"I don't get it." Gally sat himself down on our bed, arms crossed. "I saved you from the maze and now you're all sad again."

"I could have saved them Gally. Our friends." I murmured, sprawled out across the covers. "I'm the only person who's ever spent a night in the maze and survived. I would've been the most logical person to send out there." Gally laid himself down next to me, loosening up. "Now Thomas, Minho, Alby, they're all gonna die."

"I couldn't let you slip away again." His hand anchored my arm, holding me down. "Not after you were banished. Not after I saw all that fake blood on you that day. Not after I just fixed things again after doing something stupid." His fingers pressed into my skin, squeezing it. "You're my best friend y/n. No matter what. I can't just stop caring about you." I gave into him, melting our bodies together.

"You really mean that?"

"Would I lie to that pretty face?"

"Shut up." I smiled, heat flushing my face. His words were so sweet, contrast to the rough demeanor he carried with the others.

"Why don't you make me." A small twitch of a grin turning his lips up. "Or I could make you." The hand affixed to the wrist he gripped I used to smother his mouth.

"That's how I can make you shut up. Peace at last." I laughed, feeling his smile only growing under my hand. My happiness shined for a few fleeting moments before I remembered how my friends were being murdered.

The giggling died. I felt selfish. Extremely selfish. How self absorbed could I get? My skin crawled at how disgusted I was at my myself. They were bleeding, dying, getting their guts ripped out and here I was laughing. Wow.

Guilt crammed up my throat, tears readying themselves to fall over my friends. I drew my hand away from him. His grasp staying with me.

"What's wrong?" Gally propped himself on his elbows. "What's wrong y/n?"

"Everything." I whispered. "Everything, everything." Covering my mouth to keep any whimpers from slipping out.

"I know." He rubbed my shoulder, pressing his face against my shirt. "It's shucking bad I know. I knew them all too. For a long time." Prying my hand off my mouth he replaced it with his lips, softly. Alternating kisses between my upper and bottom lip.

They were delicate this time, grazing my mouth for half a second. Like little butterflies landing on my skin. It was as if he was afraid of breaking me.

"But hey." He mumbled between kisses. "At least we have each other. That's all we need, right? Just you and me." Gally drew his lips to my ear, whispering. "Y/n, tell me you love me again-"

"What if that's not enough?" I blurted. He wavered away from me, slowly.

"What does that mean?"

"It means-" Exhaling deeply I continued. "I don't think I can stay here much longer." I snuck my fingers onto his palm, interlacing them through with his. "We have to get out of here soon." His face fell, he was unable to look at me. Uh oh. "But think of how happy we'll be when we're out. When we've beelined it to the biggest flashiest city. We can bring Chuck with us too..." Gally's eyebrows knitted themselves. "Gally?"

"You can't be happy here?"

"Well it's just that the glade's kind of gotten old hasn't it? I mean I would've thought you'd love to go."

"I've been here three years." His voice was low and crackly.

"I know that-"

"Why can't you be happy here? With me?"

"Because people are dying Gally."

"People die every day. The box'll bring more people."

"What if I die next. Or you. Or Chuck."

"I'd never let that happen."

"You can't know that."

"I can keep you safe, here!" Gally clutched back onto my wrist, his knuckles whitening as he did so.

"You can't!" I tried pulling my wrist away without avail. "No one is safe here. We're all going to die! One by one, until we're all just a pile of rotting bones and flies and maggots!"

"I'm not letting you die!" Gally shouted, grasp tighter than ever. Shocking me with his hostile tone. "We're staying here!" His eyes registered my face, the fear and brokenness of it. Altering his voice to a much gentler tone. Releasing my wrist. "I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm sorry. It's just, I can keep you safe in here. Out there it's all out, no going back. We don't even know what we're dealing with out there. It's dangerous."

Silence.

"I don't want to have to finish carving your name off of that wall." Gally said hushed. "I love you." I knew what he was waiting for, so I gave him it. I gave him the special words.

"I love you too." His eyes practically lit up at them, joining my mouth in a kiss.

"Don't leave me okay." His lips shied away, buried in my neck.

"Till death do us part."

Yup. Till death do us part.

_________________________

Chuck got me up the next morning. Dragging me to the doors. I was running dry on hope so I pretty much knew what to expect when the doors parted. Except...I didn't.

Zart spotted them first. After everyone else had turned away, head between their legs, except for dutiful Chuck.

"No way." It popped out of his mouth. Everyone whipped their head back, practically in sequence. Chuck burst into happiness, a mix between shock and euphoria that we all felt in that moment. An adrenaline cocktail of sorts.

"Yeah!" He exclaimed, each cry stronger than the last as he relished in the triumph. "Yeah! Yeah!" The triumph made true by three boys hobbling their way back. The long gone, ready to be forgotten, ghost boys.

"Oh my god." My eyes had to be as wide as saucers, everyone else's were. They neared closer, becoming realer with each step. "Oh my god!" My voice couldn't help raising itself. Just as Thomas passed the heavy load of Alby off to a few other boys, I bounded over. Wrapping my arms around him in the tightest hug I could muster. Pulling his face down in my hands, I ran my fingers across his skin. A small cut on the upper right side of his face drew my attention. "You're safe! You're here! How?!" Before he could answer a snarky voice welcomed a beaming smile to my face.

"Wow y/n." Minho rolled his eyes, arms crossed. "Just as I thought you were starting to miss me."

"Minho!" Tearing away from Thomas I pulled my sweetly bitter friend into a snug hold. "I did miss you! I missed you a lot Smart Ass!" I laughed, snatching him closer. The slight beginnings of tears started to dribble out my eyes. Not sad tears though. Happy tears. Very happy tears.

"Does a kiss come with all that crying?" Minho asked, smirking.

"Sure." I agreed. He straightened up, stunned by what I had said. Quickly I tugged his face down level to mine and placed a kiss square on his forehead.

"That wasn't what I was thinking." He grumbled.

"Be grateful for what you got Shuckface."

"Hey that's my thing!"

"Too bad." I grinned, saying. "I inherited it while you were dead." His eyes rolled over dramatically, almost to the back of his head. A Minho specialty.

"Well I'm back, so it's mine again, Shuckface."

"What the shuck?" Gally had stumbled on our buzzing little reunion. "How the hell are you alive?!"

Uh oh.