Archive of Our Own

Thomas isn’t sure what’s wrong but he feels off. He feels hotter than normal as he runs through the maze and he feels like he hasn’t had any water in days, but he knows that’s not true. He had plenty of water before he left for the day. His mouth feels dry and it feels like he’s not even sweating, it’s weird. Even with the sun starting to set and him making his way back to the Glade, he feels as hot as he would if the sun was still in the center of the sky beating down on him. He tries to think of what could be causing such a feeling but his brain feels foggy and slowed. It was like his brain was trying to work in slow motion and wasn’t able to finish any train of thought or even form coherent thoughts.

Really, it’s luck that got him back to the Glade before the doors closed for the night, his brain wasn’t truly aware of him running, it was muscle memory that somehow carried him back to the Glade. When he gets there he can see others already finishing up their jobs for the day so he knows he’s a little late getting back. “There you are, Greenie,” Minho calls, jogging his way. “I was getting worried about you. So was Newt, he was about to come stand by the entrance to wait for you.”

“Yeah, sorry. I’m back.”

“Well hurry up and get to the hut to trace your route so you can get dinner with everyone else. You look like you could use some water.”

Thomas nods and starts running towards the runner’s hut, wanting to quickly finish his job for the day so he could get some water. While he knew he had to eat, water is what his mind finds most important right now. His brain is still foggy as he reaches the runner’s hut but he grabs his piece of paper and tries to remember what he ran today. It’s a little hard, especially since he only got back to the Glade because of muscle memory, but he tries his best as he marks it down. He can deal with the consequences of a wrong route when he’s not feeling like he’s standing on the surface of the sun and when his brain doesn’t feel like it’s working in slow motion. Thomas doesn’t bother looking it over when he’s finished, just putting it away and rushing to get to dinner.

He moves on instinct through the line, grabbing his food and water, before sitting down in his usual seat between Newt and Chuck. “You alright Tommy? You look a bit tired.”

“Yeah, I think it was just really hot today and it’s wearing on me,” He answers as he picks his cup up. Newt watches him with a worried look as Thomas chugs his water. He puts his cup down with a small frown, he still feels like he hasn’t had any water, it’s as if he’s swallowed a mouthful of sand. “Can I have some of your water, Newt?” He asks, not wanting to stand up to get more. Now that he was sitting down, his body ached and he didn’t want to get up anytime soon. 

“You sure you’re alright?” Newt questions again, already sliding the cup over to him. “Your skin is a little red.”

“Maybe he got a sunburn,” Minho offers from a few seats away. “I think Jeff and Clint still have some aloe for that.”

“Maybe you should go see them Tommy, you aren’t looking too hot.”

“Thanks,” Thomas jokes softly, grabbing Newt’s cup to down it too. 

“I’m serious. I haven’t seen you like this before,” Newt scolds softly.

Thomas passes Newt’s cup back over to him, he feels a little better now. His mouth doesn’t feel nearly as dry and he isn’t as thirsty. “I’m fine, I was just thirsty.” He smiles in a, hopefully, reassuring way. “If I feel bad tomorrow then I will go see Clint and Jeff.”

Newt sighs softly, nodding. “Alright. You better keep your word. I don’t want you running through the maze being sick. Knowing your luck you’d get stuck out there for the night again.”

“I will, I promise.” Thomas rolls his eyes, still smiling.

After Thomas eats he goes to bed, ignoring the aches in his body and the heat that he still feels. He’s not sweating so he knows he’s not actually hot, he assumes it must not be serious since he’s not sweating at all. Surely if he was overheating he’d be sweating and showing other signs. So he lays on the ground, on top of his sleeping bag, hoping that it’ll help cool him down during the night.

Thomas wakes up the next morning still feeling a little hot but he feels a lot better than he did last night. He takes that as a good sign and continues his day as normal, eating breakfast and ignoring Newt’s worried looks over his red skin, and then going for his run in the maze. Thomas feels ready for the day, even if he is a little hot.

However, it starts going down hill within an hour of him running through the maze. He is running with no trouble until he very suddenly feels even hotter than he did yesterday and he can feel his heartbeat throughout his entire body. His mind feels foggy again and he gets confused as he runs, running into dead ends and being unsure of where to go.

He’s not sure how long he runs around in a confused and dazed state. His body feels hot and tired but his mind just feels foggy and slow, it makes everything even more confusing. Thomas isn’t sure what’s going on. Why is he suddenly so hot and why has his mind stopped working? It makes no sense and it’s not something he’s ever experienced before. He’s running around a corner when suddenly he comes in contact with someone else, bumping right into them and stumbling back. “Thomas? This isn’t your route today.”

Thomas looks up at Minho, blinking slowly. “What?”

Minho looks at him for a moment before his face drops. “Hey, you feeling okay? Why don’t you head back to the Glade.” Thomas stares at him and Minho raises an eyebrow. “Do you know the way back?”

Thomas turns to look behind him, willing his brain to work and actually think. “Yeah, I do,” He finally answers.

“You’re sure? I can run you back if needed,” Minho says, looking at him with a worried look. 

He nods and smiles softly. Being a burden is not something he wants, making Minho run him back to the Glade would be a waste of time. He’ll figure this out. “I’ve got it.”

Without waiting for an answer from Minho he starts running towards where he thinks the entrance to the maze should be. He tries to focus on the route to the exit in his head, one that he’s taken many different times. His brain is sluggish though, seemingly not following the orders that Thomas has given it. Even though he should know the way back it was like his mind couldn’t call upon the information. Yesterday his body seemed to know where to go so he really hopes that it does the same today. If he gets stuck out here he’s not sure he’ll be able to run and avoid the grievers like he did his first night stuck in the maze.

Luckily, his body does its job of carrying him back to the Glade even though it takes him longer than yesterday. When he exits the maze he can see the others gathering around for lunch, which means it took him quite a few hours to actually find his way back. He fixes his pace to a slow walk, hoping it’ll help slow his heartbeat that is beating harshly throughout his entire body. He starts to head towards the others that are getting lunch, figuring that getting some water might help again. “Tommy? What are you doing back already?” Newt calls.

“Minho sent me back,” He explains.

Newt stares at him for a moment, eyeing him closely without moving even though he’d usually start to meet Thomas halfway when he got back. “What’s wrong?” He looks at Newt with a confused face, unsure why he was suddenly asking him that. He opens his mouth to respond but doesn’t get the chance as a wave of dizziness washes over him, making him stop walking so he can stay standing. Everything suddenly feels like too much, he feels like he’s standing on the surface of the sun again and that it’s burning his eyes. His heartbeat is rushing through his ears and making his head pulse in pain. “Tommy?” He tries to focus on Newt, who is now rushing towards him, but everything feels too weird. Too wrong. His mouth suddenly fills with saliva, which is weird since he felt so dehydrated before. As he tries to watch Newt and focus on him, his eyes betray what he’s telling them to do and he feels them roll back as he starts to fall to the ground. “Thomas!”

Thomas’s eyes open slowly, eyes rolling back a bit before settling how they are supposed to be. He’s not sure what’s happening or where he is, his breathing picking up out of fear as he tries to look around. But, his vision is a little blurry and he can’t really make anything out. “Tommy, you’re okay. It’s okay. I’ve got you.”

His eyes take a moment to focus but when they do he spots a face above him. He finds himself even more confused. It feels like someone he should know but he can’t put a name to their face and it makes anxiety rise in his chest, where is he? What’s happening? He can’t help the way he tears up, looking around and noticing even more faces above him, ones that he doesn’t recognize at all. “Give him some space guys, go back to lunch,” He hears another voice say and the group around him seems to walk away.

It calms him a little bit but he still doesn’t know anything. He can feel something soft under his head and he brings a hand up to feel at whatever it is. It doesn’t take long for him to realise that he’s on someone’s lap and he quickly pulls his hand away. “You alright, Tommy?” The man above him, most likely the person who’s lap he’s on, asks in a soft voice.

Thomas opens his mouth to reply but it doesn’t really come out the way he wants. “Where… ‘m I? Who’re you?” He asks, voice slow and slurred.

The person above him looks at him with a worried face, dragging his fingers through Thomas’s hair. “You don’t know who I am?” He asks, a tinge of hurt showing in his voice. Thomas shakes his head slowly but when he does, his body jerks and it causes pain to shoot through Thomas’s muscles. He lets out a pained sound and then a sob, tears starting to roll down his face. He doesn’t know what’s going on and he’s in pain, it’s all confusing and it makes him feel horrible. The boy above him quickly shushes him. “It’s alright, don’t worry about anything right now Thomas. Just relax. Close your eyes.”

Thomas does as told, sniffling softly as he does. The hand that was in his hair continues what it’s doing but the boy’s other hand comes down to rub his cheek in a comforting way. It helps Thomas relax a bit and he lets out a breath, feeling his body relax against the ground. A wave of lightheadedness hits him suddenly and he can feel it pulling at his consciousness. He doesn’t try to fight it, he’s already on the ground and he’s safe with this unknown boy. Even if he doesn’t know the boy he knows that he’ll protect him. So he lets himself slip unconscious again.

When Thomas wakes up his body feels heavy and his head hurts, he doesn’t even want to open his eyes out of fear that it’ll make his head hurt more. He’s not sure why he was asleep or why it feels like he’s not on the ground like he normally would be if he was sleeping. Someone’s hand in his hair pulls him from his thoughts and he opens one of his eyes slowly. He doesn’t know where he is but it’s definitely not outside where he would normally sleep for the night. He’s inside a building and he can only assume it’s the Homestead. A noise of confusion slips from his throat and suddenly Newt’s face is worriedly watching him from above. “Tommy, hi,” Newt quickly says, standing to look at him better. “How are you feeling?”

He scowls softly, confused on why he’s being asked this. His body and head hurt and he feels weird but it’s for some unknown reason, did something happen to him? “My head hurts and my body feels heavy. But why?”

Newt seems to get more worried at that, continuously running his hand through Thomas’s hair. “You don’t know why you feel this way?” He shakes his head but it makes his head hurt worse and he lets out a pained whine. “It’s alright, don’t move. Just stay still for right now, Tommy. Jeff!”

Thomas lets out a little noise of agreement when he’s told not to move, but doesn’t talk past that. “Is he awake?”

“Yes, but he doesn’t remember anything.”

“That’s normal. He wasn’t conscious during any of it, even if his body was doing all of that movement, he passed out before it all started,” Jeff explains. All of this just makes him more confused, what wasn’t he conscious for? “His was worse than any we’ve ever seen, it will probably take a few hours for him to become aware of everything again and for his brain to recover. Just stay here with him, keep up with the cool towels and either talk with him about small things or let him sleep if that’s what he wants.”

“Okay.”

“If you need me, or Clint, then just call.”

Thomas listens to Jeff leave before looking up at Newt. That worried look is turned back towards him as the hand moves to rest on his forehead. It’s nice and cool and Thomas lets out a soft breath, it feels nice against his skin. He wants to know what’s happening and he tries to remember what happened to get him here but he feels like his brain has been stuffed with cotton. No cognitive thoughts seem to be making it through his head. “What happened?” He asks.

“Maybe we should wait til you’re feeling better to talk about it. Just relax for right now.” He huffs softly, not liking that answer at all. But it makes Newt smile. “I know. You like to know everything about everything. Don’t worry, I’ll explain it all to you once you’re feeling up for it.”

“Okay.”

He closes his eyes and wills his body to relax, hoping it will help with the heavy feeling in his body and the ache throughout his muscles. He just wants it all to be over and he can feel his eyes water a bit. This is all too confusing and he doesn’t know why he’s in pain. The confusion he’s feeling doesn’t help the headache either, trying to think about anything just seems to make his head throb in protest. “Are you tired? You can take a nap.”

Thomas opens his eyes to look at Newt, chewing on his lip softly. He likes that Newt is here, he feels comfortable with Newt and trusts him. He doesn’t want to go to sleep and risk waking up to someone else being with him instead. Usually, he’d be too embarrassed to actually voice that. But right now he feels vulnerable and really doesn’t want to be alone, or with anyone that isn’t Newt. “Will you be here when I wake up?”

Newt’s face softens and he smiles. “Yeah, I’ll be right here. Don’t worry.”

“Okay… Will you pet my hair while I sleep?”

That makes him chuckle. “Sure.”

True to his word, Newt starts to run his fingers through Thomas’s hair again. It feels nice and he finds himself relaxing into the cot that he’s laid on. He can’t really register anything but aches and weight in his body but his head is sensitive so the soft touches to his hair and forehead help make him feel a bit better. It soothes him and makes him feel better about the unknown situation he’s now in. Even if he doesn’t know what’s going on, Newt is here. He knows Newt will fill him in when he is feeling better and will make sure that he’s okay, even if it is just because it’s his job as second-in-command. It doesn’t take long for the soft touch to relax him and lull him to sleep.

The next time Thomas wakes up, it’s to someone putting something cold on his stomach and it jolts him awake. “What?” He mumbles out, trying to sit up to see what happened.

“Stay laying down,” Newt tells him, quickly pushing on his chest to get him to lay back down.

“That’s cold,” He whines softly as Newt fixes whatever cold thing he just put on Thomas’s stomach.

“It’s supposed to be.”

“Why?”

He hears Newt let out a fond sigh before he comes into view above him. “How are you feeling?”

“Cold because you put something cold on my stomach,” He huffs, frowning at the other.

“You’re not in any pain? How’s your head feeling?” 

He’s a bit confused at the questions but he stops to think. He glances down to see he’s in just his boxers and covered in what he guesses is frozen rags. This confuses him but he ignores it for now, looking back up at Newt who starts to run his fingers through Thomas’s hair again. It’s then he remembers what happened before he went to sleep and he focuses on trying to figure out if he still feels the same as he did before.

His mind is clear now, he’s able to think and articulate thoughts better than before, and his senses feel normal again. And aside from a few small aches on his body, it feels better too. He doesn’t feel like he’s been covered in weights or like he’s just been in a serious accident. “No, I feel fine. Can you tell me what happened now?”

Newt nods, sitting in a chair next to Thomas’s bed. It makes him a little happy to know that Newt really stayed with him the whole time, he hopes it wasn’t too much trouble. “Well, you got heat stroke. You got way too hot and your body couldn’t cool itself down enough. How were you feeling yesterday, when you got back from the maze?”

Thomas thinks on it. “I don’t know… I was really hot and really thirsty. I was a bit confused, I didn’t really know how I got back to the Glade, it was muscle memory that brought me back since I didn’t really know where I was going. But I wasn’t sweating, I thought if I was that hot I’d be sweating.”

Newt frowns. “If you’re not sweating even though you feel that hot, you need to see Clint and Jeff. Not sweating is a big sign of heat stroke. How were you feeling this morning?”

“I felt way better, I had cooled down a bit when I slept but after an hour of running I felt worse than I did yesterday. I accidentally ran into Minho and he sent me back to the Glade. But… What happened when I got back? I can remember getting back to the Glade and seeing you, but then I can’t remember anything after that until I woke up after it happened.”

Newt’s frown grows, worry clear on his face. His hand stops moving, just resting in his hair now. “Well. You got so hot that you had a seizure. It was really bad, it lasted longer than any of us have ever seen, it was the longest few minutes of my entire life. I didn’t know if you’d bloody make it, you were foaming at the mouth and I was so scared.” Newt takes a moment to take a small breath before continuing. “We’ve only had a few people have this happen to them so we had some idea of what to do but it took a long time for you to come out of it and for us to be able to move you here so we could cool you down.”

Thomas is quiet as he takes in the information. He knows what a seizure is. Even though their memories are taken from them before they get here, they do retain some information that has nothing to do with their personal lives or the outside world. Things like medical emergencies, what parts of animals are safe to eat, and how to plant and grow food. Sometimes it takes a while for the knowledge to come back, it was why they had everyone try all the jobs throughout the Glade, most often the memories would come back and they’d be able to do a good job in the place they were put in. This information has just now returned to him and it makes him feel bad for brushing Newt’s worry off last night. “I’m sorry.”

“There’s no reason to apologize. It’s not your fault, I’m just glad you’re okay,” Newt assures, going back to running his fingers through Thomas’s hair. 

“I don’t like worrying you, I should have gone to Jeff and Clint when you told me to. If I did then it wouldn’t have gotten so serious.”

“Well, unfortunately Tommy, I’m always worried about you. Nothing will stop that. It’s just a part of life. But I do agree you should have seen the Med-jacks, I would have pushed more had I known why you were acting so off.” Newt pulls his hand back to feel Thomas’s forehead. “You seem pretty cooled down though, you’re not bright red anymore. You’ll be under observation for a few days, just to make sure you’re fully healed and didn’t get any permanent damage.”

Thomas nods slowly. He still feels bad that Newt was worried about him, he hopes Newt wasn’t worried for him just because he’s new. He can handle himself, even if he’s only been here a few weeks. He’s gotten used to the Glade, the place that is now his home for the time being, and has fallen into a routine. A little part of him hopes that maybe Newt worries for him because he cares about him in a more serious manner, like Thomas feels towards him, but he doubts that’s true. “I can handle myself, you don’t have to worry about me cause I’m new, Newt.”

“That’s not why I worry about you. I know you can handle yourself. But you’re too smart for your own good Tommy, you often do some bloody stupid things because of it.” Newt smiles. 

Before Thomas can argue there’s a knock at the door and whoever it is doesn’t wait for a response before opening the door. “Newt? Is he awake yet?”

Thomas looks towards the door and sees Clint. “Yeah, he just woke up. I explained what happened to him,” Newt answers, standing up.

Clint nods, walking over. Him walking over makes Newt step away from the bed, taking the hand in his hair with him, and Thomas has to stop himself from frowning about it. “How are you feeling Thomas? What can you remember?”

“I have a few aches but they’re not that bad. I can remember everything aside from the actual seizure,” He answers, letting Clint grab his wrist and press his fingers into it.

“That’s good. Your muscles will probably ache for a while, you might even have a few bruises since this all happened on the ground. Newt was able to protect your head so I doubt there’s any serious injury up there.” As he talks Clint takes his pulse, seemingly liking the result because he pulls back with a small nod after. “Your pulse has returned to normal and it seems your cognitive and motor functions have returned to normal. Are you still feeling hot?”

Thomas takes a moment to really let himself think about that. While he is covered in frozen rags, he doesn’t feel particularly hot or cold. The frozen rags should make him feel cold but instead he just feels normal. “No, but the rags aren’t making me cold either.”

“Alright, your body is probably still coming down. We can probably stop the rags after these ones, we’ll keep an eye on you and if your body still isn’t able to cool itself we’ll start them back up. I think you’ll make a full recovery.”

Thomas nods. “Thank you Clint.”

“It’s no problem, it’s my job.” Clint gives him a smile. “I’ll bring you guys some dinner. Thomas, we’ll be giving you a lot of water while you recover, make sure you drink it. Hydration will be important for your recovery.”

“Okay.”

“I said we’ll be doing these things, but really it’ll be Newt. He’ll probably be the one observing you too,” Clint adds. That makes Thomas look at Newt, who looks a bit embarrassed. “He’s been the one taking care of you since he caught you when you passed out. We wouldn’t want to step on his toes,” He says in a teasing voice, looking at Newt with a smirk before turning to leave. “Be right back.”

Thomas is a bit confused, he could tell Clint was teasing Newt but he didn’t know why. He looks over at Newt to see him glaring at the door Clint just left through, embarrassment still clear on his face. “What was that about?” He asks.

Newt turns to look at him, shaking his head. “Ignore him.”

Thomas stares at him, thoughts racing. Was there something that he didn’t know? Why was Clint teasing Newt about sitting with him and watching him? Doesn’t he do this for everyone? He’s the second-in-command, surely it’s his job to check on the people of the Glade. It must be tiresome to have to do that. Thomas feels like he’s always causing some sort of problem for Newt and a feeling of guilt rises in his chest. “I’m sorry I cause so much trouble for you. If I paid attention you wouldn’t have to be sitting here with me,” Thomas finally says, turning his head away so he could look at the ceiling instead of at Newt.

Newt is suddenly close to him again, moving to stand next to the bed again now that Clint is gone. “Don’t say that. You don’t cause me any trouble, mate. I might worry about you but that’s normal.”

Thomas frowns. “Well if I didn’t get sick you wouldn’t have to sit here with me, I’m sure it’s not fun to have to sit around all day just because I’m sick. You could be out doing your work instead of being forced to sit here.”

“I’m not being forced to do anything, I’m here because I want to be here... Because-”

The door opens and Clint walks in with food. “Here you go. Don’t force yourself to eat if you’re not hungry Thomas, but at least drink some water.”

Clint walks over and puts the food on a table by the bed. “Thank you,” He says, pushing himself to sit up. 

The rags on his chest and arms fall off but before he can grab them, Clint does. “We can probably take these now. So you can get dressed, but if you start feeling hot tell someone right away.”

Clint takes the rest of the rags off Thomas’s body as he talks and Thomas nods along. “Okay.”

Clint gives him a smile before walking out of the room, leaving him and Newt alone again. He looks over at Newt. “What were you going to say before he came in?”

Newt is quiet for a moment, staring at the food that Clint just dropped off. “Nothing, just forget it. Right now, eating and drinking is what’s important.” Thomas doesn’t like that answer, he wants to know what Newt was going to say, and it must show on his face because Newt shakes his head. “Looking at me like that won’t get you the answer.”

“Looking at you like what?”

“Like Bark does when he wants table scraps.”

Thomas lets out an offended noise. “I am not looking at you like that!”

“Yes you are, it’s what you do when you want me to tell you something, or when you want something,” Newt tells him with a smirk. “Now, here are fresh clothes, then you can eat.”

He takes the clothes from Newt and dresses himself, pointedly ignoring looking at the other boy the whole time. When he’s finished he reaches over to grab the food and water. Right now he’s not all that hungry, he’s mostly just tired, but he plans to drink the water like he was told to and take at least a few bites of the food he’s been given. 

“Are you still feeling tired?”

Thomas looks up to see Newt taking a bite of his own food. “Yeah. I’ll probably go back to sleep after this. Are you going to go to your room?”

Newt shakes his head. “I’ll stay right here.”

Thomas takes a bite of his food, chewing it as he looks at Newt. Newt’s going to stay in that chair all night? That can’t be comfortable. It’s good people aren’t usually stuck under observation a lot or Newt wouldn’t be getting any rest. “In the chair?” Thomas asks after swallowing his bite. “Won’t that be uncomfortable?”

“I’ll be fine Tommy, I’ve slept in worse places.”

Thomas frowns a bit, setting his food back on the table when the bite of food makes his stomach churn in an uncomfortable way. He doesn’t want to be the reason Newt is sleeping in a chair, he’s sure he’ll be fine for the night. He wants Newt to be comfortable, especially since he does so much around the Glade. It's unfair of him to make Newt sleep in an uncomfortable place and get a bad night’s rest just because he is sick. He runs through some solutions in his head, trying to find the best one, before speaking up. “Well, you can sleep on the bed with me. That way you can actually sleep. I’m not contagious so I’m sure it’ll be okay,” He says before drinking his water.

Newt’s eyes widen for a moment, frozen in place with the fork still in his mouth. Thomas raises an eyebrow at him and it seems to kick him back into gear and he pulls the fork out of his mouth. “No, you don’t have to do that. It’s totally fine,” Newt tells him quickly.

Thomas shakes his head. “I don’t mind. It’s the least I can do.” Newt opens his mouth to argue and he quickly stops him. “Don’t argue with me. I’m the one that’s recovering from a sickness.”

He finishes his water quickly, setting the empty cup down on the table with his food. “You are so bloody hard-headed. Do you know that?”

“Yes. You tell me so all the time,” Thomas smirks as he settles against the bed.

He scoots back against the wall that his cot is pressed up against, settling in and getting ready for Newt to join him. Thomas isn’t used to feeling so tired, usually he’s up all day and ready to sleep and then get up again. But right now he feels like he could just sleep for days at a time. He doesn’t give in to that though, instead he watches Newt as he eats, waiting for the older boy to join him.

When Newt finally does finish he stands and stares at the bed for a moment. “Come on,” Thomas hums, patting the bed. 

Newt sighs before climbing into the bed with him, laying on his side so they are facing each other. Thomas stares at him, butterflies erupting in his stomach as he looks at Newt and he wonders if this was a bad idea. He likes Newt and now he’s sharing a bed with him and it’s making him feel a little giddy. Thomas knows he can’t say that though and he tries to ignore it since he can tell that Newt’s got something on his mind, so he waits to see if he’ll say it. It’s quiet for a few minutes before Newt reaches out to drag his fingers through Thomas’s hair. He can’t help but instantly relax into the touch, making the older smile softly. “You really worried me today. I know I already said that, but I was really scared. Do you remember the first time you woke up?” Thomas nods in reply. “When you woke up and couldn’t remember anything… I was terrified. You didn’t know who I was and I thought… I thought you were going to forget all about me. I thought that maybe the seizure had messed with your memories again, that it had triggered whatever they used to wipe our memories before sending us up in the box and you’d have to start all over again. I don’t know what I would have done if that happened. I don’t know if I could have handled it.”

Thomas looks at Newt as he talks, noticing the way he starts to scowl as he talks. He reaches out with his thumb to smooth out the scowl, smiling softly to reassure him. He couldn’t imagine dealing with that and he feels bad for putting Newt through that, even if he knows Newt doesn’t blame him for it. Making Newt feel bad isn’t something he ever wants to do. He really likes Newt, he likes Newt a lot .  “I’m sorry, that must have been really scary. I remember you though, I don’t think I could ever forget you like that. You can’t get rid of me that easily, Newtie.”

Newt stares at him before a smile breaks out on his face. “There’s no reason to apologize. I’m just so glad you’re okay. Don’t ever make me worry about you like that again.”

Thomas chuckles softly. “I promise.”

“Good. Now go to sleep, you probably need it.”

Thomas nods, letting himself relax into the bed under him. He is tired and comfortable. Newt has been a constant throughout the past few times he’s fallen asleep, especially with the hand running through his hair. Now, it seems like having Newt with him and feeling his fingers combing through his hair makes his body just instantly relax, his brain shutting down instead of running through tons of thoughts all at once. It was nice and Thomas leans into the fingers in his hair as he falls asleep, missing the soft coo that falls from Newt.

“Hey Newt- Woah!”

Thomas jumps a bit at the sudden yell, eyes opening as he sits up. “What happened?” He asks quickly, looking around in confusion.

When his brain catches up to everything around him he sees Jeff standing in the doorway looking at them. “This isn’t what I expected to see when I opened the door.”

Thomas looks at him, confused, before turning his attention to the still sleeping Newt. He blinks once, twice, before his face heats up at the realisation of what Jeff is talking about. “No no! It-It’s not like that!”

“Tommy, you’re too loud.” Newt reaches up and slaps his side. “Be quiet.”

“Jeff is here.”

Newt opens his eyes and blinks a few times before rolling over to look at Jeff with a confused look. “Alby wants to speak with you,” Jeff says, a smirk on his face. “I figured while you did that I’d check up on Thomas.”

Newt looks at Jeff before turning to look at Thomas, he can see the gears turning in the older man’s brain before he suddenly sits up. “I’m going.”

Newt is up and out of the bed within seconds, already making his way out of the door before anyone can say anything. Jeff watches him walk away before turning to look at Thomas, that smirk still on his face. “So you two are sleeping together now?”

That makes Thomas’s face get even hotter. “No! I was just… Well Newt is staying by my bedside cause I got sick, I’m sure he must be uncomfortable from staying at bedsides all the time when people need it so I offered to share the bed with him.”

Jeff looks at him funny as he grabs Thomas’s arm to check his pulse. “What do you mean? He doesn’t stay at bedsides. Most of his work is with the Track-hoes, even as second-in-command. He’s not a Med-jack so he doesn’t care about that sort of thing.”

Thomas feels his face finally calm down, no longer bright red, as he listens to Jeff talk. He’s a bit confused. If this isn’t something Newt normally does, then why is he doing it now? “It’s not? Then why’s he sitting here with me? He wouldn’t even go to his room to sleep in last night. Clint had teased him yesterday about him being the one to monitor me…”

Jeff stares at him, seemingly forgetting about checking his pulse as he just looks at him. “Wow, you’re dense,” He says after a moment. Thomas sputters in surprise at that, what’s that supposed to mean? “Did Newt tease me about my crush? I guess it’s fair I tease him back later… This is too good to pass up,” Jeff mumbles to himself, which Thomas assumes he’s not supposed to hear. He does hear it though and it makes his eyes widen in shock. Crush? Does Newt have a crush on him? “Listen Thomas. If you were anyone else, Newt would not be staying at your bedside like this. He loves doing his job around the Glade, says it takes his mind off things and can relieve stress. But yesterday all he did was sit and watch you sleep, I’m sure he could’ve found a better use for his time if he wanted to.”

Hearing this, Thomas feels butterflies start in his stomach again. Does Newt like him back? Does Newt feel the same way? Does he care enough that he wants to be by Thomas’s bedside so he knows that he is actually okay? If Newt doesn’t do this for everyone then it must mean something. “You think so?”

“I know so Thomas. You weren’t awake for it but I saw how worried he was about you. He was the one that caught you, you know? He said he knew as soon as he saw you that something was wrong.” Jeff lets go of his arm, sitting in the chair that Newt had put next to his bed. “The entire time you had the seizure, he had your head on his lap, protecting it. Then he carried you here and him going to see Alby right now is the first time he’s left. Alby was wondering where he was because he’s been gone.” Thomas can’t believe his ears. He knew Newt cared about him, at least a little, but this goes beyond what he thought. Maybe Newt really does like him back. The thought makes his chest feel warm and he can’t help the smile that appears on his face. It makes Jeff’s smirk grow. “Do you like him?”

Thomas nods slowly, his face once again flushing. He figures he can trust Jeff with this since he was telling him all this. “Yeah. I thought that he just… worried about me cause I’m still the latest greenie.”

“No way. He’s never been worried like this with anyone, not even Chuck and he loves Chuck.”

The door opens before he can respond and Newt walks in. “Alright, I got that sorted out,” Newt hums. “I brought you some water, Tommy.”

Thomas takes it when it’s handed to him, smiling softly. “Thanks Newt.”

Newt eyes him for a moment before looking at Jeff. “What’d you say to him? Why’s he so red, I know he wasn’t that red when I left.”

That just makes Thomas more embarrassed, especially as he listens to Jeff start to laugh. “Nothing! Nothing at all,” He says, standing and walking towards the door. “Bye now!”

“I don’t believe you,” Newt calls after him. When Jeff closes the door he turns to look over Thomas. “What did he say? He wasn’t teasing you about the bed thing was he?”

Thomas shakes his head. “No, it wasn’t about that.” 

Newt doesn’t look like he believes him but doesn’t comment on it further. Thomas takes this as his chance, he can ask Newt if he really does like him back then he’ll know the truth. If he’s wrong then he can deal with the consequences of it, even if it does make things awkward. “I can see the gears turning in your head, what is it?” Newt asks, pulling him out of his thoughts.

“Well… I just…” Thomas sighs, taking a big gulp out of the cup in his hand before placing it on the table next to his bed. “Do you… like me?”

Newt eyes widen at his words and he doesn’t answer, just staring at Thomas. That makes him a little nervous and he worries that maybe Jeff had accidently given him incorrect information. “Of course I do Tommy, did I make you think otherwise?” Newt finally says, smiling softly. “You’re my best friend.”

Thomas chews on his lip at that, Newt misunderstood his question. He could take this as an out, a way to not make it awkward, but he just needed to know. “No, I mean, do you really like me? More than the others. You know, in a… relationship kind of way.” Newt is once again silent, eyeing him closely. It makes the nervousness in his stomach grow, he feels like his heart is in his throat. What if he is wrong? “I mean, it’s fine if not. Jeff just said that you don’t sit at everyone’s bedside like this, which is what I thought you did, but since you didn’t I figured you might like me back. If I read it wrong you can just tell me so and I won’t bring it up again-” He rambles, picking at the stitches on the pants he’s wearing to try and distract himself.

“Tommy,” Newt says, cutting him off. “Do you like me?”

Thomas looks up at Newt. He’s nervous but he swears he can see a bit of hope in Newt’s eyes, so he goes for it. “Yes.”

The reaction is instant, a giant smile breaks out on Newt’s face and he seems to relax. It makes Thomas feel butterflies and grow warm again, that smile must be a good sign. “I like you too. I wasn’t sure if you felt the same way since you never picked up on any of my hints.”

“Well… I thought you just cared for everyone the way you care for me…” He mumbles, embarrassment clear in his voice.

Newt chuckles. “No, you’re the only one I do things like this for. I think everyone in the Glade knows I have a crush on you. Minho and Alby have been teasing me about it since you came out of the box and I started treating you differently.”

Thomas smiles. He feels so relieved that the feelings are mutual and that now he doesn’t have to keep his own feelings for Newt buried. “Well I’m glad I know now… Does that mean we can be together?”

“Of course Tommy, I really thought you’d never ask,” Newt says, laughing softly.

“If I had known you liked me I would have asked sooner.”

Newt leans in, kissing his forehead. “I’ll have to be very obvious about my feelings from now on, just to make sure you know about them,” He teases, mirth clear in his voice. “Now, hurry and get better so we can go out and do something together.”

“Yes, Newtie,” Thomas replies playfully.