Chapter 125 Feeling Sluggish

- 2 1/2 Hours Later -

Manny punched the keycode into the door and listened to the door unlock. He pushed the door open and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. The bag in his hand rustled as he slipped his shoes off and wandered over to the sleeping Lee Seng. He set the food on the nightstand and hovered over Lee Seng.

"Lee, wake up." Manny shook the dirtied and completely out Lee SEng. Manny shook him harder and began to slap at Lee Seng, which stirred Lee Seng to move. "Get up. You need to get ready for the Hell event!" Lee Seng groaned and pulled the blankets over his head.

"Leave me alone..." He tiredly groaned. He shuffled underneath the comfort of the comforter and Manny sighed.

"Get up. Go shower and eat the food I bought for you!" Manny slapped Lee Seng's butt. Lee Seng shouted as his tail flicked and the comforter flew off of him.

"Fine, fine!" Lee Seng sat up. Manny watched Lee Seng roughly fix his bed hair and then move to the bathroom.

"I'll leave your food on your desk." Manny told him.

Ten minutes passed and Lee Seng came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. He wandered over to his closet as Manny looked up from his phone. Manny watched as Lee Seng swung his tail back and forth. He was humming something to himself.

'His mood switched like nothing.' Manny thought. 'How does his tail not cause trouble with clothes?' Manny watched as Lee Seng slipped on boxers underneath his towel. He dropped the towel afterwards and Manny watched as his tail easily adjusted to it.

"How the hell does your tail even function?" Manny asked out loud. Lee Seng slipped on jeans and turned to look at Manny.

"Its Dark Matter and mimics an actual tail. The lower-half is more flexible than the top-half. The top-half is more like a tail while the bottom-half is almost ethereal. I don't know why its like that." Lee Seng answered. He buttoned his jeans and pulled a black shirt on and closed the closet. He wandered over to his desk where Manny had moved his food to and sat down to eat.

Lee Seng mimicked a vacuum sucking in dirt and dust. He ate his food quickly and finished within minutes. Manny glanced at the clock on his phone and noticed they had about fifteen minutes before the hell event. Manny scooted to the edge of the bed and stretched.

"I'm gonna die if I don't get sleep tonight." Lee Seng rubbed his tired eyes. He moved all of the empty containers into the plastic bag and stood up.

"You should be more worried on what this event is gonna be." Manny told him. Lee Seng moved to his closet and opened it. He pulled out his black leather jacket and some ankle socks. He closed the door and set his jacket on the bed and sat on the edge of his bed, facing Manny.

"This event couldn't be too hard like the last one. Plus, it's groups." Lee Seng responded. He began to slip his socks on, yawning in the process.

"Yeah, well, the last hell event is usually based on trends. We've been in school for a couple of months, so the 4th Years typically know what they're gonna do a month and a half in, but I heard one of the recent events caused them to suddenly change what they were gonna do."

"They can change it in a matter of weeks? Isn't that... bad to do?"

"Mmm, typically everything should be set a month ahead of when the transfer students arrive. The first event went smoothly because of the planning. The second event might not go as smooth because of the sudden changes. Although, they could have altered what's happening and kept the structure similar."

"Well, I guess its no use in trying to figure out what's gonna happen. I just hope I don't see that musclehead 4th Year." Lee Seng stood up. He pulled the jacket off the bed and slipped it on. He moved over to grab the shoes next to his nightstand and slipped them on. Manny stood up and grabbed his shoes and slipped them on.

"Where are you going?" Lee Seng looked at Manny.

"I'm coming with you." Manny answered standing up straight.

"Why? I can go with Ritsuka and Evan."

"One of the 4th Years running the event emailed me. Told me I should keep an eye out for that musclehead that you almost got into a fight with yesterday."

"Huh? I can handle myself. I can stay outta trouble just fine." Lee Seng pulled the drawer open and stuck a couple of iron beads into his jacket pocket before shutting it. Manny shook his head and moved to the door.

"You still carry around those things?" Manny scoffed. He turned his back to the door and looked at Lee Seng. "You are better at holding yourself back compared to back then as kids. Just because you're better at it, doesn't mean that tongue will do the same." Lee Seng watched Manny point a finger at his mouth and Lee Seng stuck his tongue out.

"Mmm, says the guy who likes to flirt with everyone." Lee Seng rolled his eyes and moved forward. Manny turned and opened the door.

"I'm coming with you whether you want me to or not. I'm just doing my job as part of the Academy Twelve." The two moved out into the hall, Lee Seng closing the door behind him.

,m "Academy Twelve?" Lee Seng asked as they moved down the hall and turned left.

"It's like the student council. The Academy votes for the students on the Academy Twelve each year. I, unluckily, got a seat so I got roped in with you because of our history. I wish they didn't know you, me and Sara were so intertwined." Manny answered.

"I can't ignore you even if I wanted to. You're my roommate and like to be nosy." Lee Seng moved to pinch Manny's nose but stopped himself at the last second. He awkwardly pulled back as they reached the stairwell door. Manny pushed the door open and the two descended down the stairs to the first floor.

'To think you came here with Sara and it ended up not working out....' Lee Seng shook his head. The two stepped out into the front. Lee Seng looked around and noticed they were the first to arrive. He pulled his phone out and checked the time.

11:48am

'12 minutes left. Hope they arrive soon.' Lee Seng slipped his phone back into his pocket and listened to the doors open.

"Ah, they're here before us." Ritsuka pointed out. Lee Seng and Manny turned to see the others stepping out.

"Did you guys wait that long?" Olivia asked, waving. Manny waved with a smile and Lee Seng shook his head.

"We just got here." Lee Seng answered.

"Ah, good. Let's go then." The five moved towards the Academic building. The path to the Academic building was quickly growing into Lee Seng's mind. He felt like he could space out and let his muscle memory take him where he needed to be.

"Ah, how're you holding up, Lee Seng? The nap good?" Ritsuka asked. Lee Seng yawned and shook his head. He felt sluggish, but his body wasn't bruised and hurting.

"I just want this day to be over with." Lee Seng said. He turned to Manny and looked at him. "Did you heal me while I was asleep? I kinda forgot to ask you to heal me."

"Oh, that." Manny nodded. "You literally hit the bed and fell asleep. I saw the bruise marks and was wondering what you did to get them. Were you really training in the wee hours of the morning?"

"Mmm."

"Your habits never change." Manny shook his head. "I figured if you didn't ask someone from the hospital wing to heal you, you were just gonna ask me. Which, by the way, you should ask me next time. I don't mind healing people, but it'd be nice to be asked and not become a habit of just 'assuming' I'll do it."

"Yeah, I got it." Lee Seng waved. They spent the next couple of minutes following the path and popping out at the end of the trail. They climbed the steps up into the Academic buliding as Manny moved to the front and led them to the cafeteria.

"The auditorium is next to the cafeteria." Manny said. They popped over to the other side of the cafeteria and turned right. "It's located to the right, following this hallway. This hallway leads to the front of the Academy." Lee Seng noticed similarities to the First Year building. He saw artwork behind glass and a huge set of doors between the artwork. Manny motioned at the door like a guide and came to a stop.

"We're here." Manny said. They walked into the lit auditorium and took in the sights. Rows and rows of seats that ramped downwards to the huge stage. The stage was lit up and the stage curtains were covering the rest of the stage. A podium stood in the middle of the stage with a screen behind it. It was a huge blank screen. Some students were milling about near the front of the stage, talking amongst each other.