Adam Grey is a second-year university student, part-time employee at his local garage, severely sleep-deprived and sick of his neighbour's shit.
After three months of constantly listening to his neighbour blare dubstep at 2am, Adam enlists the help...
Adam slowly packed his notepad and textbook into his bag and rose from his chair, feet dragging along the floor as he headed for the exit. The world was nothing more than a dazed blur of colour as students filed out the door.
Two cups of coffee had done nothing to shake him from his sleep-deprived state that morning. His neighbour had been blaring music again until four a.m. and Adam's alarm went off at five. Exhaustion overcame him before he even hit his first class of the day.
To make things worse, his Professors had began handing out exam schedules and review packages that morning. Adam was at least six weeks into exam preparation but it didn't make seeing the little bold deadlines on paper any easier to stomach. He had one shot to keep his tuition and that was by not letting his grades slip.
But schoolwork was getting harder to stay on top of when Adam barely got two hours sleep most nights, especially as the library closed at ten p.m. and forced him to study at home.
Leaning against the brick wall outside his classroom, Adam pulled his phone from his pocket and texted Piper.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Adam pushed himself off the wall and began to trek downstairs to leave the Science building.
Piper's blue curls were easy to spot in the sea of students lounging on the grass in the late morning sun. She'd upgraded from scarf to a small picnic blanket, which was now strewn with a cluster of highlighters and textbooks laid before her.
She didn't look up as Adam dropped his bag beside hers and collapsed on the blanket. Highlighter cap between her teeth, she asked, "Rough morning?"
"That's putting it mildly."
She glanced up at him. "Wanna talk about it?"
"It's nothing." Adam rubbed a hand over his face. "I'm fine."
"Like hell you are." Piper sat up, putting the cap back on the highlighter and tossing it aside. She focused her full attention on Adam. "You look wrecked, and that's saying something since exhausted is your natural state."
"I'm fine, Pipe. Just stressed about exams."
She eyed him incredulously. "You started studying for exams weeks ago."
"I need to keep my grades up or they'll revoke my loan."
Piper stared at him for a moment. "There's something else though."
Adam was content to play the ignorant game but honestly didn't have the energy for it today. He sighed, shoulders drooping as he glanced at the phone in his lap. "I was supposed to meet up with Cole yesterday at the cafe. He blew me off."
"What?" Piper's mouth fell open. "That's not like him."
"That's what I thought." Adam shook his head. "It just doesn't make sense. He was the one who invited me out for coffee. Why wouldn't he show?"
