The Darkness Pulls Over Everything Aubrey Decker It all started in a room full of brightness. The curtains were almost always wide open. I had pictures of all of my friends on the wall, white bedsheets, and a clean, organized white desk. I was sitting in my neat room as the news struck; we would not be returning back to school. As the news spread, and the pandemic grew, I noticed the world almost started to get darker. And as the world got darker, so did my room. I first started by upgrading my curtains to blackout ones. I didn’t want to see the outside anymore. It was so empty. It seemed minuscule at first, but the more I left the curtains closed, the more I noticed the change. I removed most of my photos off of the wall. I couldn't live to have those memories still surrounding me. Everything was so much better, so much brighter. A lot of leftover space appeared. The walls looked empty, depressing, and dark now. There was no concept of time in my room. There was no natural lighting to remind me of the time. I had no responsibility. I started to stay up later and sleep longer, going to bed at 6 o’clock in the morning and waking up at 5 o’clock at night. My desk eventually got messier. I spent all my time in my bed, but still, my desk was a mess. Stains from makeup, leftover papers, garbage from Amazon packages. My room was becoming a pit of darkness and messiness. It was barely livable, yet I started spending more and more time in there. I only left when necessary. I decided a white desk wasn't for me. I upgraded to all new black furniture. Once again, the room got darker. The only thing left that wasn't completely dark was my bedsheets.
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