CHAPTER 3
Autumn Berry – Pov
--
"If I walk in there and they smirk…"
I tightened my grip on my laptop strap.
"…I'm transferring schools."
That was the confident version of me speaking.
Very short-lived.
The real version of me, the one currently pacing outside the dorm like a socially anxious squirrel, whispered,
"Or I can… solve it myself. Yes. Smart. Independent. Strong woman. Tech queen."
I opened my laptop again.
It greeted me with silence like nothing weird ever happened.
Traitor.
I clicked a random folder.
It opened normally.
I clicked another.
Also fine.
I slowly squinted at the screen like I could intimidate it into behaving.
"See? I can fix things. I'm a capable adult—"
The cursor slid by itself.
*Morning again, Autumn.
Working so hard. Cute.*
I shut it immediately.
"Nope. Not cute. Creepy. Zero stars."
---
I did the only logical thing:
I searched "how to stop hacker without crying."
Helpful results:
* meditate
* pray
* scream into pillow
* call IT guy
I don't have an IT guy.
But I do have a *club of chaotic smart kids across campus*.
I swallowed my pride like expired medicine.
Okay. Plan B.
---
I left the dorm.
Step.
"Maybe it's a glitch."
Step.
"Maybe the café Wi-Fi cursed me."
Step.
"Maybe Quinn downloaded… something weird."
Quinn's my Roommate btw
A pause.
Actually, knowing Quinn, that was possible.
I shook the thought away and kept walking.
Campus was alive — students, flyers, someone skateboarding badly, coffee cups everywhere because apparently caffeine is the campus bloodline.
I passed the gardens. Sang through my nose like a dying dolphin to hype myself up.
It did not help.
Halfway across the courtyard, sunlight hit a handrail just right — and—
Flash.
Locker slam.
A voice yelling.
"Don't look at her, she remembers everything—"
Blink.
Campus again.
Normal.
Very normal.
Totally fine.
No trauma here. Nope.
I exhaled like a balloon losing dignity.
---
The club room door loomed like a boss level.
I hesitated.
Wanted to run.
Then my laptop chimed inside my bag.
Like it was laughing.
I scowled, knocked, and whispered to myself,
"Be normal, Autumn. Just… be human."
Door opened.
Liam appeared. The Tech guy
Sleep-eyed. Hoodie. Hair like he fought a wind demon.
Classic tech goblin aesthetic.
He blinked at me.
"Oh. It's you."
"…that was almost rude," I said.
"That *was* rude," someone called inside.
I peeked past him. Rhea stood like a calm storm cloud, arms crossed, evaluating.
The clipboard girl Dorielle smiled too sweetly,
Theo waved awkwardly like he didn't know if I was dangerous or needed snacks.
Great. Audience.
I cleared my throat.
"So. Hypothetically… if my laptop was possessed—"
"Not possessed," Liam interrupted immediately. "Hacked."
"Let me finish the sentence at least."
He stared.
I sighed. "Fine. Hacked."
Rhea lifted an eyebrow. "And you came here because…?"
"I panicked," I admitted. "And Google was judgmental."
Theo the normal one or I think, nodded sympathetically. "Google is a bully."
Finally, I pulled the laptop out.
"I just need someone to explain why it's acting like it knows my schedule and emotions."
Dorielle gasped dramatically.
"That is *so* scary. If anything like that happened to me I would cry."
Rhea didn't gasp. She didn't move. She just… watched me.
Like she was solving me the same way she solves cases.
Strangely, that made me more nervous than the laptop demon.
---
Liam sat and snapped his fingers like a tiny dictator.
"Laptop."
I placed it slowly.
This man looked like he bonded with keyboards more than people.
He began typing, mumbling tech language.
Theo leaned beside me.
"So… do you prefer cats or dogs?"
I blinked. "Uh… cats?"
"Good. Cat people don't usually stab."
"Good to know," I said.
Dorielle leaned close, smiling. "Don't worry. Rhea doesn't bite in the first day."
I was… unsure if she meant that as a joke.
---
Liam stopped typing.
Turned the screen toward us.
Nothing spooky. Nothing dramatic.
Just a weird line of code and a small window open:
*Activity Logs
External access attempts: 12
Origin: Unknown user
Time stamps: consistent*
He leaned back casually.
"You weren't hacked fully. But someone tried. Repeatedly. They were logging your activity."
"Logging," I repeated. "As in…"
"Watching what you do," he said.
My face went blank.
My brain went NOT blank.
My stomach did parkour.
Dorielle whispered, "Creepy."
Rhea nodded once. Calm, confident.
"Good thing you came."
I rubbed my forehead. "So what now? Toss laptop? Burn building? Fake my death?"
Theo raised a hand. "Don't burn anything. I'm a pre-med student, not fire-resistant."
Rhea looked at me with that slow, calculating gaze again.
"You owe us a favor."
I squinted. "For what? For… telling me my laptop is stalker-bait?"
"For helping," she corrected. "We'll clean the breach. Stop whoever's watching. You don't get that for free."
Liam hummed like this excited him more than appropriate.
Theo nodded nervously.
Dorielle smiled like she was imagining my makeover for club photos.
I stared at them.
Then my bag.
Then my cursed laptop.
Then back at them.
"…Is this how cults recruit?"
"No," Rhea said flatly. "Cults have robes. We have logic."
"That sounds worse somehow."
"Welcome to the club," Liam said.
"I did not say yes."
"You brought your laptop," Rhea replied.
"That's yes."
I buried my face in my hands.
"Oh my god. I joined a detective club by accident."
Theo whispered, "That's how I joined too."
I peeked at him. "Really?"
"Yes," he said proudly. "They tricked me with snacks."
I sighed into the void.
This was my life now.
Coffee-dependent.
Trauma-haunted.
Laptop-stalked.
Unofficial detective club member.
And honestly?
Could be worse.
Probably.