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IT TOOK A MONTH, BUT THE GLADERS RECOVERED. Another thirty days had come and gone for Samson and he could barely believe how fast it had gone by.
The first week without Nick was tough for everyone. So many of the Gladers slacked off, slept in and moped around. Some of them stayed in the Cookhouse all day and all night. For that first week, the Glade was eerily quiet and unoccupied. Still, Samson went to work in the Kitchen every day. He didn't want Alby worrying about him on top of everything else.
Alby had changed so much. Having all of Nick's responsibilities thrown on him was hard and scary for him and Samson could tell. He didn't see him around as much. He didn't come into the Cookhouse to eat. After the first week, Samson decided to start bringing him his meals so that at least he knew he was eating. And even though he didn't show it, he knew Alby was grateful for it. Alby chose Newt to be the new Second-in-Command, which didn't surprise Samson. They were best friends, and it's what Nick would've wanted. But that also meant that Samson didn't see Newt much anymore either, he was always too busy checking up on everyone else who needed him.
Two weeks after Nick's death, there were still some Gladers who just couldn't seem to move on. It was mostly just the Sloppers and the Gladers who were close with Nick. There was even a Runner who would just sit in the Cookhouse and cry. Whenever Samson would ask him if he wanted something to eat, he'd just cry to him about how he'd lost his two best friends in the whole Glade; first George and now Nick. Samson felt awful for them all, but he knew sooner or later, things were going to have to go back to normal.
Eventually, Alby came to his senses and realized that the Gladers couldn't live under that dark cloud any longer. At dinner one night, Alby jumped up on a table and stood there until the whole room went silent.
"I understand that everyone here is grieving Nick. He was our leader. He was smart and kind, and logical. He gave us hope. But most importantly, he wanted us to live. He wanted us to keep things going no matter what, and he wanted us to work our tails off so we could get out of this shuck place. Sitting around and crying for him isn't what Nick would've wanted us to do. I'm not gonna watch you all grieve anymore. We need to get things moving again. So starting tomorrow, if I see any of you slacking, it'll be one night in the Slammer,"
A few Gladers groaned or stood up to protest. Newt stepped forward and held his hand up.
"Alby's in charge now! He's right, this is getting out of hand. We need to pick things up 'round here, make Nick proud." Newt's eyes were dark and low as he scowled at the few boys who were arguing. He too had changed a lot. It was clear that being Second-in-Command in the Glade was stressing him out.
The Cookhouse slowly quieted down again and Alby shook his head. "That's all I've gotta say. I hope my message is clear. Enjoy your meal," Alby stepped down off the table and still, nobody spoke.
