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Jay's first trip to another planet had come to an end just like that. Overall, it had been a thrilling journey without any real danger. Though he would never say he wanted to do it again, looking back on it, the trip had even been kind of fun.

Helena was considerate enough not to drag the exhausted extraterrestrial travelers through the usual round of questions. She said she would stay behind to deal with the aftermath and find an opportunity to get the full details from Jay later. That promise was welcome news for Jay, Kara, and everyone who had escaped Warworld. After that string of terrifying experiences, they had reached the point where even forming a thought felt like a luxury. All they wanted now was their warm homes. If they had to name something they missed even more, it would probably be their even warmer beds.

Kairi International Creative Company had been completely sealed off. As they left the skyscraper, Jay had never been more grateful for his Kryptonian "solar-powered battery" physique. The warm sunlight poured generously over every inch of his skin, driving away all his exhaustion in an instant. It felt as though every cell that had been drained dry was swelling full again with sunlight. The sensation was indescribably comfortable.

Squinting as he enjoyed the sun's gift, he said, "I love yellow suns. When I get back, I need to find time to sunbathe for an entire day. No, I want to fly straight to the sun's surface and soak it in. I've never tried that before. It has to be amazing."

Kara laughed. "I strongly suggest you don't. More likely, you'll either get overcharged to death or get so sick of the sun that you'll never want to see it again."

Jay turned his head and saw the brilliant sunlight tracing a golden edge along Kara's nearly translucent pale skin. A few golden strands of hair lifted in the gentle breeze. She was so beautiful it was almost beyond words.

Kara noticed his gaze and tilted her head in confusion. "What is it? Did something from the junkyard get stuck in my hair?"

As she spoke, she reached up and felt around her head. Jay laughed. "No. It's just... just incredible, what we went through." He paused, then added, "I couldn't have done it without you. Thank you."

"The same goes for me." Kara smiled softly, then seemed to remember something and suddenly pulled a face. "Well, I definitely missed Ms. Grant's flight. She's going to be furious with me. I think I'm definitely getting fired this time."

Jay burst out laughing. "Relax, she won't do that. Trust me, she actually likes you deep down."

"I guess we'll find out soon enough." She sighed heavily and curled a lock of blonde hair around her finger. "Um, I should probably go home and take a shower. I must smell awful right now."

"Ha, me too."

"Then... bye for now?"

"Yeah, see you." Jay hesitated for a moment before saying somewhat awkwardly, "I still need to report back to my mom, and my dad too, you know. But... once all this is taken care of, and we both have time... maybe..."

Kara smiled. "Let me guess. You want to say... a real date?"

"See? We can be pretty in sync sometimes."

They looked at each other and smiled. Kara nodded. "Sure. It's a deal, then. A real date. Don't stand me up."

As she spoke, her body gently rose into the air like a soft, weightless feather. Jay watched from afar as she vanished into the blue sky, and for an instant, the cloudless heavens seemed bluer than ever before.

Jay's adventure had crossed the universe and leaped between star systems. It seemed long and distant, but in reality, it had all happened in little more than ten hours. Yet to Mrs. Reynolds, anxiously waiting at home, it had felt like ten centuries had passed.

She had originally prepared a stomachful of complaints and grumbles for Mr. Reynolds, but the instant her husband and son appeared together at the front door, they all vanished into thin air. With reddened eyes, she gave them both a huge hug. It was a reunion that belonged only to family, and at that moment, they were all immensely grateful to have one another.

That was, until Mrs. Reynolds pushed them apart, pinched her nose in disgust, and asked, "Which one of you smells so awful?"

Jay awkwardly raised his hand. Mrs. Reynolds hurriedly urged him to change clothes and take a shower, because he smelled like a walking recycling station. Jay said he really had just crawled out of a recycling station, an alien one at that.

Father and son promptly took turns showering, while Mrs. Reynolds buried herself in the kitchen to prepare a feast for their homecoming. After his shower, Mr. Reynolds seemed to have washed away all his exhaustion. When he came out, he was several times more energetic than before, like a completely different person.

Jay asked what exactly his father had been investigating for things to turn out this way. After a brief exchange, Jay discovered that what he had found in the office folder was basically everything his dad had uncovered. Those clues had led them to Kairi Technology Creative Company, which had then implicated unexpected crimes such as human trafficking in cooperation with aliens from Warworld and illegal human experimentation.

What was even more chilling was that this whole series of incidents could be traced back years, yet people had noticed nothing at all. So many people had vanished from society without a trace, including figures with considerable social influence. Could the government really have failed to notice anything strange?

Or perhaps the real question was: what role had the federal government played in all this?

Some mysteries had been solved, only to reveal even more questions, each seemingly more terrifying than the last. Jay increasingly felt that the events they had become involved in were far from simple. Perhaps this was a vast conspiracy beyond imagination, and he was not sure whether he was ready to face what was coming.

Their discussion sank into a heavy silence. They sat wordlessly on the living room couch for a long time.

After a while, Mr. Reynolds broke the silence. "Thank you, son. And I'm sorry. I shouldn't... I shouldn't have kept what I was doing from you and your mom. We're family. We should trust and help each other. My thoughtless actions brought about these consequences."

"It's okay, dad." Jay patted his shoulder and smiled. "It's over now. What matters is that we all came back, right?"

"Yeah." Reynolds looked directly into his son's blue eyes. "I'm such an idiot. Even though you have incredible abilities, all this time I've still only thought of you as a child. My child. I worried too much and overlooked something so important—you've grown up."

"You can talk to me about anything, dad," Jay said. "No matter what it is, I believe we can solve it together."

Mrs. Reynolds, passing by from the kitchen, could not help smiling at the sight. She cleared her throat twice and strode into the living room. "Mr. White, the newspaper's editor-in-chief, just sent his regards. He also gave both of you a few days off. Which got me thinking: when was the last time we went on a family picnic?"

Mr. Reynolds immediately agreed. "That's a great idea." Then he seemed to think of something and turned to Jay. "Oh, right. Maybe you could invite that girl you were with this time. She's Supergirl from National City, right? She seemed terrific. Do you have her contact information?"

Jay's face darkened. He was somewhat reluctant to think about which aspect Reynolds meant by "terrific."

"I do, but... I'm not sure that's a good idea," he said. "I'm not sure she'd be willing."

"Give it a try. Youth is about having the courage to try, so you won't have regrets!" Mr. Reynolds struck a spirited pose, as though he had returned to his own youth. "Or you could say that since she saved my life, I want the chance to thank her in person."

"Fine, I'll ask." Jay gave in. At the very least, that reason did not sound too bad.