TROUBLE || Gally x Reader

31 || Preparing to Run

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A/N
It is very helpful when you guys point out errors!

Seriously y'all, thank you for your patience with me.

TW: none?
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First Minho took me to the Dining Room, as I had missed breakfast. According to him, no Runner could think straight on an empty stomach. Especially not a newbie. Honestly, I was just happy to get to eat.

To my ultimate disappointment, my suspicion that I would miss all the bacon was correct. There was eggs and toast left though, so I was at least somewhat content.

Gally had to head off to work, but not before kissing my forehead and making sure I was doing alright. And I was. Sore and worried, sure, but overall alright.

Once Minho and I finished eating, we headed over to a wooden shack with a large sunroof. I remembered from my tour that it was called the Map Room. 

Things were a little tense between Minho and I as he showed me how the maps were drawn. He explained what the real life proportions were for each of the drawn gaps and helped me find where some of the common patterns were.

Many hours passed of us sitting on the floor, surrounded by organized stacks of map papers and having Minho talk at me. Just after my foot fell asleep, lunch was called.

I felt uninvited by Minho and a little bit by Newt too, so I decided to play it safe and sit at Gally's table. He was confused, but nonetheless happy that I was showing interest in his friend group.

He introduced me to a few people that I had yet to meet. I politely smiled, but truthfully my mind was elsewhere.

I wanted Zart gone. I wanted to stop looking over my shoulder and worrying about what could happen if he escaped. I wanted to finally rest.

Something that puzzled me was how everyone was so ready to dismiss Gally beating up Zart, yet they still cared for Zart enough to let him stick around a while longer.

According to Alby's rules, the boys should each only get two days in the Slammer. Technically, they never had the chance to get under my clothes. But if they hadn't been stopped when thay had, they definitely would have.

Did intent mean nothing? Were the Keepers just going to let them go free until the next time they pulled something and hope that it's a banish-able offence?

Lunch was over sooner than I would have liked and Minho and I were off again. Instead of going back to the Map Room, he led me over to a small shed-like structure that required a key to enter.

There was a short stone staircase that led underground to a cement storage room. The walls were lined with wooden shelves packed with various items; rope, gardening tools, pens, all kinds of papers, farming equipment, pencils, and— to my biggest surprise— a decently large arsenal of makeshift and authentic weapons. Knives, spears, katanas. No guns, though.

"What's this? Who knows about this?" I immediately started questioning.  Did Zart know? Ben? Thomas?

My voice was still croaky but after resting it for so long short sentences stopped hurting.

"Hardly anyone. Just Alby, Newt and I. Plus a lot of the Runners." He explained. "Not Ben." He quickly added once he saw me slightly panic. That was certainly a relief.

"These all came up with the first Box load of people that arrived at the Glade. They collectively decided to lock them up down here. It was to avoid violence, I'm assuming." He gestured to the weapons.

"Good thing, too. Imagine what kind of damage someone who's been stung could do with one of these." Minho thought aloud as he picked up a long barbed spear and started twirling it around. It clattered to the floor within seconds and he embarrassedly put it back in its place.

"What I brought you down here for-" he quickly changed the subject "is this. If you're going into the Maze, then you'll need to pick a pair." In one swift movement, he pulled out a big blue tub of running shoes. It was hard to find a pair that fit me considering they were all mens sizes and I was a particularly small person.

He went on monotonously about the importance of proper running shoes for a while and the difference they made, eventually stopping when he realized that I had pretty much zoned out.

"Okay, Shebean. You've listened to me yap all day, you can go free now. But seriously, rest up. Tomorrow we go out there." He pointed dramatically to where the Maze entrance would be if it were in view.

"You shouldn't have a problem though, since apparently you already know your way around." He still was clearly upset with me, but it did also sound like just a lot of his usual snark.

Once Minho and I tidied up the shoes, we parted ways and soon I was heading towards where Gally was working. I found him hammering a nail into a long plank near the top of one of the huts.

"Hey." I greeted softly, trying not to startle him as I gently wrapped my arms around his torso. He put what he was doing on immediate pause and swiveled around in my arms to face me.

"Hey." He grinned back at me. His half-smile was contagious. "Aren't you supposed to be with Minho?"

"He let me go early." I explained. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close.

"In that case..." He leaned in with a cheeky look on his face and we began to kiss. It was sweet and playful. I heard a soft 'plink' as he let the hammer fall to the ground. His hands started to politely roam.

"Eek!" I all but squealed as he grazed his hand along my side and I folded myself over for protection.

"(Y/N), are you... ticklish?" Gally looked shocked in an evilly good way. Oh, no.

"NooOOO!" I began to shriek with laughter as he tickled me harder. I fell to the floor with him on top of me, making it impossible to knock his hands away. Once I was decently out of breath, he stopped.

The smile on his face was wide and radiated joy— not like anything I'd seen from him before. It made me so happy to see. For a few long moments, we just stared at each other happily before he sighed and climbed off of me.

"You have to stop being so distracting now, (Y/N). I need to get my work done, or Newt will have my head." He over-dramatically complained.

"Apologies, fellow Glader, continue your work." I jokingly allowed. I planted myself at the bottom of a nearby tree and began picking at the grass anxiously. Zart and the others still plagued my thoughts.

"Have you heard anything from any of the other Keepers?" I asked after a little while. He gave me a puzzled look and asked me what I meant.

"I mean about what they're going to do about the boys in the Barn." I clarified, looking down at my hands that were currently tearing apart a dandelion.

"No, I haven't really talked to any of them. Why? Are you worried?" He wondered, stopping his hammering to look at me.

"A little. I mean..." I proceeded to explain my concerns over the technicality of Alby's rules and about how easily they could all break out.

"Hey, (Y/N), look at me." I realized that I hadn't been making eye contact with him at all and forced myself to look at him.

"They are not going to hurt you again, you hear me? I'm sorry they even got that far with you in the first place. I promise not to let them near you again. Understand?" The look he was giving me was so intense I almost couldn't handle it. I nodded and sighed.

Please, whatever-almighty-being-that may-be-out-there, let him keep his promise.