Chapter Text
ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO JAMES DASHNER, AUTHOR OF THE MAZE RUNNER SERIES
"I'll watch Star Wars when we get home if you ask him out," Newt said gesturing with a slight tilt of his head to the olive skinned boy with surprisingly short dark hair sitting a few rows of seats behind them who Minho had been ogling at since the guy got on the bus. The reasonably attractive older boy had his earphones in, playing music that Newt guessed was probably some kind of mix between Mozart and Black Veil Brides just by looking at the boy; he was wearing a dark grey shirt with an unfamiliar brand name scrawled across his chest, his jeans were ripped and his backpack was pitch black however he had the best posture Newt had ever seen, sitting upright with his legs together.
"Okay," Minho half-heartedly replied still looking at the unfamiliar boy. Newt’s tanned friend had turned his whole body so he was facing completely and utterly the wrong way on the uncomfortable bus seat with the sole purpose of getting a better view.
"Good that, now when we get to Runners United, you have to ask that guy out immediately," Newt knew his friend hadn't been listening, so why not mess around a bit? "Also, I want you to suck my dick."
"Yeah alri- wait, what? There is absolutely no way on this goddamned planet i would ever suck your tiny ass, non-existent di-" The two hadn't realised how loud they were talking and soon noticed the entire bus was looking at them
"Shhhh," Newt chuckled to himself as Minho turned back around so he was facing the right way.
"Fucking asshole probably doesn't even have a dick big enough to blow anyway," Minho mumbled almost incoherently as he gave Newt a dirty look. "Oh thank the lord, we're here!"
Newt, who’d been sitting on the aisle, stood up and grabbed their bags from the overhead lockers and they both waited for their turn to merge into the seemingly never ending line of people. Minho, who could no long see his ‘star-crossed lover’ due to the people standing in his way, took this opportunity to properly look outside. He was momentarily blinded at the bright outside light but as the white light faded he could make out the vibrant green grass, the almost neon blue sky and the impossible variety of brightly coloured flowers. The more his eyes adjusted the more he couldn’t believe his eyes at how just how well this place had been kept. Not a single piece of litter was to be seen ... except the wrapper one of the people who’d just gotten off the bus had dropped, what a piece of shit Minho thought to himself, but the rubbish had disappeared as quickly as it had come to meet with the grass. Wow. There was a gravel path starting at the curb, continuing through a stone arch with a wooden sign engraved with the words ‘RUNNERS UNITED’, and kept winding around buildings and flowerbeds as far as the eye could see.
***
"Welcome to the Runners United campus," a dark skinned boy who was standing by the entrance welcomed them, handing each of the boys a piece of paper. "Here's a map, just follow the signs to get to the dorms."
"Thank you, Alby," Newt took the map whilst exaggerating his accent to the extreme.
"You've been here three seconds and you're already flirting?" Minho smiled, he shook his head and kept walking. “Also, how the hell'd you know his name?”
"Name tag you bimbo and that was not flirting," Newt almost sounded offended.
"Please," Minho wasn't surprised; Newt was constantly using his 'cute British boy' accent to get dates. "I'm surprised you didn't call him Sir and show him your best curtsy!"
Newt laughed and the two continued following the signs labelled Runners this way accompanied by corresponding arrows.
"Excuse me," A dark haired boy, who looked about the same age as Newt and Minho, came running up behind them, looking at a sheet of paper as he spoke. "Do you know how to get to the....the Glade?"
"Yeah man, that's where we're heading now - just follow the signs," Minho pointed to the closest Runners sign.
"Oh yeah, that makes sense, cool thanks," the boy responded slowing down, separating himself from the two friends.
"Hey, what's your name?" Newt turned so he was facing the new boy.
"Thomas," He replied, smiling and with a quick flick of his head to get his hair out of his eyes. "You?"
"Newt, nice to meet you," Newt turned back around and smiled to himself, blushing slightly, damn that boy was cute. With his moles scattered perfectly across his face, his messy brown hair and his brown eyes to match, Newt just wanted to hold him close and never let go. He called over his shoulder. "You can walk with us you know."
“Hi, I’m Minho,” Minho said introducing himself, holding out his hand for Thomas to shake. “So, what brings you to Runners United?”
“I’ve always loved running, for me it’s an escape,” Thomas looked into distance as he spoke, as if just talking about running gave him the same feeling as actually running. “Anyway, I heard about this place from a friend who wouldn’t shut up about how great the course was. Said it gave him ‘a new view on life’, figured I’d give it shot. What about you guys?”
Thomas looked over at the other boys to see that the blonde wasn’t listening but instead admiring the view of the campus. Thomas wondered for a second why the hell his parents decided to name their son ‘Newt’ but was quickly distracted by the boy’s heavenly looks. With the morning sun shining behind him, gleaming through his golden hair and highlighting his dark eyes. Newt looked like an angel, an impossibly beautiful angel. Thomas wanted to hold him and never let another soul near but simultaneously never wanted get too close to the blonde either, in case Thomas’ mortal hands somehow tarnished Newt’s perfection. Thomas shook his head to rid himself of thinking such thoughts. You’ve just met this guy Thomas, keep it together.