I stepped inside, my hands still shaking.
Neil looked up from his book. “Hey… you’re back quickly. Everything okay?”
I opened my mouth, but for a moment no words came out. My heart was racing too fast, my thoughts crashing into each other.
“The boy next door,” I finally said, my voice barely above a whisper. “Neil… he looks exactly like Toby.”
Neil froze.
Not confusion. Not disbelief.
Fear.
I saw it instantly—and that’s when something inside me shifted.
“He has the same eyes,” I continued, stepping closer. “One blue, one brown. Neil… that doesn’t just happen. That’s our son.”
Neil stood up slowly, rubbing the back of his neck. “You’re upset. It’s been a long time, and—”
“Don’t,” I snapped. “Don’t you dare tell me I imagined it.”
Silence filled the room.
Then I said the words that changed everything:
“How old is he, Neil?”
Neil didn’t answer.
My stomach dropped.
“He said he’s nineteen,” I whispered. “Exactly how old Toby would be.”
Neil turned away from me, pacing once, twice. I could see him fighting something inside himself.
“Neil,” I said, my voice breaking, “tell me the truth.”
Another long silence.
Then he finally spoke.
“…Toby didn’t die.”
The world stopped.
I stared at him, waiting for him to say it was a joke, a mistake—anything to make it make sense.
But he didn’t.
“What did you just say?” I asked.
“He didn’t die,” Neil repeated, quieter this time.
My knees nearly gave out. I grabbed the back of a chair to steady myself.
For Complete Cooking STEPS Please Head On Over To Next Page Or Open button (>) and don’t forget to SHARE with your Facebook friends.
