Amarisoft

If he checked the time again, it would be 4:00 AM. And if it was 4:00 AM, he had already lost.

His phone sat on the charger, a glowing siren. He knew that if he picked it up, the blue light would finish off whatever remained of his melatonin, but the temptation was a physical ache. He reached out, his fingers hovering inches from the screen.

By the time he got to the second floor window frames, the gray light of dawn began to bleed through the curtains. The birds started their first, tentative chirps—a sound that usually signaled a fresh start, but to Elias, sounded like a finish line he had failed to cross.

Elias rolled onto his stomach. Then his left side. Then his right. He flipped the pillow to the "cool side," which stayed cool for approximately six seconds before absorbing his frantic radiating heat.