I'm Just Dandy

All of us are currently standing in a room, listening to Thomas as he tries to convince us, well, mostly Vince to go back for Minho. To come up with a new plan because there is no way in hell that we are leaving him behind. I already know what Vince's answer is going to be, and i can't blame him for it. He won't do it because it puts everything we have pulled off in the last few months at risk. It puts the kids we saved today at risk. WCKD are getting too close to our new hideout for us to be able to stay any longer. 

Vince won't be helping this time. 

Thomas points to the part of the map he's circled. "There, that's it. It's a few hundred miles. based on the railways, everything that Aris told us. That's gotta be where they're headed. That's where they're taking Minho".

For a small moment, the room is enveloped in silence. We watch as Vince stares at Thomas. "We can take everyone who can fight. Follow the roads where we can. Make it back within a week" Thomas continues. I glance at Vince, and anyone can see that he's not convinced. 

"A week? It took us six months to get here. We got over a hundred kids here now. We can't just hang out here forever, after what we just pulled. You wanna wander off to some random point on the map? You don't even know what's there" Vince argues, strongly against the idea of staying put any longer. 

I can't blame him for being nervous. WCKD has been getting too close for comfort, almost uncovering our hidden camp. Soon enough they're gonna find us, and all the kids we saved will get taken again. We can't lose the progress we just made after months of planning and rebuilding. 

My uncle Jorge interrupts my thoughts. "I do. It's been a few years, but i've been there". We all look at him. "The Last City. That's what WCKD called it. It was their whole base of operations. If that city is still standing, that's the last place you wanna go, Hermano" He explains. 

"But if it's still standing, it would be the perfect place for WCKD to keep and experiment on the kids. That's where Minho will be" I interrupt, not being able to help myself. 

"Magdalena, that's the Lion's den" Jorge says, giving me a stern look that says 'Don't even consider it' as if he can read my thoughts. 

"Maddie's right. I'm sure that's where they're heading. And it's nothing we haven't done before" Thomas says., but Vince isn't having any of it. "Yeah, with months of planning, and reliable information, and the element of surprise... none of which we have now" He argues. 

"Vince, i've thought this through. Would you just hear me out?" Thomas asks but gets cut off by Vince. "The last time we went off half- cocked, i lost everything! You remember that?" Vince snaps, silencing Thomas. 

"Look, i know it's Minho, all right? But you can't ask me to put those kids on the line for one man. I won't do it" Vince says, his voice is less harsh. Before anyone can say anything, the sound of the radio filling the silence pulls our attention. 

We look around, hearing aircraft's flying around in the distance. "Shit. Hit the lights!" Thomas exclaims. We all sprint into action, turning off all the lights in the camp. 

I walk out of the small building we were in, noticing Thomas and Vince on the beach, staring ahead. I follow their gaze to see a berg and a helicopter, shining their lights as they scan the ground for us. I feel the presence of my uncle as he comes to stand next to me. 

"They're getting real close. We'll be lucky to get away in two days when the ships built, if they haven't already found us" I say to him, even though i know for a fact that i won't be on the ship with him. Instead, i'll be following Thomas as our small group of gladers attempt to rescue Minho. 

Jorge pulls me into a side hug. "We'll get away in time. Don't worry Madeline, i promised to protect you, so i will until my last breath" He says. i reciprocate the hug. 

"I'm glad i found you again uncle Jorge, even though i don't have any memories of before" I say. 

"We'll work out a way to get your memories back. And if that doesn't work, i'll tell you everything you want to know" He replies, causing me to smile. 

"I'm gonna go to bed, Good night uncle Jorge" i say, pulling away from the embrace. I feel an overwhelming guilt that consumes me from lying to him. I can't tell him because he won't let me go with Thomas. He won't let me lose the chance of escaping WCKD forever. But i can't go with him and leave Minho behind. I won't do it. 

"Sweet dreams, my little Magdalena" He says with a small smile. I walk towards my tent, feeling my eyes water up slightly. This is my final goodbye to him, because there's not a great chance of seeing him again. There's no guarantee that i won't be killed, or that we will find him, Vince and Brenda again after we've rescued Minho. I silently mourn leaving the uncle i've only just got back. 

I walk into my tent to see Newt and Fry waiting for me with bags of their own.

"Do you have everything?" I ask them, walking over to my small, wooden bed. I kneel down and grab my packed backpack hidden there. 

"Yeah, and everyone's basically asleep" Fry replies.

"So, Thomas is gonna be sneaking out very soon" Newt adds.

"Let's go. I've got a jeep ready" I say, leading them out of my tent to stealthily sneak past everyone's beds. Fry and Newt stay close behind me, but i come to a stop at the sight of my uncle fast asleep in a hammock. I watch him for a moment with a sad smile, a goodbye on the tip of my tongue. 

In a few short minutes, we reach the jeep. I hand Fry the keys and watch as he gets into the drivers side. 

"I saw Thomas eyeing the jeep up earlier. He'll be here any minute" I say, recalling Thomas' gaze on the jeep. I could practically see his plan to take it forming in his mind. I'm quite surprised no one else had realised that he was ready to disappear into the night. Thomas is not subtle at all. 

"Fry, shut the door so the light stays off. We can't let him see us yet or he'll try to sneak off another way" Newt says, leaning against the jeep on my right. 

"Copy that" Fry replies with a small grin, shutting the door. The light goes off and we wait in the dark for Thomas to show. 

We're only waiting for around five minutes when we see a figure heading towards us. The faint moonlight is enough for us to see that it's Thomas, zipping up his backpack, too focused to notice us waiting for him. 

"Where do you think you're going then?" Newt asks, causing Thomas' head to snap up in surprise. He comes to a stop just as Newt turns on a light that's placed on a small table near us. 

Thomas' eyes flicker to me for a small moment, then he returns his gaze to Newt, letting out a sigh. "Newt".

"Don't be a twat about it. I'm already in" Newt cuts him off before he can say anything else, taking a couple of steps towards him. I can't help but feel a little bit uncomfortable with the tension between them. 

I seriously feel like i'm intruding and i wish i just sat in the car with Fry whilst they had their little moment. 

"Come on" Newt says to him, taking his backpack and walking back towards the jeep i'm still leaning against. 

Thomas shakes his head, already against us being here. Actually, he's against Newt being here. I'm almost certain he's forgotten i'm here or just hasn't processed it because he's too busy undressing Newt with his eyes. "No. No, not this time".

"Oh great. Here comes the lover's spat" I mumble, feeling more uncomfortable as the tension rises between them.

For fuck sake. Someone save me. 

"Look, even if we find Minho there's no guarantee we make it back from this" Thomas says. 

"Well, you'll need all the help you can get then. Won't you?" Newt asks rhetorically, opening the driver's side door to reveal Frypan, who gives Thomas a smile. Then he points to me, and i for some silly reason decide that an awkward wave would be the best thing to do in the moment. I instantly regret it, cringing slightly. 

"Well, we started this together. May as well end it that way too" Newt says to Thomas. Fry and i give small nods in agreement. 

Thomas has a hint of a smile on his face. "Ok. Let's go get him back".

Thomas gets into the passenger seat, whilst Newt and i jump in the back. Once we're all in, Fry switches the engine on, and pulls away from the building. I look out of the window, watching as we leave behind the Right Arm and the chance to get to the safe haven with our friends. no. Our family.  

"I just want to say Thomas, that you're the most predictable guy i have ever met" I say, earning chuckles from Fry and Newt, and an unimpressed look sent my way by Thomas. 

"She's right. Did you really believe you could sneak away without us knowing?" Fry teases. 

"You two aren't funny" Thomas says to us, a small smile on his face. 

"Wow Thomas. Now you're predictable and a liar" I reply with a smirk. 

"Stop teasing him. It's not his fault that he can be dense sometimes" Newt mocks, earning an offended look from Thomas. 

"This is why i didn't wanna bring you guys" Thomas pouts, earning laughs from us. 

We follow the road until daylight. Thomas has the map in his lap so he can check that we're heading the right way. After hours of driving, we pass an old, rusty sign that states we're two miles from a mandatory infection check area. Fry slows down when we get there. We all look around the area to see abandoned, broken cars in the checking area. 

Fry stops the car in front of a dark tunnel. We all step out of the car to take a look.

"You want us to go in there? I don't want to come across as too negative. But if i was a crank, that's exactly where i would be" Newt says, glancing at Thomas who's staring at his map. 

"He's got a point. If we go in there, then we're probably not ever coming out" I state, staring at the tunnel, feeling uneasy. 

"Thanks, Maddie. That makes me feel so good about heading in there" Fry says sarcastically, his face full of worry as he stares into the tunnel. 

"Would you rather me lie and say, it'll be ok guys. There's probably nothing in there and it'll be smooth sailing to the other side!" I say with fake enthusiasm. 

"No. I would rather you not comment at all" Fry replies. 

"Stop bickering" Newt hushes us, turning to Thomas and waiting for his thoughts on the death tunnel. 

Thomas looks up from the map "I don't think we have much of a choice".

We all stare at the tunnel for a moment, before Newt breaks the silence. "All right. I get shotgun".

"This isn't gonna end well" I say, shaking my head and getting into the back of the jeep. Fry and Thomas follow suit, but this time, Thomas is next to me. He shifts into the middle seat as Frypan slowly drives the car into the tunnel. 

"Well, here we go" Fry says, glancing around as he drives. Newt is shining his torch around the tunnel, in areas the lights from the jeep aren't really reaching. 

"Yeah, just take it nice and slow" Newt says to him, keeping his eyes trained out of his window. 

"Whoa, whoa, whoa" Fry says, coming to a stop. We all stare ahead to see a crank standing in our path. 

"Oh God" i say, trying to not panic, even though i can feel my gut telling me something bad is about to happen. 

"It's ok. It's just one. So, just take it slow and go around him" Thomas reassures us. 

"Fry. I think you should just run it over before it jumps at us" I say. 

"No, it'll be fine. Just go around him. We'll be fine" Thomas says. 

"Take it slow" Fry repeats, wrapping his hands slightly tighter around the steering wheel. Newt rolls up his window in preparation.

Thomas suddenly jumps out of his skin, backing into me. I turn and scream unintentionally at the sight of a female crank's face pressed up against the window. 

"Mother fucker!" I shout, staring at the woman as she begs us to let her in the car. 

Another crank presses itself against my window. "OH FUCK NO!" I shout, leaning into Thomas as we practically sit on each other in the middle seat in an attempt to get away from our windows.

"Ok, we gotta go" Thomas says, wrapping an arm around me as i shake slightly in fear. 

"Please just run them over!" I beg. More cranks bang on the car. "Whoa!" Fry shouts as a crank bangs on his window. 

"We need to go right now" Newt says. 

"Just floor it Fry!" Thomas exclaims, causing Fry to do exactly that, shouting "Hold on!".

Fry steps on the gas, speeding off just as a crank jumps on the hood of the car. It starts punching the windshield, cracking the glass.

"Come on Fry, shake him" Thomas says, as Frypan forces the car to zigzag. 

"I'm trying" Fry replies in distress. The crank manages to climb around, holding onto the driver's side door. "Hang on!" he shouts at us, as Thomas and i knock into each other unintentionally because of Fry swerving the car. We hold onto the seats, trying to avoid being tossed around like rag dolls. Fry swerves the car towards a truck with metal sticking out of it, effectively knocking the crank off of the window. 

I wince at the crack that comes from the crank hitting it. "That had to hurt".

Thomas shouts out to Frypan. "Fry, Watch out!". Fry reacts too late. One side of the car drives on a ramp, causing it to flip over. The car lands upside down, and i can feel large shards of glass slice me in different spots. Smoke fills our lungs from inside of the car, making us cough as we recover from the crash. 

"Everyone Ok?" Thomas asks between coughs. 

"My hand" i hear Fry wince in pain from the drivers seat. 

"I'm just dandy, thanks for asking Tommy. And Fry, i just want to say great driving" I reply, clutching my sliced arm. I can also feel blood dripping down my face from the cut on my forehead.

"We've crashed and you're still being sarcastic" Newt grumbles from the passenger seat.

"I'd like to see you drive better Maddie" Fry adds in annoyance. 

"Well next time. Give me the damn wheel" I snap back, hissing in pain at the sting from my cuts.

"Stop arguing. We're still in an upside down car. Fry, cover your eyes" Thomas says, before kicking at the window, and effectively smashing the glass. 

"Oh shit. You ok man?" Fry asks Newt. 

"Yeah, you alright?" He asks. 

"Shit, my hand" Fry says, holding it. He glances back to me and notices Thomas climbing through the window he just smashed. "Wait. Thomas".

I start attempting to kick the door open, but it's stuck. Thomas gets up and helps to force the door open. "Shit, alright. Fry go around" Thomas says, not being able to open the door.

"Shit" I curse when my injured arm hits the seat as i try to find a way out of the car.

Newt manages to get his door open, and i watch as Fry moves to go through it next. I decide that my best option is to just climb through the window Thomas went through moments ago, knowing it'll be easier than trying to climb to the front seat with my arm. 

"Fry, Maddie. You guys good?" Thomas asks. Before either of us can reply, i shimmy out of the window and hear a loud screech. I hastily get up once i'm out, and see a crank heading straight for us. 

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I grumble, clutching my arm as i bend down to search for my gun in the car. 

"Guys. I think we gotta move, now!" Thomas exclaims, ready to run for it. 

"Wait a minute" I hear Fry say as i finally find my gun, grabbing it and rushing to Thomas and Newt. 

"Right now!".

"Fry now!" Thomas and Newt shout at him as the crank gets too close to us. I click the safety off of my gun, holding my breath as i am and shoot. I shoot two bullets at the crank, but one goes straight into his head, causing him to drop to the ground. 

Fry comes up aiming his gun. I look back the three to see shocked looks on their faces.

"Damn Maddie!" Fry says in shock. 

"Good shot" Thomas says with a small smile. 

"Remind me to never piss you off" Newt adds, but his face betrays that he's proud of me. 

"Thank you, i've been training with Sonya and Harriet" i say with a smirk. 

"No wonder you're so good. Harriet is the scariest girl i've ever met" Fry replies. 

"Yeah, she rivals Brenda" Newt adds, shivering as he mentions them. 

We're interrupted by more screeching. We look down the tunnel to see a large number of cranks heading for us. 

"Go, go!" Fry shouts, aiming and shooting at the cranks growling at us. I help him try to shoot them down as we follow Thomas and Newt down the tunnel. 

"Fry, come on. Let's go" Thomas shouts as he runs. 

"Go, go , go!" Newt shouts to us as we all sprint away from the cranks. I glance back to see more and more chasing us. 

How are there so many?!

"Whoa, whoa, whoa" Thomas says, forcing us to stop. We see more cranks coming from the side we're running to. I look and see that we're completely trapped, and i don't have enough bullets to last. 

"Fry, Maddie. You got any left?" Thomas asks us, referring to the bullets in our guns. 

"Yeah" Fry says, shooting at the cranks behind us. 

"Not many" I add, shooting at the cranks in front. 

"Ok. This way, this way!" Thomas says. Fry and i switch between both directions, shooting at all the cranks we can. 

"I'm out of bullets!" I shout, my gun clicking but the chamber empty. 

"Shit me too!" Fry adds.

"Shit" Thomas says as the cranks close in on us from both directions. 

"Well. It was fun whilst it lasted. Rest in peace boys" I say, waiting for the inevitable to happen. 

"I'll miss you sis" Fry adds, hopeless. 

We turn around at the sound of an engine roaring towards us. The truck runs over a bunch of cranks, coming to a stop right next to us. The first person i see is Brenda, who stands up through the roof window and starts shooting at the cranks. "Hey, get in!" She shouts. 

I don't hesitate to jump in the back of the truck, the boys following suit. I look in the drivers seat to see Jorge looking at me through the mirror as we speed off through the tunnel. 

"My dearest niece. I wanna have a talk with you later" my uncle says to me. I just send him a sheepish smile in return, knowing i'm in deep shit for leaving him without saying anything. 

Pretty soon, we're out of the tunnel, driving down the road in daylight. "I'm impressed. You almost lasted a whole day" my uncle says with an amused smile, but i notice the hard look he's giving me. 

I'm dreading the lecture i'm about to be given.

"I'm sorry. I didn't wanna bring you guys into this" Thomas says. 

"I think what he's trying to say is thanks for saving us" Fry adds with a grateful smile. 

 "Your welcome" Brenda replies with a small smile before turning to face the front. 

"Hey, don't get your hopes up. That checkpoint there, that was the city's last defence. If that was overrun. The chances are the city is too" Jorge explains. 

"Yeah, unless they figured out another way to keep the cranks out" Newt says, staring into the distance. I follow his gaze, my eyes widening in shock as my uncle Jorge stops the car. 

We all get out to see the city, still intact and surrounded by large stone walls. 

"Funny. Spent three years trapped behind walls, trying to break out. And now we wanna break back in" Newt comments as we stare at the city.

"Yeah. It's hilarious" Fry adds sarcastically, causing me to snicker.

"Jorge, how do we get in?" Thomas asks.

"Don't look at me, Hermano. Those walls are new. I guess that's WCKDs answer for everything" My uncle replies. 

"Well we ain't gonna figure it out from up here" Brenda comments. "Let's go!". The boys begin to follow her back into the truck. I get stopped by my uncle. 

"Oooo, Maddie's in trouble" Fry sings, getting into the back. 

"Fuck you Fry" I reply, holding my middle finger up with sarcastic smile, making everyone chuckle.

"Language, Madeline. We'll be a minute" Jorge scolds me, then addresses the others. We take a few extra steps away from the others, but i know they can still hear and that they'll be eavesdropping the whole time.

"Look, i know that i should've told you and i shouldn't have snuck off, but i didn't think you would wanna come. I thought you and Brenda would be better off leaving with the Right Arm. That's been your plan since we met" I explain. Jorge pulls me into a hug the second i stop talking, and i reciprocate with a smile. 

"That was my plan, but i found you again. I wouldn't have left you, my little Magdalena. And i knew you wouldn't leave without your friend. Family sticks together and i made a promise to your mother that i would keep you safe. We stick together until the end, alright?" He asks me. 

"Alright" I reply, wincing as he accidentally puts pressure on my arm. He gently grabs my arm to inspect the cut. Then he checks the cuts on my forehead. 

"You wouldn't have been hurt if you had me driving. Your uncle is by far the best" He comments. 

"That's Frypan's fault. If it was me driving, we wouldn't have crashed. I've got medical supplies in my backpack" I say, gesturing to the truck my bags in. 

"Alright. Clean yourself up on the way. I'm glad to see that you're ok" He replies with a chuckle. We get back into the truck. I look to the boys and Brenda, who have small smiles on their faces. I also see Fry look slightly offended, so i know they heard everything. Jorge starts the truck, and we set off towards the city. 

Author's Note:

Writer's block hit hard for a few days but i've finally finished the chapter. I know i've said it already but i'm so grateful to you guys for taking the time to read my fanfic, and for waiting patiently for me to post new chapter so thank you!

I hope you enjoy the chapter, and remember to take care of yoursleves.

Xxxx