Chapter Text
Gally's hostility towards Thomas has been a constant puzzle to the other Gladers ever since Thomas arrived in the maze. From the moment Thomas set foot among them, Gally's demeanour shifted, his usual gruffness turning into outright hostility.
Thomas couldn't understand why he seemed to be the target of Gally's aggression. Every interaction with Gally was met with cutting remarks, disdainful glares, and a palpable tension that hung in the air whenever they were near each other.
It was as if Gally's gaze bore into him, filled with an intensity that bordered on obsession. Thomas couldn't shake the feeling that Gally harbored some deep-seated animosity towards him, but the reason remained a mystery.
Despite Thomas's attempts to bridge the divide between them, Gally's hostility only seemed to grow stronger, leaving Thomas feeling like he was constantly walking on eggshells around him.
As Thomas tried to navigate the turbulent waters of their relationship, he couldn't help but wonder what had sparked such intense hostility towards him. Little did he know, Gally's feelings towards him might be far more complex than he ever imagined, with emotions running deeper than mere dislike.
“Hey greenie you better stay put and not make a scene again.” Gally spat with a mean look. Thomas tried to ignore him as he walked around the place, observing everyone and their given jobs—wait why was Gally even following him?
“Can you leave me alone?” Thomas asked without looking up. Gally snickered back in reply. “I’m not joking, why are you even following me?”
“Need to keep an eye on you, I would’ve gladly left your reckless ass alone if it was my choice but gotta follow the leader's orders.” This time Thomas looked up at Gally, to see if he was being for real.
“You actually listen to people other than yourself?” Thomas asked sarcastically.
“Uh huh, if it maintains order then yes” Huh , Thomas thought, maybe Gally was only mean to him. But why?
“Can you please stay put in one place, why have you been walking in circles for so long?!” Gally sounded tired, he felt bad but didn’t at the same time.
“You can leave if you want. I just want to explore”
Thomas still kinda felt bad so he found a clean spot under a tree and sat down, then, as he saw Gally follow, patted a spot beside him. Gally looked varying.
“I don’t bite.” Thomas stated before Gally came and sat beside him, albeit some distance.
“See if you stay put like this you actually might survive here” Gally said as he was playing with some stick he found on the ground.
“Well staying put does nothing, what I need to do is go discover that maze and find us a way out” Thomas spoke hopefully, as he looked up at the long walls around them.
Gally had started laughing at that thought, “Thomas I think you might have some hero complex, cause what makes you think the moment you arrive here—you’ll find a way out of the maze, a way that those runners there that have been trying to search for 3 years?”
Thomas turned to look at Gally laughing before he had started replying to him— Gally actually looked nice laughing, he looked genuine for a second—then he just had to go ruin it by opening his ugly mouth.
“Well, new people, new ideas.” He replied before getting up to leave again, but as he was getting up Gally had held his arm back and pulled him, allowing him to tumble back on the hard ground on his ass — “what the hell-“ he would’ve continued yelling but then he realised it wasn’t the ground he had tumbled on, it was Gally’s lap..
“Listen here Thomas” this was the first time he had heard Gally say his name and it actually wasn’t that bad… “You'll get yourself killed, you dumbass. The maze may look cool from the outside but you don’t understand or know what creatures lie in that maze. Don’t act stupid and certainly don’t act like a hero cause we don’t need people dying!”
Thomas thinks that Gally probably doesn’t realise that he’s on his lap. But whatever, but what he needs to pay attention to is…definitely not Gallys eyes, no, um he needs to pay attention to how he should reply back.
“So make me a runner, Gally. Thomas begged.
Gally was taken aback at the way Thomas had spoken his name…it was weird. His mind was telling him millions things, and one of the million things was the thought that ‘oh shit he’s on my lap right now, Push him off’ but then another part of his mind was telling him how nice it felt—which, abort!
And so that’s what he did, he awkwardly pushed Thomas off him, getting up and walking away, leaving Thomas to think about what the hell just happened.
It was safe to say that the rest of the day was really, painfully awkward. Gally had abandoned his job to keep an eye on the greenie and had faced the consequences of it, a night locked up. Thanks a lot, Thomas.
Right on cue, Thomas sauntered into the cell, seemingly oblivious to the chaos he'd caused, his presence sparking a mixture of frustration and something else Gally couldn't quite name.
"Why are you here?" Thomas asked innocently, his gaze flickering around the cell as if searching for an escape route, but his eyes kept returning to Gally.
"Because of you," Gally replied, his tone laced with a hint of something deeper than annoyance.
"Me? What did I do? I followed your orders and stayed put!," Thomas countered, his lips curling into a mischievous grin that only fueled Gally's irritation.
"Yeah, well, thanks to you, I neglected my duty to watch over you," Gally admitted, his voice softer than he intended, betraying a vulnerability he rarely showed.
"So, I got you in trouble?" Thomas mused, his smirk fading as he took a step closer, the tension between them palpable.
"Stop with the smirk! I'm the one suffering here!" Gally snapped, his frustration masking the sudden intensity of his feelings.
"Relax, Gally, you'll be fine ," Thomas said, his voice low and soothing, though his proximity only served to heighten the tension crackling in the air, and Gally couldn't help but notice how the flickering firelight cast a warm glow upon Thomas's features, stirring something deeper within him.
As Gally and Thomas stand lost in the charged moment, the flickering firelight casting soft shadows across their faces, they're interrupted by Frypan's voice calling out to Thomas from across the place.
"Hey, Thomas! Come over here and grab some food," Frypan calls out, breaking the spell between them.
Thomas reluctantly pulls away from Gally, his gaze lingering for a moment longer before he turns towards Frypan with a nod. "Be right there," he responds, tearing his gaze away from Gally's with obvious reluctance.
As Thomas walks away to join Frypan, Gally watches him go, feeling a mix of disappointment and longing swirling within him. But before he can dwell on it for too long, he notices something unexpected.
Thomas, amidst the hustle and bustle of getting food, glances back at Gally with a look of remorse flashing across his features. It's then that Gally realizes the reason for Thomas's guilt – he's not allowed to eat tonight because of the trouble he caused for Gally.
Moved by Thomas's gesture, Gally watches as Thomas discreetly sneaks a portion of food onto a plate before slipping away from the crowd. With a knowing smile, Thomas makes his way back to Gally's cell, his eyes meeting Gally's with unspoken understanding.
"I thought you might be hungry," Thomas says softly, passing the plate of food through the bars to Gally, their fingers brushing briefly in the exchange.
Gally's heart swells with gratitude and something more as he looks at Thomas, realizing that despite the awkwardness and the trouble, there's a bond forming between them that goes beyond words. And as he takes a bite of the food, he knows that this unexpected act of kindness is just the beginning of something special between them.