IT HAD BEEN EXACTLY A MONTH SINCE Chuck came up in the Box, so that meant they were getting a new Greenie that day. All of the Gladers gathered around the spot in excitement, waiting for it to come up with their new edition.

The machine made a whirring sound as the gate opened, revealing the cage-like top of the Box. Alex pushed past some of the boys to get to the front so that she could stand next to Gally and stare down at the new guy. He was holding up his hand, shielding his eyes from the bright light after being shut in the dark Box.

Some people chuckled as they pulled open the top, and Gally was the one to jump down. He leaned over the boy who had scooted back, away from him.

"Day one, Greenie. Rise and shine."

There was some chatter and laughter as Gally grabbed him and threw him onto the grass above. He landed on his back and began scrambling away as he stared up at them with fear and confusion in his eyes. Frypan said, "I could use some help in the kitchen."

They all groaned in amusement when the Greenie climbed to his feet and just began running in a random direction, which happened to be toward one of the openings in the Wall.

"Hey, we got a Runner!" Zart yelled as they watched the boy in the blue shirt sprint away. After a couple more seconds, he tripped over his own feet and face planted onto the ground.

Alex winced as the whooping continued and the boy climbed to his feet, spinning around and staring at his surroundings in question. "Not a good start, man."

"He's never gonna live that down," Newt sighed from next to her as they watched him.

She shook her head in response. If there was one thing the Gladers loved, it was making fun of each other, especially if it was for things they did when they first came up. "No, he is not."

"All right, everyone back to work!" Alby ordered, gesturing for them to move along. Then he pointed at two boys in the crowd. "You two, throw the Greenie in the Pit until he calms down. Alex and Gally, you lead the unloading crew like usual."

"Aye, aye, captain!" the girl said, mock saluting him.

He nodded at her in reply as the other boys that weren't apart of the unloading team left and went back to their jobs. As they started the process of taking the crates out, Gally questioned, "So, what do you think of the new Greenie?"

"I don't know," she answered with a shrug as she passed one of the smaller crates to another boy. "I mean, he ran pretty well until he face-planted, but I haven't really talked to him yet."

"I don't trust him," the Keeper of the Builders informed her.

She rolled her eyes and stared down at him from on the grass since he was inside the Box, passing things up to her. The amount of times that she had heard him say that was actually crazy. "You don't trust anybody."

"Yeah, well, I especially don't trust him," he countered.

"Why?" she asked curiously. The Greenie had been there for not even an hour, and the boy already did not trust him. All he had done was fall on his face. "He seems pretty normal."

He sighed, of course not giving her an actual reason. "I don't know. He just gives me a weird feeling."

"Maybe you're in love with him," she suggested smugly, and he just glared up at her. He passed the last crate up before climbing out and wiping the sweat off his hands.

Just then, Alby and the Greenie approached them, and the new boy still seemed so confused. Alex plastered on a smile as Alby introduced them. "Guys, meet the Greenie. Greenie, this is Gally, the Keeper of the Builders and Alex, Keeper of the Weapons Instructors."

"Welcome to the Glade," the girl greeted, reaching out to shake the boy's hand. She realized then that they really needed to come up with a better name for her job.

Gally did not say anything to the Greenie. He just glared at him with his arms crossed, so Alex elbowed him not-so-subtly in the ribs. He grunted quietly before offering a small smile, and the girl accepted it, knowing that was the best she was going to get.

Alby nodded at them. "Okay, well, we'll let you two get back to unpacking. Nice work."

"See you around, Greenie," she told the new boy, and he just looked at her in confusion. This happened pretty much any time a new person came up because she was the only girl.

They left, and the group finished unpacking over the next hour or two. They were about to get back to work when Gally spotted something in the distance. The Greenie was walking toward the Wall with Chuck trailing behind him frantically. The Builder muttered, "What the hell is he doing?"

"Gally, don't," Alex called, but he was already speed walking toward them. She had no choice but to run after him to make sure he didn't do anything too stupid. "Gally!"

"Hey," he yelled before shoving the boy in the blue shirt before he could take another step. He flew and landed on the ground about a yard away with a grunt.

The girl behind them groaned as the Builder kneeled above him. "Gally, stop!"

"We've gotta stop meeting like this, Greenie," he told the boy who hit him in the leg and tried to crawl away quickly. The boy standing up tried to calm him down. "Calm, calm, calm, calm. Take it easy. Just relax."

"Don't touch me!" he shouted, and people were starting to run over, the screaming grabbing their attention. The Greenie stood up and stared at the rest of them incredulously. "What the hell is wrong with you guys?"

"Just calm down, all right?" Newt told him, holding out a hand toward him.

He shook his head, looking to Alby. "No, okay? Why won't you tell me what's out there?"

"Just trying to protect you, man. Okay?" the leader assured him, but he still did not seem convinced. "For your own good. I can't let you leave."

"Why not?" the Greenie questioned, and he was answered not by the boy but by the Maze itself. There was a rumbling at the walls began to close, and a strong wind blew toward them. The new boy flinched at every other sound as he watched in amazement.

Once the doors were finally closed, Gally walked up to him. "Next time. I'm gonna let you leave." Then, without another word, he walked away, the other boys following him. Alex ran after him as well.

"Hey, you can't just go around shoving people whenever they ask questions," she informed him, her voice lowered as she waited for the others to get farther away. "He was just curious."

"Too curious," he added.

She stared at him with a 'really?' look. "Every single person that has come up in that Box has wondered about the Maze."

"But none of them have tried to waltz in like they shucking own the place," he muttered to her with bitterness in his voice. "The shank could've gotten himself killed on his first day."

"Okay, you need to calm down. You're starting to sound crazy," she told him.

"Don't call me crazy."

"You know I didn't mean it like that," she sighed. "I'm just saying that he came up in the Box just like the rest of us. He's as scared and confused as you and I were when we were sent up."

He stared at her with overdramatic betrayal in his eyes. "Why are you taking his side?"

"I'm not taking anyone's side. There's not even sides. There's him being curious and you overreacting," she groaned, running a hand through her air. He said one thing before storming off.

"Well, sometimes, my 'overreacting' keeps us all from getting killed."