Cid's grin was infectious, though the one on Jess' face extended from ear-to-ear. Here he was on his own, god knows how far from home, but he had managed to meet a ship captain. The only adults he know that seemed at all extraordinary were Leslie's parents and Ms. Edmunds, and while Jess was greatly impressed by a pair of writers and an often mesmerizing music teacher, this was different somehow. More like part of story Leslie would tell him, be it something she was fortunate enough to experience or invented entirely.

"That is so cool. You're really the best in the world?" Just as Jess had blurted the question out, he realized that something about what Cid said had seemed peculiar. "Wait, a pilot? I thought pilots flew planes, not ships."