Sofia Taylor was the only daughter of Jeremy and Bella Taylor. Jeremy Taylor was the owner of the Spring group of hotels and resorts. It was their family business. He married his childhood sweetheart Bella Jones. Together, they had a daughter, Sofia.

Sofia was beautiful with dark brown hair, fair skin with a rosy complexion and eyes like dark chocolatey orbs which could captivate anyone who looked in them for too long. She was not what her parents wanted her to be. She hid her striking beauty and she didn't want anyone to attract towards her. She wore the least attractive clothes amongst her friends.

She didn't have many friends except for a few classmates who she was on really good terms. She was a brilliant student and an obedient one. She was never the type to judge people according to their social or financial statuses. She was an extremely friendly person with a heart as beautiful as her face.

Sofia was not friends with too many people. Apart from her classmates, she had one friend, Simon who was her friend since grade six.

The school basketball team captain always wanted to ask Sofia to be his girlfriend but she was always engrossed in her books. Sofia loved reading and she was often found in the library.

So, one day, the captain was scaring Sofia by going close to her so she would have no space to escape. Simon was searching for a book on the opposite shelf. He saw her scared. She had her lunchbox clutched close to her. Simon ran to call the librarian. The librarian came and kicked Tim out of the library. Sofia smiled a little when she saw Simon looking at her.

"Hello. Thank you so much for saving me." She said giving him a sweet smile.

"It's okay. No problem." He replied as he turned to go back to the shelf.

"Wait!" She called out to him a bit too loud for her surroundings. The librarian looked at both of them from over her glasses and motioned them to be quiet. They both nodded.

"What's your name? I forgot to ask you." She whispered.

"Simon Evans." He replied.

"My name is Sofia. Sofia Taylor. Nice to meet you." She said as she put forward her hand for him to shake.

"Nice to meet you too, Sofia," Simon replied as he shook her hand.

"You are a good person. Can we go outside and talk?" She whispered again.

"No... I have to do some reading. I can't do that at home." He said as he made an excuse.

"Why can't you do it at home? Don't you have a computer?" She asked innocently.

"...No."He said as he looked down towards his shoes. Everyone had a computer in those days at home. Simon thought he was the only child who didn't have a computer at home.

"It's okay. I can help you." She said.

"No. I can do my work on my own." He said to her as he put his books on the table and started reading.

"Okay. Umm... Can we be friends?" She asked.

"Yes," He said as he resumed his work.

"Okay. Then my mother says friends don't leave each other alone. So I will sit here with you and help you until you finish your work." She said as she put her backpack on the table and took out her book.

After school was over, Sofia's bodyguard, Mark came to pick her up from school. She saw Simon walking home. Sofia ran towards him. Mark was right behind her.

"Hi, Simon! If you want I can drop you home." She said as she reached him.

"No thanks. I'll walk." He declined nicely.

Sofia was disappointed. Simon was quite a handsome boy for his age. He had thick black hair and a fairly tall height with a fair complexion. She wanted to know more about him but he was not being very friendly.

Mark took Sofia home. Sofia was sad. Her mind was stuck on Simon. Her nanny brought her snacks. Mrs. Clarke was Sofia's nanny since the day she was born. She was like a mother to her because her own parents were too busy to spend time with her.

Being the daughter of one of the famous fashion designers of the country was not easy. Her mother's fame meant that Sofia had to sacrifice her time with her because her mother was too busy to spend time with her and so was her father. But they always had their dinner together.

"C' mon Sofia, eat something darling." Mrs. Clarke said to Sofia as she brushed her hair.

"No Mrs. Clarke I don't want to eat anything." She replied.

"Okay. Tell me. How was your day at school today?" She asked.

"It was fine. I met a boy. His name was Simon. He saved me from Tim. Do you remember Tim, Mrs. Clarke?" She asked her.

"Yes, I do remember that boy." She replied nodding her head as she continued to braid her beautiful brown hair.

"Simon is a strange boy. I asked him if I can drop him but he said he'll walk home." She told her.

"It's alright darling. No need to worry. Some kids don't talk to strangers. He will come around in a few days. I'm baking some chocolate cookies, you can share some with him. Because sharing is caring, right? Nobody can say no to chocolate cookies." Mrs. Clarke said with a twinkle in her warm eyes as she got up, collected the tray and left Sofia.

"Mrs. Clarke, when will mum be coming home?" She asked.

"Mrs. Taylor has some meeting out of town so she will not be home tonight. I'm sorry darling. I thought you knew." She said as she saw Sofia's shoulders slump in defeat.

The sound of a car was heard. Mrs. Clarke hurried to the window.
"Oh, it's your father, Sofia!" She told her. Hearing her father's name, Sofia got up, put on her slippers and fled out of her room.

"Careful darling!" Mrs. Clarke called out after her as she followed her.

"Dad!!" Sofia exclaimed as she jumped onto her father and hugged him.

"Sofia! My princess! How are you?" He said as he kissed her forehead and spun her around. She was the apple of his eye and he loved her dearly.

After having dinner, both Jeremy and Sofia played a game of chess before she fell asleep. He  tucked her in her bed, shut down the light and kissed her goodnight