Maelstrom (noun): whirlpool; turbulence; agitated state of mind

5:43 am.

7:16 am.

8:58 am.

She’d woken up three times in a day.

And when did she sleep? 8:31 pm.

The first time she lulled back to sleep with the quiet hoots of an owl.

The second time by her neighbor’s garage door followed by the engine of his car, heading off to work as a normal and functioning member of society.

The third time, well, the sun was glaring fire on her exposed back. It felt as if it was disappointed with her mopey, lazy shape, bundled uselessly in her blanket like an alien blob.

Her hands rummaged sleepily across the bed until it hit the plastic of her phone case. She tugged it across the sheets and turned it on.

Its screen light was blinding.

Knocked half-mad with the sudden eruption of brightness, the girl blinked several times, disgruntled and dumbfounded. She hurriedly lowered the brightness and began to scroll through her notifications.

A group chat was bustling with answers to a math quiz. Instagram sent her a reminder of her new follow requests. There were also a few missed calls, probably scam calls from a Nigerian prince hoping to share his fortune, or a fictional company’s extended car warranty.

Sigh.

The girl rolled over, letting her phone flop to the carpet. Her eyelids drooped down once again, not out of physical fatigue, but out of a fog clouding her mind.