The gates opened with their usual groan.
But today… it felt different.
I stepped forward beside Minho, the morning air cool against my skin, the weight of yesterday still sitting heavy in my chest. The nightmare hadn’t left me—it clung to the edges of my thoughts like a warning I couldn’t ignore.
“You good?” Minho asked, glancing at me as we crossed the threshold.
“Yeah,” I said, a little too quickly.
He didn’t call me out on it. That’s how I knew he was worried.
We ran.
The maze stretched out in front of us, twisting paths and towering walls, the same as always—but every turn felt sharper, every shadow darker.
Minho slowed slightly. “Something’s off,” he muttered.
“I feel it too,” I said.
We took a left. Then another. Then—
I stopped.
“Minho…”
He turned instantly. “What?”
“This is the same path,” I said quietly. “We’ve been here.”
He frowned. “No, we haven’t—”
“Yes, we have,” I insisted, stepping forward. “Look.”
There, carved faintly into the wall, was a mark.
One I recognized.
My mark.
Minho’s expression shifted. “That’s not possible.”
But it was.
My heart started pounding. “This… this was in my dream.”
The words hung in the air between us.
Minho stepped closer, his voice lower now. “Hey. Look at me.”
I did.
“We’re not in your dream,” he said firmly. “You’re here. With me. And we’re getting out. Got it?”
I nodded, even if the fear didn’t fully listen.
We pushed forward.
But the maze didn’t feel like it was letting us go.
The turns came faster now, tighter, like the walls were guiding us somewhere. Or trapping us.
Then—
A sound.
Not loud. Not distant.
Close.
Minho’s entire body tensed. “Run.”
We didn’t question it.
We took off, sprinting through the corridor, boots slamming against stone. My breath came fast, my pulse louder than my thoughts.
Left. Right. Straight.
“Dead end!” I shouted.
Minho skidded to a stop beside me, already scanning. “No—there’s gotta be—”
The sound came again.
Closer.
Too close.
For a split second, I froze.
Just like in the nightmare.
My chest locked. My legs refused to move.
“Ada!”
Minho grabbed my arm, snapping me out of it. “Don’t you dare freeze on me now!”
“I—I can’t—” I choked.
“Yes, you can,” he snapped. “You’re the fastest runner we’ve got. You don’t stop. Not here. Not ever.”
The words hit something deep.
Not fear.
Something stronger.
I forced my legs to move.
Minho spotted a narrow opening just as the corridor seemed to close in. “There!” he shouted.
We darted through it, barely making the turn in time.
And then—
Silence.
We slowed, both of us breathing hard, hearts racing.
I leaned against the wall, hands shaking. “That… that was exactly like the dream.”
Minho stepped in front of me, hands on my shoulders, steadying me. “But you didn’t freeze,” he said. “Not this time.”
I looked at him, still catching my breath.
“You moved,” he continued. “You fought it. That’s what matters.”
I swallowed, nodding slowly.
For the first time since the nightmare, the fear didn’t feel like it owned me.
We made it back to the Glade just before the doors started to close.
The second I stepped through, Chuck ran straight into me. “You’re back!” he said, holding on tight.
“I told you I would be,” I said, hugging him close.
Frypan gave me a relieved nod. “You look like you saw something out there.”
“Just the maze being its usual nightmare,” I said lightly.
But Newt—
Newt saw right through it.
He walked up slowly, eyes locked on mine. “What happened?”
I hesitated.
Then quietly, just for him, I said, “It felt like my dream… but I made it out.”
His expression softened, something like pride flickering through. “Course you did,” he said.
Minho clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Told you. She doesn’t lose.”
I looked around at them—Chuck, Frypan, Newt, Minho.
My family.
The maze might try to break me.
But it was going to have to try a lot harder than that.
ns216.73.216.89da2
and then Add to home screen.