A no sleep challange

“I know, right? It was so surprising when the main character died at the end of the final volume. I still really enjoyed that book though.”

“Me too. It’s among the better ones that I’ve read.”

“By the way, Rui-”

I stopped mid-sentence, as I noticed sunlight streaming through the window.

“Whoa, it’s morning already? I didn’t even sleep.”

“We must have talked for hours.”

“I know, it didn’t feel that long at all.”

“Aren’t you tired, having not slept for the entire night?”

“Not right now, but I have a feeling it will catch up to me eventually. It’s a summer Sunday, and I have no plans for today or tomorrow, so it doesn’t matter anyway.”

“What do you usually do in your free time?”

“Work or study. What about you?”

“Just work. After attending school so many times, I have all the subjects practically memorized.”

“Why do you even attend school now?”

“It’s so I don’t get bored.”

“Oh... And other stuff doesn’t interest you?”

“Well, I often read and watch movies, but it’s hard to find a good one. They all feel the same to me now.”

“I kind of get that. I also have trouble finding something that interests me. Badminton seemed fun, but it’s not like I enjoyed it that much... I have gotten a little better though.”

“Do you think you could beat me now?”

“Not that much better.”

Then, I suddenly remembered something.

“Oh man... I completely forgot!”

“About what?”

“Rita found me in your closet, remember? How do I even explain that? And my condition is also suddenly much better now, so what if they think I was faking it the whole time?”

“Is it really that big a deal? You can just tell them you were sleepwalking and somehow walked to my dorm, and ended up meeting me there.”

“I have thought about that, but do you really think they would believe that?”

“Why does it matter to you so much that they do?”

“Because-”

Wait, why does it matter so much to me? So, what if they don’t believe me? Sure, it would sting a bit if they thought I was lying to them, but does it really matter? I will need to lie to them a little anyway, since I can’t reveal Rui’s secret.

“I guess you’re right. It would definitely be a little awkward, but it’s not like they would stop talking to me over it.”

“Exactly. On a different note, I’d still like to observe your sleep, so if you don’t mind, it would be ideal if you would either stay or come back at night.”

“Right, I forgot about that. What time is it right now?”

Rui looked at her phone and told me.

“It’s just about 5 in the morning.”

“I could try falling asleep now, if that’s fine with you.”

“Okay, but didn’t you say you weren’t tired?”

“...I can’t believe I’m saying this, but couldn’t you just knock me out like you did before?”

“I could, but there is a chance that the spirit will defend your body again and I will be knocked out as well. In that scenario, I can’t guard you while you’re sleeping, making it possible for the ghost to control your body again. That’s why I wanted you to sleep normally first, before trying out that plan.”

“Oh, that makes sense. I guess I could go home for now and come back in the evening. Not having slept for a night, I’ll definitely be sleepy by then.”

“Okay. In the meantime, you absolutely cannot fall asleep.”

“I understand. I’ll call you when I’m ready to come over.”

Even though it was barely 5 in the morning, I packed the few things I had brought and headed home. Luckily, buses started running at about 4:30 every day, so I didn’t have to walk.

When I got home, Matt was still sleeping, so I quietly brought a bowl of cereal along with buttered toast and some apple juice to my room and ate it there, so I wouldn’t risk waking Matt up.

Now that I don’t have work, I have nothing to do. Maybe I should apply again since I’m basically completely fine now. I’m sure if I explained I quit because of an illness, they’d let me work there again. But do I even want to? I get enough money from my parents, so I don’t really need more from a job. But my parents only pay for my living expenses and food, so if I want to find something to do in my free time, I’ll need money for that too. Even though I didn’t really enjoy it, I also didn’t hate working at the café, so it wouldn’t hurt to ask for my job back. I should give them a call, but not right now. They probably wouldn’t pick up this early.

While I was wondering what to do, I got a notification from CactuCall. It was a message from Rui.

“Don’t fall asleep.”

I only just left, and she’s already checking up on me? Does she have no faith in me at all?

I replied, assuring her I wasn’t sleeping.

“I know, don’t worry. Still not sleepy btw.”

“What is ‘btw’?”

She really doesn’t know any abbreviations, does she?

“It means ‘by the way’.”

“Oh.”

Bored, and already having Cactucall open, I sent a message in the badminton group chat.

“I don’t want to jinx it, but I’ve been feeling a lot better since Friday. Will there be badminton next week?”

Since it was so early in the morning, I wasn’t expecting a reply right away, but to my surprise, David replied instantly.

“Glad to hear that! I’ll be there, and Otto and Rita said they’ll come as well. Kotoba mentioned having plans, so she’ll probably skip next week. I don’t know about others.”

Rita... I still don’t know if she ratted me out or not. Oh, I have an idea.

I exited the group chat and opened the chat with Rui.

“You there?”

Rui replied immediately.

“Where?”

...Seriously?

“Never mind. Would you be willing to come to badminton next week?”

“Why?”

“We don’t seem to have enough people, and I haven’t been in a long time, so I was hoping to go next week.”

“I see. I could go.”

“Really? Great, thanks! On that note, is it okay if I tell them that I met you by chance yesterday and got your contact information, to explain how I invited you as well as why I was in your room?”

“Okay, but don’t mention my contact information. If they know you have it, they might want it too, and I don't want too many people getting it.”

“Okay.”

I went back to the group chat and told them what I had just discussed with Rui, but didn’t get a response this time until noon. Rui checked on me through text multiple times until evening came, but I still wasn’t sleepy. In fact, I had just as much energy as the night before.

I let Rui know, and she said I should just stay home, on the condition that I text her every half hour to make sure I didn’t suddenly fall asleep, in which case she would come over to me, so I left my key under the doormat. But I didn’t. When morning came, I still hadn’t slept and wasn’t feeling tired at all.

This isn’t normal. I know it’s possible for a human to go days without sleep, but not if they’re actively trying to fall asleep. I'm not doing a no sleep-challange, so what's going on?! Is it perhaps because of the ghost? I can’t think of any other explanation...

Days went by, and I was still unable to fall asleep, with my energy levels staying basically the same the whole time. It felt like the longest week of my life, and soon, Friday came.