Back Online by Laura Dower Page A

on!”
    She thought about Joe’s comment. Dan had photos of Madison on his phone? Lately everything seemed to have something to do with Dan, didn’t it?
    Where was Mrs. Wing? She still hadn’t arrived, and things were getting a little rowdy. The volume went up a decibel as kids tossed airplanes and yelled to one another.
    Leyli leaned closer to Madison to be heard. “Hey, what’s your favorite color?”
    â€œOrange,” Madison said. “And not just ordinary orange. I mean loud, almost neon.”
    â€œTraffic-cone orange?” Leyli giggled.
    â€œYes! What’s your favorite color?” Madison asked. “I bet your screen name is a big purple clue?”
    â€œYes, it’s purple,” Leyli said. “And I like polka dots, too. My bedroom is dot city. Weird, right?”
    â€œNot as weird as Joe,” Madison said.
    They laughed together again.
    â€œSeriously though, I like dots.” Madison pulled up her ripped-up jeans. She had on polka-dotted socks to match the crocheted sweater.
    â€œTwinning again,” Leyli said.
    â€œYou have a pet right?” Madison asked.
    Leyli shook her head. “I used to have a fish, but it died. You?”
    â€œWell, you know I have a pug. His name is—”
    â€œPhineas T. Finn, or Phinnie for short,” Leyli blurted back. “How could I forget?!”
    â€œYou even got his middle initial. Impressive.”
    Madison and Leyli quickly realized how much they had in common. Ever since her English teacher had given her the advice last year to “expect the unexpected,” Madison always kept her eyes open for the new and different. But something she truly never expected was to meet a brand new BFF in eighth grade like this. She figured her friend group was pretty much set in stone at Far Hills. Leyli was the most unexpected thing that had happened in a long time.
    Finally, the classroom door flew open. Mrs. Wing appeared at last.
    â€œTech labbers!” Mrs. Wing howled, her arms waving and bracelets jangling. “Sorry I’m so late, but I have the best new assignment for all of us. Is everyone ready to change things up a bit?”
    Madison chuckled to herself because as far as she could tell, change was allthat was happening these days.
    Everyone in class scrambled for his or her seat, especially Egg and Drew, who’d been paper-airplane-tossing. Joe was in the back of the class, staring at the back of Madison’s head. She felt his eyes like laser beams.
    â€œOkay, class!” Mrs. Wing said. “Does everyone know what we’re here to do?”
    â€œ Fix up the website! Boo-yah!” Egg called out, pumping his fist in the air.
    â€œYes, Walter,” Mrs. Wing said in a low voice. “And while I appreciate your enthusiasm, I’m trying to teach a civilized class. So let’s keep the fist-pump volume to a minimum.”
    Everyone laughed. Egg silently pumped his fist in the air again.
    Mrs. Wing brought down the lights so the images on the SMART board came into sharper focus. She flipped through a basic PowerPoint that explained the next months of classwork. It all sounded exciting. Electives in middle school kept getting better and better.
    Â 
    The Magic of Electrons
    Multimeter Measures
    Simple Motors
    Resistors and Capacitors
    Computer-Aided Drafting and Design
    Web Development
    Basic Robotics
    Â 
    Mrs. Wing explained how the school had received an important grant from a computer foundation—a grant Mrs. Wing had applied for last year. Her technology program had been selected over the summer from among hundreds of others across the country. The grant funds would help her to do a complete overhaul of the school’s website. Part of the change included tech assistance from Mrs. Wing’s top students as well as any members of the Tech Club.
    Madison knew that was why Joe fit right in with the rest of the geeks in the room, herself included. But she hoped