Zander would wait for me a quarter mile ahead while I slowpoked my way, seeing the blaze of colors with my camera lens wide open. I caught up to him before we crossed the bridge, and he pointed and drew my attention to the west, where the sun, a fading spark of yellow, was hugged tight between a shifting canvas with shades of orange and pink and baby blue. Even with the occasional distance between us, cycling back from Old Town Alexandria to home was one of our most romantic dates yet.
