Lily lives in a little house in a quiet town. She likes to play inside, she likes to play outside. But what Lily likes most of all, is to watch her pet goldfish, Spot.

Spot has a little spot on his eye, and a long, flowery tail. He loves to swim! He swims in his tank all day. Lily loves watching Spot. Even though he swims the same way every day, it’s never boring for Lily.

She would imagine herself swimming alongside Spot. They would play hide-and-seek in the plants together all morning, and stop for a snack in the afternoon. Then they would race to see who could reach the model castle first. Spot would win most the time, but sometimes he let Lily take the lead.

Lily took a pinch of flakes and dropped them in the tank. Spot happily swam up and gulped them down. “I wish we could play together for real, but I’m just happy to take care of you every day!”

As she stared into the glass, Lily thought she saw Spot smile.