The narrator's cousin doubts that his encounter with the alien Ami was real and not a dream. When the narrator asks his grandmother about tasting alien "walnuts," she does not remember. He realizes the only way to prove it was real is to return to the beach and see if the symbol Ami left carved in rock is still there. But his cousin refuses to take him, saying they will go next summer. Feeling frustrated, the narrator decides to find a way to the beach himself to see if the symbol is there.