Christopher Lawson

That afternoon, Annabelle and I immersed ourselves in a world of fun. We played tea house, raced toy cars, built structures with Legos, and colored the quirky drawings she'd made. By the time Juliet walked into the room, I realized hours had flown by unnoticed.

“It’s past 5 p.m.? Have you two been playing all this time? WOW!” she exclaimed, watching us piece together a Lego masterpiece. I had already changed out of the ballet dress I wore earlier—it had ...