A four-year-old boy was born with a rare genetic disorder that means he has no fear of strangers and will stop and speak to anyone he meets.
Alex Vasey lives with Williams syndrome, which makes him extra sociable and possibly one of the friendliest kids in Britain, and gives him a starburst pattern in his eyes.
But the health and developmental problems caused by the medical condition makes Alex, from Aberdeen, more vulnerable than most children
Lacking social awareness, he doesn't comprehend things such as "stranger danger" or understand when people are mean to him, and he "could easily be taken advantage of", his parents, Don and Bethan, told the Daily Record.
Don, 40, said: “Alex will speak to anyone. But he won’t comprehend things like ‘stranger danger’.
“Like other Williams children, he is generally so happy and loving and caring. He sees the good in everyone. He’s also very empathetic. If another kid starts crying, he wants to know that they’re OK.
“He’s very friendly and outgoing, and that’s the thing – he could easily be taken advantage of. He lacks social awareness.”
Williams syndrome is a rare congenital disorder that occurs randomly and affects about one in 18,000 people in the UK, according to the Williams Syndrome Foundation.
There is no cure and no way to prevent it.
Alex's verbal skills are better than most of his peers as a result, but it can mask the condition.
His dad said: “He picks up a lot of words from the environment he is in. He repeats them quite easily but doesn’t necessarily understand the concept of them.”
Alex appeared to be in perfect health for the first 10 months of his life.
His parents had never heard of Williams syndrome until he was diagnosed aged one.
They didn't know that the starburst pattern in his eyes was one of the most visible signs of the condition, in addition to specific facial characteristics.
Don said: “His eyes have a starburst pattern around his iris. Everyone kept saying, ‘He has beautiful eyes’ but that’s a feature of Williams syndrome.
“We never noticed it when he was first born.”
The condition was discovered after Alex, who has a sister Agatha, two, came down with a cold and his mum Bethan, 38, took him to see a GP.
The GP found that Alex had a heart murmur - an unexpected or unusual sound heard through a stethoscope.
Further tests found he had a major heart defect called supravalvular aortic stenosis, a narrowing of the main blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the rest of the body.
It is a common problem in people who have Williams syndrome, along with hypersensitive hearing and fears of loud noises.
Genetic tests confirmed Alex had the condition.
Don, the Scottish co-ordinator for the Williams Syndrome Foundation, said: “When they told us, it was life-changing and you think the world is coming to an end.
"What you imagined for your child is going to be suddenly changed.
"It’s a bit of grief for that, but you come to terms with it.”
He added: “To us, he’s just a normal wee man.
"We wouldn’t want to change him.
"He’s a funny, friendly, cheery little boy and he keeps us happy.”
In 2016, a YouTube video went viral showing an excited young boy, who has Williams syndrome, going on his first helicopter ride.
The vulnerability of people with the disorder was highlighted a year earlier when 32-year-old man, who has the mental age of a child, was forced to eat a maggot sandwich.
