Free Minds

Chapter 43.

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"So I was up all night—Beth!" Talise cut herself upon noticing my presence at Rav's room's entrance. "Good morning! Sleep well?"

"Why didn't you wake me up?" I shot Camila an accusatory glare, ignoring the eyes of Talise, Dorian and Rav on me.

"I assumed you have your own alarm," she shrugged in response. "I wasn't going to ruin that."

   That still wasn't an excuse to let me sleep till almost nine am. When I realised I was the only one in bed when I awoke, to say I freaked out was an understatement. Everything I did afterwards to make myself presentable for the day was in an impulsive rush.

   And judging by the stares that hadn't faltered from where I was standing, it was an embarrassing open secret. 

   I blamed the creased overalls I made the dumb mistake of selecting as my outfit for the day.

"Here, Beth." Tali handed me the brown paper bag she'd fished out from her backpack. "I brought you doughnuts."

  She didn't have to tell me where she'd gotten them. The mouthwatering aroma that suddenly filled the room was a clear indication it was from 'Drinks and Reads' the coffee shop that formed the first half of the name, linked to Mr. Shin comic book store.

"Thank you," I mumbled as I took the bag, trying not to drool as the scent became stronger in my hands.

   I didn't think twice and dug in. Reality soon faded away as the sweet flavour of doughnut icing ravished my taste buds. I took my time with every bite, making sure I didn't miss the richness each delectable goodness had to offer.

  It was only when I raised my head to catch my breath that I noticed Dorian's eyes on me the whole time. It was impossible to figure out the expression he had on since his gaze instantly shifted when my eyes met his.

   What was a whole lot worse, however, was trying to understand the sudden thump felt around my chest area that seemed to travel to the pits of my belly in a heated hurry.

   Shit. I could only guess how long he'd been staring. Did he notice the one time I suffered trying lick off the syrup that dribbled down my chin?

"Before Beth walked in, I was about to announce some news." Talise looked up from her laptop on the desk in Rav's room. "All the hours that were spent without any sleep, excessive coffee breaks and occasional nervous breakdowns last night and this morning didn't go to waste. At almost exactly three am today, Zavlon Academia's system was infiltrated by your favourite genius! The system clicked on the malware link to evaluate the profile, granting me access to the deepest darkest corners of Zavlon Academia's system."

    Rav gave a resounding cheer and claps that the rest of us followed up with applauses of our own.

   Was I proud? Hell yes! I knew Talise could do it. Not to brag or take credit or anything, but everyone in this room could attest to the fact that I was the one who thought to include her in all this.

"Don't go crazy yet though," she yelled over the noise. "Our main focus is the algorithm."

"But you just said you have control of Zavlon's system," Dorian remarked.

"No, I said I infiltrated the system. That means access. And just because I have access to the system doesn't give me control of the algorithm. The only way I can exercise control over the algorithm is when it begins the selection. If I were to try to do so now, suspicions could be raised as to why there is activity with the algorithm but if it is during the selection of visitors, any foreign activity would be barely noticed. Worst case scenario, the Yunies detecting anything unusual will instantly lead them to think the algorithm is glitching. It's pretty old, after all."