Staying Neutral

Chapter Twenty: Will She Awaken?

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It was 3 am, and Y/n was awake.

"My dude, my gosh," she groaned in slight annoyance. "I have fuckin school."

And without another word, she falls asleep.

...is what she tries to do.

She was sharing a bed with Sera since John had only one bed and one couch and William had taken the couch while John had taken the floor in the living room. It made sense for the only two females to share a bed, even though it was pretty cramped. Y/n shifts in the bed and faced the outside, trying not to make any more skin contact than she already was and forced her eyes shut.

And what felt like hours, Y/n then open them with a feeling of disappointment when she sees it was only 3:07.

"Gosh dang it," she mutters.

"Y/n, are you awake too?"

Sera, who facing towards the wall, moves front and stares at Y/n's back. "Yeah," the female replies with a sad tone. She really didn't feel like waking up dead in the morning but her body wouldn't allow her to even get into slumber. Though, having to know that Sera was in the same boat slightly comforted her; At least she won't be suffering alone.

A few moments of calm silence had swallowed the atmosphere, only disturbed by their soft breathing and the sound of muffled snoring coming from the living room.

"Sera?" Y/n's timid voice cut through the silence, and the female hums in response. "What do you want?"

"What would you do if you had suddenly lost your ability? I mean, you're the Ace because of how powerful and intelligent you are, so what would happen to you if you'd happen to lose it?"

 "Damnit Y/n. Please don't even start this 3 am discussion."

 "Sorry, sorry."

 They continued to be silent for a few more minutes before Sera groggily says, "I'd be okay without it, I think. I mean, look at John. Remember the Poker game?"

 Y/n nods, knowing that Sera would feel her movement in the pillow.

 "Poker can be applied to real life. The way John and William were so confident in their cards that I backed out, taking their bluff. And if I was able to read their expressions more and if I wasn't so confident in my cards, then I would've backed out when John did his turn. Life depends on how others perceive you, and if you make them believe you have the highest hand, those who are unsure will back out."

 The h/c thinks for a while before saying, "Isn't that what William said?"

 "Yeah. His words really got me wondering."

 Turning her pillow to the cooler side, Y/n then mumbles, "That's how John lives, doesn't he? Acting confident despite being the 'weakest' in the school." Y/n almost snorted when she did that, but she held herself back.

 Sera goes quiet for another minute. "Don't you think it was quite difficult to see through during the game? It was like... he was a different person, and was able to read me like a book. It's strange, really," she said, and the words hover over Y/n. Y/n then sniffs and curls up even more. "Yeah," she agreed, "It was quite strange." Not wanting to stay on this controversial topic any longer, Y/n pipes up, "So there's like different names for the cards, right? What card would you be?"

 "Well, obviously the Ace," the purple-haired female said with an obvious tone. "Mm. Then what would John be?"

 "...I don't know to be honest. I feel like he's like something that has a trick up its sleeve," Sera's voice says softly as her eyes begin to close, and she lets out a yawn. "What would you be, Y/n?" She said in a tired tone.