Mali woke up to the incessant screeching of an unfeeling digital alarm clock, its cold red LED screen flashing 6:00 AM into the darkness. She blinked a few times, taking stock of everything her lower back was sore and her arms felt a bit tight, but that was fine, nothing unusual. What was worse was how the inside of her mouth felt like a chicken finger stuck between two sheets of 2000 grain sandpaper. Sitting up, Mali was eye level with the alarm clock, that sat directly opposite of her across the room. The red flashing of the alarm clock served as the only light source, revealing the unorganized opened boxes left over from moving in and furniture strewn about the room. Getting up out of bed, Mali traversed the treacherous terrain of her bedroom to finally shut the damn thing off.

Tip toeing her way into the kitchen/living room, Mali turned on the fluorescent white lights that made everything way too bright for half a second. Digging through a cabinet she pulled out a matte blue plastic cup and filled it with tap water. She drank it all in one go, appreciating how much a little went to reversing the desertification of her mouth. Briefly, her mind turned to thoughts of eating, but those were shoved out of the forefront. She had to do morning cardio first. Despite this, her eyes wandered over to the fridge anyway. On it was a note written in sharpie ink on yellow paper reminding her that tonight was a party night where everyone in this group of buildings would supposedly be at. Well today was a rest day, and it wouldn't hurt to get to better know the neighbors. Mali made a mental note to try to put together a cute outfit later.

But for now, it was time to run. Mali headed back to the bathroom and changed into a sports bra, a loose-fitting pair of black shorts, a pair of plain white socks and a baggy grey shirt. Fetching the last few necessities (wallet, phone, headphones, keys, a water bottle) and turning off the kitchen light, Mali walked to the door and shoved on her black and yellow running shoes without bothering to redo the laces. As she left the apartment building, she put her headphones into her ears and started thinking about what to do for the party later.