#maze runner modern au

[heliads]

Hello 💕🌸 can you do a Thomas modern au fic when the reader is not well, sad. And Thomas come to her house to shower her «  the boyfriend package » : hug kiss, etc… the reader is adopt sister of Brenda, Teresa is Thomas twin sister. Newt is their best friend (who also had been matchmaker before they dated..) can you do à maximum of fluff please 🥹🥹

'boyfriend checkup' - thomas

masterlist

Being sick is terrible, isn’t it? From the second you felt the first threads of the cold start to clog your throat and nose, you knew it was all over. Mentally, you signed your death certificate: Y/N L/N, passed away today, gone from the most horrific cough known to man. That’s how it felt, at least, yet you’re still expected to get up and act as if nothing was the matter. Those kids with tuberculosis in the Victorian age who got to lie around in bed all day while their parents treated them like royalty didn’t know how good they had it.

Thankfully, you have at least a couple of days to feel better before you really have to be productive. You started feeling poorly on a Friday, barely managing to stumble through class before heading home as quickly as you could. Not wanting to complain and spoil the good mood of everyone excited about their weekend plans, you had tried to tell as few people as possible. Specifically, you hadn’t told your boyfriend, Thomas, but now you’re missing him more than ever.

It’s not like you’re intentionally trying to keep things from him, you just don’t want him giving up whatever fun things he was supposed to do this weekend so he could hover over you. You love your boyfriend more than anything, honestly, but when it took you so long to admit your feelings for him because you were certain he would never like you back, small things like this make it even easier to talk yourself out of thinking he’ll want to know about it. Thomas is the varsity cross country athlete, the popular one. He loves you, and he’ll tell you that as many times as it takes so you believe it, but some part of you will always wonder why.

That’s why you haven’t told him, not yet, although you have a feeling that he’ll find out sooner or later. Your adoptive sister, Brenda, is best friends with Thomas’ twin, Teresa, and they trade gossip like no one you’ve ever seen before. Both of them have repeatedly assured you that Thomas is head over heels for you, but what if he’s not quite infatuated enough to want to drop his weekend plans to take care of an invalid?

As the cold progresses, though, you start to wish that you had bothered him anyway. You’ve shut yourself up in your bedroom with all the lights off, just lying there and reminiscing about the golden days when your nose had worked as it was supposed to. You had taken so much for granted, and now you’re afflicted with a truly terrible fate indeed.

You’re miserable even on a Saturday, which is how you know things have truly taken a turn for the worst. Not even the weekend, the blessed release from work, can lift your spirits. Your best friend Newt was the only one who knew that you were going through it, and he’d made you promise to call him the second you started feeling better so he could plan a friend group movie night or something. Newt’s always the one on top of stuff like that. You doubt any of you could accomplish anything without his work behind the scenes to keep you all organized. He holds all of you together and keeps anyone from straying too far.

You had hoped that Newt would forget that you were feeling down, but it’s half past noon when your phone buzzes with an incoming call from the blond boy. You briefly consider just letting it go to voicemail, but that would alarm him even more than if you admitted that you still aren’t feeling your best.

You end up giving yourself a second or two to put on your best fake smile before answering the call. Thankfully, Newt had elected to go for just a talk over the phone instead of FaceTime, so you only have to disguise your voice and not your expression, too.

Newt’s voice rings over your phone. “What’s up, Y/N? How’re you doing today?”

You’ve never planned on a career as an actress, but when you answer Newt as happily as you can, you start to consider it. You sound chipper and excited, surprising even yourself. “Doing fine, Newt. How about yourself?”

Maybe this is actually doable. Maybe you might be able to convince your friend that you’re fine so he doesn’t do something terrible like try to get involved. Right now, you just want to be left alone to wallow in your dark room until you’re physically forced out of it.

Newt clicks his tongue in disapproval, sending a rush of static crackling over the phone. “Y/N, are you being honest with me?”

You start to sputter in surprise. Hadn’t your ruse been perfect? “What? Of course I am!”

Newt lets out a sarcastic laugh. “Sure thing. We’ve been friends for years, I know when you’re lying. You want to let me know how you’re really feeling?”

“Really, I’m great,” you eke out. “You’re being paranoid, Newt.”

“Am I?” He asks.

“No,” you admit. “I’m still miserable. My head is killing me, and I haven’t left my bed for more than a couple of minutes all day.”

Newt sighs. “That’s what I was worried about. Is there anything I can do? Maybe rally the group to swing by your house to cheer you up?”

“No, honestly. I don’t want to do anything. Hopefully I’ll get better soon, but until then, I don’t want any crowds around.” You tell him.

Newt pauses for a moment, thinking, then asks, “What about just one person?”

You frown. “Are you offering? I thought you were busy all day.”

“I am,” Newt clarifies, “But Thomas isn’t.”

You go silent. Newt, always the perceptive one, sighs again. “You haven’t told him that you’ve been feeling under the weather, have you?”

“No,” you admit, “but I didn’t want to bother him, that’s all. There’s nothing Thomas can do about this. I don’t want him to worry about something out of his control. He’s already got enough on his plate already, you know that as well as I do.”

Although this conversation is happening over the phone, you can picture Newt’s look of disappointed consternation anyway. “No, he would be furious with me if you were sick and I didn’t tell him. I’m letting him know immediately.”

“Newt, don’t you dare,” you admonish.

He just chuckles. “Too late. Texting him now. With any luck he’ll be over within the hour.”

“You’ve betrayed my trust. You’re a terrible friend,” you admonish him, but only half heartedly.

Newt laughs openly. “No, I’m a fantastic friend and you know it. Did I not use everything in me to get the two of you together?”

You giggle in spite of yourself. “You did indeed. I remember you bringing that up many times.”

“As I deserve,” Newt grumbles. “The two of you fought me all the way despite supposedly wanting this. He had better make you happy now, I’m not ruining all of my hard work for a bad cold.”

You smile. “Thanks, Newt. I’m very glad that you suffered so much for us.”

“You had better be,” he says, but he’s laughing when he hangs up.

Seconds later, you get a text from Thomas: On my way ASAP. Might be breaking the speed limit.

You grin and text him back. Don’t get pulled over.

Never, he answers, and he’s true to his word, a knock sounding on your front door about five minutes later. The rest of your family is out of the house, so you have no problems creeping down the hall to unlock the door and let him in.

Thomas swoops in immediately, pressing a kiss to the top of your head before pulling away so he can get a good look at you. “How are you feeling, Y/N? Dizzy? Feverish? You look alright, if a little tired, but let’s get you back in bed at once.”

You laugh. “I’m not dying of the plague, Thomas. I’ll survive standing up for a few more seconds.”

“Yeah, but you shouldn’t have to,” he says. Pausing briefly to leave his shoes at the door, Thomas proves his point by picking you up in bridal style and carrying you back to your room despite your protests, which are admittedly pretty halfhearted.

Once Thomas has gotten you back in bed again, found a glass somewhere to bring you water, insisted on watching you drink all of it, run back downstairs so he could fill it again, and returned, he perches on the side of your bed, gently squeezing your hand.

“Well, Doctor Thomas?” You ask teasingly. “What’s your diagnosis?”

He grins and plays along. “Not terrible. I recommend bed rest, and maybe also letting your boyfriend know when he needs to take care of you.”

This last bit is delivered with increasing passion, and you’re left sheepishly smiling at him. “Alright, maybe I should have told you in the first place, but I just didn’t want you to worry.”

“Worrying is my job,” Thomas says, “I am excellent at it. Also, if I think you’re not telling me when you need extra love, I’ll worry even more than usual. The only way to keep me from worrying is to let me know when you’re sick or hurt. Deal?”

“Deal,” you agree, and smile when he kisses your cheek.

“You should get some rest,” Thomas urges you. “Here, I’ll close the door so the noise from downstairs doesn’t bother you.”

He moves to stand, but you reach for his hand and he freezes at once. “Stay with me?” You ask hopefully.

“Of course,” he smiles, and, careful not to disturb you, climbs into bed next to you, lying down on top of your blankets to keep his street clothes off of the mattress. You curl into him, letting your eyes shut as the steady beat of his heart lulls you to sleep. Once you wake up, you’ll feel better, and be more open to conversation, but for now, both of you are quite content with the silence. Peace is good for both of you.

requested by @hope92100, i hope you enjoy!

maze runner tag list: @rogueanschel, @ellobruv, @retvenkos, @neewtmas, @mayfieldss, @hiya-itsamber, @gods-fools-heroes, @23victoria, @w1shes43, @imwaysthelastchoice, @fadedver

all tags list: @wordsarelife

[nomoreusername]

Maze Runner Boys School Stereotypes

The popular kid who doesn't realize it

People either love him or hate him

Lots of girls like him but he’s mostly oblivious to it

Asks a lot of questions in class

Gets super high grades

The bookworm

Can be found in the library a lot

Drops everything he’s doing if his friends need his help

Tutors people for cheap

Gets amazing grades

The jock

Runs track and field, is on swim time, and the reason the school’s always winning

Gets his license as soon as possible and drives a sports car

Thinks he’s good with girls but is actually mediocre and kind of tone deaf

Gets good grades with the motivation of sports

The scary kid in the back of the class

Doesn't talk much

Can be really nice if you're nice to him

Has been in some fights and almost always wins

Gets alright grades

The quiet kid

Talks his friends ears off though but they never mind

Sometimes gets skipped during role and has to remind the teacher that he exists

Could get away with skipping but doesn't

Gets great grades but doesn't gets recognized for it

The chatty kid

Gets in trouble for talking in class

Is seen as annoying by some and kind and helpful by others

Always does his best on everything and is trusted in group projects but can get sidetracked

Gets alright grades

[newtkive]

pixels [newt x reader - modern text au]

ch. 1 - the gc birth

in which two online friends navigate a romance through a minecraft groupchat with their stupid friends

or, newt, the quiet, stoic boy, and y/n, the bubbly girl both curse the world for keeping them apart, but at least they can send each other cute emojis and hope the other doesn't notice their blossoming feelings.

warnings: strong language, mutual pining, none really.

➥ m.list

__

notes: hi :p im very new to writing on tumblr (but ive always been a reader) so pls bare w me! and im trying to revert back to being 14 (im 23 lols..) so im revisiting my old favs including the maze runner/thomas (bc i binged the artful dodger and now im obsessed again). there will be non-text chapters in the future as well, when everyone eventually meets. this will be newt focused so enjoy !! also everyone is like a realistic age from 23 to 28

__

THE GLADE

[ 7:45 PM ]

alby added minho, y/n, newt, tommy, and gally

alby: Hello, guys.

minho: wtf is this

newt: uhhhh

tommy: hi :3

y/n: so this is why you asked me for my # in private

gally: i didn’t consent to this when i gave you my number

newt: don’t give strange men your number y/n

tommy: oh that’s y/n?

alby: Wait, Newt you had Y/N’s number already??

newt: yea

tommy: o.O

y/n: i gave it to him like two weeks after we met lmao

tommy: SO HE HAD YOUR NUMBER FOR A YEAR AND I DIDNT????

y/n: well he asked and you guys didn’t :p

newt: lmao

minho: ik he smug as fuck rn

not u asking for a girls number lmao simp

newt: stop

y/n: we all talk in discord anyways so i didn’t really think about it

plus you guys are friends irl so idk

it felt kinda weird to insert myself heh

minho: we’ve known you for a year and a half y/n

we play games all the time

call all the time

we even send packages and shit

you’re very much considered our irl friend

y/n: REALLY?? 🥺🥺

tommy: internet friends are real friends 😍❤️

minho: the heart eyes are crazy

but yes dude

newt: of course you’re our close friend. just cuz we live near each other and you’re a bit far away doesn’t mean we don’t adore you

minho: ADORE IS CRAZY LMFAO

but real ig

y/n: AWWWWW YOU GUYS LOVEEE MEEEEEE

hahahahha

HAHAHHAHJFIEKMGOR

I LVOE YOU GIYYYYSSSS IM PUTTING ALL OUR MINECRAFT BEDS TOGETHER LATER

gally: i do not want my bed to be infested by you guys

minho: gally sleeps in the corner

gally: no i dont i sleep in my mansion

y/n: cherry blossom mansion*

gally: and you sleep in a shed

y/n: cherry blossom shed* its pink and that matters.

tommy: love you y/n 😊🥰

y/n: love you tommy <3333

minho: that’s actually nasty stop now

y/n: u mad ur unloved

i love how the gc name is our minecraft town name :((

newt: aw it is

minho: can we talk about why tf this was made when we have a perfectly good discord

alby: I’m done with Discord.

newt: you got your shit hacked didn’t you mate

minho: mate 💀💀

british people so crazy

alby: Yes maybe..

I don’t want to make another.

y/n: or your old ass doesn’t know how to

minho: LMAO REAL

alby: Gonna ignore that. But I am getting too old for it. I have a new promotion at work so that means I won’t have time to play with you guys as much anymore. So I decided to make this groupchat in hopes to talk to you guys more to make up for it :)

minho: every group always has the old head with the job 💀💀

newt: minho admitting he’s jobless

minho: you work at a library be so fr rn

newt: i have an income. you have a room in your grandmas basement. we are not the same.

gally: LMFAOOOOOOO

minho: stfu :////

y/n: AWWWWWWW ALBYYYYYYY

tommy: YAAAY!!!!

im going to text you guys all day

tell you every meal

every thought

every interaction will be meaningful and glorious

newt: you are 24 years old you don’t have to do all that

minho: no fr im turning off my phone if he starts this shit

why not just do it before in the discord ??

tommy: easy access now and i tried before but stopped since no one really replied..

y/n: i say we all do it :D i will too tommy

newt: ok second thought that’s fine

minho: .

gally: that’s wild.

y/n: YAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!! NEWT YOU GO FIRST

newt: first with what

y/n: say what u ate today

newt: didn’t say i’d do it.

tommy: i ate muffin, monster energy drink, and hamburger :3333

you guys next

minho: that’s all you had bro..

y/n: hot cheetos and french fries and coffee :D

minho: ??????? BRO

how are you guys alive

y/n: it's my day off and no class so i just wanna rot in bed and that means no cooking

newt: please eat and drink water.

like for real and document it

y/n: ok wait

there

tommy: yum!

minho: y/n..

newt: cereal does not count

y/n: I DONT HAVE ENERGY TO MAKE ANYTHING OKAY

im a 23 year old broke college student my fridge is bare

newt: alright what do you want?

y/n: wym?

newt: like if you could pick.

minho: that’s so cruel 😭😭 just making her imagine it

i like it go on.

tommy: i want chick fil a

minho: i knew you hate the gays

tommy: I AM THE GAYS?????

y/n: ugh that does sound good

mmmm chickem sandiwh waffle fry I Want that Os mYch

newt: that’s what you would order?

y/n: mmmcm yeahshhhhh

newt: ok

minho: that’s it?

i thought soemthing would happen

tommy: me too

like a spell! magic 🪄

y/n: sigh

my cereal tastes bad now

newt: well it is cocoa puffs.

minho: L cereal

y/n: DTOP SAYING L ITS SO ANNOYITIGJNGGGGG

minho: she so madddd 😂😂 L

newt: you're annoying minho

minho: youre just saying that bc shes saying that

newt: no ive always said it. and i will continue to. youre fucking annoying

minho: who bought you your coffee yesterday

newt: ???

myself

and i paid for yours too

im the one with an income

minho: .

well i didnt think youd remember that well.

newt: it was literally yesterday.

minho: yeah but ur old

newt: IM THE SAME AGE AS YOU

minho: yeah but im 🤗✨ 26 ✨🤗and youre... 26😬😔

tommy: guys stop fighting

newt: we aren't fighting

maybe this gc was a bad idea

tommy: NO!!!!!!!!!

y/n: NOOOO!

tommy: this is like y/n is here w us irl

y/n: awwwwwwwwwwwwwww

minho: no it's not. we would smell a foul stench if she was

y/n: i ahte you sooo bad.

wait there is a knock at my door im scared

newt: answer it

minho: aren't you supposed to say don't open the door for strangers ????

newt: well usually yes

y/n: no im not expecting company

newt: just do it pls

y/n: ok :D

minho: bruh..

i hope she gets robbed and u feel bad forever newt

newt: why would you want that

minho: bc she owes me money

newt: YOU owe ME money

minho: yes but i have a good reason she just wanted robux

tommy: Y/N DONT DO IT!!! I HAVE SEEN DATELINE

y/n: :o....

tommy: Y/N?????????

OH GOD THEY GOT HER

minho: why would she text a silly face if she got got

tommy: clearly its a surprised face

maybe its not her

its like those cut out magazine letters murderers use

y/n: who got me chick fil a!!!!!!!!!!

minho: me

newt: you literally did not

minho: shut up

y/n: newt it was u i see ur name on the receipt

newt: well

y/n: :(

newt: what why are you sad?

minho: im hungry too

y/n: u spent ur money :(

newt: you're hungry are you not?

minho: she's not but i am

y/n: yeah but..

i feel bad you shouldn't have

newt: just eat it or i'll be mad

minho: i think i want red lobster

newt: it's really no big deal y/n

y/n: thank you newt :(((((

newt: you're welcome

go eat and watch ur show or smth

minho: i owuld love to eat and watch a show rn <33 ohhhh im starving

newt: can you shut up

gally: im muting this gc if this means i have to deal with your guys' shit more than usual now.

minho: thank god

newt: good

tommy: good

y/n: good

the food is good too <3

newt: good.

_

lmk if you want to be tagged!

[newtslvt]

I know the Gladers technically had Bark but in a modern AU what pets would each Glader have? And what would be their names?

[arcadian-litterateur]

sick of kissing you in my head (when can it be real instead?) | modern au!gally x fem!reader

𝖒𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙

summary: your boyfriend, gally, is across the country, and despite the struggles a long distance relationship can bring, your love is strong enough to carry you through the long distance season of your relationship. but spending your birthday without him is different than spending normal days separated, and you know deep down that nothing will make you happy on your birthday when he’s all you need.

word count: 8k holy—i really didn’t even realize how long this was till i checked the wc omg

warnings: emotional meltdown, mention of anxiety and anxiety meds, brief mention of panic attacks

a/n: hey guys! i love love love the song this is based off of: all i need (the distance song) by avery lynch. it's such a good song. this was supposed to just be fluff about visiting your bf gally, and then it turned into a whole thing lol. so yeah, i hope you guys enjoy this long ass one shot. i really really enjoyed writing it.

“𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘧 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦. 𝘪𝘧 𝘪 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪’𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥. 𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘪 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥.”

𝗥𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥 onto my side, legs brushing against my sheets, I smile at the FaceTime call on my phone, but it's bittersweet. On the other end of the video call sits my boyfriend, the soft smile on his face mirroring my own. From where he sits, I can see the San Francisco skyline out his hotel window, highlighted by the rising sun.

“I miss you,” I mumble, studying the lines and contours of his face and wondering if they've changed since the last time I saw him in person. If I've missed any change; any detail while we've been separated. If anything has changed or tipped the balance since we've been apart. 

I'm not insecure in my relationship with Gally, but be long distance for enough time and everyone gets in their head about it. Catches themselves wondering; doubting.

“I miss you more every time we have to part,” I add, watching the bitter take over the sweet in my boyfriend's eyes for a few seconds before he replies.

“I know, baby, I know.” His gaze wanders into the space between the atoms, his mind leaping forward into the future as he assures both me and himself, “Once my contract with WCKD Enterprises is up, I'll be able to move back to Denver. We'll be back in the same city.”

My smile is tired, only half there, and Gally knows it. It's been months since I've held him in my arms. This long distance routine is wearing us both out. We're both running out of steam—not for each other; not for our relationship, but for the complexity that being long distance has brought to our relationship. Conflicting schedules, spotty internet, the deprivation of physical contact with the person we crave it from the most…it's all beginning to pile up, and we both know it.

In an attempt to change the subject, I ask, “When is your flight back to Chicago again?” I already know, but I'm not sure what else to say, and besides, it's always good to check.

“Your birthday,” comes the cheeky reply, my eyes rolling of their own accord as I secretly admire the handsome grin on my boyfriend's face. But all too soon, his grin fades.

“I'm sorry I can't be there for your birthday,” he says gently. I wave him off, assuring him that I'll be just fine.

“Bren, Tes, and Sony are planning something. Won't tell me what, though.” I sigh before admitting, “It won't be the same without you. But your work's important.” Gally smiles gratefully, but there's cracks in the smile, and my stomach sinks. Guilt over my last comment settles in my digestive tract. “Sorry,” I mumble.

“No, no, don't apologize,’’ Gally says quickly. “You're allowed to be sad that I can't be there.” His amiable grin morphs into a scowl, “Tried to get Janson to give me the time off, I really did. But that rat wouldn't do it.” I give Gally what I hope is a reassuring smile.

“It's okay, babe.” We fall into silence, not necessarily comfortable, but not bad either, before Gally interjects,

“It'll be nice to be in my own apartment, though. I'm getting sick of all these Californian hotels. I'll be glad to be home, smog and noisy L-trains galore.” I chuckle, knowing that Gally loves Chicago because of its quirks, not in spite of them.

Still, Denver has always been home to me. But Gally and I've decided to cross that bridge when we get to it. We've got enough to think about as it is.

I'm trying to come up with another conversation topic, since I don't have work until later today, but unfortunately, Gally isn't so lucky. It’s the perks of working from home as a crisis hotline counselor, I guess. The hours aren’t as demanding, since the work itself is.

“Shoot, I have to go,” he hisses. “I'm sorry, princess. I'll call you tonight?” I nod, forcing myself to look forward to tonight's call, rather than be sad that this one is ending. “Alright, good that,” Gally grins. “I love you, babe!”

“I love you, Gal,” I smile and wave goodbye. The half-baked grin melts right off my face once he's hung up. Gosh, I miss him so much. 

There's only so much comfort a video call can give.

Teresa calls me soon after Gally hangs up, blabbering on and on about a date she'd had with some guy named Ben, but I can't focus on her stories like I normally would. Usually, I'm all in to hear my friend's tales, but my mind is still fixated on the miles separating Gally and I. Something in me wonders how much longer we'll be able to go without holding each other. How much longer we can stand to be separated.

When we first started dating, I could have gone months, as long as we were still interacting. But as my love for Gally increased, the length of time I could stand to be without him decreased. 

I'm fully, unashamedly in love with Gally now, and part of me wonders what I would do to be living in the same place as him. To be in his arms for good. The easy answer—the most raw answer—is anything. I'd do anything for him.

“(Y/N)?” Teresa's voice brings me out of my thoughts, her suspicious tone confirming that she's noticed my lack of focus today. “You weren't listening, were you?” To an outsider, her tone might sound harsh; reproachful, even, but I know her too well. She's not mad. Just annoyed she'll have to repeat her story if she wants me to hear it.

“I'm sorry,” I mumble, and it's sincere. I am sorry that I lost focus. But I don't apologize for pining after my faraway boyfriend. There's no reason to, for one, and two, I won't ever apologize for thinking of him. For missing him. 

Teresa is grinning at my distracted tone, I can tell. Even through the phone, I can tell. “You're good. Dreaming about your bae, aren't you?” 

I don't hesitate to admit, “Yes. I miss him more than I thought was even possible.” I hear Teresa's hum from the other end of the phone.

“You need to see him,” she declares. I scoff.

“Believe me, I know, and we're trying to figure out when he can next visit, but we're both just so busy.” Teresa clucks her tongue, the sound distorting oddly through the phone speaker. I imagine it running across the telephone poles, through the wires, twisting and bending and knotting out of shape as it flies all the way to me.

“I didn't mean like that, (Y/N). You need to go see him.” I chuckle, I wish I could.

“He's busy, Tes. Besides, he isn't even in Chicago right now,” I reason. This doesn't deter her.

“Well, when will he next be in Chicago?”

“His flight's on my birthday.” 

“That's perfect!” Teresa squeals. 

“How is that perfect?” I huff.

“You can fly out and spend your birthday with him! Surprise him!” 

I actually laugh at this. “Um, no, I can't. I don't have the kind of money to just throw down for plane tickets. Besides, weren't you, Brenda, and Sonya planning something?” 

“Well, yeah, but we could always change plans if we needed to,” Teresa says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. On any other day, I would entertain this kind of silly daydreaming, but today, I already felt lonely enough.

“Sorry, Tes. Those spontaneous decisions are not my cup of tea,” I sigh, and I think she can tell I'm shutting the conversation down. She lets it go, and I thank her silently, forcing the ache in my heart left by Gally's absence to venture to the back of my mind. If I waste the day away, it'll be evening again, and then he'll call, just like he said. 

And so despite the fact that I know wasting the days away is bad for me, I do it anyway. Just today, I tell myself. Just today.

Of course, I know I'll do it again tomorrow, and the next day, and all the hours in between my calls with Gally. It's ridiculous, how they all say having space helps one think clearer, when having space just distracts me by making me miss him that much more.

When he's gone, I'm reminded that much more that he's all I need.

_______________________________

𝗜𝗧’𝗦 𝗦𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗡 p.m. by the time Gally calls, his eyes lighting up when he sees me despite the exhausted, burnt out look on his face. I'm equally as ecstatic as he is to revel in the gaze of my lover, both of us simply brushing every inch of each other's faces with our eyes, memorizing each other for the millionth time. It won't be the last time, either. I could never get tired of scanning my gaze across his skin, memorizing every inch of his beautiful face. 

In our current situation, it's the closest I can get to kissing every inch of his beautiful face.

Gally is the first to break the silence, and I'm okay with it. He's the one who's had a long day. He knows what he needs to talk or not talk about. I just love hearing his voice. 

“How was your day, baby?” he asks, a tired sort of happiness seeping into his voice. Like I'm giving him some kind of rest just by smiling at him.

“It was good. Uneventful.” I shrug, knowing that I'd barely moved from the chair I occupied now. “The real question is, how was your day, my love?” 

Gally grins at the pet name. He always does. It's the same reaction that I have whenever he uses terms of endearment on me. It's our own personal love language of sorts. How many different ways can I call you mine?

“My day was okay,” Gally says quietly, sighing when he sees the look on my face. The one that tells him to lay it on me; rant if it'll make him sleep better tonight. “Well, it was…mediocre,” he amends, running a hand through his short hair. “Tim was being an ass. As always.” I nod sympathetically, understanding the deep hatred he harbors for his coworker.

Why Gally doesn't like Tim, I'm not exactly sure, but I know it has something to do with taking credit for a project that Gally did all the work on. It resulted in a harsh lecture from their boss for Gally, who was presumed to have slacked off, and a promotion for Tim. 

Anyone who knows Gally knows that he would never slack off. He takes duty and work seriously; more seriously than anyone else I've met, in fact. I know my boy. He wouldn't hurt his company's productivity, even if his boss is an asshole like Janson.

“I'm sorry Tim was giving you trouble, baby,” I croon, watching the aches and tension of the day seeping out of his stiff shoulders at the sound of my voice. His smile weaves its way back onto his face. It's a soft, vulnerable smile, the one that makes me want to take him in my arms and just hold him like the precious treasure he is.

“I wish I could hug you,” Gally groans, rubbing his chin with his fingers before trying to regain his composure. “Sorry…I don't mean to bring everything up again. I just…I just miss you.” My comforting smile wobbles, knowing that those same thoughts are eating away at me inside, but I bring the happy thoughts back to the surface and my grin rights itself.

“Soon, love, soon,” I murmur, knowing I can't truly promise anything with how busy our lives have become. But soon doesn't have a time slot or expiration date. I can promise soon and define it later. All I know is that it brings a smile to my boy's face, and that's what I need right now. 

We spend the rest of the night talking, lifted by the promise of Soon, love, soon, knowing that it could very well mean a long, long time. 

_______________________________

𝗦𝗨𝗡𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗠𝗦 in my bedroom window, blinding me when my eyes flicker open. But once I blink away the black spots in my vision, I see that the sunlight isn't the only reason I was pulled from the comforting arms of sleep. 

Brenda, Teresa, and Sonya are standing at my bedside, my sheets in a bunched up ball in Sonya's hands. I groan, trying to roll away, but Bren, ever the fearless one, grabs my shoulder and pulls me back to face them.

“Get up, (Y/N). No spending the day moping,” she orders. I heave out an exaggerated sigh, making my body intentionally limp as Brenda and Teresa each grab one of my arms, pulling me upright until I have to support my own weight. 

“Sometimes I really regret giving you guys my apartment passcode,” I comment, leading Sonya to pinch my arm. I yelp, rubbing the red mark as I get manhandled out of my pajamas and into a new outfit by my best friends. “What—what are you crazies doing?” I splutter, quickly taking the pair of jeans from Teresa's hands before she can try to shove them on my legs, opting to put them on myself. 

“We aren't letting you mope around until Gally visits. Who knows how long that would be? It's not healthy,” Sonya explains, linking an arm through mine as the three girls drag me to the bathroom. Brenda shoves my toothpaste-loaded toothbrush into my hand as Tes starts pulling my hair brush through my hair.

“Ow,” I complain around a mouthful of toothpaste suds, pulling away from Teresa's assault on my tender scalp momentarily to spit. She and Sonya make quick work of my slightly frizzy hair, tag teaming it to create a fun yet elegant braid. 

“Beautiful,” Sonya sighs, leaning back to admire her handiwork. Brenda, on the other hand, seems to have some kind of mental checklist, full of all the tasks she must see me complete.

“Breakfast is next,” she commands, and I find myself being pulled into my kitchen, watching helplessly as my friends dive into making us a scrumptious, sugary feast.

I have to admit, the fluffy blueberry pancakes filling my stomach certainly make venturing out into the world much easier than I expected. I only feel the need to text Gally three times before leaving my apartment with my friends, rather than the usual five to ten. Whether these texts are to let him know I'm fine or to make sure he's fine, I've never been able to figure out. Maybe they're both. Either way, it's a good thing Brenda shoved my meds into my hand before breakfast. 

When I'm here alone, I don't take them. Sometimes I skip them on purpose, sometimes I just forget. But either way, I don't take my anxiety meds unless Brenda is there to shove them down my throat. Thinking about it, I'm grateful she's here to force me to take them today. With all of these mixed up feelings about being separated from Gally for so long, having more control over my anxiety will be good.

A day shopping with my best friends is a good distraction from the painful loneliness I've been feeling without Gally. It's not exactly a cure, but it's close. My friends know this; know their own limitations, and so they do the best they can.

And I'm so grateful that they've put in the time. Put in the effort. All for me.

“Thank you,” I whisper to them as we sit in our favorite coffee shop, sipping oat milk lattes. 

“Of course,” Brenda immediately responds.

“We love you,” Sonya adds.

“We know we aren't your boy,” Teresa chimes in, “but we're your best friends, and that means we stick by you. No matter what.” She leans over to rub my arm. “When you're down, I'm down. We wanted to help pick you back up.”

The smile on my face is genuine for the first time in a long time, knowing that my friends love me enough to support me despite having the knowledge that they can't give me everything I need. They give what they can, and accept me when it doesn't fix everything.

I haven't always had friends this good, and I look up at the sky, thanking the heavens that I've been blessed with such good friends now.

_______________________________

𝗧𝗪𝗢 𝗗𝗔𝗬𝗦 before my birthday, I can’t get Teresa’s half-joking, hare-brained idea out of my head. Realistically, I know that the likelihood that I could find a flight on my birthday to Chicago that isn’t full (or way too expensive) is slim. Realistically, I know that I don’t have the money for plane tickets right now. Realistically, I know that flying halfway across the country on a whim to see my boyfriend is ridiculous. 

But when Gally sends me his flight information, knowing I like to watch his progress and get confirmation when he lands safely, I find myself checking flights from Denver to Chicago, telling myself it’s just out of curiosity. Because what if there is a flight to Denver from Chicago on my birthday? What if there is a possibility that I could see Gally on my birthday? What if there is a chance that I could have this gift; the only one I truly want?

If there’s even a chance to see Gally on my birthday, I want to know. 

Gally’s flight information is pulled up on my phone, which is next to me on my desk as I scroll through flights on my laptop. My right thumbnail is between my teeth, bitten down to the quick and then some. It seems that flying is a popular travel option right now, as flights are filled even into places like Dawson County, Montana. Every flight I find from Denver to Chicago is either full or too expensive for someone just out of college, like me. The cheapest is $374, and I know rationally that blowing through that much money would be devastating for my finances. 

I swear under my breath, angry at myself for even getting my hopes up. It was a stupid idea to check the flights, and I find myself wishing I could go back in time to stop myself from looking. The disappointment grows even larger knowing that there would be a way to get to him if I wasn’t a broke post-college student making minimum wage in the Mile-High City. Then the disappointment and anger melt away, leaving me with a heart wrenching sadness that feels so empty and yet so all-consuming that I can’t help but break down into tears.

I don’t want to let myself cry about a silly daydream that was unlikely to happen anyway, but I’d let myself entertain the thought of seeing Gally soon; of holding him close and kissing him until we couldn’t breathe, and now everything else seemed pale in comparison. It wasn’t that my life had no purpose outside of him—I’d made it very clear when we started dating that the two of us needed to make sure we had lives outside of our relationship, too. But Gally had become a part of me; my favorite part of me, in fact. I was perfectly happy with the life I had, but Gally made it even sweeter. And knowing that sweetness was mine but was inaccessible made the absence of it even more palpable. Even more unbearable.

Crumpled into a heap on my floor with tears slowly leaking from my eyes is how Teresa finds me when she opens my door fifteen minutes later. “Hey, girl—” she calls before seeing me, rushing to my side with a worried, “Oh, my gosh, what’s wrong, (Y/N)?” I just shake my head, the waterworks turning back up to full blast.

“I miss him so much,” I sob as she gathers me in her arms, unable to care that I sound pathetic. 

“Oh, I know, darling, I know,” Teresa coos, rocking back and forth with my shaking body, whispering comforting words into my ears just like she always does when I get so worked up. My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath, hand flying up to wipe the snot from my nose, but of course, the minute it’s gone, more replaces it. I’m past the point of an easy calm-down, instead finding myself close to the edge of hyperventilating. Thankfully, Teresa isn’t a stranger to my emotional meltdowns, and she isn’t afraid of them, either. Instead, she’s the kind of friend who will take my hand and guide me through it.

“Did you take your meds this morning?” she asks cautiously, to which I shake my head in embarrassment. Tears are still pooling in the corners of my eyes as I manage to get out,

“I’m sorry.” 

Teresa just shushes me calmly. “Don’t apologize. It’s in the past now. I just wanted to know.” I nod shakily, the soothing pressure of her hand rubbing my arm helping me steady my breaths slightly. “What set you off?” she queries, squeezing me a bit tighter when the tears speed up again.

“I—I decided to check the flights for my birthday,” I answer, sniffling as my best friend strokes my hair lovingly. “It was stupid, because it just made me upset. They’re all too expensive, and I knew they would be, and it just made me miss him so much more.” Admitting it out loud makes me feel even dumber, the guilt creeping into my stomach. “I did this to myself,” I mumble. Subconsciously, my nails find their way to my arms, digging into the delicate skin and leaving pink crescents behind. Teresa pulls my hands away from my arms quickly.

“Stop blaming yourself. You did nothing wrong. I would’ve done the same, (Y/N).” I know she’s trying to comfort me, but I just squeeze my eyes shut.

“Yeah, and it wouldn’t have caused you to end up on the floor like a pathetic child.”

“(Y/N)! Stop!” Teresa scolds me. “Stop with the negative self-talk.” I try to protest, but she fixes me with that no-nonsense look that can get anyone to agree to anything, and I find myself nodding meekly. “None of this is your fault. You’re in a difficult situation, being separated from your boyfriend, and your heart isn’t sure how to handle it. That’s okay. You don’t have to know how to handle it perfectly yet.” I sigh, leaning into my best friend’s shoulder, feeling slightly calmer now. She always knows the right words to say when I’m in too deep to think straight. 

Teresa coaxes me into the kitchen to drink hot chocolate once my breathing has steadied somewhat. She’s looking at me with an odd look that I can’t quite place, as if she’s…proud of me?

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I ask warily over the top of my steaming mug. My best friend grins, staring at me for a couple more seconds before replying,

“You’re just, like, the strongest person I know.” My face turns what I assume is beet red at the compliment, not expecting such high praise from the woman who just held me in her arms as I sobbed like a baby. But then again, Teresa is special. She doesn’t judge based on outward appearances or impressions. She can see right into the heart of people, as if she can sense their goodness; their potential, and then she nudges them down that path. Helping them choose the sunshine. The good side. The light.

Knowing her compliment is slightly overwhelming, Teresa shrugs and changes the subject so fast I think I get whiplash. “You should call Gally,” she suggests. “Tell him that you were missing him and ask him for some love.” I cringe, turning away from her.

“I don’t want to make him feel bad that he isn’t here. I think I’ve already done that too much this week.” 

Teresa scoffs, “That’s nonsense. He’ll be happy that you reached out to him after your meltdown. He’ll be touched that you wanted to let him know how you’re doing. He’ll feel honored that you’re willing to be vulnerable with him.” I know deep down that she’s right; that the only thing he’d do is make me feel better. Never after calling Gally do I feel worse. I know I’m just scared to hurt him, but he always assures me that I don’t need to harbor that fear. I don’t need to hold onto that anxious voice in my head that whispers, You don’t deserve him.

I can even imagine him next to me if I try hard enough, murmuring, “You’re perfect, baby,” when I grow insecure. Whispering, “I’m so lucky to have you” in my ear when I doubt myself.

“Okay,” I agree, letting Teresa take my phone and FaceTime him. Despite the fact that it’s the middle of the work day, Gally picks up on the first ring, a concerned look decorating his handsome face.

“Teresa? Wha—” 

“She’s fine!” Teresa rushes to assure him, motioning for me to join her on the couch. I pop my head into the frame, wincing as I see how swollen and puffy my face is. Gally’s forehead immediately creases upon seeing me, obviously still worried when he sees the tear stains on my cheeks.

“Babe, are you okay?” he asks. Teresa silently asks if I want to take the phone, but I shake my head. My hands are still slightly shaky, and holding the phone is an added stressor. Teresa understands and angles the phone towards me.

“Yeah, I’m okay, don’t worry,” I whisper, my boyfriend’s shoulders relaxing only slightly. “I just had a bit of a meltdown. Teresa found me and helped me calm down.” Gally’s eyebrows soften, his mouth tilting down in a sympathetic frown.

“Oh, baby, I’m sorry,” he murmurs. “What happened?”

“I just miss you,” I mumble sheepishly after a second’s pause. It seems kind of silly once I admit it out loud, and I start to duck my face away when Gally gets my attention.

“Hey, (Y/N), (Y/N),” he says, waiting until I’ve turned back to him before continuing, “You don’t need to feel embarrassed. I miss you, too, okay? I miss you so much. You don’t need to feel ashamed for struggling.” He waits for me to respond, and I nod slightly. Truth be told, just hearing his voice has made me feel better; stronger. There’s something about his comforting, strong tone that soothes me. Just his voice can make me truly believe in myself. I swear, this man could make me believe anything as long as he says it aloud. 

“Thank you for picking up,” I smile, finding my mood lightening as a grin finds its way back onto his face. “Seeing you helped.” Gally blushes slightly, rubbing a hand along his chin.

“I’m glad I could help, baby.” Offscreen, someone gruffly commands him to get back to work, and he mutters an apology before turning back to the screen. “I’m sorry, but I have to go. But call me if you need anything, okay?” I nod, trailing my eyes over his freckles one more time as he thanks Teresa for taking care of me and then hangs up.

“It helped?” she asks, as if double-checking to make sure I truly am feeling better.

“Yeah,” I grin sheepishly. “You know what you’re talking about.” With a roll of my eyes, I joke, “You should be a counselor for a living. At this rate, you’re better than me at my own job!” Teresa just laughs.

“Well, now that you’ve cracked a joke, I know you’re feeling better.” She pulls me into a hug, and I gladly return it, silently wondering how I got blessed with such an amazing best friend.

“Hey, I’m here for you,” she reminds me one more time as she leaves, her meticulous check-ins a promise for the next few days.

“I know,” I assure her. “I promise I’ll call if I need to.”

“Good,” she says, smiling as she waves. “I love you, babes!” 

“I love you, too, Tes!” Feeling a bit lighter, I wave back as I close my front door.

_______________________________

“𝗜 𝗖𝗔𝗡’𝗧—I can’t take this,” I stutter the next day, wide-eyed at the wad of cash Teresa is currently shoving into my hands. Brenda and Sonya are flanking her on either side with looks that imply they’re attempting to telepathically convince me to take the money. 

“Don’t be sorry!” Brenda sighs. “Just take the money! It’s our birthday present for you!” I look back and forth between my three best friends, realizing that there is no way they’re letting me reject the money. But it feels so weird having this many fifties weighing heavily in my grasp. 

“Yes, you can,” Teresa sighs exasperatedly. “Like I already told you, it’s the money we were going to spend on your celebration pooled together. But we all know you’d rather spend your birthday with Gally, and we want you to be able to, so we’re giving you the money for that plane ticket you couldn’t afford. It would be a waste to throw you a party you don’t want to be at. Helping you see your boyfriend is a much better use of that money. We all agreed.” Brenda and Sonya both nod, Teresa shoving the cash even further into my palms. I take it shakily, counting silently as I gape at them.

“But—but this is nine hundred bucks! I can’t—I can’t take this, I’m sorry!” 

“Please take it,” Sonya says softly, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. “We want you to be able to go see Gally. We want you to enjoy this birthday. You’ll be giving a gift to us by making this impulsive choice to do what makes you happy.” My resistance gets melted away by her words, knowing that this was their tactic all along. Get (Y/N) all toughened up to the ‘just take it’ ruse and then let Sonya slip under her defenses when she least expects it. But I’m not annoyed by it. Instead, I let Teresa close my fist over the cash.

Immediately, the three start cheering, but before I can even blink, they’ve moved on from celebrating and are pushing me towards my laptop where, just as I’m sure Teresa suspected, the flights from Denver to Chicago are still pulled up. Teresa obviously asked Gally to share his flight information with her, because she seems to have it memorized as she scans the flights. 

“Alright, here’s the best one,” she announces after a few minutes of looking. “United, nonstop, leaving at 9:30 a.m. MT and arriving at 12:56 p.m. CT. It’s in the same terminal as Gally’s flight, and he lands at 2:23 p.m. CT, so that gives you a little over an hour to get to his gate and wait for him. Sounds good?” I nod wordlessly, still slightly in shock over the way my best friends have handled this so nonchalantly, as if their friend flying across the country on a day’s notice is just a normal part of their lives. 

Sonya pulls me towards my room as Brenda takes the stack of cash back from me, mumbling that Teresa insisted they have it for show but was just planning on Venmoing the cash to me. I laugh at our friend’s antics before following an impatient Sonya, who grabs my suitcase from my closet and starts making a list of what I should pack.

“We’re not buying you a return flight,” she explains, “because we didn’t know how long you’d want to stay, and we figured you didn’t know either. Just bring your work stuff and you can work from Gally’s apartment, and use the rest of the money to buy a return ticket when you decide to come back.” I shake my head in awe at the schemes of my friends, who have obviously thought of every single anxiety I could have because of this plan and have set out to refute them. 

With Sonya helping me pack, a task that would usually take me at least three hours, two cups of coffee, and a panic attack is done in under one hour, no coffee or panic attacks in sight. While I wouldn’t have minded the coffee, the no panic attack part is nice, and I decide I can live without those two cups of coffee if it means my peace of mind is intact. 

And the next morning when Teresa drops me off at the airport, my medicine taken and an ample breakfast eaten, the nervous butterflies in my stomach don’t feel scary. In fact, they feel almost…exciting. And I feel crazy for doing this; for flying halfway across the country to surprise my boyfriend so I can kiss him on my birthday, but I also feel so alive.

And today, the idea of living doesn’t seem as scary anymore.

_______________________________

𝗔𝗦 𝗜 wait at my gate and sip my Starbucks latte, I answer the countless birthday texts I have already received, smiling at the overflow of love from people I talk to everyday and people I barely even know. It’s funny, knowing that there are people out there who remember my birthday but don’t talk to me otherwise. Some might feel disheartened at the idea, but I just giggle quietly to myself, wondering if I’m going crazy for feeling so lighthearted. 

Maybe it’s the adrenaline, I think to myself. The adrenaline from doing something so stupid and yet so exciting. Shrugging to myself, I take another large gulp of coffee, finally getting to the text from Gally. I saved it for last, knowing it would be the best one. And sure enough, as I read the message, I feel happy tears pricking my eyes. As always, he’s sweet; sappy, even, but his message also holds the serious intensity that he always has around him. It’s like an aura, telling those around him that he does everything fully and completely, never giving only half of his effort. That intensity is probably why I love reading texts from him over and over. Even if it’s a simple good morning, his texts always seem to scream I love you from between the lines.

I text Gally back, thanking him for the love he’s sent zipping along telephone lines, across the country and all the way to me. I suck the last dregs of liquid from my Starbucks cup, finally accepting that the beverage is gone as the gate attendant calls for Boarding Group 1. I find myself bouncing from foot to foot, realizing once again that I’m really doing this. I can’t bring myself to sit down as I wait for my group to be called, instead standing by the gate’s charging station, fidgeting like I’m about to run the 100 meter dash. By the time I’m boarding, I’m breathing heavily like I just sprinted up Pikes Peak. Whether from nerves or excitement, I can’t really tell, but it’s enough that the flight attendant touches my arm as she checks the cabin. 

“Ma’am, are you okay?” I look up in surprise before giving her a quick grin. 

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just nervous.” 

She smiles empathetically. “Is it your first time flying?”

“No. I’m flying out to surprise my boyfriend, and I guess I’m just hoping it all works out like I planned,” I explain. 

At this, I receive an even bigger grin from the flight attendant, who thinks that is just—“the most adorable thing ever!” I nod along, unsure whether I’m actually smiling or just masking my anxiety. Either one is a plausible explanation, and I’m pumped so full of adrenaline that all of my emotions currently feel interchangeable. 

I spend the entirety of take-off nervously fiddling with the little screen in front of me, trying to distract myself. Once we’re at a constant altitude, the flight attendants offer drinks, and I ask for a ginger ale, my go-to drink on airplanes. It calms me down, the comforting security of it helping me stay rational. Unfortunately, the ginger ale combined with my anxious thoughts cause my bladder to reach its limit quite quickly. 

I hate the little bathrooms on airplanes. So loud, so claustrophobic, so turbulent. It’s like trying to pee while in the middle of an earthquake. But my bladder isn’t playing games today, and the last thing I want to do is ignore it and then pee myself. The intrusive thoughts fight to take over as I rush through the motions, washing my hands as quickly as possible, but I stave them off and make it back to my seat in one piece.

The remaining hour until landing is the longest hour of my life.

When we finally touch down and taxi to our gate, all of the tension that has built up inside me feels ready to explode, but I hold it in, knowing that I can let it all out once I see Gally. It’s barely even occurred to me that I’m a year older now—that it’s my birthday—because all I can think about is getting to hold my boy. 

I almost trip getting off the plane, too busy checking his flight’s progress and landing gate. His flight is still an hour and thirty minutes out, giving me more than enough time to go to the bathroom, get some food, and wait for him. I pull my suitcase behind me, so glad I decided to take everything in my carry-on, as I’m now realizing that baggage claim is outside the secure area of the airport. I break free from the flow of traffic heading in that direction, redirecting towards the bathroom.

One bathroom trip, makeup refresher, and food court scavenger hunt later, I’m standing against a column at Gally’s gate, drinking my second Starbucks latte of the day. Normally, I wouldn’t let myself indulge like this, but it’s my birthday, so I feel justified. I even treat myself to a slice of sweet bread, too. I’m too anxious to eat a full lunch. Besides, I’m sure Gally will be happy to get lunch on our way back to his apartment. He’s always willing to eat, no matter the time of day.

I’m trying my best not to look suspicious. There’s a flight leaving from this gate after Gally’s flight arrives, so I blend in, but my leg is bouncing nervously and my hands are shaking slightly. I’m a naturally energetic person, but the fidgeting increases exponentially when I’m either excited or nervous. Right now, I’m both.

Thankfully, no one seems to notice me or think I’m behaving weirdly. I’m simply overthinking, like I often do. At least it passes the time. I only have thirty minutes left to wait.

I run back to Starbucks and buy another latte. It’s gone within ten minutes, my anxious energy prompting me to gulp it down like I’m dying of thirst. Then I’m running to the bathroom again, bladder shouting angrily at me for the caffeine abuse I’ve been subjecting it to. It’s unpleasant, but it kills more time. 

Ten minutes to go. I’m staring at my phone, Gally’s flight details pulled up, reloading the page over and over in hopes that magically, they’ll teleport and be here instantly. With anyone else, I wouldn’t be this obsessive; impatient, but it’s Gally. I could obsess over Gally for days on end with all the love overflowing from my heart. So I pass three minutes refreshing the page persistently, watching the minutes countdown.

I let out a quiet, barely there gasp when my phone screen tells me he’s landed. I can barely contain my excitement, nervous energy causing me to wiggle my hips like a rhythmically challenged dancer. His plane is on the ground, taxiing over, right to where I’m waiting. He’s going to walk through that gate, and I’m going to see his beautiful face, and I’m going to run and jump into my boyfriend’s arms.

All of a sudden, doubt crashes into me like a fucking tidal wave. What if he doesn’t want to see me? What if this is weird, and he’s going to be all awkward about it? What if this was one huge fuck-up? I can feel myself starting to spiral, starting to lose touch with the confidence I’ve been channeling all day. The panic has started to grow, and it surges through my veins, reaching to the tip-top of the cliff that is followed by a plunge off the deep end. Thankfully, though, with only a few minutes to spare before my boyfriend gets off his plane, a little girl in a princess dress bumps into me, hard, causing my knees to buckle and my head to snap out of the spiral it’s in. 

I catch myself against the trusty column I’m leaning against, looking down to find a young girl, maybe six, wearing an Elena of Avalor dress-up costume with a stuffed animal that looks like some kind of leopard with bird wings. 

“Amity!” her mother scolds her, ordering her to apologize for bumping into me. Amity looks up at me with big, brown doe eyes and a huge, genuine grin.

“I’m sorry, Ma’am,” she chirps. I smile back, making eye contact with her mom, before crouching down to her level and holding out a hand to shake.

“I forgive you. I’m (Y/N). Want to know something?” Amity shakes my hand, grinning widely, before looking at her mom as if to make sure it’s okay to talk to me. Her mom gives a gentle nod, a kindness in her eyes as they meet mine. “Well, Amity, you actually helped me just now. I was feeling super duper nervous and it was making me get shaky and worried. But then you bumped into me, and I saw your smile, and it made me feel a lot better!” 

I can tell Amity’s mother is touched, and I make sure to assure her that I’m doing better. That Amity’s little scuffle with my legs was truly helpful. And then Amity and her mom are on their way, Amity’s tight hug and whisper of “You look like a princess” giving me the last boost of confidence I need.

Right as I finish waving goodbye to the adorable little girl, I hear the sounds of passengers starting to come down the jetway. I suck in a sharp breath, making sure my small suitcase and jacket are safe by the column before stepping closer to the junction between gate and jetway, watching passengers closely as they start to trickle into the airport. 

It’s no surprise that I can pick Gally out of the crowd immediately after he walks out of the jetway, his head easily peeking over every other passenger. He doesn’t see me at first, focused on trying not to trample the small toddler whose family is trying desperately to get him to behave as they walk in front of my boyfriend.

I wait until he’s right there, just the toddler’s family in front of him, to call his name. “Gally!” His head snaps up, eyes scanning the surrounding area before settling on me, his jaw going slack, falling open in surprise as the toddler’s family quickly moves out of the way. 

It’s like we’re living in slow motion, the way I watch Gally’s backpack slide out of his hand and hit the floor with a thump, his look of shock morphing into a state of joyous disbelief, as if he’s not sure he’s truly seeing me. He looks frozen in this state, unable to move towards me, but I don’t care. I’m already running up to him, happy tears gathering in my eyes as I jump into Gally’s arms, my head burying itself in his neck before I lean up to kiss him with all the pent-up love, tension, and nerves that have been coursing through my body all day.

His lips are warm just like they always are, soft and full and inviting as we kiss passionately; shamelessly, right in front of everyone waiting to board their flight. I can’t bring myself to care, anxiety nowhere to be found now that I’m here. In his arms. Held tightly, kept safe, flooded with warmth, just like I’m supposed to be. 

He pulls away first, still in shock as he scans my face, as if expecting to find some imperfection that reveals me as a doppelganger. “Baby—” he chokes out, tears brimming at the corners of his eyes, my own tears rolling down my cheeks. “Baby, you’re here.” He lets out a giddy, confused laugh, cupping my cheek with his hand as he wipes the remnant saltwater away with his thumb. 

“You’re—you’re here. In Chicago,” he repeats, putting my feet back on the floor so I can stand there with my arms around his neck, his other hand coming up to cup my other cheek. “You’re—it’s your birthday!” he says, and I can’t tell if it’s another reason he’s confused I’m here, or if it’s just an observation. Well, probably both, so I just giggle.

“Yes, Gally, it’s my birthday.” 

“But—did you—when did you get here?” he asked, bewildered, a lovestruck, excited smile lighting up his whole face. I run my hands through his hair, admiring his gentleness as he cradles my face in his palms.

“An hour and a half ago, I think. I’m not sure the exact timing,” I shrug. He gasps.

“You flew on your birthday?” I give him an odd look. 

“Yes…why? Is that illegal or something?” Gally chuckles through the joy-filled tears still drifting down his face every once in a while.

“No, baby. I just thought—most people wouldn’t be willing to fly or even be at an airport on their birthdays. Don’t you have cool stuff to do? Fun people to see?” I shake my head, pulling him as close as I can, our lips hovering inches apart. 

“You’re the only person I wanted to see. This is my birthday present.”

Gally’s eyes water even more as he presses his forehead to mine, running his hands through my hair. “Baby, I—” He pulls away to wipe a tear from his eye and then leans back down, pressing a gentle peck to my forehead, “I love you so much.” 

“I love you even more, Gally,” I whisper back, staring into his teary eyes with my watery own. He chuckles, shaking his head.

“Not possible.”

“It is, too,” I giggle, still whispering as I press a kiss to his lips, “and I’m the birthday girl, so you have to let me win the arguments today.” 

“Oh, that’s how that works,” Gally laughed, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Well, I suppose I can let you win this one, since you did fly all the way to Chicago on your birthday.”

“Oh, but that was selfish,” I smiled. “I wanted to see you. I needed to see you. It was purely selfish.” Gally just hugged me tighter, pressing kisses to the top of my hair as he admitted quietly,

“Well, I needed to see you, too. I needed to have you in my arms.” I relax into the warmth of my boyfriend’s chest, the material of his hoodie tickling my nose. I endure it because it smells like him, and that makes it the most calming aroma in the world. 

“Being in your arms is all I need. You are all I need,” I whisper. 

I kiss him again, a loving, sweet kiss, reveling in the presence and taste of my boyfriend, a sense of peace and safety wrapping its warm arms around me. 

Nothing else matters in this moment. Not my job, or my life in Denver, or my birthday. All that matters is that I am here, in my boyfriend’s arms. In Gally’s arms.

Right where I’m supposed to be.

the end

[scorchedmazes]

rip minho you would’ve loved closing all the fitness/activity rings on an apple watch.

[zer0brainc3lls]

Newt and Thomas would try to film duo TikTok trends as a couple and Minho would but it EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

Sometimes they won’t notice but Minho will be in the background somewhere going: 😡 *wags finger*

[nxwtonsxngster]

okay hear me out this is something @adoresbenho and i came up with on our late night facetime call yesterday

modern au, picture vince and jorge running each an illegal business (like dr*g or something) and they’re absolute enemies;

meanwhile thomas is vince’s son and minho is jorge’s, both work for their dads so are supposed to hate each other but they’re actually secret lovers??

the plot being about thominho being in love behind their dads’ backs meanwhile vince and jorge are fighting to ruin the other’s business and involving their sons into their toxic battle

add an hint of drama ofc, and maybe an enemies to lovers vinge side plot?

i’d sell my SOUL for this

[that-tmr-girl]

Movie Night

He takes your virginity on movie night.

Public handjob, public fingering, oral, vaginal sex, praise, aftercare

The night would go as innocent as always. With me next to Y/N as our friends sat on the couches beside us. After some going back and forth on movies at least.

Cuddled next to her, I was more focused on her than the movie. On her hair slightly in her face and her lips in a small smile as she stared at the screen. Her eyes were as bright as ever as she gazed ahead.

Her lips though. If nobody else were here I would definitely kiss them. Like always, I would be on top of her, on this very couch, as I left marks on her neck and tasted her mouth.

Of course, it has never gone past that. It just wasn't something we were ready for. I just had to remind myself of that sometimes. Like when she's sitting on my lap. I have to keep my hands on her hips then. She thinks it's just to hold her, but I actually making it so she doesn't accidentally grind against me. Because that's when I would get hard and make up some excuse to leave. So she wouldn't know that I wanted her right then and there.

I don't tell her, but I've wanted to taste more of her for a while now. I've wanted to be inside of her. I've wanted to take this to the next level.

I just have no experience, and that terrifies me. What if I'm no good? Too vanilla? Too rough? Too slow? Too fast? What if I can't do it right? What if I can't make her feel good? What if she fakes it, doesn't tell me, and then just decides to break up with me because I'm that bad?

I know I sound paranoid, but I can't help it. I just want it to be special. I've thought about it so much more than I'd like to admit. About if she's quiet or a screamer. If she would guide me, tell me what's good, be honest and vulnerable. If I could cuddle and just talk with her all night after. I'd like that. I wonder if she likes being praised. I wonder what her kinks are, if she even has any. I just wonder-

Too much. I had wondered way too much for way too long.

Because I had just grown hard right next to her, and all I had to help was some stupid blanket.

I think I need to panic. And leave. I definitely need to leave. How though? There are so many people.

Realizing I was trapped, I held my breath as I tried to adjust my sweats so it would be harder to tell. Still, it didn't seem to help much. Why did I have to choose gray sweatpants tonight? And I was supposed to be sleeping over.

This is bad. This is so bad.

She suddenly leaned closer and put her head on my chest. I felt my heart start racing as I stared straight ahead. Why now? Why tonight?

Before I could comprehend it she put a hand on my thigh before coming to the hem of my sweats. I stared at her, but she just looked at the television as she put her hand down my pants. She knew. She definitely knew, and in front of everyone she was just going to get me off. Bad. This is such a bad ide-

Before I could finish my thought she wrapped her hand around my shaft and stroked me. I bit the inside of my cheek to hold back a noise while she started pumping me. Without even realizing I had thrust myself further into her hand. She didn't seem to mind though as she kept an even pace, making my hard on even more obvious.

Suddenly, she was circling my tip causing my face to flush with pleasure. Being so slow and gentle it was almost unbearable, she finally started pumping me again. This time she went even faster causing me to twitch in her hand. Closing my eyes as I savored the feeling, I came to my release.

I felt my shoulders relaxed as I waited for her to pull away, but she never did. She just pumped me faster and faster from my tip to my base. Then, she started massaging my balls. Giving in to the feeling, I threw my head back before I could catch myself. Once I did though, I stared in the direction of the movie and pretended I could see anything but black dots.

As she went back to pumping me, I twitched again before shooting my seed on her. She pulled away and subtly sucked on her fingers.

Quietly trying to catch my breath, suddenly something in my mind clicked. She had just given me a handjob while other people were around. She didn't even talk while she got me off. She just did it, and she did it good.

Looking at her, I saw her crossed legs as she rubbed her thighs together. Somehow knowing what this meant, I put my hand on her thigh as I rubbed circles on her skin. Gradually working my way up, I touched her through her pants. She subtly opened her legs a little wider for me.

That when I accidentally froze as my hand remained outside her pussy. I just started thinking of everything that could go wrong. What if I'm bad at this? What if I can't make her cum? What if she fakes it? Or I go too rough and hurt her? I don't want to-

Before anything else could run through my head she placed my hand on her pajama buttons. I took a breath as I undid them before trailing my hand inside her pants. I touched her through the fabric of her underwear, and she thrust her hips into me. Taking it a step further I put my hands inside her panties and traced my fingers along her folds to see that she wasn't just wet. She was absolutely soaked. This is good, right? I think so. I hope so. I really hope she's supposed to be so wet that I can feel it no matter how lightly I touch her. I just want to be doing this right. I want to be making her feel good, and-

"Stop teasing,"She begged in my ear. Only then did I realize that I had just been gently and slowly running my fingers along her slit.

Doing as she said, I put one finger inside of her and started pumping. Looking at her through the corner of my eye, I saw her biting her lip to hold back noises.

Putting another finger into her, I pumped faster while using my thumb to rub small circles above her entrance. She seemed to grow even wetter as her walls clenched around me. Going even faster now, I kept subtly watching her as her hands grasped at the blanket.

As she grew tighter around me I increased my pace while grinding my palm against her clit. That's when she let out a quiet breath before cumming all over my fingers.

Pulling my hand out, I quickly licked her juices up to discover that she tasted good. Really, really good. So good that I just wanted more. I needed more. I-

"Well that movie was predictable,"Minho spoke up. We looked over to see him with a bored expression.

"I liked it,"Thomas argued.

"Of course you did. Anyways, I'm supposed to meet Gally at his house. Are you guys coming?"He invited.

"We're going to stay,"Y/N shrugged. He looked at the others who nodded their heads and followed him out the door, finally leaving us alone.

"If you're that good with your fingers then your mouth has to be amazing,"She breathed out once everyone was gone.

"Why don't you find out?"I suggested.

"Yes. Right now,"She agreed, taking my hand and pulling me to her bedroom. Turning on the lights, I pushed her on the bed and went to take off her shirt when she stopped me.

"What's wrong?"I asked quickly. She just turned red as she looked at the lights. That's when I understood. For some reason she didn't want me to actually see her naked. "I want to see all of you. I want to see everything,"I promised.

"Everything?"She asked.

"Every. Last. Detail,"I reassured her, kissing her neck at each word. Putting my hands around her waist, she pulled her shirt off so I could kiss down her bare stomach.

Coming to her pajama pants, I looked at her for permission. When she nodded I practically ripped everything off and kissed her inner legs. Working my way up, I started sucking and kissing her clit. Then, she bucked her hips further into my mouth, inviting me to plunge my tongue all the way inside of her.

Tracing my tongue along her folds, I took my time and spread her legs. Because I meant it when I wanted to see everything.

"Pretty,"I whispered, admiring her naked body. Her face flushed as she whimpered. She makes such pretty noises too. She's just so perfect.

Lost in thought as I kept my gaze on her, I got distracted by what I was doing until she pushed my face deep into her pussy. I put my tongue inside of her and circled her walls. She tasted so sweet as she grew wetter. Damnit, I love this almost as much as I love her.

Feeling her clench around my tongue, I put her leg over my back as I kept eating her out. When her grip on my hair tightened I knew she was close so I put my hand on her other thigh and spread her wide open so I could have even more access to her pussy. It was absolutely perfect as she moaned my name before full on screaming it. What a nice sound.

Louder. I want her to be louder.

To do this I started humming inside of her. Sure enough she screamed again before letting go. Her cum was everywhere. My mouth, my lips, my face, her legs. Perfect.

Looking up, I saw her chest quickly rise and fall as she seemed to be in some kind of blissful trance. Then, she sat straight up and pulled her legs away from me.

"I'm sorry,"She frantically apologized.

"For what?"I asked.

"I didn't mean to cum on your face without warning. You just felt so good, and-"

"Do it again,"I demanded, making a show of licking my lips.

"What?"She asked.

"Cum on my face again,"I clarified.

"But what if you-"

Realizing nothing would work I wrapped both her thighs around my head before burying my face into her. She was screaming my name again as I moaned into her. She was still soaked, and now I was sure I was addicted to her taste. She was just so fucking intoxicating. Her naked body, her hands, her sounds, and definitely her taste. So beautiful. So, so perfect.

As I envisioned what kind of faces she could be making she came again. Pulling away, I resisted the urge to cheer at the fact that this was actually happening, and it was so much before than I could have imagined.

Looking up, I saw her panting as she tried to catch her breath. Then, before I could react, she pulled me on top of her. Hooking her finger around the hem of my sweats, she kissed me as she pulled them off. Her mouth tasted sweet too. All of her always tastes sweet.

Pulling away from her lips, I kissed her neck before she dragged my boxers off. Throwing my shirt over my head, I saw her eyes travel to my chest before she raked her fingernails down my abdomen.

"Good girl,"I whispered, grabbing her wrist. She let out a small moan letting me know that I was right. She does have a praise kink.

"Yeah? You like those words babydoll?"I asked. She bit her lip to hold back a noise at the praise.

"Don't be quiet. There's nobody here but us,"I promised. She nodded as she squirmed beneath me. Then, she got that look in her eyes. The look of excitement yet fear.

"I'll be gentle. I'm going to treat you so well. I'm going to treat my princess so good,"I promised. She let out a breath before nodding her head.

I put my hands on her thighs before spreading her legs as wide as they could go. Lining myself up with her entrance, I took my time as I nudged into her. Still, when my tip was barely in she let out a whimper. I could also tell why. She was tight. Tighter than I could have ever imagined.

Stopping, I kept myself above her as her eyes filled with tears. I kissed them off until she seemed okay. No. She seemed better than okay as she moaned and bucked her hips.

"Can I move?"I checked. She just nodded, unable to do anything but make strangled sounds.

Pulling out for a moment, I then slammed back into her. She started growing louder than I thought possible as I moaned her name.

"Aris,"She trembled, dragging her nails down my back. I let out a grunt of pain and pleasure as I wrapped her legs around my waist and made my way deeper. "You're so tight,"I groaned, going a little harder. She dug her nails into my skin as she threw her head back. "You take me so well,"I praised, fucking her like my life depended on it, like if I stopped so would the world.

"I'm close!"She cried out as her walls somehow clenched around me. How can she feel this good? How can she take dick so well if she's never had it? Take me like she's done it for so long?

"I know princess,"I groaned, feeling my own thrusts get sloppier as she tightened. Slamming into her again, I felt her release all over me.

Panting, and out of breath, I felt myself twitch inside of her. Still, I wasn't quite there. I was so close. So unbearably close.

She also knew as she flipped us over so she was on top. She started riding me, and she looked damn pretty doing it. As her tits bounced with each thrust, her face screwed up with pleasure, and her eyes were to the back of her head, I was pushed over the edge. With one last thrust I released inside of her.

Staring at the ceiling and trying to regain my vision, I waited for her to get off. She never did though as she let out little whimpers.

"Y/N,"I breathed out.

"Don't move yet. Please?"She trembled.

And I always give into her.

Staying where she was, I felt my cock press against her. Slowly, she started rocking herself back and forth. Her soft moans made me get hard inside of her.

Putting my hands on her hips, I moved in synch with her. With sloppy, tired thrusts, it took almost no time for me to twitch inside of her. Feeling her walls clench again, we both let go.

"Oh fuck,"She whimpered, collapsing next to me. I kissed her cheek and went to rub small, affectionate circles on her thighs, when I realized that she was too wet. Looking down, I saw blood on her thighs.

I forgot this part. Still, I was quick to stand up and find her a towel. Running it under water, I made sure it was damp because coming back and wiping her legs.

"Love. Love you,"She breathed out, gazing at the ceiling as a small smile crossed her pretty lips.

"I love you too. I'm gonna run you a bath, okay?"I asked, scooping her up in my arms. She cuddled into my chest until I set her in the tub. As promised, I let the warm water run over her before sitting beside her. Running my hands over her scalp, she let out a relieved sigh as I washed her hair and body. The entire time I told her everything. How she was so good, how I love her, how she's my world, how she's so pretty, how I'm lucky to have her, and so on.

[confessions-of-a-monster-freak]

Dogs really are man’s best Wingman - Minho TMR

Prompt: Out walking their dog who chases your dog. WC: 3640

Synopsis: You work from home at a service desk that does data entry and take night classes from the local college for your chosen degree. You go on regular walks with your dog Lark, and just so happen to run into a certain someone.

Another prompt fill, I am quite happy with this one, even though it is rather short. This is a Non-Apocalypse Minho from The Maze Runner. If you have any questions on how I see the Gladers in today's society, put them in my ask box! I will answer the best I can.

Notes, Reblogs, and comments are appreciated! (I'd love to hear feedback or even silly little comments from you!)

Warnings: Swearing? (I don't know if the words I used count as swearing.)

I was finally on my lunch break, my legs were starting to cramp from the lack of movement, but it was better than constantly moving around a warehouse or otherwise. That meant it was time for a walk with Lark. Who had been patiently waiting on the couch for me this entire time. I stood up and walked to the door to grab her leash. When she heard the jingle of her leash she jumped off the couch and happily pranced over to me. She was happily prancing around and partially on my feet when I had a good hold on her harness. Her long tail thumped into my legs as I straddled her to get her harness on.

“C’mon Lark, just stand still a bit longer yeah?” I grumbled softly, having a struggle to try and get her harness on. She was normally very compliant when I had to put her harness on. Today it seemed she just wanted to get out. I couldn’t blame her, I’d been so busy I couldn’t even toss the tennis ball around for her during calls. I felt bad about it, but I knew I could make up for it when we got back and I got back to work, and when my classes started. I could play tug of war whilst listening to the lectures, or even give her a busy bowl for some enrichment.

Once her harness was attached properly, I toed on my shoes. Thank goodness for running slip-ons. I grabbed my keys, and my doggy bag, and slid on my headphones. It was time for some music and a change of scenery. Maybe even to stop at the cafe a few blocks down. At that thought I decided to duck back and grab my wallet. Tucking it into the doggy bag for safekeeping. I hooked her leash and opened the door. She knew better than to tug, but there were times that she had gone AWOL. I was doing my best to correct it when it happened, such as when she went AWOL after a squirrel. But just to be safe, I gave her the harness.

I turned on my headphones as we got into the elevator, scrolling through a playlist before deciding to shuffle it and hope I got some good songs. The elevator dinged and we left. Setting off from the building at a brisk pace. Lark stayed in front of me and kept an easy pace. Her tail wagged happily as we walked, starting to almost prance again as I picked up my walking speed. If I wasn’t sure that I wouldn’t be able to handle two dogs I’d get another one to keep her company. She’s old enough that I’m not concerned about littermate syndrome.

My lunch break was typically an hour to hour and a half long so we had time. I remember when people told me not to get a Dalmatian because I lived in an apartment. All these worries about it being aggressive, barking excessively, or even not getting enough exercise. Here I was proving them wrong, getting Lark was the best decision I could have made. She kept me just as entertained as I kept her, as well as active. Now that I had her, I had a reason to get up and get out of bed in the morning, and go for walks. Hike even. Not that I had very many opportunities to do so.

I made up my mind to stop at the cafe so I could eat on the way back. I could even get a biscuit for her too. I was lucky that it was a pet-friendly cafe, and that they made stuff for dogs there too. As we continued our walk we passed some other dog walkers, most of which I knew were for people who had jobs that took them out of the house for work. I smiled as I passed, and continued along. Lark even stopped a few times to say hi to the dogs. I was proud of the work that I’d put into her, she still had a long way to go and was still young so we had time. I wanted to work on off-leash recall. That way when I did go hiking or camping I could call her back if needed.

I could finally see the cafe, we had a bit to go still, but at least it was in sight. It also didn’t look too crowded, which meant I didn't have to hold onto Lark’s harness to make sure that she stayed where she was supposed to. Even with her having a fairly good heel down, she still had issues in crowded places with other dogs. Especially since she just wanted to play with all of them.

With some more pep in my step, I continued along, Lark was wagging her tail as we got closer. She could probably smell the other dogs that had been there and wanted to sniff around when we got there. I took this small gap of time to look down at my phone and check the time. That and to skip the song I was listening to, it didn’t quite fit my mood at the moment.

In the split second from skipping the song to the next. I heard a name being called. I turned to see where it was coming from only to have something rocket into my legs. I stumbled, pulling Lark back as I did before looking down and spotting this bright red dog wagging at my feet and greeting Lark. There was a leash attached to a black harness on the dog, but that didn’t seem to be attached to a human.

“Well hello you…” I said, pulling off my headphones and crouching down to greet the dog. “You got away from your human didn’t you?” I cooed softly, letting the dog sniff my hand before petting its head. It was very soft, softer than most dogs that had this long of fur. I reached around for a collar or tags and managed to find one. Printed on a simple tag was the name Cinder.

“Cinder! Goddamnit” I turned and saw a man jogging across the street to me and the dog. He was well built and also seemed pretty athletic from the clothes he was wearing. He crossed the street and then whistled, Cinder looked between me and the man before running back to him and sitting at a heel at his side.

“I'm so sorry, I wasn’t paying attention and she yanked the leash out of my hands” He apologized, reaching down to pick up her leash as she stared at him. Once he had the leash in his hands he wrapped it around his wrist a bit more firmly. “That's a nice Dalmatian,” He said looking at Lark, before looking at me.

“She’s friendly, you’ve got a pretty dog yourself” I answered, as he crouched down to greet Lark, who seemed more than content to let him pet her so long as she could get closer to Cinder. She tugged a bit before I corrected her and she rounded back to me. Not in a heel, but closer to my legs to where she wouldn’t be tugging at her leash.

“She seems really well trained” I pointed out, since she hadn’t broken her heel even with Lark trying to play with her. I was curious if he’d teach me how to do that with Lark, or even point me in the direction of the person who taught his dog that.

“Thank you, she is. She has to be for the amount of hikes we go on. I guess she just couldn’t contain herself this time” He shrugged, looking down at her before patting her head. Making her tail start to thump on the concrete behind him.

“I’m Minho,” He said, sticking out his hand for me to shake. I took it and introduced myself. Before looking down at Lark who was wagging her tail enthusiastically whilst looking at Cinder, she didn’t tug to try and get closer and play.

“Well Minho, do you think you can teach me how to get that good of a heel?” I asked, “I’ll buy if you’d like to stop at the cafe” I offered, deciding maybe the promise of food or a drink might help ease any tension.

“Sounds good to me” He agreed, clicking his tongue and Cinder stood up and watched her owner very dutifully. “It took me some time to get her this good, but I think I can get…” He trailed off, having not been told my own dog’s name.

“Lark” I answered, starting to walk, this time slower as Lark drifted over to the side Cinder was on to walk next to her. I was hoping this could turn into a good friendship, even if it was just based on him helping me with training my dog.

“Lark. I think I can get her close” He said with a grin, leading me to smile as well. Minho seemed very charming and personable. Someone I could get along with. Which I did as we continued to talk whilst walking to the cafe. I was keeping a rather dutiful eye on the time since it was a fifteen-minute walk back to my apartment from the Cafe.

“So what do you do?” I asked, looking over at the man who was keeping an even pace with me. I would assume he was some sort of fitness coach with how he looked. He wasn’t buff per se, just well-built and in shape. Maybe he was an athlete at the nearby college. I wasn’t quite sure.

“Work at a sports store” He answered, “Not ideal, but it gets me discounts on the stuff that she wrecked as a puppy” He added, looking down at Cinder who was staring right back up at him. Unaware that he was talking negatively about her she started wagging her tail furiously.

“I’m also in school to get my bachelor's, last year and then I can get that cartography degree,” He said with a huff, “I’m glad it's almost over, I’m getting tired of the traffic on campus” He tacked on at the end. Figuring my question could be interpreted both ways.

“Sounds annoying, the last time I was over in that area I was stuck at a traffic light for like fifteen minutes” I agreed, it's been ages since I was over at the college. Normally Rush Week would be the busiest time, but apparently this year they had a surge of freshmen compared to previous years.

“I can’t wait to graduate and be able to camp for like two weeks and then go do my job” He sighed wistfully, I wasn’t sure how cartography worked but I assumed it could be a pretty lonely job. Maybe that’s why he got Cinder, to keep him company whilst he worked.

Once we got to the cafe and had our stuff ordered and bought for. Minho insisted on sitting outside so that way there’d be fewer distractions for Lark whilst training. Which was smart, I didn’t think about the fact it might not be the dogs in the cafe causing the issue. It could be the noise in the Cafe.

“To keep her focus on you” He started, having taken Lark’s leash from me whilst I held onto Cinder’s for him. “You need to have something she wants, that way she learns it positively,” He said, digging into his own pouch and pulling out a dog biscuit. Lark’s eyes suddenly locked onto his hand. Her tail started to wag and she almost looked ready to jump him for it.

I laughed softly at her reaction. “I barely give her treats for training, mostly I give her kibble so she eats her food” I explained. Having felt that would be better since she had alternating food schedules. She got raw food three times a week, and kibble four times a week.

Minho hummed and nodded. Before he continued to explain how to get her to heel like how Cinder had. Whilst he talked I pet Cinder, who’d laid her head in my lap. Growing tired over her owner talking.

It was weird seeing Lark be so receptive to a new person. She wasn’t stranger aggressive, but she was wary of strangers. Seeing her being so comfortable as to jump on him to try and get the treat was a new thing. That and she rarely jumped because she was strong enough to knock me over. Cinder was different, she seemed so open to everyone and everything. Including me, since she was half asleep in my lap whilst Minho walked and talked me through the heel process.

Eventually, we swapped places, with me taking Lark’s leash and going through the process a few times to hopefully get it down. Once that was done, we sat down to eat, talking more in the process. Minho seemed like a pretty good guy. One with a lot of ambition and some crazy friends it seemed. “I told him not to get in the car, 'cause it was Dingus driving” He continued, Dingus was Thomas. Or at least what Minho called him frequently. “But he got in the car, and I watched them spin on the ice as soon as he left the parking lot. I seriously question how some of them even got into their majors” He finished, grinning as he watched me laugh at the horrible story.

“That is ridiculous.” I shook my head, his friends sounded interesting. I was bad with names, so I’d probably have to be reminded. But I didn’t think I would forget Thomas any time soon and his horrible driving skills. “How many tickets has he gotten?” I asked, reaching down to pet Lark as she was pawing at my leg for attention.

“None so far, stupidly lucky bastard” He answered, shaking his head. “I keep telling him that he’s going to get ticketed one of these days. But apparently, the cops don’t even try” He huffed, crossing his arms. “He’s going twenty over and doesn’t get pulled over. I go five over, and I get pulled over” He pouted, apparently still sour over the whole ordeal.

I couldn’t help but laugh, seeing someone like him pout was oddly adorable and funny at the same time. When I started to laugh his pout went away and turned into a smile. For how we met, we turned out to be pretty compatible. That and our dogs were compatible which was a rare scenario for me.

“Well this was wonderful, and I will put all of that into practice. But I have to get back so I don’t miss my check-in for work” I said eventually, holding onto my to-go cup of the drink I typically got wherever I went.  “But maybe we should meet up again, since both of them dragged us together,” I added, smiling at him. He looked down at Cinder who did nothing but wag her tail at him. She then looked at Lark and me and continued wagging her tail.

“I think that’s a good idea, how does tomorrow evening sound at the dog park?” He asked, looking back up at me with a smile. I assumed it was due to him working, but it worked out perfectly since I didn’t have a lecture that evening.

“Sounds good to me.” I agreed, before pulling out my phone and offering it to him to input his number. “That way if either of us needs to cancel” I added, watching as he took my phone and inputted his number. Before sending himself a text with my phone and handing it back.

“See you tomorrow evening” He called, watching me walk back down the street with Lark.

I echoed his parting words, waving at him before turning around and picking my speed up again to get home in time for the clock-in. He seemed nice, and so did Cinder. Maybe regular Pup-play dates would be in order. I’d have to ask about that tomorrow, but for now, I had to get home and find a proper meal to eat in between calls.

I had decided to drive to the dog park, that way when Lark had exhausted herself I didn’t have to do much with her except load her into the car. I pulled up and unloaded her, locking my car before heading into the park. Lark was prancing about as we did, she always loved getting so much open space to run around. I didn’t like to bring her in the afternoons, as that’s when I found most of the Puppies that needed “Socializing” were out.

That led to some disasters that I’ve had to break up before. I didn’t understand how people could be ignorant about what socializing was. In fact, they were just traumatizing their poor dog by putting them in a park with other dogs. Not to mention the new wave of people not vaccinating their dogs for simple things.

I heard another car pull up and turned to see Minho getting out of his car with Cinder. Who pranced over to the gate and pawed at it. I laughed at her behavior, Minho didn’t seem concerned with her running off. I opened it for her and let her run around with Lark once they entered. I figured they wouldn’t need much, so I brought a few tennis balls just in case. I even had that old frisbee in my trunk still. But with the way they were sprinting around the park, it didn’t seem like they needed any additional toys.

“I don’t think they need the toys I brought” He laughed, joining me in the park. He was now in jeans and a plain polo shirt. He didn’t look like he’d just gotten off of work, so I assumed his shift was earlier in the morning. “I do not believe so” I agreed, “I think they are gonna tire each other out” I added, walking over to one of the benches and sitting down. Lark quickly sped past me with Cinder chasing her. 

“How is the heel going?” He asked, joining me on the bench. Looking over at me. I had texted him at some point yesterday because Lark was struggling again and he offered some pointers.

“Okay ish” I laughed, “It's kinda difficult to practice in my apartment with it. But I made some progress in” I admitted, which was true. She mostly wanted to play instead of practice, and I couldn’t blame her. I was trying to practice whilst listening to my lecture. Which made my focus off, as well as hers.

“So long as you keep consistency you should be fine” He assured, looking over at me before looking at Lark. “So if you live in an apartment, why’d you get her?” He asked, “Now don’t think I’m one of those, “Don’t get a dog if you live in an apartment” People, I live in an apartment with her.” He corrected quickly, gesturing to Cinder who was belly up and roughhousing with Lark.

“I got lonely, and while I do like cats, I needed to get out more” I explained, “I work a customer support and data entry job from home. Plus I take online night classes. So I truly never leave home much” I watched Lark as she jumped over Cinder and then off they went chasing each other. It brought a smile to my face seeing her this happy.

“We should make this a regular thing” I offered up, “Gets both of us out, and gives them freedom to run around” I grinned as Lark came running up to me and slammed into my legs before whirling around and taking off again. I laughed off the pain in my shins from her impact and watched them sprinting around the totally empty park. Barely anyone went to this park in the evening. Making it perfect for training and for Lark to get her energy out completely.

“Sounds like a good plan to me.” Minho agreed. Before he turned to look at me. “How would you like to go camping?” He offered and I turned to look at him, my mouth opening slightly before I smiled. That was forward and out of the blue, but not totally unwelcome. We got along really well, and so did our dogs. It was only reasonable to ask something like that. 

“Are you asking me on a date?” I inquired, watching him grin back at me. He started to chuckle a bit before glancing at the dogs to make sure they were doing fine and not getting into any major trouble.

“Absolutely” He replied and I laughed. Nodding my head agreeing. Minho was charming, and I definitely wanted to get to know him better than I already knew now. So I assumed he wanted the same with me. We’d have to figure out our schedules for camping, but I’m sure it’d be fun.

“So long as you can keep Lark in check, then yes” I answered, turning to look at the dogs, who knew that it would be dogs that are man’s best wingman. Lark came running back to me and was panting, slobbering all over the ground. “Are you having fun darling?” I cooed, grabbing her face and squishing it playfully as she mouthed at me. I laughed and played with her until Cinder came and stole her away again.

“I think I can handle her, it’s you I’m worried about” Minho teased lightly, making me shove him with my shoulder pouting playfully until we both just started laughing. Maybe this date would be a good thing for both of us.

Well hello! You've made it to the end of this fic. I've got a question for you if you'd like to share your answer. What's your favorite dog breed? I personally love Beaucerons. *Cinder is an Irish Setter, and yes, I went down a dog breed rabbit hole to find a dog that Minho would get along with.

[heliads]

'wckd is good' part 2 - newt

Based on a past request for a Maze Runner fic set in the MCU where Newt was Venom, Reader was Spider-Woman.

part one / masterlist

a/n yes this is wayy longer than i expected lmao but i choose to see this as a good thing

Running has always been easier than staying to face the truth. As you swing back through the dark city, you hear Newt’s words echoing in your head with every snap of web hitting concrete and glass. It is foolish to let one conversation shatter your entire worldview, but even running can’t convince your mind to settle back the way it had been. Newt has done his part well. 

Worst of all, you think he was right about you, about everything. Usually, when the moon hangs low over the city such that its glow can be hidden by the shadows of the skyscrapers around you, your worst fears about this city seem like they couldn’t be more true. On nights like these, you always see a monster lurking in the face of every man, the darkness bleeding from every eye. Now, though, in every face you see only a blond boy grinning back at you. If the worst monster you’ve seen lately was just a kid like you, what does that say about every creature you’ve killed in the name of preserving the peace? What does that say about you?

You don’t get into any more confrontations that night, electing instead to perch on the edge of a dark roof and watch the lights of the cars go by far below you. Your shift ends, but you only return to WCKD headquarters when you’re certain no one else will be there. A few rooms have lights on, but you avoid them as best you can. There is no one you want to see right now. No, not true— there is one person you want to see, but if he’s in WCKD’s clutches, it’s all over. 

Sleep comes fitfully that night, as it has every night before that and will every night again. You see Newt reaching out a hand to you, smiling easily, but then his jaw ripples and the monster’s awful fangs come out again, distorting his charm into something terrible. You wake up screaming; for you or for him, you can’t be sure. 

Even more restless than usual that morning, you decide to go on a walk to clear your head. Normally, walking around in the bright sunshine, seeing the smiling families, the upturned faces, all serves to lift your mood. A strong city is a happy city; this is why you do it, remember? You protect these people, all of them. It’s worth every sacrifice. 

Turning down another street, though, your spirits refuse to lift. How many more people would be here if you hadn’t been in charge of taking them out? How many times did you get it wrong? How many Albys do there have to be before you realize that you can’t make judgment calls on someone’s life?

Lost in thought, your guard slips unconsciously. You don’t notice the hand snaking out to grab your arm until someone’s already pulled you under a shadowy overhang. Immediately, you’re on high alert, grabbing a knife from your belt to press against their throat, but your attacker just laughs. It is this sound and this sound alone, that call like the high-pitched ring of a bell, that stops you from slitting his throat. 

“You shouldn’t have done that, Newt,” you warn him as you pull your knife away from his neck. 

For someone who’s life almost ended, he seems remarkably unaffected by your words. “It’s lovely to see you, too. Didn’t realize you remembered my name.”

You roll your eyes. “It’s my job to know things. Don’t take it personally.”

“Yes, Y/N, because it would be terrible to not be as affectionate as you,” Newt muses. “Forgive me for wanting to be friendly.”

“Being friendly gets you killed.” You remark plainly. “So does trying to sneak up on an assassin. Don’t let that happen again.”

You turn away and walk back onto the sidewalk. Newt, however, just joins you without a heartbeat’s delay. “It’s not up to me whether this happens again. I think you wanted to see me a little more than you care to admit.”

You shoot him an angry look, but Newt remains resolutely cheerful. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t I?” Newt asks. Without giving you a chance to interject, he carried on blithely, “Or maybe you’re right. Here, I’ll give you a chance to prove it. I’m meeting up with some friends tonight to discuss our favorite enemy. If you don’t want any of this, feel free to stay away. Or don’t.”

He casually passes you a folded paper that’s been creased from staying in his pocket. A quick glance towards its contents reveals a place and time. 

You arch a brow. “If this little gathering is happening so you can denounce WCKD, I don’t think giving the location to one of its best soldiers is really the brightest idea.”

Newt lifts a shoulder. “That’s what they said too, but I know what I saw last night. They don’t have a chokehold on you, Y/N, despite what you might try to tell me. Somewhere in there,” he says, brushing a hand against your temples, “you want out. Let me help you with that.”

You press your lips together, thinking. Going could be suicide. What if this is just a trap to take out WCKD’s finest agents one by one, and Newt’s just telling you this so he can lure you into letting your guard down?

At the same time, your mind whispers selfishly, what if he isn’t lying? What if there was a world without WCKD? You haven’t dared to let yourself imagine such a thing in a long time; security cracked down after Thomas and Minho ran away a year or so ago. There’s no way they’d let you go without a fight. If Newt’s friends had your back, then maybe, just maybe, you might win this one. 

“You told your friends about me? Moving awfully fast, aren’t you?” You question. 

Newt grins. “Don’t take it personally, baby. I tell them a lot. Doesn’t mean we aren’t special, of course, but you wouldn’t be the first girl I’ve brought home.”

You laugh, surprising yourself. “No need to get carried away.”

“Too late,” he says, smiling back at you, and then he turns down a corner and disappears into the crowd. You’re left clutching the note, wondering if this mistake might cost you your life, and if you’re leading any sort of life that’s worth saving to avoid a chance like this. 

You shouldn’t go. Odds are, WCKD has someone tailing you, and even though you’re always careful to shake anyone you even suspect to be following you, there’s no way to tell for certain that you got rid of everyone. You check your clothes and personal items thoroughly for recording devices every time you leave WCKD headquarters, but what’s the precautions of one girl against such a massive organization?

You check the note once, twice, and then again. The time is later tonight, the pickup location outside the docks near the south of the city. Newt hasn’t given you many hours to deliberate, although you suspect that was intentional. The less time you have to ponder about whether or not you’ll take him up on his offer, the less time you have to turn them into WCKD if you decide to betray him instead of trying to run.

In the end, you put away your sense of self-preservation and head out again. You aren’t scheduled to go out on patrol until tomorrow, so you’ll have plenty of time in case something happens. You don nondescript clothing and pull a baseball cap low over your head to disguise your face. After taking a long, roundabout way to the docks to avoid suspicion, you stand on a pier, watching the dark water go by.

It was smart of them to pick this place. The sound of the tides, the churning of the boats up and down the water, the roaring of distant traffic echoing off of the tall buildings, all serve to muffle the sound of the strangers as they walk up to you. Normally, you’re able to sense trouble when it comes to you, but maybe your reflexes decide that your assailants aren’t a threat before your head makes that call, because you don’t notice anyone sneaking up behind you until they’ve already shoved a dark hood over your head and clamped a mouth over your hand to silence any shouts.

The second the hood is pulled over your eyes, you’re swimming in dark danger. You can feel the heartbeats of the people around you; four of them, men, young men. Boys. Newt’s age. Your age. They’re desperate, you can taste their fear like metal on your tongue. One of them has a limp. If you strike now, you could break a leg, roll away long enough to get the hood off of your head, then kill them all. They’d be dead before they even hit the ground. The blood would run scarlet into the river and ruin your last chances of leaving this hell. You’d be alive, though. Isn’t that why you do all of this, to live? Isn’t that the only motivation any of us have ever had?

A whisper in your ear, sharp and urgent:  “Trust me. Please.”

Newt.

You don’t trust people. You shouldn’t. He knows this. If Newt set you up to die, though, he would have killed you already. Newt’s monster doesn’t need to sneak up on you and blind you to kill you. One snap of those jaws would do the trick. If Newt wants you to play by these shifty rules, there must be a reason. Strangely enough, you realize that you believe in him enough to want to know what that reason is.

You comply, going limp long enough for the others to seize hold of your arms and take you with them into a waiting car. They intentionally take a confusing, circuitous route so as to confuse you. Still, you carefully note each turn, how long you stop at traffic lights or stop signs. Then you’re bustled out of the car again and into a building with tall ceilings; you can tell from how your footsteps echo against the top that the sound has a long way to go.

Eventually, you’re sat down on a chair, your hands bound behind you. The others hover nearby, you can sense their presences. There are more of them now, probably a dozen. Mostly inhumans, with the occasional exception. Not bad numbers, but not enough to really challenge WCKD. That’s why they’ve gone to you, though, you suppose. Foolhardy, but not completely insane.

A voice, loud and challenging, calls you sharply back to reality. “Y/N. You work for WCKD, don’t you?”

“Yes,” you answer deadpan. “None of you do. That’s why you were so kind as to bring me here, right? You were desperate. Now, can you take this hood off of my head? I would hate for you to miss anything I said.”

The loud boy scoffs. “There’s no way we’re letting you get a good look at us. You’d just turn us in.”

You cock your head to the side, staring exactly where you think the boy’s eyes are. “Would I? I don’t need my sight to do that. There are fifteen of you in this room right now, but that’s not all of you. About five leaders, I think. All teenagers. One adult, though. He drove. And one little boy. I can hear your heartbeats. I know who you are.”

A young voice lets out a muffled complaint from the far side of the room. “I’m not a little boy.”

Instantly, he’s shamed into silence. “Shut it, Chuck. Don’t give yourself away.”

A weakness. You grin, even though they can’t see it. “Chuck? That’s the boy, then. If I looked up connections between boys named Newt and Chuck, how long do you think it would take for me to track all of you down? I’d start by checking security cams near the docks. We’re in the warehouses near the docks. I’d guess the third from the left in the second row, yes? Usually used for temporary storage of agricultural products, but you’re in between seasons, so it’s empty for now and you’ve been borrowing it for meetings.”

A collection of gasps confirms your theory. You press on. “I know where you are, I know who you are. Bonds and a hood won’t keep me. Hell, I don’t even need you to undo me. I can manage that by myself.”

See, your would-be captors were so distracted by their own seeming safety that they didn’t check to make sure your wrists were fully together when they tied you down. Also, they were so stunned by you being able to catch onto them that they didn’t notice you slowly pulling a blade from your sleeve, nor spot when you sawed through your bonds. You stand up easily, toss the ropes to the ground, and pull the hood from your head.

You’re greeted with fifteen shocked faces. Well, fourteen. One’s grinning proudly. Newt. He winks when you catch his eye, but he’s careful not to let his friends see. Another boy, with close-cropped hair and a dark glare, looks particularly unhappy about your little escape. This is the one who had been speaking to you, you assume, and there’s the man in the back who drove you here. Silver touches his dark hair near his temples, but he looks intimidating enough anyway. Close by him is a girl about your age.

The angry boy who had spoken earlier groans in disgust. The angrier he gets, the more his eyes start to flicker, turning from green to a fiery red. Sparks flash along his clenched fists. Another inhuman, then. Fire powers. He’s probably somewhere on your list. “Who tied her up? Winston, you know to make the bonds stronger than that.”

“Wasn’t his fault,” you call out, and hold up the knife you’d disguised in your sleeve to make your point.

The boy groans again. “What is that? No one checked her for weapons?”

“You certainly didn’t, Gally,” Newt points out.

The boy– Gally– tosses Newt an irritated look. “Don’t start with me, Newt. I bet you’re just delighted with her for this bit of showmanship, aren’t you?”

“Very,” Newt says, grinning over at you.

Gally looks like he can’t decide who he wants to throttle more, you or Newt. “Fine. Fine. Let’s get started, if that’s what you really want. How do we know we can trust you?”

“You’re the ones who kidnapped me,” you argue. “I think I should be asking that question first.”

Gally might actually try to kill you this time, so Newt quickly steps in before things can escalate further. “Play along, will you?” Newt asks. “We’ll get nowhere if both of you are bickering the whole time.”

You sigh. “Alright, fine. If I wanted to turn you guys in, you’d already be dead. WCKD doesn’t cut corners, you know that. We would have burned your entire establishment to the ground. Happy?”

“Very,” Gally remarks dryly. “We’re familiar with your typical way of handling things, thank you very much. We know how WCKD operates.”

“If you know so much, why do you need me?” You ask. “Newt knew where to find me even on my off day. I’m assuming you’ve done your research thoroughly or you’ve got a source, in which case you’d have no reason to reach out to me, too. Why take a risk like this?”

“Because our source is no longer in WCKD,” Newt interjects. “Our information is out of date. We want more relevant gossip, to put it plainly.”

You frown. “You used to have a source in WCKD? Who?”

Newt goes silent, something almost like pity in his eyes. Gally, unencumbered by weak things like empathy, answers your question. “Thomas.”

You draw in a harsh breath. “You know Thomas?”

This changes the whole situation. Thomas– Thomas was everything. He and Teresa were the very first to show up to WCKD. You were the third, but they’d been there for at least a year before you. It changed them, you think. It made them closer than anyone else. When Thomas left, it destroyed Teresa. You and Teresa have known each other for years now, but it’s nowhere remotely close to the bond she shared with Thomas. Nothing can ever match that.

Thomas had been the last of the good ones, you think. After he left, everything was ruined. It was the first sign of the end of days. If Thomas, Thomas the believer, Thomas, the one who was willing to give everything to cause even when it left him broken and bloody, could walk away, what claim did the rest of you have to anything at all?

Thomas’ departure changed the way that WCKD worked. Neither Thomas nor Teresa had been true experiments. Teresa was trained as a Black Widow, and Thomas made himself an indestructible shield, running around the city as Captain America and saving people wherever he went. They juiced him up a little to make him stronger, but nothing as intense as the rest of you. No cuts were made.

Thomas was the last ideal any of you had that humanity could be protected by other humans. Once Thomas was gone, WCKD started up their labs in earnest. Now, almost every one of their teenage recruits is modified in some way. They say it’s because you have to fight fire with fire, that you can’t possibly compete with mutants if you’re not more than human yourself, but many terrible things have been done in the name of scientific progress. This would not be the first.

And now you find out that Thomas had once been here. Thomas had been friends with everyone in this room. You look wildly from face to face, expecting to find the boy you had once pledged to defend until your dying breath. The two of you had saved each other on countless dangerous missions, but now he’s just gone, and you aren’t even entirely sure that you would recognize him were you to see him again.

Newt saves you from the peril of not knowing. “He’s not here,” he answers you gently. “Thomas got out. He told us to try to reach you, though. Said you could be trusted.”

“Not Teresa?” You ask softly. That surprises you. If Thomas could save anyone, wouldn’t it be her?

Newt shakes his head. “He said Teresa was better than him. She would never leave.”

“But I would?” You say bitterly.

“He knew you could save us, not just the city,” Newt supplies. You’re not sure if that makes it all better or worse, but it is an answer to fill the empty silence curling between your ribs, so that helps with something, at least.

You nod curtly. “Alright, then. If you’ve got Thomas on your side, I’ll help. Just– have you seen him recently? Is he still alive? I would ask on my end, but I don’t know if WCKD would tell us if they– if they killed him.”

Gally looks vaguely irritated. “No, the asshole’s still alive. He’s a major pain, won’t stop asking questions or getting in the way we do things, but he’s still kicking.”

You grin in spite of yourself. “That’s Thomas for you. He has a way of getting under your skin. He means well, though.”

Newt laughs. “That’s one way of putting it. He skipped town a week or so back. Said he was going to try to look for an old friend.”

At first, you’re confused about who that would be except for you and Teresa, and then– Oh. It hits you like a tidal wave. “Minho.”

Newt nods. “You knew him too?”

You smile. “The four of us were always the closest. Maybe we can do a little family reunion if I can get away without WCKD always watching my back.”

Gally coughs pointedly. “Let’s get back to business. You can reminisce later about the good old days of killing mutants together. You’re willing to help?”

You incline your head. “As best I can. Tell me what you need and I’ll do my best to get it. It might be slow going at first, I’ve got to divert suspicion, but I have access to just about everything. Perks of working for them since I was small. Satellite feeds, location tracking, anything.”

For the first time all night, you think Gally smiles. “You know what, I think we just might be friends after all.”

Isn’t that a lovely thought? As it turns out, Gally isn’t wrong. Days turn into weeks, and the information you accumulate for Newt’s friends steadily turns into a virtual mountain. You find mutants for them, people with abilities who WCKD would kill but they can save. They have friends, too, who are already on WCKD’s radar and need to be removed from the list. You pretend to kill them to erase any sign of their existence. After that, they can run without getting gunned down when they try to leave the city. WCKD has this place on lockdown, the only way you can escape their clutches is in a bodybag, so you fake that part and everything goes according to plan.

You usually rotate members of Newt’s group when handing off information to avoid suspicion, but your favorite blond shows up the most often. You heard one of the other boys grumbling once that Newt has a habit of insisting that it be him to meet up with you, even threatening to set his monster on someone who argued too hard against it, but that just makes you laugh. Newt’s a sweetheart. He wouldn’t hurt any of his friends to stop them from flirting with you. Hopefully.

One evening, the two of you are walking along the river for such a handoff when Newt breaks the one boundary both of you have had the good sense to maintain and asks you when you’re going to leave along with them. Newt’s friends aren’t interested in making a stand against WCKD, they just want to get the last of their allies out of the city before the whole thing burns down.

The more you research on Newt’s behalf, the more you realize how precarious the whole affair is. WCKD has no surefire way of keeping crime out. Their only solution for stopping violence is to nip it in the bud, so to speak, but innocents get caught in the crossfires more often than not. The murder rate is skyrocketing anyway. Nothing any of you do will matter in the long run, and it just puts the teenagers WCKD hires in harm’s way more than the adults who hide in the wings and keep their hands clean.

It’s like working just downhill from a volcano. At some point, the lava will flood into your streets and engulf you all in an inferno of blood and tears. You pretend that you can just work hard enough to fight that, but it isn’t working. It hasn’t since the start. You can push off the inevitable a few weeks, but it always comes in the end.

That’s why Newt and his friends are so interested in getting out. WCKD keeps clear tags on all mutants and inhumans in the area. The second any of you try to run, they send an assassin out to kill you. Supposedly, it’s all about containing the threat, but none of this has ever been about having a good motive, no matter what you say. Everything leads back to power. If you run the city with all the inhumans, you have more power than the rest. Easy as that.

You’ve been steadily helping people escape. Chuck was one of the first to go, all of you agreed. He was just a kid, hardly twelve. He ended up on WCKD’s list because he figured out how to turn his flesh and bone into any material. Soft skin could become as hard as diamond or as pliable as water in a second if he just thought about it. Often, he didn’t, electing instead to just ignore his mutation in favor of trying to blend in with the rest of the guys he idolized, but WCKD doesn’t forget as easily as a preteen.

There were others, too. Clint, a boy about your age, who could heal from any injury. Frypan found an old spell book and learned how to cook up portals to other places and fantastic rings of glowing energy. Zart could shrink as small as an ant or grow taller than a skyscraper. Jorge had a mechanical suit impervious to most attacks that let him fly so long as he kept it up to date; he taught a girl named Brenda how to do the same. They don’t like being apart.

Only a few remain now. Newt, with his monster. Gally, with his fire abilities. You, with your webs. Thomas has appeared a few times now to help ferry people out of the city. The first time you saw him, you nearly wept. It was like seeing a ghost. You assumed he had died a long time ago, but then you’d walked into the warehouse one day and there he was, making a sarcastic joke to Newt. He’d turned to look at you as you slowly approached, and said it was good to see you again. It had taken everything in you not to break down at that very moment.

So he’s alive, then, and Minho is too. Hypothetically, the rest of the boys you’ve been slowly ferrying out are with them. In reality, you have no idea if any of them managed to survive past the edge of the city, but you can hope. That’s all any of you have at this point, hope that someday, you’ll all live past WCKD’s imposed expiration date.

There is, of course, the idea that once the last of them leave, you’ll be left alone with the organization you’ve been steadily betraying, but truth be told, you thought you’d be found out long before the last of Newt’s crew left, so that decision was never going to be yours to make anyway.

Newt doesn’t care about that, though. Newt has told you that he’d break into WCKD headquarters all by himself if you were captured or discovered. So of course it makes sense that Newt is the one to look you in the eyes at last and ask when– not if, but when– you’d be leaving with the rest of them.

You let out a shaky breath. “I wasn’t under the impression that I would be going with you.”

Newt reacts as if you’ve slapped him. “Why wouldn’t you? You don’t believe in WCKD anymore. Burn them to the ground one last time, then leave with us.”

You sigh. “I would be abandoning the only life I’ve ever known. If I leave, WCKD would know for certain that I’d betrayed them, if they haven’t figured it out already. They have evidence of dozens of murders I’ve committed. If they wanted to, they could release that information and have the police drag me back to them. WCKD doesn’t like it when their experiments try to run away.”

You learned that lesson well enough with Thomas. Newt’s jaw locks at the mention of what WCKD had done to you, but he manages to keep his cool. “Exactly why you should leave. Where we’re going, no one will find us. It’s wild land in the middle of nowhere. There’s a total maze of forest cutting off outside access. We’ve got farmland and a big house for all of us. It’ll be a simpler life than we’re used to leading, sure, but no one can find us there. You’ll be safe, Y/N. We all will.”

You’re not sure if you want to laugh or cry at the fierce hope in his eyes. “Do you really believe that?”

“Yes,” Newt says decisively. “We’re so close, Y/N. Most of us are gone, only a few left. Promise me that you’ll go with us when the last of us leave. Maybe we can fake our deaths or something to stop them from looking. Just promise me you won’t let me leave alone.”

Promises are dangerous. They have a way of being broken. Still, you nod, and press your fingers against his when Newt takes your hand. “I’ll do it. I promise.”

A sunrise of a smile splits Newt’s face. “I’m holding you to that.”

You hope against everything that he does. To be honest, hearing him talk, you almost think that you could do it; make it out alive. The last few kids are shipped out of the city, and then Newt meets up with you, says that only he and Gally are left. It’s time to go. You agree to meet him that night to run. You haven’t let your hopes truly rise all this time, but it’s impossible to avoid now. A life without killing. It seems like a dream, but it might be yours after all.

And then, a few hours before you’re scheduled to meet Newt to leave the city behind, you get a call from WCKD saying they want to meet with you to discuss recent progress. You text Newt from a burner phone telling him that you might be late and to go on without you if you take too long. You know he won’t, but the comforting lie that he might make it out without getting caught up in your capture carries you to WCKD.

Your heels click on the tiled floor. You know everyone here, you have since you were small. That fact used to fill you with pride; after years of watching people get replaced, you alone stayed, along with Teresa. You had what it took to put your life on the line and keep going. You were the best of the best.

Now, it just seems like another betrayal. How could all of those people watch you grow up and still condone what they had forced you to do? You try to imagine making Chuck go out and hunt down kids his age. It makes you sick to your stomach. All of these people are complicit in the blood caking your hands, and they will never, ever be accountable for it.

You’re certain that they must know what you’ve done. You walk to the conference room in a haze. Newt is on the other side of the city by now. Maybe he’s already out. Maybe they’re all out. If there was one good thing you did in your life, you couldn’t be more proud that it was for him. After years of senseless death, you saved the lives of other mutants just like you. It won’t be enough to wash your ledger clean, but it’s a start. It’s a shame it’s all over now. No more chances to improve. Just one last opportunity to die.

You walk into the meeting room and take the only empty seat. Around you are many familiar faces. Dr. Ava Paige sits at the head of the table, her second in command, a sickly man named Janson at one side, Teresa at the other. Teresa eyes you with no small amount of judgment. How righteous she must feel, knowing that of the three kids who started it all, she alone was capable of carrying out the blessed mission without getting corrupted. How challenging, to wonder why both you and Thomas needed to leave and she could never find a reason why.

Other WCKD officials and high-level agents crowd the ranks. There are only a dozen people in here, maximum, but Ava Paige has chosen them well. They’re all older than you, making the aura in here quite sinister indeed.

Once you’ve sat down and the door closes behind you (do you hear a lock slide shut, or are you just paranoid?), Dr. Paige begins. “We’ve had reason to worry about you, Y/N,” she says. “You’ve always been one of our best agents, but your quotas have been down as of late.”

“By quotas, you mean the people that I’ve killed, correct?” You clarify, sending a ripple of whispers around the room.

Dr. Paige’s face tightens. “I refer to the threats you have eliminated from our glorious city, but if that’s the way you’d like to put it, fine. You have killed fewer times, yes. Why?”

“Maybe I didn’t find any more threats,” you reply.

Janson arches a brow. “There are always threats. Have you lost your stomach for it?”

You smile, although the expression is cold. “I have a question, Dr. Janson. Why is it always me?”

He frowns. “Pardon?”

“Why is it always me out there in the field?” You repeat. “All of you in this room would rather send a child out to kill inhumans than do it yourselves. Does that ease your conscience? Does it reduce variables of concern for human life if you force a teenager to kill instead of doing it yourself?”

Ava Paige rises to her feet. “Y/N L/N, you have been a part of this organization since the start. I remember when you were fiercely dedicated to the cause. Don’t tell me you’re walking away now because you’ve decided to reinsert morals into the equation. What about the people who will die because you are no longer willing to protect them?”

“I’ll find another way to protect them,” you shoot back, “One that doesn’t involve murdering people just because you think they might one day become a problem.”

“That’s naive and you know it. You can’t leave,” Dr. Paige says, her face bleached pale.

“Why not?” You ask. “Are you afraid that I’ll tell people what you had me do? What will you do to stop me?”

When she remains silent, you realize that it’s not just you who has something to fear from WCKD’s actions becoming public. They’ve sanctioned killing dozens if not hundreds of times. They can’t afford to call you back without letting all of their dirty secrets go, and that is a loophole you will most certainly exploit.

You stand. “I think we’re done here. I am.”

They don’t try to stop you. Teresa, however, runs out the door after you. “Don’t you leave us, Y/N. You know what WCKD means to this city.”

“I know what it means to innocent inhumans who have to fear for their lives every time they leave their homes,” you retort.

She pulls you into an empty room. In the half-light of the nearby windows, her eyes are frantic. “You’re the only one I have left. The only one who believed like I did. You know we have a responsibility to this city.”

“Not like this,” you whisper sadly. “Teresa, you know this isn’t the way. We can still save the world in our own right, but it shouldn’t come at the cost of this much blood. There are other ways.”

“What, like with that little group of mutants you’ve been running around with recently?” Teresa’s voice is shrill, and you feel your blood ice over in your veins. “I know, Y/N. I know everything. I know you’ve been feeding them information. You’ve been working with the enemy all along.”

“Then why haven’t you turned me in yet?” You ask quietly. “That would be what WCKD wanted, to know about moles or liars. Why are you telling me this now?”

She’s silent for a while, then:  “I wanted to know why you would throw all of this away for nothing.”

“It wasn’t nothing,” you tell her. “I made friends there. Real friends, who wanted me to be safe.”

“They’re not your friends, I am. Those are perfect strangers who could be planning to kill you the second you all leave the city. You can’t trust any of them.” Teresa argues.

You look her steadily in the eyes. “Maybe not, but I trust Thomas.”

That finally gets through to her. Teresa rears back. “No. He wouldn’t–”

“He would,” you continue. “I’ve seen him, Teresa. He knows all of my friends. Thomas is the one who wants us to get out alive.”

She shakes her head, but the fight is gone from her eyes, you can see it. “No. That can’t be true.”

“It is, Teresa,” you say, then on a sudden urge, “Come with us. There’s still time. WCKD is going to destroy itself in a matter of months, you know this. I don’t want you there when the whole thing goes up in flames. Come with me. Stay alive.”

You reach out to her, but Teresa backs away slowly. “I can’t abandon the cause,” she whispers.

It hurts like a broken bone, but you can’t say you didn’t see it coming. “Goodbye,” you tell her at last. “Thank you for being my friend.”

She nods once, tight and controlled. “You should go now. Before they try to stop you.”

There is nothing else to say, so you take one last look at her and run. She’s saved you one final time by not turning you in, but she’ll do no more for you from here on out. This is the end of you and her, although if you were going to be honest, you would know that your friendship effectively ended when you first started going against WCKD. Everything past that was a betrayal of your work with her, and Teresa knew it all along but didn’t say a word. She has always been the best at sacrifices, hasn’t she?

You should still have time to get to Newt before their car leaves. He’s probably stalling with everything he has so you can make it to him, and you won’t let him down now. You practically sprint out the door and down the sidewalk, hurtling towards the pickup location. Secrecy doesn’t matter anymore. WCKD caught on to the fact that you no longer want anything to do with them, and they’ll be sending someone after you to kill you soon if they haven’t already.

You whip around a few corners. You’re meeting at the docks one last time, it’s just a few corners down. You take a shortcut across a parking lot, but several dark cars screech into the space behind you just as you enter. WCKD already. You swear under your breath and pick up speed, turning down an alley so they can’t follow you except on foot.

One of your stalkers is crazy enough to run after you. He’s bigger than you, and gains ground quicker than you’d like. You take several quick turns, but can’t shake him. The alley opens up to the docks, and you sprint towards the empty pavement of the loading area. You’ve hardly left the shade of the alleys behind when someone collides with you from behind, sending both of you toppling to the ground.

You shove the man off of you, staggering to your knees to come eye to eye with Janson. “Experiments can’t leave,” he growls. “We’ll learn from your bones if not your missions.”

He draws a gun from his belt and points it at you. “Come with me, now. Don’t make this any more difficult than it has to be. I can collect your corpse if that’s easier.”

You wonder if Newt is still here, if he can hear you. You hope that he’s already gone. It’ll be far worse for him to watch you die. He’s already watched too many of his friends lose their lives to WCKD, you cannot be another one.

You hold up your hand slowly. “Don’t do something you’d regret.”

“I should be telling you that,” Janson snarls.

You wait for him to be distracted trying to move across the uneven ground, then lunge for the ground, shooting a web at his hand to muffle the trigger. He shifts at the last second, and the spider web hits the trigger instead, sending a rogue shot against the side of a nearby shipping container instead of you.

You duck on instinct, rolling away in case he tries to shoot again. Janson looks half mad as he aims at you again. “You can’t leave us,” he says, “We made you. You cannot abandon your creators.”

There’s a shadow moving somewhere behind him. With a chill, you realize you know who it is. Newt doesn’t know that Janson has reinforcements; although they’re still a little behind, they’ll catch up soon enough. You cannot afford for Newt to be caught, not now.

You shout as loud as you can, “Don’t do it! You have to run!”

Janson glances at you, confused. “Who are you talking to?”

You ignore him, calling again to the shifting mass of shadows steadily growing darker by the edge of the shipping containers. “You have to go! Leave me!”

“No,” answers the darkness slithering across the ground, forming into a massive monster behind Janson.

Janson whips around, and his eyes grow large at the sight of Newt’s monster. It snarls at him, displaying rows of wickedly sharp teeth. He tries to shoot, but the monster grabs the gun with one muscular hand, forcing it away and snapping several of the bones in Janson’s hand at the same time.

Janson screams in pain. “This is what you leave us for, Y/N? This monster? You’re no better than everyone you killed. You’ll always be a disease upon this earth.”

“Actually,” the monster corrects, “You are.”

Before your eyes, the shadows start to run away from Newt all at once, but instead of disappearing like normal, they coalesce onto Janson instead. Janson’s head is flung back as the monster enters him, eyes shot with dark veins. When it’s over, Janson is comatose on the ground, arms and face shadowed with the monster, and Newt is running over to you, human, anxiously searching you for any sign of harm.

“I’m fine,” you promise him, “But– what did you do?”

“I gave it up,” Newt says wryly. “I didn’t need the hate anymore. I just needed you to be alive.”

At last, you understand. Newt needed the monster so he could protect his friends from WCKD, but that’s over now. The last car is about to leave, and then the city, the dying, all of it will be a nightmare that has finally ended.

He grabs your hand. “We need to hurry. Jorge’s waiting, but he won’t want to stick around much longer.”

You run with him towards the waiting car. Gally’s in shotgun, and although he’s always sworn that he doesn’t need any of you, you swear he almost smiles in relief when he sees you and Newt slide in. “Way to cut it close, you guys,” he admonishes you.

Newt rolls his eyes. “We’re here now, aren’t we? Let’s go.”

“I’m perfectly fine with that,” Jorge says, and pulls away into the night.

You watch the dock disappear behind you into a web of roads and street lights. You thought it would be impossible somehow, leaving, like there would be an invisible wall to keep you here. When the lights of the city fade into a dim skyline, then vanish behind the safety of miles of distance crossed, you realize at last that you’ve done it, you’ve left. Now, all that exists for you is a wild dream of a simple life, one with your friends where no one tries to hunt you down.

Newt takes your hand and squeezes it. “We’re out,” he says.

“We’re out,” you repeat in somewhat of a daze. “Where are we going again? What’s that place where everyone’s waiting?”

Newt chuckles. “It’s a bit of a mess right now. It’s just us in the middle of nowhere, but that’s the way we like it. Thomas managed to acquire a property surrounded by parkland so no one could build nearby. It’s just us. Nice place, though. Lots of green space. We’re thinking about calling it the Glade.”

A soft smile crosses your lips. “The Glade. I like that.”

It sounds good. It sounds, at last, like a quiet end to your otherwise violent story. Sometimes, though, quiet isn’t always bad. It lets you know that you’re alive, that you made it. Quiet tells you that you’re going to be okay.

first part requested by @thornyrose463

maze runner tag list: @rogueanschel, @ellobruv, @retvenkos, @mayfieldss, @hiya-itsamber, @gods-fools-heroes, @hope92100, @23victoria, @w1shes43, @imwaysthelastchoice, @fadedver

all tags list: @wordsarelife

[nomoreusername]

Newt Highschool AU

Minho Highschool AU

Minewt Highschool AU

[newtkive]

pixels [ newt x reader - modern text au ]

ch. 3 - infamous minecraft night

summary: the usual minecraft night ensues, and newt comes to a realization.

warnings: strong language, mutual pining, none really.

➥ m.list

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note: the first meme is minho i swear. anyways first written chapter yaaaay !!

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The only sounds coming from Newt’s apartment were the whirring of his pc and the shuffle of his friend situating himself on the living room couch. Newt was stationed in the corner of the small apartment, typing away at his computer, head down and floppy blond hair over his forehead.

“Dude, chill. You’re going to give yourself carpal tunnel from typing that fast.” Minho said from his spot on the sofa. His hands were behind his head, feet on the coffee table and shooting a judgmental look Newt’s way.

The older looked over his shoulder, running a hand through his hair. “I thought I told you to stop putting your nasty feet on my table.” He retorted.

Minho rolled his eyes, dramatically stomping his feet back on the ground. Another look was shot his way, curtesy of Newt before he turned back around, focusing again on his screen. “We getting on Minecraft or what, man?” Minho sighed, putting his laptop on his lap.

“Uh, yeah, go ahead and get on. I just finished my work and I’m gonna join the call.” Newt mumbled, taking hold of his mouse to click off of the library website he was editing, and switch to the Discord app. It took a second for him to find ‘The Glade’ group, noticing three active members in the voice chat to the left side of the main chat. He suddenly saw the chat moving as an alert popped up, showing that a familiar name was typing.

y/n: yooo newt get on!!

y/n: i see you online. get on call! we need a voice of reason

Newt’s dark eyes flew across the screen, a small smile gracing his lips as he read what you said. Behind him, Newt could hear Minho scoffing. The sound must have sobered the blond up, since his smile fell and he coughed to snap himself out of it.

“Dude, how come she asked you to join? I’m online too!” Minho grumbled like a spoiled kid.

Newt smirked, sending him a look again from over his shoulder. “Because she needs a voice of reason, or so she says. You’d only serve to make things worse in whatever is going on in that call.” The older snickered, and a harsh glare came from his friend. Newt swore he heard Minho mutter a few curses under his breath as he turned back around, but he let it go.

Clearing his throat, Newt clicked on the voice chat and prepared himself. An onslaught of voices immediately filled his ears, a mix of halfhearted arguing and giggles from Alby, Gally, and yourself. As usual, dark eyes instantly found the small square that housed the image of you and Newt couldn’t control the smile that lit up his face.

“Newt!” You beamed right back at him, waving through the screen.

“Y/n!” The blond reciprocated the wave and felt his cheeks heat up as you giggled a bit.

A few groans lit up the call belonging to Alby and Gally. The two had a similar set up going on; sitting in front of their fancy gaming computers while adorning a headset, a bit distracted as they played Minecraft.

“You could say hey to us too, Newt.” Alby sassed, with a broad grin and raised brows.

“Yeah, but you guys probably caused whatever problem is going on." Newt chuckled. This elicited a furious nod from you in the corner, and Alby immediately began wagging his finger in the camera with a series of 'no, no, no's.

"Sure, go see what Y/n did to my house." Gally remarked the bottom left corner of the screen and rolled his eyes.

"I only blew half of it up because you destroyed my shed!" You gasped at Gally. Newt's smile grew at their antics.

"You mean my shed that you've been squatting in!" Gally shouted back at her. There was a hint of an amused smile on his face despite the obvious irritation about the TNT blowing his hard work up. Newt figured it would have been a bigger deal if it was anyone else's property, but Gally was an absolute beast at Minecraft; he could fix any damage within mere minutes.

Before you could retort, the sound of another person joining the call cut you off. A vertical screen stretched to fit the layout, and a blurry image of a familiar brunette was shown.

"Heyyyy, guys!" Thomas sing-songed out, holding his phone up in the air like a stereotypical dad. He was clearly walking along the snow covered streets, wired headphones in as he adjusted his beanie. The crew let out a chorus of 'hey man's and 'hey Tommy's'.

"Where the hell are you?" Newt asked, laughter laced in his voice, head tilted to the side to decipher where his friend was going.

"Uhhh, I'm on my way home," Thomas started, looking around as snow began to fall a bit, almost seeming unsure of his own words, "I think, at least."

"You think?" Newt echoed, amused.

"You're like one of those kids who need a leash on their backpacks." You said, grinning at your best friend as he trudged along the almost barren stone street of New York.

Thomas shrugged, a little laugh bubbling out. "I guess. I kinda got lost, I thought this old lady was following me so I faked her out and went a weird direction. Now I'm in a fancy neighborhood." He explained.

Alby, Newt, yourself, and even Minho from behind Newt let out a loud laugh.

"Dumbass." Gally snickered, grinning for once on the call.

"Tommy, you're nuts." You mumbled, hand moving rapidly along with your mouse as you tried to fix your shed, eyes glancing back and forth between the screens.

"Who was that? Is Min there?" Alby questioned, squinting at Newt's image on the screen.

Newt scooted his rolling chair to the side to reveal Minho's slouched over form on the couch. The man's smile comically fell as he was revealed, almost like he had an upset image to keep up (he did). "Wow, you know my laugh anywhere. You're obsessed with me." It was Minho's turn to sass out, as usual.

Alby rolled his eyes and Tommy grinned at the sight of their friend. "Minho! Hey, buddy!" The latter waved enthusiastically as he trudged the quickly darkening streets. Minho simply flashed a middle finger, making him pout.

"Join the call, Min. You should get on Minecraft too." You piped up, eyes looking away from your phone camera and glued to your laptop.

"No, fuck you guys. I'm mad at you." Minho all but shouted, arms crossed and leaning back on the couch.

Newt scooted more into the frame again, shaking his head. "He's pissed still, as you can tell."

"You're the one who removed him." Alby said, clearly annoyed.

"But you guys are the ones who didn't add me back!" Minho shouted again, glaring at the screen from his spot.

"I added you back!" Alby corrected him.

"Oh, please." Minho didn't know how to reply, so he just scoffed at the man. He was right after all, and Min didn't like being wrong.

Newt shook his head, leaning back in his chair. He shrunk the screen a bit to pull up Minecraft, eager to see what kind of damage was done to everyone's homes.

They had build up a cute little town: dark oak houses, each unique to every person who built them, all leading up to a giant cherry blossom mansion that Gally resided in. The shed beside the mansion housed any stray horses found—each horse assigned to a different person—and your own little blue bed. You refused to live in your own home after everyone made fun of the dirt house you and Tommy built together. Unlike you, Tommy stood his ground and stayed inside of it. You chose to spite everyone who made fun of you and move into the public stables, inconveniencing them.

Newt crossed his arms and patiently waited for his game to load as he tuned back into the conversation. You had convinced Minho to play with all of you if you gave him your hard earned diamond—emphasis on the singularity of the use of diamond. You often had a hard time mining without dying, so you took pride in your jewel.

"Oh, c'mon. That just means you'll steal more of my shit." Newt said, pretending to sound exasperated.

At the sound of his British accent rolling through your speakers like honey, your eyes immediately darted back to the screen to see Newt's smirk. A blush emerged on your cheeks and you bashfully smiled. "No, I won't! I swear." You said, a bit embarrassed.

Newt didn't mind you borrowing his things, and he had an inkling that you knew that. "Sure, I bet that'll last for an hour." He chuckled.

Internally, Newt was giddy at your interaction like a school girl. Now he was internally embarrassed. At the perfect time, his game screen loaded and he began playing the game to distract himself.

"Guys, promise me you'll tell me if there's someone behind me." Thomas piped up while trekking through the streets. Everyone monotonously agreed, not fully paying attention.

"Guys, c'mon!" Thomas whined incessantly, sounding like a little kid. You giggled and assured him you'd keep an eye out, and he seemed to calm down at those words.

With that, the group gaming really started up. It was weird without Thomas being online and his little character not moving around, but his constant talking filled the void.

On the other side of the screen you were reeling at the sight of Newt. He was focused on the game, lip between his teeth, brows taut, and messy, thick, blond hair splayed over his forehead like a golden crown. Brown eyes constantly flickering around the screen but somehow finding their home on you in the end—or at least you hoped.

Newt was thinking similar things about you. Eyes catching your form every time you moved your hair to the other shoulder, or ran your hand through it. He tried not to be obvious and strayed away from glancing over at every movement, but it was hard. If he caught your gaze, he would waggle his brows a bit, and you would dissolve into that cute little smile that lit up his stomach in butterflies. Thankfully, no one noticed your interactions—or at least that's what both of you told yourselves.

By the time Thomas got to his own apartment, and those affected rebuilt their in-game homes, things were slowing down and tiredness overcame most of you. Even Minho's shit talk from behind Newt had almost came to a halt. The first one out was Gally, claiming he had work tomorrow. Next was you.

“G’night, you guys. I have a 9 am Zoom class tomorrow, I gotta be up early.” You grumbled. A hand came up to lazily rub at your eyes as you carried your phone to your room, and Newt resisted the urge to say something along the lines of 'goodnight sweetheart' (which he didn't know why that popped up in his brain).

The group of guys chorused a goodnight to you, all waving. Newt stared at your image, your sweet smile that would stick in his mind long after you hung up. The sound of you leaving echoed in his brain as he stared at the spot where you once were. That is, until Alby's video replaced where yours once was and he scowled.

"What's with the stink face?" Thomas gawked at his friend from where he laid on his bed, phone sat up next to him on the pillow. His friends sudden smile turning into a stoic expression startled him.

"His girlfriend left, that's what." Minho said, walking up behind Newt. Min placed his hands on Newt's shoulders, and the blond shot him a dirty look, shaking his hands off.

"Shut up. The fuck does that mean?" Newt grumbled. Everyone seemed to notice how bothered Newt sounded, which only made smirks grow wider. Everyone but Tommy, who was just about half asleep by now.

"Ahhh," Minho started and tapped Newt's bicep, "just as we all thought." Minho left it at that and stood up straighter, hands on his hips. Newt looked up at him entirely confused.

"Do you guys talk outside of the groupchat?" Alby asked.

"We talkin' about Y/n?" Thomas slurred out.

"Yes, dumbass." Minho leaned down so Thomas could see his annoyed face, but his eyes were closed.

"Uhhhh, not too much, no." Newt shrugged. "Why does it matter?"

Minho gave him an 'are you actually stupid?' type of look, arms crossing as he gazed down at his best friend. "'Why does it matta?'" He mocked his accent, "It matters cause it'll show her you like her!" Arms flew up in the air, as if the answer was obvious.

All Newt could manage to do was look to the side, tongue to his cheek as he ignored the blossoming blush thanks to the topic.

"Min is right, dude! You should talk to her more." Alby's words seemed more encouraging than Minho's. Maybe it was due to the fact that all Minho ever expressed was sarcasm and disdain, but Newt just didn't find him as earnest as Alby at the moment.

"They're right," Thomas piped up, lazy smile on his face. "She's super easy to talk to."

"What?" They all bellowed out in unison.

"You talk to her?" Newt was flabbergasted at this new revelation.

"Uh, duh. She's my best friend. So what?" Thomas scrunched up his brows, eyes cracking open.

Newt just scoffed and shook his head. He wasn't jealous, just.. at a loss for words. "Alright, on that note, goodnight." Newt punctuated his goodbye with a press to the 'end call' button.

The black screen faced both boys, and Newt quickly stood, beelining for his kitchen to make some tea.

"Dude, you call me dramatic." Minho grumbled. Newt just gave him the umpteenth pointed look of the night from his spot next to the sink. As soon as the blond turned around to put the kettle on, filling it up for two, Minho let his knowing smile show.

"You stayin' the night?" The older one called from the kitchen. He decided to ignore whatever that humiliating topic was prior.

Minho plopped down on the couch, head in the pillow, and fishing for the television remote. "You know it." He said. It wasn't odd for Minho to spend the night, as the couch was honestly dedicated to man at this point. Newt liked the company anyways.

The best friends fell into a rhythm of one finding a Netflix show and the other preparing two mugs of tea (Minho usually detested it, claiming it was too British for him, but he surprisingly learned to like it. He would never admit it, but he actually found himself making some tea when he was at home).

Newt had the previous short conversation replaying in his mind over and over as he zoned out while waiting for the water to boil. Did he really like Y/n like that? Yeah, she was gorgeous, and he always found himself looking for her approval and reactions, but he didn't want to be that guy who liked the only girl in the friend group. Although, he knew the situation wasn't really like that.

As Newt brought over the steaming hot mugs and sat on the opposite couch from his friend, waiting for whatever action movie was pulled up to play, he decided talking to Y/n more wasn't such a bad idea.

[newtslvt]

Ooh look what we have here! Another drabble (double drabble this time).

Summary: Newt meets an awkward Barista who happens to love Star Wars just as much as he does.

For @ssseashell <3

[hauntedhosie]

thomas x teresa || alternative trope #1

resident partygirl x playboy

song ; Make You Mine by Madison Beer & Love Potions by BJ lips

"i love you,,

''i don't,,

[teen-antisocial]

FOLKLORE

TRACK 2

CARDIGAN

JACK DAWKINS X READER

ANGST

The night was surprisingly quiet. No one really made a sound, the streets below, no carriages. The city was finally still. The only sound that was heard was one of the youngest Fox sister. She was up in her room, sobbing her heart out, after witnessing her sister kiss her boyfriend. A small hunch telling her that Jack, her boyfriend, the love of her life, was the one who started the kiss. She remembers it all.

Jack was wearing a vintage tee, and had a brand new phone. Belle, had high heels on the cobblestones. She remembered it all. How it happened, when it happened, where it happened. And when she told her mother she was told, she must have imagined it because of how much she remembered. It doesn't help that when you are young they assume you know nothing. Well in her mothers eyes anyway. That a young person doesn't remember this much, how it happened ect.

However you remembered all too well, been in your room with a sequin smile, black lipstick listening to sensual politics despite the fact when you are young they assume you know nothing.

When she slowly turned on her side, she faced a photo of her and Jack. And it's almost like she didn't recognise him, but she knew him. Dancing in his levis, drunk under a street light. She knew him, hand under her sweatshirt. And everytime she was hurt, Y/N knew she could run to him with any injury and ask, “baby kiss it better” he would. And when she felt like an old cardigan under someone's bed, Jack'd put her on and say “you're my favorite.”

The next day, it was school. And Y/N dreaded it. The thought of seeing Jack, disturbed her to the core. Especially if he was with Belle. But all three of them were in the same friend group, so it would be heavily awkward if they saw each other. Then again, it's like Jack said, she was a friend to all. But she didn't really feel like that was true. She felt like she was a friend to none.

Luckily for Y/N tho, they let her change her home room. So she could actually think of what to do about the whole situation, a few ideas came to her head. One was writing ‘chase yeo girls, lose the one’ on a post-it note and leave it in his locker. But it didn't seem like the right thing to do. Talking to him felt more right.

She felt like she knew nothing at that moment, because Y/N deep down her mothers words played in her head “when you are young they assume you know nothing.” But the reality was, she didn't know anything, she just didn't know what to do, but her thoughts said otherwise.

Y/N was arguably more annoyed with her sister, because Belle knew her playing hide and seek, and giving Y/N her weekends. And Y/N knew her, Belle’s heartbeat on the High Line. Once in 20 lifetimes, and when she felt like an old cardigan under someone's bed. Belle put her on and said that Y/N was her favorite.

Laying her head on the table, she remembered her memories with Jack. How there version of happiness was to kiss in the car and downtown bars. It was all they needed. When Jack drew starts around her scars, but now she's bleeding from the betrayal she had just faced.

The worst part? She'd happily take Jack back. She'd forgive Belle.

If Jack came up to her now, she'd do nothing, she'd just kiss him. Cause he knew her stepping on the last train. Marked her like a blood stain. And she knew him. How he tried to change the ending. And it reminded her of Peter loosing Wendy. And now she knew him, only now, he was leaving like a father, running like water.

Slowly, she lifted her head up as the bell went off. “Time for an hour of math.” She muttered. A lesson she hated, a lesson that made her feel stupid. The lesson that started her mothers words of when they are young, they assume you know nothing.

She stopped at her locker, grabbing the books she needed, and saw a photo of her and Jack kissing, taped to the cold metal door. She sighed before putting a finger on her lips. And remembered the day it happened at the school fair. How she thought their love would last forever.

But, now she knew he'd linger like a tattoo kiss, she knew he'd gaunt all of her what-ifs. The smell of smoke would hang around this long. Looking back on it, that night she knew something was going to happen. Cause she knew everything when she was young. But she didn't want to belive herself until this moment.

Clank!

The sound of stones being thrown at her window brought her back into reality. “Jack…” she muttered to herself, cursing the thought of him under the window. Knowing she'd curse him for the longest time, chasing shadows in the grocery line.

She ran to the window, seeing Jack waving from the ground. She knew he'd miss her once the thrill expired, and he'd be standing in the front porch light. And she knew he'd come back to her.

Quietly, she looked under her window. Confusion, filled her face. “I'm sorry!” he cried, “Fuck! It was just a summer thing! I'm so sorry!”

And he'd gone back to her.

“Please! I just want more chance! I promise!” He called out.

And he'd come back.

She smiled, trusting his promise, risking it. She nodded, “Just get up here!” She laughed. And now when she felt like she was an old cardigan, under someone's bed. He put her on and said she was his favorite.

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Masterlist

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