Chapter 5
I was on my couch reading a book. It was "First Person Shooters for Dummies" I was reading so maybe I could play with Taylor sometime. I heard knocking on my door.
I looked up. The knocking stopped. I shrugged and went back to my book. The knocking started again. I looked at my watch it was 11:48.
"Who could that be?" I asked my self. I walked over to the door and opened it to see Taylor standing in the darkened hallway holding a flashlight and a blanket wrapped around her.
"What's up?" I asked.
"I couldn't sleep." she said quietly,
"Come in" I opened the door wider.
"Where's Chris?" she asked.
"He's on vacation."
"Oh, so you're here alone?"
"Pretty much."
"He goes away a lot I think he's planning a room transfer."
"I'm sorry" Taylor said.
"Eh, don't be. He's kind of annoying."
Taylor grinned. "Kind of?"
I rolled my eyes. "So what do you want to do?"
"I don't know something. What where you doing before I got here?"
"Reading."
"What were you reading?"
I walked over to the couch and showed her the book.
"What's this?" she grabbed the book. "First Person Shooters for Dummies?"
"Yeah, so then I can try to play with you someday"
Taylor nodded. "I see." she sat the book down. "Hey, um.. I know this is a little weird, but…mind if I spend the night here?"
"Not at all, isn't that what you came to ask me in the first place."
She nodded. "Yeah,"
"Okay, hey um want to play a game?"
"I guess, what games you have?"
"Um…" I walked over to my cabinet next to the T.V and opened it. "Kart Racing, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Street Fighter, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii"
"Mario Bros."
"Alright," I slid it out and started it up. We played for about forty-five minutes until we got tired of it. After that Taylor was ready to sleep.
I laid a blanket across the couch and fluffed the pillow. Taylor laid on the couch. I laid her blanket across her.
"Thanks Max," She said.
"You're welcome."
"I'm glad we're friends."
I smiled. "Me too."
Taylor smiled then started snoring softly.
Couldn't sleep huh? I thought. I walked over and turned off the light. I walked back and laid on my bed. I might as well try to sleep. I closed my eyes and actually did fall asleep.
…
I woke up and I saw Taylor staring at me I flinched.
She laughed. "You're a little jumpy"
"Well I woke up to see you staring at me"
"Good point. So who are we going to talk to first?"
"Not sure what time is it."
"Nine in the morning."
"What?!" I jumped up.
"Easy," Taylor said. "There's no class today."
"Why?"
"Third Thursday."
"Oh really?" The third Thursday of every month there's no class at VGHS.
"So who are we going to first?"
"Randy?"
"Sure,"
I slipped on my hoodie and walked out the door with Taylor closing the door behind us.
"Which way is his dorm?" Taylor asked.
"Not sure, I think that way" I pointed to the left.
"Okay let's check that way,"
We walked down the hall checking each door for the right name tag. We finally found the right one.
We looked at each other Taylor knocked on the door. No answer. She knocked again. Still no answer.
"Maybe he's not here." I said.
"Maybe but I doubt it."
We heard the noise of locks turning.
"See? He is here."
The door opened. It wasn't Randy it was his roommate, Ted Wong.
"Hey Max, Taylor. What's going on?"
"We're looking for Randy." Taylor said.
"Oh he left for somewhere this morning."
"Do you know where he went?"
"No why?"
"We think he framed me." I told him.
"Framed you for what?" Ted asked.
"Can I use your laptop to show you?"
"Sure,"
Ted disappeared inside his dorm and came back a few seconds later.
I opened his VGHS ranking program. I scrolled to the very top and turned the screen around so Ted could see.
"Max," he said. "You're number one."
"Not by skill," I said.
"Then how?"
"Someone hacked the school's system and put him on top." Taylor said.
"So that's why you want Randy, you think he did it." Ted speculated.
"Yep," I said.
"Well I would think he would be in the game room enjoying his day off, trying to get the high scores."
"Thanks," Taylor and I said at the same time.
Ted looked between us. "You two would make a cute couple. You guys know that?"
I blushed and in the corner of my eye I could see Taylor was too.
Ted smiled and said. "Good luck, with Randy I mean." He closed the door.
"So… I guess we should check the game room first." I said.
"Uh, yeah…" Taylor said. Her face still red.
…
We found Randy in the game room playing Pac-Man, he was less than fifty thousand points from the high score. Which I held.
"Hey Randy," I said
"Hey," he said not taking his eyes off of the screen.
"Hack any games or anything lately."
"If you're accusing me of hacking VGHS and putting you at number one then you're wrong. I'm a hacker but I wouldn't hack VGHS. You know the punishment is expulsion?"
"So I hear."
"By the way what would I have against you to do that?"
"I don't know you tell me."
"Well I don't really have anything against you." Randy admitted. "I mean it's annoying that you have high scores on every single game here, but I don't really have anything against you."
"Do you have any idea who might have hacked the system Randy?" Taylor asked I actually forgot she was there.
"I don't know." Randy said. "Law?"
"But what does he have against Max."
"Same thing, high scores but he's more serious about them. Dang it!" I heard the Pac-Man dying noise. "Ugh, game over and so close too!" He turned to us. "Anyway yeah, I didn't do it."
"Do you know who would've?" I asked. "Besides Law."
"Like Emily Peters?" Taylor asked.
"Oh… Dude," Randy said chuckling. "She hates you ever since you rejected her."
"I guessed that" I said.
"But I don't know how she would know how to hack the system last I checked, she barely even knows how to insert a cheat combo." Randy said grinning.
We all burst into laughter.
"All right well see ya man!" I said. "Keep trying on those scores, it took me a while so it will take you a while." I took out a quarter and flipped it in the air.
Randy caught it. "Thanks,"
Taylor and I started to walk out. "Oh, and Max."
I turned. "Yeah,"
"Good luck with finding who did it."
"Thanks." I said.
We resumed walking. "Well it wasn't Randy," I said.
"Unless he's lying," Taylor said.
"Nah, I believe him. I mean he's not that smart but he's not stupid. He knows when too far is."
"True, I mean if he gets banned on a game for hacking he can just create another account."
"So who next."
"Ugh, my least favorite person in the world I suppose."
I grinned. "Emily Peters."
A/N Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter sorry it's been a while with school starting and all I haven't had much time to write/type. It shouldn't take too long I'll try to upload during the weekend, so it might be a while until the next chapter.