The rest of the week passed by in a blur. Every day, they all ate breakfast together, then on weekdays Gregory would leave for school, and Sun and Moon would try to entertain themselves until Vanessa woke up. She taught them everything she could about how to survive a job at the Pizzaplex. She also tried to teach them how to shave. It got rid of the pricklies, and some extra blood she assured them they didn't need. Fortunately, their faces were able to heal before Monday.

Sun and Moon woke up bright and early to the sound of Vanessa's alarm clock, which she had let them borrow. Actually, it was too early to be bright, but that didn't make Sun any less excited. The nightmares had stopped after the night they got hired, so he was sleeping much better. It had stopped raining, too, so when the sun did come up, it would be in full display. He wished he would get to see it. Sun turned off the alarm and shook Moon to make sure he was awake.

"Moon! Moony, wake up! It's time to go to work!"

"I know, Sun, I heard the alarm, too," Moon groaned, turning on the lamp. Considering Moon's habit of sleeping through other noises, Sun thought his concern was justified, but he was too excited to say so.

"Can you believe we're finally going back home? I can't wait to see the kids again!"

"I missed them, too, Sun. And we probably won't get to Roxy Raceway today, but be on the lookout for any clues just in case."

They got dressed and scarfed down some cereal before heading to the bus stop. Vanessa had shown them how to get there the day before, and it really was close to Gregory's bus stop. Despite it being early, they weren't the first ones there.

"Moon," Sun whispered, "there are people. What do we say?"

"Like Vanessa said, we don't have to talk to them. Just stay quiet until the bus gets here."

"Shouldn't we at least say 'good morning' or something? They all look so sad."

"Sun, we don't need to mess up on our first day. Don't. Say. Anything."

As much as Sun wanted to at least greet the other employees, he didn't want to disappoint Vanessa. After waiting for ten minutes in complete silence, a bus with the Glamrocks painted on the side finally pulled up right in front of them. There weren't a lot of people on the bus, so they were able to sit right next to each other. They stayed quiet for the entire bus ride. Sun felt like he was going to explode. Finally, they reached the Pizzaplex. When they got off the bus, he couldn't help letting out a short squeal, attracting a few glances from fellow passengers.

"Look Mo- I mean Gabriel! We're finally here!" He couldn't believe he almost blew their cover before they even clocked in!

"Yeah, Sam, I'm pretty sure it's not normal to be that excited about anything, especially work, so maybe tone it down a bit."

"Oh, sorry."

Since they didn't have their I.D.s yet, they had to use the main entrance. The lobby was still flooded with S.T.A.F.F. bots.

"Vanessa was right, they really have amped up security!"

After they had accepted the jobs, they had gotten another email that told them everywhere they needed to go. First, they went to customer services to get their pictures taken. No human employees were in sight, but there was a S.T.A.F.F. bot with a modified Faz-cam standing next to a photo backdrop. S.T.A.F.F. bots had comparatively limited processing power, but Sun tried to be polite anyway.

"Hello! We're new here! Is this where we get our pictures taken?"

The S.T.A.F.F. bot turned to face him.

"Please state your first and last name."

"Samuel Aster."

"Yes! First time!"

"Please stand on the X."

It pointed to a big red X on the floor. Sun stood on it and smiled, but the S.T.A.F.F. bot didn't take the picture.

"Neutral expression required for valid I.D."

"What? Not even a little smile?" If smiling wasn't allowed, why on earth would they mention it in the email?

"Neutral expression required for valid I.D."

Sun forced the corners of his mouth down until the S.T.A.F.F. bot accepted it and took his picture.

FLASH

"You may pick up your I.D. and company-issue duffel bag at this counter tomorrow. Next."

Sun blindly stumbled out of the way and waited for Moon. They really needed to dim those flashes!

"Please state your first and last name."

"Gabriel Aster."

"Please stand on the X. Headwear prohibited for valid I.D."

"But I… have hat hair," Moon tried to reason with the bot.

"Headwear prohibited for valid I.D."

Sun regained his vision just in time to witness Moon take off his new beanie and attempt to smooth out his hair before also getting blinded. Moon rubbed his eyes while Sun led him away from the backdrop.

"You may pick up your I.D. and company-issue duffel bag at this counter tomorrow."

When he was able to see again, Moon pulled his hat back on, and they walked to the daycare. As they stepped through the doors, they couldn't help but smile. That playful music, the slight smell of cleaning products and craft supplies, the bright cloud-shaped fluorescent lights, it all meant that they were home again. They had never actually been upstairs during business hours, so they were surprised to see a young woman leaning against the check-in counter and filing her nails. When she saw them, she sighed and put down her file.

"You must be the new guys."

"That's right! Brand-new! Our first day on the job! I'm Samuel, but you can call me Sam, and-"

"Uh huh," she interrupted. "Yeah, nice to meet you. Welcome to the Faz-fam, etc. etc., you're working check-in with me, your brother is working down there with the kids."

Sun was confused. "Check-in? I thought-"

"That you'd be watching the rugrats all day? What position were you assigned in the email?"

"Um, position 2?"

"Yeah, that's check-in. Here." She reached under the desk and pulled out two aprons with the Superstar Daycare logo on them. "Your uniforms." Sun and Moon grabbed their aprons and put them on. Not as creatively themed as their usual uniforms, but they would do. "Oh, that concludes your 'orientation,' btw." With that, she resumed her manicure.

That was it? That was it?! She told them they were going to be separated ALL DAY, threw some aprons at them, and acted like that explained everything! He looked at Moon. He was trying to seem nonchalant, but he hadn't been practicing faces as much as Sun had. Sun wanted to grab him and insist that they had to stay together, no matter what the emails said. But Moon was right. They had to be careful.

"Um, bye, Gabe," said Sun, squeezing Moon's hand. "I'll see you after work, I guess."

"Yeah, see you after work." Moon paused, then slid down the slide.

So far, this job wasn't turning out as well as Sun hoped. He couldn't imagine doing this without Moon. And he wasn't even working in the play area! At least he would get to say hi to the kids as they came in. It wasn't the same, but it was something. And he could always talk to… her. She hadn't introduced herself yet.

"Like I said earlier, I'm Sam. What's your name?"

"Elaine," she said without looking up.

"Elaine? That's a wonderful name! Very elegant. It's nice to meet you, Elaine!"

Sun held his hand out. Elaine stared at it until he drew it back. Not too fond of handshakes, that's fine.

"I have a boyfriend."

"That's great! What's his name?"

Elaine rolled her eyes and focused back on her nails. Sun was surprised at her behavior, even though he probably shouldn't have been. In general, Pizzaplex employees had never been very friendly to him or Moon. He had grown used to everyone outside being nice, part of him had assumed things would be different here, too.

He came around to the other side of the desk. The computer monitors both showed a list of kids' names, ages, addresses, and parents or legal guardians who were allowed to pick them up. It was surreal to see something so close to the database in his head displayed on a screen. There were also some buttons that he didn't know the purpose of. Elaine might know, but was it really worth asking?

Of course it was! He had to, for the kids!

"So… how does this work?"

"How do you think it works?"

"I don't know. It's my first day, and I was told that-"

"I'm sure they told you a lot of things. Wanna know a secret? They lied. Believe me, I've been working here since the Pizzaplex reopened. I've tried to quit three times, but I stay because they give me a raise every time. Do you know why they do that? Because despite what they tell you, no one else wants to work here. No one. And guess what? Neither do I. I'm going to quit for real the second my boyfriend graduates, as long as this stupid music doesn't drive me insane first."

Ok, clearly she wasn't going to help. Who needed her, anyway? He checked the clock in the corner of the monitor screen. There was still… one hour and forty-three minutes until the daycare opened. He could figure it out by then, right?

Fortunately, he was able to figure it out before opening. It was a good thing, too, because the flood had damaged some schools and other daycares in the area, causing more people to have nowhere for their kids to go during the day. Since these kids hadn't been there before, they had to be entered into the database. And since they had gotten rid of the Daycare Pass system, and Elaine was being a Little Miss Grouchypants, Sun would have to do it. Fortunately, the first kid was none other than Suzy Pevinski, a regular.

"Good morning, and welcome to the Superstar Daycare! Who's checking in today?" Obviously, Sun knew who Suzy was, but it would probably be odd for someone who you thought was a complete stranger to call you by name.

"I am!" said Suzy. Suzy wasn't outright scared of him and Moon, but she had never been this excited to talk to him before.

"You are?! That's fantastic! What's your name, new friend?"

"Suzy."

"Suzy Pevinski," Suzy's mom added. "And I'm Charlotte Pevinski."

"Suzy... and Charlotte," said Sun, trying to find the Pevinskis in the database. "Those are some wonderful names! ...Aaaaand there you go! All checked in! Have a Fazerrific day!"

"Really? That was fast. Suzy, what do we say?"

"THANK YOU!" Suzy yelled as she ran towards the slide.

"You're welcome, Suzy!"

For the first half hour after opening, a steady stream of people kept flowing in. They were so busy, even Elaine started finally doing her jo- er, helping. It slowed down after that, but families kept trickling in for a few hours. That meant that Sun spent most of his time being bored, and since someone wasn't much of a conversationalist, he was practically alone, too. He wished that Moon was there.

Around 2pm, a little boy zoomed towards the slide. Sun ran and caught him just as he reached it. It was Tommy Harrington, another regular who had been coming to the daycare ever since he was a baby. Sun didn't pick favorites, but if he did, Tommy would be one of them.

"Whoah there, little guy! Your parents need to check you in before you can go down the slide!"

"No! I wanna go!" Tommy giggled.

"I promise you can go down the slide soon. Where are your-"

"Tommy!"

Sun turned to see what he could only assume was an angel running towards him. Her long, ash-blond hair flowed like silk, framing her slightly tanned face. And her eyes. Her eyes were a deep brown, warm as sunlight. He would've been happy to gaze into those eyes forever.

"Oh, dreeeeaam weaver, I believe you can get me through the niiiiiiiight"

"Oh, hold on." She pulled out her cellphone, and the music grew louder for a moment, then stopped. "Don't you just love spam calls?"

Sun didn't know what a spam call was, but he had a feeling that if she loved it, he probably did, too. He realized his heart started thumping faster, and he was sweating.

"That's weird. I'm not doing anything particularly strenuous, and it's never been too hot in the daycare, except that time the air conditioning broke, but it's not even hot outside, so that can't be- oh she's talking again."

"Tommy, what did we say about running off?" She was now holding Tommy in her dainty, perfect arms.

Tommy only laughed in response.

"You think this is funny, huh? It wouldn't be very funny if you got lost, would it?"

Tommy shook his head, still smiling.

"That's what I thought. Can you please stay with me next time?"

"Uh huh," Tommy nodded.

"Great. Now let's get you checked in." She looked at Sun, who suddenly remembered that he had a job to do.

"Oh! Yes, of course! I can check you in!" Sun scrambled back behind the counter and found Tommy's name. "Tommy Harrington?"

"That's right."

"I assume you'll also be picking him up, Mrs. Harrington?"

"Actually, that's my sister."

"Oh, I'm sorry! It's my first day, and her name was listed here, so I just assumed…"

"No, you're totally fine! I'm Chloe Stephens, Tommy's aunt."

Chloe. Even her name was beautiful. He typed it into Tommy's file.

"Chloe… Stephens… alright, Tommy, you're good to go!"

"I can go play with Mr. Sunnydrop now?"

Sun's heart dropped.

"Um, actually, Mr. Sun isn't in the daycare right now. He and Mr. Moon are taking a few days off. They should be back soon, though!"

Tommy stopped smiling for a moment.

"Oh."

"But! But Mr. Sun told me that you're one of his very best friends, and that he's very sorry he can't play with you today. He also said that he'll come back as soon as he can, and then you can play as much as you want!"

That answer seemed to be good enough, because Tommy smiled and started giggling again. "Bye bye, Auntie Chloe!" he yelled as he slid down the slide.

"Bye bye, Tommy!" Chloe waved. She turned to Sun. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how much that means to him."

"Just doing my job." His face felt hot, and his stomach was in knots. She was still talking to him. Why was she still talking to him?

"Maybe, but still, you didn't have to say all that. I know he really appreciates it, though. He did not stop talking about that thing the entire time the daycare was closed. Anyway, I gotta run. Bye… what was your name again?"

He panicked. What was his name? He knew he had one. Wait, no, he had two! Which one was the right one? They both started with the same letter. Was it… S! It was S, definitely. Hopefully. And the other ones were…

"I-I'm Sam," he managed to squeak out.

"Great! Nice meeting you, Sam!"

As soon as she left, Sun started walking towards the stairs as fast as he could. These feelings couldn't be normal. He must be malfunctioning, and he needed time to fix it before he continued working.

"Hey, where are you going?" asked Elaine. What a time to start talking!

"Um, the uh, bathroom! Yeah…"

"So you're just leaving me alone up here? Next time, go during lunch!"

When he reached the bathroom, Sun slammed the door closed behind him. Fortunately, he was alone.

"Oh no, nonononononono, what's wrong with me? I acted so silly up there! And, and a-and the sweating, and my tummy feels HORRIBLE and-" he looked in the mirror- "and why is my face so red?! I must be sick! Yeah, that's it! Oh no, oh nonono! I can't be sick! If I'm sick, I'm going to get all the kids sick! And if the kids are sick, they can't come to the daycare, and if no kids come to the daycare, it'll close down, and when they get better, they'll have nowhere to go, and then I'll get fired, and they'll probably fire Moon too, and we'll never be able to find out what that purple ball was or how to reverse this and we'll be stuck like this forever and Vanessa and Gregory will go broke and if we all survive we won't be friends anymore and we'll be so lonely if I even live that long which I might not becauseI'mSICK! Ohnoohno can'tbreathecan'tbreathe…"

Sun stopped and tried to do the deep breathing Vanessa had taught him.

"In… two… three… four… and hold… two… three… four… and out… two… three… four… and hold… two… three… four…"

After a few rounds, he was feeling much better. His face wasn't red anymore, either.

"Oh. Well, that is peculiar. Maybe I'm not sick after all. But if I'm not sick, what was all that?"

Sun tried to think of when he had started feeling off. Oh right—Chloe. There she was, in her stylish rose-patterned blouse and flare jeans with little brown ankle boots. She looked amazing in them, although she would probably look amazing in anything.

"There it is again! Why am I thinking that? She's just Tommy's aunt. There's nothing special about her… except for everything…"

Sun leaned on one of the sinks. He remembered how she smiled after he talked to Tommy.

"Thank you so much. You have no idea how much that means to him."

"Just doing my job," Sun repeated out loud.

"Maybe, but still, you didn't have to say all that. I know he really appreciates it, though."

Even though she was talking, her voice was like a song. His new favorite song.

By this point, Sun was feeling a lot better, so he took one more deep breath and opened the bathroom door.

"-a room. A rubber room. A rubber room with rats. And rats make me crazy. Crazy? I was crazy once. They put me in-"

The children were all doing some sort of chant that seemed to get louder with every round. As Sun climbed the stairs, he saw Moon standing on top of one of the play structures holding one of the new kids, while the others were staring up at him from the floor. He looked… scared?

"Do you need any help over there?" Sun called out.

Moon looked around for a second before finding him. "No, I've got everything under control!"

It was hard to hear him over the children.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm good!"

"Ok, if you say so."

By the time Sun got back to the counter, the children were starting to drown out the music. Elaine was covering her ears with her hands.

"Could somebody tell those kids to shut up?"

That was not an appropriate way to speak to, or about, children, but Sun was willing to excuse it given the circumstances.

"M-Gabe has it all under control." Why was it so hard for him to say that name? He had practiced saying it dozens of times over the weekend.

The chanting turned to yelling, then to cheering. Sun turned to see that Moon and the little boy were safely on the ground. It was now that Sun realized he forgot the boy's name. He had never forgotten a Starshine's name before, unless he forgot that he forgot it, which was a whole other problem.

"It's about time," sighed Elaine.

"Hey, Elaine?"

"What?"

"Do you remember that little boy's name? Y'know, the one… Gabe was holding?"

"No clue. Look it up if you want."

Actually, Sun couldn't look it up. Unlike the ones in his head, these copies of the Starshines' files didn't show their pictures, so the only way he could find the boy's name was if he already knew it. He decided to memorize all the new kids' names while they waited for the next customer, which would probably be a long time.

A little less than three hours later, a heavenly voice broke through his thoughts.

"Hey! I'm here to pick up Tommy."

Sun started feeling sick again.

"Hello, Miss Stephens! Welcome back! Hold on juuuust a second… there we go! You're all set! Just head down those stairs and go through the big door."

"Thanks… Sam, right?"

"She remembered my name! I can't believe she remembered my name!"

"Yep. Sam. Samuel. The ol' Sam-a-roni. That's me! Heh, yeah, definitely…"

"Cool." She smiled and went downstairs.

Sun sighed and rested his chin on his hand. He was drawn out of his trance by the ever-delightful Elaine.

"That was painful to watch."

"Excuse me?"

"Do they not have girls on your planet?"

"There are lots of girls on earth."

"Riiiight. What I'm saying is, it looks like all your hormones just activated at once, and it did not turn out well."

"…hormones?"

"Ah, forget it."

The sickness wasn't as strong this time, probably because he had only talked with Chloe for a few, perfect seconds… but at least now he was pretty sure it was her that had caused it. How did she manage to make him feel so terrible while also being so… enchanting? That's it! She must've used some sort of magic to make it come and go so quickly! Maybe she was a witch? No, surely an evil witch couldn't be so kind and beautiful. She had to be something else, like… a fairy! Yes, a very tall fairy who was hiding her wings! But why would a fairy want to make him sick?

"That wouldn't make sense," he mumbled.

"Hm?"

"Nothing! Nothing at all!"

"M'kay."

Maybe Vanessa would know what this sickness was. She knew all sorts of human things, even more than Gregory, and she had already helped them so much. Unfortunately, that meant that he had to wait until they got back to the apartment, and it was a looooong time until closing.