As I knocked on Cole’s front door, I wondered what would happen if Edna decided to turn me in. I mean, there was posters of me everywhere and no seems to have noticed.

“Hello,” a woman said as she opened the front door. “Who are you?”

“I’m Aus.... Austin. One of Cole’s friends,” I muttered hoping my fake name would work for now.

“Oh, come on in. Cole’s down in his room, do you know where it is?”

“No, I’ve never been over here before,” I said telling the truth. Cole never wanted Edna or I to come over. He thought his foster parents would make fun of him if we did.

“Let me show you the way,” the woman said, walking down a long hallway. We reached a door and she turned to me, “His room is down there.”

“Thank you.” I walked down the stairs and saw Cole playing his guitar on the couch, his back facing me. “Cole?”

“Mom, I told you already that I don’t want to talk about it right now! Just leave me alone,” Cole said, strumming his guitar louder.

“It’s Aussie, not your mom.”

He stopped, “Aussie?” Cole looked at me and frowned, “I told you never to come over here! How did my mom even let you in?”

“I told her that I was Austin, one of your friends.”

“What do you want?”

I just starred at him, “I went to the other side.”

He looked at me with disbelief, “Come on that joke is over. You’d never go to the other side.”

“I did! On the other side of the wall is nothing but darkness and monsters. The government is looking for me and my mom wants me to leave Zerg forever. She wants me to find this secret something my dad told her about. I don’t want to go alone. Edna doesn’t want to come with me.”

Cole put his guitar on its stand and walked over to me, “Why did you come here? Did you think that I would want to go with you?”

“Kinda, I thought you would want some adventure and get away from your foster parents that you dislike so much. Plus, I figured that you would want to come with me,” I muttered, trying not to turn red.

“Well you thought right. When are you leaving?”

“In a few days, my mom needs to find the note my dad left her about the secret place. We also need to pack a bunch of food and stuff. I already packed my clothes.”

“Okay, I’ll pack and head over to your house. Are you sure Edna didn’t want to come?”

“I’m gonna call and ask her. You can invite some other guys if you want, it seems like it’d be awkward if you just came with Edna and I. Just don’t have them come to my house, we’ll get them later.”

Cole laughed, “I’ll see if my twin brother, David, would want to come.”

“Twin?”

“Yea, he’s with a different family. I’ll ask him then meet you at your house.”

I smiled, “See you later then, Cole.”

“Bye Aussie...or I mean Austin.”