(1 week later)

Clara had been in the Glade for more than a week, and she had already begun to fit in. She became good friends with the flirty Asian boy she had met before, whose name was Minho. There were a rare few that still attempted to flirt with her, but Alby's scoldings would keep them under control. She continued working with Zart and the other Track-hoes, whom she became friends with.

Newt had been acting strange the previous week; not like himself. He became moody, he was normal one day, but angry and sad the next. His appearance became more and more disheveled. Clara would wake up to him tossing and turning in his hammock. On days he wasn't working, he would walk deep into the Deadheads and not appear again for hours. Clara was concerned something wasn't right and she wanted to talk to him, but work consumed her days and friends distracted her in the evenings. Soon, Clara slowly began to forget about it.

Clara woke up one morning to find Newt's hammock empty. He must be running today, she thought nonchalantly as she slipped out of her hammock. She headed over to the Homestead to get a quick breakfast from Frypan before work. Her day was filled with weeding and harvesting as usual, but something didn't seem right; Clara didn't know what it was but something felt off.

Once the day was over, Clara finished her work and made her way to dinner. She grabbed a sandwich, an apple and some water before sitting down on one of the picnic benches. She barely started eating before a figure jogged out of the Maze. Minho. He ran straight past Clara without a greeting, instead heading straight for Alby. When he got to Alby Minho whispered something in his ear; Alby's expression changed to concern. Before Clara knew it, Alby was darting into the Maze. There was obviously something going on, and from what she could see, it probably wasn't good. Her heart beat began to quicken when she realized Newt hadn't come back yet. All the Runners were back at this time.

Minho finally walked over to her with a sandwich and an armful of water bottles. He plopped down on the bench beside her and started chugging his water.

"Is everything alright?" Clara asked, her tone strained.

Minho finished drinking and sighed " Newt hasn't come out of the Maze yet. When all the Runners met at our rendezvous point he never showed. We tried looking for him, but we couldn't find him."

His response didn't make Clara feel any better. She thought of how dangerous the Maze was, the amount of possibilities of getting hurt... or killed. The best case scenario was that Newt had gotten lost, but that was still unnerving.

Once Minho finished eating, he and Clara gathered by the West door along with the other Gladers, and waited for Alby and Newt's return. The tension among the crowd was suffocating. Clara watched anxiously for any sign of movement, and soon enough, her prayers were answered. Alby appeared from around the corner, and Clara realized her worst fears had come true:

He was dragging Newt's lifeless body with him.