Young Writers Project: Wired In

I sit stagnant on a couch,
its color long forgotten beneath me,
surrounded by my friends:
a text on my phone,
a chat on my laptop,
a few tabs and apps of social media here and there.
YouTube plays songs into my headphones
that might as well be attached to me.
Friends I know from school,
friends I know from travels,
friends whose faces I have never seen.
My thick red headphone wire lies across my lap.
Phone and computer chargers tangle in my legs.
A book lies forgotten on the coffee table in front of my body,
but my mind is elsewhere.
Inside the computer,
sugar and bright pixels stimulate my brain.
I fight off virtual dragons and hop over fantasized snow.
As much as I hate to admit it,
I’m addicted.
I’m stuck.
I’m wired into the system.
I’m wired.