After we reunited, Austin and I stayed close as we briskly walked along the white glass-like floor. Our hands linked together, our eyes were locked onto the floor, and even though it was 12:00 in the afternoon, we were pacing as though we were in some kind of action movie.

Looking in Austin's way, I tried to picture my best friend through the thick layer of makeup, dark sunglasses, and dyed blond hair, but somehow I couldn't.

To most people, he was an eccentric stranger, but to me, he looked as though he was a disguised CIA agent.

Waltzing past a loving couple, I looked in Austin's direction and said coolly, "So, Austin."

My best friend looked at me from the corner of his right eye.

"So, Jack," responded Austin.

"So, of all the disguises in the world, " I began, treading around a family of five. "Why would you wear that?"

He rolled his eyes, releasing my hand.

"I tried picking another outfit," Austin explained. "but because I couldn't find a place to park the shitty car, I had to improvise."

I raise my eyebrow. "Where did you park the car?"

Immediately, Austin's casual stroll broke into a silent trot; sharp, brown eyes remained focused on the path ahead, as Austin proceed forward, trying to dissuade my question.

"Austin, " I began slowly. "Did something happen while you were outside?"

My best friend bites his bottom lip then ducks his head in shame.

"You know you can tell me, " I insist. "I am not mad."

Taking a deep breath, Austin says to me: "You know that sign that has the letter P with a slanted line across it?"

I nodded attentively.

"I parked Kristy's SUV there," he replied, trotting alongside me. "Just twenty inches away from the parking lot."

I gawked at his confession, but just when I was about to speak my mind, I noticed several people casually wandering around the airport like fishes in a large bowl.

As we walked slowly, rolling wheels streaked against the hard surface, as men, women, and children tightly clenched the handles of their suitcases.

I widen my eyes. "Are you fucking serious?"

Austin groaned.

"What if your moms find out?" I hissed in frustration. "We could be in serious trouble!"

He closed his eyes for a second then replied: "I know it sounds bad, but it's only space that hasn't been invaded by cars."

Mockingly, I tilt my head sideways.

"Gee, " I said sarcastically. "I wonder why?" 

Flustered, Austin pockets his hands inside his jeans, hoping they would keep warm from the draft cold air.

"Well, before I left the SUV, "  he began. "I got rid of the evidence. I wipe my fingerprints off the steering wheel, and I threw some old wrappers away."

"That's clever, " I admit, "but our parents and the cops already know that we had stolen the SUV."

"Shit." cussed Austin.

"And what about your stuff? Did you leave anything in the car?"

"Nope," answered Austin. "As soon as I parked the car, I carried my shit, and hurried into the airport before someone realizes that I was gone."

"Did you change your clothes in the bathroom?" I ask.

He bobbed his head. "Yeah. There were a lot of men pissing near the urinals, so I changed in the stalls."

"Speaking of changed clothes, do you have my makeup kit?"

I nodded. "Yeah, it's in my bag. I will give it to you when we get on the airplane."

"Cool, " he says, looking behind my back in search of something.  "So, where is Erykah?"

I give him my brightest smile.

"She is going to Saint Adam's with Lisa," I explained.

Austin raised his eyebrow at me. "Really?"

I nodded, shifting my arms back and forth.

"And Erykah agreed to it?" he inquired. "Are you sure?"

I nodded again. "At first, she seemed to reluctant, but now Erykah wants to be a part of Lisa's life."

My best friend chewed his bottom lip then flashes me a nervous look.

"Are you sure Erykah is okay staying in some orphanage?"

"Yeah, " I answer. "Besides, it's better than having her tag along with us."   

Nodding reproachfully, Austin said: "while you two were changing in the bathroom, I headed over to the men's to wear this disaster outfit."

"God, " I frowned, studying his obscure outfit. "It must be uncomfortable wearing this."

Austin grimaced a little.

"It wasn't uncomfortable changing in this outfit," he began. "It was uncomfortable changing in the men's stalls, listening to the sounds of someone pissing in the urinals." 

"Oh God, " I groaned.

"I know," Austin agreed. "walking in the men's bathroom is like attending a Comic-Con: it's smelly, stuffy, and it's full of ecstatic idiots."

I scrunched my face a little, imagining myself standing inside an unsanitized bathroom, squirming at the noise of relinquished fluid.

"Ew." I cringed. "Okay from now on, never say the word urinal in front of me."

"What?" he asked, shrugging his shoulders. "It's a dude thing."

I rolled my eyes again.

Even though I wasn't into girly shit, just the thought of urinal stalls made me want to vomit.

"After I was finished changing, I washed my hands, got out of the bathroom, and I tried to find you."

"But?"

Austin sighed. "But I ate some Chinese food on the way here."

I frown a little. "I thought I was going to buy you some food."

Feeling remorseful, Austin places his comforting arm on my left shoulder.

"Sorry, Jack." he murmured. "I got a little hungry."

"It's fine. So how much money did you spend?" 

"Twenty bucks," answered Austin.

"Twenty bucks?" I repeated, staring at him. "On what? Fried rice, chicken—"

"I bought myself a small box of fried rice and vegetables," explained Austin. "I ate it on the way here."

I sigh in relief. "Okay, at least you didn't spend a lot of money."

Taking a deep breath, Austin removes his arm away from me and didn't say anything after that.

Playing with my dreadlocks, I gaze at Austin's solemn face.

White makeup stained his high cheekbones as my best friend tries his best to put on a brave smile. But because it was his first time leaving New York without Kristy's and Olivia's acknowledgment.

When Austin was young, Kristy and Olivia cooked for him, wiped his face, and made sure he was satisfied with his life.

How did he repay them? By packing his bag and running away.

"I am sorry that you had to ditch the car, " I say quietly. "I know how much you like driving it."

But Austin casually shakes his head. "Are you kidding me? I didn't enjoy driving that death machine."

I frown at him. "You're not?"

Austin shakes his head again. "You were right: that car was a piece of work."

I smiled a little at his response. "Piece of shit."

Austin looks at me quizzically. "What?"

"I said the SUV is a piece of shit, " I corrected. "Not a piece of work."

Austin rolled his eyes. "Fine whatever."

I chuckled then give his outfit a questionable look. "So, what are you exactly?"

"Jesse Warhol," Austin answered.

My stare continued to study his olive-brown face. "Jesse Warhol?"

Austin grinned proudly. "Yeah, starting now, I am Andy Warhol's great-great godson. What do you think?"

I squint my eyes at him. "Jesse Warhol sounds like the name of a basketball player."

Austin shrugged his shoulders. "I know, but it's the only name I could think of."

Walking further into the distance, I noticed a majestic, brown desk near Austin's side. Behind it, is a man looking at the computer screens, pretending to be busy.

Tall, cleanly shaved, and completely worn out, the male receptionist had light tan skin, strong hands, and a drab gray business suit with a mustard stain on the black tie.

His tired brown eyes focused on the computer screen, and his fingertips are covered in thick calluses.

Studying him for a second, Austin suggested, "maybe he can help us."

I raise my curious eyebrow at him.

"Are you sure?" I ask. "He looks as if he wants to throw up."

"Come on, " said Austin. "You want to go to Australia, right? He can help us."

"I don't know," I grimaced. "The flight to Australia might get canceled. And besides, we don't have any plane tickets."

Austin contorts his face a little. "Yeah, we do."

I stopped walking with him.

"What?" I ask.

Ruffling through his jeans pockets, he takes out two undamaged plane tickets to Australia, and hands one of them to me.

"Whoa," I murmured, staring at the ticket.

It felt like a thick piece of paper sitting on my hand. Across the thin black lines, were words typed in black ink.

"They must be expensive, " I murmured. "How did you get the money for the plane tickets?"

Austin smirked. "I'll tell you on the way to Australia."

"Did you steal them?" I ask, frowning. "Because if you did-"

"I'll tell you on the way to Australia," Austin repeated sternly, keeping his voice down.

As he spoke, strands of white blond hair danced on his sweaty forehead. Thick, black backpack straps balanced on his emaciated shoulders.

Nodding in agreement, I lift my backpack then trudged behind him. Adjusting my gray beanie, I slithered my hands inside my pockets and kept my gaze down in case someone saw me.

Austin became cautious as well when he notices two boys in baggy clothes stood near the kiosk watching him suspiciously.

I didn't know if they are curious about our disguises or not, but I do know that they had never seen someone so...unusual.

To them,  Austin looked like a genetic combination between Elton John and Draco Malfoy, but to me, he was Austin.

The sixteen-year-old sarcastic, hip-hop loving, comic book nerd whose loving moms treat me like a daughter.

Grabbing Austin's hand, I scampered over to the desk and presented my ticket to the bored receptionist.

"Hello, " I say politely. "we would like to go to Australia."

Although he seemed annoyed by our presence, the man took our tickets, typed in a couple of computer keys, and said, "Mr. and Mrs. Warhol. Right on schedule."

Surprised by our fake names, I turn to look at Austin, who seem nonchalant and calm.

"Do you know where we should wait for our flight?" he asks.

The bored receptionist sighed. "Go straight down and take a right.

"Do you need help with your luggage?" the man asked.

We both shake our heads no.

"No, no thank you," said Austin. "We are fine."

Handing the tickets back to us, the man watched as we lift our bags over our shoulders, and walked away.

As soon as we left, I look in Austin's face then snorts: "Mrs. Warhol?"

Austin chuckled nervously. "Yeah, you wanted to go to Australia, so I planned ahead and bought plane tickets online."

"Wow, " I said, feeling surprised. "That's awesome."

"Thanks."

"As much as I am impressed with your deception skills," I began. "Can we pretend to be siblings or something?"

Austin frowns. "Why?"

"Because, " I answer, shuffling my feet. "I don't want people to get the wrong idea that we're—"

My words came into a halt when  I accidentally bumped into a passing thirty-something-year-old woman.

She has wavy brown hair, dark eyes, an oval-shaped face, and freckles decorating her rosy cheeks. For her attire, the woman wears a casual white t-shirt, jeans, and gray tennis sneakers.

"Oh shit," I murmur, backing away.

I immediately wanted to apologize for my reckless behavior, but when I examine the woman very closely, I immediately recognized her as Kristy.

Why is Kristy here? I wondered.

Shouldn't she be taking care of Rainbow Kisses or something?

I glance at Austin, who stood like a frozen statue. Even though he was wearing sunglasses, I can imagine his eyes bulging at the sight of his mother.

His hands trembled, his knees wobbled, and his face looked as if he had eaten a bad taco.

Straightening her shirt, Kristy flashed me a perfect smile.

"Don't worry about it, " she says. "I am sure you didn't mean to."

"Okay," I say quickly, grabbing Austin's hand. "Catch you later."

We were about to leave when Kristy blocked our path.

"Hey, hey." she says quickly. "I am sorry if I scare you."

I shake my head no. "Nope. You were fine."

Kristy turned to Austin, tilts her head, then asks him a nerve-wracking question: "Do I know you?"