Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Take control of your life

T-shirt, jeans, and running shoes, just like he wore in the maze.Refreshing, soft socks.After washing from head to toe at least five times, I feel like a different person.He couldn't help thinking that from now on, everything would be fine, and he could start to take control of his life from now on.If only the mirror hadn't reminded him of his own tattoo!This tattoo was from before he went to the Scorched Earth.It was a permanent sign of what he had been through, and he wished he could forget about it. He stood outside the door to the bathroom, his back against the wall, arms folded, waiting.He was wondering, would the Rat Man come back?Will he let Thomas wander here and start another round of trials?Before the train of thoughts could begin, he heard footsteps, and then he saw the sly figure in the white uniform flashing out of the corner.

"Ah, you look handsome!" the Rat Man commented, the corners of his mouth curled up along his face, and he forced out an ugly smile. Thomas had a hundred sarcastic answers in his head, but he knew it had to be straightforward.The important thing now is to collect as much information as possible and find friends. "I think it's fine, really, so... thanks." He also put on a casual smile, "When can I meet the other Gladiators?" "Right now." The Ratman, serious again, nodded toward the way he had come, motioning for Thomas to follow him. "You've all passed the different tests of the third trial. The model of the kill zone was drawn, but we had to temporarily change it in order to move forward a bit. However, as I said, we are almost there. You will all be full partners in this current study, help us Adjust and push until we solve the mystery."

Thomas narrowed his eyes. He guessed that his third level was the white house, but what about the others?As much as he hated the ordeal he was put through, he could only imagine that WICKED could have made it worse.He even hoped that he would never know what torture they planned for his friends. Finally, the Rat Man stopped by a door.He opened it without hesitation and walked in. They walked into a small auditorium, and Thomas finally breathed a sigh of relief.Scattered across a dozen rows of seats were his friends, all of whom looked safe and healthy.Gladiator and B group girls, Minho, Frypan, Newt, Ares, Sonia, Harriet.Everyone seems to be having a good time, talking and laughing, although they may be faking it.Thomas thought they'd all been told the end was coming, too, but he doubted anyone would believe it.Of course he wouldn't believe it himself, at least not yet.

He looked around the room, trying to find Jorge and Brenda.He really wanted to see Brenda, who hadn't been seen since the Bergs found them.He'd been worried about her ever since, afraid that WICKED would send her and Jorge back to the Scorch, as they had threatened before, and now there was no sign of either of them.But before he could ask the Rat Man where they were, a voice broke the noise, and Thomas couldn't help but smile knowingly. "Oh, my god! It's Thomas!" Minho yelled.As soon as he finished calling, there was cheering, cheering, and screaming all around him, and Thomas felt a surge of sadness and joy in his heart.His eyes continued to search every face in the room, and he couldn't hold himself back to speak, but kept grinning until he saw Teresa.

She stood up and turned at the far end of the row to face him.Her black hair, neat and shiny, fell to her shoulders and framed her snow-white face.Her red lips burst into a bright smile, illuminating her entire face, and her blue eyes looked extremely bright.Thomas almost walked towards her, but he held himself back, a dark cloud passed over his mind: he remembered vividly what she had done to him, how she had said that WICKED was good despite everything that had happened . can you hear meHe shouted in his mind, just to see if their telepathic ability had recovered. But she didn't respond, and he still couldn't feel her presence in his heart.The two just stood there, looking into each other's eyes, although it might have been only a few seconds, it felt like a minute.At this moment, Minho and Newt came to him, patted his back, held his hand, and pulled him into the room.

"Hey, at least you're not dead, Tommy!" Newt said, squeezing his hand tightly.His tone sounded more grumpy than usual, especially after not seeing him for weeks.Luckily he's at least intact, and I'm grateful for that. Minho had a smirk on his face, but the sharp light in his eyes showed that he had suffered, that he was not natural yet, but was trying his best to act like that. "Fantastic Gladiator, back together at last. Glad to see you're still alive, Skunk! I've imagined your death a hundred times. I bet you cry every night and miss me. " "Yeah," Thomas murmured.He was so excited to see everyone, but he didn't know what to say.He squeezed his way out of the crowd and walked towards Teresa.An uncontrollable desire urged him to confront her, to calm his mind so he could decide what to do next. "Hi."

"Hi," she replied, "are you okay?" Thomas nodded. "It's okay, it's been a rough few weeks. Can you..." He stopped.He'd almost asked her if she could hear his telepathic echoes, but he didn't want her to know he'd tried, that way she'd be flattered. "I try, Tom, I try to talk to you every day. They cut us off, but I guess it's worth it." She reached out to take his hand, which provoked a roar of laughter from the Glademen. Thomas quickly withdrew his hand, his face flushed hot.For some reason, what she said suddenly made him very angry, but others thought he was just embarrassed.

"Oh," Minho said, "It's so sweet, just like the last time she stabbed your stinky face with the tip of a spear." "That's true love." Frypan also took up the conversation, and laughed wildly after speaking, "I don't want to see these two people really fight, who knows what will happen." Thomas didn't care what they thought, but this time he was determined to make Teresa understand that after all she had done to him, she couldn't run away this time.Whatever trust they had had in each other before the Burns, whatever relationship they had had, was gone now.Maybe he could live in peace with her, but at this moment he swore that he would only trust Minho and Newt in the future, and no one else.

He was just about to say something when the Rat Man strode over from the aisle, clapping his hands as he walked, and said, "Please take a seat, everyone. Before we take out the brain card, we have to tell you something." He said it so casually that Thomas almost didn't catch it, but those words were frozen in his mind: Take out the brain card!He froze. The whole room fell silent, and the Ratman stepped onto the stage in front of the room and walked to the pulpit.He gripped the edge of the pulpit, forced his old smile again, and said, "Yes, ladies and gentlemen, you will recover your memories in no time, not less."