| abstract
| - ~Phineas~ You know what's really frustrating? Getting into a really good dream, and then waking up because you have to pee. It's so annoying. I was having an awesome dream, I had superpowers. I was saving Danville from another attack from Khaka Peu Peu. What happened to the Beak suit anyway? Sighing, I make my way to the bathroom, and I see a light still on in the living room. That's funny; it's one in the morning. Who would still be downstairs? I know I shouldn't spy on whoever's down there, so I use the bathroom and try to go back to my room. But, the curiosity is gnawing at me, so I find a safe enough place to hide, and I try to see who's down there. Mom and Dad? What are they still doing up? My question is answered when I hear Mom say, "I know that Candace knows about him, after all, she was seven when you and I got married. I don't think she's said anything to Phineas. Should we tell him? He's eleven; I think he deserves to know who his real father is." I can't believe what I'm hearing. Real father? No one has ever mentioned him to me. I mean, I guess somewhere along the line I realized that Dad wasn't my real dad. But it never occurred to me to ask about my real father. Why would Mom and Candace keep this a secret from me for so long? This is all so confusing, I have to talk to someone or I'm never gonna get back to sleep. I can't talk to Ferb; he doesn't know anything about not knowing your Dad. And then it hits me. Isabella. Who knows what happened to her father? Maybe we can both go on this journey together, and find our dads! But, I should probably wait until the morning. I think I would scare the living daylights out of her if I knocked on her window or snuck into her house. Shoot, it would scare me if she did that. In the meantime, I'll do my best to get to sleep. ~Isabella~ I wake up at 7:30. No alarm, no nothing. I guess I've trained myself to get up this early so I can spend more time with Phineas. I have this really weird feeling that he has the best idea he's ever had today. What's that called? Premonition? Intuition? I don't know. I slide down the stair railing to get some breakfast. Couple of waffles and a glass of milk; my favorite! As I'm making myself some breakfast, my mother says "Isa, you shouldn't slide down the stair railing like that. You could hurt yourself." "But I didn't," I retort, "and how many eleven-year-old girls do you know that willingly wake up at 7:30 and make their own breakfasts?" Mom must have realized that I have a point, because she smiles and says, "Alright, Isa, just please be careful." I finish my breakfast as quickly as possible, brush my teeth, get changed, and head over to Phineas' house. Hopefully, my feeling proves to be right. As usual, I enter the backyard gate and say "Whatcha doin?" but to my surprise, nothing is happening. I see Phineas and not Ferb, which is odd because they're always together, leaning against the backyard tree. I don't think he even heard me come in. He looks like he's thinking really hard about something. I get a few steps closer and say, "Phineas?" He snaps out of it. "Oh! Sorry Izzy! I was just…." he trails off. "Thinking?" I finish for him. I continue, "You know, I had this weird feeling when I woke up this morning that you were gonna have your best idea yet today! But I guess I was wrong." He looks me square in the eye and says, "No, Isabella, you were right. I do have my best idea yet." I sit beside him and ask, "Well, don't leave me hanging, what is it? A machine that instantly makes your favorite food? A teleport to England so we can see Emily? Did you learn how to fly a plane?" "Izzy, those are all good ideas, but that's not what I was thinking of." Geez, I have no idea what to expect! "My idea is for the two of us to, I don't exactly want to call it running away, but…uhh… we leave and go and find our dads. I mean, we're eleven! I think we deserve to know who our real dads are and what happened to them!" My eyes widen, and I realize he has a point. What happened to my dad anyway? "I think you're right, Phineas. I think we do deserve to know. But I hope you know that this isn't gonna be easy. If our parents haven't told us about them, then they probably don't want us to know. I have no idea if my mom will even tell me his name." "That's why we're doing this together. If there's two of us asking both of our moms, I'm sure we'll get something. The hard part is actually going to find them without telling our moms," he says. "Whose mom first? Yours or mine?" I ask. "I think yours will be harder to get information from," he comments, "so I think mine first." I wish I had his confidence. Sensing my fear, he says, "It's okay Isabella. I'm right here, and we're gonna do this together. It'll be fine!" ~Phineas~ I really don't blame Isabella for being afraid. I have to admit, I'm a little scared too. But I think that we deserve to know these things, and I always fight for what I believe in. First, I decide to approach Candace. Yes, I know she's all about "busting" Ferb and I, but she doesn't really bother me when Isabella's involved. I wonder why. Heading towards Candace's room, I hear loud music blaring, as usual. I knock on the door, doubtful that she'll hear me. She doesn't. I look at Isabella who says, "She never cares about your privacy, think about all the times she's barged in on you, specifically to "bust" you. Why should you care about hers?" I decide she's right and I just barge in, which is very unlike me. Candace is writing in her journal and she doesn't see me. "Let me guess," I say to Isabella. "Dear Journal, Jeremy was totally staring at me today! Okay, so he was all the way across the food court looking in my direction, but I know he was looking at me!" Isabella laughs hysterically. "CANDACE!" I scream, to be heard above the music. "BEAT IT TWERP! I'M WRITING IN MY JOURNAL!" she screams back. "CANDACE, I HAVE A SERIOUS QUESTION I NEED TO ASK YOU!" She turns off the music. "Okay, but make it quick," she responds. I realize I have no clue what I'm going to say. "Go on," Isabella urges. "Uhh…Candace? I was wondering if you could tell me anything about our real dad." Candace remains silent. "Really Candace? You're really gonna do this to me? No one's told me! I want to know; I deserve to know!" "Calm down Phineas. I was just thinking about how to say this," Candace replies. "Our dad lives far away." "How far?" I ask. Candace says, "Why would you want to know that?" After a moment or two of silence, she seems to get it. "Please don't tell me that you two plan on finding him." "What's wrong with that?" I ask angrily. "Plus, this isn't just for me; we're going to find Isabella's dad too! But, please don't tell Mom, Dad, or Ferb. I don't want to worry them." Candace sighs. "Fine. I'll give you a name and I won't tell anyone. Just promise me you won't hurt yourself, or do anything stupid." "I can promise you I won't. Now, the name please?" I say. "His name is Campbell Flynn. And, to be honest, I'm not quite sure where he is. Last thing I heard, he was in New Orleans. And how exactly do you plan on getting there?" "Candace," I begin, "remember the cool things I build every day? And then you try to "bust" me? I have my ways." "Alright, just be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you," Candace says. I give her a hug. "Don't worry about me, big sis, I'll be fine. Promise you won't say anything?" "Promise," she replies. ~Isabella~ I can't believe how easy that was! I know Candace seems like she's always out to get Phineas, but I also know that she really loves him. Personally, I think Candace is a bit curious herself as to the whereabouts of her father. Phineas closes the door to her room. "Well, that was easy," he says. "We've got all the information we can get here. Now we need to talk to your mom." "Phineas," I say shakily, "I don't know if I can do this. I can't even begin to tell you how much this terrifies me." He gives my hand a squeeze. "Isabella, I know you want to find your dad." For some reason, this brings tears to my eyes. "No, no. Please don't cry on me. I'm gonna do this with you; that's why I'm here." Together, we head over to my house and walk inside. We see my mom making lunch. "Oh Isa! I was just about to call you to come back home. I made sandwiches. Phineas, would you like some?" "No thanks Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro," he says, not forgetting our mission. I look at him, and he just nods at me to begin. "Mom," I start, "there's something I need to ask you." "Por supuesto m'ija. (AUTHOR'S NOTE: That's Spanish for "of course, my daughter.") What is it?" "Well," I say, "maybe we should sit down." The three of use move to the living room and sit on the couch. I decide I should just get it out. "I want to know where Dad is, what happened to him, and why I've never met him!" I blurt. My mom is shocked, and looks at her engagement ring. "Aye, aye, aye. I guess it is about time you know. Your dad's name is Manuel Garcia. Manuel is a spy for the American government. That is why he is gone all the time. He wants to see you, Isa, so very badly. But I'm afraid he can't. I'm not entirely sure what his mission is, as he's not allowed to tell anyone of the confidential details. When we talked last week, he said he was in New Orleans. And no, Isa, we are not divorced. We talk every week. He always asks about you, and how you are doing. I never told you about him because I knew that you would think he abandoned you and you would grow to despise him, so I said nothing. I knew that sooner or later you would ask, and I decided to wait until then to tell you." I process this. "My dad is a spy?" "Si, Isa. Now let me guess, you and Phineas are gonna go look for him and his dad, Campbell, now aren't you?" Phineas and I freeze. "Um, maybe?" Phineas states. Mom laughs. "Aye, you kids. You know what, Isa? I will allow you to. Yes, I know that you were assuming I wouldn't let you go on a crazy cross country trip with nothing but the clothes on your back. But I think it will be a wonderful experience for the two of you, and if I had that chance when I was your age, I would've taken it. I will worry about you a lot, but I trust Phineas to take good care of you. I don't think this one is gonna let anything happen to you, are you Phineas?" He blushes slightly. "Don't plan on it. But if Mom asks, can you please not tell her that we went to find our dads? I don't know what I want you to tell her, but I know she'll try to stop me from finding my dad, or else she would've taken me to him herself, right?" "Good point, Phineas," Mom says, "it is safe with me." ~Phineas~ Isabella and I return to my backyard and sit against the tree, where this all started. "I can't believe our luck! Our dads should both be in Vegas!" I say. Looking over at her, she still seems a bit shaken by our conversation with her mom. I turn to face her and say, "Izzy, what's wrong? You got the info you needed, and your mom's cool with us trying to find your dad." "It's not that, Phineas," she says, "I'm just hurt that Mom kept that a secret from me for so long. We've always been so close, 'cause it's been just the two of us, you know? If she kept this, then what else is she keeping?" "Isabella," I begin, making sure to look her in her beautiful blue eyes so she knows I'm serious, "your mom did what she thought was best for you. I'm not saying she was right, but all she had was your safety in mind. Think about it, if she would've told you about your dad, you would've tried to find him just like we're doing now. Going by yourself, you very well could've ended up in some serious trouble with the American government! Your mom didn't want to risk that." She smiles a little. That's more like Izzy! "Thanks Phineas; that made me feel a lot better." "Now there's the matter of how we're actually gonna get to New Orleans. I mean, we're two eleven year old kids. We're in Danville, Virginia, we can't drive, and we've got something like nine hundred miles to our dads. Are you sure you're up for this?" She looks at me, more determined than I've ever seen her. "Yes, yes I am," she says, using one of my trademark phrases. Isabella asks, "Do you happen to have any cash or money of any kind?" "Of course I do!" I say, "I have close to five hundred dollars." "Phineas, how did you come across that kind of money?" she asks me. "Promise you won't laugh?" I ask. She nods in response. "Okay, you know Irving, right? Our little creepy Obsessive Compulsive Stalker Nerd? He commissioned me to build some projects specifically for him and, wanting the cash, I caved. I guess it came in handy. How about you? You got any money?" "Sure," she starts, "but not nearly as much as you. I've got three hundred dollars at the most. It comes from all that money from birthdays, Hanukkahs, and babysitting my annoying cousins when they're in town. Do you think eight hundred is enough to make it?" "I think we're set," I say. "Before we leave, we should budget our money, since we're too young to earn any more. I happen to know a thing or two about New Orleans (AUTHOR'S NOTE: The author, Haley, has family in New Orleans, LA and happens to visit them every summer. That is why she chose this city as the location of Phin and Izzy's dads) and I know that a hotel there is going to cost a fortune. I'm talking around $100 a night, for one room! If we stay there for three days, that's all of your money already! Plus, we can't walk there, and I'm not gonna let you hitchhike. If it were just me, yeah I probably would, but I'm not gonna put you in that kind of danger. So if we take a bus, that's another $50 total for a trip this long. I know that leaves us a lot of money. But we're on the road, who knows what else we'll need, or want, the money for?" This sounds conceited, but I'm glad I'm smart. ~Isabella~ A normal girl my age with some regular guy would find this journey impossible. But I have Phineas, and with him who knows what you can do? For the first time since he mentioned the idea, I'm not worried. I know that, no matter what happens, he's not gonna put me in any danger. Also, he's very smart. He can think his way into, or out of, any given situation. What other eleven year old can save all this money, and be smart enough to know how to budget it? "You look like you're thinking about something," Phineas says, "what is it?" I smile. "I'm just thinking about how lucky I am to have a guy as smart as you to be my best friend." He blushes. "Come on, Isabella, I'm not that smart. I just know how to budget money." "So, when are we leaving on this journey? And are you going to tell Ferb? I mean, he's gonna be worried sick about you!" I remind Phineas. "I guess we should leave tonight, before we talk ourselves out of this. And I will tell Ferb. I know he won't say anything. In fact, I think we should go tell him now." I nod, glad he took my advice. We make our way upstairs, to the room with the door marked "P & F." Ferb is in there, writing just like Candace was but it looks like a letter. I bet it's for Emily. It's so sweet that he still writes to her even though she's all the way in England. Would Phineas have done that for me? I think so. "Hey Ferb! Whatcha doin?" I ask him, using my signature phrase. "Just writing a letter to Emily," he replies. Yes, I was right! "What's up guys?" he asks. Phineas says, "Isabella and I are going to go on a journey to find our dads, and we're leaving tonight. I was just telling you so that you don't freak out when I'm gone. But whatever you do, please don't tell Mom where we are. She would just try to stop us. And don't worry, Isabella surprisingly has permission to go." Ferb just stares, first at Phineas, then at me. All he says is, "Are you sure this is what you guys want?" We both nod at him. "Okay then," he continues, "I won't tell Mom. Just be careful guys. Especially you, Isabella." "Why me?" I ask. "You think I'm stupid or something?" "No, just that big cities and tweenage girls don't really mix." "It's okay," I say, "I'll be with Phineas. You know he won't let anything happen to me." All three of us realize that this is goodbye for a while. We all form a group hug, and I realize that I really am gonna miss Ferb. "Good luck guys," he says. We walk out of the room. Phineas looks kind of depressed. "Phineas, I know you're really gonna miss your brother. Are you sure you don't want to bring him?" I ask him. "I thought about it, Izzy," he answers, "but this is something that you and I need to do, and we don't need to get more people involved than we need. So, although I'll miss him terribly, yes, I'm sure that I'm fine with leaving him here." I swear he gets more mature every day. "Around 9:30, I'll knock on your window or something and we'll head to the bus stop to wait for a ride, okay?" he says. "Don't worry, we'll be fine!" I head home to see my Mom and to tell her goodbye. "Isa, when are you and your boyfriend leaving?" my mom asks me. "Mamá, él no es mi novio, es mi mejor amigo." (AUTHOR'S NOTE: Spanish for: "Mom, he isn't my boyfriend, he's my best friend." I thought it would be cool for Izzy to speak Spanish.) "Sí, sí, sí. But when are you leaving?" "Tonight," I say, "and I can't tell you how grateful I am that you're giving me permission to do this. Before we leave, though, I need to say goodbye!" I wrap her in an enormous hug. "Oh, Mamá," I cry. "I'll miss you!" "I'll miss you too, Isa, but I know this is what you want. Please call me on your cell phone periodically though, so I know you're safe." "Will do, Mom." ~Phineas~ After Izzy left, I got to thinking. I thought about leaving Mom without saying anything and that seems unfair. I decide to write her a note, so she knows I'm not dead. After about thirty minutes or so, I'm happy with it. It says: Mom, I am gone, in case you haven't figured out. Isabella and I left. Where we're going, I'm not entirely sure. But I'm okay, I promise. I'm not running away from you, or anyone; I'm not mad at anybody. The two of us just have some things to figure out. Don't worry about me being out on my own because I'm not, I have Izzy and that's enough for me. I don't know when we'll be back, but please don't stress out because I'm gone. I promise I am alright. When I return, I'll accept any punishment you're willing to give me. I love you. -Phineas- It was hard to write, but I can't leave without saying anything to her. Dinner is a drag and it's hard to look at my family because I know I'm going to leave them. Candace looks at me, and I can't look back. She knows where I'm going. Ferb too. After dinner, I go to Candace's room to say goodbye. I knock on her door. "Come in!" she calls. I look at her. "You do realize I'm leaving in a couple hours, right? I came to say goodbye." I hug her. "Just don't get yourself killed!" she says. I would hate to admit this, but I really am gonna miss her. My bedtime is 9:30, so I pretend to go to sleep and say good night to everyone. I leave my note on the bed and sneak out the window. Then, as I promised, I threw a rock at Isabella's window to let her know that it was time to go. She's out in no time. "Here goes nothing," I tell her. "I've got the money in my pocket, so let's go!" We walk towards the bus stop. Until now, I never realized how awesome Danville is at night. The streetlights are all on, the buildings are lit up, and it really is pretty neat. Even the bus stop doesn't look shady like you'd probably think. It's just a boxed off area, that kind of looks like one of those windows in the big hotels, except it's on the ground and there's a bench inside. Inside the unit, there's music playing and I hear our song playing! "Gitchee gitchee goo means that I love you!" Isabella starts singing. "Gosh, Phineas. Don't you remember performing this?" I smile at the memory. "Yes, yes I do. How long do you think it'll be before the next bus gets here?" My question is answered by an automated voice saying, "Bus number 72 heading south, approaching soon." Isabella screamed, and to be honest, it scared me too. "It's okay Izzy, but it was kinda freaky," I tell her. Contrasting with the "high-tech" bus stop, a sorta shady looking bus rolls up in front of us. A smoking driver asks, "Aren't you kids a little young to be traveling by yourselves?" Surprising myself, I say "Aren't you a little disgusting to continue smoking?" Isabella stares at me in shock. "Wise guy, eh?" the driver asks, "Look kid; just tell me how far you want to go." "That depends on how far you can take us," I respond. "This bus goes all the way to Charlotte, North Carolina. Is that how far you want to go?" I nod. "Alright then, $45 for you both." I pay him and turn to Isabella. "Told you," I say. We climb in the back of the bus, and our journey has officially begun. We're walking towards the back of the bus when some guy who looks like he's about thirteen goes whistling at Isabella, like Ferb did when we first saw the Super Duper Mega Superstore. For some reason, this angers me and I put my arm around Isabella and say, "Back off, punk. She's mine!" Flynn, where the HECK did that come from? When we sit down, Isabella says, "Phineas, where did that come from?" "Just looking out for you. I don't trust that guy." Truth is, maybe I really do want her to be mine. I haven't really had time to think about it, or understand it yet. "Oh, okay. Thanks!" she says. It's just like we're riding in the back of Mom's car. We laugh at random things we see on the road, we play those games where you try to find a specific type of car or a license plate from a certain state, we talk about the things we've done over the summer and remember things from past school years then start laughing like crazy; you know, the stuff you do on road trips with your friends. I glance at my watch and say, "Izzy, it's 10:30. We've already been on the road for an hour." "Gosh," she says, "I guess this means I should try to get some sleep. I mean, we're gonna be on this bus a while." "Okay then, Izzy." I say. She rests her head on my shoulder, which kinda catches me by surprise, and tries to fall asleep. That punk kid looks back over at us, and I mouth "Told you she's mine." No she's not, Flynn. She's not your girlfriend; she's your best friend. Seems Izzy was right, because I suddenly fell tired. So, I try to fall asleep too.
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