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Authors: Sophie McKenzie
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Perl wagged her tail furiously. She had a long, intelligent face and almost looked like she was smiling at me.
I looked up at Theo. He glanced through a door to my left, where the thickset man I’d seen at the window was staring at us.
Theo saw I’d noticed. ‘Er . . . that’s Roy.’ He shut the front door and propelled me towards the stairs. The dogs scampered after us.
I wanted to ask who Roy was, but Theo clearly didn’t want to talk about him.
We climbed the stairs. ‘Did you get it okay?’ Theo said. His voice was low. It sent a shiver down my spine.
I nodded. ‘It was fine. My dad was out and I don’t think Mum suspected anything.’ I shrugged the backpack off my shoulders as we reached the first floor. A long corridor stretched ahead of us, doors leading off on both sides – books and bags and dirty clothes were strewn all over the carpet. ‘The computer’s in here.’ I handed Theo the bag.
‘Thanks.’ He stared at me. ‘I really, really appreciate you doing this.’
I looked at the floor, embarrassed, not sure what to say. Then the smaller dog ran up again, licking at my hand.
‘What did you say they were called?’ I said, bending down to stroke him.
‘Java and Perl. They’re named after computer programs. They only understand computer-speak. If you want them to fetch stuff you have to tell them to defrag it. And check this out.’ Theo leaned down and picked up a pink-and-white sock that lay on top of a heap of dirty washing next to us.
‘Virus. This is a virus,’ he said, holding the sock out to the dogs. He threw it into the air above their heads. ‘Okay. Delete the virus.’
Perl and Java leaped for the sock. Each grabbed an end in their mouth and tugged hard. In seconds the sock was torn to shreds.
‘Wow,’ I said, transfixed by the dogs. ‘They’re amazing.’ It was strange. All those anxieties I’d had. And now being here with Theo just seemed like the most natural thing in the world. He turned away from the dogs and smiled at me. A warm, generous, beautiful smile.
I could feel my heart liquefying and sliding into a puddle at his feet.
‘Come on,’ he said, patting the bag. ‘Let’s take this to Max.’
I followed him along the corridor. With any luck Max would be so geeky that he’d get completely wrapped up in hacking into Dad’s computer and leave me and Theo to talk.
Not that I could think of anything to say.
Not that Theo would ever, ever be interested in me.
Perl and Java raced past us, barking happily as they bounded into a room at the end of the corridor. Theo stood back to let me go past him. The room was as messy as the corridor outside. Overflowing with wires and headphones and computer games, with heaps of clothes scattered across the floor. A pair of lemon-yellow curtains fluttered at the dusty window. A hunched-over figure was sitting at the desk in the corner, mostly hidden behind two precariously balanced stacks of DVDs and mini-disks.
‘Max,’ Theo said. ‘This is Rachel.’
The figure uncurled itself and stood up.
Close-cropped, white-blonde hair. Pale, pinched face. Long, skinny legs in tight, massively ripped jeans.
My mouth dropped open.
Max was a girl.
19
Theo
I pulled the laptop out of the bag and shoved it at Max. She took it, then just stood there, staring at Rachel.
‘Max,’ I muttered. Why did she have to glare like that? I knew Max so well I didn’t often stop to think about how strange she must look to someone who’d never met her before, with those jeans she always wore that were more rip than denim and her stony black eyes that bored into you.
Rachel was blushing, her forehead shining with sweat.
‘D’you want a drink?’ I said. ‘Give Max a chance to examine the hard drive.’
‘Yes, thanks.’ Rachel smiled shyly at me. Then she turned back to Max. ‘You won’t . . . I mean, the computer . . . it won’t show that you’ve been looking or . . .’
‘Course not.’ Max sniffed impatiently. ‘Your
I looked up at Theo. He glanced through a door to my left, where the thickset man I’d seen at the window was staring at us.
Theo saw I’d noticed. ‘Er . . . that’s Roy.’ He shut the front door and propelled me towards the stairs. The dogs scampered after us.
I wanted to ask who Roy was, but Theo clearly didn’t want to talk about him.
We climbed the stairs. ‘Did you get it okay?’ Theo said. His voice was low. It sent a shiver down my spine.
I nodded. ‘It was fine. My dad was out and I don’t think Mum suspected anything.’ I shrugged the backpack off my shoulders as we reached the first floor. A long corridor stretched ahead of us, doors leading off on both sides – books and bags and dirty clothes were strewn all over the carpet. ‘The computer’s in here.’ I handed Theo the bag.
‘Thanks.’ He stared at me. ‘I really, really appreciate you doing this.’
I looked at the floor, embarrassed, not sure what to say. Then the smaller dog ran up again, licking at my hand.
‘What did you say they were called?’ I said, bending down to stroke him.
‘Java and Perl. They’re named after computer programs. They only understand computer-speak. If you want them to fetch stuff you have to tell them to defrag it. And check this out.’ Theo leaned down and picked up a pink-and-white sock that lay on top of a heap of dirty washing next to us.
‘Virus. This is a virus,’ he said, holding the sock out to the dogs. He threw it into the air above their heads. ‘Okay. Delete the virus.’
Perl and Java leaped for the sock. Each grabbed an end in their mouth and tugged hard. In seconds the sock was torn to shreds.
‘Wow,’ I said, transfixed by the dogs. ‘They’re amazing.’ It was strange. All those anxieties I’d had. And now being here with Theo just seemed like the most natural thing in the world. He turned away from the dogs and smiled at me. A warm, generous, beautiful smile.
I could feel my heart liquefying and sliding into a puddle at his feet.
‘Come on,’ he said, patting the bag. ‘Let’s take this to Max.’
I followed him along the corridor. With any luck Max would be so geeky that he’d get completely wrapped up in hacking into Dad’s computer and leave me and Theo to talk.
Not that I could think of anything to say.
Not that Theo would ever, ever be interested in me.
Perl and Java raced past us, barking happily as they bounded into a room at the end of the corridor. Theo stood back to let me go past him. The room was as messy as the corridor outside. Overflowing with wires and headphones and computer games, with heaps of clothes scattered across the floor. A pair of lemon-yellow curtains fluttered at the dusty window. A hunched-over figure was sitting at the desk in the corner, mostly hidden behind two precariously balanced stacks of DVDs and mini-disks.
‘Max,’ Theo said. ‘This is Rachel.’
The figure uncurled itself and stood up.
Close-cropped, white-blonde hair. Pale, pinched face. Long, skinny legs in tight, massively ripped jeans.
My mouth dropped open.
Max was a girl.
19
Theo
I pulled the laptop out of the bag and shoved it at Max. She took it, then just stood there, staring at Rachel.
‘Max,’ I muttered. Why did she have to glare like that? I knew Max so well I didn’t often stop to think about how strange she must look to someone who’d never met her before, with those jeans she always wore that were more rip than denim and her stony black eyes that bored into you.
Rachel was blushing, her forehead shining with sweat.
‘D’you want a drink?’ I said. ‘Give Max a chance to examine the hard drive.’
‘Yes, thanks.’ Rachel smiled shyly at me. Then she turned back to Max. ‘You won’t . . . I mean, the computer . . . it won’t show that you’ve been looking or . . .’
‘Course not.’ Max sniffed impatiently. ‘Your
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