Friends Old and New

February 2033 - Oasis Springs, Nevada
Richard household - Dewey is 37, Anna is 37, Piper is 7, Landon is 5, Dylan is 2

Anna and Dewey Richard love going out bowling with Madison and Bryant Smith any chance they get. Stepsisters, best friends, neighbors. They're perfect for spending time together on a child-free night out.

 Maybe bowling is a bit boring when it comes to ideas for a night out.

 But if you ask Bryant it's always an entertaining night for longtime friends.

He cheers loud every time he gets a strike. Dewey and Anna can't help giving Madison the side eye as she grins wide at her husband and congratulates him once again before adding, "Now settle your butt down and stop acting like you're a superhero."

That doesn't stop Bryant from continuing to cheer even longer. Dewey looks at Anna and rolls his eyes, though he never gets mad at his best friend for overreacting on the little things.

***

Afternoons at the park are always the best part of the day if you ask Piper. She meets her friends out there any afternoon she can. It's February, and while Anna has told her daughter about the snow that sometimes comes back in Pine Hollow, it's not snowing here in this warm desert town. Instead, Piper gets to play in the sun, and if you ask her she wouldn't change it. Well, maybe just once so she can see what snow really looks like, but not all the time.

When they don't get a day at the park, little Dylan is not happy and isn't afraid to show it.

He'll walk around the house, fussing and letting everyone know how unhappy he is.

He does anything he can to get some attention and make things the way he wants.

***

San Myshuno, New York
Smith household - Sam is 28, Ariel is 25, Alex is 3

February days in San Myshuno are not like the days in Oasis Springs.

This winter is coated in a lot of snow and Sam loves taking Alex outside to play in it, like he did when he was a kid himself in Pine Hollow.

Thinking of those memories makes him think of his twin sister Lexi. It's still hard to think about life without her and a lot of times he still thinks she's with him. He knows she would have loved playing in the snow with her nephew.

One thing Ariel really loves about living here in a big city is all the vendors they can find on various sidewalks and parks.

Sam thinks it looks a bit strange, but Ariel loves the new painting she found at one of those sidewalk displays. She couldn’t resist buying it to hang in their living room.

Sam has become close friends with Micah, the alien he met that day in town.

They talk about everything. Life here, life in Sixam, their families. Micah has an Earthling wife and they have a daughter, Corrine, who is studying at Windenburg University right now. Sam mentions that his cousin's girlfriend is also studying at Windenburg, and he makes note to ask Ethan if Lily has met Corrine.

Micah tells Sam all about Sixam and why some of the scientists there travel to other worlds across the universe to study other types of life. Micah is one of those scientists, having come to Earth to do some studies. But he lost contact with the rest of his team back on Sixam long ago and so he's grown here, learning to be an Earthling and trying to blend in as best he can. Living in a big city like San Myshuno works much better than the small towns do. Micah can wear a turban to hide his pointed ears and no one ever questions him about it, they just let him blend in with the rest of the crowd on the sidewalks.

That is something that Sam has noticed in his life in San Myshuno. It's easier to blend in here, and no one asks him about his green skin. It makes him relieved that maybe Alex really can live an ordinary life here and no one will ever suspect that part of him is not entirely Earthling. Sam isn't ashamed at being descended from Sixam life, but he's not sure yet how most people would respond to it. While Alex is still so small and growing Sam doesn't want to face the unknown in that part of their lives.