When Colby got home, he found his mom helping his dad get dressed. Right away, something felt off to him. These were his parents, but for a split second, they seemed like strangers.


    "Colby, what''s up with you? I told you toe back early, but you never listen. The guests will be here any minute!" his mom said, walking over just like she always did, about to help him with his coat.


    "I had such a beautiful child, and you turned out to be a boy! I''ve got so many pretty dresses, and you''d look amazing in them," shemented with a sigh.


    Colby''s face darkened. "Mom! I thought we agreed to drop this?"


    "But it''s such a shame," she insisted, handing him a suit his dad had custom- made for him. "Wear this to the dinner party tonight. Don''t embarrass your father in front of Andrew!"


    His dad stepped up, frowning. "How could my son ever embarrass me? If we hadn''t been a stepte back then, his daughter would be calling me Dad."


    Colby remembered clearly that the Russell family had a daughter. They yed together a couple of times when they were kids, but then he went abroad and lost touch. Her name was Sophie.


    When her name popped into his head, he felt a strange familiarity.


    "Colby, stop standing around and get ready."


    "Yes, Mother," Colby replied in a formal tone, taking the suit to the next room. The room felt familiar, filled with the essence of home, yet he couldn''t shake off the feeling that it wasn''t really his ce.


    Downstairs, the guests had arrived. As Colby made his way down, he greeted the Russells, clearly ufortable with these family gatherings.


    Almost on autopilot, he drifted outside the Costello estate and unexpectedly found Sophie standing by the fountain.


    "You."


    "Me?" Sophie turned, pointing at herself, ncing around as if unsure he was talking to her.


    "Why are you at my house?" Colby asked, eyebrows knitted together.


    "My house?" she responded, puzzled. She had bumped into his car earlier that


    day, and now here she was again-what a coincidence.


    He felt like he''d seen her before. Colby took a step forward.


    Startled, she instinctively stepped back. "Stop! Don''te any closer!"


    Seeing her flustered face, Colby couldn''t resist teasing her. He took another step towards her.


    As he got closer, Sophie climbed


    onto the fountain''s stone edge,


    Bug


    looking pale as she pointed at kim, stammering, "You, you! I told you not to. Ah!" .


    ''Ssh''


    Colby froze.


    The grand fountain erupted, sending water everywhere. Sophie was now in the fountain, her hair and makeup a mess.


    Watching Sophie''s bedraggled state, Colby suddenly remembered how as kids she''d rope him and the boys into hide-and-seek. Back then, she was chatty and mischievous, while he was the quiet type.


    Sophie loved to tease him, getting a kick out of making him blush. She even once coaxed him into climbing a tree, only to hide in the bushes herself, leaving him up there for three hours,pletely unnoticed.