Chapter 9: Positive Test

My room was filled with a gentle, grey glow as the morning light crept faintly through my drapes. As I lay there, calm and motionless, I saw dust particles idly floating through the atmosphere. From my thinking was everything calm. I kept returning to the same question as an unending cycle of worry: how could I have been late?

I hadn't noticed the difference for two weeks. Always on time, my cycle had veered off course. And the reality always found a way to resurface, no matter how many times I attempted to tell myself that stress was the cause.

With a knot in my gut from anxiety, I carefully got out of bed. I had a weird hesitancy to leave my room for the first time. I walked to the toilet, closed the door and looked in the mirror. My eyes were weary, my lips were set in a narrow line, and my hair was a touch untidy. I hardly recognised myself.