Chapter 4

The next morning, I handed Sarah a brand-new, top-of-the-line graphics tablet.

Her eyes widened. "Ethan, I can't accept this, it's too much."

"Consider it an investment in a promising artist," I said, trying for a light tone.

Brittany saw the exchange from down the hall, her eyes narrowed into slits.

Later that day, Principal Davison' s voice crackled over the intercom. "Ethan Miller, please report to my office immediately."

Ms. Davison looked grave, Brittany and Chad sat opposite her desk, looking concerned and righteous.

"Ethan," Ms. Davison began, "there's been a serious accusation, a hacking incident involving the school's grading system, several grades were altered."

Brittany spoke up, her voice full of fake sympathy. "We saw him near the admin computers late yesterday, Ms. Davison, he looked... shifty."

Chad nodded, "Yeah, he was bragging about how easy it would be to change things."

Lies, all of it.

"I wasn't near the admin computers," I stated. "Check the security footage."

"Unfortunately, Ethan," Ms. Davison said, her eyes sad, "the security logs from that corridor appear to be corrupted for that time period."

Convenient.

I was suspended for a week, my early acceptance to a top Computer Science program now under review.

The news spread like wildfire. "Nerd snaps, tries to hack grades."

During English class, as Mr. Harrison discussed integrity, a jock snickered, "Guess Miller missed that lesson."

Suddenly, Sarah' s voice, clear and firm, cut through the snickers.

"Ethan wouldn't do that, he' s too smart to be that stupid, and he has more integrity than anyone in this room."

The class went silent, stunned. Sarah Jenkins, the invisible girl, speaking out.

I looked at her, truly looked at her, a wave of gratitude washing over me.

After class, I caught up to her. "Thanks, Sarah, that meant a lot."

She blushed. "It was true."

"Hey," I said, an idea forming. "Want to hang out this weekend? There's this old-school arcade downtown, pre-prom warm-up?"

Her smile was genuine this time. "I'd like that."