In the milky white light of my room, I stretch my arms, feeling sinew pull to the ceiling. I see shadows splash across my arm. I move it from the patch of light - move it back, watching how my skin is drained of colour. Enticed, I sit up in the swimming heat of my little bed, relieved to feel the somewhat cooler air of the late July evening on my skin.
Breathing is too hot for tonight.
I slide my legs onto the gritty wooden floor, watching the pink cotton of my nightgown fall to my knees. It is too hot. It suffocates my body and my brain. I strip it off, convinced that it has cornered me like some wild animal on the prowl. I watch it float to the floor, landing in an untidy heap beside my bed.