "Zora, Gally— run!"

She is hurrying to put her backpack on but I throw it towards the monster to somehow slow it down, and then tug her arm until she follows us.

But my shock and their hesitation has slowed everything down way too much. We're powerless against this thing.

One of the legs jerks forward, towards the closest bystander: Zee. 

Gally and I jump forward, too. I push her out of the way right before the arm hits her. She stumbles, fast, against the wall, a shriek yelp leaving her.

I might've saved her in that one second, but now she's trapped in a corner. Gally acts as fast as he can, pulling her away from it, right into my arms.

"Let's go!" I steady her on two feet. "Run!"

Not a second later, Gally gets thrown against the wall. He slides down it, and he does not move.

What.

I don't understand.

I can't follow what's going on.

Zee is bleeding and I'm not sure what caused it. Gally seems to be unconscious. I have never felt this useless in my life before. My dagger is in the backpack I left further away from here, when I was peeing.

Panicked, I look around. Walls and ivy surround us, but that's it. Gally is lying right next to the vines, some parts of his body covered by them.

The vines some kids use as blankets at night. That's it.

I dive towards him, below the monster's arms, and push his unconscious body all the way below the ivy.

Then I sprint back to Zee as fast as I can. She is shaking, unsteady on her feet. Her hand constantly reaches for her head— that's where she's hurt.

"Here." I open the blanket of ivy with my arms. She quickly slides below them, eyes pleading for me to join. I nod, cast a last look at the monster that's trashing around, and then glide next to her.

Her breaths are heavy. Little winces come along with them. I'm forced to press my hand against her mouth to stop it. This is our only chance.

The monster was so wild that it might not have seen our hiding spots. It might realize we're gone soon, and then it will leave.

Somehow, that is exactly what happens. The urge to climb away from this clammy spot is so big that I nearly do it. I should check up on Gally anyway.

But it's not safe. I doubt it is.

When I turn to Zee, though, her eyes are closed. She's breathing, but still. She is unconscious.

No way she fell asleep. She must've fainted or something. 

My hands work to grab a thick vine. I do my best to wrap it around my hand. When I slide it off, it's... something.

It'll do.

Carefully, I lift her head up and place the ivy below it. My hand is bloody once I pull it back.

Her head is bleeding. That's really bad. I think— no, it's definitely bad.

An unwanted cry slips from me. This was the worst idea ever. Everyone around me is unconscious. I don't know what that was. I don't know if Gally is even still alive. I don't know what happened to Zee.