Diminishing Returns

*This is all bullshit!*

The final bell rang, closing the curtains on exams for the day. Frustrated beyond belief, I threw my cheaply made mechanical pencil on the ground, where the plastic burst open, scattering the contents around the floor. As I pitifully sulked in my chair, I overheard an equally pitiful conversation that was slowly headed for the exit of the room.

"Why's he getting worked up over something so simple? What an idiot. I guess having an Asian last name doesn't make you one, huh?"

"Hey, leave us Asians out of this. We don't claim him."

"Hey, leave the rest of us humans out of this, too. We don't want him near us, either."

"Hahahaha!"

*Seriously... calling finals "something so simple"? That's actually hilarious.*

As the conversation left earshot, I sighed in relief. Those goons didn't know how to do anything but get good grades. I've always heard that the typical high school bullies are the jocks and athletic types, but it couldn't be more wrong in my case. The gym-goers were extremely friendly and they always motivated each other to improve themselves. They were my people.

The "intellectual" type, on the other hand... I had them beat in most other areas, so the only way they could attempt to harm me is with this sort of trash talk about grades on the edge of my hearing.

*You know what, it's their lucky day that I don't want to retaliate. They're probably just so scared of my intelligence that they can't bear to be in the same room as someone a few years younger. That's gotta be why they treat me like that.*

I tried to delude myself as I picked up the pencil and graphite I had carelessly hurled. As I did, I heard footsteps approaching at a leisurely pace. Without looking, I already knew who the culprit was.

"Hey," I mumbled, still not turning to look at him.

"Yo, Jon. Ready to lose again?"

This guy. He'd always boasted higher accomplishments in the academic department, and with a love for games, it was no surprise that he was the president of the chess club as well. He was also someone who would never go easy on me in a battle of wits despite knowing he was superior. Despite being one of the so-called "intellectual types" I despised, he was still my best friend.

"Of course not! I'm fired up right now."

"I can tell that much... Need help?"

He glanced at the debris on the ground and offered me a hand.

"... Sure."

He joined me on my hands and knees to clean up my mess. We gathered the remnants and tossed the dilapidation in the garbage.

"Alright, let's go."

Classes were done for the day, which meant it was time to begin the extracurricular activities. At this point in the day, I would normally just go home. But today was different, and I had expressed my interest in visiting the club to my friend earlier. We collected our belongings and started off.

"So? What did you think?"

*Is he asking me about the final?*

"Oh, it's totally nothing. Other than the fact that the one thing I don't study turns out to be the question worth the most points! What the hell is that upside down triangle thing, anyway? Did we even talk about that?"

"Of course we did. And it just so happens to be the day you fell asleep."

"Right. Of course... And you? What did you think? Wait, never mind. Why did I even ask..."

The kid had never gotten under a ninety-five percent on an exam, so there was no point in asking. But his next words raised my hopes a bit.

"Well, I did think it was difficult..."

*Huh. If the smartest kid in the class thought it was difficult, maybe I'm not as dumb as I thought?*

"I wasn't even 100% confident in one of my answers!" he continued.

"Man... I should have expected you to say something like that!"

I gave him a playful shove, and we both laughed in kind.

"Well, whatever. I'm glad that finals are over," I sighed.

We reached the outside of the clubroom, but we couldn't go in just yet. I wanted to try something.

"Wait. Let's play a game. Winner gets to do the club president duties first thing upon entry. Whatever those are."

To be honest, I kind of wanted to see how to be the president of a club. In the past, I'd never really paid any attention to leadership and practically freeloaded off of the benefits of being a useless member of society. But hearing what my sister said earlier about the "threshold of adulthood" made me reconsider my choices.

Because of this, the demand of the winner seemed somewhat strange, and my friend didn't fail to pick up on it.

"Oh? You *want* to try being club president for a day? That's unusual. I'd love to see it, but I don't want to lose, either. You'll have to give it your best shot."

"That's just like you; I've given you an incentive to lose, but you won't take it... Bring it on. I'm feeling kind of down after that last final, so let's play RPS-5. Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock, best of 3."

Actually, I had another reason for challenging him here as well. The minor victory I had won against Jeanna gave me some confidence in my abilities, and I was itching to play something as soon as the exams ended for the day. Of course, I didn't have to say this aloud.

"Hmm... alright. On shoot, then?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "Let's start."

The game to decide today's fate - Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock. A 5-way version of roshambo. The rules are simple; they're identical to normal Rock Paper Scissors. However, there are two extra options: Lizard and Spock. Each option beats two others and is defeated by the remaining two.

On the mental count of three, we simultaneously began chanting.

""Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!""

I extended my hand all the way, and opened my ring and pinky fingers on one side, and my middle and index on the other. The result - Spock.

He, however, had simply extended his hand all the way out with no hesitation. Four fingers and a thumb, fully extended. The result - Paper.

I let out a small whistle, impressed at his first immediate victory.

Paper disproves Spock. I was losing 0-1.

"Really, now, Jon? You're so easy to read!"

"Am I? That's a shame."

Obviously, I knew this was a bluff. The only person in the world who could read me so easily was Jeanna, and nothing could change that fact. The first round was nothing but luck. It's impossible for him to know that I'd have played Spock.

In classic roshambo, men, especially those who don't know any strategy, typically open with rock. Although the choice doesn't hold any more weight than the others, it's definitely psychologically comforting to hold out a fist right from the get-go. Obviously, my opponent isn't a moron. However, this is where reverse psychology can come into play. It's possible he could pick Rock even if he knows it's a typical starting move. Therefore, it's impossible to know if he will play Rock.

Conversely, women throw Scissors more often. It's definitely an opening move that's likely to win. Knowing this, I picked Spock. Spock smashes both Rock and Scissors. He knows this. However, there's no guarantee that he knows I will play Spock due to the logic of reverse psychology; it's possible I could have not picked Spock *because* it's a solid counter to common openings.

In a psychological match between two people who were both new to a game, the match would be pure luck. No strategies or tactics could be developed by either since neither knew what they were doing. In a similar fashion, when both players had effectively solved the game, it returned to pure luck. Once every strategy and tactic is known by both players, what can they do to outwit each other?

Therefore, the first throw was pretty much a toss-up.

This is also what made a 5-way version of RPS so much more exciting than the standard. Since so much of the first throw was down to luck, there's a 1 in 5 chance of a tie. In standard RPS, there's a 1 in 3 chance. Of course, there's the argument that more ties can make the game more suspenseful, but I'd rather just get the thing over with as soon as possible. I play to have fun, and ties aren't.

"Again."

"Of course."

We prepare for the second round. Once again, on the mental count of three, we chant.

""Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!""

I stuck only my index and middle fingers out sideways and made sure there was a gap in the middle. The result - Scissors.

Lo and behold, my opponent responds in kind with the same move as last time, a fully open hand. The result - Paper. A mirrored move, and a decent strategy. It's unlikely to want to make the same move twice, especially now that there's five options to choose from. Of course, if this was the only thing I knew, I would have hesitated to play Scissors. But, there was something else I had an idea of. To confirm, I looked at his hand. It looked to be shaking uncomfortably, as if he were trying to flex his muscles really hard.

*Wow. It was a gamble, but it paid off. Who knew he still couldn't make that symbol with his hand?*

"I've got Scissors, and you've got Paper. Scissors cut paper. That's one for me. Who's easy to read, again?" I taunted him.

"... paper. Right. The point goes to you," he reluctantly responded.

The score was tied 1-1.

*Now, I think I've got him where I want. He looks pretty flustered at the moment. And would you look at that... He's even switching what hand he's using.*

"Ready?" I said, making sure my tone didn't betray my confidence.

"Yeah, let's go."

For the final time, the chant resonated through the hall.

""Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!""

Four of my fingers were stuck together on top, while my thumb was across from them, resembling a "C". The result - Lizard.

My opponent, for the third time in a row, unleashed a fully open hand - Paper.

"Lizard eats Paper. 2-1, my victory," I said. And I gave him the upright Scissors. Some may call it the hand symbol for "peace" or "victory", but frankly, that's overrated.

"No way, dude. You knew?"

"Hmm? What's that? Knew what?"

I feigned innocence at his flustered words.

"Okay, I'm sorry. I take back what I said earlier about you being easy to read. Can you tell me how you knew that I can't play Spock?"

Yup, this was the kicker - this was how I beat him. The dude literally can't even make the Spock sign with his hands... It's a pretty dirty victory, but a win's a win. The odds were tilted in my favor when I decided the conditions of the game. There were several variants of RPS-5, but I specified that the two remaining slots *must* be Lizard and Spock.

Regardless of if he managed to play Spock with his other hand, Lizard poisons Spock, so I still would have won. In an effort to protect his pride, he had to play either Paper or Spock. It was checkmate.

"Oh, I just happened to overhear it back in the day on the elementary school playground... no big deal, right? I heard you watched Star Trek one day, and tried to make the Vulcan symbol, but couldn't. I took a chance that you still couldn't do it to this day, and would you look at that."

"Man... is that why you only wanted to play RPS-5? What's got you feeling so upbeat today? Especially after failing the final..."

I pretended like I didn't hear that last part. We usually did play more complicated versions of RPS, even going up to RPS-101, which didn't include Spock. But his judgement was correct - I indeed wanted something simpler after failing a final.

As for the bet... although I was willing to take a test of leadership by being club president for a day, I had to admit that I couldn't change overnight.

*I'm still nervous about dealing with a bunch of people, it seems...*

Anyway, this was definitely an opportunity! I could finally learn how to be a leader. I'd never really witnessed a club president's duties before. I was usually either late or absent, and I hardly paid attention to what anyone else was doing, since I didn't really care.

*The going-home club is best, after all.*

This was my first time actually being punctual.

We opened the club door to find a myriad of faces. The sound of the door alerted the members, and all of them eventually focused on me.

"..."

"So? What are you gonna do, Mr. President?" he asked me.

"Huh? How am I supposed to know?"

"Haha, today's pretty easy. We don't have any events planned, so we just need to check attendance. That's it for formal duties. You can do that much, right?"

"Uh, maybe."

My friend handed me a clipboard from his backpack and gave me a fake smile, as if to say, "You can do it!"

*... Thanks.*

I took the clipboard and stared at the people in the room. All of them were still staring at me. Needless to say, it made me *very* uncomfortable.

*Do they have to keep doing that? ... I guess I have to say something...?*

"Uh... I guess I'm the club president for today. Nice to meet you all. Here's the sign-in sheet. Thanks for coming today...?"

I walked up to the closest member, who I'd never seen before, who was seated at a desk. She had curly hair that reached past her chest and was wearing a denim jacket and long white pants. She also appeared to be chewing bubble gum.

I gave her the sign in sheet, on which she didn't put down her name. Instead, she just stared at me, chewing her gum.

"Um. Is there a problem?"

This was awkward. I tried to get her to say something, but no words came out of her mouth. Instead, she, very slowly, began to blow a bubble with the bright pink gum. It expanded past her nose, her cheeks, and even grew bigger than her head. Finally, it popped, leaving pink residue all over her face.

I was thoroughly confused.

*What's going on? What am I supposed to do here?*

After very slowly picking the gum off her face, she put it back in her mouth and began chewing again. A few more awkward seconds passed before she finally spoke up.

"Who are you?"

*It took you all that time just to say that?*

"I'm the... uh... temporary club president for the day?"

"... Really? That guy seriously allowed a dip like you to do that?"

... I didn't know what that meant, but it felt like an insult. Why was she getting agitated for no reason?

"Like I said, it's only for today, so there's no need to get nervous..."

"Nervous? Of someone like you?"

*Oh, boy, here we go... What did I do this time?*

I had a strange talent to agitate people around me for no reason, and it didn't help that I was socially awkward. I didn't know how to resolve the situation.

"... Sorry if I offended you. Please sign the sheet and pass it on so we can finish this as smoothly as possible..."

The only thing I could do was apologize. I didn't really care what people thought of me; I just wanted to get out of this situation.

"And why should I listen to you?"

*Why is she making this so difficult?*

Of course, I wasn't going to voice my thoughts. I was already regretting my decision to become temporary president.

"If you don't want to sign it, I can only assume you weren't present today, thanks."

I snatched the clipboard back before the girl could react and passed it to a guy who was sitting on top of a desk a few feet behind.

"Wait..!"

Ignoring the girl, I passed the sign-in sheet around, verifying everyone present. Apparently, the sign-in sheet would be sent to the school board to judge the club's activity. The more popular the club, the more funding it would get. Therefore, everyone was reminded to sign in.

After the signing, a few of the club members were still looking at me with wide eyes, and the rest were discussing something quietly among themselves.

*Is it just me, or did the atmosphere change...*

At this point, I felt like I was being treated like an exotic animal.

*Well, whatever.*

I ignored them and turned to face my friend.

It was worth noting that since I didn't show up very often, I would always demand a chess match with him whenever I did. However, this wouldn't be happening today, since I wasn't planning on playing.

He noticed this, and took the initiative to speak up.

"What's up? Scared of losing another chess match?"

"Pshh. You know how it is. You beat me most of the time, anyway."

I didn't want to admit it, but I was a little nervous to play. My win rate against him never went above 45%. But that was irrelevant today; it was a special occasion. I wanted to see how he stacked up against a certain someone. Maybe if I knew the result, I could relax my soul even more.

"Then why did you even come? On time, no less... are you healthy today? You didn't hit your head, right? No, I wouldn't lose to a concussed Jon. Your performance on the final definitely-"

"I've got a special guest coming today, and I guarantee your loss."

Once I said that, the hushed conversations in the background went completely silent.

*Oh, I guess their attitudes make sense... A little bit.*

I think... I'd finally figured out why these guys were acting so strange. They held the club president in such high regard that anything that came close to defiance against him was met with disdain. The same bubblegum blowing bit- I mean, girl, seemed especially angry.

"Club president? Guaranteed loss? Seriously, who are you? And Prez, why are you letting this clown do... whatever he's doing right now?"

I guess I could understand where she was coming from... Objectively speaking, the number one and number two players were on a pretty different level from the rest of the club. If a random guy came in and said that he knew someone that could get either one of us a guaranteed loss, he would probably be treated like a laughingstock.

The thing was, I shouldn't have been "a random guy". I was the aforementioned number two player. It was surprising and disappointing how long this question created conversation. When I looked closer, I saw that there were actually quite a few new kids I'd never seen before.

*Oh jeez... how long has it even been since I last came here? Somebody please tell them something...*

I looked around the room, but none of the club veterans wanted to speak up for me.

*Why? Please defend me here, someone.*

Of course, nobody could hear my inner plea.

*Is it jealousy? Is it because I have the unshakeable number 2 spot despite being absent for God knows how long?*

I understood that feeling. There came a point where no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't surpass the hurdle in front of you. For so many activities, I'd struggled to break through and could only watch as others effortlessly flew by. In this case, it was them stuck at the barrier and it was I who surpassed them. If this was the case, their resentment was reasonable.

Finally, the third-ranked player, Alex, began to speak up. The newbies focused on him to hear what the old fox had to say.

"Yea, I have no clue who he is. Guaranteed loss on the Prez? No way, of course he's bluffing!"

Silence resonated.

"..."

*Dammit, et tu, Alex? Though it's not like you were my friend or anything in the first place...*

"Yea, I've been coming here for the past six weeks and I've never seen him."

"Seven for me."

"Eight."

One after another, newbies testified to never having seen me despite their club activity.

*I really haven't been here in two months? I guess time flies when you're not losing chess games.*

It was impossible to get the club to calm down after that one. I'm glad I didn't need to perform any real "leadership duties" today. No one would have taken me seriously...

At that moment, the clock struck 4, and the door opened.

*Punctual, like always... Perfect timing, too. Save me from this mess, please!*

The guest of honor had arrived. All the attention on me dissipated; all eyes were on the door. Of course, without a bold claim such as guaranteeing the number one's defeat, this wouldn't have happened. Even if they believed it was impossible, I guess they couldn't completely kill their curiosity towards this mystery guest.

... Now believe me when I said I was relieved when I saw her. But another emotion immediately overrode that.

*What the hell are you wearing, Jeanna?*

"Yo," she said, like a typical... something. This wasn't her normal behavior. What was going on?

She was dressed in a dark gray sweatshirt hoodie, with the hood up, mind you, and light gray sweatpants. No trace of dignity whatsoever. I couldn't believe she would come to school dressed like this.

"Who's the punk I need to beat?"

She raised an eyebrow at me.

"By the way, you can't comment on my outfit when you literally have negative fashion sense."

"..."

I couldn't even be surprised anymore.

"Uh, yea, he's right over here... Jeanna, this is..."

"No need for introductions, I've heard all about you from lil' Jon here. I just need to beat you, right? Let's just get this over with."

*Don't call me that here of all places!*

"Oh? Interesting. I assume you're Jon's older sister? Not like it matters who you are, anyway. I won't give you any special treatment. This is what I say to all my opponents, regardless of who they are. Ready to lose?"

"I should ask you the same thing. Let's play."

The two challengers quickly set up the board.

Of course, this sudden entry was not taken very warmly. From what I've told her about the club, she should know that as well. Apparently she's trying to rile them up on purpose, and it's not helping my cause. Her audacious behavior was sending my negative reputation with the club even further down.

"Hey, seriously? She just walks in here like she owns the place?"

"Talking to the Prez like that? Talk about arrogant..."

"Who is that chick, anyway?"

I sighed quietly enough for no one around me to hear.

*This is a problem. I didn't expect their reverence to border fanaticism. Don't just follow someone around because you think he's a god... learn to form your own opinions!*

Hopefully they'd be hit with some reality after this game.

---

The game was close. It really was. Jeanna, playing on the black side, couldn't have been evaluated at more than -2.0 for most of the match. But the result was clear. Checkmate, her win.

Everyone was stunned into silence. Before anyone could react, Jeanna abruptly said, "Is that it? See ya."

She got up to leave, but was met with some mildly annoyed chatter.

"Hey, this guy said he knew someone who could give Prez a guaranteed loss. Although it was a win, it didn't look very guaranteed to me."

"Yea, let's see a rematch!"

*They can't even take a loss on someone else's behalf?*

"Hmm? Is that any way to treat a lady?" Jeanna inquired mockingly.

"What? Act like one, then!"

She started towards the door, and the absurd scene continued until *somebody* with some authority decided to speak up.

"Why not? Let's go again. Scared I'll beat you this time?"

There was a fire in his eyes that was rarely seen amongst normal people. Most people didn't witness this side of him, but he was like this every time he was against me. I recognized this look; it was one of burning determination to win. He wasn't going to back down from this declaration.

With those words, Jeanna stopped and turned her head back to look at us. Her eyes narrowed. "Oh? I was trying to go easy on you knowing this would happen, but you saw through it?"

"Of course. Even though your advantage was small in terms of material, you kept it consistently throughout the course of the match and had superior positioning. You're truly a fearsome opponent. I probably won't win, so let's go again."

After a heated staring contest, Jeanna complied and sat back down on the black side of the chess board.

"Fine. But we're playing on a one minute timer this time. Any complaints?"

"Not at all. As long as I get another fair match against you, the extra stuff doesn't matter."

Her expression was cold. His expression was heated. A bullet battle of ice and fire would rapidly consume the table in between them.

Once again, she was victorious. There was no holding back this time; she crushed him. The result to any doubters was clear this time.

"Let's go, Jon."

She grabbed me by the wrist and briskly headed towards the door.

"Huh? Um... okay?"

A repetition of a previous scene occurred: stunned silence with one person seemingly unaffected.

Jeanna quickly pulled me out of the room. As the door shut behind us in the hallway, a myriad of questions swam in my head.

"What are you doing?"

But I couldn't articulate any of them. Instead, I gave her this pathetically concise excuse for one.

Jeanna sighed as she tried to put her thoughts into words.

"There are a lot of things going on right now, but I guess the most important thing you need to know would be... Let's see, you know what diminishing returns are, right?"

"Huh?"

She let the hood fall off of her head as she explained.

"The more skilled you become at something, the more time and effort it takes to gain the same amount of skill."

"Well, yeah. So?"

Of course I knew what diminishing returns were. I was confused about where this conversation was going.

*What does that have to do with anything...*

"Do you remember what I told you earlier today? He's a dangerous opponent. He seems to be the type to enjoy losing."

"... I guess he can be like that. How could you tell so quickly?"

"I know because I'm the same way. I love playing against stronger opponents. I love losing against someone stronger. But that's a rare case nowadays; finding a difficult opponent is quite a task. I'm sure he feels the same way."

"Then why don't you just play chess online?"

"... I do. It's just not the same as over-the-board chess. Also, it's a massive time sink. Like I said, diminishing returns. I'd have to play an insane amount of chess at this point to get any better. It's not worth it. And you know that chess isn't the only thing I'm good at."

I then realized something. It was possible to optimize what you were "extremely" skilled at. If you balance your skills and skill levels perfectly, it can seem like you're a pro at everything, especially to the average person. In reality, you are far worse than a legitimate pro, but that didn't matter very much.

If an ant stood in front of two mountains, both would seem insurmountable, even if one mountain was over twice as tall in reality.

"Not only that... but here's what scares me... he's an insanely quick learner, especially if he loses against someone an order of magnitude stronger. I don't know how many matches it would take for him to catch up to me, but it wouldn't be very many. Normally, I'd be fine with someone surpassing my skill in a game, but..."

She glanced nervously back at the door.

*Why is she so on edge today? There's definitely something she's not telling me.*

"I don't get what you mean. I play against him all the time, but he's not nearly as scary as you. Although I guess he can get really fired up sometimes..."

I recalled the time I beat him and he flipped the table, demanding a rematch in the process. But that wasn't a good enough reason for Jeanna to be acting like this.

"What's going on with you today?"

Jeanna smiled bitterly.

"Thanks, Jon, I'm glad I look like a big and scary monster to you."

She stuck out her tongue to tease me, completely ignoring the question.

*Ugh, she really is a scary monster when she wants to be, though...*

Suddenly, the door opened, revealing a pale face with blonde hair.

"Hey," he said.

"What the heck are you doing? I resign as temporary club president forever. You may as well be starting a cult in that room with how you're treated. Me and Jeanna are outta here for now." I told him.

He stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind him.

"Then I'll come along as well. I'm really interested in what's going on between you two. I just left the presidential duties to Alex. Punishment for trash talking you."

He winked at me.

*I don't need that consolation...*

Jeanna looked really uncomfortable at this point, as if she really didn't want to be near this guy. It took a little convincing, but she sighed and reluctantly agreed to bring the psycho along with us.

We walked in silence towards the exit doors of the building.

"Aren't you two gonna say anything to each other... Are you really siblings? Where's the trash talk?"

I wasn't going to voluntarily answer that question, and Jeanna didn't seem to have any plans to speak up, either. So the silence continued.

We eventually walked outside towards the commons. Eerily enough, it was deathly silent outside as well. Barely any sounds of nature reached our ears.

Suddenly, Jeanna spoke up.

"Hey, Jon. If you were stranded somewhere remote, do you think you could muster your will to survive?"

"Huh?"

*She's blindsided me at nearly every opportunity today with these strange questions and statements... I wonder if everything really is okay today...*

"You heard what I asked... would you?"

"If it really happened, then yeah. I'm not actively trying to get myself killed here."

"Is that so? Thank goodness..."

She turned away and hid her face in her hood.

*She seems especially relieved after hearing that answer. Don't tell me I'm going to be shipped to a random island right now?*

Maybe she was just being overprotective of me, but seeing her that relieved made me smile, too.

Suddenly, we were hit with a small earthquake.

"What the hell?"

Something was wrong. It wasn't as if earthquakes were uncommon in our area. In fact, they were not rare. It was *because* of this that I was freaked out. I didn't know how to describe it, but it didn't feel normal.

*No, can this even be called an earthquake?*

"You guys are feeling this, right?"

"Yeah. It's definitely strange."

"..."

The small earthquakes I'd experienced in the past often started with a small jolt and progressed to slightly stronger jolts. However, this one felt like an eerily consistent vibration, as if it were meticulously played at a calculated frequency. It didn't last long, nor was it destructive. But it was odd enough to be memorable.

*Actually, I feel like I've felt this type of earthquake before...*

The vibration passed as quickly as abruptly as it started.

Jeanna, who ignored my previous question, spoke up as soon as it subsided.

"Hey, on second thought, let's not go towards the park. Let's go around towards the commons..."

"... Why?"

"Um... you know how they have that mascot statue there? I don't want to admit it, but... that thing really scares me..."

I knew which statue she was talking about. It was a fairly large brass statue of a wolf, our school mascot. And it wasn't very well crafted. It definitely fell within the uncanny valley in terms of how cute it was. However, there was no need to worry, because...

"They got rid of that statue last year. I do admit it was pretty creepy, though."

"Oh... are you sure? I still don't want to go that way, it was horribly made and still gives me chills."

"It'll be fine! It's not like it's cursed. Nothing's gonna happen in the park, okay?"

My friend only looked to put fuel on the fire; Jeanna didn't look convinced and didn't lighten her demand.

"... Fine. We'll go around."

I had to reluctantly agree.

"Thank you~"

We changed our path and silently continued on. The awkwardness from the beginning of our little stroll hadn't let up.

After a minute, we arrived at the outdoor commons.

*That's odd. Why are there so many people here?*

Even though the commons were one of the busiest places in the school, it was well after curricular hours. Despite that, there appeared to be over fifty people in the area. This was unusual.

*Especially with the weird earthquake that just happened... Nobody evacuated?*

"What's going on here today?" I asked. I had to know. Something really didn't feel right.

"I don't know. There weren't any school-scheduled events for the commons today. Hey, Jon's sister. Why did you bring us here?"

"..."

Jeanna didn't respond.

"Jon's sister, you better tell us what the hell is going on."

My friend apparently also felt like something was not right, believing Jeanna to be a culprit of some sort. He aggressively approached her, but I quickly restrained him.

"Hey, calm down... It's not like she brought everyone here on her own for nefarious purposes or something. There's gotta be a simple explanation, right?"

Though I wasn't immune to the strange atmosphere, I trusted Jeanna with everything I had. Whenever she was around, I felt safe.

"What? Of course I didn't plan this event. How could I get this many people here at this time by myself?"

Jeanna gave a flustered response.

At this point, I didn't know what to think. She sounded genuinely surprised.

I wanted to believe that I was right and he was wrong, but Jeanna's odd answer made me feel even more uncomfortable.

"So… Is something about to happen?" I asked.

As if on cue, a beacon of bluish-white light suddenly shot upward from the center of the school's commons area. Cracks started appearing across the sky, as if someone were driving piles into glass in a sloppy polka-dotted pattern. The cracks from the small holes extended into even smaller fractals of branches that expanded radially outward. Panic ensued throughout the campus. In a peaceful world like ours, something of violence on this scale was sure to traumatize everyone who experienced it. It appeared that no one would make it out alive. This is what my instincts were telling me, even though I'd obviously never seen anything similar to it before.

"What's going on?" my friend hurriedly asked.

"It's not like I have a clue, either, man. Why are you asking me?"

"... Go."

My sister, normally so caring, so gentle, had an unusually agitated look on her face and an icy look in her eyes.

"What? What do you mean? What's going on?" I replied.

*Go where?* I thought, but thinking about it clearly, there really was only one place to go.

"Just leave! I've been trying to prepare you for this your whole life! You're not about to render my efforts nil!"

*This is really my sister, isn't it? What's with that vocab? Is that her true nature? And... preparing me for what?*

"Why are you so mad all of a sudden?" I inquired.

Most likely realizing her abnormal condition, she suddenly froze and took a deep breath, which softened her features back to normal.

"Listen, Jon. As you can probably tell by now, it's not safe here. If you want to survive, you must leave. I'll take care of things on my end. Just trust me, okay?"

"... okay."

How can I say no to her when she's looking at me like that? I looked around the world again, most likely for the final time.

*I don't really get what's going on, but I trust you, sis.*

I turned away from my sister's slightly bewildered smile which seemed to say, "You can really abandon me that easily, huh?" and started off towards the commons.

*I'm not abandoning you. Don't you know of a little something called trust?*

"Come with me, dude." I hollered towards my friend.

"Uh, o-okay! I'm not a third wheel or anything in this situation, right?"

"..."

This guy. Even in a chaotic situation like this, he's still able to keep his head straight and joke around. As expected of someone with great leadership capabilities.

Slowly, step by step, I started off towards the light.

As I ran towards the beacon, it seemed like its light was expanding towards me as well - it seemed like it was rushing towards me faster than I could ever imagine. Then, both pairs of footsteps slowed to a stop. Exhausted, I turned around to look at my friend who was struggling to keep up.

I told him, "Dude, I don't think I can make it any farther... This thing's too bright... And for some reason, it's getting pretty hard to run..."

"Seriously, Jon? I'm sure... even someone as dumb as you... can figure out the world's ending or something, and this light is our only hope! If you can't make it, you're really not gonna make it!"

*I know what you're thinking. You can probably guess that I haven't truly given up yet, right? I guess you're not too wrong, but...*

"So the world's ending, you think? Isn't that quite the conclusion to come to just from what we've seen today? ...Yeah, I know. I'm just getting both of us riled up for no reason, aren't I? I just got Mr. know-it-all over here to say something really dumb!"

"Shut up! It's not like you're that much dumber than I am! Anyway, who knows how long we're gonna last here! ...How about this? Let's play a game."

"A game, huh? You can't seriously mean..."

"When it comes down to a game, Jon, I'm always serious. And you know what it's gonna be."

This is how he always is. Whenever I'm feeling down about myself, he always brings the one thing to light a fire within me again. A game. But it wasn't even going to be a contest. When it came down to physical ability, there's no way I would lose against him.

"Of course. First one to reach the light wins, right? Bring it on. This is just like you; always picking useless fights with me... Let's go."

With the pseudo-motivational speech accomplishing its task, two pairs of running footsteps could be heard once more. The end was in sight.

*Just a little bit farther, now...*

Each step closer to the goal was more difficult than the last. It wasn't particularly exhausting, but the already blinding light wouldn't stop getting brighter. Eventually, the light became so bright that I couldn't tell if my eyes were open or closed. My steps seemed to become more and more hurried, as if running on a treadmill that was going too fast. But I couldn't stop now, or else who knows what would happen to me? Faster. Faster. And then...