Clara's POV

A hand wrapped around my arm and drug me along behind them but I was still focused on where Winston flew over the edge. I should have known we all wouldn't get through this alive but Winston and I had been through a lot together, I didn't think one crank would end it. My thoughts lingered on the night the grievers came into the glade where it was just Winston and I running for our lives together. Or the night right after Ben was banished and he promised he'd keep Thumper safe just because I wanted him to and then he gave me his torch so I'd feel better.

My heart clinched in pain and I could feel the steady stream of tears running down my face as my eyes finally focused ahead of us. Thomas was the one gripping my arm with Newt trailing right behind us holding my hand. Newt seemed just as shaken up as I was. My heart pounded erratically in my chest and my legs wobbled like jello as we continued running from the spot Winston lost his life. If it wasn't for Thomas' tight grip on my arm I definitely would have face planted on the uneven ground.

Winston's screams still rang in my ears as Thomas pulled us through the group to the front. We stopped when we reached a door and Thomas stepped forward to try to force it open. His grasp on my arm never loosened as he slammed his body into the door. I turned towards the rear of our group and noticed the cranks slowly getting closer. Their shrieks filled the air in excitement when they realized we had stopped.

"Tommy..." My voice was barely a whisper but I saw his head flip towards the cranks in anticipation. He grunted as he threw himself at the door once more and it finally broke open only to reveal about fifty or more cranks on the other side. He screamed out in surprise and pulled me away from the door. He sprinted down the hall opposite the group of cranks, hoping for an exit.

Since we were the closest to the door we were now at the back of the group with Minho and Chase at the front. Thomas pushed me to where I was in front of him as the cranks got closer and his hand remained on my arm. I glanced behind us only to be propelled forward even faster.

"Don't look back Clara, just keep going." Thomas' voice was urgent in my ear and I could sense the fear radiating off of him.

I nodded and my eyes landed on Newt just in front of us. He seemed to be struggling with the run now a little bit and I guessed it was because of the distance we were attempting with his bad leg. Thomas noticed too so he stepped in line directly behind Newt to catch him if he fell.

"In here!"

Minho's voice sounded farther away than I expected and my heart pounded in fear of us getting separated or worse with the cranks closing in. They had a door open and Minho was ushering the group in. Newt climbed through quickly and Minho nodded at me to go but since Thomas didn't let go of me, Minho ended up going through last. He screamed out as a crank grabbed a hold of him and in a flash Thomas and I were pulling at him and his clothes to pull him through. The door wedged open a bit further as we pulled and a few more cranks tried to push their way through. One grabbed my arm and pulled me closer as Minho wrapped his arms around me, trying to pull himself free. Thomas let go of Minho and pushed against the door, eliminating all of the cranks but the one that still held Minho. It's teeth dug into Minho's flesh as it clawed at my arm but with one final tug I pulled Minho away from him and Thomas slammed the door behind him. Thomas collapsed against the door, breathing heavily from the exertion spent trying to free Minho. Minho laid on the ground beside me as I frantically pulled his shirt away from his newly created wound.

"How's it look, Poke?" Minho's voice was low as his eyes studied me, waiting for an answer.

The bite barely broke skin; just enough to make him bleed and I felt myself sighing in relief. "Looks okay Monkey. I think you'll make it." I grinned at him and patted his shoulder before climbing back to my feet.

Thomas moved closer to us and he glanced down at me quickly assessing me for any injuries. I did the same to him before turning to Newt. Newt pulled me into him for a tight hug before pulling Thomas' jacket up so he could see my wound. He grimaced and his eyes met mine with sympathy. I looked down at it and gasped at the dark black lines devouring my wound. "It's infected." Newt whispered, his eyes full of grief. Thomas moved beside him to look at the same time Chase and Minho stepped forward. They glanced at each other and I dropped my gaze to the ground.

"We'll find something to help you, love. We will." Newt mumbled, gently rubbing my back in comfort.

"I know we will." My voice came out much quieter than I expected and wasn't as convincing as I was hoping it'd be. My eyes scanned the dark room we were in now and I sighed when I noticed the gaping hole in the wall. Fry Pan hovered by it uneasily, peaking his head outside to see where we were. He stepped back a few feet and turned towards us. "There's a helicopter up there with a big light on it. I think they're looking for us."

"We have to keep moving then. Won't be long until they find us." I said, stepping away from Newt and towards the wall. Thomas shadowed me and leaned out of the hole with me, both of us diving back inside when the light came our way.

"If we go now we'll get caught. We need to wait until the helicopter is gone then make a run for it." Thomas nearly whispered as our group gathered around closer to one another.

"And then what? Where do we run to?" Teresa asked the question that was on everyone's mind, her voice trembling with fear.

The events of the day had caught up to all of us and the weight on our shoulders started really weighing us down. We wouldn't be able to last very long with our spirits so low.

"There's a ton of fallen buildings out there and even debris we can hide under but Thomas is right. We have to keep moving and distancing ourselves from this place." My voice was stronger than I thought it would be and I felt a smile appear when everyone looked at me with hope in their eyes.

"We're gladers. We can do this. Cranks and Wicked are nothing compared to what we can handle. We just have to know we can do it." I shrugged as if this was the simplest thing in the world, trying hard not to wince when my shoulder throbbed in pain. I could feel the fear in the back of my mind slowly seeping into my thoughts as I realized I didn't have much time to battle an infection out here. The longer we stayed still the less adrenaline flooded through my body and the more I could feel the pain. As hopeful as I sounded with the gladers I couldn't quite convince myself that we'd be okay.

"Clara's right. If we don't believe in ourselves then we won't get out of this and might as well go back to Wicked now." Chase added, looking around the group. My eyes met Newt's and I knew he could sense something was off with me. I took a staggered breath and slumped back against the nearest wall needing to take a break.

"I'm fine, don't look at me like I'm dying." I told Newt and the others that followed me to the wall. Newt's eyes analyzed the sweat rolling down my forehead and the chills on my arms and he stepped closer to me so no one would hear us speak.

"You're not fine, don't lie to me now Clara." His voice was steady but his eyes shown the concern that must have been building over the last few minutes he watched me. "Talk to me, tell me what's happening to you."

I breathed out a sharp breath that made me wince and shook my head at him. "Complaining about the pain won't help anyone. I'll be fine when we get something to help the infection."

"But how long will you be able to hold out?"

"Honestly?" Another wave of pain flooded through my body and I could feel my energy draining. "Probably not long." My head leaned back against the wall and I let out a breath of relief as the pain subsided slightly.

He turned to talk with the others and I let my eyes close. Just to rest them....only a few minutes....

I gasped in pain when I was shaken awake afterwards. My eyes opened and I met the worried faces of Thomas, Chase, Minho, and Newt in front of me. Newt's hands were on my arms and there were unshed tears in his eyes.

"What?" My voice cracked from lack of water as I looked up at the boys hovering over me.

"You wouldn't wake up. We were scared you weren't going to come back to us." Newt replied with a shaky voice.

"What do you mean? How long have I been out?"

"Six hours." Thomas answered. His voice also trembled as he spoke making me realize how scared they really were that I wasn't going to wake up.

"I do like the dramatics of giving a speech full of hope and then nearly dying. Great effect." Minho stated sarcastically. He grunted when Thomas punched him in the arm.

My eyes widened as I took in the information and I turned my gaze back to Newt. "I'm sorry. I...I...didn't realize..."

He pulled me into him with a gentle hug and I wrapped my arms around his shoulders in response. My shoulder throbbed in pain and I found myself burying my face in Newt's neck for support. "We need to get out of here, Newt."

He nodded against me and pulled me to my feet. His gaze met mine briefly before he pressed his lips against mine. The kiss was soft at first but quickly became passionate as though it might be our last. One of my hands gripped the back of his neck while the other moved through his hair. The hair that I've always loved so much. The others had all turned away to give us privacy, well as much as they could in the small space, but our embrace was short. Newt pulled away and smiled softly at me as his arms released me. He wrapped one arm around me to support me as Thomas turned towards us.

"Okay, we haven't seen the helicopter for a while so we're going to make a run for it now. You guys going to be okay?" His gaze lingered on me and we both nodded. "Alright, let's go."

We slowly climbed through the hole in the wall, Minho leading, and made our way through the dark night away from the Wicked facility. Or at least we hoped. No one was really sure where exactly we were heading but we were getting away from the bright lights we assumed was Wicked. Newt helped me walk but I found it getting easier and easier as we continued on. Eventually I released him and settled for holding his hand as we neared morning. Newt handed me his water bottle when we finally stopped, resting under a large concrete slab that most likely crumpled off of a nearby building. The water was stale but refreshing and after my small drink I found myself wanting more.

"I'm sorry love, we don't have much. And we don't have any food I'm afraid." Newt's voice was quiet and I knew he was worried. We were all worried we made a mistake by leaving. We were dead if we stayed there though, of this I was sure.

A/N: I realized a bit too late that I made a big error in the last chapter but it has been fixed! I'm sorry if it caused any confusion. Thank you all for reading! :)