Chapter 4 (K)

I don’t know how long I sat there in shock, but eventually I was able to peel myself off of the steps and go inside. I quickly dump my lunch bag in the kitchen and run upstairs. I type the password into the keyboard and the door to my room opens.

I feel instant relief as I enter. My room is my sanctuary. I drop my bag onto the floor and jump onto the beanbag chair. I just let my mind blank out as my body sinks into the chair.

“Kaya, dinner will be at 6:30, ok?” Yells my dad from downstairs. “So do your homework instead of loafing around.”

“Ok!” I shout back, and I move to get my homework from my backpack. I glance at the clock. It’s 4:45. Plenty of time to get everything done plus have some time to research. My body goes into an automatic mode as I quickly go through all my homework. I just want to get to my researching.

Finally, I finish all the homework due tomorrow. I stuff it into my backpack and turn on my tablet. Ok, let’s see. Now where was I?

Right. Hacker Maury.

Now I have a few hacking skills I’ve learned from the web, but whatever tricks I know pale in comparison to what Maury could do. He hacked into the teacher’s website to get the answers to homework and to find info about the upcoming tests. Of course, the teachers never suspected. He’s even been able to hack into the provincial government’s system and change the results of the last provincial vote. The voting had to be redone, but no one was able to trace it to Maury.

But that just asks the question: why was Hacker Maury the first virus victim?

Other than hacking, he’s never done anything notable in his life. Nothing suspicious that would raise the attackers notice. It’s the same story with all of the victims. All of them are perfectly normal people, with no apparent reasons as to why they were attacked.

Pretty much, I’m left with no starting point or path to follow.

Maybe I should ask Drew for help… wait. I totally forgot. All my strange feelings flood back as I remember what had happened just an hour ago. My face flushes again and my hearts starts beating harder. Maybe I should just video call some of my friends to ask what’s wrong with me.

I open up Facetime and a screen projects above the tablet. I dial Evelyn, Vera and Catherine. They’re all really good listeners.

“Hey guys, I said. “Can we move this to a group chat?” They nodded their assent.

Once we’re all set up, I just stare at the screen and say, “I don’t know where to start.”

“What’s wrong?” asks Catherine. “You usually don’t call us unless it’s really serious.” All three of them look concerned.

“Well… it all started this afternoon…” and I launch into a detailed summary of what happened, including how I felt. By the time I finish, Evelyn and Catherine are smiling and shaking their heads while Vera looks utterly confused.

“What are you smiling at?” I ask defensively. “This whole situation is weird!”

“Kumquat,” starts Catherine. Normally I hate that nickname, but I let it go this time. “Have you just realized it now?”

“What do you mean?” This whole situation seems to be flying over my head.

“I’m lost guys. Why would level-headed Drew do something like that?” asks Vera. She looks as confused as I feel.

“Let me clarify. He’s liked you for awhile now, and it seems you like him back,” says Evelyn. Vera starts smiling in realization. Now I’m the only one in the dark.

“Of course we like each other! We’ve been friends for a long time,” I say, but I think I’m starting to understand.

“Not that type of like, silly,” laughs Evelyn. “The type like in the manga that you read.”

It takes a few seconds before it fully hits me. “How long have you guys noticed?” I ask, blushing like mad.

“Awhile. Sometime in grade 7. At least that’s when we realized he liked you. We had no idea about you until today!” giggles Catherine. “You guys should totally get together. You two look so cute!”

My head’s spinning a bit. “Thanks guys,” I manage to say. “I think I need to think a bit…”

“Don’t keep him waiting, K, now that you know,” says Evelyn. “You should give him an answer on your email.”

“Have you been on my email again, Evelyn?! How many times have I told you to stay out of it? Even though you know my password no matter how many times I change it.” I sigh.

“I’ll tell you guys how it goes,” and I hang up on them.

Ugh. I have something else that I have to worry about now.

Heeheehee. This is a long one. Probably to catch up on that one day I missed. Facetime is an actual thing, so I just made the "evolved" version of it. I introduced Evelyn, Catherine and Vera. Thank goodness the real V can't hack into my email :) that would really complicate things. E and C really are good listeners.

Enjoy!