#astrangerlikeme

"I know you've been writing notes to Newt," she smirked. "Love notes."

"Why do you even care?"

"Because I came to tell you that he's been doing the same thing as you have been doing: copying a Shakespeare quote and putting them in a love note. He knows you love Shakespeare, Ruthie, and he's memorizing them for you."

"Stop teasing me," I snapped.

"I'm not making this up," she said as she crossed her heart with her index finger. "Go quote Shakespeare to him and see what he does."

"Fine," I said as threw my hands up in the air. "Some pistol you are."

She just giggled as I walked out of the room I was in.

-

"Ruthie, wake up," a voice echoed.

I opened my eyes to find that I was still in the cozy little bedroom Rachel put me in. Sitting in a chair next to my bed was Lovey. She had her wooden medicine box with her, but also some paper and a pencil.

"Good sleep?" she asked.

"I guess," I answered as I rubbed my eyes. "I mean, I feel rested."

"That's all I needed to hear," she smiled as she opened her box. "How are you feeling overall?"

"I'm fine," I replied as I sat up.

"How's the little one?"

"I think he or she is alright, I guess." Both of hands gently smoothed over my swollen belly.

"Sorry," she chuckled. "Rachel asked me to ask questions when I came up to check on you."

"I'm guessing I'm the first chick carrying a babe inside of her to enter the Glade."

"You guessed right," she said as she took out her wound-cleansing items. "Let me see your left arm."

I obeyed.

She took the old gauze off of my arm, used a cloth with a wet substance to clean my cut then wrapped it with fresh gauze.

"Good as new," she smiled.

"May I ask you something?" I asked, and she nodded. "Why do you have paper and a pencil? I mean you came up to check on me, right?"

"Yes, I did, but I came up here while you were still sleeping, so I decided to do some writing. I didn’t want to wake you."

"What do you write?"

"Poetry," she whispered.

"How beautiful!" I responded.

"Although Beth thinks it's a waste of time, I still think it's a way of expressing your feelings and sharing a thought or multiple thoughts."

"I bet you're really good," I encouraged her. "You should read one to me sometime."

"I will," she promised. "I'll go tell Rachel you're awake."

"Okay."

She gathered her box and paper then strolled out of the room.

I pulled the bed sheets off of myself, got up slowly, made the bed, and waddled over to the window. Outside, a few of the other girls were practicing what looked likes to be self-defense with spears. Some were gardening, and others seemed to be talking to each other.

"Hi, Ruthie," Rachel's voice came from the doorway.

"Hi, Rachel," I replied as I turned around to face her.

"Rested?"

"Much."

"Good. Usually, those who first arrive don't really take a rest before being told where they are," she explained, "but you looked like you hadn't slept in days. I thought you were going pass out or something at any second."

"I'm glad I didn't," I chuckled. "How long was I asleep?"

"About two hours. Anyway, we have a lot of things to discuss with you." She led me out of the door, down the stairs, and out of the cabin.

"So everyone here has no memory of anything but their names?" I asked after Rachel, Lovey, and a few of the other girls finished explaining the Glade.

“Correct.”

"The Runners," Lovey spoke, "go out into the Maze to try to find a way out. No one wants to be in the Maze. To us, it's like we were put here for a reason, and we have to find that reason by trying to survive out here and make things worthwhile."

"As long as everyone does their part," said Rachel, "we can make things livable until the Runners have figured things out."

"So what will I do?" I asked.

"We've been in need of a new caretaker," the girl they called Beth mentioned. "Our last one was also a Runner, but she was killed by a Griever. Also, we've been needing a cook. A good one."

"Oh."

"Can we count on you, Ruthie?" Rachel asked with a smile.

"Yes," I nodded as they started to cheer. "But I need one of you to show me what to do, first."

"I'll show you," Lovey offered as she stood up and reached her hand out for me to take it.

"Thanks," I smiled. She led me to a little garden area with flowers blooming, vegetables sprouting, and vines strung around the nearby trees.

"This is our garden," said Lovey. "We've been taking care of it since our last one died. I'd give you the job in the blink of an eye, but since you have your condition I think you should stick to the cooking. You'll have to talk to Rachel about that."

"Okay," I replied. "I just want to do my part until we get out of here."

"Are you alright?" were what came out of my mouth, even though it wasn't really me.

"I guess," she whispered, still looking down at her feet.

"Listen," I said to the girl. "I'm not thrilled about this either, but we don't have a choice."

She just shook her head, looked at me, and said, "I'm too young for this."

"So am I, but it was their decision. If I had the authority to stop it, I would." She looked down again and tears began to pour down her cheeks. I turned towards her and lifted her chin up so she could meet my eyes again. "Good night! Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow…" I said to her.

"That I shall say good night…" she replied.

"…till it be morrow," we said together. She smiled, and I kissed her forehead.

We heard some sort of alarm that told us that something was ready for us. The girl and I faced the door. I took her hand, and she held mine.

"We'll get through this," I said then looked at her. "Together."

"Together," she repeated.

The door opened, and walked through the doorway towards the light, hand in hand.

"Newt," someone said. "C'mon, you shank. Get up."

Something kicked my back, and I jumped. I turned around to find Gally standing over me.

"Oh, it's you," I groaned.

"Who'd you expect?" he asked sarcastically.

"Never mind."

He finally left once I got up and brushed off the dirt off of my pants.

The girl returned to my mind. Such a beauty she was! The saying said together was familiar, but I couldn't pinpoint where it came from.

"’Good night! Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow. That I shall say good night till it be morrow.’"

I couldn't get her voice out of my head, or that saying. I had been in the bloody Glade for about eight months now, and I realized that this was the first time I had ever had a dream.

"Newt, where are you?" I heard Alby's voice call my name.

"I'm coming," I replied.

I ran out to see what was the matter, only to find that we were getting a new Glader.

"About time you showed up," Minho said.

"Sorry," I apologized. "My mind's on other things."

"Other things such as the mysterious girl in your dreams last night?" Minho grinned.

"How'd you know?" I asked.

"You were talking in your sleep."

I glared at him. "It's none of your business."

"If you say so."

The new Greenie had curly brown hair, was a bit stout around the middle, and seemed to be no more than twelve years old.

Instead of ignoring him like almost everyone in the Glade, Alby and I showed him around.

"Welcome to the Glade," I said with a welcoming smile. "I'm Newt, and this is Alby. What's your name?"

"Chuck," he replied after a short pause.

"Well, Chuck," Alby said he put a hand on his shoulder, "first order of business: carve your name on the wall." He handed the young boy the knife and the baton as we led him to the giant, stone wall.

He carved a "C" then an "H." After that he carved a "U" and another "C". Finally he carved a "K". The writing was jagged but it still spelled out "CHUCK".

"Nicely done, Chuck," I said with an encouraging smile.

"I'll show him around, Newt," Alby said, taking back to knife and baton. "You can get back to work."

I did as I was told and made my way to the vegetable garden.

My thoughts drifted off the girl again. Who was she?

Good night! Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow. That I shall say good night till it be morrow. Her sweet voice refused to leave my mind, but I kept repeating what the girl and I recited together in my dream over and over in my mind.

"What are you yappin' about?" a voice sounded that made me jump. It was Winston.

"Nothing," I replied as I began pulling the weeds out from the garden.

"Nothin' means somethin', Newt."

"Never mind. It's none of your concern anyway."

"C'mon, you shank," Winston pressed on. "A lot of us know about the dream you had last night. The dream about…her."

"Fine," I gave up. "She was in my dream last night. Are you so bloody happy now?"

"I will be once you've told me a bit more about her."

I didn't want to tell him about her, but if I kept refusing he would keep on pressing.

"Have a seat," I instructed, and he obeyed.

I put my knife down and explained to him about her. I told him about her ravishing red hair, her bubbly laughter, and her beauty. I even explained about the new dream.

"She sounds like a really nice chick," Winston nodded his head. "I'd kinda like to meet her."

"Me too," I agreed. "If she's even real."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"For all I know, she could just be someone I made up while I was asleep."

"Dude, I don't know. I just know that you need to talk to someone other than me. I don't know what to tell you."

"Then why did you come over here anyway?" I asked as I went back to weeding.

"To tell you that Alby needs you for something," he replied.

"Okay." I discontinued my work, promising myself that I would come back to it later. I also needed to write out the recitation of that saying. As I thought about the recitation, I realize that it was like saying good-bye. Not forever, but in way of saying "I'll see you soon."

Would I see her soon? If I was to see her soon, when and where would I see her?

The saying kept bouncing around in my mind.

All of a sudden, I felt something hit my gut. Not hard, but almost like a nudge.

"Who's there?" I called out. No one answered, and I felt the nudge again.

My instincts told me to feel around again, and I did. I found that I was alone in the box except for a few crates in there with me.

The nudge came again. I felt all over myself, but I was terrified when I came to my gut. I started crying.

The box came to a quick stop. I heard a metallic noise, and the ceiling began to open. Light came pouring in. It was so bright I closed my eyes quickly.

"Woah!"

"It's a red head."

"Is she okay?"

"Someone get Rachel and Lovey over here!"

The voices were all female. When I could open my eyes again, there were girls standing around above the box and looking down at me with curiosity on their faces.

"Out of the way!" someone commanded. "Move! Back up! Give some space!"

Some of the girls moved out of the way to let two girls with blonde hair through. One was short with kind blue eyes and a gentle face, and the other was pretty tall with tawny eyes and was holding a medium-sized brown box.

The shorter one jumped into the box in front of me. I backed up.

"It's okay, sweetie," she said with a kind smile. "You're going to be alright. You're safe now. My name is Rachel. What's yours?"

What is my name? I thought.

Ruthie was what came to mind. Actually, that was my name.

"Ruthie," I said.

"It's nice to meet you," she said then held out her hand. "Come on. Let's patch you up."

I took her hand, and she led me to a ladder where some of the girls had put out for Rachel and I to climb out of the box. She went first and climbed out before I could blink. When it was my turn, I struggled.

"Help her up," Rachel said. Two girls obeyed, grabbed my arms, and pulled me out.

"Thanks," I smiled. My arm began to sting. When I looked down, a big cut was going down my arm, and the taller blonde came to my rescue. She put the box down, opened it, and pulled out a bottle along with cotton balls and some gauze. I was surprised I even knew what these things were. I couldn't remember anything before waking up.

Soft chattering filled the air. They were whispering something and staring at me.

"Why are they looking at me like that?" I asked as the girl began to work on my arm.

"I'll explain later," she answered.

"What's your name?" I asked her in an attempt to distract myself from the stinging sensation of what she was putting on my arm.

"I'm Lovey," she smiled.

"That's a pretty name."

"Thanks."

"Alrighty," Rachel smiled. "Come, Ruthie. We've got a place for you to stay."

"Okay," I sighed.

"But first, we need you to carve your name on our wall." She handed me a knife and a rock, and led me to a tall wall made of stone. Names like Ruby, Marie, Arly, Rosa, and Ellie were carved in a jagged way. A few names had x's or lines crossing through them.

"What do the crossed out names mean?" I asked.

"We've…lost a few Gladers in the past," Rachel explained. "Most of them were Runners, but I'll explain later. I promise. First, carve your name then we'll get you to a bed for you to rest in. You look exhausted, sweetie."

I did as I was told. Carefully, I pressed the knife against the wall and carved an "R" in the wall using the rock to press it in. Next came a "U" then a "T" then an "H". An "I" and "E" followed. It wasn't perfect, but at least I knew I was an official Glader, as Rachel called it.

She took the rock and knife in one hand and wrapped the free arm around my shoulders. Guiding me to a little house, Rachel pointed out everything in what she called "the Glade." The place had a large open field with neatly cut green grass. A little barn had a few animals such as cows, sheep, and chickens roaming around. How do I remember these things? I searched my thoughts, but my memory was lost. I did remember one thing that Rachel asked about, and it made me realize why the other girls were whispering and staring at me. I remembered why I kept feeling nudges in my abdominals.

"I know you don't remember anything before waking up in that box, but do you have some memory of the father?" she asked as we walked up to the door of the wooden house.

I looked down at my gut. It was a bit large.

"I don't know," I replied as rubbed it gently. "I can't remember."

"Well," she said opening the door to lead me inside the house which was actually a large cabin, "hopefully you'll find out sooner or later."

She led me into the cabin. It was pretty cozy for something that should be dusty. A little table with a vase filled with lilies in it was in the center of a few chairs and a couch. It made the little cabin a little more homey and lovely. There was a portrait of a woman in a beautiful old dress hanging on the wall. She was looking downward on her left side, and her black hair was in a beautiful bun with diamonds in her hair. By her profile I could tell she was beautiful. She was smiling, but it was a warm smile. It was sort of welcoming.

"Ruthie," Rachel brought me back down to earth. "Come on."

"Sorry." I followed her up the stairs. She made me take her arm, because she didn't want me to fall.

"Here's your room," Rachel smiled as she led me into a room with a wooden dresser, a little nightstand, and a bed with clean-looking sheets and a pillow.

I fell in love with the blankets almost immediately of laying my eyes on them. It was yellow with a blue-and-white floral pattern, and the pillow at the other end was in a light blue pillowcase.

"It's not much, but it's one of the best we have," Rachel said as she pulled the sheets down for me.

"It's perfect," I replied. "Thank you."

"Not a problem. Lovey will be up in a while to check on you, but for now get some rest."

"Okay."

I slipped into the bed and settled down on the pillow as she tucked me in.

She was just about out the door when I stopped her. "Wait," I said.

"Yes?" she said as she stepped back in.

"Who's that a portrait of? Downstairs, I mean."

"We're not sure," she replied. "It came with the first few of us when we first arrived about two years ago."

"Okay. Her smile is very welcoming. That's all I wanted to say."

"She does have that affect on all of us. Now, get some sleep. We'll explain everything when you wake up," she promised.