Newt walks onto a sandy shore, seeing pretty blue ocean waves and feeling the nice, warm sun beat down on his sensitive soft skin. He takes in a breath, closing his eyes as the salty sea air fills his nostrils and settles into his lungs. Once he exhales, a laughter emerges from far away, coming closer. His dark brown eyes peek open, looking over to see Chuck running for him while Alby, Ben, Winston, and other boys of the Glade who’ve lost their lives follow; all wearing smiles.
“Newt, you made it!” Chuck grins, hugging his waist tightly and Newt places his hands on his back. “Hopefully it wasn’t painful.”
“No, Chucky,” Newt begins, “forgetting would’ve been more painful—more bloody awful.”
Chuck lets him go and all the others give Newt hugs, welcoming him to their own Paradise; a place free of harm, Grievers, WCKD, Cranks, and most importantly, the Flare.
Night fell and the boys all made a fire, sitting around it, and talked of stories of the ones who they left behind. One by one, they each spoke, listing off things that they remembered and what stuck out to them.
It landed on Winston and he cleared his throat. “I remember being in pain in the Scorch, and I wanted to end it, I didn’t want to be a Crank. So Newt … Newt granted me the choice to die how I was—a Slicer of the Glade.”
Chuck was next, smiling as he held up his own little wooden totem that he made of Thomas. “I gave up my life for Thomas, gave him my little carving to remember me by, and while he does that, I carry his. To remember that if I had the choice, I’d do it all over again.”
Newt smiled, hearing him say that because it was true. If Newt had to trust Thomas all over, to choose Thomas, to follow Thomas all over again, he would.
“Newt?” Alby motioned to him. “What about you?”
“Tommy,” he whispered happily. “Tommy, and Minho.” His eyes shifted down to his limp before focusing on the boys. “I thank them for their friendship, for taking care of me … I thank them for trying to save me. I thank them for being my family—my brothers.”
Alby nodded, agreeing and raised his mason jar filled with moonshine. “To brothers!”
Everyone one else joined, raising their jars while Chuck raised a juice pack, cheering, “To brothers!”
The smile never left Newt face and he didn’t mind. He was home.