Bella woke up long before sunrise, the events of yesterday still burning in her mind. She couldn’t go back to sleep. Instead, she quietly slipped out of bed and started working out right there in the small dorm room — push-ups, squats, planks, burpees — anything to make her body stronger. Sweat dripped down her face as she pushed herself harder, breathing heavily through gritted teeth.
Molly groaned from her bed, rolling over and squinting at her through half-closed eyes.
“Bella… it’s 4am in the morning,” Molly mumbled, voice thick with sleep. She glanced at the clock beside her bed. “We don’t even have class until 10. Why are you torturing yourself?”
Bella didn’t stop moving. “If I have to get stronger, I need to workout,” she replied, voice determined. “I’m tired of being weak. Tired
