“Thanks, Winters,” Griffin said, patting me on the back. “I encourage anyone who wants to up their game to spend the extra time given.” He joined me in staring at a bunch of blank faces. All except one. A pixie with pink in her hair who couldn’t help but smirk. “Okay then,” Griffin continued. “You’re free to go.” The room instantly transformed into a flurry of motion with his magic words—a scene I was usually happy to be a part of, except for when they were all running away from me and what I loved to do in my spare time. It was almost comical.

Almost.

I supposed if no one showed up, I could at least use the time to maintain the website like Tanner had demanded and then prep for the TOC coming up in March. I’d just have to make sure I did a damn good job on the website so Tanner didn’t find a worse way to punish me for not being able to stop something I hadn’t seen coming.

Something worse than a Code Club.

Something like shining his shoes or catering one of his social dinners.

I was so fucked.

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Amber

“You’re good to ride home with Jake, right?” I asked Hannah while we dropped books off in our lockers.

She wore a cheesy grin as she closed her locker door. “Oh, you know I am.”

I laughed. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I’m just excited for you,” she said. “A cool after-hours computer club? With Dean? Sounds pretty…romantic.”

I rolled my eyes. “Please stop. You’re killing me with all the gushy stuff.” I sighed. “Besides, the idea of Code Club is actually pretty sad. The true grit of what we do is underground, not…you know, in a school club approved by Tanner himself.”

And I suddenly wondered why the principal would approve something like this. Especially after the fiasco this morning. Add to it that Dean had been front row and center to the train wreck? Something didn’t add up.

Maybe the club would look good for whatever information he compiled over the year to keep his job? Did he think having a coding club would make him look more progressive? If that was the case, he should’ve asked me—a girl—to do it. Not that Dean wouldn’t nail it…but girls—to my utter disappointment—made a small percentage of coders across the nation. There were only five others in Griffin’s class. And I wanted to see those numbers soar. I’d tried and failed miserably to recruit Hannah into coding, but she didn’t have the patience or the interest.

Either way, it didn’t stop me from jumping at any chance to test my skills against Dean’s.