* warning *
this chapter contains gruesome details of death

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THE YOUNG GODS
CHAPTER FOURTEEN

" 50 SHADES OF HIS BLOOD. "

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    ROSIE SMILED STANDING next to a few of the boys circling around the box. They all waited impatiently for the machine to come up to the top. Especially when it was Rosie's first time to welcome a Greenie. All the boys decided it would be her who would jump into the box. It had been a few weeks after the fire incident and Ander been close to finishing his recovery. Anticipation took over the group when they heard the box start moving.

     "You ready, little one?" Gally stood behind her, behind who he considered was his best friend. His eyes met hers once she glanced back for a few seconds nodding impatiently. His dirty hands found themselves squeezing her shoulders.

      "Did I miss it?" Vince yells running towards the group taking a notice that the box wasn't at the top yet. "You going, Rosie?" She nodded not wanting to vocalize her reply. His eyes linger at Gally's hands and before he noticed, Vincent was next to Gally slapping his arm away.

       "Ow!" Gally exclaimed removing his hands from Rosie who was too fixated on the box to notice the whispers behind her. "What was that for?"

       Vince shook his head feeling the need to protect the girl. He felt a weird bond that he hasn't felt with anyone else, the closest he's felt like that was with Winston. "Watch your hands."

       Gally blinked trying to process what his friend meant by the comment, "you're jacked if you think i'm trying to do something—"

       "Box is coming up!" Zart announced standing at one of the sides ready to open the metal doors as it was heard running. The pair stopped their conversation excited for their new Glader.

      "You going down?" A voice was heard jogging towards the group. Rosie turned her head hearing the familiar voice which she adored. He reached the brunette who smiled nodding. "Excited?"

       "More nervous but still hoping it's a girl." Rosie spoke biting her nail waiting impatiently for the boys to open the doors. Her breath hitched for a second as she felt his hand trailing up her back. His hand stopped between her shoulders and his thumb gently brushing her skin.

"Good luck." Newt spoke a smile tugging on his lips.

      She swallowed trying to recompose herself after distracting herself momentarily with his simple touch. It had almost made her forget what was happening in front of her as Newt's finger swiped left and right one more time making a shiver run down her spine.

"Rosie!"

"Rose!"

The girl shook her head snapping out of the trance Newt unintentionally put her in. "Sorry, what?"

"We're opening it."

Her nod became a signal to the two boys who started opening the metal doors. Rosie stood at the edge looking for someone. Her eyes reaching a boy sitting against a corner doing his best to hide away. A few boys reached her wondering why she hadn't jumped in yet.

"Why aren't you in yet?" Vince spoke scanning the box noticing the trails of blood. He took the initiative to jump inside ignoring the side comments from a few of the boys that wanted to see Rosie jump in. Something inside her sparked and the boy looked so familiar to her. Vince reached the worn out boy who kept trying to keep his eyes open. "Gally!"

Not a split second went by as Gally had already jumped inside grabbing a hold of one the guy's arms. The pair grabbed a hold of the boy bringing him up to the grass. "Medjack!" Rosie yelled as they laid him on his back.

The boy scanned the field trying to figure out where he was, his eyes landed on the girl scaring the Gladers with his first few words, "Rosie, that you?"

All the boys looked up at the brunette who felt she knew the Greenie but didn't know who he was yet. Yet. "You know him?" Newt spoke to the girl in a serious tone wondering what was happening as the boy sat up not taking notice of where he was.

"N-no." Rosie hesitated trying to see if she remembered anything but she only had a familiar feeling just like she would have during her dreams or memories she'd randomly have.

"Well, clearly he knows you." Gally spoke up confused but felt less wary knowing he'd talk to her in private.

Clint arrived touching the boy's forehead realizing he had a fever. "We finally found you. I need to take you to them." The boy spoke trying to get himself up. Clint found the source of blood realizing it was coming from a section on his head.

"Don't get up!" Clint demanded causing the boy to sit back down. "This is going to hurt." Clint spoke with a transparent bottle pouring the liquid over his head stinging him. The boy winced in pain as Clint wrapped a bandage over him knowing the boy needed stitches. "Take him to the Medhut." Vince and Gally grabbed the boy dragging him to the Medhut. "Rosie, c'mon you're gonna help."

The girl turned to look at Newt before following Clint. Confusion was written all over his face wondering what was going on. Rosie grabbed a hold of his hand squeezing it before letting it go. She couldn't hold his hand any longer knowing the sensation she'd feel in her body if she did. His touch somehow made her feel alive. Just like her touch did with him.

Rosie headed to the Medhut leaving the rest of the boys to grab the rest of the materials from the box. "What's your name?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you got no name?"

"I don't remember it."

Rosie entered the room in the middle of Gally interrogating the boy sitting on one of the beds. "How you gonna know her name and not your own?"

The boys eyes glanced towards where Rosie stood but before he could take her in, Gally's hand grabbed a hold of the guy's chin turning it towards him. "Don't look at her, look at me. I'm the one talking here. She's not gonna help you."

"Gally, c'mon." Rosie spoke reaching where the interrogator stood. Her hand squeezed his shoulder and let it rest there as Gally huffed letting his hand go turning to the girl.

"I'm just trying to protect you, little one." Gally replied, "it's shucking weird that the kid knows who you are but doesn't know who he is."

"Rosie, imma need your help to stitch up the crack on his head." Clint spoke up holding the materials she was going to need.

The girl nodded walking to the medjack who would ask her to stitch up severe wounds with her steady hands. "I need you to stay still." Rosie spoke feeling lucky that this boy seemed to have had a haircut and didn't need for them to cut his hair. "You can put your hands on my sides."

The boy turned to Gally and Vince with a smug look on his lips turning back to Rosie placing his hands on her sides while she had begun the process.

A few minutes later the two boys stared intensely at the boy's hands movement. His hand twitched causing Vince to speak up, "watch your hands buddy before I cut them off."

"What's taking so long?" A British accent spoke entering the room with Ander walking right behind him.

Rosie stopped doing her work almost finishing but turned to look at the confused Newt. His attention was focused on the boy's hands placement on Rosie's body. His eyes lingered up to look at the girl who took a notice of Newt's jealousy forming.

A laugh erupted in the Greenie's mouth picking up on the tension between Rosie and Newt. The boy faked a British accent, "don't worry my kind lad, I prefer gentlemen more."

Vince and Gally shifted uncomfortably realizing the boy had been looking at them and not Rosie. They had been overprotective not realizing the boy's attention was the complete opposite. Ander swallowed noticing the Greenie's eyes lingering on him.

      "Nick and Alby called for a meeting." Newt announced, "finish up quick. It's important." Before Rosie could reply with an okay, he had left the hut.

      "Who pissed in his oatmeal this morning?"

ROSIE shifted her weight onto her right leg glancing at the keepers reactions. Her arms crossed themselves taking a step back to take in the announcement.

"And you think it'd work?" Minho asked very unsure of the task Nick had proposed to do himself.

The boy gave his honest opinion shaking his head, "what's the worst that could happen? We don't find anything and you'll pull me back up."

"You're telling me that this whole time you've been stuck in here you haven't thought about going down the box?" Rosie asked not understanding why it took the gladers to think about that idea.

Nick flickered his attention to the female glader admiring her beauty for a split second knowing he wasn't even near her radar. "We have, Rosie, but no one's been willing to go down."

"Fine then, who's going down?" Zart questioned looking around for volunteers but none of the keepers volunteered.

       Rosie watched the fear in the boys eyes and took a step forward, "I'm up for it."

      "No." Gally stated pulling her towards him not hesitating for a second to keep the girl out of danger. "You're not going down there."

      "Gally's right. We can't afford our only girl to be in any source of danger." Frypan spoke up, "plus she's the best cook I've had."

      Rosie shook her head, "fine then, who will it be."

      "I'll go."

      Rosie whipped her head at the British boy who volunteered himself. A laugh came out of her lips, "haha, funny. Definitely not you."

      Minho agreed with Rosie for the first time they've known each other. The pair rarely ever got along, Rosie didn't know why he despised her so much. But she was glad they always came in agreement when it involved Newt.

       "I'm going." Nick announced everyone kept quiet not knowing if it was a good idea to let the leader go down himself.

       "I don't think that's a good idea, Nick, maybe someone else—" Newt spoke trying to keep the leader safe but was cut off.

      "Well we gotta try it." Nick spoke, "I'm not letting anymore of you guys die because of me."

      Rosie stood in between Gally and Frypan as a few boys left to gather supplies and gather more Gladers to help. "You think this is going to work?" Rosie asked the builder who had his hand resting on her lower back.

     He looked towards her shaking his head muttering, "no."

      "That's why you don't want me to go down—"

       "Mmhmm." Gally mumbled knowing this was not going to end well.

The rest of the boys came back with ropes tying them up together. Zart tied the rope around Nick's waist securing him in it. There was no chance he could slip out of it. "You could always back out, man. No one's forcing you." Zart spoke to his dearest friend also having a bad feeling in his gut.

Nick nodded feeling uneasy himself, "just bring me back when I tell you guys to, okay?"

All the boys nodded lining up behind each other. Alby stood in front tying the rope around his hands, Minho standing right behind him securing the rope in his hands, Gally behind him doing the same thing wincing at the material of the rope feeling the fabric sting his cuts in his hands, Vince after him being the last one as he had secured the rope onto a tree that Newt made sure wouldn't come undone.

Nick let out a deep breath climbing down the empty hole, the box had gone down about an hour ago. Nick looked around the seemingly endless dark hole. Before the Gladers could react, the lights inside the hole flashed red and blue with loud sirens going off. Nick took another breath letting himself go more down even when the boys on top urged him to come back up.

"No, I'm fine—"

Rosie squeezed her eyes shut hearing a loud scream coming from the hole. Her hands covered her ears hearing the boys scream at each other trying to lift the boy back up. Her body panicked trying to close off from what was happening in front of her. "Get me back up! Get me back up!"

      Rosie dared herself to open her eyes noticing the four boys somehow struggling to pull up a scrawny boy. Before her feet knew it she was at the edge of the hole trying to figure out why they couldn't pull him up. "What is it Rosie?" Alby asked pulling tighter even though the rope wouldn't budge.

      "The rope's stuck." Rosie stated kneeling down trying to figure out how to release the rope without dropping Nick. "If I can just reach down, I think you'll be able to pull him."

     "C'mon, Rosie, figure this out, please." Nick spoke looking down at the endless hole scared for his life at the moment.

      "Just reach for my hand, okay?" Rosie spoke offering her hand down for Nick to grab it. His hand stretched out swinging himself trying to connect it with hers. Before she knew it droplets of red liquid splattered around her face and arms.

      The Gladers winced at the terrifying screaming leaving the girl's lips as she pushed herself away from the box. Her eyes had witnessed what might be the most traumatic incident she'd ever seen in her life.

       The guys screamed at her asking what happened, where's Nick, what's wrong. Her hand pointed shakily at the box not wanting to see what was inside. "It—it sliced him!"

      Not even a second the boys tried pulling him back up this time feeling the weight half less heavy. The boys lifted him up throwing him back to the grass taking a second for everyone's eyes to  widen in fear. He landed next to Rosie splashing more blood onto her clothes.

     Alby let go of the rope standing in front of the leader watching over his body. He swallowed hard not knowing how to react. He was in shock. Everyone was in shock. Rosie was scarred. His drops of blood rolled down her face. Gally had rushed to her side pulling her up as he wrapped his arms around her and blocking the sight all the guys were seeing.

      In front of them laid the upper half of Nick's body.