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Thomas was a curious one. He wanted to know what was behind the walls, what was happening, and why this was happening. He wanted to know how he had gotten there and how long these people have been here. He wanted to know everything because he was always curious.
He soon found out the answers to some of these questions. He found out what was behind the walls by becoming a runner after breaking the gladers’ rules. He hasn’t found out why this was happening, but he did have a broad answer on what was happening. He knew they were being tested. He knew they weren’t put here for good fun. He knew something much bigger was happening, and the only thing they can do is get out of the maze.
He found out a few days ago how long these people have been here. Alby had said three years. The gladers have been here for three years. They had gotten here by a box, and Thomas knew the creators of this place put them in that box to ship them here. He just didn’t know why.
He was satisfied with most of his questions being answered. He could handle being in the dark for a few questions. He found that it gave him a thrill. He ran the maze with determination to find the exit and save the gladers. He wanted so bad to find something that Minho and the other runners have missed. He wanted to help these people, especially Chuck, by getting them out.
Though, after a deja vu situation happens when he just barely made it back to the glade before the doors close, he gets more questions to answer. Once he gets back to his sleeping bag, he finds a flower crown on his pillow.
It had different color daisies spread out on a vine of some sort. It was shaped into a zero to fit like a crown. He picks it up like a feather and runs his fingers over the vines, feeling no thorns. He places it on his head for a minute before placing it beside his sleeping bag. He eyes it with furrowed eyebrows as he lays down.
Who gave him the flower crown? Why did the person make a flower crown? Why for him?
He has never seen anyone else wear a flower crown. Though it would’ve looked rather silly on any of the gladers. Thomas looks around to maybe see someone watching for his reaction, but no one is even around him. Everyone was still at the bonfire listening to Gally rant.
He lays back and closes his eyes. Questions pop in his mind preventing him from sleeping that well.
When he does fall asleep, it isn’t for long. He’s soon woken up by a shove to his shoulder. He jolts and looks up to find that it was Minho. Minho was staring at the flower crown.
"Where did you get that?"
"This?" Thomas points to the crown knowing that it was what the runner was talking about, but he wasn’t quite awake yet. Minho scrunches up his face in confusion.
"Yeah. The only time I ever see shucking flower crowns around here is when I pass the garden. Newt wears them all the time," Minho explains as he looks behind him towards the garden. Thomas looks as well, but none of the gardeners were out working yet. Minho looks back at him.
"Did he give this to you?" he asks suspiciously with a hint of bizarre. Thomas shrugs.
"I-I just found it on my sleeping bag last night. I didn’t see anyone scurry off laughing if that’s what you’re asking," Thomas jokes trying to make Minho not look so serious. It didn’t work. Minho tsks.
"Newt only makes them. He doesn’t ever let anyone have them. He gets defensive over these buggers," Minho scoffs like the thought was silly. Thomas looks back down at the crown. He runs a finger gently over a flower.
"What does that mean? Does he like me?" Thomas asks, but then his face reddens when he realizes how weird the question sounded. Minho didn’t make a face though.
"Maybe..I don’t know. Newt is very quiet. All he does is garden and make flower crowns. He’s been this way for a year and a half now," Minho explains. Questions overwhelmed Thomas’s mind now.
Why did this Newt guy make him a flower crown? Did he like him? Was he coming out of his shell or something? Was he lonely-
"Thomas! Don’t drive yourself mad over this. It’s only interesting. We have to get going," Minho interrupts Thomas’s thoughts with a point towards the doors and heads off. Thomas only stared mindlessly after him.
It only takes him a minute though to realize what Minho just ordered him to do. He starts gathering his things. He grabs a water bottle and is putting it in his bag as he walks across the field. He looks at the garden and finds that the workers were there now.
He observes every boy working there and tries to find the one with a flower crown. None of them looked like they would have any interest in flowers, and Thomas was filled with confusion. He tries to inconspicuously look through the vines and bushes to see if someone was hiding behind something, but he doesn’t see anyone. He huffs as he zips his bag up angrily. He stalks over to the doors and stands beside Minho. He listens to the doors begin to open, and takes a chance looking back at the gardeners. He widens his eyes as he sees someone new walking to the garden.
The boy was blonde and had a very lean body. He had a satchel around his body, along with a belt to hold a machete. The sight should’ve given him shivers, but the machete looked so out of place on the boy. Especially when Thomas notices the flower crown on his head.
Thomas was observing the calm, peaceful look on the blonde’s face when he was suddenly jerked forward and into the maze. Minho shouts over his thoughts.
~*~
Thomas almost got lost five times.
He was too busy thinking about the blonde, who had to be Newt. The boy looked so kind and collected, but he also looked isolated. He didn’t seem to have taken any interest in anybody as he strolled flawlessly through the grass and plants. He moved in determination, and Thomas couldn’t have looked long enough.
He knew he had to head back now, and the closer he got to the glade the harder he thought. He looks at the maze’s walls and sees vines hanging every which way, and he gets an idea. He stops to grab hold of a few vines and yank on them. He has to fold them up once to tear the vine off, but he does succeed. He steadfastly yanks on the vines to try to find free hanging ones. He gets a couple and he immediately takes off for the doors.
He makes it back in time with a few remarks from Minho saying that he’s going to be stuck in the maze again for the night. Remembering that awful night with Minho and Alby makes him nod and apologize. Gally had yelled at him and tried to get him banished. Thomas wasn’t going to let that happen again.
Before he even thinks about going to the kitchen to ask Frypan for some water and some fruit, he moves toward the garden unthinking. He moves around the vines and plants looking for Newt. He gets weird looks from the others as he finally finds the blonde, and starts heading his way. When he gets to him, Newt looks at him deliberately. Thomas could feel his face turn red.
"I-I um thought of you when I saw these vines," Thomas stutters out. He slowly reaches out to hand the vines to Newt, but the blonde just looks at them. Newt eyes him down and Thomas suddenly felt like he was sweating more now than he sweats when running around the bugging maze. Thomas scratches self consciously at his neck.
"You were the one who made me the flower crown right? I only thought it was-"
"Yes."
Thomas widens his eyes when he hears the blonde talk in a such smooth and beautiful british accent. He finds himself smiling, and Newt finally takes the vines with caring eyes. Thomas blushes.
He liked them.
Newt looks at him again, and Thomas could barely breathe being watched with those dark brown eyes. Newt had a little amount of dirt smudged on his face and shoulders, but Thomas only found the look more intriguing. He doesn’t even think when words exit his mouth.
"That flower crown looks beautiful on you."
Thomas couldn’t believe his own ears. He rolls his lips in embarrassment. He feels even more like a fool when the corners of Newt’s lips go up in a grin. His eyes jump in nervousness, and he sees that they were being watched by the gardeners, Minho, Alby, and Gally like they were rats being used to experiment with.
He did feel like a rat right now. Newt was the cat he was trying to impress and he knew that the blonde could make him run with his imaginary tail between his legs.
"Thank you for the vines."
Thomas comes to when he hears Newt whisper. He smiles not sure where to look. He nods. “It was no trouble..” he starts, but just then the blonde walks away leaving him with jumbled thoughts. He hears a few whistles and laughs around him. He only heard them in a low echo. His main focus was on Newt who was walking to the kitchen.
~*~
"Stupid..Stupid..Stupid!" Thomas hisses in the dark making his way back to his sleeping bag. Dinner had went awful. He tried to sit with Newt to start a conversation and get to know the british boy, but he said the dumbest things that he could’ve said.
"You look nice. The dirt makes you look even better it seems like," Thomas mocks himself with a nasty tone.
What kind of so-called compliment was that?
"What made you start making flower crowns?" Thomas laughs bitterly.
Newt was shy for shuck sake. He wasn’t going to answer any of your questions you stupid slinthead.
Thomas kicks sticks and rocks out of his path childishly. He wished he could just take all that back. Newt wouldn’t have gotten all red and zoom out of his seat.
"I’m so shucking-" Thomas stops when he sees something on his sleeping bag.
A flower crown.
He grins so big as he reaches down to look at it. This one had sunflowers and a few dandelions on it. The yellow in the flowers made him think of Newt’s hair.
Thomas put the flower crown on top of the first one, and lays down much happier and hopeful.
Maybe Newt will forgive his stupid comments. He has made him two flower crowns. He’s never made anyone else any.
With that thought, he falls asleep with a small smile on his face.
~*~
He wakes before anyone needed to come get him. He scrambles out of the sleeping bag and grabs the latest flower crown to put it on. He tries to comb his hair with his fingers, but instantly gives up. A few people were up, and he looks around and finds that Newt was one of them. Newt was making his way to the garden to start working, and Thomas hurries over.
He smiles cheekily when he makes Newt jump in surprise. Newt blushes with a blush on his cheeks. Thomas thought he looked adorable.
"I got your flower crown," he says with a tilt to show the crown off. Newt smiles wide when he sees it.
"I’m glad you like it," Newt says with a second long tap of a finger on Thomas’s forehead. The brunet gapes at him playfully making Newt laugh.
"I’m glad you’re not mad at me or anything," Thomas shyly says taking Newt off guard. Newt frowns at him.
"Mad?" he asks with a thick accent making Thomas’s stomach fill with butterflies. Thomas nervously scratches at his arm.
"I thought I had totally embarrassed you yesterday-"
"Don’t worry about it Tommy. I guess I just don’t like so many people staring at me-what?" Newt tries to explain, but then he sees Thomas’s shocked face.
"You called me Tommy…" Thomas grins. "I didn’t know you knew my name." Newt laughs as he starts taking the weeds out of the soil. Thomas looks down at him.
"You did yell Thomas like your bloody hair was on fire the first night you got here. Plus, you haven’t exactly stayed out of the news since you got here as well."
Thomas flushes when he realizes how truthful Newt was. A lot of things has happened since he got here, and he didn’t know if that was a real bad thing. Gally and a few others were getting suspicious of him, and he didn’t know why. He was just curious. He was a very curious person.
"What can I say? I’m a very curious person," Thomas drawls coming a little closer to a now standing Newt. The blonde tenses as Thomas gets closer.
"Will you help drench my curiosity by telling me everything about yourself?" Thomas flirts unafraid. He knew what he was saying was bold, and cheesy, but the look on Newt’s face made it worth it. Newt was blushing like mad and trying to keep himself busy with planting and straightening up grains. Thomas whines internally as Newt tries to back away.
Without looking to see if they had any overseers around them, he grabs Newt’s shoulder tight enough to not be painful, and pulls him to him. A gasp leaves the blonde’s lips as their lips touch, and Thomas wraps his arms loosely around Newt. Thomas’s heart flourishes when he feels Newt kiss back.
He ignores the gasps and cat calling around them.