Kirk sat obediently at Cecily’s booth while she ran to grab lunch.

The items in the booth were very interesting. Cecily made masks and prosthetic attachments that could transform a human into all manner of fantastical creature, from a fairy to a zombie, or even an alien - although the human imagining of aliens was unlike anything Kirk had ever encountered.

Her makeup area held bowls of tiny scales and shimmering jewels in addition to pots of creams and potions in every color imaginable.

A display of photographs hung along the back of the booth. Most were black and white shots of actors wearing her creations. He had asked her why the photographs weren’t in color when her creations certainly were, and she had shrugged and told him it was tradition.

He hadn’t had time to ask many more questions. The booth was busy nearly every moment, either with fans wanting to buy a signed copy of her memoir Make-up Sex, or with actors from different films and televisions shows she had worked on stopping by to visit.

Kirk had discussed human behavior with Dr. Bhimani back at the lab. He was fascinated by how differently the people of Earth interacted with their world.

By Dr. Bhimani’s estimation, he was pretty sure Kate would be described as an introvert, in spite of the fact that she spent so much time interacting with so many people.

Cecily, on the other hand, seemed to grow more energetic the more people she talked with. The Con didn’t seem to exhaust her the way it did Kate - instead, it appeared to fuel her.

Kirk admired her extrovert strength, but secretly preferred Kate’s quieter demeanor, which was more like his own.

The day passed slowly, as every woman’s smile made him think of Kate. He missed her horribly, which made little sense as he had only met her a few days before.

He was amazed to find that his sadness was not merely a state of mind, but also a physical affliction, causing him a tightness in his chest and a hollow feeling in his stomach.

Though he had felt moments of regret on Aerie, he had never felt this way, turned inside out with grief, and he wondered if the emotions were part of the physical body.

Inwardly though, he knew it wasn’t true.

He had chosen Kate as his mate.

And she had rejected him.

He should be torn apart with sadness. He would never know human happiness now, never click into his human form for good.

Dr. Bhimani had explained to him that humans could lose a lover and find happiness again one day. But he knew instinctively that this wasn’t true for his race. Kirk and his brothers had a single choice, a single chance.

His only hope now was that Kate might change her mind.

Though it was hard for him to wish for that, if he used his head instead of his heart.

She was right - if it came out that he was an alien, things would go badly for everyone back at the lab in Stargazer.

And beyond that, if being mated to him meant she had to abandon her own dreams, then he was willing to live with this sadness and let her go.

He hoped that if he made himself useful to the gentle inhabitants of this planet, he could have a worthwhile life, even if it was a lonely one.

Assuming his other brothers were successful enough to convince the rulers of Aerie that the Earth was worth keeping intact.

The downside now was that while he had felt useful guarding Kate, he was completely useless at Cecily’s booth. He could see how Solo had been a help setting up all the various items that were heavy and too high for her to reach, but at this point she could handle everything herself.

“Hey, Kirk,” Cecily said, handing him a white paper bag. “There’s a turkey sandwich in there and a Coke.”

“Thank you, Cecily,” Kirk said politely. “Do you need my help this afternoon?”

“Not really,” she admitted. “Though my fans definitely appreciate your company.”

Kirk laughed.

“No, I’m fine,” she said. “Go explore the Con or do whatever you want. Let me know if you need anything.”

“Thank you, Cecily,” he said. “I’ll check in with you in a while in case you need me later.”

He waved to her and headed out, bag in hand, to check in on Kate.

Her line was closed, as he had expected. She was likely on her lunch break too.

He headed out the paneled door and down the hallway to the green room.

Light streamed in the windows and he caught his breath at the beauty of the city skyline. It filled him with wonder to think that in each room of all those buildings were people, minds filled with the complicated beauty and pain of life on this mysterious planet.

When he reached the green room door he took a deep breath, then knocked.

“Who is it?” Solo’s authoritative voice asked at once.

“Kirk,” Kirk replied.

“Ah, come in, brother,” Solo opened the door.

Kate looked up from her phone.

“Hi Kate,” Kirk said. “I thought maybe we could share some lunch?”

He held up the bag.

“I have already brought her eight sandwiches, brother,” Solo said proudly, gesturing to the counter, where indeed, an impressive number of sandwiches were lined up, unopened.

“We can still chat,” Kate said quickly, slipping the phone back into her pocket.

“I’ll just run a quick errand,” Solo said. “I’ll be back at the end of your break.”

Kate smiled and Kirk felt his heart melt.

Solo slipped out, closing the door quietly behind him.

“I don’t mean to intrude,” Kirk said. “I just wanted to talk with you now that we are both feeling less surprised.”

“I’m sorry I reacted like that,” Kate said. “I don’t blame you. You’ve been so quick to help. I was just upset.”

Kirk pulled up a chair and sat.

“You were right to be upset,” he told her. “I didn’t know how important your position was. I mean, I knew that you were an actress, but that doesn’t exist on my planet. And fame is something I’m only beginning to wrap my understanding around.”

“It’s pretty weird, right?” Kate asked. “I still can’t get it straight in my own head sometimes.”

“The reason I wished to talk with you is that I wanted you to know that I understand why you don’t want to be with me,” he told her, determined to say what he had come here to say even though all he wanted to do was throw himself at her feet. “Our relationship would be a danger to both my family and your career. And I won’t risk your happiness or theirs to satisfy my own. It feels like I can’t live without you, Kate, but I am going to try.”

She nodded slowly and he thought for a moment she looked disappointed. But he understood so little of human emotion that he plowed on rather than dwelling on it.

“Cecily is doing very well at her booth and I don’t think she needs my help,” he said. “I’d like to do something useful. I know when we met you had thought you might be able to help me get a job. Would you still be willing to do that?”

“Actually, I do know a guy at one of the booths who’s short-handed today,” she said. “Do you think you could help him out? It’s not exactly a career move, but if you’re wanting to be useful…”

“I would be glad to help,” Kirk said, hopping up. “Which booth and what does he need me to do?”