Half past six in the morning and Eric lays flat on his back in bed contemplating what this day has in store for him. The thoughts of what will come next also hit him. In the last week and a half, he has changed quite a bit, it is more having let his inner self out rather than anything else and of course this is due to what has come into his life. An odd kind of dread is also settling in. he would like this oddness to end, a return to normality would be nice but really, in all honesty he does not want it to end, hence the dread.

The person he has become or is becoming is maybe the person he is meant to be, someone less concerned with financial wealth and more interested in personal gain. He does indeed that dread a possible end, a more than likely end to this relationship he has with a humanoid plant. Will he ever see her again after he returns to that antiques store?

It has been the most surreal few days of Eric's life while also probably the most real of days he has ever had too. The change in his life, the thoughts he now thinks, the effects these days will have on the rest of his life, Eric knows he is a changed man. Nothing could have prepared him for this moment but now he feels that he is as prepared as anyone can be for whatever life can throw at him from this point forward. There may be a sadness within him, a knot to the pit of the stomach dread but there also is a happiness, a sense of peace and calm, a sense of achievement.

A knock comes to his bedroom door and Audrey soon enters. This is a bit unusual and unexpected for since when does Audrey need to knock let alone actually do it. There have been of course a couple of mornings where Eric awoke to find Audrey either on or in his bed and on the first of those occasions Eric was unsure as to what it was that had come to him.

'Good morning sleepy head' speaks Audrey.

'You do know it has only just gone six thirty ad besides I have been awake for a little while.'

'Bit strange for you to be awake so early without having been woken.'

'You can say that again.'

'Bit strange for you to be awake so early without having been woken.'

'Ha, ha, very funny.'

Audrey smiles and Eric can't help but smile too.

'So, are you getting up or what? We are due at the community center for half seven.'

'Yeah, give me a minute.'

'I will give you some space, not that I haven't it all already honey ...' This statement brings laughter but the sadness too, perhaps more sadness than joy. '... I'll go get breakfast ready' says Audrey while heading back towards the bedroom door.

'Hey Audrey, does today really have to be the end? Is there some way around this ten-day thing?'

'Today my friend is an end of sorts, an end in one way. It may be a kind of goodbye, but it will never truly end, as long as we both remember.'

'I will miss you.'

'As I will you, right get up, c'mon let's go.'

'Alright already, I'm up.'

Once again there is reason for smiles to be shared albeit with that more than slight sense of sadness.

Breakfast is had and the trip to the community center is made where a huge congregation, if you can call it that, has gathered. Lisa has come too but remains at the back of the hall being accompanied by a couple of her closet friends. The aerobic session is an energetic one to say the least. There is plenty of laughter with smiles on many faces though there is plenty of concern shown and given to Lisa. There is a lot of love on this day. A community has indeed come together for the benefit of them all. Something special has indeed begun.

The session ends with the consumption of what goodies have been brought. Eric and Audrey spend some time with Lisa before Audrey takes some time for goodbyes. It is as if there is an unspoken understanding as to what is going on. Watching Audrey and all the goodbyes Eric can't help but feel a lump swell in his throat and he has to fight the tears that are welling in his eyes. A bond may remain unbroken, but all good things really must come to an end. The aerobic sessions will continue of course but just not with Audrey at the helm.

Eric and Audrey soon have themselves a long slow walk along the nearby beach and they do this in silence taking in the beauty which surrounds them. A triangular area remains from where a fire had previously burned when Eric and Audrey had taken a sunset walk along this trail not so long prior. There is a snail not so far from the fire remains. An odd place this is for a snail to be. It could not be possible that Johnny Nitro could have made it here from the hospital grounds, could it? Then again ...

In the afternoon, a light lunch is had down by the Tavern Mike works at. There are hellos and acknowledgements made to Audrey and to Eric as well. A walk would continue down by the Chinatown botanical gardens where Audrey puts on another show for Eric and without any sort of feathered consumption. Then it is back to Eric's home until the evening comes.

The day passes almost like watching a movie, in one way it moves in slow motion and in another way, it passes all too quickly. There is still the evening's ball to look forward to, so the day is not done yet. There is still some amount of fun to be had.