Remington woke with the sun, as usual.

He had tossed and turned all night. The dreams of Addy were endless. Addy in his arms. Addy pinned beneath him, moaning in abandon. Addy rising like Venus from the frothing sea.

He dashed off to the showers and then dressed quickly and headed to the restaurant to look for the schedule that would tell him his day off.

The air was cool and the birds sang in the trees. The lake lapped mysteriously at the pebbled shore, its depths unknowable when compared with the bright blue of the pool.

Though the chances were slim, Remington felt hopeful about his day off. And about Addy as well.

Her words denied him in a fluster of confusion, but her body welcomed him so eloquently.

Perhaps there was hope that he might win her yet.

She made noises about not being ready for a mate during this part of her life.

But what part of a life would not be improved by the presence of a mate to assist and encourage? The birds built their nests and watched for predators together. The wolves each had their own task to strengthen the whole. What was it about studying that made Addy feel it had to be done in solitude?

Remington and his brothers had studied humanity together, making sense of the inscrutable through their warm discussions and wild arguments. They had learned to use their bodies, and to speak with only each other as a point of reference. Remington could not imagine assimilating all that knowledge alone, trying to analyze and imbibe a culture without the perspective of his brothers.

Perhaps he would ask her about her studies, try to understand what she was studying. Maybe there was a way for him to help even if she didn’t see it yet.

She wanted to be a doctor, to heal other humans in need.

He had constructed an entire human body from stardust and hope.

Surely that must be worth something.

He ducked in the back door of the restaurant.

Inside, a symphony of banging and the scents of a hundred breakfast foods greeted him. The kitchen staff was already preparing for the breakfast rush, which began with a parade of elderly golf players, all desirous of burning hot coffee and freezing cold cranberry juice.

“What are you doing here?” Malik asked. “It’s your day off.”

Remington’s heart soared.

“I wanted to look at the schedule,” he replied.

“Sure,” Malik said. “But it’s pretty boring for you, each week is the same. You always have Sundays off.”

Remington followed his employer to a bulletin board on the back wall of the kitchen, next to Malik’s own small office.

“See,” Malik said.

Remington glanced at the huge spreadsheet. It was impressive and efficient, even if it was not as beautiful as the one’s Addy constructed. His own name appeared on one side and sure enough, he could see the green box that said OFF on each Sunday going all the way across the pages.

“Thanks,” he told Malik.

“Did you want to pick up a shift today?” Malik sounded hopeful.

“What does this mean?” Remington asked.

“It’s your day off, but if you want to work anyway, you could stay here and allow another employee to go home,” Malik explained. “I was thinking Jocelyn might want a day off.”

“I don’t want a day off,” Jocelyn said scornfully on her way past.

“Oh, hello, my dear,” Malik said, sounding a bit embarrassed.

Jocelyn was known to be unskilled as a waitress. Remington imagined this was why Malik preferred to give him her shift. He was proud that his employer appreciated his skills, but relieved that he could go.

“Thanks anyway,” Remington said quickly, heading toward the door.

“Have fun, my boy,” Malik called after him.

His eyes were still adjusting to the sunlight on the lawn when Remington nearly bumped into someone.

“Oh, hey,” Addy said.

“Sorry, Addy,” Remington replied.

“Did you check your schedule?”

“Yes,” he said with a smile. “Today is my day off. I have off each Sunday this summer.”

“Great,” Addy cried. “Sundays are my days off too - there are no swim lessons on Sundays. At least, there are no official ones.”

“That’s nice,” he told her.

She smiled, then looked down at her feet.

“Well,” she said, “Honey said I could use her car today. Want to go to town?”

“Yes,” he responded eagerly.

They walked in companionable silence to the gravel lot behind the main house, where Addy unlocked Honey’s car and they got in.

The drive to the little town was peaceful.

“The trees are so lovely,” Remington said.

“Were there trees on Aerie?” Addy sounded fascinated.

“No,” he replied. “The only flora was more akin to lichen, but carnivorous.”

“Oh,” Addy said. “Is it beautiful there?”

Remington gave that some thought. At times he missed the contrast of rocks on sand, silhouetted by stars, so close they nearly filled the sky. But was it beautiful?

“It was beautiful to me,” he said. “But not in the way of your landscape. Aerie is a dry place. Mostly there are rocks and loose crystal, like sand.”

His hand went to his necklace. The stone in the pendant was of a common sort found on Aerie. He suspected it might be more valuable on Earth. One of his regular customers at the dining hall, an old Geology professor named Dr Blum, had offered to buy it from him more than once. But he was not willing to part with it. It was all he had left of his home.

“This made the trip from Aerie with us,” he told her. “A little piece of my home world I carry with me.”

“Do you miss it?”

He had missed his home terribly when he’d first arrived on Earth, especially during his stay at the lab in Stargazer. Things had certainly been simpler for him on his planet. And even though his thoughts had been more consumed by other matters lately, he still felt the pull of Aerie, calling to him through the void.

“Sometimes,” he said.

They reached the edge of the little town of Purple Mountain. Remington knew it was called Purple Mountain because a sign in the center of the street proclaimed Welcome to Purple Mountain.

He recognized storefronts, like he’d seen in the movies, and wondered if there were a place he could take Addy for a milkshake. He had been wise enough to bring some of his pay with him.

“We’ll go to the hardware store first,” Addy said. “See if they can arrange to bring in a couple of truckloads for a sandcastle competition.”

The day passed pleasantly. The gentleman at the store was only too happy to arrange for a sand delivery. When a woman came in and asked for several large bags of mulch, Remington carried them to the car for her so that the owner could continue his business with Addy.

“Thank you, son,” the older man said to Remington as he came back in. The man gave him a smile so big his cheeks nearly covered his eyes. “Not too many old school gentlemen like you out there.”

Remington smiled politely though he had no idea what an old school gentleman might be.

But Addy winked at him and patted his shoulder.

“He’s a keeper, kid,” the owner said to Addy.

She laughed but didn’t respond and Remington was left guessing again.

Once their sand business was conducted, they went to the print shop.

Remington was quite taken with the wild spectrum of paper colors and the scent of the ink in the air. He examined the bins of clips and pens and erasers and the business books in the circular rack.

When the young woman behind the counter finished helping Addy, he lifted their large box of posters and started for the front of the store.

Just then, a man appeared at the glass front door, his arms laden with precariously stacked packages.

Remington placed the posters back on the counter and dashed to the door to help.

“Thanks, buddy,” the man said as Remington held the door open with his foot and took half the stack of boxes so they could both come in easily.

“You’re welcome,” Remington said. “A shared load is a burden for no one.”

He placed his half of the stack on the counter, and picked up the posters again.

Addy was gazing at him in a funny way. He wondered if his wording had been incorrect. The subtleties of her language had proven more difficult to master than any of them had expected.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said. “Yeah, of course. Let’s go see if we can get anyone to post these.”

“We’ll put one up,” the girl behind the counter offered.

“Thank you,” Remington replied, handing her a poster.

“We don’t normally do this, but you seem like such nice people.” She smiled warmly at him.

“Ready for lunch?” Addy stood by the door, looking a bit impatient.

“Sure,” he replied, joining her.

They went back out into the bright sunshine.

Addy wanted to eat at a café a few blocks away. They stopped along the way to ask business owners to display posters. Most of them agreed.

Remington used his superior height to hang the posters, while Addy thanked the owners. It was fun to meet new people. Remington had not expected their mission to be so pleasant.

At last they reached the café. Sadly, all the outdoor tables were taken, so they went inside and sat near the back.

Their table was flanked by two large benches with high backs. A light fixture with amber colored glass hung above. It was cozy inside. Addy studied the menu, her hair glowing in the soft light.

Remington was thankful he had earned the day off.