𝐍𝐄𝐖𝐓 𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐒 | 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳

{30} Changed [REQUEST]

Requested by @fan74girl

Trigger warning- swearing and mild descriptions of sexual assault.

She didn't use to be like this.
She didn't hide behind a façade, a lie.
She was happy, and bright and alive. She felt safe to be herself...

She was naïve and foolish.
Now she knew she had to be tough, rude and closed off if she was going to survive, to stop drawing attention to herself.

"Hey, Ada!" A boisterous voice called, "Tell Ryan to get more twine and a couple more nails from the Homestead."

Grunting in reply, she marched off to do what Gally had asked. Walking confidently, she felt like a hoax, a liar, a con-artist; she wasn't confident, she wasn't emotionally hollow like the character she portrayed, she wasn't as strong as who she wanted, no- needed to be.

If she was going to survive as a the only girl in the maze, and a Builder at that, then she needed to be strong.
He had taught her that.

That son of a bitch, Alec...

One week. She had been there for a week, and had managed to (mostly) ignore the rude and antagonising catcalls, the crass jokes about 'favours', even the orders coming from boys who had no authority over her.
No, that she could deal with. Especially since every time it happened when Newt or Minho was near they helped her shut it down, and none too kindly.

They were the only people she trusted, or had trusted to be more exact. She had cut herself off from them fully about a week after it happened, her ability to trust completely severed.

It was a cold night when it happened.
She remembers because she had left Newt and Minho at dinner to get her jacket from her bed.
That's when he, quite literally, ran into her.
Alec.

He'd always been a bit weird around her, but Ada could tolerate weird. At least he had never said or tried anything rude with her.
Until that night at least...

In retrospect, she knew what he did was worse than she admitted to herself in the moment. Maybe if she knew that then she wouldn't have hidden it, brushed it under the carpet. Swallowed the shame and tactless guilt until it burned through her heart like acid.

"Oh!" She gasped as he stumbled blindly into her, "Hey, sorry... uh, Alec, right?"

Grabbing his arms to steady him, Ada kneeled down in concern in front of him.
His eyes seemed adrift, as if seeing another world, and his body didn't seem to listen to his commands.

He seemed drunk, lacking control and helpless.
Ada realised he was none of those things when he shoved her to the damp grass. It seemed that Gally's Drink had only given him cunning and strength.

"What the-?!" She managed to yell before his dry and cracked lips were pushed forcefully onto hers, the telling reek of Gally's secret recipe alerting her to his state of drunkenness.
Managing to wriggle out of his confining grip, she slapped him hard across the face and rolled our from under him.

"What the hell, Alec?! You can't just-"

Again, she was cut off by him, this time by him knocking the wind out of her by tackling her.
One of his arms that had been  coiled around her waist viciously struck out to backhand her, dizzying her and sending her head lolling to the side.