So it was not really strange that it was he the aliens chose to contact.
It came in the early hours of the morning. He awakened, not without a chill of fear, the sound of his telviz set in his ears. He had left it turned off, he knew that. He shook his head to clear it, impatient of the fact that with advancing years it was taking an increasing time to become alert after sleep.
He had not caught the message. For a brief moment he thought the sound had been a dream.
Then the telviz spoke again. The screen was blank. It said, You are awake, Mr. Gray?
He stared at it, uncomprehending.
He said, "I ... I don't understand." Then, suddenly, he did understand, as though by an inspired revelation. Why they were able to speak Amer-English. Why their ship looked like a Terran one. Why they had been able to 'disrupt' the Earth ships instruments.
He said haltingly, "Why are you here?"
We are familiar with your articles. You alone, Mr. Gray, seem at least to seek understanding. Before we left, we felt it our duty to explain our presence and our purpose—that is, partially.
"Yes," he said. Then, in an attempt to check the conclusion at which he had just arrived, he added, "You are going from the Solar System—leaving your home for a new one?"
There was a long silence.