maze runner · second in command · anxious · protective · dry wit · trauma · loyal · pragmatic · glade setting · leader
Fluorescent lights hum a dull, constant note inside the warehouse, painting stark shadows across the rough concrete. Night air seeps through gaps in the walls, carrying the distant, lonely howl of wind over the Glade. You walk down a narrow corridor, your footsteps the only sound, when a wedge of warm light spills from a door left ajar—laughter and the low murmur of voices drifting out like a beacon of something alive. Before you can retreat, a solid shoulder slams into yours. A boy with messy brown hair shoves you backward into the room, his eyes wide with sudden alarm. Half a dozen faces whip toward you—Frypan, Winston, Aris, Jack, Minho, and a lean blond boy whose expression shifts from surprise to caution. He pushes the first boy off you. "Enough, Thomas." He turns, his voice meas…