"W-what did you call me?" I stutter, surprised by his words. How did he know that nickname?

"I...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Charles apologized, looking confused. "I...you don't remember me?"

"Do we know each other from before somehow?" I asked, equally confused, which made him sigh in disappointment.

"So you don't," he muttered to himself. "That's a shame."

"What do you mean?" I questioned, still trying to grasp what he was saying. "How am I supposed to remember someone I've never met?"

"Ouch, that's a bit harsh coming from someone you practically grew up with," Charles retorted, pretending to clutch his chest in mock pain.

"What do you mean?" I asked again.

"You used to live in Monaco, right?" Charles inquired. "You were born there?"

"Y-yes?" I answered, feeling uncertain. These were public facts about me. Everyone knew I was born in Monaco and lived there until I was 4. But what puzzled me was how he knew my childhood nickname, known only to my family and close friends, not the outside world.

"We used to be neighbors, Valentina," he continued, "you really don't remember?"

"I..." I hesitated, not knowing what to say. If we were indeed neighbors, how could I have no memory of knowing him? I grew up hearing about him and his brother, Arthur, in the news. How could neither Mom nor my sister have mentioned that we were neighbors? It didn't make sense.

"Wait, let me show you something," he said, interrupting my thoughts as he pulled out his phone and showed me a picture of a child in front of a swimming pool. The pool looked familiar. It was the one in our Monaco home, a place where Chloe and I had many photos.

"This is-"

"Our swimming pool," I finished, stunned. "You...you really were my neighbor," I said, disbelief coloring my words.

"I'm sorry, I really have no memory of our life in Monaco, so," I trailed off as Charles nodded.

"Yeah, you were pretty young when you guys moved. Packed up your things and gone overnight. Enzo and I kept wondering where you went when Mama said you moved," he explained.

"How do you remember so much?" I asked, curious.

"Well, there are photo albums at our home, filled with our pictures," he replied. "All four of us. You, me, Enzo, and Chloe. Plus, when you starred in 'Skam España,' Mama couldn't stop talking about how proud he was of you. I tried to reach out to you, but you didn't even have social media, so I didn't know how to."

"Yeah, I only got Instagram a few months ago," I admitted, feeling bewildered. This was the last thing I had expected to happen today: to rediscover a childhood friend in one of the drivers, let alone Charles Leclerc.

Breaking my reverie, Carlos approached us with a grin. "Charles, looks like you've met Val," he remarked, causing Charles to raise an eyebrow, catching on to the nickname already.

"Apparently, we know each other from before," I chimed in, as Carlos looked at us with confusion.

"Long story. In short: we were neighbors once, but she doesn't remember," Charles explained, leaving Carlos visibly surprised before smiling.

"Small world," Carlos remarked, to which I nodded in agreement.

"How're your mom and sister?" Charles inquired, and my mood suddenly darkened, but I quickly tried to regain composure.

"Mama... passed away three years ago," I replied, causing both Carlos and Charles to look solemn. Charles seemed to regret asking.

"Bubbles, I'm so sorry," he said, using the nickname that Mom had given me. It was what I was always called around the house.

Chloe and I adored the Powerpuff Girls, and Mom assigned us roles: I was Bubbles, Chloe was Buttercup, and my best friend, Sofia, was Blossom.

Every time someone called me that nickname, I'd hear it in Mom's voice after she passed away, which made Chloe and Sofia stop calling me by that name too.

And now, here was Charles Leclerc, using that nickname, bringing back a flood of memories.