Deletion

No Breaks Given

She awoke the next morning completely unrefreshed.

It seemed to her, as of most days, that she had been asleep for only a few minutes, rather than a few hours, as she knew it had been. Her muscles ached, and she had a severe headache. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

There was no waking benefits to her. She did not feel refreshed as others did. She was not full of energy and motivation, ready to start the day. She just felt depressed and tired. Fatigued. Lethargic. She felt absolutely no motive, and she had no drive. She just...couldn't.

However, there was also Orabelle, who bounced into her room with a giddy smile on her face.

"Good morning, Meadow!" she greeted happily.

Meadow tried to smile back at her, but it only appeared as a weak twitch of her mouth into a pathetic grin. "Hello there, Oreo," she said. She yawned.

Without her input, Orabelle motioned to open the blinds, the light from which Meadow nearly staggered. But she steadied herself, instead forwarding the motion into a stretch, which did nothing to help her mood along.

Another monotonous day was ahead, and though she felt ill-prepared, she supposed she ought to take it like any other day.  She grabbed her bag, which had been laying beside her bed, and swung it over her shoulder. She then continued to trudge into the kitchen, pick up a banana, and peel it, cramming it hurriedly into her mouth. Oreo came into the kitchen, one eyebrow raised. 

"No need to rush," she said. There was bemusement in her visage. "You're still an hour early."

Meadow looked at her for a moment, then smiled weakly. "I know."

For some reason, she was always acutely aware of around what time it was. She didn't always know exactly, but she could estimate, and her estimations were almost always right somehow. Everyone always relied on her for it, and it gave her an overwhelming sense of responsibility. But then again, she supposed it was her role in the school. 

Meadow still had her blanket wrapped around her shoulders, and she strode into the kitchen. Oreo followed closely behind, munching on cookies, ironically. She stared up at her taller companion with wide, innocent eyes. 

Looking down, Meadow found that she herself was trembling on her lanky legs. She sat down on a kitchen stool for a moment. Orabelle's hand landed on her shoulder, she wearing an expression of concern. She smiled at her, and she relinquished her grip, instead walking around the island to make her some breakfast. They chatted quietly, reminiscing distant memories and childhood mistakes, chuckling at each joke. 

Finally, Oreo passed her a bowl of cereal, set with spoon, in which Meadow began to hungrily wolf down. She watched from above, highly amused by the faintly heavy breathing she was emitting. 

Meadow looked up, and found her wrapping her jacket around her waist. She wiped her mouth.

"Finished?" she asked sweetly.

"Yes. I'll handle the dish, don't worry. You go ahead and get dressed, I suppose, unless that's what you're wearing."

"Oh, I'm ready already. I was just gonna head out early. Is that okay? Can you take care of yourself?"

She laughed. It was endearing how truly worried she was about her friend. She rolled her eyes, smiling and she waved her hand at her. "I'll be fine. Go on ahead. I'll see you at school, yeah?"

"Yeah. See you later, Meadow!"

The door slammed behind her a moment later, and Meadow was left to her own devices for an hour or so. She sighed, shaking her head. 

Time to properly start the day.