The Girl Who Forgot to Look Up

Lily sat on the park bench, fingers tapping on her iPhone. She was playing a game about catching magical fish, but she didn't notice the real pond sparkling right in front of her.

A splash of water hit her sneakers.

Lily looked up. Standing in the pond was a girl about her age, with hair that flowed like liquid silver—except the tips were bright blue, as if they had been dipped in paint. The girl was made entirely of water, shimmering and translucent like a living glass of water.

"I'm Marina," the water girl said. "And you've been sitting here for an hour without once looking at my pond."

Lily's iPhone slipped from her hand and—Plop!—fell right into the water.

"No!" Lily cried.

Marina giggled and reached into the pond. When her hand came up, the iPhone was floating inside it, completely dry. "Your little glowing box," she said, tilting her head. "It makes you forget to see the magic all around you."

Marina's long blue-tipped hair swirled around her like underwater ribbons even though they were on land. "Want to see something cooler than your box?"

She touched Lily's hand, and suddenly they were underwater—but Lily could breathe. Fish swam around them in rainbows. Seaweed forests glowed with tiny lights. A turtle as big as a coffee table slowly paddled past, wearing what looked like a tiny crown.

"My pond is full of magic," Marina whispered, her hair floating beautifully in the current. "But you can only see it if you look up from your screen."

Lily watched a school of fish spell out her name in bubbles. She realized she had never seen anything so wonderful in any game.

"I'm sorry," Lily said. "I forgot how amazing the real world is."

Marina smiled and returned the iPhone. "Keep it. Just remember—magic is everywhere, but you have to look up to see it."

When Lily looked again, Marina was gone, and she was back on the bench. Her hair was damp, though there hadn't been rain. The iPhone showed her game still running, but Lily pressed the power button.

She stood up and watched the real pond sparkle in the sunlight, waiting for magic to find her again.