𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐖𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐒, thomas ✓

epilogue.

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EPILOGUE

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"Dear Thomas and Rosa. This is the first letter I think that I have ever written. Honestly, I don't know if I wrote any before the Maze, but even if it's not my first, it's likely my last. I want you to know I'm not scared. Well not of dying, anyway. It's more forgetting or falling as Rosie would put it. It's losing myself to this virus, that's what scares me. So every night I've been saying their names out loud; Alby, Winston, Chuck."

Rosa took the chisel in her hand with a sad smile, the hammer hitting the edge as she carved the name into the rock. First, it was Chuck. The boy that had taught her to not be afraid, to embrace what Rosa had spent her life fearing and being ashamed of. The very boy who she thought of as her brother, because he was. The wooden heart hanging around her neck was a constant reminder of his always rosy cheeks, his curled hair and his curious mind. She couldn't wait to tell Nick about Chuck.

"I just repeat them over and over like a prayer, and it all comes flooding back. Just the little things like where the sun used to hit the Glade at that perfect moment before it slipped beneath the walls. And I remember the taste of Frypan's stew. I never thought that I'd miss that stuff so much."

Next, it was Alby. The man who had taught her to love those who she feared, herself. Alby had taught her plenty in his lifetime and in his final moments, he had saved her with the expense of her own life, the man who she had loved with all her heart and more.

"And I remember you, Tommy. From the first day that you came up in the box, just a scared little Greenie who couldn't even remember his own name. But from that moment that you ran into the Maze, I knew I would follow you anywhere. And I have, we all have."

Then it was Winston, his name bringing back all his smiles and jokes from inside the Glade, ones that he dared to speak but everyone would laugh at. He brought the Glade together, he made it a family.

"If I could do it all over again, I would. And I wouldn't change a thing. And my hope for you, when you are looking back years from now, you'll be able to say the same. The future is in your hands now, Tommy."

Teresa, it was hard watching Thomas carve the name in the rock but it brought her peace in knowing that the girl wouldn't be forgotten, no one deserved to be. She, like Alby, had sacrificed herself for Rosa to live, even after years of hatred and competition. But Teresa had remembered all the times that Rosa had comforted her after her mother's death, spending time with her when others wouldn't. The real Teresa.

"I know that you will find a way to do what's right. you always have."

Rosa and Thomas watched as Marie formed Zart's name into the stone, smiles washing over their mouths at the sight of his name amongst the others. Then Brenda carved George, one of Rosa's first friends in the Glade, the short-haired girl turned to face Rosa with a glimpse of thanks. After she was healed, Rosa and Brenda had spent hours talking about her brother and who he really was.

"Rosie, you had and will be until the day the stars no longer shine, the love of my life. Ever since I saw that grin on your face whilst you were hiding in the trees after hiding Gally's tools or the day you pulled me from the Maze with my legs shattered, you have been the light of my existence. I never thought that I would find that love somewhere else, especially in someone else, so tell Marie that I do. I hope she feels the same."

But lastly, it was Newt. The boy who had taught Rosa much more than the others, he had taught her that family was more than the blood in her veins. It was the people she would jump in front of a bullet for, the ones who she would risk her life for. Newt was, and always would be, Rosa's love.

"Take care of everyone for me and take care of yourself. You deserve to be happy together, you really do. Thank you for being my friends, for being more than that. Goodbye. Newt."

Their hands intertwined together, looks of sorrow never leaving their expressions but it was expected. Thomas pulled Rosa into his side and kissed her head slowly, resting his lips on her head before whispering, "I love you."

"I love you more."