Your friends volunteer Pearl

You feel weirdly defensive about the drink you mixed. "It can't be that bad," you argue.

Jane takes your side. "Yeah, Pearl. Sugar and water, what's there to mess up?"

A general murmur of agreement passes through your friends, so Sully passes the can to Pearl. "Bottoms up," he orders.

Begrudgingly, Pearl pops the can and takes a sip. A shudder runs through Pearl, and she halts and wrinkles her nose.

"Is it bad?" asks Yutong.

"No, it's..." Pearl licks her lips in thought, then takes another sip. And then another.

"Is it good?" you ask.

Pearl tilts the can back and drinks more deeply. "Tastes like bubblegum," she reports curtly, before drinking more and more. It's like she can't stop herself. Pearl chugs the whole can without stopping.

Something strange begins to happen as Pearl drinks, however. Before your eyes, she grows brighter. Her hair, always midnight black, shimmers brown. A trick of the light?

What's not a trick of the light is how Pearl's black hoodie turns gray, then white. Her charcoal cargo pants brighten accordingly - first to a reddish-gray, then to a muted pink. Even Pearl's sneakers fade from black with white laces, to white with pink laces.

You stare in shock as your dark, brooding friend is color filtered.

Pearl finishes the can with and lets out a satisfied gasp, followed by an inelegant belch. "Damn, this soda's like crack," she says, wiping her mouth.

Pearl's hair gleams like gold. She's blonde now. And her makeup - previously black lipstick and dark eyeshadow - is now solidly pink. No other part of her is changed. Only her color scheme.

"Pearl," you say, "you're pink!"

Everyone gives you a look.

"You just noticed?" asks Pearl, like you're stupid.

"You changed colors," you stammer, pointing to all of her.

Pearl looks blankly down at her white hoodie and pink cargos. "What part?"

"What do you mean, what part?" you blurt out. "All the parts!"

Yutong intervenes. "Chase, what exactly do you mean?"

You can only gesture more emphatically at Pearl. "Her clothes were black, and now they're all bright? And Pearl's hair! She's blonde!"

Pearl's face hardens. "Is this some kind of advanced blonde joke?"

"I don't think I've ever seen Pearl wear black," mutters Indy, to Sully. "Was there a phase I don't know about?"

Sully surreptitiously shakes his head.

"Pearl's always dyed her hair blonde," Yutong tells you, now growing concerned. "Are you feeling okay, Chase?"

Jane steps in and touches your shoulder. "You didn't eat one of those brownies they were passing around, did you?"

"I'm not high. Pearl changed colors when she drank that soda!"

Your friends exchange nervous glances. It's clear no one believes you. Pearl doesn't own a single pink item of clothing, and if she did, she wouldn't be caught dead wearing it. What's going on? You feel like you've wandered onto the set of the Twilight Zone.

The Juicer Max buzzes ominously behind you, and you turn, taking in the machine. Bimbo Juice. The drink you mixed. It couldn't have been the soda, could it? That's insane.

Sully lays a steady hand on your shoulder. "Why don't we sit down for a minute, buddy? It's been a pretty crazy party."

And yet, Pearl's color scheme warped the moment she drank the soda. You don't have to believe it - Pearl, now blonde, dressed in white and pink, stands right in front of you as evidence. What do you do?